Its 1974. Kelvin Green
Have you encountered a system that fits Feng Shui better than Feng Shui does? How would you handle Hong Kong style action movies in a role-playing game?
Here's where my knowledge of and experience with Japanese TRPGs is both a boon and a burden simultaneously. Yes, I definitely know of some games that I feel handle Asian Action Movie Martial Arts and Gun-Fu in a cooler way than Feng Shui but they are not available outside of Japan.
The first one that comes to mind is Burning Spirits, a game that to my knowledge was printed up in one or more articles of the Japanese gaming periodical 'RPG Magazine'. I played it only once at an Anime Convention in 1994 but man-oh-man, it left a major impression on me. I loved it! A better version of White Wolf's Street Fighter game, it played like a simplier, faster Ars Magica (kind of), both easier and more evocative of the genre than Feng Shui.
Characters have a few Attributes, one of which is Speed. Your Speed determines how many Actions you can take in a Round (defined very differently from the traditional D&D meaning) and how quickly you.can get off said Actions (which effects not just initiative but whether you can defend against your opponents Attacks). Battles begin with each PC and named NPC taking a Stance that influences your approach to the fight; an Attack Stance adds to your Attack rolls and Damage throughout the engagement, while a Defense Stance makes you harder to hit and reduces the Damage you take from successful Attacks against you. This was really awesome because you could go into a fight with a Defense Stance but take an aggressive approach to your Attacks if you wanted to.
Martial Arts moves are built out of Attacks (like Punch, Kick, Hold, Throw) or Defenses (Block, Deflect, Redirect, and at least one other) and Techniques. This last category defines how the Attack or Defense is executed. Examples include Force to cause extra damage by spending two Actions at once, Position to change where you are located in the bout, or Rapid to get multiple hits in a single Attack or block a flurry of blows. Styles can be added to your moves to give additional modifiers or effects to your Action.
My character in the game I played was a big, Native American bruiser type with wrestling moves. Among his best was an Attack Stance Hold Attack that used the Clutch Technique to ensure my opponent couldn't move. What did that look like? Basically it's a mighty Bear Hug that lifts the other combatant off the ground. By combining it with one of the three Wrestling Styles I could then slam the enemy to the ground or with a different Wrestling Style, throw the other fighter across the battle area. I mostly used the throwing version and called it 'Bear Hugs and Throws the Great Salmon'! The other version was 'Bear Hugs and Hits the Great Salmon Against a Rock'. lol
My friend's character had this 'Leaping Dragon Punch' that would knock an opponent 10 spaces away, dividing that distance between vertical and horizontal movement. He hit a bad guy up 1 space and back 9 spaces, sending the thug flying out of a window. Another time he punched a crook 7 spaces up and 3 spaces back so he would hit his head on the ceiling and then go backward into a chandelier.
It was such a cool game. Sadly, I don't have that issue of RPG Magazine and I was never able to get an English translation of the rules. In fact, its almost like the game never existed. I can't find information on it anywhere, including my various Japanese contacts. Very sad panda.
The other game I really like, which is available in English (unofficial fan translation) through Scribd I believe, is SATASUPE (Saturday Night Special), which I've spoken about before on the blog. It leans more towards the Gun-Fu, over-the-top Crime Thriller side of Hong Kong and Japanese Action Films. Think Chow Yun Fat in Hard Boiled instead of Bruce Lee in Enter The Dragon. That said, the game has a number of supplements that expand the game to include Street Fighter Martial Artists, Kill Bill/John Wick type Assassins, and other elements that fit right in with the Feng Shui vibe.
This RPG is a little on the crunchie side but not overly complex. The added material fits in well with both the mechanics and setting already established. Overall, if you want to include everything Feng Shui includes and not just the classic Hong Kong/Chinese Martial Arts movies, SATASUPE would make a really good choice.
There are others, also Japanese, that I can think of but they're not truly in the vein of Feng Shui.
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