/tg/ - Traditional Games

>>53047141

>Naomi insisted on seeing us off, though she needed a cane to walk herself to the front door
>I didn't bother asking if she would be alright without me.
>She'd say yes
>So I let her be brave and kept the worried look off my face until I had turned around to leave.
>It was only then that I noticed Monkey had a black eye
>How'd that happen?
>The last time you were alone with Naomi, I tried roughoushing with your kids the way you do.
>Yeah? Which one did it?
>He looked at me levely
>Your daughter
>Caught me with her heel
>I turned back and shouted
>DAIKO! GOOD WORK!
>Mantis-san chuckled
>We headed off to the lands of the Lion.
>We took a boat up the coast, then hopped to a smaller vessel to sail up the River of the Hour of the Wolf and into the lands of the Kitsu
>We disembarked, and asked around for news.
>Monkey filled us in on what he had heard from the peasants while we were shopping.
>Seems like a few temples have been sacked recently. Lot of dead monks.
>Kitsuki-san grunted in mild surpise
>They've never done that before...
>He frowned then
>or have they...?
>What do you mean?
>He held up a finger while nibbling his fan
>Ooohhhh. Oh!
>OF COURSE!
>Kitsuki-san slapped his palm to his forehead
>I tapped my foot impatiently
>They HAVE taken out temples before, but the strife and rebellions were used to cover up the real cause of it!
>So, what then? This cell is waging war against the Brotherhood?
>Hrmm. Difficult to say. I would think they're just eliminating the most spiritual aware, in the area, making it less likely someone will recognize them for what they are.
>But it could also be the opening movements of some long term strategy I've yet to work out...
>Well, whatever they're planing won't matter once we bring the Emperors' wrath down upon them.
>That is very true, Mantis-san.
>Well then, shall we get going in the morning?
>Uh, where too Kitsuki-san?
>Shimoda village, obviously. Didn't you learn about the Kitsu?
>Mantis-san shook his head
>oh.

>>53051554
>>53051568
Hey Ishigaki. I only just caught up with the happenings now. My grandfather died on the 27th, late in the night, so I haven't been reading this. He liked it, a bit, when I told him of it, especially your descriptions of the babies.

Under the auspices of the Minor Clan Alliance, this is is now a Minor Clan thread.

>Best minor clan
>Worst minor clan
>Homebrew minor clan
>Minor clan stories
>Minor clan campaigns
>po' ass sparrow

>>53051687
Going by the story, Monkey takes best minor clan by far.

Second City campaign spoilers ahoy

>GM1 runs Second City boxed set campaign
>handful of deaths along the way
>players finally make it to final showdown with Chonitsu
>fail hard, more deaths, rakshasa succeeds with plot to open the rainbow wall and free tiger demon bros
>GM1 steps down, player becomes GM2
>Surviving samurai [Yoritomo Courtier, Dragon Void Shugenja, Spider Necromancer, Moto Bushi] are sealed in the rainbow wall prison themselves, now barred from Ningen-do and trapped in the Spirit Realms
>escape into Realm of Mischief, free trapped kenku-bro, fucked with by trickster spirits, kappa, befriend neko spirit, convince great oruchi to ferry them to Realm of Animals in his mouth
>Chikushudo, kitsune goddess troubled, shrines of the 4 elements desecrated by rakshasa and throwing realm into disarray
>tsunami, earthquakes, angry kami, animal spirit senate seceding from Tengoku, etc.
>Fix shrines and set things in order, scale massive mountain in center of the realm.
>Sleeping dragon at the top, cannot be woken. Trapped in realm of Dreams by rakshasa.
>Samurai enter the dragon's dream, fight tainted dream spirits, ask for aid from nezumi ratbros, find dream walking Order of the Moth monks to assist, beat minor rakshasa's ass. >Free dragon from slumber.

This continues through the Miedo, realms of slaughter and hungry dread, until they get to Yomi to chill with ancestors, find out rakshasa are trying to throw the Spirit Realms out of balance and obliterate rokugan. Do you want to know more?

>>53051568
>Well, there was a Kitsu that came through intent on investigating some violence at area temples.
>Now that I know it's the cell, we'll just follow after him
>And he And he was headed to a village called Shimoda.
>We were able to get to Shimoda village with no issue.
>We walked inside and looked around
>Fairly standard farming village. Small river, rice paddies, a cluster of huts around a central square. A mill with a waterwheel down the river a ways and a forest to the north.
>And we received the fairly standard greeting from peasants to samurai they did not know
>Everyone shut themselves up in their houses and waited for the elder to come out and see what we wanted.
>I was told that it was polite to do so. Samurai should interact with thier social inferiors as little as possible, and sending out the person of the greatest status, even if that person is still just a peasant, showed proper respect.
>I wondered if, like so many things that was what was just what was said
>And that the reality was that in case what we wanted was blood, well...he was going to die soon anyway.
>And if we wanted more blood than he had, he'd at least buy time for the rest to scatter.
>A small figure appeared in the door of a house
>he wobbled out, leaning heavily on a stick
>His hands shook with palsy, and his back was bent over nearly double
>I leaned over to Kitsuki-san and whispered
>What would be more unseemly? us rushing to meet with a peasant, or us dying of old age before he manages to walk all the way over here?
>Kitsuki-san shot me a glare
>The former, obviously.
>We outrank him. He must come to us. That is the proper order of things.
>Mantis-san joined in.
>Yeah, but there are always exceptions. And the fact that Toshiro could beat this guy in a foot race seems like a pretty big exception to me.
>Monkey had a huge smile plastered on his face
>You should relax Mantis-san. And try to smile a bit.
>Huh?
>Look at where we are
>He looked around. So did I

>>53051687
>Best minor clan
Tied between Badger and Monkey

>Worst minor clan
Tied between Oriole and Centipede

>>53051644
Well, Thank you. I'm glad I could add a few smiles at the end of his time. You had time to ready yourself, I hope.

>>53052192
We didn't. He had always bounced back. Always. He had his first heart attack over thirty years ago, and he just plugged through everything, no matter how likely he was to die. It... kind of made us believe, at least subconsciously, that the tough old coot was immortal.

>>53051644
>>53052395
I have no idea on what the proper protocol is for saying this to a stranger, but I want to tell you that empathize with your loss and I hope your mourning is quick but meaningful. May you live a long life, anon.

>>53052508
Thank you. You are truly kind. All of his (and probably him) are just glad his greatest fear wasn't realized.

>>53052025
>I don't get it, what am I supposed to be seeing?
>We're right smack in the middle of the village.
>Where the most people can see and hear us
>Oh, he was right. Windows and doors were cracked all over.
>So we stay here. And speak loudly Kituski-san.
>If you don't he'll just pretend he's going deaf as well until you're loud enough the others can hear.
>Kitsuki-san looked over at Monkey.
>Acutally, all we're here for is the whearabouts of the Kitsu that was coming here. Why don't you do the talking, Monkey?
>Me?
>You seem to be more at ease with peasants than the rest of us combined.
>He shrugged. Yeah, okay.
>oi
>Mantis-san got our attention
>I think he died...
>No wait, he just took another step.
>I looked at the old man.
>he'd made it about half way to us.
>Toshiro rolled his eyes
>When the old man finally got to us he tried to fall into a dogeza
>Monkey stopped him
>Oi, oi, we'll never get you back on your feet if you do that, gramps!
>It's fine, really! You've been bowing to us this whole time! Look, you're still bowing!
>The old man smiled, pulling thin lips back from bare gums
>The doors opened up and the peasants came out now to give us all their greetings.
>And just like that, Monkey had put the whole village at ease.
>Gramps spoke up as everyone who wasn't infirm with age bowed to us
>What can this one do for you, great samurai?
>We'd heard about a Kitsu who was coming here, did he arrive?
>Ah, yes yes! He is here still, great samurai!
>Come, I will take you to him!
>I prayed that the Kitsu was staying in on of the near buildings.
>He was, as it turned out. The grandest hut in the village
>Monkey whispered to us all
>That's probably gramps' house. All the other villagers would take care of it for gramps, and when samurai show up and stay gramps gives up his place and stays with another family.
>Gramps entered the house.
>Ryoji-sama! There are other samurai here to see you!
>There are? Send them in then
>We filed on in

>>53052694
>Oh my.
>So many clans?
>Gramps introduced us
>Great saumurai, this is Kitsu Ryoji-sama.
>A few peasant girls brought out tea and bowls of rice for us
>Maybe gramps took so long to give the rice time to cook...
>Grettings Kitsu Rjoji. I am Kitsuki Takeshi, and these are Tsuruchi Daigo, Toku Satoshit, Hida Ishigaki, and Kuni Toshiro.
>Toshiro held out his jade magistrate chop for the Kitsu to inspect
>Ah! Then you're here about the temples?
>Indeed we are Kitsu-san
>Good, good. The mess between the Mantis and the Phoenix has ignited tempers across the Empire it seems. The Lion are haveing their armies drill along the Scorpion borders right now as a show of force, and can't be bothered to look into a 'matter for the brotherhood'
>He sighed.
>Of all the great clans, it was the Lion who had the most antagonistic view monks.
>This was complicated in the extreme by their loyalty and adherence to tradition.
>Hantei himself had acknowledged the wisdom of Shinsei.
>And monks held a respected, even honored, place in society despite not being samurai themselves
>And yet, alone of all the Kami, Akodo did not recive wisdom from Shinsei.
>Instead, as Shiba recorded the conversation between Hantei and Shinsei, Akodo grew more and more agitated.
>Finaly he spit upon the floor.
>Hantei confronted his brother immediately, demanding to know why Akodo had insulted the little master so.
>For his way is not my way, Akodo said
>The founder of the Lion clan held up his blade
>THIS is my way!
>Shinsei responded
>it is not my, but the way of the world
>Akodo would not have it. He refused to have his followers learn the Tao of Shinsei
>Hantei countermanded his brother, decreeing that every Lion dojo would hold a copy of the Tao.
>Akodo agreed to his Emperor's demand.
>And to this day, a copy of the Tao of Shinsei sits in a place of honor in every Lion dojo.
>Unopened, and unread.
>For the most part, that is as far as the Lion dislike of monks goes.
>for the most part

>>53052990
>Toku Satoshit
*snrk*

Oh yeah, been meaning to ask: in 4ed as an Isawa School shugenja do you still need to take the advantage to cast void spells if void is your affinity?

>>53053833
Yes

>>53052990
>And yet, alone of all the Kami, Akodo did not recive wisdom from Shinsei.
I don't remember. What wisdom did Doji, Shinjo, and Shiba receive?

>>53054013

"Be a dick to everyone", "Road trips are great", and "Wizards, no sense of right and wrong" in that order. :V

>>53054646
Yup. Sounds 'bout right.

>>53054013
Shinsei explained to Doji that every snoflake was unique and special, and it's like would never be seen again. Just like people. Then he pointed to a snowdrift.

Aside from Shiba being the one to transcribe the Tao of Shinsei, it was Shinsei who told Shiba how to that trick where his soul reincarnates again inside a new host memories intact. Every Pheonix Clan champion, with the exception of Akune, has carried the Soul of Shiba. As I understand it it's more like being the Avatar then having Shiba running around with your body. The latter bit was Togashi's thing, he would transplant his souls through his magic tattoo's into comparable vessels because one of the black scrolls was hidden INSIDE his heart and his mortal body just wouldn't live forever. So I guess the lucky monk literally got Togashi's heart and soul

And whatever Shinsei taught Shinjo hardly matters because shit just goes in one ear and the out the other with that dumb bitch.

>>53055034
>Aside from Shiba being the one to transcribe the Tao of Shinsei, it was Shinsei who told Shiba how to that trick where his soul reincarnates again inside a new host memories intact.
That was something he was taught, but his wisdom was that Shiba could not see Rokugan as a mortal does.

>Shiba as a god considered all the deeds and words only the present, past, or future, while mortals would see the events he lived through as history taught, and lessons learned. Shinsei transmited Shiba that he could not appreciate history, because Shiba would live forever. Through Shinsei, Shiba learned how the lives of the mortals were linked to the divine. Shiba became a devout follower of Shinsei.

>>53051687
>Best minor clan
I second Badger and Monkey. Sparrows are cool too

>>53051687
Ox a best
Kolat did nothing wrong

>>53056885
What the fuck's a Kolat.

>>53057573
Buggers what want to rid the world of supernatural influences

>>53056611
Damn straight.

>>53055034
This sounds about right

>>53056611
What's sparrow like?

If you're bitter and spiteful, it probably looks spot on.

>>53050798

>A few days later, a rainstorm hits us hard
>We rush to find shelter
>There, that should be useful
>A large, old temple of the Ivory Kingdoms
>Now in ruins, covered by vegetation, half crumbled
>Still, looks stable enough that we don't have to camp under the rain
>Togashi-san looks entranced by the sight of the temple
>I knew she had a fascination with holy sites
>But seeing it up close was somewhat uncomfortable
>Like she could barely take her eyes off of it
>As we get off Jimbo to make camp, she starts wandering inside
>I call to her, to help get the camp set up here
>She ignores me, starts wandering into the temple
>I have half a mind to just let her go, get her fill, and get back
>But it's not safe so deep in the jungle to wander off completely by yourself
>Especially as a fellow mainlander
>Putting my armor down, I follow her slowly, not wanting to interrupt her
>She stares wide-eyed at the architecture
>Daidoji-san and Tsuruchi-san put down our things and start following as well
>Daigotsu-san and Kitsune-san take a moment for themselves, from what it seems
>I barely notice them as Togashi-san enters a large hall, the main chamber
>Great colums line the sides, and the room descends toward the centre of the back as one large amphitheatre
>Dominating from the centre back is a great altar, and behind it, and even greater statue
>A woman both hideous and beautiful, divine and demonic, with six slender arms holding various implements of war
>One even holding a bleeding heart
>A figure dead only a decade before my birth
>Kali-Ma
>Champion of Jigoku
>Until Daigotsu killed her in battle
>I followed halfway down the steps of the amphitheatre while Daidoji-san and Tsuruchi-san waited by the entrance
>Togashi-san approached the altar
>And from behind a pillar, a man in red robes approached Togashi-san
>Joined by the steely glint of a drawn dagger
>Togashi-san doesn't seem to notice my shout of warning
>So i rush forward, hand on my blade's hilt

>>53060827
Yam farmers who live in dirt poor lands right next to the richest grain fields in Rokugan.

