Legacy of the Five Rings

This work is based on Fate Core System and Fate Accelerated Edition, products of Evil Hat Productions, LLC, developed, authored, and edited by Leonard Balsera, Brian Engard, Jeremy Keller, Ryan Macklin, Mike Olson, Clark Valentine, Amanda Valentine, Fred Hicks, and Rob Donoghue, and licensed for our use under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported licence. Fate™ is a trademark of Evil Hat Productions, LLC. The Powered by Fate logo is © Evil Hat Productions, LLC and is used with permission. The Fate Core font is © Evil Hat Productions, LLC and is used with permission. The Four Actions icons were designed by Jeremy Keller. Fantasy Flight Games and Legend of the Five Rings is a registered trademark of Fantasy Flight Publishing. The use of said material in this document should not be misconstrued as a threat to the accepted copyright of the official material, and is strictly a non-profit fanwork. Visit https://www.fantasyflightgames.com/en/Legend-of-the-Five-Rings-Roleplaying-Game/ for the official material. The majority of flavour text in this work in from Legend of the Five Rings 3rd and 4th Edition books which are © Alderac Entertainment Group, and the Legend of Five Rings 5th Edition Beta, which is the property of Fantasy Flight Games. Thanks to the Evil Hat Wiki for their list of Stunts, to the woefully incomplete Fate of the Five Rings by Duncan Bain for initial guidance, and finally to Wyrdwalkers for the ideas on skills and experience points presented there. Adapted by Gwendolyn Harrow.

Tamori Alchemist On Ninja and [Shugenja] ...... 18 Shinobi ...... 29 Togashi Tattooed Order Soshi Trickster A Brief Introduction [Monk] ...... 18 [Shugenja]...... 30 To Rokugan ...... 1 Tattoos ...... 19 Unicorn Schools ...... 31 Character Creation .....1 Lion Schools ...... 21 Horiuchi Meishōdō The Great Clans ...... 2 Akodo Commander Master [Shugenja] ...... 31 Turning Japanese .....3 [Bushi] ...... 21 Ide Emissary [Courtier] The Crab Clan ...... 3 Ikoma Bard [Courtier] ...... 31 The Crane Clan ...... 4 ...... 21 Moto Raider [Bushi] .. 32 The Dragon Clan ...... 5 Kitsu Medium Utaku Battle Maiden The Lion Clan ...... 6 [Shugenja] ...... 22 [Bushi] ...... 32 The Mantis Clan ...... 7 Matsu Berserker [Bushi] Dude, Where’s My ...... 22 School? ...... 33 The Phoenix Clan ...... 8 Mantis Schools ...... 24 The Brotherhood of The Scorpion Clan ...... 9 Moshi Suncaller Shinsei ...... 34 The Unicorn Clan ...... 10 [Shugenja] ...... 24 Monk Schools ...... 34 Schools ...... 11 Tsuruchi Archer [Bushi] Playing A Monk ..... 34 Crab Schools ...... 12 ...... 24 The Four Temples Hida Defender [Bushi] Yoritomo Broker Advisor [Monk] ...... 35 ...... 12 [Courtier] ...... 25 The Order of Heroes Hiruma Scout [Bushi] 12 Yoritomo Marine Mentor [Monk]...... 35 Kuni Purifier [Shugenja] [Bushi] ...... 25 The Shrine of the Seven ...... 13 Phoenix Schools ...... 26 Thunder Ascetic [Monk] Yasuki Negotiator Agasha Transmuter ...... 35 [Courtier]...... 13 [Shugenja] ...... 26 The Temple of Crane Schools ...... 14 Asako Scholar Kaimetsu-Uo Reconciler[Monk] ...... 36 Asahina Preserver [Courtier] ...... 26 [Shugenja] ...... 14 Isawa Elemantalist The Temple of Osano- Wo Fist [Monk] ...... 36 Doji Diplomat [Shugenja] ...... 27 [Courtier]...... 14 Shiba Guardian [Bushi] The Temples of the Thousand Fortunes Daidoji Iron Warrior ...... 27 Devotee [Monk] ...... 36 [Bushi] ...... 15 Scorpion Schools ...... 28 Skills ...... 37 Kakita Duelist [Bushi] 15 Bayushi Fencer [Bushi] Equipment ...... 38 Dragon Schools ...... 17 ...... 28 Bayushi Manipulator Keep It Simple, B- Kitsuki Investigator baka! ...... 38 [Courtier]...... 17 [Courtier] ...... 28 How Armour Works . 38 Mirumoto Swordmaster Shosuro Infiltratior [Bushi] ...... 17 [Ninja] ...... 29 Sample Horse Stats .... 39

The Gunpowder Rank One ...... 57 Rank Three ...... 78 Question ...... 39 Rank Two ...... 59 Fire Kihō ...... 79 Advancement ...... 40 Rank Three ...... 61 Rank One ...... 79 Magic ...... 41 Water Spells ...... 63 Rank Two ...... 80 Extra Details...... 41 Rank One ...... 63 Rank Three ...... 81 Tags Explained...... 41 Rank Two ...... 65 Water Kihō ...... 82 Spell Rank ...... 42 Rank Three ...... 67 Rank One ...... 82 An Enchanted Void Spells ...... 69 Rank Two ...... 83 Narrative...... 42 Rank One ...... 69 Rank Three ...... 84 Universal Spells ...... 42 Rank Two ...... 70 Void Kihō ...... 85 SATs and You. No, Not Those SATs…43 Rank Three ...... 71 Rank One ...... 85 Air Spells ...... 45 Kihō ...... 72 Rank Two ...... 86 Rank One ...... 45 Kihō Rank ...... 72 Rank Three ...... 87 Rank Two ...... 47 Air Kihō ...... 73 Character Creation Example ...... 88 Rank Three ...... 49 Rank One ...... 73 Earth Spells ...... 51 Rank Two ...... 74 Rank One ...... 51 Rank Three ...... 75 Rank Two ...... 53 Earth Kihō ...... 76 Rank One ...... 76 Rank Three ...... 55 Fire Spells ...... 57 Rank Two ...... 77

Rokugan is a much-loved setting, with at least a library and a half of material covering various aspects of the Emerald Empire. It has seen six editions of Legend of the Five Rings, as well as a collectable card game and a living card game. It is a mishmash of different Asian influences – it is less like a recreation of feudal Japan and more a mixture of Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Southeast Asian, and even Mongol cultures. Still, it is a place governed by samurai, where honour is a force more powerful than steel. And as samurai, players will navigate through the intricacies of Rokuganese society – for instance, the conflict between their duties and their feelings, or perhaps, the expectations society lays on samurai and grim reality. In essence, Rokugan is a land where samurai, honourable servants of the Divine Emperor of the Hantei Dynasty, wage war and forge peace in the name of their lords. It is land where mighty Great Clans, each comprised of multiple ancient families, work together and against one another in hopes of accomplishing their political and military agendas. It is a land where valiant warriors, or bushi, struggle to win the day for their Clans on the field of battle. It is where pious priests, shugenja, offer prayers to the multitude of Fortunes and Kami in hopes of achieving the blessing of Heaven for their lands. It is a land where courtier politicans wage an endless war of words, seeking any possible advantage for their Clans. And, it is a land where the code of Bushidō shapes every facet of life – very much a romanticised vision of samurai drama. This fixation on Bushidō and the Celestial Order has of course shaped Rokugani society. For instance, the concept of On, or face. As following Bushidō (as well as being bo raises oneself above the bonge and burakumin (the former being peasants and the latter being those who perferm necessary but ‘unclean’ jobs such as undertakers and butchers), it is believed that samurai are intrinsically exceptional persons and are expected to maintain self- discipline at all times – a samurai who cannot control his or her emotions is a samurai who cannot serve his or her lord with honour and trust, for their emotions will override their judgement and loyalty. Openly showing emotions and out-of-control behavior is that of the lower castes, after all. Loss of face is answered with shame.

More on FATE Core, and base character creation can be found on the FATE System Reference Document, but in summary, characters start with: ❖ Six skills: 3 Average (+1), 2 Fair (+2) and 1 Good (+3). The skill list can be found on page 37. ❖ 3 Refresh, except for Brotherhood of Shinsei Monks and Shugenja, who start with 2. ❖ 2 Stress boxes on each track. ❖ 2 Free Stunts. ❖ The Rank One Technique of their School. ❖ And, 5 Aspects, including the High Concept and Trouble.

One of the first things needed to be established about a character is which Great Clan they are from. While a player can choose to ignore this regarding choosing their character’s Aspects, it is a key piece of backstory as it influences both the expectations other samurai have of that character, and what Schools (see page 10) the character can join without any compromises and links the character to others in the campaign world. Another choice that character’s Family, which both gives them their noble surname, and again, gives them a link to the campaign world. In the world, the Great Clans are those founded by one of the seven Kami (excluding the winner of the Celestial Tournament, Hantei), who fell from the heavens to the realm of mortals, by the Emperor Hantei’s command to set forth to pacify the land in the name of the Emperor and to gather follower to their banners. Even though the seven Kami have long since left the realm of mortals for one reason or other, such as Hantei being critically wounded in the First War or Bayushi vanished while in search of his lost follower Shosuro, the Great Clan model have endured. They are loyal to the Emperor of the Emerald Empire but conflicts between them are common, with the historical precedent of the Emperor not interfering with said conflicts. Still, each has their own duty to the Empire and loyally serve. There are also Minor Clans, but even if in theory their members command the same respect as any other samurai, in practice ignoring a Minor Clan samurai outside of their region of control carries few repercussions. Nevertheless, long after the founding of the Great Clans, one additional Great Clan has been given leave by the Emperor to serve him in the same manner as the others – the Mantis. Rokugan is a largely feudal society after all, with the Emperor at the top. Below the Emperor, are the Great Clans, who are themselves made up of various Families of samurai, who in turn are sworn fealty to by vassal families, and below them are peasants, tradesmen and merchants, and below them are tanners, butchers and criminals, etc. Monks occupy a strange rung in the social ladder, strictly they share the same ranking as peasants but as upholders of the Empire’s religious traditions, they receive a respect which other commoners do no enjoy. Turning Japanese… While a lot of Japanese terms Entertainers who aren’t samurai are considered at the have been thrown at you so bottom of the pyramid for a very specific reason: as ‘non- far, not counting honorifics, people’, a samurai may fully relax around them with no social don’t worry too much about stigma where the gentle strains of a geisha’s shamisen, a samurai using them – a roleplaying may laugh or complain about their lord and family, or cry at their game shouldn’t have force lot in life. you to learn another language after all! Each listing will give some sample Aspects for players to quickly get an impression of each Great Clan, as well as a brief overview of the Families within that Clan. The key thing to keep in mind is that these are only examples.

The Crab Clan

“We are the Wall.” ❖ [Stalwart Defenders of the Wall] ❖ [Speak Softly And Carry A Big Stick] ❖ [Underfunded and Underappreciated] The Crab stand out in any gathering of samurai, given a wide berth both for their stature and for their gruff, brusque manners. The defenders of the Empire have little time or inclination to practice social niceties; they stand guard upon the Kaiu Wall, an enduring symbol of tenacity against the horrors of the Shadowlands. Often, they grumble that their duty is taken for granted, that their fine and honorable samurai succumb to the horrifying Corruption while the effete and the careless play at games in an Empire kept safe by the spilled blood of the Crab. ❖ The Hida family, like their founding Kami, are large and strong, tough and enduring, with little patience for the weaknesses of others. ❖ The Hiruma family are mainly scouts; quick and slender, and informing the Crab of goings- on both beyond the Wall and inside the Empire. ❖ The industrious Kaiu family are skilled engineers and architects, responsible for the Great Carpenter Wall and other feats of engineering within the Empire. ❖ Members of the Kuni family stand out with their sinister air and trademark face paint, but no one else is as knowledgeable about the Shadowlands as they. ❖ The Toritaka family used to be known as the Falcon Clan before their absorption, and are known for their great knowledge on spirits and ghosts. ❖ The Yasuki family used to be part of the Crane, with their defection starting a major conflict in the third century. Nevertheless, they have a nose for a deal but other samurai hold their like of coin in distain.

The Crane Clan

“There is a proper technique for all things.” ❖ [Settle It With A Duel] ❖ [Cultural Trendsetters] ❖ [Sliver Tongues and Sliver-Lined Wallets] The Crane are the Left Hand of the Emperor, in service as the political aides to the throne. It’s traditional for the Hantei to choose a samurai from the Doji family as their spouse, more Emerald Champions have been Kakita than any other family, and the samurai of the Daidoji family serve as some of the finest shock troops in the Emerald Empire. Yet the Crane make their greatest contributions in culture: many of the finest poets and craftspeople hail from their academies, and their duelists have few rivals save one. They are the masters of court, with the wealth and status to prove it. ❖ The Asahina family are known for their pacifisim and devotion to philosophy and the arts. Quiet and serene, they abhor violence, even more so than the Phoenix Clan, and will always look for an alternative. ❖ The Daidoji family, or Iron Cranes, make up the core of the Crane military. Their selfless efforts underpin all as they do what is necessary to defend and advance the purpose of the Crane. ❖ The Doji family are the unquestioned masters of culture and politics in the Empire. Like their founding Kami, Lady Doji, they place an emphasis on courtly matters and the arts. ❖ The graceful Kakita family usually exhibit the beauty of the Crane in a more athletic manner than do their Doji cousins, renowned as some of the finest duelists in the Empire.

The Dragon Clan

“Know yourself, and you can never be defeated.” ❖ [Two! Swords!] ❖ [Inscrutable Loners] ❖ [Zen Masters] For a thousand years, the Dragon Clan has watched over the others, recording the history of Rokugan. Aloof and enigmatic, the armies of the Dragon march only rarely, intervening in the clashes of the Great Clans for seemingly inscrutable reasons. From the strange and powerful Tattooed Monks of Togashi to the investigators who challenge the system of justice in the Empire, the Dragon seek to ensure the Empire does not become too self-focused and solipsistic. It falls to them to ensure that the future of the Empire transpires in an orderly and elegant manner. ❖ The Kitsuki family are most well-known for their keen perception and their investigative techniques that rely upon physical evidence. They serve the Dragon Clan as court representatives and magistrates, but are more suited to the latter. ❖ The Mirumoto family see to the more practical needs of the esoteric Dragon Clan, overseeing the management of the Clan. Famed for their two-sword style, niten, and being the biggest family in the Dragon Clan, they are most people think of when they think of the Dragon. ❖ The Tamori family used to be of the Agasha family, and are made up of the descendents of the Agasha who remained with the Dragon following their defection. They embrace unique magical styles, such as alchemy. ❖ The Togashi Order are a monastic brotherhood rather than a noble family, known for their mystical tattoos which grant them supernatural abilities. They accept anyone willing to endure their trails.

The Lion Clan

“Honour, Glory and Bushidō. There is nothing else.” ❖ [The Lion’s Pride] ❖ [Strength From Honour] ❖ [For My Ancestors!] To be a samurai is to live and breathe Bushidō, but to be a Lion is to exemplify it to all others. The Lion’s roar heralds the call to battle and honor. For centuries, the Lion have dominated the military tactics an strategy of the Empire, pioneering new techniques and battle methods that other clans take years to adopt. Now, this clan’s samurai seek to apply the wisdom of their ancestors to the trials of the modern era. ❖ The Akodo family are the master strategists and tacticians of the Empire, and embody the discipline and control of the Lion Clan. Calm and analytical, some within the Clan regard them as too cold and detached. ❖ The Ikoma family are the voice of the Lion. Passionate historians and storytellers, they serve the Lion Clan in the courts of Rokugan, using history’s lessons to aid them in debate. ❖ The Kitsu family bloodline has a touch of the supernatural, producing members with the ability to part the veil to speak with the dead. Those born without the ability keep genealogies and tend tombs. Though, they have a reputation for being conservative and old-fashioned. ❖ The Mastu family are the heart of the Lion, both literally and figuratively. Matriarchal, with fiery tempers and eager for battle, they are the typical Lion stereotype writ large but their might is unquestioned.

The Mantis Clan

“We are the children of Thunder.” ❖ [Blood of Osano-Wo] ❖ [Swashbuckling Samurai] ❖ [Silk And Spice And Everything Nice] A Great Clan made up of a bunch of Minor Clans, the Mantis owe their recent recognition to the military they provided during the Clan War and a distant blood relation to the Crab Clan, through Hida Kaimetsu-Uo, son of Hida Osano-Wo (also Fortune of Thunder) and a Matsu woman. Primarily based on the Islands of Silk and Spice, they excel at naval endeavours such as sailing and trade. While some may decry their lack of Kami founder, there is no denying their tenacity. The Mantis believe destiny is theirs for the taking, there is nothing that cannot be overcome, and their ascension to Great Clan is proof. ❖ The Kitsune family, formerly known as the Fox Clan, are a simple, quiet people who prefer communing with the spirits of nature in the Mori Forest than travelling on official business within the Empire. ❖ The Moshi family, formerly known as the Centipede Clan, are extremely devout and matriarchal worshippers of Lady Sun. Though they find their active role within the Mantis uncomfortable, they will not break their oath of fealty. ❖ The Tsuruchi family, formerly known as the Wasp Clan, are where some of the best archers in the Empire are found. Generally perceptive and highly athletic, they excel as warriors or magistrates. ❖ The Yoritomo family are the undisputed heads of the Mantis Clan. From spending the entirely of their existence on the Islands of Silk and Spice, they have a masterful grasp of sailing and are always out to prove themselves.

The Phoenix Clan

“Master the elements and be reborn.” ❖ [Devoted to Peace] ❖ [Playing With (Magical) Fire] ❖ [The Tao Is The True Way] Other clans guard the Empire’s borders, even the Empire’s future, but the Phoenix guard the Empire’s soul. It is the duty of the Phoenix to keep safe the myriad religious paths of the Empire, defining them and arbitrating their differences. Scholars of the Tao and servants of the spirits are found among the Phoenix’s ranks more than in any other clan; the wisdom the Phoenix have gleaned from both traditions has led them to foster peace and understanding among the other clans, even if it means sacrificing themselves in the process. ❖ The Agasha family formerly belonged to the Dragon Clan, but left when they felt the Dragon had abandoned their duties to the Empire. Regardless, they are highly experimental and curious, often pushing the boundaries of what be safely attempted with magic. ❖ The Asako family are very monastic and scholarly, comprising the majority of Phoenix courtiers and the entirely of the mysterious Henshin monks as they prize knowledge, but prize wisdom even more. ❖ The Isawa family are the true rules of the Phoenix, despite the Shiba’s Kami heritage. They are known as the most knowledgable, powerful and numerous shugenja in the Empire, though some say the most arrogant as well. ❖ The Shiba family, descended from the Kami Shiba, are often seen as the most scholarly and least aggressive of the bushi families, serving the Isawa without as much as a complaint. However, they are no cowards.

