Kwai Chang Caine
Context
Kung-Fu: The Legend Continues was a spin-off of the 1970s Kung-Fu cult TV series, and was filmed during the 1990s.
David Carradine stars as itinerant kung-fu monk Kwai Chang Caine again, but *this* Kwai is the grandson of the Kwai Chang Caine he played in Kung-Fu. Kwai teams up with his grandson, young police officer Peter Caine.
Whereas the 1970s Kung-Fu took place in the American Old West, KF:TLC took place during the 1990s.
Background
- Real Name: Kwai Chang Caine.
- Marital Status: Single.
- Known Relatives: Peter Caine (son), Mathew Caine (father), Su Ling (mother, deceased), Maya (possible daughter), Martin Bradshaw (half-brother), Damian Caine (half-brother), Kwang Chang Caine (grandfather, deceased).
- Group Affiliation: The Dragon’s Wing, temporarily the City Council.
- Base Of Operations: Mobile.
- Height: 6’1″ Weight: 155 lbs. Age: Unrevealed.
- Eyes: Blue Hair: Gray
Advertisement
Powers and Abilities
Caine is a master of Shaolin Kung Fu, and employs, in particular, the styles of the White Crane, Dragon, Tiger, Snake, Mantis and Eagle Claw.
His training involved both armed and unarmed combat. In the ways of combat, he seems to favor throws, incapacitating locks, palm strikes, sleeper holds, disarms, a jumping frontal kick and round kicks.
He regularly blocks projectiles or catches them and is fully capable of dodging gunfire. However, should he be injured he will ignore the damage through sheer force of will until a time when he can properly deal with it. Thus, Caine can easily take on a group of highly trained fighters, and exit both victorious and unscathed.
Kung-Fu
Through superior mastery of several disciplines and mental skills he can perform many seemingly superhuman and amazing feats.
He was also tutored in eastern philosophy and herbal medicine. Upon graduation he attained the rank of Shaolin Master. Caine exited the school via a special corridor designed as a last test. Barring the exit was a hot iron cauldron with the figures of a dragon on one side and a tiger on the other.
By lifting the cauldron with his forearms, the graduate branded himself with the figures. The newly initiated master thus bore an imprint on each their inner forearms; signifying their new status. On several occasions these scars identified him as a Shaolin monk to those familiar with Chinese culture.
Advertisement
Other qualities
Exceptionally intuitive, he somehow always turns up, stepping out of the shadows, exactly where he is needed. He always spots a lie without even trying and has a profound effect on people.
Caine’s character is humble, intelligent, inquisitive, and usually very soft-spoken. His only known pastime is the playing of a bamboo flute. Caine is fluent in both Cantonese and English. He is also very skilled in the schools of herbalism and healing. He sometimes manages to dissuade hoodlums with his words only.
During his many years of wandering he has picked up many a trade and many a trick, often to everyone’s surprise.
Video
The didactic intro sequence of the show.
History
Like his grandfather and namesake, Kwai Chang Caine is a Shaolin priest. While his grandfather had been a wanderer in America, his father, also a Shaolin priest, was a medic with the American troops in France after the landing of Omaha beach.
Kwai Chang Caine himself ended up being the head of a temple in Northern California, where his son Peter also lived and studied. The Temple was eventually destroyed in a fire caused by a renegade priest, Master Danny Zhao, attempting a take over of the Shaolin. Zhao believed the priests would serve better as mercenaries.
After the destruction of the temple, Caine and Peter each believed the other had perished, and went on their separate ways. Caine wandered, traveled and ’adventured‘, much like his grandfather had, while Peter became a foster child, and then a police officer.
Eventually, Caine returned to the city’s Chinatown section, where Peter’s precinct is, and they were reunited after being separated for 15 years.
Reunited
Danny Zhao would return at times to bring his vengeance, which always failed, until he died. Caine would also have run-ins with the former henchmen of his greater enemies, such as Chan of Tang and George the gentleman terrorist/thief. At another occasions he faced Thomas, a Dim Mak killer from the old temple.
