https://www.mediafire.com/folder/vx477quhxz4vt/Regend5Ling#btf4cvsidtj6ff
Which non-clan faction or character type is your favourite to create a character from?
For some reason, I've always been partial to the Ashalan.
>>47809033
>GM letting you play Ashalan
If that isn't campaign central that is a weird choice for a game about magical samurai.
>>47811066
Oh, it's never happened, and it was explained that their techniques kind of suck if you're not immortal and high insight. Still something I'd like to play eventually.
I always liked the idea of a Kenku trained bushi, even if it reeks of speshul snowflake.
Also Nezumi. Hiruma-Nezumi liason gone native is a fun concept, even if it can't survive more than a few hours in most courts.
How true is the rumor that 7th Sea and L5R were originally supposed to be in the same world?
>>47811925
Doubleplusuntrue. As far as I know, there's never been any evidence of it and the gaijin mentioned in L5R never lined up well with the nations in 7th Sea.
Would you, /tg/
>>47813532
I don't think I'd be given a choice.
>>47813547
Would you want to?
>>47814262
Because Kachiko is just terrible. She is as dickish as she is beautiful.
>>47814542
Pretty sure that's not bayushi kachiko.
Yeah but, why does she wear the mask?
>>47816431
She's a sneaky girl.
>>47816431
No one paid attention to her, until she put in the mask.
From a GM's point, RP'ing Kachiko is always hard. Her weapon is seduction, and that only works if players\characters can be seduced.
Most Players are so hardwired in this game to "ALL FOR MY LORD - DIE FOR MY LORD - HONOR HONOR HONOR" that they wont play along, even if they have honor ratings of fucking 1. Also, everyone understands that you aren't getting any, and therefore, the seduction fails.
There was only one time that this ever worked. PC figured he was dead anyway, and wanted to go out with a bang. He returned the Kachiko flirting and got really spooked when it seemed to be going well, as in, not getting him murdered. He then decided that Kachiko was a slut, and bought into the seduction a 100%. He follows her into her bedchambers, and they bone all night long - little did he know it was her body double Yogo Asami. This turned into a long term affair, and the PC was so intent on keeping this love affair going, that the fell into whole of doing anything he was asked - eventually being instrumental in turning over a lot of family\clan secrets, a family heirloom, and then becoming a scorpion himself "to be close to lady kachiko" as her personal bodyguard
Naturally, he died in combat not long after that.
>>47816560
For your clan.
How did the Hida Ruri plot end?
Did she become a loyal Crab waifu through the power of love or was it just an epic Spider ruse all along?
I'm kind of new to L5R (played 3E once) and I might be playing 4E soon
I'd really like to play an unarmed combat powerhouse character (punching through armors and the people who wear them, ripping out organs, etc ...) and I can't figure out how to do that or if it's even possible/advisable. The only form of unarmed combat that I've seen for now is jiujitsu, which doesn't seem like the ideal for punching and kicking people into oblivion.
The prospective DM has already shattered all my dreams of playing commoners, so I guess the only choices I have would be a "muscle-wizard" shugenja or a tattooed monk ?
If you can help I'd appreciate it very much. Also please point out the inconsistencies with the setting in my reasoning if any. I thought I understood that it's taboo for nobles to touch meat, does that apply to digging bare-handed into your adversaries ?
Thanks in advance, have a qt for your trouble
>>47816785
Most players I've seen that want high honour were just after bigger numbers for techniques / damage.
The ones who were stuck in the stereotype of 'all honour, all the time' just needed something more to grasp the setting.
>>47817539
What books do you have access to? Hands of Stone will pretty much always be your starting point for higher unarmed damage.
Matsu Berserker / Lion Paragon / Strength of Purity kata (iirc) eventually does some intense amounts of damage, but most weapons would do more, and some get better exploding dice.
Monks? Osano-Wo, Henshin, Togashi, Hoshi, Hitomi, and the fire martial art path.
>>47817539
There's a handful of unarmed schools and quite a few martial arts that contain paths. Jiujutsu is just the name of the skill used for unarmed, in the same way that kenjutsu is the skill used for all sword combat regardless of tradition, it's not an indication of a martial art being used.
Basically, there's two ways to actually use a "martial art". You can get a skill emphasis for it in Jiujutsu, and/or you can get a special Technique for it. The skill emphasis is mostly just for fluff, but it can also get you into tournaments.
As far as major unarmed martial arts represented in 4e, there's
Kobo ichi-kai: Crab rip and tear anti-shadowlands martial art. It's represented mechanically by an entire school (Hida Pragmatists), but any Crab can learn it the basics by taking it as an emphasis. Has a wimpy non-lethal version used for tournaments called Kobo amai.
Sumai: Literally sumo, it's a fairly big deal in most clans. Only the Crab have an actual mechanical path for it, because only the Crab have tried to make it usable in real combat.
Hitsu-Do: The way of fire. Very punchy, very few practicioners. There is a mechanical path for it, but it's not open to many schools.
Mizu-Do: The way of water. Defensive, mostly practiced by the Crane. Again, mechanical path not easy to get outside the Brotherhood.
Ikoma Scrapper: Dirty fighting Lions. Poke your eyes out, bite your ears off, choke you to death.
Mantis Brawlers: Roundhouse punches and other drunken barfighter things. Mechanically, it's an entire five technique school that is also available to ronin because the Mantis just don't give a shit and it's an apprenticeship school anyway.
Unicorn Bariqu Wrestling: Not really practiced outside the Unicorn, but they do it, and they have a mechanical path for it.
>Cont.
>>47817539
Tattooed Monks are really good in general, even if you're not focussing on unarmed damage. as it stands, they also get a bonus 1k1 unarmed damage at rank 2, which helps with what you're looking for.
You'll also want to get the Friend of the Brotherhood and the Hands of Stone advantages. Being a Dragon and a Monk, you get a discount on both of them.
>>47817539
>The prospective DM has already shattered all my dreams of playing commoners
It's possible, but the rules for it went something like 'all rings start at 1, 8xp to buy low or merchant skills'.
>>47817693
>for some reason, I thought there was more left
Kaze-do: Peasants and Monks only. When you think of "jiujutsu" as a specific martial art, this is it. Fluffwise and mechanically only available to the Brotherhood and peasants. It's potentially learnable if you pretend to be a peasant for twenty years.
And then there's the Brotherhood and their endless Kiho that add all sorts of neat bonuses to all kinds of unarmed attacks.
Hands of Stone is a must as far as advantages go. If you're playing a shugenja or monk (Or "monk" in the case of Kuni Witch Hunters) and are NOT already a Brotherhood monk, Friend of the Brotherhood is a good one.
>>47817693
Actually, scratch that for Mizu-do. It's not actually possible to learn the Technique if you're not a Crane.
>>47817732
>Peasants and Monks only
Sort of. If you can convince one to train you, then there's nothing mechanically stopping another archetype taking it.