The Scorpion Clan

“I will be your villain, Hantei.” ❖ [Eyes Everywhere] ❖ [Designated Villains] ❖ [Wreathed In Shadow] From behind their masks and veils, the Scorpion smile grimly at the performance of their duty, for it is their sacrifice to be hated even as they execute it perfectly. What other clan could perform the role of loyal villain? It was the Scorpion Kami’s contention that enemies need not be external to the Empire, and thus, the Scorpion fight fire with fire. They keep all clans united in hatred against them, yet divided so that no one clan can challenge the line to whom they owe undying loyalty: the Hantei. ❖ The Bayushi family, founded by the Kami Bayushi, are dark, dangerous, manipulative, and always evaluate any situation in terms of how it can benefit them and their Clan. They dance between the lines of acting the villain and becoming that mask. ❖ The Shosuro family are mainly known for their acting talents and theatrical skills. Outsiders don’t begin to realise how fully the Shosuro embrace their roles, acting as spies for the good of the Emerald Empire. ❖ The Soshi family are often overlooked, just the way they like it. Many of them use the mischievous Air Kami to aid in acts of deception, just a little subtle nudge or a whisper into someone’s ear. However, their love for subtly brings with it an overly cautious outlook. ❖ The Yogo family, formerly of the Phoenix, are forever cursed to betray that which they love the most. The original cursed Asako Yogo joined the Scorpion as he could never love them, and they have served the Scorpion Clan ever since.

The Unicorn Clan

“One cannot capture the wind.” ❖ [Cultural Exchange] ❖ [Now Those Are Horses!] ❖ [Endless Curiosity] The Clan of the Wind spent hundreds of years outside the Empire, returning in a glorious cavalry charge that shook the other clans to their core. The barbaric ways they adopted in their exile continue to shock and disgust the other clans, yet the Unicorn remain fierce in their duty and unwavering in their honor. Of all the clans, they are best suited to uncovering foreign manipulation and infiltration, for they faced innumerable horrors and traitors in their wandering years. ❖ The Horiuchi family, recently founded after the Clan War, have never claimed more than a dozen or so members. They are a branch of the Iuchi family who specialize in defensive and protective magic, known for being compassionate. ❖ The Ide family are widespread across the Empire, serving as diplomats, couriers, and even merchants. Friendly, with an endless air of calm, they blend their foreign customs with those of the Emerald Empire. ❖ The Iuchi family are priestly, and make up the majority of Unicorn shugenja. They utilise meishōdō, the art of using talismans and names to manipulate the spirits, which is unknown outside of their family. ❖ The Moto family are what many usually think of when thinking of the ‘barbarian’ Unicorn. Their stocky builds and the heavy beards of their men, and their style of dress and equipment make them stand out, as well as the battle cries of these nomadic warriors. ❖ The Shinjo family owe their founding to the Kami Shinjo as they followed her into the deserts of the Burning Sands. They are known for their love of discovery, and often serve as master equestrians and scouts. ❖ The Utaku family are another matriarchal family, and are known foremost for their battle maidens – the finest heavy cavalry in the Empire. Their men are left serving afoot as infantry, in the stables and in the households but are respected just as much.

In Rokugan, duty is central to every samurai’s life – performing one’s societal role is the paramount responsibility of a samurai, and most serve in one of the following roles: bushi are warriors by trade, courtiers are politicians and civil servants, and shugenja (by far the rarest of these three classifications) are priests of the samurai caste who share a special bond with the kami that lets them invoke miraculous powers that more common religious leaders cannot. Monks nominally stand aside from society, but many samurai enter monastic life – most commonly toward the end of their lives, but some much earlier. As a result, at various points in history, monks have been known to wield considerable political influence, even if they are supposed to be above such earthly concerns. Finally, some samurai serve their lords as ninja – though none admit to such openly, for the work of these assassins and spies is incompatible with adherence to the code of Bushidō. Ninja are often deniable assets, and many were never samurai, but some members of the samurai caste are trained in these arts, especially among the Scorpion Clan. While ninja are quite rare, their influence over the course of history has been as substantial as it has been impossible to prove. In most cases, a samurai is limited to the Schools within their Clan as School represent the Clan’s accumulated knowledge and teachings for their own members – think of the implications if someone from the honourable Lion Clan choose to study under the Shosuro Infiltrator School! However, such a thing is not totally discouraged. Speak with your GM about it and hopefully an agreement can be made – many a character within the metaplot was taught by a Clan other than their birth Clan due to fosterage or various other reasons. In terms of mechanics, each School grants Techniques which act as bonus Stunts. The main permission for these Extras is an Aspect reflecting your character’s training. These Techniques are granted at different Ranks (Rank One, Rank Two, etc.). A character starts at Rank One and advances their Rank out of game at Experience Point milestones and in-game by training at a relevant dojo. Shugenja start with their Technique, Affinity and Deficiency, three Spells from the listed Elements of an equal Rank as the character in addition to Sense, Commune and Summon. In lieu of a another Technique, shugenja gain a Spell each time they advance their Rank. For example, Isawa Hikaru would start with three Spells, then gain one Spell when he advances to Rank Two and another one when he advances to Rank Three. Brotherhood of Shinsei Monks gain Kihō in the same manner. Additional Spells and Kihō can be purchased with XP, see Advancement on page 40 for more details.

Crab Schools

Hida Defender [Bushi] Producing the most stalwart protectors of Rokugan against the horrors that mass and swirl beyond the Kaiu Wall, the Hida Defender School teaches its disciples fortitude, courage, and practicality in equal measure. Goblins, oni, and the unliving are not honorable foes, and Hida Defenders cannot afford to behave as though the fight against these creatures is fair. An oni with skin like stone and acidic blood can be overcome by any warrior with sufficient skill and strength of will, but the Hida Defenders have specialised in killing such monsters for centuries. From their heavily plated armor to their techniques for shattering iron hides with mighty hammer blows, Hida Defenders have developed an armory and fighting style that gives them the utmost advantage and greatest chance of not just victory, but survival. ❖ Rank One: The Way of the Crab Gain +1 to attack with Fight when using a large weapon such as a dai tsuchi, masakari, ono, or tetsubo and ignore any negative effects from heavy armour, except those related to Stealth. ❖ Rank Two: Devastating Blow While using a weapon like those listed above, can use Physique to create Aspects on enemies relating to stunning or dazing them. ❖ Rank Three: The Mountain Does Not Fall At the end of a physical conflict exchange, you may spend a Fate Point to ignore any Consequences or negative Aspects your character possesses until the end of the next combat round.

Hiruma Scout [Bushi] Where the Hida Defender School teaches endurance and strength, their Hiruma cousins teach avoidance and targeting weak points their enemy’s defenses and with lightning fast strikes, fitting their role as warriors inside the Shadowlands. Those who do not heed their teachers well do not survive to perpetuate their mistakes, while those who excel their lessons become a scourge upon the Shadowlands. This School emphasises movement and survival, not just to endure a strike as the Hida do, but to live through an entire skirmish. In one-on-one combat, the Hiruma excels at evading his opponent, while in longer skirmishes his ability to avoid damage makes him adept at reaching troublesome foes and eliminating them while his allies tie up other rank-and-file opponents. ❖ Rank One: Torch’s Flame Flickers You are always considered to be able to find enough food out in the wild for an amount of people equal to your Lore skill rank and you take no penalty and grant no bonus for being outnumbered. ❖ Rank Two: Wolf’s Little Lesson

+2 to overcome with Athletics when another character presents an obstacle to you moving between zones. ❖ Rank Three: Daylight Wastes No Movement Once per physical exchange, when you inflict a physical consequence on an opponent with Fight, you may also inflict a 2-point physical hit on another opponent in the same zone.

Kuni Purifier [Shugenja] The Kuni Purifiers master knowledge and prayers to deny the dark even a foothold inside the Crab Clan or the Empire. To this end, they have specialised in invocations to the Earth Kami to strike down or banish the evil and demonic servants of the Shadowlands. From the founding of their school, the Kuni Purifiers have sought to understand the nature of the threat that the Crab fight against. This has led them down dangerous paths, and no small number have fallen to the very corruption they study. The Kuni Purifiers paint their faces in stylized Kabuki-like patterns to protect their true selves from the insidious tendrils of the Shadowlands Taint. Eternal vigilance, shading into unending paranoia, is the lot of the Kuni Purifiers. ❖ Affinity/Deficiency: Earth/Air ❖ Technique: Gaze Into Shadow +2 to Channeling when casting a Spell targeting any creature with Shadowlands Aspects. +1 if targeting a nonhuman without a Shadowlands Aspect. ❖ Spells: Sense, Commune, Summon, 2 Earth and 1 of either Fire or Water.

Yasuki Negotiator [Courtier] Formerly of the Crane Clan, the Yasuki defected to the Crab after their Doji masters refused to accept the questionable way the Yasuki performed essential tasks necessary for the Crane to function. The Crab, on the other hand, have been far more practical masters, and under their leadership the Yasuki have become the most prosperous merchant patrons in the Empire. They specialize in using commerce as a means of gaining the favour of others. They are as much salesmen as courtiers and can use any number of sales tactics, including both pressure and false sincerity, to gain that which they desire from others. No one in the Empire can take a simple resource and transform it into a hot commodity with the same style and deftness as a Yasuki Courter. ❖ Rank One: The Way of the Carp Cannot gain negative social Aspects from talking about commerce openly and can use social skills to discern some material object or service a person wants or desires with +1 to the roll. ❖ Rank Two: Treasures of the Carp +2 to overcome with Resources once per session when it is used to locate a rare or useful item for someone else. The Technique is very much intended for use with Non-Player Characters and is not meant for the Negotiator to outfit the party with the best armour and weapons. ❖ Rank Three: What Is Yours Is Mine If you know of a material item someone needs and you arrange for them to get it, you gain an extra free invokation with any social Aspects you create related to them.

Crane Schools

Asahina Preserver [Shugenja] Much like the family as a whole, the various branches of the Asahina Preserver School extol the virtue of preserving life over heedless destruction. As much monks as priests, the Asahina focus on scholarly pursuits and meditation as a means of finding their path in the world. In short, they regard everything as a teaching opportunity and likewise place great emphasis on the creation of artwork, an act they consider essential to the improvement of the world around them. However, above all else, their shugenja School focuses on defense and protection. Both its core Technique and its Spell emphases encourage Spells that reduce damage and protect others from attacks as well as crafting and creating. ❖ Affinity/Deficiency: Air/Fire ❖ Technique: The Soul’s Grace +1 to Channeling when creating defensive advantages when using that skill. And you can spend a Fate Point once per session to reduce physical stress damage done by opponents by 1 for a number of rounds equal your Rank. ❖ Spells: Sense, Commune, Summon, 2 Air and 1 of either Water or Earth.

Doji Diplomat [Courtier] No one plays the game of court better than the Crane – after all, their clan wrote the rules. The Doji Diplomats choreograph the courtly dance of favors exchanged, gifts given, and the right people invited to private gatherings. The Doji are always on the leading edge of fashion and culture, often driving it forward to benefit the Crane artisans. The Doji need never use an unkind word: their silence speaks volumes, and a simple gesture says even more. Their networks of favors, gifts, and invitations allow them to weigh the ebb and flow of the social side of the Empire and adjust the scales to their benefit. The School’s primary focus is that of creating vast networks of allies in which the Crane can call upon, preferring leaving the contact in question indebted to the Crane in the process. ❖ Rank One: The Soul of Honour So long as you keep honourable conduct, you gain +1 to social rolls, also you can use Manipulation to discern any favours or assistance the target is in need of. ❖ Rank Two: Speaking In Silence You gain access to the use of Cadence, the art of communicating through subtle gestures and body languages and can communicate with other Cranes or very skilled Courtiers this way. Only short phrases like “follow her” or “in our favour” can be communicated this way. ❖ Rank Three: Voice of Honour

You are skilled at making your position in debates synonymous with Honour. In a social conflict, if you win, the opposition gains the [Dishonourable] social consequence in addition to other effect

Daidoji Iron Warrior [Bushi] The skills of the Doji and the Kakita have raised the Crane into their position as master of the court, but when words alone cannot attain victory; it is the strength and courage of the Daidoji Iron Warriors that carry the day. Seeing themselves as the silent steel of the Crane, the Daidoji Iron Warriors are both the rank and file and the heavy infantry of the Crane armies. They also serve as yojimbo, and are often seen at the side of Doji Diplomats. All in all, the Daidoji are a versatile group, with Techniques that emphasise both enduring the damage of one’s opponents and protecting their charge. However, their fighting style is not exclusively protective and allows an Iron Warrior to fight defensively in a skirmish to great effect. ❖ Rank One: The Force of Honour So long as you keep honourable conduct, you gain two additional physical stress boxes. ❖ Rank Two: The Shield of Faith When in Full Defense, you may give all or part of your +2 bonus to defense rolls to another ally within your zone. ❖ Rank Three: Forever Vigilant At the end of a physical conflict exchange, you may spend a Fate Point to target an opponent who has attempted to strike at either you or your charge during the round. In the following round, you gain +2 to Fight to physically attack that opponent.

Kakita Duelist [Bushi] The Kakita Duelist School emphasizes “one strike, one kill,” seeking for its students to master the one perfect strike performed in the iaijutsu duel. For the Kakita Duelists, such is the pinnacle of all martial skills. While other martial skills are not neglected, neither are they the focus of the Kakita Dueling Academy. Although some might critique such single- minded dedication, the Kakita Duelists are the best duelists in the Empire. Their skill with the katana in this arena complements the Doji mastery of court and reinforces the Crane hold on the political flow of the Empire. The Kakita Techniques are obviously focused iaijustu dueling but have use in a general skirmish as they are generally faster than their opponents. ❖ Rank One: The Way of the Crane You may spend a Fate Point to go first in a physical conflict, regardless of your Notice. In the case of multiple characters using this ability, they go in order based on their Notice skill. ❖ Rank Two: Speed of Lightning When physically attacking somone lower in the turn order in a physical conflict, you get +1 to Fight. ❖ Rank Three: The First and Last Strike

Your Notice is considered to be one higher for purposes of determining turn order in a physical conflict. This breaks ties whenever facing opponents with the same Notice.

Dragon Schools

Kitsuki Investigator [Courtier] The Kitsuki Investigator School is a recent school, founded when Agasha Kitsuki saved the life of the Mirumoto daimyō by use of evidence. The Kitsuki Investigators use their method of observation, experimentation, logic, and reason to understand the truth, which puts them outside the norm of the Rokugani testimony-based judiciary system. For the Kitsuki Investigators, justice and truth align more often than many in the Empire like, yet they pursue their investigations where it takes them. The Kitsuki Investigators gravitate to legal work as magistrates and justicars, and are also found serving as courtiers and representatives of the Dragon Clan. In short, their strengths lie with gathering important from the environment and other people. ❖ Rank One: Kitsuki’s Method Once per scene you can spend a Fate Point (and a few minutes of observation) to make a special Notice roll representing your potent deductive faculties. For each shift you make on this roll you discover or create an aspect, on either the scene or the target of your observations, though you may only invoke one of them for free. ❖ Rank Two: Know the Rhythm of the Heart When you successfully use Notice to read a person's emotional state, if that person's aspects are secret, the aspects the GM reveals must be those that are of the utmost importance to the person, unless you explicitly instruct her otherwise. If the person's aspects are not secret, you may choose which one to attach each of your free invokations to. ❖ Rank Three: Eyes Betray the Heart Without rolling, you can tell if another character is lying so long as the target’s Manipulation is equal to or lower than your Notice. In the case of high Manipulation, you will know that you cannot tell, but will never receive a “false positive.”

Mirumoto Swordmaster [Bushi] Famous throughout the Empire for its unique teachings, the Mirumoto Swordsman School is the lone fighting style that utilizes the niten technique, wherein a samurai wirlds both the katana and the wakizashi simultaneously, flying in the face of the traditional style used by the other Clans for centuries. Developed at the same time as the one-sword style, there is a great rivalry between students of this School and those of the Kakita Duelist School, where “one soul, one sword” is the underlying philosophy. This rivalry is heated even during times of peace. Many opponents, anticipating the reputation of the Dragon as erratic are surprised to face the calm, implacable Mirumoto as an enemy, ready to slice open their opponent in a whirlwind of blades. ❖ Rank One: Way of the Dragon When you succeed on an attack with two swords, the stress inflicted is increased by one.

❖ Rank Two: Calm in the Mist of Thunder In duels, you may add your Fight to your Notice for the purposes of determining turn order in a conflict exchange. ❖ Rank Three: Heart of the Dragon You may make a Fight attack with +1 to Fight against every opponent in your zone, dividing your roll between them as you see fit.

Tamori Alchemist [Shugenja] Formed from the remnants of the Agasha family following their defection to the Phoenix Clan, the Tamori have inherited centuries of experimental studies conducted by their predecessors, and have embraced it just as they did. The most prominent among these unusual disciplines is the study of alchemy. The Tamori have mastered the abandoned Agasha secret of containing the essence of a Spell within ritually prepared liquids, allowing them to be used later. Coupled with the martial training that Tamori shugenja receive, this is enough to make the family’s secret teachings unique in all the Empire. This Technique allows for the greater versatility in the use of the Spells, extended so far as to allow others to use them in the Tamori stead if proper preparations have been made. ❖ Affinity/Deficiency: Earth/Air ❖ Technique: Flesh of the Elements Can use Channeling to create potions as Situational Aspects using Spells provided there is enough free time to concoct them, however, these Spells count against your session limit. The Spells stored may only affect one target person or creature and can be activated instantly by drinking or throwing the potion. ❖ Spells: Sense, Commune, Summon, 2 Earth and 1 of either Fire or Water.

Togashi Tattooed Order [Monk] The Togashi Order accepts members from across the Empire and of any caste. Those few who can find their way to one of the Togashi monasteries in the first place have proven themselves worthy of becoming initiates. The Togashi Order follows a particularly muscular interpretation of the Tao of Shinsei and expects its members to be able to travel and defend themselves as they seek their own path to Enlightenment. The members of the Togashi Order are known for and by the mystic tattoos that bind them to their order, and their artistry is matched only by their unusual powers. Only those who become true ise zumi know that their power flows from the blood of Togashi, the Dragon Clan Kami, which is mixed into the tattooing inks. ❖ Rank One: Blood of the Kami You gain a Tattoo at this Rank and another one at each Rank thereafter. ❖ Rank Two: Body of Stone When you take physical stress, you may check off two stress boxes with a total value equal to or greater than the shift value of the hit. ❖ Rank Three: Stone Strike Once per opponent per fight, you may spend a fate point after landing a successful blow to cause your opponent to check their highest unchecked physical stress box (instead of taking stress equal to the shifts you succeeded by).

