Writing story/World dEvElopMEnt Dan Comrie, Jed Carlton, Shawn Carman, Shawn Carman Douglas Sun, Lucas Twyman, Brian Yoon AEg prEsidEnt Editing John Zinser Rob Hobart, with Jon Hall, Brent Keith, David plAytEstErs Lepore, jim pinto, Todd C. Rowland Lynn Ahlgren, Becky Anderson, Alex Andersson, Dave Ashley, Terry Baldwin, Brian Bates, Kathryn CovEr Art Bayne, David Black, Tom Brown, Jeremy Bullins, Edge Entertainment Chris Burns, Jed Carleton, Brett Carlos, Ryan Carman, intErior Art DJ Chagnon, Patrick Chen, Christian Corriveau, Drew Baker, Paul Carrick, Liz Danforth, Scott Coutcher, Rob Dake, Steve DiPesa, Aien Elmi, Carl Frank, Scott James, Dave Leri, Eric Lofgren, Charles Etheridge-Nunn, Greg Fitzimmons, Charles Malcolm McClinton, Anson Maddocks, Fox, Joel Fry, Les Fulbrook, Darrick Harring, Angela Craig Maher, Jennifer Mahr, M.A. Nelson, William Harris, Jim Harris, Paul Hartmann, Kim Hosmer, O’Connor, Ben Peck, Michael Sutfin, L.A. Williams Heath Hunt, Errol Jarc, Paul Jenkins, Ashely Jetsico, Stephen Johnstone, Alex Jones, Jason Kang, Chad CArtogrAphy Kindell, Ki Chang Kim, Eric King, Chris Koch, Ed Bourelle Erin Kogan, Christopher LaHaise, Roger Liang, grAphiC dEsign C.J. Lesinksi, Tom Lewis, Paul Meador, Steven Rodney Saenz, jim pinto Mileham, Catlin Mills, Cory Mills, Brad Moenster, Dan Moenster, Arthur Nguyen, Benjamin L. Noble, CrEAtivE MAnAgEr John O’Neil, Alan Olson, John Olson, Ed Owen- jim pinto Jones, Patricia A. Pettinati, Danny Pichette, Jamie produCtion MAnAgEr Elizabeth Pinault, Molly Poole, Catherine Prickett, David Lepore Marc Quintard, Steven Rioux, David Robotham, Matt Schenck, Jon Schwartz, Mike Scott, Jason produCtion MAnAgEr Leticia Hayler Shafer, Nathan Shafer, Alexander J Skrabut, David Smith, Liza Strout, Matt Strout, Mark Turner, Mike sAlEs MAnAgEr Webb, Joe White, Roger Winter, Matt Wright Daniel Ray dEdiCAtion shippingSample MAnAgEr This book is dedicated the fans offile LBS who survived Jon Hall in the desert all these years. BrAnd MAnAgEr Todd C. Rowland

