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L5R: Clan of the Year All Years

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New thread, from >>47555063

Discuss your favorite clan here and share non-watermarked PDFs if you have them. Announce a well reviled clan as your favorite and enjoy the hate. I actually unironically like the Crane, including the non-Daidoji shit. Not my favorite clan, but definitely up there. Fight me
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>>47640097
I like Phoenix. I mean, the only time they're ever renowned is when an Isawa fucks something up, but really, Shiba was best Kami.
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>>47640134
I GM pretty much all the time so I have to shelve my opinions, but generally the Shiba, Agasha and Asako are my favorite family alliance period. Favorite clan is a weird mix of Crane, Phoenix and Mantis overall but my absolute favorite families are the Shiba and friends.
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I can swim.
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>>47640097
Crane a noxious excrement not fit to grace the inperial chamberpots much less the court itself
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Dragon have been my favourite since I started playing (ccg-wise) with Reign Of Blood.

Never been too enamored with the way rpg mechanics have pushed wielding two swords as a bonus, though. The effect of having to draw both swords and losing techniques unless you have both in hand always felt more like a drawback.
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Reposting the attempt to make Moshi Guardian of the Sun worth taking. The design goal is a very defensive school with a focus on spears and bows.

Moshi Guardian of the Sun
Benefit: +1 Reflexes
Honor: 6.5
Skills:Athletics, Defense, Kyujutsu, Kenjutsu, Lore: Theology, Spears, any one High or Bugei Skill
Outfit: Ashigaru or Light Armor, Sturdy Clothing, Daisho, Bow or Spear, Traveling Pack, 5 koku

Rank 1: The Moshi Guardian is the guard of the heaven's themselves. Their surety of purpose makes them inviolate to those who would seek to harm this divine guardian.

You may add your ranks in Lore: Theology to your armour TN. Additionally, your armour TN is not reduced during guard actions and you add an additional 1k1 to the armour TN of the person or object you are guarding.

Rank 2: The wrath of heaven is sure and swift, each gleaming blade and arrowhead divine justice that hobbles and blinds the target of this judgement.

On a successful attack, reduce your opponents armour TN by an amount equal to your skill rank in Lore: Theology. This effect lasts until the start of your next turn.

Rank 3: A single well timed blow is better than a dozen in haste. The Moshi know when it is best to strike like lightning or to be as difficult to catch as the sun herself.

You can make an attack with a spear or bow as a complex action while in the defense stance.
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>>47640372

Rank 4: The storm is a symbol of the power of the Moshi and the Guardians of the Sun can invoke it just as well as that of the Shugenja of the family. Many a foe has been cut down by piercing blows come as fast as rays of sunlight.

You may make attacks with Spears and Bows as a simple action.

Rank 5: It is the honor of each Guardian to give his life for his charge, to die with a smile on his lips and his duty done. The Moshi, however, have never been a family for death without purpose and the most talented of the Guardians have proven such. A deadly blow is quickly interposed not by a noble sacrifice of life but with a skillful parry of a weapon.

Once per encounter, when an enemy makes an attack against an ally within reach of your weapon you may spend a void point to interrupt that attack with an attack of your own. On a successful attack the opponent's attack is wasted and automatically misses.

Feedback is appreciated.
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I pinch. With a tetsubo.
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>>47640097
I like Crane. Currently playing a Dragon though.
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>>47640097
>Favorite clan
I like the Lion because it's implied that they actually do fuck lions.
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I'm gonna be running my first l5r game this thursday. What's a good encounter to draw all the players together? I plan on running the Delicate Negotiations module as their first adventure, but I feel like a practice session to learn all the rules would be nice. I kind of want to start the game off in a classic samurai movie fashion. Like, three men gather under an abandoned shrine to escape the rain, shit happens, and they have to fend off some attackers or some such.
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>>47641010
Unlike Shinjo, who we're told upfront about.
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>>47641147
Who doesn't like horsecock?
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Is there any reason to take Mirumoto Taoist Swordsman over Mirumoto bushi?
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>>47641195
Unicorn men could probably do with less of it in their lives.
...Or in their wives.
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>>47641215
It gets +1 Void and most of its Techniques are on the better end of the scale, either of which would give it the edge over most schools, while the normal bushi school is strictly middle of the road in terms of power and doesn't come with +1 Void.
Also if you want to be a special snowflake. That's the more common reason to take it over the normal school.
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>>47641010
If you fuck a Kitsu there's a good chance you are.
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>>47641057

> What's a good encounter to draw all the players together?

That will depend on where you want the weight of your encounter to lie.

If you want to keep it light on politics and courtly manners (but still introduce the concept) and mainly focus on actin, you could have the characters meet in a small village, hiding in a small temple/shrine from the rain. There they meet the monks who manage the shrine, some heimin from the village who offer to bring them something to eat, and an imperial messenger who is also hiding from the rain. You talk, exchange backstories, eat and then go to sleep. Then suddenly, in the middle of the night, ASSASSINS! CUT THE DISHONORABLE BASTARDS DOWN! As it turns out, they were going after the messenger, trying to intercept her critical message to clan (X).. As it turns out, one of the assassins was one of the freindly villagers earlier today. After the fight, the messenger politely asks you if you could acccompany her for the time being, at least as long as your paths are entwined, as she expects more assassins.

If you are going for a more courtly game, you can say all your players are (working for) delegates who are sent ahead of the clan daimyos to the winter court, and have to arrange the proper accomodations for their masters for the winter.
Start with their arrival, the proper welcome and the gift-giving, and then let them work out all the different demands of their daimyo with eatch other and the other delegates, From there, you can layer on the intrigue and affairs as thick as you want. Maybe your daimyo wants a room next to a mostly unknown but very pretty courtier form another clan. Maybe there are a few samurai that should be kept as far apart as possible, for fear of an old feud coming up again. Maybe you have orders to get any chef the scorpions recommend (or even find acceptable) off the kitchen staf, by any means neccesary. The possibilities are endless.
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>>47641272
You what?
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>>47641147

Even the Shinjo aren't as bad as the Utaku. Why do you think they are that uninterested in men?
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>>47641767
Akodo genocided the original Kitsu race and let the 5 remaining men of the species shack up with his daughters, thus creating the Kitsu family. Any direct descendant of a the original Kitsu progenitors are copulating with IRL Lion.
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>>47641769
What do you think happened between Shinjo & the kirin? Flaming horse cock.
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>>47640326

...uh. What?

You can play a Dragon Bushi who doesn't follow the Niten school, but if you're a member of the Niten school, you've been trained to use two weapons. That's just... how it is. That's how they're trained. I do not understand your complain or where it is coming from (especially since you seem to be implying that this was a thing that developed over time, and not the original basis for the Mirumoto's distinct style of fighting from literally Clan Wars/1st Edition).
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>>47640179
THIS SAMURAI RIGHT HERE. THEY GET IT.

>>47641805
The Lion. Destroying beautiful and irreplaceable things since time immemorable.

My favourite of the major clans are the Crab and Scorpion. Carapace bros for life. LIFE I tells you.

My least favourite are the Lion and Crane.
The Lion because each of the clans have two focal points; war and something else. The Lion just so happen to have 'more war' as their something else.
The Crane because you have to go far out of your way to find one that isn't a stuck up asshole.
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>be a scorpion
>bayushi bushi, groomed to be a competent duelant
>accolades and important weapons heaped upon him
>just wants to cook

How do I communicate that with my daimyo?
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>>47642102
Haiku.
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>>47641255
Are they though? I'll agree, the +1 Void is a pretty good deal, but the rank 5 technique is pretty mediocre, and overlaps with the rank 3 one. The grappling technique is nice, but requires a jiujutsu investment. And you have a lot less access to kata to boot, plus your duelling which is boosted by your probably high Void, gets no further attention whatsoever. Atleast the Mirumoto Bushi still has their rank 2 technique to up their iaijutsu beef.
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>>47642102
Get exceptionally good at masquerading the taste of poison with delish food.
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>>47642310
You mean ... I should poison my daimyo with his favorite sushi?
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>>47642102

Every samurai is allowed, evn kind of expected, to have a hobby. Just keep working on it in your free time, and request a chance from your daimyo to cook for him once, if you think you are good enough. No daimyo say no to a good cook.

Of course, you will still be expected to serve as a duelist. Because you have a talent, the clan needs that talent, and how you feel about that is inconsequential. Duty comes first.
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>>47642069
I didn't imply such. That would be your interpreting failing you.

Look at the Niten techniques.
> You can world a second sword without the penalty everyone else faces
No one else need wield two swords.
Drawing both is an impediment at the start of combat.
Being disarmed of one is a greater drawback to the Mirumoto - anyone else could simply draw their wakizashi and carry on at 1k0 damage less, rather than without techniques.
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>>47640134
>>47640166
Mah Honourable Brethren.
>>47640097
That's disgusting, but I'm intrigued.
Explain yourself.
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>>47641600
this is good advice.

If you want to emphasize the spiritual aspect, have them as guests of a lord who has a prized relic stolen, who was about to give it as a gift.
To hide any hubbub over having their security bypassed they reach out to the PCs who are each of them reliable enough and unknown enough to smooth things over.
In the course of recovering it, they find out it's cursed.

>What do?

Throw in some gaki, and you're set.
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>>47642495
What's that Skip?
The guys who've trained all their lives to wield two swords need to wield two swords?
Stone the crows Skip, who'da guessed?
Seriously that's the whole point. Do you know what the Scorpion Sensei said to his pupil about beating a dragon?
"Take away one of his blades."

Also, how are you any more disadvantaged by needing to draw your weapon than literally any other samurai?
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>>47642495
>>47642676

You know, i'm looking at the core book right now, and the only techniques in the MIrumoto school that require using two swords for anything are the rank 1 and rank 5 techniques.

Of these, the rank 1 takes away the penalties involved and gives you a minor boost to armor TN, and the Rank 5 let's you make a third attack. Good, but not crippling to lose. In other words, the idea that the Mirumoto bushi are somehow helpless without two weapons is rather silly.
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>>47641805
So you're saying if I wanted to scoop the pool I should make a Kitsu with Alternate School into Utaku Battle Maiden?
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>>47642676
Still stands; where most other schools focus on doing better in combat, the mirumoto get an entry focus on not doing worse.

>how are you any more disadvantaged by needing to draw your weapon than literally any other samurai?
You need kenjutsu 5 & iaijutsu 3 to draw both immediately. Unless the gm rules they aren't separate free actions. Either way, you can't start with both - at least one ready weapon action will be a simple action for a while.

