TEXT: The Campaign
  LEGEND OF THE FIVE RINGS 
  aND aLL RELaTED maRkS aRE © aND ™ aLDERac ENTERTaINmENT GROup 
  INc. aLL RIGHTS RESERVED.
  www.l5r.com
   ™
  CREDITS
  Second City: The Campaign
  Artists: 
   
  Steve Argyle, Drew Baker, 
  Stefano Baldo, Stu Barnes, Noah Bradley, Sergio Camarena, 
  Mike Capprotti, Carlos Cardenas, Anna Christenson, Brent 
  Chumley, Conceptopolis, Ed Cox, Edwin David, Alex 
  Drummond, Jason Engle, Edward Fetterman, Tony Foti, 
  Richard Garcia, Gong Studios, Anthony Grabski, Raymond 
  Guastadnes, Hector Herrera, Imaginary Friend Studios, Jeff 
  Himmelman, Jon Hodgson, David Horne, Aurelien Hubert, 
  Llyn Hunter, Lake Hurwitz, Hugh James, Veronica V. Jones, 
  Wen Juinn, Jason Juta, Michael Kaluta, MuYoung Kim, 
  Heather V. Kreiter, April Lee, Alayna Lemmer, Isaak Lien, 
  Diego Gisbert Llorens, Asier Martinez Lopez, Patrick McEvoy, 
  Aaron Miller, Daniel Moenster, Carlos NTC, Glen Osterberger, 
  Ben Peck, Ramon Perez, Chris Pritchard, Marc Scheff, Erich 
  Schreiner, Dan Scott, Steve Snyder, Oliver Specht, J. Edwin 
  Stephens, Miss Tak, Albert Tavira, Isuardi Therianto, Luis 
  Nunez de Castro Torres, Charles Urbach, Luis Vazquez, Franz 
  Vohwinkel, Mario Wibisono, Matt Zeilinger
  PlAytesters: 
  Team 1 (Dave Smith, Patrick Chen, 
  Aien Elmi, Jason Kang, Ki Chang Kim, Roger Liang, 
  Arthur Nguyen); Team 4 (Becca Hobart, Kevin Blake, 
  Todd Stites, Daniel Briscoe); Team 6 (Timar Long, Erykah 
  Fasset, Chad Kirby, Mike Brodu, Maxime Lemaire, Ray 
  Rupp); Team 7 (Jason Shafer, Nathan Shafer, Matt Strout, 
  Liza Strout, Joe White, Terry Moore, Eric Newlin); Team 
  8 (Edward Reynolds, Brebouillet Mathieu, David Whitney, 
  Richard Whitney, Stuart Biggs, Robert Knight); Team 8b 
  (Michael Hill, Shane Pheeney, Chaedy Ritherdon, Tarl 
  Cowly); Team 8c (Thomas Atwood, Ryan Castilla, Henry 
  Joiner, Brandon Woodmen); Team 17 (Tom Lewis, Jamie Kipp, 
  Gavin O’Hearn, Shawn MacLean, John Taylor); Team 18 
  (Dave Laderoute, Mike Clark, Chris Talarico, Chris Masdea, 
  Lee Vollum, Richard Hewitt, Bill Hrenchuck); Team 19 
  (Charles Caswell, Vincent Stantion, Eddie Sweeden, Chuck 
  Sweeden, Justin Cross, Fox Whitworth); Team 20 (Matt 
  Tyler, Timothy Hill, Stephen Mumford, Matthew Linkswiler, 
  Paul Casagrande, Robert Zapf); Team 21 (James Freeman-
  Harris, Sarah Koz, David Wright, James Mosingo); Team 
  22 (Scott Shepard, Dawn Dalton, Andrew Doud, Justin 
  Davidson, Jon Huskey, Trista Lillis); Team 23 (James 
  Wagner, Kevin Pason, Ryan Bataglia, Chris Foster, Jim 
  Friedman, Jason Whiston, Phil Jenicek, Dan Sulin, Izzy 
  Lombardi-Friedman); Team 24 (Tony Love, Kassandra 
  Mullin, Brian Tieken, Kimberly Wajer-Scott, Phillip Scott, 
  Nicholas Love, Jerry Fleenor, Patrick Williams)
  DEDICATIONS:
  Rob would like to thank:
  Our freelancers, for working hard under the deadline to make 
  this project succeed. Special thanks to Maxime “Daigotsu 
  Max” LeMaire, who stepped in to fill a hole and wrote three 
  chapters in barely two weeks!
  The playtesters, for their continued efforts to make L5R’s 
  mechanics the best!
  My wife Rebecca, who finished the maps for this project despite 
  the ultra-distracting presence of our newborn baby!
  Shawn would like to thank:
  Z, for putting it on the line and approving such an ambitious 
  project. You’re the best, boss!
  Rob “Spooky” Denton, for stepping up and making the graphic 
  design even better.
  Max, for being a champ.
  John Wick, Greg Stolze, Pat Kapera, and Rob Vaux, for giving 
  us such a high standard of L5R boxed sets to compare ourselves 
  against. We stand on the shoulders of giants.
  written by:
      Kevin Blake, Daniel Briscoe, 
  Shawn Carman, Robert Denton, 
  Robert Hobart, Dave Lauderoute, 
  Yoon Ha Lee, Maxime, LeMaire, Seth 
  Mason, Ryan Reese, Nancy Sauer
  edited by:
  Robert Hobart
  Art director:
  Shawn Carman
  box Art:
  cover design:
  Alayna Lemmer
  Robert Denton
  cover Art:
  Llyn Hunter
  lAyout
  Robert Denton
  originAl grAPhic 
  design:
  Edge Entertainment
  Production mAnAger:
  David Lepore
  senior brAnd mAnAger:
  Todd Rowland
  chief executive 
  officer:
  John Zinser
  heAd PlAytester:
  Brian Bates
  technique cArd Artists: 
   
  Michael Phillippi, 
  Hector Herrera, Oliver Specht, Fares Maese, Conceptopolis, 
  Jorge Matar, Edwin David, Thomas Denmark, April Lee, Britt 
  Martin, Drew Baker, Matt Zeilinger, Carlos NCT, Anthony 
  Grabski, Florian Stitz, Carlos Cardenas, Mario Wibisono, Glen 
  Osterberger, Richard Garcia, Stu Barnes, Gemma Tegelaers, 
  Wen Juinn, Jason Engle, Manuel Calderon, Jeff Hill, William 
  O’Conner, Jonathan Hunt, Diego Gisbert Llorens 
  stAnce cArd Artist: 
   
  Steve Argyle
  
  The Campaign
  LEGEND OF THE FIVE RINGS 
  aND aLL RELaTED maRkS aRE © aND ™ aLDERac ENTERTaINmENT GROup 
  INc. aLL RIGHTS RESERVED.
  www.l5r.com
   ™
  CREDITS
  Second City: The Campaign
  Artists: 
   
  Steve Argyle, Drew Baker, 
  Stefano Baldo, Stu Barnes, Noah Bradley, Sergio Camarena, 
  Mike Capprotti, Carlos Cardenas, Anna Christenson, Brent 
  Chumley, Conceptopolis, Ed Cox, Edwin David, Alex 
  Drummond, Jason Engle, Edward Fetterman, Tony Foti, 
  Richard Garcia, Gong Studios, Anthony Grabski, Raymond 
  Guastadnes, Hector Herrera, Imaginary Friend Studios, Jeff 
  Himmelman, Jon Hodgson, David Horne, Aurelien Hubert, 
  Llyn Hunter, Lake Hurwitz, Hugh James, Veronica V. Jones, 
  Wen Juinn, Jason Juta, Michael Kaluta, MuYoung Kim, 
  Heather V. Kreiter, April Lee, Alayna Lemmer, Isaak Lien, 
  Diego Gisbert Llorens, Asier Martinez Lopez, Patrick McEvoy, 
  Aaron Miller, Daniel Moenster, Carlos NTC, Glen Osterberger, 
  Ben Peck, Ramon Perez, Chris Pritchard, Marc Scheff, Erich 
  Schreiner, Dan Scott, Steve Snyder, Oliver Specht, J. Edwin 
  Stephens, Miss Tak, Albert Tavira, Isuardi Therianto, Luis 
  Nunez de Castro Torres, Charles Urbach, Luis Vazquez, Franz 
  Vohwinkel, Mario Wibisono, Matt Zeilinger
  PlAytesters: 
  Team 1 (Dave Smith, Patrick Chen, 
  Aien Elmi, Jason Kang, Ki Chang Kim, Roger Liang, 
  Arthur Nguyen); Team 4 (Becca Hobart, Kevin Blake, 
  Todd Stites, Daniel Briscoe); Team 6 (Timar Long, Erykah 
  Fasset, Chad Kirby, Mike Brodu, Maxime Lemaire, Ray 
  Rupp); Team 7 (Jason Shafer, Nathan Shafer, Matt Strout, 
  Liza Strout, Joe White, Terry Moore, Eric Newlin); Team 
  8 (Edward Reynolds, Brebouillet Mathieu, David Whitney, 
  Richard Whitney, Stuart Biggs, Robert Knight); Team 8b 
  (Michael Hill, Shane Pheeney, Chaedy Ritherdon, Tarl 
  Cowly); Team 8c (Thomas Atwood, Ryan Castilla, Henry 
  Joiner, Brandon Woodmen); Team 17 (Tom Lewis, Jamie Kipp, 
  Gavin O’Hearn, Shawn MacLean, John Taylor); Team 18 
  (Dave Laderoute, Mike Clark, Chris Talarico, Chris Masdea, 
  Lee Vollum, Richard Hewitt, Bill Hrenchuck); Team 19 
  (Charles Caswell, Vincent Stantion, Eddie Sweeden, Chuck 
  Sweeden, Justin Cross, Fox Whitworth); Team 20 (Matt 
  Tyler, Timothy Hill, Stephen Mumford, Matthew Linkswiler, 
  Paul Casagrande, Robert Zapf); Team 21 (James Freeman-
  Harris, Sarah Koz, David Wright, James Mosingo); Team 
  22 (Scott Shepard, Dawn Dalton, Andrew Doud, Justin 
  Davidson, Jon Huskey, Trista Lillis); Team 23 (James 
  Wagner, Kevin Pason, Ryan Bataglia, Chris Foster, Jim 
  Friedman, Jason Whiston, Phil Jenicek, Dan Sulin, Izzy 
  Lombardi-Friedman); Team 24 (Tony Love, Kassandra 
  Mullin, Brian Tieken, Kimberly Wajer-Scott, Phillip Scott, 
  Nicholas Love, Jerry Fleenor, Patrick Williams)
  DEDICATIONS:
  Rob would like to thank:
  Our freelancers, for working hard under the deadline to make 
  this project succeed. Special thanks to Maxime “Daigotsu 
  Max” LeMaire, who stepped in to fill a hole and wrote three 
  chapters in barely two weeks!
  The playtesters, for their continued efforts to make L5R’s 
  mechanics the best!
  My wife Rebecca, who finished the maps for this project despite 
  the ultra-distracting presence of our newborn baby!
  Shawn would like to thank:
  Z, for putting it on the line and approving such an ambitious 
  project. You’re the best, boss!
  Rob “Spooky” Denton, for stepping up and making the graphic 
  design even better.
  Max, for being a champ.
  John Wick, Greg Stolze, Pat Kapera, and Rob Vaux, for giving 
  us such a high standard of L5R boxed sets to compare ourselves 
  against. We stand on the shoulders of giants.
  written by:
      Kevin Blake, Daniel Briscoe, 
  Shawn Carman, Robert Denton, 
  Robert Hobart, Dave Lauderoute, 
  Yoon Ha Lee, Maxime, LeMaire, Seth 
  Mason, Ryan Reese, Nancy Sauer
  edited by:
  Robert Hobart
  Art director:
  Shawn Carman
  box Art:
  cover design:
  Alayna Lemmer
  Robert Denton
  cover Art:
  Llyn Hunter
  lAyout
  Robert Denton
  originAl grAPhic 
  design:
  Edge Entertainment
  Production mAnAger:
  David Lepore
  senior brAnd mAnAger:
  Todd Rowland
  chief executive 
  officer:
  John Zinser
  heAd PlAytester:
  Brian Bates
  technique cArd Artists: 
   
  Michael Phillippi, 
  Hector Herrera, Oliver Specht, Fares Maese, Conceptopolis, 
  Jorge Matar, Edwin David, Thomas Denmark, April Lee, Britt 
  Martin, Drew Baker, Matt Zeilinger, Carlos NCT, Anthony 
  Grabski, Florian Stitz, Carlos Cardenas, Mario Wibisono, Glen 
  Osterberger, Richard Garcia, Stu Barnes, Gemma Tegelaers, 
  Wen Juinn, Jason Engle, Manuel Calderon, Jeff Hill, William 
  O’Conner, Jonathan Hunt, Diego Gisbert Llorens 
  stAnce cArd Artist: 
   
  Steve Argyle
  
  Chapter Four: 
  Journey’s End Keep . . . . . . .41
  Journey’s End Keep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41
   Investigating Ide Uchi  . . . . . . . . . . .44
   The Gaijin Incidents . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
  Chapter Five:  
  The Second City . . . . . . . . . .49
  The Setting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
  Otomo Akio, Karo and Art Collector . 50
  Rumors in Court . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
  Otomo Akio Responds . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
  Next Steps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
  Chapter Six:  
  A Murder at Shiro Hebi . . .73
  The Setting: 
  Mirumoto Kokure’s Province . . . . . 73
  Investigating the Murder . . . . . . . . . . 76
  The Outcome: 
  Execution or Salvation? . . . . . . . . . 78
  Table 
  of Contents
  Chapter Seven:  
  The Temple of Vishnu . . . . . . . 81
  Meeting With the Spider  . . . . . . . . . . 81
  Searching the Jungles . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
  Chapter Eight:  
  Locating the Rakshasa . . . . .91
  To the Vindhyas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .94
  Climax: The Great Ritual . . . . . . . . . . 95
  Appendix: An Ivory Kingdoms 
  Bestiary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .98
  Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
  Starting the Adventure . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
  Chapter One:  
  Trouble in Kosaten Province .9
  Kosaten Shiro and Environs . . . . . . . . 9
  Preventing the Revolt . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
  The Lion Attack! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
  The Trail of Clues  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
  Chapter Two:  
  Travel to the Colonies . . . . . .21
  The Overland Route  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
  The Sea Route . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
  Chapter Three:  
  Kalani’s Landing . . . . . . . . .29
  The Setting  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
  General Investigations of 
  the Three Merchants . . . . . . . . . . . 33
  Solving Kappako’s Problem  . . . . . 35
  The Mine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
  The Smugglers  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
  Exposing the Truth? . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
  Second City: The Campaign
  TABLE OF CONTENTS
  
