[1][2] The player characters are "Sovereign Powers" called the Nobilis; each Noble is the personification of an abstract concept or class of things such as Time, Death, cars, or communication.

Unlike most role-playing games, Nobilis does not use dice or other random elements to determine the outcome of characters' actions, but instead uses a point-based system for task resolution.

[3] Nobilis draws on many sources, including Christian and Norse mythologies, but adds numerous unique details to its setting.

Countless worlds dot the branches of this world-tree, but at the top is Heaven, which is inaccessible to all but the angels (only one human soul in a billion is not turned away) and is the source of all beauty.

The Imperator Lord Entropy oversees the actions of the Nobilis and enforces the Code Fidelitatis, the five laws he has established for them, in his Locust Court.

Instead, Nobilis uses a resource management system; players may spend Miracle Points to succeed at certain actions, but otherwise they rarely fail at what they set out to do.

The character creation system also makes Nobilis notable by giving players an unusual amount of control over the setting.

Each Nobilis also has an Affiliation, which is a moral code they follow in order to regain Miracle Points, as well as character flaws called Limits and Restrictions.

When a Noble confronts and overcomes significant obstacles and antagonists, or honors the properties of their estate, they also regain Miracle Points.

The first edition was an indie role-playing game printed on demand by Pharos Press in 1999[4] with cover art by Alphonse Mucha.

Full-page black and white art was commissioned for this book, in particular from Charles Vess and Michael William Kaluta; Borgstrom's flash fiction, set in the game world, fills its large margins.

A gamemaster's screen, titled Perfidie, was released in late 2002, with a small booklet including errata and the scenario from the English language book.

The third edition rulebook, titled Field Guide to the Powers, was published by Eos Press in 2011, as the first volume in the Nobilis: the Essentials range.

[12] In his 2023 book Monsters, Aliens, and Holes in the Ground, RPG historian Stu Horvath noted, "Presented with formality and a certain poetic flare [sic], it's a type of game that was strange by the standards of the day; and for its trouble, it has gained a reputation of impenetrability.

This characterization is unfair, and the long line of approachability-minded storygames that have followed in the wake of Nobilis demonstrate that a reappraisal is warranted.