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L5R: Two Dead Emperors (Slight AU)

Started by kckolbe, July 16, 2015, 10:56:47 AM

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kckolbe

Well, if you want to go with a yari, then I would recommend the spell Yari of Air.  I think it makes sense, though.
Ons/Offs  A/A  Oath of the Drake
(From the Penis Game) Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Penis
I love a wet nymph.  "Letting some guy have [her] just to have another woman is a losing trade"

Buffy: The Vampire Slayer(IC#2)
Intro Thread

Flying Tengu

All you shugenja getting into the thick of the melee are going to give Shiori stress headaches.

This is not saying that you shouldn't do so.  Just sayin'.

kckolbe

Quote from: hellrazoromega on July 24, 2015, 03:15:48 PM
Deep down Fumiko is defiant and fears her betrothed may try to 'tame' her of her wild ways, whether or not that is true I an content to leave open to the GM.

I'd rather have a bit more direction.  I don't mind rolling up and playing NPCs to further a story, but if I have to come up with the whole concept then I am not giving you points for it.  I am just WAY too lazy for that. 

Quote from: hellrazoromega on July 24, 2015, 03:15:48 PM
I'll just switch out the blade and take the Wary and Lip Reading advantages instead which would make her one year older since that is one more XP. To the last question I would say that would depend on the though process of those you send to a new clan. If you send only 'average' Bushi is that an insult? Do you send some exemplary Bushi so as not to insult? I guess it goes back to the question of wheret or not the Crab want the Owl to succeed and be close allies or not. If the Crab see the Owl as allies guarding their backs then why not send them some of your up and comers.

Honestly, I have no problem with you having the sword if you want to go the route of her being sent as a gesture of strength, or even goodwill.  Just own it.  Write that shit in her background, that the Crab wanted to show that the Shadowlands beasts will always be their duty, so they sent Crab to the Owl to help with it.  Hell, give her a bit of glory if you want as well.  I didn't challenge you on it to get rid of it, but to force you to decide a bit more on her past and flesh it out for me so I know what I can do with her.
Ons/Offs  A/A  Oath of the Drake
(From the Penis Game) Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Penis
I love a wet nymph.  "Letting some guy have [her] just to have another woman is a losing trade"

Buffy: The Vampire Slayer(IC#2)
Intro Thread

Muse

  What on eaerth is shourido? 

  Getting to work on my 20 questions now. 
A link for all of us who ever had a shouting match with our muse: http://www.ted.com/talks/elizabeth_gilbert_on_genius.html

How to set this Muse ablaze (O/Os)

When the little angel won't appear no matter how many plum blossoms you swirl:  https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=135346.msg16474321#msg16474321 (Major update 5/10/2023)

kckolbe

Shourido is a philosophy believed to have originated in the Shadowlands that received attention in the Clan War due to Crab diplomats who worked with Shadowlands forces.  The philosophy, which has yet to receive official acknowledgement, is something of a curiosity in Rokugan right now, especially among the Crab, though other clans have varying levels of support for it.  Oddly, the two clans most opposed to it are Crane and Lion, a rare philosophical alliance.
Ons/Offs  A/A  Oath of the Drake
(From the Penis Game) Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Penis
I love a wet nymph.  "Letting some guy have [her] just to have another woman is a losing trade"

Buffy: The Vampire Slayer(IC#2)
Intro Thread

Summer

Quote from: Muse on July 24, 2015, 07:00:31 PM
  What on eaerth is shourido? 

  Getting to work on my 20 questions now.

Shourido is Bushido's antithesis; while Bushido focuses on what you can do for others, Shourido places emphasis on the self.

Shourido's tenets:

Control is to manipulate the situation so that events may arrive to a single conclusion you desire.
Determination is to carry out what needs to be done regardless of what stands in your path.
Insight is the ability to understand and use knowledge, to see it for what it is so that it may be used.
Knowledge is the knowledge-stuffs; without knowledge, you lack understanding and the tools necessary to conduct yourself.
Perfection is self-explanatory, and involves growing stronger as a person in all things and measures.
Strength is having enough power to do what needs to be done.
Will is having the capability to think for yourself so as to prevent being led astray or manipulated.

