Atemi and Advanced Atemi:

                Atemi and Advanced Atemi:

THE VITAL POINTS If you’ve ever hit the “funny bone’ in your elbow or knee then you already know what Atemi is all about. A proper strike in the right area can paralyze limb, disrupt the nervous system or knock someone out altogether. These vulnerable points that can be used to affect the body and mind in numerous ways. Each Atemi ability can be used only with the form where the atemi skills an available. In other words, if you get an Atemi ability through Aikido, you can not use the ability with any other form; only with Aikido.

Healing Atemi or Duatsu: Includes a thorough study of the art of acupuncture (healing by inserting needles into the body). The result is the ability to resuscitate a character by touch alone. Duatsu can be used to instantly reverse the effect of any other Atemi attack, except Dim Mak! It can also be used to snap a character out of a Knock-Out, Stun, Paralyze or any other form of temporary shock. It only takes one melee round attack/action to perform Healing Atemi. Note: Healing Atemi does nor restore hit points, SDC. or Chi.

Neural Atemi or Kyosho: The ability to touch and paralyze different parts of the body. The character must declare which body part is to be paralyzed and makes a successful strike (is not dodged or parried). When hit by a successful Kyosho “paralysis” punch/touch, the attack does no damage, but automaticaily (victim cannot Roll with Punch/Fallllmpact) paralyzes the specified limb. It takes 2d6 minutes (8 to 42 melee rounds) to recover the feeling in a paralyzed hand, arm or leg.

Paralyzing an enemy’s entire body is also possibie. The attacker using Kyosho must first make two successful paralyzing touches on the same opponent. A third paralysis touch will completely immobilize one’s opponent for 206 minutes. For example: The first Kyosho paralysis punch paralyzes his opponents left arm, the second punch is blocked the third dodged the fourth paralyses the right leg. That’s 2 successful Kyosho punches (out of 4 attacks). The next punch strikes the opponent in the neck, a third successful Kyosho neural Atemi, and the opponent falls over completely paralyzed.

Blood Flow Atemi or Chirigi: Damage from this kind of skill is done direct to hit points, bypassing any of the victims S.D.C. A successful attack is one that has not been parried or dodged and the roll to strike is no less than 9. Normal Strike bonuses are allowed. This attack must be done directly with a fingertip attack or fore-knuckle strike. Forms without these strikes can not take Blood Flow Atemi. Attacks do 1D8 damage with no bonus to Damage allowed.

Grasping Band Atemi or Kansetsu Waza: The character can, at will, dislocate the joints of any opponent. These are damaging bone-locking techniques that have been outlawed by most martial arts. The attacking character must first Succeed in a hold or joint lock maneuver. The victim takes no damage on the first attack/action that melee of the hold, But the rest of that melee and subsequent melees, this hold inflicts 2D6 damage per melee round. The character also gets an additional bonus of + I to damage at 2nd, 4th, 6th, 8th, 10th, 12th and 14 levels,

Open Hand Atemi: This is an attack based strictly on sound, the sound made by a single clap of the hands. There are four possible types of attacks. One possible attack temporarily deafens the victim, knocking out the sense of hearing totally for 2d6 melees, Another stuns, the victim for 2d6 melee rounds, leaving him unable to do any more than defend himself (all dodges, parries, and rolls are -3). The third throws the opponent off balance, and knock’s the opponent to the floor, but does no physical damage. The victim knocked down, loses is one melee attack and initiative.

Finally, there’s the sonic wave attack which does damage directly to the character’s hit points. This attack does 1d6 damage to the hit points of one’s opponent (no damage bonuses allowed). This attack also temporarily deafens the character for 2d6 melees.

All Open Hand Atemi attacks must be made relatively close to the victim, with the actual ‘clap” no more than two feet away (0.6m). Because of the unexpected nature of the attack, there is always a + 4 to strike from the first Open Hand Atemi attack. There is also no way for the victim to Roll with Punch/Fail/Impact. The Open Hand Atemi can be used equal to the number of attacks per melee. Note: Temporarily deafened victims arc-1 to parry and dodge, and can not defend against sneak attacks or hear warnings or other danger signals.

Withering Flesh Atemi or Iken hisatsu: This attack literally knocks out a victim’s natural S.D.C., leaving them vulnerable to attacks directly on hit points. The victim can attempt to Roll with Punch/Fall and, if successful, reduce the damage to only 2d6 S,D.C. Othenvise, the first successful Iken Hisatsu punch leaves the victim with h (½) his sac, The second punch reduces the S.D.C. to ONE point. This attack never does any damage to hit points.

