Principal Members - The Shén
CHANG’E, THE IMMORTAL IN THE MOON
Aliases: Heng’e, ChangxiIn late September or early October, on the eighth lunar month’s 15th day, Chinese, Taiwanese, and Vietnamese folk celebrate the harvest with the Mid-Autumn Festival. Families come together under the lantern light to share mooncakes full of duck-egg yolk and sweet bean or lotus seed paste, washed down with tea or cassia wine. Parents point towards the full moon and tell their children the story of the beautiful woman who lives on the moon under a cassia tree.
Chang’e is a harsh mistress. After Hou Yi, the Excellent Archer, shot nine suns out of the sky, the Queen Mother of the West Xiwangmu granted him the Elixir of Immortality. But when he began to rule the World as a cruel and selfish tyrant, his wife, the lovely Chang’e, stole his elixir and fled his vengeful arrows to the moon. There she remains. Look at the moon, now: What form does she take? Is she a toad or rabbit, forever pounding the elixir with mortar and pestle in case one day it should be needed? Or is the rabbit her companion, one of the few immortals who lives on the moon? At any rate, Chang’e represents a difficult choice. Should you strike out into the darkness for what you want or believe in, knowing you might be alone (except for a bunny) if you succeed? Chang’e says yes.
Chang’e’s Scions share her reputation for flightiness, selfishness, and superficiality, which Chang’e herself attributes to the eyes of sexism on a woman who knows what she wants and goes for it. Most famous of them is Japan’s Kaguya, bamboo princess of the moon. Chang’e doesn’t go in for fancy incarnations; she likes to appear as a Han Chinese woman wearing billowing traditional robes, shining faintly with silver light. She’s cheerful, welcoming, and likely to ask questions a little more probing than you wanted, just like your family when you see them at a holiday gathering.
Callings: Healer, Lover, Trickster
Purviews: Epic Stamina, Beasts (Rabbits, Toads), Beauty, Health, Moon
CONFUCIUS, THE MODEL TEACHER FOR TEN THOUSAND AGES
Aliases: Kong Qiu, Kong Fuzi, ZhongniNo one was more surprised than Confucius to learn Confucius had become a God. After all, he had spent a lifetime as an underemployed philosopher whose education and refinement never netted him a decent job, with a passel of students he encouraged to spend as little time as possible thinking about Gods and spirits. It was only after his death that he really blew up, kicking off a scholarly tradition — the Rújiā — known by various English names, most commonly Confucianism. This system, which recommended a government centered around a charismatic and perfect gentleman and structured like a family, dominated public life in China, Korea, Japan, and elsewhere, even to this day. During the Neo-Confucian period, wires got crossed somewhere, and to his consternation, Confucius was deified.
Confucius’s philosophy extolled family’s sanctity and primacy. When a duke told Confucius how one of his subjects snitched on his own father for stealing sheep, Confucius famously replied, “Where I come from…sons cover up for their fathers and fathers cover up for their sons.” Law and government were of little use to him if family didn’t come first. His relationships with his Scions are predictably demanding.
Confucius’s incarnations tend towards the erudite and high-class, but never quite the highest: non-tenure-track professors of hard-sell topics like literature or philosophy, second-string socialites, government apparatchiks. He’s inevitably followed by a train of students and hangers-on, which Laozi and other Daoists frequently try to sneak into to piss off Confucius, since Confucius’s temper tantrums are inevitably hilarious and often enlightening.
A strict Confucian would never presume to describe the Master as a God, or anything more than a revered sage or ancestor; but that hasn’t stopped thousands of supplicants over the course of history from earnestly and devotedly worshipping him.
Confucius frequently deploys his Scions to disabuse Cults in his honor of his divinity. Sometimes, it doesn’t even make things worse.