This is a good little thing that might be useful -- http://www.lowfierce.com/kazenoshiro/7/h7e04p05.htm

Basically, Shourido *can* be construed in such a way as to be honorable and just -- those without strength cannot actually protect the weak, for example -- it was created to draw a rift of philosophies, if I'm not mistaken.
My on's and off's

Currently refraining from accepting roleplay partners while I consolidate/prepare for some that are starting up. I do not want to accidentally neglect a roleplay for being overzealous.

Muse

Thank you.  :) 

I have ten of kotone's 20 questions done so far.  They're at the bottom of she sheet, just above the effects of her spells: 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1pDiKxEC0U2ndYLtYCctV2CTnKtkmEDs-D6mROL-DpbA/edit
A link for all of us who ever had a shouting match with our muse: http://www.ted.com/talks/elizabeth_gilbert_on_genius.html

How to set this Muse ablaze (O/Os)

When the little angel won't appear no matter how many plum blossoms you swirl:  https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=135346.msg16474321#msg16474321 (Major update 5/10/2023)

hellrazoromega

Quote from: kckolbe on July 24, 2015, 04:12:33 PM
Honestly, I have no problem with you having the sword if you want to go the route of her being sent as a gesture of strength, or even goodwill.  Just own it.  Write that shit in her background, that the Crab wanted to show that the Shadowlands beasts will always be their duty, so they sent Crab to the Owl to help with it.  Hell, give her a bit of glory if you want as well.  I didn't challenge you on it to get rid of it, but to force you to decide a bit more on her past and flesh it out for me so I know what I can do with her.
Ah I see my mistake I took you saying that you were not crazy about it as a sign that you were against it, that was my error.

Speaking if which --- I have a partial background Background (WIP):

Hiruma Fumiko cannot recall a time when her mother was not a respected Scout. Though she was scout Hiruma Moriko brought great honor to the family blade and  was a terror to the denizens of the Shadowlands. Moriko was rumored to be able to slay such foul things with little warning. Growing up Fumiko only wished to emulate her mother and earn some measures of the glory her mother had. Fumiko trained hard  and followed every bit of her mother advice. Her trining included trips beyond the Wall and to a number of other places the crab directed. Fumiko Honored her father but never had much of a  relationship with him and she was less than thrilled when he used hi influence to betroth her to a man she had only seen from across a room. To escape what she saw as attempts to tie her down she spend as much time as she could scouting. So it was that she earn her name, slaying a Revenant which had slain all but one other of her squad. This feat earned her not only her mother respect but her blade as well. Moriko moved on to train others to stalk the Shadowlands. This also made her a candidate for the newly formed Owl Clan as the Crab wanted to honor their new brethren  in the fight against the darker things by sending them a a warrior who would bring honor to both Clans, the Owl through her service and the Crab through their 'gift,' of a warrior blooded against a foul creature. For her part Fumiko saw a chance to forge her own path a perhaps extend this attempt to tie her down. Moriko knew that no matter her daughters Clan she was still Hiruma and that Fumiko would bring honor to the blade she bore. Eager to make her place in the Owl Clan she set out to bring Glory and Honor to her new Clan.
Let me knw if I need to adjust.

Dropped Read Lips, picked up Sacred Blade--left the rest as is making her 24.
Character Summary
Clan: OWL
Insight Rank: 1
School: Hiruma Scout School
Rank: 1
Insight:
Hair: Black and wild
Eyes: Brown
Age: 22
Height: 5' 5"
Weight 120 lbs.
Status/Taint
Honor: 4
Glory: 1
Status: 1
Taint: 0
Rings and Skills
Earth 2, Stamina 2, Willpower 2
Air 2, Reflexes 3, Awareness 2
Water 2, Strength 2, Perception 3
Fire 2 Agility 3, Intelligence 2
Void 2

Hunting: 2----------------------Perception 5k3
Kyujutsu: 2---------------------Reflexes 5k3
Kenjutsu: 3 (Katana)--------Agility 6k3 1k0 to damage rolls