Dim Mak: Available to characters with the Tien-Hsueh Martial Art Form automatically. One of the most insidious attacks in the history of martial arts, a successful Dim Mak dooms the victim to a slow and wasting death This works by disrupting the body’s natural ability to regenerate chi and therefore loses the ability to heal. Gradually the victim’s thi wears away to zero. At zero chi the victim can not recover S.D.C. or hit points, becomes more and more vulnerable to injury, disease and death. Unable to heal themselves, the characters are in serious peril and a legendary cure must be sought.

Characters must use a one finger attack in order to deliver the Dim Mak. Strike. Parry and Dodge rolls work in the usual way. If successfully parried or blocked Dim Mali is avoided. If the parry or dodge roll fails the character is struck, but can try to roll with the Dim Mak attack to avoid full damage. A successful Roll with Punch/Fallllmpact means the victim takes one (1 point of damage, plus the attacker’s damage bonus, direct to hit points, but is not afflicted by Dim Mak.

NOTE:' Character’s with good alignments will never use Dim Mak. It’s just too evil. See the Game Master Section for finding a cure to Dim Mak'

Long-Distance Dim Mak: Exactly like regular Dim Mak (see Ninjas & Superspies), except direct physical touch is no longer required. Unlike regular Dim Mak, where the attacker just needs to make a standard strike, a successful Long-Distance Dim Mak takes a full melee round of concentration (no other combat or Chi activities) and a roll to strike of a natural 15 or better (no bonuses allowed).

There are two ways that a Long-Distance Dim Mak can be delivered. First, if the victim is within 1000 feet (3) in) of the Tien Hsueh Master and in clear sight, the Dim Mak can be sent through the floor, wall, or any other solid object that both the victim and the attacker are touching; it will pass right through shoes, gloves or other protection.

The other possible delivery method is the telephone. If the victim can be made to stay on the line for the full melee round (IS seconds; while the attacker concentrates and says nothing), the Dim Mak can be delivered across great distances.Of course, the trick is to figure out some way to get the intended victim to stay on the phone for the fifteen seconds needed to focus the at tack, because the attacker can’t talk while concentrating. There are various tricks, including calling from a line with two phones and getting a confederate to talk to the victim, asking a question that will require the victim to make a very long answer, or just saying, “Oh, I have someone at the door, can you hold for a min ute?”

Note: Recently certain Dim Mak experts have discovered that the telephone delivery method is not 100% certain. Upon investigation, they have discovered that it always works when the connection is through lines and wires. However, if somewhere between the Dim Mak attacker and the victim there is a micro wave connection (some long cross-country lines), radio (mobile or wireless phone), a satellite link (trans-continental lines), or an optical cable (certain high-tech installations and some modem cities have replaced wires), then the Long-Distance Dim Mak can’t work.

The build-up of concentration required to launch a Dim Mak attack gives the victim a chance to realize that they are in danger. Any character with any Chi Mastery will have their Chi Awareness tickled” (the Game Master should say something like, ‘You sense some kind of change in the surrounding flow of Chi or ‘You suddenly feel a dark cloud around you.” Characters with any psionics will get a ‘bad feeling” or a feeling of danger. Others should be allowed to roll under their MA. on twenty-sided dice (no bonuses allowed) and, if successful, they will be aware that “something, you don’t know exactly what, but something is definitely wrong.”

Characters being attacked by Long-Distance Dim Mak can attempt to dodge, with all their usual bonuses, but only if they are aware of the direction of the attack or who is attacking. If the at tack is successful, the victim can try to avoid the Dim Mak and any other damage by rolling with punch/fall/impact.

Note:'' Characters with good alignments will NEVER use Long-Distance Dim Mak. It’s just too evil.

Enlightenment Strike: In a two-handed move, the martial artist pushes his palms toward the victim, pulling the hands apart an instant before they would contact the face. The result is that the victim will instantly be freed from any possession spell or entity, Chi Control or mind controlling spell. The move uses up ALL the actions/attack of an entire melee round and must be done within striking distance from the victim.

Blindness Strike: A precise two-finger strike to a point just below the victim’s eyes. It causes a total blindness that persists for 1d10 hours! The roll is so difficult that the atemi expert must roll 14 or better to strike, with no bonuses allowed. A miss or if the victim manages to parry or dodge means there is no damage or blindness. If the victim manages to roll with punclVfalllimpacc, then the blindness will only last 3D6 melee rounds. A blind character is -10 to strike, party and dodge and must travel at half speed to avoid stumbling and falling (and possibly getting hurt).

Chi Block Strike: This is a strike that disrupts the victim’s ability to control his own Chi. Once disrupted, the Wctim is blocked from doing anything that requires Chi, including Chi combat, Chi magic, and even Chi-Gung Body Hardening. It will take 2D6 minutes of intense, uninterrupted concentration, or 1D6 minutes of continuous meditation for the victim to regain control over Chi.