1 introduCtion Dahabi Merchant (Diplomat) ...... 111 Introduction ...... 5 Advantages ...... 111 Tales of Yesterday and Today ...... 7 The Qabal ...... 112 How to Use this Book ...... 8 The Politics of Sorcery ...... 114 What is Familiar ...... 8 Mechanics ...... 116 What is Unfamiliar...... 9 Qabal Factions ...... 116 A Foreign, Not Alien Land ...... 9 Qabal Agent (Diplomat) ...... 116 The Line of the Prophet ...... 10 Qabal Summoner (Sahir) ...... 117 Rokugan and the Gaijin ...... 11 Magic ...... 117 The Five Disciplines ...... 118 ChAptEr onE: rulEs of plAy Advantages ...... 124 Basic Game Mechanics ...... 13 Roll and Keep ...... 13 ChAptEr thrEE: thE AshAlAn Rings and Traits ...... 19 Ashalan...... 127 Character Creation ...... 22 Overview ...... 128 Skills ...... 27 History ...... 129 High Skills ...... 28 Political and Social Organization ...... 134 Merchant Skills ...... 34 Laws ...... 134 Combat Skills ...... 36 Government ...... 135 Low Skills ...... 39 Leadership ...... 135 Advantages ...... 42 Ishanti Crystal ...... 136 Disadvantages ...... 48 Religious Beliefs and Mythology ...... 136 Equipment ...... 53 The Souls of the Twelve ...... 136 Playing the Game ...... 61 Ceremony of Souls ...... 137 Combat Resolution ...... 61 The Masters of Magic ...... 138 Tahaddi (Knife-Fighting) ...... 68 Eternally Faithful ...... 138 Spellcasting ...... 70 Culture and Language ...... 139 Void Points ...... 71 Tattoos ...... 139 Suffocation/Drowning ...... 72 Reproduction ...... 140 Poison and Disease ...... 72 Sandsmithing...... 140 Powders ...... 76 Language ...... 141 Building Character ...... 77 Mechanics ...... 141 ChAptEr tWo: MEdinAAt Al-sAlAAM Basic Abilities ...... 141 Medinaat al-Salaam ...... 83 Ashalan Equipment ...... 142 Overview ...... 84 The Blood-Sworn (Warrior) ...... 144 Government ...... 84 Children of Midnight (Sahir)...... 144 Economics ...... 86 Heart-Seekers ...... 145 Landscape ...... 87 Sun-Riders (Diplomat) ...... 146 Demographics ...... 89 Ashalan Sandsmith ...... 148 History ...... 90 Magic Items ...... 148 The Caliphate and the Khadi ...... 95 Ashalan NPCs ...... 148 The Caliphate Today ...... 99 Caliphate and the Law ...... 99 ChAptEr four: thE AssAssins The Assassins ...... 151 The Qadi Today ...... 100 Overview ...... 153 Mechanics ...... 100 Secret History ...... 154 City Guard Weapons ...... 100 History ...... 155 Soldier of the City Guard ...... 101 Political and Social Organization ...... 162 Free Sahir...... 102 Mechanics ...... 163 The Heartless Khadi ...... 102 Assassin Factions ...... 163 Advantages ...... 103 Assassin Equipment...... 165 Houses of Dahab ...... 104 Assassin Slayer (Warrior) ...... 166 Origins ...... 104 Assassin Keeper (Diplomat) ...... 167 Houses of Dahab Today ...... 105 Assassin Duelist ...... 168 The Qolat ...... 105 New Skill/Emphasis ...... 169 The Qolat Masters ...... 107 New Disadvantage ...... 169 SampleMechanics ...... 108 file Magic Items ...... 170 The Houses of Dahab ...... 108 Assassin NPCs ...... 170 Dahabi Enforcer (Warrior) ...... 109 Dahabi Bargainer (Sahir) ...... 110

