Where the answer to any and all inconsistencies in the setting is "John Wick is a Fucking Idiot".
>>44314014
John Wick is a douchebag, but the guy got shit done.
BTW: Matt Wilson, founder of Privateer Press, hates Wick's guts.
i also have this weird theory that L5R is semi based off the Game of Thrones.
i've heard each clan is one of the 7 Samurai, but i never had it explained which was actually which (though 3 are obvious)
>>44314602
>John Wick is a douchebag, but the guy got shit done.
Every team needs somebody like that.
That team also needs to take responsibility and ensure said person doesn't actually influence the setting at all and instead focuses on the mechanics of what they're doing.
This applies almost universally.
>i also have this weird theory that L5R is semi based off the Game of Thrones
That would be a pretty impressive considering L5R came out a full year and 6 months before the first Song of Ice and Fire novel.
>i've heard each clan is one of the 7 Samurai, but i never had it explained which was actually which (though 3 are obvious)
And yes despite this the original dev team clearly missed large points of that film entirely with how the setting turned out.
>>44314602
L5R predates ASoIaF by at least a year.
>>44314838
There's a reason we used to say "John Wick has the knowledge and expertise of Japanese history and samurai culture as someone who's seen exactly one samurai movie and only half remembers it."
>>44314943
One thing that I incorporated into my personal L5R campaign were the two most important lessons of Kurosawa films; that samurai were at heart just people like any other and Bushido is just a loaded word with inflated meanings.
Honor is always about "average" or lower for the usual samurai in my campaigns and corruption is about as common as it actually was during the samurai's true heyday, which is to say depressingly so.
Honor was a lot less important to Japanese culture then Face; your personal opinion of yourself and your integrity didn't mean shit, but how everyone ELSE saw you was super important.
>>44314838
It would be nice to rewrite a whole lot of the fluff of L5R to make each clan and samurai correlate more clearly.
Unfortunately it has been years since I saw seven samurai and I don't know enough about L5R to do so myself
I'm working on a version of Rokugan as a setting inspired by the "Champions of the Sapphire Throne" alternate setting and real-life history.
It's the distant future of "current" Rokugan (the 1500's or so) and the Empire is wealthier and is more stable then at any point in it's history. The Emperors are still the Toturi, but have been increasingly marginalized as time went on as the Shoguns descended from Kaneka gradually took more and more political power as Naseru's children were less competent rulers then he was.
The Shogun's greatest success came when the fourth Shogun "fixed" the Shadowlands problem seemingly permanently after slowly weakening it bit by bit through the efforts of the Crab by using a complex and powerful ritual created with the help of the Jade Champion which effectively "closed" the Pit of Fu Leng's portal directly to Jigoku, the Jade Champion sacrificing his life in the process. The Shadowlands are still Tainted (probably permanently) but no longer spits forth endless demonic and monstrous hordes to threaten Rokugan and demonic threats are localized and small-scale, created by sorcerers and demons still in Rokugan itself. This military and magical accomplishment screwed the Emperor badly; it appeared that the Shogun had effectively permanently fixed a problem that no Son of Heaven ever actually came close to fixing, and did so without his blessing or consent at the time.
Eventually like in Sapphire Throne restricted foreign trade is introduced to the Empire which brings it massive wealth but causes to rise of the middle class, which along with the increasingly strong peace promoted by the Shogun's Bakufu (who have become the government in all but name as the Kuge gradually loose power), and it truly is the "Age of Man" in Rokugan as theoretically it was supposed to be after the Second Day of Thunder.
>>44315413
Are you using iron rokugan's firearms?
>>44315413
As time went on shugenja began to concern themselves mode with spiritual matters over the worldly (as they were supposed to even if the actual fluff never bothered to support this), but their magic was still needed at times.
Eventually a few Phoenix revealed that direct communion with the kami wasn't strictly necessary to manipulate the Elements, as gaijin have been doing it for years and they have no real understanding of the kami compared to Rokugan.
At first there was resistance to this, but the Bakufu was extremely willing to favor what worked and what was functional over form and tradition; the onmyoji slowly became adopted as secular alternatives to shugenja, able to use magic and the elements without tying themselves into religion too heavily.
This suited the Bakufu, as the Shogun at the time considered the shugenja's constant ignoring of reality for spiritual matters to be something of a problem, not to mention how despite supposedly being "held apart" by society they were just as likely to go crazy and turn into evil madmen that threatened the Empire. The onmyoji were NOT held apart by society and were explicitly secular in nature, allowing them to be policed and treated like anyone else.
By the 1500's Rokugan looked very different; wealth had made the middle class grow, there hasn't of a Shadowlands Incursion for almost three centuries, and Clan Champions were increasingly a meaningless position since the Great Clans were prevented from warring by the Kaneka Shogunate, making their position largely ceremonial ones and giving most major political power to the Shogun's hatamoto and the individual daimyo.
The Shogun's government was based out of Ryoko Owari, while the Imperial Court was in the rebuilt Otosan Uchi, an obvious decision on the part of the Shogun to keep the powers of the Emperor separate from that of the Shogun, who's position had become hereditary under the Kaneka family.
>>44315449
Teppo exist, but are controlled entirely by the Shogun's Imperial Legions; they were crucial in the original pacification of the Shadowlands, which helped win over literally the entire Cran Clan to the Shogun's side when a major assault on the Kaiu Wall was obliterated in moments by massed cannon and gunfire.
>>44315666
With the Age of Man now three centuries underway, Rokugan is beset by different problems entirely.
The middle class and merchants now often wield wealth in enough amounts to cripple major families, and the samurai in their disdain for money only realized how dependent they were upon them well after this had become the new status quo.
Gaijin are restricted in Rokugan but more common then before with trade between the Senpet, Thrane, Marenrae, Ivory Kingdoms, and even the Yobanjin cities heavily enriching the Empire. Though there were now more samurai then ever before thanks to the long peace and the absence of the Shadowlands semi-regularly depopulating nearly an entire section of Rokugan, but thanks to the Bakufu's enforced peace they had less to do then ever before and so turned to internal political scheming.
The Kuge scheme to regain their former power as the Champions struggle with each other and the Bakufu to take sides with the Emperor (who's religious position is respected, never threatened, and for the most part totally neutered politically) or the Shogun, who's political authority now effectively supersedes that of the Emperor's when it comes to appointing them.
The Clan Champions are useless figureheads and the daimyo of the major families no longer feel especially beholden to each other as for almost two centuries the concept of the Great Clan led by a mighty Clan Champion hasn't been politically or militarily relevant, dividing up Rokugan into various contested fiefdoms that limit the Clan's power on internal squabbles....which is of course exactly how the Bakufu wants it.
Rokugan is at peace but is now struggling with a foe it can't simply slay or assemble a team of seven great heroes to kill a god with; it struggles with modernity and the relentless march of reality and progress.
>>44315959
I'm still keeping the magic and supernatural elements of Rokugan, but how rather then Sauron-like hordes the unnatural takes in a much more sinister horror film aspect; you can't just crush it with armies anymore as it is insidious and hidden, eating away at a peaceful world from the inside.
Magic is now a science of sorts rather then a matter of faith (which for all practical purposes it was treated as in the fluff because...well...bad writers), and onmyoji are fully a part of Rokugani society, albeit ones with weird social duties.
It's a setting designed to facilitate smaller-scale stories about individuals and people rather then grand sweeping battles and epoch-changing events that happen once every year and a half to sell a new edition of a CCG.
>>44314943
Is that really an issue? L5R is Rokugan not japan. Just Middle Earth is nothing like medieval Europe
>>44319670
There is so much wrong with this statement that if I wasn't laughing at you right now, I'd be crying.
>>44314014
>John Wick is a Fucking Idiot
>>44319890
Goddammit, Keanu. Put it in the pocket of your shoulder.
>>44319877
But it's only meant to be asian themed fantasy kingdom. Not historic fiction.
>>44320076
It's a specifically japanese themed fantasy setting and fantasy settings cannot be wholly (note that I said WHOLLY) divorced from their origins. L5R in particular has more historical versimilitude then most.
>>44319670
>>44320076
Of course it's not Japan.
The only things based off Japan are it's language, government, class system, basic economy, naming scheme, linguistic syntax, names for the class system, reasons for the class system, mythological creatures, religious, name for religious figures, forms of address to others in polite conversation (in this case literally unique to Japan; no other language does this the way Japan does), explanations for it's class system, the way it's Imperial government works, names for it's individual classes of it's class system, it's weapons, it's martial arts, it's notable honor code, and it's overalls cultural customs.
Other then that, not like Japan at all, no.
And it borrows from China a lot! Like for instance the fact that it's not on an island. Makes it totally just like China. And Korea? Don't get me started. It's about as Korean as unagi, and that's so Korean it can only be found in Japan. And Polynesia? Man, it's so Polynesian that it's Shinto, if you get my meaning.
>>44320786
To be fair, L5R's imperial government has more in common with China than anything resembling Japan.