>>47642987
The rank 1 is controversial in any case, for being exactly as you said - a minor bonus at every rank.
Multiple attacks is their big thing in dealing damage, so yes, losing the rank 5 is a big deal.
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>>47643202
>>47642987

So I'm hearing a lot of people say that the rank one bonus is negligible.
I don't think that's so.
If I recall correct, it's +schoolrank to your TN, which is pretty small on its own, but that's on top of the baseline TN bonus you get from having an item you can parry with in your offhand which is, yes, +insightrank to your TN.

I think it's poor design because it's boring, not because it's weak, though it does reflect the -strength- of the niten style as affording defense as well as offense. the mirumoto school is intended to allow powerful offense and defense, and this is shown in their fluff, and the mechanics of their kata. Nightingale wings and such.

All of this, as well as reminding you all that TN is cripplingly hard to raise. It's much easier to get better at hitting, than it is to get better at being _-Generally-_ harder to hit. Outside of stance bonuses, TNs tend to cap out at around 20-30 before armor, and not hit more than 45 even with armor and armor tech.
With the defense bonuses from rank 1 of Mirumoto bushi, the mirumoto get to be ahead of the curve on the TN of most bushi schools.
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>>47643688
+2 isn't much at rank 1, and +10 isn't much at rank 5. It's been admitted that the school suffered by way of not wanting to make it as powerful as 3e.
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>>47643740
I just feel that the difference of +10 tn versus a traditional school who won't be benefiting from duel-wielding isn't trivial?
It's true that a number of schools got overnerfed from four though.
My shiba bushi straight up do not function anymore.
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>>47643688
Dragon seem to be pretty defense-focused in general, the Kitsuki rank 1 technique is also a TN bonus, and Tamori are Earth Shugenja, the most defensive element.
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>>47642987
>>47643202
>>47643688
Ah yes well there's your problem.
Using the jumbled mess of 4e instead of using the 3e school in your 4e games.

> You need kenjutsu 5 & iaijutsu 3 to draw both immediately.
...you have encountered a GM that doesn't believe that a Niten swordsman can draw a swords with each hand?
Mate I'm so sorry, I didn't know.
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>>47642086
>The Lion. Destroying beautiful and irreplaceable things since time immemorable.

And this is why I love the Lion. We'll ruin your shit, we'll conquer your lands, we'll brutalize your peasants, and we'll get away with it too, because we're more honorable than you are.
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>>47643805

> I just feel that the difference of +10 tn versus a traditional school who won't be benefiting from duel-wielding isn't trivial?

Don't forget the +5 from dual wielding in the first place, which actually adds up pretty well in total.

And yes, the Shiba school is rather meh. Unfortunately, since i like them, but the only useful trick they have is be better and more efficient at using Void.
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>>47641195
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I will probably never get to play in an L5R game again, but, goddammit, one of these days I should finish homebrewing some Sparrow bushi rank skills that aren't utter shit.
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>>47644349
>and we'll get away with it too, because we're more honorable than you are.

Also, I now have a mental image of a Lion and a Sparrow having an honor-off in a neutral court that offered to mediate to avoid a war. They're just... just kind of JoJo-posing at each other, but honorably, if that makes sense.

For some reason they're also both wearing sunglasses.

I... I don't know.
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>>47644480
As I discovered in the l5r game I was in, sparrows make the best wingmen.

>sip your tea a bit too loudly
>sparrow does it even louder to take the heat off you
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>>47644507
This reminds me of the court game that's about passive-aggressively insulting your opponent, and the loser is the one who either loses their composure or comes up with an insult that isn't subtle enough.
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>>47644480
Sparrow techniques, huh?

>Rank One: Open Beak, Closed Guard
A Suzume bushi carries his natural gregariousness into battle like a second set of armor, knowing how to recite whatever story will best distract and baffle his opponent.

As a simple action you may begin recounting a story to your oppenent. Add your ranks in Perform (Storytelling) to your Armor TN for a number of rounds equal to your School Rank. While this bonus lasts you are also immune to fear effects.
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>>47644608

I thought you might be in this thread, littlest-crab cranebro. I'm between jobs at the moment, if I find the time I might GM a new game myself. I'll try to look you up if I do!

D10 is a funky and swingy-as-fuck system, and I know on an intellectual level that L5R is a horrid mishmash of poorly-appropriated cultural concepts that make native Asians laugh like mad, but... there's just something appealing about how the game blends political sniping, strong cultural rules and mores and gritty, bloody combat and conflict. Can't get my mind off it. I'm sure I could do something with it.

>>47644715

I kek'ed. I kekk'ed a *lot.* The funny thing is, the 2nd edition "way of the minor clans" had a skill that worked just like that for Sparrows, just out-of-combat. "Conversation." They could avoid a fight altogether by striking up a friendly chat about just the right thing (the example given was avoiding a fight with some bored, surly Crabs by asking them their opinion about what sorts of armor are the most durable, which suckers the Crabs into a lengthy conversation that they honestly enjoy.)
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>>47644349
Little cat roaring
Sheds hair claws art yowls for food
Time to put it down
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>>47644480

To be honest, they aren't that bad, not much worse then they should be (keep in mind, the sparrow don't have a great school because they don't have the time and resources to build one). I like the concepts of slowing down to hit harder on one side, and using honour to boost their defence on the other. And even the random performer technique thrown in makes sense if you remember that they don''t have their own courtier school, so bushi have to do double duty.

The mechanical side does need tweaking though. the bad parts are the rank 3 (which does not do what it should, i.e. leverage their storytellling into an advantage) and it's rank 5 (which relies on you fucking around for one round of combat before you can hit something. And then makes it useless for the one situation where it could help.) Also, the rank 2 is a bit weak, you could probably double it, or even base it off your school or honour rank.
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>>47644820
It is nature's rules
That the cat hunts and kills birds
Can't fight nature, Jack.
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>>47644858
Paws bat at stone shells
Tap tap 'til you find the sting
Flail in agonies grip
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>>47642464
>Because you have a talent, the clan needs that talent, and how you feel about that is inconsequential. Duty comes first.

One thing I like about L5R is that it's heavily implied, if never outright stated, that the many privileges of the Samurai class are not free - they're the rewards for shouldering the duty and burden of leadership. In practice, of course, that very often isn't the case, and many, if not most Samurai have at least some egotistical investment in their innate superiority over the filthy peasant scum, but *strictly* speaking that superiority is supposed to be gifts bequeathed for the sole purpose of guarding and guiding the peasantry more effectively.

Asian chivalry, you could say. Because if you look at classic Western chivalry, it always seemed to me to be "check your privilege" cira 1350AD. The mark of a true Nobleman was recognizing their privilege as synonymous with duty, instead of taking advantage of it to be a gigantic heel.
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>>47644653

Sadame? Sadane?

Can't remember the name properly, but I was a rat-thing hanger-on to a pair of crab clanners and some other honorable so-and-sos. I was pretty vile and the moment I learned of this game, I was all in, any time, day or night. I ripped open one Lion so hard in a 'game' they turned into a major villain that would later go on to kill me. Good times.
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>>47644653
>This reminds me of the court game that's about passive-aggressively insulting your opponent, and the loser is the one who either loses their composure or comes up with an insult that isn't subtle enough.

L5R: the only game where "bantz" is an actual thing in the setting. Glorious.
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>>47644965
>One thing I like about L5R is that it's heavily implied, if never outright stated, that the many privileges of the Samurai class are not free - they're the rewards for shouldering the duty and burden of leadership.

This is pretty much stated in the rulebook as part of Rokugan's class system. Samurai may have perks, but they are also required to do their part in the celestial order, i.e. manage and protect the heimin and hinin doing their duties, and serve those samurai above them, in a chain running up to the emperor.

It's also the reason why ronin are considered so lowly, despite being samurai. They are no longer part of the celestial order, and therefore, the reason for the normal privileges has falllen away. They sometimes still enjoy some of it, either because they have a temporary master, because it's ingrained in the peasants, or because they have swords and the peasants don't, but for the most part, they are no longer part of society, despite their birth.
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>>47644920
Very sound advice
Tell that to your new recruits
Watch them soil themselves
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>>47645054
It's just this shy of becoming a full on rap battle. All you need to do is have the courtiers' yojimbo start beatboxing.
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>>47645152
I tell them stories
They all grin behind their On
My recruits can swim
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>>47645198
You're a funny guy
I like you, Scorpion-san
So I kill you last.
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>>47644245
> implying 3e wasn't a jumbled mess
Those are some rose tinted gaijin baubles, anon-san.
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>>47645177
>It's just this shy of becoming a full on rap battle. All you need to do is have the courtiers' yojimbo start beatboxing.

Perform (Vocal Percussion)
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>>47642511
>That's disgusting, but I'm intrigued.

I enjoy the guardians of culture aspect. They invented basically all the good things in life and were the ones who designed a system of courtly romance because they also are the worst at keeping it in their pants/out of their pants as appropriate for what they are hiding under their kimono. I like how the Kakita are pretty much obsessive artists (even the ones with the swords, because sword is art) and have had good times playing that aspect before with a character. And the Crane who do fight are amazing. Their bushi characters in setting history are tight, and the Iron Warriors are just cool period. Plus their scout school is a personal favorite mechanically.

