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Chinese Ascending Ones

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glamourweaver Posted: 16 Oct 2009 1:12 AM
Obviously the Ascending Ones would be found amongst the strong Muslim culture in western China, as well as amongst Chinese Jews and Christians; but what about more traditional Han Chinese Taoists?

This occurred to me when I was considering the "Shih" from the OWoD and the concept of taoist internal-alchemist martial artists concerned with balance above all else - and it struck me that that fit the Ascending Ones perfectly.  Even the phoenix imagery fits!

Perhaps I can use the Shih as another faction of the "Cult of Fenghuang"; and then use a "Cult of the Tiger" (don't have a primary name yet) as a powerful Indian Conspiracy, combining Hindu & Sikh traditions; and a traditionally-legalist "Cult of the Dragon" (don't have a primary name yet) that's devoured the traditionally-confucian "Cult of the Tortoise/Snake" & has risen to become the government-conspiracy of the People's Republic (with a break-away faction in Taiwan).
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Lord of Badlands replied on 18 Oct 2009 11:03 PM
Reignhell has done a Shih conversion here. Perhaps its something you like.
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glamourweaver replied on 19 Oct 2009 2:36 AM
Lord of Badlands:
Reignhell has done a Shih conversion here. Perhaps its something you like.

An excellent adaptation to be sure, and one I was fiddiling with when I was thinking this out.  What struck me though is that the ethos - once you get past the Eastern vs. Western philosophical differences - is actually quite similar to the Ascending Ones: Internal Alchemists dedicated to protecting a broad abstract concept of harmony, willing to engage the supernatural socially a peacemakers when necessary; it all fits very well.

What I'm wrestling with now is the idea of 4 major Conspiracies active in China...

(the fact that all these groups are in some way "negative" in no way reflects any statement on Chinese cultural traditions & philosophy; it's just how I see all Conspiracies in the game... pretty much the Lucifuge come the closest to unambiguous good guys on Tier 3, only because the source of their Endowments is so inherently troubling & the potential darkness surrounding their state & their boss)

"Cult of Zhu Que" - basically add a fourth Faction to the Ascending Ones based around Taoist Mysticism & Philosophy, the way the Order of the Southern Temple is based around Greek Philosophy & Western Mysticism.  As is noted with the Factions of the Ascending Ones, they wouldn't necessarily recognize a shared identity with their Western counterparts (though they are economically linked to the Jagged Crescent).  Obviously their Endowments are Elixers.

"Cult of the Xuan Wu" - Originally a Mohist tradition, with the philosophy's long-term suppression (thus hampering the conspiracy's ability to recruit actual Mohists) the ideology warped over time, eventually culminating in its investment xenophobic populist madness of the Righteous Harmony Society Movement (aka the Boxer Rebellion) - and further into Maoism & the Cultural Revolution.  Despite this there are still those who remember & practice the true principles of universal love, organized perfection, and the efficient defense of society from all corruption (especially the TRULEY foreign - the supernatural devils).  Applying these principles of discipline & organized perfection to themselves they have developed/received (depending on whether one believes in the Doctrine of the Spirit Warriors) enhanced martial arts Endowments.

"Cult of Qing Long" - Unlike the populist Xuan Wu, the Qinglong have become the true governmental Conspiracy of the People's Republic... it just took them a while to properly ingratiate themselves with the Communists after the civil war, since they had been the governmental conspiracy of the Imperial Dynasties preceding it & the nationalists... thus the Qinglong can take smug satisfaction of not bearing the sin the Cultural Revolution the way the Xuan Wu must, though they committed plenty of systematic oppression via countless governments, including the CCP.  The Qinglong were originally born as a Confucian sect concerned with Righteous Governance.  In the Qin Dynasty though they had to adapt to the Legalist ideology of the time, and in the following Dynasties was well served by this blended belief structure that became the state's official position.  Centuries of scholarly leadership, honed mental & cultural experimentation, & the hoarding of arcane lore has facilitated the development of "psychic" endowments.
[for what it's worth - the Chinese Government has some Advanced Armory level tech, but despite their massive military budget, they have not yet mastered the mass industrialization of cutting edge tech the way the Americans have (through the 20th century this has been the US's edge in warfare), and thus they are not available to individual agents as Endowments, but can be made available as plot devices]

The Qinglong have a break away wing active as part of the Republic of China as well.  The two factions are actually cozier with each other than either government realizes & some lower level agents (such as most PCs) suspect they might not have schismed at all - the organizations uniting at the clandestine top.  Under this theory the Qinglong just invested themselves in Nationalists & Communists both during the civil war, and they're still working toward their end goal of a perfectly managed righteous hierarchal society, free of inhuman chaos & exploitation.


