Wu-Keng

The Hounded

The Wu Keng are one of the two principal Oriental Crafts. Their age-old opponents, the Dragon Wizards of the Wu Lung, are the mandarin magicians, the court sorcerers to the great emperors of China. The Wu-Keng are their opposites, the peasant wizards. Village wizards, undertakers and monks, holy men and healers all find as much a home among the Wu Keng as they do among the Akashic Brotherhood, although the Craft has its share of bad apples - necromancers and demonologists.

There is more to being a Wu Keng than class and vocation however. They are clearly distinguished from other Mages by the nature of their Avatars. For, while most Avatars promote the growth of the Mage, guiding them along the path to Enlighten-ment as and when they are ready, the Avatars of the Wu Keng actively oppose the progress of their Mage, and indeed seek to see them dead.

A Wu Keng's Avatar always takes the form of a terrible, demonic opponent. A faceless warrior or a scholar shrouded in shadow, the Avatar is a shadowy reflection of all that the Mage hates and fears within himself. Progression along the path to Enlightenment requires that the peasant wizard confront his Avatar and survive. Most never even attempt a Seeking; when the time is right, their Avatar will come for them. The Seeking is invariably brutal, painful and at times humiliating; the Wu Keng are forged in a harsh fire.

A Wu Keng Awakens in the moment that he first perceives his Avatar. It may come in a dream, or in a waking nightmare, but it will come, usually a year or two before the young Mage reaches puberty. If he survives - and not all do by a long margin - he is Wu Keng.

If he is lucky, another Wu Keng will find him and teach him, otherwise he will be on his own, forced to fight future battles against the Demon which hounds him with the handicap of ignorance tied like a shackle about his legs. If he is especially unlucky, a Mage of another tradition (or Tradition) may find him. If this Mage does not understand the Wu Keng - and almost none do - then the young Wu Keng is doomed, for he will be trained to accept, not fight, his Avatar. From this perspective, it is better for the Mage to be found by the Technocracy, who train recruits to reject their Avatar as a superstitious throwback, but even this is far from the best preparation.

Throughout his life, in times of crisis and revelation the Mage is visited by the Demon. If he defeats it, then he grows, becomes stronger, and most importantly, he lives. If he fails, he dies, usually of massive heart failure, embolism or stroke. Only the most dedicated of Wu Keng ever seek out these confrontations, but those who do believe that they gain an advantage by embracing their birthright, and thereby choosing the ground of their confrontation to some extent.

I recommend this site for fuller explanations of these and other terms, and also for a Mandarin Chinese pronunciation guide.

Lexicon

Ba Gùa Zhâng: The martial art "eight trigram palm", said to have been created by a Daoist hermit during the Qing dynasty (AD1644-1912). All movements in Eight Trigram Palm are based upon the eight trigrams of Chinese astrology. During the Qing dynasty the imperial bodyguards were required to master this martial art.

Dà Fà Shi: A kind of Daoist priest, who specialises in exorcising ghosts and demons, noted for their ruthless efficiency. Among their number are a few Wu Keng, often those who have been forced to fight the most terrible battle with their own Demon.

Dâ Shôu: Hired thug; hatchet man. A common nickname for HIT Marks.

Dào Shi: A Daoist priest. Like their spiritual cousins, the Dà Fà Shi, the Dào Shi are very adept at controlling, manipulating, and in some cases, destroying, supernaturals on this side of the barrier between worlds. Some Wu Keng are priests of this type.

Demon: The Wu Keng name for their hostile Avatars.

Family: In specific context, a Wu Keng's sifu, fellow students and pupils, as well as their sifu's fellows, and the pupils of their students and pupils, and so on.

Fêi Cùi: Ancient jade. The most expensive (and purest) jade one can find. The Dà Fà Shi actively seek out this kind of jade to use against wraiths

Guan: Hypostasis, or manifestation, of the One (Dào). A mage's (not Wu Keng's) Avatar. (Note: This word is slightly questionable, as it is a very specialised term used amongst Daoist priests and acolytes.)

Guan Xì: "Relationship." Face. The single most important element in Chinese culture. Almost all social interaction outside of immediate family circles centres on giving and receiving face. Guan Xì in China is a subtle art, and those that go about it clumsily are an embarrassment to all involved.

Hé Shàng: A Buddhist monk.

