Wu Jen (Class)

ordrose, wizard for hire, sneered. He was having a good day — a very good day. Terrorizing townsfolk was fun, made more fun because he was being paid for if, and rendered truly enjoyable since he smeared their four best champions all over the street. So when the old man with the long wispy beard and caterpillar-thick eyebrows hobbled into the street and announced his challenge, Mordrose couldn’t possibly imagine a fight worth even one spell.
“Prepare to d—”
The old man was gone. One second he was there, the next not.
“Over here, dishonorable one,” cackled a voice behind him. Mordrose turned just in time to see the old man, capering gleefully on the rooftop, launch a fiery mass of flame straight at his chin.
One of my favorite pieces of ancient history is Oriental Adventures, the first rulebook I wrote for the AD&D® game back before there was a “2nd Edition” attached to the name. It presented the game with a uniquely Eastern point of view, trying to capture the sometimes elusive feel of Oriental fantasy. It included new races, character classes, equipment, spells, and magical items, along with the first appearances of many things that later made it into the 2nd Edition rules.
Alas, time and the 2nd Edition rulebook have passed that work by. Much
Wu-jen: the Oriental mage revisited of the material in Oriental Adventures has been made obsolete or so modified by the 2nd Edition that it is hardly worth the effort of most players to make the changes needed to play in that setting today. Now, this could be mourned as a terrible loss or a big inconvenience; I prefer to see it as a golden, shining opportunity. It’s time to introduce a wu jen for the nineties.
A woo what?
Wu jen are lone wizards of awesome physical ability, strange habits, and mystical power. Wu jen were the Oriental Adventures equivalent of the standard mage, men of mysterious power who often lived as hermits and who terrified sensible folk by their mere presence. (For those who want to know, wu jen were originally a mix of Taoist hermits, Chinese sages, and the mountain hermits of Japan, among others.) The original wu jen as described in Oriental Adventures was little more than a specialist wizard with a few special powers (ki) and some amusing restrictions. Since that time, specialist wizards have cropped up all over the place, and the world has gotten more exposure to the inspired hyper-activity of Asian fantasy films. It’s definitely time for the wu jen to change.
Thus, wu jen are now wizards with a difference: wu jen are mages of physical action. Wu jen are not mages who clutch puny daggers and cower behind fighters. Wu jen are men of physical strength, weapon prowess, and mystical skill. Wu jen magic is hard and physically demanding. It’s power comes from both arcane ritual and the caster’s own strength.
Wu jen characters are available to any race also open to mages. (If your DM is trying to run an Oriental-styled campaign, check to see which races are allowed first.) Wu jen must have an Intelligence of at least 9 and a Constitution of at least 12. Characters with a 16 or greater Intelligence gain a 10% bonus on all experience earned. (A high Constitution is its own reward, as shall be seen.) Wu jen can be of any alignment. Their abilities cannot be combined with kits or multi-classed. Wu jen use the same experience tables as wizards. Wu jen start at first level with 2-5 hit points; thereafter they gain 1d6 hit points per level.
Unlike wizards, wu jen are not limited in their choice of weapons. They can use any weapon available, although they still use the wizard THAC0 progression. Like wizards, wu jen cannot wear any armor or use shields. They can use magical items available to wizards or warriors except, of course, magical armor.
All wu jen are automatically followers of a school. This does not mean every wu jen has an academy where the character trains, although some do this. A wu jen’s school is the collected wisdom of a great sage or immortal whom he has chosen to follow. Such schools are 
typically handed down in books containing work of the founding great master, along with all the commentary, debate, and expansion done by later students of that great master. (A proper wu jen is always a “student of the great master,” even if the master died 700 years ago. Only when others come to seek him out does a wu jen ever hope to become a great master himself. In any case, it is bad form for a wu jen to announce himself as a great master.)
There are five common schools that match the five elements — earth, air, fire, water, and nature. The spells of each school are listed on Table 1. In addition, the DM can create other schools that suit his campaign.
Unlike specialist wizards, a wu jen can learn only spells of his school; All other schools are strictly off-limits to the character. Furthermore, his working selection is very limited. A wu jen does not learn a massive number of spells which he keeps in a massive tome. Instead, a wu jen can only learn one spell per level regardless of his Intelligence. This spell can be of any level the character can cast.