Stealth: 3 (Sneaking)---------Agility 6k3 Simple Move actions in stealth allow Water x5
Defense: 3-----------------------Reflexes 6k3 Keep a defense roll for subsequent rounds.
Athletics: 3---------------------Strength 5k2 No impediments from moderate terrain. Difficult terrain only reduces water ring by 1 rather than 2
Lore (Shadowlands) 1-----Intelligence 3k2
Medicine 1---------------------Intelligence 3k2
Artisan (Origami) 1 ---------Awareness 3k2
Advantages & Disadvantages
Wary 2
Sacred Weapon 6
Kaiu Blade
Quick Healer 3
Silent 3
Crab Hands 2

Antisocial 5 -1k1 to all social rolls
Contrary 3
Bitter Betrothal 2
Combat
Kaiu Blade Attack 6k3, Defense 6k3, Damage 6K3  -2 to reduction, unbreakable.
Tanto Attack 6k2
Han-Kyu--- Range 100' Str 1, Attack Roll 6k3, Damage 1k0
Willow leaf Arrows (20) 2k2
Flesh Cutter Arrows (5) 2k3 (Double Armor TN bonus from armor, 1/2 range
Armor Piercing Arrows (5) 1k1 (Ignore Armor TN bonus from Armor)
Ashigaru Armor: TN Bonus 3, Reduction Bonus 1

Initiative: 4k3+3
Base TN: 20
Current TN 23
Current Reduction 1
Wounds: 0=10,+3=14, +5=18,+10=22, +15=26, +20=30, +40=34 (Must spend void to attack), Out 38.
Healing: Quick Healer: (Stamina+2)x2+Insight=11

School
Rank 1
Dance the Razors Edge: Add Stealth Rank to initiative rolls, , Can make Food, Water and Jade last twice as long for a number of people equal to Hunting skill rank (3). Add 1k0 to stealth rolls when in the Shadowlands and always know the direction of the Empire and roughly how far away it is.
Equipment
4 Fingers of Jade
--Blanket
--Bottle of water
--Chopsticks
--Flint and Tinder
--Grapple Hook
--Miniature Go set
--Rope (50')
--Week's Rations
--Whetstone
--Small metal bowl/ cook pot
Traveling Pack
Metal Mirror
Medicine Kit
Tatami mat
Several strips of old cloth about 2' wide and 12"-18" long all in muted browns and grays
Traveling cloak.
3 large dark silk scarves.

kckolbe

Would like to see a point of glory added if you can spare 3 points.

Also, 4 fingers of jade?
Ons/Offs  A/A  Oath of the Drake
(From the Penis Game) Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Penis
I love a wet nymph.  "Letting some guy have [her] just to have another woman is a losing trade"

Buffy: The Vampire Slayer(IC#2)
Intro Thread

Annaamarth

Hellrazoromega- might Fumiko have spent any of her time closer to the wall, either patrolling farmlands or merely travelling from one place to another?  Fumiko may have met Kuni Tora, or even Maseko herself, or may have heard about the oni and the maho-tsukai cell in crab lands.  If they haven't met, is there any reason Maseko might have heard of you?

Boss- I mean GM (KC?  Kolbe?), I kind of like the idea of a Shugenja who acts mostly like a Mantis, thinks kind of like a Scorpion, and fights like a Crab.  The Yoritomo school emphasizes knife-fighting, because that's all the fighting that's expected of a Yoritomo Shugenja, so she'd have exposure to yarijutsu and chain weapons but may not have learned either.  Going toe-to-toe with an Oni alongside a pack of Crab would have taught her that everybody fights and a Shugenja better have a backup plan- spells take time that you may not have.

So now I'm picturing this girl sauntering into town, straw hat on her head, piece of straw in her mouth, loose linen kimono in a Mantis cut but in Scorpion red and black, with a tetsubo slung over one shoulder.  Reaction of anyone seeing this- "What the fuck am I looking at?"

No Katana though, which would mean that she carries a tetsubo without considering herself bushi.  Or she just doesn't like the idea of carrying a katana next to Crane lands where all those Kakita Duelists can take offense to that- or anything else.
Ons/Offs

My sins are pride, wrath and lust.

hellrazoromega

Quote from: kckolbe on July 24, 2015, 08:49:12 PM
Would like to see a point of glory added if you can spare 3 points.

