Good suggestions and there's room to fit them in or modify what's already there to accomidate them for the most part.
Some of what we normally think of as KungFu mystique is I'm also including in the WuXing stuff, especially the meditative stuff. Iron Will which is currently a choice of powers for Kung Fu masters allows you to go without food, absorb damage, and I think maybe heal faster, etc so it might be able to explain those abilities without having to add extra powrs for the the kungfu master. But perhaps the higher level masters could get the Suspended Animation power.
I'll look over Water's power choices. There may be one that could be replaced by a low level plasticity. I remember concidering something like it but discounting it for some reason, but the idea does make senes of the character concept. A super-powered level double jointedness. Yes, I might need to make that fit in there somehow.
I can add other martial supremacies for weapons to the kungfu side. And perhaps kinetic bolt could be included in there as a mental acomplishment.
The other 3 powers (or rather "power slots") that all WuXing masters have are Power Control (dampening/nullifying specific for one type of Chinese Element) and Linguistics.
Linguistics basically permits your "enlightened" state of being to overcome any problems from language barriers. It's sort of like a "gift of tonges". This will keep down the headache from traveling characters, etc.
Power Control (costs 2 slots) lets you nullify, weaken, or corruptpowers, influences, or energies that are based around one opposing Chinese Element regardless of its source (works on Wu Xing powers, Warlock powers, Sorcery, Elementals, some other nonhuman entities, and sometimes raw nature)
Wood overcomes Earth, Earth overcomes Water, Water overcomes Fire, Fire overcomes Metal, Metal overcomes Wood. So the type of element you can overcome depends on which Wu Xing school you mastered.
I am putting together ideas for a game that can be a one timer or has the possiblity to be played a few more times. Meaning, the characters that I'm making for it arn't disposable characters and they'll have some depth to them to improve Player attachment.
The characters will be kung fu masters who have also studied different specialized philosophies of "enlightenment". Their mastery of their philosophy has given them supernatural abilities commonly associated with mystics and enlightened masters of martial arts (the ultimate being immortality).
The game itself could be run using any number of game engines, including GURPS and d20, but I think Marvel will suit it best since it basically makes use of special abilities that the characters have.
The characters will be from from a setting like 17th or 18th century China but I'm thinking the game will set in modern times with current technology. I haven't decided if this time differential is just a perception (meaning that the cultures the characters come from were behind in technology, like in remote parts of asia) or if the characters have actually been studying for hundreds of years and are now re-entering the world to find that it has changed. There's no real need to tie this game to a specific time or place.
And just because the game will focus on kung fu masters as PCs, the game itself won't necessarily be heavy on combat. In fact, it might be quite combat-lite and instead focus more on the philosophies of (and powers gaind from) the different character's schools.
And as a disclaimer, I am not a scholar of Chinese philosophy, history, mythology, or martial arts. This game is not meant to reflect anything that is actual, historic, or literary. I haven't watched any of the old "classic" fung fu movies so I can't draw on them for inspiration but here are some movies that I have used to shape my thoughts on this.
Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon
Hero
Bulletproof Monk
Kung Fu Panda
Kill Bill vol. 2
The Matrix (sort of)
The Forbidden Kingdom
Interesting idea, but I'm not Marvel is your best engine for this. Yes, we know marvel intrinsically and can run/play marvel with very little effort. But Marvel is very combat-centric. Far more so than even D&D in any of it's incarnations, honestly. If you want a game that involves any real time with things outside of combat, Marvel is not your best choice. I point to it's decidedly weak skill system as my reasoning here for saying that.
Might this be a good way to explore GURPS Powers? I still like having skills and advantages / disadvantages. And martial arts-style games are easily built around things like the "taught by a master" advantage.
I'm not trying to knock your idea, honest. I'm just wondering if Marvel is the best engine for combat-lite gaming at our disposal.
Without a bit more info on what you DO want to focus on instead of combat, though, I'm not sure if my criticism holds weight.
This is my Signature. There are others like it, but this one is mine...
I concidered GURPS for this briefly and still might be convienced that it would work, but the game so far, is more about useing powers and special abilities than it is about skills. I was going for an easy-fast system that could encorperate this and GURPS is too much about numbers and point spending to make this fast.
Maybe I overstated the combat-lite-ness of the game. I didn't mean to emply that there wouldn't be combat, nor that badguys wouldn't try and fight you. I meant it more as a statement to head off misconceptions that because you're playing kung-fu masters, that every problem would be solved by a punch or a kick.
I have the GURPS Powers book but I'm affraid that achieving the character concepts I have with GURPS would require alot of those special modifiers that change how each individual "book listed" power works so that it can achieve the need of the character. That number juggling gets pretty cumbersome and I don't think the possible benifit warents the extra work it would require.But honestly, I'vealready put a bit of time into this figuring out how itcan work with Marvel and don't want to try and change it at this point.
Hmm... the last part of my previous post got deleted somehow.