Hòu Zùo Lì: Backlash; the term Chinese mages use to refer to what Western mages call 'paradox'. In the East, this is a natural reaction that occurs when a mage pushes too hard against the Dao.

Kung Fu: a form of martial art, often with a highly mystical approach, but also any specialised skill. Sometimes used in English speech to denote fighting spirit as well as prowess.

Ní Gu: A Buddhist nun.

Red Flower Society, The: One of the greatest of the Wu Keng Societies, who opposed Manchu oppression in 18^th century China.

School: An extended martial family.

Sect: An extended non-martial family.

Sifu: Master worker. A polite form of address for Buddhist monks and nuns, as well as masters at some meritorious action (skill), such as martial arts. As this is a very traditional word, it is usually reserved for monks and nuns, martial arts masters, and hei shôu, or people who work with their hands such as mechanics and plumbers.

Society: A band of Wu Keng (and sometimes others) who work and travel together, but who are not necessarily of the same family or school.

Tài Jí Chúan: The Daoist martial art of T'ai Ch'i Chuan. Not only is it one of the most effective unarmed combat styles ever created, is also one of the healthiest forms of exercise around. Literally means ultimate fist.

Wû Shù: Martial arts.

Xiu Dào Shì: A western monk.

Yù: Jade.

Yuedao points: Focal points in the art of acupuncture, also used as pressure points in some styles of kung fu.

Zhao Shì: A sphere of magick. Each sphere is named according to the dragon that represents it.

Zùi Chúan: "Drunken fist." The style of martial arts that, when performed, looks as if the performer is drunk.

History

The Wu Keng have existed for millennia, but in their current form as a loose-knit fellowship of magical practitioners can be traced back to about AD 500. In a time of great turmoil, various magical factions grappled for control of the Middle Kingdom's paradigm. Among these groups were the Akashic Brotherhood and the imperial Wu Lung, as well as numerous smaller societies, both magical and mystical and of the fighting community.

However, in the midst of the high-and-mighty mystic and dynastic conflicts, the people of China suffered. They turned for protection to their local wizards and shamans, but these peasant wizards soon realised that more than their individual efforts would be needed to ward off the aggression of groups like the Wu Lung.

To this end, the Wu Keng Society formed; a loose association of peasant sorcerers and martial artists, who vowed to aid each other against the oppressive forces of the greater magickal dynasties. Many of the Wu Keng were old, and stayed with their villages, but younger magicians and fighters began to form bands in which they would travel, lending their aid to the sedentary Wu Keng where it was needed, and receiving in return the hospitality of their older brethren. They had many dealings with the Shaolin after the creation of the temple, far fewer with the Akashics and none - at least none that were friendly - with the Wu Lung.

They performed many deeds, great and terrible, and members of the Wu Keng numbered among the ranks of such illustrious groups as the Red Flower Society who opposed the Manchu dynasty in the eighteenth century, although a few of them betrayed their roots to serve imperial masters. Their associations with the Chinese fighting community have shaped their history, and the demands of honour have often dictated their path.

Many stories are told of the Wu Keng curse and its origins. Some say that a travelling band of Wu Keng made a pact with a group of demons in order to escape the cruel "justice" of an Emperor. Others say that the Wu Lung set a ravening horde of demons to hound their enemies down through the ages, resulting in the pollution of the Wu Keng’s Avatars. Whatever the truth, sometime after their founding as an organisation, the Wu Keng were struck by the curse.

Their own Avatars turned on them, and a dozen of their greatest sifu were lost before they had even realised it. Desperately they tried to fight back with their magic, but whatever had been done had altered their very Avatars, and they could not use magic without feeding the force that struck at them. They found ways to fight the Demons - meditation, study, discipline - or tried to evade them by disguising boy-children as women, or girls as men. Still the onslaught continues.

The modern Wu Keng are a disparate bunch. Joined by their common curse, all are related to one of the Wu Keng active at the time of the curse, and hence all are of Chinese stock. They are predominantly of Cantonese descent, and all are of humble birth. As a group they espouse simple living and the mental discipline necessary to prepare for the Demon's coming. All are deemed to have a duty to watch for newly Awakened Wu Keng, and to guide them through the difficult process of adjustment.