A successful Chi Block requires a roll to strike of 10 or bet- ter, without benefit of attribute and combat bonuses. The oppo nent can attempt to patty or dodge and, if successful, will avoid any damage. If the victim manages to roll with punclilfallfam pact, instead of the Chi Block, the character will lose 31)6 Points of Chi (Positive or Negative, whichever the victim is currently charged with).

Since the exact location of the “Chi Control Center” is differ ent from person to person the atemi expert must observe his op ponent before attempting this attack. If the adversary is seen engaging in combat or in any fonn of Chi control, it will only take a single melee round to discover the exact spot. Otherwise, if the victim is simply engaged in normal activities (eating, walking, sleeping, etc.), the atem, expert will need to observe the victim for at least ten minutes.

Tien Hsueh Amnesia: This ability will not work in com bat situations. Victims must either be willing and passive partiç pants, or must be rendered unconscious before the Tien Hsd Amnesia can begin.

Short-Term Amnesia: If successful, the victim will forget all the events of the preceding 1D6+5 minutes. Note: The memories of the “lost” time will NEVER be recovered. It will be as if the character never experienced the events of that time period. This is the only Tien Hsueh Amnesia that is permanent. Traditionally, Short-Term Amnesia is done on those who have witnessed either the forbidden or the horrific, and when the victim volunteers to have hk memory ‘erased’ forever.

Alignment Amnesia: The victim remembers everything, in cluding his or her name and previous life, but somehow “for gets” his/ber alignment/moral view of life. To those who can detect alignment, the character will seem uncommitted and un formed, as if he had never figured out what alignment to be come. Usually this is used as a means of infiltrating an enemy group (i.e.: it allows ‘good” alignments to sneak into evil groups, or “evil” alignments to pass undetected among princi pled and scrupulous). Lasts 1D6 days.

Full Amnesia: The victim remembers absolutely nothing from his or her life previous to the Tien Hsueh, nor any shred of identity. Although the character still has all hisTher usual skills, abilities, and bonuses, he/she won’t remember what they are (they just occur when needed). Because of the total loss of memory, the victim is easy prey for anyone who wants to ‘fill in” their memory. The amnesia lasts three hours per experience level of the character who caused the amnesia in the first place.

Finger-Snap Tien Hsueh: The sharp sound from this special “snap” of the fingers disrupts the victim’s inner ear and he loses all sense of balance. Finger-Snap Tien Hsueh attacks must be made close to the victim, so the ‘snap” takes place no more than 3 feet from the ears; closer is better. To succeed, the attacker must roll a natural 8 or better to strike, with no strike bonuses of any kind allowed.

After being affected by Finger-Snap Tien Hsueh, the victim can still think normally and perform most skills and other actions, but he cannot stand, walk or make sudden movements. If the character lays on the floor, is seated solidly, or stands with their back anchored against a wall, he will be comparatively okay. However, every time the character attempts to stand unassisted, walk, turn, or make a sudden movement, a wave of dizziness comes over him and he’ll lose his balance and fall down. Note: Even when “propped up,” the Finger-Snap victim is -3 on initiative, -7 to dodge and cannot kick, leap, or turn quickly without falling over.

There is no defense against Finger-Snap Tien Hsueh, except wearing noise-proof ear plugs or being in the middle of a rock concert or similar noisy environment. There is also no way for the victim to roll with punch/fall/impact. Recovery takes 3D6 minutes, although a Healing Tien Hsueh can cure the problem instantly.

Puppet Dance Tien Hsueh: The first step for the attacker is to get a good grip on the back of the victim’s neck. This can be done with any sort of combat “grab” orjust by moving a hand into place when the intended victim is unaware or helpless.

Once the attacker has a hand on the back of the victim’s neck, it takes another roll to strike (normal bonuses allowed) and a single melee action for the Puppet Dance Tien Hsueh to be activated. The victim has one last chance to dodge/pull away, but there is no possibility of a roll with punch/fall/impact.

Mastering complete puppet control over his victim usually takes about one full melee round of experimentation with finger pressure. The puppet victim is completely aware but helpless. The attacker maintaining the puppet hold can manipulate his vic tim like a living puppet via pressure from his finger on the neck

— the perfect hostage hold. The victim can be made to walk, skip, dance, open doors, or otherwise move around. The arms can be made to move, gesture, pick up or drop objects, scratch, point, etc. Even the face can be made to change gestures, with forced smiles, frowns, winking and blinking, mouth movements and the like. In fact, the only things the Puppet Dance can’t do is get the victim to speak, although humming and grunting are possible. The victim can be forced to fight, but such actions will be terribly slow and clumsy. Note The puppet has only two melee actions per round and has no combat or attribute bonuses avail able (natural rolls only). Skill performance is at -60%.