I meant to conclude with a statement that said, "Once I lay it all out here on the forum, you guys can look it over and decide if Marvel was the right way to go, and if it's something that you'd like to give a try".
looking forward to reading more about this.
And yes, the modifiers seem to get REALLY ugly really fast in GURPS. The character generator program helps, to some extent, but it's still overly cumbersome to get going.
I just suggested it because your typical games are less melee and more thinking, and GURPS tends to support that better.
This is my Signature. There are others like it, but this one is mine...
The Marvel world I'm setting the game in is mostly a mundane world, from the character's point of view. Most people are ordinary humans. But there are some people who can achieve/produce super-human powers. These people are concidered "Altered Humans" for the purposes of Marvel mechanics. They started off as human, but through their mystical training, have achieved an altered state that gives them their powers and hightened abilities. There are 4 routes of such training that can produce superhumans. (The PCs will be low level Kung-Fu masters but high level Wu Xing Masters.)
Kung-Fu Master - by mastering a fighting style and its principles, some of the feats one can achieve with this training are super-human but not greatly superhuman. Examples include some extrasensory capibility, enhanced fighting abilties, and some minor phyical feats like the stereotypical hyperleaps, air walking, and levitation tricks that are abundant in kungfu movies like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.
Wu Xing Master (pronounced Woo Shing) - by mastering a metaphyscial philosophy (studying and balancing within oneself the concepts and principals of1 of the 5 universal elements), one attains true enlightenment which provides abilities and ensight which go way beyond what normal humans can do, including some form of immortality. These abilities are somewhat more supernatural in appearance than those of the Kung-Fu master but are often more subtile, internal, and personal than those of the Warlock (see below). The ultimate achievement of the Wu Xing Master is a form of immortality, but each tradition of Wu Xing seeks immortality through a different route. Some Masters are unharmable, some are reincarnators, some are rapid healers, etc. Each Wu Xingmaster's powers center on the philosophies of one of the universal elements: Wood (also called Tree or Life), Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water. But their powers deal with the more philosophical substances (and ideas) of these elements than the raw nature of the element itself.
Warlocks - are often failed Wu Xing students but can be people who sought this status outright. These altered humans come about when the forces of one of the Wu Xing elements is grossly outbalanced in one's body and soul. These people have missed the subtilty of balancing the forces of the Wu Xing and have instead, embraced an imbalance. Warlocks are known for their powerful displays and command of the phyical nature of the elements. These are the people who can throw fireballs, tunnel through the earth, freeze water, etc. The unbalance within themselves often corrupts the soul so Warlocks tend to eventually become blights on civilization, even though their initial intentions may be good. They often develop characteristics and persoal traits that lead to destruction, chaos, and evil (much the way turning to the Dark Side inStar Wars leads to these traits.)
Sorcerers - (from the point of view of the Wu Xing master) are those people who seek to pervert theWuXing elements by unnatruallyforcing and blending them together in a hope that the result is a spectacular feat.One reason Wu Xing masters try and keep their trainingtechniquessecret is to prevent the development of sorcery which canresult fromsuperficial understandingof their ways. Sorcerers are not evil nor are their accomplishments necessarily bad. Some good has come from Sorcery from the point of view of the public. An example includes the invention of gun powder, some types of medicines and elixers,and other forms of "technology".
The PCs will have all trained under the same Kung Fu master and after having achived the first level of mastery, will have been sent into the Forbidden Mountains in search for additional training in one of the Hidden Schools of the Wu Xing. Each PC will have found a different Wu Xing school and will therefore have a different set of powers. The game can easily handle up to 5 PCs. In fact it would be best if there were 5 PCs.
Sounds interesting. My concern is that an ongoing game with 5people (the same 5 people) may be tough with our group so you may wantto build in a reason that characters randomly appear and disappear ormake sure that all session end on time so we have a reason for someonenot being able to make the next session.As we discussed some of usdon't really have the time or desire to do planing betweengames so keep in mind we may forget what has happened with long periodsof time between games.
As for forgetting events, that's where campaign journals are a huge benefit. By posting the key events from the game here and fleshing out the details as needed, we can all keep tabs on what we've done and what we've learned.
This is my Signature. There are others like it, but this one is mine...
I am unsure yet whether this will turn into a campaign. It will more likely be a possible set of individual adventures with the same characters (if so desired by the group). The intro game that i have in mind can easily accomidate 5 PCs. After that, anyother games could be hit or miss as to participation. The way I see the group dynamic is this...associates who were at one time friends in their early days went out to study at separate schools of higher learning. In their time appart, they eachdeveloped a sense ofsuperiority with how they view the world comparied to other schools and there issomething of a rivalry between the schools (but not right-out antimosity). Sort of like competition in the way modern day colleges view other colleges with regard to academics and athletics. The PCs willfind themselves in a vastly different enviornment than they were brought up in, nameing the high techmodern day, and will initially have acommon goal. After the firstadventure, their common goal may be achieved, and any further adventuring they do may be because theyare somewhat alone in an unfamiliar world and have only each other as a link to the past times, even though there is something of a rivalry between them. PCs that are missing fromgame to gamecould easily be absent because they are tending to their own buisness at that time.