>>47817683
>>47817708
>What books do you have access to?
Practically most of them, theoretically, I can procure any of them, or at least the rule points required.
Hitomi monks look appealing because of their martial arts focus and because if I remember well, monks aren't as involved in the diplomacy/etiquette side of the game, which would help me pick it up as we go rather than risk tragic blunders
>>47817693
the Kobo Ichi-Kai, Ikoma Scrapper and Hitsu-Do seem like what I'm looking for, punchy, brutal close-combat with high lethality/mutilation potential
Can I pick up one of these while playing a tattooed monk ?
>>47817732
Brotherhood are the tattooed monks, right ? Togashi, Hitomi and Hoshi ?
Thank you very much to all, I was happily surprised by the speed and usefulness of your answers !
Domo arigato, as they say !
>>47817815
No, the tattooed monks are Dragon Monks, The Brotherhood is the Brotherhood of Shinsei.
The Hitome Kikage Zumi can learn Hitsu-Do.
Kobo Ichi-Kai is an entire School unto itself mechanically, and is a Crab School. Ikoma Scrapper is a path only available to certain Lion Schools.
>>47817815
>Brotherhood are the tattooed monks, right ?
Nah. Brotherhood are the monks that do high flying wuxia kungfu magic.
Tattooed men are Dragon Clan.
>>47817698
Do you have any resources or suggestions on tattoos ? There seems to be a buttload of them and I'm having trouble finding clear descriptions of their effects
>>47817708
I wanted to play a sumotori or a yakuza but apparently the DM's playstyle revolves around a lot of interactions intra-nobility and that would mean having an inactive character or having a high chance of him being killed off because nobles regard commoners as less than dirt
>>47817843
>>47817858
The brotherhood is an affiliation of its own then, separate from the clans ? Or are they a "secondary" allegiance
Tattooed monk still looks appealing but how close are they to their clan ? I'm seeing the character as some kind of travelling martial perfectionnist, that might oscillate between bandit and vigilante. Is this even feasible or advisable in L5R ?
I'm sorry if I'm making you spell out what seems obvious to you but this is really confusing to me, and the more I'm digging into this, the more I'm realizing that what I played was a homebrew setting with little to do with the actual setting (tattooed monks were outlawed, for one thing).
>>47817815
>monks aren't as involved in the diplomacy/etiquette side of the game, which would help me pick it up as we go rather than risk tragic blunders
That's not really true. Etiquette (the skill) and effort to remain polite are always important, but rarely life saving when dealing with everyday samurai. If you really want to avoid your lack of etiquette being a problem, don't go into the big city courts. Go rural. Play a young samurai from the Crab or Lion. The former is expected to be brutish, the latter may debate honourable courses of action with others. So long as you know the seven virtues roughly as written, you'll be learning more than if you play a monk straight away.
>>47817938
>The brotherhood is an affiliation of its own then, separate from the clans?
Yes. They're not samurai. They're their own separate class of people who draw members from all other walks of life. One monk might have been a peasant infant left on a monastery's doorstep and raised in the Brotherhood for their entire life, while another might be a retired old samurai. Either way, they give up past affiliations, take on a new name, and start fishing for enlightenment.
A samurai with the right mindset could literally put down their swords, shave their heads, and move into the nearest monastery with almost no questions asked. They're functionally dead to their clan, and completely removed from the normal celestial wheel. If peasants are below samurai, and eta are below peasants, then Brotherhood monks are somewhere off to the left.
The Dragon Tattooed monks and other clan monks are still technically samurai.
>>47817938
Tattoos and their effects can be found right after the Tattooed Monk school, right before the Lion Clan schools begin.
Best tattoos good for unarmed fighters are, in alphabetical order: Bamboo, Blaze, Crab, Mountain and Storm. Ki-Rin, Ocean, and Phoenix are also pretty good.
Although it's not strictly for unarmed combatants, I'm gonna take the time to mention the Dragon tattoo, and that breathing fire is really cool.
>>47817938
The Brotherhood is its own thing, unaffiliated with the clans
The Three tattood orders are part of the Dragon Clan
The Order of the Spider could be converted to a Ronin school for a martial perfectionist
>>47818006
>The Dragon Tattooed monks and other clan monks are still technically samurai.
The Henshin are all of samurai birth, but the Togashi take whomever passes their tests. Any that weren't samurai before do not become samurai after, it's just not done to ask about the previous life of a monk.
>>47818112
They're still treated as samurai, even if they don't "become" them.
>>47818006
The shinsei monks sound exactly like what I'm looking for, with a Hitsu-do focus
What books should I check out in particular for these ?
>>47817963
I'm planning on doing my homework and reading up on the etiquette and virtues anyway and trying to apply it as good as I can. The DM is pretty forgiving on that, especially for new players.
Would it be logical or acceptable to have a former Crab become a shinsei monk and keep using his crab fighting style or would it just be cheesing ? Also can fighting styles be combined ?
>>47818074
I remember the monk of our party basting a dozen of shinobis inside a pagoda thanks to the dragon tattoo. Good times.
>>47818112
Do you know about the rules of admission for the Hitomi ? Or are they assimilated into the Togashi ?
Again thank you very much, you're all being incredibly helpful
>>47818112
The other clans don't care about the distinctions made within the Dragon Clan.
As far as they care, the Togashi tattooed men are the "Togashi family", and if they raise a peasant up to their level, then that's socially the same as any other family allowing an ashigaru to swear fealty as a samurai.
They respect the fact that they're monks, but they're still Togashi samurai first in the minds of most other samurai.
>>47818154
Although, with the level of secrecy and isolation involved, most other samurai won't even be aware that the Togashi take in anyone who can pas their test and would just assume that they're all samurai from the start.
>>47818120
Yes, but they cannot consider themselves of samurai blood, nor take the daisho, if they were born a peasant.
>>47818176
Dragon Monks are celibate (I think), and don't you the daisho anyway: there is no important difference between those of peasant origin and those of samurai origin.
>>47818154
It's less that other clans don't care, and more that they can't know for sure.
We're talking about the same samurai that would attempt to kill the peasant successor of an Oracle, because the Oracle clearly made a mistake.
>>47818196
That depends on the vows they choose to take, you accidentally words, and you're wrong.
>>47818199
They can't know for sure, but they also don't know that it's even a potential issue. The Togashi never carry their daisho anyway because they're monks, but their leader is the Clan Champion and they're a group founded by a kami. As far as non-dragon (And really, even non-Togashi) are concerned, they're a Dragon samurai family. They might not consider themselves to be one, but when they step out of their mountains, they're given the full samurai treatment because nobody knows how they really work and assume that they work like any other samurai family does.
>>47818233
>The Togashi never carry their daisho anyway because they're monks
Untrue, ever since 1e included an advantage explicitly for it. Hence the quibbling over samurai blood.
>>47818261
The quibbling is a meta thing.