I think there's a lot to love and play up if you wanted to. Though as a GM I also have indulged in the ponce uptight Crane stereotype before, I try not to resort to that too much for any clan. Keeps things from being boring.
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Shouting Matsu my
Glorious sensei will you
Please come back to us.
>>
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>mfw never played before
>mfw I desperately want to play
>mfw all my IRL friends are either not interested in RPGs, flakes or can't make a character sheet in a whole month the one time I actually got players
>mfw everyone I've ever played other games online with is either a flake, an ass or with completely different wishes for where campaigns should go
>mfw I don't want to GM for randoms because I have no idea how to properly evaluate if one is actually a nice player, see above
hold me, teeg

wat do
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>>47646135
Honorable seppuku
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>>47646135
There's an online sort of roleplaying community that's supposed to be decent called (unimaginatively) Legend of the Five Rings Online that you can try out. Alternatively, there's an unofficial Winter Court in the make, they have a post on FFGs forums and will be starting by the end of the year.
Or if you're up for running a game online and are looking for players I'm up for it sempai~
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>>47646860

>>47646135
>if you're up for running a game online and are looking for players
See my last point :(
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>>47647011
Well, you make your wishes for a campaign known well in advance, start out with a larger party so it doesn't collapse when one or two flake, and be proactive in setting game dates? There's no way to guarantee a good online game, as there is none to a real life game, but with some trial and error there's a significant chance it'll work out, especially with a relatively obscure system like l5r, where everyone's game-starved as it is. But if you've some bad experiences I can't blame you for not trying
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>>47647241
I just might.
I didn't like the idea of larger parties in general, and especially in roleplay and intrigue heavy games such as L5R, but needs must, I suppose.
>>
What do you think about running a magic-less variant of L5R, perhaps set in feudal Japan?
>>
I've been reading A LOT of Usagi Yojimbo lately, and it's making me want to try L5R.
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>>47647417
You can't really make a magic-less version of L5R, because the system is designed to let you play the inherently divine humans of the setting, represented by Void points and all the silly things that a person can do with void points if they train right.
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>>47647417
>>47647535
Also, trying to use it for a historical game isn't a very good idea. It's a fantasy setting and the system is purpose built for that specific fantasy setting.
I honestly wonder why there are so many people who think that this is a good system for historically realistic games. It hasn't been marketed like that for literally decades and even a passing knowledge of feudal Japan should tip you off that Rokugan is a fantasy setting, not a historically accurate copy of Japan.
>>
Say, when would prodigy be worth taking, aside from the bragging rights and roleplay reasons?
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>>47647577
>>47647535
Less a realistic game and more of "no mages or spirits" kind of deal.
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>>47647578
From a strictly mechanical point of view, it's worth it as a substitute for taking all of your school skills to 2, but no higher, because it costs 12 and taking your school skills all to 2 costs 14 (or 15). That's not great though, since it stops being mechanically efficient if you want to take those skills to rank 3 (And you almost certainly do, eventually, if not from the get go).
From a fluffier point of view, it's a very good choice for anyone aspiring to be a sensei or develop their own alt rank technique.
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>>47647578
when you got plenty of school skills at rank 10. So, basicly only in a game with an insane starting exp.
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>>47647603
It's doable. Most of what shugenja do in the setting can still be done without actual spirits. Lots of crop blessings and marriages and whatnot.
The problem is stuff like the Shadowlands and other supernatural threats. The setting would look very, very different if there was no supernatural elements.
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>>47647745
No shadowlands, no shugenja.

Of course the setting would look different, that was why I suggested a faux feudal Japan.
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>>47640097
Mantis. Love me some not!wako pirates.

Also obligatory

>Crane clan worst clan OP has shite taste
>>
How do you justify a whole bunch of misfits from different clans forming a party?
What are they doing that requires such inter-clan cooperation?
>>
>>47648841
Imperial assignments are a pretty standard go-to. Make them all Emerald Magistrates, or Legionnaires, or Imperial Cartographers. Otherwise, they could all be attending the same court when something happens that requires their collective attention.
>>
Rolled 3 (1d6)

>>
>>47648841
Pretty much what >>47649108 said.
You could also make them the setting's tiniest inter-clan conspiracy.
>>
>>47649225
You can also make them all cousins having a get together, since people marry into other clans all the time and their kids would be raised in that clan. They could could all share a grandparent from one clan, several of whose children married into other clans, and they're all attending the grandparent's funeral when something happens.
>>
>>47648841

One way of looking at it is not seeing it as inter-clan cooperation, but as interpersonal cooperation. Family ties and promises mean a lot to these people, and can tie together people from different clans with different personalities without issue.

Let's say for instance you have a party of a Kakita bushi with artistic aspirations, one very pragmatic yoritomo marine with a lust for koku (and other things) that wishes to captain his own ship someday, and an introverted isawa shugenja with void powers. Not a very homogenous group. However, that changes when you say they share a grandfather, the daimyo of a trading port on the southern crane shore. One daughter was married to a influential Mantis trading family to strenghten the ties to that family, and another turned out to be shugenja with the power of the void, and was married into the Isawa family, who will offer outrageous marriages in their ongoing efforts to monopolise void magic. His only son married in the clan and had a son of his own, trained in the traditional kakita ways. Even for those relatives no longer part of the clan, honouring their family and ancestors is a big deal, so if grandfather wishes them to spend the winter in his court, of course they accept.

Why grandfather wants to gather all his grandchildren in one place is something you'll have to come up with, of course.
>>
>>47649376
You can also use favors owed for those sort of things.
One of my favorite characters was a wallcrab who ended up as a yojimbo for an Ide because there was a debt owed from a few generations ago and they called it in for some muscle.
>>
>>47649504
>because there was a debt owed from a few generations ago
Oooooh, I like that.
>>
>>47641600
Well in the module I'm running the goal of the players is to convince a number of minor clan lords to either be for or against a trade deal. Depending on what clan the players are from, they will either try to sway/bribe/blackmail the lords into opposing or supporting the trade agreement.

I suppose they could run into an assassin who wants to make sure they don't interfere with the proceedings, or perhaps another influential diplomat who is the target of the assassin.
>>
>>47642236
taoist is bad

rank 5 erase rank 3 technique, should have been an incremental rank 3 and another effect at rank 5. even then, not a great school
>>
>>47650227
It doesn't erase it.
The rank 3 lets you use a single void point for damage whenever you want.
Rank 5 lets you dump as many void points as you want into a single damage roll, but only once per skirmish.
The real problem with it is that it doesn't have any way to gain or preserve its void points and will quickly run out if it actually uses these abilities too much.
>>
>>47645885
first ed devellopper where huge fans of the crane, thats why so many awesome npc where crane.

they even ressurected a crane nobody liked because they loved the crane so much
>>
>>47650460

A lot of schools and techniques that are heavily based on using void points (the most famous are the Shiba bushi, but many other schools and even ronin techniques also rely on them) run into this problem. Even a character with maxed out void only has 10 points, and regaining them takes time, time you may not have. Very few ronin bandits/maho sorcerers/ Kolat revolutionaries will agree to a tea break in the middle of a fight. Meaning that these characters always have a limited number of "shots" before they are effectively useless.
>>
>>47650663
and a void can be spent to negate 10 wounds, that saved me so many times
>>
>>47650663
>before they are effectively useless.
I wouldn't go that far. Techniques aren't so powerful that someone who can't fully utilize theirs is completely useless.
Rolling 10k6 to hit and 8k3 to damage as a Simple Action is more than enough to be useful, and most high end bushi are somewhere in that range or better without benefiting from any technique whatsoever.
>>
>>47650663
If you've completely depleted 10 Void points and still have a fight left to finish, you've got bigger problems, like a GM actively trying to kill your character. You should be rocket tagging one or two guys to death every single round without even using any void points. Everyone on your team should be rocket tagging one or two guys every round. There shouldn't be anyone left to kill after even a handful of void points have been spent.
>>
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>>47647421
Usagi Yojimbo is great. L5R is way more fantasy honorabooru than their setting but it is still a great thing for mood
>>
>>47647394
Well, if you do decide to organise something, be sure to post about it in /l5r/ or one of these threads!
>>
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>>47650462
1e Crane were pretty shit tier because that was when Ree Soesbee was most hands on with them. I say this as a Crane fan since early 3e when I first really found the setting (so not got the same depth of time as true oldfags of L5R), fuck her.

Freddy Mercury here cannot believe the shit about her perfect storyteller insert with the Lion ninja Kolat boyfriend
>>
>>47651823
>Lion ninja Kolat boyfriend
I like how in this setting that's a normal thing to be, instead of being a gibberish list of things, like space pirate zombie alien.
>>
>>47651679
I don't feel like it is. We just see different parts of Usagi Yojimbo, and we see different parts of L5R. If you were playing ronin, then Usagi Yojimbo's atmosphere would fit fine. It's not like he's running around in furry Kyoto 100% of the time, either; official business is something he runs into because he's good at stabbing people, not because of any courtly intrigue.
>>
>>47651862
Well it isn't normal, but it is something that uses proper descriptives to assemble for the reader a proper image of the guy.
>>
>>47651823
"What the fuck is this?
Lion-chan wrote this foul smut
Of me sucking dick?"
>>
>>47652170
Lion can have mysterious depths.
>>
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>>47651862
>>47651823

Didn't Shizue also turn out to be a secret Kolat too or something? She also de-aged between her basic and experienced forms.
>>
>I will never get to play L5R with any of my three (3) RPG groups

Hold me, /tg/.
>>
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>>47640097
>Tfw you F6 and no Spider clan

You are all plebs, I'm glad Daigotsu Kanpeki won in the end.
>>
>>47646135
Are you in melbourne?
If so I can help.
if not, sorry.
>>
>>47652729
You're the only one who does.
Spider Clan a shit.
I bet you play Ultramarines as well
>>
>>47645885
All of this is reasonable and even appealing.
+1 status.
>>
>>47652666
I know, Satan, she was a fucking mess. I legit think that half the Crane hate isn't just because the holier than thou ponces (which don't help and do exist) but because of how 1e Crane were so hyped and hyped and hyped that it became community catharsis to rage.
>>
>>47652750
You'd think Night Lords would be more their speed.
>>
>>47642086
>The Lion. Destroying beautiful and irreplaceable things since time immemorable.

And yet, of all the things that they SHOULD destroy, somehow the Crane are still around.
>>
>>47652937
Hello, Hida Kuro.
>>
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>>47652752
Most Crane are kind, gracious, giving, and good company as long as your only joy in life isn't just battle (Oddly you'd think more Crab would like them when they're away from the wall because they are good company and distractions, but I guess the whole 'weak artists don't deserve what our suffering gives them' is also pretty fair) and generally make great friends.

Doji social manipulation is just making sure everyone likes you so when someone is a dick to you all your friends stop doing any favors for them. This does however breed a whole arrogant class as well because they are OBVIOUSLY the best and most important clan, and those who place their cultural contributions as more important than others' duties which is where you get the flip side of the Crane coin.

Also sometimes the Kakita just plain old go crazy in their pursuit of perfection and the perfect strike. As seen here, as if that modern bi color die job isn't doing its poison dart frog warning coloration thing already.
>>
>>47652937

not for lack of trying though
>>
>>47652884
Yeah but Night Lords don't get developer favoritism.
>>
>>47652750
Spider had some decent potential at every single point, imo. It was the execution and connecting the dots to the ccg where it fell apart.
>>
>>47651823
You mean 2e.
>>
>>47653184
The problem with the Spider Clan was/is that AEG and the Storyteam couldn't give them a proper identity without stepping on the Scorpion turf. And now the Clan is nothing but a hot mess with no identity.
>>
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>>47653221
I may actually. I legit forget what is new in Secrets of the Crane vs. Way of the Crane though you're correct in the metaplot dick sucking peaking a bit later.