>>44314602
There were originally 6 clans, so I'm not sure how that works out. I mean Scorpion was was planned from the beginning, I guess.
>>44319670
>>44319877
>>44320786
Okay, to cut this discussion short, Rokugan is not Japan, it is a japan-derived fantasy setting.
However, if you want to derive a fantasy setting from something, you should probably try to learn what that something is.
And to be honest, they did improve in the later versions. Some parts of the setting are still off, but those are deliberate choices, or derived directly from japanese fiction and culture from later era's ( the ban on guns and ridiculous extremes of etiquette, for example)
>>44321387
Actually? No. No it doesn't.
Rokugan's Imperial government strongly resembles that of Japan BEFORE the samurai rose to power, the Heian Period when the Tenno was the actual head of state rather then just a ceremonial/religious functionary.
China's Imperial government is way, WAY different and wasn't organized with an aristocratic caste like the Kuge (BTW, the Kuge were not samurai and the samurai were not Kuge in Japan) and along family lines because the government uses Confucianistic ideals and was mostly entirely run by the scholar-bureaucrats, who could be born from any social status at all and as long as they passed the national exams they could then rise up in rank pretty much as far as they wanted, right up to the point where in many cases in Chinese history the scholar-bureaucracy is more effectively in control of the government then the Emperor himself was.
There also was no talk of the Empeorer being divine, the Son of Heaven.
The Japanese Tenno is supposed to be directly descended from Amaterasu, which is why they never really just outright killed him; he was important to the country's religion.
The Chinese Huangdi wasn't descended from gods (since entire dynasties had been repeatedly overthrown and destroyed in their history), but he had the Mandate of Heaven on his side, which was like a sort of "contract with the divine" to rule the world as China saw it. Obtaining the Mandate of Heaven was technically pretty easy; if you killed or overthrew the last guy then you had the Mandate of Heaven and the guy you overthrew never did, because clearly the Heavens wouldn't have abandoned anyone who was on their good side.
This is why China's history seems to blend together sometimes; though it's obviously divided up into many periods and had shifting borders and very different political dynasties, the functioning government itself always stayed largely the same and the guy in charge was treated as sort of the same as the last guy.
>>44322725
The difference is noticeable because most Imperial governments in Asia (they all liked to call themselves that even if strictly they weren't Empires) patterned their courts strongly after China's, as China was their nearest and largest neighbor and in many ways they were treated as client states of whatever dynasty was in control at the time.
Japan's government and court was very different as it was separated by a good deal of water.
What do I do with my old cards?
>>44322934
Fold them into origami. If you make a thousand cranes and wish hard enough, maybe they won't become irrelevant.
>>44314890
the RPG does not:
Game of Thrones was released early in 96
the RPG was summer of 1997
the RPG did flesh out a ton of stuff left unchecked by the CCG
>>44322934
Cut lines of coke?
>>44321463
Bayushi Hisa and Kachiko were 1st edition prints, like the Naga Warlord and Shugenja and Abomination...
they didn't get strongholds until 1996
>>44323086
Jesus lady, put on some pants.
I know you're a Mantis and you have the standards and dressing habits of a dead duck crossed with a Crab bushi, but at least the CRAB wear pants.
>>44323127
Isn't she fishing? I mean, she's got a net and a spear, and she's up to her knees in the water. You don't wear pants when you go swimming, do you anon??
>>44323249
So wear a fundoshi or water-stilts!
Or get a boat!
>>44323279
She does have the Taint.
Shadowlands Taint that is.
>>44323279
Fundoshi is the underwear thing, right? I'm think is is wearing something--looks like some kind of thong. You can see the swatch of green just above her spear.
>>44323309
And the Dragon are more infamous for forgetting to wear clothes.
>>44323127
>pants
>in rokugan
you wot mate? the closest they have are hakama, which are essentialy very wide track suit pants, and those are almost exclusively worn by bushi.
Besides, she's fishing in the sea, pants would only get wet.
>>44323331
Togashi monks are all about the magical tattoos, but do other dragons also get all inked up with mundane tats? Just how popular are non-magical tattoos in general?
>>44323366
Yes, and pretty popular among most clans.
>>44323366
Very popular amongst the dragon. It is written most mirumoto Bushi get a tattoo to commemorate every battle and duel they fight.
Agasha (and the later branch off Tamori) are noted as fond and have a habit of showing them off. Kitsuki are the most mundane looking of the Dragon clan.
>>44323402
Some clans don't like showing off flesh.
Such clans may be less likely to ink up.
>>44323366
IIRC, tattoos were a normal thing to have in rokugan. For instance, all daidoji have Crane tattoo to remind them of their duty. And the Yakuza/Kolat haven't probably been a thing for long enough yet for there to be a stigma against tattoos in general.
The only problem you are going to run into is that samurai shouldn't show skin below the neck in polite company, so you have little chance to show them off.
>>44323366
>>44323402
Irezumi tats were pretty popular during some periods of history (mostly the Edo Period) with pretty much every caste, so I think we can assume that in Rokugan the same applies since it mostly takes it's culture from the Edo Period.
Apparently firemen got them a lot and they were considered to be dashing and roguish looking, so samurai who got them were probably going for the "badass" look I imagine, which is why so many yakuza toughs got them.
Plus there's the pain tolerance thing; irezumi tattooing HURTS a lot more then modern ink does so if you could get a really impressive mural all over your body then you were showing off your pain tolerance.
>>44323470
Even the Crane and Phoenix get tattoos.the Lion are more into brands
>>44323484
Firemen, huh? Why them specifically? Is it a rank kind of thing, or just a weird part of firehouse culture?
>>44323501
Apologies, as
>>44323473
Clarified, it is not less likely to have, just less likely to be seen.
Even the more propriety conscious may have them, even beyound heraldry (such as the iron Crane have).
>>44323551
Firemen in ages before socialized fire departments were often extensions of powerful cartels.
Equal part heroic saviour from an Inferno, rapid robbery specialist, and (sometimes whispered) arsonists.
Different fire Gangs would fight each other over who would fight a fire, unless both were paid off.
Pic not related.
>>44323551
What >>44323606 said.
Also, firemen were supposed to be tough and irezumi makes you look tough by Japanese aesthetics.
>>44323075
I'm curious if the Carpenter wall was one of those things that existed before ASOIAF.
>>44323659
Firefighters were biggest baddest asses in town. They had the power of life and death. They warred amongst themselves. They just didn't carry Longsword.
>>44314943
And for someone who put Toturi, ronin badass turned Emperor, and Toku, the People's Samurai, in his setting, he was pretty snide about those who want to play ronin in his new samurai game.
"Wait, so you *want* to play a homeless person?"
>>44323668
I do not recall.
But it has fluctuated from being like pic related, and being a monstrosity of almost dungeonpunk murder machines.
>>44323763
I always took it to be a pretty direct lift of China's Great Wall, rather than any kind of ASIOF rip off, myself. I mean, it's not like Really Big Wall is any kind of original idea.
>>44323751
Toturi the Black and an upstart peasant pretender...
They should have jumped forward another thousand years after the second day of thunder...
>>44323789
Some versions have very developed war machines. Ones that would look more at home in a whimsical reimaginings of world war 1
>>44323751
Those two won in spite of the creators, not because of them
>>44323366
Many Dragon get cosmetic tattoos to commemorate events or just as art. The Crab like tattoos a lot as well. Sailors of all sorts like tattoos of all sorts, so the Mantis are also big on them.
The Daidoji family all get a crane tattooed on their wrist once they become adults. Other Cranes, on average, don't have any tattoos, but at least acknowledge that it can be art.
The general attitude of other clans isn't mentioned and can safely be assumed to be mixed or uncaring. I'd imagine that the Scorpion don't like things that are so identifiable being branded directly onto their skin, but then again, they have members that are dedicated diversion, so maybe those individuals like being immediately identifiable to draw attention. Commoners (Especially criminals) also enjoy a good tattoo.
>>44323822
I was more talking about the origin of the idea, rather than the tech level of the actual wall.
>>44323864
On an aside, the Scorpion did get Shadow brands... Which are like tattoos...
>>44323864
I imagine Unicorn sometimes have weird gaijin tattoos, to go with all of their other weird gaijin customs.
>>44323880
Fair point.
The only real counter being it held monsters rather than Mongols (read:Unicorn) put.
>>44323920
Just something that i wondered for a while: what do Rokugani smoke? Do the mantis grow tobacco, or do they have something else?
>>44323763
>>44323822
I think it depends on what exact part of the wall you're on. When it was first built, only one (large) section was actually made to break the Maw on, and the rest of the wall was added on either end until it was finished. All of its specific defenses are made by kaiu engineers who put their own personal touches on the weapons above and deathtrap mazes below, so it's not strange to consider that they might have built and continuously repaired the wall with their own personal ideas (Or at least as necessity demands. Can't put up the fancy shit when the wall needs to be fixed yesterday). The kaiu wall is looooong and continuously in need of repair. Standardizing something like that isn't very likely, especially considering that a lot of the original plans were lost in a fire (Which is why the tunnels are so confusing, since nobody is 100% on what's down the paths that aren't straight exits, and it's very dangerous to explore due to traps and lost monsters)
Incidentally, the final exam for new engineers is to design a new siege weapon from scratch and if it passes, their first duty is to build the thing and put it up on the wall.