  Second City: The Campaign
  TABLE OF CONTENTS
  
  4
  The Campaign
  InTroduCTIon
  
  This book presents a full-length campaign for the Legend 
  of the Five Rings RPG 4th Edition, using the setting and 
  materials presented in the Second City box set. Through a 
  chance encounter with an aged Scorpion magistrate, the 
  player characters stumble onto the trail of a mysterious 
  figure who seems to be hatching a subtle and elaborate 
  plot. The trail will take the PCs to the Colonies in the 
  former Ivory Kingdoms, where they must investigate their 
  foe’s schemes while dealing with the complex politics of 
  the Second City and the physical and cultural challenges 
  of a foreign land.  
  The villain of this story is Raniyah the Sly, a rakshasa 
  from the Ivory Kingdoms who has been living within 
  Rokugan for generations. At the beginning of the twelfth 
  century she lived in Otosan Uchi itself, taking the guise 
  of a tattooed man called Togashi Kenjin. When Otosan 
  Uchi was destroyed by Daigotsu’s assault a few decades 
  later, Raniyah relocated elsewhere in the Empire, slipping 
  between a dozen different human identities. During the 
  invasion by Kali-Ma’s Destroyer army in the late twelfth 
  century, Raniyah chose to stay out of sight, preferring 
  to keep her freedom of action rather than serve Kali-
  Ma as one of her brethren did. If the dark goddess had 
  actually won and conquered Rokugan, there would be 
  more than enough time to emerge from hiding and pledge 
  allegiance – until then she preferred to bide her time. Once 
  Kali-Ma was defeated and the Rokugani discovered the 
  goddess’ Cult of Ruhmal had all but depopulated the Ivory 
  Kingdoms, Raniyah realized she had an unprecedented 
  opportunity… an opportunity related to the ancient history 
  of her demonic race.
  Raniyah is one of less than a dozen rakshasa left alive 
  in the mortal world. This is because over a thousand years 
  ago, the Ivory Kingdoms’ god Vishnu the Protector, lord 
  of life, imprisoned most of the rakshasa race, locking them 
  away in a spiritual trap beyond the physical world. Only 
  a few of the creatures, such as Raniyah and her cousin 
  Adisbah the Cruel, managed to escape Vishnu’s punishment 
  and continue to roam the world. A millennium later, one 
  of these escapees would serve as the commander of Kali-
  Ma’s great Destroyer army for the invasion of Rokugan. 
  With all of the Ivory Kingdoms’ gods dead and the 
  Kingdoms themselves reduced to little more than an 
  empty wilderness, the power of Vishnu’s ancient seal is 
  weakening. Raniyah realizes there is the distinct possibility 
  her brethren can be freed. She has spent the last decade 
  masquerading as a Crane samurai called Doji Chonitsu, 
  using a web of alliances among mortals to slowly gather 
  the powerful spiritual artifacts and divine substances she 
  will need to have a chance at shattering Vishnu’s ancient 
  5
  The Campaign
  InTroduCTIon
  
  seal. She has also gathered a small group of weak-willed 
  mortal followers who she can use for human sacrifices 
  when the time comes. Her scheme is drawing slowly but 
  steadily closer to fruition, and if she should succeed, the 
  world of mortal men will be afflicted by an unprecedented 
  plague of malignant and nigh-invulnerable demons. 
  As the campaign begins, the only thing standing 
  between Raniyah and her diabolical scheme is an aged 
  Scorpion magistrate, Yogo Tanaka, a member of the 
  secret kuroiban order. Tanaka has slowly pieced together 
  enough evidence to suspect Raniyah’s human guise, Doji 
  Chonitsu, is engaged in some kind of sinister conspiracy. 
  In the opening adventure of the campaign, the PCs will 
  meet Yogo Tanaka and have the chance to learn something 
  about his investigations prior to his untimely death. Once 
  Tanaka is gone from mortal life, it will be up to the PCs to 
  use his accumulated evidence and follow the path of the 
  elusive “Doji Chonitsu” – a path which will lead them to 
  the Colonies and eventually the Second City itself.
  Structurally, this book is designed to allow the 
  PCs considerable freedom in how they pursue their 
  investigations once they realize Doji Chonitsu is up to no 
  good. Many role-playing campaigns have a fairly linear 
  structure in which the clues from one adventure lead to 
  the next one in strict succession, but for Second City we’ve 
  attempted to open things up a bit. For example, there are 
  two different options for reaching the Colonies – by land 
  via the Unicorn Clan’s route, or by sea with the help of 
  the Mantis Clan – and once there, the clues to Chonitsu’s 
  activities can lead the PCs in several different directions. 
  They may find themselves ensnared in the complex politics 
  of the Second City’s court and contending with Chonitsu’s 
  chief political ally Otomo Akio, they may get involved in 
  a mercantile clash in the settlement of Kalani’s Landing, 
  or they may end up seeking out clues among foreigners 
  at the outer edges of the Colonies. If their actions draw 
  negative political attention, they may wind up exiled to 
  the jungles of the Colonial frontier, helping the Spider to 
  explore the most dangerous corners of the land. 
  And all the while, Raniyah is advancing her plot, 
  moving relentlessly toward the day when she can free her 
  myriad rakshasa kin. 
  6
  The Campaign
  InTroduCTIon
  
  Starting the Adventure
  This campaign begins within Rokugan, as the PCs 
  stumble by chance onto the trail of ‘Doji Chonitsu’ and his 
  plots. This allows the GM to start the player characters in a 
  more familiar L5R environment before transitioning them 
  to the exotic world of the Colonies and the Second City. 
  However, there is no requirement to follow this structure 
  – if the GM has already launched a game set within the 
  Colonies, the opening adventure can be easily relocated 
  into those lands, skipping the encounters set during the 
  voyage from Rokugan, with the campaign playing out 
  normally from there. 
  This campaign is designed to begin with player 
  characters who are of low Status and limited experience, 
  but who are not brand-new characters fresh out of the 
  rulebook. As a basic guideline, the characters should have 
  accumulated somewhere between 25 and 45 Experience 
  Points before entering the campaign. It is of course up 
  to the GM whether to accomplish this by running them 
  through some prior adventures or to simply award them 
  additional XP at the start of the campaign. Either approach 
  can work, depending on the needs and preferences of the 
  GM and players. Running a few simple adventures prior 
  to starting the campaign can be a good way to get the 
  characters to “gel” as a party, but it may also lead the 
  players to assume they will be playing in a conventional 
  L5R campaign, creating surprise (and perhaps unhappiness) 
  when the action transitions to the Colonies.  
  The rest of this book is divided up into chapters so as 
  to organize the campaign for the GM’s use. These are 
  arranged as follows:
  Chapter One: Trouble in Kosaten Province presents 
  the introductory adventure in which the PCs meet Yogo 
  Tanaka and learn about the sinister activities of ‘Doji 
  Chonitsu.’ It assumes the PCs already know each other 
  and travel together, and have a motivation for visiting 
  a troubled border province. There are many ways for 
  the GM to arrange this, depending on the composition 
  of the group. If the PCs all belong to one of the clans 
  involved, they could be sent as mediators or investigators 
  by another lord (or even a family daimyo) to look into the 
  border tensions. They might also be Imperial Legionnaires, 
  yoriki to a magistrate, or in any other relatively modest 
  authority role which would give them motivation and 
  duty to investigate. Alternatively, the GM could have them 
  in the area for a completely different reason, such as an 
  impending festival or a visit to a specific PC’s friend or 
  relative. Regardless, once the PCs reach Kosaten Province 
  the GM should be able to easily get them involved in the 
  rising tensions and the investigations of Yogo Tanaka. 
  Chapter Two: Travel to the Colonies describes the 
  challenges and dangers of a journey to the Colonies, 
  allowing the PCs to take either the overland Ki-Rin’s Path 
  from the Unicorn lands or the sea-going path to the port 
  of Kalani’s Landing.
  Chapter Three: Kalani’s Landing takes place in 
  the Colonies’ largest port, where the PCs can look into 
  some of Doji Chonitsu’s merchant contacts, investigate a 
  mysterious attack on a Crab merchant’s jade mine, and 
  perhaps find clues pointing to Chonitsu’s larger plots and 
  activities.
  Chapter Four: Journey’s End Keep is set in the terminus 
  of the overland route from the Empire. Here too the PCs 
  can look into more of Doji Chonitsu’s mercantile allies and 
  also gain clues pointing to a group of local natives who 
  may have vital information.
  Chapter Five: The Second City takes place in the 
  capital of the Colonies, the Second City itself. This is the 
  largest chapter in the book, plunging the PCs into a world 
  of political intrigue in which their reputations and even 
  their lives may be at risk. Success here can gain the PCs 
  a vast amount of crucial information, but failure will see 
  them exiled to the frontier with the Spider Clan.
  Chapter Six: A Murder in Shiro Hebi sends the PCs to a 
  secondary stronghold in the Colonies where they can seek 
  out a group of gaijin who may know something about Doji 
  Chonitsu – and who have been framed for the murder of 
  a samurai.
  Chapter Seven: The Temple of Vishnu allows the PCs 
  to explore the frontier jungles of the Colonies – perhaps 
  by their own choice, or perhaps while exiled to live among 
  the Spider – and locate the one remaining temple to 
  Vishnu the Protector, where they can gain the final clues 
  they need to uncover and defeat Raniyah the Sly.
  Finally, Chapter Eight: Locating the Rakshasa presents 
  the climax of the campaign, as the PCs plunge deep 
  into the unexplored Vindhyas Mountains in search of 
  Raniyah’s lair.
  The Appendix to this book presents an array of new 
  creatures, animals and monsters native to the Colonies, for 
  use in the L5R 4th Edition RPG.
  Skills and Die Rolls
  Every GM has a different approach to handling Skill Rolls and TNs. Some GMs prefer to call for frequent die rolls and to enforce me-
  chanical requirements such as calling Raises for better results; other GMs prefer a looser, more free-form approach in which Skill Rolls are 
  only occasionally needed. Likewise, some GMs try to be generous on which Skills are applicable to a given situation, while others prefer to 
  be more strict in order to encourage the players to develop a full selection of Skills. 
  Accordingly, we have not listed specific Skills or TNs in this book. Instead we have offered suggestions of which Skills would be applicable, 
  and modest guidance as to how difficult the TNs should be. This way, each GM can tailor the campaign to his or her specific style.
  7
  The Campaign
  InTroduCTIon
  
  8
  Chapter One
  TrOuble in KOsaTen PrOvinCe 
  
  Chapter One
  Kosaten Province is a Crane province located in their 
  northern lands, next to their main border with the Lion 
  Clan. Like most of the northern Crane provinces, it is a 
  richly productive agricultural territory, with numerous 
  villages surrounded by rice paddies and grain fields. The 
  seat of power in the province is Kosaten Shiro, a major 
  military fortress of the Daidoji family. Like most castles, it 
  has a fairly large village (about 2,000 inhabitants) associated 
  with it, and a well-maintained road leading south toward 
  the coast and the major port towns of Kyuden Doji and 
  Musume Mura. 
  The current lord of Kosaten Province is Daidoji Sokazaka, 
  a man who eschews the traditional Daidoji militarism in 
  favor of a love for art and beauty. The peace which has 
  prevailed in this part of the Empire in recent years – in 
  particular, the peace between Lion and Crane which has 
  held since the time of the Four Winds – has given Sokazaka 
  the freedom to indulge his artistic taste without worrying 
  too much about his clan’s military forces.
  However, Sokazaka’s indulgent life is about to turn badly 
  against him. Tensions are rising on the border between 
  Kosaten Province and the neighboring Lion province 
  of Kaeru, ruled by a militant Matsu lord. Sokazaka has 
  hurriedly raised taxes in order to prepare his previously 
  neglected military forces, and this sudden imposition 
  has generated outrage and growing resentment in the 
  peasant class, raising the threat of a potential revolt. All 
  this impending violence is in fact engineered by Raniyah 
  the Sly, who intends to use an outbreak of war, peasant 
  rebellion, or both to cover her theft of an ancient Ivory 
  Kingdoms artifact from Sokazaka’s court.    
  Kosaten Shiro and Environs
  Kosaten Shiro is a large military castle located on a 
  low hill, giving it an excellent view of the plains leading 
  north to Lion lands. Like all Crane castles it is splendidly 
  arrayed and quite beautiful, but an observant samurai can 
  tell (perhaps assisted by a Battle / Perception roll) that it 
  is also a well-designed military fortress. Below the hill is 
  a large town housing roughly two thousand commoners. 
  It boasts three inns: a large high-quality inn called the 
  Golden Crane and two smaller, cheaper establishments 
  catering to poorer clientele. There is also a geisha house 
  called the Lucky Star, located on the main street facing 
  the castle for maximum convenience of samurai clients. 
  The town boasts a large temple to Bishamon, Fortune 
  of Strength, along with several smaller shrines to other 
  Fortunes. The town is not walled – the immediately 
  adjacent castle is assumed to provide security against 
  banditry – but bushi from the castle patrol the streets 
  twice a day. 
  The south and east of the town are cultivated lands, 
  covered in rice paddies and grain fields, with several 
  smaller “satellite” villages visible on the horizon. There 
  is also a nearby patch of woods, totaling several acres, 
  which is carefully tended for timber and firewood. To 
  the north and west, toward the Lion lands, the land is 
  uncultivated and relatively open, studded by a few trees 
  and patches of brush, interrupted only by a single road 
  that snakes its way to the horizon. 
  9
  Trouble in KosaTen Province 
  chapter one
  
  LocaL atmosphere and tone 
  Whenever the PCs arrive, they find the town seems 
  to be outwardly prosperous – the buildings are in good 
  repair, the rice paddies and grain fields are plentiful and 
  healthy, and the shops and other businesses all seem to 
  be doing well. However, the residents are oddly subdued 
  and lacking in energy. The peasants have a sullen, 
  slump-shouldered look to them and there is a distinct 
  undercurrent of tension and nervous fear. 
  If the GM has arranged for the PCs to be here for 
  a festival, this odd negative tone will be especially 
  striking, and the PCs will notice that the preparations 
  for the festival seem lackluster. Also, regardless of why 
  they are here, if any of the PCs are Lion samurai there 
  will be a notable anxiety expressed toward them by the 
  commoners, while the resident Crane samurai will treat 
  them with cool, distant politeness. 
  If the PCs seek rumors or otherwise try to find out 
  why everyone is so uneasy and anxious – the GM can 
  simply role-play such inquiries, or could require the PCs 
  to roll Courtier (Gossip) / Awareness at a modest TN – 
  they can learn there are many rumors of border clashes 
  with the Lion troops in the neighboring province of Kaeru. 
  The Daidoji have noticeably stepped up their vigilance; 
  the local lord, Daidoji Sokazaka, has ordered ashigaru 
  raised and has sharply increased taxes to fund the sudden 
  defense efforts.
  Other things the PCs can notice if they look around the 
  area:
   
  c
  There are groups of peasants working in the open 
  plains to the north, under samurai supervision. 
  Most PCs will not be allowed near this mysterious 
  work, but Crane PCs (and Imperials with Status 3.0 
  or better) can approach and learn that the peas-
  ants are busily repairing an array of traps, pits, 
  and other defenses which have been allowed to lie 
  fallow during the recent era of peace.
   
  c
  Masons and carpenters are hard at work patching 
  cracks and flaws in Kosaten Shiro’s outer defenses. 
  PCs who examine the castle and roll a suitable skill 
  (such as Engineering / Intelligence) can see that the 
  castle’s defenses have been neglected, probably for 
  several years.  
   
  c
  Lord Sokazaka has forcibly impressed a significant 
  number of peasants to serve as ashigaru. The PCs 
  will be able to see groups of sullen-looking ashi-
  garu drilling in the fields, and there is considerable 
  gossip on the topic among the common folk. The 
  combination of sharply increased taxes and the re-
  moval of a large number of peasant men from the 
  workforce will make for a very difficult harvest, 
  and everyone is deeply worried about that.
  a night at the goLden crane
  Regardless of whether the PCs are official or unofficial 
  visitors, they will most likely stay in the town’s main 
  inn, the splendid Golden Crane, which caters to visiting 
  samurai and the wealthier breed of commoner. (If all of the 
  PCs are ronin, monks, or similarly penniless types, they 
  obviously won’t stay at the Golden Crane – in this case 
  the GM will need to adjust the structure of the adventure 
  a bit to compensate.) 
  Due to the booming commerce in this normally-
  prosperous region, the Golden Crane is a very large two-
  story building with an attached bath-house, a walled 
  garden, and a generously-sized stable. The common 
  room is large and usually crowded with samurai visitors 
  and traveling merchants. Local commoners are too poor 
  to visit the Golden Crane, but samurai from Kosaten 
  Shiro visit regularly in the evenings for food, drink, and 
  conversation. The innkeeper, a cheerful portly commoner 
  named Gofu, keeps a staff of four serving maids to deal 
  with his abundant customers. 
  Alternate Settings
  This adventure is set in Kosaten Shiro, a major Crane 
  settlement located conveniently close to the border with 
  the Lion. However, not all GMs may wish to depict a 
  Crane-Lion conflict in their games. Some campaigns 
  may already be set in another part of the Empire where 
  the GM is more comfortable, or the GM may have estab-
  lished another clan conflict that will better fit the situa-
  tion depicted here. Accordingly, we have deliberately de-
  signed this portion of the campaign to be fairly “generic” 
  in terms of content and overall structure. The action can 
  be relocated to almost any clan border area by changing 
  a few names and descriptions, and the GM should feel 
  free to do so.
  10
  Chapter One
  TrOuble in KOsaTen PrOvinCe 
  