Callings: Judge, Leader, Sage
Purviews: Artistry, Order, Passion (Filiality)
ERLANG, THE MERCIFUL AND MIRACULOUS KING
Aliases: Li Erlang, Yang Jian, Governor Zhao YuThe True Lord and Illustrious Sage Erlang is the Jade Emperor’s nephew, but his legendary pride keeps him from spending much time in Heaven, where he feels like he wouldn’t get the respect (read: attention) he deserves as Heaven’s finest warrior; instead, he hangs around a temple dedicated to him in east China’s Jiangsu Province. During his most famous visit, he mustered an army of heroes to smack down Sun Wukong’s primate host. The clash between them started out as a field engagement which Erlang won, developed into a kaijū duel which Erlang won, and degenerated into a transformation battle which Erlang won. It ended when the Monkey King disguised himself as Erlang himself to infiltrate Erlang’s own temple and finally succumbed to Erlang’s forces, aided by Laozi. Monkey has been cool with Erlang since then; Erlang does not return his amity.
Erlang’s a good shot with any bow or crossbow, but his favorite weapon is his Three-Pointed Double-Edged Blade. With this polearm and his faithful Howling Celestial Dog, he subdues any demon who takes up arms against the Shén. His third eye can pierce truth and falsehood or discharge thunderbolts, his body is immune to nearly any attack, and his transformations are innumerable. No wonder he’s got an ego.
Erlang loves to play hero. Were he a player at your table, he’d probably turn in a stack of bluebooks of character backstory and expect everyone to read them and compliment his creativity. His mortal Incarnations undertake elaborate adventures, overcoming villains, rescuing damsels in distress, and generally doing their best to upstage anyone and everyone nearby. He relishes competition with his own Scions, turning simple Visitations into climactic duels or tests of their puissance. It’s always gotta be a whole thing with this guy.
Callings: Guardian, Hunter, Warrior
Purviews: Epic Strength, Epic Stamina, Forge, War, Water
FUXI, ANCESTOR OF HUMANKIND
Aliases: Paoxi, Baoxi, TaihaoFuxi, the great serpent with a human head, has always prioritized the care and development of humanity. He can also manifest as a more humanoid dragon-man rather than just a serpent, the better to have hands to do things with. After the flood, Fuxi took it upon himself to recreate humanity, marrying his sister Nüwa (that’s not weird if you’re a God, right?) and inventing myriad practices, crafts, and tools to keep mortals alive in a cruel World. Fuxi’s inventions include fishing nets, writing, various musical instruments, law, calendars, and the Changes Classic divination manual.
Fuxi technically retired from his Ministry of Health post long ago. He should be enjoying himself in a handsome villa with a generous pension and his sister-wife Nüwa; but he can’t keep himself out of the office. He still comes in to work every day, even though he doesn’t officially do anything, to offer advice and ideas to other Shén, some of whom find his little suggestions edifying and some of whom wish he would go home and shut up. Wherever he goes, everyone seems to know him: “Oh, it’s that guy, don’t quite remember his name, but he definitely works here, something important.”
Fuxi’s Scions are innovators in fields from cultural practice to mechanical engineering. Some join high-profile startup adventures, as they’re the type to use the verb “disrupt” unironically. They’ll look at their house falling apart around them and start talking about all the cool stuff they could build with the debris. Ever the busybody, Fuxi likes to show up and help even when his Scions have assured him they’ll be fine on their own — half out of loneliness and boredom, half because he believes there’s no problem he can’t solve.
Callings: Creator, Hunter, Sage
Purviews: Artistry (Musical Instruments, Writing), Beasts, Fertility, Forge, Fortune, Health, Order, Sun
GUAN YU, THE DIVINE GENERAL
Aliases: Yunchang; Changsheng; Shouchang; Marquis Zhuangmou; Duke Zhonghui; the Lord of the Magnificent Beard; Guan the Holy Great Deity, God of War Manifesting Benevolence, Bravery and Prestige, Protector of the Country and Defender of the People, Prow and Honest Supporter of Peace and Reconciliation, Promoter of Morality, Loyalty and Righteousness; Sangharama BodhisattvaRiding alone for thousands of lǐ, pressing on untiring towards his destination, Lord Guan arrives in a thunder of hooves. His green armor strikes fear into the hearts of the enemy. His Green Dragon Crescent Blade fells a dozen warriors with the slightest movement. His beard radiates majesty. Confucians, Daoists, Shintōists, and Buddhists all revere Lord Guan, most loyal and dedicated of all the Three Kingdoms period’s combatants. Establishments from police stations to candy stores display his image to invoke his protection, to guard their health and their fortunes. The Romance of the Three Kingdoms details his steadfast success in battle and tragic death.