>>44323952
Opium
Rokugani smoke opium.
>>44323955
I like it.
>>44324043
That's highly illegal in Rokugan and not something you'd do out in the open.
>>44323952
>inb4 420 blaze it jokes
Actually looking into it, it seems like it is tobacco, although the Unicorn apparently introduced hookah to Rokugan.
>>44323902
Perhaps, but actually the Mongols (who the Ujik-hai and Moto are clearly based off of) didn't have much in the way of tattoos; you sort of need a developed urban society for it and they never had one they didn't conquer.
>>44323952
Probably kizami, which is extremely finely shredded tobacco that was originally brought over to Japan by the Portuguese and thus in real life was never actually found natively in Japan before then.
They also have opium (which apparently the Scorpion control a hefty amount of in the main setting), which also was not native until it was important from overseas.
>>44324043
>wears her bow in the front
Man, those Crab women are sluts, aren't they?
>>44324057
Medicinal opium is perfectly legal.
I'm certain those fine ladies are all war heroines.
>>44324090
Well, geographically speaking, Rokugan isn't anything like Japan. It's not an island for one thing.
It's like the "Fantasyland shouldn't have potatoes because those weren't in medieval Europe" argument. Fantasyland isn't medieval Europe and Rokugan isn't Japan. It's fine for it to have things that real Japan didn't have, like magic, or easily harvestable drugs.
>>44324160
Indeed.
Rokugan's climate is strongly varied too, so tobacco and opium are probably found natively; you generally need warm weather to grow opium and we know both the Crab lands and the Mantis islands are basically equatorual environments that can get hot as hell in the summer.
>>44324121
Well, Yasuki will do anything for a Koku, that's why they left the Crane...
>>44324121
Someone has to take care of the off duty bushi, right? Can't let them man the wall feeling pent up
>>44324213
Add to that the Crab lands are literally next to hell...
>>44324267
Jigoku isn't hot in myths, and is usually more associated with the cold and dark if it's any temperature at all.
It's also not particularly associated with disgusting body-warping horror like the Shadowlands are, but that's actually fairly common among various yokai in myth anyway even without the existence of the Shadowlands.
How many of you sorry motherfuckers have never played Tenchu, I wonder? That's probably one of my biggest inspirations when GMing Rokugan.
Plus it's got the SICKEST music.
http://youtu.be/TnbD-1MAezk
>>44324393
>Tenchu
Ma ninja! That game series was rad.
I admit to sorta ripping off some of the bosses for NPC's in some of my games.
http://youtu.be/aVEeGtO0Px4
>>44324255
That is actually a pretty good story hook. The PC's are investigating multiple kidnappings, maybe a daughters of samurai or very wealthy merchants among them. It turns out some unscrupulous Yasuki are managing Geisha houses (and "geisha houses") behind the wall for the Crab, and felt the need for some cheap "proactive recruitment".
The Crab in general don't know, and would be absolutely outraged if they found out. Which is why the Yasuki in question (and his small army of unscrupulous allies and mercenary ronin) will do all in their power to keep you from revealing the truth.
>>44325048
Okay, so what's the difference between a geisha and a prostitute?
I don't mean the official line, but what's the actual WORD difference from Japan?
>>44325467
A prostitute doesn't necessarily have any skills other than fucking. A Geisha probably also knows music, dancing and conversation. It's the same difference between a hooker and an escort, basically, except geisha are legal.
>>44325467
Geisha's are like highly trained and specialized courtesans, except really all they do is provide company and highly specialized non-sexual entertainment.
Oiran were what geisha were BEFORE there were geisha (geisha are actually fairly recent, dating back to the 19th century), and they'd do everything a geisha did and also sleep with you, but you'd need to book appointments and such and treat her politely or you get nothing.
Yokata are your basic poor-ass hooker; the name means "night-walker" or something similar.
>>44325515
The "geisha as high-class prostitute" is very recent actually, and mostly stems from a really unfortunate source; namely American GI's who used them as such even if they weren't originally supposed to.
Geishas sprouted up when the sex trade became completely illegal (as opposed to partially legitimate) after the Meiji Reformation to make the new Japanese Empire seem more "civil" to Western countries where prostitution was indeed illegal.
It turns out rich guys still like pretty women singing and dancing and reading poetry to them even if they couldn't sleep with them at all.
>>44325519
So a geisha is entertainment, an oiran is "entertainment", and a yokata is ME RUV YOU RONG TIME.
Thanks. The Rokugani definition of shit sometimes is way misleading and I wanted to use the language right for my personal game rather then completely unironically name an entire family "the Otaku".
>>44325603
>It turns out rich guys still like pretty women singing and dancing and reading poetry to them even if they couldn't sleep with them at all.
>even if they couldn't sleep with them at all.
And if you actually believe that, i have a bridge to sell you.
I'm not saying that geisha houses were actually the old whorehouses in disguise. But when you have very rich men and attractive young women entertaining those men in private, the matter of sex is going to come up sooner or later, and some of them like the money enough.
>>44325683
Another name for common prostitutes is "yujo", with yokata being the lowest form of prostitute, one who doesn't even work in the protection of a brothel.
>>44325683
An apt summary.
But keep in mind geisha's in rokugan can also serve as "entertainment", it is just not part of their job, and you need to court her first. Which would have the advantage that it's done in total privacy, and so lacks the usual problems of hitting up random samurai women. It is even said in the rulebook that the only way "out" for a geisha is to catch the eye of some samurai or rich merchant and become his wife/concubine.
>>44325722
>But when you have very rich men and attractive young women entertaining those men in private, the matter of sex is going to come up sooner or later, and some of them like the money enough.
Oh they still had hookers, they just weren't geisha and now they were illegal instead of legal in certain areas.
I'm sure some geisha did fuck their customers, but this was probably not very common as the penalties were pretty goddamn harsh (usually including a torturous death) if they ever got caught, and if they did other geisha didn't consider them geisha at all.
The first geisha in Japan (and the most numerous by far for over a century) were MEN actually, because the word literally referred to an entertainer; this was because entertainers and sex workers were both officially non-people and eventually the roles became conflated.
But no; a geisha's not fucking you if she's an actual professional.
And in Rokugan if she does I'd advise checking her room for a mask and watching what you say around her if you catch my drift.
>>44325851
So basically a geisha can sleep with customers but you'll never pay her enough to do it, you gotta actually woo her?
That's not really prostitution at all, it's more like legitimately dating a girl who's job is a stripper, just a really high-class one. A stripper who doesn't even get naked, just wears revealing clothes.
>>44325863
>The first geisha in Japan (and the most numerous by far for over a century) were MEN actually
so?
>And in Rokugan if she does I'd advise checking her room for a mask and watching what you say around her if you catch my drift.
point taken. To be honest, i assume all geisha's, prostitutes, innkeepers and helpful store owners to be scorpion spies unless proven otherwise (pro tip: you can't).
Not that i have anything against the scorpion, but we don't want to make it too easy for them, now do we?
>>44325964
For a given definition of "revealing", sure.
Most samurai-ko in the official art wear shit that no geisha (or even an oiran) wouldn't touch with a ten-foot pole.
>>44325990
Let's just say that most of the artist probably haven't read the core book, especially the section on clothing.
>>44325964
It's more like a professional girlfriend than anything. You start with a business relationship where she'll hang out with you and do all kinds of entertaining things, and if you keep coming back, the manager will keep putting you with the same girl.
Most relationships end there with something like a favored customer status. If you actually hit it off with her, you can potentially move up by giving gifts to the manager in the name of your geisha, possibly with the ability to buy her contract as a concubine or even wife.
Basically, it's pretty well codified and structured. As far as they care, there's a proper way to do things and it's all good as long as you go about it correctly.
>>44325989
>so?
They were geisha who didn't have sex. They just played instruments and read poetry.
If a man wanted to fuck a man in Japan back then a lot of the time they just kinda did it, as there wasn't a social stigma towards it quite yet since the stigma was mostly a religious one.
There's even a special word for a master-servant sexual relationship in Japan, which was fairly common among samurai during that time period.
>Not that i have anything against the scorpion, but we don't want to make it too easy for them, now do we?
Just never tell them anything of consequence and you'll be fine. Talk about how hard your boss is riding you and how annoying your wife is and how your kids don't respect you like they should and how everything was better when you were younger.
>>44326013
Good. More attractive women in revealing clothing makes pretty much everything objectively better.
>>44326083
They actually do have male geisha in Rokugan, but in some ways, they're the opposite of normal geisha. Geisha are supposed to be quite and beautiful and artistic and cultured, the male equivalent (There's a different word for it) is supposed to be loud and boisterous and comedic. They are cultured, but they act in a completely different way to geisha.