My error, Anonymous-san. I beg forgiveness for my stupidity.
>>
>>47652964
>poison dart frog
Top kek
>>
>>47653410
If AEG weren't so tied to the ccg / player base / tournaments, we might have received that.

As a Dragon fan, I know enough dissenting voices can alter the story, and I've seen enough results to know the majority vote for nothing to change, bloodspeaker paragons of honour, and/or kenku ninja pirate personality cards.
>>
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>>47653521
>tfw when no Frog Clan founded by a Shosuro poison master
>>
>>47653065
>Villian faction
>is made good because villian faction
>muh favoritism

Its like people forget how to make a BBEG
>>
>>47653410
It was getting fixed right before the end, they were going back to their chuda, undead, oni , evil samurai, themes and become Shadowlands MKII, then they sold the license to FFG shortly after announcing the change..
>>
>>47654856
The Frog Clan actually almost exists for most of the relevant setting history. The Kaeru (Lit. "To Change" or "Frog" depending on what moonrunes you use to spell it) family is a family of Ronin that control the City of the Rich Frog and are often better off than many Minor Clans.
All it would take is one emperor to bump them up.
>>
>>47654959
It was getting fixed in the wrong way. Going back to chuda zombie corrupted would be the right thing to do, but they also made them control the entire empire and specifically fuck over most of the other clans even when those other clans won tournaments over them.
>>
>>47655088
This.

To be completely honest I'm glad someone at least semi-competent got L5R away from AEG.

I'm really hoping FFG eliminates the Spider somehow.
>>
>>47654959
That wasn't fixing the Spider, though. That was eliminating them. IIRC, one of the Iweko brithers was leading the faithful / untainted faction, too.
>>
>>47655383
Eliminating the Spider IS fixing them.
>>
>>47655472
Subjective opinion is subjective.
>>
>>47655383
And that's the core of the problem.
The Spider existing at all fucked up the old Horde styles, and now that it's finally settled into its role as Scorpion+, it's being dragged back to horde.
But the old horde players have fucked off and the new douchespiders don't want to horde and everyone else is getting fucked in the process because of executive favoritism.
>>
>>47655491

Correct opinion is correct.
>>
>>47655491
Like it or not it was the events of the destroyer war, race for the throne, and Spider becoming a GC that ultimately signed L5R's death sentence. CCG Players were leaving the game in droves at that point, and the company only jumped at the chance to sell off the property because it was a dying game.
>>
>>47654856
I thought that was a pair of big green tits for a moment
>>
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>>47655057
I've run L5R for years but actually never once made a trip to that city. Maybe I should now and have the Frog exist since my current game is set about a century past where canon last ended.
>>
>>47655570
The Kaeru eventually become vassals of the Lion, because the Lion rolled up to the city, laid a claim to it, and nobody objected.
This hasn't actually resulted in very much difference to the Kaeru, since the Lion decided to be hands off and leave the existing administration in place and the Kaeru don't object to paying taxes in exchange for military support.
>>
>>47655498
Thank you.
>>
Anyone have the PDF's? I'm interested in giving this system a try with some of my friends, but have none.
>>
>>47655926
These are the links that used to be in the general.
No idea if they're still valid.
https://www.mediafire.com/folder/vx477quhxz4vt/Regend5Ling#btf4cvsidtj6ff

http://www.4shared.com/folder/61429qLm/Legend_of_The_Five_Rings_4th_E.html
>>
>>47656037
You are the best. Thanks man :)
>>
>>47655383
>one of the Iweko brithers was leading the faithful / untainted faction, too.

That was a bunch of fan fiction of the RPG players that took part in the last wintercourt event. There wasn't any empire loyal faction, a few monks turned and died for it and the Susumu family was burned alive in their castle except for the Spider loyal ones.
>>
>>47656366
>fan fiction
Nah, dude. Clearly you weren't paying enough attention to what AEG was planning for the following edition before they passed everything on to FFG.
>>
>>47656708
What? You mean like in the last AEG fiction where the empire loyal Susumu died in a fire? Or the leaked Onyx sets that got spread a week or so ago that had not one untainted Spider among them, basically just Chuda and undead, with the year after being tainted Dark Paragons and Obsidian magistrates? The rumors pointed to a few monksai maybe becoming unaligned like Tetsuo but nothing more.

The "walk the light" fags failed to get any real sentiment besides their RPG players crying because they chose to play wintercourt as good guys instead of the evil little shits they were supposed to be. Hell they even tried to argue that Shourido was not a shadowlands thing and condemned the taint overall, all the while speaking of "unity and peace" missing the whole fucking point of the Spider clan, to incite conflict and chaos and pray on the sins of those made desperate by said chaos.

There was that shourido path idea which was a nice compromise but its clear that evil, tainted and daigotsu loyal was the majority of those votes by a massive margin.

There was never any real faithful / untainted faction led by anyone. Shiabatsu was made Susumu Daimyo, Spider rebelled and went into hiding, accepted the taint, burned down the empire loyal susumu, corrupted the vast majority of the order of the Spider to found the kokujin, and then over the first Onix edition ground the empire to dust under a wave of undead after killing the Mantis Isles before finally conquoring Toshi Rambo and establishing Otosan Uchi as the new capital before a full time jump into Onix year 2
>>
>>47656708
He kind of is right and kinda is wrong.

One of the final stories (post sale) had most of the Empire loyal Susumu getting trapped in a burning castle, but at the same time one of the spring Kotei wins had the Scorpion saving the Susumu.
>>
>>47656969
But the scorpion saving the Susumu did not mean that they would not be Spider... they saved the Susumu so the concept would not be totally destroyed, and the scorpion also chose to have their not-ninja half flat out side with Kanpeki for a chance to murder the kolat for good. They saved the Susumu FOR the Spider, to bring the clans closer, like the story prize said it would, not for some fake anti spider faction. Which by the way became irrelevant as the Spider were the bad guys, so there was nothing to worry about with them, they basically were told that they weren't losing anything by story team members and told to use their few wins to go taint all the shit of other clans, so Scorpion saving the Susumu became more moot then anything else.
>>
>>47656928
>The "walk the light" fags failed to get any real sentiment besides their RPG players crying because they chose to play wintercourt as good guys instead of the evil little shits they were supposed to be. Hell they even tried to argue that Shourido was not a shadowlands thing and condemned the taint overall, all the while speaking of "unity and peace" missing the whole fucking point of the Spider clan, to incite conflict and chaos and pray on the sins of those made desperate by said chaos.

I want you to know that we couldn't be "evil little shits" during WC4. They tied gaining Honor to the games victory condition. We could not be seriously evil/vicious in anywhere visible without hurting our candidate's chances of victory.

It didn't help that the Crab had a brokenly min/maxed Shiba Bushi Duelist that beat up Crane duelists.
>>
>>47655570
I'm not sure what he's so upset about; the fact that his servant has committed seppuku in protest, or the fact that she's done it improperly.
>>
>>47657315
I think she's dead- and he killed her. So it's a haunting.
>>
>>47656928
>There was that shourido path idea which was a nice compromise but its clear that evil, tainted and daigotsu loyal was the majority of those votes by a massive margin.
If you were paying attention to the polls, none of them were final. All of them were open to tipping the balance as the story arc progressed.
>>
>>47657315
>>47657338
The art is based on a fiction in which, during the years of peace after the destroyer war the Carpenter Wall was basically turning into a money pit and the Yatsuki and Hida were thinking of cutting fundings to the wall, so she, a hida, gave herself the three cuts, walked into the room of her commander, the shocked guy, and revealed the cuts after informing the lord and his court publicly of how foolish laxing the walls defenses would be.
>>
>>47657315
Yeah, the three cuts are not done that way.
>>
>>47657315
>>47657338
It's kanshi. He's made a decision she doesn't like. She's too honourable for his shit, so after a final plea that she expected him to refuse, she pulls the "I've already killed myself" card in the hopes of finally changing his mind.
>>
>>47657426
Look at the picture. The three cuts she did are all vertical. The 3 cuts in seppuku are first a vertical cut downwards, continued with a horizontal cut then finished with a vertical cut up forming a u shape.
>>
>>47657473
Gah... first vertical should be horizontal.
>>
>>47657473
I'll inclined to ignore the blood pattern and pretend she has some thicker layers holding her entrails in.
>>
>>47657315

Read >>47657495 again. The poster knew it was a Kanshi but was making fun of the artist's mistake with the 3 cuts.
>>
>>47657413
It was 75% of the voting tied up in embracing jigoku and the taint initially and overthrowing the Iweko empire, with only 25% wanting to go back to serving the Iweko and remaining pure. Story team basically said that Walk the Light would be receiving nods, but evil was Spider's path forward. The only real questions to be answered would have been just HOW evil to go and how would Kanpeki rule his evil empire, through jigoku's infernal fist or through Spider's strength of arms and will, though the first few years of Spider was already locked into the Embrace option, then we were going to see the Shourido aspect creep in with the Dark Paragons and Obsidian Magistrates, because the brand lead personally liked the Shourido path.

Walk the Light was basically dead, the idea that it could magically overturn evil spider, especially after 2 years of guaranteed evil cards that were coming is silly at best. It would be like arguing that the Lion could still side with the Spider, even though only 20% decided to chose that option and 80% said hell no.

Could there have been a cool unaligned guy... maybe, but a whole faction? Not likely at all.
>>
>>47657228
Considering this was at a point in time where every story prize for every clan benefitted the Spider in some way, you can't really take it as anything the Scorpion players actually wanted.
>>
>>47657616
It was 75% of the voting tied up in embracing jigoku and the taint initially and overthrowing the Iweko empire, with only 25% wanting to go back to serving the Iweko and remaining pure.

No, it was 40% Jigoku, 35% Shourido and 25% Light. Jigoku was go full Shadowlands, Shourido was Dark Samurai and Light was go full Samurai.
>>
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>>47652964
Cranes are Duelists, it's What They Do.
>>
>>47657783
I don't even like Spoony much but he really got fucked over in that story. Shame it tarnished his opinion of L5R forever.
>>
>>47657800
Yeah, having a L5R group full of That Guys didn't really help things at all. Kinda glad the later editions ease up on the "Die within minutes if you piss off the wrong courtier or samurai" thing.
>>
>>47657783
The funny thing is, only one family/school in the Crane are the duelists; the rest of them are courtiers.
>>
>>47658239
Given the era Spoony probably played it, the other families of the Crane had their own various special snowflake power too, except for maybe the Daidoji.