They do story telling, humility, and long-windedness very well, but their school is intentionally the worst in 4e.

http://l5r.wikia.com/wiki/Sparrow_Clan

>>53060875
Literally "Just fuck my shit up, samurai", the clan?

>>53060917

No. More "pretty much Ronin," the clan.

An in setting joke is "What is the difference between a Ronin and a Sparrow? One Koku."

>>53060956
And for the uninformed, it's the Ronin who has the one koku.

>>53056885
Ox are a cool concept but executed poorly. Kolat did do nothing wrong tho...

>>53057573
They're the rokugani illuminati, with the goat of removing all influence both Jigoku and Tengoku have on Ningen-Do. The other spirit realms also, but they're less important.

>>53061567
> Kolat did do nothing wrong tho...
Kolat did nothing. End sentence. Of all the things that reduced the influence of the Heavens on Ningen-Do, literally none of them were the Kolat's doing. The very first major operation they undertook after 1000 years of existing (Handing out crystal to fight the Nothing) was also the very last thing they did, since it resulted in their cover being blown.
The Kolat claim to have an agenda, but all they really are is an old boy's club for the powerful to get more power.

>>53061716
>caring about L5R's shitty storyline/metaplot, and what it does to the setting's factions
you first mistake

>Kolat is basically the only true meritocracy in the entire setting, where anyone can rise up regardless of birth or station
>"just an old boy's club for the powerful to get more power"
your second mistake

>>53062096
Like it or not, the plot is as is. Anything else is your headcanon and yours only.

>>53062096
>Implying
Funny how the only people to benefit from the kolat for over 1000 years are the people in charge of the kolat, who are usually clan champions and high ranking daimyo.

>>53062165
Yes, and it sucks. You shoudn't use it except in the most basic, watered-down and palatable form. The only good plot in l5r is "X exists," and "X is something that happened and is necessary to play the edition of the RPG you are currently using." Basically everything else should be ignored.

>>53062179
Yeah, it's almost as if Samurai are educated their whole life to be badasses, so there are more likely to become badasses than non-samurai. It's almost as if the kolat is going to use its influence to put high-ranking, capable members in positions of power, like clan champion or daimyo.
Isn't that strange?

>>53062378
>It's almost as if the kolat is going to use its influence to put high-ranking, capable members in positions of power, like clan champion or daimyo.
Exactly my point. All they are is a power club for people in power to get their friends in power. It's cyclical, sure, but everyone in it got to the top because they were useful for someone who was at the top before them. All they do is accumulate power for themselves with an ideal to draw in the pawns.

>>53062476
That's how literally every organization works. If you're capable, you get promoted. If you get promoted, you have more power. It's an incentive, not a goal.

>>53062378
>Yes, and it sucks.
What you're offering is even worse though.

>>53062540
It's literally the only thing they do for centuries. They draw people into the sekrit conspiracy club so they can't squeal without hurting themselves, then promote them to have friends in power, thus empowering themselves. It's a pyramid scheme that starts with a morals based recruitment lie.

>>53062552
I'm not offering new lore or anything. I'll use my headcanon for my games, you use your headcanon for your games. But please don't use the established lore, because it's trash.

>>53062584
>It's a pyramid scheme that starts with a morals based recruitment lie.
I'm sorry, but isn't that _literally_ the entire Emerald Empire?

>>53062663
It's fine if you use your headcanon for your games. You just don't get to call offical lore trash when your headcanon is just as trashy.

>>53062663
>I'm sorry, but isn't that _literally_ the entire Emerald Empire?
No, because most of the empire is just feudal. The kolat literally run a pyramid from the temple masters on down. Nobody at the top actually wants to get anything done, because that would ruin their power base. The people at the bottom don't really understand what's going on, and the people in the middle are sucking up so that one day they can be at the top. The whole "overthrow the heavens" bull is just a good excuse as to why they should have all the power they've been idly accumulating.

>>53062702
What headcanon? I haven't mentioned anything yet, other than it exists.

>>53062731
In what world is feudalism not a pyramid scheme?!

>>53062772
I can guess what it is already, because you kolatfags can't play more than one tune. Feel free to post it and prove me wrong.

>>53062830
I actually don't have the Kolat in my games, since Jigoku and Tengoku were never as much of a problem in my headcanon as they are in the established lore. I've amalgamated the Kolat with the Gozoku to make a kind of omnipresent threat that does nefarous things for the PCs to uncover and defeat. Kinda like Bloodspeakers, but for Emeralds instead of Jades.

The only real difference in my lore is that a lot less happened during the 2nd day of thunder onwards. Yakamo and Hitomi weren't assholes, and they each fused with the obsidian and jade dragons respectively, becoming new entities; the fortunes were never kicked out of Tengoku.

Iweko dynasty never happens. Daigotsu never happens except in the background. Destroyer war does happen, however, and Spider are made a Great Clan. But, the Spider are a lot less blatantly evil in my timeline. They're loyal to the Empire, but they're still generally edgy cunts. They (incorrectly) see Fu Leng as a martyr figure who went mad while valiantly fighting against the influence of Jigoku.
Spider still use maho and embrace the taint, however; they see it as sacrificing their soul as well as their life for their duty to the emperor, and are smug about how this is a greater sacrifice than what other samurai are willing to make.

I do declare, it's time for more Ishigaki action. Sometime

>>53052990
>And yet, in plays and stories, it was often the Lion clan that were the ones who attacked temples and slaughtered monks.
>Many times a general would take advantage of the neutrality of monks and temples, setting up a command center for his armies inside a temple while 'praying for victory from the Fortunes/Kami/Ancestors.'
>Only for the Lion to lose their patience and assault the place.
>The Lion clan will happily endure long bloody sieges, but they really hate being held in check on a battlefield by words and custom alone.
>This situation though, allowed them to split the difference between proper behavior and their own distaste
>'For what reason do the Sohei exist, if not to protect the temples?' the Lion say, as they turn their backs to the situation.
>They point to all the duties their Clan must fulfill, downplaying the severity of the situation
>and in the midst of all this comes a lone Kitsu, a priest of the Kami, who receives his Lord's permission to go and help defend the temples
>The Lion get to say they DID send help, while the Kitsu commits not-quite-Kanshi to protest his Lord's lack of piety.
>Not-quite because he could still succeed and return alive, slim though that chance may be.
>At least, it was slim until we arrived.
>Kitsu-san spoke to Ryoji
>So then, I take it you have some idea where the next target is?
>The Lion nodded.
>It is here.
>Well, over that way, to be specific
>The Lion pointed
>Just beyond the rice paddies in that direction there is a temple.
>I'm certain the bandits will strike there.
>They will also likely attack this village for it's food stores.
>Rjoji bowed to Toshiro
>Please, Magistrate! Will you help me to defend this place?
>Toshiro nodded.
>That's what we came here to do.

>>53053143
At this point, it's obvious my fingers are so used to typing shit that they just have to add a t and the end of shi.

>>53055939
Kitsuki-san, Moshi mounds is back and she wants to talk with you about something...

>>53064306
>Toshiro looked over at me.
>Ishigaki-san.
>Right, on it.
>I stood up
>Ryoji-san, I need to walk the village. Can you show me where, exactly, the temple is?
>Of course
>Kitsuki-san, little help here?
>Yeah.
>So, Ryoji. Any idea when we'll be facing the bandits?
>Kitsuki-san had insisted earlier that we not bring up the fact that the 'bandits' were really just pawns of the bloodspeaker cult, if not the bloodspeakers themselves
>Against a Maho-Tsukai, surprise was valuable, even vital.
>Best to avoid any chance of them finding out the extent of our knowledge
>No, I don't
>Damn. A proper Kaiu could have turned this village into a fortress in a day. I was not a proper Kaiu.
>Sitll, even without knowing how long I had, some basic earthworks should be doable.
>Give the enemy a choice
>Go up and over mounds of loose earth, sliping and expending a lot of energy before the fight even begins, or go though narrow gaps that reduce the number of men that can fight effectively.
>I glanced at the woods. Clearly where the peasants got the wood for their homes.
>Any bamboo?
>Ryoji shook his head.
>Damn again.
>A smooth cut could leave a piece of bamboo sharp enough to pierce flesh.
>In an emergency, an entire peasant vilage could be armed with bamboo spears.
>But not if there wasn't' any bamboo around.
>linning a pit in front of the earthworks with bamboo stakes, and putting peasants with long babmoo spears on top of the earthen mounds would have made going over the earthworks go from a bad choice to a suicidal one.
>Well, there goes that idea then.
>There was a child, wodden toy clutched tightly to it's chest, staring at me.
>I scratched at my beard. I'd gotten shaggy again in on the trip here.
>We reached the temple
>it was a simple thing. Tori arch leading up to a small building with a single room.
>A place for offerings off to one side
>inside a few sticks of incense burned before a statue.
>I didn't recognize whichever ancestor of fortune it was supposed to be off.

>>53064822
>I grunted.
>It was a small village, but I guessed there were somewhere between one and two hundred people.
>Should be enough.
>Ryoji looked at me
>You have a plan, Hida-san?
>Yep.
>C'mon.
>We're gonna need to talk to gramps
>Once we had rejoined everyone we gathered around to disquss the plan
>Kitsuki-san, the map please.
>Ryoji looked over in surpise
>You weren't making a map.
>Kitsuki-san grinned.
>Yes I was
>And with that he produced a piece of rice paper, ink and brush.
>And mapped out the village.
>To scale.
>Kitsuki-san looked at Ryoji when he was done.
>I never forget anything.
>I...see...
>The problem is we don't know when they'll strike, or where they'll come from. We don't know if they'll attack the shrine or the village first. They might even just try to engulf it all at once. Do we even know how many there are?
>Ryoji shook his head
>Right.
>I took Kitsuki-san's brush
>sorry I have to make a mess of your nice map here
>I drew a line around the village and another around the shrine
>square, with gaps in all directions for the village
>a single gap befroe the Tori on the shrine
>Gramps, you're going to need to get every shovel in the village.
>We're going to dig a pit around it, pile up the earth and create a barrier.
>The gaps will be much more inviting, but they'll be narrow, so only a few can push in at a time.
>Come on, I'll show you what I mean
>Gramps called out for a shovel, I took it ans set to work
>digging a quick hole I piled all the earth up on one side, so that anyone aproaching the village from the outside would first hit the ditch, then have to climb up the mound
>And you want this dirt to stay loose! Don't pat it down or anything like that!
>The harder it is to find purchase in the better!
>Somone get me stick
>Someone did
>I drove the stick into the ground, and gave it a few taps with the shovel.
>Dig until the earth pile gets this high!
>It was only waist high, but I knew how big a ditch it would take to get a mound that size

>>53065161
>If you start to get tired, trade out!
>I know there aren't going to be enough shovels fro everyone, so keep the diggers fresh! Speed is essential, because we don't know how long we have to finish this!
>I handed off the shovel as the peasants got to work, encouraged by Monkey joining in.
>While they did that I marked out where the gaps should be, and how wide
>Toshiro, you'll need to take the shrine.
>The village is large, and we may have to run between the gaps, He nodded.
>Kitsuki-san spoke
>I can stay with him
>That will work
>Ryoji looked to Toshiro then.
>Can you not speed this up Toshiro-sama?
>I'm more of a siege engine
>Toshiro looked down at his club foot
>And about as mobile too.
>Ah.
>That left Monkey, Mantiws-san, Ryoji and myself to defend the village itself
>Along with whatever peasants could scrounge up some tools to use as weapons.
>We got into our armor and waited for the bandits to come to us.

Poor village,
Samurais defending it,
Not seven them though.

>>53060872

>Three more men in robes appear, from their hiding places behind columns
>They start chanting together, distinctly not in Rokugani
>One word, one name repeated over and over
>Kali-Ma
>Cultists
>And the mesmerized Togashi-san was to be their first new sacrifice
>Tsuruchi-san's arrows start flying towards them as I rush to Togashi-san's protection
>She stands, still entranced despite my shouting, in front of the altar
>The cultist silently approaching from behind
>Raising his dagger
>One of the cultists tries to intercept me
>An arrow finds its way through his throat
>Daidoji-san manages to goad the other two into attacking him, buying me more time
>But that doesn't manage to buy more time for Togashi-san
>As we hear the crack of thunder from the rainstorm, he stabs deep into Togashi-san's unprotected back
>The lightning strike lands somewhere on the temple, judging from the acompanying blast sounds
>Finally snapping out of it, realizing what's going on, she roundhouse kicks him away from the altar
>Closer to me
>I take my final steps, and unsheathe my Kakita blade in a shining arc
>The cultist is still recovering from Togashi-san's kick to even try to avoid my strike
>His back bleeding profusely, he attempts to lunge at me as well with his dagger
>I hear behind me Tsuruchi-san and Daidoji-san finishing up the remaining cultists
>Togashi-san starts looking weaker on her feet, unable to land a punch on the wounded cultist
>With a quick stab, I end the man's life
>"Is saving your life going to become a habit of mine?"
>"Here's hoping not, Kakita-san"
>She slumps down, finding it difficult to stand due to her wound
>I help her get back up to the entrance, with some help from the stronger Daidoji-san on her other side
>At least, what used to be the entrance
>The lightning strike seems to have struck there
>Blocking our way out
>We'd have to look for a different way back
>Over ruins made slippery wet by the heavy rain
>With one of us heavily wounded
>Damn it

>>53066531
>>53060872

Was it their magic or Togashi had Fascination for holy sites?

>>53051898
You are asking /tg/ if they want more stories? Of fucking course

>>53061716
>Of all the things that reduced the influence of the Heavens on Ningen-Do, literally none of them were the Kolat's doing.
>>53062165
>Anything else is your headcanon and yours only.