General Guan represents loyalty above all else. None of Chancellor Cao Cao’s gifts and temptations weakened Guan’s devotion to his sovereign, Liu Bei. He sees his role as the general of the Shén as an opportunity to instill a loyal spirit in his subordinates and peers. He has no time for unjust warfare, or petty and selfish warmongers. Divine might, says Guan, must always be used to help others.
Wherever General Guan goes, he’s ready for action. His Incarnations tend to be protectors and commanders, from the local Better Business Bureau head to the police commissioner. He’s not afraid to show anger in his words, but he never lets wrath take the wheel from him. He isn’t pushy when it comes to his Scions’ activities, but if anyone asks, he’ll express his approval or disapproval frankly and directly. If one of them steps out of line — perhaps failing to honor an agreement, or working for the wrong guy — he asks another Scion to visit and suggest a change of course. Still, as the centuries have passed and he’s reflected on mistakes he’s made, he’s realized how much toxic masculinity colors his actions and feelings.
Callings: Guardian, Leader, Warrior
Purviews: Epic Strength, Epic Stamina, Artistry (Historical Fiction), Order, Passion (Loyalty), Prosperity, Sky, War
GUANSHIYIN PUSA, WHO PERCEIVES THE SOUNDS OF THE WORLD
Aliases: Avalokiteshvara, Hayagriva, Guanyin, Kannon, CundiGuanshiyin Pusa — Guanyin for short — is a bodhisattva, a Buddhist luminary who has postponed their own final enlightenment and exit from the chain of dependent origination in order to help all other beings achieve Buddhahood. Their original Mantle was Avalokiteshvara, lord of compassion. They are also Cundi, the 18-armed lotus-throned monster, invoked with the popular Sanskrit mantra “om manipadme hum.” The Chinese so loved Guanyin that they deified them, which confused Guanyin a good deal: While Buddhism describes many Buddhist or Buddhist-adjacent figures as divine, they don’t occupy the same station relative to the Buddhist flock as, for example, a more traditional God like Huitzilopochtli of the Teōtl does relative to his. Divinity exists in Buddhism, it just isn’t that important.
Guanyin is the World’s most popular Buddhist, exceeding even the Tathagata. They struggle to pay their Scions adequate attention because of their packed schedule answering prayers and displaying compassion towards the entirety of Great Vehicle Buddhism. Guanyin nevertheless expects one thing above all from their children: compassion. They maintain that Scions come into being to spread the blessings of Godhood, which Guanyin regards as a weird kind of privilege, to mortals in need who lack those blessings through no fault of their own.
Ever the populist icon, Guanyin favors humble Incarnations such as fishermen, mendicant monks, and sex workers, though omens such as thousands of eyes, hands, or faces sometimes set them apart. They often travel with bodyguards (sometimes including General Guan Yu himself) and her faithful white parrot. Likable and experienced in liaising between the Shén and the Buddhist community, Guanyin and her Scions often take point on delicate diplomatic proceedings between pantheons.