>>44326134
Speaking of Japanese entertainment; is Rokugan like Japan where if you start drinking with friends you're expected to get completely fucking plastered with them and if you're drinking with reservation then your basically being rude?
>>44326170
Japanese dining habits are like, the opposite of western ones.
>Slurp your soup or noodles loudly. Don't drink in moderation. Eat as much as you want and do so like a pig to show your appreciation for the cook.
>>44326170
I dunno. They do have this thing where they try to ignore anyone who is flat out drunk and also try not to hold anything they do against them (Other than getting drunk in the first place). If you do get completely plastered with your friends, you may find yourself being wrangled by some enforcers who are trying really hard to move you away from anything delicate while not making you angry.
>>44326170
Not that i know of, and considering the hard social rules of rokugan it does not sound likely.
Still, being drunk is an acceptable excuse for improper behaviour in-game, so take that how you will.
>>44326224
>>44326248
Okay, so another standard Japanese culture element I'll leave out.
Last question; do Rokugani have surnames as well as clan names?
I know not all members of a clan family are part of the same family, so do they make the verbal distinction like Japan did?
>>44326208
Rokugan is different there too. At least at the highest levels. Slurping is still a-okay, but eating is supposed to be something you do because you are hungry, not because you actually want to eat. You're supposed to leave a little bit on your plate when finished, since eating it all implies that you weren't given enough.
Of course, eating outside of formal settings is different, as is eating anywhere where food is somewhat scarce (Crab or Dragon lands, especially). Leaving food on your plate there is rude, since there's not really that much to go around (On a clanwide scale, anyway).
Context is everything. If you're at the Imperial court, you politely complement the food without sounding excited by it (Even though you should be, since they pull out all the stops there) and you leave some on the plate and you only drink a little bit to not embarrass yourself.
If you're at a bar or something you eat as much as you can stuff into your face and slap the serving girl on the ass every time she comes by because you're drunk and can't be held accountable for your actions anyway.
>>44326282
Yes; each family has a number of families that make it up (and those families can have vassal families, and etc).
>>44326282
Officially it's mentioned that they do in Emerald Empire I believe.
However you'll rarely if ever in fluff see anyone use them, probably because if's just one more Japanese name AEG could fuck up badly.
So even if you're Akodo Shimzu Susumu by name, you just go by Akodo Susumu and avoid using using your surname. name.
>>44326282
All the clans are divided into "Families", each of whom have theri own surnames. the Crane for instance have the Doji, Kakita, Daidoji and Asahina.
In the older versions those people in the families who were not directly descended from the founder also had a second last name, usually because they were adopted into the clan, so you would get Doji (firstname) no (last name). Nowadays, in 4th edition at least, everyone seems to adopt the Family name when they become part of it.
>>44326318
>>44326331
Fuck that's confusing.
Not to mention completely ruins the specific forms of social address they actually used; addressing someone by clan name and NOT their family name if they were sworn to a clan would be really rude by most standards.
>>44326382
>All the clans are divided into "Families", each of whom have theri own surnames. the Crane for instance have the Doji, Kakita, Daidoji and Asahina.
I know THAT, I was just wondering about the family name not in an arbitrary and sort of incorrect CCG term used to help make the setting sell cards easier.
>>44326282
I don't think so. Each "family" actually functions more like what you would call a clan in the first place, since they aren't actually all descended from the same progenitor, from from people who adopted the progenitor's name and ideals. So, for example, when Agash Kitsuki was allowed to found his own family, his own children were part of it, but other, completely unrelated Dragons who thought like he did also joined him and started calling themselves Kitsukis. There would be some intermarriage there, but not enough that they would all be related. So a single Rokugani Family is a lot like a Scottish clan in that way.
Then all of these clan-like families are further united into a Great Clan, organised around a Kami's descendants and the people who flocked directly to the Kami's banner, rather than to the banners of his direct underlings, the Family founders.
To different actual bloodlines among a Family, I think you just have to know who is related to who from having grown up in that context. And really, anyone outsidet he family either doesn't care. or will be in contact with a matchmaker who can deal with figuring it out for them.
>>44326282
Yes, however, they're used by many, many others in the same family, and vassal family names are generally only used within the clan (And sometimes only within the larger family). A family could be considered more like a clan in the classical sense of the word. Most members of the "family" aren't related to the ruling line at all, and distinguish their lines by memorizing their lineage essentially.
I always use the Crab as an example because they're the clan I know the most, but lets take the Hiruma family as an example.
Hiruma Exampru is a member of the core Hiruma family. He is called Hiruma Exampru both in and out of his family and clan lands.
His cousin, Raikuto Namehiru is a member of the Raikuto vassal family of the Hiruma. He is called Raikuto Namehiru in Crab lands and Hiruma Namehiru outside of Crab lands. He might introduce himself as "Hiruma Namehiru no Raikuto"/"Hiruma Namehiru of Raikuto"/"Hiruma Namehiru of house Raikuto" (Depending on whether you as a group want to use some Japanese words here or there when appropriate) to people who aren't members of his clan, but in general, he's a Hiruma as far as anyone else is concerned.
>>44326385
Yes, I know.
See >>44314014 and >>44321760 as to why.
>>44326436
Who is this Wick guy anyway?
And why is he such a dumbass?
>>44326473
The guy who fluffed most of the early setting; he loves samurai stuff, but is, mildly put, really terrible at anything resembling accuracy and despite the rise of Wikipedia making research easier then passing gas he refuses to do any more of it even though he now has his own samurai game that is supposed to take place in historical Japan and not Rokugan.
>>44326473
He created the setting and he's a dumbass because he did it before the internet was a major thing, didn't have a good grasp on anything Japanese at the time, and refuses to get a better grasp on it now that the resources are freely available to him.
Someone said that the setting reads like it was made by a guy who saw one samurai movie and forgot half of it, and that's about right.
>>44326512
>>44326536
Goddamn.
So, am I better off just making my own setting or what? Because I'm hardly an expert on Japanese culture and STILL some of this shit makes my eyes twitch.
>>44326512
I don't see a problem, it's a romanticized version of medieval Japan. It's no less 'accurate' than any number of romanticized Samurai Anime or Manga or movies.
>>44326603
play Tenra Bansho Zero instead.
>>44326603
Personally I'd just use Rokugan and then work in elements designed to make it a bit more like the type of setting it was designed to emulate; different writers have been doing it for years in the RPG, they just had to struggle around some really arbitrary "hard" fluff of the CCG that they weren't allow to touch much of.
So if you want to make a samurai named Kawakami Yoshimatsu of the Hida, then do it because the only one it really hurts are bunch of jackasses who don't even own the setting anymore anyway.
>>44326603
It's a fantasy setting. If you're looking for historical accuracy, go elsewhere. If you're looking for magical weaboo fantasy samurai adventures, this is what you want.
>>44326662
I really don't want historical accuracy.
I'm fine with the broad strokes being made up as long as the details of the setting are right, and right now the best advice I'm getting is this >>44326657 and add my own details since AEG didn't bother.
>>44326759
The question becomes whether the setting is worth salvaging, or if certain aspects are simply too integral to the setting that attempting to change them to something less offensively nonsensical opens far too many cans of worms.
How much can be scooped out in order to "fix" it before it no longer resembles Rokugan at all?
On a lighter note, I have had excellent fun in arranging L5R for groups with die-hard weebs. Whether they fall over in praise at getting to play at samurai adventures or go into a state of shock about how little it actualy resembles Japan it certainly tells you a lot about them.
>>44327226
I like playing it because a high fantasy setting which focuses entirely on humans, with other races generally being tricky spirits, super reclusive, and/or monsters is fairly unique as far as fantasy settings go. Also, the supernatural elements with literal gods, ancestors, and spirits enforcing rules and codes of conduct is interesting as well.
>>44327226
>How much can be scooped out in order to "fix" it before it no longer resembles Rokugan at all?
I think I'll keep the clans and families and politics and just add details, you know? Rokugan seems pretty fixable to me, you'd just need to go to the effort of changing the small details and adding little bits that need changing to really make it work and then you have a good not-Japan right there, kinda like the Tales of the Otori novels.
I don't give a runny shit about the CCG and so don't feel beholden to anything of it, but I think the broad strokes are pretty cool and the system is pretty badass otherwise I wouldn't even have bothered asking my questions here in the first place.
A lot of the resistance I'm seeing seems to revolve around not changing stuff so that it ceases to resemble a failing CCG that from what I've recently heard isn't even actually in publication anymore.
Is FFG gonna make a new RPG or just a card game or what?
>>44328029
Probably.
>>44328029
They bought the rights to everything, including the roll and keep system. So far they've only announced a new L5r LCG, and they haven't even given any details on that. Considering their purchase., though, and their track record with the 40k, Star Wars and End of the World rpgs, though, it seems like a pretty safe bet that they'll come out with a new l5r rpg at some point too.
>>44328077
Sweet.