2 table of contents

ChAptEr fivE: thE rA’shAri New Maneuver ...... 239 Chapter Five: The Ra’Shari ...... 173 New Advantages ...... 240 Overview ...... 175 New Disadvantages ...... 240 History ...... 177 Magic Items ...... 240 Political and Social Organization ...... 179 Yodotai NPCs ...... 241 The Great Caravan of Mysticism ...... 180 The Great Caravan of Entertainment ...... 180 ChAptEr Eight: thE JACkAls The Great Caravan of Commerce ...... 181 Chapter Eight: The Jackals ...... 245 The Great Caravan of Memory ...... 181 Overview ...... 246 Religious Beliefs and Mythology ...... 182 History ...... 247 The Ra’Shari and the Jinn ...... 183 Political and Social Organization ...... 249 Culture and Language ...... 184 Religious Beliefs and Mythology ...... 249 The Life of a Nomad ...... 186 Culture and Language ...... 252 Language and Naming Practices ...... 186 Mechanics ...... 253 Mechanics ...... 187 Jackal Weapons ...... 253 Ra’Shari Factions ...... 187 Jackal Characters ...... 254 Ra’Shari Knife-Fighter (Warrior) ...... 188 Jani (Warrior) ...... 255 Ra’Shari Trader (Diplomat) ...... 189 Necromancer (Sahir) ...... 256 Ra’Shari Diviner (Sahir) ...... 190 Kabir (Diplomat) ...... 258 The Cokaloi of Dawn ...... 190 Magic Items ...... 259 The Cokaloi of Dusk ...... 191 Jackal NPCs ...... 260 The Cokaloi of Night ...... 193 ChAptEr ninE: thE EBonitEs Ra’Shari NPC ...... 195 Chapter Nine: The Ebonites ...... 261 Overview ...... 263 ChAptEr six: thE sEnpEt History ...... 264 Chapter Six: The Senpet ...... 197 Political and Social Organization ...... 267 Overview ...... 197 Political Structure ...... 267 History ...... 199 Social Structure ...... 268 Political And Social Organization ...... 204 Religious Beliefs and Mythology ...... 270 Religious Beliefs and Mythology ...... 206 The Ebon Stone ...... 271 Culture and Language ...... 208 The Virtues ...... 272 Mechanics ...... 211 The Code ...... 273 Senpet Characters...... 211 Other Religions ...... 273 Senpet Equipment ...... 211 Culture and Language ...... 275 Senpet Legionnaire (Warrior) ...... 212 Culture ...... 275 Senpet Charioteer (Warrior) ...... 213 Language ...... 276 Senpet Sahir (Sahir) ...... 214 Naming Conventions ...... 277 New Paths ...... 215 Mechanics ...... 278 Avatar of Ten Thousand (Warrior) ...... 215 Ebonite Equipment ...... 278 New Spells ...... 216 Ebonite Templar (Warrior) ...... 278 Disadvantages ...... 217 New Paths ...... 279 Magic Items ...... 217 Magic Item ...... 280 Senpet NPCs ...... 219 Martial Arts ...... 280 ChAptEr sEvEn: thE yodotAi Ebonite NPCs ...... 282 Chapter Seven: The Yodotai ...... 221 A Letter to Moto Chagatai ...... 223 AppEndix History ...... 223 Appendix ...... 283 Political and Social Organization ...... 227 Creatures of the Burning Sands ...... 286 Religious Beliefs and Mythology ...... 230 Special Abilities ...... 290 Culture and Language ...... 233 The Jinn ...... 291 Mechanics ...... 234 Jinn Creation Templates ...... 293 Yodotai Characters ...... 234 Jinn Creation Tables ...... 293 Yodotai Equipment ...... 234 Negotaiting with Jinn ...... 295 Yodotai Legionnaire (Warrior) ...... 236 Map of the Burning Sands ...... 296 Yodotai Mercenary (Warrior) ...... 237 Character Sheets ...... 297 Sample Yodotai Berserker (Warrior) ...... 239 Index ...... 299 file

3 Sample file Introduction

The Empire believes that Moto Chagatai is a barbarian, but From the Journal my Khan is not without mercy. So many others would simply of Iuchi Yue have demanded I take my own life as penance for my failure, do not remember how long it has been since I came to this but the Khan only told me to correct my mistake. He sent me I accursed place. out into the Empire to find the scroll, to bring it back. I gleefully In truth there is much I can no longer remember. There was agreed, eager for the sweet release of revenge. no daylight in the room where they have kept me, no means for I tracked the thief to the Phoenix lands. I met a strange little me to measure the passage of time. I feel quite certain that it has man, I thought perhaps he was one of those who took the scroll. I been years since I was taken, but I cannot say with any certainty. discovered later that he was a Phoenix Inquisitor, a man who devoted Months, at the very least. his entire life to crushing the darkness that consumes the souls of I wonder what my family believes has become of me. At the men. I wish that I could remember his name, but that is one of the very least they think I failed them, and I suppose that is true. many things that has been taken from me by time and suffering. That pains me far more than any of the suffering my captors He and I traveled together for a time, but the scroll and those who have inflicted upon me. took it escaped our grasp. In time, we parted ways. I am not entirely My family was charged with protecting an ancient artifact of certain what happened after that. I wandered the northern Phoenix great power, perhaps one of the most dangerous and powerful lands, hoping to find any clue of what had happened to the scroll. I items ever wrought by the hands of man. A Black Scroll, which went to sleep one night in my camp. I woke up… somewhere else. contained a fragment of the power of the dark god, Fu Leng. Or I do not know where I have been. I do not know who the men it did once. We could never be certain if it was still as powerful as and women are who hold me. I am kept in a dank, miserable it once was, but what did it matter? It was no less dangerous. As room with very little light. They come and take me somewhere daimyo of the Iuchi, I was honored with the duty to protect it, as else. They ask me questions, subject me to… unpleasantness. were those who swore their loyalty to me. At first they came every few hours. Then it became days. I ISample failed my Khan. The scroll was stolen. believe now that weeks or even monthsfile pass in between their Even now, after so long, I do not know for certain who attempts to get information from me. I will not waver. I will not took it. allow them to break me. I will tell them nothing.