Kung Fu
Kung Fu Masters have at least 3 powers: one relating to their style of martial arts, another represents their level of mental achievement, and a third that demonstrates their physical achievement of overcoming the forces of gravity. Kung Fu fighters with fewer than three of these powers are not yet full masters. Your character will be a low level Kung Fu master so will have one power from each of these categories. Higher level kung fu masters have more than one from each. Even though your character technically learned his/her kung fu before studying Wu Xing, you may want to choose kung fu powers that work well with your Wu Xing teachings. This can be viewed as your selection and entry into that particular Wu Xing school was in part due to your understanding of a select skill set from your kung fu training. If you dont want to customize your character, then Ill simply put together the power set that makes the most sense for the Wu Xing master in question. From which, you can customize as much or as little as you want.
Martial Arts Supremacy (choice of one at Remarkable level). This power rank can be used for all rolls involving this style martial arts in place of the normal attribute called for. A talent in this fighting style is not needed.
Eagle Claw Style (form A) uses a variety of grips, joint locks, pressure point strikes, and take downs to use the attackers strength against him.
Tiger Claw Style (form B) uses primarily arms and legs to strike hard and fast.
Praying Mantis Style (form D) waits and observes opponents before making a fast, devastating attack at opponents weak points.
Monkey Style (form E) uses a variety of feints and unpredictable motions to deceive opponents before landing sneak attacks.
Python Style (form C) heavy on grapples and escapes. Uses immobilizing techniques to render opponents helpless.
Mental Achievement Power (choice of one at Excellent level)
Spatial Awareness (a combination of Circular Vision and Dark Sense) you have a spatial awareness of things around you as if you could see in all directions regardless of the light intensity or your eyes being open. This is not truly visual in nature, but includes an incorporation of all your senses to form a high fidelity mental image of your surroundings. You cannot be flanked or surprised. And have a visual-like awareness of your surroundings even when you sleep.
Communicate with Animals Much of Kung Fu comes from studying animals and mimicking their techniques for facing challenges. Because you have excelled at observing and studying animals, you have achieved an ability to communicate with them.
Mind Blast You can use your physical attacks or touch to strike nerve centers and chakra points in your opponents to produce other effects in your target than a mere strike would normally allow. Examples for a Green success include pain, numbness, and involuntary bodily functions. Examples with a Yellow success include blindness, deafness, and paralysis. A Red success can achieve unconsciousness. All affects are temporary and heal at normal rates as if damage were done at Power rank level. Psyche or Iron Will resists this Power and Mental Invisibility renders it useless.
Iron Will As described in Ultimate Powers Book. Can be used to resist the affects of damage and resist other mental and physical assaults.
Mental Invisibility - hides ones inner self from all forms of detection or mental affect. Your physical self can still be detected, but your emotional state, chakra points, chi, life-force, etc cannot be seen or affected by Powers of Excellent level or lower. Appropriate powers that are stronger than Excellent must make a check to detect or affect you.
Physical Achievement Power (choice of one at Ty level)
Hyper-Leaping As described in Ultimate Powers Book. Used to achieve the stereotypical kung-fu leaps.
Levitation You can resist the pull of gravity and never suffer damage from falling. You can levitate up to 6 feet off of a horizontal surface that is capable of supporting your weight. You can descend from any height due to gravity at any speed you wish (up to terminal velocity).
Skywalking - You can walk, run, or leap through the air like it was solid ground but you require a fixed destination before beginning and require constant, straight-line motion to that point. You cant walk around willy nilly through the air, nor can you remain still in the air for more than 1 turn. If your way becomes blocked, you must overcome it or fall.
Waterwalking You can walk, run, or stand on water and other liquid surfaces as if it were solid ground.
Your groupings would work.
I guess my only real concern w/ the whole idea of marvel over gurps is that the last time you ran a rigidly defined Marvel game with less than superman strength pc's, it left Shiva and I feeling a bit underwhelmed when it came to our PCs. (I refer to the Incredibles game.)
Again, not saying this would be an unplesant game. Just that we tend to suffer from feelings of inadequacy in marvel when we're not super supers.
I think the same above concepts could be done via GURPS using some custom templates of powers. Not saying we should, just that it could be done.
If you think this game wouldn't leave us unhappy with the PCs, then ignore my concerns and press forward!
(Besides, making Marvel PCs is still the easiest, most fun character gen I've experienced)
This is my Signature. There are others like it, but this one is mine...