In-setting, they're treated as samurai because they run a samurai clan and are presumed by most to be a samurai family. A very, very strange and sometimes vexing samurai family. From a non-Togashi point of view, when they aren't carrying daisho, it's because they're doing the monk thing and just being weird, as ever. When they are carrying daisho, it's because they're samurai.
So, I've got a rules question, /l5rg/
the Chosen by the Oracles (fire) gives me +1k1 on all fire ring rolls. Does this count to the damage roll of a Tattooed Monk's dragon tattoo?
>>47818291
>The quibbling is a meta thing.
No.
>>47818300
Yes.
A Togashi tattooed man who comes down from the mountains is treated as a samurai. Period. He could be carrying nothing but a loincloth and he'd still be treated as a samurai.
>>47818315
You are stubborn, I'll give you that. Doesn't make you any more correct to hold your ground, however.
Even saying tattooed men are always treated as samurai is incorrect. Some will treat them as monks.
Just one last question for you rokugan savants
Can fighting styles be combined ? Or can characters only benefir from one style at a time ?
Is anyone currently running a game online and got room for one more?
I've always wanted to play a game of L5R but there's no community for it in my area
>>47818567
Techniques can be fully combined, Kiho can be combined up to a point (One of each type at a time), kata can't be combined with other kata.
>>47818620
L5R has an acute lack of GMs.
>>47818641
So I can theoretically use both Hitsu-do and Mizu-do (random example) at the same time ? Pretty neat ! I can't wait to be punching my way through samurai, horses and undead abominations
>>47818620
>currently running a game online
yes
and got room for one more
no room, I'm affraid.
But, I will give you some advice. I was in the same situation as you are in right now, before I found the solution: be the GM.
Now, I'm not an expert at L5R (one of my players is significantly more knowledgable than me), nor am I a particularly great GM, but I've been trying my best and my players seem to like it.
Best of luck in finding a group, anon.
>>47818699
You theoretically could, but since they are not both available in any given School, you can't really. Not without jumping through a LOT of hoops and going up three ranks in a completely new school.
>>47818727
I'll have to keep learning how all this works, but thanks again !
>>47818727
A completely new school in an entirely different social strata.
A Doji Courtier or Asahina shugenja who gets to rank 3, takes mizu-do, then retires to the brotherhood, goes up to rank 2, and takes Hitsu-do could do it.
But I think at the point where you're a practitioner of Hitsu-do, you've almost certainly abandoned Mizu-do. They're very, very opposed philosophies behind those two martial arts.
>>47818754
What would you recommend as an effective complementary school with Hitsu-do ?
>>47818714
But Ihave only ever played a TTRPG once before as a player in a 4-session shithowso I don't know if that would be a good idea
>>47818775
If you're going Brotherhood, Temple of Osano-Wo. They're big, burly militant monks and their Technique also adds damage to unarmed damage. Hitsu-Do completely replaces your basic unarmed damage when you activate it, but because of the way the Osano-Wo monk technique is worded, it still adds its bonus damage to the Hitsu-do damage.
If you go this route, Hands of Stone becomes less important. It does stack with the Osano-Wo technique, but it doesn't stack with Hitsu-do technique.
So, I'm making a Tamori Shugenja for a game I'm playing, and I've found a way to start the game at insight rank 2. I'm mostly doing this because I've taken Agasha as my ancestor and Transmute is a dope spell.
I just want to know, is this considered bad form? Am I gonna rub people the wrong way by doing this?
>>47818856
Yes, most people consider that to be poor form.
I assume you're talking about the "Take every skill at rank 1" method. It works sort of, and it works better for shugenja who don't need to actually succeed at many skill rolls, but it's kinda shitty to do.
>>47818831
That's what I was going for in the first place
I think I'll stack the 3 since hands of stone is cheap as dirt for monks and it still gives quite a punch without activating the Hitsu-do
+0k2 on unarmed seems pretty savage if I give him decent strength
>>47818789
Well, before I started DMing recently,I could count the number of sessions I played per year on one hand.Most of my knowledge of TRPGs is through reading the rules and building campaigns rather than actually playing them.
>>47818881
Hitsu-do won't be worth it until you get your Fire up to 3 or better, but that's fairly easy to do and you won't have access to the Hitsu-do technique until insight rank 2 anyway, so it's fine.
>>47809033
A Free Ogre. I once had a Free Ogre character who could remember the lost glory of his race and their downfall. He could remember Fu Leng killing their king and turning my character's friends and family (including his beloved wife and children) into mindless brutes. His hatred towards Fu Leng and his minions was so strong he willingly submitted himself to an Emerald Magistrate just so that he could seize the means and resources he needed to kill as many Lost and Oni as he could.
For almost a decade he served the magistrate, clad in a massive armor that hid his true nature (outwardly, he was really just a very big samurai). He killed countless minions of the Dark Kami and even became a honorary member of the Crab Clan (they did not know that he was an ogre, only that he was everything a Crab warrior should be). In the end, he even found his wife andmercy killed her when it turned out that she was too far gone.
Boy, it was a pretty fooking cool character!
>>47818971
pretty badass, desu senpai
>>47818879
Not really "every skill at rank 1," but a few of them. I've got a couple of skills at rank 3, and a bunch more at rank 2,
Most of the rank 1 skills are either lore skills or flavor skills, and none of them seem out of place (well, for a Dragon).
The only ones that really seem unusual are Games [Go] (I have the fascination disadvantage for Go) and Artisan [Gardening] (Agasha had a few ranks in it, and she taught me a bit).
>>47818831
>Hitsu-Do completely replaces your basic unarmed damage when you activate it, but because of the way the Osano-Wo monk technique is worded, it still adds its bonus damage to the Hitsu-do damage.
I don't believe it does. Hands of Stone is worded the same, and gives no benefit.
My gm had the biggest shit eating grin when he revealed he created a whole bunch of minor clans just so one of them could be the "Herring' clan.
One character from the Herring clan who we all thought was the bad guy - his name was "Akashi", he was literally named Red Herring.
Anyone have a any cool names to go with the theme of "Air".
So far all my campaigns have had a name but I am coming up blank for Air.
I've had - "Way of Fire", "Honor like Stone", and most recently "Within Water, Beneath Waves". But god damn if i am completely blank for Air.
>>47819508
Hitsu-do explicitly calls out Hands of Stone as something it doesn't stack with. It does not say that it can't be affected by other Techniques, just that it doesn't get affected by Hands of Stone and mechanically counts as a Mystical Kiho. It also is not a special action on its own. It's just a modification of the basic unarmed attack.
The Hand of Thunder says that "You gain +0k1 bonus to all damage rolls stemming from unarmed attack. This effect is cumulative with any other effects that allow you to roll or keep additional dice on unarmed damage.", which very clearly means that it stacks with anything and everything, as long as it's unarmed, which the Hitsu-do technique is.