I'm glad they bought the rights to R&K too, it's a fairly flexible system that's easy to learn I find, and I genuinely get more excited when my dice start exploding then I do when I roll critical hits in d20-based games.
>>44328334
I have fond memories of blowing up The Great Death in a game.
My Fist of Osano Wo spell exploded all the way to 150 damage. (After it had taken a bit of a beating from the other Moshi on the same ship)
>>44328496
My most hilarious and awesome moment involving exploding dice was when my Kakita Duelist, who was surprised and rolling half dice for initiative mind you, got 64 to go first and then in the first turn one-shotted what was supposed to be a big badass boss oni by dropping 102 damage on it and it resulted in this in-character exchange after we all stopped laughing.
>Crab Bushi: "Holy shit, you killed it! I didn't even SEE it before it was dead!"
>Me: "I didn't either."
>Lion Shugenja: "What do you mean?"
>Me: "I mean I never actually saw it. Just drew on reflex and hit it without looking. I sort of blacked out. Where's it's corpse anyway?"
>Crab: "I can't see it. It must have vanished."
>Lion: "That happens sometimes with oni."
>Me: "Well, it must not have been very powerful or anything. Come on, we gotta deliver this message."And that was how I killed the Elemental Terror of Water and accidentally ruined a massive battle for our Rank 4 characters our GM planned. I actually felt kinda bad afterwards when after the game I found out I'd whacked Mizu no Oni in one round.
Bump for Osano-Wo.
>>44324160
Basically everything John wick got right is will be his accurate detailed research and everything he got wrong as result of his 'artistic license'. He's got his cake and he is eating it.
Which is of course infuriating from critical point of view but I don't think actually is an problem if you're willing to take the setting as it. A magical fantasy kingdom based around samurai movies.
>>44326170
As with everything it varies. Reading between the lines I think it's a class thing. Commoners can enjoy a good drink. Samurai are expected to be reserved at all times.
There might be rare times it's acceptable even expected that samurais expected to graciously all hospitality and party hard such as situations where he's with equals. But they certainly wouldn't be expected to go to the Tavern and get pissed.
>>44330248
>A magical fantasy kingdom based around samurai movies.
So was Tales of the Otori.
Gillian Rubenstein did it better, while still retaining the obviously a fantasy aspect.
>>44330248
>Samurai are expected to be reserved at all times.
Samurai were reserved in front of their lords and on their duties, but originally were kinda open with each other; in effect they were soldiers and soldiers can get pretty chummy.
There's a reason the "drunk samurai" thing is so common, though this is partially because a lot of them probably were depressed about feeling useless.
>>44330451
>There's a reason the "drunk samurai" thing is so common, though this is partially because a lot of them probably were depressed about feeling useless
Kinda.
Another reason it was common was there being pretty much no social penalties to them being messy drunkards in Japan.
You can talk about "loosing face" and all that, but in the time period when everything we know about samurai started actually existing most samurai didn't really have anything in the way of actual jobs or duties to perform so there was no one to loose face TO; their boss lived up in a castle somewhere and they just kinda did nothing on a stipend that could be pretty decent if they were long-term loyal retainers.
In modern day if you get drunk and cause damage you get arrested, but since technically no one but samurai could arrest other samurai and most police officials weren't of the samurai class (their officers would be, but they weren't usually on patrol) they could get as trashed as much they felt like and walk away before anyone with the authority to arrest them showed up.
The caste system caused some funny problems in Japanese society as time went on that Japan was very bad at dealing with at the time.
>tfw no gm
>>44331423
Be the GM you want to GM you!Or something equally generic and inspiring.
>>44328796
l5r.wikia.com/wiki/Mizu_no_Oni/Meta
>Claims to have one-shot Mizu no Oni
>Wounds: 100 - Dead
Yeah, I'll take bullshit for 200.
I believe >>44328496 even less so, since the meta page for The Great Death says it has 1000 Wounds before it dies.
>>44331423
What >>44331628 said.
The reason L5R GMs are so rare is because the vast majority of people interested in it don't want to GM, they want to be players. The most common excuse is that they don't want to GM a game they've never played before, but that just makes this endless circle where no one will GM because no one wants to GM until they've had a chance to play first.
What that means is you have 2 choices. The first choice is you do nothing, and keep praying that one day a GM will start recruiting and you can join. You'll be waiting a long time for that one, because I've honestly only seen someone advertise an L5R game here on /tg/ four times before despite being here for four years. One of those GMs flaked and the other dropped his game before it even started because he was overly sensitive at what someone in the gamefinder thread said.
Your second choice is to suck it up and GM. Doesn't have to be a year-long campaign, it could be a one-shot or a short two-month game or something. At least that way you'll be able to do something with the system, and it'll give people a chance to play, which will hopefully get them to GM themselves at some point since now they've had a chance to try the system.
Hell, you could probably do a round-robin style game and just pass the GM hat around. That way everyone gets a chance to play and everyone tries their hand at GMing at least once.
>>44330404
Well I've never heard of that glass to take your word for it. I'm a fan of obscure RPG's As much as the next hippester but familiarity has it's quality
>>44330581
In the game though the few times it gets mentions it implies a samurai shouldn't be publicly drunk, Samurais could get drunk without the sunrise yes but they wouldn't do it in front of their betters or followers. That's a loss of face.
There maybe fluff that says other wise but that's impression I get from it. No sake for Haka.
>>44332372
Even if you don't round robin, you can probably make a deal to DM a game if someone else in the group will also DM a game at the same time.
>>44332058
>Yeah, I'll take bullshit for 200.
I don't claim to know his stats.
Also, pretty sure he was using older ones from the classic Time of Void big adventure, though he quickly started making shit up as he went so it wouldn't surprise me if he was making shit up.
The if I'm being honest he just wasn't a very good GM, frequently fucking up rules, stats, midjudging party strength, act. He actually though John Wick gave GOOD GMing advice, which tells you a lot right there.
I'm not trying to sound badass because I killed a made-up monster originating in a collectible card game (even the idea of lying about fictional accomplishments of a fictional character in a fictional setting sounds fucking dumb to me), I'm just telling what my GM told me after I kept rolling a bullshit amount of 10's that turn.
My guess is he just looked the monster up, gave it way weaker stats or pulled them out of an earlier edition book when we were playing 3rd Ed or something; guy was a very diligent GM (he could always be relied to GM that is) but damn if he wasn't a LOUSY one sometimes....
>>44332481
>Well I've never heard of that glass to take your word for it. I'm a fan of obscure RPG's As much as the next hippester but familiarity has it's quality
It's not an RPG, it's a novel series.
A pretty successful one (as far as fantasy novels go anyway) at that.
I'd highly recommend at least checking out the first one, "Across the Nightengale Floor" if you like L5R.
>There maybe fluff that says other wise but that's impression I get from it.
Is flexibility for fluff even allowed in this setting, or is it all what this Wick guy thinks he knows or thought he remembered about a movie he's partially forgot?
Also, how the fuck do you get a party together in the core setting? I've already ruled out Emerald Magistrates since it doesn't fit what we have right now, and ronin as far as I can see are designed to suck the long dick of Wick mechanically.
>>44332372
>Hell, you could probably do a round-robin style game and just pass the GM hat around. That way everyone gets a chance to play and everyone tries their hand at GMing at least once.
That's what we do at my house.
I always end up GMing the most, much to my irritation, but there you go.
>>44332372
Maybe some jackass needs to make a quest or something.
>>44334104
What a terrible idea.
>>44332058
I'm actually the GM for the game that killing the Great Death happened in; it was attacking a boat with some skeleton raptors with it. There were a total of five Moshi shugenja aboard it, including the one PC, who were focusing on distracting and pounding the shit out of it with lightning spells. Each and every shugenja exploded upwards of at laest 75 damage, and two of them (including the PC) hit up to 150.
Now, you also should know, this was before the Great Death had canon stats printed in a book, so I was going purely by conjecture and what was on his CCG card. I had given it 500 wounds.
>>44334316
I get the feeling that some monsters and characters literally aren't designed to be beatable because they have CCG cards.
>>44334104I would, but I'm already having trouble finding time to run two quests as it is. Plus, if anyone ran an L5R quest they'd probably have to make some chargen decisions for the players, just so the first eight hours aren't spent debating what advantages and disadvantages to take.
>>44334426
If you stat it, they will kill it.
Some things should just be left as plot devices.
>>44334515I'd run one, but I've run and dropped several quests at this point due to real life bullshit and there's no point in doing yet another. I'd also skip chargen entirely and pretty heavily screw with the canon setting, so basically I'd be doing nothing to help people who want to play the actual RPG.
>>44334551
True dat.
>>44333862
>>44334316
Okay, now these both sound more believable, my apologies.
>>44334426
Eh, to be fair it's kind of hard to establish something in the game as a Big Fucking Deal while also giving it canon stats. I think most of the big names that have stats (such as the oni lords) were stated under the assumption that the players wouldn't tackle it alone, but with a lot of others to back them up/be meat shields.