>implying the Kolat/Qolat have done absolutely nothing this anon has not heard of
I needed that laugh, thanks mate.

>>53068655
Ever heard of Russel's teapot?

>>53069120
Ever considered not being a dick?

The infiltration of the Yasuki came after the clan wars, and that by itself proves they continued acting after the fight against the Lying Darkness. Every time their cover was blown, the Kolat let the empire at large believe they were utterly destroyed, and continued onward, infiltrating the clans and reducing the influence of the heavens on Ningen-do.

>>53066531
Was one of them shouting "KALI-MA!" while reaching for a heart?

Does anyone have the PDF?

>>53069730
So what sort of influence did their "acting" produce? Rokugan is still as religious and supernaturals still run around however they see fit, as it was before. If they even do anything besides "observe and wait for the right moment", they might as well not do that because there is no visible effect.

>>53065387
>The bandits took their time.
>The peasants got the ditches dug, and only an idiot would fail to realize how difficult climbing over one would be.
>even peasants with farm tools could kill idiots
>Ryoji, myself, Monkey and Mantis-san took turns on watch that night, along with several peasants
>I was standing in the north facing gap, watching the edge of the forest when some grunting and huffing caught my attention
>It was coming from further down, and I was pretty sure it was in the ditch.
>I walked around to the outside, so I could hop down in easier if it was something I needed to kill, and and headed towards the noises.
>It was a pair of kids.
>Well, young adults would be a better term. 15-20 years I'd guess.
>the loose soil of the bank had given way under their weight, sank and shifted every time they tried to find purchase, so they just kept sliding back into the ditch.
>The two were panting and gasping, clothes disheveled and slipping off.
>I could see one of them had cleavage, exposed by the shoulder of her top sliding off.
>The froze when they saw me come striding up.
>A samurai's armor does far more than stop arrows and turn aside blades
>It is a weapon, that strikes at the soul of his foes constantly.
>Many forget that. Samurai are well trained, and such an attack has little outward sign.
>Though of course, trying to get your strike past the armor and into the warrior beneath does give pause to all but the most experienced warriors.
>However, these two lovers were a clear reminder that Samurai armor is also absolutley terrifying if you're unused to it.
>A gaint in blue and black metal, holding a metal stick studded with spikes, his face an emotionless mask carved into a demonic snarl, and you can't even tell if it's a human under all that armor or not.
>I tugged a few laces and slid down my mempo.
>You two. Which side did you sneak out through.
>They just kept staring.

>>53071881
>So I shot the boy a grin.
>Look, I know what you're doing, and have done.
>y-y-you do, great samurai?
>Yeah. This isn't the only panting and grunting you've done tonight, right?
>the girl flushed, then realized the state of her clothing and straightened it.
>The boy broke into the half proud half embarrassed grin that you see on young men who were older boys not to long ago.
>H-hai! great samurai!
>So I want to know which dunce you snuck past, so I can find someone with beter eyesight to take over for him.
>The girl was the one who protested
>But great samurai! It's not Kodai-san's fault! He was looking where he should have been, that's why we were able to get past him!
>I gave a snort.
>Fine. You two can't think of anyone else your age dumb enough to try and sneak off when there are bandits about, can you?
>They looked at each other, then back at me and shook their heads in unison.
>Alright.
>I held out a hand to jaul them up.
>Let's get you out of there
>No go on back home.
>Explaining why look the way you look to your parents will be punishment enough for risking your lives.
>They both looked down at themselves.
>Then they bowed and took off
>The rest of the night passed without incident.
>I headed to the shrine to check on Toshiro and Kitsuki-san, to see if they saw or heard anything suspicious in the night.
>Toshiro shook his head.
>Nothing here. How about you?
>Just a couple of kids, snuck past a guard to loose their virginity in the woods.
>I chuckled.
>When they came back they realized getting in was a lot harder.
>Toshiro gave his half-snort half laugh at that.
>I returned to the main village, ate a bowl of rice, and sat down for a quick nap
>When I woke up, I decided to walk the perimeter.
>Seiges occur when an army takes up a strong defensive position, that an attacking army has no choice but to deal with.
>Even basic modifications like the simple ditch we had dug, give the defender a massive advantage in the battle ahead.

>>53072182
>Because an assault would be so costly, some generals took to other means of victory in a seige
>Like simply waiting for the defenders to run out of food.
>And so defenders inside fortified positions often had to deal with long periods of nothing happening, save that an enemy army was camped out on the front lawn.
>That could strain a warriors mind, make them crack under the slow, constant pressure.
>One man breaking in dramatic enough a way could cause others to follow suit.
>The attacking force had yet to show itself, but then again the defenders were not samurai
>I was pleased, but honestly not that surprised, to find the peasants bearing up well.
>It was only the second day, the defenses prepared, and there were samurai here.
>Doubtless many told themselves the bandits would move on in search of easier prey.
>Many more would be confident in an easy victory.
>Well, nothing to worry about yet. At least nothing that can be adressed with just words.
>They would need to face a real battle before they understood. Until they had that experience for themselves, they just wouldn't understand.
>They day wore on into eveneing, and after a simple meal I got a few more hours of sleep before my time to watch came.
>It was then that they came

>>53072363
The magnificent 5 samurai - attack 1.

Remind me, what year is in Crab's storytiem? Slightly before Colonies?

>>53072549
No established timeline. Not even the current dynasty is set in stone.

>>53072663
At least, not yet.
Right now im reading a timeline of l5r. It's very convoluted mess, especially in the end. So, in the end Rokugan fall or not?

>>53072725
It was originally planned for Rokugan to fall, and for a new emerald empire to be started in the colony, with the next chapter being the reconquista of rokugan. But, the company got bought out before then, so none of that shit happened.

>>53072792
Thank gods

>>53071402
>Rokugan is still as religious and supernaturals still run around however they see fit, as it was before.
That's not the case. Take a look at Rokugan in the 1100-1200s vs literally any other time period. Everything changes, women become pretty much equal with men, morals loosen, the very sun & moon are formally replaced by former mortals. Religious beliefs weaken, and the influence of the Kami on the great clans is weakened by the grip of the Kolat.

>>53073881
Like I said, timeline and canon in Rokugan is a convoluted mess. Especially with all this gender bending and mind fuckery

>>53068097
Not just Fascination, he took as many points in it he could, leading to a ridiculously high TN for our insight rank
He thought it wouldn't appear that much in-game
He must have skipped the part where everyone has a shrine or a temple everywhere
And our ST really loved using our backstories and disadvantages as plot hooks
>>53070915
Unfortunately, only in my headcanon

>>53073964
w/e. I think you just don't want to work in good faith to show you were wrong.

Crane best clan

>>53074652
Crane a shit.

>>53075498
a shit indeed!

Yet everybody want fuck them. Everybody knows the best girl is a Monkey!

I wish the Crab and the Scorpion got along better. One is external security, the other is internal. Sure, wildly different work environments but they both cannot accept failure because that'd mean the end of the Empire.

So, here is my attempt to contribute.

Here is headcannon of girlfriend's cons from Great Clans:
Crane
>High standards and even higher maintenance
>Will cuck you with everybody, and make you content with it.
>She does everything better than you and constantly remind you about it.

Crab
>Hick.
>Not cares about anything but fights
>Paranoid about taint and will kill anyone with even slightest hint of it.

Lion
>Will never, ever, love you.
>For her, you're a soldier on a platoon, not a person.
>Proud, stubborn and brags about it.

Mantis
>She see you as a walking wallet
>Nouveau riche in bad sense
>Reckless

Scorpion
>Her family is much important for her than you.
>Stalker, and have at least three plans how to murder you
>The mask stays on, always.

Phoenix
>Secretive Hypocrite
>If you are not shugenja, you are shit in her eyes.
>Will subtly manipulate you with her "momma knows best" attitude.

Dragon
>Would prefer seeking Enlightenment than you.
>Even more secretive than a Phoenix
>You will never, ever truly understand what the fuck she said.

Unicorn
>If you are not a horse, she will neglect you.
>Shameless gaijinboo.
>Naive and oblivious as fuck.

>>53075917
>Lion
>Will never, ever, love you.
>For her, you're a soldier on a platoon, not a person.
>Proud, stubborn and brags about it.
I prefer the 1e Lion women writeup.

>Where most women walk, these women stride. Where women should blush and smile, they are silent and stare at you with the most unnerving gaze.

>>53073983
Not only your headcannon, I did make one of them invoke her name while striking Togashi.

>>53075738
>Scorpion
>Internal security
>Organized Gozoku
>Attempted Scorpion Coup
>Weren't even a threat to Kolat until the war with Lying Darkness

>>53075917
The fact that you did not start with or even include pros does not elude me.

>>53076751
well, duh. It is a list of cons, after all. Why should i include a pros in cons list?

>>53077686
Why would you limit it to cons only or start with cons in the first place?

>>53076751
Implying any of them have pros when your marriage was arranged by your parents for their financial and political gain

>>53077854
Blissfull Betrothal is a thing you know.

>>53075738
In my headcanon the Scorpion quietly respect the Crab and give them preferential treatment in their political manipulations, second to the Dragon. The Crab for their part naturally hate the Scorpions for being sneaky cowards, and the Scorpion wouldn't have it any other way.

>>53073881
And literally none of it is the Kolat's doing.
Women and men being equal is literally a metachange based entirely on edition (See also: An entire page explaining what they changed, why, and how to change it back if you want), morals don't actually change much, the sun and moon being replaced by mortals were singular events that no one except fate itself planned for. Religious beliefs change, in that extra gods are added and Rokugan is forced to admit that there are foreign gods at all, and the influence of the Kami is exactly the same as always, as shown by Shinjo showing up and having everyone trip over themselves just to kiss her feet.

>>53075738
They tend to get along very well when the shit hits the fan. Its when they're idle that they go at each other's throats.

>>53075738
>>53078864
Flipping through way of the Scorpion this is pretty much true. The antagaonizm between the two clans is due largely to the fact that the Crab have no respect for the way Scorpion do things. And of course, the fact that the Scorpion are deliberately playing the villan to focus ire on themselves so that fewer people get upset with the ruling dynasty is one of those big secrets no one outside of the Scorpion, Otomo, and the Emperor themselves would know.

Since you can't suggest that any Clan is anything less then a perfectly loyal servant of the Emperor without having every bushi in said clan burying your lord in a flood of challange letters for you, the reality of Emprie, of having to pit the Clans against one another so that no one Clan can build up enough power to stage a coup is a big ass secret.

The difference is that everyone knows what the Crab do, they just ignore how vital that is when it's convenient. Which, thanks to the Crane, Scoropion and Otomo, is most of the time. Whereas is people knew what the Scorpion were really up to, it'd make it a million times harder. Everyone knows that the Scorpion clan knows your dirty little secret and will blackmail you to get what they want. Everyone knows that if you fuck with a Scorpion, know mater how personal the issue is, the rest of the Clan will jump all over you. What NO ONE knows is what the hell the Scorpion are actually trying to accomplish at any given time. Because sometimes the Clan looses on purpose, while still achieving their goal. Scorpion have mastered the fine art of granting their foes pyrich victories. The fact that Scorpions are willing to die on the orders of their superiors no questions asked is understandable, the fact that they're willing to throw away their glory and die in apparent shame is just unthinkable.

>>53072363
>I got my first clue that something was amiss when a giant flaming comet raced through the sky to explode among silhouetted people over by where the shrine was
>Subtle, sure, but I was still fairly certain it meant the bandits had arrived
>Sure enough, as soon as that happened the bandits that had been crawling on the ground towards the village stood up, making their presence obvious
>It's good that I'm so observant. I'm make a piss poor sentry if an army of bandits could crawl up a hundred yards on top of me without me noticing ANYTHING.
>Well, it's on now.
>I yelled for one of the peasants standing watch to go rouse the village, and he took off
>We had worked out a specific rythm to beat the alarm stick with so that everyone would know where the bandits were.
>I listened. Two sides, mine and Ryoji's.
>And the shrine.
>Peasants quickly flooded the mound, and none of the bandits tried to brave it.
>Good.
>I plugged up the gap with my armored bulk and waved the first bandits forward.
>In the gap they could only fight me three at a time.
>If I stepped back, it would only be one or two bandits figting inside the gap, with myself and few others fighting them
>I didn't step back for two reasons. First, it would be eaiser for them to try and slip past me, second three on one against bandits was no big deal.
>For me, anyway
>They came and I played whack-a-bandit, smashing any that dared to pop his head up
>The corpses piled quickly at my feet.
>they fell back from me quickly once it became aparant that wasn't going to work.
>At first I thought they may try to go around to another side.
>Instead several dozen stepped up and drew back on bows.
>Oh those fuckers.
>I turned to the side, tucking down my head behind my sode as they loosed
>Arrows peppered me from head to toe
>I straightened up, my left side a pincushion, and shattered the shafts sticking out of my armor with one downward sweep of my tetsubo.

>>53079657
>I rolled my left arm around in a wide circle, letting them know if that was their plan they were going to need a LOT more arrows.
>You okay?
>Monkey
>And Mantis-san was right behind him
>Yeah, I'm fine. None of them really got through.
>Why are you both here?
>Ryoji's got his side covered.
>Yeah, he's using his magic to strengthen the peasants. Hell, I think they're doing better than you are!
>Okay then.
>I stepped back.
>I'll give those bandits credit, they were braver than I thought.
>Stupider too.
>They tried again
>Bandits with polearms came out to the fore
>two with yari rushed into the gap, their shoulders touching
>They couldn't move very well, but their plan was to use their weapons length to push us back so their fellows could get inside
>Sadly for them, two bandits were no match for the three of us.
>after the third try I yelled at them
>OOI! It's getting a bit... corpsey around here. Hard to fight properly. Why don't a few of you get over here and drag your buddies clear? Go on, we'll wait.
>The bandits ran away instead.
>Monkey looked over at me.
>You've got to teach me that trick.
>Wouldn't work for you Monkey.
>I looked aside at him.
>You couldn't be scary if your life depended on it.
>I can too!
>Really? Okay then, scare the next child you see.
>What, NO! That's just mean, why would I do that?
>See?
>What?
>The first step to being scary is convincing other people you'll do shit so horrible they can't even imagine it.
>If you can't actually be cruel, you can't be scary.
>Bullshit, I've seen you scare people by being calm all the time!
>No, see that only works on cowards. And it's not really being scary, it's just convincing the coward they don't have the upper hand.
>oh.
>Mantis-san chuckled.
>Trust a Crab to be able to deliver a lecture on the finer points of intimidation...
>I looked at him evenly.
>Damn straight.

