Post originally by Praetus at 2004-11-01 21:14:00
Converted from Phorums BB System

Here's a simple rundown on the difference between these games.

Feng Shui has a simple character design (assign some points, pick a few things from a couple of lists, and go for it). It has a turn-by-turn, action-by-action resolution system in which characters wait for their initiative opportunities and then roll for success or failure and results of each specific action. Special effects are based on selected options which have specific rules effects (each Shtick gives has its own rules which must be remembered individually, like the effects of spells in D&D) and they are often activated by expenditure of Chi points.

Wushu has a simple character design (assign some points and describe your character). It has a turn-by-turn resolution system in which each character can accomplish multiple things in a turn with a single roll of the dice (or rather, rolling attack and defense dice for the whole turn). Special powers are handled by describing them in the description of the character's actions in that turn, and are adjudicated more on what that kind of character could reasonably do in the setting rather than whether or not there's a specific ability listed for that on the character sheet. Chi points are used to give bonuses to help deal with really bad situations, but are not necessary to allow extremely heroic events to take place.

The main difference in play is that Wushu ends up faster (one roll handles several actions) and tends to produce higher-power games (it's just as easy to perform "Once Upon a Time in China" super kung fu moves in Wushu as it is to perform Bruce Lee realistic martial arts, so why not go for it in the description?). Feng Shui takes some more bookkeeping (it has an experience system, and you have to keep up with Shticks in addition to basic stats) and controls the characters' powers by having them pay Chi to use the more extreme abilities.

Perhaps the main advantage is that the group can preset the level of game they want to play in Wushu. You can use Wushu rules to play "Once Upon a Time in China," "Enter the Dragon," or "Matrix Reloaded" with no adjustments to the rules. Feng Shui can't handle that shift without altering the available Shticks before the game starts, but it wasn't intended to handle that variety of movie settings. "Enter the Dragon" and "Matrix Reloaded" aren't Chinese or Hong Kong action films, and that's what Feng Shui is explicitly for. Wushu is for any kind of high-action game you want to play *right now* without designing new rules for it.