Also, 4 fingers of jade?
Yeah the fingers of Jade are a hold over from the last game  played her in. Let me know how many would be available in your game.
Quote from: Annaamarth on July 25, 2015, 03:15:06 AM
Hellrazoromega- might Fumiko have spent any of her time closer to the wall, either patrolling farmlands or merely travelling from one place to another?  Fumiko may have met Kuni Tora, or even Maseko herself, or may have heard about the oni and the maho-tsukai cell in crab lands.  If they haven't met, is there any reason Maseko might have heard of you?

Boss- I mean GM (KC?  Kolbe?), I kind of like the idea of a Shugenja who acts mostly like a Mantis, thinks kind of like a Scorpion, and fights like a Crab.  The Yoritomo school emphasizes knife-fighting, because that's all the fighting that's expected of a Yoritomo Shugenja, so she'd have exposure to yarijutsu and chain weapons but may not have learned either.  Going toe-to-toe with an Oni alongside a pack of Crab would have taught her that everybody fights and a Shugenja better have a backup plan- spells take time that you may not have.

So now I'm picturing this girl sauntering into town, straw hat on her head, piece of straw in her mouth, loose linen kimono in a Mantis cut but in Scorpion red and black, with a tetsubo slung over one shoulder.  Reaction of anyone seeing this- "What the fuck am I looking at?"

No Katana though, which would mean that she carries a tetsubo without considering herself bushi.  Or she just doesn't like the idea of carrying a katana next to Crane lands where all those Kakita Duelists can take offense to that- or anything else.
Fumiko has a reputation for being a 'wild child' who spends too much time out scouting (And yes I see time in the farmlands on the Rokugan side of the Wall would have been part of her duties), so Maseko could have heard of her that way. Their common link of having slain a Shadowlands creature would have caused Fumiko to seek Maseko out, they could have meet that way. The fact that Crab were invilved would have made this all the more likely.

kckolbe

I would like for everyone to broad stroke a minimum of one NPC that your character has met that is now in the Owl Clan.  I don't want skill levels, just family, role (as in bushi, courtier, etc), and a few details about them.  As a heads up, the Lion will make up the li-plurality of the Clan.
Ons/Offs  A/A  Oath of the Drake
(From the Penis Game) Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Penis
I love a wet nymph.  "Letting some guy have [her] just to have another woman is a losing trade"

Buffy: The Vampire Slayer(IC#2)
Intro Thread

HopeFox

Well, Keitaro and Shiori obviously already know each other, but for another...

Bayushi Kanzen was a Scorpion bushi, alongside whom Keitaro fought in several skirmishes in the War of Spirits. While Keitaro could not fault Kanzen's courage on the battlefield, he always suspected that Kanzen was pursuing some kind of secret mission for the Scorpion at the same time, mostly because Kanzen kept bragging about being on a secret mission for the Scorpion. Keitaro briefly tried to figure out what was going on beneath Kanzen's layer(s) of misdirection (if any) and eventually concluded that unravelling Scorpion plots wasn't something he was trained for. Throughout the campaign, he learned that he could trust Kanzen with his life in battle, but probably with nothing else.

Finding Kanzen in the Owl Clan will strike Keitaro as highly suspicious.
If you're such an iconoclast, where were you when we trashed Constantinople?

kckolbe

Great deduction by Keitaro.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oL895peZpqY

Mind adding a random Lion as well?  I plan on a lot of Lion NPCs.  The daimyo will be a Lion, as a reward for their loyalty.
Ons/Offs  A/A  Oath of the Drake
(From the Penis Game) Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Penis
I love a wet nymph.  "Letting some guy have [her] just to have another woman is a losing trade"

Buffy: The Vampire Slayer(IC#2)
Intro Thread

Flying Tengu

#89
Every Lion unit of a certain size has an Ikoma bard.  They're good for morale for a number of reasons: they cheer up the troops by verbally recognize those who perform well, and every Lion performs a little bit better knowing that their deeds will be chronicled.  Shiori's scout unit was too small, but they reported back to their company command.  That's where she met Ikoma Saburo.  He was a member of the Ikoma Bard school, although you would hardly know it if you encountered him off duty.  He is large, tan, and weathered, with the appearance more of a veteran soldier than a courtier.  Furthermore, in private conversation, he is a man of few words, communicating with grunts, gestures, or words of as few syllables as possible.  It is only when speaking in an official capacity that he grows verbose.