5 introduction

I have failed my Khan, but I will never betray him. My “host” tells me that I have been given a few days of freedom Two days ago I saw the sun. It was so bright that I think it may to build my strength. The quality of food they have given me is have permanently damaged my vision. I did not complain. After so much improved, and I can feel the strength I once felt, so long ago. long in darkness, I do not care how painful the light may be. My My host says that we are taking a journey, a long sojourn that will captors have changed. The dark-eyed men who used to torture me take us well outside of the boundaries of Rokugan. He has not said are gone, replaced with a well-dressed, portly man who speaks to that I will not be returning, but I believe that is his intention. me with laughter in his voice. He is soft and weak. I could kill him, I feel so many things right now, I do not know what troubles or I could have before so long in the darkness left me weak, but I me most. know that the men with the dark eyes are not far. I have but to Is it that I may never see my home again? reach out my hand for his neck, and they will be at my side, cutting Is it that I am so excited to see the lands my ancestors once traveled? my throat. I do not care. Death would be a release. Is it that these men no longer think I am a threat? I may still find the scroll. I must live. Or is it that, in my heart, I believe they are right? My host claims that he has ordered my release. He says that if I had anything that could have been valuable to him and his Far from the borders of the Emerald Empire, there lies allies, I would have told them long ago. Now, he says, nothing a vast desert, blasted barren ages ago by the wrath of I have to say would be accurate. How long? How long was I in Lady Sun, inhabited by races, creatures and civilizations the darkness? thoroughly foreign to the Emerald Empire. It is a place I have been supplied with scrolls and ink. I am free to write where water is the most precious commodity, cursed for whatever I wish. I wonder if they will read it while I sleep? eternity yet blessed with a miraculous oasis on which Somehow I doubt it. I believe the man when he said that there is the great city of Medinaat al-Salaam, the Jewel of the nothing I have to say that would interest him. Desert, sits — prospering for a thousand years.

Sample file

6 introduction

The samurai of the Emerald Empire as a whole view That intersection, and what has happened to the foreigners as abominations who do not belong in the various peoples of the Burning Sands since then, Celestial Order, and would rather not have any contact maybe be summarized thusly: with it and its inhabitants. And yet they cannot deny The great city of Medinaat al-Salaam was founded its existence; the Ki-Rin Clan spent centuries exploring by a coalition of tribes living in the most blessed spot it at great hazard to themselves before returning to the in the Burning Sands, a place where popular trade and Emerald Empire as the Unicorn. Their current ruling travel routes came together, drawn by geography and a Family traces its history to a time when they were rare abundance of water and other natural resources. barbarian nomads wandering through its wastelands. The city grew and prospered, and developed into a city- The Scorpion Clan spent years of exile there, returning state governed by two distinct, but linked offices: that from Medinat al-Salaam with one of the myste-rious of the Sultan, who decreed the laws of the city, and the Ashalan race in their company. More recently, the Caliph, who administered those laws assisted by judicial dark cult known as the Jackals has made overtures to lieutenants known as qadi. Daigotsu’s Spider Clan, warning them of dark portents The modern history of Medinaat al-Salaam and the from beyond the Empire’s borders. Burning Sands begins with the rise to power of a former This is the land known as the Burning Sands. It slave girl named Hanan, who acquired the Senpet is a rich and wondrous world all to itself, and yet its Book of the Dead and made herself immortal using the history is bound with that of the Emerald Empire, so knowledge gleaned from it. She became a sahir (magic- that one could not undo the tales of their intersection user) of great power, and Caliph by wide acclaim. Once with undoing the entire skein of Time itself. installed in office, however, she supplanted the qadi . with her undead lackeys, and burned all of the libraries in the city, so that no one could ever learn enough arcane knowledge to match her power. Known as the Immortal Caliph, Hanan used her considerable powers Tales and immortality to rule the Jewel of the Desert for two centuries, reducing the Sultanate to a mere figurehead. of Yesterday When the Immortal Caliph was at the height of her powers, a people from the west known as the and Today Senpet approached Medinaat al-Salaam. Once a great empire, the Senpet had wasted much of their energies on constructing monuments and neglected proper agriculture and other essential underpinnings of a great The history of the Burning Sands is not a single story, civilization. As a result, their empire was beginning to but a series of stories belonging to different peoples decline. The Caliph, sensing a chance at magnifying that happen to intersect in time and place. Unlike her power, allied herself with the Senpet Pharoah the Empire of Rokugan, which (despite its political Hensatti, and began incorporating the Senpet into her quarrels) is populated by a single people guided by government. Refugees from the Empire of Rokugan — the same religion and mythology and who express a the Scorpion Clan, banished for their alleged complicity relatively unitary culture, the Burning Sands embrace in the disappearance of Emperor Toturi I — came with a variety of ethnically and culturally distinct peoples. the Senpet, who had enslaved them. Their stories are told through historical timelines A race of astoundingly successful conquerors called presented at the beginning of Chapters 2–9, each of the Yodotai also appeared in the Burning Sands at whichSample is devoted to one or more different Factions. around this time, launching anfile unprecedented (if The intersection of those stories is also recounted ultimately unsuccessful) attack on the Jewel itself. through the storyline of the Legend of the Burning Sands The Immortal Caliph’s rule came to an end with the Collectible Card Game. cataclysmic events known collectively as the Awakening.