>>47819725
An Air of Danger
>>47818405
Not that guy, but trying to pin the Togashi family down on one thing is stupid. The Dragon break the mold, the tattoo'd men are both monks and a samurai Family, any distinction between the two makes no sense as they are both. They are never not-samurai, and they are never not-monks, aside from the circumstance that one leaves the order and obtains permission to marry from the Clan Champion of course. Other samurai consider them members of the buge caste, even if they don't wear a daisho - which as an anon indicated, they can however, because they're samurai! Peasants will likely treat them as samurai if they're aware of their standing as members of a samurai Family, if they've never seen one in their life and are unaware of their buge status, they'll likely default to treating them as they would anyone they don't know the precise caste of, like say an unarmed ronin. That is, with due deference and respect. The fact that some might also treat them as strange monks does not impact their status as samurai in the slightest, even if they don't deny being monks.
>>47820284
http://l5r.wikia.com/wiki/Noble_Birth
>>47819725
Maybe pick something in relation with the sky or te clouds?
>>47820787
In short, the Ise / Tsurui / Kikage Zumi are tattooed people. Mostly they conform to the Togashi / Hoshi / Hitomi, respectively when all three families exist. Any other time, they're all Togashi.
They are referred to as Tattooed Men, but may be women.
They are referred to as monks, but may be of noble birth and retain their daisho.
They are referred to as samurai, but may be of low birth, or have given up the daisho as part of taking a new name.
They may adhere to the default monastic vows (WotOH), any others, or their own, but are not required to.
They can be monastic or worldly, cryptic one moment and bluntly straightforward the next. Even the notion that they're all loyal to Togashi and the Dragon Clan is a preconception that enlightened madness occasionally breaks.
>>47819725
On an Ill Wind
Clear Skies, Clouded Paths
The Wafting Scent of Danger
Final Breaths
Like Birds, Fleeing a Cat
Could anyone point me towards rules concerning explosives for 4e. I've found information about gun/cannon/etc. but I find it very difficult to find any information about things that a Scorpion Saboteur or Infiltrator may use.
>>47822959
Imperial Histories pg 180 forward.
Keep in mind that all gunpowder use is blasphemous at best, so is reserved for really important things. Throwing it around willy nilly will get someone hung out to dry, just to avoid the Imperial sledgehammer that will be coming down on them and everyone they know if they get caught.
>>47823115
Oh wow, literally right under my nose. Thank you.
I know it's very illegal but I was just looking at what tools the saboteur had because it is one of the few 'ninja' prestige classes.
Hello dead game general.
I do miss you.
But then I am forced to remember how shitty the game was the last few years before its demise.
Question about the Iron Rogukan gun rules: WHY THE FUCK DO THEY USE INTELIGENCE AS THE TRAIT FOR TEPPOUDO??!?
>>47824094
Hey hey, the RPG is still loved and played!
>>47819913
>>47820907
>>47822600
Thanks for the all responses
>>47818112
>Any that weren't samurai before do not become samurai after, it
Yes they do. It is a lord's right to select his retainers. This goes down to city daimyo level, but the right of elevating peasants is probably reserved for family daimyo. However, by accepting these babies into their order, the Togashi daimyo is elevating them to their weird samurai-monk status. After all, only the ones who actually pass their musha shugyo become true members of the clan and thus samurai. So the unfit don't get elevated.
>>47825122
gempukku I mean
Sorry I was thinking about a musha shugyo thing earlier and my brain shit itself. One player wants to go on one, but how should I handle it if they go up insight rank during it? Will they be allowed to go to their sensei still? Do they just bank that rank till it is done?
What's your favorite Minor Clan? Mine isnot actually the Bat, I'm a huge Badger fan, but I like the Bat a lot and this is cool art
>>47825122
See every other post on the subject, m80-san.
>>47809033
So I'm looking to pick up a core book. Is there "edition wars" like in dnd where some editions are drastically different/better at other things, or is it safe just to pick up 4e uniformed on the others?
What do I need to know?
>>47826377
4th E is by far the best. And outside of it, "the Great clans" and "Enemies of the Empire" are the only other books that most would say are essential.
>>47826377
In short, fourth is the most streamlined/balanced/modern, first is the most flavorful(albeit less balanced), third is heavier on crunch(also a bit wonky), while second is the d20 edition and should be avoided like the plague.
>>47809033
So tomorrow is Free RPG Day. I feel like making some content.
There anything you guys would like to see or maybe find useful?
>>47824174
Because they're slow in all respects, and you need to understand how they work, more than being agile or quick in aiming.
>>47826824
Adventures? Alternate weapon and/or movement rules, akin to Legends of the Wulin?
>>47826992
I always just houserule them as perception based. Intelligence works fine for me for cannon fire since there's trajectories and even sometimes math involved, but have you ever shot a gun? Or met a really dumb dude who is just a crack shot? That is a weird as fuck link, famalamadingdong
>>47827098
Yes, I have. I've also swung more than a few swords, and been silly by trying to iai draw a shitty AEG prize katana.
>the art of Teppoudo places a great emphasis on mindfulness, calm deliberate intentions, and careful breathing. It is just as much a practice of zen-like focus as it is a test of rote and memory.
Never did much like this. How about you?
>>47825647
Boar. Hardass spear masters are my jam.
>>47831806
>hard ass-spear masters
I thought that was the Crane.
>>47832679
No, the Crane, unfortunately, are only second best at everything, except for everything that matters.
>>47832895
>second best at everything
And that's definitely supposed to be the Dragon.
How much samurai and how much monk are the tattooed guys exactly?
>>47836102
You'd have to ask them.
>>47836102
100% monk, 100% samurai
>>47825647
Fox. I like how their niche is making poor life choices. The druid-samurai theme is also pretty cool.
>>47825647
I would say the Sparrow. They make due with what they have, and have never complained even once about having been dicked over by the Crane when they got their lands.
>>47825647
Bee Clan for lyfe.
>>47842255
Please take your fanfic clan and leave.
>>47842312
You're just jealous that you can't comprehend how fashion changes from day to day.
>>47836102
>>47837253
Really? Doing this again?
http://l5r.wikia.com/wiki/Noble_Birth
What tattoos would you want, /tg/? Would it be worth the price of your nipples?
>>47845682
To breathe fire? fuck yeah
What's the most mechanically powerful bushi build there is at a straight fight?
Let's say in a game for some reason the emperor himself was doing something and becomes some sort of an encounter. Is there a school that the emperor most likely would have ranks in?
>>47851826
Typically, the direct imperial line are raised by great clans. They would have ranks in whatever clan raised them, probably bushi, maybe courtier? Also feel free to give them a special advanced path, or give them some gem champ ranks for free.
>>47850549
Matsu Berserker is pretty simple, in that it hits better and harder.
>>47851826
Which emperor? The four winds had their own 'i win' techniques, iirc. Hantei had his Moon-killing technique.
>>47851826
Back in the day they used to be trained in the Kakita dueling school.
>>47851981
The Emperors? Not Emerald Champions or something like that?
