Tales of Perpetual Peace/JianghuLoresheets

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The Wulin in the Age of the Xin

The Wulin Registry

The Most Wanted List

Even at the height of the Xin Dynasty, when the Imperial Constabulary kept a firm and constant peace in the city, it was unwritten policy to allow the Wulin to police their own, for the wise Ministers realized that no good would come of involving the Empire in the bloody feuds and long-standing rivalries of the Jianghu. Yet some baneful Wulin could not be ignored, and it fell to the Liquid Metal Delegates to track and, if possible, to pacify these criminals by any means necessary. The List currently features: Sword Bitch, the leader of the Blade Dogs in Perpetual Peace (if such a group can be said to have a leader!); Abyssal Ink, a notorious criminal famous for the incendiary anti-Xin calligraphy he leaves at the scenes of his crimes; and White Star Mask, a seemingly recent arrival who is all too willing to sell his murderous services to the highest bidder.

The Top Ten

In a city such as Perpetual Peace, where the Wulin are drawn like moths to a flame, it is inevitable that they should rank one another, and compete to stand preeminent in the Imperial Capital. Though the rankings are known to change, several Wulin are mainstays. They include: Red Sky Raptor, the sly and deadly Eagle Talon Executive whose special variation on the traditional Eagle Talon technique makes her a deadly opponent; Captain Hsi Jing-guo, the chief of the Brocade Guards, the elite unit of the Liquid Metal Delegates, and bearer of the Legendary Weapon Numberless Blades; Brazen Fist, five-time champion of the Illustrious August Tournament; it is said his skin is pure metal, and that no weapon can harm him; and the Sword Bitch, currently the only Wulin to figure on both the Most Wanted and Top Ten Lists.

Wulin Factions

Factions from the Corebook

The following Factions are taken from the Legends of the Wulin corebook, and their loresheets are merely updated to reflect the setting.

Little Forest Sect

• The Great Proscription
• Lotus against Diamond
• The Wayward Sangha

Eagle Talon Syndicate

• Red Sky Raptor
• The Unwritten Contracts

Yun Clan

• The Legacy of Winter
• The Tsubo Threat
• Ebon Stag

Heaven Sword Alliance

• The Ambition of Five-Metal Spirit
• Unconquered Gentlemen, Disciples of the Blade-Dao, and Sword Devils

Beggar Fraternity

• The Eternal Carnival
• The Beggar's Tunnels
• The Postal War

Resplendent Phoenix Society

• The Willow Wars
• Fiery Masked Phoenix
• Maidens at the Bridal Palace

Fallen Leaves Society

• Blossoming Peony Declaration
• College Life
• The White Crane Club

Countless Rivulets School

(Formerly the Dragon Well Sect)

• The Hidden Well
• The Old Ways
• Master Qiu's Denunciation

Liquid Metal Delegates

• The Brocade Guard
• Informed by a Thousand Eyes

Hundred Ghost Faction

• The Barrow Guards
• The Yama King's Gate

Yue Clan

(Formerly the Southern Dragon Pirate Clan)

• The Southern Dragon Heritage
• Shipping Magnates

Blade Dogs

• Legacy of the Sword Bastard
• The Duelists
• Sword Bitch

Black Lotus Society

The old Black Lotus Society is no more. The Xin armies razed the Black Sand Pagoda in the reign of the Second Xin Emperor, and Black Storm Buddha met his end at the hands of the Abbot of the Little Orphan Monastery. But like the noxious weed that gives them their name, they have grown up anew, taking advantage of the growing weakness in Xin power. A mysterious figure known as the New Lotus Saint, bearing a panoply of potent intoxicants made from a strange western flower, has reformed the baneful society. Now they begin to ply their foul trade once more.

• Grains of Black Sand

Although the old Black Lotus Society was destroyed, not every member of that wide-ranging organization was successfully hunted down. These survivors laid low during the height of Xin power, but have flocked to the New Lotus Saint's call to form the Society anew.

• • 3 Destiny: You descend by birth or martial tradition from an original Black Lotus Society member; this will be important to your story.
  • 3+ Treasure: You are in possession of some artifact of the original Black Lotus Society; perhaps it was passed down from master to disciple since the time of Black Storm Buddha, or perhaps you took it 'the old fashioned way'. Work with your Sage to determine the details.
    • 0 Bonus: As long as you own this item, your effective Status is one higher than normal among the Society.
• The Five Petal Lotus

It is said that this strange flower, remarkable for its many-colored petals, was discovered on a distant peak in the Kunlun Mountains. Manipulated by strange alchemies, it has produced a variety of powerful intoxicants, each based on a different petal of the flower. Those who distribute the drug promise a kind of euphoria that would make the Buddha himself spurn enlightenment.

• New Lotus Saint
  • 4+ Fortune: You have discovered a secret about the identity of the New Lotus Saint; perhaps you have been to his fortress in the Kunlun Mountains, or are privy to his plans.
    • -2: This information has come at a heavy price; in learning about him, the Saint has seen into your heart of hearts. You have a Major Weakness giving you an action penalty whenever you disobey or attempt to keep secrets from the New Lotus Saint.
  • 3+ Involvement: The New Lotus Saint is seeking five lieutenants to aid in his rebuilding efforts; he is calling them the Five Petal Princes. You are intimately involved in this process.
    • +3: You have been named one of the Petal Princes! What have you done to earn this accolade? What honors and responsibilities accompany this role? (You must have at least Status 4: Black Lotus Society to select this option.)

Vile Rain Cult

• See the Vile Rain Cult Legend

Revised Factions from the Corebook

The following factions are taken from the Legends of the Wulin corebook, but have been reimagined.