I'm using Marvel as an engine because I think it does what I need it to do in the most painless way possible. The Incredibles game was about playing characters with 1 or 2 powers. This Kung Fu game (even though not concidered a "super heroes" game) will have all player characters with 13 power slots (though some will have fewer powers because of having powers that use 2 slots). And the ability scores fall on the altered human scale. I think everyone will concider these PCs as superhuman. As much as marvel's mutants are superhuman.
The Kung Fu enty above gives a sample of how i'm setting this up. I'll continue posting info on Wu Xing
Sounds good. You have a copy of the Ultimate powers, with errata, right?
This is my Signature. There are others like it, but this one is mine...
Yep. I've poured over the Ultimate Powers book for ideas on designing these 5 characters. What I've put together are basically pregen characters with some flexibility for tweeking. The characters will have 3 powers from their Kung Fu training (as mentioned in a previous post in this forum),10 powers from their Wu Xing training (of which 7 will be unique to their school and 3 will be similar among all 5 characters). But I may allow players to trade Wu Xing powers for additional Kung Fu powers if they want. It probably depends on the powers. I haven't decided.
Wu Xing Masters
Wood
The principals of Wood are patience, care, and observation. Though mastery of this discipline one becomes aware of the intricacies and interrelationships of life force, growth, weakness, and death. This understanding shows the master how these forces can be manipulated. Wood is very observant and life-conveying. It can be flexible (like Fire and Water, yet not to their degree) yet it can also be strong (like Earth and Metal, but again not to their degree). Through slow, careful planning, Wood can circumvent (grow around) obstacles in its path. The mastery of the principals of Wood convey immortality by allowing the master to continually heal and renew his life force by gradually absorbing life force from the environment, even if his body sustains a death dealing injury.
Wood-type people are steadfast, organized, logical, practical, innovative, unique, assertive, fortitudinous, independent, challenging and direct. They like to plan things, take action, and go on adventures and challenges. They are perfectionists who tend to push themselves to the limit and seek out the best, and take first place in competition.
Forces that can overcome the principals of Wood are primarily those of Metal which is fast, direct, and strong like an axe chopping a tree; but also to a lesser extent Fire which is life-force consuming like a fire burning brush.
On the other hand the careful and slowly directed force of Wood can overcome the seemingly impregnable defenses of Earth as roots penetrate the ground. And the forces of Wood can lend strength to and nurture the forces of Fire.
The Wu Xing master of Wood has these powers which work as described here.
Self-Revival (10 Good) If killed, your dead body heals itself 10 times faster than your natural rate of healing until you are revived from death. Once revived, healing continues at its natural rate, or Biophysical Control can be used to heal yourself (see below).
Life Detection (20 Excellent) You can detect the presence of life up to half a mile away and identify specifics about that life, however in a populated area (like a city) where life of a similar nature is abundant, identifying specific individuals from the crowd requires a roll. Within a line of sight, you can sometimes determine specifics about an observed life form such as its health/condition (green roll), physical stats (yellow roll), or physical and life-force-based powers (red roll).
Weakness Detection (20 Excellent) You can detect flaws and stress points in a target. This doesn't guarantee you can exploit this knowledge, though. The success determines the types of weaknesses you can detect: Green=physical weakness only. Yellow=mental and physical weaknesses. Red=mental, physical, and Power-based weaknesses.
Environmental Awareness (20 Excellent) You have increased sensitivity to conditions in, disturbances in, and influences on the environment for a range of about half of a mile. You automatically maintain full knowledge of current conditions in your surroundings. This awareness extends to such factors as weather, chemicals, movement, and life.
Biophysical Control (40 Incredible) You can transfer life force between or among targets including yourself. This requires touch but can be part of an attack. You can transfer up to 40 points of health or 10 points of physical stat scores per individual per day. If the target is unwilling but not helpless, then this transfer must be part of an attack and the amount of life force transferred is equal to the damage done by the attack. This transfer is permanent but damage sustained from the use of this power heals at the normal rate. Damage done by the use of this power must have a destination but the destination can be the environment. Maximum health or stat scores can only be exceeded by 10% with a red feat and are lost at a rate of 1 point per hour.
Wu Xing Principals
Fire
The philosophy of Fire is that mater is temporary, transient, and fleeting. Nothing solid is ever permanent. Ones soul, essence, or Fire is the enduring, true quality of a thing. Fire uses and consumes mater to continue existing but is not defined or contained by the mater. Fire is elusive and somewhat unpredictable. Fire can be felt and affects things at a distance. Masters of Fire achieve immortality through reincarnation; by preserving that which matters most, ones soul/spirit, even after the body that contained it is destroyed.
Personality traits that are associated with Fire include being energetic, artistic, passionate, easily excitable, and have a tendency to rapidly change emotional states as well as become aggressive. These people love sensation, drama and sentiment. They seek joy, gratification and the attention of others. They like to be invited to a party and dislike being alone.
Forces that can overcome the principals of Fire are primarily those of Water, which is cold but equally agile and elusive; but to a lesser extent Earth which is smothering.