>>44334665
>but with a lot of others to back them up/be meat shields.
That makes sense, but I've rarely seen something like that put into substantial practice; it's already hard enough excusing a bunch of samurai with different clans working together, even more of them fighting alongside each other had gotta be even trickier to justify.
>>44334988
It's not really that hard. If something as dangerous as an oni shows up, I'm pretty sure the magistrates and soldiers of whatever lands you're in will send backup with the party. Crab may have Crane, and Lion may hate Scorpion, but they all hate oni a whole lot more than they hate each other. It's one of the few things they will set their differences aside over.
>>44335220
That's a fair point I suppose.
Though I suspect almost all of the but the Crab would be at something of a loss when it came to fighting demons; some of them can't even be properly hurt without special tools.
>>44332058
>Wounds: 100 - Dead
barring invulnerability, 102 pts would do it.
truth.
>>44335351
The Crab have a way of rating an Oni, it's based off how many Hida Warriors it can kill in a minute.
This designation is important as often the best Crab tactic is to slow the beast down with a body pile to buy time for the Kuni to bind, banish or sacrifice themselves with a ritual to drive it away.
>>44336004
>The Crab have a way of rating an Oni, it's based off how many Hida Warriors it can kill in a minute.
There's some really disturbing implications in a regular and semi-consistent in judging monsters by "Hidas".
>>44336075
'This creature has a rating of 1 Hida a minute. Mostly because it tends to stand about for an hour and laugh at us trying to banish it before it gets to work'
>>44336075
>>44336115
>"KUNI! WHAT DOES THE SCROLL SAY ABOUT IT'S HIDA NUMBER?"
>*Kuni crushes his scroll*
>"IT'S OVER NINE THOUSAAAAAND!"
>>44336004
Fuck me, seriously? That's seriously messed-up.
>>44336171
Weirdly appropriate here.
>>44336004
>often the best Crab tactic is to slow the beast down with a body pile to buy time for the Kuni to bind, banish or sacrifice themselves with a ritual to drive it away.
Except the Crab don't have nearly enough bodies or Kuni to make this even remotely possible.
>>44336171
>9000+ Hida Warriors per minute
>Hida
>Lvl.1 use heavy armor w/o penalty and get 1.5 HP as much as any starting joe.
Jesus Fuck, dude!
>>44336404
Not quite as many dead guys as Lu Bu, but you're not supposed to pursue him either.
>>44336360
>Except the Crab don't have nearly enough bodies or Kuni to make this even remotely possible.
Even if they don't the "dead Hidas" number is pretty disturbing.
>>44336629Anon made it up.
>>44333990
>It's not an RPG, it's a novel series.
>A pretty successful one (as far as fantasy novels go anyway) at that.
I'll do that thanks. But as far as RPGs go if you're looking for samurai L5R is the only really major game there is I'm aware of.
>Also, how the fuck do you get a party together in the core setting?
If you don't want to hand wave they all meet in a sake house you just need to give up diversity. Have them all part of same house.
>>44336708
>I'll do that thanks. But as far as RPGs go if you're looking for samurai L5R is the only really major game there is I'm aware of.
There's a lot of good samurai RPGs out there, problem is most of the good ones are fairly old and out of print. Also it doesn't take much at all to just do an "Oriental Adventures" of any given fantasy RPG.
I swear fucking L5R has become the D&D/PF of oriental roleplaying.
>>44336773
>I swear fucking L5R has become the D&D/PF of oriental roleplaying.
Sssort of in that D&D 3.5's "Oriental Adventures" is the D&D/PF of Oriental Roleplaying.
>>44336796
No, as in "the one game everyone knows of and so they don't look at anything else because no one plays anything else because no one plays anything else (ad nauseum).
>>44336658
I wonder what the conversion rate on it is?
>"How many Hidas?"
>"I dunno, it only targets Lion samurai."
>"Shit....I always forget the conversion count on this...it's like three-quarters for a Lion, one quarter for a Crane but one half for a Daidoji, three quarters for a Dragon but there's a mysterious floating quarter unused, one-half for a Unicorn..."
>"What about his horse?"
>"What?"
>"Unicorn always have horses, do we count the horse?"
>"Fuck! I just lost track of my math you asshole! Now I gotta start counting again!"
>"Remember to count the horse this time."
>>44336773
>I swear fucking L5R has become the D&D/PF of oriental roleplaying.
I'm a fan of Legends of the Wulin myself, but it only works for that genre in my opinion.
>>44336884
There was an anon a long time ago that suggested running L5R with LotW.
I wonder what happened to them...
>>44336912
That would be a very different experience mechanically.
>>44333990
Speaking of Not!Japan fantasy novels has anyone read Jessica Salmonson's Tomoe Gozen series? I saw it recommended in the Blade of the Iron Throne book as a good Sword and Sorcery novel with samurai.
>>44337040
A Sword and Sorcery book starring an actual historical person? Interesting.
>>44323127
>at least the CRAB wear pants
Less than you'd think, by the art. Hence the traditional titles for Crab of Hida NoShirt and Hiruma NoPants.
>>44337199
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tomoe_Gozen_%28novel%29
It's more the character is heavily based on the "real" figure.Tomoe Gozen wasn't real, as much as people love to cling to her myth, the only accounts of her existence come from stories written hundreds of years after her time, and there are no contemporary accounts of her or anyone like her existing.
>>44336833
>After suffering heavy losses due to incorrect Oni calculations Scrolls containing all the formulas were distributed to every Tower on the Carpenter's Wall.
>>44336658
Nah. It's in one of the fluff books. Probably Bearers of Jade, but maybe the first Book of the Shadowlands. He might be paraphrasing but it mentions something like that, thought it might be more generic warriors than specifically Hida samurai.
Bearers of Jade is pretty dark and fucked up in general.
>>44336004
>>44338037
Bearers of Jade has the 'maru' - the amount of time an invulnerable oni takes to kill an armoured man. It's about 2 seconds.
>>44337040
>Jessica Salmonson
Sorry, I'm sure there good but i only read books by men now.
>>44341225
>stop reading books by cis white men
>wears a Dr. Who shirt
How fucking stupid do these people get, really? Don't they just fucking think before they take a picture like that? They have more sets of clothing, right? Why not just quickly switch shirts so you don't look like an idiot?
>>44339250
Thank you, I had forgotten where I saw that.
The important part being, it illustrates the recognition that, against some foes (specifically the ones that most soldiers don't have equipment to meaningfully harm), slowing it down with an iron plated zerg rush to buy time for someone to figure out if it needs big rock (crystal) or jade or something else is a developed tactic.
>>44341717
I read in The Book of Void that the Crab actually have blade oils with powdered jade in them so they can successfully hurt more invulnerable monsters, thought this isn't very reliable because after a few strikes the stuff will run dry.
>>44341252
I find that stressing over stupid people being stupid isn't worth the returns on it.
>>44341717
Anyone have that motivational poster about how sometimes you get a job because you are the only one strong enough for it?
>>44341750
I'm personally surprised they don't use more obsidian arrows and javelins, obsidian hurts most baddies and if you use it as munition you may skip the curse...
>>44341815
I imagine it's because there's no safe way for the Crab to harvest obsidian where they are; since it's very easily Tainted, any of it found near the Shadowlands would already be so corrupted that it would be too dangerous to handle.
Plus, against invulnerable Shadowlands demons it isn't really any more effective then anything else.
>>44341875
In 4e it penetrates invulnerable just like Jade or Crystal.
However, difficulty of harvest is an issue.
>>44341891
At least that explains why other folks might want to make blacksteel out of it. Not exactly sure where you "harvest" obsidian in Rokugan though, as it's a little light on volcanoes.
Unless it's like Elder Scrolls where "obsidian" isn't even the same thing as our obsidian and it's some kind of fictional metal stuff I guess....
>>44341750
That one is in the core rulebook actually, p.320. Of course, it is in a completely illogical spot and lacks any way to acquire it beyond the GM giving it to you, but meh.
>>44342170
It isn't. IIRC it is the blood of the Moon (one of the original deities) that fell to earth during his fight with the Kami, so finding it is completely ramdom.
Who here read the stuff on the Yobanjin in Imperial Archives?
I always like hearing about the stuff outside Rokugan as much as inside it and showing that it's just part of a larger world that the Rokugani don't fully understand quite yet.
>>44342343
"Isawa-san, you're on fire again"
do you think his Shiba always keep a bucket of water handy just in case?
>>44342378
I bet.
>>44342380
Man, it's a simple fucking rule; if the scroll is BLACK, then DON'T OPEN IT.
Rokugani are so fucking retarded.
>>44342343
>>44342378
>>44342380
This looks like it is part of a powerpoint presentation, "why we should keep our shugenja on a leash at all times", made by some really overworked Shiba.
>>44342483
>"As you can see, here the noble Isawa has gotten so excited that he lit himself on fire again."
>"Blessed are the shugenja who commune with the kami."