Some of his foes would eventually reform as an effect from his wisdom and teachings.
Caine’s fate took him through a difficult journey with many challenges. He eventually progressed towards becoming a Shamballah Master. After defeating the telepathic and telekinetic Dark Warrior, and nearly losing his life to do so, he became a full Master.
Caine and Peter have faced numerous natural and supernatural threats together, including shadow and voodoo assassins, demons, legendary martial artists, corrupt politicians, extortionists, ghosts, poltergeists, the mafia, Bruhus and cults such as the Sing Wua (against, among others, his half-brother Damian; 3.21) and the Scorpion sect and the Black Widow Spider sect (4.5).
Caine and Peter have actually mentally traveled through time and helped start the path towards the creation of Kung Fu.
Caine has also guided and helped the exiled heir to China and accidentally joined the search for the Holy Grail that his father had once seen in France, then found it and passed all tests with flying colors. He chose to leave the grail in its resting place (3.12) in France where his father still lives.
Caine, ultimately a powerful and wise Shamballah master, still walks the city righting every wrong he perceives or that find him.
Description
He often wears grey cotton pants, a brown jacket, a brown hat and his flute on his back. Other times he wears a formal gi or the like. On his forearms he bears the burnt in marks of the tiger and the dragon, which marks him as a traditional Shaolin monk.
His looks have sometimes been called enigmatic and he has been described as “a little oriental”. There is an empathic, calming aura about him and a sense of inner strength that people can quickly relate to. He sometimes wears his hair in a ponytail.
Personality
Kwai Chang Caine is a Shaolin priest and used to be the leader of a Shaolin temple located somewhere in California 15 years ago. Caine is highly intelligent, wise and honorable as well as a master of Kung-Fu. His extensive training and mastery of many various arts and skills allow him to perform impressive and often, impossible, superhuman feats.
Caine is an excellent teacher and sometimes slaps his student for the lessons to properly sink in. Caine keeps an extensive collection of journals of his and his forefathers at Peter’s place (these are excellent story hooks). Most of what he says is colored by Oriental Wisdom™.
When a philosophical quote is mentioned by him, everyone assumes it’s from an ancient eastern philosopher. However, Caine acknowledges that it’s often from famous celebrities (usually rock stars). As such, Caine is not only wise in the old ways, but very present in the modern days as well.
Pacifism
Being a priest, he follows a rigid code of ethics and morals. He is a pacifist in every sense of the word and will only use violence for defense. Cain is, however, unusually active for being a passive priest. This is so because he has made a vow to help everyone in need, which all too often puts him at great personal risk.
While extremely humble he is never ever a pushover. As such he fights only when there is no other option although he is no fool and will strike pre-emptively if he is certain of enemy attack. He employs a very stylish and rather slow, although highly effective, combat style.
He believes in the sanctity of life, but will kill in self-defense if necessary and the only option available. However, too much violence or death makes him feel depressed at which points he will meditate to regain his equilibrium.
Ethics
He is very prone to reminiscence and extremely tenacious in his beliefs. He never forgets a face and often gets visions during his meditations. Of course he never lies. He hates it when Peter calls him ’pops’. Although he is exceptionally humble and doesn’t really judge people he does sometimes scold people with his finger.
He is utterly compassionate and he speaks very abstractedly. He is practically always on the same page as his friend Lo Si as to his intents, the morally right choices and ways to find harmony. While having no ambitions whatsoever for power, he went into politics because he was asked to help more people and stayed there as long as he could do good.
As a Shamballa Master he must always fight for truth and light no matter his personal outcome and price. A strong believer in karma and in always doing the rightful thing, he also feels compelled to try to correct the old sins of his forefathers and mistakes from his earlier days.
He speaks in a staccato-like, slow-paced rhythm and most people will stop and listen to his words. He often touches people on a deeply spiritual level and many have changed their ways after an encounter with Caine. He has a very good memory and is prone to reminiscence. Peter often figures in his memories of the old days.