  Whenever the PCs visit, the samurai in the common 
  room will include several off-duty Crane samurai, a 
  visiting Crab woman named Kuni Aya, and the key NPC, 
  Scorpion magistrate (and kuroiban) Yogo Tanaka. 
  npC #1: Kuni aya
  Kuni Aya is a thin, hard-faced young woman who wears 
  her hair tied back in an uncomfortably tight maiden’s 
  foxtail. She dresses in a simple, practical kimono and 
  always wears the unsettling kabuki makeup of the Kuni 
  family, as well as a prominent jade pendant marking her as 
  a member of the Witch-Hunter order. Aya is a very intense 
  and somewhat angry young woman and takes her duties 
  extremely seriously – some might say excessively so. She 
  has just arrived in Kosaten Shiro, having heard rumors of 
  peasant unrest. As a Witch-Hunter she is trained to look 
  for sinister explanations behind such surface problems, 
  and she is convinced the unrest in Kosaten Province is 
  due to some sinister force such as a maho cult. 
  In particular, Aya has fixated on a local superstition, a 
  cultural holdover from ancient times in which the villagers 
  offer a small ritual blood sacrifice to appease the kami and 
  ensure a good harvest. Aya is convinced this is a secret 
  maho ritual and therefore proves the unhappiness among 
  the peasants is actually a maho-fueled rebellion. Thus far 
  the local Crane authorities have shown no interest in her 
  theory (they’ve known about the ritual all their lives), and 
  she will batten onto the PCs as newcomers who might be 
  willing to support her investigation. 
  Aya comes across as extremely dedicated – to the point 
  of being obsessive – but somewhat naïve; she believes 
  most samurai don’t recognize the “true threat” from maho 
  and tends to embrace a paranoid conspiracy-theory view 
  of the world. She is intelligent enough to recognize she 
  can’t run around accusing samurai, but still hopes to 
  somehow gather enough evidence to make someone in 
  authority listen to her. She will see the PCs as her chance 
  to do this, telling them at length about the burgeoning 
  maho cult in the province, the clear signs of an impending 
  peasant revolt, and the need to persuade Lord Daidoji 
  Sokazaka to take action.   
  npC #2: yogo TanaKa
  Yogo Tanaka is an older man, probably at the age of 
  retirement if not beyond, although he is cagey about 
  admitting his actual age. He has a long thin salt-and-
  pepper goatee beard, which he often absently strokes with 
  his left hand while he is talking or thinking. He is balding 
  and has only enough hair left on his scalp for a very small 
  samurai topknot at the back of his head. Tanaka wears a 
  simple paper mask that covers the upper half of his face; 
  he carries a wooden pipe and smokes thoughtfully in his 
  idle moments, conveying an impression of wisdom. 
  Tanaka is actually a member of the kuroiban, the 
  secretive Scorpion organization dedicated to hunting the 
  forces of maho. Publicly, he does not admit to being a 
  kuroiban but does wear a badge marking him as a clan 
  magistrate. He has spent the last few years investigating 
  Raniyah the rakshasa (in her primary guise as “Doji 
  Chonitsu”), although he does not truly understand who or 
  what she is, and suspects the creature is a Shadowlands 
  Extra NPCs at the Inn
  The GM may wish to add more NPCs to the Golden 
  Crane’s common room, both to liven up the inn and keep 
  the two “plot hook” NPCs – Tanaka and Aya – from 
  being too obvious. Herewith a few ideas for interesting 
  personalities to be staying at the Golden Crane:
  Togashi Shuji: An ageless Tattooed Man, smooth of 
  skin but with eyes that have seen many experiences. 
  He enjoys observing the world and the people in it, and 
  watches everything with a delighted wonder undimmed 
  by many years. Shuji speaks seldom, generally only 
  when spoken to, and tends to be brief and cryptic.
  Iuchi Kageki: A short, physically unimpressive man 
  with a long goatee and drooping moustache. Kageki is 
  friendly and outgoing, and is traveling the Empire to 
  learn more about the magic of the other clans. He re-
  sents the Phoenix somewhat for the hostility they show 
  to his “gaijin-influenced” magic, and is hoping for better 
  results from the Crane.   
  Bayushi Hiei: Unremarkable of feature and wearing 
  a simple wooden mempo (mask), this personable Scor-
  pion is a good conversationalist and an excellent listener, 
  ready to offer sympathy and advice to any who might 
  want it. He has no ulterior motives here (other than the 
  usual Scorpion habit of information-gathering) and PCs 
  waiting for him to steal something or poison someone 
  will be disappointed.
  shapeshifting demon or a similar entity. He does know that 
  “Chonitsu” has a connection to the Colonies (the former 
  Ivory Kingdoms). 
  Tanaka carries a personal journal – adopted in imitation 
  of the Kitsuki, who are famed for recording all of their 
  investigations in journals – and writes in it whenever he 
  is idle; it is likely the PCs’ first sight of him will be of him 
  writing in it. 
  Yogo Tanaka is looking for allies, but unlike Kuni Aya 
  he is cautious about approaching anyone too readily – 
  his previous experiences with “Doji Chonitsu” have made 
  him wary almost to the point of paranoia. Instead he will 
  initially approach the PCs in the manner of an engaging 
  old gossip, asking them for the latest news from around 
  the Empire and sharing, in return, the rumors loose in 
  Kosaten Province. He claims to have no real business 
  in the province and is simply there to “visit and relax,” 
  although he expresses concern that his pleasant visit 
  could be disrupted by a war. Tanaka is a skilled liar and is 
  also quite good at using half-truths and evasions to lead 
  others into assuming things he has not said, but he will 
  try to avoid deceiving the PCs too blatantly since he is 
  somewhat hopeful they might be potential allies. He will 
  use his first meeting to sound out the PCs, trying to get a 
  read on their personalities and intentions.   
  11
  Trouble in KosaTen Province 
  chapter one
  
  If the PCs mention Kuni Aya and her claims of maho 
  cult activity, Tanaka will chuckle. “Well, this old man may 
  not know very much about such things, but it seems to 
  me that sudden high taxes may have more to do with this 
  unrest than any quaint local superstitions.”
  Visiting the court
  If the PCs are here on official business, they will be 
  granted an audience in the court of Daidoji Sokazaka to 
  conduct their task. If they are here for casual or personal 
  reasons (such as attending a festival), they will still be 
  expected to make a brief visit to the castle to present 
  themselves to the local lord – the GM can have them roll 
  Etiquette / Intelligence at a modest TN to remember this if 
  the players are not aware of the custom.   
  Either way, they are permitted to visit the court 
  within Kosaten Shiro. As one might expect for a court 
  in a predominantly military castle, it is a relatively small 
  one – the main chamber is about half the size of the 
  court chambers in major political centers like Kyuden 
  Doji. However, the PCs will notice there are a surprising 
  number of courtiers in attendance, and the room displays 
  an astonishing array of artwork – sculptures, paintings, 
  displays of decorative weapons and armor, and so forth. 
  The PCs can specifically notice (perhaps with the help of 
  a Perception roll) that many of these artworks employ 
  unusual or esoteric styles, and there are also several 
  exotic-looking items which can be identified with a 
  suitable Lore Skill as being gaijin curiosities, including 
  a woven rug from Medinaat al-Salaam, a strange suit of 
  armor from some distant land (actually Yodotai), and a 
  fetish-like statue of an eight-armed man from the Ivory 
  Kingdoms (actually a statue of Vishnu the Protector, 
  although it will require considerable knowledge of Ivory 
  Kingdoms culture to know this).
  npC #3: Lord daidoji SoKazaKa
  The lord of Kosaten Shiro is a slightly portly man in 
  his late thirties with a ready (if somewhat vacuous) smile 
  and a weak chin. He is friendly and outgoing, with a 
  superficial charm that usually wins over his guests, but is 
  often a bit “at sea” when confronting serious issues such 
  as the current border crisis.   
  PCs who make a suitable Skill roll to learn more about 
  Sokazaka – Courtier (Gossip) is an obvious choice – will 
  discover he is a well-known patron of the arts, especially 
  of adventurous and unconventional artists, as well as a 
  collector of rare and foreign artwork. He tries to cultivate 
  an image as being “daring” in order to draw attention in 
  the larger social/political world of Rokugan. If any of the 
  PCs are themselves artists, Sokazaka will make a point of 
  speaking with them, asking about their work, and perhaps 
  make inquiries about possibly sponsoring them in the 
  future. 
  Aside from his interest in artists, however, Sokazaka 
  will come across as distracted, anxious, and irritable. He 
  is deeply uneasy about the brewing threat from the Lion 
  and has developed something of a thin skin on the topic. 
  If any of the PCs are Lion samurai, he will be notably cold 
  and hostile toward them. Given the opportunity, he will 
  angrily denounce the “aggression” and “intemperance” of 
  the Lion, prompting a round of agreement and support 
  from the other Crane in the court (including Doji Chonitsu, 
  of course). Although Sokazaka talks boldly about the Lion, 
  he does not really believe there 
  will be a war (nor does he have 
  the skills to fight one), and sees 
  his military preparations more 
  in the nature of an elaborate 
  effort at maintaining face and 
  upholding appearances.
  Sokazaka 
  is 
  vaguely 
  aware there is unrest among 
  the peasants over the high 
  taxes and sudden military 
  mobilization. 
  However, 
  he 
  generally dismisses this as 
  having little importance, and 
  will wave away any suggestion 
  of a potential peasant revolt. 
  If the PCs present and support 
  Kuni Aya’s claims, however, 
  they can attempt to win him 
  over with a suitable Courtier 
  Technique or, lacking that, an 
  appropriate Contested Social 
  Skill Roll. Some of the other 
  courtiers will speak out against 
  Aya’s notions, but Doji Chonitsu 
  will not (if the PCs think to ask). 
  If they are successful, Sokazaka 
  will agree to let Aya conduct a 
  12
  Chapter One
  TrOuble in KOsaTen PrOvinCe 
  
  “brief and limited investigation, so long as all proprieties 
  are maintained.” 
  PCs who watch Sokazaka or speak with him for a 
  significant amount of time can attempt to get a “read” 
  on his personality. Preferably this should use Courtier 
  Techniques, but if there are no Courtier PCs the GM 
  can allow a Contested Roll of Investigation / Awareness 
  against Sokazaka’s Etiquette / Willpower. Regardless, 
  with a success the PCs realize Sokazaka is a weak-willed 
  man who badly wants to be liked and admired, and 
  consequently allows himself to be easily influenced by the 
  men and women of his court. A very successful PC may 
  be able to identify Doji Chonitsu as having a particularly 
  strong influence, although the GM should be wary of 
  making this overly obvious too quickly.  
  npC #4: doji ChoniTSu 
  The primary human guise of Raniyah the Sly is a 
  handsome, elegant male Crane with long white hair and 
  a smooth, cultured voice. He is always splendidly and 
  perfectly attired and moves with precision and grace. 
  Chonitsu comes across as charming and talkative to the 
  point of being gossipy, but a PC who rolls Investigation / 
  Awareness at a high TN (at least 25) may realize there is an 
  underlying tone of deep arrogance and cold maliciousness 
  to Chonitsu’s nature. 
  Chonitsu is friendly toward Crane PCs and PCs from 
  other “civilized” clans like the Phoenix and Scorpion. 
  Conversely, he is coolly hostile toward samurai from the 
  more martial and aggressive clans (especially the Lion, of 
  course – he will make a point of needling any Lion PCs in 
  order to further reinforce the current hostilities). He will 
  also flirt subtly with any attractive female PCs who are 
  not Lion, trying to establish rapport for the future. (As 
  an immortal being, Raniyah is very good at long-term 
  planning, and likes to constantly develop new alliances 
  and supporters.) He openly supports Daidoji Sokazaka’s 
  belligerent stance toward the Lion, blaming the Lion Clan 
  for the current tensions; he also supports Sokazaka’s stern 
  attitude toward the peasant unrest.  
  The GM should try not to let Chonitsu be too “obvious” 
  to the PCs initially. When they first meet him, he should 
  come across as merely one of several prominent courtiers 
  in Kosaten Shiro, all of whom support Sokazaka’s policies 
  to a greater or lesser degree. 
  the mysterious shrine  
   
  and Kuni aya’s inVestigation
  If the PCs arrange for Kuni Aya to get permission 
  for an investigation, she will invite them to accompany 
  her. They may also choose to look into things without 
  permission, on their own or with her. Regardless, Aya will 
  describe the sinister peasant ritual she has learned about: 
  “Once per month, the villagers visit an ancient shrine in 
  the woods and cut the palms of their hands, dropping 
  blood on it. They bow and venerate the shrine as well. 
  What proper religious ritual invokes blood? The next one 
  is due to take place within a day. We cannot allow this 
  travesty to continue!”  
  Members of the Court
  Aside from Sokazaka and Chonitsu, there are of course several 
  other Crane present in the court and a few guests from other 
  clans. The GM should feel free to round out the selection of NPCs 
  with others of his own creation, but the following can serve as a 
  starting point:
  Daidoji Banjin, Clan Magistrate: This man has a stern face and 
  hard, unfriendly eyes. He wears his hair in a strict samurai top-
  knot and is always perfectly dressed and precisely controlled, even 
  when red with fury. Banjin is the local magistrate and regards the 
  presence of Kuni Aya as an insult to himself and his lord – he will 
  be the primary courtier to speak out against any PC appeal on 
  Aya’s behalf. He supports his lord’s policies toward the Lion and 
  the peasants completely. If the PCs do gain permission for Aya to 
  investigate, Banjin will offer the absolute minimum cooperation 
  which etiquette demands.
  Kakita Geinin, Poet: A soft-spoken older man, in his early 
  forties, who never raises his voice or loses face. He always 
  speaks very carefully and precisely, without any interjections or 
  hesitations. His features are undistinguished and he is short of 
  stature.  In general, he is an easy man to underestimate. In fact, 
  Geinin is a famed Crane poet and playwright (Glory 5.8), and is 
  here developing material for a play about the Lion Clan’s cruelty 
  and lack of enlightenment. He is constantly accompanied by a 
  quiet servant with a writing table and supplies, in case inspiration 
  strikes. Needless to say, Geinin is very supportive of Sokazaka’s 
  hard-line stance toward the Lion; his sheltered lifestyle makes him 
  oblivious to the suffering of the peasants. 
  Doji Majime, Ambitious Courtier: This short but superficially 
  handsome young man wears a perpetual smile and is perhaps a 
  little too eager to make friends and curry favor. He is an ambi-
  tious courtier “on the make” and sees the ferment in Sokazaka’s 
  court as an opportunity to gain allies and attention. Currently he 
  publicly supports whatever Sokazaka says with regard to the Lion 
  and the peasants, but he is capable of trimming his sails and can 
  adjust his positions quickly if things go wrong. Majime is vaguely 
  aware that Chonitsu is more influential than he should be, but has 
  not drawn any serious inferences from this yet. 
  Yoritomo Zurui, Mantis Merchant: This deceptively heavy-set 
  man usually wears a pleasant smile, but the perceptive will note 
  the powerful muscles beneath his fat and the calculating glint in 
  his dark, observant eyes. Zurui is here both to pursue commercial 
  alliances with the Crane and to undercut rival merchants within 
  that clan, although he is skilled enough to avoid speaking about 
  trade in open court. He has no particular opinion on the Lion-
  Crane tensions (other than the general observation that war is 
  bad for business), but he is concerned about the mounting ten-
  sions among the peasants, and worries that a revolt could be both 
  a tragedy and a commercial disaster. Zurui has looked into the 
  peasants’ concerns on his own and can be a potential ally (or at 
  least an information source) for PCs trying to avert a revolt. He 
  suspects Chonitsu is promoting the Lion-Crane conflict but has 
  no idea why. 
  13
  Trouble in KosaTen Province 
  chapter one
  