>"But also, we REALLY need to lock down their bullshit. Like, they won't tell you this in Shiba School kid, but lemme tell ya; they may be 'holy' but shit are they dumb. Like, every time any of them try anything substantial it explodes in their face. Literally. Maybe they'll turn into Dark Oracles, maybe Isawa's Last Wish will blow up the world, maybe they'll open not one, not two, but THREE Black Scrolls, maybe they'll just stick their dicks balls-deep in Taint to see what happens, but your job is to clean up after their messes."
>"Your gempukku is complete. Here's your Sacred Bucket. Keep it filled with water at all times."
>>44342641
Being a Shiba is suffering.
Important query; which Clan spawns the biggest tits in Rokugan?
>>44343686
The most indolent ones. So imperial families, rich crane girls, mantis heiresses, etc. Have to imagine all the running and physical activity cuts down on developing big racks. There's always exceptions, but it's usually the girls who sat talking during gym class that developed the largest pairs from my experience.
>>44343866
I would also rule out the whole Dragon clan, since they're supposed to be short of food all the time.
>>44343866
>>44343907
Good to know.
You have helped make a joke line for my group seem more authentic, increasing the humor.
>>44343686
>>44343866
Phoenix probably produce some good specimens, too. Lots of time spent in-doors copying scrolls, studying, and paraying/meditating without the self-deprivation of being a monk.
I wonder if being blessed by certain kami includes an increase in cup size? Would water-attuned women be the most stacked?
>>44343686
CCG-wise, the Scorpion clan. Keyword seductress needs to come from somewhere.
>>44344019
Benten probably makes her favoured more attractive in general.
>>44344019
Just be careful with the air shugs. They can easily be a trap with all the illusion spells at hand. The current Master of Air is a prime example.
>>44344038
Oh, for sure. I meant more kami lower-case, the general nature and elemental spirits that commune with shugenja.
>>44344083
The confusion between the Kami and the kami is just one more thing AEG was god-awful at clarifying. Should've worked on that a bit.
>>44344083
Earth kami empower fertility (T&A represent that), fire kami have passion (And titties are good for inspiring that), water kami have health (Such as the kind that gives you big tits), air kami appreciate the distraction potential of titties, and the void is everything and nothing, which I take to mean ultra tittie monster and/or dfc.
So pretty much every shuggie should have impressive tits, except for void shuggies, who should have either the most impressive tits of them all or no tits whatsoever.
>>44344264
Maybe Void has CONCEPTUAL tits.
Schrodinger's Tits; are they there or are they not?
>>44344447
You don't know until you squeeze them and collapse the wave function
Need some help L5R gen
I'm RPing a tainted crab berserker who was sucked through a portal into another world after killing an Oni (in reality I wanted to play a crab in another system, and portals opening up and pooping people is normal in the setting). So how do I best do this in the setting? It's sort of a steampunk-pseudo medieval setting, so so far I'm playing it as sort of unsettled by all the technology.
So far the party is:
>a human thief
>human ranger
>dorf barbarian
>child air sorcerer
>human face/mild magic
What should I focus on doing? I'm a first time TTRPG player, so I'm already a little confused. I'm having tons of fun but I'm a little unsure on how to do this in character well
>>44346402
First off, the general Rokugani xenophobia needs to be addressed, and the easiest way to do this is to have the character assume that they somehow ended up in a spirit realm or something equally bizarre. As long as he doesn't know the "rules" of the "spirit realm", he can justify not killing everyone he sees because they aren't human/ are dirty gaijin scum. He might believe that he'd piss off a powerful spirit if he did that.
Standoffish is probably your best bet. Just because he can't show his disgust for the dwarf (It's clearly some kind of widespread freak) doesn't mean he has to like the dwarf.
>>44346547
Well the guy playing the dorf is my best mate IRL so I kinda already screwed that up. He was drunk and so was I (in character of course, and in order to get him into the campaign) so he challenged me to an arm wrestling competition. Rolling for feats of strength, he managed to beat me by 1 point (he rolled an 83 and I an 82), so I RP'd it as if I gave him respect, and we later got into hijinks together so our characters are bros now too. So far in the setting my character has heard of another place that has people who look like me (squinty eyes and black hair, etc). So right now my character's plan is to work with the party to slay local demons and then find the place that could be Rokugan
>>44346402
How does the taint play out in your new location? Depending on what type of Crab he is, I'd guess he'd be honor-bound to either focus on trying to get back to Rokugan, defeating 'oni' in this new land, protecting people, or maybe even trying to find a way to remove his taint? He could also just say screw it and decide to live it up becoming like a mercenary or bodyguard. That gives you a pretty good range of options.
He'd probably be pretty distrustful of the non-humans at first(and I guess, even the humans since they'd be gaijin), but Crabs are a pragmatic lot and would probably come to accept the others once they proved trustworthy.
Samurai Jack might be a good reference for how a samurai would react in a future setting, but overall he's not particularly Crabby, so you could always substitute some of his confusion and shock with violence.
It sounds like a pretty fun idea, overall, anon. Crab da best number one.
>>44346722
Well right now in the campaign I'm working with the party to clear out the local bandits blocking the road to get to the "Imperial City" which my character interprets as the Imperial City he knows. And yeah it's pretty damn fun. The system has an advantage called blood the great beast which I read as taint because it bestowed powers like extreme strength and resilience. I'm trying to make him pragmatic, while naturally distrusting of most of the population he meets, he works with them when they prove themselves, like in >>44346691 And yes, Crab Cran Best Cran
>>44346722
>>44346818
The REAL question is, which Crab Family is best Crab family and why?
>>44347224
Without a doubt it is theKaiu because without their knowledge and walls Rokugan would have been overwhelmed hundreds of years ago
>>44347224
Kaiu, because we're the only ones who improve anything.
>>44347224
I always liked the Hiruma for being the most flexible.
But the correct answer is to ask one Hiruma, one Kaiu, and one Kuni all at once.
And the even more correct answer is that the Crab work together as a well-oiled machine and all of them are very important.
>>44343686
Crab and Unicorn, likely Mantis as well.
Crab are the largest of Rokugani, and thier diet is full of fried foods. Also, they tend to leave the ladies at home to be baby factories, so what makes the Hida warrior big and beefy likely gives the Hida housewife a little extra curvature.
Unicorn (and to a lesser extent, Mantis) bred with foreigners. Rokugani have slender builds and aren't as prone to large breasts as humans from elsewhere in the world. The foreign geisha in Ryoko Owari was referred to as a disgusting caricature of femininity. Because she was buxom. Thus it stands to reason the clan that has deliberately bred with the big tittied people elsewhere may be more inclined to be boobilicous.
>>44347315
I'm a fan of the Hiruma myself.
First character I ever played was a Hiruma Bushi.
>>44347315
By your powers combined, I am Captain Kabe!
>>44347490
I like this.
It's scientific. Boobology.
>>44347568
That, and on a cultural note, Rokugani tend to shun large breasts. Therefore Benten's blessing, dangerous beauty and other divine favourings are less likely to produce heavy chested specimens.
>>44347490
Do Matsu women end up as busty amazon musclegirls?
>>44348197
>musclegirls
>busty
you know that boobs are fat right?
>>44347702
Depressingly historically accurate too.
One element of historical accuracy I could have gone without in Rokugan...and apparently so could all the artists for the CCG and books.
>>44348338
you're fat.
I've been on a L5R kick lately -- anybody have any good campaign stories by any chance? or know where to find good fiction or fanfiction. Seeing a L5R thread reminded me of an old story that was told on /tg/ years ago. I've been looking for it for a while anyway and finally found it, so I figured I'd share it! It deserves to be in circulation.
It's about a Scorpion who alone among his friends survived their final battle against an Oni.
And his motivation? Not for money, not for any ideology, not for glory... all for revenge.
"To this day the Kakita's player does not get why I went to such elaborate lengths for revenge and why everyone thought their deaths fighting the oni were cool."
I remembered it years later because it seemed like a very well-done Scorpion story, and a great revenge story. It was in fact this story that interested me in the Scorpion.
"No does revenge like a pissed off Scorpion."
https://warosu.org/tg/thread/9499912#p9501109
https://warosu.org/tg/thread/13655984#p13657422
(It got told twice; the second is the more familiar and slightly more fleshed-out version, but I included the first one just because. It has an extra minor detail or two.)
>>44349753
Scorpions are good at revenge.
>>44349753
I have a story of my first session where I got to play as my character.
So some backstory first, I was new and someone else had recently quit the group due to schedule differences, so I was offered a chance to play their character while I make up my character sheet.
The party consisted of me the crab beatstick, a former lion, a crab scout with the greatest falcon sidekick, a badger clan archer (from memory) and a dragon diplomacy duelist. We also had a dmpc healbot.