Ikoma Saburo, now serving the Owl, has been tasked with leading the chronicling of their history.  It is also his responsibility, when visiting other courts, to make sure that other clans are properly aware of the Owl, and their place in Rokugan.  Perhaps owing to all this new duty, he has begun using even fewer words in private conversations, as though saving them up for the long speeches he gives to the delegates of other clans.

Annaamarth

The coastal city in the proposed clan territory is Oni Mura.  In case it's not clear, that used to be a Crane city.

The battle at Oblivion's Gate cost Rokugan (and the Crab) the bulk of their jade stores.  As a jade shortage has continued since then, a few years ago a significant amount of jade mysteriously disappeared from temples and estates at Mura Sabiishi Toshi, about 200 miles along the coast to the North of Oni Mura.  As it happens, Maseko was in the city at the time, serving under her sensei aboard Yoritomo Kobe's vessel, which had been moored there for three days.

Naturally, Kakita Musune, the city magistrate, inquired amongst the Mantis as to whether they had seen any unusual jade traffic lately.  They had not, of course- if they had, they would have told the city magistrate and his enforcers right away, naturally!

Kakita Musune was not a sailing man and did not employ sailing men (being new to the position at the time) and never noticed that Kobe's ship was missing some crew... and one of it's small boats, which might be suitable for travelling the rivers or coasts of Rokugan.

A few days later, Maseko (along with Kobe's ship) left Mura Sabiishi Toshi and travelled south, where they... replaced a missing launch at Oni Mura.  A striking coincidence, that such a vessel, so similar to the one that had been missing, should have been found there, no?  The ship then departed for Crab lands.

Kakita Musune, being a magistrate local to the area, may well have been selected as part of the Crane's tithe.  He may or may not recognize Maseko- and if he does, he may not be happy to see her.

Maps

Distances and names found here.
Compared to original map, here.
Did I mention that Maseko doesn't like the Crane?
Ons/Offs

My sins are pride, wrath and lust.

kckolbe

Oni Mura is more village than city, largely due to the "oni" part of the name.  Not sure why a Mantis ship would be sailing there.

I'm just not comfortable with this one.  Admittedly, the goal is to get you guys to create some of the nobodies that your char might know that are invisible in Rokugan. 

Ons/Offs  A/A  Oath of the Drake
(From the Penis Game) Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Penis
I love a wet nymph.  "Letting some guy have [her] just to have another woman is a losing trade"

Buffy: The Vampire Slayer(IC#2)
Intro Thread

Muse

  Oh.  I was about to start building someone who might be a bit of a thron in my side.  A lecherous glorious bastard of a Lion clan bushi who's experience as a battlefield leader makes him valuable, but who was sent far from lion lands (to owl lands) after molesting someone important. 

  Is that something you'd like to see more of?  Or shall I focus on someone less formidable? 
A link for all of us who ever had a shouting match with our muse: http://www.ted.com/talks/elizabeth_gilbert_on_genius.html

How to set this Muse ablaze (O/Os)

When the little angel won't appear no matter how many plum blossoms you swirl:  https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=135346.msg16474321#msg16474321 (Major update 5/10/2023)

kckolbe

Definitely less formidable, and prefer a neutral-ish relationship, more a "hey I know that guy"
Ons/Offs  A/A  Oath of the Drake
(From the Penis Game) Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Penis
I love a wet nymph.  "Letting some guy have [her] just to have another woman is a losing trade"

Buffy: The Vampire Slayer(IC#2)
Intro Thread

Summer

#94
I think this is a good time to supply my own NPC, thus.

Born into a peasant family in a farming village, Nakano Haru felt the call of the ascetic life and he chose to answer it shortly after the age of twenty, when his village and family were stable enough to no longer need him. Shortly thereafter, the War of Spirits began, and Haru -- making use of his firm build and endurance built up from labor -- took on the path of a komosu, offering aid to those who were in need of it, especially in the areas most heavily affected by recent battles.

