For those who don't know, Judge Dee is the hero of a series of
detective novels set in 7th-century China by Robert van Gulik.
Actually, Judge Dee really lived, and is (or was) the hero of many
Chinese detective novels - and has been for centuries. Van Gulik
"westernized" many of the stories, combining plots and making the story
lines more accessible to western readers. There are, I believe, 16
Judge Dee books, written in the 1950s and 1960s.
These make excellent RPG background material. In fact, I've even
gotten a Bunnies & Burrows plot from the Judge Dee
books. So I thought I'd write up Judge Dee and his three lieutenants
in Fudge terms. These portraits are from roughly the
middle of the books - they may be slightly different at either end of
the chronology.
(Actually, there is a fourth lieutenant, Sergeant Hoong, but I find him
a little too bland to write up. While a likeable character, loyalty to
Judge Dee seems to be his only prominent attribute!)
For those who'd like to try reading some Judge Dee, I recommend
you read them in chronological order in the Judge's career. They
are listed in that order at the end of this article.
I recommend the series quite highly, with the caveat that some won't
be as good as others. Interesting setting, interesting characters,
usually good plots.
Judge Dee:
Attributes: Skills:
Perspicacity: Superb Law: Superb
Force of Personality: Great Sword: Great
Physical Prowess: Good Riding: Good
Observation: Superb Etiquette: Good
Bluff: Superb
Gifts: Medical Skills: Fair
High Rank Most Knowledge Skills: Good
Good Education Aesthetics: Good
Perseverance
Faults:
Bit of a prude
Low tolerance for non-Confucian religions
Ma Joong:
Attributes: Skills:
Perspicacity: Fair Boxing: Superb
Force of Personality: Fair Weapon Use: Great
Physical Prowess: Superb Riding: Great
Observation: Good Disguise: Good
Pretense: Great
Gifts: Move Quietly: Great
High Pain Threshold Streetwise: Great
Tough Hide Acrobatics: Good
Combat Reflexes Boating: Great
Faults:
Lecherous
Sucker for women
Afraid of the supernatural
Chiao Tai:
Attributes: Skills:
Perspicacity: Good Weapon Skills: Superb
Force of Personality: Good Unarmed combat: Good
Physical Prowess: Great Riding: Great
Observation: Good Etiquette: Good
Leadership: Great
Gifts: Woodcraft: Great
Combat Reflexes Move Quietly: Good
Military Training Acrobatics: Superb
Climbing: Superb
Faults:
Quixotic
Unlucky in Love
Tao Gan:
Attributes: Skills:
Perspicacity: Good Covert Skills: Superb
Force of Personality: Mediocre Swindle: Superb
Physical Prowess: Mediocre Detect Hidden Things: Great
Observation: Great Sneak: Great
Pretense: Superb
Gifts: Move Quietly: Superb
Patience for Paperwork Streetwise: Great
A Certain Disarming Charm Knowledge of
Criminal Techniques: Great
Defensive Combat skills: Good
Faults: Sleight of Hand: Great
Compulsive Swindler
Miserly
Cynical/Suspicious - assumes strangers have base motives
The Books
Here are the Judge Dee stories in the order you should read
them. They have been through many editions, and are currently in
print as I write this. You can find most of them in used bookstores
if money is an object. Note: some bookstores classify them
under Gulik, others under Van Gulik, and others under both at the
same time (!), usually in the Mysteries section.
Notes
- The novels have my personal ratings of the quality of the
book, using Fudge levels - and I'm being harsh. The
short stories and novellas are all too short, alas!
- # = Short
story found in Judge Dee at Work, which contains only
short stories. WARNING: Do Not Read the summary at
the back of this book! They give away some vital information about
later novels that they shouldn't - shame on them!
- % = novella,
found in The Monkey & the Tiger.
The Chinese Gold Murders (Great)
# Five Auspicious Clouds
# The Red Tape Murder
# He Came with the Rain
The Lacquer Screen (Fair)
The Chinese Lake Murders (Great)
% The Morning of the Monkey
The Haunted Monastery (Good)
# Murder on the Lotus Pond
The Chinese Bell Murders (Great)
Necklace and Calabash (Superb)
# The Two Beggars
# The Wrong Sword
The Red Pavilion (Great)
Poets & Murder (Fair)
The Emperor's Pearl (Great)
The Chinese Maze Murders (Great)
The Phantom of the Temple (Great)
# The Coffins of the Emperor
# Murder on New Year's Eve
The Chinese Nail Murders (Good)
% The Night of the Tiger
The Willow Pattern (Great)
Murder in Canton (Great)
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