On the other hand the non-physical nature of Fire can overcome the seemingly uncontested strength Metal has over matter as fire melts metal. And the forces of Fire can lend strength to and nurture the forces of Earth as fire generates ash.
The Wu Xing master of Fire has these powers which work as described here.
Free Spirit (20 Excellent) You can disentangle your soul from your body so that it can float free. When your soul is away from your body, your body is unconscious (comatose). The effort costs at least 5 point of health, but you can spend more if you want and you can use any damage that your body sustains from an attack, etc toward this investment. You take your senses with you in your spirit form, but with a yellow or red success, your body also retains its senses if you want (but you dont have control over your body while away). With a red success, your soul also can manifest your other non-physical powers. The health points spent add to your Free Spirit rolls that you make while in the spirit form. Each point of heath spent provides 5 minutes that your soul can be away from your body. After this time, any senses your body still retains are lost until your soul returns. Also, your claim on that body is lost so it becomes an empty vessel which requires a Serial Immortality roll to re-enter. As a free spirit, your soul has an attraction toward vessels that can hold it (see serial immortality). As long as you retain your claim to your body, this lure is easy to resist but once you lose your claim on your body, passing by a vessel requires a psyche check or youll find yourself being drawn to it.
Serial Immortality (40 Incredible) Your earthbound soul is more or less immortal but to have a body requires that your soul possess a body which can receive it. For the purposes of this power this can be an unborn child, a brain dead body, a soulless body, or a recently deceased person (less than 3 days). You cant displace anothers soul. And any body you take possession of has the qualities of the body you possess including its age and any damage it has sustained. When in your free spirit form, you can choose to possess a candidate vessel on a temporary basis as long as you still have a connection with your current body.
Incarnation Awareness (20 Excellent) You can access the memories (green success), personality traits (yellow success), and powers (red success) of your souls vessel. If you possessed the body of a recently dead banker, you could access the combination to the safe where he worked. With a yellow success, you could act like him.
Emotion Control (20 Excellent) You can alter a target's emotional state and resulting activity by forcing him to feel a particular emotion. You can only instill one emotion at a time. However, you can select any emotion you desire. You can affect multiple targets but all targets must be able to see and hear you. This power works through chi but ones body language is its medium. For example, to make people afraid, you must make an attempt to appear fearsome. To make people laugh, you have to attempt to appear funny, silly, etc. This power can be used in spirit form if a red success was achieved when attaining your Free Spirit. If so, it only affects one person at a time but doesnt require body language. It does require your spirit form to contact your targets body though.
Telekinesis (10 Good) You have close range (w/in 50 ft) telekinesis for moving or manipulating physical objects with the power of your chi. You have an effective strength of Good for this purpose. Shaping your chi to interact with the physical world through this power requires hand gestures and arm motions, unless you are in your spirit form. This power works in spirit form if you achieved a red success in attaining your Free Spirit.
Wu Xing Principals
Earth
Earth is unchanging and permanent, yet a solid, nutritive medium for that which changes ones life and mind. Earths philosophy focuses on stabilizing ones physical self so it can provide a stable vehicle for growth and learning. Earth is strong and can endure most anything. Earth is a receptacle for holding both the spiritual and the physical. It is where we put the dead so their souls can rest and it is where we bury our most treasured possessions for safe keeping. Achieving an impenetrable defense is Earths goal. Masters of Earth gain immortality by achieving an indestructible body that can withstand practically any physical insult.
Most Earth-type people are trustful, steady, loyal and responsible. They are honest, religious, reliable, and keep their promises. Earth people don't like to move their body and change their mind too often. They are honest, trustworthy, and responsible. They also have good faith. They can sit in one position for a long time. They are slow to react. They like to collect things, and enjoy their collectables at home, but not outdoors.
Forces that can overcome the principals of Earth are primarily those of Wood which can carefully seek out and exploit the most superficial of weaknesses like a root growing through the soil; but also to a lesser extent Metal which is hard and direct like a plow or shovel turning up the soil.
On the other hand the porous nature of Earth can slow the speed and agility of Water and corrupt its nature as earth muddies water. And the forces of Earth can lend strength to and nurture the forces of Metal as earth produces ores.
The Wu Xing master of Earth has these powers which work as described here.
True Invulnerability (40 Incredible) Nothing physical can hurt your body. Well, nothing physical with intensity less than Incredible can hurt your body. You are virtually immune to all mortal weapons, fire, lightning, cold, etc. However you do still need to breath, eat, drink, etc.
Spirit Storage (20 Excellent) The Earth is a receptacle for souls. You have the ability to hold in yourself, multiple disembodied spirits. You can communicate with these spirits and seek their advice when needed. This is one way Masters of Earth keep their minds fresh over the years. They train a new master and gestalt (fuse) with him. As a result, the Earth Master is many people, comprised of generations of masters all in one body. But the more recent the spirit, the stronger it is in the amalgam personality. This power also allows you to hold other disembodied spirits that are not part of the legacy.
