Links to some other Jade Court discussions:
http://www.jimbutcheronline.com/bb/index.php/topic,15947.0.html

I was the creator of the above. I don't want to reprint the whole thing in this post (it was very long), but it has been many months since I posted these ideas. I still haven't worked up all the rules, but some ideas about Magic Drinking were thrown around here and that might make for a good add on. My Jade Court are a cross between Wizards and Vampires - I take a lot of the Chinese legends and transmogrify them into what I consider to be something new and unique, but still feels Asian.

I will put some of the rules up in the next few days. Until then, comments?

Just shipped a package using USPS from Indiana to Nova Scotia and it was just under 2 weeks which was making me think the package was lost.  Freaks me out when I can ship to the UK, Germany, New Zealand and Spain in (usually) a week. 

Nope, that is just Canada customs.

Calgary, Alberta, Canada with absolutely no hope of ever cracking this open at my gaming table (my group absolutely refuses to consider anything but D&D 4e).

As a long time MAGE fan, I did not know if this game would unseat the WoD as my go to game for modern sorcery/urban fantasy. Considering what I saw with SotC, I just thought it would be good to mine for ideas.

Just after reading the magic section, I came to realize THIS is the magic system I was looki g for all along.

Congrats on hitting the homer. You most likely made a hardcore WoD fan drop his d10s for Fudge dice.

Excellent stuff guys. Can't wait to see the rest of the book(s).

Sounds like quite a nasty long-term antagonist since being able to retreat out of your body makes one very hard to kill. I guess that the easiest way to take these guys out would be to draw a magic circle around them without them realizing it (to keep their soul in) and THEN kill them, which would keep their soul from running away. Would something like that work?

You know, I don't know. I think I would have to see the text of the RPG before making a call on that. It's one of my problems right now. I've got to wait for the two big books like everyone else (or the PDF's - which I will get with the Preorder). It sounds like a MEAN idea.

I guess if I had to make a decision now, I would say it works...to a point. I'd have to decide how long it would take before the soul dissipates and goes to oblivion and then decide how long a magic circle lasts. If the circle dissipates quickly, the soul returns to the jar.

Still. It's a great idea and I wouldn't discount it as a possibility. Thanks for the idea. It is a very Harry Dresden thing to do. Just lets see the rules first.

I would avoid the temptation to place more than one of the originals in the same location.  Even going so far as to keep their individual locations secret from one another wouldn't be considered overkill for a psuedo-immortal (the only thing that keeps them immortal is that darned jar...modern versions might even consider a safe deposit box a good place to hide their jar).  Motivations for the cultists might extend beyond greed (ascending to what they consider a godlike state being an option) thus creating truly dedicated followers.  Using entire remote villages as followers (Serving the vamp has become a serflike responsibility) would work as well (fear/duty being the motivator).

Good point. Each of the Dragons represent one of the Chinese directions, so it would make sense if they were seperated as well - just to keep them safe. I hadn't figured out whether they would all be in China or not. But that would also make sense if a rural village were to be used as servants for the Dragon.

As for motivations beyond greed ... any suggestions? I agree - greed is not always the best motivator. It was the only thing I could think of at the time.

From a "power" standpoint, I would like to see something along the lines of pyschic domination since sex and drugs are now taken.  This would help explain how they have remained a force to be reckoned with in Communist China (maybe working with Mao to help consolidate his power?).  The best way to be invisible is to convince everyone that you do not exist.

Hmmm...domination. Great addition to the powers. It also fits the theme.

Sex and drugs (white and red) - I hadn't thought of the Red and White courts like that before. That's really cool. I kinda wish "Rock n Roll" would fit the theme.

Part 2:

RULES

This is where things get tricky. The above background should be fine, but what I need help with are Rules. What Supernatural Powers should I give them? Which ones will I need to create whole cloth? Which ones can simply be adapted?

PC CHARACTERS

Disaffected Jade Court Cultist: You didn’t know whom you were serving, but you were terrified when you discovered who or what your master truly is – an immortal vampire. It took a lot of thinking, but you must do something to bring the Jade Court down – from the inside.

ASPECTS

If anyone can offer some suggestions here (with compels), that would be great.

SUPERNATURAL POWERS

Drinking Chi: Jade Court Vampires drink Chi energy – the breath of life. It is very similar to drinking blood, but it creates no physical mark. Anyone witnessing a feeding see wisps of smoke coming from the victim’s orifices (mouth and nose typically). Draining a mortal of all his Chi leaves a dessicated corpse in its place devoid of any moisture. The skin looks and feels like leather.

Other Supernatural Powers:
Soul Drinker
Feeding Dependency
One of Inhuman Strength, Inhuman Toughness or Inhuman Speed

MAGIC

The Sight – What Does Harry Dresden See? The Soulgaze would show any sorcerer or wizard that the soul inhabiting the body is no the owner’s original soul. Jade Court Vampires will not have access to the Sight.

Thaumaturgical Rituals (6)

Although Jade Court Vampires originated from Wizards, modern vampires have little supernatural affinity for magic. They will know rituals which help them transfer souls and create other Jiang Shi, but that is all. Older Jade Court vampires such as the Dragons would be formidable foes indeed who not only have the powers of a vampire, but also the powers of a wizard.

1. Create new Jiang Shi by performing the Black Jade Ritual – Rending the Immortal Soul

2 Create new Hosts by performing the Green Jade Ritual – Rending the Mortal Soul
Either have the body nearby (easiest) or steal the soul from afar by having something very personal. But then, need to have knowledge about the person.

3. Restoring the Soul - Third Ritual – restore chi to dessicated body – have only one hour to do this – after that, the body will no longer accept any soul. It can only be controlled as a Jiang Shi

4. Questioning the Soul – ritual to speak with a soul in a jar. Can ask it questions, but whether it answers or not is another matter.

5 and 6.Two Rituals to Create the Enchantments for the Black Jade and Green/White Jade:Enchanting the Black Jade, Enchanting the Mortal Jade