Tattoos Unless other stated, the following conditions apply to all Tattoos: they can be activated at any time and require a Fate Point to activate, only one may be activated at any time and their effects last a number of exchanges or scenes equal to the monk’s Rank. ❖ Balance Any Channeling rolls targeting you are increased or decreased by an amount equal to your Rank, you choose whether it is an increase or decrease when you activate the Tattoo. ❖ Bamboo +1 to Physique when defending against physical attacks. ❖ Blaze +1 to Fight with unarmed attacks in a physical conflict. ❖ Centipede You can move vast distances while this Tattoo is active. For instance, over a hundred feet or four zones. The Tattoo is active for the entire day but as soon as you stop you collapse in exhaustion and can take no physical actions for twelve hours. ❖ Crab Physical stress damage inflicted on you is reduced by one. ❖ Crane Gain a free reroll on social rolls such as Rapport and Manipulation rolls. ❖ Dragon Use Marksmanship to attack with +1 to breathe fire in a cone but take half the total physical stress inflicted. ❖ Hawk May use Athletics to move two zones in a physical conflict for your turn. ❖ Ki-Rin A free reroll once per exchange in a conflict. ❖ Lion Your Fight, Physique or Athletics becomes equal to your Rank. ❖ Mantis Your Will is increased by two when you are defending against the fearsome aura of supernatural creatures. This Tattoo is always active and does not prevent the use of other Tattoos. ❖ Mountain You gain an additional physical stress box for the duration. ❖ Ocean You no longer need food and drink, though can still partake in them. When you activate this Tattoo, you are instantly refreshed as you had spent eight hours of sleep. ❖ Phoenix You must have at least one unspent Fate Point for this Tattoo to trigger. It is triggered automatically when your physical stress boxes are filled and you are forced to take an extreme consequence. When you do, you immediately heal an amount of physical stress equal to the number of unspent Fate Points you have, and all unspent Fate Points are lost.

❖ Scorpion While this Tattoo is active, you gain +2 to Stealth and your unarmed attacks inflicted the [Dazed] boost. ❖ Spider While this Tattoo is active, you gain +2 to overcome or create an advantage actions with Athletics on any climb. ❖ Storm While this Tattoo is active, you gain +2 to use Physique to create an advantage on an opponent by knocking them off balance. ❖ Void While this Tattoo is active, you are aware of the location and rough details of all living things within a radius of a zone, even if you cannot see them. However, you only know rough details such as ‘two soldiers’ or ‘two rabbits’, you can recognize individuals you know, however. ❖ Wind While this Tattoo is active, you gain +2 to Athletics when using it to defend against or overcome knockbacks and pushes. ❖ Wolf You gain a bonus to Lore equal to your Rank when using it in tracking.

Lion Schools

Akodo Commander [Bushi] The Akodo War College’s curriculum is focused on control: of one’s weapons, of the battlefield, over the flow of conflict, and ultimately, over oneself. Its students study the advice of Akodo’s Leadership, the last word on the art of war, which was written by the Lion Clan Kami himself. In addition to their training as warriors, the Akodo Commanders are educated to be leaders on the field of battle. They often treat war as a game of go, to be decided by exact moves. The Akodo Commanders strike precisely without hesitation when using a sword or commanding a unit – for them, purpose and execution are one. Their goal is to minimize losses while achieving their objectives: the pinnacle of the art of war. ❖ Rank One: The Way of the Lion Can use Lore instead of Fight to attack, defend, or create an advantage when part of a mass battle. Can also use Lore instead of Will for the purposes of determining turn order in a mass battle. ❖ Rank Two: Triumph Before Battle Once per physical conflict, you may spend a Fate Point and designate an opponent at the end of an exchange. If you do, they cannot use invokations when defending against your physical attacks. ❖ Rank Three: Akodo’s Final Lesson When you are attempting to overcome opposition using Fight, Physique or Athletics in a physical conflict and you beat the base opposition before any Aspects are invoked and Aspects are invoked against you, you still succeed.

Ikoma Bard [Courtier] In the end, after trials, sacrifices, and death – once their body is burned and the ashes scattered to the winds – all that truly remains of a samurai is their story. The greatest monuments of humans may vanish to dust, but legends live on so long as there is someone to kindle them in the memory of the living. The Ikoma Bard School trains its students for this purpose – they are historians, bards, and keepers of the stories of heroes. They exist not just to preserve knowledge, but to transmit these tales to the next generation, inspiring the warriors of the Lion Clan to equal and even exceed the achievements their ancestors won in ancient days. Thus, while Ikoma Bards do not usually serve as frontline combatants, they are no less warlike than the other scions of the Lion Clan – they simply fight a different battle, remembering and venerating glorious deeds in story. ❖ Rank One: The Herald of Glory Can brag about other characters with Lore to heal stress and sometimes consequences related to social reputation. ❖ Rank Two: The Heart of the Lion

You cannot gain negative social consequences related to displaying emotion in public, as long as you do so on behalf of another Lion or a honourable cause greater than yourself. Also, you gain +2 to Will when defending against attempts at swaying your emotions in social situations. ❖ Rank Three: The Strength of Tradition Can use Lore to create advantages relating to verbally encouraging an ally with a tale of great deeds from the past once per session. With success, the next roll the ally makes, if they fail it, they can reroll it for free.

Kitsu Medium [Shugenja] The ancient rituals of the Kitsu Medium School have remained virtually unchanged since the family’s creation, and the notion of putting aside the relics of the past has never occurred to the family. Because of their unique origins, descended from mystical creatures, they have always possessed insights into the relationships between the mortal world and the realms beyond. Their ability to perceive the bonds that tie the living to their ancestors have gradually expanded to the point where they are also able to sense, and even manipulate the bonds an individual may possess to other realms. This is represented in their Technique that allows the disruption of certain types of Aspects or Stunts. ❖ Affinity/Deficiency: Water/Fire ❖ Technique: Eyes of the Ancestors Can use Channeling against Fair (+2) opposition. If you are successful, you learn of an Aspect or Stunt related to spiritual matters (if they have ancestry from the other spirits realms, or are blessed by a Fortune, etc.). Then, you may spend a Fate Point to negate that Aspect or Stunt for a number of minutes equal to your Rank. ❖ Spells: Sense, Commune, Summon, 2 Water and 1 of either Air or Earth.

Matsu Berserker [Bushi] The majority of the vast legions of the Matsu samurai study at the family’s home School, if for no other reason than most Matsu believe other fighting styles are too conservative and reserved. A true Matsu has no fear of death, and as such the Techniques imparted by them embrace absolute, unwavering commitment to battle. Although this leaves the Matsu vulnerable to an opponent’s attacks, the philosophy between the Techniques is that an opponent who has been defeated has no opportunity to retaliate. It is for this reason that the legions of Matsu Berserkers are so feared on the battlefield: how can one defeat an enemy who does not care if she lives or dies, so long as you are defeated first? ❖ Rank One: The Lion’s Roar As long as you maintain honourable conduct, you gain +1 to Fight when physical attacks in a physical conflict. ❖ Rank Two: Matsu’s Fury When you suffer a physical consequence, you can invoke that consequence for free on your next attack. If you suffer multiple physical consequences, you get a free invocation for each. ❖ Rank Three: The Lion’s Victory Once per conflict, when you invoke a physical consequence on a successful Fight attack, you can spend a Fate Point to increase that consequence's severity (so mild

23 becomes moderate, moderate becomes severe) before your opponent takes stress from your successful attack. If you invoked a severe consequence, your opponent must either take a consequence from your attack or be taken out.

Mantis Schools

Moshi Suncaller [Shugenja] The practices of the Moshi shugenja were developed over the course of many years spent in unwavering devotion to the Sun Goddess. Despite the celestial upheaval that has occurred within the Celestial Order during Rokugan’s history, the Moshi have managed to retain their devotion even if the nature of their magical studies has changed somewhat. Since joining the Mantis Clan, their focus has shifted from one of pure theology to more practical concerns, and they excel at invoking the Kami who hold sway over the weather as they are frequently stationed aboard Yoritomo vessels in other to placate the seas during the clan’s all-important mercantile voyages. Their Technique allows them extreme versatility in their spellcasting choices, enough to rival even the Isawa of the Phoenix Clan. ❖ Affinity/Deficiency: Air/Earth ❖ Technique: Favour of the Sun During the day, you gain additional Affinity for Fire spells. This benefit is lost at night. ❖ Spells: Sense, Commune, Summon, 2 Air and 1 Fire.

Tsuruchi Archer [Bushi] Even before joining the Mantis, when they were the Wasp Clan, there was little question that the Tsuruchi were the greatest archers in the Empire. That they have so embraced this as to virtually put aside the study of the blade, however, has often caused others to look at them with great suspicion. The Tsuruchi rarely care however; they believe in the purity of the bow, and while they teach proficiency with other weapons as well, such are purely secondary concerns. The Tsuruchi Techniques are the epitome of the Rokugani philosophy of archery: the arrow knows the way, and should be fired without hesitation or aiming. Nevertheless, when pressed into melee, a Tsuruchi Archer will be badly outclassed by virtually any other bushi School. ❖ Rank One: Always Be Ready You can use Marksmanship instead of Notice to determine turn order in any physical conflict where shooting quickly would be useful. ❖ Rank Two: The Arrow Knows The Way During a Marksmanship attack, you can spend a Fate Point and declare a specific condition you want to inflict on a target, like [Shot in the Hand]. If you succeed, you place that as a situational Aspect on them in addition to hitting them for stress. ❖ Rank Three: Tsuruchi’s Eye You can make physical attacks with Marksmanship from up to three zones away, rather than the usual two and any situational Aspects you create with a Marksmanship roll gain an additional free invokation.

Yoritomo Broker [Courtier] Left to their own devices by an Empire that largely discounted them, the Yoritomo family refused to disappear, instead devoting their considerable resources to every possible aspect of a Clan’s normal development. Out of that development and a desire for trained courtiers, the Yortimo developed this School mainly as a means to get ahead in mercantile interests. Like the Yasuki, the Mantis courtiers are merchants as well as diplomats, but they take a different approach: rather propping themselves up as middlemen, the Yoritomo Brokers are notorious for their brusque manner, depending on the blunt instrument of intimidation to hammer their points home. While this tactic is successful in business endeavours, it has only rarely made strides in court as such tactics are seen as uncouth. Nevertheless, few can break these courtiers’ iron will. ❖ Rank One: Duty Before Honour You can never gain any negative social Aspects for talking about commerce openly, or using intimidation. You also receive +2 to Presence when creating an advantage and dealing with ronin, bandits, gang members, mercenaries, pirates, and other lawless types. ❖ Rank Two: Command the Winds If you have failed a Rapport roll, you may reroll it as a Presence roll instead but must take the result of the second roll, you may do this a number of times per session equal to your Rank. ❖ Rank Three: Strength in All Things Any time you are using Presence to attack or Will to defend against Presence, and your results nets you a Boosts, you may turn that Boosts in a full-fledged Aspect.

Yoritomo Marine [Bushi] The Yoritomo are masters of the sea, and as a result of centuries spent fighting from ship to ship and on the beaches, their fighting style is highly unusual. The pitching and rolling of the waves has been incorporated into their style, which uses more movement than many major Schools. In short, naval combat has highly shaped the Yoritomo bushi School into something unique: in the School they learn to ruthlessly exploit any weakness in their opponents’ defenses to end skirmishes quickly and make use of unconventional weaponry, the kind seem as peasants’ tools, as sea air and steel do not keep well. Jacks of all trades, but masters of none, the bushi produced by this School are highly adaptable assets. Though, the typical Yortiomo Marine is a whirlwind of twin kamas. ❖ Rank One: The Way of the Mantis You can never gain any negative social Aspects for using weapons such as kama, and kumade. You also gain +2 to Athletics to overcome or defend against rough or uneven terrain. ❖ Rank Two: The Rolling Wave +2 to attack with Fight whenever you move at least one zone unopposed before you attack with a weapon such as a kama or kumade. ❖ Rank Three: Hand of Osano-Wo You may spend a Fate Point when you succeed on an attack with a weapon such as a kama or kumade to inflict additional physical stress equal to your Athletics.

Phoenix Schools

Agasha Transmuter [Shugenja] During their service to the Dragon Clan, the Agasha pursued many unconventional paths and in additional to their alchemical interests, the Agasha have always had an interest in the creation of Spells that invoked Kami of multiple Elements simultaneously. Among the Phoenix, the Agasha have been given leave to pursue this area of study as far as they wish, and they have made tremendous strides. Their Technique focuses on the family’s interest in merging the elements and casting multi-Elemental spells. Although this practice has yet to be accepted, it allows for unmatched versatility and gives insight to the interaction of the Elements. ❖ Affinity/Deficiency: Fire/Water ❖ Technique: Element of All Things When casting a Spell, you may spend a Fate Point to use another skill in place of Channeling provided suitable narrative justification. ❖ Spells: Sense, Commune, Summon, 2 Fire and 1 of either Earth or Air.

Asako Scholar [Courtier] The Asako are monastic and scholarly by nature, and nowhere is this evident than in the courtier tradition they maintain on behalf of the Phoenix Clan. Their training consists of extensive studies in large number of subjects, some of which may be chosen by the students themselves. A broad knowledge base gives the Asako a frame of reference from which to examine any new data situation, and allows them great insight into the social situation of court. In short, they specialize in scholarly pursuits, and use those as a means of succeeding in social situations side by side with the Phoenix devotion to peace and civility as their in- depth study of historical events allows them to detect subtle patterns of behaviour in every court – there is over a thousand years of data to analyse, after all. ❖ Rank One: Temple of the Soul You can spend a Fate Point to use Lore in place of any other skill for one roll or exchange, provided you can justify having read about the action you’re attempting. ❖ Rank Two: Invincible Mind When you are defending yourself against an attempt to influence your emotions, opinions or behaviour and are beaten through Rapport or other social skills, you may reroll your defense roll as a Lore roll instead but must take the result of the second roll, you may do this a number of times per session equal to your Rank. ❖ Rank Three: Wisdom of the Ages Once per scene you can spend a Fate Point (and a few minutes of observation) to make a special Lore roll representing a flash of insight. For each shift you make on this roll you discover or create an aspect related to your vast knowledge, on either the

scene or the target of your observations, though you may only invoke one of them for free.

Isawa Elemantalist [Shugenja] No tradition has a more complete mastery of the way of the spirits than that of the Isawa Elementalist School. Since the time before the Kami fell to earth, the priests of the Isawa have sought knowledge and understanding of the kami, the Fortunes, and the very elements themselves. Over the centuries, they have perfected the rituals and supplications to request great boons on behalf of the Phoenix Clan and terrible banes for casting down their enemies. Yet, they know that the spirits require service in exchange for their blessings, making the Isawa Elementalists hesitant to call upon the Kami except in times of great need. To do so without cause is to risk upsetting the delicate balance of the natural world – or bring the wrath of the spirits upon them. ❖ Affinity/Deficiency: Isawa Elementalists may select any Element of their choosing to be their Affinity, including Void. They do not have a Deficiency. ❖ Technique: Isawa’s Gift +1 to Channeling Spells of the Element you choose be your Affinity. ❖ Spells: Sense, Commune, Summon, 2 of the chosen Affinity’s Element and 1 of any Element.

Shiba Guardian [Bushi] As the ever-selfless Kami Shiba swore to protect Isawa, the Shiba Guardian School emphasizes defense and cooperation with the Isawa; its members complement and protect priests, shrine keepers, and shugenja. The Shiba Guardians are broadly trained, often as much scholars as warriors, and they approach conflict as a problem to be solved without bloodshed if possible. Those who underestimate them due to their reluctance to take a life usually only do so once: the Shiba Guardians are as devoted to the perfection of the martial arts as any samurai. Their devotion to theological study and long practice has taught the Shiba Guardians how to dance in harmony with Elemental Kami when called forth by the invocations of the shugenja. ❖ Rank One: The Way of the Phoenix ❖ When someone is attacked physically while within your zone, you can spend a Fate Point to redirect that attack to yourself. You may defend against that attack at +1. ❖ Rank Two: Dancing with the Elements At the beginning of a physical conflict exchange, before any action occurs, you may choose a target. That target receives either +1 or −1 (your choice) any Channeling rolls related to spellcasting. ❖ Rank Three: Touch of the Void At end of a physical conflict exchange, if any allies spent a Fate Point in that exchange for any reason, you gain a Fate Point. This Technique can only activate twice per physical conflict.

Scorpion Schools

Bayushi Fencer [Bushi] The greatest villains in Rokugan’s most successful plays are always Scorpions, because it is so easy for most samurai to believe. It is the actions of students from the Bayushi bushi School that have brought this stereotype to life and reinforced it over and over again. Every student in the Bayushi dojo is trained to be the perfect weapon of discord, capable of turning the Clans against one another with minimal effort. Just as the Scorpion are famed for their schemes and manipulation, they bring misdirection and chaos to the battlefield. Bayushi Techniques have often been called ‘dirty tricks’ as they focus on debilitating opponents and pressing the advantage. Many a samurai has met their end because of the infamous Scorpion feint. ❖ Rank One: The Way of the Scorpion During the first exchange in a physical conflict, whenever you are not first in the turn order of a physical conflict exchange, you gain the [Please, After You] Boost. ❖ Rank Two: Strike from Above, Strike from Below +2 to creating advantages with Manipulation that relate to confusion and misdirection in physical combat. ❖ Rank Three: The Pincers Hold, the Tail Strikes Whenever you create an advantage such as [Stunned], [Dazed] or [Distracted] in physical conflict, that Aspect gains an additional free invokation.

Bayushi Manipulator [Courtier] Through the adept use of deception, temptation, and espionage, Bayushi-trained courtiers are the masters of finding and exploiting the weaknesses of others. No method is too dishonorable as long as it is effective and untraceable. The Bayushi Manipulators are the shadow to the Doji Diplomat’s light, justly feared by all; yet, no court is complete without its Scorpion scoundrel – others are glad to have the Scorpion be the ones to dirty their hands. The Bayushi Manipulators accept their roles as villains in the play that is Rokugan, and in doing so, they help ensure that no true villains rise to threaten the Emperor. To carry out that duty, the Bayushi Manipulators have become more than proficient at the discovering the weakness or dark secrets or their opponentss and ruthlessly exploiting them for the good of the Scorpion. ❖ Rank One: Weakness is My Strength +1 to social skills such as Manipulation and Rapport to attack, create an advantage or defend when you know the opposition's Trouble Aspect. ❖ Rank Two: Secrets are Birthmarks Every two minutes of conversation you have with someone reveals one of their aspects. However, for every two aspects you learn, you reveal one of your own to that person and anyone listening. Round down, so the first one you learn is free

❖ Rank Three: No More Masks Once per session, you may roll against an opponent’s Rapport. With a success, you may inflict an extreme social consequence on that opponent which lasts for one in- game month unless the target takes action to expunge it sooner.

Shosuro Infiltratior [Ninja] Few outside the Scorpion Clan are aware of the existence of the Shosuro Infiltratior School, after all, ninja do not exist in Rokugan and it speaks volumes about the Shosuro Infiltrators’ prowess that the official stance on ninja in Rokugan remains that way. They have perfected acting and stagecraft. With their well-honed abilities of acrobatics, disguise, and stealth, these Scorpion agents encounter very few places to which they cannot gain access. As agents of surprise and disruption, they do not stand and fight, but instead sow chaos and vanish – usually to disguise what their mission actually was. Many a yōjimbō has thwarted an apparent assassination attempt that was merely a distraction from the target the Shosuro Infiltrators truly sought. Such infiltrators can vanish into shadows or, with equal skill, mingle with peasants to become invisible to the eyes of samurai. ❖ Rank One: The Path of Shadows You can use Stealth instead of Fight to physical attack when your target isn’t aware of your presence, and you cannot gain negative social Aspects from lying, pickpocketing and so on, or using ninja weapons as long in it is in service to the Scorpion Clan. ❖ Rank Two: Many Masks, One Face You have a cover identity you can assume. Describe your cover identity, choose a High Concept and a Trouble Aspect for your cover identity, and choose an apex skill for your cover identity. You can assume that identity with enough preparation and the expenditure of a Fate Point.