Mass Increase (20 Excellent) You can increase your mass by 20 times your normal weight. Your strength increases proportionally for the purposes of carrying your increased mass but doesnt affect your ability to lift other things. But you can increase the damage you do from hitting, bashing, and charging by 20 points when you are at maximum density. Attaining this mass is not instantaneous. It requires concentration. A mass equal to your normal mass can be added to your total each turn. Performing other actions or being distracted while concentrating on becoming heavier requires a green psyche check, but no check is needed to maintain that weight. Your size does not grow with this power.
Internal Limbo (20 Excellent) The folds and pockets of your clothing provide access to an extra-dimensional pocket that can hold a virtually unlimited amount of things. This power is not tied to a specific set of clothes, but it does require you to have clothes in order to access the pocket-dimension. The maximum size of an object that you can put in your internal limbo is limited to the size of an object you can conceal in your clothes. So for instance, youd have trouble getting a shield to fit into your hat, but you could put a shield in the pocket dimension if you wore a loose fitting robe, cloak, or cape. Anything you put into your Internal Limbo, you can pull out. But living things cant go there. You cant force people into the pocket dimension. And forcing living animals in to the dimension requires a power check (which kills the animal and does an amount of damage to you equal to the amount of health of the animal). However, dead plant or animal material that is put there remains perfectly preserved. The temperature of the Internal Limbo is the temperature of a cave. Fires can continue to burn in the Limbo (such as a torch) but only last as long as the fuel lasts and requires a yellow result to successfully store the object with flame intact.
Artifact Creation (10 Good) Because your body is centuries old and because other masters have contributed to its state, your Internal Limbo is filled with all kinds of things that you might not know about or remember. You can try to pull out any sort of object that would fit into your internal limbo even if you did not put it in there. The more common the object is (or was), the easier it is to draw it forth. For instance, chopsticks can be summoned from the pockets of your clothes with no check required, but producing a lantern would require a green success. Producing a set of lock picks would require a yellow success. And happening to find a key that fits this old lock to the cell you are in would require a red success. Air, food, and water can be produced with this power too. Like Internal Limbo, this power requires that you have clothing but is tied to your person rather than the clothes. You couldnt give your hat to someone and have them pull a dead rabbit out of it. But if they gave you their hat, you could pull a dead rabbit out of their hat.
Wu Xing Principals
Metal
Two key features of Metal are its unequaled strength and its reflective nature. These features form the heart of the philosophy of Metal. Anything can be overcome through strength. If not strength outright, then the strength to change or reflect the obstacle into a more manageable solution. Offence, pure and simple, is how Metal approaches problems. Metals idea of defense is to attack the opponents strike. Metal tarnishes and corrodes, but it can also be polished and sharpened. Metal can be beautiful and showy at times or it can be harsh, cold, and ugly. Masters of Metal achieve immortality by the combination of two strategies, 1) by achieving a strength that lets no harmful attack reach their person, and 2) by mastering the flow of time regarding their age.
Metal people are brave, disciplined, trained, organized, authoritative, determinative, routine, firm, resolute and have an urge to win. They have a large sense of honor. They like to spread their fame. They are sensitive in grief and sadness.
Forces that can overcome the principals of Metal are primarily those of Fire which affects matter through unseen forces that are hard to overcome with strength fire melts metal; but also to a lesser extent Water which can corrode metal and can easily dodge Metals strength water rusts metal.
On the other hand the strong and direct force of Metal can overcome Wood as an axe chops a tree. And the forces of Metal can lend strength to and nurture the forces of Water as water condenses on metal.
The Wu Xing master of Metal has these powers which work as described here.
Age Shift (10 Good) You can control the physiological age of your body (but your mind is unaffected). You can alter your physically apparent age by 10 years per attempt. There is no technical limit to an age which you can achieve, but the further you attempt to shift in one day the higher the success needed. The shifted age is permanent until shifted again or until time ages you normally. Also, there are health implications from attaining ages at either extreme.
Digestive Adaptability (20 Excellent) You can chew up materials of Excellent strength or lower, and digest them for nutrition regardless of their natural nutritive value.
Lung Adaptability (6 Typical) You can breathe any gaseous substance as if it were air and not suffer harm from it. You can also inhale and/or exhale at supernatural strengths. Your exhale can achieve 90 mph wind (Ty intensity) for a very short duration, distance, and area of effect. A target within 10 ft must make a Ty Endurance check to remain standing. Intensity drops 1 CS for every 10 ft.
Penetrating Vision (2 Feeble) You can see through up to 2 ft of solid material if you concentrate on it briefly (1 turn). If your target is immobile (with respect to yourself) and you continue to focus your stare for 1 min on the target, you can use Disruption (see below) on the target up to 30 feet away. You, in effect, stare a hole through it.