>>47809033
FINALLY AN L5R THREAD
>>47852109
Emerald Champions are determined by a contest open to all highly qualified bushi.
So they can and have been from many different schools.
>>47818620
Same boat, my friend, same boat.
>>47851826
Imperial children default to the Otomo School unless the Emperor used their training as a political tool (Which happens quite often), because most of them are going to abdicate the throne and join the Otomo family.
So basically, the Emperor can be in any school from any clan. The heir would probably go to a more prestigious school (Meaning the most "important" school of whatever clan got them), but the second, third, ect kids could end up at pretty much any school.
>>47852277
There's also a few imperial siblings who join the Seppun. Presumably a handful have joined the Miya, but that's never actually stated, so it must be really rare.
So I have been Gm a L5R campaign for a bit, tending to avoid courts and stuff like that, or at the very least downplaying it. But It's time to go in and go all full courts and .. That kind of stuff.
How to I go about making this interesting and handling well, it's kinda why i have been avoiding. I just don't feel like i could pull it off as well as anything else.
Help please, tips, etc.
>>47852840
First off, make EVERYONE understands what etiquette, sincerity and courtier really do, because there is always some confusion. I would advise you to homebrew the rules slightly, because otherwise the whole becomes binary and unenjoyable.
Going to the court itself, have a precise layout of the court itself with private rooms, balconies and similar stuff. Secret meetings are bread and butter of courts.
Important info needed: Is it a major court or a provincial one. That alone is a big difference.
>>47852840
Think about which court you're sending them to - that alone will determine a lot of the mood and character.
If you can, find find the Winter Court trilogy, read any adventures on Kaze no Shiro, and check Emerald Empire, Sword & Fan, etc for ideas.
>>47852948
I guess like a mid-tier court. With mayors and lower level Clan and imperial officials. It's gonna be somewhere in the Crane lands.
>>47852277
Pretty sure the kids do have a bit of discretion here in asking for other schooling. I mean if the sitting Emperor/Empress says no you can't do shit about it, but asking if you can be a bushi instead of courtier might get approval.
>>47854381
It might, but most samurai kids, from the lowest of vassal families all the way up to the Imperials themselves, are slated for a specific school by the time they're five years old.
So TG, do you have any house rules you want to share? Like balancing weapons or schools, or changing how the taint works, etc. etc.
Personally, I changed the Hare school a bit. Made the Armor bonus from athletics also work in Full Attack Stance, as well as giving a 2k1 DR bonus when doing the bunny jump.
>>47854430
Also need to rethink how the Rank 5 thing should work (Feints damage in not limited by insight), but it's probably never gonna come up.
>>47854430
I disagree with it still working in Full Attack.
If you're in Full Attack, you are not defending yourself in any way. Just focusing exclusively on fucking up the other guy. Applying the armor bonus means that they're still defending themselves. It just doesn't mesh with how the stance is supposed to work.
>>47854456
I get what you're getting at, but I thought mostly from a mechanical perspective, as the bonus TN is not really "worth" getting beyond +5 and that it meshed better with the rest of their techniques, as you need to be in full attack stance for the jump (at least until Rank 4).
How different is the normal daily life of a monk and a shugenja, other than the shugenja being a samurai and having duties related to that?
>>47854430
I think the DR bonus is a fine idea, though as other anons have said making the armor bonus in FA stance doesn't really mesh.
House rules my group uses mainly deal with Masteries; specifically Spears, Staves, Polearms, and Knives since the 4e ones are just shit. We just replaced them though with the ones from FRO.
>>47854769
There's a lot of variation in both of those.
Shugenja perform a lot more duties though. They run weddings, funerals, bless crops, bless children, lead ancestral worship, spiritually purify other samurai, troubleshoot supernatural problems, advise religious matters, ect.
Monks can help peasants out, but they don't actually have a duty to perform religious ceremonies.
>>47854842
What's FRO?
And I guess you guys are right, the Armor TN doesn't really fit.
>>47854889
So, essentialy, Shugenja are priests and monks are monks?
>>47854911
Yeah, pretty much.
>>47854906
Five Rings Online. It's a massive chat based game of L5R. Here're their house rules for Masteries.
http://soul-of-the-samurai.wikispaces.com/House+Rules
>>47854430
The weapons are a major part I changed, but most importantly, I added a system for court to make it a bit more interesting.
>>47854943
Thanks anon, might make the weapons less shit.
>>47855072
Anything you want to share?
>>47855398
I made a simple system where a person has a base "relation to the PC, like Neutral/Friendly/Aggressive, and succeeding a check would shift said tendency by one. Every 10 points above the success would make it go one more to the aimed side.
As for the weapons, the Yari family got a reach ability giving an attack of opportunity against a charging character. Similar abilities for other of the weaker weapons.
>>47814625
"Wick sucks dick"
>>47855398
Part of the problem is that some of the Masteries are weapon-specific, like Knives 5 granting you a free Raise to Sai and Jitte. That's fucking useless and should have been just folded into a special ability for Sai and Jitte.
>>47822600
>The Wafting Scent of Danger
That's what I get after spending dinner at Unicorn-san's.
>>47809033
>Lost my L5R files
>Gone from /tg/ for countless eons because reasons
>See link to 4e files in OP
Awww yiss, data. Thank you.
>>47853577
Then make it feel like a crane court. Depict an ample garden, and numerous musicians and jesters. Emphasize clothing styles in discussions between courtiers.
>>47858723
This.
The Crane pride themselves on having the best courts with the most stuff to do. There's ALWAYS some event or another going on, even if it's just a curated stroll through a garden, or an unscripted haiku-a-thon.
If you end up in one of their courts, even if they're directly at war with your clan, they're going to be the best hosts they can be, with the best court they can make. They might just post a few more guards in your general vicinity (For your own safety, of course).
>>47859029
And the jesters might find more a liking to you for some unexplicable reason.
>>47854889
Shugenja perform a lot more duties for samurai - particularly higher status samurai. Peasants and ji-samurai are attended to by monks for things like weddings, etc that we'd normally associate with shugenja.
>>47860457
There are also non-shugenja "lesser priests" who are never really given much detail, but are mentioned for things like that.
One important part of the religion is that anyone with the correct knowledge and disposition can simply be a priest. There are ronin who become wandering priests simply because it's a better life than being a mercenary, and there are peasants who are functionally priests because they've been maintaining a shrine and appeasing the relevant fortune(s) for their entire life.
Monks can perform those duties too, yes, but it's mostly the "worldly" monks that do it. The more introspective monks would avoid presiding over layman ceremonies, since it takes away from time that could be spent meditating or punching a rock or whatever it is that they do all day.
>>47854430
>So TG, do you have any house rules you want to share?
Oh boy, where should I start?