>>53079895
>>Monkey was looking down, thinking about somehting
>Could you actually be cruel like that Ishigaki-san?
>...I can convince myself I could do it, and project that conviction outward.
>But I hope I never actually have to try and follow through with it.
>uhhh.
>Mantis-san rolled his eyes.
>He's saying that when he puts on his 'scary face' he thinks about doing something horrible, that comes out in his expression. Other people see that and get an idea of what he's thinking.
>They get scared when they have to wonder if he really will do whatever he's thinking of doing.
>Oh! So to scare people you have to convince them you don't care about the consequences of your actions, you just want to hurt them!
>Now you're getting it, Monkey.
>And they're more likely to believe it coming from you since Crabs don't get things like 'manners'!
>Right, again.
>Okay, I see now. Yeah, I'll leave the scary face to you!
>good.
>Since, you know, your face is always scary.
>...
>That was a stupidly long way to go for a cheap 'you're ugly' joke
>god dammit monkey.
>The magical fires had stopped as well,
>I'm going to go check on Toshiro and Kitsuki-san.
>Right, we'll take care of things here then.
>I headed off
>Toshiro was applying some magic to Kitsuki-san's cuts and scrapes when I got there
>A half dozen headless bandits spoke to the work Kitsuki-san had done, while the piles of chared and crushed bodies were obviously Toshiro's.
>Looked like very few even got close enough to meet Kitsuki-san's blade.
>Looks like you two had things well in hand here.
>Yep
>Toshiro turned to face me
>He had the stub of an arrow sticking out of the thigh of his club foot
>...How does that keep happening?
>He shook his head
>Damned if I know. It's like it just draws arrows to it.
>And you? That's a lot of arrows...
>None got through.
>I see.
>They tried to push two sides. Ryoji handled one side with some water magic and peasants, we handled the other.

>>53075917
Scorpion seems top tier, imo

>>53080954
Scorpion is top-tier waifu so long as three things are true:

1: You never cross the Scorpion.
2: You NEVER cross your waifu.
3: Your marriage wasn't part of a long-term plot to ruin you, your family, and your clan in the first place.

Number three is Almost Always not true. It's Almost Always more useful for the Scorpion to maintain the idea that any given wedding is not automatically a trap.

But keep the possibility in mind.

All things must be in balance. Here's something to counterbalance Ishigaki's tale.


>Things I expected to find in the forest in the L5R game called "Naga Wars"
>>Naga warriors
>>Samurai forces
>>Naga treasure

>Things I actually found:
>>Naga warriors
>>Naga princess that joins the empire
>>Naga abomination with 2 snake heads and 1 human head casting elemental spells (I-is this normal?)
>>Naga children being the naga supply lines
>>Naga eating samurai
>>Naga-eating samurai (om nom nom delicious naga stew)
>>Artifact of a dark oracle
>>The aforementioned dark oracle
>>Oni (plural)
>>A tainted temple guarded by said oni
>>World-eater snake (DOES THIS COUNT AS NAGA?!)
>>The heir of Sun Tao
>>Kenku standing on a bridge demanding to be faced in iaijutsu, delaying an entire army
>>Forest killer "dojo" (uh, what?)
>>Nezumi tribe
>>Nezumi warrens
>>Ronin nezumi (really)
>>Lost
>>2 Togashi that randomly show up, demanding that everyone help them push over an obelisk so they can take it home (IT TOOK A WHOLE DAY). In the end, the outcome is in no way actually influenced by character participation
>>Kunis that said "screw it" to secrecy and asked everyone for naga corpses to dissect, one of them making the samurai hold organs while he drew them in his book
>>Tons of samurai dragging corpses to said Kuni by hand
>>Samurai taking the heads of naga to read the future from their last impression (Getting a-head in the future, hue hue hue)
>>Bridges made out of crystal (4 of them)
>>Naga treasure that gives full spellcasting + access to all spells
>>Yasuki that trade sake houses for a total of 12 bottles of sake
>>Half the empire’s forces are non-combatants. We’re not talking healers here, more like courtiers, a ton of scouts that refuse to fight, and some ninjas.
>>Five-day forced march in hellish heat conditions.
>>Samurai 40k commissars who execute troops who fall behind in the forced marching.

>>53081276
- Bridges made out of crystal (4 of them)
- Naga treasure that gives full spellcasting + access to all spells
- Yasuki that trade sake houses for a total of 12 bottles of sake
- Half the empire’s forces are non-combatants. We’re not talking healers here, more like courtiers, a ton of scouts that refuse to fight, and some ninjas.
- Five-day forced march in hellish heat conditions.
- Samurai 40k commissars who execute troops who fall behind in the forced marching.
- GM making up his own rules for heat exposure instead of using actual mechanics in the L5R books. Only people who wear armor must make Stamina rolls or be affected.
- GM refusing to allow the Hida Bushi’s technique to avoid the heat fatigue penalty, only because the tech does not specifically mention ‘fatigue gained from wearing heavy armor’. (How dare the rules not take into account the GM’s houserule that he made up!)
- Poppy fields
- Piranhas
- 3rd wave feminism
- Mirumoto bushi 1/Shiba bushi 1/Daidoji Iron Warrior 1/ Forest Killer 1
- Ise-zumi named… Akodo Furia. A gaijin-named Lion Scout with magical Tattoos.
- GMPC A-Team expies winning combats and making the players their glorified sidekicks
- No orders given ever. Despite a chain of command supposedly existing, everyone in the army does whatever.
- Pollens that gives you Quick Healer for free when inhaled.
- Sake that work like health potions, healing 3k3 Wounds when drunk.
- The long lost Ki-rin Clan, in a period where their actual return should be decades later

>>53081294
>>Said clan returning only because some random Togashi found a random artifact lying around in some tree and was able to contact them with it
>>A ratling shaman that spammed Take Name, using it on entire platoons of samurai. Since Take Name requires the loss of Name, and Niche limits Name, this means that the shaman broke the Niche and Name scale, having more than 10 on each to use such magic so recklessly.
>>Said ratling shaman ignoring the drawbacks and requirements of it’s spells besides backlash.
>>A player character transformed into a kawaii uguu monstergirl naga.
>>Samurai skinning a naga, then making and wearing a naga-suit out of it’s skin.
>>Naga doing the same with samurai.
>>Piles of Nezumi memory sticks that can be used by humans by… smoking them.
>>Samurai getting high by smoking sticks soaked in rat piss.
>>GM withholding XP to prevent one player from gaining new insight rank, proceeds to make an event with an XP reward. Way to hoist yourself with your own petard.
>>GM uses the same strategy for all creatures. In melee they use Full Attack and fight to the death, spellcasters only use direct damage or healing.
>>GM forbids positioning, moving back more than 10 ft. is considered retreating and removes you from combat. Archers and spellcasters are put into melee with everyone else.
>>Samurai carrying shrunken decomposing heads on their persons as lucky charms. Under hellish heat. Hope they had deodorant.
>>Thinking about it, for an entire game around mass combat, war and more war, the Battle skill was rolled only once, in one of the first events, not even to actual command troops, and never again. Even by the players supposedly in command (gunsos and the like)

>>53081311
>>Fighting a Lost, one of the players identified her as being such. The GM forbade him from telling the other players so that they could target her with Jade Strike to oblivion. Even if it is a Free Action to say “That fucking bitch is Tainted!” Instead, the GM allowed it… only it would take a Courtier (Manipulation)/Awareness roll and a simple action to do so.
>>Two Kuni on said fight, a witch-hunter and a shugenja, not only fail to warn and assist the rest of the party, they also flee the combat and let the others fight the Lost unprepared. The two Kuni suffer no ill consequences for this whatsoever.
>>A monk who is stabbed by a bunch of Lion and a ronin because he beat them in claiming a nemuranai.
>>Gates into the spiritual realms, sending wave and wave of enemies (I guess this one is normal and expected in Shinomen. Maybe just not as a focus for a military campaign against the Naga)
>>Constructing bridges! Because otherwise piranhas would eat us. They are constructed with Craft (Mining) or Craft (Shipbuilding).
>>Cobra warriors. Dear kami, so many Cobra warriors. I thought only Cobra could be jakla, and as such, were primarily such.
>>Four armed mutant warlords leading the Naga. I thought Naga disliked Abominations.
>>Togashi-trained Lion is running around with a nezumi nemuranai made from the hip bone of the brother of a Sparrow daimyo from the future (my brain hurts).

>>53081321
>Shugenja travels into Yume-do and voluntarily lets the Akasha take them. For reference, this was the one running around in a naga fursuit (scalesuit?) made of dead naga skin.
>>Our commander was victim of an assassination. The assassins were four Cobra warriors in heavy armor and led by… a gigantic jakla with a mutation that made it perpetually on fire. Yep. Somehow, they were able to waltz through our camp and into the command tent.
>>Over the course of the game, eight treasures were found by scouts just laying around. They were all claimed by members of the Lion Clan. Additional nemuranai were obtained during the course of the game, and again, all went to the Lion.
>>Lots of players keep sneaking into the woods to capture each other’s one-eyed snakes (read: to f*ck). Into the woods. Full of enemies.
>>I was not aware that Shinomen Mori is a jungle. The campaign changed between dry spells/heavy rains and mists, and with all those piranha, rubber trees and such… yeah.
>>I should say something about rations: rice, only rice, is being distributed. For two months, not a drop of water has been handed. And any local source of water? Everyone was forbidden of drinking from it.
>>A Shiba prancing around with a goblin pet.
>>Samurai are allowed, no, expected to loot temple murals for jade >>and if they fail to do so, are accused by the Crab of stealing jade.
>>The price tag of Kaiu armor is 11 koku. Hand over 11 fingers of jade to the Crab, each worth1 koku, and they’ll give you a suit of Kaiu armor!
>>Not interested in Kaiu armor, you say? You can get one whole rank of Status for a mere 9 koku instead!
>>Hand in three koku worth of jade? Get two koku back for your trouble.
>>A Well of Eternity as the source of power and souls for the Cobra bloodline. Literally the same name and concept as from Warcraft 3 or WoW, and just as out of place.

>>53081334
>>If you drink from the Well of Eternity, you can learn any Naga school, without having to pay for Different School or Multiple School. You can replace human school ranks with Naga paths.
>>Three words: “Lion-Sparrow Alliance”.
>>Mirumoto Taoist lesbian stripper loli. She’s so awesome and innocent, watch her be the sluttiest thing you’ll ever see, being lecherous and gullible! (Also, she’s a legendary hero of justice who nobody has ever heard of before, being only Glory 1!)
>>Status does not matter. Status 1 hohei freely ignore orders from Status 3 gunso. In fact, they overrule him by mob rule.
>>Shugenja players have -6 spellcasting rolls for no effect in this game, and they become incapacitated if they fail the roll by less than 6. This can only be circumvented by paying 5 exp and taking an obligation to the Lion clan.
>>In the most tense moments after conquering a Naga city, samurai have to… carve buckets with their own hands. Said buckets are to catch piranha for the Dragon. All the ashigaru must be busy masturbating and it seems samurai cannot has buckets.
>>If you put two piranha in the same bucket, they will kill each other. Because piranha are antisocial fish that do not live in massive schools.
>>If enough fish are put into their own personal samurai-crafted buckets, the Agasha weaponize piranha. Dragon piranha.
>>Something that must be said about the GM’s events: Individual samurai must do everything themselves. It’s bad enough that they’re doing menial work befitting heimin and eta, but samurai good at making buckets can’t cooperate with samurai good at fishing?
>>Ridiculously specific subcategories for Lore skills. For instance, there’s Lore: Fish, Lore: Naga CULTURE, Lore: Nezumi CULTURE, and Lore: Sake.
>>These highly specific skills are needed in some events. You can’t substitute those with more general skills such as Lore: Nature, Lore: Naga or Lore: Nezumi, not even at increased TN/Raises.

>>53081349
>>In the campaign to exterminate the Naga, players had the choice to attack the Naga’s supply of magical pearls at one of their holdings, severely crippling their resistance, or to move the entire army through a portion of the forest so dangerous nearly every scout doesn't return from it, since it is jealously guarded by the spirits of the forest. The latter was chosen.
>>And an entire freaking army enters Chikushudo without noticing. Who could expect that?
>>Said army is then attacked by a freaking army of bears, with battle lines and everything.
>>This assault is followed by a legion of wolves that know Spellcraft, the precise duration of each spell, and will calmly wait for those spells to run their course.
>>A few hours upon entering Chikushudo and the army starts turning into animals. In Chikushudo. After a few hours. Chikushudo doesn’t extend its influence on people unless they voluntarily decide to stay. When that happens, any changes take months to start.
>>The GM just handed out five Otaku war horses in Chikushudo. Almost half of them were claimed by Lion samurai.
>>An entire army disappearing into Chikushudo without anyone noticing is an ass pull, and facepalm worthy when the NPC commander threatened to cut down the two senior shugenja for not being able to explain this fact >>having no more information from the GM than the others.
>>Animals stole and destroyed all the army supplies… but then somehow, the players can recover triple the amount of supplies lost.
>>Losing all of the army supplies apparently means nothing but -3k0 to the rolls of several thousand people. Just as with heat exposure, his rules on starvation are different from the official rules. The penalties for starving are different, and people should eventually be taking damage as they starve to death.