While you’re in that identity, its High Concept and trouble replace yours and you can use Manipulation in place of its apex skill. You lose these benefits as soon as your cover is blown, and you may have to spend some time creating a new cover identity.

If you wish to change your cover identity, you can with enough downtime. ❖ Rank Three: The Final Silence When you make a successful attack using Stealth on an unaware target, you may spend a Fate Point to turn all four Fate Dice to show a result of ++++.

On Ninja and Shinobi The ninja, or shinobi, are a weapon of war, but they are often used in times of peace to hide the origin of an attack and deflect blame for drastic but precise violence. The use of such tactics, and the shinobi themselves, are officially banned by Imperial Edict, but somehow rumors of their use remain.

Soshi Trickster [Shugenja] The Soshi understand better than most that the Kami are not honourable beings as many envision them, but rather completely alien creatures with no firm concept of human behaviour or even of honour itself. They can and will do virtually anything asked of them if properly entreated, so long as the request is not a violation of the natural order such as blood sorcery. The Soshi Tricksters excel at exploiting this to channel the Kami into feats of stealth, trickery, and deception – although all shugenja have the potential to cast Spells discreetly, that is the niche the Soshi shugenja School inhabits. Their ability to cast virtually any non-damaging Spell without any outward indications of its origin make them perfect for infiltration and subtle manipulation at court. ❖ Affinity/Deficiency: Air/Earth ❖ Technique: The Kami’s Whisper You many spend a Fate Point when casting any Spell with no potential to inflict damage to eliminate all visible signs of the Spell having being cast. ❖ Spells: Sense, Commune, Summon, 2 of Air and 1 of either Fire or Water.

Unicorn Schools

Horiuchi Meishōdō Master [Shugenja] The Unicorn understanding of magic and the spirits has been greatly influenced by their years exploring outside the Empire, and the making of magical talismans remains the focus of their craft, meishōdō. While they serve as priests to the Unicorn, the Horiuchi Meishōdō Masters rarely confine themselves to a temple or library, preferring to travel and experience the world. Their magic is unique among Rokugan’s shugenja; using words of power taught to them by foreign sorcerers, the Horiuchi Meishōdō Masters bind the spirits into talismans, which can then be gifted to others to use. Their unique heritage makes the Horiuchi one of most open-minded and experimental of the shugenja families. Of course, before the family was founded, the Iuchi managed the School of Meishōdō. ❖ Affinity/Deficiency: Earth/Air ❖ Technique: The Way of Names You may use Craft to create talismans as Situational Aspects using Spells provided there is enough free time to bind the spirits to them, however, the Spells stored count towards your session limit. Regardless of the Spell’s Rank, it takes only one turn to cast the Spell and no casting roll is needed. However, the Spell is treated as being cast with a standard success. Other shugenja may use your talismans only if they are also proficient in meishōdō. ❖ Spells: Sense, Commune, Summon, 2 of Fire and 1 of either Earth or Air.

Ide Emissary [Courtier] The Ide Techniques focus on a calm mind, serenity in all things, and meditation. They are the most pacifistic of any courtier traditions among the Great Clans, save possibility for the Asako Scholars of the Phoenix Clan. The intensity of their conviction with regard to pacifism has waxed and waned over the years, but on the whole, they remain devoted to defusing conflict whenever possible. Welcome allies to some Clans, and meddling outsiders to others, their courtier Techniques are almost non-offensive in nature. The Ide Emissaries specialize in protecting themselves from the ramifications of their actions, and in attempting to defuse conflicts among others – the lesson they learned from their time in the Burning Sands is that honesty and friendship are the best policies. ❖ Rank One: Open Hand, Open Heart You never suffer any increased difficulty from unfamiliarity with your setting, making it easy to maneuver through local customs you haven’t encountered before, and to cover up any gaffes with a laugh and a sparkle in your eye. ❖ Rank Two: Reaching Through the Veil While in a conversion with someone, as long as you maintain a friendly demeanour, you can use Rapport instead of Notice to read their emotions. With a success, you get a simple, general idea of their true feelings. But with a success with style, you get

better information, such as their motivation or instincts (if using the social conflict rules). ❖ Rank Three: The Immovable Hand of Peace You may spent a Fate Point to make a Rapport roll against a target individual, if you succeed, the target cannot take any hostile actions against you for a number of hours equal to twice your Rank, as long as you likewise refrain from hostility against that person. The person in question must value honour, so ronin and oni etc. are immune to this Technique.

Moto Raider [Bushi] The Moto bushi are the living stereotype that many hold of the Unicorn Clan. The family are born of a union between the Rokugani people and the gaijin who were allowed to join the Unicorn during their travels abroad. Owning to their descent from the wild, nomadic, barbarian tribes of the northern steppes known as the Ujik-hai who used to be extremely dedication to gaijin gods known as the Lords of Death (or Shi-tien Yen-Wang) , the Moto Raiders practice an unfettered fighting style that makes them awe-inspiring opponents on the battlefield, even as it earns them the enmity of all those who despise deviation from the customs and nature of Rokugani warfare. Being heavy cavalry, their Techniques are naturally unabashedly centred about that role. ❖ Rank One: The Way of the Unicorn You gain +1 to attack with Fight while mounted, using a scimitar, or while using a two-handed melee weapon. These bonuses do not stack. ❖ Rank Two: Shinsei’s Smile Whenever displaying your fighting stance or threatening someone with violence, you may roll Fight instead of Presence to scare them. ❖ Rank Three: The Charge of Madness Whenever you take out an opponent in a physical conflict exchange, you may immediately make an additional attack with +2 to Fight.

Utaku Battle Maiden [Bushi] The Battle Maidens are a harsh contrast to the Moto Raiders, this is mainly apparent in the fact that the Battle Maidens command respect rather than fear. Additionally, while the remainder of the Clan trains on gaijin riding horses – a larger and sturdier breed than the simple Rokugani pony – the Utaku alone have the right to breed, raise and ride into battle the legendary Utaku steeds, the finest horses in the world. The Utaku Battle Maiden Techniques focus on mounted combat just like other Unicorn bushi Schools, although not to the total exclusion of non-mounted abilities (even if they are a terror in combat when on a horse). The Battle Maidens also keep honour close to their hearts, and in a land where it is a stronger force than steel, there are clear benefits for valuing it. ❖ Rank One: Riding in Harmony As long as you maintain honourable conduct, you gain +1 to Fight to attack and to Ride when creating an advantage. ❖ Rank Two: Sensing the Breeze

You fight and act on horseback without penalty, and nothing can knock you off. Any time you would take a physical consequence, you can opt for the horse to take it instead – the horse having a similar consequence track to your character. ❖ Rank Three: Wind Never Stops Once per scene, you may move one zone while mounted, create an advantage with Ride, and then move one additional zone, provided there are no situation aspects restricting movement. When you succeed with style on a that Ride roll and place an aspect on an opponent, you may exchange one of your free invocations for a 2-shift hit on that opponent.

Dude, Where’s My School? In the 4th Edition Core Rulebook alone, there are at least over thirty

different Schools, not counting the Alternative Paths and Advanced Schools. Other supplements add even more to that number. While other ninja Schools such as the Daidoji Harriers and all of the Artisan Schools have been left out, this is partly because of the staggering number of Schools available.

In the conversion process, it was deemed best to simply stick to the Schools present in the 4th Edition Core Rulebook as other Schools are simply too niche (such as the actual Hiruma Scouts and the Moto Vindicators which are solely focused on anti-Shadowlands Techniques, or the Imperial Families Schools which are solely focused on directl) or come off as being in the same niche as another Great Clan School (such as the various Artisan Schools to each other and the aforementioned Daidoji Harriers being the Crane variant of the Soshi Infiltrators).

Nevertheless, if you really want to play, say, a Hida Pragmatist or a Yogo Wardmaster, nothing is stopping you from discussing that with your GM and working something out.

The Brotherhood of Shinsei

“The Elements are not the means to an end... they are the beginning, and the end.” ❖ [The Four Vows] ❖ [Mystical Martial Arts] ❖ [Many Branches, One Tree] The Brotherhood of Shinsei is composed of a diverse group of monks and scholars dedicated to rescuing the soul of the Empire. Each sect of the Brotherhood believes its own method of enlightenment is the true path, and they have all created hundreds of techniques dedicated towards calming the spirit and reaching balance. Despite each sect adamant in their assertion of being the one true path, existence of several sects is permitted as their founder’s greatest adage is that each man must follow his own path. Each of the following Monk Schools, also called Temples, represents a network of temples devoted to a particular sect within the Brotherhood of Shinsei, and reflects where the character was trained and indoctrinated into the Order. Each School also studies the Tao of Shinsei or the Fortunes’ strictures but places a greater emphasis on one or the other.

Playing A Monk Of course, the permission of the GM is needed if you wish to play a monk as while they are respected and given leeway by the samurai of Rokugan, they are a complicating factor in a great number of politicial and social situations – their rather hazy position within the social order of Rokugan, for instance. In the 4th Edition Core Rulebook, these were in the Optional Rules chapter for a reason.

But, if you want to play a Monk and you have the GM’s permission, go right ahead! Monks do not come from any particular family and can have backgrounds from being a retired samurai to coming from lowly peasant stock. Mechnically, they start with 2 Refresh and 3 Kihō equal to their Rank – powerful spiritual techniques activated by aligning their inner energy, or ki, to specific Elements or universal forces (see page XX for more).

Note that those of the Togashi Tattooed Order (p. 17) do not start with Kihō as they are not a part of the Brotherhood of Shinsei and are in fact a self- contained order. Additionally, samurai who retire and become part of the Brotherhood renounce any connections they have to their Clan.

Monk Schools

The Four Temples Advisor [Monk] Many secs believe that monks must retreat into seclusion to achieve harmony with the elements. The monks of the Four Temples sect know that man is a social and it is in his nature to interact with others. The Four Temples monks believe they must maintain a strong connection to civilisation to unravel the mysteries of the world. They remain in direct contact with the political heart of the Empire – indeed, one of its biggest monasteries lies within the Imperial capital. Those from the Four Temples Sect may become advisors to major generals or daimyō, or they may travel the road, helping the unfortunate who cross their path. ❖ Devotion: Shintao ❖ Technique: Soul of Civility +2 to creating advantages with Rapport when interacting with important figures.

The Order of Heroes Mentor [Monk] A small sect that is not well known among those outside the Brotherhood, and their monks belong to one of most proactive sects within Rokugan. Adherents are followers of the Tao, the Thunder Dragon, and the Fortune of Heroes, Goemon. They believe the potential for greatness exists within the soul of all men. With the proper encouragement, any samurai can become a hero of legend to inspire and teach others. The Order actively seeks out threats and problems that exist within the Empire, and then seeks out individuals who posess the proper talents to deal with the matter, quietly assisting in the births of hundreds of heroes and legends. ❖ Devotion: Shintao ❖ Technique: Destiny’s Hand You many spend a Fate Point to confer a bonus of +1 to any rolls that would be made by an ally who hasn’t acted in the current exchange on their turn.

The Shrine of the Seven Thunder Ascetic [Monk] When Rokugan desperately called for heroes to defeat the threat of the dark god Fu Leng, seven mortals sacrificed everything to save their Empire. The monks of the Shrine of the Seven Thunders honour these heroes by dedicating their entire lives to enlightenment through contemplation and tranquility. These monks rarely leave the monastery, choosing instead to become one with their environment. However, when they reach a certain point in their training, both mental and physical, they are presented with the option to travel beyond the monastery and experience the variety of life. Though, those who do so frequently find their path fraught with difficulty, as they have little experience of non-monastic life. ❖ Devotion: Shintao ❖ Technique: Walk with the Prophet

All three of your initial Kiho must be selected from the same Element. Your Rank is considered one higher for the purposes of learning Kiho from that Element.

The Temple of Kaimetsu-Uo Reconciler[Monk] The adherents of Kaimetsu-Uo, the founder of the Mantis Clan, have a considerably different view of that heroic individual than the samurai who belong to the Clan he founded. They believe Kaimetsu-Uo performed legendary deeds because he wanted to avoid the destruction that would have come if he had stayed and contested the claim to the Crab Clan’s leadership. He embraced a life of hardship in search of his own destiny and accepted wisdom from wise bat-spirits, where most would have distrusted them. The monks of the Temple of Kaimestsu-Uo believe enlightenment comes from conciliation and harmony with others, always seeking the path of peace. ❖ Devotion: Fortunist ❖ Technique: The Path of Purity When defending against someone’s attack action in a social conflict, you may use another skill instead of the default, as long as you can justify it, e.g. using Lore to defend against Rapport instead of Will.

The Temple of Osano-Wo Fist [Monk] Perhaps the most militant of all Brotherhood sects, the Temple of Osano-Wo stands apart from the other Fortunist orders because of its extraordinary focus on physical prowess and martial arts. Adherents believe enlightenment comes with hard work and physical exertion, and a well-trained body leads to a well-trained mind and soul. Monks of this order are notorious for ritually scarring their skin to mark the progress of their training, giving them an alarming appearance. Often called the Thunderers, their focus on unarmed combat is obvious to all who encounter them. ❖ Devotion: Fortunist ❖ Technique: The Hand of Thunder You inflict one additional stress with unarmed attacks.

The Temples of the Thousand Fortunes Devotee [Monk] Rokugan is a devout Empire filled with thousands of shrines and monasteries across the land. The Temples of the Thousand Fortunes are as diverse as the gods they revere and are a large network of shrines that only pay lip service to the Tao of Shinsei but embrace the doctrine of individual Fortunes. It is almost impossible to categorise all of the monks within the Temples of the Thousand Fortunes as one group, let alone the doctrine of this group of temples as the Fortunes are as different from one another as any two mortals, but most believe they must work diligently to prove themselves worthy of enlightenment. ❖ Devotion: Fortunist ❖ Technique: The Thousand Forms You begin with four Kihō instead of three.

Legacy of the Five Rings uses a modified list of the FATE Core skills. To reflect the fact that characters start with fewer skills than the FATE Core default, some skills have either been removed or merged with other skills. ❖ Athletics, as per FATE Core, represents your character’s general level of physical fitness and is usually used when your character is jumping, running, etc. ❖ Channeling, which is highly important to shugenja, as it represents their ability to interact with the Kami and produce feats of Magic (see page 39 for more). ❖ Craft, which not only represents, say, a blacksmith’s ability to forge a fine katana but that of a samurai’s prowess at the finer arts such as calligraphy, ikebana (flower arranging), origami, or poetry. ❖ Fight, as per FATE Core, represents your character’s prowess at close-quarters combat. ❖ Lore, as per FATE Core, is a measure of your character’s knowledge and education. ❖ Manipulation, as per Deceive in FATE Core, is all about lying to and misdirecting people. ❖ Marksmanship, as per Shoot in FATE Core, is the skill of using ranged weaponry, whether it is a yumi or a shuriken. ❖ Medicine, is all about treating physical stress and consequences – wounds, poisons and diseases alike. Beware that Rokugani medical knowledge is rather limited. ❖ Notice combines Notice, Empathy, and Investigate from FATE Core, and represents your character’s ability to… well, notice things, whether it is a character tic, bandits in the trees, or a pendant left in a corner of a crime scene. ❖ Physique, as per FATE Core, is a counterpart to Athletics, representing the character’s natural physical aptitudes, such as raw strength and endurance. It is also used to determine the number of physical stress boxes your character has. ❖ Presence, is like Provoke in FATE Core but is also a representation of social toughness, and is used in intimidation and dealing with large groups socially. If you deem it fit to have a social stress track, this skill is used to determine the number of social stress boxes your character has. ❖ Rapport, as per FATE Core, is all about making positive connections to people and eliciting positive emotion. ❖ Ride is Drive but more geared towards horses and more animal-based transportation. It is also used for piloting boats and driving carts, however. ❖ Resources, like in FATE Core, describes your character’s general level of material wealth in the game world and ability to apply it. Mercantile matters often come under it as well. Samurai are not expected to handle money or have any mercantile knowledge but those without the skill are wholly dependent on their daimyō for their material needs. ❖ Stealth combines Burglary and Stealth from FATE Core, and thus is all about avoiding detection, stealing things and breaking into off-limit locations. Not very honourable. ❖ Will, as per FATE Core, represents your character’s general level of mental fortitude and determines the number of mental stress boxes your character has.

With FATE Core and its narrative focus, equipment is more of an afterthought. However, you can safely assume that a samurai has their daishō (katana and wakizashi), armour, to a travelling pack containing basic supplies, and even a Rokugani pony – outside of any exceptions to the rule – as all that a samurai requires to fulfill their duty is given to them by their lord. Anything outside of that bundle must be purchased via a Resources roll – a tie or worse could mean word reaches your daimyō and they are offended by the insinuation of failing to equip their vassals properly! The main exceptions to the rule are shugenja and courtiers as they start with just a wakizashi and no armour as they are not frontline combatants nor are they expected to be as such. Monks, of course, start with a simple weapon such as a bo (or pair of jo), simple clothes and a scroll satchel with passages from the Tao. Shugenja, of course, also start with a scroll satchel containing scrolls with the incantations for their starting Spells. Finally, the Moto Raider stats with a Unicorn riding Keep It Simple, B-baka! horse and the Battle Maiden There are all sorts of options to represent different starts with a Utaku warhorse. weapons and other types of equipment in FATE Core, known as Extras. For instance, weapon and If using the armour rules, armour ratings a la The Dresden Files Roleplaying Game the Hida Defender, Daidoji Iron which adds or reduces shifts to hits. These can be Warrior, Mastsu Berserker, and used in more grittier games but some consideration is Moto Raider have the option of advisable before adding them to yours. starting with heavy armour. The rest of the bushi Schools start The armour system is meant to minimise combat with light armour. accounting while representing the protection that armour would provide. If you wish to use that or How Armour Works other subsystems for more mechanically involved Rather than adding to combats, go ahead, though other systems might be defense skills, armour has a set more suited towards such things – the Legend of the number of physical stress boxes Five Rings RPG 4th Edition is recommended for this that can be used to absorb purpose. physical stress in conjunction with the character’s own physical stress boxes. For instance, if an unharmed character wearing light armour suffered a 3-shift hit, rather than checking off their own 1-box and 2-box, they can simply check off their 2-box and the Light Armour’s first 1-box. However, no more than two boxes (one from the character, and one from the armour) can be used in this way. Once all of the armour’s physical stress boxes are used up, the armour is broken and requires repair. ❖ Light Armour: 11 11 ❖ Heavy Armour: 11 21, +1 to the difficulty of Athletics, Fight, Ride and Marksmanship actions.

Sample Horse Stats Usually horses and the like are fine as simple props, but here’s some numbers if there is the need to represent them mechanically. Rokugani Pony ❖ Aspects: [A Reliable Steed…], […But A Little Skittish] ❖ Skills: Fair (+2) Athletics, Average (+1) Fight and Physique. ❖ Stress: 11 Unicorn Riding Horse ❖ Aspects: [Bred For War!], [Not That Smart] ❖ Skills: Good (+3) Athletics, Fair (+2) Fight, Average (+1) Notice and Physique. ❖ Stress: 1121 Utaku Warhorse ❖ Aspects: [Formidable Charger], [Fussy] ❖ Skills: Good (+3) Athletics, Fair (+2) Fight and Physique, Average (+1) Notice, Presence and Will. ❖ Stress: 1121 ❖ Consequences: One physical slot at (−2) Mild.