So, my gaming group totally reworked the combat system. Instead of the bleak Free/Simple/Complex action setup we have an Initiative point like system where you can buy actions from your Initiative score. There is a maximum limit on how many Initiative points you can spend this way, and every action can be performed only once per turn. The actions themselves range from the usual Swift/Light/Normal/Heavy/Full Attack and Free/Simple/Complex Move to things like Focus (old Center Stance), Assessment (just like in a duel), and Dodge.
There are techniques and special abilities that allow a character to perform an action more than once per turn or combine two or more actions into a single action. For example, dual wielding allows the character to perform bonus Swift and Light Attacks with his off-hand weapon, and the Mirumoto Bushi turns this up to eleven by allowing off-hand Normal Attacks and giving an action that is four attacks rolled into a single action. My Mirumoto Bushi - built to maximize its school advantages - could make as many as fourteen attacks per turn... the dude was a fucking whirlwind of death.
The Wound system also underwent a change: there is now an amount of "dumb" wounds called Momentum that is drained by damage and confers no penalties for disappearing. It is more like a representation of how much "edge" and "wind" the character has in the combat. Once the Momentum drops to 0, the character gains the 'Disadvantaged' condition and his enemy can perform the 'Execute' action on him for an instantaneous incapacitation. But his allies can also perform the 'Revive' action to remove the Disadvantaged condition, and there are schools that can stir some shit here too (the Hida Bushi can revive himself while the Bayushi Bushi can do all sorts of sneaky executions).
>>47860830
Post it?
I know there's lots of good official art, but is there any fan art of this game that isn't garbage?
>>47864645
You mean general samurai & monk art?
>>47864990
No, specifically art of stuff in-setting.
>>47854418
Yeah. But don't forget, the clans want effective samurai too. There's examples in canon characters who were identified as better fits in other schools or rolls within their clan by their sensei early on and moved to better make use of their natural talents.
Like I doubt the Hida would force some kid who was unusually small due to sickness when he was 8 to go through their main warrior school, even if his ancestors are Hida bushi all the way back to the first of their line. It is equally honorable and extremely practical to learn about logistics or engineering with the Kaiu. If you can't fight right, you can make sure to arm and entrench the ones who can. And one of the most famous Crane duelists ever was actually shifted from the Kakita to the Daidoji schools at his sensei's suggestion despite that being what his father said for him.
>>47864063
Is she molesting that woman? Like the blood makes me think bloodspeaker, but the bondage and face the cuts are all over her chest make me feel like this is just some really violent lesbian affair
>>47866099
No. She's a maho-tsukai and she's just drawing blood from where it's easy to get to when standing behind her.
>>47811749
Nezumi politics are strange and mysterious.
>>47866099
>>47864063
Ahh, the Asako Inquisitors. Their shtick was accusing and handing out evil keywords (Shadowlands, Kolat or Ninja) to other personalities, then boning their players for having said personalities. Good for honor gaining, honor bombing, or just being jerks in battle.
>>47859836
>Bitch, I'm fabulous
>tfw attempting to gain tea secrets
>>47867041
Way back when, before the Dragon lost 2/3 orders, this guy was my favourite. Hate the art, though.
Urgh, can anyone point me to a 4e book that's got a lot of stuff on samurai retirement?
GMing my next campaign next sunday
My players rolled
- A Crab Shugenja (M)
- A Unicorn Battle maiden (F)
- A tattooed monk (F)
Quick synopsis :
>Scouts have reported a strange wooden box carrying the seal of a forgotten clan, eradicated during an Oni attack.
>The week-long battle to reconquer that town was legendary and led many families to glory
>This box almost certainly contains records from this battle - its contents could potentially change history and ruin noble families built upon false honor
What do you think?
>>47869319
Sounds like a neat plot point. I might steal it for later.
>>47869319
Sounds intresting.I would add a group of scorpions trying to get the box before the players and 2 rival families that would try to persuade the party to give the records directly to them to spice things up.
>>47868971
Not 100% sure if it's there, but i think u can find something about the retirement in emerald empire suplement.
>>47869402
Of course, the foes involved would be
>Scorpions, more blackmail stuff is better. Imagine if it says one of X's ancestor was actually a hero, they could have the descendants eating in their hands.
>Spiders, who would try to recover info collected about the demons
>Demented maho-tsukai who believes the Clan actually summoned the Onis and wishes to recreate the ritual
Since Crab shugenjas have bonus against Tainted, I figured I'd throw him a bone.
>>47869526
Spiders would be a bit too obvious imho. What would u think about crane or lion clan scouts disguised as ronins trying to get the box to protect thier family honor. Crab wouldn,t be able to find the corruption in them so it wuold make an intresting plot twist.
>>47869599
Considering the party is probably a group of magistrates... wouldn't it be strange for any regular samurai to follow through with orders against them? I can understand ninja... but Akodo Joe who has no idea that his great grandpappy lied his way to the top?
>>47869599
Crane, I can see. Lions wouldn't compromise and do shamefurr things though.
Then again, it's their very first RPG, so I'm not doing anything too sophisticated.
Can someone explain the card game to me in a few sentences?
>>47869647
>Lions wouldn't compromise and do shamefurr things though.
>Ignoring the Ikoma
>Not recognising that 'never breaks honour, ever' is honour 9-10, while most Lion sit about three ranks below that.
>>47869617
You should never allow the players to start as magistrates (this gives to much power in rokugan society) only let them work for one of magistrates. It doesn't give them any authority over npcs. And remember that the loyality to the empire not always comes first in rokugan. Many times great clans put their own buisness over imperial responsibilities. Another piont woul be the fact that lions and cranes would do many things to protect thier honor and ronin disguise let them hide thier affiliation and stay "clean".
>>47869694
It is dead atm. And rules are too complicted to explain it in few sentences.
Sell me on the Spider Clan. What do they add to the setting? Do they make for good party members? Do they make for good stories?
>>47869694
You have two decks.
One is your fate deck, which contains actions, items, etc, and draws into your hand.
The other is your dynasty deck - personalities (attach items), holdings (produce koku to pay for personalities and items, etc). This deck draws into four 'provinces' - essentially slots to hold a single card face down.
At the start of your turn, you flip over your province cards, take certain actions / attach items, send your personalities over to destroy provinces, and then buy cards out of your provinces.
Losing all your provinces is a military loss.
Paying extra for personalities and doing other stuff to gain honour can take you over 40 honour, and that's an honour victory. Going below -19 honour is a dishonour victory for the other guy.
Reaching special conditions for all five ring cards and putting them into play is an enlightenment victory.
>>47869721
Spider pcs are intresting addition to the party becauose they can do things other samurai would never do. They are not following bushido code, but its twisted version called shurido, which is the path of self improvment without any restrictions. They have also shugenjas possesing the knowledge of blood magic maho, and monks which use the dark arts and heavy weapons (naginatas, bisentos and other more exotic weapons). The only problem is that most of other clans don't trust them so it is really hard for players to rember that they shoul not trust spiders or be even hostile (crabs for example). On the other hand they can be really useful and add depth to PC paty.
