I have been remiss in mentioning Risus Dungeoneers, a PBeM campaign over at http://www.epicwords.com/campaigns/1630 . It;s a classic dungeon crawl style campaign using Risus rules. I play a monk. Here he is:
He Geng Yan
Oriental monk, blessed by spirits at his birth, raised by the wise monks of the Spirit Dragon monastery. Trained in the “Sagacious Fist style” of martial arts. Appointed Guardian of a lost artifact, his efforts to locate it have been thwarted by a mysterious conspiracy involving a double of Yan called Tong Su-Shi!
Bare-Fisted Ascetic (4) (dodging arrows, punching out small armies, running up walls)
Humble Student of Ancient Wisdom (4) (uttering cryptic aphorisms , throwing the oracle bones, knowing what one hand clapping sounds like)
Mystic Wanderer (3) (going with the flow, redirecting chi, laying on the "quivering palm")
Questing Dice (5): Assisted by Willing Spirits (Yan can only use those spirits which naturally reside in the area, if any, and he can only ask their assistance, not compel it.)
Hook: Seeking a lost artifact while opposed by mysterious conspirators.
Tale: Born to a poor family, He Geng Yan was unusual almost from the time he was born. He always seemed to be watching or listening to someone his family couldn’t see, and often spoke “baby talk” as if he was conversing with these unseen beings. Family and neighbors were baffled by the infant, and opinion was divided as to whether he was a prodigy, feeble-minded, or possessed by spirits benign or corrupt. A visiting sage determined that Yan had been visited by spirits at his birth, who gifted him with a blessing. He offered to take Yan to a monastery, where he would be raised to understand the gift of the spirits. His family accepted the offer, to the relief of nearly everybody in the village.
Yan grew up in the Spirit Dragon Monastery, where learned as much from the wisdom of the monks as well as their library of ancient scrolls. He became sensitive to the flow of chi and learned to direct it, becoming proficient in the Sagacious Fist martial arts style. He was always aware of the presence of spirits around him, and learned to interpret what they said by reading the oracle bones, which told him that the spirits had blessed him at birth because he had been chosen as the guardian of a long-lost artifact of power. The spirits, unfortunately, could not or would not tell him the nature of the artifact, but he did learn that it had been taken far away by a horde of barbarians many years ago. He soon realized that he would have to take his leave of the monastery to find the answers he sought.
At first, he had some success. He learned about the Barbarians who took the artifact, and learned the path they had taken from the Kingdom. However, he soon began encountering strange obstacles (people he sought dying suddenly, scrolls and documents disappearing before he could read them, etc.). Also, people began mistaking him for someone named Tong Su-Shi, who apparently annoyed the wrong people, who came to Yan for restitution. Though mostly annoying, some of these encounters have led to attempts on his life. Though Yan has pursued his mysterious doppelganger, he has never encountered Tong Su-shi, who is somehow a few steps ahead of the hapless monk.
Recently, his relationship with the spirit world has been complicated by the appearance of some mischievous spirits, who do their best to irritate and frustrate him. Seers and diviners have told him that he has angered them somehow, but Yan does not recall how and the spirits canno or will not tell him.
Reading these various signs and portents, Yan has concluded that he must leave his native land to venture into the realm of the Barbarians, where the mysterious artifact was taken. He hopes that the mysterious events that have been plaguing him will be left behind, but he is also rather daunted at the prospect of journeying amongst uncivilized strangers. He knows that he cannot find peace within himself until he has fulfilled the duty set upon him at his birth.
Description: Small man of "Oriental" descent, whose frame and features betray his peasant origins. However, his ascetic training and mastery of his chi has made him leaner and more graceful than a peasant farmer would ever be. His head is shaved, with "Sagacious Fist' symbols tattooed along his chakra points (running from his head to the base of his spine). When using his chi powers actively, his eyes flash eerily.
When travelling, he wears a simple, homespun hooded robe.