The Gunpowder Question Historically, samurai and ninja alike latched onto gunpower and firearms as soon as they were readily available, for example, through channels such as Portuguese traders in the 16th century, or earlier in the 13th century via the Chinese. After all, a firearm has the advantage when it comes to range compared with the katana and requires less training to use.

While in the Alderac Entertainment Group Legend of the Five Rings canon, the Rokugani encountered firearms when gaijin fleets from the distant nations of Merenae and Thrane arrived at the shores near Otosan Uichi in the 4th century. The ensuing battle between Rokugani and gaijin forces, known as the Battle of White Stag, lead to firearms being banned by

Imperial Edict and being viewed as dishonourable weapons.

However, the general view the GM’s Rokugan samurai have

on gunpowder and gaijin is solely up to them. Imperial Histories 2 already lays out an alternate Rokugan which embraced firearms, and even a whole scenario could be based on the effect they have on Rokugani warfare.

While FATE Core measurements advancement in different types of milestones, Experience Points (XP for short) are used. However, it is easy enough to see the two as interchangeable. Though while milestones occur at significant “break points” in the game – the end of a session, the end of a scenario, and the end of a story – there is no set formula for awarding Experience Points, only suggestions. XP Milestones For instance, the “classic” model of Experience Point awards gives out 1 XP for Rank One 0 XP playing the game session, 1 XP for role-playing well, and 1 or 2 XP for in-game Rank Two 15 XP accomplishments. All depends on how fast the Rank Three 30 XP GM wants the players to advance in Rank and power level, for instance, awards of 5 XP per session will result in the player characters to reach Rank Two in three sessions, and Rank Three in another three. Of course, advancement in Rank occurs when the player character has accumulated that much XP, regardless of what the player has spent that XP on. Experience Points can be spent in a manner thusly: 0 XP (After a session only) 3 XP 5 XP 10 XP Switch the rank values of any One additional skill point, One new regular Increase Refresh by one, to a two skills which can be spent to buy Stunt. maximum of three. Change any non-Technique a new skill at Average (+1) One additional One additional Rank Three Spell stunt for another stunt or increase an existing Rank One or Two or Kihō Rename one character skill by one rank. These Spell or Kihō Enter into another School. Aspect that isn’t your High may be “banked”. Concept.

When a samurai enters into a new School, they stop all progression in their current School and gains any benefits from the new School when they advance Rank. Schools can be combined in a manner thusly: Second School Tag First School Bushi/Ninja Courtier Monk Shugenja Tag Bushi/Ninja Yes Yes Yes No Courtier Yes Yes Yes Yes Monk No No Yes No Shugenja No Yes Yes No

Although the term Spells is generally used to describe the abilities of shugenja in both game terms and within the world of Rokugan, in point of it is incorrect. The invocations used by shugenja to accomplish incredible effects are ritualised prayers that invoke the Kami in a carefully researched, specific manner. Because the Kami lack free will as mankind understands it, they tend to respond in roughly the same manner each time a specific prayer is invoked. To reflect the rote nature of Spells, each Spell is a specific use of the Channeling skill. For instance, through the Spell called Jade Strike, Isawa Hikaru can used his Channeling skill to attack a horror from the Shadowlands or, through the Spell called Never Alone, Isawa Hikaru can create the advantage [Warm Encouragement]. Any ad-hoc Spells require importuning the Kami through a challenge of finding the Kami and trying to convince them to do the shugenja’s bidding. Also to note, a failed Channeling could result in a backlash as the Kami inflict physical or mental stress on the shugenja and unless otherwise stated, a Spell last for the duration of a scene and has a range of one zone.

Extra Details Permissions: An Aspect reflecting the shugenja’s training. Costs: Skill ranks in the Channeling skill. People who are train in the ways of the shugenja are able to use ritualised prayers to perform supernatural effects as specific uses of the Channeling skill, as it the Channeling skill cannot be used just on its own.

O Overcome: When Channeling is used to cast a Spell using the overcome action, it is usually a Spell that is a magical ritual or answers questions about arcane phenomena.

C Create an Advantage: When Channeling to perform Spells that alter the environment or place mental and/or physical impediments on target, it is through creating an advantage.

A Attack: When Channeling is used with a Spell using the attack action, it is a Spell that directly harms someone or something with magic.

D Defend: When Channeling is used with a Spell that uses the defend action, that Spell defends against hostile magics or other supernatural effects. Counterspelling is also represent through defending with Channeling.

Tags Explained Think of Tags as mini Aspects below Boosts – they cannot be used in game but are there to signify certain properties in terms of rubrics. For example, Hida Daichi cannot join a [Shugenja] School because he already has the [Bushi] Tag from his School.

Spell Rank Passive Spell Casting Difficulties and Casting Times

Rank Zero Mediocre (+0) One Turn

Rank One Fair (+2) One Turn

Rank Two Good (+3) Two Turns

Rank Three Great (+4) Three Turns

Each Spell has a Rank, from One to Three, just like player characters. A shugenja can only learn or cast Spells of equal Rank or those with a Rank less than his or her Rank. In addition to that, Spell Rank also affects the difficulty of casting the Spell when it comes to passive resistance. Universal Spells are a special case, all being Rank Zero. Affinities and Deficiencies also affect this as they represent both the ritualised teachings of the Great Clans and the inherently oppositional nature of the Elements. A shugenja with an Affinity for an Element adds one to their Channeling roll. Conversely, a shugenja Deficient in an Elements subtracts one to their Channeling roll when trying to cast that Spell. If this reduces the shugenja’s effective Channeling skill to zero, they cannot cast Spells of that Element. Finally, Spell Rank affects the amount of time the Spell takes to cast – bigger, flashier, and more An Enchanted powerful spells take more time to cast than more subtle ones, i.e. Spells require a number of turns equal to their Narrative Rank to cast. While in a physical conflict exchange, Many of the Spells listed characters must state whenever they are intentionally here can be simply trying to interrupt a Spell being cast, and must overcome represented through the caster’s Will in order to do so. Disrupted Spells special usage of the four cannot be completed but they do not count against the actions, especially shugenja’s Spells per session limit. creating an advantage.

While Situational Aspects are a good model for these Spells, The following Spells you could simply skip are the most basic, essential that step and have the lessons taught to young effect ‘just happen’. students aspiring to learn the secrets of the Kami. Every shugenja Remember the limits of in Rokugan knows these spells, and virtually every other the Bronze Rule! spell in existence is a modified, more powerful version of one or more of these Spells.

Commune ❖ Element: Any, except Void. ❖ Rank: Zero. ❖ Action: O or C Commune allows the caster to speak with one of the local Elemental Kami, asking it a few questions, which it will answer honestly to the best of its ability. Typically this spell will invoke the most active and energetic spirit of the chosen Element in the immediate area; if all of the local spirits are quiescent, the GM may increase the difficulty of the casting roll by one shift to “wake up” a local spirit enough to answer questions. A spirit reached with Commune will answer two questions without the use of social skills. Though, bear in mind, Kami are notorious for their inability to fully comprehend human behaviour, which may affect their answers. However, spirits do not forget and shugenja can ask a spirit about something that happened decades ago; a small caveat of this is the fact that the Kami do not experience time in the same way as mortals. The nature of the information which the spirits can impart varies by Element: ❖ Air Kami tend to be playful and easily distracted, conveying information as emotions or as riddles and jokes. Since they are more interested in feelings than facts, and enjoy playing games with those who speak with them, communing with an Air spirit can be very frustrating at times. A small hint: they respond well to offerings of incense, feathers, or flowers, etc. ❖ Earth Kami are straightforward and matter-of-fact, often blunt, but are also often rather uninterested in the behaviour of mortals, have a poor understanding of human emotion, and tend to be overly focused on obscure details such as the colour of a piece of clothing, or the weight of a horse. They respond well to offerings of salt, soil or stones from a sacred place, or seeds. ❖ Fire Kami are irritable and temperamental, and are often angry at being summoned unless they are propitiated with an offering of something to burn such as kindling, paper, ash and other small flammable objects. On the other hand, if a shugenja can please them, they end to offer the clearest and most accurate information. ❖ Water Kami communicate their knowledge through soundless visual images. This can be very helpful to a shugenja trying to investigate a past incident, but since Water spirits cannot convey scent, sound or emotion, the information they provide can often be incomplete or misleading. They respond well to coins, seashells, precious materials, seaweed or sake.

SATs and You. No, Not Those SATs… Many of the Spells detailed here create Aspects. Some Spellborne Aspects use remaining free invokations as a sort of timer – free invokations are taken away at the end of every exchange and when there are none remaining, the Aspect then goes away at the end of the next exchange. For simplicity’s sake, this is referred to SAT (or Spellborne Aspect Timer on the duration of some Spells. Invoke or recharge those Aspects before they go!

Sense ❖ Element: Any, except Void. ❖ Rank: Zero. ❖ Action: C Sense allows the caster to detect the presence, quantity and rough location of Elemental spirits (not the evil spirits known as kansen) of that Element in the local vicinity. This Spell is most frequently applied when looking for spirits in which to Commune with (see above), but can also be useful as a crude, basic location device. For instance, a caster lost in the wilderness could cast Sense (Water) in hopes of locating a source of drinking water. Therefore, this Spell is used to create Aspects such as [A Small Spring] or [A Flow Of Water Kami]. Summon ❖ Element: Any, except Void. ❖ Rank: Zero. ❖ Action: C Summon allows the caster to summon a modest quantity (one cubic foot) of the chosen Element. The summoned matter appears (usually in a rough ball-like shape) in any open space within the local vicinity. However, the summoned material cannot be placed via summoning inside another physical object or living creature. The summoned Element will behave in a normal and mundane manner – earth falls to the ground, water soaks anything it lands on and so on. Aspects created by this Spell are those such as [A Ball of Dirt] or [A Splash Of Water].

Air is enigmatic and mercurial in all things. Spells produced from entreating the Air Kami usually harass the might of the winds, ferry whispers from one location to another, or produce illusions as the Air Kami themselves are capricious and mischievous but their wrath is as that of the storm. Air Spells have a wide range of effects, from the subtle to the overt.

Rank One Blessed Wind ❖ Area of Effect: Caster ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Action: C The shugenja recites a short chant and the dust whips up, carried upon twisting currents of air that foil and deflect projectiles. Stones, arrows, and even larger missiles are knocked aside by buffeting winds, keeping the caster safe from such attacks – the Aspect [Buffeting Winds] is created and can be invoked while defending against non-magical ranged attacks as magical ranged attacks pierce through the winds. By the Light of the Moon ❖ Action: C Revealing the secret of an illusion can ruin it, but the playful Air Kami can be cajoled to undermine the work of another schemer, especially if it leaves that person in a compromising position. When a shugenja performs this Spell, the quality of light in the area briefly changes to that of a moonlit night, granting illumination of the affected area for those inside and unweaving the shadows to lay bare the things they conceal. Hidden objects glow faintly with silver light, while mystical illusions are revealed as translucent, gossamer forms – the Aspect [… Revealed!] is created. However, only the caster can see the hidden objects. Cloak of Night ❖ Area of Effect: One object or character ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Action: C A sufficiently learned shugenja can call forth Air Kami to play one of their simplest and most effective trick – enveloping an object or person in their embrace to hide it from sight. Pulling threads of shadow and weaving them into a shroud of invisibility that covers the desired target, the Air Kami render it imperceptible by mundane sight – the Aspect [Invisible] is created on the target.

Mask of Wind ❖ Area of Effect: Caster ❖ Action: C Deception is not the way of the samurai, but it is often the way of expedience. The shugenja asks the Air Kami to mask their features and even their voice, causing onlookers to see a different person – the Aspect [Definitely …] is created on the caster. Tempest of Air ❖ Action: A The shugenja beseeches the Air spirits to lash out at all around them, calling buffeting winds into existence in the blink of an eye. The force of this burst of air might push foes backward, their robes flapping about them, or even hurl them from their feet. This Spell is an attack action where any Boosts produced successes with style are those as [Knocked Down]. Token of Memory ❖ Action: C People often see what they desire to see, and reminiscence can fool the senses by stirring the heart. After performing this Spell, the shugenja conjures an illusion from the air, a trick of the light captured in hand. The illusionary object seems real to sight, and other senses at the GM’s discretion, and is represented through an Aspect such as [Illusory Amulet].

Rank Two Call Upon the Wind ❖ Area of Effect: Caster ❖ Action: C The shugenja whispers breathless prayer and rises slightly from the ground as gentle winds bear them aloft. Air spirits usually carry their charges gracefully, without dropping them to stumble the last few feet – usually. The caster gains the Aspect [Aloft], and while they have that Aspect, they ignore any Aspect related to difficult terrain and can move up to two zones without rolling. Essence of Air ❖ Area of Effect: Caster ❖ Action: C The shugenja entreats the Air Kami to briefly make them as mist, intangible and immune to most physical harm, gaining the [Intangable] Aspect. While in this state, the shugenja seems to be shrouded in fog, floats several inches above the ground, and mundane swords and arrows pass through them without effect. When they reform at the end of the Spell, the mist dissipates, and they land gracefully (or are dropped unceremoniously, if the Air Kami are feeling overly exuberant) upon the ground beneath their feet unharmed. Striking the Storm ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Action: C The most powerful winds can turn aside not only arrows, but steel as well. The shugenja summons a buffet of winds that surrounds them in an unrelenting cocoon of swirling air – the Aspect [Cocooning Winds] is created and can be invoked when defending against both ranged and melee non-magical attacks. However, the force of the winds surrounding the shugenja prevents them from hearing others speak. Summon Fog ❖ Action: C Tendrils of mist spill forth from the character’s robes or armour, billowing out before them and wrapping the world in an ominous haze – creating the Aspect [Fog Cloud]. The fog clings to the shugenja, making them hard to spot and harder to strike. When the Spell ends, the fog thins and eventually vanishes, the last traces melting into dew upon the ground.

Secrets on the Wind ❖ Range: From one major location to other ❖ Duration: Session ❖ Action: C The Kami can carry whispers across an Empire, if given proper incentive to do so. This Spell requires the shugenja to perform a preparation ritual in order to be cast which requires ten minutes of uninterrupted mediation in the area designated as the Spell’s area of effect, creating the [Whispers’ Start] Aspect. Any within the 48 hours immediately following the ritual, you may cast this Spell, and overhear anything being said in the prepared area. The Spell ends if your concentration is disrupted and another preparation ritual must be done to renew the Spell’s effect. Only the preparation ritual itself takes up a Spell usage. The Kami’s Whisper ❖ Duration: One exchange ❖ Action: C The Kami of the wind can carry whispers for great distances, and can even create them if properly entreated. The shugenjia petitions the Kami to create a false sound, either a voice or a natural sound such as an animal’s growl or running water. The sound can be no louder than a normal speaking voice, and cannot impersonate a specific person’s voice. If used to create the sound of a voice, the Spell is limited to twenty words. The Aspect created by the Spell depends on the sound created.

Rank Three Draw Back the Shadow ❖ Area of Effect: One zone ❖ Action: O Just as the Kami craft illusions, they can cast them aside. Within the area affect by this spell, any illusions created by spells of Rank Two or lower are automatically dispelled. Spells of Rank Three require a Channeling roll in a contest against the shugenja who created those illusions. Success means they are dispelled as well. Ongoing non-illusion magical effects may also be dispelled by this Spell, but they also require a Channeling contest. Grasp of the Air Dragon ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: O or A The shugenja exhales a long breath at the end of the incantation and extends a hand pointing to their target. A stillness descends, the moment before the storm breaks. Then, the clouds high above twist and trail like festival streamers after an invisible force as it from the heavens, rattling loose objects and shaking people nearby. The wind swoops toward the target and hurls them into the air – carrying them to safety or to their doom, depending on the will of the shugenja. The target is moved two zones and is either set down gently, or slammed into the ground, your choice. The latter is an attack action while the former is an overcome action. Know the Mind ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: O Meddling in the minds of others clearly defies the Bushidō tenet of Gi (Righteousness), for deception imposed on the very heart is difficult to countenance. The Kami, however, are less preoccupied with such matters of human morality, and with the right incentives, can be convinced to delve into the minds of humans – willing or unwilling – to extract and even alter the memories found there. This process is difficult even if the target is willing, for memories often seem to have a will of their own, and are not easily extracted without inflicting considerable discomfort or lasting harm to the spirit. The target defends passively with their Will. If the shugenja succeeds, they ask the target telepathically a number of questions that must be answered truthfully equal to the shifts between the Channeling roll and the target’s Will. If the shugenja fails, they must answer one question from the target truthfully. Rise, Air ❖ Area of Effect: One summoned spirit ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Action: C

The wind itself will take form to defend you. The ultimate actualisation of the Summon Spell and a specific sort of advantage creation, this Spell summons a massive Kami of pure Air to serve the shugenja. It takes the form of a vaguely humanoid shape, roughly ten feet in height, with an indistinct outline visible only because of small debris caught up in its body. In short, the caster summons a manifest Air Kami with the following profile: Manifest Air Kami ❖ Aspects: [Air Incarnate], [Easily Distracted] ❖ Skills: Good (+3) Athletics, Fair (+2) Fight and Stealth, Average (+1) Manipulation, Will and Physique. ❖ Stress: 112131 ❖ Consequences: Two physical slots at (−2) Mild and (−4) Moderate. It takes its turn immediately after the shugenja’s, every exchange. The Kami obeys the shugenja for one exchange, plus any free invokations got with the Channeling roll. When that period ends, it either departs or begins to follow its own directives, if stirred to particular ire. The shugenja can increase the duration by further use of the Channeling skill to place more free invokations on the Aspect [Summoned Kami]. The False Legion ❖ Area of Effect: One zone ❖ Action: C The greatest illusory gift of the wind is legion. Within the area of effect of this Spell, the shugenja creates up to thirty illusory figures which may be as detailed as or as vague as the shugenja prefers (such as [Illusory Crane Bushi] versus [Illusory Heavy Infantry Of The Fourth Daidoji Legion]), although the shugenja must be familiar with their appearance. The figures are fully mobile and will obey the shugenja as long as they do not leave the Spell’s area of effect. They can be seen, heard, or even smelled but cannot physically interact with anything in any way. Wrath of Kaze-no-Kami ❖ Area of Effect: One zone ❖ Action: A Despite their mercurial nature, Air Kami are not easily stirred to grand acts of destruction. However, like all nature spirits, they are beings of creation and destruction, shaping the world and tearing it apart in a tireless cycle. When stirred to wrath, the spirits of the wind become a howling tornado, devastating everything in reach. In short, the shugenja unleashes a hurricane that buffets all characters in range, and Boosts produced successes with style are those as [Disoriented].

Earth is eternal, unchanging and unmoving. The spirits of Earth are quiet and impassive but can be roused into brief moments of terrible violence. Earth Spells are usually supportive, increasing an individual’s ability to withstand and endure. However, from Earth also comes jade and thus a good number of Earth Spells also punish those Corrupted by the Shadowlands.

