Kuei-jin

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Introduction

The term "Kuei-jin" is a portmanteau word consisting of the Mandarin word for ghost (kuei) and the Japanese word for person (jin). It is a relatively recent construction designed to indicate the commonality of the undead condition throughout the Middle Kingdom. The term Cathayan is often used by Western Cainites to refer to the Kuei-Jin. The word is borrowed from the classic name for China, Cathay. It is perceived as offensive by the Kuei-Jin themselves.

It is said that the Kuei-Jin are the corrupted descendants of the Wan Xian, the "Ten Thousand Heroes" chosen by the August Personage of Jade to guide and protect the universe in ancient history (and the predecessor to the Exalted). The Wan Xian were originally chosen by tests of skill and courage, and fed on the ambient chi of the universe. However, they fell from grace, learning to feed off of the chi of living beings and corrupting the tests of worthiness. Their children, the Jin Hai tried to keep them on the path of righteousness, but were eventually killed for their presumption.

As the blood of the Golden Children cooled, the August Personage pronounced judgment on His former champions. He cursed them to live as undead, unable to acquire chi except from drinking the blood of the living, and to exist in a brutal mockery of their former state. He revised the tests so that the former heroes and champions were replaced by criminals and murderers who escaped from Hell itself. Then He left the Wan Kuei alone to contemplate their crimes.

Since that time, the Wan Kuei, the fallen Wan Xian, have developed a redemptive religion while occupying an ecological niche akin to Western vampires. There are many paths initially ascribed to Xue, the Grand Arhat of the dead. However, the road to the Hundred Clouds is long, and the Kuei Jin are ultimately forced to stay on the Wheel of Ages as history slowly grinds towards the inevitable victory of hell and the rise of the Demon Emperor.

Supernatural Characteristics

In the Middle Kingdom, all creatures are believed to have two souls: a Hun, or higher soul, and a P'o, or lower soul. In general, the P'o is a brutal aspect of a person, while the Hun is more refined, intellectual and impotent. When a person who has led a less than exemplary life dies, that person goes to Hell. There, the P'o and the Hun are generally shredded for chi, unless they can strike a deal and find a way out.

On the rare occasions they can, the body takes its "second breath" and rejoins the land of the living as a cannibalistic demonic hell-beast. If not caught, these creatures will go on killing sprees and rampages of destruction - which is why the capture and civilizing of infant devils is a critical part of Kuei-Jin society. All Kuei-Jin begin in Hell and then graduate to a mad cannibal in a human body; it is only through discipline and whip-cracks that they can move above that level.

Physical Nature

The Kuei-jin are physically akin to the Risen, in that their physical bodies are powered by mystical energy and that energy serves to heal them. Unlike the Risen, who rely on pathos to power them, the Kuei Jin use chi. Depending on the type of chi used, a Kuei Jin's body will have different attributes - ranging from a low-energy corpse like state, to a feverish state close enough to life that they can create new life. Apart from being faster, stronger and tougher, a yang aspected Kuei Jin appears to be a living human being.

Kuei Jin are less tied to their bodies than might be expected - because they are spirits wearing bodies, they can take an enormous amount of damage, including a "little death" that wipes out the body and forces the Kuei Jin to seek out a new host. There is a subspecies of Kuei Jin, the Yulan Jin who do this on a regular basis.

Kuei Jin are effectively unliving chi batteries; they need and hunger for chi the same way that the Kindred hunger for blood, and they need no other sustenance, although they take more pleasure from food and sex than the damned do. With the right chi, Kuei Jin can even withstand the sun for a short period of time. Chi is divided into Yin and Yang, which have both drawbacks and advantages when Kuei-jin imbalances himself to one of them.

Spiritual Nature

The Kuei Jin have an awakened P'o which seeks to make them fail. This P'o behaves like a wraith's Shadow and can temporarily take over the Kuei Jin. As a result, Kuei Jin are constantly struggling against a far more intelligent and wily opponent than the beast that bedevils the Kindred.

More importantly, Kuei Jin are creatures on a spiritual trek. They have been granted a second chance by Heaven, and must earn their redemption in this new life. To do so, each Kuei Jin subscribes to a Dharma. Each Dharma outlines a different view of the universe and the means towards achieving enlightenment. In addition to spiritual comfort, enlightenment brings strength - as a Kuei Jin advances in his dharma, he learns to feed off things besides blood, his ability to manipulate chi increases and his abilities can achieve new heights.

Weaknesses

Kuei-jin are not created through the act of another, like western vampires are, and their numbers are limited and can not be easily replenished. Their blood has no supernatural properties of its own and cannot create Blood Bonds or Ghouls.

The sun is just as dangerous to the Kuei-jin as it is to their western cousins. Kuei-jin, however, do not begin to burn when exposed to sunlight, instead, their flesh begins to rot until nothing remains but a putrified carcass.

A stake through the heart does not automatically paralyze a Kuei-jin. However, the heart is instrumental in processing Chi energy, and certain types of attacks can disrupt the Chi flow in a Kuei-jin's body. Vampires of Yin prove vulnerable to wood, the element of Yang; conversely, vampires of Yang are vulnerable to metal, the element of Yin.

Kuei-jin Disciplines

Chi Disciplines

Demon Disciplines

Soul Disciplines

Shintai Disciplines

Alternative Shintai
  • Smoke Shintai
  • Beast Shintai
  • Storm Shintai


Known Kuei-jin Courts, Clans, and Houses


Known Kuei-jin

Sources

http://whitewolf.wikia.com/wiki/Kuei-jin

https://www.localiiz.com/post/culture-local-stories-chinese-mythology-101-18-levels-hell

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