world of the MIND WALKERS

[Axelmania]

I just realized for years that I perhaps wrongly thought of Mind Walk as functioning like Astral Projection where you could only sense/communicate with the real world but not actually affect it to any serious degree...

I did remember something about Hard Chi but for some reason I thought that was only affecting other Mind Walkers...

Reading the ability, however, it doesn't appear to have any such restriction. You don't inflict NORMAL physical damage from attacks, but it seems like Mind Walkers are fully capable of hurting people IRL using Hard Chi, One Finger Chi, or attacking them via Negative Chi Attacks.

MW in standard positive chi would be somewhat balanced by the ability to die from Negative Chi attacks. So if you go around killing bad guys or healing good guys, eventually some villain with the ability to make negative chi attacks can come destroy you. It is much more dangerous because whereas getting reduced to 0 chi normally just stops you from healing, reaching 0 chi as a Chi Spirit DESTROYS you.

MW in negative chi mode seems a lot more dangerous. There is no "positive chi attack" inherant ability, after all. So you can only be harmed by damage via Hardened Chi / One Finger Chi and that other instant-death one. Of course you can parry or roll-with-blow to mitigate these. Of course there is a martial art technique which allows positive chi to be put into the sword, which sort of balances things, since that isn't a treat to those of positive chi, AFAIK.

Another balancing mechanism is the very low speed. Spd 2 means it would be very hard to run away from somebody out in the open. Using terrain would be the best tactic. If you move through a wall, for example, someone with a melee attack capable of hurting chi spirits would have to move around (or knock down) the wall to get at you.

Probably the best tactic would be to sink into the ground itself, since grounds are like infinite walls. This wouldn't be an uber-defence if you weren't fighting at ground level though, like if you were a chi spirit flying through the air, or at the top of a tall building.

Teleportation is very cool, but needing 1 minute of prep doesn't make it seem like a good instant-getaway a in a lot of situations. It might be good if you could get some down time (say by floating through a wall into a thick bank vault) and it would take an enemy a while to get at you.

The only thing I'm not sure about teleportation-wise is the Reformed Demon. When listing the ability to teleport in pure negative chi it does not mention needing 4 melees (1 minute) to charge the ability. It says "instantly" but then so does Mind Walk, so it may just refer to the transition time but not the prep time. At bare minimum something like this should cost a melee attack like the HU major ability...

Speaking of which... the normal Infernals don't actually mention an ability to teleport. Even though they are 'creatures of negative chi', for some reason getting unconscious knocks them into a manifested infernal form rather than a form of pure negative chi. Very strange.

Is it possible that changing to pure chi and/or teleportation is an ability gained by Reformed Demons (Shan Muo) but not possessed by regular ones?

Fox Spirits have an ability to change to pure positive chi. I can't recall a mention of their being able to teleport. It does mention they can move quickly with the flow of chi... I don't recall this being mentioned in N&SS under Mind Walk. There also doesn't seem to be mechanics. All I can figure is maybe something like adding the flow of chi to your Spd? So if there was a flow of 5 chi you could move at Spd 7 for example. Does that seem too slow?

Fox Spirits can also select Zenjorike... which makes me wonder, how would you play a Fox Spirit using Mind Walk? There doesn't appear to be anything forbidding someone in the form of a Chi Spirit by other means from using Mind Walk, but how could you leave anything at all behind if you took your chi with you?

At best maybe all that does is allow you to teleport if you can't already do it? If we assume teleportation-as-chi-spirit is a benefit unique to Mind Walk (and Reformed Demon) but not present in other forms of chi spirit unless explicitly identified?

Another weird bit: Mind Walk specifies "Soft Chi" as one of the "Chi attacks" that a Chi Spirit is vulnerable to. Specifically it is among a list which can "do damage directly to Chi".

How would that work though? Soft Chi adds a bonus to d20 rolls to parry or body flip. It doesn't mention adding a bonus to damage. Should we assume that the +1 also increases the damage of body flips?

Or could this be a situation exclusive to Taido users and the Turns/Spins/Circles ? Perhaps those get a damage bonus when Soft Chi is used and that's the only time Soft Chi enhances damage?

[Regularguy]

I wonder if the intent is to let Mind Walk be combined with Chi Zoshiki.

[Borast]

Hmm...interesting conjecture.
However, for the Negative Chi walkers, remember, if (s)he is not IN a negative chi environment, (s)he is being attacked every SECOND(?) with (if memory serves) 1D6(?) positive chi. There was a mention of this in the Undead Immortal write-up.
So, if you are considering this for a villain, make some "interesting" decorating choices for his or her lair..."Hey, Fred, you have any idea why these black and yellow lines are on the floor of some rooms and halls?"

[Axelmania]

for the Negative Chi walkers, remember, if (s)he is not IN a negative chi environment, (s)he is being attacked every SECOND(?) with (if memory serves) 1D6(?) positive chi.
There was a mention of this in the Undead Immortal write-up.

This is mentioned on 55 for Fox Spirits (from negative chi) and for positive chi for 3 others: 57 for Reformed Demons, 118 for Undead Immortals, and 124 for Damned Immortals..,.

I can't find it for any of the normal demons, including on the Infernals on 143 (the ability to turn into pure chi isn't even mentioned, but it's implied by their SDC description) which doesn't list the Reformed Demons' teleportation power.

You don't see it under Mind Walk (including Mystic China's expanded notes) or for "Evoke Animus of Pure Chi" (85) or "Detach Animus" (95) which can be done with a negative chi animus.

Paoh Chih (MC 192-3) has a positive chi animus which can be detached at 10th level, no mention of it being automatically attacked in a place of negative chi like a Fox Spirit, for example, so I wouldn't assume it or magical animi or mind walkers get auto-attacked either.