Rank One Armour of Earth ❖ Area of Effect: Caster ❖ Duration: Three exchanges ❖ Action: C Earth is the element of protection, and many shugenja Schools teach Spells to use it as armor and a shield. When a shugenja performs this Spell, shards of rock fly toward them, fastening together in midair to form a suit of protective armour. As the torrent of earth dissipates, the shugenja stands clad in rocky battlegear, maintaining a degree of flexibility thanks to their bond with the Earth Kami. On a success, the Armour of Earth is equivalent to Light Armour. On a success with style, the shugenja may instead choose for it to become equivalent to Heavy Armour. Courage of the Seven Thunders ❖ Action: D At the dawn of the Empire, the Seven Thunders stood against Fu Leng, and their clash resounded from the Shadowlands to every corner of Rokugan. Earth is the Element of recollection, and from the Earth Kami, a shugenja can unearth fragments of the memories of these heroes from across the ages and impart them to their comrades in arms. This Spell does not erase fear, but it reminds a samurai of the legacy they must uphold – that others stood against the darkness before and prevailed. Whenever something is trying to attack or create advantages related to fear, the shugenja can use this Spell to defend against that for the entire group of player characters. However, samurai who are not of the original Seven Great Clans reduce the effect of this Spell by one shift. Grasp of Earth ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: C With a harsh chant and a gesture of seizing, the shugenja calls upon the Earth spirits to lay hold of someone, dragging them down and containing them. Usually, this Spell causes the target’s legs to sink into sucking mud that springs up from the ground, fall into recently arrived quicksand, or an inconveniently placed hole that entraps them. In short, on a success, this Spell creates the [Entrapped by Earth] Aspect on someone.

Jade Strike ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: A Jade, said to be the tears of Amaterasu, is a sacred stone. It is anathema to creatures of darkness, and one of the few substances capable of harming the greater minions of Fu Leng, the Fallen Kami. While the material is extremely rare and valuable, a shugenja can mimic its effects by entreating Earth Kami to punish evil before them. The shugenja’s hand is enveloped in the sacred green glow, which strikes forth, withering creatures of evil and humans under the sway of the Shadowlands’ insidious power. Bear in mind, this attack Spell is only capable of harming those with an Shadowlands Aspects. Jurōjin’s Balm ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: C Jurōjin, guardian of longevity, health, and physical wellbeing, is one of the most sought-after of the Seven Fortunes – for whether one is a lord or a peasant, one is sure to pray for health sooner or later. A shugenja can impart spiritual fortification in this Fortune’s name, anointing the body of the target with sacred earth, healing plants such as ginseng or rhubarb, or stranger remedies still. While under the effects of this blessing, a character is much more resistant to poison, disease, and the effects of alcohol – the Aspect [Fortified By The Balm] is created on them. Though whether the former effect of this Spell is a boon or a curse depends on whether the character is determined to stay sober or drown their sorrows. Tetsubō of Earth ❖ Area of Effect: One created weapon ❖ Action: C The shugenja takes a steady stance and calls the spirits of Earth, and a pillar of stone erupts from a nearby plot of soil, chunks cracking away to reveal the form of a studded club. Despite the great weight of this weapon, the shugenja can heft it with ease, their might reinforced by the spirits of earth that brought forth the tetsubō for their use. The Aspect [Tetsubō of Earth] is created on the caster, and whenever the shugenja attacks with the created weapon and the target has an Aspect or Boost such as [Prone], the physical stress damage of the attack is increased by one.

Rank Two Bind the Shadow ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: C The shugenja draws forth a small sanctified object, such as a piece of jade or blessed ward or holy prayer beads, and beseeches the spirit within to stop a Corrupted being in its tracks. The presence of the pure spirit is so abhorrent to the corrupted creature that it disorients or even paralyzes the monster until it musters the strength to fight back. The Aspect [Immobilised] is placed on the creature with one extra free invokation. This Spell does not work on characters or creatures without Shadowlands Aspects. Earth Becomes Sky ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: A The shugenja gives a short incantation, stomps a foot on the ground, and a torrent of dirt sprays toward their foe, carrying with it stones or even boulders heaved up by the Earth Kami. These land with the force of an avalanche, raising a hideous crash and sending out tremors that rock everyone nearby. This is an attack Spell where any Boosts produced are those such as [Prone]. Embrace of Kenro-Ji-Jin ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Action: C The shugenja appeals to rumbling subterranean Kami, offering the proper prayers to receive safe passage even across places humans were not meant to tread. The spirits shroud the shugenja, allowing them to stick to rocky surfaces or gently parting the ground to allow their passage, allowing the shugenja to traverse even vertical surfaces made of earth or stone placing the [Sticky Climber] Aspect on the caster. Force of Will ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Duration: Two exchanges ❖ Action: C The Spell infuses the target with an intense resistance to pain and death, as the Earth Kami bolster their will to live to superhuman levels, creating the Aspect [Superhuman Resistance] on them. For the duration of the Spell, the target’s physical consequences cannot be compelled, or have any narrative effect. However, when the Spell expires or when the Aspect goes away, the level of any physical consequences are increased by one immediately – for instance, from Mild to Moderate.

Soul of Stone ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: C The Spell fills the target’s soul with the firm and unyielding strength of stone, creating the Aspect [Soul of Stone] on the target which can be invoked to resist emotional manipulation or the distractions of desire. However, this stony self-control makes it difficult for the target to read and affect the emotion of others, and for the duration of the Spell they suffer a −1 penalty to any social rolls made for the purpose of influencing others. Symbol of Earth ❖ Area of Effect: Special ❖ Duration: Permanent ❖ Action: C Earth spirits govern boundaries and domains, and by inscribing an emblem in dirt, scratching it upon stone, or imprinting it upon sand, a shugenja can create a field that repels malevolent supernatural entities, hurling those inside out of the sanctified area with the force of an earthquake. The symbol is represented by an Aspect and once activated by a creature or character with Shadowlands Aspects, it suffers physical stress equal to the caster’s Channeling skill.

Rank Three Earthquake ❖ Area of Effect: Two zones ❖ Action: A Earthquakes are common in some parts of Rokugan, and are rightly feared – whole villages have been known to vanish when the Earth spirits are set to turmoil. To intentionally raise their ire is dangerous, but one of the most powerful techniques a shugenja can wield. While wielding this invocation, ripples shoot across the ground around the shugenja as the earth bucks and tumbles, or cracks might form beneath their feet, spliting apart to expose magma, the glowing blood of the earth. The shugenja’s foes plummet into chasms of darkness and sulfur, entombed forever beneath the ground they once walked. This is an attack Spell where any Boosts produced are those such as [Prone]. Essence of Jade ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Action: O The shugenja takes a pinch of jade powder and sprinkles it in a pentagram-shaped pattern on the earth, recalling the spirits of the land to their rightful place to provide a bulwark against the forces of evil. If successful, the [Corrupted] Aspect of the terrain is removed for the duration of this Spell. Power of the Earth Dragon ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Action: C The shugenja places a hand on the earth and a hand over the target’s heart, reciting a deep, reverberating prayer that thrums loudly through both. From the earth, vitality swells into the target, reinforcing their bones, invigorating their muscles, and deadening their nerves. If the casting of this Spell is successful, the target gains the [Empowered by the Earth Dragon] Aspect which can be invoked for rolls where resilience is important and gains an extra physical stress box for the duration of the Spell. Rise, Earth ❖ Area of Effect: One summoned spirit ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Action: C A manifest Earth Kami arrives in a tumult of stone, like an avalanche bursting from the ground itself. These beings often take the form of guardians like those found at Fortunist temples and tombs of ancient kings, creatures of living rock with veins of precious stone like sapphire, ruby, or even jade. Earth Kami can be cantankerous, and woe to the shugenja who awakens one without proper cause, but they hate the impure beings of the Shadowlands most of all, and strive to obliterate them.

In short, the caster summons a manifest Earth Kami with the following profile: Manifest Earth Kami ❖ Aspects: [Earth Incarnate], [Extremely Stubborn] ❖ Skills: Good (+3) Physique, Fair (+2) Fight and Will, Average (+1) Notice, Will and Presence. ❖ Stress: 11213141 ❖ Consequences: Two physical slots at (−2) Mild and (−4) Moderate. It takes its turn immediately after the shugenja’s, every exchange. The Kami obeys the shugenja for one exchange, plus any free invokations got with the Channeling roll. When that period ends, it either departs or begins to follow its own directives, if stirred to particular ire. The shugenja can increase the duration by further use of the Channeling skill to place more free invokations on the Aspect [Summoned Kami]. Earth’s Stagnation ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Action: O Earth is the Element of patience and tempo, and a shugenja can invoke Earth Kami to slow the flow of time within an area enclosed by a circle drawn in the dirt, causing it to pass more slowly within. Some shugenja use this to entrap foes, as it lets them make preparations against their enemies. Others have made more creative use of this power, using it to hide from their pursuers or even preserve a specific state until the time when they need it. If the casting is successful, the target’s position in the turn order in any exchange is at the bottom for the duration of the Spell. Tomb of Jade ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Action: C One of the most powerful invocations of the spirits of Earth, the rite the Kuni shugenja call the Tomb of Jade seals a malevolent entity – one suffused with the power of the Shadowlands – within a prison of jade, transforming its blighted flesh into this sacred substance. The jade behaves as normal, adversely affecting other evil creatures nearby. However, if the prison of jade is cracked or broken, the spell weakens, and the being sealed within might be able to escape to wreak havoc once again. The Aspect [Tomb of Jade] is created on the creature or character with Shadowlands Aspects and for every exchange the Aspect persists, two physical stress is inflicted on the target. If they are taken out this way, they are turned into jade entirely and permanently, though damage to the statue might allow it to slip free.

Fire is dynamic, change, energy, illumination, motion and destruction. Thanks to the legions of Isawa Elementalists, is no secret that many Fire Spells wreck destruction, but the Fire Kami are also capable of mending what has been broken, as well as destroying all in their path. Fire Spells can also provide support in the form of warm encouragement or quickness in battle.

Rank One Biting Steel ❖ Area of Effect: One bladed weapon ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Action: C Flame, passion, and ingenuity transform ore into steel, and steel into a sword. So too, then, can a shugenja wield the flame to transform a sword into an even greater weapon, an impossible edge that parts nearly any substance in its ferocity. By drawing a pattern along the naked blade, a shugenja can wake the Fire Kami still sleeping within it. The weapon gains the [Sharpened] Aspects and as long as that Aspect remains, the weapon inflicts one additional physical stress. Extinguish ❖ Area of Effect: One zone ❖ Action: O Shugenja who commune with the spirits of fire must learn to still them, lest the flames they conjure consume them. However, it is not in the nature of Fire Kami to be quelled – therefore, the shugenja instead master the art of precisely inciting the raging Fire Kami further, causing them to quickly exhaust themselves. With a few words and a rising gesture, the shugenja inhales, drawing the flames to a searing glow, then exhales, letting them settle to embers. In short, if the Spell is successfully cast, any number of mundane fires in a zone are immediately snuffed out. Haze of Battle ❖ Area of Effect: A group in a zone ❖ Action: C The shugenja calls to Kami of war and flame with an ancient chant, and the calamitous spirits of the battle-din roar back, inciting fury within nearby targets. Those affected seem almost to glow when seen by a spiritualist, their eyes ablaze and their physiques appearing to warp to unearthly proportions. This is a dread incantation for most shugenja to invoke, but it is done as a last-ditch effort to draw one’s enemies into a trap or empower one’s own troops for a desperate last stand. The characters resist with either with the Fair (+2) passive resistance of casting this Spell with or their Will, whichever is higher. If successful the Spell creates the Aspect [Enraged] on the targets.

Katana of Fire ❖ Area of Effect: One created weapon ❖ Action: C Fire seems insubstantial, and yet anyone who has felt it knows its bite. The shugenja takes a kenjutsu stance, holding their hands aloft or in a guarded position, and a burst of fire swirls existence in their grip in the shape of a sword. This blade weighs nearly nothing but its edge cuts like the finest steel, leaving blazing trails of light in the air behind it and scorchmark cuts through any flesh it crosses. The Aspect [Katana of Fire] is created on the caster, and with an attack, inflicts one additional physical stress. The Fires from Within ❖ Area of Effect: A group in a zone ❖ Action: A The incantation to call fire is guttural and raw. Even as the words echo, the shugenja’s hands snap open and motes of flame trail from their fingertips, searing their way toward the objects of the shugenja’s ire. Any of these motes that fail to hit their intended targets seize upon any flammable material in their path, devouring it greedily before spreading to seek their next meal. If precisely controlled, this invocation can be a pinpoint strike, smiting only their intended foes; if the shugenja’s emotions flare up wildly during the invocation, however, the fires spread rapidly, their avarice unchecked by the shugenja’s intentions. This is an attack Spell where any Boosts produced are those such as [On Fire!]. Never Alone ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Action: C This Spell invokes Fire’s Element of knowledge and understanding, strengthening the spirit of one of the shugenja’s allies by opening their eyes to the courage of their ancestors. The target of the Spell receives the Aspect [Warm Encourgement] which can be invoked to assist them in many matters.

Rank Two Armour of Radiance ❖ Area of Effect: Caster ❖ Duration: One exchange, plus any shifts ❖ Action: C Shugenja attuned closest to the Kami of Fire know that the best defense is an attack from which the foe can never recover, and by appealing to the Fire Kami that slumber within an object, a shugenja can turn even a set of armour into a weapon. The Fire Kami’s creative energy expands rapidly as the incantation ends, causing shimmering radiance to burst forth into a halo of fire that encircles the armour. These flames are harmless to the wearer – though if the shugenja is not performing this invocation upon their own armour, they would be well-advised to take a step back afterward. This Spell creates the [Wreathed In Flames] Aspect on a piece of armour and as long as that Aspect persists, any opponents near the caster suffer the [On Fire!] Boost at the beginning of their turn. Disrupt the Aura ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: C Any whose Elements are out of balances will feel the effects, and this Spell creates that condition deliberately by aggravating the Fire present in the target’s body, creating the [Disrupted Aura] Aspect on the target. While the Spell is in effect, any magical healing effects the target receives automatically fails. Sense (Fire) will show the presence of many excited Fire Kami within the target and is the only way of finding out what has happened to the target. Fires of Purity ❖ Area of Effect: One zone around the caster ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Action: C The shugenja’s eyes glow as they finish the gestures and chant and unleash fire around them. These flames swirl from the shugenja’s hands, clinging to their body, and withering heat blasts anyone else nearby. This Spell also ignites nearby flammable objects. The zone around the caster gains the [On Fire!] Aspect.

Hurried Steps ❖ Area of Effect: Caster ❖ Duration: Two exchanges ❖ Action: C Fire is the Element of thought, and thought is swift indeed. The shugenja draws upon the speed of the Fire Kami to aid them in the next Spell they cast and the Aspect [Quickened Casting] is created on them. As long as that Aspect is on the caster, the casting time of the next Fire Spell the shugenja casts is reduced by one. If the shugenja does not being casting the new Spell within the next two exchanges, however, the benefit of Hurried Steps elapses. The Raging Forge ❖ Area of Effect: One weapon or piece of armour ❖ Action: O Fire is the Element of creation as well as destruction, and a skilled shugenja can use that fact to great effect. This Spell invokes the powers of the forge, mighty and merciless, to remake a material item, such as a weapon or suit of armour, into its perfect form. This Spell cannot repair an item which has actually been broken or destroyed, however, and it can only affect items that are of ordinary quality. Wall of Fire ❖ Area of Effect: Two zones ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Action: C A roiling wall of fire sends a very specific message: approach and die in a manner most awful. Shugenja who commune with Fire spirits can summon forth such blazing warnings with relative ease, brushing oil or powder across the ground and then igniting it with a word of invocation. The wall of fire sparks to life with great force and extends up a few meters for several moments, but maintains its intensity only so long as it has fuel. This Spell creates the [Wall of Fire] Aspect on two zones and as long as that Aspect persists, any opponents in any affected zones suffer the [On Fire!] Boost at the beginning of their turn.

Rank Three Breath of the Fire Dragon ❖ Area of Effect: Two zones ❖ Action: A “Fire is born of the breath,” or so the Isawa Elementalists have long said. Some shugenja make this practice more literal, calling upon the fire kami to ignite the air they exhale, transforming it into a gout of charring flame. A shugenja properly trained in breath exercises can maintain this stream of fire for some time, building its intensity until the final moment and annihilating almost any opposition in the process. It also tends to ignite nearby flammable objects. This is an attack Spell where any Boosts produced are those such as [On Fire!]. Fury of Osano-Wo ❖ Area of Effect: One zone ❖ Action: A The storm Fortune of Rokugan, Osano-Wo is a figure of ancient myth whose blood is said to run through the hardy sailors of the Mantis Clan. With a sudden, harsh incantation and a downward gesture or gaze, a shugenja trained in the invocation call the Fury of Osano- Wo can conjure a bolt of lightning to strike foes with a powerful blast. This attack spell can only be performed outdoors and any Boosts produced are those such as [Dazed]. If this Spell is cast during a thunderstorm, the damage is increased depending on the severity of the storm. Ravenous Swarms ❖ Area of Effect: One zone ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Action: C The shugenja ignites a number of candles and hurls them into the air, and the flames leap forth and quickly devour the tallow. These ghostly motes of flame settle around the shugenja’s shoulders or near their feet, sputtering cheerily and spitting out sparks that seek to spread and multiply. In addition to providing a (dangerous) source of light, these flames can also leap onto anyone the shugenja attacks, distracting or even searing them as they dissipate. The Aspect [Fiery Motes] is created with one additional free invokation, and can be invoked after the shugenja succeeds on an attack. Rise, Flame ❖ Area of Effect: One summoned spirit ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Action: C A humanoid form wrought of flame, garbed in a flowing robe of cinder and smoke, with hair of trailing sparks, a manifest Fire Kami is an alluring and terrible sight to behold. Where its gaze passes flames arise, and only ash remains in its wake. To summon such a

62 being is an act of desperation only for most shugenja, for Fire Kami are notori- ously hard to suppress once invoked to take form in the realm of mortals. In short, the caster summons a manifest Fire Kami with the following profile: Manifest Fire Kami ❖ Aspects: [Fire Incarnate], [Aggressively Direct] ❖ Skills: Good (+3) Fight, Fair (+2) Physique and Presence, Average (+1) Lore, Will and Athletics. ❖ Stress: 112131 ❖ Consequences: Two physical slots at (−2) Mild and (−4) Moderate. It takes its turn immediately after the shugenja’s, every exchange. The Kami obeys the shugenja for one exchange, plus any free invokations got with the Channeling roll. When that period ends, it either departs or begins to follow its own directives, if stirred to particular ire. The shugenja can increase the duration by further use of the Channeling skill to place more free invokations on the Aspect [Summoned Kami]. The Soul’s Blade ❖ Area of Effect: One summoned weapon ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Action: C The shugenja extends a hand to the sky and makes a dangerous appeal, calling for a heavenly weapon to vanquish their enemy. If the invocation is performed properly and the shugenja’s cause is judged worthy by the powers they sought, the sky cracks and a thunderbolt descends, piercing intervening objects and arriving in their hand in the form of a weapon. Be it the hide of a great beast or the sorcerous ward of a mahō-tsukai, there is nothing this blade of judgement cannot pierce, and only in the depths of Jigoku will the unrighteous find respite from it. A [Blade Of Pure Flame] is summoned forth into the caster’s hand, which ignores armour or any sort of supernatural resistance. Wings of the Phoenix ❖ Area of Effect: Caster ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Action: C The shugenja leaps into the air and fiery wings burst forth behind them, carrying them into the sky. Small motes of flame fall in the wake of the shugenja’s passing, igniting the ground before fading into delicate feathers of ash. While the caster has the [Wings of the Phoenix], they may move up to two zones without moving, with any zone they move into gaining the [On Fire!] Boosts.