As long as the Tien Hsueh expert maintains the hold, the victim will be manipulated like a puppet. However, the attacker cannot perform any other Tien Hsueh, cannot use Chi, and will have difficulty in combat because he’ll be distracted by the ma nipulation of his puppet (- attack per melee round, -2 on initiative and -2 to dodge). The attacker can continue to talk normally, walk around (with the victim), and use the other hand to fight, parry, shoot, or perform skills (one-handed of course).

Once the hold is released, the victim will be instantly back in charge of his/ber own body and will remember (and resent) hav ing been manipulated.

Bakusai Tenketsu (Breaking Point Technique)

Everything in the world, living or not, has one vulnerable point, the ‘Breaking Point,” whether it be boulder, frog, cricket, or, yes, the human body. However, this version of the Breaking Point Technique is incomplete as it was designed by ancient Chinese martial artist miners; it only works against stone. Against stone, the character could bring down a mountain if they so choose! By interrupting the flow of Chi at a key point, the structure of an object can be disrupted. It takes 1 point of Chi (negative or positive) to use the Breaking Point in its most basic form. When striking a stone target, the character can shatter 6D6x10 lbs. of stone (it explodes in a cloud of shrapnel--doing 2D6x10SDC/MDC in MDC worlds to all within 10 feet) per 1 Chi (3D6x10 SDC to stone targets).

Once the character has mastered the Breaking Point, the second function of this technique is revealed. Since every time the character uses the ability they are at ground zero of an explosion of stone and shrapnel, they become much tougher! The character gains +5 PS, +2 PE, +100 SDC, and any blunt, kinetic attack (hand to hand attacks, blunt melee weapons, etc.) do 1 point of damage for the first two dice in the attack. (Also, the character is never banned by his own use of the Bakusai Tenketsu)

Example: Ryoga is hit by Ukyo for 2D8 damage. Since he is a practitioner of Bakusai Tenketsu, he takes 1 point of damage per die, for a total of 2 SDC regardless of what Ukyo rolled. However, if she hit him for 4D6 damage, Ryoga would take 2 points for the first two dice, and whatever was rolled for the second two dice.

Because the character still takes damage, however minimal, they can eventually be worn down in an attack (this is how Ranma would usually beat Ryoga--hit him enough times in the same place, and he would eventually fall down).

Bakusai Ten-Satsu (“Breaking Point Kill”)

This hideous and debilitating variant of the Bakusai Tenketsu was accidentally discovered by an enemy of Ryoga Hibiki, Ryo Muhoshin (at least, in two known universes it was). Muhoshin had devoted his life to the defeat of Ryoga and had determined that the best way to do it was to beat him at his own game—learning how muse Ryoga’s weapons, Ryoga’s moves, even Ryoga’s attitude, against him. To beat Ryoga, he had to know Ryoga better than Ryoga knew himself.

In his training, he found that the Bakusai Tenketsu did work against bone, a substance with enough calcium in it to be affected by the stone-shattering aspect of the power. The problem with the Bakusai Tenketsu was that it worked by touch, forcing Clii into the pattern of an object through the medium of touch, making such an attack utterly useless against living beings; after all, there was all that soft tissue in the way.

Muhosh’m noticed that Ryoga could channel the Bakusal Tenketsu through his umbrella by treating it as an extension of his own body. Through extensive and harsh training, Muhoshin duplicated this feat and then went one better: by attaching a sharpened spike or needle to the umbrella’s tip, he could use the umbrella as a piercing weapon (like a spear). Then, when the spike would hit an opponent’s bone, he would channel Chi through it, shattering the bone like fragile china. This method of combat became even more dangerous when used against a particularly vulnerable spot like the skull or spine. Only two of the megaverse’s “Ryo Muhoshins” are thought to know this technique; one of them has since been reduced to little better than a vegetable, and the other has reformed,

Author’s Note: Complicated? Read “ Series and “The More Things Change/The Pursuit of Happiness You’ll be glad you did.

Of course, a true Hibiki would never use the Baskusai Tensatsu training they so arduously pursue for such an evil purpose; however, they do feel that the best way to keep the Bakusai Ten-Satsu out of the hands of people who would misuse it is to keep it safely within the family. Most Hibikis who learn this technique do so entirely on their own, by accident (much as Muhoshin did), and then only find out where it really came from after questioning an elder.

By spending five Chi a user of the Bakusai Ten-Satsu (who must be of an alignment worse than Scrupulous, and an Unprincipled Hibiki will only use this move for self-defense) may charge a piercing weapon (a spike-tipped umbrella is traditional) with destructive force. If the strike against a target is an unmodified 17-20 (natural 20 only for head and spine shots), and is not parried or dodged, then the Bakusai Ten-Satsu takes effect; otherwise the Chi is simply lost and the weapon must be recharged. The strike on a Bakusai Ten-Satsu acts precisely as a called shot, hitting whatever portion of the victims anatomy is desired.