7 introduction

Hanan was finally defeated, and the shattering of an ancient and mysterious object known as the Black Stone brought forth powerful jinn, led by one named Kaleel, intent on the destruction of the world. Only a coalition of sahir and other jinn, known as the Celestial Alliance, How to Use could oppose them. The Celestial Alliance prevailed, but this struggle between light and dark more than left its This Book mark on the Jewel of the Desert. The Scorpion Clan slipped their shackles and returned to Rokugan. At this point, the storyline told in the Legend of the Burning Sands CCG came to an end. Over 30 years have Legend of the Burning Sands is aimed at two categories passed in the Burning Sands since then. The tyrant of readers. One is players who are already familiar Hanan was succeeded as Caliph by Adira, a member of with Legend of the Five Rings Roleplaying Game, and who the Order of the Mountain, the sect also known as the are curious about how this exotic, gaijin land — many Assassins. Adira stirred controversy by bringing many of hints of which have already appeared within the borders her fellow Assassins into the Caliphate’s administrative of the Empire of Rokugan — might be made to fit with structure, but otherwise her rule restored much-needed their existing experience of the game and the setting. calm to the Jewel of the Desert. After 20 years as Caliph, The other group is readers interested in the Burning her health failed, and she stepped down in favor of her Sands as a setting, but who might not be familiar with son Puja, who still rules. Legend of the Five Rings or the Third Edition rules. Some of the Factions whose tales wove together to To that end, Legend of the Burning Sands contains not form the modern history of the Burning Sands have just detailed information on nine key Factions from gone into eclipse; the Ashalan and the Ra’shari joined the Burning Sands (the Khadi, the Houses of Dahab/ the Celestial Alliance during the Awakening, and many Qolat, the Ashalan, the Assassins, the Ebonites, the of them ascended into the heavens with their victory. Jackals, the Ra’Shari, the Senpet and the Yodotai), Others saw their roles irrevocably altered. The Order but also a chapter containing as much of the Legend of of the Ebon Hand, known as the Ebonites, formed the Five Rings Roleplaying Game rules as you need to get to guard the Black Stone; now that it is shattered, started roleplaying in the setting. Many rules (Chapter and now that they have defeated the Cult of Rumahl 1) will be familiar to existing players, but some will not and the Jackals — their two primary enemies from the — and we will explain what this book shares with other time before the Awakening — they have entered the books in the product line, and what it doesn’t share. Caliph’s service as a sort of police force for the Jewel of the Desert. The decline of the Senpet Empire only What Is Familiar worsened after the death of their ally Immortal Caliph; If you wish to roleplay in the Burning Sands, or bring a the Yodotai quickly recovered from their failure to Burning Sands character into a Rokugani context, you will take Medinaat al-Salaam, crushed the Senpet and use just about all of the basics of the Legend of the Five Rings incorporated them into their empire. Roleplaying Game Third Edition system. Some terminology So although the tale of one age came to an end with appropriate for Rokugan, but not for the Burning Sands, is the Awakening, the tale of the age that follows has yet changed here, but the mechanical concepts underlying these to be told in full. terms are the same. Character creation and advancement, using Skills, and resolving Skirmishes all work just the same. SampleWhat Isfile Unfamiliar However, there are also important mechanical differences between roleplaying in the Burning Sands and in