  Visiting the Lion?
  One possible distraction/diversion that might take place 
  here would be for the PCs to travel across the border to the 
  Lion lands and try to find out why there is so much border 
  tension, or possibly even to find a way to defuse the crisis. 
  The Lion province is ruled by Matsu Mugoi, a tall 
  muscular samurai with a square unfriendly face, sporting 
  a nasty scar on the right side of his neck which trails all 
  the way up to the corner of his ear. Mugoi is a harsh man 
  who seems always seething with barely-contained rage. If 
  anyone asks about his scar, he mutters, “A Crane.”   
  Mugoi has been manipulated by Raniyah, who adopts 
  a Lion guise when visiting his lands. The rakshasa has 
  stoked his simmering resentment against the Crane to the 
  boiling point, ensuring he will start a war regardless of 
  the consequences. The PCs can certainly try their best to 
  dissuade Mugoi, but he will likely be deaf to their pleas. 
  The GM should feel free to expand this portion of the 
  adventure, of course, especially if some of the PCs are Lion 
  and want to make a sincere effort to figure out what is 
  going on from their clan’s perspective.
  Some of the PCs may think of trying to escalate matters 
  further by going to Mugoi’s superiors – to the Matsu family 
  daimyo or even to the Lion Clan Champion. In normal 
  circumstances this should not be a viable strategy, since 
  the campaign assumes the PCs start out as relatively low-
  Rank characters with limited political influence. However, 
  it is possible the GM’s particular group of characters 
  might have a viable chance at making an appeal to these 
  authorities. In this case, the GM can opt to have the war 
  erupt while the PCs are engaged in their appeal, thereby 
  allowing Raniyah to pursue her plans. 
  tanaKa recruits the pcs
  At some point, Yogo Tanaka should approach the PCs 
  and try to recruit them as his allies and, if possible, as 
  yoriki assisting his investigation into “Doji Chonitsu.” 
  Ideally he will do this after the PCs have visited Daidoji 
  Sokazaka’s court and gotten a chance to pick up on 
  Chonitsu’s subtle but destructive influence. If possible, the 
  GM should also try to establish the growing threat of a 
  peasant uprising in the area.
  Tanaka will approach the PCs at the inn – or in some 
  other locale if it seems more appropriate to the GM – 
  and sound them out over their reaction to the situation 
  in Kosaten Province and the circumstances in Daidoji 
  Sokazaka’s court. Hopefully he has already impressed the 
  PCs as an intelligent and appealing man during their first 
  meeting. 
  The goal of this scene should be for the PCs and 
  Tanaka to agree there is a problem in Kosaten Province, 
  whereupon he will enlist them as allies (and as yoriki if it 
  is appropriate). 
  It should be noted that while Tanaka wants allies, he 
  has become more than a little paranoid from his earlier 
  interactions with Chonitsu. Thus, he will not directly tell 
  If the PCs ask any villagers about the shrine or the 
  monthly ceremony that is performed there, they will offer 
  the following tale: “Many years ago, when our village was 
  new, we were cutting down many trees for firewood and 
  construction. There were powerful spirits in the forest who 
  grew angry at our use of the trees, and they sent wild 
  animals and violent storms to torment us. Our village was 
  nearly destroyed. But then a holy man came to visit us 
  and spoke with the forest spirit. He did not return from 
  the woods, but when we gathered our courage and sought 
  for him, we found a stone shrine had appeared in front of 
  the oldest tree in the woods.  In front of the shrine were 
  kanji scratched into the bare earth. Those of us who could 
  read interpreted them. The holy man told us he had given 
  up his life to placate the angry spirit, and so long as we 
  remembered his sacrifice with small payments of our own 
  blood, the forest spirit would be placated.  So we have 
  continued, from that day to this, as he bid.”  
  Although this ceremony does superficially seem to be 
  maho-related (ritual spilling of blood, after all), in fact it 
  is harmless, an ancient survival of the pure blood magic 
  from the pre-Kami days. The story which the villagers tell 
  about its origin is more-or-less true, although the original 
  holy man merely made a sacrifice of blood rather than 
  giving up his life. There are a number of things which 
  point to this truth:  
   
  c
  There is no sign of Shadowlands Taint anywhere 
  in the village or the shrine.  Kuni Aya is aware 
  of this (she’s been testing with her jade amulet) 
  but dismisses it, since she claims Bloodspeakers are 
  known to have sinister spells which can conceal 
  their Taint.
   
  c
  There is no invocation or chant associated with the 
  sacrifice of blood. PCs who can roll Lore (Shadow-
  lands) or Lore (Maho) at a suitable TN will know 
  that maho always involves a chant which invokes 
  the dark kansen (evil spirits) who feed on the blood.
   
  c
  If the PCs have a shugenja among them, they can 
  speak with the spirit in the shrine by casting Com-
  mune (Earth). Characters with innate abilities to 
  speak with spirits can also use that talent here. The 
  shrine spirit will confirm the benign nature of the 
  ritual and explains it does not feed upon the blood 
  – it merely recognizes it as a sign of “payment” for 
  the villagers’ use of the forest. The spirit will be 
  quite angry if the PCs suggest there is something 
  wrong with the ceremony, perhaps unleashing a 
  storm or a small earthquake. It will also do this if 
  the ceremony itself is disrupted or halted.
  Ultimately, Aya’s investigation is a red herring, and 
  pursuing it too aggressively may actually work to discredit 
  the PCs. If the PCs actively disrupt/halt the ceremony, or 
  allow Aya to do so, the subsequent physical manifestations 
  of the spirit’s wrath will further inflame the peasantry, 
  driving them toward revolt.   
  14
  Chapter One
  TrOuble in KOsaTen PrOvinCe 
  
  the PCs he suspects Chonitsu 
  to 
  be 
  a 
  Shadowlands 
  creature, 
  nor 
  will 
  he 
  immediately reveal he is a 
  kuroiban. Rather, he will 
  simply try to persuade the 
  PCs there are unwholesome 
  influences pushing Kosaten 
  Province toward violence, war, 
  and revolt. He will be pleased 
  if the PCs suspect Chonitsu; 
  if they don’t, however, he is 
  not surprised. Either way, he 
  explains he has conducted 
  an extensive investigation 
  of a “samurai of interest” 
  who he believes is behind 
  the 
  problems 
  in 
  Kosaten 
  Province and many other 
  sinister activities as well. He 
  will specifically mention this 
  person has connections to 
  the Colonies and travels there 
  regularly. 
  Preventing the Revolt
  Realistically, there is no chance the PCs can avert the 
  looming Lion attack – after all, if it doesn’t happen, the 
  scenario can’t really proceed into the main campaign. 
  However, the PCs are not powerless – they do have the 
  ability to prevent the peasant uprising, an event which 
  otherwise will make things considerably worse for the 
  inhabitants of Kosaten Province.
  There are two obvious ways to avert the peasant revolt. 
  The first and most direct is to convince Lord Sokazaka there 
  is a serious threat of a peasant uprising and persuade him 
  to either ease off on the pressures he has placed on the 
  peasants or to re-allocate some of his troops to suppress 
  any possible peasant unrest. The PCs will need to present 
  a compelling case and use Social Skills and/or Courtier 
  Techniques to overcome Sokazaka’s resistance. In general, 
  convincing him to increase security will be a lot easier 
  than convincing him to lower taxes. Doji Chonitsu will 
  speak against any PCs who advocate lenient policies (e.g. 
  reducing taxes, releasing some of the ashigaru), but will be 
  less forceful in opposing a re-allocation of forces since this 
  serves his agenda of a Lion attack. 
  If the PCs do succeed, these measures can avert the 
  revolt. However, some PCs may wish to take a different 
  approach and try to speak with the peasants directly; this 
  may be especially likely if some or all of the PCs are Mantis, 
  Unicorn, Crab, ronin, or monks. Even PCs from traditionalist 
  clans like the Crane or Phoenix may be willing to take this 
  approach if their personalities or back-stories make them 
  highly empathic toward the lower castes. 
  The headman of the town is Teinei, a tired-looking man 
  in his fifties, although his bald head and sunken face make 
  him look much older. He plays the simperingly-respectful 
  peasant to the hilt, trying to placate the PCs with deep bows, 
  apologies, and platitudes. He insists there is no possibility 
  of a revolt and sincerely (but falsely) promises to calm any 
  hotheads among the common folk.
  Better results can be had by asking around for 
  information on who is most unhappy among the peasants. 
  This sort of investigation can eventually lead the PCs to a 
  man in his early forties named Futeki. Futeki is a carpenter, 
  heavily muscled and tough, with a much more courageous 
  and intense personality than Teinei. He is well-known and 
  respected in the town, and his growing advocacy of action 
  against Lord Sokazaka’s unreasonable demands is a major 
  factor in the impending revolt. If the PCs speak with him, 
  he will be properly respectful but does not cower or curry 
  favor. Convincing him to avoid revolt will be difficult (not 
  least because he will never admit to a samurai that a revolt 
  might be brewing) and should require skillful role-play as 
  well as good Social Skill rolls. Futeki is largely immune 
  to threats to himself, but appealing to his concern for his 
  fellow peasants and the suffering they will endure through 
  a revolt can break down his resistance.
  Alternatively, ruthless PCs who identify Futeki as the 
  focal point of the unrest can solve the problem by having 
  him arrested or killed. 
  Finally, another alternative for the PCs to avert a revolt 
  will be to speak with the local monks, who are closer to 
  the common people than samurai. In particular, the large 
  temple to Bishamon boasts a sizable contingent of monks 
  who go out into the town to work alongside the peasants. 
  The abbot, Tokai, is a calm and thoughtful man who speaks 
  in a soft, gentle voice. He is probably in his forties at least, 
  although his shaven head and serene face makes it difficult 
  15
  Trouble in KosaTen Province 
  chapter one
  
  to be sure. He is a proudly ascetic Taoist, wearing only 
  a simple robe and going barefoot, and has a somewhat 
  judgmental attitude toward samurai, who he sees as violent 
  creatures ruled by their base passions. On the other hand, 
  he is also an enlightened and peaceful man, and spends 
  many hours of each day teaching the children of the town, 
  working in the fields, and helping his acolytes to clean and 
  maintain the temple. 
  Tokai always speaks quietly but with great firmness, and 
  will not allow himself to be intimidated. He usually smiles, 
  but gets a fierce expression when condemning a samurai’s 
  cruelty or foolishness. If any PC is angry enough to directly 
  threaten him, the abbot calmly remarks that his superior, 
  the abbot of the Temple to the Kami in Toshi Ranbo (the 
  Imperial capital) would undoubtedly be much troubled by 
  Tokai’s death, and might feel compelled to mention it to his 
  friend the Emperor’s advisor. “But no matter. By all means, 
  samurai, kill me. I am certainly ready for my next life.” 
  It will be the bold samurai indeed who proceeds with any 
  violence against such a man.  
  Thus an appeal to Tokai based on force, authority, or pride 
  will have little impact, but an appeal based on piety and the 
  love of peace, or on compassion toward the common folk, 
  will impress him greatly. If Tokai is favorable to the PCs, he 
  will quietly lend his influence to persuading the peasants 
  not to resort to violence, thereby averting the revolt.
  The Lion Attack!
  At some point, the Lion will indeed storm across the 
  border and attack Kosaten Shiro. Since there is no specific 
  schedule for when this occurs, the GM can trigger it 
  whenever it works best for his particular story. 
  The first warning will come when a peasant begins 
  beating violently on a small metal bell atop a wooden tower 
  on the northern side of the town. Soon after, the outlying 
  labor forces and Crane patrols will begin hurrying in from 
  the northern fields, racing to join the defenses of the castle 
  itself. The Lion army becomes visible within a quarter-hour 
  after that, marching rapidly toward the castle and spreading 
  out to encircle the town as well.
  The Lion will besiege and assault the castle, battering 
  down the poorly-maintained gates with an improvised 
  ram, while also sweeping through the town for any enemy 
  samurai or troops who may not have made it into the castle 
  in time. PCs who flee the town immediately will be able 
  to avoid the battle (and can even stay around to watch it 
  from a distance), but otherwise they will find themselves 
  swept up in the action and forced to participate in order to 
  stay alive. Lion PCs, of course, will have their own moral 
  questions to answer – does clan loyalty compel them to join 
  an attack by a local lord, especially when they themselves 
  are not involved in the quarrel?
  The GM has a lot of flexibility in how to approach this 
  sequence. A tough GM, or one running a gritty “anyone 
  can die at any time” type of campaign, may wish to use 
  the Mass Battle rules to resolve the PCs’ survival. However, 
  GMs who are running a more story-oriented style of game, 
  or who want to avoid the risk of character deaths this early, 
  may wish to run the battle as a series of discrete scenes 
  focusing on the PCs trying to avoid Lion attackers, protect 
  local allies or innocent peasants, and simply stay alive.
  Two key things need to happen during the Lion attack: 
   
  c
  ‘Doji Chonitsu’ takes advantage of the chaos of 
  Lion troops storming the castle to enter the now-
  unguarded court chamber and steal the statue of 
  Vishnu. The PCs should not be able to prevent 
  this (otherwise there is no campaign!) but the GM 
  should arrange opportunities for them to realize 
  what has happened or even to glimpse Chonitsu 
  fleeing the castle with the statue. If the GM 
  feels the need to emphasize Chonitsu’s mystery 
  and menace further, have the PCs catch sight of 
  Chonitsu fleeing through an area with a squad of 
  Lion troops – and when they follow, they find the 
  Lion all dead, torn apart as though by wild animals.
   
  c
  Yogo Tanaka dies, leaving the PCs to carry on in 
  his place. Although it may be tempting to have 
  Tanaka be killed directly by Chonitsu, from a 
  scenario standpoint a better choice will probably 
  be for the PCs to encounter Tanaka while he is 
  following Chonitsu away from the castle. The old 
  Scorpion, clutching his journal to his chest, urges 
  the PCs to join him, perhaps even tells them briefly 
  what is going on (“Chonitsu has it! From the court 
  chamber!”) – and then the group comes under a 
  hail of Lion arrows. Several of the PCs are hit and 
  Tanaka takes multiple hits, dying within a few 
  moments.
  16
  Chapter One
  TrOuble in KOsaTen PrOvinCe 
  