>>53081362
>>Then, there’s the naga spear fiasco. One of the Naga commanders had a jade spear with 3k3 base damage. The GM didn’t expect a player would loot a corpse to obtain this very powerful weapon. Considering the more unclean things he forced samurai to perform throughout the game, I do not see why he would not expect that. To deal with this, he uses a player under the influence of Lord Moon’s Curse to steal the weapon and throw it down a cliff. Classic.
>>Lemurs. Freaking lemurs attacked the army. I was not aware that Madagascar was off the coast of Rokugan.
>>Tigers, but hey, if Shinomen is handled as a freaking jungle...
>>There are structures in Chikushudo.
>>A naked priest going around, covered in honey and bees, holding a mock “court” as “Queen of Bees, Ruler of Space and Time.”
>>Scouts are executed for giving accurate, successful and honest reports.
>> The final boss - I can only call it this - of Chikushudo is a peacock riding an Indian elephant. The peacock is the ruler of Chikushudo, its - I kid you not - Maharaja.
>>One of the treasures just handed out the Lion was a magical cloak that protected as a Light Armour, with no penalties, gave +1k1 on all Etiquette and Courtier rolls when worn and imposed a penalty of -1k0 on all attackers. While other players were more secretive of the benefits of their treasures, one can expect them to be around the same level of power.
>>The GM of this game often bashes L5R’s story team in his OOC comments. For all that, his game was a pretty blatant rip-off of the Dark Naga story arc in the L5R CCG, transposed from the Colonies to Rokugan in the 8th century, with little consideration or sense, just jammed in and hammered to fit.
>>Another obvious sign of his hack job unoriginality is the fact that he’s been turning the Shinomen into a jungle all this time. It’s most obvious when he brings out the Indian elephant final boss, tigers and assorted tropical critters and fauna.

>>53081376
>>In order to return to Ningen-do, there was an event about collecting items from Ningen-do and performing a ritual with them. The ritual was pointless; even before the event, our return was assured. But it was not all for nothing, no! If you did particularly well, you would get fox spirit waifu. Because.
>>A scout stumbled into a powerful nemuranai, the Mempo of Chikushudo. A nemuranai created by a Kami whose existence was unknown for most of the empire until the 11th century, created in 1170. Just laying there. No points for guessing the clan of the samurai who gained it.
>>A player got a temporary Permanent Wound.
>>Even after succeeding an event that replenished three times the supplies and resulted in extra rations for everyone, everyone is still starving. Yes, the GM was pretty insistent on reminding us how we are starving on one paragraph… immediately following with another one in which he reminded us we had +2k0 on all rolls due to the extra rations.
>>Not only that, after four days of forced march, the troops are to fight without any food, the surviving receiving double rations. Keep in mind, while everyone is fighting on empty stomachs… they get the +2k0 on all rolls (emphasis on all rolls) due to extra food.

>>53081393
>>Random characters have the “tweest” of being Kolat sleeper agents all along! Their mission? A very detailed order, with various contingencies, to escape from the army, evade the Naga, enter a specific temple, disable magic wards and steal a specific rosary. It includes contingencies, like sacrificing themselves if detected by Naga. Not too shabby, for a command that needs to be stated in five words or less.
>>Another comment on how the GM designs events: He seems to dislike shugenja and monks so much that practically all of the events in the game do not permit spells or kiho to be used.
>>Not only that, but several events are stated as ‘non-combat events’, even when for practically all purposes, they are combat. Just so characters can’t apply their techniques to the rolls required. Instead of “attacking” an animal to keep it at bay, you make a “weapon skill roll” vs a fixed TN. Nope. Not attacking. It’s only using a weapon against an enemy.
>>The whole thing was an exercise in futility. There was the chance to make a suicide charge against a squad of archers, because destroying them early would mean no more attacks from archers later… or so the GM told us. Archers kept popping up even after that.
>>The entire thing is an exercise of futility. After disabling the archers, all players refuse to join the other tactical events required for victory, and the Empire loses all of them. They still win the war; it was futile for them to do anything.

>>53081411
>>The final enemy of the campaign is… a Naga Avatar of War. This gets players because of the rewards offered, but was just as pointless. The Naga would be destroyed even if the Avatar was not; the only difference was that the Avatar would keep waging against the Empire.
>>A monk does a Lore: Bushido honor-scan on a disguised Shosuro Actor and gets vetoed by the GM for being metagamey. A Lion does a Kitsu-scan on the same Actor later, and then the Actor gets banned for metagaming.
>>CCG-style character keywords: Lion * Shugenja * Bad Luck Magnet * Mudblood * Wolf-cub * Cat-toy
>>When the Shosuro actor is uncovered in the middle of a mob of people staring right at it, some with hands on their weapons and scrolls drawn… it gets a surprise round. And some players get reaction rounds. And yet people had already rolled initiative, but those people did not even declare their stances. It was like some were playing d20 and others L5R. And the GM was on the former group.
>>In the middle of the center of the >>now destroyed >>Naga civilization is a pool. Filled with water that can remove Bad Eyesight, Bad Health, Blind, Epilepsy, Lame, Low Pain Threshold, Momoku, Permanent Wound, Shadowlands Taint, or the Weakness disadvantage.
>>The worst implication is that the explanation why the Empire knows about that pool and its properties is that an Ikoma had been there before. On a pool. In the middle of the >>sold for two months as >>unexplored Shinomen Jungle. In the middle of the center of the previously unknown Naga civilization.
>> And for all the effort, the Empire goes back empty handed. After a long, grueling campaign, after defeating the enemy, after conquering their city, the Empire force just… leaves. After finding neverending treasures, including a pool that can cure Taint, they just shrug and pull out. .

>>53081427
>>In fact, something should be mentioned about the Empire just abandoning their conquest and spoils. There were two events in which in case the player lost, a faction of the Naga would survive, claim the capital back and wage war upon the Empire. The players won those; then he had one optional - keyword event, optional, - full of nemuranai rewards. The catch was, that up until now, all those optional assassination events resulted in nemuranai all around and a boost to the army. In this final optional scenario? If you failed, the Empire would retreat and the Naga take back their cities and attack the Empire, undermining the entire campaign and achievements of the game.
>>And about that “optional” encounter whose failure would undermine an entire campaign? Well, 4 110 XP players against 7 IR 3 Naga and one IR 5 leader. Rolling 10k8+7 to attack and with ATN 105. If I ever saw a blatant “fuck you” to the players, it was this. Needless to say, TPK.

>>53081446
I think that gm might have more fun playing Exalted.

>>53080198
>Toshiro looked at me.
>So, how many Maho-Tsukai were on your side?
>...
>what?
>didn't you see any?
>No.
>We had three here.
>Kitsuki-san nodded.
>I guess you can't tell, but more of this blood is mine than should be.
>They had spells that made injuries bleed more than they should.
>...
>Did they have scolls?
>Yes.
>I took off running back to the village
>Monkey! Where are the Eta?
>Uh, over that way, why?
>There were tsukai in the group that attacked Toshiro, they had scrolls!
>Oh shit!
>We ran over to where the Eta were tossing the bandits into a pyre
>I yelled out to no one in particular
>If anyone found a scroll on one of the corpses, they should be thrown into the pyre as well.
>Do NOT open them, do not try to read them. Just burn them.
>I stood there, trying real hard to simultainesouly ignore the eta and also look to make sure no one keeps something they should not.
>Hey, Monkey. Go make sure none of those peassants found any maho scrolls.
>And tell Ryoji and Mantis-san to keep a lookout.
>I pondered while Monkey ran off.
>What the hell?
>Had the bloodspeakers been supplying the bandits with maho?
>That was something they usualy didn't risk
>From time to time bandits DID decide they just hated everything and went after temples as well as the usual rice stealing...
>But even those ones didn't often employ maho...
>Least it wasn't me this time
>Ryoji came running up, panting and sweating.
>He DID look to be nearing retirement age.
>Guess his age was catching up to him.
>You going to be okay?
>Yeah... yeah.
>I've had more difficult marches than this little fight.
>I was a much younger man then, it's true, but I'll be fine.
>I nodded.
>Is it true then? Not just blasphemy, but outright MAHO?
>I nodded again.
>Didn't you see anything?
>no... but maybe their suicidal recklessness was brought out by some foul magic?
>I considered that.
>No, I don't think so. Unthinking bloodlust is something Maho can curse a man with, that much is true.

>>53081680
>But they weren't going berserk.
>They were willing to fight past the point I'd expect, but they were never complete idiots about.
>Always had a plan, even if it was a bad one...
>Ryoji nodded.
>Well, now what? Do you think they'll try again?
>I don't know.
>We bloodied them hard this time.
>If their full strength wasn't enough, then they would need a miracle to win now that they've suffered losses.
>Ryoji looked at me.
>A dark miracle?
>Yeah.
>And since bandist rely on their reputation as being unbeatable to get peasants to hand over rice instead of trying to fight back, they really can't afford to lose here.
>So I wouldn't be surprised if they try to rely on that dark miracle.
>Though some will try and desert the band at this point.
>I grinned.
>Bandit leaders get their station by being the meanest, scariest bastard in the lot.
>If they catch a man trying to desert, they'll kill that man as a warning to the rest.
>They have no choice but to more terrifying to their men than we are, or they'll never hold the group together through tough times like these.
>You...seem to know a lot about bandits.
>I know a lot about war, and knowing what drives your enemies forward into death is vital in war.
>Ryoji nodded at that.
>You almost sound like an Akodo
>heh. Just hard won experience.
>Once the cremations were done I got some more sleep
>In war you sleep when you can. There's no telling when you'll be able to sleep next
>The village was quite the next day.
>I could see a few tear stained faces here and there.
>None of the peasants had been killed, but I suppose the violence of a real battle had been quite shocking.
>Especially for people who are farmers, not warriors.
>Well, they were all quite safe, even if they didn't realize it.
>As I walked the village I noticed it was quite windy
>I glanced up
>Clouds
>I could see a darker patch on the horizon.
>A storm was heading this way.

>>53081446
And you didn't drop it immediately like it was hot because..?

>>53081446
>>53081427
>>53081411
>>53081393
>>53081376
>>53081362
>>53081349
>>53081334
>>53081321
>>53081311
>>53081294
>>53081276
...the fuck did i just read?

>>53082564
How not to play L5R

>>53081276
>>53081294
>>53081311
>>53081321
>>53081334
>>53081349
>>53081362
>>53081376
>>53081393
>>53081393
>>53081411
>>53081427
>>53081446
>>53081446
what the fuck

I don't even play L5R, but seriously

what the fuck

>>53082452
Because how else he would tell us about this huge clusterfuck?
For our own amusement and well being, some sacrifices must be made, anon. Even in your own sanity.

>>53082452
Strictly speaking it isn't my story, someone shared it elsewhere and I'm reposting it here.

Apparently, it was a mix bile fascination, powertrip high (the GM was handing out XP and magical trinkets left and right, as you might have guessed from the story) and curiosity to see the trainwreck in full.

>>53082564
Some kind of fapfic about Lions wearing scale suit made out nagas. DM sure LOVES suck Lions dicks.

>>53082787
lionfags are almost as bad as cranefags

>>53084251
My honor v My courtesy

>>53079260
>And literally none of it is the Kolat's doing.
Sorry, bro. You can keep going around in circles without me.

>>53086093
Took you some time to figure out that you need to go.

>>53086264
One day you'll figure out the difference between what I said and what you assumed, buddy.

>>53086504
Bud, you're missing the point. The point being that you need to go. So go.

All I've figured out from all the Kolat mentions here is they either have been the cause of everything, or they have done absolutely nothing.

>>53087054
It pretty much depends on the meta and how in love you are with the concept.

>>53087054
It's not really either. When they're not the leading cause of anything major (which is most of the time), they nudge events closer and closer to Kolat goals.

>>53086529
Your opinion needs to go, and stay go, friendo.

>>53087412
This Doggo has Honor and Glory 9. All hail.

>>53087412
What opinion? I haven't posted any opinion in here.

>>53082003
Bump

>>53087796
>>53087412

Both of you are cancer and nobody cares about your argument.

>>53089157
>I know! I'll bump the thread by telling two people who aren't currently posting they're shit. That will totally tell them, and not just contribute to exactly the kind of posting I don't want.

SOOOOO...(he sais, in an attempt to divert the shitstorm)

Would you say that some samurai games are more honourable than others? Shogi vs go vs kemari vs etc.
I read about a mantis kemari star once in one of the splat books (secrets of the mantis, I think) and the idea tickled me.

>>53089394
IIRC, gambling has a bit of a negative stigma to it. Same goes for anyone who really devotes themselves to one game or passtime, since it's considered unbecoming. The one exception to this is Go, which is said to make great generals.

>>53085279
Everyone knows Mantis are best because they are pirates and pirates are free

>>53090364
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iH3tqQY0ioI

>>53089608
>Same goes for anyone who really devotes themselves to one game or passtime
As far as I can tell, attempting to master anything that isn't dishonourable or taking time away from your duties is considered worthy of renown.

It's even explicit in some passages that even if you, your father, etc. have next to zero experience in keeping tropical fish (eg), that if your great great grandfather was lauded amongst tropical fish keepers of Rokugani for whatever reason, you will still find that samurai prefer your advice on tropical fish over some no-name tropical fish keeper with actual skill. One of those obscure details that can be really hard to bring into a game unless everyone is on board.