>>47869721
They exist because people didn't like one faction (Shadowlands) being ganged up on in the ccg. While the Susumo almost reached the point of either truly being on the side of Iweko's empire or serving in Kanpeki's evil empire, AEG ditched it into FFG's lap / Kanpeki went tainty-murdery before either result came about.
Their techniques might be worth allowing, conditionally and without taint effects, but I wouldn't let them be part of the setting as written.
>>47869846
>people didn't like one faction (Shadowlands) being ganged up on in the ccg
*and having entirely separate tournament results. They was the other thing they wanted to work on. Getting everyone aiming at the same story prizes.
>>47869846
And it gave AEG an option to prepare any deck archetypes other than pure military decks/ chi death control decks.
>>47869876
Unfortunately, their idea of "same story prizes" boiled down to "decide how will the Spider fuck you and get away with it."
>>47840112
I prefer thte Sparrow Clan as well.
Bumpu
>>47869930
And open them up to dishonour loss.
>>47870073
Hence 'wanted', I suppose.
>>47869721
If they had managed to show us the spider turning Rokugan evil, or the Spider and Lost splitting into separate factions, then I could back allowing Spider PCs.
So, when do you think we'll get word on how ffg intends to handle the rpg? Anything at all would be nice even if it is just a timetable for it
>>47875690
I expect they're going to focus on the LCG for a little while. I predict we don't get any substantive news on that front until after the card game's first cycle, with MAYBE some hint about their plans in 2017 when the LCG core box is launched.
>>47875690
They said Gencon 2017. I personally hope earlier though. The wait is killing me.
>>47875690
>>47876037
So what are you guys hoping for them to do with the rpg, mechanically speaking? Keeping roll-and-keep is a given, but anything else?
For myself, I'd love if Shugenja stopped being semi-vancian.
>>47876102
I think shugenja work just fine with having more spells the more in tune they are with a given element.
The only thing weird about the casting system is that it's a hard cut-off, when it should have an ever increasing difficulty after your allotted spells. Every spell after the "slots" you get should require you to call a raise for no benefit, and then two raises for no benefit, and so on, with the raises representing the difficulty of continuously calling on the Kami without insulting them.
>>47876102
To give us a proper mechanic for court stuff. The few skills are NOT enough.
>>47876102
I'd like to see them take a crack at rebuilding the damage and injury mechanics. High lethality is good but at a certain point it becomes rocket tag, where defense can't even come close to keeping up with attack. In my games we toy with adjusting reduction and how ATN is calculated to see how well we can do it, but nothing seems satisfactory.
My favorite vassal family is the Raikuto of the Hiruma, and now all of you know it.
Is there a good source on the vassal families? I think I haven't seen a single word about them in 4e. Don't they exist anymore?
>>47878957
Many of the more notable ones are given a few paragraphs each at the end of the Great Clans books.
>>47878971
Thank you senpai.
Alright, chucklefucks. How hard would it be to play a gaijin?
Before you go on some wild inquisition, this is the concept I have half-baked inside my mind right fucking now:
>Runaway negro slave from Civil War period US
>Runs westward, becomes a damn good tracker/gun-for-hire for a small town
>Bros with the tribe that taught him his skills and is totally banging the town mayor's smoking hot daughter
>Is challenged by a trickster spirit to a drinking contest; wins
>"Reward" is a one-wayor so he thinkstrip to Rokugan
The main reason I'm posting this is because I want to know whether or not it would even be possible, not if it would be recommended.
TL;DR: I want to play pic related in a game with magical weeaboos, backstabbing schemers, and HONORABU COMBATTU. Is it possible, y/n?
>>47881632
No, because there's no rules for playing as miscellaneous gaijin, and the legal system has "kill first, ask questions never" as standard operating procedure when it comes to gaijin for the vast majority of its history. Even when gaijin aren't kill on sight, they're contained in very specific areas and held to cultural and legal standards that they don't fully comprehend if they ever leave those areas.
>>47881722
Ok, so how would I make it work within the current rules, then?Other than just playing a ronin, of course.
>>47881632
No, because even if you invent a country that had firearms as advanced as the wild west (the only other guns in setting are medieval era flintlocks and canons). Even if Rokugan was magically accepting of him. Even if he just magically learned Rokugani. Even if he brought equipment and ammo with him, he'd never be able to restock. He lacks the lifetime's worth of training a regular bushi already has. The only ones who would teach him swordsmanship are ronin, and even though it'd take years for him to even reach rank one... assuming his sensei could even put up with him.
>>47881749
You don't. Unless the GM has a very specific game idea about gaijin contact and going full high level politics, you don't. There is no lost gaijin in Rokugan who aren't basically in hiding or lost in the woods and dont' realize they made it to the far side of the Shinomen Mori.
>>47881749
>Other than just playing a ronin, of course.
That's the only way to make it even remotely possible within the rules.
And even then, he'd probably have to be some kind of freakish dream construct that was expelled from Yume-do (Which has happened exactly once in the fluff) and somehow landed in Ningen-do. And even then, nobody would care because he's unmistakably some unknown kind of gaijin.
This is not the setting for stuff like that.
>>47881773
>>47881776
>>47881862
So how would *you* do it, then? I don't mean to sound challenging or combative; I'm genuinely curious to see your solutions and to see if I could maybe apply them myself to make my concept even remotely viable.
I'd still like to run this character, but maybe you guys can show me how to make it actually *work.*
>>47881632
Let's put it like this. There are rules for playing a snake-person and a rat-person.
There are rules for playing as a person who has been trained by a mystical crow-samurai
There are no rules for playing as a Gaijin.
>>47882003
I wouldn't do it, because it would require houserules from the ground up and wouldn't work at all unless the entire campaign is centered around it.
>>47882003
You don't. You do not play a gaijin in L5R unless the game is set in the Burning Sands or the GM specifically wants to do a game about contact with gaijin.
>>47882010
Also this. Basically gaijin aren't something you can play without GM cooperation effectively because the setting doesn't have wiggle room for it.
>>47882003
The closest thing to possible would be if the campaign was set in the Ivory Kingdom or even beyond those borders, something this game isn't really made for. If he was NOTeuropean or NOTarabic, it could kiiiinda work with the unicorn, since they and the tortoise clan have relative knowledge of those places, but beyond that? Demons and devils.
>>47882003
Why are you even trying to play L5R if you don't want to play a character that's even remotely within the setting's standards? Play something else.
>>47882238
Because I want to have fun. Because talking about cool character concepts interests me, even if they are impossible/crap/completely bonkers. Because I wanna be the guy who has those cool storytimes about doing that one thing at that one time that made the campaign enjoyable for the rest of the group.
Also because I enjoy making outside-the-box scenarios for you guys to ponder over.
>>47882325
If you just want to play a gaijin in Rokugan (guns notwithstanding), then my suggestion is to play as an Ivinda Kshatriya who was adopted into the Mantis or Unicorn or a gaijin from another culture who was accepted into the ranks of the Unicorn through marriage or services rendered.