  Regardless of how Tanaka dies, the GM may want to 
  allow a dramatic final moment or two in which he gasps out 
  his true identity as one of the kuroiban, thrusts his journal 
  at the PCs, and urges them to “find it, find it and kill it.” 
  GMs who prefer a less melodramatic approach will have to 
  rely on their players’ curiosity and sense of adventure to 
  motivate them and keep them investigating. Obviously the 
  old Scorpion’s journal is a key ingredient for this, and the 
  physical handout included with this boxed set will allow 
  players to interact with the journal directly as a “prop.”
  aftermath of BattLe
  It is up to the GM whether the Lion ultimately capture 
  Kosaten Shiro or are finally driven back by the desperate 
  Crane defenders. From the standpoint of the rest of the 
  campaign, either result works, so the GM should choose 
  the outcome that best suits his own game. Likewise it is 
  up to the GM whether or not Daidoji Sokazaka survives 
  the battle. Regardless of the Crane lord’s specific fate, the 
  GM should probably allow at least one prominent member 
  of Kosaten Shiro’s court to live so as to spread word 
  afterward that Sokazaka’s prized Ivory Kingdoms statue 
  disappeared during the fighting. (If some of the PCs have 
  contacts among the common folk, this information can 
  instead be conveyed by servant gossip.)  
  Regardless, once the fighting is over it will become 
  apparent that Doji Chonitsu managed to escape during 
  the battle (several witnesses report seeing him fleeing the 
  castle and the town) and his immediate whereabouts are 
  unknown. If the PCs conduct a more detailed investigation, 
  trying to trace his movements from Kosaten Shiro, they 
  should eventually be able to track him to Kyuden Doji, 
  where he boarded a ship bound for the Colonies.
  The Trail of Clues
  Hopefully, once the PCs have read Tanaka’s journal 
  and reviewed all the events at Kosaten Shiro, they will 
  feel properly motivated to follow ‘Doji Chonitsu’ to the 
  Colonies and try to figure out what he is scheming. If they 
  aren’t fully committed to this task, they clearly do not 
  have enough adventuresome spirit, and the GM may need 
  to drop a few more clues or request a couple of Lore Skill 
  rolls to get the PCs motivated.
  Regardless, once the PCs head for the Colonies, they 
  should start looking into the background and connections 
  of Doji Chonitsu. In fact, this will be vitally important for 
  the further progress of the campaign because they will 
  find it nigh-impossible to actually locate Chonitsu himself 
  physically. Raniyah the Sly spends much of her time 
  traveling around the Colonies in various false visages, 
  emerging as ‘Chonitsu’ only when needed to maintain her 
  web of contacts and allies. Most of her plan is actually 
  being carried out by her various human agents and allies, 
  and the PCs’ best chance of defeating her will be to track 
  down those allies and learn the truth from them.
  The main part of this campaign, comprising most of 
  the remaining contents of this book, is based around two 
  interlinked “trails” of clues which will lead the PCs to 
  the truth about Doji Chonitsu and his various allies. In 
  order to continue the campaign, the PCs will have to dig 
  up these trails of clues. There are a number of ways this 
  can be done, but the most obvious is for the PCs to begin 
  asking their various social contacts about Chonitsu and his 
  activities. PCs who are magistrates or who have contacts 
  with NPC magistrates may be able to call on the resources 
  of the law to look into Chonitsu’s activities, while PCs 
  who have connections among commoners or the criminal 
  underworld (such as Yasuki, Scorpion, or Yoritomo 
  characters) can likewise make inquiries among them – this 
  route may be especially fruitful, in fact, since these groups 
  will have a better awareness of the extent of Chonitsu’s 
  contacts and activities. Likewise, PCs with mercantile 
  associations (Yasuki, Daidoji Trading Council, etc) will be 
  able to call on those contacts for more information about 
  Chonitsu, who has many mercantile contacts of his own.
  Depending on the players’ approach, the GM may wish 
  to create role-playing scenes in which they can make their 
  inquiries. However, if this is not overly interesting to the 
  players, a more efficiency-minded GM can simply have 
  the players roll appropriate Skills such as Investigation, 
  Commerce (Merchant), Courtier (Gossip), or Intimidation 
  to root out their clues. The PCs will need to find enough 
  clues to carry them forward into the rest of the campaign, 
  so the GM should not make it impossibly hard to find them. 
  However, realism demands some player effort should still 
  be required, since Yogo Tanaka, an old and experienced 
  investigator, had great difficulty learning about Chonitsu. 
  Of course, the rakhsasa’s plans are coming closer to 
  fruition, so her activities are becoming more overt and 
  easier to detect. 
  Peasant Revolt?
  If a peasant revolt does take place, for maximum 
  dramatic effect it should happen immediately before 
  the Lion attack. Thus the Lion army will arrive to 
  find the Crane defenses already severely disrupted 
  by angry peasants rampaging through the town. 
  This will allow plenty of opportunities for the GM 
  to enhance the overall drama of the battle, as well as 
  increasing the general level of chaos and thus mak-
  ing Chonitsu’s later escape easier to pull off.
  The final fate of the peasants of Kosaten Prov-
  ince is left in the merciful hands of the GM. 
  17
  Trouble in KosaTen Province 
  chapter one
  
   
  CLue paTh #1: poLiTiCS
   
  c
  Chonitsu is known to have an influential friend 
  among the high-ranking Imperial samurai in 
  the Second City. The man is a collector of Ivory 
  Kingdoms artwork, and Chonitsu has assisted him 
  several times in acquiring rare and highly sought-
  after items.
   
  c
  The influential Imperial is named Otomo Akio. He 
  is a mid-level figure in the court of the Second 
  City, and while his focus on art limits his political 
  power somewhat, he is nonetheless considered a 
  rising star in the Ivory Court.
   
  c Although Chonitsu is known to have supplied 
  Akio with several notable pieces, there are also 
  some stories claiming that Akio has done the same 
  favor for Chonitsu. 
   
  c
  The two men meet regularly in the Second City and 
  it is claimed that Chonitsu is the one who arranged 
  Otomo Akio’s invitation to the House of Sparrow’s 
  Song, the most elite geisha house in the city.   
  CLue paTh #2: merChanTS and gaijin
   
  c
  Chonitsu has a number of mercantile operations, 
  and seems to show a particular interest in the 
  collection and trade of rare substances like jade 
  and crystal, as well as the art and relics of the 
  now-defunct Ivory Kingdoms. He is believed 
  to sponsor or support a couple of prominent 
  merchant patrons in the Colonies who specialize 
  in these markets. Although Chonitsu is known to 
  usually travel to the Colonies by sea, he has been 
  seen more than a few times in the settlement of 
  Journey’s End Keep on the northern edge of the 
  Colonies, the terminus of the long overland route 
  from the lands of the Unicorn. Supposedly he has 
  shown considerable interest in both the surviving 
  remnants of local gaijin folk in that area and in the 
  more obscure foreigners from the Burning Sands 
  who occasionally visit the settlement.  
   
  c
  The two merchants are named Daidoji Iyashi and 
  Ide Uchi. Iyashi is based out of the port town 
  called Kalani’s Landing on the southern coast of 
  the Colonies, while Ide Uchi owns a caravan which 
  is based out of Journey’s End Keep.
   
  c
  Chonitsu’s interests in jade and crystal have 
  sometimes drawn enmity from Crab merchants 
  who are eager to acquire jade for their clan’s 
  never-ending war with the Shadowlands. One 
  particular merchant, Yasuki Kappako, is especially 
  noted for his clashes with Daidoji Iyashi. Kappako 
  is also based in Kalani’s landing.
   
  c
  The PCs can also potentially learn that a Mantis 
  merchant named Yoritomo Hokare has also 
  sometimes gotten into mercantile tussles with 
  both Daidoji Iyashi and Yasuki Kappako. (This 
  would be an especially appropriate clue if the 
  PCs are specifically looking into rivals/enemies of 
  Chonitsu’s interests.)
  Travel Papers
  The rest of this adventure assumes the PCs are 
  functioning as Yogo Tanaka’s yoriki and thus have 
  the ability to write travel papers for themselves. This 
  is important since the rest of the campaign involves 
  extensive travel, first to the Colonies and then to 
  many different locations within them. If the PCs do 
  not have travel papers, it will be impossible for them to 
  undertake most of the investigations and adventures 
  which comprise the remainder of the campaign.
  If the PCs did not sign on as Tanaka’s yoriki, or if 
  the GM does not like that gambit as a way of getting 
  the adventure moving along, other plans may be 
  needed. One option is for one of the PCs to already be 
  a magistrate, or receive an appointment as one early 
  in the campaign. Another choice is for an influential 
  Ally of one (or more) of the PCs to arrange travel 
  papers and other problem-smoothing assistance 
  for them. This latter option can be especially useful 
  if one or more of the PCs are Courtiers who have 
  accumulated Allies, Blackmail, or similar resources. 
  Allowing the PCs to be more pro-active in arranging 
  their own travel can often be the better choice in any 
  RPG campaign.
  Listed below are the two main sets of leads the PCs 
  can pick up about Chonitu’s allies and activities. Each 
  of these incorporates a number of additional clues and 
  details which the PCs can acquire if they investigate in 
  more detail. The GM should make the secondary clues 
  harder to find, requiring higher Skill rolls and/or better 
  role-play to unearth, rewarding the PCs for greater effort. 
  Some clues may only be available through certain routes 
  of investigation, while others may be more “general” – the 
  GM should use his judgment and try to reward PCs who 
  take a more creative approach to their investigation. 
  18
  Chapter One
  TrOuble in KOsaTen PrOvinCe 
  
   
  c
  Some stories claim that Chonitsu has a particular 
  interest in purchasing the semi-legendary Ashalan 
  Crysteel, which can only be found in the Burning 
  Sands, and that this is the reason for his association 
  with Ide Uchi.
   
  c
  A Unicorn traveler claims to have seen Chonitsu 
  get into a shouting match with a handful of local 
  gaijin at Journey’s End Keep. As a result, the 
  Unicorn magistrates beat the gaijin and drove them 
  out of the settlement. Chonitsu was disappointed – 
  he wanted the gaijin killed for their insolence.
  daidoji SoKazaKa, Lord of KoSaTen Shiro
  Air: 3
  EArth: 2
  FirE: 2
  WAtEr: 2
  Void: 3
  StAminA: 3 intElligEncE: 3
  Honor: 4.9
  Status: 5.0
  Glory: 3.7
  School/Rank: Doji Courtier 2
  Skills: Calligraphy 3, Commerce 2, Courtier 3, Defense 1, 
  Etiquette 3, Investigation 2, Lore: Art 4, Lore: Theology 
  2, Sincerity (Honesty) 3 
  Advantages: Allies (several), Social Position (lord of 
  Kosaten Shiro)
  Disadvantages: Gullible
  yogo TanaKa, magiSTraTe and Kuroiban
  Air: 2
  EArth: 3
  FirE: 3
  WAtEr: 2
  Void: 4
  AWArEnESS: 4 WillpoWEr: 4 intElligEncE: 4 pErcEption: 4
  Honor: 4.1
  Status: 4.0
  Glory: 2.1
  School/Rank: Yogo Shugenja 4/Kuroiban Path
  Skills: Calligraphy 3, Courtier 2, Defense 2, Etiquette 
  3, Intimidation 2, Investigation (Notice) 5, Kenjutsu 2, 
  Lore: Law 2, Lore: Maho 3, Lore: Shadowlands 3, Lore: 
  Shugenja 4, Lore: Theology 3, Meditation 4, Sincerity 
  (Lying) 3, Spellcraft 3, Temptation 2
  Advantages: Crafty, Social Position (Clan Magistrate)
  Disadvantages: Bad Reputation (elderly), Dark Secret 
  (Kuroiban), Sworn Enemy (Raniyah the Sly)
  19
  Trouble in KosaTen Province 
  chapter one
  
  20
  Chapter Two
  Travel To The Colonies
  
  Since marching through the Shadowlands is not an 
  option for even the most formidable party of PCs, there 
  are two practical choices for traveling to the Colonies: 
  they can travel overland via the Ki-Rin’s Path, skirting the 
  Shadowlands to the north and west, or they can travel by 
  sea, sailing around the Sea of Shadows. Depending on the 
  structure of a specific game, the GM may decide to restrict 
  the party to only one of these routes, or allow the PCs to 
  choose which route works for them. 
  The Overland Route 
  The Ki-Rin’s Path departs Rokugan from Outsider Keep, 
  on the western border of the Unicorn lands and the Empire 
  itself. It traverses a series of passes in the southward 
  extension of the Great Wall of the North Mountains, then 
  descends into the empty and desolate lands known as the 
  Western Wastes. This allows travelers to skirt the northern 
  reaches of both the Shadowlands and the foul jungles that 
  separate that vile land from the former Ivory Kingdoms. 
  Once clear of the jungle, the route turns south and soon 
  reaches Journey’s End Keep. The entire trip normally takes 
  6 to 8 weeks, depending on season, weather, and events 
  along the way.  
  outsider Keep
  The Ki-Rin’s Path begins at Outsider Keep, also known as 
  Bugaisha. For much of its history this was a place of exile. 
  The Unicorn Clan would send its dishonored samurai here 
  to live out their lives in useful but obscure duty, guarding 
  a key western approach to the Empire. The Keep watches 
  over the pass known as Kanashimi no Komochi, Sorrow’s 
  Path, also sometimes called the Exile’s Road or the Path 
  of Woe. It was through this pass that Shinjo originally led 
  the Ki-Rin Clan from the Empire on their great journey of 
  discovery.
  Even in its days of relative obscurity, Outsider Keep was 
  a haven for ronin and saw a great deal of traffic from 
  the gaijin lands to the west. Merchants and traders from 
  the Caliphate of Medinat al-Salaam in the Burning Sands, 
  from other factions in that exotic city, and from even 
  further places such as the Senpet and Yodotai Empires 
  were frequent visitors to Outsider Keep. At times, a 
  veritable city of tents would rise outside the walls as these 
  foreign traders jostled for business during the daylight 
  hours, which was the only time they were allowed within 
  the Keep’s walls. 
  Since the founding of the Second City and the expanded 
  need for overland trade and communication with the 
  Colonies, Outsider Keep has grown considerably in 
  importance and is now well-known throughout Rokugan. 
  Regardless of what they may have heard about the place, 
  the PCs will find Outsider Keep to be a bustling metropolis. 
  The original walled fortress is now surrounded by a sprawl 
  of permanent buildings built in a riot of architectural 
  styles; traditional Rokugani structures rise alongside 
  flat-roofed, sand-colored buildings typical of Medinat 
  al-Salaam and more ornate, columned constructions of 
  obvious Senpet origin. The people of the place likewise 
  mingle, especially in the twisting streets and market 
  bazaars. Dour Unicorn magistrates maintain order as best 
  Chapter twO
  21
  Travel To The Colonies
  Chapter Two
  
  they can on behalf of the current lord of Outsider Keep, 
  Shinjo Sukhbataar. As one can imagine, at such a cultural 
  crossroads misunderstandings can quickly flare into open 
  hostility.
  While Outsider Keep itself is essentially just a way-
  stop on the journey to the Second City, GMs may wish 
  to play up clash of cultures here as a way of making it 
  clear to the PCs that they are leaving the safe and staid 
  confines of the Empire. After all, they will encounter an 
  even more intense mix of gaijin and Rokugani culture 
  at Journey’s End Keep on the far end of their trip. PCs 
  who are of an adventurous nature or who are from the 
  more “open-minded” clans such as the Mantis or Unicorn 
  may have little difficulty with this, but more traditional 
  samurai such as those from the Lion or Crane should 
  find the whole thing quite unsettling. The gaijin visiting 
  Outsider Keep have learned to be somewhat tolerant of 
  Rokugani xenophobia, but GMs should still feel free to 
  confront the PCs with clear instances of just how foreign 
  these foreigners can be.
  arranging the Journey
  The most important business for the PCs here will 
  be arranging a trip to the Colonies. The Unicorn are 
  likely to insist on guides and possibly military escorts 
  accompanying any party of Rokugani undertaking the 
  journey. Otherwise they might come to harm, which 
  would reflect badly on the Unicorn given their mandate to 
  maintain the overland route to the Colonies.
  The easiest, safest and most efficient way to do this for 
  all concerned is for the PCs to join an existing caravan 
  that is making the journey. Unless the PCs can be very 
  convincing (through role-playing, calling in favors 
  or Allies, and/or the use of Skills such as Courtier or 
  Temptation) this is most likely to be the “default” means 
  of traveling overland. Caravans are subject to schedules 
  related to commercial needs and practical realities, so it 
  may be necessary for the PCs to wait as much 
  as several days or even a couple of weeks for 
  departure. While safe, caravans are generally slow 
  and are not particularly discreet.
  A more flexible and discreet means of traveling 
  would be with guides and escorts specially 
  assigned to the PCs for the purpose of making 
  the trip. This is a much less likely option, at least 
  from the point of view of Shinjo Sukhbataar. Given 
  the demands of maintaining security and order at 
  Outsider Keep, operating and protecting caravans, 
  and patrolling the route to the Second City, his 
  resources are already stretched thin. Accordingly, a 
  party of relatively minor PCs asking for precious 
  manpower to be devoted to their own purposes will 
  probably meet with a cool reception. To have any 
  chance of persuading Sukhbataar to accommodate 
  them, the PCs will either have to be well-connected 
  (reflected in relatively high Status and/or Glory, or 
  possessing Advantages such as Social Position or 
  Sacrosanct) or make it worth Sukhbataar’s while. He 
  doesn’t need money, so any “bribery” would have to take 
  the form of political favors, or involve the use of more 
  nefarious means such as Blackmail.
  Alternatively, the PCs may wish to hire their own guides 
  and escorts. There is no shortage of people who have 
  made the trek between Outsider Keep and the Colonies, 
  some of them many times. However, any who are Unicorn 
  Clan will fall under the authority of Shinjo Sukhbataar 
  and will not work for hire. That will most likely leave the 
  PCs to choose between Rokugani heimin or gaijin, all of 
  widely varying quality and reliability. (Some of these may 
  be outright criminals, who will either take what they can 
  from the PCs and then cut and run at the first opportunity, 
  or even lead other criminals to attack the party.) If the 
  PCs are fortunate, they may encounter a non-Unicorn 
  Rokugani samurai or a ronin who has made the trip and 
  is willing to serve as a guide (a clan samurai would most 
  likely be a Dragon).  
  Finally, the PCs may wish to proceed without guides 
  or escorts. This is the most discreet and flexible way to 
  travel; it is also the most hazardous and is technically 
  illegal. By Imperial decree, the Unicorn are responsible 
  for the overland route and those traveling on it, so 
  any Rokugani who undertakes the journey without the 
  knowledge and consent of the Unicorn is flouting that 
  clan’s responsibility. The greater risk, however, is the 
  journey itself. The Ki-Rin’s Path is actually a number 
  of possible paths that repeatedly diverge and converge; 
  the specific route to be followed, especially through the 
  Western Wastes, depends on the weather, the time of year, 
  the likelihood of hazards such as floods and rock slides, 
  and so on. Those unfamiliar with the route are likely to 
  run afoul of such hazards or become lost. Some sections 
  of the route are also plagued by bandits and other kinds 
  of predators. If the PCs question travelers or pick up the 
  rumors swirling around Outsider Keep, it should quickly 
  become clear that the Ki-Rin’s Path has a reputation 
  for great danger, especially for those who are first-time 
  travelers.
  22
  Chapter Two
  Travel To The Colonies
  