Once the war had seemed to be nearing its conclusion, Haru -- as many other people had -- traveled to Dragon lands to speak of spiritual matters amongst the monks that more permanently resided there. It was during his stay that he met Yuu, and he regaled the interested girl with talks of the many years he spent helping others and what he had learned from it. The stay hadn't been long -- little more than a week, perhaps -- before he left Dragon to travel once more. With the war completed and his own age starting to catch up with his activities, Haru decided to bring his journey as a wandering monk to an end when he came across a small, inornate shrine that was in moderate disrepair, seeing it as an opportunity and calling to help take up the responsibility himself.

Said shrine is coincidentally in Owl lands, and he was not aware this his stories had helped to push Yuu into wanting to take a mushu shugyuu that had prompted her daimyo to assign her to the Owl. Were they to come into contact with each other -- if Yuu were to visit some of the outlying shrines, most likely, or he were to receive word of her deeds nearby -- it would likely be a pleasant affair.
My on's and off's

Currently refraining from accepting roleplay partners while I consolidate/prepare for some that are starting up. I do not want to accidentally neglect a roleplay for being overzealous.

Annaamarth

Quote from: kckolbe on July 26, 2015, 09:30:47 AM
Oni Mura is more village than city, largely due to the "oni" part of the name.  Not sure why a Mantis ship would be sailing there.

I'm just not comfortable with this one.  Admittedly, the goal is to get you guys to create some of the nobodies that your char might know that are invisible in Rokugan.

I can change it.

Oni Mura being a village is why a Mantis village could pick up a "missing" boat along with some "missing" crew who fled another location with "missing" jade.  In other words, my ship stole jade from the crane, a couple of guys smuggled it either down the coast, or, more likely, upriver (avoiding the Daidoji training grounds, because Mantis are not dumb) to portage the whole mess from near the bridge to Nishiyama Mura to Oni Mura, so that those crew members could be picked back up by the ship and take the whole mess back to Crab lands to sell it for a tidy profit.  I was going towards a "just on the suspicious side of neutral" relationship.

But I can change it.  Thinking.
Ons/Offs

My sins are pride, wrath and lust.

kckolbe

Hey everyone!  Here's your one stop shop for all War of Spirits history (let me know if there are any questions)

1136:
The Phoenix devise a ritual which will render a spirit mortal. Toturi issues an edict that all returned spirits must either submit to this ritual or commit honorable suicide and return to the afterlife. Many spirits obey, but many more do not.

1138:
The Crab and Crane battle on the Yasuki border.  Following a rejected demand from Yasuki Masashi, a brief but bloody clash erupts between the Crab and the Crane.

Hantei XVI seizes the Phoenix Children. A spirit force led by Hida Tsuneo and assisted by the disgruntled Dragon daimyo, Agasha Tamori, seizes Kyuden Isawa in a bold raid. The children there, including those of the Elemental Masters, are taken hostage.

Hantei XVI Demands the Throne. Hantei Okucheo arrives in Otosan Uchi and demands Toturi surrender the Throne to him. Toturi refuses. The Hantei is infuriated when Shiba Tsukune, the Phoenix
Champion, refuses to turn on Toturi in spite of his holding her clan’s children hostage. Hantei declares war on Toturi and the War of Spirits begins.

1139:
Battle of Fallen Ground. The first major battle of the War of Spirits, fought near the Lion-Phoenix border, pits a spirit army under Hida Tsuneo against a mainly Lion army under the general (and former Akodo ronin) Akodo Ijiasu. It is a mortal victory, albeit a costly one. Tsuneo is prevented from attacking Otosan Uchi and falls back on Kyuden Isawa.

The Phoenix children are freed. Hantei XVI’s murder of the Master of Earth’s daughter causes the Phoenix to rebel and drive the spirits from Kyuden Isawa.

1142:
The Battle of Shallow Waters. A mortal army comprised predominantly of Lion troops is attacked by a much larger spirit army in a river valley on the edge of the Golden Sun Plain. The Lion fall back on a fortified camp; the camp is eventually overrun, but its sacrifice allows most of the mortal army to withdraw intact.