Water is rapid change and alteration. Spirits of Water can enhance the movement abilities of those they bless or bolster their strength in other ways. Water Spells include those which allow the caster to divine many things or restore the health of others. Skilled shugenja can even entreat the Water Kami to carry themselves or others on a swift wave, or transform themselves into animals.

Rank One Bō of Water ❖ Area of Effect: One summoned weapon ❖ Action: C Water can be as soft as a gentle rain or as hard as a tidal wave, and can shift between the two in an instant. A shugenja can invoke the spirits of Water to take the form of a weapon, drawing forth a staff of shifting water or ice from a source of water or even moisture within the air. This weapon can change form at the bearer’s will, swirling from a staff into a blade in the blink of an eye. The Aspect [Katana of Fire] is created on the caster, and at the end of an exchange, the caster may transform the weapon is any summoned weapon. Dominion of Watatsumi ❖ Area of Effect: Two bodies of water ❖ Action: C Shugenja deeply attuned to the Kami of Water can implore their spiritual patrons to show other places in the reflections they perceive, linking two bodies of water together. The shugenja completes the invocation by tracing a circle across a pool of water, and as the ripples subside, the reflections coalesce into a vision of a second body of water within ten or so miles chosen by the shugenja. Onlookers can see out from the pool as if they were beneath the surface of the water at the second location, this also means they cannot hear what is taking place near the body of water, only see it. Ebbing Strength ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Duration: Three exchanges ❖ Action: O Energy flows through the universe just as Water flows through the mortal shell. The shugenja may send their energy to another, weakening themselves and strengthening their target in the process. The shugenja may only reduce a physical-related skill by an amount equal to their Rank to increase the same skill of the target by an equal amount.

Inari’s Blessing ❖ Area of Effect: Created sustenance ❖ Action: O Shugenja often offer food to the Kami as oblations, but like many things in their relationship, this can go both ways. Water is life, and Water Kami can provide life-giving gifts of food and drink even from the most desolate environments. After the shugenja performs the rite, splashing the sacred sake or other offering across the ground, the land nearby flourishes with life, delivering food to the shugenja, and pure water springs from the ground. The food might consist of mushrooms and berries in a forest, fish in a river, or even edible cactus in a desert. This food is simple and nourishing, and can be cooked or even packed away as rations for later if needed. Path to Inner Peace ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: O Water is the Element associated with healing and revivification, and Water Kami can encourage the body to heal at an accelerated rate. By communing with the Water Kami that dwell within the body, a shugenja can right imbalances and correct the flow of chi, speeding the process of recovery dramatically. If the casting is successful, two physical stress is healed (success with style is needed for consequences). As this form of healing is useful for everyday cuts and bruises but cannot fully replace surgery as it relies upon the patient’s own vitality to help them heal, there are limits to the amount this Spell can restore within a short time span – one less physical stress is healed if the Spell was used in the previous exchange. Reflections of P’an Ku ❖ Area of Effect: One unidentified item ❖ Action: O The shugenja call forth Water spirits to recognize their own by submerging the item in sacred water, making the proper obeisances, and awaiting a response. The water spirits often provide cryptic answers, and might demand further payment for further details, but can usually grant the shugenja a good idea of an item’s composition, whether it possesses any mystical properties, and the general disposition of these traits.

Rank Two Dance of Seasons ❖ Area of Effect: One zone ❖ Action: C A skilled shugenja can impart meaning into sublet intonations and gentle movements, entreating the Kami to change the world around them – this Spell exemplifies that practice In the dance, the Water Kami mirror the movements of the shugenja and shift the state of the water around them from water to ice to vapor and back again. The water inside of living beings is unaffected by this seemingly gentle invocation, however. Water turned into ice or mud becomes [Slippery Terrain], water turned into vapour becomes an [Obscuring Fog], for instance. Rejuvenating Vapours ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: O Water washes away all that is impure, refreshing and reinvigourating all it touches. The target of this Spell is instantly refreshed if they had just arisen from a full night’s sleep – any Aspects such as [Tired] or [Exhausted] on them are removed. When used on a shugenja, the Spell does restore one Spell use. However, other abilities that characters may use a limited number of times are not refreshed by this Spell. No individual can benefit from Rejuvenating Vapours more than once within a 24-hour period. Stride the Waves ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: C Walking across water is one of the earliest invocations the Isawa Elementalists sought to master, demonstrating clearly their divine favour to any onlooker, be they peasant or lord. By communing directly with the Water Kami, an artful shugenja can do far more than merely walk across ponds, however – guided by the spirits of Water, a character can slide effortlessly across the surface of a stormy sea, ride a current of water out of the ocean, or even plunge beneath its depths, breathing the brine as though it were air. This Spell creates the Aspect [One With Water] on the target and remains there until the end of the scene. Sympathetic Energies ❖ Area of Effect: A small group of three or so characters ❖ Action: O Water Kami flow through all living beings, and a shugenja can use their winding channels to transfer boons and curses alike between individuals. With an incantation and a swirling motion of the hands or body, the shugenja spreads or transfer lingering effects – or Aspects – of a Spell or sorcerous ability between multiple people.

The Ties That Bind ❖ Area of Effect: Caster ❖ Action: O Even the lightest touch forges a connection, and through the spirits of Water that connection may be explored. The shugenja seeks out Water Kami within a single, specific object. The caster must be familiar with the object in question, either having spent a great deal of time around it or handled it personally. If the object is within ten miles or so of the caster’s position, the shugenja will receive knowledge of the direction and relative distance from their current position. Visions of the Future ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: O Although not as reliable as the natural (if extremely rare) gift of foresight or the (equally rare) Void Spells that enable divination, this Spell still allows powerful visions of the future. First developed by the Tonbo family of the Dragonfly Minor Clan, the shugenja gazes into a large pool of still water and enters a brief trance, seeing images of things that have not yet come to pass. These images are rarely direct but accurately depict future events.

Rank Three Ever Changing Waves ❖ Area of Effect: Caster ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Action: C By following the bond produced by the cycle of reincarnation backwards, a shugenja adept in communing with the Water Kami can reshape their flesh to mirror a past form – albeit briefly – transforming into a natural animal or mythological beast for a short time, creating the Aspect [Transformed] on themselves. The shugenja maintains their memories and intel-lect, but possesses the basic knowledge of how to function in their transformed state. This Spell generally cannot be used to transform into a different human, although it might be able to be used to take the form of a sentient natural creature, at the GM’s discretion. Heart of the Water Dragon ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Action: C The shugenja traces a gentle pattern on the target’s skin with purified water, calling upon the Water Kami in their body to protect and mend the flesh they call home, giving them the [Resistant] Aspect. The target becomes extremely resistant to invocations, sorcery, and other supernatural abilities, with arcane flames rippling off their skin harmlessly and curses parting that they might pass. And so, as long as the Aspect remains on the target, they reduce all physical stress inflicted on them by two. Hand of the Tides ❖ Area of Effect: A small group of three or so characters ❖ Action: O Using this Spell, a shugenja can exchange the positions of living beings near to one another, throw enemies off-balance, or put allies in a position of advantage. While the Elemental Masters have been known to debate whether the targets are moved or it is the world that the spirits of water reshape around them, the effect of the Spell – shuffling the positions of a number of individuals in a small radius as the shugenja sees fit – is easy to understand, if hard to comprehend. In short, this Spell exchanges the position of individuals up to two zones away from each other. Rise, Water ❖ Area of Effect: One summoned spirit ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Action: C Water Kami are nurturing, for Water fosters all life. But like all nature spirits, they are beings of destruction and creation, and calling a Water Kami to take manifest form is to

68 summon a potent force indeed. A manifest Water Kami often takes a humanoid form, rising from a nearby lake, river, or ocean and carried aloft on a crushing wave. In short, the caster summons a manifest Water Kami with the following profile: Manifest Water Kami ❖ Aspects: [Water Incarnate], [Free From Convictions] ❖ Skills: Good (+3) Marksmanship, Fair (+2) Fight and Medicine, Average (+1) Lore, Notice and Stealth. ❖ Stress: 112131 ❖ Consequences: Two physical slots at (−2) Mild and (−4) Moderate. ❖ Stunts: Split – Can split into two each having a profile of: ❖ Aspects: [Water Incarnate], [Free From Convictions] ❖ Skills: Fair (+2) Marksmanship, Average (+1) Fight and Notice ❖ Stress: 1121 It takes its turn immediately after the shugenja’s, every exchange. The Kami obeys the shugenja for one exchange, plus any free invokations got with the Channeling roll. When that period ends, it either departs or begins to follow its own directives, if stirred to particular ire. The shugenja can increase the duration by further use of the Channeling skill to place more free invokations on the Aspect [Summoned Kami]. Strike the Tsunami ❖ Area of Effect: One zone ❖ Action: A The shugenja calls to the water kami to become violent, rising from their tranquility to lash out at enemies nearby. Upending the contents of a water pouch or reaching into a nearby lake or stream, the shugenja pulls an impossibly large torrent that slams into several foes nearby, pushing them back or dragging them forward as the shugenja wills. This Spell requires a source of water in order to perform it. Watatsumi’s Embrace ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: A The ocean is the source of much life – and much bounty for the people of Rokugan – but it is also a dangerous realm, hostile to humans who venture into its depths. A shugenja with the proper knowledge – and the will to wield it – can inflict a drowning death upon their enemy, transforming the air in their lungs into seawater and killing them as surely throwing them off a pier while tied to a heavy stone. This is an attack Spell where any Boosts produced are those such as [Suffocating].

Void is both the presence and absence of the other four Elements – the state of all Elements existing together simultaneously and yet also the emptiness that exists between them. Few shugenja can manipulate the Void itself as few have the required Affinity for Void Spells, and there is no naturally Kami of the Void. The ishiken commune with the Void to produce a wide variety of effects, from divination to unmaking portions of reality.

Rank One Boundless Sight ❖ Area of Effect: Caster ❖ Action: O All is linked through the Void, and through the Void all can be perceived. By focusing their energy, the shugenja can look through the veil and see another location if as they were standing there. The location must be familiar to the shugenja Flow Through the Void ❖ Area of Effect: Up to one cubic foot of pure Elemental matter ❖ Action: O In the Void, all things are equal, all one and none. By tapping into this connection, the shugenja may transform a small amount of pure Elemental matter – water, fire, air or earth in the form of dirt or soil – into any one other Element. Sense Void ❖ Area of Effect: Zone around caster ❖ Action: O Life is evident in the Void like the stars in the night sky. The shugenja enters a trance and becomes aware of the existence and locations of all living creatures within a radius around the caster. Although aware of their location, the shugenja cannot see them or any details – the caster would know if there was, say, three humans waiting outside the castle wall but not whether they are bandits or villagers or samurai, etc. Spirits and Shadowlands creatures are recognisable as a gap in the shugenja’s awareness. Witness the Untold ❖ Area of Effect: Caster ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Action: C It is possible to gain fleeting glimpses of things that have not yet happened by peering through the Void. The caster gains the [Forewarned] Aspect. If the shugenja is

70 delaying their action, they may interrupt an opponent after they have declared their action but before that actions has been taken.

Rank Two Drink of Your Essence ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: O As an ishiken grows more powerful, they can gain more information from examining an individual’s pattern within the Void. On a successful cast, the shugenja learns two Aspects of the target of this Spell, their current state of health, and a one word summation of their present mood. Moment of Clarity ❖ Area of Effect: Caster ❖ Duration: Two exchanges ❖ Action: O The entirety of human achievement is reflected in the Void. The shugenja may select one skill and gains temporary ranks in the skill equal to their Rank, e.g. a Rank One ishiken could increase their, say, Ride to from Mediocre (+0) to Average (+1) when they cast this Spell. The new level of the skill replaces the old one; the two are not cumulative. Read the Essence ❖ Area of Effect: Caster ❖ Action: O Even objects have resonance, and retain some memory of those who hold them, and events that take place involving them. By meditating upon an object, the shugenja can gain a vision of the individual who held it last, or of a major event that might have involved it in some manner. The GM has ultimate authority over what vision the Spell impacts. Extremely important objects, such as ancestral weapons, may have powerful visions that grip the caster for significant amounts of time. The Empty Voice ❖ Area of Effect: Caster ❖ Action: O Drawing on the essence of everything allows an ishiken to invoke the Kami with far greater ease than normal. Until the end of the scene, the shugenja may cast Spells of other Elements without speaking their prayers aloud – this only applies to Rank One Spells.

Rank Three Ear of the Void Dragon ❖ Area of Effect: Caster ❖ Action: O Rare and extraordinarily powerful, even by shugenja standards, this prayer calls on the unique favour of the dragon whose domain the ishiken tread: the Void Dragon. This Spell is more a meditation ritual which allows the shugenja to commune with the Void Dragon itself. During the caster’s brief contact with this divine entity, they may ask it questions as they see fit. The Void Dragon knows all that can be known, although it is under no particular compulsion to answer the shugenja directly, or even at all. Respect must be maintained at all times, or the ishiken’s very existence may be threatened. Kharmic Intent ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: O Links forged of the Void allow the passage of enormous energy, the substance of the universe itself, between those who share it. The ishiken may target any one willing individual, all remaining Fate Points either of them possess are placed into a single pool either of the two may draw upon as normal. Essentially, this Spell allows two individuals to share Fate Points back and forth as they see fit. At the end of the scene, all remaining Fate Points in the shared pool are divided equally between the participants. Unmake the World ❖ Area of Effect: One target creature, individual or object ❖ Action: O The most powerful and terrifying ability of those who command the Void is ability to ability the bonds that exist between the five Elements. By eradicating the bonds between existing Elements, the ishiken can effectively cause one object or creature to cease to exist. When the shugenja casts this Spell on a living creature, they defend with their Will and Physique together, combined. If you are successful, they are instantly killed, and their remains disappear in the Void. Success is automatic against a non-magical object but attempting to destroy a magical object may have dire ramifications. Void Strike ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: A The mortal shell can endure only so much direct contact with the Void; too much and the flesh can be destroyed by the exposure. This is an attack Spell where any Boosts produced are such as [Crippled] and inflicts one additional physical stress.

Somewhere between the Spells of shugenja and the martial techniques practiced by bushi, the strange Elemental abilities known as Kihō are almost exclusively the province of Rokugan’s monastic orders, and are poorly understood by virtually everyone else. While many Kihō represent what an individual is capable of doing when the body and mind exist in a state of spiritual harmony, some represent feats that can only be described as superhuman. They are similar to Spells in that they are aligned with a particular Element. By focusing on the essence of that Element within themselves, monks are capable of a variety truly impressive feats, such as devastating atemi (nerve-cluster) attacks or aligning their own ki with one of the Elements to increase their abilities. There are some broad rules that govern Kihō use: ❖ A character can only have one active at a time and cannot reactivate a Kihō that is currently active. ❖ As such only one Kihō effect can be delivered per attack. ❖ Unless otherwise specified in their description, all Kihō require activation. A Kihō may be activated by spending a Fate Point or by spending a turn and making the required skill roll. ❖ A number of Kihō require successful atemi attacks as part of their activation – the “activating attack”. When making the atemi attack, the character may spend a Fate Point, or make the required skill roll.

Kihō Rank Passive Kihō Activation Difficulties

Rank One Fair (+2)

Rank Two Good (+3) Rank Three Great (+4)

Each Kihō has a Rank, from One to Three, just like player characters. A monk can only learn or activate Kihō of equal Rank or those with a Rank less than his or her Rank. In addition to that, Kihō Rank also affects the difficulty of activating the Kihō when it comes to passive resistance. Nevertheless, when it comes to attacks, the monk must have beat the activation difficulty first off, then the attack is defended against as normal, just like Spells. If a Fate Point is used to activate an atemi strike, then it is treated as meeting the activation roll. For instance, an Air Fist activated via a Fate Point is treated as Fair (+2) attack for the purposes of the defend roll.

Air Kihō centre around hearing the whispers of the world and understanding their meaning while detaching from earthly desires.

Rank One Air Fist ❖ Skill: Fight ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: A The monk swirls their hands in an intricate pattern, channeling their ki into the air itself and turning even a placid breeze into a funnel of roaring wind. A gale follows the monk’s strikes, hurling foes back and slamming them against intervening objects. If successful, the unarmed strike pushes the target one zone back in addition to the regular effects. Stain Upon the Soul ❖ Skill: Fight ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Duration: One exchange ❖ Action: A While this Kihō is a basic martial technique known to many sects of the Brotherhood, it is one that is decried by several orders as impure and wicked. The monk makes a surgically precise atemi strike which disrupts the target’s ki flow. With a success, the target suffers a penalty to all checks equal to half your Rank, rounded up, for the duration in addition to the regular effects. The Great Silence ❖ Skill: Presence ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Duration: One exchange ❖ Action: C The monk swirls their hands in a spiral, pulling air inward and stealing even the reverberations sounds make through the air. Lies die on the lips unspoken, and prayers never reach the spirits for whom they were intended. Sound returns slowly to the area as the effect ends. The Aspect [Complete Silence] is created and lasts for the duration, while it is present characters within the area produce noise and cannot hear, also magic cannot be used for even the Kami cannot hear the shugenja’s call.

Rank Two Riding the Clouds ❖ Skill: Athletics ❖ Area of Effect: Self ❖ Action: O The monk inhales and lets go their earthly tether to ascend to new heights. Born aloft on a small tornado, an invisible current of air, or even a small cloud, the monk can move far more freely. On a success, the monk may immediately move from one zone to a number a zones equal to the shifts on the roll. The movement may be vertical, and any negative effects of terrain are ignored. Soul of the Four Winds ❖ Skill: Will ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Area of Effect: Self ❖ Action: C The monk brings their ki in alignment with that of the wind, and dramatically increases their reaction time and ability to evade the blows of others. On a success, the monk creates the Aspect [Aligned With Wind], which can be invoked while defending against attacks. Way of the Willow ❖ Skill: Notice ❖ Area of Effect: Self ❖ Action: C The oak stands firm against the storm and breaks, but the willow survives it by bending. The monk sees as the wind does, increasing their ability to perceive threats and preemptively counteract them, creating the Aspect [Forewarned]. While that Aspect is present and the monk has not yet taken their turn during a physical conflict exchange, the monk may “cash in” the Aspect to immediately interrupt any opponent in the same zone who declares a melee attack against them, moving out of the way or making an unarmed attack against them.

