Dharma Rating
Basics
| Dharma Level | Gain chi (KotE 137) | Spend chi | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | freshly killed human flesh | max 1/turn | chih-mei / hin (KotE 26-27) -4 dice on social rolls vs higher level kuei-jin |
| 1 | blood | disciple | |
| 2 | |||
| 3 | |||
| 4 | jina | ||
| 5 | "breath" | max 2/turn |
Dharma Level is a basic measure of a kuei-jin's state of awareness.
- PCs begin at level 1.
- Raising your level requires an auspicious occasion (see below) and spending XP, and is also subject to '+rules minimum time'.
- PCs cannot go above level 5. For NPCs, see KotE page 54.
- Dharma-related game mechanics common to all PCs:
- Sum of Yin and Yang is capped at 10.
- Sum of Hun and P'o is capped at 10.
- Attributes, abilities, and disciplines are capped at 5.
Auspicious occasions
Sample auspicious occasions:
- Being taught by a Kuei-jin who has mastered a high level in your Dharma
- Being taught by a Kuei-jin who holds a higher rank than yours, but in a different Dharma
- Receiving instruction from a bodhisattva
- Receiving instruction from a Yama King or similar powerful spirit
- Journeying into the spirit worlds (for the first time)
- Understanding a master's koan
- Doing something within the tenets of your Dharma that costs you something important
- Meditating for at least one week with one of the training methods
- Coming very near to death (within one Health Level of final destruction)
- Receiving an auspicious omen (Dharma-specific)
(KotE 53-54)
Resisted rolls, Dharma virtue vs P'o. Difficulty of each roll is your permanent Willpower.
- Dharma virtue wins: Gain one Dharma level.
- P'o wins: P'o takes over for one scene.
- Tie: Feel discouraged.
Submit a +request, then roll dice to the job. (+roll/job <job number>=<pool> vs <difficulty>)
- If the pools are the same, declare ahead of time whether the first or second roll will count as your Dharma virtue. (+myjob/add <job number>=<comments>)
| Dharma | Virtue |
|---|---|
| Devil-Tiger | P'o |
| Resplendent Crane | Hun |
| Bone Flowers | Yin |
| Thousand Whispers | Balance (average of highest/lowest virtue) |
| Thrashing Dragon | Yang |
Storyteller notes: It takes more than a chance occurrence to rise to the higher levels of a Way-- it takes dedication, experience and a wisdom that can come only with time. Experiences that were once wondrous become stale; if a Kuei-jin understands Zen koans easily, the riddles lose their effectiveness. That character must find new ways to open himself to Heaven's will. It is perfectly appropriate to add one to Dharma roll difficulties if the character has used the same experiences to advance before.
If your rolls do not result in a raise of Dharma, then you must wait one calendar week before submitting a new +request to try again with a new auspicious occasion.
Acts of blindness
Sample acts of blindness:
- Violating some important tenet of your Dharma
- Attempting to follow the tenets of your path, but failing in some really costly manner
- Acting in an extraordinarily egotistical manner
- Losing yourself in mortal concerns and neglecting enlightenment
- Losing yourself to the P'o (even if you belong to the Devil-Tiger path)
- Discovering that a Dharma teacher lied to you
- Being banished by a priest or other person with True Faith
- Killing an ancestor or bodhisattva
- Meeting the Little Death (torpor)
- Receiving a bad omen (Dharma-specific)
At staff discretion, they will open a query and perform the same rolls as auspicious occasions.
- Dharma virtue wins: Retain current Dharma level.
- P'o wins: Lose one Dharma level.
- Tie: May feel shame/remorse.
Falling in Dharma Rating:
- Minimum time is waived to regain rank previously held and then lost.