With all the That Guys in the group, the Crane had probably min-max'd his character for maximum dueling power, then realized he couldn't challenge bandits and oni to formal duels. He was probably itching for someone to commit a BREACH OF HONOR to drop the pain on them.
>>
>>47655472

Dragon Pls
>>
>>47658310
Neither the party nor the GM explained the code of etiquette to him until after he'd unwittingly breached it, either; and even then, they got some parts of it wrong (like the tea thing; you don't have to refuse tea twice before accepting the third time, that's only a ritual reserved for formal gifts). The players basically set him up to fail and the GM was too lazy to correct them..
>>
>>47658239
Really only one school. Not all Kakita become duelists, there are plenty who train to become courtiers, and there's the Kakita family artisan school, too.

Honestly even though the Crane are known for having the most and best duelists, it's such a small part of what they do.
>>
>>47658339
Holy shit, that's fucking stupid. Do people get off on being shitty or something? Also their failure at etiquette is shameful
>>
>>47658423
It happened enough back in 1e and 2e that it's one of the main reasons a lot of gamers got turned off to L5R.
>>
>>47658327
No, no, Dragon-san is right in this case. The only good Spider is a dead one.
>>
Nightingale Samurai or Mirumoto Talon?
>>
Are there any books/spells/schools or whatever that you don't allow in your campaigns?
>>
>>47658782
I don't allow Spiders and make shugenja explain why their sensei have given them each of the spells they pick.
>>
>>47658789
>make shugenja explain why their sensei have given them each of the spells they pick.
>Jade Strike
>"I met a Kuni shugenja once"
>"But you're a Phoenix!"
>"Yup..."
>>
>>47658789

>Moshi Shugenja
>Fist of Osano-Wo
>"We are the Chosen of the Thunder Dragon, I think that gives justification for us to have lost of zzap scrolls about."
>>
>>47658818
Jade Strike is actually the easiest to explain. Literally every shugenja school has it in abundance (And the Kuni will literally hand it out to anyone who somehow doesn't have it). Even the pacifists have it, since most of them don't consider shadowland beasts to fit in their worldview as things to not kill.
Jade Strike is so easy to get and so freely shared that even a ronin shugenja could have learned it from literally any school or wandering shugenja he encountered in his travels.
>>
>>47658846

Oddly enough, it was one of the main spells my Spider Shugenja knew. That and the 'Pass your taint onto another one'.

She spent her time pretending to in fact be a Ronin with a hatred of everything shadowlands when in fact she was very good at framing people for being in league with dark forces.

The Kuni tend to accept you as an ally when your introduction to them is slamming a tainted samurai across the room with Jade Strike
>>
>>47658846
That's the joke.
>>
>>47658846
It's also so common that not having it makes many people automatically suspect you to be a maho tsukai (Which is compounded by the fact that any situation where it becomes relevant already has a ton of paranoia about infiltrators and monsters), and the Kuni will not allow a student to pass their gempuku without demonstrating mastery of the spell.
>>
A question for those of you with a lot of the books, which books have some good poisons in them?

I'm currently makiing a soshuro infiltrator (disguised as a courtier, disguised as a ronin bushi) who makes use of a lot of poisons. I made himm a painter and tattoo artist, in order to hide his various poisons among the numerous vials of paint he is always carrying, and to have the rokugani equivalent of injection needles at hand. However, while the poisons in the core book aren't bad, they lack variety.

What i am really looking for are some food-based poisons, as well as the memetic "get cut in a duel, die days afterwards" poisons of the bayushi duelists, but anything interesting iis nice.
>>
>>47659194
Honestly only the core has any poison at all, but it has a few and you can kind of use those as inspiration to make new ones. I know, not as helpful as a real fucking list. Sorry, anon
>>
>>47659194
There aren't a lot of them.
Just keep in mind that the Scorpion like to keep their poisons strictly controlled. Don't want too many opportunities for healers to experiment with cures, if you catch my drift.
>>
>>47659194
Look up Way of the Scorpion.
>>
>>47640097

My favorite clan has to be the Mantis. Samurai sailors scouring the seas, not afraid to try a new solution to an old problem.

My least favourite has to be the Lion. Not because of their HONOUR schtick per se, but they don't really have anything about them beyond war, war and more war. It's telling that the historians among them are by far the most interesting family.
>>
>>47660632
I actually like the Kitsu. I just wish they would have gotten more screentime in the fictions. Alas, the fate of many less important families.
>>
Weeb Jew Mafia are the best family.
>>
>>47658789
Would the answer to that not nigh always be either "My sensei gave it to me" or "I chose it from the school libraries?"
>>
>>47660648

You'd think that a family built on bestiality and directly speaking to their ancestors (in a culture that worships their ancestors) would be interesting enough to stay in focus.
>>
>>47660632

I'd love to see more done with the Lion Beastmasters. They are cool.
>>
>>47660681
Yes, but WHY did you pick it, WHY did your sensei choose this one to teach. Not how, why.
>>
>>47660879
Sensei acts in mysterious ways.
>>
>>47661186
That's a lazy answer. Your character might not know it, but there is always a reason.
>>
>>47660699
That's why they're not in focus. It's always uncomfortable when you call up your ancestor for some advice and it's an actual lion that shows up to answer, in front of everybody watching.
>>
>>47661223
>That's a lazy answer.
Sure is. But in all seriousness I think that's a neat detail to have in your games.

>>47661286
> Lion Grandma shows up
Priceless.
>>
>>47661286

I'm pretty sure modern Kitsu can't breed with lionss anymore, but i'm going to make this canon for our games. Just imagine

>grandfather, we come to you for council. Should we trust the scorpion on this new trade agreement?
>ROOOOOOARW RAWR ROAR GRRRRR!
>thank you for your wise council, honorable grandfather. We are in agreement, fuck the sneaky bastards.
>>
>>47661223

>Your character might not know it, but there is always a reason.

Then how are you supposed to explain the reason which you don't know?
>>
>>47661533

And yes, i know that that is much too direct for Rokugani, but i wanted to get it done today.
>>
>>47661592
You do as a player, but not your character.
>>
>>47658742
Ugh, what?
>>
>>47661623

That's metagaming, son.
>>
>>47661631
No, it's coming up with a backstory.
Like having your parents be retired assassins, unbeknownst to the character.
>>
>>47661631
Not the picky GM, but it sounds more like the player needs to know why they have the spells they do. Maybe this helps the GM prepare encounters?
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>>47660699
So which family has the most non-human blood in it? Kitsu? Kitsune? Komori?
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>>47640097
Fox Clan best clan
>>
This was proposed last thread as a homebrew for centipede clan bushi. Thoughts and CC?

Rank 1: The Moshi Guardian is the guard of the heaven's themselves. Their surety of purpose makes them inviolate to those who would seek to harm this divine guardian.

You may add your ranks in Lore: Theology to your armour TN. Additionally, your armour TN is not reduced during guard actions and you add an additional 1k1 to the armour TN of the person or object you are guarding.

Rank 2: The wrath of heaven is sure and swift, each gleaming blade and arrowhead divine justice that hobbles and blinds the target of this judgement.

On a successful attack, reduce your opponents armour TN by an amount equal to your skill rank in Lore: Theology. This effect lasts until the start of your next turn.

Rank 3: A single well timed blow is better than a dozen in haste. The Moshi know when it is best to strike like lightning or to be as difficult to catch as the sun herself.

You can make an attack with a spear or bow as a complex action while in the defense stance.

Rank 4: The storm is a symbol of the power of the Moshi and the Guardians of the Sun can invoke it just as well as that of the Shugenja of the family. Many a foe has been cut down by piercing blows come as fast as rays of sunlight.

You may make attacks with Spears and Bows as a simple action.

Rank 5: It is the honor of each Guardian to give his life for his charge, to die with a smile on his lips and his duty done. The Moshi, however, have never been a family for death without purpose and the most talented of the Guardians have proven such. A deadly blow is quickly interposed not by a noble sacrifice of life but with a skillful parry of a weapon.

Once per encounter, when an enemy makes an attack against an ally within reach of your weapon you may spend a void point to interrupt that attack with an attack of your own. On a successful attack the opponent's attack is wasted and automatically misses.
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>>47661904

the Utaku.
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>>47662180
I should have known this joke was coming, but I thought I didn't have to inb4 it because it was a serious question. Utaku battlemaidens may fuck their steeds, but that doesn't mean that their kids will be half-horse. Other families have actual animal spirits in their lineage, some really recently.
>>
>>47662180
My god that face.

>>47662165
I like it. It's got a clear theme going on and seems to be on relative power parity with other schools.
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>>47662165
It's a pretty thematic school, so that's cool. My only concern is how Techniques 3 and 4 are supposed to interact. Is the attack in Denfense stance supposed to remain a complex action even after you can do simple action attacks in the attack stance, or is the rank 4 tecnhique supposed to make attacks from the defense stance simple actions as well? The language could be a bit clearer to make which ever case you intend more explicit.
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>>47662165

I like your ideas behind it, but some of the design choices are a bit odd.

The first ranks are based of lore:theology. Personally i'd have used honour, but if that is the direction you want to take the school, it works fine.

However, the next attack is also based on being defensive, but is focused around using bows and spears, something not mentioned in the style before. And why would you use a bow in defensive stance? If you are in defense stance, that means that something close by wants to eat your face, which is not the time to be shooting arrows at distant targets. Also, how do you defend with a bow while aiming at the same time? Also, you might want to clarifiy in the rank 4 technique that it does not apply to this attack.
The rank 4 goes on with the ongoing pattern of spears and bows. It's perfectly servicable, but i would have preferred the inclusion of samurai weapons in there, which is part of the basis for most schools, and opens up a lot of options.

As for the rank 5, i like what you did to it. It might be a little underpowered with the restrictions, but the school was never designed to be some type of top tier class, it's what the Moshi bushi could come up with in their spare time. Does it work with ranged weapons tough? because that sounds like a hell of a trick shot, altough it does add some extra utility to the character.