Caine walked around 15 years looking for the essence that was his son. He is now a stranger to his son although he himself knows his son very well. Peter continuously struggles to understand him. Caine has many friends all around, most notably Lo Si the Apothecary, Peter’s foster father, Blaisdell, and his old friends from the temple, as well as the Dalai Lama himself.
Life
As a Shaolin priest he is allowed to marry, so he actually dates women. Caine is not in the habit of explaining himself to anyone, resulting in a permanent aura of mystery.
A firm believer in destiny, he wanders around the city helping people to different destinations on different days. Absurdly enough, sometimes during such walks he’s attacked by ninjas and stuff sent by one of the many foes he has gained over the years. He will then usually not know which one but defeat said foes and move on with his day as usual.
In Caine’s eyes the search for light and truth never ends.
Quotes
“A courageous fighter shuns violence. A skillful soldier avoids anger. A mighty warrior does not fight for petty conquest. True insight can not be gained by specialized knowledge, by victory or by defeat, by doctrine or by dogma. It can only be achieved by the illumination of one’s own inner self. In other words, it does not matter who wins or loses.”
“When you can learn to understand your own motives, and the motives of your enemy, then you can’t help but win. You do not understand this man and so you will lose.”
“Anything is possible… if you can perceive the way.”
“We are all prisoners of our circumstances until we can change them.”
“To help troubled souls on the path to wisdom is the Shaolin way.”
[About cheating] “Why would you compromise your honor for such a small thing ? A man who has no skills can be taught, a man who has no honor has nothing. You must guard your honor. It is the most precious possession you will ever have. It is the one thing that cannot be taken away from you.”
[Caine is attacked and counter-strikes] “The tiger braces the mountain.” [opponent strikes and Caine blocks and strikes down opponent] “The white crane brushes the sky.” [opponent throws his blade, Caine catches it and kicks him into unconsciousness after which Caine leaves in peace]
“Knees are vulnerable (knee kicks foe), as is the breast bone (sidekicks foe), and as are the lungs (palm strikes foe).”
“Protect him with your life if necessary. The freedom of millions is in his hands.”
“Classic form of attack must include these four weapons. The first is the staff, a symbol of strength yet flexibility. The second is the staff divided into three sections, symbolizing the body, mind and spirit. The butterfly knives represent the penetration of the flesh, the cutting away of all negativity in one’s life. The steel whip is like water. It flows and wraps itself around your enemy, entwines it. Though soft to the touch its grip is inescapable. Proper defense is not to treat these separately but as one weapon. They must work together and they must be defeated together. To master one weapon may take a lifetime.”
“I am Caine. I will help you.”
DC Universe History
Caine and his ancestors are among the greatest and wisest martial arts teachers that ever lived. Caine would have faced the Sensei and his League of Assassins on many occasions, as well as King Snake, Kobra, Lady Shiva and many others.
His son Peter would have served as something of a comic sidekick, but on a competent Robin-like level. Characters such as the Batman and the Question would have been his one-time pupils.
His great legacy extends to the era of the Legion of Super-Heroes where his skills were taught to Val Armorr, the Karate Kid himself. Considering the capacity of the old masters to stop their aging, it’s plausible that Caine is still alive in that era and beyond.
Game Stats — DC Heroes RPG
Tell me more about the game stats
Kwai Chang Caine
| Dex: 06 | Str: 04 | Bod: 04 | Motivation: Responsibility of Power |
| Int: 08 | Wil: 10 | Min: 07 | Occupation: Teacher, Shambhalla master, Apothecary |
| Inf: 08 | Aur: 08 | Spi: 08 | Resources {or Wealth}: 001 |
| Init: 024 | HP: 050 |
Powers:
Empathy: 03, Flame Control: 02, Mind over Matter: 04, Reflection/Deflection: 05
Bonuses and Limitations:
- All Powers are Skilled Powers (+20BC).