Callings: Guardian, Healer, Sage
Purviews: Epic Stamina, Deception, Health, Journeys, Passion (Mercy), Water
HUANGDI, THE YELLOW EMPEROR
Aliases: Gongsun, Xuanyuan, Youxiong, Zhongyue DadiThe Yellow Emperor ruled China from 2697 to 2597 BCE. He controls the center direction and the element of earth. He is a culture hero, the father of Chinese civilization, master of bears, commander of animal armies, author of classics on medicine and politics, inventor of dozens of necessities such as the calendar and clothing, and husband of Leizu the Goddess of Sericulture. Lightning among the stars presaged his birth. He has four faces, all of which could speak when he was a mere infant. Early in his reign, he warred against Chiyou and Yandi Shennongshi. He slew Chiyou in battle after a long and bitter war, but found after Chiyou’s death that he still needed Chiyou’s services as a God, and so allowed Chiyou to be deified. Later, when he fought Chiyou’s father Yandi Shennongshi, the Yellow Emperor set an example for the Shén who would one day bow to him when, instead of executing or imprisoning Yandi Shennongshi, he installed the Flame Emperor as a client king. Since then, the Shén have preferred to adopt defeated demons, Gods, and monsters into their pantheon instead of obliterating them.
Huangdi has founded so many Scions that one struggles to describe them with any common qualities other than greatness. They include the heroes Gun, Yu, Zhong, and Li; Gods such as Shujun and Yuqiang; and even entire ethnicities like the Huantou and Miaomin. Any Scion of Huangdi’s, though, should rest assured that theirs is the road more traveled. Dozens, at least, of Huangdi’s Scions are still active, ready to provide advice and trade favors with any more recent developments.
Huangdi watches current developments in Chinese government with reservation and concern, but in typical Daoist fashion prefers not to make noise or get involved. The Great Cultural Revolution hit the Shén hard; many of hem still haven’t forgiven mainland China’s Communist government for the event. Nevertheless, the Communist Party has sent representatives to participate in sacrifices and rites to the Yellow Emperor, whom they acknowledge as the founder of the civilization they recently inherited.
Callings: Creator, Leader, Sage
Purviews: Beasts, Death, Earth, Forge, Health, Order, Prosperity, War
LAOZI, THE OLD MASTERS
Aliases: Li Er, Lao Dan, Boyang, Taiqing, the Grand Supreme Elderly Lord, the Universally Honored Virtuous One, the Daoist AncestorEighty-one short poems plus commentary, originally written on bamboo strips and organized into two books called the Way Classic and the Virtue Classic, comprise the ancient Chinese text now called the Daodejing — “Way and Virtue Classic” — or the Laozi — “Old Masters.” The Daodejing is the second-most-translated text into English, after the Bible. It ostensibly concerns political theory, but fans have expanded its applications to disciplines as disparate as martial arts, medicine, and magic. Through comparisons to natural phenomena, it advocates a social and political approach to life centered on exerting as little effort as possible to achieve greatest efficacy, in accord with things’ true nature.
Few know for sure the true personae of the Old Masters who wrote it, for they obscure their identities as much as possible. Some say the Old Master was a court official, an archivist or astrologer perhaps, who wrote down his wisdom before riding a water buffalo into the west. Others call him an Incarnation of the Heavenly Lord of Way and Virtue, one of the Three Pure Ones who created the Universe. Laozi is happy to let these stories propagate, for their favorite Incarnation throughout the ages is actually a large number of grandmas, dressed however grandmas dress in China at the time, who constantly bicker amongst themselves.
Laozi’s Scions tend to be of humble birth, rarely male. They excel in positions which require subtlety: not president or king, but the power behind the throne, the campaign manager or chief of staff. Traditionally in China, many of Laozi’s Scions wound up in the Daoist priesthood based out of locations like Wudang Mountain. Laozi’s most notorious Scion is the White Eyebrow, a Shaolin monk whose research into Daoist black magic (apparently that’s a thing) got him expelled from the Monastery — and who subsequently betrayed Shaolin to the government, resulting in one of the temple’s many destructions.