Rank Three Flee the Darkness ❖ Skill: Will ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Area of Effect: Self ❖ Action: C A member of the Brotherhood is taught the fundamental lesson of keeping their spirit free from the darkness that can envelop all men. The Aspect [Darkness Begone!] is created on the monk and as long as it is present, the monk is immune to the influence of Corruption. However, if the monk takes any deliberate action that would normally result in Corruption, the effect ends immediately and Corruption is gained as normal. Harmony of the Mind ❖ Skill: Notice ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: O A gift possessed by members of the Brotherhood is the ability to quickly and accurately gauge the strength of others. The monk makes a Notice roll against a target within line of sight, and may learn one of the following pieces of information: their High Concept, Trouble, highest skill or a Stunt. The monk may also learn additional pieces of information equal to the number of shifts on the roll. Steal the Air Dragon ❖ Skill: Stealth ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: C By drawing their ki inward, a monk can make themselves less noticeable and more prone to be being easily overlooked. The Aspect [Subdued Presence] is created on the monk, which can be invoked in matters of stealth, with a number of free invokations equal to the monk’s Rank.

Earth Kihō focus around securing one’s roots, feeling the vibrations of all that pass across the ground, and waiting patiently for the right moment to strike.

Rank One Cleansing Spirit ❖ Skill: Medicine ❖ Area of Effect: Self ❖ Action: O Rain and time wash the mountain, leaving it free impurities. While this Kihō is active, the monk gains +2 to any roll made to resist the effects of poison or disease. Earth Needs No Eyes ❖ Skill: Will ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Area of Effect: Self ❖ Action: C The monk who waits and listens sees much, even without eyes. Sending out waves of their own energy and letting the ki of the life around them to flow into their body through the ground, the monk feels the reverberations of everything moving nearby, from the thunderous breaths of a warrior in battle to the footsteps of the tiniest ants. A monk sustaining this Kihō is nearly impossible to ambush unless one can avoid touching the ground entirely. The monk creates the Aspect [Attuned To Vibrations], and while that Aspect is present, the monk cannot be surprised by land-bound opponents in addition to the other effects. Earthen Fist ❖ Skill: Physique ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: A Placing their hand on the ground, the monk draws clumps of hardened earth that coats their skin, forming a rocky gauntlet then strikes. If the attack is successful, any Boosts produced are those such as [Prone]. If the target is [Prone] then the monk may spend a Fate Point to give +2 to their attack roll.

Rank Two Speed of the Mountains ❖ Skill: Fight ❖ Duration: Three exchanges ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: A Earth is many things, but fleet is not among them. By delivering an atemi attack against an opponent and activating this Kihō, the monk causes their opponent’s Earth ki to become ascendant. After a successful attack, the opponent must roll to move from one zone to another and their position in the turn order of a conflict exchange is lowered by an amount equal to the shifts on the attack roll. Root the Mountain ❖ Skill: Will ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Area of Effect: Self ❖ Action: C As the Crab say, the mountain does not move, and neither does one who shares its strength. The Aspect [Rooted] is created on the monk, and can invoked while defending against being knocked down, or being forced to move against their will. The monk may not move from one zone to another without dispelling this effect. Way of the Earth ❖ Skill: Physique ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Area of Effect: Self ❖ Action: C The grip of a monk can be like stone, crushing those who find themselves trapped in their grasp. The Aspect [Crushing Grip] is created on the monk and while it is present, opponents engaged in a grapple with the monk suffer one physical stress during the end of the exchange, regardless of who is winning the grapple.

Rank Three Embrace the Stone ❖ Skill: Physique ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Area of Effect: Self ❖ Action: C By focusing their ki like that of the mountain, monks may become like stone themselves, turning aside blows and ignoring damage. The Aspect [Like Stone] is created on the monk and while it is present, all physical stress inflicted on the monk is reduced by one. Grasp of the Earth Dragon ❖ Skill: Will ❖ Duration: One exchange ❖ Area of Effect: Self ❖ Action: C Planting a foot on the ground and taking a wide stance, the monk stomps, sending reverberations of ki rushing down into the depths. An instant later, stones begin to rise around them, orbiting their body and deflecting attacks, or even adhere to their flesh, armouring them in rocky scales. The Aspect [Armour of the Earth Dragon] is created on the monk and until their next turn, all physical stress inflicted on them is reduced to one. However, while this Kihō is active, the monk cannot benefit from any other armour. Rest, My Brother ❖ Skill: Fight ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: A Easily among the most difficult and most sacred of all Kihō, it functions by reversing the ki flow of a Corrupted individual, causing them excruciating pain and temporarily restoring clarity of thought. On a successful attack, in additional to the normal effects, additional physical stress equal to the number of Shadowlands Aspects the target has. If the target is a human or other formerly Uncorrupted creature (as opposed to an oni or other inherently Corrupted creature), any effects of their Shadowlands Aspects are nullified for the remainder of the scene, freeing them from the madness and mental instability normally brought on by Corruption.

Fire Kihō function by kindling the energy within, fostering its life-giving force and channeling it outward to change the wider world.

Rank One Breaking Blow ❖ Skill: Fight ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: A The monk delivers a strike that looks like a gentle tap, unleashing a spark of ki into an object and igniting the latent energy within it uncontrollably. This causes the object to explode, shatter, or splinter. In additional to the normal effects of an attack, choose one worn piece of armour or readied weapon in your target’s possession, it breaks. This Kihō can also the used to shatter mundane objects, such as wooden doors, stones and tress. Flame Fist ❖ Skill: Fight ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: A The monk throws a rapid, reckless strike and flame streams out, seizing and charring whatever they touch. While sustaining this Kihō, the monk’s hands and feet trail fire, lending power to their strikes. The physical stress of this unarmed strike is increased by one. Fire’s Fleeting Speed ❖ Skill: Athletics ❖ Duration: Three exchanges ❖ Area of Effect: Self ❖ Action: C Fire darts and surges, as do those who carry it in their souls. While this Kihō is active, the monk can move up to one zone without rolling, regardless of any obstacles. Also their Notice, for the purposes of deciding their position in the turn order of a conflict exchange, is consider one higher.

Rank Two Destiny’s Strike ❖ Skill: Notice ❖ Duration: A conflict ❖ Area of Effect: Self ❖ Action: C The force of destiny is powerful, and can be harnessed by those who truly understand their place in the universe. The Aspect [Readied] is created on the monk and while it is present, when defending against an attack, if the result is a tie, the monk can forgo the Boost to inflict two physical stress on the attacker. The Body is an Anvil ❖ Skill: Will ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Area of Effect: Self ❖ Action: C A master of the ways of Fire can channel their ki outward, granting them a measure of protection and repelling attackers. The Aspect [Hot To The Touch] is created on the monk, and while it is present, anyone who touches the monk or is touched by the monk suffers one physical stress. Unbalance the Mind ❖ Skill: Fight ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: A A momentary disruption of the Fire ki within a target can leave them addled and confused. Any Boosts produced by this attack are those such as [Dazed].

Rank Three Channel the Fire Dragon ❖ Skill: Fight ❖ Area of Effect: One zone ❖ Action: A The monk inhales sharply and then exhales their ki as a torrent of fire. While sustaining this life-giving fire within their lungs, the monk is largely immune to cold weather and flames alike. Any Boosts produced by this attack are those such as [Dazed]. Also, after this attack, the Aspect [Temperature Resistant] is created on the monk. Dance of the Flames ❖ Skill: Athletics ❖ Duration: Special ❖ Area of Effect: Self ❖ Action: C Filling one’s ki with the power of Fire has considerable effects on one’s speed as well as one’s temperament. The Aspect [Dance of the Flames] is created on the monk, and as long as it is present, the monk may make any number of attacks per turn. However, if the result is a tie or worse, the monk must wait until their next turn to continue the chain of attacks. Additionally, the monk must make an unarmed attack against an opponent every exchange while the Aspect [Dance of Flames] is present, or it disappears. Falling Star Strike ❖ Skill: Fight ❖ Area of Effect: One zone ❖ Action: A The monk hurls a series of rapid strikes and with each one, fire erupts from their palm or foot, scorching their target. While sustaining this Kihō, the monk’s attacks continue to explode like fireworks, burning their foes. Any Boosts produced by this attack are those such as [Burning]. Also, after the attack rolls are made, the monk may spend a Fate Point, if they do, each [Burning] or [Dazed] target within the same zone that was attacked suffers an amount of physical stress equal to the physical stress inflicted by the original attack of this Kihō.

Water pervades all life, the ground, and even the air. Water Kihō allow their practitioners to feel the ebb and flow in all things, and to alter those currents to their needs.

Rank One Buoyed By the Kami ❖ Skill: Will ❖ Duration: Special ❖ Area of Effect: Self ❖ Action: C A monk whose Water ki is ascendant can resist the siren call of the depths. The Aspect [Water Walker] is created on the monk and while it is present the monk may move across the surface of the water as if it were basic terrain. The effect only continues as long as the monk moves each round. Ki Protection ❖ Skill: N/A ❖ Range: Melee ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: O Perhaps the strangest application of the atemi technique, the monk touches the injured individual, feeling the flow of their ki and using their own to gently correct its flow. The monk must spend a Fate Point to activate this Kihō, and the individual target by the strike is healed by two physical stress immediately. The monk may not use this Kihō on themselves. Waves In All Things ❖ Skill: Fight ❖ Range: Two zones ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: A Water flows through all things, including the earth. The monk throws a soft blow against a nearby object and makes their ki as water, rippling across intervening objects and sliding pasts protections to reach its destination. The force of the strike finds home against its target, even if they are on the other side of a wooden or stone wall.

Rank Two As the Breakers ❖ Skill: Fight ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: A By disrupting the flow of ki through others, the monk can inhibit them without harm. With a successful atemi strike, the target of the strike cannot perform simple actions such as moving or drawing different weapons on their turn. The monk may only target opponents who have not yet acted in the current exchange, and an opponent may not be affect by this Kihō more than once per conflict. Ebb and Flow ❖ Skill: Athletics ❖ Area of Effect: Self ❖ Action: D As water is forced down, the surrounding water rises up in greater strength. Such is the power of this Kihō. The monk must first declare a Full Defense. If an attacker fails to strike them, the monk can strike back the attacker – and only the attacker – following exchange, with a +2 bonus on the attack. The Boundless Depths of Water ❖ Skill: N/A ❖ Area of Effect: Self ❖ Action: O The master of this Kihō learns that there is no end to the body’s endurance; as long as the spirit survives the body may be enticed to endure. If the monk suffers a severe consequence, the monk may spend two Fate Points and clears that consequence. Afterwards, in a physical conflict, the monk cannot attack and can only make basic actions for at least five exchanges.

Rank Three Freezing the Lifeblood ❖ Skill: Fight ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: C The monk touches a single point on the target’s body and, with an icy stare, causes the ki within the target to seize up, contracting muscles into a spasmed state and then causing them to fall slack, inflicting no damage but placing the [Stunned] Aspect on the target with a free invokation. Ride the Water Dragon ❖ Skill: Will ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Area of Effect: Self ❖ Action: C The monk shifts their stance and moves with inexorable purpose, making their inner energy fluid and allowing supernatural effects to ripple of them harmlessly. Despite their measured approach, monk becomes nearly impossible to pin down with supernatural effects, sliding past invocations and curses with ease. The Aspect [Supernatural Resistance] is created on the monk and any effects from supernatural sources the monk is suffering are cleared. Slap the Wave ❖ Skill: N/A ❖ Area of Effect: One zone ❖ Action: A A powerful expression of inner strength, the monk strikes their hands together and releases a powerful kiai shout, channeling their ki outward in an explosive wave that carries the power of a tsunami. The monk must spend a Fate Point to activate this Kihō, which is an attack on every opponent in a zone and any Boosts produced from it are those such as [Dazed].

Void Kihō revolve seeing through the lie of material reality and into the truth that exists beneath. When one sees with eyes unclouded, the subtlest movements can create vast ripples and the gentlest strikes can become deadly.

Rank One Song of the World ❖ Skill: Notice ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: A By listening to the song of the Elements around them, a monk may perceive the universe slightly ahead of all others. The monk must target an opponent when activating this Kihō, and if the attack is successful no damage is dealt, the opponent’s Notice – for the purposes of determining turn order in a conflict exchange – is lowered by one, and the monk’s rises by the same amount. To the Last Breath ❖ Skill: N/A ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: O With a simple exhalation, a monk can expend their energy into the universe around them, allowing others to partake of it as they wish. A Fate Point must be spend to activate this Kihō. The target gains a Fate Point on their next turn, however, no target may benefit from this Kihō more than twice per day. Void Fist ❖ Skill: Fight ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: A Unlike other atemi attacks, the Void Fist is a normal unarmed strike that would appear, if observed to be damaging to its target. This is an illusion, however, as its true purpose is to use the target as a conduit with the great Void. A successful attack inflicts no physical stress but the monk immediately gains a Fate Point. This Kihō can only be used on enemies, and has no effect on allies or targets who do not have Fate Points.

Rank Two Banish All Shadows ❖ Skill: Fight ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: C One of the most powerful effects of one’s ki upon another is the clarity it brings, which can allow one to overcome shortcomings for a short time. The target of this Kihō’s activating atemi strike replaces their Trouble with [Shadow Banished] for the duration of the Kihō. Eight Directions Awareness ❖ Skill: Will ❖ Area of Effect: One zone around monk ❖ Action: O Some monk are a state of harmony with the world to such extent that they are aware of everything around them. When activated, this Kihō allows the monk to become aware of all living things in the area of effect and also are of any object or individual within that range that has been deliberately concealed, including secret doors, hidden compartments, buried objects, etc. Silent Solace ❖ Skill: Fight ❖ Duration: SAT ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: C Proper use of nerve strikes can impede not only the physical, the spiritual as well. An opponent struck by this Kihō must expend two Spell Uses to a cast a single Spell as long as the Aspect created by this Kihō, [Disrupted Casting], is present.

Rank Three Death Touch ❖ Skill: Fight ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: A Also known as dim mak, the monk delivers a blow to a single point on their target’s body and gives a dread proclamation that echoes across the ensuing stillness. The lucky are merely wounded by this experience, but a single brush can be fatal. After the attack, if it is successful, the monk may spend any amount of Fate Points to increase the severity of any consequences inflicted by this attack by one step each, or turn a Boost produced by this attack into an Aspect. Use of this Kihō can be ground for excommunication from the Brotherhood of Shinsei. Spin the Kharmic Wheel ❖ Skill: Fight ❖ Area of Effect: One target ❖ Action: A Theoretically one of the most powerful Kihō to exist, Spin the Kharmic Wheel is known only to a handful of reclusive masters within the Brotherhood, and discovered by a new soul perhaps once a generation. The monk must an unarmed atemi strike on the target which inflicts no physical stress. The monk must also expend all of their remaining Fate Points when the Kihō is activated. The target of the attack loses one randomly determined Aspect and gains another in its stead. Touch of the Void Dragon ❖ Skill: Will ❖ Area of Effect: Self ❖ Action: O The root of the universe is nothing and everything, and the monk pursues this spiral to its depths, finding limitless power within. The monk sees many realities swirl around them, the storm of possibilities slowly solidifying into the present, and can jump at opportunities that might otherwise have passed them by, vanishing unseen into the abyss that is the past. If successful, the monk regains two Fate Points. However, this Kihō can only be used once per scene.

Steve, a player in Triss’s game, has decided on a rough character idea of a champion of peace. Looking through the Great Clans and their Families, He decides to go with the Crane, as they have the best duelists and the idea of a duelist who tries to settle disagreements with words first, and duels second appeals to Steve. He quickly settles his character’s Trouble as being a bit too soft-hearted (which can also be invoked when the character need to apply the soft touch to things). Steve also glances at a list of Japanese names and settles on Kaoru for no particular reason. The Asahina family, as they are renown for being pacifistic, are a good fit. Steve of course goes with the Kakita Duelist, and reasons that his character was shoved there as he didn’t appear to have the gift of being able to commune with the Kami. So far, Steve has his Name, High Concept, Trouble, Clan, Family and School settled.

Name: Asahina Kaoru

High Concept: A Duelist For Peace

Trouble: Soft-Headed

Clan: Crane

Family: Asahina School: Kakita Duelist Rank One: Way of the Crane

May spend a Fate Point to go first in a physical conflict, regardless of your Notice.

Now Steve comes to deciding his character’s three other Aspects. First he thinks to his character’s hobbies and decides seeing Asahina-san was probably surrounded by his fellow Cranes, many of which are masters of the courtly arts, and took after them – he has an [Artistic Soul]. Also, to naturally accompany Aashina-san’s desire for peace, Steve decides to ensure that he is [Sliver-Tongued]. Now, for the final and third Aspect, Steve mulls it over and decides to round out his character by making him [Endlessly Inquisitive].

Name: Asahina Kaoru

High Concept: A Duelist For Peace

Trouble: Soft-Headed

Artistic Soul

Sliver-Tongued

Endlessly Inquisitive

Clan: Crane

Family: Asahina School: Kakita Duelist Rank One: Way of the Crane

May spend a Fate Point to go first in a physical conflict, regardless of your Notice.

Next is the question of Skills. Steve mulls over the list and picks six skills – one at Good (+3), two at Fair (+2) and three at Average (+1) – he thinks are suitable to the character. He picks Craft as Kaoru’s top skill, to reflect his artistic prowess. Rapport and Notice go on the second tier as it’s obvious to Steve that Asahina-san is a social sort, while the more martial skills (Athletics, Fight and Will), go on the bottom as they are not Kaoru’s priority but he was trained to be a warrior. Having Will at Average (+1) also gives his character an additional mental stress box.

Good (+3) Craft

Fair (+2) Rapport Notice

Average (+1) Athletics Fight Will

Finally, Steve has to decide his character’s two Stunts. Stunts can change the way skill work for a character. Such as switching one specific skill with another specific skill when doing a specific action (ex. Overcome, Create an Advantage, Attack, Defend). Steve then invents the Artistry of the Duel Stunt, which lets Kaoru use his Craft skill instead of his Fight skill when attacking in a formal duel. Steve justifies it as his character is obsessed with lightning-quick dueling strikes – creating the perfect cut – and his is supplemented by his character’s knowledge of dance and other arts. Another use for a stunt is to give a skill an automatic bonus under a particular, very narrow circumstance, effectively letting a character specialise in something. As Kaoru is a champion of peace and has settled a few arguments, Steve decides that he should be given the Negotiator Stunt, giving the character a +2 bonus to Rapport when he is brokering an end to an armed conflict. Triss notes that the bonus wouldn’t apply if Steve had Kaoru start a conflict just to fish for the bonus. And so all of these elements come together to create a character.

Name: Asahina Kaoru

High Concept: A Duelist for Good (+3) Craft

Peace Fair (+2) Rapport Notice Trouble: Soft-Headed Average (+1) Athletics Fight Will Physical Stress 11 21 Artistic Soul Mental Stress 11 2131 Sliver-Tongued Consequences −2 Mild Endlessly Inquisitive −4 Moderate Clan: Crane −6 Severe

Family: Asahina School: Kakita Duelist Rank One: Way of the Crane

May spend a Fate Point to go first in a physical conflict, regardless of your Notice.

Stunts

The Artistry of the Duel: May use Craft instead of Fight in formal duels.

Negotiator: +2 to Rapport when trying to broker an end to an armed conflict.