>>53090510

>>53082003
>what's a Maho-Tsukai?
>Even though I didn't recognize the voice, I was certain it was addressing me.
>I glanced down.
>It was the kid that was staring at me earlier.
>They were looking up at me with wide eyes, still clutching their favorite toy.
>looked to be a year or two older than Daiko
>Where did you hear such a word, kid?
>Mama and Papa. All the grown ups, really
>They say that
>The child screwed up their face and tried to imitate and adult voice
>Now that the samurai know there are maho-tsukai, they won't stop until they've killed all of them!
>then the kid went back to normal
>but what's a Maho-Tsukai?
>...
>great.
>Well, a Maho-Tsukai is a bad person who prays to evil spirits.
>How do you know an evil spirit from a good one?
>...
>shit. I'm not a damn shugenja, and this was just a kid. How in the hell...
>Well, the Evil spirits come from another world, called Jigoku. It's a realm of pure evil, and everything that lives there wants to destroy our world.
>Way to go Ishigaki, that won't give the kid nightmares or anything.
>The child just cocked their head to the side, though.
>So everyone who prays to those evil spirits wants to destroy our world?
>No, most of the people who pray to those spirits are just dumb.
>They lie to themselves: they think they're in control of the spirits, or they don't admit the truth of what those spirits are.
>But how can so many people be so wrong?
>Eh, it's not like there are that many Maho-Tsukai in the world. Sometimes they cluster together in groups, so it seems like there are more than there really are.
>Oh..,
>...are you really going to kill all the Maho-Tsukai
>...
>shit.
>I had let this conversation, already about a dark topic, go on to long.
>Now it was really dark.
>Damn it Ishigaki, why did you indulge this kids curiosity?
>And why the hell can't you just lie to the brat?!
>Yes. Yes we are.
>I heard a strangled cry
>And a young woman came running up to snatch up the child

>>53090688
>She threw herself down into a dogeza so hard I'm certain she tore up her knees
>Please forgive him, great samurai! He does not know what he's doing!
>I waved it away.
>It's fine, it's fine. He's just a kid, right?
>You don't need to do that, really...
>Thank you Great Samurai! Thank YOU!
>She inched back on her hands and knees, dragging her confused child with her.
>I found it very disconcerting to be thanked for not killing a child because they spoke to me.
>And yet the looks from all the other peasants told me quite plainly any attempt to convince her, or any of them really, that I really didn't mind the child's questions would just go in one ear and out the other.
>How did Monkey do it?
>Well, whatever.
>I took another look at the clouds on the horizon.
>They had come closer all right.
>I judged that the bandits would try to use the cover of the storm to take us off gaurd.
>Which meant we had time until they struck.
>I got out of my armor to give it a good cleaning.
>It was only the second day in my armor, so the wear wasn't that bad yet,
>I just had to get between the plates mostly.
>The lacquer helped protect against rust, but blood, mud and other things could eat away at the lacquer and eventually start on the metal, given enough time.
>It's something few samurai thought about.
>Servants would handle cleaning their armor after every battle, after all.
>But for a Crab, whose armor was a second skin, cleaning and caring for it should be as natural as bathing.
>I gave all the cords a few good tugs to make sure they were still sound, then washed the clothing worn under the armor.
>Then I got dressed, nice and slow and proper.
>I had a bowl of rice and took a quick nap.

>>53090912
>I woke to the sound of thunder
>it would begin soon
>A peasant girl entered the room, with a tray bearing a bowl of rice, a wooden cup, and a small jug of steaming sake
>As I shifted, stretching out my joints, she knelt before me and set the tray down
>You don't need to bother with that.
>I've got to go-
>I had to break off as I caught her wrist, stopping the small knife from reaching my neck.
>I wrenched her wrist and slammed my other hand down her elbow
>Something in there broke, and the peasant girl screamed in pain
>I had just enough time to get to my feet and grab up my tetsubo when the doors flew open and peasants flooded into the room
>All armed
>One had a scroll
>I rushed that one, bowling another peasant over on my way, and turned the scroll bearers face into a bloody ruin with my tetsubo
>No. No maho for you.
>I was then surrounded with peasants, swinging farm tools and kitchen ware
>They were about as effective as you would think.
>Still, there were enough of them that some were able to get around into my blind spots and get past my armor
>I hardly felt it.
>But I DID feel it.
>I cleared a path with a broad sweep of my tetsubo, and made my way outside.
>I had to get to the others.
>It had gotten very dark. A bolt of lighting lit up the village like noon as thunder boomed
>I saw Mantis-san and Monkey
>I broke into a run, heading for them
>Ishigaki-san! What the hell is going on?!
>Figure that out latter!
>For now, just KILL!
>I emphasazied my point by caving in the chest of the first peasant to reach me.
>He fell, gurgling and choking up blood
>And then the heavens opened, and the downpour came
>Heavy rain, coming down in sheets, obscured our vision.
>Flashes of lightning gave me glimpses of Mantis-san and Monkey laying about with their weapons, desperately trying to fight off the peasants.
>I began to realize, it wasn't just a cell in this village.
>The village WAS the cell.

>>53091072
Oh shit, what a twist. I didn't see that coming.

>>53089394
>SOOOOO...(he sais, in an attempt to divert the shitstorm)
It's easier than that. Don't acknowledge it.

>>53090364
Badger = OG Crab = Best.

>>53090525
Did I just see that girl's nipple fall off and stick to her armpit?

>>53091072
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YemwYfeStW0

>>53091432
I did. The child gave it away.

>>53091432
I don't know if that was sarcasm.

>>53092029
It wasn't. Am I as thick as Ishigaki?

>>53092033
The child kinda gave it away to me.

>>53092041
Creepy kid asking about forbidden lore? Of course the twist was coming

>>53093257
Plot twist in plot twist - their new ally is Maho tsukai as well.

>>53093697
That's why he volunteered for this duty

>>53093709
Obliviously, duh.
It would be a REAL twist if he is innocent.

Maho Tsukai,
Not always are noble men,
Anyone can be.

So, I'm in a mood for writing some haikus.
Throw suggestions at me, please.

>>53095262
The Wall, a Unicorn horse, the fragility of life, how badass the katana is compared to every other weapon, doggos.

Side by side we walked
But you can't walk any more
Dog years are too short

>>53096823
Well fuck you too, anon.

>>53092041
I thought it was odd the way the kids overheard such talk from the peasants.

>>53091072
>Okay.
>1 to 2 hundred peasants.
>5 of us.
>Maybe 6 if you count Ryoji.
>...
>Worst case, 40:1
>Not even Monkey could beat odds like that.
>Another bolt of lighting. This time screams acompanied the thunder.
>Toshiro.
>Monkey, Mantis-san!
>I ran towards where the lightning had fallen
>In the rain I could dimly make out two figures together, several others forming a ring around the two
>I slamed into a peasant, knocking him down with my momentum, then crushed his chest with my tetsubo before he could rise.
>Monkey and Mantis-san were right on my heels, Mantis sending two sprawling, Monkey finishing them off.
>I heard Kitsuki-san shout
>Toshiro!
>Kitsuki-san pointed to a knot of peasants coming
>Toshiro yelled, and another blast of lighting slammed into the lead one
>The others were disorented by the thunder that followed
>I waved towards the edge of the village
>LET'S GO!
>I took the lead, Toshiro and Kitsuki-san right behind me, with Monkey and Mantis-san on the rear flanks, cutting down any one brave enough to get to close
>it was slow going, obviously. Toshiro thumpdragged as fast as he could, and the rest of us slowed our pace to match his
>In this storm, the earthworks would hamper us trying to get out almost as much as they hampered anyone else trying to get in.
>Toshiro most of all
>So we made for one of the gaps
>as expected, two peasants were side by side in the gap, trying to block our escape
>But when a 6'4" man, weighing 260 llbs and wearing another 50 llbs of metal rushes at you in a dead sprint...
>The path opened
>Where are you leading us, Ishigaki-san?
>The forest!
>We can use the clumps of trees to break up their numbers!
>Right!
>Once outside, I yelled for Toshiro to get on my back.
>We ran for the woods

>>53098160
Going into the woods is always the best idea

Humble peasantry
Samurai, death and bandits
Prayers to Fu-Leng

Unicorn women
Love their men who stand so proudly
On their four strong legs

Oh dear Unicorn,
You came as north raider,
And stolen my heart.

>>53098160
They gonna get mauled by a werewolves, do they? Going into wood in such situations ALWAYS attracts werewolves.
...Does Rokugan even have werewolves?

>>53098538
Why women only? Are their cavalry all female? Or is it just preferable to dwell on the women?

>>53099728
I was trying to imply the "men" the women loved were actually their horses

>>53099728
Unicorn clan known for two things, beside their gaijinboo tendencies: their horses and their cavalry. They have that special super elite all-female army with a most powerful horses in whole Rokugan, which besides this specific army and Emperor cannot have. Ever.

>>53099932
And if you ride their horses without permission the whole clan will hunt you down

>>53100783
That's true for most things that are considered proprietary.
Leak a Technique and the whole clan will hunt you down. Hell, other clans might hunt you down just so the reflected shame doesn't cause a war or something.

>>53100783
>>53100818
Similar to the Crab Clan's best armor. If a Kaiu didn't personally make it for your explicit use, then they will probably hunt you down for wearing it. The Emperor has a set, of course.

>>53100865
>>53100818
>>53100783
The lesson here is don't take someone's shtick

>>53099932
>>53100783
Even the emperor doesn't actually ride his Utaku Steed(s). They're generally not very accommodating for men or strangers.

>>53102846
It's a status symbol if nothing else

>>53103003
Bump

>>53098160
>Somehow we made it in ahead of the mob
>Okay, someone...anyone...
>What the hell is going on?!
>The vilagers are part of the cult, Monkey. Isn't that obvious?
>Yes, it's obvious! What's not obvious is WHY?
>What was the point of the bandits?
>Why were they attacking the village at all?
>None of this makes any sense!
>Kitsuki-san spoke between pants
>You...are not wrong...Toku-san...
>I interjected
>Save it for latter.
>Now's not the time to wast your breath
>Toshiro spoke up
>Um. Ishikgaki-san?
>Turn around.
>I did so
>Lights danced back in the forest.
>Torches. They were guttering in the wind and rain, but the peasants must have had good oil since they didn't go out.
>I set Toshiro down.
>Ishigaki-san? What, you want someone else to carry him for a while.
>It's not that Monkey.
>We're not deep enough into the woods yet.
>There's still to much room; they'll overwhelm us with numbers.
>They have to be slowed down.
>Toshiro looked at me.
>Nodded, and fished out a scroll
>I've not found the right time to cast this before, but now it's time.
>Toshiro knew his limits, and his abilities.
>He would find a good place, where the terrain would cluster the peasants togother as they tried to approach him
>>He just needed the time to find it
>And even though Kitsuki-san was not a bushi, he was still quite deadly.
>These four would be fine.
>Toshiro finished his spell.
>and my whole body began to glow with jade light
>It won't last long, go quickly!
>I nodded and ran towards the torches
>as the others headed deeper in
>I came upon a slight dip in the land, leading down into a clear area about 15 feet wide.
>Three peasants were in the clearing, one with a torch.
>As if glowing with jade fire wasn't enough, a bolt of ligthining stuck somewhere behind me.
>All three peasants looked at me in horror.
>I leapt down into the clearing, and rushed the one with the torch.
>My tetsubo took him on his shoulder, and I felt bones shatter

>>53104375
Super Saiyan Time

>>53104375
fires of purity? its such a great spell

>>53104375
>Blazing as I was, it was easy for more to find me
>good.
>I called up all my spirit with a fierce Kiai, and assumed a stance taught solely in the dojo of the Crab, one that would almost guarantee my enemies weapons would find only armor.
>My shout of battle fury was echoed in a roar of thunder from the storm, and the peasants cowered before my fury
>I did not give them time to recover
>I threw myself at them, swinging my tetsubo about in wide swings.
>It was not elegant, and I knew I did not kill any.
>But I hurt several, and frightened many more
>I saw another with a scroll, too late.
>She cut her arm deeply and pointed at me
>The Jade light around me flared.
>That was all.
>She stared in shock
>I seized upon her hesitation, and struck her.
>She raised an arm insticivley to ward off the blow.
>So I only broke her arm, tearing a large gouge of flesh from it, instead of her head.
>several peasants with parangu managed to strike at my back while I was busy
>I whirled
>One was stumbling back, shacking his head as though he was dizzy.
>I had seen that reaction when I had been struck before
>I smashed his hip and left him screaming in pain in the mud
>Let his agony be another weapon in my hands
>As I hoped, a wide circle opened around me
>they had been caught up in the heat of the sudden violence
>Now they saw what was in store for them, and they hesitated.
>More were torches were aproaching
>They could afford to wait.
>I turned and ran
>By now the ground was so muddy from the storm, combined with roots and rocks concealed in the dark, even I was having a hard time moving.
>As they gave chase I turned.
>I struck the first one to reach me, taking his legs out from under him
>Then I ran back through them.
>They took a few wild swings, but they didn't expect my maneuver and missed.
>Most of them, anyway.
>A heat running down my thing told me one had gotten lucky
>No matter. I pushed aside the pain and kept going
>Then I turned again.

>>53104815
Essence of Jade.

>>53104815
Good enough that I don't give people a free pass to walk around without burning stuff.

>>53105755
>The one just behind me tried to stop himself
>He only slid in the mud
>right into my tetsubo
>my swing caught him right under the chin, and took his jaw off.
>The peasants managed to stop, and tried to come slowley
>They were determined to end my life.
>They knew as well as I did everyone in that village would die if even one of us escaped to tell of what happened here
>Sickened by the violence, terrified by the armored samurai they could never hope to match, they still came on.
>Death ahead, and death behind, they could only choose where and how.
>They chose to die here and now, in the hope that their deaths would buy a future for their fellows.
>I did not like that I found something to admire in a village of maho-tsukai
>I braced myself to begin running, and the ones in front prepared to recive my charge
>As expected
>So I ran the other way
>I heard a shout above the noise of the strom, and my jade flames flared up again.
>Then they flickered and died
>I shout rose from the peasants
>They thought this would help them
>It would, but thier overconfidence would now cost them
>I ran and slipped behind a tree
>It was hard to see in the downpour
>It was as if Osono-Wo had gone to great lengths to prepare a proper stage for my final act.
>I thanked my ancestor for his thoughtfulness.
>Sure enough several peasants ran past where I was, trying in vain to see where I had gone
>Their shouts of horror as I struck them from behind were quite satisfying
>I turned and saw several peasants with scrolls
>This time!
>One panted
>This time for sure...!
>They were probably right.
>I had know there was no way could kill the entire village ourselves
>I had known they could not allow us to live
>The others had all known as well
>It was just a matter of delaying them. Buying enough time for others to escape.
>Maybe I could do it by myself, maybe some of the others would be following behind me soon.
>But one... just one had to escape.

>>53105889
That's why I always have Extinguish (That and most buildings are made of paper and wood).
Yeah, it's initially magical fire, but once it starts spreading beyond the target of the spell, it's plain old normal fire.