Callings: Leader, Sage, Trickster
Purviews: Epic Stamina, Artistry (Poetry), Chaos, Darkness, Health, Order, Water
PRINCE NEZHA, THE MARSHAL OF THE CENTRAL ALTAR
Aliases: The Third Lotus Prince, NatakuPrince Nezha is one of those guys with no acquaintances or casual friends — just devoted allies and spiteful enemies. Nezha’s mother gave birth to a rolling ball of flesh after three-and-a-half years of pregnancy. His father split open the ball to reveal a boy who could already speak and walk, bearing a magical ring and bolt of cloth. Nezha was almost two meters tall by the time he turned seven. He antagonized the Dragon King Ao Guang, killed his third son and bodyguard, committed suicide in recompense, and became a God of healing. Ultimately his teacher Taiyi Zhenren made him a new body out of lotus roots. Now he dashes about on his Wind-Fire Wheels, flaunting his Universal Ring and his Red Armillary Sash, impaling foes with his Fire-Tipped Spear…you get the picture. Big damn hero, unless of course you ask the Dragon King.
In contrast to Erlang Shén, whose pride is a passive kind of thing that has him laying back in the cut and waiting for accolades to come (inevitably) to him, Nezha’s pride is an active force. He’s badass and he’s got lots of toys, but he’s not quite as badass as Erlang or Sun Wukong, so he has to work to make it up. Nezha’s office constantly licenses the prince’s likeness and life story for animated series, stage productions, feature films, and video games, in exchange for partial creative control and a slew of sacrifices and ceremonies.
Nezha doesn’t give a damn what his Scions do as long as he hears about it. Wanna start a wuxia battle in a nightclub? Rescue a busload of orphans from a right-wing militia? Cure cancer, but one of the cool cancers? Knock yourself out. Knock someone else out, too. Make Dad jealous. That’s how he knows you’re his kid.
Callings: Guardian, Trickster, Warrior
Purviews: Epic Stamina, Epic Strength, Artistry (Animation), Health, War
NÜWÃ , THE SNAKE GODDESS WHO MENDS THE HEAVENS
Aliases: NüguaNüwā, a great serpent with a woman’s face, was so resourceful and powerful she could have been or done anything, but she chose to care for humanity and the World it lived in. When the pillars holding up the sky collapsed, everything was in chaos. Fire, water, birds, and beasts ran rampant across the land, and none could stop them — save Nüwā. She patched the sky with colorful stones, cut off a giant tortoise’s legs to prop up the sky, fought off a black dragon, dammed the flood with reed ash, and — since she could not reproduce normally with her brother-husband Fuxi — molded humans using mud, though pieces occasionally fell off and resulted in disabilities. She taught them to arrange marriages and created wind instruments for them to play.
Today, Nüwā serves as a Divine Sovereign among the Shén, along with Yandi Shennongshi and the technically-retired Fuxi. She liaises between humanity and the pantheon due to the volume of prayers she receives. Send a random cry of need into the æther, there’s a good chance Nüwā will hear and even respond to it. Her commitment to humanity’s priorities sometimes brings her into conflict with more ruthless Shén like Laozi, who see humans as straw dogs; she once saved humanity when her father the Jade Emperor sent the God of Plague to cull humans. When she goes among humans, the “serpent with a human face” form tends to freak people out, so she more commonly looks like a smiling older woman in traditional Han Chinese clothing.
Nüwā’s Scions tend to share their mother’s selfless love for humanity and lateral thinking skills. They care deeply about humanity’s problems and are endlessly creative and brave in how to solve them.
Callings: Creator, Guardian, Healer
Purviews: Earth, Fertility, Forge, Health, Moon, Sky
SUN WUKONG, THE MONKEY AWAKENED TO EMPTINESS
Aliases: Miao Min, Tôn Ngô Không, Heng Chia, Son Ogong, Sun Gokong, Son Gokū, the Monkey King, the Great Sage Equalling Heaven, the Protector of the Horses, Sūn the Novice, the Victorious Fighting Buddha, Clever Stone Monkey, That Damned MacaqueHandsome Monkey King! He was born from a stone egg on the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit, ruling over the monkeys, baboons, gibbons, tamarins, aye-ayes, and gorillas. There is a poem to prove it:
Playful bonobos scale the branches,
Chimpanzees use sticks as weapons.