"The Cult of Bai Hu" - Individuals thinking of themselves as members of the Cult of the White Tiger are few and far between.  For the most part it's how the Chinese Hunter Conspiracies speak of the powerful Indian conspiracy that has been entreanched with the sub-continent's (local) rulers for centuries - today blending a primarily Hindu & Khalsa Sikh membership & ideology under secular government "sponsorship" (not that most in the Indian government know it exists).  [I have yet to come up with the Sanskrit name the group calls itself]  The Bai Hu are active through central, east, & southeast asia though, with many members having no affiliation with the Indian government.  While bearing no proven link to the Aegis Kai Doru, it bares marked similarities, & has spent millennia cultivating divine & profane artifacts of great power.



Thoughts?
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High Quabalist replied on 19 Oct 2009 12:41 PM
glamourweaver:
Thoughts?


Interesting to say the least. I'm nowhere near an expert on chinese history but some of these have definite potential especially the cult of Bai Hu and the cult of Zhu Que...
Can Truth be perceived or are our minds closed to it forever by our mortal failings? It is impossible to know, but the quest never ends and perhaps someday a flicker of these things will be perceived... 
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Ophidimancer replied on 19 Oct 2009 12:47 PM
glamourweaver:
enhanced martial arts Endowments.


I'd love to see some ideas for this.
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glamourweaver replied on 20 Oct 2009 5:19 AM
High Quabalist:
Interesting to say the least. I'm nowhere near an expert on chinese history but some of these have definite potential especially the cult of Bai Hu and the cult of Zhu Que...

The named the four "cults" after the four directional guardians of Taoist tradition.  Bai Hu is "White Tiger" associated with the West.  Zhu Que is "Vermillion Bird" (usually equated with Fenghuang - Phoenix) associated with the south.  The "Tiger" is traditionally used in Chinese iconography to represent India & the Phoenix is obviously linked with the Ascending Ones, as well as a symbol of the principles of Yin & Yang (hence - taoist alchemists).

I actually came up with the idea of the primary traditional Indian conspiracy being an Eastern counterpart to the Aegis Kai Doru before the idea of the four Chinese "cults" came up.  I was using the pattern of the Hunter supplements to come up Compacts & Conspiracies focused on Prometheans & fringe science, Changelings & Fae, Geists & Ghosts, as well as "Creatures" (Creature from the Black Lagoon meets Naga & Mer lore meets Lovecraft's Deep Ones) my own take on some of the same concepts raised by the Leviathan: the Tempest fan project.  The Artifact wielding Indian conspiracy fit the slot for the Hunter conspiracy most focused on the "Naga" (Creatures) - though obviously not to the exclusion of other supernaturals (though do tend to be more interested in Creatures & Vampires, unlike the Mage & Werewolf focused Aegis Kai Doru).  Once this concept was developed, expanding them beyond the sub-continent just became the natural way to fill the 4 Guardian pattern for China.


It's worth noting for fans of the Old World of Darkness, that the Cult of Qing Long (Azure Dragon) is based on the Miao Guan - though obviously with the anti-technology angle removed (an ideology more likely to be embraced by the "Boxers" of the Cult of Xuan Wu - Black Warrior [or Tortoise or Snake]).
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nothri replied on 20 Oct 2009 9:23 AM
I used to love an Alternity setting called Dark Matter. Very conspiracy oriented, heavily influenced by the then popular X-Files. Had a lot of "illuminati" groups in it, steeped in meticulously researched conspiracy lore. One group was the Rosicrucians, or the Ascended Ones. The group was, IN THIS MYTHOLOGY, founded in ancient egypt as the Companions of Horus. It stayed as a group dedicated to ancient secrets and lore, until the library of Alexandria was burnt to the ground. Fortunately, the Companions foresaw this, and fled with the bulk of their ancient texts to the Himalayas, founding a temple in Tibet. There they spread their lore in secret. Legends of an ancient celestial city called Shambalah were spread....and then the Chinese invaded in the modern era. Occult experts insist the Chinese were after this legendary city and the temple of the Companions.

This scenario, while perhaps not exactly what you want, offers a ready made link between China and the Egyptian roots of our Alchemical drugpushers. It wouldn't take too much tweaking to justify similar happenings in your game. I agree, the whole alchemical angle is worth exploring outside of Egypt.
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High Quabalist replied on 20 Oct 2009 12:24 PM
nothri:
I used to love an Alternity setting called Dark Matter. Very conspiracy oriented, heavily influenced by the then popular X-Files. Had a lot of "illuminati" groups in it, steeped in meticulously researched conspiracy lore. O


Yes Dark Matter is an awesome setting I would definetly run using WoD rules...
Can Truth be perceived or are our minds closed to it forever by our mortal failings? It is impossible to know, but the quest never ends and perhaps someday a flicker of these things will be perceived... 
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