>>53105965
This seems a perfectly reasonable place to take a break. I can't imagine anyone is killing their F5 key right now.

>>53106073
but I am

>>53106073
My F5 is long dead, now Ctrl and R are paying for its shameful weakness.

>>53106073
I'm on a phone, and almost broke a screen under an "update" button.

Desperation looms,
Only death awaits traitors,
Of the Emperor.

Burn the blasphemer
Kill the maho-tsukai
Purge all the unclean

In a grim and dark,
Rokugan twelfth century,
Only war there.

>>53107188
Your haiku are shit,
In fact, shit is much better,
Please kill yourself.

>>53106073
Shame on you for all the cliffhangers, Crab-kun

It's hard to match cliffhangers up on the screencaps too.
Only one today.

Bump

>>53107916
Give man a break, he wrote a goddamn novel amidst all of these threads. Be thankful he still does it for your sake.

Man, this is a very good storytiem. I hope I can see the ending of this wild ride.
This board need less hatred, more good stories, no matter faked or real it is.
...oh shoggy, where are thou?

Dead will rise again,
Be sure burn all bodies,
But for now, bumping

>>53107916
Ever read a book, watch a show, listen to an audio drama, or something nigga? In nearly every successful one, near every chapter/Episode/whatevers is gonna end in a cliffhanger.
It's called drama mang.

Seriously though, Ishigaki cliffhangers and Crab-anons constant drifting away flare my anxiety a little bit.

>>53105965
>I readied my tetsubo and charged towards the ones with the scrolls
>They might kill me, but damned if I was going make it easy for them
>I got to the middle one before they finished
>My blow landed square into his stomach, gouging a large chunk of flesh away
>Then there was pain.
>the muscles in right arm twisted and rolled under my flesh.
>I would have called it disturbing, if it wasn't accompanied by blinding pain
>I couldn't use my Tetsubo like this
>So I dorpped it.
>I drew my wakizahi with my left hand.
>Awkward, to say the least, but I managed to get it out quickly.
>I then threw the blade at the one to my left
>They were so taken aback all they could do was stare in horror
>The blade buried itself in their neck.
>I had my hand on my katana and was turning to the one on the right
>When a figure darted past her, and she collapsed in two.
>What're you doing, Ishigaki-san?
>Get your wakizashi!
>What the hell are YOU doing, Monkey?!
>I retrieved my blade
>The pain in my arm was begining to subside
>Monkey handed me my tetsubo with a grin
>Stealing some of your glory, now come on!
>I followed after him.
>Monkey moved lightly.
>On even ground, I was a little faster than him
>But I kept sinking deep into the mud, whereas he always seemed to find stable footing.
>We ran, until suddenly he stopped
>Here! Go down!
>I looked where he was pointing
>a hole in the ground, with a rope ladder
>I didn't hesitate
>I went down as fast as I could, and Monkey came down behind me, pulling a trap door closed behind him
>What the hell, how did you guys find this?
>Kitsuki-san saw a few of the peasants come up out of the ground, so he figured there must be something there.
>And he was right!
>I looked around.
>There was light from a torch.
>Everyone was wet, muddy, and bloody.
>I imagine I didn't look much better.
>How are you all doing?

>>53111542
>Monkey responded first
>I'm fine...
>Mantis-san rolled his shoulder
>Could be better
>Kitsuki-san had a fresh bandage wrapped around his forehead
>I'll live
>Toshiro shrugged and said simply
>Still crippled.
>I could see in the light that we were in some kind of natural underground cave system.
>The tunnel down into it was man made, but this part was natural
>Mantis-san asked me
>How many did you get?
>I killed ten, at least, for certain... but beyond that I don't know...
>Kitsuki-san spoke up
>We should get moving
>Right
>We headed deeper into the tunnels
>So, Kitsuki-san,,,
>You were saying I was right earlier? About how none of this made any sense?
>yes, I was. And it still doesn't.
>But you've got an idea or two don't you?
>I have seven...
>But I need more information to narrow it down further.
>Mantis-san glanced at Kitsuki-san.
>Seven?
>You're making that up.
>Whoa!
>Monkey's exclamation cut off the banter
>we followed after him into a wide cavern
>There were several places where fire pits were placed
>I knelt down and looked at one.
>Looks like this place was used frequently...
>Kitsuki-san nodded
>You're right, Ishigaki-san...
>Kitsuki-san ran his hand through the ashes
>Picked up a bit,
>Sniffed at it.
>Opium...
>huh?
>They burned opium in these fire pits, along with the wood...
>Toshiro looked up.
>Doesn't look like air can move easily around here.
>So...they come down here for their debauched rituals?
>Kitsuki-san nodded.
>They must have cleared out a section deeper in the woods to grow the opium.
>All hidden from the eyes of the Lion Clan patrols.
>OI!
>We turned to see what Mantis-san had found
>It was a corpse
>Toshiro looked at it
>At least a week...
>the body wore a brown and gold kimono
>The mon on the kimono was lion's head, with a mane of fire.
>A Kitsu...
>Kitsuki-san spoke
>Did any of you ever see Ryoji cast a spell?
>I shook my head.
>Mantis-san did likewise
>Monkey pursed his lips
>now that you mention it, no. I didn't...

>>53111804
>>Toshiro shrugged and said simply
>>Still crippled.
Is Toshiro best girl?

>>53111804
>Then, I'd say that we have just found Kitsu Ryoji.
>Kitsuki-san nodded to himself
>yes, the rest of the attempts were trial runs.
>The bloodspeaker, the false Ryoji, needed everything to go just right.
>He would bring in bandits, terroize the local villages, then he would personally show up, pretending to be a local samurai come to deal with the bandits
>He would rally the peasants behind him, and lure them into his cult that way.
>The bandits were only there to scare the peasants, they never actually fought with them before.
>He would take a few with him when he left, while leaving the rest behind to trick the anchorites into believing the problem solved.
>he then began the process all over again.
>Toshiro nodded
>But this time, WE showed up
>Exactly, Toshro-sama.
>So they had to go with the deception even to the point of harming their own, to keep us in the dark.
>Until the chance to remove us came.
>Monkey scratched his chin.
>But...why?
>Why do this at all?
>Mantis-san grunted
>He pulled out his special chopsticks, and opened the Kimono of the Kitsu just a bit
>There was a scroll tucked inside
>He fished it out with the chopsticks
>Kitsuki-san took it, opened it, and read.
>By the Kami!
>Toshiro-sama, please look here!
>Toshiro leaned in
>Is what Ryoji feared possible?
>Toshiro frowned.
>yes.
>Yes it is...
>Mantis-san, Monkey and I looked back and forth between the two.
>What? What is?
>Toshiro looked up at me gravely.
>The blood speaker has created a new riutal, a maho ritual that will transfer the taint from a large amount of people, into the earth itself.
>...
>how much of the earth are we talking about?
>Ryoji, the real one that is, feared it might be enough to taint the lands of the Kitsu. All of them

>>53111804
>that Kitsu was a traitor after all
called it!

>>53112052
Hoooooooy fuck

>>53112052
>Ryoji, the real one that is, feared it might be enough to taint the lands of the Kitsu. All of them

>>53112052
Maho-tsukai: no sense of right and wrong

>>53113053
Fairly very sure they know they are in the wrong

bump

>>53114341
Maho Tsukai: surprisingly more morally aware than you'd fir guess.

>>53115508
Everyone knows
To bump Ishigaki thread
You use a haiku

>>53115620
Fuck there was meant to be a "that" at the end of the first sentence. Also shitposting is the second method to bump

>>53115655
Haikus athe shitposts

>>53115860
Not really. You cant really make a bantz in haikus - it means both or more parties are capable of making something creative or at least, emulating it.
While shitposts are more common skill.

Deepest apologies to those that have been wondering where i've been with Daikakita's tale these past few days
Stuff piled up here and there, both personal and uni-related, that I haven't quite been able to find time
That, and a bit of writer's block in the sense that I wasn't entirely sure how to write what was coming up next (mostly blaming inexact memory there)

Gonna write a few posts more than usual now to make up for it, hoping that there are still some people waiting for the next bit

Coming up:
The group recovers from their attack, arrives at the Spider outpost, and find the true source of Sweet Dreams

>>53116612
Danke, Crane-kun

>>53066531

>We find a way out through some windows
>But we'd have to climb
>On slippery masonry
>And Togashi-san was in no condition to do anything physically exerting
>Fortunately, we find a length of rope behind the altar
>By looping it a few times, we create an imporivsed seat to help lower Togashi-san from one level to another
>The climb takes a while, and Togashi-san almost slips and falls, but we manage to get our way back to our camp
>Only to find Kitsune-san healing a heavily wounded Daigotsu-san
>Shit
>Turns out, there were more cultists outside
>Six of them, from the bodies laying there
>Even though there is still some doubt left regarding Daigotsu-san's true motivations
>I can no longer deny his impressive skill did earn him his victory at the Topaz Championship
>Once Kistune-san is done taking care of her betrothed, she turns her attention to Togashi-san
>And once more I see why shugenja in tune with water kami are so important
>Thanks to her healing magic, we don't need to delay our journey much longer than if we had been without one
>A few days later, we arrive at the Spider outpost in the late morning
>One of many places out of which Iweko's Conquerors operated
>These were those among the Spider that were tainted before the Empress granted them Great Clan status
>Forbidden entry into the Emerald Empire itself, they were sent out to conquer and pacify the Colonies in her name
>Remembering many stories of the taint, I make sure to limit my contact with any of the samurai here
>Kitsune-san is asked away, no doubt to handle some spiritual business
>While Daigotsu-san excuses himself to deliver his report
>Duties of an Explorer, and all that
>He introduces us to a Susume Ivory Magistrate, to help us in finding the apothecary Hotake
>Susume-san tells us that Hotake came by last night, and had left an hour or so before we arrived
>In the direction of an old abandoned native village
>Rumored to be haunted by gaki and other malevolent spirits

>>53108270
Have you considered doing something crazy, like storing this stuff on a site somewhere, and just putting the link in the OP?

>>53117250
I'm not screencap anon, but the PDF anon. There's not really a good option for hosting large images in an album online, especially not without tanking the quality.

>>53116953

>We tell Susume-san that Hotake was a criminal
>Guilty of breaking Imperial decree
>I explained my duty to the Ivory Magistrate
>And that no rumors could stop me or my yoriki
>Daidoji-san looming behind me stoically and Togashi-san's monk-like demeanor seemed to convince him
>"Don't say I didn't warn you, Kakita-san"
>He gives us small satchels of jade powder, to apply to our weapons in case we do come across any evil spirits
>Explains that while most of the Conquerors were tainted, there were still many here that wanted to return to their Clan holdings in the Empire
>I politely decline
>These are most likely only rumors to keep people from going anywhere near the village
>Everybody else grabs a stachel
>With permission of the local quartermaster, he also lends us a few ponies to more easily get to the village
>While asking us to leave them at the outskirts of the village
>To spare them of any cruel gaki that would kill these animals
>He joins us as we set forth, to guide us to the village, or at least as close as he'd be comfortable going himself
>Couldn't have us getting lost so close to our goal, after all
>As we arrive, it's easy to see why these rumors of gaki have taken hold
>It's an eerie sight as we arrive as a strange fog settles around the half-crumbled buildings
>As we get off our horses, Daidoji-san takes his satchel of jade powder and applies it to his no-dachi
>While Tsuruchi-san does the same with his arrow tips
>Togashi-san seems to prepare herself with her kiho
>And we enter the village

>>53117518

>The fog disperses under our feet at every step we take
>The sense of abandonment is hard to ignore
>Dense foliage starting to cover what remains of these old stone buildings
>I hope none resemble a temple too much, for Togashi-san's sake
>We've had enough needless distractions already
>As we get closer to the centre, we notice a large building
>Despite the overgrowth, it's easy to tell that this house belonged to a lord, rather than the village elder
>Tsuruchi-san notices something different about this place
>All other buildings had cobwebs covering the windows and the doorways
>This mansion had cobwebs on the windows
>Someone had recently passed through the doorway
>Hotake, maybe?
>We approach the doorway
>Voices arguing can be heard from inside
>His co-conspirators, as well?
>This is going even better than planned
>We enter into a courtyard
>A skylight going through the first floor and the roof illuminating through foliage
>Voices from directly above us
>"I'm telling you, I've done everything I ca-"
>"Silence, fool!
>You have been of great service to me
>But your carelessness lately has been endangering us all!
>An Imperial ban on our product?
>You were too eager, Hotake"
>"But we've sold so much already, there's no doubt that it has reached many in the Empire
>I've even heard of many great samurai that have succumbed to our Sweet Dreams!"
>"MY Sweet Dreams, Hotake
>I created this lovely little powder
>But that's exactly the problem
>So many among the samurai have used our product
>And now they're scouring the Empire and the Colonies for us
>We'll have to lay low for now
>Hope that none of them come too close"
>I step forward, and shout as loud as I can
>"I AM
>THE LAW"
>Silence

>>53117844
btw, as a reminder

this is how i magistrate

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=itmNiTwHOsM

some weird connection issue, can't seem to post the next bit of greentext

>"I swear, master, I did not know
>What are you doing? I-
>AAAAAHH"
>A man falls down into the courtyard from above
>Head first
>The pool of blood beneath him shows his fate
>What I did not expect was him standing up again
>Skull caved in from the landing
>Zombie
>"Quickly, back into the laboratory
>Let Hotake greet our guests"
>The shambling undead starts walking towards us
>Then stops as one of Tsuruchi-san's arrows pierces his head
>Daidoji-san steps forward and with a mighty blow of his no-dachi decapitates the zombie
>They start rushing up to the next floor, running up the half-crumbled stairs opposite the entrance
>With calm intent, I follow them, ready to draw my blade against whatever criminal awaits us
>"Men, cut your palms for me"
>This was worrying
>I finally start running myself
>As I enter the laboratory, I see a large table covered in papers
>Glass containers of various shapes and sizes
>And in a corner
>A great mound of flesh
>Facing us, two ronin, with cut palms
>Turning into hulking monstrosities of muscle
>Behind them, a samurai in a silver and grey kimono
>Bearing the mon of Chuda, the Snake Clan
>After having died out in the early 5th century, they had been reborn among the Spider several decades ago
>Not long after the Spider became a Great Clan, they had been banished
>Going against the laws of the Empire regarding gaijin items and the use of maho

looks like it was too long, despite within character limit

gonna psot the rest of what that was supposed to be, then have to sleep

hope this'll make up partway for my lack of storytiming these past few days

>>53118391

>"Lay down your arms, Chuda
>You are under the arrest
>This is your last warning"
>I could not give this man the respect of using honorifics
>No more than a common criminal to me now
>"Hah, as if I'd obey a lapdog of the empire
>Kill them"
>He started collecting his papers as the monstrosities moved forward
>Tsuruchi-san lets one of his jade-tipped flesh cutter arrows fly towards one of them
>It lands in his shoulder
>And it doesn't even slow down
>This was not going to be an easy fight

>>53117336
Honestly, doesn't make a difference to me, but I wasn't talking about image hosting. Mega exists, and it's not the only site out there. If you can't think of one, either you've been hiding under a rock for way too long, you're not trying, or you're being purposefully obtuse.

