So, Wu Jen Taboos?

[hushblade]

How about we have some fun and brainstorm some taboos? Ones you've played, Ones you'd like to play, Ones you have no intention of playing, but the idea is still amusing to you.

I have a few ideas to get us started:

Must always greet any non-hostile sentient being with a kiss(non-hostile before the kiss anyway)

Cannot speak in the first person

Must sell all earthly goods once per month(With the spellbook likely just being handwaved by the DM)

[FMArthur]

I accidentally dissuaded my only Wu Jen player from playing the class when I said "can't turn left" was too dumb and pop-culturey. :smallfrown:
Seriously what has to be going on in a person's head to make that a deal-breaker? Maybe she was already meta-roleplaying a Wu Jen.

[Hazzardevil]

I accidentally dissuaded my only Wu Jen player from playing the class when I said "can't turn left" was too dumb and pop-culturey. :smallfrown:
Seriously what has to be going on in a person's head to make that a deal-breaker? Maybe she was already meta-roleplaying a Wu Jen.

What's that meant to be from?

I wanted to try a Taboo of Cannot say a word somebody else has said in that conversation.

Sans things like A, and and I.

[FMArthur]

It's from Zoolander. The main character can't turn left. He can't do it at all and he has to make 270-degree right turns to go places sometimes. A plot point is that he's a fashion model who always does a right-turn pose at the end of the runway (he thinks there are a number of variations but they're all the same pose of course) and he finally reveals this new move of his at the end where he turns left. Everyone is enthralled and it saves the day. It's still the exact same pose.

[Elfinor]

I once DM'd a recurring Wu Jen NPC mostly-ally whose first (and only memorable) taboo was that he had to change gender presentation every day, made to poke fun at me voicing female NPC's.

Voice was normally my player's only cue that I was voicing a female NPC. On female days, to emphasise the fact that the Wu Jen had no disguise ranks, I'd put on a long, blonde, curly-haired wig and speak in the Wu Jen's male voice. As the campaign progressed, he improved his disguise skill and his female voice changed (in)appropriately - I still wore the wig though. It was roleplayed as a spirit curse and the Wu Jen didn't want to use Alter Self to give the spirit who cursed him the 'satisfaction' of seeing him actually change sex.

[Flickerdart]

I once DM'd a recurring Wu Jen NPC mostly-ally whose first (and only memorable) taboo was that he had to change gender presentation every day, made to poke fun at me voicing female NPC's.
That's not a taboo. A taboo means that he has to be forbidden from doing something.

[hamishspence]

"May not dress "as a man" on certain days"?

[Elfinor]

That's not a taboo. A taboo means that he has to be forbidden from doing something. I know what taboo taboo means, but in the Wu Jen's case 'must' (can't not do?:smalltongue:) do something fits as well - there's a sacrifice example in the ability description.

[Xynphos]

Cannot carry odd amounts of coinage.

Cannot sit down until everyone else in the room has.

Cannot grapplehug dire mongoosesrabbits.

[Vizzerdrix]

I've always wanted to play one that had to clang symbols and sing. Everywhere. All the time.

[FMArthur]

Taboos might be a funny roundabout way of doing vampire weaknesses; can't touch direct sunlight (carry a parasol!), can't cross rivers, approach garlic or crosses, go too long without drinking blood, etc. You could use it in combination with one of the races that provides vampire-like benefits but fails to account for weaknesses to form a more complete interpretation of the vampire without being any of the 'true' vampire races with awful level adjustments and such.

So you could be an elan Wu Jen with these and it would work as a creative reimagining of old vampire lore. In terms of playability, it's also nice that it doesn't fill the world with unusual instant death hazards for you, just temporary loss of powers.

[nedz]

Taboos might be a funny roundabout way of doing vampire weaknesses; can't touch direct sunlight (carry a parasol!), can't cross rivers, approach garlic or crosses, go too long without drinking blood, etc. You could use it in combination with one of the races that provides vampire-like benefits but fails to account for weaknesses to form a more complete interpretation of the vampire without being any of the 'true' vampire races with awful level adjustments and such.

So you could be an elan Wu Jen with these and it would work as a creative reimagining of old vampire lore. In terms of playability, it's also nice that it doesn't fill the world with unusual instant death hazards for you, just temporary loss of powers.

I like this. You could even create Wu Jen PrCs which required a certain set of taboos. One of which could be a psuedo vampire. There are no Wu Jen PrCs IIRC ?