Overall, i'm not a fan of adding the bow to the schools techniques. I know it's part of the starting outfit, but that does not mean it has to be part of the school. Also, the Mantis already have an archery school, the archery school, and i don't think wuxia archery fits with the "simple loyal guardsman" feel of the school.
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>>47662223

>but I thought I didn't have to inb4 it because it was a serious question.

Welcome to /tg/, enjoy your stay.

As for a serious answer, it is going to depend on how many spirit ancestors intermingled with how many human ancestors of course, but if i call correctly the Komori have the most recent origin, so they are at least closest to the original spirit ancestors.

Of course, it is rarely specified if any of these families keep up their interspecies affairs in the current day, which would affect the amoount of nonhuman blood in them drasticly.
>>
>>47662383

As the person who rewrote the rank 3, yeah. It's intended that you can't make two attacks and Defensive Stance at the same time.

I think, however, it would be better to reword 3 to limiting you to a single attack. So that once you hit 4 you can Move + Attack in defensive but you don't get to stab twice.

>>47662416

I went with a Skill as it's something that not going to start as high but scales better. It was based off the several other schools with an ability to get <Skill> to armour somehow, with the Theology being how the Moshi are a rather religious family.

Defensive Stance still works against arrows, though you do have a bit of a point. On the other hand, I'm a bit hesitant to remove all archery for it. Mostly because I feel without the Ranged addition it might be a tad underpowered for a Great Clan school.

Perhaps replace it with some Iajutsu-help? As according to book of Air, the Moshi run most of the clan dueling schools.

The rank 5 was designed to work with bows, yeah. You think the 1/encounter limitation should be removed to make it a bit more powerful?
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>>47662487

>I went with a Skill as it's something that not going to start as high but scales better. It was based off the several other schools with an ability to get <Skill> to armour somehow, with the Theology being how the Moshi are a rather religious family.

I see your point. Like i said, there's nothing really wrong with it, altough it might be a bit weak at early levels. Maybe skill+school rank?

>Defensive Stance still works against arrows, though you do have a bit of a point. On the other hand, I'm a bit hesitant to remove all archery for it. Mostly because I feel without the Ranged addition it might be a tad underpowered for a Great Clan school. Perhaps replace it with some Iajutsu-help? As according to book of Air, the Moshi run most of the clan dueling schools.

I like that idea. Perhaps the rank 3 technique can add a bonus for iaijutsu as well (a seperate bonus for the defensive stance, maybe?) in return for removing the bow from the original effect. The Mantis really don't have anyone with duelling techniques, so this would be pretty helpful.

the rank 4 should probably add samurai weapons, or at least swords with the samurai keyword (excluding the naginata, because spears 4 life bro). You can and probalby should keep bows. I doubt it would break the game and it will probably come in handy, especially with the rank 5.

>The rank 5 was designed to work with bows, yeah. You think the 1/encounter limitation should be removed to make it a bit more powerful?

It really should not be removed, but maybe double it to twice per encounter? this adds a lot of usability, both practically (like being able to block both attacks from a rank 3+ bushi) and psychologically ("i can afford to use it, i have one left in reserve"). Keeping the void tax for balance.

Overall, it's looking good tough, definitely something worth adding to the game, especially if it now fills two gaps in the Mantis arsenal (spear wielding infantry and iaijutsu).
>>
>>47662656

>a seperate bonus for the defensive stance, maybe?

What i meant was, a separate bonus for the center stance. Maybe a boost to iaijjutsu (assesment) rolls or something similar?
>>
>>47662656
>>47662686

Perhaps. I was pondering actually letting them choose to be in the Defensive Stance instead of Attack during the Strike aspect of Iajutsu (Since they CAN attack in it). So while they might not get the first hit in a duel as much as a Kakita they have a much higher chance of the other guy missing. They win by being better at defense, even in duels.
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>>47662790

A duelist who does not win by being faster than the opponent, but dodging'/deflecting their attack and striking back? I bet the crab can hear the Kakita screaming and whining all the way over on the wall. Which is reason enough for me to approve.

To be honest, i don't know if the rules even account for that. Everything written about duels assumes that the strike is going to hit. ON the other hand, there is nothing suggesting you can't do it, and it does sound like a very mantis solution to the problem. "i can't draw as fast as the Kakita, no matter how hard i train. Well in that case, why don't i just block that "perfect stroke" and attack at my leisiure?"
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>>47662911

>To be honest, i don't know if the rules even account for that. Everything written about duels assumes that the strike is going to hit. ON the other hand, there is nothing suggesting you can't do it

Yeah, there isn't really saying that you don't still have to hit armour TN.

It does mean that it's MUCH better at battlefield duels than it is at a court duel (As it will work with your armour quite well) but that's not really a bad thing.

>The rules didn't say I couldn't parry. It's not my fault that my blade was a thicker, tougher blade than his.
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>>47640097
CRAB MASTER RACE!!!!
>>
Quick rewrite:

Rank 1: The Moshi Guardian is the guard of the heaven's themselves. Their surety of purpose makes them inviolate to those who would seek to harm this divine guardian.

You may add your ranks in Lore: Theology and your School Rank to your armour TN. Additionally, your armour TN is not reduced during guard actions and you add an additional 1k1 to the armour TN of the person or object you are guarding.

Rank 3: A single well timed blow is better than a dozen in haste. The Moshi know when it is best to strike like lightning or to be as difficult to catch as the sun herself. A glorious perfect cut cannot strike what is no longer there.

You can make a single attack with a Spear or Katana each turn while in the defense stance. In addition, they may assume the Defensive stance during the Strike phase of an Iajutsu duel rather than the Strike stance.

Rank 4: The storm is a symbol of the power of the Moshi and the Guardians of the Sun can invoke it just as well as that of the Shugenja of the family. Many a foe has been cut down by piercing blows come as fast as rays of sunlight.

You may make attacks with Spears, Katanas and Bows as a simple action.

Rank 5: It is the honor of each Guardian to give his life for his charge, to die with a smile on his lips and his duty done. The Moshi, however, have never been a family for death without purpose and the most talented of the Guardians have proven such. A deadly blow is quickly interposed not by a noble sacrifice of life but with a skillful parry of a weapon.

I'd also swap Kenjutsu for Iajutsu in the starting skills. Helps with 'They are duelists but the battlefield weapon is a spear'
>>
>>47663101

That all looks pretty awesome. 10/10 would play.
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>>47663148

http://pastebin.com/dzwamact

Finalized version. Not putting it here because it's too big for one post once you add in the starting stuff.
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>>47661533
I jokingly put a Lion in a daimyo's throne based on a joke I saw on here once. Akodo Shishi (son of Akodo Shishi going back for generations) is an actual war lion whose ancestor was made daimyo after an Emperor decided the predecessor provincial lord was so inept an actual lion could do it better and was making a point and shaming the man. And because Emperor, nobody objected.

However it turns out that the Ikoma 'interpreter' assigned to him was actually a very good ruler and the two families have been in place now for centuries. The party loved him, he attended their various weddings and brought the most thoughtful gifts. And also sometimes a dead deer.
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>>47664627

Isawa san probably shouldn't drink that much.

Not that anyone is complaining,, of course.
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>>47665044
Not yet they aren't, but when Isawa-san wakes up tomorrow morning on a pile of opened Black Scrolls it'll be different story.
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>>47663204
https://1d4chan.org/wiki//tg/_Custom_L5R_Minor_Clans#Centipede_Clan

added to the wiki.
I made some changes for balance; I removed mentions of Iajutsu because the clan school seemed better to be focused on defending lands and charges. I also balanced some techniques to bring it more in line to minor clan power levels.
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>>47665432

...the centipede are not a minor clan.

They are the Moshi Family of the Mantis Great Clan.
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>>47665432

Why would you drop the Honor to 5.5? They are canon at starting at 6.5. The Moshi are a very honorable, spiritual family.
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>>47665557
The centipede clan is a canon minor clan that was absorbed into the Mantis when the latter became a Great Clan. The wiki isn't wrong.
>>
>>47665557
The Centipede are a Minor Clan for a non-negligible portion of their history, and /tg/ l5r homebrew page just happens to have minor clan in its name. Cool down there, anon.
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>>47665597

Yeah but you can't really say they should be at Minor Clan power levels any more than say, the Wasp School should be at Minor Clan power levels.
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>>47665432
Question for balance. Does the rank 5 technique deal damage when done?
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>>47665621

Honestly I'm mostly annoyed at the 'Brought into line with minor clan power levels' when it's a Great Clan school.
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>>47665649

It does if you are in range of the attacker, not just the target. You can't have your blade zoom across the battlefield to stab an archer.
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>>47665633
But that was the wasp's primary schtick, which they perfected. The Moshi are a primary Shujena family, hence their great clan level for shujena. Their lesser known bushi may not have received the same focus and resources that is needed to develop a school as good as a great clan school.
>>
There's precedent for a minor clan's school to remain the same after being absorbed by a Great Clan.
See also, Toritaka bushi and their Falcon's Strike alternate rank after they join the Crab.
>>
>>47665784

The Yoritomo managed both. Heck, they've got more alt-levels for their Shugenja path than the Moshi do for theirs.

I don't think it's really a good idea to put one of the two primary families of a clan at 'minor clan status' with a school for it.
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>>47665860
The Kitsune Shugenja school is presented in the Minor Clans section of the optional content in the corebook even though they're also a Great Clan family in the present day. The Toritaka Bushi school, too. Of course, I don't know how those schools compare, mechanically speaking-- they might still be on par with other Great Clan schools even though they're listed with the minor clans.
>>
>47665649

That is a good question actually. If it does damage, that might be a little overpowered, especially since it only costs the guardian a single void point to attack out of turn.

Which is another reason why we need the "twice per encounter" cap back, by the way.
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>>47665432

They likely need to keep the Iajutsu. The Mantis don't really have anything for dueling.
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>>47665923

The Kitsune is a VERY good school, if you use it right. Easily one of the best Shugenja schools.
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>>47665945
>>47665585
>>47665935

all valid issues, fixed.
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>>47665935

It might be best if it does no damage. Otherwise you are paying two void points for an extra turn of damage, plus deny an enemy a turn.
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>>47666154
Though really, I unless someone is pumping their void ring like crazy at most they get maybe 3 usages of this before running out of points.
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>>47666290
According to the description, you only get two.