The victim is permitted a saving throw to avoid the worst effect If successful, the target merely takes an extra three dice of damage from the weapon (ie; if the weapon normally did 1D6 SDC, it does 4D6 SDC on this strike) and a small hole is cored through the bone struck (it will heal in a few days); the shot wasn’t precise enough to trigger a breaking point. If unsuccessfu’, too bad--they had more than enough chances already.

An unsuccessful save means that the bone’s breaking point was triggered, shattering the bone into fragments and flechettes; this strike inflicts 1D4x 10 SDC damage (which cannot “spill over” into HP) and an extra 3D6 damage straight to hit points. In addition, the bone struck is broken so badly that heavy medical care (or magic healing) is required to repair it; otherwise, that bone is rendered permanently useless--and whatever it was supporting. Bakusai Ten-Katsu strikes near vital organs may have more dangerous effects (a saving throw versus Coma/Death would not be inappropriate). A shot to the skull or spine grants +5 to the save (the skulls plates are flexible and strong and the spine is mostly nerve tissue and fluid); if failed, let your sickest desires as GM take over--an instant frontal lobotomy or life in a wheelchair are the kindest things you can do.

As a final note, there are over two hundred bones in the average human body (though most of them are in the hands and feet) and a Bakusai Ten-Satsu strike is necessary for each and every one of them (with some exceptions--an exploding bone will likely destroy very small surrounding bones).

Oshi Kyusho or Atemi Deafness Strike

This is a precise one finger strike directly behind the lower portion of the victim's ear. It causes a disruption of the ear drums and temporary deafness. This deafness lasts for 1D6 hours! The strike is so difficult the atemi expert must roll a 14 or better to strike, with no bonuses to strike. A miss or if the victim manages to parry or dodge, means there is no damage or deafness. If the victim manages to Roll with Punch/Fall/Impact then the deafness only lasts for 3D6 melee rounds! A deafened character loses initiative, and is -6 to strike, parry, and dodge. Victims also take an additional 1D6 damage each melee round for 1D6 melee rounds due to damage to the ears.

Advanced Atemi Abilities: Nerve Destruction

This is a combination of Neural Atemi and Tamashiwara. In a nerve destruction attack an opponent's nerve clusters are struck hard enough to permanently disable them. A nerve destruction attack must be a fore-knuckle fist and the first (and only) attack of the melee round. The character chooses one of the opponent's limbs (arm or leg) and must roll a natural 14 or better to strike. If successful the opponent takes (1D6 + bonus) damage and the targeted limb is disabled for a number of days equal to the amount of damage taken. If the amount of damage the opponent takes is greater than his P.E. then the limb is permanently disabled. There is a (100-amount of damage)% chance that the damage can be repaired through surgery. If the attacker misses (Rolls 4 or less, or the attack is dodged.), he takes 1D6 damage and the arm used in the attack is hyperextended at the shoulder and elbow.

Kotegaeshi or Paralyzation Defense Atemi

This defensive technique allows the character to perform a paralysis attack (as per N&S rules, page 132) in place of a parry, as a countermove against the following Holds and Locks; Arm Hold, Finger Lock, Wrist Lock, Arm Lock, and Elbow Lock. It costs one melee action to do and is considered a defensive move for the purpose of combat (which means a tie allows this move to be performed successfully).

Koe Joumae Atemi (Voice Lock Vital Point)

A precise strike to the neck that prevents a person from speaking. For this to be successful a Natural roll of 12 or better must be made. If successful, the target loses their voice until Healing Atemi is used to reverse the effect. If the target manages to successfully Roll with

Punch/Fall/Impact the target only loses their voice for 3D6 melees.

Kagyaku Kyusho or Atemi Pain Strike

This is a debilitating attack used to distract and impair the target. On a successful strike the victim must make a saving throw vs painA successful save means the character has managed to overcome the pain and can continue to function at an impaired level for 1D6 melee rounds +1 melee per level of experience. Reduce speed by 40%, melee attacks/actions are reduced by half, skill performance is -30% and reduce all combat bonuses and maneuvers by half. These penalties remain in effect for 2D6 melee rounds. Note: The character can try to roll again to save vs pain when the above time elapses. Another successful roll means he or she can continue for another 1D6 melee rounds +1 melee per level of experience. However, pushing oneself like this can cause greater injury and damage. A failed roll means he can not continue, collapses and falls unconscious for 1D6 minutes. When he awakens he suffers from the full range of penalties from pain and can not roll to save vs pain again for this injury.A failed roll generally means that he succumbs to the pain and is either incapacitated by it -- kicking and screaming or just pass out. The character will pass out on a saving throw result of 1, 2, 3, or 4. If conscious the pain is incapacitating: Reduce speed by 30% and then an additional 1D6x10%, melee attacks/actions are reduced to two (or one if the character has less than four attacks), skill performance by half and all combat bonuses and maneuvers are reduced to zero; no initiative. These penalties remain in effect for 2D6 minutes. Pain medication will dull the suffering considerably, but clouds one's mind and abilities so the penalties remain in effect.