Daoists, Buddhists and Muslims have belonged to the fellowship, and in recent years there have even been a few Christian and Shinto Wu Keng. What is important to the fellowship is not the Mage's past, but their Avatar; the Demons seem to know a Wu Keng far before his brothers do. What is more, once a new Wu Keng is accepted no religious views are forced on them, despite the Daoist/Buddhist bias of the society.

Philosophy is something of a different matter. Rooted in the Chinese martial arts, the Wu Keng put great weight on honour, discipline and responsibility. A Wu Keng who does not possess these virtues I taught them. If he will not be taught, he is punished until he learns. If he still will not learn, then with sorrow his teachers leave him to the less than tender mercy of his Demon. Less vital, but still of great import, are such characteristics as compassion, humility, respect and honesty.

Organisation

The Wu Keng do not have a centralised organisation. Instead they have a complex arrangement of sects, schools and craft "families". A Wu Keng's sifu - a term combining elements of teacher, mentor and master - is his craft parent (mother or father), while fellow pupils are brother or sister. These associations then extend to his own pupils, who will have aunts and uncles by virtue of their craft.

By extension of these families, the Wu Keng are divided into Sects and Schools. These are similar to craft families, and usually begin as such. The term has a broader emphasis, and is particularly used to describe families that have grown beyond the ability of their members to know every other member. Sects are typically families, which are philosophical, academic or theological in their emphasis, while School is used to describe a martial family.

Schools and Sects constantly splinter and spread, spawning new families as old philosophies and techniques are replaced by the new. Each has its own styles of magick, martial arts and philosophy, and an experienced Wu Keng can identify these styles and thus another Wu Keng's school, and often the identity of their sifu.

Not all Wu Keng belong to a School or a Sect however. Some are loners by choice; they simply do not wish to be tied down. Others turn their back on the society - these are most often those who try to avoid confronting their Demon. Others still develop their own styles, and such are considered founders of their own School, although the School itself does not exist until they take students of their own.

In general, any Wu Keng will aid another. It is considered rude to refuse hospitality, and to reject another Wu Keng and thereby hasten or bring about his death brings the wrath of the fellowship as nothing else except outright treason. It is left to each School or Sect to punish its own students, and each member of the Family is responsible for the behaviour of all members of lesser status.

In addition to Schools and Sects, Wu Keng organise themselves into triads. Similar to the hermetic concept of a Cabal, these are groups of Wu Keng who travel and offer their aid where it is needed. In the modern day, they often refer to themselves simply as "fighting societies" to avoid confusion as to the meaning of triad.

Few honorifics are used among the Wu Keng, the notable exception being sifu. Among the various societies a wide range of titles are used, but these are rarely grandiose. The leader of a fighting society is often referred to as Helmsman, and society members are referred to by a numbered rank (such as Fourth Brother or Fourth Sister). The most widely used honours are the Craft-names given to individual Wu Keng. These are not awarded by any particular individual, but rather arise in usage; in effect they are simply nick-names, reflecting a distinguishing characteristic of the Wu Keng's style of magic, fighting or simply of being.

Magickal Style

The Wu Keng have developed a very distinct style over the years, but more importantly, different families have widely varying styles, which, as mentioned above, can tell the right person a great deal about the Mage. The Wu Keng Society can basically divided into sorcerers and fighters - those who truly practice "magic" and those who practice kung fu.

Sorcerer Wu Keng are more adept at the wider aspects of magical practice. They are usually flexible and adaptive in their use of their powers, but they rely on a great many physical foci in their spells, and their ritualistic style is rarely subtle in its performance - although it can be most subtle in its effects. It is best used at a distance, and so Correspondence is an important sphere for them. Spirit is also popular, as it should be in so animistic and spiritually rich a culture as the Wu Keng derive from.

Fighters on the other hand rarely, use any focus but their kung fu, but their magic is often more limited. They learn very much by rote, and they usually have an impressive but inflexible series of moves on which they rely. In addition, with the exception of manoeuvres like the long punch, few fighters can affect anything which they do not make at least a slight physical contact with. Their use of Correspondence is almost universally limited to sensory effects. Fighters prefer the use of Life - yuedao points and acupuncture, inner strength kung fu - Prime and Forces - Chi focus and lightness kung fu.