So the story starts out as the badger player and the dragon player were out sick, so we were starting well. We were traveling through a forest to get somewhere for something or something. Basically, we had a short encounter to introduce me to the system, then came across a town. With a gate guard. We stopped for a moment to assess the situation. The players we had available were two Crabs and a disgraced Lion. We effectively stopped for 20 minutes basically going back and forth, saying the crabs didn't have social skills, but the ronin was a ronin. 20 MINUTES. After this, the DM just said that one of the people who weren't there walk up and ask for entry.
One "Yeah, sure" later, we were in the city. It was at this point that I realised two things. 1) Other than being ronin, anyone could speak to anyone else who wasn't too far above them in rank, and 2) Being frank about what you want was generally seen as a welcome change to the political speak from everyone else for the DM. While everyone else was trying to be flowery with their words, I just started speaking normally. Bluntly, even.
Shortly after entering the city, and having a scooby-doo style chase scene with a robber, we ended up at a bar where my actual character was, and that's where the session ended. Thus began the (short) tales of Mana, the dragon monk with words blunter than her fists.
>>44348197
We had a campaign where one of our players actually WAS a busty badass Matsu samurai-ko.
I get the feeling the character was something of a self-insert for the player; she has weird "my boobs are too small" inferiority issues and wished she was a badass.
The Unicorn have dat gaijin blood and lots of proteins and meat in their diets; you're probably looking at the Shinjo and the Hida for the biggest tittied Bushi in the Empire.
The Mantis have access to all sorts of rare things so, it stands to reason, this includes natural breast enhancements... it wouldn't surprise me if some of their courtier used 'em to get bigger.
Also I'm so fucking stealing that headcanon about the shugenja and Rings giving bigger ta-tas,
>most civil L5R Clans discussion ever is about titties
Never change, /tg/.
>>44355344
It's something a lot of people can agree on.
>>44342641
I suddenly like the Shiba a lot more.
>>44349753
This is still my favorite moment from playing L5R:
/www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=4966620&postcount=23
In an L5R 3e campaign that is currently on hiatus, I'm playing a Matsu Berserker - Matsu Katsumi - a melee-only character that, while able to do tremendous damage in melee (seriously - she averages out to 80-90 wounds per attack, when most PCs do 20-30 and most everything has 60hp tops) is a serious glass cannon. She's really melee-only: no ranged weapons on the character whatsoever, and no skill at all with any sort of throwing weapon. If she can't get into melee, she's pretty useless. She even has a Disadvantage that limits her ability to use a bow.
(Fluff note: In L5R, "Jigoku" is equivalent to "hell" - the literal translation is "the afterlife" but it's got negative connotations in the setting.)
So, the city in which we act as magistrates has been infiltrated by an evil, blood-magic wielding Clan (the Spider) under our dumbass noses. After nine months (and a year of real-time) of their seeding the city with their forces, they spring their revolution and start raping, killing, and looting their way across our beloved city, not necessarily in that order. We wake from a sound slumber to combat them, entering into a four game session extended combat.
By the end of this, we've engaged the BBEG (a blood magic-mutated uber-samurai) and his retinue. The rest of the party goes after him while Katsumi mops up the three-critter retinue (with 2 attacks per round and an interrupt attack that goes off when someone attacks me, the three are all dead before they've had a chance to make an attack roll). I turn around to see Mr. BBEG with three of the five party members strewn about him in varying states of "heavily wounded and unconsciousness", one PC cowering in a "castle of water" that he cast around himself, and with the last party member with his ancestral weapon broken on the ground.
>1/2
>>44360798
>2/2
BBEG recognizes Katsumi by reputation and pops wings via a spell and takes to the sky. He's about 50' up and starts monologuing while I stand around like a chump on the ground wondering exactly how the heck I'm going to go after this guy when I have no ranged weapons. Then I remember: with enough force behind it, anything is a ranged weapon. I blow a point of Void (kind of like Action Points) to give myself a single "virtual rank" in the "Thrown Weapons" skill (for dice to explode in this game, you must have ranks or virtual ranks in the skill), and burn the rest of my Void Points to perform "a single action not generally otherwise allowable by the rules." (a ruling from our GM and a common enough houserule you can even do it in official sanctioned play)
Katsumi hefts her no-dachi like a spear, shouts "From Jigoku's heart, I stab at thee!", and launches her ancestral weapon skyward.
BBEG has a TN to be hit of 80, and 120 wounds.
Rolling 5 d10 and keeping 4 of them (10's explode) against a TN of 80. Four dice roll 10s. Then 3 rolled 10s. Final check result? 81. A hit.
GM tells me to grab my wife's dice and use hers. I shrug and grab her dice.
Damage check. GM rules that the no-dachi thrown does damage as a thrown spear. After some math (and advantage that adds a LOT to damage) I'm rolling 10 dice and keeping 5. 7 dice roll 10's. Then 5 dice roll 10's (20 per die so far). Then all five of those dice roll 6 or above. Final damage result? 142!
So, the BBEG, mid-speech against a melee-only character stuck on the ground 50' below him, is suddenly struck through the heart by a flying 2-handed sword and plummets, stone dead, to the ground below, ending the battle and the war.
My sword even rolled a 10 on the "GM's feeling vindictive" check result (needed a 10 on a d10) to not be broken when it hit the ground.
So, how many people do you think would be interested in an L5R Quest?
Neat, I'd totally forgotten that story! Maybe GiantITP has more...
L5R threads are rare on suptg, but there are a few (like 2 or 3 total) storytime threads. Here's a quick story about another Scorpion from one such thread.
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/8874104/#8874836
In my groups L5R game, my first character was a Shosuro Shinobi masquerading as a member of the Ox Clan, and a secret member of the Kolat. I took Forsaken at creation, with the idea that years without the voices of his ancestors had made him bitter, and so he turned his back on everything spiritual, deciding that a man's personal abilities and power were greater than even the Kami themselves, hence Kolat membership.
Well, my GM wouldn't let me take Kolat Lore at creation, saying that I was just an expendable agent. This was all well and good until my lack of Kolat Lore prevented me from reading a message that my handler had sent, which eventually resulted in my being captured by Emerald Magistrates.
So, I did what any self-respecting Scorpion would do, and sold out my secret conspiracy. This happened shortly before the Scorpion sacked the Kolat Hidden Temple in canon, so in our Rokugan, my character provided the intelligence necessary for the Clan to locate and destroy the Temple. Of course, it was necessary to fake my death to keep my former compatriots off my trail.
Six months of real world time later, I'm playing the same character again in his new position as an Emerald Magistrate with a reputation of hatred towards conspiracies against the throne.
So far I've managed to talk the first born sibling of our group's Crane into Seppuku, making our Courtier into the next in line for control of his family's lands, get our Tsuruchi promoted to the front of a unit of troops, and execute a former Kolat Master for murder following my Yoriki intentionally getting himself killed in a first blood duel.
All without anyone else in the party having any idea that it's the same character.
>>44361050
I'd be interested.
>>44349753
I killed the rest of the party while they were sleeping. I was playing a Scorpion, and they weren't doing what I told them, so I stabbed them in the back. They knew what my PC was when their lord added me to the party.
>>44362527
That's perhaps a little overzealous.
>>44362153
Huh, okay.
>>44362527
And this is a prime example of doing it wrong.
After having tried this game a couple times, I've come to the conclusion that I really hate courtiers in it. The social combat in this game is beyond rudimentary (on par with D&D's "just roll diplomacy") considering how ridiculously important it is to the game.
>>44314014
You know the real reason why Wick is so shitty?
It's not even anything to do with his stubbornness or obstinacy or willingness to completely overlook flaws in his own logic for the sake of convienanice.
It's because for whatever reason he dislikes the idea of player choice.
I've been GMed by him twice (both times at cons) and both times he always hated when our personal choices went off the rails of his plot. Both times also involved pre-prepared characters with pre-made backstories and stats that he had done beforehand, along with detailed write-ups about how your PC should act in different situations. Whenever we went off the rails he'd roughly slam us back onto them and then punish the player who's choice either wittingly or unwittingly disrupted his carefully laid plot.
And it shows through in his games; there's "right" and "wrong" ways to make PC's, and if you try to make anything outside of this the game hampers and punishes you. Worse, the right and wrong has nothing to do with systems, rules, or internal setting logic; it all boils down to whatever John Wick thinks is the correct way to do a thing.
In Wick's ideal game there wouldn't even need to be players controlling characters because everything including their reactions was already pre-planned, and then at the conclusion you'd be expected to be wowed at what an awesome story he crafted for you to not participate in.
>>44364896
What games did you get GMed by him?
>>44364930
One game of L5R and one of 7th Sea.
>>44364896
Well /tg/ shits on the choices people make in L5R story tournaments all the time so they'd probably agree with Mr. Wick.
>>44365148
Not sure how Wick's GMing preferences affect the CCG crowd since at no point has the TRPG ever actually affected what happened in the CCG while the reverse is most certainly not true.
>>44364939
Confirming, played in a game he ran at gencon years and years ago.
He doesn't run games, he writes fiction where the players are bit characters who are rewarded for doing as he says and made grotesque examples of for not being the stereotypes he faps to.