  shinJo suKhBataar
  Lord of outsider Keep
  At one time, the title “Lord of Outsider Keep” would 
  have been synonymous with social and political oblivion 
  amongst the Unicorn. Now, however, it is a prestigious 
  and influential position within the clan, a fact that the 
  ambitious Shinjo Sukhbataar is happy to exploit – he 
  dreams of one day attaining the position of Shinjo family 
  daimyo. Thus, Sukhbataar will react poorly to anyone or 
  anything that threatens to make him look bad. As noted 
  earlier, he will expect any potential overland travelers to 
  the Colonies to accede to his desire for them to accompany 
  an organized caravan, if only because it is the safest and 
  least disruptive option for him. Any other course chosen 
  by the PCs is going to meet with Sukhbataar’s disapproval 
  unless they take measures to somehow placate him. Note 
  that Sukhbataar has an impressive network of informants 
  among the people in and around Outsider Keep, so unless 
  the PCs are extremely discreet he is likely to find out about 
  any enquiries or plans they make.
  Shinjo SuKhbaTaar, Lord of ouTSider Keep
  Air: 4
  EArth: 3
  FirE: 3
  WAtEr: 3
  Void: 3
  Honor: 2.0
  Status: 5.0
  Glory: 4.0
  School/Rank: Shinjo Bushi 4
  Skills: Calligraphy, Commerce 4, Courtier 4, Defense 4, 
  Etiquette (Conversation) 4, Games 3, Horsemanship 5, 
  Hunting 3, Kenjutsu (Scimitar) 5, Lore: Heraldry 4, Lore: 
  Law 3, Sincerity (Honesty) 3
  Advantages: Allies (Various, spies throughout Outsider 
  Keep area), Crafty, Way of the Land (Sorrow’s Path and 
  Route to Second City)
  Disadvantages: Driven (become Shinjo daimyo), Gaijin 
  Name)
  Ki-rin’s path: the Journey 
  How the journey to the Colonies progresses is largely 
  dependent on how much time and effort the GM wants to 
  devote to it. If the GM wants the journey to pass quickly 
  so as to move on to the rest of the campaign, it would 
  be best to have the PCs accompany a caravan. Caravans 
  are well-guarded and have several experienced guides, 
  so they are unlikely to get lost or run afoul of hazards 
  on the road. An attack by bandits or other enemies on a 
  large well-escorted caravan is unlikely and will probably 
  be easily repulsed. The journey should therefore be largely 
  uneventful and the action will quickly and smoothly move 
  from Outsider Keep in Rokugan to Journey’s End Keep in 
  the Colonies.
  If, on the other hand, the PCs are traveling with their 
  own guides and escorts or completely on their own, trouble 
  on the road is much more likely. The exact nature of that 
  trouble depends on the stage of the journey in question. 
  There are, in broad terms, three such stages:
  A Potential Guide: Temulin
  If the PCs wish to recruit their own guide to the 
  Colonies, the GM may employ this ready-made NPC, 
  Temulin, for that role. Alternatively, if the PCs accom-
  pany a caravan, Temulin can be the liaison or “han-
  dler” assigned to them. 
  Temulin is a female ronin and a rather dour young 
  woman – probably of Unicorn ancestry, judging from 
  her name and appearance. She is obviously well-ac-
  customed to long travel under harsh conditions. Be-
  yond that, it is up to the GM to decide if she is all she 
  seems or if she has darker motives for assisting the 
  PCs. For example, she could be in league with ban-
  dits in the Western Wastes, attempting to maneuver 
  the party into a position where they are vulnerable 
  to ambush. Alternatively, she could be one of Shinjo 
  Sukhbataar’s agents trying to learn more about the 
  PCs. She could even be an agent of Doji Chonitsu or a 
  cultist follower of Raniyah in her true form. The only 
  limits on her use are those which suit the GM. 
  TemuLin
  Air: 4
  EArth: 3
  FirE: 3
  WAtEr: 3
  Void: 3
  Honor: 1.0
  Status: 0.0
  Glory: 1.0
  School/Rank: Ronin, Insight Rank 2. 
  If a Technique is desired, the GM may give Temulin 
  the Forest Killer Ronin path or the Rank 1 Shinjo 
  Bushi technique (reflecting a clan ronin). 
  Skills: Athletics 3, Defense 4, Horsemanship 4, 
  Hunting 
  (Survival, 
  Tracking) 
  5, 
  Investigation 
  (Notice) 2, Kenjutsu 3, Kyujutsu 3, Stealth (Ambush, 
  Sneaking) 4
  Advantages: Absolute Direction, Crafty, Way of the 
  Land (Ki-Rin’s Path)
  Disadvantages: Gaijin Name, Social Disadvantage 
  (Ronin)
  Sorrow’S paTh 
  The passage through the mountains can be treacherous, 
  particularly in the spring when runoff from melting snow 
  can cause floods and landslides. The high passes are 
  generally impassable in winter. The safest times to travel 
  are summer and early autumn. Hazards here are mostly 
  natural, related to weather and geography. If the PCs have 
  an experienced guide, or the equivalent of such a guide 
  in Skills and Advantages (e.g. Hunting 3 or better, an 
  appropriate Way of the Land, etc), they will be able to 
  avoid the worst of such hazards. Traversing the mountain 
  passes takes one to two weeks (a GM desiring a specific 
  23
  Travel To The Colonies
  Chapter Two
  
  number can roll 1k1 +10 for the total days), the variance 
  due to minor mishaps, weather delays, detours around 
  rockslides, and so on. 
  If the party has no guides and no relevant Skills or 
  Advantages, the passage becomes longer (+1k1 days) and 
  each character should make an Agility roll (TNs will be 
  higher in the spring) or suffer serious injury from some 
  incident such as a fall, being struck by falling rock, getting 
  caught in a landslide, or similar misfortune. It is up to 
  the Gm how serious to make this injury; in general, a 
  PC reduced to Hurt will be able to recover on his own 
  with modest medical attention, but a character reduced to 
  Crippled or below will need extensive care and may not 
  be able to move for several days. The PCs may wind up 
  having to return to Outsider Keep for assistance. 
  The weSTern waSTeS 
  Once the PCs emerge from the mountain passes of 
  Sorrow’s Path, they enter the Western Wastes. This is a 
  bleak expanse of low barren hills rising from dry and 
  desolate plains. The terrain is devoid of notable features or 
  landmarks and appears drearily the same in all directions. 
  Both plants and animals are scarce; plant life is limited to 
  little more than yellow grass and tough, scrubby bushes, 
  while animal life consists of small rodents and the lone 
  birds, snakes, and lizards that prey on them. 
  Natural hazards are rare in the Western Wastes, but 
  the harsh environment itself is a threat. Without an 
  adequate supply of food and fresh water the PCs will need 
  well-honed survival skills (Hunting 4 or better, with the 
  Survival Emphasis) or they will soon suffer ill effects from 
  dehydration, malnutrition, and exposure. As a simple 
  mechanical option, use the effects of “Fasting” on page 89 
  of the L5R 4th Edition Core Rulebook, but the TN penalties 
  begin to apply after only one day of fasting rather than 
  two. 
  Because of the unending sameness of the terrain, 
  navigation is difficult. Without an experienced guide or 
  other equivalent means (such as the Absolute Direction 
  Advantage and a reasonably accurate map of caravan 
  routes through the Western Waste) the PCs will quickly 
  become lost. Lost characters could potentially wind up 
  wandering the Wastes indefinitely, with only a small 
  chance (no more than 5%) of blundering into a caravan or 
  other travelers before they die of dehydration or starvation. 
  Assuming the PCs do not get lost, passage of the 
  Western Wastes will normally take 4 to 6 weeks (2k2 + 30 
  days if the GM wants to be exact).
  predaTorS and bandiTS
  Not all dangers in the Western Wastes are related to 
  the environment. Foul creatures and vicious bandits stalk 
  the desolate hills and ravines. As noted above, large well-
  protected caravans generally face little threat of direct 
  attack, but smaller parties or those who stray too far from 
  their caravans represent easier prey. Given the scarcity of 
  animal life, large natural predators are rare in the Western 
  Wastes, but some do exist, including mountain lions and 
  small packs of wolves. Such creatures can be represented 
  by the entries for Lion and Wolf on page 323 of the L5R 
  4th Edition Core Rulebook. 
  Even more rare are unnatural creatures such as ogres, 
  goblins, or oni. It is possible to meet such creatures if they 
  have wandered into the Wastes from the Shadowlands, but 
  it would be quite unusual. Ghosts can be encountered on 
  the Ki-Rin’s Path, the result of human souls left here by 
  tragic deaths on long journeys. 
  Bandits in the Western Wastes deserve special mention. 
  Small, poorly-organized bandit gangs have sprung up in 
  the Western Wastes from time to time, attracted by the lure 
  of the caravans, but they tend to disperse – or die – just 
  as quickly. These sorts of weak bandit groups could be 
  represented by Rank 1 bushi generated from the Tengoku’s 
  Justice group on page 235 of the L5R 4th Edition Core 
  Rulebook, or by the “Simple Bandits” from page 206 of 
  the L5R supplement Enemies of the Empire, with leaders 
  represented by the “Experienced Bandit” on that same 
  page. Regardless, all such low-level bandits will likely 
  attack recklessly, with little regard for tactics, and flee at 
  the first sign the battle is turning against them. 
  However, the Wastes have recently gained a reputation 
  for occasional attacks by much larger groups of heavily-
  armed and well-organized bandits. These groups will attack 
  even large caravans, usually by springing well-planned 
  24
  Chapter Two
  Travel To The Colonies
  
  ambushes. More striking is the make-up of these 
  bandit gangs; travelers who have encountered 
  them report they include men and women from 
  many different lands, including Senpet, Yodotai, 
  and Ra’Shari from the Burning Sands, Dahabi and 
  other natives of Medinaat al-Salaam, Ivinda from 
  the defunct Ivory Kingdoms, and the occasional 
  Yobanjin from the High Steppes. There appear to be 
  no Rokugani among their numbers, although some 
  are equipped with arms and armor of Rokugani 
  origin. Rumors abound as to the nature of these 
  elusive bandits – some claim they are actually the 
  ghosts or spirits of all who have died in the Western 
  Wastes, while other tales claim they are members of 
  a secretive criminal or religious sect, inhabitants of 
  a fabulous hidden city deep in the Wastes, or scouts 
  for some great gaijin host preparing an invasion of 
  Rokugan. Regardless, they are clearly organized by 
  some manner of powerful and intelligent leader. 
  If the PCs encounter these more organized 
  bandits, they can be represented by the Forest Killers 
  from page 234 of the L5R 4th Edition Core Rulebook, 
  although their Insight Rank should be higher. Likewise, if 
  using the Enemies of the Empire supplement, the majority 
  of these bandits should be “Experienced Bandits” led by 
  one or more “Bandit Lords.” These bandits will fight with 
  sophisticated tactics and great tenacity, retreating only 
  when it seems best. 
  reaChing The CoLonieS 
  The Ki-Rin’s Path leaves the Western Wastes on the 
  northern edge of what was once the Ivory Kingdoms. 
  The land begins to grow more fertile, with scrub giving 
  way to healthier grasslands as the route progresses south. 
  Hostile encounters on the road become less likely and 
  the PCs may find themselves sharing the route with trade 
  caravans coming to and from the Burning Sands cultures 
  to the northwest. On the other hand, natural animals will 
  become more common and predators correspondingly 
  more frequent as well. The Wildlife Encounter Table on 
  page 282 of the Enemies of the Empire supplement may 
  be useful for GMs who wish to spice up this stage of the 
  journey. The final portion of the Ki-Rin’s Path normally 
  takes about five days to traverse.
  The trip comes to an end with arrival at Journey’s End 
  Keep, a location described in Chapter Four of this book. 
  The Sea Route 
  Officially, the sea route to the Colonies departs Rokugan 
  from Dragon Guard City, a bustling Mantis holding and 
  port located on the coast between the Phoenix lands to 
  the north and the Crane lands to the south. However, 
  the Mantis ships that undertake the ocean journey from 
  Rokugan to the Colonies typically make landfall at several 
  ports to the south, including the Tortoise holding of 
  Kyuden Kasuga and the cities of Mura Sabishii Toshi in 
  the Crane lands and Sunda Mizu Mura in the Crab lands. 
  Accordingly, passage to the Colonies could be arranged in 
  any of these locations. 
  Once they leave Rokugani waters, Mantis ships travel 
  south and west, avoiding the Sea of Shadows by daring 
  the open ocean. Once past the Sea of Shadows the route 
  continues westward, passing south of the haunted jungle 
  bordering the Shadowlands and eventually arriving at the 
  Colonies. The journey takes anywhere from 3 to 5 weeks, 
  depending on the weather and the time of year. 
  ports of origin 
  Sea travel to the Colonies is normally conducted on 
  a regular schedule. Convoys of ships routinely depart 
  Dragon’s Guard City, following a scheme devised by the 
  Mantis; the Mantis Clan holds an Imperially-mandated 
  responsibility for the sea route, and ships from other 
  clans who wish to sail to the Colonies must do so under 
  Mantis supervision. Convoys typically number about a 
  dozen vessels, accompanied by several Mantis warships 
  as escorts. However, because travel during the winter 
  months is curtailed by the increased frequency of storms, 
  early spring convoys tend to be larger – sometimes up 
  to two dozen vessels. Cargo is carried at rates set by the 
  Mantis, although official cargoes authorized by Imperial 
  edict are of course carried freely as a matter of duty to 
  the Throne. Likewise, passengers normally pay established 
  rates unless they are traveling on official business on 
  behalf of the Empire (although such Imperial travelers 
  may be encouraged to offer an honorarium for passage in 
  order to assist in defraying the material costs that are an 
  unfortunate reality of sea travel).
  25
  Travel To The Colonies
  Chapter Two
  
