Designers Notes: Nieh Hsiao Tsing is the name of a female ghost that appears in Tsui Hark's A Chinese Ghost Story. Killed at a young age, she was cremated and buried in a graveyard behind Lan Ro temple. Unfortunately, the urn containing her ashes was buried amid the roots of an evil "tree demon" and thus, her soul has been enslaved by the same demon. Now, she is forced to lure men into the confines of the temple, seduce them, and in doing so provide the tree demon with a continuous supply of victims upon which to feed.

For all intents and purposes, Nieh Hsiao Tsing is pretty much a "normal" person, at least physically. Being a ghost she does have a number of very unusual powers, which are detailed below. BTW: the name "Nieh Hsiao Tsing" is pronounced (as near as I can tell) "Knee Sue Sing".

Description:
Hsiao Tsing is played by actress Joey Wang (who stars in all three Chinese Ghost Story films). She is of average height, standing about 5'3" or so, with a slight build, fine features and long, black hair that falls to about mid back. And... uh... um... What was the question?

Since she is a ghost, Hsiao Tsing is very pale, and unusually cold to the touch. Naturally, she doesn't age, and still looks the same as when she died. She is normally dressed in long, white, flowing gowns, but can change garments in an instant, dressing herself in whatever outfit she desires.

Powers Notes:
The powers exhibited by Hsiao Tsing are very different than those that are common associated with Western ghosts. For starters, she is solid to the touch, and doesn't seem capable of turning insubstantial. On the other hand, when Leslie Cheung's character first meets Hsiao Tsing, he accidentally throws his knife blade right through her, and it ends up sticking out of the back wall.

Personally, I'd declare this as a form of Desolidification, Invisible Power Effects, 0 END, Only vs Physical Weapons, but since there has been a lot of argument of the use of Desoild as a defensive power, I'll let GMs decide this one for themselves.

For the rest of her powers, I'm going to start at the top of the list and just work my way down.

Breath Attack: Hsiao Tsing exhibits at least two different powers based on simply blowing out a breath or air. The first is the ability to simply render a person unconscious for a few moments (or, since it's only 4d6 'to Stun' them).

Aside from the standard defenses (no need to breathe etc.) I seriously doubt that such an attack will affect any reasonably skilled or experienced priest, or other holy man (such as Swordsman Zen in CGS I or the old priest in CGS III). Naturally, such a requirement is up to the GM to fully define. Hsiao Tsing's other breath power is the ability to push small objects away by blowing on them. For example, at one point she blows a snake up into a tree.

Hsiao Tsing's costume comes with long, flowing sleeves, which she can cause to extend at will. By manipulating her sleeves, she can restrain a target, or reach out and grab something at range. The strength she can apply via her sleeves seems to be much greater than her own, natural strength, hence the No Range TK power.

Any use of her sleeve powers requires Hsiao Tsing to engage in some rather acrobatic manipulations, thus the "gestures" limitation. Note that breaking free of her grasp has the special effects of her sleeve's tearing, but this doesn't seem to affect her powers any.

Hsiao Tsing can mimic a wide variety of sounds, including bird calls and wolf howls. This power is often used to confuse, drive away or lure a target/victim.

Since she is a ghost, Hsiao Tsing possess some interesting movement powers. She doesn't seem to walk anymore, but flies about. When trying to move normally, she will "walk", but that should merely be a visual effect. At times, especially if walking slowly, she won't even seem to move, but will 'glide' across the floor. Hsiao Tsing's other movement powers is the ability to appear out of no where. This teleport power only works if no one is looking, but as soon as some one looks away, Hsiao Tsing can appear or disappear at will.

Hsiao Tsing's other powers are pretty simple, she can see in the dark, change her clothing at will, and being dead, doesn't have to sleep, eat, age, and so on. She is also quite aware of dangerous situations before they truly develop (like the arrival of Swordsmen Zen, or the coming of dawn).

In Chinese Ghost Story III, Joey Wang plays another ghost character. This version exhibits a few new powers, including the ability to extend her fingernails into long narrow claws, and uses her hair in much the same way she uses her sleeves.

Disadvantages Notes:
Hsiao Tsing's disadvantages are pretty simple, although GMs should feel free to edit the Psych Lims depending upon use. Hsiao Tsing is pretty much a nice person, forced to do terrible things by her master. BTW: by "sister" I mean the other female ghosts that inhabit the temple... I've already explained her Distinctive Features above, but her Phys Lims need a little detailing.

Hsiao Tsing is physically repulsed by the mere sight of holy texts, good luck charms and similar symbols. She cannot look at such objects, and to actually confront her with a holy item will (at the very least) cause her to look away and usually drive her away. She also can't handle such objects, as they will burn her hands.

This could be bought as a Susceptibility, but doesn't quite do the necessary damage. Hsiao Tsing also cannot stand sunlight, and must remain in shadows or darkness if out during the day (which usually renders her immobile). If caught in direct sunlight, Hsiao Tsing will start to dissipate into a cloud of smoke.

The "Matron" is the tree demon I mentioned earlier. One thousand years old, this terrible creature feeds upon the bodies of men to increase her (its?) life. Any description of the Matron certainly wouldn't do it justice, the movie should really be seen to get the full understanding of it's powers. (Perhaps I'll write her and Swordsmen Zen up at some point...) Anyway, Hsiao Tsing is under her control, due to Hsiao Tsing's ashes being buried amid the tree demon's roots.

Hsiao Tsing' Ashes:
Hsiao Tsing ashes reside in a small ceramic pot, buried in the Lan Ro graveyard. This small pot is more of a plot device than anything else, but for completeness sake I offer the following notes. Hsiao Tsing usually resides 'within' the pot during the day, thus the pot could be considered a form of Extra Dimensional Movement (realm of the dead). The pot also allows someone to control Hsiao Tsing if they wish. Carrying the pot about means that one can take Hsiao Tsing from place to place, of course, she can only appear at night. Returning the pot to Hsiao Tsing means that she is freed from her supernatural existence and can return to the 'cosmic wheel' to be reincarnated as a new person. This last fact is her aim (and part of the plot) of a A Chinese Ghost Story.