All that being said, your original concept is never going to get off the ground unless your GM is helping you along because there is no other way for it to work. Aside from him being a gaijin who doesn't speak Rokugani, he also has guns and gunpowder; This would see him dead the moment somebody sees him use them.
>>47882325
I'm sorry man, it's just not the game for that. The game is tightly focused and doesn't stray too far from what it does. You're going to either need to make a normal character within the setting or play something else.
And honestly, when I sit down to play a game about samurai with strict ethics and a rigid social structure and someone came to me and insisted on playing a special black outsider I would immediately label them that guy.
You could go play 7th Sea where it would be a bit more viable. Or even Burning Sands if you want to stay in the same setting. But if neither of those work there are plenty of kitchen sink style settings to fit weird concepts into Not!Japan. I wish you the best of luck, honestly, I think it's a cool concept just in the wrong game.
>>47882325
There's plenty of room to do "outside the box" characters in L5R, but this would be like insisting you play a Vietcong (complete with equipment) in Greyhawk. It's just so far out of what the setting does that it's entered the realm of absurdity.
>>47882842
Don't be a dick.
If the group is down for it, you can totally play the gaijin in l5r. Burning sands, gunpowder nations (whatever they were before being wiped out by plague), ivory kingdoms. Just as you can play the nezumi, naga, etc.
The foreigner just needs to be disguised, or approved by someone official enough that not everyone wants to kill them.
>>47883163
There's still the issue of the character's presumed skillset being gunslinging. He'd be worthless to any group of people trying to get anything accomplished unless it was a gunpowder-wielding rebellion.
>>47883185
I also think I mentioned tracking as part of my skillset. That could be more useful.
But yeah, I don't think gunslinging would do me any good outside of really niche cases.
>>47883234
Okay so your character has Investigation as a skill. Now try and justify literally any other skill to me.
>Any social skill
Nigga, the Rokugani grew up in this bullshit and they still barely know whats going on.
>Any weapon skill besides guns or bare handed
Not without years of training
>Any lore skill
No.
>>47883286
Actually, he'd have Hunting, not Investigation.
>>47883163
If his group wants it, I guess. I just agree with >>47883140
It would hardly be L5R with some dude who is less than human by social standards and doesn't have any skills like >>47883286 said. I'm honestly not trying to be a dick. The dude is trying so hard and I just don't think it's going to work out for him.
>>47883325
My bad, senpai.
The other bigass hurdle is that the skills in L5R actually follow the fluff for the most part. Knotwork is a subsection of sailing because Rokugani schools don't teach you how to use advanced knots without also teaching you how to sail.
Improvised weapons fall under jiujutsu because Rokugani schools don't teach you how to fight with anything that comes to hand without first teaching you how to fight with the hand itself.
There are actually separate gaijin Skills for similar applications. The Yobanjin have their own skill for using Swords that has different mastery abilities. The gaijin gun users have a different skill than the one developed by the Rokugani in that one alternate reality because they literally teach and learn it differently.
>>47883334
True, the suggested character blows chunks for being appropriate, but Rokugan isn't quite so hermetically sealed as some seem to think.
Gaijin are only slightly above ruthless war heroes in terms of infamy. Crane & other clans have had trade and relations with yobanjin (Phoenix has a village for half-castes), three clans train with the Ivory Kingdoms remnants, Dragon/Phoenix/Unicorn/Scorpion have dealings with the Burning Sands ...
Thus far I've only mentioned stuff that has 4e viable schools, paths, or at least weapons.
>>47883622
None of them allow extremely obvious gaijin to just wander around unchecked. The Phoenix village is for half-Rokugani, and the Ivory Kingdom gaijin are still strictly kept out of Rokugan proper.
Literally the only gaijin allowed in are from the Burning Sands, and only when the Unicorn vouch for them as samurai.
A random non-asian American dumped into Rokugan has a lifespan measured in however long it takes for a magistrate, bushi, or ashigaru to notice his presence, which is basically however long it takes for the local peasants to send a runner to the nearest outpost, town, or watchtower.
>>47883622
Infamy =/= legality.
Gaijin are banished by direct Imperial edict, and blackpowder is banned on pain of death for causing the death of an Empress and being a blasphemy. Some clans get away with having gaijin because they're at least partially Rokugani, and the Moto are allowed because a literal actual God said that they've got the souls of Samurai and they've been intermarrying anyway.
A random gaijin might not be the most "infamous" thing in Rokugan, but that doesn't mean the xenophobic society won't try to kill him for being a gaijin who is carrying something that is anathema to their religion.
Has anyone ever ran the 'tournament of Minor Clans" before, and if so, any house rules or changes I should do? Or any tips and suggestions otherwise, like for prizes or whatever.
I wanna run a 16 player topaz championship.
No NPC participants.
Just the championship.
>>47885060
On one hand, I'm always up for a game of L5R. On the other hand, I doubt this is a good idea.
The salt would be immense.
>>47884544
>Infamy =/= legality
Never said it had to. Let's take another example. Yoritomo Singh. Proof positive that not all of Rokugan is 'kill on sight, gaijin dog anathema' retarded. Just some of them, and some of the player base.
http://l5r.wikia.com/wiki/Yoritomo_Singh
>>47884544
>that doesn't mean the xenophobic society won't try to kill him for being a gaijin who is carrying something that is anathema to their religion
Also, stop dealing only with the example. I've already said it's a shit example, and have been talking in generalities of actual gaijin races.
Gaijin!Anon here, I didn't mean to cause this massive flamewar. Honest, I just wanted to posit my idea and have you guys offer critique on what was wrong and other building blocks for me to use to fix the wrong bits.
Can we all just get along?Protip:NOAND WE NEVER WILL
>>47885908
As with the guy who wanted to play a commoner, you're probably better off playing a Ronin. You can get the same underdog/fish out of water feel to it, without all the headache.
>>47885734
Singh specifically was brought in through the Mantis in a way not unlike desert moto and like others had noted before he doesn't 'just' exist in the setting. He's tied to the Mantis narrative, he's accepted and approved by the clan champion, he isn't just some char gen level dude.
You can have gaijin. You just need to make sure with your GM it is that kind of game. Otherwise? No. Just some rando, or trying to insert a gaijin into what is intended to be an Emerald Magistrate campaign busting criminals and maho users or somethimg, would be the opposite of good playership
>>47885908
Breaking the mold is fine, so long as it makes sense. It's just the wrong setting for that particular character. There are plenty of ways to break the mold of a standard L5R character without resorting to gaijin or guns.
>>47884544
Lots of things have killed various Emperors over the centuries, yet gunpowder is the only thing that gets banned? Sounds like Rokugani are scrubs who are just jealous because they don't have guns.
>>47886779
No shit, the writers just needed an excuse as to why Rokugan has had jack shit in terms of technology development in 1000 years.