8 introduction

Rokugan. The most significant of these is probably the dueling rite of iaijutsu. However, the cultures that share magic system; though the five Elements make up the Medinaat al-Salaam do recognize their own common fabric of the physical universe just as they do in Rokugan, form of single combat; it is called tahaddi, and it involves the civilizations of the Burning Sands have developed fighting with a knife in each hand instead of a sword. approaches to magic that differ from the Rokugani Chapter 1 describes the rules for resolving a tahaddi practice of cultivating those born with the gift of speaking duel, replacing wholesale the iaijutsu rules that are part to the kami. These are described in the Faction chapters of the L5R RPG system. Chapter 1 also introduces a as appropriate, particularly in the part of Chapter 2 that Skill and an Emphasis called Tahaddi, to cover expertise describes the Qabal, and rules enumerated therein by and in this stylized form of combat. The Iaijutsu Skill is large supplant the magic system laid out in the Legend of removed from the Skills list because it is not native to the Five Rings Roleplaying Game Third Edition. the Burning Sands, existing there only through the Another important difference involves the Traits relatively marginal influence of the Scorpion Clan. Honor and Glory, both of which are social constructs Some Advantages/Disadvantages that make relatively that have meanings very specific to Rokugan. Outside little sense outside of a Rokugani context, such as of the Empire, in cultures with different mores, they Benten’s Blessing or Imperial Spouse, are deleted or are rather less meaningful. Therefore, Burning Sands altered so that they are more compatible with Burning characters have Traits that are roughly comparable, but Sands characters. not exactly the same: Integrity instead of Honor, and Reputation instead of Glory. Their exact definition and A Foreign, Not Alien Land mechanical functions are discussed in Chapter 1. Legend of the Burning Sands is a book about a place that Another culturally specific concept that does not is foreign to the Rokugani, but not unknown by any translate from Rokugan to the Burning Sands is the means; and about peoples whom the Rokugani would (by and large) rather not know, but whose existence Translating Across they cannot deny. The Burning Sands is not Rokugan, but neither are the two completely separate. Their histories run in parallel, and sometimes intersect in لامرلا ةقرتحملا ضرألا لامرلا ةقرتحملا ضرألا odd and interesting ways; one might even say that their The fact that the Rokugani concepts of Honor fates are more closely connected than anyone in either and Glory are broadly similar to the Burning region realizes. Sands Traits of Integrity and Reputation, yet do We invite you, then, to welcome this book as an not translate directly into them, is not without expansion of the Legend of the Five Rings universe, not mechanical implications. When a character a replacement for it or a mere appendix to it. It is a from one culture enters the other, some attempt departure from our usual focus on Rokugan’s epic saga at converting one into the other may become and an invitation into an exotic place with its own rich necessary. tapestry of stories to tell. It is a place that, admittedly, If a situation arises where approximating Honor Rokugan would rather not acknowledge. But the for a Burning Sands character or Integrity for a Burning Sands and the Empire of Rokugan are part of Rokugani character becomes necessary, reckon the same world joined under Heaven, and one can only that the foreign Trait is half of his equivalent conclude that their occasional intersections are part of native Trait, rounded down to a minimum of 1.0. Heaven’s inscrutable will. For instance, if you needed to determine Honor for a Burning Sands character with Integrity of The Line of the Prophet Sample6.3, it would be 3.1. Use the same formula to In the ancient history of the realmfile where Medinaat al- reckon Glory and Reputation. Salaam now sits, there was a prophet long ago, a brilliant but enigmatic little man who helped the various peoples of the Sands find some degree of common ground