Which is still enough to change it from simply a strong defensive ability to "fuck action economy".
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>>47666399

Mind you, it fails if you just go and stab the Moshi. It only says it works on allies.
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>>47666456

Of course, the technique meant to protect allies only works when protecting alies.
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bumpu
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I'm semi sure this is supposed to be Topaz Championship art. In which case, what kind of teens are the Unicorn breeding to give such a luxurious stache?
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>>47669770
The kind that have hairy gaijin blood in their veins and have been growing a mustache since they were 6 years old. His chest hair is also something to behold, and his pit hair could be woven into a rope.
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>>47669770
Its not. The lion also sports facial hair, and a scar, and all look too old. Its probably just a festival or some shit
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>>47652964
This raises an odd question, and an IDEA for a story arc. A Kakita duelist master has gone mad, and is forcing people into duels and slaying them as an expression of his/her having perfected their strike. The PC's job is to find him/her, take them down without anyone knowing. They can't just order their death because the duelist is technically within the law, but must be removed before they deplete the pool of talented duelists amongst the clans.

Would this work in any way? Ignore, for the moment, that the Scorpions would just poison the shit out of him/her. Maybe there's some sort of political reason that she can't be found poisoned for some stupid reason. Because RokuwhatsitohshitIforgothowtospellit has all sorts of weird political shit going on, so hell, that's halfway believable.
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>>47670175
Part of the reason the killer needs to be quietly handled is none of the clans want to admit their best and brightest are being slaughtered left and right.
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>>47669770
Horse. Hair. Also those guys are in their mid 20s at least.

>>47670175
Easy. No scorpions have been targeted yet. Hell it could just be a problem that's affected only a couple of the great clans and a bunch of minor ones if the Kakita is inside Crane lands. But of course the Kakita isn't stopping so they need to be put down.
Maybe there is some underlying grudge or old hate there that's led the Daimyo to just flat out put a hit on the Kakita.
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>>47671349
Yeah, I thought about it more and decided that it'd be simple to say no Scorpion had been killed yet. Probably primarily Dragons, Cranes, and Lions.

None of these clans are willing to admit their best and brightest are being cut down left and right, so the party is asked to quietly handle it. Could end in a quiet assassination, a climactic duel, etc. I think it'd be pretty cool, honestly.

If I ever get a decent party who could handle the subtle intrigues and such of L5R, that'd definitely be one of the arcs.
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>>47670175
>because the duelist is technically within the law
They aren't. You need both daimyo to sign off on lethal duels, and if someone starts running around slaughtering for shits and giggles "perfected art", they're going to get taken down. Possibly with non-lethal force as a formality, but it's more likely a blood feud and a sniper's arrow.
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>>47671349
>No scorpions have been targeted yet
Samurai go to the Scorpion with problems that need solving all the time.
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>>47673643
And the Scorpion prefer to avoid using their poison most of the time, because exposure is weakness when antidotes can be found.
Which might be why they're trying to guide a group into taking the guy down. If they can solve the problem without poison, they will.
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>>47673716
True, and there's little question they can, doubly so when someone gets all spoony-slicer with their powder blue.
>>
tfw there will never be a good phoenix bushi school
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>>47674362
Shiba Bushi are absurd, especially when paired up with a shugenja.

Question for the room: Is there a list of all the Ronin ranks? Which is your favorite? Which is your least favorite? Which one do you like the most, regardless of whether it's shit or not?
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>>47674406
No, the shugenja is absurd when paired with a shiba bushi. The bushi doesnt do anything.
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>>47674437
>I've never played L5R, I just complain about it
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>>47674564
You're an idiot who thinks spending an extra void point for an extra 1k1 is a good idea. I bet you even try to feint with it.
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>>47674603
>implying that the void spam is for combat
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>>47674603

Not who you are arguing with but it really is. It means the Shiba Bushi is disgustingly versatile outside of combat.
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>>47674406
There used to be an xls file that did lists of everything. Not sure where you should find it now.

Hawk Purist is my favourite ronin tech, with master of games & other social techs.
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>>47674635
Also neither of them, but Shiba bushi tend towards being void blowers. Once they're out, they need a refractory period before they can be useful again.
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>>47674406

here you go. The ronin are near the bottom.

http://pixel-breath.com/imperial-registry-index-of-all-schools-in-l5r-4e/
>>
What books do I need to read as a GM to get a good feeling for the setting, enough to run a good game?
>>
>>47675340
GM Section of the Core, Legacy of Darkness Free RPG Day Module, and Emerald Empire for the nitty gritty. But everything is on the L5R wiki for the most part. It ain't too hard man.
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>>47674686
Or they just need someone else to spend a void point.
There's a reason why two or more mid-rank Shiba bushi working together is one of the most bullshit things in 4e. Void bounce is powerful, especially since combat ends in less than 4 rounds on average and they can do it twice per skirmish, each.
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>>47675471
Two rank 5 Shiba void bouncing with just 4 void points apiece can each roughly do 10k10+16 for a simple action attack (And then another attack with saner numbers) or 10k10+4 twice in the first round of combat. And then they'll both still have at least one void point each for rounds 2 and 3 because they'll both be generating a void point from the other one's void point usage. Of course, they can also conserve their void points by spending one per round each and regaining the one they spent for the first two rounds, effectively giving them both 2 more void than they should have, each one of which is worth two void points anyway.
Getting to use two void points every time you use a void point, then doubling the effect of each individual void point and letting you do it again is powerful enough. Combining it with the ability to gain a void point when someone else spends a void point is amazing when that other person has these same abilities.
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>>47640097

I've been playing L5R since 1st Ed

I started out as a die hard Crane, but over time, I came to like all the clans - each one is written well enough with a weakness of character, and a strength of character

But that was 1st Edition. If you take in the entirety of the metaplot, I hate or have hated a clan here and there because of bad writing.

Like the Mantis, who gobbled up most of the cooler minor clans and went off on a superiority streak.

Or the Unicorn, who got gutted because of the DUMBEST fucking point of early plot ever (the kolat), lost their only cavalry school that men can join, and then got taken over by literal mongols who take shits on rokugani tradition.

In the end though, I'm torn between the Crab and Crane as being my favorites. Whether its the selfless heroics against the most unfair shit in the game, or the strive for perfection and make life matter, i kinda love both.
>>
>>47640097
i used to like fenix, but the sparrow clan just have a piece of my heart. Specially when you get the ancestor merit and you start saying bullshit in every court you go only to have the most priviledged minds there arguing over the meaning of the shit you just drop.
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I'm running an L5R 1st Edition game, Coup going into Clan War

I'd love to tell everyone about it, but I'd suspect a thorough shunning once everyone heard all my houserules and setting changes
>>
>>47675692
>but I'd suspect a thorough shunning once everyone heard all my houserules and setting changes
And that is stopping you why?

Also, I'm new to L5R, why 1ed?
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>>47675724
>And that is stopping you why?
Perhaps I'm rather proud of what I've come up with, and if the reception is overwhelmingly negative, I might be convinced that what I've done is wrong.

>Also, I'm new to L5R, why 1ed?
Later editions do not represent the early metaplot. For instance, Coup and CW Unicorn were ruled by the Shinjo, had a co-ed cavalry school (the Shinjo Bushi School), the Utaku were called the Otaku, and the Moto were actually Rokugani, not mongols. A lot of schools and concepts didn't even exist (like the daidoji ninja), and many minor clans still had their autonomy, notably the Wasp and Centipede.

As for my campaign, I can through out a few of my changes, and we'll see what kind of hissing it elicits

Campaign centers around group of PC's dealing with emerald magistrate bullshit (such as having to bring a retainer family to heal after they converted to the vaticine faith due to an overzealous castillian priest), and learning first hand that 4k4 armor ignoring muskets fucking hurt. Anyway, in Otosan Uchi to report to the Champion (so sorry, the champion is in another castle), they happen to be on hand when the Coup goes into full effect. However, the bulk of the campaign is the players (most of which become ronin due to the Coup), helping their crab samurai leader, who lost his retainer family house and province due to the political scheming of another retainer family (who covet their lands), and leading a partisan resistance to take back those lands from the filth that stole them - and then wading into the Clan War at the helm of a small retainer family with everything to gain - likely to end up overthrowing the Hida and making sweeping changes in the Crab Clan itself.
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>>47675800
>Later editions do not represent the early metaplot.
Are the mechanics the same in 4e and 1e?
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>>47675828

Basically yes, but the later editions are much more refined, and considerably more complex, as a way of creating balance and plugging holes.

1st Edition wasn't very balanced, but the rules were simple and elegant. Certain schools were just plain better then others, and other schools could be downright worthless. Later editions solved that.

Its generally agreed that 4th Edition is pretty good, and 1st Edition being pretty good as well. 2nd Edition is terrible and should be avoided at all costs, and 3rd Edition is ok.
>>
>>47674798
Someone who isn't me smacking people with that list?
Is it my birthday?

>>47675800
This sounds like an awesome campaign. Any more details to share?
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>>47675880
>Any more details to share?

Sure!

First off, in my L5R, 95% of samurai are members of retainer families, of which about a third of those are land owning families. Older families are direct retainers to the big name families, and often rule cities or provinces, while smaller retainers might just have a fort\castle, and a maybe a village. You don't have a big name unless your actually a part of that family (as in, nephew to the clan champion, cousin to the heir, etc).

Retainer Families, especially big ones, often operate as little mini clans, and sometimes set their own diplomacy irregardless of their over-clans diplomacy leanings - for instance, in a previous campaign, while Matsu Tsuko was burning and salting the northern crane lands over Arasou's death (before toturi came out of the monastery), a Matsu Retainer Family (the Honda) took 300 elite cavalry down to the southern crane provinces to help a crane retainer family (the Okita), in stopping the ambition of another crane retainer daimyo (the Ashidaka) from uniting the southern provinces by force using gaijin weapons. They helped because the brother of the Okita daimyo was their very best friend, and keeping their word was important to them.

Second big thing - there is currently free trade between the Gaijin Lands (Thea) and Rokugan. While the Gaijin were outlawed after the Battle of White Stag (otherwise known as the Third Prophets Crusade), the Mantis exploited a loophole and kept trading with them anyway, and got VERY rich because of it. But, they got found out, and before shit could blow up, a Vodacce Ambassador was granted an Audience with Hantei Jodan (the 38th). The ambassador was nobody special, but he did have his wife with him...
From that meeting, Hantei Jodan (*cough*Emperor Meiji*cough*) became enamored with the Gaijin, and its really brought back his youthful excitement. Only law is that Gaijin cannot spread their religion (Vatacine Church\Church of Theus)
>>
>>47675953
Fascinating stuff.
I really like the take on main/vassal families.
It's something that's been coming up more in my games and something I feel isn't detailed enough in the source books.
>>
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>>47675953
>>47675880

L5R gaijin nations lack a lot of detail and really only exist because "you gotta have gaijin"
I used L5R because of its wealth of detail, lore, and likable cultures - in this way, all the evil can be concentrated in the actions of individuals, instead of a whole nation\ethnicity being bad to justify japanese xenophobia.