Atemi Abilities: Er Qiao An Xi Tien Hsueh (2 Strike Knockout Atemi)

This is exactly what the name says, a 2-part atemi strike that produces unconsciousness in the target. To use this attack the character must make 2 consecutive strikes within the same melee round, each roll to strike must be a natural 9 or better. If successful the unconsciousness lasts 2d6 melees.

Atemi Abilities: Burning Pain

The character is able to strike the victim's nerves in such a way as to cause great pain, but little actual damage. Requires a natural Strike roll of 13 or better. If successful, the victim must roll a saving throw versus Pain ( 13+), or be incapacitated for as long as the attacker maintains the hold, plus 1D4 melee rounds after release.

Jua Jin (Grabbing the Muscle/Tendon) –

The martial artist learns the best points at which to grab the surface muscles and tendons of the body, and trains in the grips best suited to ripping those fibers from their moorings. The character may choose to attack an arm, leg, or the neck. For arm or leg attacks, a called shot is required (15 or better, plus bonuses). If successful, the strike does normal damage directly to hit points, and the target receives penalties appropriate for the torn muscle or tendon (see Nightspawn, or 'Bane if you must, p. 39). A Jua Jin attack to the neck is essentially a Death Blow attack, and is treated as one, except hat the character's required Death Blow roll is reduced by one (ie, if you have Death Blow on natural 20, a 19 is ok...).Limitations - the Jua Jin attack can only be performed with a claw hand strike. At the GM's option, the Crushing Grip Body Hardening Exercise or a minimum PS or Hard Chi expenditure (yes, Hardened Chi works just fine with Jua Jin) may be required.

Reiki - Atemi Ability

Prerequisite: Duatsu/Healing Atemi Atemi Ability - Reiki - An advanced form of Duatsu/Healing Atemi (but NOT an Advanced Atemi Ability), Reiki blends the principles of Duatsu with a low form of Chi-Atsu to allow the character to heal damage to the body or Chi by hand. One point of SDC/Hit Point damage or Negative Chi infection can be cured per minute of Reiki massage. A character can perform up to his/her PE in minutes of Reiki massage before requiring rest, and each minute drains him/her of one point of Chi (which must be Positive).

Chian Hsi Tien Hsuh (Seal the Breath Vital Point)

When this atemi point is struck, it interferes with the target's ability to breath. There are three different points, with three different levels of effect. The first requires a Natural 12 or better to hit, and reduces the targets effective P.E. to 3/4 of what it originally was. The second requires Natural 15 or better to hit, and reduces the targets effective P.E. to 1/2 of what it originally was. The third requires a Natural 18 or better to hit, and reduces the targets effective P.E. to 1/4 of what it originally was. This lasts for 1D4 hours. If the target manages to successfully Roll with Punch/Fall/Impact this is reduced to 3D4 minutes.

Atemi Abilities: Ullu Varman (Muscle Vital Spot)

When struck this atemi causes a sharp, painful contraction in a muscle. To use this attack the character must declare that a limb is being struck. If successful the opponent loses use of the target limb for 1 melee.

Thodu Varman ( Minor Deadly Spot )

When this atemi is struck it produces a short shock to the central nervous system. If the attack is successful the opponent must save vs. Pain or lose their next action. The roll to strike for this ability is a natural 11 or better.

Shokkaku no Shibireru or Atemi Touch-Numbing Strike

This is a strike to one of many nerve clusters which handle the sense of touch. This loss of feeling persists for 1D6 hours, but is often unnoticeable. While this strike is difficult, it does not require as

precise a target as many other atemi strikes, and only requires a called shot of 12 or better to succeed. A miss or if the victim manages to parry or dodge, means there is no damage or loss of touch. If the victim manages to Roll with Punch/Fall/Impact then the loss of touch only lasts for 3D6 melee rounds! A character who has had this ability used on him is -5% to perform skills, and as this is a strike that can be done multiple times, the effects are cumulative, with four successful strikes of this type adding a -1 to all combat rolls in addition to the skill penalty.