1145:
Battle of Shiro Iuchi.  Spirit forces manage to capture the seat of the Iuchi family after a hard-fought battle. The sometime-ronin Shinjo Morito plays a key role in the defense.  In recognition of his valor at Shiro Iuchi, Shinjo Morito’s claim to the land he and his followers have occupied near the Phoenix border is recognized by Emperor Toturi. This eventually leads to the creation of the Ox Clan in 1158.

1146:
The Second Battle of White Shore Plain.  A mortal army of Unicorn, Scorpion, and Phoenix troops engages and defeats a spirit army at White Shore Plain, then moves to retake Shiro Iuchi. A young Scorpion bushi named Bayushi Paneki reputedly infiltrates a spirit camp and poisons their food supply, swinging the following day’s battle in favor of the mortal army and allowing Shiro Iuchi to be retaken.

1147:
The Mantis sail to the Ivory Kingdoms.  After actively participating in the War of Spirits during the first few years, the Mantis Clan seems to all but disappear from the Empire from this time forward.  Many think the Clan Champion, Yoritomo Aramasu, is showing disinterest in the Empire’s woes, but in reality Aramasu and the Mantis are obeying an order from Toturi to sail to the gaijin lands known as the Ivory Kingdoms and assist the ruling maharajah against an aggressive rebellion by the Cult of the Destroyer. The Mantis are largely successful, and Rokugan avoids a new threat from overseas…at least for a time.

Yasuki Oguri and Yasuki Kamoru executed for membership in the Kolat.  Whether investigators happened to stumble onto the identity on their own or the Kolat exposed someone with conflicting loyalties is unknown, but Yasuki Oguri, the Master of Coin, and his son Kamoru, who had been appointed heir to the position, were caught by Seppun Toshiken and eventually allowed to commit seppuku.  Before dying, Oguri named many other semi-important positions within the Kolat, thus averting what would have been an execution.  This move had the ironic effect of weakening the Empire, as the Kolat had been firmly aligned with Toturi against Hantei XVI, and the blow significantly weakened their ability to support, though not their resolve. In addition, Toshiken sustained significant wounds due to an ambush while investigating.  (inserted)

1148:
With the Yasuki family daimyo and his only child dead, battles between Crane and Crab resume, each trying to claim control of the leaderless family once more. (inserted)

1149:
The Battle of Drowned Honor.  Hida Tsuneo moves to take control of the key Scorpion city of Ryoko Owari. A combined mortal force of Crab and Scorpion troops engage his force, marking one of the first major commitments of Crab troops to the war and the first time they have stood against Tsuneo.  The mortals win, pushing Tsuneo away from the city, but the victory is costly: Hida Yasamura, the husband of Crab Champion Hida O-Ushi, dies with an arrow in his throat, fired from the bow of a spirit Crab.

Battle of Kiken and Roka Toshi.  With the Mantis diverted and the Crab focused on Ryoko Owari, spirit forces were able to sail up to the coastal palace without hindrance, successfully taking the city.  Supplies in the city were scarce, and despite the short distance from the capital, reinforcements could not arrive before the city was taken and reinforced.  This was a huge blow for morale of Toturi forces. (inserted)

1150:
Month of the Goat: The Battle of Quiet Winds.  Determined to end the suffering caused by the ongoing war, Toturi marches the bulk of his army south through Beiden Pass to join a large waiting Scorpion force. He finally achieves the decisive engagement he seeks at the Battle of Quiet Winds, so-named because the day of battle is still and sultry. However, at a crucial moment the Scorpion appear to change sides and join the spirits. Toturi’s army is forced to withdraw, with only a valiant and sacrificial rearguard action by the Lion preventing a total rout.

Month of the Goat: The Fall of Beiden Pass.  Driven from the field at the Battle of Quiet Winds, Toturi’s army retreats northward through Beiden Pass, seeking to regroup and prevent the Steel Chrysanthemum from threatening Otosan Uchi. At the urging of Bayushi Baku, Hantei XVI orders Hida Tsuneo to send the spirit army in pursuit. However, this is actually a trap of Scorpion design. When most of the spirit army is in the Pass, Phoenix shugenja collapse it, burying and destroying the spirit army.