- Flame Control can only be used to extinguish fire (-1).
- Reflection/Deflection can only be used against projectiles, such as thrown weapons, arrows and similar (-1).
Skills:
Acrobatics: 05, Artist (Actor, Flute, Guitarist, Harmonica, Pianist): 04, Charisma (Persuasion): 09, Detective (Clue Analysis): 06, Gadgetry (Herbal concoctions): 06, Martial Artist (incl. Techniques): 08, Medicine (First Aid, Medical Treatment): 06, Military Science (Danger Recognition): 07, Occultist (Premonition): 07, Thief (Escape Artist, Locks & Safes, Stealth): 07, Thief (Concealment, Escape Artist): 09, Weaponry (Melee, Thrown): 07, Vehicles (Air): 03
Bonuses and Limitations:
Medicine includes Mental and Spiritual healing (+1).
Advantages:
Expertise (Herbalism, Meditation, Pai Gow domino game), Familiarity (Botany, Carpentry, Chinese Dialects), Iron Nerves, Language (American Sign Language, Cantonese, French, Mandarin Chinese), Leadership, Misc.: Clairvoyant (Precognitions through Occultist cost only half normal price), Schtick (Blind Fighting, Catch projectiles), Scholar (Buddhism, Chi Energy, Oriental Philosophy, Teaching).
Bonuses and Limitations:
By concentrating (for example by a candle light) he can lend HPs to an ally at a far away distance as per the Leadership advantage w/ a bonus (+5 BC).
Connections:
Peter Caine (High), Lo Si the Apothecary (High), The Dragon’s Wing (his old L.A. Shaolin Temple Buddies and others) (High), Captain Paul Blaisdell (Low), The Dalai Lama (High).
Drawbacks:
Distinct Appearance (Shaolin monk with tiger and dragon scars on arms).
Equipment:
As a buddhist monk he will not own things and carries almost nothing except his clothing. Around his neck he carries a communication stone, which can be used to telepathically communicate with a carrier of a similar stone. On his back he usually carries his flute.
Behind every legend lies an impossible dream
As part of his quest for total harmony Kwai Chang Caine has mastered spiritual skills, mental skills and chi mastery to seemingly unbelievable levels. This is partly represented by his high Attributes and Skills.
In addition, he regularly performs simply amazing feats, which all add to his legend. The uninitiated refer to such feats as Kung Fu mysticism and magic.
Here are a few highlights, all of which he should be able to do under special conditions. All of these are available as Minor Marginal abilities (5 HP fee for 1 hour of free use), or, alternatively as Martial Arts Rituals, in which case Caine has 8 APs in such Ritual Casting and the APs of Effect serve as the OV/RV:
- Great escapes – He once unexplainably escaped from an isolation cell & later returned to it undetected. This hints at some very high AP levels of Thief (Locks & Safes) and (Stealth) subskills at around 10 APs. Although a slightly supernatural explanation is also possible, it was probably too early in his legend for it to have been magic. Magic does exist in the setting in a similar vein as in, for example, Big Trouble in Little China.
- Levitation – While meditating and in a trance, he has levitated a few feet above the ground, suggesting Air-Walking: 00 under trance conditions only.
- Combat concentration – while doing combat his concentration is so complete that his sense of pain is greatly dulled. Likewise, he can eliminate minor wounds by willpower alone. This gives him the permanent and free equivalent of the Mind over Matter power as noted under his Powers.
- Distance Push – By manipulating his Chi he has done Knockback attacks, using his STR, at people, or simply slapped them, at a few APs of distance. He has also used it to create distracting sounds in the woods. Likewise, this manipulation of Chi and the displacement of air can be used to reflect back light attacks of gas (in addition to his normal projectile blocking) back at the opponent. This is Reflection 05 APs or so extended towards gas attacks.