  Dragon’s Guard City itself is a large, lively town 
  crowding around a bustling port. As the official point 
  of origin for the sea route to the Colonies, it has only 
  grown in importance in recent years. Likewise, Kyuden 
  Kasuga, Mura Sabishii Toshi, and Sunda Mizu Mura, as 
  established ports-of-call for Colony-bound shipping, 
  have grown considerably in the years since the Colonies 
  were first established. Nonetheless, each port retains the 
  character of its respective owning clan – cynical if good-
  natured manipulation among the Tortoise of Kyuden 
  Kasuga; cultured but somewhat arrogant efficiency in 
  Mura Sabishii Toshi, and dour practicality in Sunda Mizu 
  Mura. However, regardless of their point of origin, the PCs 
  will face similar choices: either go on a scheduled convoy, 
  or hire or sail a ship of their own. Note that unlike the 
  Unicorn with respect to the Ki-Rin’s Path, the Mantis are 
  much less concerned about minor samurai (like the PCs) 
  choosing to dare the sea route by their own means. As far 
  as the Mantis Clan is concerned, such fools do so solely at 
  their own risk.
  options for traVeL
  The most obvious choice for the PCs is to book passage 
  on board a scheduled convoy. Much like the caravans of 
  the Ki-Rin’s Path, this is the easiest and safest option. 
  Convoy navigation is in the capable hands of skilled 
  Mantis mariners, many of whom have made the trip 
  numerous times. Protection comes from both the sheer 
  number of vessels, which provides mutual defense against 
  seaborne threats, and from the military escorts provided by 
  the Mantis. However, much as with the land caravans, the 
  downside of convoy travel is inflexibility in scheduling. A 
  convoy departing Dragon’s Guard City is likely to put into 
  at least one and perhaps all three of the southern ports 
  listed above. It is also likely to initially journey eastward, 
  making port in the Mantis Islands at Kyuden Gotei before 
  turning west toward the Colonies. This means the first 
  week or two of travel will occur in Rokugan’s coastal 
  waters. Furthermore, during the winter months when the 
  sea route is subject to severe storms convoys are much less 
  frequent; indeed, in some years there are no convoys at all 
  between late autumn and late spring. Travel by convoy 
  is also far from covert unless extraordinary measures at 
  taken, such as gaining the cooperation of ships’ masters 
  and crews in maintaining secrecy.
  A more flexible and discreet means of travel would be 
  fore the PCs to hire a ship to carry them to the Colonies. 
  This is an easier prospect than hiring personal guides and 
  escorts on the Ki-Rin’s Path since there is no single access 
  point to the sea route; any port on the Rokugani coast 
  could potentially host a ship and crew willing to carry 
  a party of samurai to the Colonies without intervening 
  stops. However, such a journey will not be cheap and there 
  is unlikely to be a waiver of costs for “official business.” 
  Moreover, a willing crew is not necessarily a capable or 
  even a trustworthy one. The journey is long and fraught 
  with difficulty; a vessel must be in superb condition, with 
  a skilled crew and a competent master and navigator, or 
  it will encounter serious and quite possibly fatal problems 
  along the way. It is up to the GM to decide if it suits his 
  campaign for the PCs to be shipwrecked or otherwise lost 
  at sea; if not, a ship hired by the PCs should probably be 
  considered at least equal to the demands of the voyage. 
  This does not necessarily mean it will be able to avoid 
  the other hazards of the journey described in following 
  sections.
  If the PCs have among them the necessary Skills, it may 
  be possible for them to operate their own vessel. However, 
  a small vessel, suited for a crew of a half-dozen or so, 
  will be at great risk on the journey simply because of the 
  physical challenges of making such a long and arduous 
  trip in such a small craft. Moreover, such a small vessel 
  would be entirely unsuited to skirting the Sea of Shadows 
  via the open ocean and would have no choice but to hug 
  the coast of the Shadowlands; in most respects this is little 
  different from attempting to traverse the Shadowlands 
  proper. Thus, unless the GM wants to introduce a major 
  Shadowlands sub-plot to the campaign, this is probably 
  not a realistic option. 
  the Journey
  Much as with the overland route, the specifics of a sea 
  journey largely depend on how much time and effort the 
  GM wants to invest in this part of the story. If the PCs 
  book passage on an organized convoy, the voyage can 
  potentially be quick and uneventful. Navigation is not an 
  issue, and a large convoy with escorts is robust enough to 
  ward off the threat of pirates and other seaborne dangers.
  If, on the other hand, the PCs have booked their own 
  passage on a single ship, or the GM simply wants the 
  journey to be more eventful, the sea route offers its own 
  share of hazards. There are three, broad stages to the 
  voyage.
  roKugani CoaSTaL waTerS 
  This portion of the journey is likely to be relatively 
  uneventful and to last roughly two to three weeks (1k1 + 
  10 days for GMs desiring an exact time). The coastal waters 
  of the Empire and the trade routes to the Islands of Silk 
  and Spice are well-patrolled by both the Mantis fleets and 
  other Rokugani naval forces. Most encounters are likely to 
  be with other Rokugani shipping, including fishing boats 
  of many sizes and larger cargo vessels plying their way 
  between ports. Many of the latter will belong to the Mantis, 
  but the Crane, Crab, and Phoenix have sizeable fleets of 
  their own, and there are also many vessels belonging to 
  the Imperial families and the Minor Clans, to merchant 
  cartels, or even to individual merchants and traders. There 
  is a small chance of encounters with pirates, particularly 
  along otherwise barren sections of coastline; such pirates 
  are unlikely to attack a convoy, but will eagerly attack a 
  single vessel or a convoy ship that has become separated 
  from its fellows by weather or other problems. 
  A pirate gang will sail a small vessel such as a higaki-
  kaisen with a crew of half a dozen to a dozen men; they 
  can be represented with Rank 1 Forest Killers from page 
  234 of the L5R 4th Edition Core Rulebook, with a few Rank 
  2 individuals to represent their leaders. Alternatively, if 
  26
  Chapter Two
  Travel To The Colonies
  
  using the supplement Enemies of the Empire, a pirate crew 
  of “Desperate Fishermen” led by one or more “Scourge 
  of the Seas” NPCs from page 209 can be used. Rarely, a 
  pirate gang may be large enough to use a kobune with a 
  crew of 20 to 30 individuals. In any case, pirates always 
  attack swiftly – preferably by surprise – and seek a quick 
  easy victory in order to minimize their own losses while 
  maximizing their spoils. In the face of stiff resistance, they 
  will just as quickly retreat.
  A greater risk than pirates in the coastal waters of 
  Rokugan is the weather. While the winter months present 
  the greatest threat of severe storms, sudden changes in 
  weather are possible at any time of the year, and storms 
  may last several days. In general, the effect of storms will 
  be to slow the passage of ships – assume each day of 
  stormy weather adds 1-3 days to the journey, depending 
  on the severity. Again, unless a shipwreck fits the GM’s 
  story purposes, it is suggested that no worse effects be 
  incurred from storms. 
  The open oCean and The Sea of Shadow 
  The standard route of ships sailing to the Colonies 
  is to swing far out to sea and skirt the outer edges of 
  the Sea of Shadows. There are excellent reasons for this 
  despite the considerable extra time it imposes. The Sea of 
  Shadows is contaminated by the Taint of Jigoku, and its 
  sea life is twisted into vile monstrosities, some larger than 
  ships. Even the elements are corrupted, such that seawater 
  can suddenly boil or freeze, storms howl with poisonous 
  winds, and pitch-black clouds drop rains of steaming 
  blood or razor-sharp shards of bone. Small wonder the 
  Mantis convoys stay in the open ocean. 
  A course across the open sea is not without its own 
  dangers, of course. The time to make the journey this way 
  is anywhere from 15 to 25 days, and the vessels must 
  remain on open waters out of sight of land for the entire 
  time – a hazardous choice when sailing in any vessel, 
  but even more so with Rokugani ships that are not well-
  suited to deep-water sailing. Skilled navigators (at least 
  Sailing 4, with the Navigation Emphasis) are needed to 
  avoid becoming lost on the open waters; a lost ship has 
  little chance of making landfall before running out of 
  water and food or being sunk by a storm. Even with a 
  skilled navigator, mistakes and delays can happen, with 
  each failed Skill Roll adding +1k1 days to the voyage. 
  A severe failure may result in the ship making landfall 
  in the Shadowlands or the haunted jungles beyond it. 
  The only alternative to skirting the Sea of Shadows is 
  to pass through it. In theory, the Crab maintain a “safe 
  lane” through these haunted waters, running parallel to 
  and just within sight of the coast of the Shadowlands. In 
  practice, this “safe lane” remains extremely dangerous, 
  since even patrols by the iron- and jade-clad koutetsukan 
  cannot guarantee safe passage. Even so, the “safe lane” 
  is safe compared to the Sea of Shadows generally. A 
  ship traversing the “safe lane” faces a roughly 25% 
  chance of an attack by Shadowlands forces during 
  its passage. In the rest of the Sea of Shadows, this 
  increases to a minimum of 50%. With Crab pilots, a 
  ship is essentially guaranteed to remain within the 
  “safe lane,” but without such pilots a Sailing (Navigation) 
  / Intelligence roll against a tough TN (we suggest at least 
  25) is required to avoid wandering into the uncharted Sea 
  of Shadows.
  The Sea of Shadows is full of dangerous marine creatures, 
  such as sea trolls (umibozu) and the dreaded Skull Tide, 
  both described in Enemies of the Empire. PCs may also 
  encounter Tainted ships commanded by Lost or undead 
  crews, as well as random undead swimming through the 
  corrupted waters. Some types of Oni also venture into the 
  water. Ultimately, only the GM’s imagination can limit 
  what sort of horrors may be found in the Sea of Shadows. 
  The only advantage to passing through the Sea of 
  Shadows rather than avoiding it via the open ocean is the 
  savings of time. The passage can be completed in 6 to 12 
  days, saving at least 10 days over the seaward route.
  CoLoniaL CoaSTaL waTerS 
  Once the PCs’ ship makes it to Colonial waters the 
  journey will likely become an uneventful one, lasting 
  another week to ten days. The coast of the Colonies will 
  be visible, a tropical environment with lush jungles and 
  white beaches, and Mantis patrols and merchant vessels 
  will pass by regularly. There is, once more, a small chance 
  of encounters with pirates, although they are even rarer 
  here than in Rokugani waters. These pirates are likely to 
  be a mixture of Ivinda (Ivory Kingdoms survivors) and 
  Rokugani criminals, making for a rather odd assortment 
  of foes. 
  Unless the PCs specifically ask for one of the other 
  ports, their voyage will terminate at Kalani’s Landing, the 
  primary port of the Colonies. 
  27
  Travel To The Colonies
  Chapter Two
  
  28
  Chapter Three
  Kalani’s landing
  
  This adventure deals with a clash between several 
  different merchant patrons in the Colonial port of Kalani’s 
  Landing. The PCs will most likely be aware of these 
  merchants through their investigations of Doji Chonitsu’s 
  activities and contacts in the Colonies; see the section 
  “Connecting the PCs to the Plot” for more details of how 
  to get them involved.
  Yasuki Kappako is a ruthless merchant who serves 
  the Crab Clan in Kalani’s Landing, gathering wealth for 
  his family and jade for the Crab armies. He has a fierce 
  commercial rival within the city: Daidoji Iyashi, of the 
  Daidoji Trading Council. Iyashi receives support and 
  assistance from Raniyah the Sly, both in her own guise as 
  Doji Chonitsu and through her carefully cultivated Second 
  City ally, Otomo Akio. Raniyah needs large quantities of 
  jade and crystal in order to help carry out her plan to 
  free her fellow rakshasa, and Iyashi is one of her primary 
  sources. However, Iyashi’s aggressive acquisitions have led 
  to a growing rivalry with Kappako, who seeks the same 
  substances for his own clan and is increasingly resentful 
  of Crane interference.  
  Recently, a prospector working for Yasuki Kappako 
  discovered what appeared to be an Ivory Kingdoms 
  jade mine in the jungle-shrouded hills outside the city. 
  Presumably it had been abandoned when the Cult of 
  the Destroyer overran the country. This discovery was a 
  potential huge source of both profit and strength for the 
  Crab Clan, but unfortunately the news of its discovery 
  leaked, and Daidoji Iyashi set out to sabotage Kappako and 
  claim control of the mine. After several initial attempts 
  to politically or financially maneuver Kappako off the 
  mine failed, Iyashi decided to take a more direct (and 
  dishonorable) route, hiring a group of ronin to pose as 
  bandits and terrorize anyone working at the mine. With 
  Kappako’s laborers driven away by fear, it would be a 
  simple matter to retrieve the jade with his own labor force. 
  Initially Iyashi’s plan worked well. The false bandits 
  he created drove away Kappako’s laborers, and he began 
  removing the jade from the mine and smuggling it out 
  to Doji Chonitsu’s agents. The influence of Chonitsu’s 
  ally Otomo Akio ensured the city magistrate would not 
  interfere.  
  However, a complication lurks in the wings: an ambitious 
  Mantis merchant named Yoritomo Hokare. Hokare knows 
  Yasuki Kappako is in trouble and has offered to help him 
  by arranging assistance from outside the area. In return, 
  of course, Kappako will be indebted to him and will have 
  to share the profits of the jade mine. 
  Chapter three
  29
  Kalani’s landing
  Chapter Three
  
  The Setting
  The main action of this chapter takes place in Kalani’s 
  Landing, the principle Rokugani port on the southern 
  coast of the Colonies. The great majority of the oceanic 
  travel between the Empire and the Colonies goes through 
  Kalani’s Landing, so if the PCs come to the Colonies by sea 
  they will almost certainly arrive here. 
  The Landing started as a small village built on a bay in 
  the shadow of abandoned Ivory Kingdoms palaces atop 
  the surrounding hills. The two largest hilltops outside 
  the town still boast the decaying shells of such palaces, 
  once the residences of kshatriya noble families. In the two 
  decades since Rokugani settlement of the Colonies got 
  underway, Kalani’s Landing has grown substantially and 
  is now a major town of over 5,000 people. The bulk of 
  the settlement is located on the fertile coastal land that 
  surrounds the bay, lining both banks of the Dai-Shinano 
  river, which allows travel inland toward other settlements 
  and (eventually) the Second City itself. In recent years as 
  the town has continued to grow it has spread into the 
  jungles and up the hills into the surrounding territory. The 
  town was originally walled but has long since sprawled 
  beyond those defenses; this part of the Colonies is peaceful 
  enough that there has been no pressure to build a new 
  wall farther out (in contrast to the more dangerous regions 
  deeper inland). In current times, the wall serves more as a 
  dividing line between the core of Kalani’s Landing – the 
  port district and the major government structures – and 
  the rest of the town. 
  Kalani’s Landing is dominated by the Mantis and one 
  of their samurai holds the office of local governor. The 
  local magistrate is an Imperial, Miya Ichiko, whose career 
  is sponsored by Otomo Akio in the Second City. Thus, in 
  real terms she is controlled by Doji Chonitsu, allowing him 
  to provide protection for his merchant allies.   
  connecting the pcs to the pLot
  There are several ways to get the PCs involved in this 
  storyline, but the most obvious connections are of course 
  Yoritomo Hokare and Yasuki Kappako, both of whom are 
  potential allies (or at least co-belligerents) for the PCs. The 
  PCs can potentially learn about both Hokare and Kappako 
  on their own once they start investigating Daidoji Iyashi, 
  the Crane merchant patron in this city who is associated 
  with Chonitsu.
  30
  Chapter Three
  Kalani’s landing
  
