Ponos [40 pt]
Many religions have the concept of possession by either devils or evil spirits; they also have methods for exorcising those spirits. Some religions use prayer: others use contests of will; and more than a few at least claim to use theurgy. The monks who practice Ponos, on the other hand, have a much simpler and direct technique; they merely half-yank the spirit out from the body it’s currently possessing, and then proceed to viciously rip off pieces of that spirit until it decides of its own free will to go somewhere else.
Ponos works as a martial art because most spirits are simply not used to this kind of combat, and they’re definitely not used to having the ectoplasmic equivalent of having their shoulders dislocated, then turned into gravel. Ponos thus does not do much in the way of advanced defensive techniques; this martial art is all about hurting evil spirits until they run away, preferably with a cross permanently tattooed on their forehead from the adept’s sanctified brass knuckles. After a while, spirits start getting the hint, and just leave as soon as a Ponos monk comes within view. Particularly if the monk is scowling.
Note that there is no real cinematic version of this martial art, but even ‘mundane’ Ponos monks need to have the True Faith advantage and some fairly esoteric IQ-based skills at reasonable levels. Disadvantages will depend on the campaign world’s expectations of clergy, although there’s nothing that forbids a layman from learning this martial art. Assuming that the monks will teach one.
Advantages: True Faith [15]. The various forms of Blessed are also appropriate, but not required.
Skills: Brawling, Exorcism, Intimidation, Religious Ritual, Theology, Wrestling.
Maneuvers: Arm Lock (Wrestling), Choke Hold (Wrestling), Drop Kick (Wrestling), Elbow Drop (Brawling), Elbow Strike (Brawling), Eye Gouging (Brawling), Finger Lock, Head Butt (Brawling) Head Lock (Wrestling), Kicking (Brawling), Knee Drop (Wrestling), Neck Snap, Stamp Kick (Brawling), Two-Handed Punch (Brawling), Wrench, Wrench Spine (Brawling)
Perks: Can yank a possessed spirit out a body temporarily, using True Faith [1], Can attack incorporeal spirits with Brawling and Wrestling [1], May use Brass Knuckles as a focus for True Faith [1].
The material presented here is my original creation, intended for use with the GURPS system from Steve Jackson Games. This material is not official and is not endorsed by Steve Jackson Games.