>>53118415
I'm very excited to see how you survive this

>>53119467
Or die trying.

>>53119825
Nah, we know the party lives and is intact until the end of Summer Court.

>>53119838
Did he confirm intact anywhere?

>>53120631
Intact as in the whole party survived

bump

Yup, they do survive, although some only just barely

Don't think I did mention Tsuruchi-san when I confirmed, though, since he wasn't introduced as a PC yet

Though with his introduction including some of his disadvantages, like Honest and Rumormonger, probably hinted at his fun (read: frustrating) role at the Summer Court

My GM said already last thread that he'd add whatever I missed at the Summer Court, since I can't really talk about most of it in this first person narrative

Because it was quite entertaining

Can't properly continue storytime right now due to course, but will bump if necessary by explaining the Different replacement characters I came up with after Daikakita-Sam's death, if anybody is curious

>>53124260
First and least, since it's the only one I didn't make a proper sheet for, was a Sparrow storyteller in training who, after hearing tales of these new heroes of Rokugan, would fanboy all over the party, and basically tag along to witness their further adventures first-hand, and become famous himself as the first to truly, properly tell their continued story before returning to his beloved yam farm

The idea was for a naive, wide-eyed and humble opposite to Daikakita, as well as someone who'd be capable in court since the others didn't focus too much on that part

Wanted him to act a bit like a loveable comic relief samurai, similar to Ishigaki-san's Monkey, but the lack of gravitas and pathos, things I enjoy in my characters, especially the latter, led me to set him aside, maybe for a different campaign in the future

>>53117250
>Have you considered doing something crazy, like storing this stuff on a site somewhere, and just putting the link in the OP?
Not a bad idea.
I might try that out when, or if, I ever get caught up again.
Around the 16 mark I posted them all in a screencap thread
>>/tg/thread/52587795/#52600640
>>/tg/thread/52759929/#52816138
I think these link the first 23 or so.

>>53125011
2 of 2

I just haven't had as much time to spare recently.
But I'll keep at it.

>>53124945
The second character, and the one I almost picked, was a Badger recently gone ronin

Having been the yojimbo/executioner of a small Lord, he was unable to fulfil his duty when he was ordered to execute his brother. After refusing, someone else killed his brother on the Lord's behalf, and the Badger left with his massive tetsubo

On his travels, he slowly became a Paragon of Compassion, and took on a habit of entertaining heimin children with various stories, although letting himself go quite a bit with regards to etiquette, becoming loud and boisterous, and very much enjoying as much sake as he can whenever he can

Personality-wise a mix between Ishigaki-san and his Monkey friend, I also took some cues from Zhang Fei from the Romance of the 3 Kingdoms

I think I'll leave the last one for the epilogue, since it'll fit better then

>>53051554
Thank you to the library anons who have been compiling and proofreading this stuff.

>>53125018
Last post, last line got messed up.

Bumping with a forbidden love

>>53127699

>>53127699
Blue board, man.

>>53112052
>Soooo.
>That could be bad, right?
>Very bad, Monkey.
>The Crane produce more RICE, but the lands of the Kitsu are the largest breadbasket in the Empire.
>Didn't you notice?
>On the map of the Empire, there is nothing in the lands of the Kistu
>There are little rivers to that the there's water for the crops, and small forestes like the one above us so the peasants can get lumber for houses and tools...
>But that's it.
>The entire Empire would feel if if even a quarter of these lands could no longer produce crops.
>Once Kitsuki-san finished explaining I looked over at Toshiro, who was still going through Ryoji's journal.
>He got any ideas on disrupting the rutual.
>No...in fact he's not even certain that's what's going on.
>It's all just theory based on his knowledge of magic, and of Maho.
>Why would the real Ryoji have that knowledge?
>Guidance from the ancestors, he says.
>They'd been telling him his whole life that a confrontation with a Maho-Tsukai would be his greatest challenge.
>So he prepared himself as best he could
>Toshiro bowed to the body of Ryoji
>We'll take it from here
>I pulled out my katana and took Ryoji's head off
>Mantis-san looked at me
>What was that about?
>There's maho flying all over the place, it wouldn't surprise me if there are kansen everywhere.
>So, just in case?
>Just in case.
>Kitsuki-san waved from the side of the room
>Over hear!
>The shadows do a good job of concealing it but there is a passage.
>Where do you think this leads?
>Kitsuki-san closed his eyes for a moment at Monkey's question.
>Back towards the village...no.
>Towards the shrine!
>Well then.
>We hurried onward.
>we ran through another smaller cave, this one stacked up with bushells of rice and wheat
>Hiding some of their crop from the tax collector.

>>53129423
>we reaced the end of the tunnels, and found another ladder waiting for us
>I grabbed hold, preparing to climb up first
>Just in case there were peasants waiting on the other side of the trapdoor
>We'd...better hurry.
>I glanced over my shoulder, and Mantis-san's warning
>Torchlight was dancing at the end of the tunnel
>They had figured out where we went.
>I scrambled up the ladder, knocking over the trapdoor with a bang when I got to the top
>I emerged out into the shrine
>The false Ryoji was there, chanting away
>a kanji had been written in blood on the statue
>dozens of peasants were crammed into the shrine, all of them glassy eyed and smiling like idiots.
>The smoke filling the room was not from incense.
>Fakoji broke of his chant to glare at me
>Damn you all, you've killed enough that I don't know if I can get all of it now.
>I glanced back at the trapdoor as Mantis-san hauled himself up out of it
>So then, he was right?
>....?
>Oh, him?
>How did?
>Never mind.
>Just die.
>He pulled a knife and slit the throat of one of the peasants, and shouted a single word.
>BURN!
>The kansen need blood to be spilled in order to work their magic.
>Most of the time, they only need a bit
>But just as the kami can be pleased with offerings, so too can the kansen.
>More blood is always a fine offering.
>searing pain ripped through my body, and I sank to one knee.
>I panted, and a reddish mist came out of my mouth
>I could see the others all gritting their teeth against the pain, the red mist pouring from them as well
>Kitsuki-san cried out and fell, clawing at his skin
>My vision swam, as I lurched tomy feet and moved toward Fakoji
>Only to have my path blocked by a wall of glassy eyed pesants.
>I struck one down, and another took their place
>Shit.
>Monkey came up beside me, and stabed one through the heart
>WHUMP
>I glanced back.
>Toshiro was leaning hard on his tetsubo, and standing directly on the trap door
>another WHUMP and the door underneath him bucked up

>>53129918
Oh shit. Oni incoming!

>>53129918
>The peasanst in the tunnels
>As I looked Toshiro pulled back his hand, which burst into jade fire, and threw a ball of green energy at the tsukai.
>I do not know how black can flash brightly, but it did so as the spell struck Fakoji.
>And the dark energy swallowed the Jade energy.
>Your jade magic won't work on ME, Kuni.
>Toshiro's eyes narrowed
>TWANG
>An arrow lodged itself into Fakeoji's wrist
>Mantis-san had readied his bow.
>HE grinned.
>Well, that seems to work just fine
>Fakeoji responded by ripping the arrow from his arm, and stabbing another peasant in the stomach.
>The blood that burst forth ran INTO the wound, and it closed
>Shit.
>Kitsuki-san pulled himself up, and came to stand beside me, panting hard
>Toshiro pulled back his hand again
>Fakeoji laughed.
>I told you Jade magic will not work!
>I know...
>Toshiro threw blue white magic this time
>Fakoji screamed as the energies burned him
>But THIS spell used the power of crystal.
>My sensei had run into a Maho-Tsukai who used that same spell you're using now.
>So he learned this one, for the next time.
>He gave it to me, when I became a jade magistrate.
>Monkey nudged me
>Ishigaki-san, give me a boost!
>I looked at him
>Then I knelt down, dropping my tetsubo and interlaced my fingers, making a step
>Monkey stepped into my palms, and I thrust up as he jumped
>He caught one of the rafters and hauled himself up.
>Fakeoji looked up at him, and drew back his knife to stab the pesasnt again
>But Mantis-san shot another arrow into him, ruining his spell
>Which bought Monkey the time he needed to hop from rafter to rafter and then leap down upon Fakeoji and strike
>A line of red apreared on Fakeoji's face
>then he split in two, from crown to groin.
>maggots writhed inside the organs that spilled everywhere
>WHUMP
>No time to celebrate
>The peasants in here were too drugged to fight back, or do much of anything but get in the way.

>>53130250
>I yelled for Mantis-san
>Behind me! Do as I do
>War between samurai is, generally, a simple affair
>The two armies form up, in nice neat little rows
>The commander decided when each group will engage
>At the signal, the group goes forward, contacts the enemy and then each samurai looks around for a worthy opponent.
>Despite the large number of people, most times it is nothing more than many, many single combats.
>Of course, Ashigaru do not fight that way, nor do the beasts of the shadowlands.
>And Scoprion only fight that way until the time it is most advantageous for them to stop.
>Further, while it was the Lion Clan, Akodo himself in fact, who pioneered the formations of the Empire, every clan now teaches their soldiers specific formations that will give them advantages depending on the situation at hand
>There is one used by the Crab, when we must attack
>It takes full advantage of the large size common among the Hida, and our heavy armor
>Our warrirors walk forward, swaying side to side
>Violently
>And we just keep going
>This leaves the enemy being staggered one way by a burly slab of metal shoulder cheking you, only to be shoved the oposite way by another burly slab of metal
>This goes on until they fall over
>And then get trampled underfoot, or struck by, those coming up behind
>Mantis-san also wore heavy armor
>Though this "formation" was anything but with only two people, and one simply imply imitating what he saw, our enemies weren't a disciplined army either.
>It was good enough to clear a path for Kitsuki-san and Toshiro, who both knocked over oil lamps and candles as the passed
>Monkey just hopped along the rafters
>we got outside as the temple began to burn
>a bolt of lightning struck the temple, speeding up the process considerably.
>As the temple burned, the remaining pesants began to head towareds us from the village
>Damn, just no end to them...

>>53130250
>Hopping over the rafters and splitting the enemy in two with a jump attack
Monkey's at it again

>>53130620
>Toshiro was chanting, a scroll in hand
>I heard the name of the Fortune of Fire and Thunder
>He was calling directly upon Osono-Wo
>Toshiro dropped his tetsubo so he could place his hand on my shoulder as he prayed
>As the peasants came in range, the storm went wild
>Lighting flashed again and again, and balls of flame rained from the clouds
>Through Toshiro's prayer to the son of Hida, the fury of Heaven was made manifest
>The spell engulfed not just the peasants coming for us, but the village behind them
>Whoa.
>You said it, Monkey.
>Yeah, I wouldn't count on me ever getting such impressive results with that spell again
>We looked at Toshiro.
>The condidtions were about as perfect as you could get.
>Three members of the Clans that have his blood, one a direct descendant, fighting against Maho-Tsukai planning to devastate the whole Empire?
>Toshiro pointed up
>Plus, he's right there watching the whole thing already.
>Toshiro grinned.
>I dare say Osono-Wo is pleased with our performance, and this is his way of saying so.
>We stood in the rain and watched Shimoda village die.

>>53130809
That's it for this arc, we're at the part where the music is beginning to pick up. The crescendo of the campaign looms close.

>>53130809
One of the pleasant side-effects of divine casting; Sometimes the boys upstairs take a personal interest.

>>53130856
Thank you Crab-sama

>>53130856
>Crescendo of the campaign looms close
Jesus what. my heart can't take much more of this

>>53130856
I can always count on you to post funny yet appropriate pictures, crab-sama

>>53126050
Deep. I'll fix it later.

>>53127699
Oh... if only you knew!

But I don't want to spoil anything...

>>53118415

>Togashi-san rushes forward, punching one of the hulking ronin
>Her magically amplified strikes knocking him side to side
>Daidoji-san faces off against the other
>His jade-empowered no-dachi cutting deep wounds into him
>As Tsuruchi-san's arrows fly into the inhuman muscles
>I approach the Chuda
>"For the use of maho
>For assaulting honorable samurai of the Empire
>For the trafficking of a highly dangerous drug
>Your guilt can be seen as clear as day"
>"What, are you trying to intimidate me, Crane?"
>"No
>Only showing you the face of justice"
>Finally, the hulking affronts to nature fall
>Daidoji-san cuts the head off one of them
>And Togashi-san manages to punch a hole into the ronin she was facing
>Then rushes to the maho-tsukai with a flying kick
>I rush past her
>I would be the one dispensing justice to this criminal
>As I stand before him, I remember the teachings of my school
>I take my stance
>Rest my hand on my sheathed Kakita blade
>Close my eyes
>And find my centre
>"No justice today, Crane
>Only your death"
>He attempts to stab me with a tanto
>The blade bounces off my armor
>My eyes open
>And unsheathe my sword in a strike
>Cutting deeply across the abdomen of the maho-tsukai
>Blood gushing out of his wound
>He starts laughing
>Drops his arms forward
>And the blood starts pooling out of his body into a glowing red orb between his hands