Danger Sense (20 Excellent) Your strength over the flows of time allows part of your subconscious to reside in the near future and it gives you a warning when danger is about to befall you. This power operates on two levels. On the unconscious level, i.e. when youre not focusing on using this power, Danger Sense only affects reflex-like control over your Disruption power and Reflection power (see below) and can only sense the impending harm that these powers can avert. On the conscious level however, meaning when you declare that your are trying to sense danger, you can sense impending harm to yourself of any nature up to 20 sec in the future and the degree of success tells you about the nature of the impending harm.
Disruption (30 Remarkable) (includes a +1 CS from being by touch only) You can pulverize solid matter of up to Remarkable strength into dust by the force of your punch, kick, or on objects high velocity impact with your body. This power can be used to cleanly chop down trees with a strike of your hand; poke holes in concrete with your fingers, shatter bullets, knives, and other weapons when they strike your body, etc. This power is by touch only and generally requires some form of transfer of kinetic energy. For instance, you couldnt gently caress a bowling ball and expect it to fall into powder, but you could squeeze it with your hands or allow it to strike your head if thrown. Objects that are intended to harm you which you disrupt cause no harm to you. This ability can be used at a short (30 ft) distance as described by Penetrating Vision (above).
Reflection (40 Incredible) - You can turn any attack of Incredible intensity back onto the attacker. The attack may be of any nature: brute force, energy, Power, or magic. The Power absorbs the energy of the attack up to and Incredible rank and redirects it. A White Result reduces the intensity of the attack by 1 SC, but otherwise is not redirected. A Green Success sends the attack off in a random direction. A Yellow Success reflects some of the attack back onto the attacker (-3CS in Intensity) or its entirety toward a directed target that is in generally the same direction and range that the attack was moving before being reflected. A Red Success sends the entire attack back onto the attacker or a target within range that you select. If the attack's Intensity is higher that Incredible, some of the damage passes through and affects you. The Power rank is subtracted from the attack's Intensity. While most of the attack is reflected, the remainder gets through to you. If this power is activated by reflex (see Danger Sense), then a target cannot be chosen. The energy from the attack is either diverted in a random direction (Green) or back at the attacker (Yellow or Red).
Wu Xing Masters
Water
Water is fluid and giving. Its strength comes from its ability to yield to any force while maintaining its nature. Water can be still like in a pond or it can be mobile and fluid like in a brook or river. Water finds its way through any solid obstacle by being dynamic and agile. The principals of Water view the body as a fluid container for ones life force, not to be used and discarded like Fire teaches, but to be shaped and formed as needed. Water is empowered by turbulence and is strengthened by forces it absorbs. These philosophies form the route by which Water masters achieve immortality, by absorbing physical assault and changing their forms to appear young.
Water-type people are smart, wise, frank, and resourceful. They have good memories and think before they leap.
Forces that can overcome the principals of Water are primarily those of Earth which can soak up and change its nature as earth muddies water; but also to a lesser extent Wood which can consume water like a crop that drinks the rain.
On the other hand the nimble and cold nature of Water can counter the effects of Fire as water quenches fire. And the forces of Water can lend strength to and nurture the forces of Wood as all life must drink.
The Wu Xing master of Water has these powers which work as described here.
Absorption, Kinetic (20 Excellent) You can absorb up to 20 points of kinetic force at one time and convert that energy into self-healing. So punches, falls, etc heal you. If you are already healthy, you can choose to take damage from part of the force and use other parts to heal it with a Green success. So if successful basically, it doesnt hurt you. You can use kinetic energy to provide nourishment too. An attack that exceeds 20 points of kinetic energy can hurt you. You possibly take the difference, but even that can be sometimes avoided by using Anatomical Separation (see below).
Anatomical Separation / Anatomical Control (20 Excellent) Your bodys physiology is very fluid. You can shift the position of your internal organs, bones, muscles, etc. at will. If prepared (meaning you activate this power), your body can be punctured by blades, bullets, etc without causing you harm. You have complete control over blood loss. Just like water that is parted can come back together, physical damage to your body from weapons, etc can be mitigated by shifting your vital organs and tissues around and preventing wounds from bleeding. Limbs or digits that are severed from your body can continue living for a time without being attached to your body and you retain control over them (e.g. your severed hand can continue to crawl around, grab, etc. Parts of your body that get cut off can be reattached by with this power without the need for surgery.
Imitation, Face Changer (20 Excellent) The expert control you have over your musculature, hair growth, and flesh tone allow you to convert your facial features to mimic any human face. You cant change your bodys physical size, but you can effectively imitate anyones physical appearance that is close to your size, even opposite gender. You can also assume a face that bears no resemblance to anyone youve seen. Basically, you can make your face look like what you want it to, as long as it remains roughly human looking.
