(I've tried to make the mod as self-explanatory as possible in the game while trying to keep a "lore friendly” tone overall. I'm totally open to criticism and making changes if necessary. This section is mainly for those who are wondering how I made this mod, want to know the logic behind it, or didn't understand what I've tried to say in the game. I'll use values and that sort of thing. You have been warned).

This is just another crossbow weapon mod but with meshes and textures found in the game to fit in the mod narrative (I had to edit 1 texture and was included in the mod, among some icons, some mesh and a few more textures), they are weaker but faster than vanilla crossbows. They are made using Chi, a resource that generates by itself through a building called "Chi Regeneration", it's the ammo for the weapons, the resource for all researches and resource for some items I've added. Chi regeneration have a hunger rate of 7.

To get access to the first research (impossible to reach without a blueprint), you need to use my Start or find a Chi user, currently I have implemented only 1 NPC in the Drifter faction called "Chi Expert" (3 variants of the same char), you can expect them to appear in bars in Holy Nation, United Cities, Shek Kingdom, some places in the Swamps, Black Desert City and Tech Hunters (including Waystations, exceptuating Mourn). Currently you can talk to them or kill them to get the blueprint (and the tutorial books + Chi pass that you MUST take), the attack can be started through dialogue or simply by attacking the character. Depending on the spawn zone, Chi users can be spawned with a bounty, which will be:

- TH, SK, and UC spawns: HN
- HN: SK and UC
- Swamps, Black Desert City: UC

(Spawn rate: 25% on almost every bar of the mentioned factions, except in The Hub, wich have 10%)

Their inventory consist on Good Quality items, a Superior Chi Conduit, some Chi, Condensated healing items, Chi: Fundamentals blueprint, the 7 tutorial books and a Chi pass. They also have a Chi backpack with lantern, purple or blue.

More NPC are in the works. Currently, except for the initiation dialogue, you can ask for some Chi to a Chi user once or once per week. If you aren't using the Chi Pass, they will think you aren't a Chi User and they'll trigger the first dialogue again. This is intended in case you lose the Pass and doesn't want to kill them (The pass is important for the third part of the mod series).

Researchs are made in "Research Plane" building, it's a research bench lvl 0 (all the researchs are level 0) and have a 2x2 inventory to avoid using it for every single research on the game. I've tried to limit the inventory to just the Chi item but it was impossible (let me know if there is a way, please!). Research are kinda interconnected between them as requisites, so you can't focus on just one investigation to rush until the strongest Conduit. The game will tell you how much do you need in terms of time and items, just like a regular research. This doesn't use stats to work. This is included with Chi: Fundamentals. Hunger rate 7.

Researchs shoudln't take more than 30 hours in game each one, but they are a lot, this was made because the first iterations had less research but longer times, it was too lazy. I will change some values over time until I'm comfortable (it will be like that with the mod itself, not just values, but I'm gonna do extensive change notes when that happens).

Conduits are made in "Chi Condensation", a crossbow research that uses Chi to create them. Each Conduit will need different researchs and resources and time for construction, the bench uses PERCEPTION as stat for work. You can learn 3 different conduits and each one go from prototype to masterwork. There are 3 more Conduits but they are going to be added on the future, because their stats are dependant on the regular variants and they need more balance. Hunger rate 9.

Later you will have acces to the Chi Evulsion, a medical bench that increases a LOT your hunger, it's dangerous and it trully can be lethal, but it can make any healing item using Chi as resource (literally, skeletons included). They are 10% stronger than their regular counterpart on the last tier of efficacy (Advanced in vanilla, Condensed in my items). Lower tiers are better than vanilla, but because vanilla values were too low for the cost I've made for this items in terms of time, research and hungry rate. Hunger rate 35.

Chi Distillation it's a item furnace, 2 metals will give you 1 Chi back, but you can burn anything as a regular item furnace. I've tried to limit the inventory to just Conduits (my true intention) but it was impossible (again, if someone knows how to do it, please let me know!). Hunger rate 9.

Chi Restoration are portatile beds for every race, both versions are unlocked at the same time when you reach Chi: Master 2. They have a healing rate of 3 (regular camp bed 4, bed and skeleton bed 8). Hunger rate 2. A deeper and soft blue light at night (same light for both types). THIS IS THE ONLY BUILDING THAT CAN BE CONSTRUCTED EVERYWHERE and because of that, it needs 1 Chi [Resource] to be made. Same build speed as a regular sleeping bag.

Chi Respiration allows you to create a "Breathing Technique", wich is a shirt or a belt item that gives 100% protection for head, chest and stomach with 20% for blunt and cut, 0% cut efficency. They can be stacked (against my intentions), belt is for those people who doesn't like to unlock their skeleton shirt slots, because skeletons are considered as Chi users, but use it at your own discretion. It also gives 100% protection for dust and gas and a lot of stat buff for combat depending on the style you choose. First style is martial arts + crossbow, second and third style are melee and stealth. There is another technique called "Nirdahana Chi" that is weaker than the other breathing techniques and does not offer any combat buff, but provides 100% protection against Acid and Burning. These items doesn't need materials. Hunger rate 15. It uses PERCEPTION.

Chi Transmutation creates items in the same way as Respiration, without Chi but the Hunger cost is quite heavy due the nature of the stuff you make. In there you make robotic limbs (100-150 HP/ 0 - 4% stats / NO PENALTIES / Imitates your shape depending on your race). Hunger rate: 20. Uses PERCEPTION as a stat, so that way I guarantee that wou'll be making masterwork Conduits and Limbs if you train hard enough :). White and bright pulsating light. It can also make Backpacks (a weird set of backpacks). The backpack set consist in 3 backpacks at the same time.

Buildings don't require construction materials because their physical appearance only exists as a means to make them visible, they are supposed to be just meditation techniques. The buildings are limited to the exteriors because meditating on the safety of a shack in the middle of nowhere or in a Ancient Lab wasn't my intention at all. Meditation is intended to be a risky playstyle choice. They have a light at night with different colors depending on the building, Evulsion and Respiration have pulsating red and orange light respectively to give a hint about their dangerous nature.

The animations used are separated from the rest of the game in case a mod changes it BUT it uses the internal vanilla animations so they won't change at all. I also didn't touch the global reload animation for ranged weapons, to avoid destroying normal crossbows or other mods.

If you still have problems to understand the order of the researchs and items, I've made this flowchart of the Chi Research Tree to help you out!

Link: https://i.imgur.com/WHuH7TE.png