Character time, whoop whoop.
The Game: Tianxa: Blood Silk & Jade
The Publisher: Vigilance Press
Degree of Familiarity: None with this game, but it's Fate Core and I've got a pretty good handle on that
Books Required: Tianxa and Fate Core
Tianxa invites comparison to Jadepunk, since both are Fate games that take inspiration from kung fu and wuxia media. I think Tianxa comes out better. It's a little clearer about its influences, and it's a lot more well-designed in terms of kung fu and how that works mechanically. Stylistically it reminds me a bit of Feng Shui 2nd Ed.
Anyway. I'm making a character who is a martial artist and part of the kung fu underground in not-China. I actually already what style of kung fu I want; I'm going to lean into my predilections towards stealth and defense-based fighting. I think I want my character to be a sailor from a distant land, who was discovered on an otherwise empty ship drifting on the ocean. He was clearly too young to be a full member of the crew, maybe a cabin boy or something, but he was an expert sailor and skilled with rope. He caught a ride back to the mainland and took up with a mercenary company heading into the country's interior, and eventually wound up in Jiāngzhōu, at which point the GM or the other players would hook me in. My High Concept, then, is Mysterious Sailor from Another Land.
Need a Trouble Aspect, and I don't want to tie it to my strange origins. I think instead my character is believed to have killed his master. His master, Silent Pei, also traveled with the mercenary company (let's call them the Long Road Caravan Warriors), and took a shine to my character, especially his skill with rope. He taught him the Ghost Serpent Style, but then when the company got near the city of Bão Jiāng, one morning they found Silent Pei hanging from his neck in a tree. The company blamed my character, but there was no evidence against him and no one could really come up with a motive. They expelled him anyway, and Everyone Knows He Killed His Master.
I think I want a name before I go further. I'll call him No-Shadow Hai. Hai is slim, quiet, and quixotic. He has black hair, but his skin is notably lighter than a lot of the folks around here. He has light brown eyes and oddly soft hands, considering all his time working with rope.
Now the Phase Trio. I feel like the Caravan Warriors aren't pleased with him, and I would like an Aspect dealing with his master from his perspective. I'll let his Trouble carry the load of the former, and I'll take I Will Learn the Truth About Pei.
I've mentioned his skill with ropes a bunch, and I think I'd like to do something with that. I was thinking about a stunt, and I might still do that. But suppose I make it an Aspect, too. A Well-Tied Rope is as Steel, how about. And then I think I want something to kind of highlight his personality a little, too. I Could Explain; Would Anyone Listen? Sounds good.
Skillz! I get the usual Core pyramid, and Tianxa adds a new skill, Chi, which I definitely want. I think, though, that I want to put Stealth at Great. For my two Good, I'll take Fight and Chi. For my three Fair, Athletics, Burglary, and Deceive. And then four Average: Physique, Will, Provoke, and Notice.
Stunts! Now, I get an extra Refresh, which I'm encourage to use on Kung Fu, which I will. Hai is a student of the Ghost Serpent Style, a student of the late Silent Pei. I get a Form Aspect, which I'll call Silken Viper Form. I get a Technique from either of these substyles, and I can spend Refresh for more. Hmm. I know I want Serpent Strikes First (lets me use Fight instead of Notice for turn order) and I think I'll burn another Refresh for two more Techniques. I'll take Ghost Strikes the Spirit (I get bonuses against enemies with lower Chi than me), and Serpent Bites the Hand (if I defend with style, I can inflict stress immediately, which I picture as Hai catching a strike in his rope and twisting).
Umm...stunts! I want to take Garrote (inflict Choking consequence if I beat an unaware opponent's Notice with a Stealth action). I take one called Tethered (+2 to Defend with Athletics if I have a rope handy, the idea being I can use it to anchor myself). And, finally, I'll take The Sea's Secrets (+2 to Create an Advantage with Lore if I can frame it as a sailor's yarn).
And...that's it. I would totally run this game, this is pretty baller.