Hyper Speed (6 Typical) Through concentration and meditation, you can prepare your mind and body in such a way that after the completion of your meditation you can perform tasks and actions up to 6 times faster than at normal speed. This doesnt actually allow you to perform a task in less time than normal people, it simply allows you to spend most of the time it takes to perform an action in meditation and thought (conditioning your muscles and planning the procedure in your mind) so that you can perform the action in a burst of blinding speed at the completion of the meditation. So this power is not very useful for spur of the moment decisions, but it can be useful. If something occurs during hyper speed that was not accounted for during the meditation, an Intuition check must be made to continue with the hyper action. The amount of meditation required is dependent on how long it normally takes to perform the desired action. The meditation plus the action still take the same amount of time the action normally takes. If it normally takes 6 min to perform an action (e.g. search a room for clues) you could perform the action in 1 min if you spent 5 min in mediation first.
Stealth (40 Incredible) You can move in ways that cannot be detected, whether while moving or if subjected to later tracking. When you use Stealth, you rank is subtracted from the efforts of those detecting you. So you can basically move silently and hide really well. You are not invisible.
Clairaudience (10 Good) 2500 mile range. You can "hear" distant sounds and voices despite any intervening distance or barriers. The Power is not hindered by factors that affect normal sound transmission, such as distance, time lag, muffling, distortion, or the absence of a transmitting medium. Your Clairaudience works in the following ways. 1) you can try and listen in a stated direction and distance (but you can move this "listening post" around). A Reason check is used for targeting if it is out of the line of sight. 2) you can attempt to locate familiar sounds within range (e.g. the sound of a familiar voice) with an Intuition check. 3) If listening, you can hone in on anyone who says your name, even if you are not familiar with their voice, with an Intuition check. And finally, you can listen around parts of your body that have been separated from the rest of yourself (see anatomical separation above).
Speech-Throwing (2 Feeble) 2 mile range. You can make your voice audible in a distant location, without the vocal sound waves actually traveling the intervening distance. Targeting follows the 4 methods outlined in Clairaudience, above. Meaning, as long as it is in range of this power, if you can listen at a particular location, you can also cast your voice there too.
"Everybody was Kung Fu Fighting!"
Sorry. Every time I see this topic in the Latest Posts block, I feel that song running through my head. It's a curse!
Your templates for the characters seems fairly well designed. I think there are a few areas I'd do differently, but not enough so that it's worth arguing over.
I guess the next question is, what're your ideas for plot(s)?
This is my Signature. There are others like it, but this one is mine...
You mean I have to have a plot? Crap, I was hoping I could just make 5 characters and you all could do stuff, and all. YOu know, hang out and do Kung Fu stuff. Talk about the old days and how everyting used to be better. Make fun of your old master. That kind of thing.
Honestly, I have some ideas but they are only ideas at this point and the plot could go several different ways. There are a few things that I want as major plot elements, though. I'd like for the game to be somewhat modern anything from 1950's to now. I'd like for the PCs to not be familiar with modern ways or technology (at least initially). The "bad guy(s)" will likely be Warlock or Sorcerer in nature.
Right now the strongest plot idea that I have is that something devistating (undecided exactly what) happens to your schools which you survive but your students don't. If you have elder masters in your school, some of them may have survived too. You go in search for answers to why and how your school was destroyed and find out that other schools of Wu Xing were destroyed too, which also have survivors (the other PCs).
Other variations of the above framework could be
1) that something gets stolen from each of your schools and that you must get it back (instead ofthe school getting destroyed)
2) you have become aware that your school has been infiltrated by an outside influence that you must identify
3)
Not that I'm looking for an argument, but I am at least interested in hearing your opinion on what you'd do differently. I don't want to run a game that no body is going to like. But I have also put a bit of time into thinking out the powers that each WuXing master would have. Some I was dithering on but eventually sorted it out. I rolled one set of scores for the powers and made them the same for all characters. I
I think you've missed a few of the "kung fu" tk stunts that are fairly common. Hence, I'd place it in the Kung Fu area.
I also think the "meditation" aspect of kung fu needs a place. Kung Fu Theater sometimes used meditation as a sort of Suspended Animation or Self-Sustenance when food or water was scarce. It might also be a way to increase heailng?
As much physical abuse as most martial artists take, Resistance to Physical Attack (+1CS: restricted to blunt force trauma (ie fists, feet, sticks.....) would also make sense.
Water might benefit from a low-level Plasticity to simulate being something beyond double-jointed when it comes to escaping or fiting in tight spaces.
Oh, and you said there would be 3 "general" wu xing powers for all pcs. What were those?
This is my Signature. There are others like it, but this one is mine...
Oh, and I'd probably add in Martial Supremacy(ies) for the various "standard" melee martial arts weapons. Staves and swords at least. Possibly some pole-arms and others as well?
Hm, instead of TK as a Kung Fu power, Kinetic Bolt makes more sense. And perhaps requires both hands to perform, as it's more about pushing things mentally than about moving things around with finesse.
Sonic Generation and/or Vibration fits in with ki / chi powers, but maybe not too well?
This is my Signature. There are others like it, but this one is mine...