Advancement of Spheres is much the same for sorcerers is much the same as for other Mages, but fighters almost without exception do so using the rote training system (see House Rules). Advancement of Arete is a risky business; rather than attempting to find a Seeking, many Wu Keng spend their lives trying to avoid them. When they do come they are a brutal, dangerous affair, which can leave the Mage nothing but a twisted husk if the Demon overcomes them.

A Wu Keng's Seekings are more akin to a Wraith's Destruction Harrowing than to other Seekings. The Demon will attack and attempt to overcome the Wu Keng, the method of attack varying according to the nature of the Mage. A fighter is likely to be engaged in combat, but games of chess or cards with lethal wagers, riddles, philosophical discourse and harsh and challenging quizzes are also possible. Since the Demon grows with the Mage, these do not get any easier with time. Victory in the challenge results in an increase of Arete; failure leads to madness or death.

Foci

• Ritual Gestures, Dance - Including martial arts kata and traditional Chinese opera dances, motion is very important to the Wu Keng sorcerer. Such movements are usually extremely distinctive, and impossible to do subtly. Gestures usually involve twisting together and/or pointing the fingers. Again they are distinctive, but they are less obtrusive.

Movement is often an important, sympathetic element of spells intended to produce motion.

• Kung fu - Often the sole focus of warrior Wu Keng, the martial arts are the heart and soul of their power. Every rote is connected to a specific manoeuvre, and they learn their magic as elements of their kung fu.
  • Inner Strength kung fu - The art of exceeding the body's limitations through force of will, which Wu Keng fighters associate with the Life Sphere.
  • Lightness kung fu - The form of martial art focusing on movement and speed, usually associated with the Sphere of Forces.
  • The Sixty-four positions - a set of formal body poses used in kung fu kata. Often these are used in Correspondence rotes. The eight trigram movements of Ba Gùa Zhâng can serve a similar role.
  • Yuedao points - the energy centres targeted in acupuncture are also weak points against the wrong opponent. Knowledge of the body's yuedao points is used in both Life and Entropy attacks and defences, and in healing. See also acupuncture.
• Mantras and Sutras - Mystic, repetitive chants allow the sorcerer to focus his will and call upon the forces of the universe for aid.
• Meditation
• Prayer and spell papers - Simple sutras, mantras or prayers are written on yellow papers for talismanic use. The sorcerer may use these as a focus, often carrying large numbers of pre-prepared papers, and using as many as a hundred papers in a single spell.
• Prayer beads - Another meditation focus, prayer bead strings can also be swung as a motion element.
• Weapons - Weapons are sometimes connected to warrior's rotes as part of their kung fu focus, and may be either general or unique foci. For sorcerers however, weapon foci are of far more extensive ritual significance. Wooden swords, wind-fire wheels, knives and needles are all used.
• Blood - Blood - human or animal - is a potent source of mystical energy, and often used in rituals. It is used in conjunction with spell papers, mixed with ink to produce a particularly potent paper.
• Rice and eggs - Both of these foods have significance. Rice is a staple, and a proof against the undead. The egg is the source of life, and is used as a coagulant in some blood-ink mixes, again mostly for use against the undead. Spirits also have a liking for eggs, and offerings of eggs are common foci for summoning rites.
• Fans - Very useful in motion elements, fans are especially linked with magic of air and protection. They are also sometimes part of a warrior's kung fu focus.
• Acupuncture - A popular focus for Life magic, especially for healing, although knowledge of the body's vital yuedao points can also be used to harm or paralyse.

Arete and Foci

Sorcerers use a huge range of foci for their spells and rituals. It is not uncommon for a Wu Keng sorcerer to have more than one focus for a specific Sphere. Like other Mages, they abandon one focus for each dot in Arete above one, but unlike most, this may leave other foci still for the Sphere. Use of multiple foci for a single Sphere reduces the difficulty of spells by -1 (regardless of exactly how many foci are used), but so long as any foci remain for the Sphere at least one must be used.

Although this leaves Wu Keng sorcerers unusually tied to their foci, they can eventually shed their tools, and for every dot in Arete above five they may shed two foci. In addition, they have a very flexible range of foci for any given Sphere, and if one is out of use, another can be used.

Fighters on the other hand use a limited range of foci, usually only kung fu, a weapon and maybe a knowledge of acupuncture. However, they almost invariably have to learn a different manoeuvre for each effect they wish to use, learning each as a separate rote. In addition, they shed their Sphere foci at the same rate as Techno-mages.