9 introduction

have prevented one universally accepted version from ever being widely distributed. For those intimately familiar with both the history of It is also noted in Chapter 1 that money takes Rokugan and the history of Medinaat al-Salaam, the somewhat different forms in Rokugan and the timing and actions of the Prophet and his descendant Burning Sands. If your campaign never leaves make it quite clear that Mekhem was the name by which the borders of the Burning Sands, translating Shinsei, the legendary “Little Prophet” of Rokugan, from one economy to the other should not be an was known in that area. Somehow he survived his trip issue, as both economies are self-contained and to the Shadowlands alongside the Seven Thunders, and work well on their own terms. defeated Fu Leng only to leave Rokugan behind and However, if your campaign involves economic spread his wisdom to others. Likewise, his descendant encounters between these two worlds, then you Duqaq was known in Rokugan as the Hooded Ronin, may use the conversion ratio 1 koku = 1 copper who aided the reborn Thunders in defeating Fu Leng as a rough guide. Of course, you may subject once again, then retired to the Sands to continue his this rule to significant local variation, as a Yasuki ancestor’s work in shaping the Awakening. trader might pause over how much he should value Both Mekhem and Duqaq disappeared when their a copper coin, or a Dahabi merchant scratch his work was done in order to ensure that their line head over what he could get for a koku of rice. continued, for there is much work to be done before where before there existed only hostility and animosity. this age comes to its conclusion. The son of Duqaq, His name was Mekhem, and he was known simply as a man known as Rosoku in Rokugan, returned to the Little Prophet. His wisdom was recognized by all Rokugan far earlier than anticipated, only to be killed cultures, all peoples, without question. He accepted by an assassin. So far as anyone knows, the Prophet’s pupils of all stripes and creeds, without exception. Any line has ended. Rumors persist of Rosoku’s infant son who wished to learn at his feet were welcome, and those being taken into seclusion by the Keeper of the Five honored to call him master eventually returned to their Rings to be trained to carry on his father’s work, but people and spread his message of understanding and no one can confirm such things. tolerance to all who heard them. In time, his wisdom Rokugan and the Gaijin was given form in a book simply called The Forty-Seven The Rokugani are, as a whole, an incredibly insular Sayings of Mekhem. The Prophet’s ultimate fate is people. The Unicorn and Mantis have been known unknown, but many believe he simply accomplished to deal with foreign nations, but most Clans give full what he set out to accomplish within the Sands, and weight to Hantei’s prohibition against dealing with then moved on to a different land. gaijin. All Rokugani view the world as part of a strict Centuries later, the line of the Prophet would Celestial Order and knows their place in the Order. reappear in the form of Duqaq, the descendant of Foreigners pose a special problem to the Rokugani Mekhem. Duqaq was cut from the same cloth as his mindset, as they not only do not acknowledge the ancestor, and contributed a great deal to the individual proper Celestial Order – they lack a place in the Order groups of the region. He aided in preventing disaster entirely! during the Awakening, and contributed his knowledge This leads to the common Rokugani view that to a School of Astronomy that bears his name, as foreigners are actually not human at all. After all, gods well as various other domains of learning. In time, have walked the earth in living memory, and demons he repeated his ancestor’s feat as well, and simply that walk and talk like men claw at the edges of the disappeared into obscurity with no explanation for Empire every day – there is plenty of evidence for the Samplehis fate. Like Mekhem, his sayings and wisdom were file average citizen of the Empire affirming the structure collected by those who knew him during his brief stay of the universe and the possible inhumanity of the in the Sands, although disputes over his teachings strange-looking foreigners.

10 introduction

This assumption has only been reinforced by and without Imperial approval. The Scorpion were Rokugan’s interactions with other nations. While accompanied by many Senpet expatriates and other there have been a few exceptions (like the lucrative foreigners when they returned to the Empire, and the black-market trade between the Mantis and the Ivory Crane have dealt with foreign interests when it would Kingdoms, or the Moto’s dealings with the Ujik-Hai), not be noticed. In fact, one of their most honored Rokugan’s large-scale interactions with other nations heroes, Daidoji Uji, made careful study of gaijin have led to conflict. The gaijin attack at the Battle of weapons and tactics and maintained a small collection the White Stag, one of the earliest recorded encounters of gaijin artifacts. This, of course, is the exception between Rokugan and foreign lands, is an obvious among the Crane, as loutish outlanders tend to offend example – it ended with the death of the Empress and the refined sensibilities of seasoned courtiers. the destruction of most of the gaijin. The Unicorn Of the remaining Clans, the Crab are traditionally faced nothing but hardship during their long travels hostile towards foreigners, as they spend every day through foreign lands, and the Scorpion were enslaved defending the Empire from invading forces. The Hida by the Senpet during their banishment. and Hiruma have little sympathy for outsiders, be they However, the assumption that Rokugan is devoid of Tainted or fully human. There is a small minority of foreign influences is not entirely accurate. The Empire samurai in the Crab, mostly among the Kuni and Kaiu, has long maintained a few ambassadors in the Imperial who have gingerly approached the Ivory Kingdoms to Court, and the Unicorn, Mantis, and Tortoise Clans study their magic, obtain more jade, or to study their regularly make deals with foreign nations, both with military tactics.