- Invoke Memory – he has talked blind witnesses into recalling enough sensory input from an assailant to be able to draw a description of the assailant. This is Recall of 04 APs useable by Others for a given action combined with Caine’s unskilled Artist (Painter) at effectively 04 APs.
- Remove Memories – by first bringing forth detailed memories of an assault in a victim, he has then, seemingly permanently, removed said memories by hypnosis at effectively 04 APs, thus curing the subject of the trauma.
- Healing – by hands on healing he has saved the life of a stabbed and dying man. Another time he drained a mystical poison from a man into himself with his hands. These effects are simulated by Damage Transference: 05 or so.
- Stage magic – he once performed as a stage magician and there performed fantastic magic tricks of illusion, such as levitation, bringing a toy to life etc. That was Illusion of 7 APs or so limited to stage magic tricks.
- Vanishing – by a wave of his hand he has completely disappeared in a puff of smoke. This trick, typically performed by ninjas, is represented by superb APs of Stealth (around 9 APs) after employing Fog of 5 APs or so.
- Time Travel – while in a deep meditative state Caine can mentally travel back to any time and place. There he can gather information and interact with others as a physical person. He cannot, however, change history. He once brought Peter with him hundreds of years back and together they set the foundations of Kung Fu.
- Animal Control – by playing his flute he has made a pack of rats follow him obediently, thus saving others from their‘ attack. This is Animal Control (Rats only) at 06 APs.
- Intuitive Flashes – in his dreams or when he meditates he sometimes has clear flashes of the future, and can then be where he is supposed to be to carry out his destiny. However, instead of being a regular omni-ability, all of his uses of the Premonition Subskill simply have their costs halved. This ability is also used for free at the GM’s discretion to start an adventure Subplot.
- Empathic reading – his empathic sense is so strong that he can sometimes essentially read the exact reason for a person’s sadness. By scoring RAPs, using Mind Probe of 05 APs in this fashion, he can sway any Character Interaction with that character by a full column shift.
- Negating Evil – Caine once permanently negated the evil energies and Powers of a powerful enemy. This was Neutralize of 7 APs or so with the Permanent Effect Bonus only useable against the mystic linked powers of opponents of evil alignments.
Good allies are not so hard to find
Lo Si
Lo Si the Apothecary “Bloody marvelous!”, also known as the Ancient, was a Shamballa master at the old temple that got destroyed. He has impressive knowledge in herbal medicine (at 08 APs or so w/the Bonus that Medicine includes mental and spiritual healing (+1)) and Gadgetry (Herbal Concoctions) at 08 APs.
Although the Apothecary is very, very old, he still is a true master of Kung Fu. As such he has at least 7 APs of Martial Arts, a skill kept fresh by regular sparring with Caine. While he is clearly very old his age is unrevealed, and he likely has at least the Slowed Aging Advantage.
The Apothecary has Connections with a lot of folks in Chinatown, and can offer advice or help even to Caine and often does so (Caine himself is also a respected apothecary).
He also sits at the board of the American Imperial Guard that watches traditional, royal Chinese affairs in America and guards the future heir to the throne of China. Naturally he speaks fluent English, Cantonese and Mandarin Chinese. He is so cool that one actually wants to learn to speak Cantonese as well!
Other contacts
Caine could also call in his old temple buddies and other friendly acquaintances, a total of at least five competent persons, if he really needed to, but would very rarely choose to do so (seen in 1.17 and 2.19).
They are collectively referred to as the Dragon’s Wing: Steadman the Brit (and his daughter Katya), Rykker the mercenary and Master Khan the janitor. Even his son Peter and Peter’s stepfather Blaisdell could count as Dragon Wing members. Yeah, and Caine also personally knows the Dalai Lama.
Previous Stats
At the very start of the series Caine had the Guilt Drawback. His HPs were 20 only, and he had no Powers.
Source of Character: Kung Fu: The Legend continues TV-series Seasons 1-4, played by David Carradine.
Helper(s): Black Adam.
Writeup completed on the 21st of July, 2011.