All this may sound odd, but it is the casting of spells where wu jen truly differ. First off, wu jen do not memorize spells to cast them. They do not spend their mornings poring over spellbooks to prepare for the day’s adventure. Indeed, a wu jen has no need for a spellbook. He has already studied the writings and from that and his own mental skill has learned how to invoke the power held within the spell’s components.
Instead, a wu jen can cast any spell he knows at any time he wishes — provided he can pay the cost. For a wu jen, casting a spell is to tap into his own physical power and release the energy from within. In game terms, a wu jen suffers damage every time he casts a spell. 
The amount of damage suffered is triple the level of the spell. Casting a magic missile costs the character 3 hp, a wu jen casting a fireball loses 9 hp. These hit points lost are treated as normal damage. A wu jen can never cast a spell requiring more hit points than he has available at the instant the spell is cast. Tsao (with 4 hp) plans to cast magic missile (at a cost of 3 hp) but loses the initiative and is struck by an arrow for 3 hp damage. 
He only has 1 hp remaining — less than the magic missile requires — so the spell is impossible. A wu jen can deliberately cast a spell that reduces his hit points to exactly zero. In this case he
falls comatose and the optional rules allowing survival into negative hit points are used.
Because of the intense physical power a wu jen must store and tap from within himself, the benefits a wu jen receives from magical healing are halved (rounding up). A cure light wounds that would heal 7 hp for another character only heals 4 hp for a wu jen. Normal healing for a wu jen character is unaffected.
As with the old wu jen of Oriental Adventures, the new wu jen must also abide by a number of personal taboos. The magic drawn from within the character can be tapped only if certain seemingly trivial rituals and restrictions are observed by the character. These serve to protect the character’s inner energy from contamination. At first level the character must observe one practice; thereafter he must add another at every level divisible by five. Failure to observe these practices results in a loss of spell-casting ability for 2d4 days.
There is no set list of restrictions and players and DMs are encouraged to cre ate their own. The restrictions should be minor, features to enhance the personality of the character and not detriments to the enjoyment of play. Restrictions should also relate to the purity or cleansing of the body. Suggested observances include such as the character:
* is a strict vegetarian
* Cannot touch a dead body
* cannot touch a member of the opposite sex
* Cannot drink alcohol
* must bathe frequently (at least every other day)
* cannot bathe
* cannot wear shoes
* cannot sit facing a certain direction
As part of their mastery over the power of the self, wu jen develop over time a number of physical abilities of fantastic proportion. All wu jen are able to enter into a yogic trance. This trance is as restful and refreshing as sleep; however, the wu jen suffers no penalties to his awareness of immediate surroundings. Thus a wu jen can sense if something enters the room or camp where he is meditating and can immediately react as if he had been awake all that time. Meditating wu jen are never groggy or disoriented, nor do they sleep through events unless they choose to.
At 6th level, wu jen are able to enhance any one physical attribute (Strength, Dexterity, or Constitution) by
1d4 points for 2d4 rounds. This requires intense effort and concentration on the part of the wu jen, costing 1d6+2 hit points whenever the power is used regardless of the amount of increase or duration. The character can choose the attribute affected but has no control over amount or duration. Abilities cannot be increased beyond the character’s racial limits, but the Exceptional Strength rating for fighters is used. Any adjustments are applied immediately but are not retroactive. Increasing Constitution does not gain additional hit points. Characters can use this ability multiple times, summoning up the power once per round. Thus a wu jen could increase his Strength several times over or raise his Strength and Dexterity near simultaneously if he wants to spend the hit points.
Upon attaining 10th level, a wu jen attracts 1d4 pupils, all 1st-level wu jen, who come to study his teachings. The pupils are generally faithful unless illtreated or severely tempted (such as by a superior master). With each level they gain, there is a 5% cumulative chance of leaving to pursue their own studies. Those who leave are quickly replaced by new 1st-level pupils (unless they left due to mistreatment). Wu jen do not automatically build strongholds or attract fighting men, although they can do these things should they so choose.
At 12th level, the wu jen can leap and spring to up to 30’ in any direction, again by summoning up his physical reserves. Each leap costs the character one hit point, even if only a portion of the distance is traveled. Furthermore, the wu jen can perform a series of such leaps within a single round, up the limit of his normal movement.