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11 introduction

The Lion are the most vocal opponents of gaijin willingness to wear fur and leather disgusts most influence — although this did not keep the Ikoma honorable Rokugani. Even the ruling Moto Family of from closely studying the tactics utilized by the Senpet the Unicorn, once inhabitants of the Burning Sands, general Abresax before Matsu Gohei killed him. have stumbled many times in Rokugan’s complex and The Phoenix have, in the past, made contact with fearful social environment. wise men from the Ivory Kingdoms and the Caliphate It should be noted that despite the chaotic events in the hopes of exchanging studies of magic, but of the past 50 years, Rokugan remains a society that traditionalists inside the Clan have prevented any deeply adheres to its traditions. The Toturi Dynasty may enduring relationships from forming. Only the allow foreign diplomats when in the past they would Yobanjin, who border the Phoenix Lands, have had have been killed on sight, but that does not make the regular contact with the Clan. The Isawa secretly average Rokugani more accepting of strange-looking believe these barbarians to be relatives of their visitors. As guardians of the Celestial Order, samurai Family’s founder, and have been known to discretely do not look kindly on the new ideas that foreign visitors trade with them. represent. Many whisper that it was no surprise that Finally, the Dragon are predictably silent on the matter the Unicorn – a Clan that allowed so many foreign of gaijin. Whether Lord Satsu or his godly predecessors influences to spread – was the Clan that was most had dealings with outlanders, none can say. infested with the Kolat (known in the Burning Sands Most visitors to Rokugan come as traders or as the Qolat), the secret society that plots to bring ambassadors (or both), and they are often overwhelmed down the Celestial Order. More recently, Iuchiban’s by the Empire’s intricate web of cultural customs and terrifying foreign magics and the anti-Celestial Order social taboos. Many customs common outside the rhetoric of the Bloodspeakers served to cement the idea Emerald Empire would be considered crass or even of foreigners as inhuman villains in the eyes of the disgusting to Rokugani. In most societies (particularly common Rokugani. the Merenae, Yodotai, and other nations originating With the emerging prominence of the Unicorn Clan on the eastern end of the continent), touching is in the Empire’s affairs, Rokugan’s relationships with viewed as a form of familiarity or intimacy, but in the rest of the world hang in a precarious balance. If the Rokugan it is considered offensive to touch others in Unicorn emerge as leaders, the Empire could begin to public. The Rokugani custom of refusing a gift three take steps towards interaction and beneficial trade with times nearly caused an international incident between the rest of the world, and perhaps prepare themselves the former Ivory Kingdoms ambassador Rama Singh for the threats that have begun looming at the edges and a young Crane diplomat, and the outlanders’ of the world. Sample file

12 Chapter One Rules of Play

his chapter lays out the rules of the Legend of the Burning Sands Roleplaying Game that you will need toT know in order to roleplay in the Burning Sands. The Part One: world of the Burning Sands is set in the same fictional universe as the world of the Emerald Empire, depicted in Basic Game the Legend of the Five Rings Roleplaying Game Third Edition, and the rules presented here are directly based on those used for roleplaying in the Emerald Empire. Mechanics Indeed, with the exception of the magic rules, the rules covering Integrity and Reputation, and the rules covering Tahaddi knife-fighting duels, this chapter largely duplicates the mechanics found in the Legend of the Five Rings Roll and Keep Roleplaying Game Third Edition Revised core rule book, In the Legend of the Burning Sands Roleplaying with only minor changes to make them appropriate to the Game and its sister game, the Legend of the Five world of the Burning Sands. Rings Roleplaying Game, players roll 10-sided dice to determine whether their characters succeed or fail at a given task. This is accomplished by rolling a number of dice, usually determined by a character’s Skills and Traits, and selecting which dice to keep. Once the kept dice have been selected, the total of their individual rolls is added up and compared to the Target Number the Game Master has established for the task. If the total is equal to or greater than the Target Number, Samplethe character has successfully performedfile the task. If the total is less than the Target Number, the attempt has failed. Distinguishing between how many dice are

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