Roua Kyusho or Atemi Mute Strike

This is a precise one finger strike directly to the throat, above the larynx of the victim. It causes a disruption of the larynx and temporary loss of speech. The loss of speech lasts for 1D6 hours! The strike is so difficult the atemi expert must roll a 14 or better to strike, with no bonuses to strike. A miss or if the victim manages to parry or dodge, means there is no damage or loss of speech. If the victim manages to Roll with Punch/Fall/Impact then the loss of speech only lasts for 3D6 melee rounds! A mute character cannot speak and must find another way to communicate. Characters made mute in this manner are likely to be shocked and panicked, making them -2 to strike, parry, and dodge, but only for one melee round.

Release

The attacker manipulates the victim's pressure points in such a way that the victim either vomits or defecates or urinates, ( this is a real-life ability BTW ). This attack requires a natural Strike roll of 14 or better. The attacker chooses the effect. If the attack is successful, the victim loses initiative, and 1D6 melee actions.

Yang Qi Bi Tien Hsueh (Positive Chi Block Vital Point)

This is a more selective version of the Chi Block Tien Hsueh. It only prevents the target from using positive chi. For this to be successful a Natural roll of 12 or better must be made. If the target manages to successfully Roll with Punch/Fall/Impact the chi block is not

succesful, but the target loses 4D6 positive chi. (For more information see Mystic China page 150.)

Yin Qi Bi Tien Hsueh (Negative Chi Block Vital Point)

This is a more selective version of the Chi Block Tien Hsueh. It only prevents the target from using negative chi. For this to be successful a Natural roll of 12 or better must be made. If the target manages to successfully Roll with Punch/Fall/Impact the chi block is not

succesful, but the target loses 4D6 negative chi. (For more information see Mystic China page 150.)

Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms

This is a series of Atemi point Strikes that closes off sixty-four specific chakra points (tenketsu) on an opponent's body effectively eliminating their ability to use chakra( PPE, ISP, CHI) for quite some time and making it quite difficult for them to move. It begins with the closing of two chakra points, followed by four more, then eight, then sixteen, then thirty-two, and then sixty-four strikes. Each set of strikes is done at an increasing pace.

Uses all attacks for the melee round 64 hit +1d6 damage per hit can be layered with other techniques, never misses, must be first attack of the round and removes ½ of opponents (P.P.E./I.S.P./Chi) users choice 1-144 hour duration

Eight Trigrams One Hundred Twenty-Eight Palms

This Atemi power is essentially a doubled version of Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms. Like the former, it closes off the opponent's chakra points in an exponentially increasing number of quick successive strikes. Unlike the former, it closes off twice as many at twice the speed. Alternatively, it can be used to hit a great number of targets very quickly. It has a slightly different stance than the lesser form in which the upper body is slightly rotated to the right. This stance activates the characters at the edge of the sight field to begin the technique. : (100 chi to use uses all attacks for the melee round) 128hit +1d6+ps dmg per hit can be layered with other techniques, never misses, must be first attack of the round and removes all (P.P.E/I.S.P./Chi from the opponent)1-144 hour duration.

Empty Palm

This Atemi poweris similar in practice to Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms, but has a specific target rather than a general area. To perform it, the user does a palm thrust at an opponent while expelling a large burst of chi from his palm. This violently pushes the opponent away. The opponent does not need to be within his reach for the attack to be effective, this attack does no damage and bypasses armor effects are: Agony: A particularly cruel and painful attack that incapacitates its victim with pain. Under the influence of the attack, the victim has no attacks per melee, cannot move or even speak; only writhe in agony. Although there is no physical damage (no S.D.C. or hit points are lost), the pain is very real, and it will take another minute for the victim to regain his full composure. During that minute his number of attacks per melee are reduced by half, speed is reduced by half, and he suffers a penalty of — 1 to strike, parry and dodge.

Blind: Temporarily knocks out the victim's optic nerves, rendering that person quite helpless. Victims are -10 to strike, parry and dodge.

Deafness: Can be caused by manipulating the eardrum. Victims cannot hear anything, and are -6 to parry or dodge attacks from behind. In addition, the shock of suddenly becoming deaf makes them -3 to strike, parry or dodge any other attacks, and they automatically lose the initiative on all attacks while deaf.

Ecstasy: This attack is a very dangerous reversal of the Agony attack. While the Agony attack activates all of the victims pain centers, the Ecstasy power does the reverse and activates all of a victims pleasure centers. The attack creates the same effects to a targets activity that the agony attack does but does it for the opposite reasons. For the first minute, the victim will be able to do nothing but writhe in pleasure. After that initial minute, the target takes another full minute to regain full composure and during that time the number of his attacks will be reduced by half, speed will be reduced by half, and will have a penalty of -1 to strike, parry, and dodge, and has a 10% chance of victim being addicted to it per application cumulative.