Blood Wind Cult

• The Coming Storm
• Anointed by Blood
• Tengri's Bride

Brilliant Light Path

(Based on the Western Fire Doctrine)

• Secrets of Destiny: Brilliant Light Path Kung Fu
• A Sapling in the Martial Forest
• The Hierophant
• The Shadow Path

New Factions

Eight Mountain Sect

• Secrets of Destiny: Eight Mountain Sect
• Secrets of Destiny: Eight Mountain Sect Kung Fu
  • 0 Bonus: You have a -2 Destiny discount when purchasing one of the following as a secondary External Style: Destiny Cloud Fist, Flowing Universe, or Immortals' Supreme Boxing
  • 0 Bonus: If you are a member of the Eight Mountain Sect, you probably have Breath of the Yellow Emperor as your Internal Style. You may learn all its techniques, rather than one per level.
  • 2 Technique: You have mastered the Entangling Fists technique. The purity of your Chi allows you to make your hands and feet seem to come at your opponents from all directions at once. Fighting Unarmed now also counts as fighting with a Flexible weapon. This allows you to combine the bonuses of both types of weapons and to combine different styles. If you know multiple Techniques that improve your Unarmed fighting, you may only use one at a time; you must choose at the start of each round.

Sect members with Breath of the Yellow Emperor may learn the following Techniques:

• • 5 Technique: Dark Cloud Judgment
    • If you are in Destiny Cloud Fist stance and use Mountain-Leaping Step, you may spend one more Chi for Lightfoot than your Rank would normally allow.
    • If you are in Destiny Cloud Fist stance and use Pure Air Punishment, you attack causes Ripples as normal in addition to the penalties for respiring or using Corrupt Chi.

• • 5 Technique: Master of Breath
    • If you are in Flowing Universe stance and use Suffocating Blow, you may 'stack' a second Breath Disrupt condition on the same opponent to lower his normal Chi respiration by 2.
    • If you are in Flowing Universe stance and use Balance Through Excess, you have a +15 rather than +10 bonus to your Minor Action.

• • 5 Technique: Disciple of Huangdi
    • If you are in Immortals' Supreme Boxing stance and use Pure Chi Armor, your bonus on Chi Aura rolls against energy attacks increases to +15.
    • If you are in Immortals' Supreme Boxing stance and use Huangdi's Method, the cost of extending the technique is 1 Chi for the first and second rounds, 2 Chi for the third and fourth, etc.
• The Dragon Well Legacy
• The Minders of the Way
• The Lonely Apostle

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The Diamond Vehicle

• Secrets of Destiny: Diamond Vehicle Kung Fu
• The Shambalan Embassy
• The Western Rites

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Three Harmonies Union

• Secrets of Destiny: Three Harmonies Union Kung Fu
• The Way of Honor and the Way of Silver
• Lords of the Lulin?
• Black Market Fortunes
• The Elder Council

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Guardians of the Bones

Destiny Cost: 3

Concept: The agents and enforcers of the Astral Directorate, sworn to bring about what Fate demands. 'Recruited' from orphans and child captives, these fearsome warriors have been taught since childhood to submit their will to the dictates of fate. They are trained in the arcane kung fu of the Purple Star Sages, and feared by all those who run afoul, knowingly or not, of the Astral Directorate's predictions. The Guardians of the Bones are the stuff of whispers and legends throughout Shen Zhou.
Virtues: Fatalism, Zhong (Loyalty), Ruthlessness (Hen)

Secrets of Destiny: Guardians of the Bones

• 3+ Status: You are one of the Guardians of the Bones. You serve the Astral Directorate, and work to ensure that the predictions of the Purple Star Sages come to pass.
  • 0 Treasure: You may purchase a special weapon with a -2D discount.
  • 0 Bonus: If you are a member of the Guardians of the Bones, you may purchase the Fatalism loresheet at a -2 discount.
  • 0 Bonus: You have a free Inspire specialty: Bad Cop, that applies whenever you make use of your position to intimidate possible offenders or common folk.
• 0/5 Disadvantage: You have been placed on Probation. You have done something to earn the ire of your superiors; you can be sure they are aware of your every move, and further disappointments may result in more severe sanctions. Gain one extra Destiny every time your compromised status causes you difficulty.

Secrets of Destiny: Guardians of the Bones Kung Fu

• 0 Bonus: You have a one-time, -2D discount when buying one of the following as a secondary External Style: Bagua Tower, Murderous Shadows, or Ravenous Wings.
• 0 Bonus: All Guardians of the Bones are taught the Guidance of the Purple Star internal style; you may learn all techniques in that style, rather than one per level.

The following techniques are based on the Guidance of the Purple Star; you must know that style in order to learn them.

• 5 Technique: You learn the In the Shadow of the Tower technique.
  • If you're in the Bagua Tower stance, and use the Heart-Finding Strike technique while acting in accord with a Prediction, you inflict a Rippling roll if your strike lands.
  • If you're in the Bagua Tower stance and use the Gift of Foresight technique while acting in accord with a Prediction, opponents must exceed your initiative by 20 in order to break your waves.

• 5 Technique: You learn the Murderous Savant technique.
  • If you're in Murderous Shadows stance and use Picking Among the Strands, you have a +5 bonus to your primary attack result, applied after you decide which roll to employ. NEEDS REVISION
  • If you're in Murderous Shadows stance and use Future Holds No Secrets, you Fear no attacks or defenses this round.

• 5 Technique: You learn the End of Days Dance technique.
  • If you are in Ravenous Wings stance and use Falling Star Escape, the bonus to Footwork increases to +20 if you are acting in accord with a Prediction.
  • If you are in Ravenous Wings stance and use Death Comes for All, your attack ignores armor.

The Purple Star Sages
The Thousand Eye Division
The Weight of Destiny
Pan Gu's Bones

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