The Order of the Kai are warrior monks who have mastered various natural and supernatural abilities. The Kai Monastery is found in the western central part of Sommerlund near the Durcrag Mountain range, next to the Darklands. They are also known as Kai Lords.
In the land of Sommerlund, it is tradition to send the children of certain families to the Kai Monastery for training. There, they become initiates who are trained by existing Kai Lords, until they too have become masters of the way of the Kai. Once fully trained, the new Kai return home, prepared to defend themselves and their families should the threat of the Darklords be made manifest. Although Kai training is not easy, it instills unique Kai disciplines upon those who practice it. These disciplines manifest themselves in areas such as honed combat reflexes, psychic powers of the mind, and uniquely sharpened senses.
Kai disciplines are the skills taught to and mastered by the fictional Kai Lords of the Lone Wolf universe. According to the lore, these skills have been mastered over the centuries and passed down from one generation of Kai to the next. A true Kai Master will have mastered all of these disciplines.
In the gamebooks, there are a total of ten disciplines. A new reader (playing as a new character) begins with five of these ten disciplines. The rank of a Kai Lord is based upon the number of disciplines learned, with the following progression:
1. Novice 2. Intuite 3. Doan 4. Acolyte 5. Initiate 6. Aspirant 7. Guardian 8. Warmarn or Journeyman 9. Savant 10. Master
As a player successfully completes a Lone Wolf gamebook, he or she is able to select an additional discipline, so that, for example, someone who has completed one book will have six disciplines.
The Kai disciplines themselves are as follows:
Camouflage - The ability to remain undetected, both in terms of remaining hidden when in natural surroundings, and blending in with the natives when in more urban settings.
Hunting - The ability to find food virtually anywhere, except in extreme arctic or desert conditions. Additionally confers a certain speed and manual dexterity.
Sixth Sense - The ability to sense imminent danger or a concealed threat. Also the ability to sense when something is not what it seems.
Tracking - The ability to track a person or object, or to determine the correct path to take in order to reach a given destination.
Healing - A natural ability to heal wounds more quickly than average.
Weaponskill - Focus and mastery of a single weapon or weapon category.
Mindshield - The ability to protect one's mind from mental or psychic attacks, particularly those of agents of evil.
Mindblast - The ability to attack an enemy using the force of one's mind, increasing general combat prowess except against foes who are specifically immune.
Animal Kinship - The ability to bond with and communicate with animals.
Mind Over Matter - Telekinesis, or the ability to move small objects with one's mind.
Sun Eagle founded the Order after completing his quest to recover the Lorestones of Nyxator. He recounted his story in the Kai Orders most valuable possession, the Book of the Magnakai.
At the beginning of the Lone Wolf gamebook saga, Flight from the Dark, the Kai are all but wiped out by a sudden sneak attack from Darklord forces. The only surviving member of the Kai, who was once known as Silent Wolf, swears vengeance and takes on the name of Lone Wolf, last of his clan. Lone Wolf, in the wake of the destruction of Helgedad and the Darklords, refounded the Kai order and helped produce the first Kai Masters since the destruction of the order 30 year previously.
The Dark God Naar attempted to wipe out the Second Order while Lone Wolf was busy fighting the Deathlord of Ixia. He sent an army of dragon creatures to attack the monastery, which Lone Wolf was able to arrive back in time to help counterattack. He then ensured that a huge number of gigantic dragons, which he would later discover were being brought through with Shadowgates created by Naar, were lost en route to Magnamund.
Kai Lords were different colored tunics depending on the rank. Those in grey were the kai masters. Those who progressed a little further were in light or dark blue. Higher ranks were indicated by green (a color shared by the kai initiates), scarlet, orange, yellow, white, silver and the kai grand master wore gold.
Notable Kai Lords
Notable Kai lords include:
Barking Fox, Black Hawk, Blazer, Bold Blade, Bold Dancer, Bold Fire, Bold Friend, Bold Hawk, Bold Heart, Bold Helm, Bold Sheild, Bold Star, Bold Strider, Brave Blade, Brave Dancer, Brave Fire, Brave Friend, Brave Hawk, Brave Heart, Brave Helm, Brave Shield, Brave Star, Brave Strider, Bright Hawk, Bright Star, Cloud Maker, Cloud Owl, Dawn Light, Deep Heart, Diving Skua, Eastwind, Firefly, Firestone, Forest Hawk, Frost Lark, Ghost Hawk, Gold Rain, Lone Wolf, Moon Blade, Moon Dancer, Moon Fire, Moon Friend, Moon Hawk, Moon Helm, Moon Serpent, Moon Shield, Moon Star, Moon Strider, Red Dawn, Rune Blade, Rune Dancer, Rune Fire, Rune Friend, Rune Hawk, Rune Helm, Rune Serpent, Rune Shield, Rune Star, Rune Strider, Sabre Fox, Sharp Dove, Silent Wolf, Spring Eagle, Spring Rain, Star Lynx, Steel Hand, Storm Blade, Storm Dancer, Storm Fire, Storm Friend, Storm Hawk, Storm Hawk II, Storm Helm, Storm Serpent, Storm Shield, Storm Star, Storm Strider, Strong Bear, Sun Blade, Sun Dancer, Sun Eagle, Sun Fire, Sun Friend, Sun Hawk, Sun Heart, Sun Helm, Sun Shield, Sun Star, Sun Strider, Swift Blade, Swift Dancer, Swift Fire, Swift Fox, Swift Friend, Swift Hawk, Swift Heart, Swift Helm, Swift Moon, Swift Shield, Swift Star, Swift Strider, Sword Blade, Sword Dancer, Sword Fire, Sword Friend, Sword Hawk, Sword Heart, Sword Helm, Sword Shield, Sword Star, Sword Strider, True Blade, True Dancer, True Fire, True Friend, True Hawk, True Heart, True Helm, True Shield, True Star, True Strider, White Crow, Wild Weasel, Winter Owl, Winter Owl II, Wise Blade, Wise Dancer, Wise Fire, Wise Friend, Wise Hawk, Wise Hawk II, Wise Heart, Wise Helm, Wise Shield, Wise Star, Wise Strider