The big danger of the power is not the effect the power has in combat but that some psychics have used the spell to profit off of victims similarly to the way drug dealer will addict people to drugs. They can do this by using the power for free or a reduced price and then once the person is addicted, they raise the cost of the power astronomically or make the person do jobs for them under the threat of not using the power anymore. The process of addiction takes from two to four weeks normally. The other disadvantage is that addicts of this power will get no save against the power even if it is cast on them in combat

Rumored and only whispered is that some psychics have used the powers agony and ecstasy together. For every two sessions of this, the target must save against insanity. If this power combination is used often for over two months, their pleasure and pain centers will get mixed up and whenever a person feels pain, they will feel pleasure as well (GM's choice of actual effects).

Mute: Impairs the victim's vocal cords, making speech impossible. Victims are likely to be shocked and panic, making them -2 to strike, parry and dodge for the first melee ONLY.

ORGASM: Effect: Probably the gentlest and most pleasurable incapacitation attack to date that functions by stimulating the victim's body into feeling an intense sexual orgasm. While under the power of the attack the victim will have no melee actions, can barely move, and cannot make any intelligible sounds other than a faint moan of pleasure. There is no physical damage inflicted by this attack , although the character may wish to clean their shorts shortly after succumbing to the spell's effects. After the brief incapacitation period, the victim will need another 1D4 minutes to regain their composure. Until such time the characters attacks per melee and speed will be reduced by half. They will also suffer a -1 penalty to all combat bonuses and -5% to skill performance. Only one person may be affected per use of this attack. It should be noted that although this attack suffers from a shorter incapacitation time than the Agony attack, of which it is derived, it is more sought by characters of good alignments who would not bring such pain as the Agony attack on any living creature while at the same time, totally incapacitating the victim of the attack.

Pain: By manipulating the nerve centers the psionic can induce terrible pain, shooting throughout the body. Victims are -6 to strike, parry, and dodge, and take one point of damage off their Hit Points (not S.D.C.) per each minute affected.

Paralysis: Immobilizes the motor part of the brain, causing legs and arms to stop functioning. Victims are completely incapacitated for the duration. Note: A paralyzed character can still use psionics but only if he has line of sight on his intended target. Spell casters need to speak, so they cannot cast spells while paralyzed.

PINS & NEEDLES: Effect: This unique attack causes its victim to experience the stinging "pins and needles" sensation as if the blood flow in that particular limb of the casters choice has been temporarily cut off and then restored. If used on a leg the victim will run at 1/2 speed, -4 to dodge, and have a -5% skill penalty from the distraction. Any skill requiring the use of a leg will be at -25%. If used on an arm, that particular arm will be -4 to strike and parry, and any skills requiring manual dexterity will be at -25%, other skills will only have a -5% penalty. If used on the head, the victim's face will become flush and is very distracting giving them a -1 on initiative, strike, parry, and dodge bonuses as well as a -5% skill penalty unless trying to speak in which the character has a -40% language penalty! They will also have a temporary -2 to their M.A. and P.B. as no one can take their appearance and voice seriously. Using this attack on the torso will give the victim a -2 initiative, -1 strike, parry, and dodge, and a -5% skill penalty. Also when used upon the torso, sex will be no pleasure less no matter how hard the victim tries, even if affected by the orgasm spell. On the plus side, however, any limb affected by this spell is impervious to all other pain, which can be a boon to wounded people with no anesthetics handy.

Release: The attacker manipulates the victim's pressure points in such a way that the victim either vomits or defecates or urinates. This attack requires a natural Strike roll of 14 or better. The attacker chooses the effect. If the attack is successful, the victim loses initiative, and 1D6 melee actions, must have art of offense and art of defense to gain

Stun: This attack disorients and confuses its victims. Victims forfeit one attack per melee, speed is cut by half, and the character is -4 to strike, parry, dodge, disarm, and all combat moves.

Tissue Manipulation: Affects the tissue's connecting nerve fibers which can cause a variety of effects. By irritating the nerve fibers, a victim will suddenly feel itchy, as if breaking out in a severe rash. Through endothermic manipulation the victim can also be made to suddenly feel cold or hot while everyone around him feels fine. ALL three conditions are more annoying or frightening than physically impairing. In each case the victims are -1 to strike, parry and dodge.

If the attack is successful, the victim loses initiative, and 1D6 melee actions, and this attack pushes opponent back 1-100 ft per time hit.

Vital strike: this attack power can be a layered attack does no damage and bypasses armor its effects are:

Agony: A particularly cruel and painful attack that incapacitates its victim with pain. Under the influence of the attack, the victim has no attacks per melee, cannot move or even speak; only writhe in agony. Although there is no physical damage (no S.D.C. or hit points are lost), the pain is very real, and it will take another minute for the victim to regain his full composure. During that minute his number of attacks per melee are reduced by half, speed is reduced by half, and he suffers a penalty of — 1 to strike, parry and dodge.