Anyway, my L5R is a mix of Sengoku Jidai clan politics, and Meiji Era social upheval. The middle class is emerging with gusto, Retainer Families are beginning to exert more and more autonomy, and the Clans are heading straight for war where everyone will be fighting everyone - the clans themselves will likely fracture as they give way to new names rising to prominence.

In my Campaigns, they have centered around the Okita (an old but withered crane retainer family now led by a crafty young woman), the Shima (steadfastly loyal crab retainer family who have been the victim of political scheming causing their loyalty to be shaken, since their last three patriarchs have been executed by the ruling Hida due to the schemes of their rival), the Kono (a Yasuki retainer with strong inter-breeding ties with the scorpion, and the rivals of the Shima, who covet their lands), and the Sanada (a very young lion retainer given a shitton of new lands now that the Akodo got declared Ronin - described as being fearless warriors who prize cunning and craft over fighting prowess - their close ties with the Unicorn have allowed them to build up an impressive elite cavalry).

Considering the Hida go full shadowlands in the clan war due to Kisada's ambitions, the Shima (who this campaign focuses on), will decide to its time the Crab were ruled by someone else.

Using everything from gaijin muskets and cannon, to a fleet of warships, an honorable ninja clan, and working diplomacy with other retainer families, its going to be a campaign of war and strategy.
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>>47676040
>I used L5R because of its wealth of detail, lore, and likable cultures

By that I mean "7th Sea"
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>>47676008
>something I feel isn't detailed enough in the source books

L5R wasn't ever meant to be "Sengoku Jidai: The Game" - for what it is, its great. Much of what I've done with it is because I'm very familiar with the depth of samurai politics from that time period, and its more fun to add layers and depth to the social strata of L5R.

Some would say, however, that I'm perverting the simplicity of the game, adding autistic levels of detail that were never supposed to be there.

Not exactly wrong either.
>>
>>47676083
Oh I know, that's not quiet what I meant.
I was more lamenting the lack of details about the sub-families and families that aren't associated with schools.
Stuff like the Tortoise Clan have this tiny family of vassals that act as their bushi/yojimbo's or the divisions of the families in the great clans. Is this guy of the main Mirumoto or some branch family.
>>
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About to run a game and considering to add a recent event to the history of the hare clan saving crab from shit with the help of gorillion ronins. Now I was considerign that afterwards the hare are either made into a great clan or become a part of the crab, thoughts?
>>
>>47676120
So the Hare absorb the surviving ronin and become a great clan? Great if you want to make Rokugan wide upheaval a feature. What lands would they be taking on in that situation?
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>>47676100
Well, I've made a number of smaller changes too

For instance, Clans no longer protect their Bushi Schools with such fervor. While yes, you can't just be a scorpion and walk in to the Kakita Dueling School and expect to get lessons - but exchange programs are a lot more common now. Enough so that the Different School advantage (while maintaining its cost) is encouraged in my games - it almost always comes paired with Obligation however. There isn't so deep a stigma of insult to learning a different clan school, and there comes a nice blend of culture from it. Although, the caveat comes that its nearly impossible if the two clans have horrible diplomacy - a Crab is not likely to be accepted into the Kakita school, and a Doji isn't likely to be accepted into the Hida School. But a Crab could do an exchange with the Lion.

I've reduced the stigma on "not using swords" - noble samurai weapons are just as honorable to use, and if you want to use a Yari thats been in your family for generations, no one is going to give you shit for it.

Some parts of the Metaplot I've completly removed. The Kolat no longer exist. The Wasp no longer snap swords. The Mantis carry daisho. There isn't as much stigma against minor clans. There also isn't as much stigma against Ronin either, and many Ronin were former peasants who had enough money to buy a sword and train at a local kenjutsu dojo. The classes are somewhat fuzzy at the lines (harsh division between social classes, historically, didn't start until after the sengoku jidai, when tokugawa ieyasu banned swords and made sure samurai were hereditary). Many Samurai in a Lords army are non-land owning retainer samurai. Not all of those Samurai have rich family history stretching generations.

I haven't detailed the full extent of Retainer Families, but you can safely assume, that over all the major clans, minor clans, and imperial families, there exists at least 130+ land owning retainer families
>>
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>>47676146
Was concidering just unifying their different holdings and the teritories, while avoiding possible snekpeople places
>>
>>47675800
>co-ed cavalry school (the Shinjo Bushi School)
That still exists, fwiw.

>daidoji ninja
Pretty sure way of the crane has gunpowder using crane.
>>
>>47676213
>That still exists

It does not

4th Edition Unicorn
>Moto Mongol School
>Iuchi Shugenja School
>Ide Emissary School
>Utaku No Men Allowed School

Unless theres a supplement book that adds it back in.
>>
>>47676247
one of the alternate history books has rules for shinjo bushi. (it's garbage)
>>
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>>47676277

1st Ed Shinjo Bushi school is pretty good, ranked as one of the middle of the road but better schools. Has a great 1st rank technique, assuming your on a horse, and the rest of the techniques aren't bad. They even get the Akodo 5th Rank Tech at 4th instead.

The only bad part about it was that it was a Unicorn School.
>>
>>47676277
Shinjo bushi ... IIRC, someone on the aeg forums built an ATN 50 duellist or of it.
>>
>>47676212
Why not make snek part of the new clan?
>>
So we can all agree that Matsu ladies make the best waifus, right?
>>
>>47676466
In 4e? You don't recall correctly. Shinjo Bushi doesn't have any school techniques that increase your raw ATN, nor do they have anything usable in a duel.

They get a buff to full defense, and they're allowed to shift from defense/full defense to attack when they dodge a hit and make a free attack.
>>
>>47676522
Only if you like having a broken pelvis.
>>
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>>47676541
>he doesn't like snu-snu
>>
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>>47676522

Crab have best waifus
>>
>>47676559
Crab waifus aren't HONORABLE enough.
>>
>>47676577
Yeah but they love to breed.
>>
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>>47676577
>>
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>>47676522

Scorpion girls make the best waifu's. Just as beautiful and cultured as their crane counterparts, and absolute demons in the sack on top.

You should not need to worry about being scorpion'd, as long as you treat her right and don't make yourself an enemy of the clan (in which case, why are you marrying a scorpion girl), but you might see some of your problems suddenly take care of themselves, with no leads tracing back to you..
>>
>>47676559
Needs more muscle
>>
>>47676539
However it worked, it wrecked duels.
>>
>>47676585

Need to make a lot of new bushi to man the wall, after all.
>>
>>47676610
>marry scorpion
>she was actually a yogo
>>
>>47676614
IKR
Probably doesn't even have the large disadvantage.

>>47676626
So far the only thing you've managed to break
~is my heart~
>>
>>47676626
>she doesn't love you
>still dutiful and limber
>everything went better than expected
>>
>>47676619
You must be thinking about another school or another edition, because it literally doesn't work.
>>
>>47676698
Shame there's no way to find it again.
>>
>>47676610
>as long as you treat her right and don't make yourself an enemy of the clan

You can very easy become an enemy of the Scorpion through no fault of your own. You can control interests that they'd like a more direct hand in, or you could have what they consider to be the wrong allies, or your death might be the perfect way to further a complicated plan of theirs, or they might just want to show that they don't need you - they can swim, after all. It's quite possible that the match was just a means to give her temporary control over your household until a more suitable match can be found for her.

You could have been sentenced to die as soon as you were betrothed, and neither you nor your bride knew it. And when the order is given, even if she liked you, she'll kill you and never know why. She'll never even dare to ask.
>>
>>47676910
>until a more suitable match can be found for her

If a scorpion marries into your family she officially stops being a scorpion, though. If you die and leave her a window, finding any new match for her is your daimyo's job, not her old scorpion daimyo's.
>>
>>47677074
That's usually the rule, but you know that nobody would pretend that she's not still a Scorpion, especially after her husband mysteriously disappeared. Your daimyo would throw her back.
>>
>>47677108
Wrong, Scorpion accept their duty absolutely, once you got a Bayushi waifu to take your name you can assure that she's yours for life.
It's the Lawful Stupid honour retards that make the worst waifus, Akodo probably top the shit list.

Hida waifus are canonically the most devoted and awesome though.
>>
>>47676610
>he doesn't want to waifu a Lion bushi in Iron Rokugan
>he doesn't want to be betrothed to a strong, beautiful, but profoundly sad warrior woman

Seriously, if you like the Lion and want to feel bad, read this shit:
>So the Lion remain steadfastly supportive of the Imperial Throne even as disenchantment steadily spreads through their ranks. No Lion dares mention his feelings out loud lest he shame his family, his sensei, and his ancestors by losing face for speaking against the Imperial Throne. During the later years of Empress Meisho’s reign, a new practice rises within the ranks of the Lion Clan: every morning, Lion Clan samurai leave their homes, stand before their ancestral shrines, and yell into the morning sky with all their might. All who hear this cry know it comes from a frustrated and anguished heart, a futile protest directed toward the heavens themselves. None speak of this new tradition; to do so would go against Bushido itself. And none question why the samurai of the Lion do this. They do it because they feel they can do nothing else.
Doomed, more than any other clan to become relics of a dead era. To pass into a purposeless existence, trying desperately to cling to what honor they have left.
>>
>>47640097
Thinking of running a campaign.

So, goblins probably know that Twenty Goblin Winters are a thing, right? Add that to the fact that goblins are intended to replace humans and have a mockery of human society, and I can only conclude that goblins have a Winter Court.
>>
>>47677166
>Boohoo the new agricultural methods of the gaijin have turned us into an economic superpower that rivals the Crab's iron mines and our armies are now unquestionably powerful.
>>
>>47677204
>>47677166
Funny how their honour allowed them to use that tech to facerape the Dragonfly out of existence before they started lamenting the whole 'death of bushido' thing
>>
>>47677204
Yes, and it only cost them the very core of their clan's identity.
>>47677224
Chock that up to typical quality aeg writing.
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