Month of the Monkey: Hantei sends a messenger to Toturi to negotiate the terms of surrender.

Month of the Rooster: Lord Sun creates the Great Crater.  The destruction of Beiden Pass leaves the Empire without a major direct route through the Spine of the World Mountains. In answer, Lord Sun hurls fire into the mountains near the ancient Seikitsu Pass, creating the Great Crater and reopening a route through the peaks.

Month of the Rooster: Treaty with the Spirits.  With the bulk of his army lost, Hantei XVI finally agrees to negotiate with Toturi. In exchange for peace, the Stag Clan is created, headed by Hantei Ochukeo. In return, Hantei Ochukeo renounces his claim to the Throne of Rokugan, bringing the War of Spirits to an end.

Month of the Boar: Winter Court begins at Kyuden Gotei, the Mantis Clan Palace.  The new Great Clan, championed by Hantei Ochukeo, is announced as the Stag Clan, with Hantei Masashi (formerly Yasuki) founding the Masashi family, vassal to the Hantei.  The Crab Clan is given 1 month to name a new daimyo to the Yasuki family, the previous daimyo and only heir having committed seppuku during the Spirit War.

Month of the Rat: Akodo Reijiro is named the daimyo of a new Minor Clan, the Owl, which will carry his name.  Toritaka Reju is named the sensei of the Owl bushi school.  Crab name Yasuki Mayako daimyo of the Yasuki family.

Month of the Ox: Territory for the two clans is finalized.  In addition, Toturi decrees that not only must all Clans send "two tenths of one percent" of their samurai, but that "all families will be represented."  Locations in Rokugan are designated as points for those to declare their change of fealty, the majority in Lion lands.  Imperial ambassadors would be sent to both the Crab and Crane to determine which of their samurai would be tithed.

Month of the Hare, 1151: All "tithed" samurai report to the various locations across Rokugan to announce their new fealty and travel to Owl lands.
Ons/Offs  A/A  Oath of the Drake
(From the Penis Game) Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Penis
I love a wet nymph.  "Letting some guy have [her] just to have another woman is a losing trade"

Buffy: The Vampire Slayer(IC#2)
Intro Thread

Annaamarth

NPC stuff!

Koritome Tsukasa of the Koritome, vassalized to the Matsu, was not the finest Koritome archer to ever live... but certainly a match for most Tsuruchi.  The Tsuruchi claim that the Lion father of their forbear was himself a Koritome, and in honor of that a handful of Koritome are allowed to visit Mantis lands to practice with the Tsuruchi, or even serve with the Tsuruchi bounty hunters.  Tsukasa was one such Samurai, and while Maseko was sailing with the Mantis her ship transported him, Tsuruchi Fuki, Tsuruchi Jun and Tsuruchi Tatsuya (a group of Tsuruchi bounty hunters and archers) from the Mantis islands to the mainland.  Tsukasa was a handsome young man and Maseko flirted with him a bit during the voyage... largely to make the straightlaced Lion squirm.

In such ways do Mantis pass the time aboard ship.
Ons/Offs

My sins are pride, wrath and lust.

kckolbe

All right folks, I'm back.  Tomorrow I am going to go over character sheets.  If your character isn't finished by the end of the day tomorrow, I am going to move forward without you.  The first IC post will be up this week, taking place outside Owl lands.  Am thinking nonconsensual human system groups for the section.
Ons/Offs  A/A  Oath of the Drake
(From the Penis Game) Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Penis
I love a wet nymph.  "Letting some guy have [her] just to have another woman is a losing trade"

Buffy: The Vampire Slayer(IC#2)
Intro Thread

Muse

*Smiles* I'd like to voice my aproval on that section.  :) 
A link for all of us who ever had a shouting match with our muse: http://www.ted.com/talks/elizabeth_gilbert_on_genius.html

How to set this Muse ablaze (O/Os)

When the little angel won't appear no matter how many plum blossoms you swirl:  https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=135346.msg16474321#msg16474321 (Major update 5/10/2023)