On the slopes of the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit,
Primates great and small take their leisure.
Their king, the Handsome Monkey,
Actually isn’t all that attractive.
This guy counts as a Buddha?
How is that a thing?
Chimpanzees use sticks as weapons.
On the slopes of the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit,
Primates great and small take their leisure.
Their king, the Handsome Monkey,
Actually isn’t all that attractive.
This guy counts as a Buddha?
How is that a thing?
After cultivating his conduct with a Daoist teacher, Sun Wukong made havoc in Heaven, fighting Heaven’s most distinguished warriors and generals. He stole Laozi’s immortality pills, erased his name from King Yama’s records, and generally proved himself a nuisance until the Tathagata Buddha, who happened to be visiting for a social function, trapped him under the Five Elements Mountain for 500 years to teach him a lesson. Then the Tang Priest Xuanzang snookered him, along with Pigsy and the Sand Monk, into bodyguard duty on his journey to India to fetch the Tripitaka scriptures. For his devotion, the Tathagata made Monkey the Victorious Fighting Buddha, which is apparently a real job you can have. The Chinese classic Journey to the West and its infinite adaptations chronicle Monkey’s adventures.
The Monkey King is, depending on whom you ask, either a) living proof the Shén can rehabilitate even the most troublesome and intractable monsters, b) living proof that rehabilitating the most troublesome and intractable of monsters will backfire catastrophically, or c) all of the above. Still, no one can deny he’s talented. His favorite outfit is the elaborately made-up costume that represents him in the Běijīng Opera, though he often appears as a completely ordinary monkey. His Scions tend to share his indefatigable commitment to noble goals, and his incorrigible demeanor and pranks which will leave you constantly doubting that commitment.
Callings: Liminal, Trickster, Warrior
Purviews: Epic Strength, Epic Dexterity, Epic Stamina, Artistry (Opera), Beasts (Monkeys), Chaos, Deception, Journeys, War
YANDI SHENNONGSHI, THE FLAME EMPEROR AND DIVINE FARMER
Aliases: Sinnong, Thán Nông, Entei, Shin’nō, Five Grains Emperor, Medicine KingYandi Shennongshi, God of agriculture and medicine, rules the southern direction, the summer season, and the element of fire. He was once two different Gods — Yandi the Flame Emperor, and Shennong the Divine Farmer — but Huangdi merged their offices under a single Mantle for administrative reasons. Yandi once ruled nearly half the World, but he warred with his half-brother Huangdi and lost. Huangdi was merciful to Yandi Shennongshi, though. Recognizing his genius, Huangdi assigned him to Shennong’s office, and eventually to Shennong’s Mantle. The success of this interaction set an important precedent for the Shén: Defeated enemies, if shown mercy, can be rehabilitated and become productive members of society.
The son of draconic parents, Shennong himself has a dragon’s head and a human’s body. By age three, he knew everything there was to know about agriculture, invented various farm implements, and taught the first humans the secrets of cultivation. His exhaustive surveys of wild plants revealed the staple crops called the Five Grains (rice, two varieties of millet, beans, and wheat) and gave rise to Chinese medicine via his catalogue of plants’ flavors and qualities, which nearly got him killed over and over as he tasted poisonous plants.
Yandi Shennongshi’s Scions tend towards interdisciplinary excellence, but they are rarely far from the land. Their father encourages them to look towards the needs of not only their fellow Shén and Scions, but also the common folk in the background. Don’t just stop an attacking Titan: Convince that Titan that gainful employment with their Pantheon would be a better way to spend their time. Don’t just feed the hungry: Revolutionize a nation’s farming infrastructure. Don’t just heal the sick: Cure cancer, and not just one of the cool cancers. After all, If Huangdi could take a chance on Yandi Shennongshi….
Callings: Healer, Leader, Sage
Purviews: Epic Stamina, Artistry (Storytelling), Fertility, Fire, Forge, Health, Prosperity
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