Continuing our Chinese based review of the World of Darkness book line! Next up is the first entry in the Chinese line of World of Darkness products, Kindred of the East.
Kindred of the East
China has its own vampire stories that Kindred of the East is based on. Chinese vampires are called jiāngshī. They’re an independent creation from Western vampires which are based on rabies victims. Jiāngshī are also known as hopping vampires because one of their powers is jumping really high. The other major difference is jiāngshī drink the chi of the living instead of their blood. Still a type of energy, but metaphysical rather than physical.
Kindred of the East tries to blend a bunch of different things together with its version of Eastern vampires. They are called kuei-jin, a combination of Chinese and Japanese words, instead of jiāngshī. Kuei-jin were inspired by myths from China, Japan, Korea, Southeast Asia, and India into a mish-mash of Asian vampire tropes. They’re most similar to jiāngshī, but other parts are brought in that I’m not as familiar with. The lore in Kindred of the East is all over the book, but poorly organized. Lots of random bits are mixed in with the mechanics making it difficult to follow the narrative story along with the rules.
Kuei-jin are not vampires in the same way as Vampire: The Masquerade. Within the game’s conception of what the monsters are, kuei-jin are more like a ghost possessing their own dead body. A kuei-jin’s spirit escaped the Buddhist cycle of reincarnation, but in an evil fashion. If their current body dies a kuei-jin’s soul is destroyed. The only path out is to achieve enlightenment in their current extended lifetime.
Kuei-jin choose from five Dharmas instead of thirteen clans. The Dharma is their guiding principle for how they achieve enlightenment. Each of the five Dharmas is connected to new personality stats introduced in Kindred of the East. Devil Tigers want to become evil incarnate and use Po as their main stat. Resplendent Cranes want to improve the world and atone for their sins and they use Hun as their main stat. Shadows want to obtain all knowledge and protect families and they use Yin as their main stat. Thrashing Dragons want pleasure for themselves and others and they use Yang as their main stat. Thousand Whispers want to recreate the reincarnation cycle in themselves by living many different lives and use the balance between Yin and Yang as their main stat. Kuei-jin get stronger and stronger as they get closer to enlightenment so there’s a strong incentive to follow your Dharma.
Kuei-jin survive by consuming chi, just like vampires consume blood. In fact they usually drink blood in order to get a person’s chi. More powerful kuei-jin can harvest chi from someone’s breath or from spiritually infused environments. Chi comes in two varieties, Yin and Yang. Yin is roughly “dead” chi while Yang is “life” chi. If a kuei-jin has equal Yin and Yang chi they look normal. Too much Yin chi and they start to look like a corpse. Too much Yang chi and they become infected with diseases.
Kuei-jin have other aspects of their soul based on Chinese philosophy. These are the heavenly soul Hun and the demon soul Po. The Hun and Po are somewhat obscure parts of Chinese philosophy which indicated to me that the authors were approaching this idea with some serious intent. The blending of all Asian folklore feels unnatural, but it is balanced by each piece making individual sense as it’s presented.
Each of these four new stats power different abilities within the game. Yin chi let’s you look at auras of undead creatures and use powers associated with death. Yang chi let’s you heal, look at auras of living creatures, and use powers associated with life. Po provides strong demonic powers that use a special type of Demon chi that refills every night. Hun let’s you master your darker nature, which is effectively using your Po powers without becoming evil. Balance between your Yin and Yang chi prevents penalties for being out of balance.
The rest of the stats for kuei-jin are the same as for vampires and other characters in World of Darkness. The Disciplines that kuei-jin choose for their magic powers are different. They’re each powered by Yin, Yang, or Demon chi. The selection is similar enough to what vampires get. Some are wuxing based, others are based on different Asian monster stories. All of them have a heavy Yin-Yang focus.
If you’re interested in the Kindred of the East book you can check it out at DriveThruRPG: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/2552/kindred-of-the-east
With Kindred of the East completed, I know how Chinese vampires function in World of Darkness. I’m not necessarily interested in the modern age though. My search for China games is focused on the Tang dynasty in the 600s CE. What changes are made for World of Darkness in the Medieval period?
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