  Yoritomo Hokare in particular is currently looking 
  for capable samurai who can assist him in resolving 
  Kappako’s problems. If the PCs are actively investigating 
  Doji Chonitsu’s merchant associations, word of this will 
  quickly get back to Hokare and he will begin considering 
  whether to approach the PCs. If the PCs themselves seek 
  him out, he will be delighted (since this shows them to be 
  pro-active) and will happily meet with them. Otherwise, 
  he will eventually send them a note requesting a meeting. 
  The note mentions “mutual interest in certain individuals 
  of the Crane Clan” and suggests a meeting to discuss “the 
  potential of sharing our efforts.” The PCs may be (rightly) 
  suspicious of this approach, but if they investigate Hokare 
  they will quickly learn he is a commercial rival to Doji 
  Uchi. 
  Yasuki Kappako will not approach the PCs on his own 
  – he is a more cautious man than Hokare – but will meet 
  with them readily enough if they approach him.  
  meeting With yoritomo hoKare 
  Yoritomo Hokare is a pudgy man in his thirties with 
  thinning hair that barely manages to form a samurai 
  topknot. He smiles a lot, though his eyes have a cool 
  measuring quality that never changes. He is fond of 
  rolling a pair of koku in his hand, creating a constant soft 
  clinking sound. 
  Hokare will ask why the PCs are looking into Daidoji 
  Iyashi. If they say anything about Doji Chonitsu, he is 
  intrigued – he knows Chonitsu is an associate of Iyashi, 
  but is not aware of how deep the connection goes. 
  However, he does know the local magistrate, Miya Ichiko, 
  seems to be favoring the Crane merchant and has blocked 
  any attempt to investigate Kappako’s situation. How much 
  Hokare chooses to share with the PCs will depend on his 
  assessment as to their usefulness, particularly whether they 
  can help him deal with Kappako’s problem (thereby both 
  inflicting a defeat on the Crane and indebting Kappako 
  to him). He is more direct and blunt in his manners than 
  many samurai, an aspect of his Mantis nature, but he will 
  still avoid saying anything too blatantly until he is sure 
  he can trust the PCs. (Note, however, that from Hokare’s 
  viewpoint “trustworthy” PCs are just as likely to be easily 
  manipulated dupes as they are to be intelligent and 
  reliable.)
  Hokare can potentially provide the PCs a considerable 
  amount of information, depending on how much he trusts 
  them and what questions they ask. He will always be 
  cagey and will try to extract pledges of help in return 
  for his knowledge. The following bullet-points summarize 
  what he knows:
   
  c
  Yasuki Kappako recently located an abandoned 
  Ivory Kingdoms jade mine in the hills to the north-
  west of the town. He brought in workers to recover 
  the jade for the Crab Clan, but the site came un-
  der attack by bandits. Several workers were killed 
  and the rest fled, unwilling to work no matter how 
  much they were paid. Kappako has no authority 
  to forcibly impress workers, so his hands are tied. 
   
  c
  The mine came under attack a month ago. “My 
  poor Yasuki friend is at his wits’ end, I can tell 
  you.” Hokare does not know anything about the 
  bandits himself, aside from their supposed ruth-
  lessness and cruelty, but if the PCs express interest 
  he can arrange for them to question some of the 
  peasant laborers who fled the mine.
   
  c
  Hokare can provide the PCs with a guide to the 
  mine within a day if they wish to go there. He will 
  not go himself – “I am no bushi to do battle with 
  bandits” – and if the PCs seem to be a non-com-
  bative group he will do his best to warn them off 
  of the danger.
   
  c
  Hokare knows Daidoji Iyashi made several attempts 
  to buy the mine from Kappako and even petitioned 
  the governor of Kalani’s Landing to have the land 
  officially switched to his control.  
   
  c
  If the PCs ask for more information on Daidoji 
  Iyashi, Hokare describes him as a “skilled patron 
  of merchants” with significant wealth and, appar-
  ently, political influence. “I’ve heard he has friends 
  in the Second City itself! Someone in the Imperial 
  families, supposedly. Also some influential court-
  ier named Doji Chonitsu, and a Unicorn called Ide 
  Uchi, I believe. Of course, I have my own networks 
  of friends – a man who specializes in a topic as 
  distasteful as trade has no choice but to cultivate 
  as many allies as possible.” 
   
  c
  If the PCs ask Hokare for more information about 
  Doji Chonitsu, he reports the Doji is “a rather in-
  fluential merchant patron, from what I can tell, 
  although no one really seems to know quite why 
  he has so many allies.” He affirms Chonitsu and 
  Iyashi seem to share an interest in rare substances 
  like jade and crystal. “Something to do with com-
  mercial rivalries with the Yasuki, I suppose.”
   
  c
  Some PCs may think to ask whether Iyashi is cur-
  rently exporting any jade (e.g. jade that he might 
  have gotten from Kappako’s mine). Hokare raises 
  his eyebrows. “An interesting question. Perhaps I 
  should look into that.” The answer, ultimately, is 
  no. 
   
  c
  If the PCs ask why Hokare is trying to help Kap-
  pako (who after all is a rival merchant), he explains 
  with a wry smile that such an exchange of favors 
  would be greatly favorable to him and, through 
  him, to the Mantis Clan. If some of the non-Mantis 
  PCs seem troubled by this, his smile turns into a 
  smirk: “I am sure most samurai prefer to operate 
  in the more refined world of the courts, where ex-
  changes of favors are always dealt with in the most 
  pleasant and restrained manner, but in the world 
  of trade such arrangements are necessary as well.” 
  31
  Kalani’s landing
  Chapter Three
  
  Kappako has heard of Doji Chonitsu as a prominent 
  Crane courtier with connections to many merchant patrons 
  in both the Colonies and in the Empire, including Daidoji 
  Iyashi. He knows Chonitsu has a strong interest in Ivory 
  Kingdoms relics and Ashalan crysteel, but does not know 
  whether he has any direct interest in raw jade or crystal. 
  If the PCs are looking for other merchants, either those 
  who have connections to Chonitsu in particular or those 
  who might also be involved in the trade of rare substances 
  or gaijin items, Kappako can name Ide Uchi, an influential 
  merchant patron based in Journey’s End Keep to the north. 
  The attack on the mine took place a month ago. He 
  has not seen the bandits who raided the mines, but spoke 
  extensively with the surviving peasant laborers. They 
  described the bandits as four men and one woman, all 
  well-equipped and skillful. Kappako does not see any 
  logical reason for the bandits to have taken up residence 
  near his jade mine, and therefore presumes they are acting 
  on Iyashi’s behalf. 
  Kappako knows Iyashi is not currently exporting any 
  jade to the Empire. He believes the Crane is simply waiting 
  until Kappako gives up on the mine before using it himself.
  Yoritomo Hokare is a commercial rival but not a direct 
  competitor in the rare substances market. Kappako is 
  aware Hokare is looking for a chance to gain influence 
  with him, and would much prefer to resolve his problems 
  without indebting himself to the Mantis, but he is realistic 
  enough to recognize it might be unavoidable. 
  If the PCs ask Kappako why he has not sought help 
  from the Crab Clan’s representatives in the Colonies, he 
  will point out his clan is not known for having strong 
  political influence. This is only part of the story, however, 
  and if the PCs push him he will eventually admit he has 
  already called in all the influence his family had available 
  in the Colonies to block Iyashi’s earlier attempts to take 
  the mine away from him.
  meeting With daidoJi iyashi
  Some PCs may decide to take the bull by the horns and 
  approach Daidoji Iyashi directly, especially if they haven’t 
  thought to look into any local rivals or enemies. They can 
  easily find his residence on the Street of Golden Lanterns, 
  a somewhat upscale neighborhood in the southwestern 
  quarter of the town. The samurai residences here are large 
  and pleasant, with low stone walls protecting the grounds 
  and gardens from passing riff-raff; the inhabitants are 
  drawn from the elite of Kalani’s Landing, the wealthiest 
  and most politically influential samurai in the region. 
  When the PCs arrive, servants will bring tea, sake, and 
  rice cakes. After a significant delay, Iyashi will come in, 
  apologizing smoothly for taking so long. He is a thin and 
  perhaps slightly anxious-looking man, with a balding 
  head and clean-shaven face. He wears a fine kimono of 
  Crane blue in a very light weave designed to lessen the 
  impact of the Colonies’ hot climate. Like most successful 
  Crane merchants, Iyashi is both shrewd and smooth-
  spoken, capable of being quite charming when he puts 
  his mind to it.
  meeting With yasuKi KappaKo
  If the PCs decide at any time to visit Yasuki Kappako in 
  person, they can locate his house in the town’s dock district. 
  From the outside it is a small and rather unimpressive 
  structure, indeed little more than an oversized peasant 
  dwelling, modified for the hot climate of the Colonies. A 
  single servant waits outside, squatting under the eaves to 
  avoid the hot sunlight, then jumps to his feet and ushers 
  the PCs inside. 
  Inside, however, the small home is immaculate and 
  pleasantly furnished. Yasuki Kappako greets the PCs 
  personally and leads them back to a small and carefully 
  maintained rock garden, where his single servant offers 
  flavorful tea (it is Colonial tea, noticeably different from 
  that of Rokugan) and rice cakes. Kappako is a skinny, 
  sallow-faced man with narrow, piercing eyes. He is a bit 
  of a chatterbox, using words to shroud and camouflage 
  himself and his intentions, and gives the impression of 
  a nervous, scatterbrained man; however, he is actually 
  quite shrewd. He will sound out the PCs and their attitudes 
  carefully, all the while rattling on about inconsequential 
  matters, asking what they think of the town and of the 
  Colonies, gossiping about current events in the Empire 
  and the Second City, and so forth. “Welcome, welcome. 
  Enjoy my humble hospitality… nothing much compared 
  to a Crane or a Unicorn, and of course we can’t match the 
  luxuries of the Empire here in this remote land, but one 
  does what one can.”  
  Kappako is in a difficult position. He committed 
  significant resources to locating and opening the old 
  Ivory Kingdoms jade mine, as well as all of his remaining 
  political strength to fend off Daidoji Iyoshi’s attempts to 
  take it from him through the courts. Now the bandits have 
  made the mine untenable and he is in dire financial straits 
  with no remaining favors to call in on his behalf.  
  If the PCs seem interested in helping, Kappako will be 
  delighted, but also cautious – he wants to know why the 
  PCs are here and what their motives are. Most likely they 
  will be asking about Daidoji Iyashi and his connections to 
  Doji Chonitsu; Kappako is perceptive enough to probably 
  pick up on the fact that Chonitsu is the PCs’ real point of 
  interest, and he is perfectly willing to bargain information 
  and connections in exchange for their help with his current 
  problem.  If the PCs want to visit the mine, Kappako will 
  provide them with a guide. He may even go himself if the 
  PCs seem sufficiently tough and martial in nature. 
  Daidoji Iyashi is his principle competitor in the Colonies 
  in the field of locating and selling rare substances, 
  especially jade and crystal. As far as Kappako knows, most 
  of these rare goods are shipped back to the Empire, though 
  he does not know positively that all of them are.
  He is fairly sure Iyashi has political support within the 
  Imperial families, since the local magistrate Miya Ichiko 
  has refused to offer him any assistance with the bandit 
  problem. His own political resources are too limited to 
  oppose such power.
  32
  Chapter Three
  Kalani’s landing
  
  It is highly unlikely Iyashi will reveal anything to the 
  PCs voluntarily. He will politely deny any knowledge of 
  Kappako’s bandit troubles while freely admitting he went 
  to considerable efforts earlier to try to get control of the 
  mine. “I suppose I can see it as a kharmic reward, these 
  bandits plaguing my rival after all my own efforts came 
  to naught.” 
  Likewise Iyashi will not reveal anything about Doji 
  Chonitsu, although he freely admits to being a friend and 
  ally to the other Crane. “Chonitsu-sama is a man of great 
  perspicacity and we have happily aided each other from 
  time to time. Is this so unusual, two Crane assisting each 
  other, that it has drawn your attention?” He claims to know 
  nothing about Chonitsu’s other associations and denies 
  selling any jade or other valuables to Chonitsu, though he 
  does mention that Chonitsu collects Ivory Kingdoms relics, 
  “a market of which I myself know little.”   
  Although the PCs may be able to figure out Iyashi is 
  hiding information (especially if they have a Kitsuki in 
  their ranks), they will have no way to prove it merely in 
  conversation. Acquiring hard proof will most likely mean 
  solving Yasuki Kappako’s bandit problem.
  General Investigations  
   
  of the Three Merchants
  Some PCs may decide to look further into the affairs of 
  the three merchants (Iyashi, Kappako, and Hokare). The 
  PCs can gain more information by asking around the town 
  and especially among the merchant caste. This will likely 
  entail some Skill rolls (Commerce, Investigation, or Intimi-
  dation could all apply depending on the approach the PCs 
  take). Given the topic involved, bribery may be useful – 
  the GM can justifiably award bonuses to the Skill rolls if 
  the PCs spend money on bribes.  
   
  c
  It is common knowledge that Daidoji Iyashi and 
  Yasuki Kappako are rivals in the market for rare and 
  exotic substances such as gems, jade, and crystal. 
  They buy and sell many conventional goods as 
  well but this is their specialty. Both of them have 
  sponsored exploratory missions into the less-
  settled lands of the Colonies to search for these rare 
  substances. Ronin and laborers in their employ have 
  been known to occasionally clash in tavern brawls. 
  Yasuki Kappako is reputed as the more skillful of the 
  two, but Iyashi is by far the richer and is rumored to 
  have sponsors in the Second City. 
  33
  Kalani’s landing
  Chapter Three
  
   
  c
  Yoritomo Hokare trades primarily in more 
  conventional goods such as lumber and seafood, 
  avoiding the more volatile rare-goods markets. His 
  specialty is importing Rokugani goods that are not 
  available in the Colonies, such as soy sauce. 
   
  c
  In recent weeks, many of Kappako’s businesses 
  have been under pressure – loans getting called 
  in, deals going sour, and so forth. With so many 
  resources sunk into his (inactive) mine, there is 
  much quiet speculation as to which of his two 
  rivals is responsible for this trouble.  
   
  c
  Some PCs may seek information on the local 
  magistrate, Miya Ichiko. She is a former Herald 
  who spent several years carrying messages across 
  the Colonies, a dangerous duty and not particularly 
  glorious. However, about two years ago she 
  received an appointment to replace the retiring 
  magistrate of Kalani’s Landing. It is believed this 
  was due to political sponsorship in the Second 
  City. PCs who dig into this further can pick up 
  rumors that her political patron is Otomo Akio.  
   
  c
  Smart PCs may think of asking whether Iyashi 
  has recently begun exporting jade (e.g. wondering 
  whether he is smuggling out the jade from 
  Kappako’s mine). Interestingly, the result appears 
  to be negative. Even the local smugglers, if the 
  PCs track them down (Mantis or Tortoise courtiers 
  can probably do so readily enough), have not been 
  making any shipments for Iyashi lately. 
   
  c
  Exceptionally clever PCs may think to ask whether 
  any of the local smugglers are absent from the 
  town, perhaps out on a mission. This inquiry 
  can ascertain a smuggler named Gozu, a man 
  well-known for the ugly scar that replaces most 
  of his nose, and his team and wagons have been 
  out of town for the last month – a time period 
  corresponding to when the “bandits” chased 
  Kappako’s miners away from the mine.
  surViVing mine WorKers
  Both Hokare and Kappako can arrange interviews with 
  the surviving mine workers, or the PCs can seek them out 
  themselves with a few Investigation rolls (assuming they’re 
  willing to investigate among commoners, something many 
  samurai eschew). The workers all describe a series of attacks 
  by a group of five well-armed ronin – four men and one 
  woman – who came out of the jungle. The bandits attacked, 
  killed several workers, and chased the rest out of the mine. 
  The workers tried to return the next day and were attacked 
  again, so they gave up and fled back to Kalani’s Landing. 
  The workers describe the ronin as carrying good qual-
  ity weapons, including bows and spears. Their clothes were 
  of reasonably good quality for ronin, and they didn’t look 
  desperate or starveling as bandits typically do. They were 
  all Rokugani, not Invinda (Ivory Kingdoms natives).
  meeting With the magistrate
  The PCs may decide to meet with the town magistrate, 
  Miya Ichiko, to try to learn why she refuses to help Yasuki 
  Kappako. The magistrate’s residence is a modest private 
  home located near the center of the original town, within a 
  couple of minutes’ walk of the docks. A bushi from the local 
  garrison is always on guard outside, and the front rooms 
  of the residence are occupied during the day by her two 
  yoriki – Yoritomo Hogai and a ronin named Choro. The PCs 
  can speak with the yoriki easily enough, but if they want to 
  meet Ichiko herself they will have to cool their heels for at 
  least a day. Eventually, though, she will invite them to share 
  tea with her in her garden. 
  Ichiko’s garden is a small one, barely four paces on a 
  side, located in the back of her residence. She waits for the 
  PCs there, sitting cross-legged, her swords politely laid on 
  the ground to her right. Ichiko is a sturdy muscular woman 
  in her thirties, dressed in a businesslike hakama and gi. Her 
  face is serious and roughened by weather – she served as a 
  Herald in her younger days, carrying messages across the 
  Colonies – and her hair is cropped almost painfully 
  short, an adaptation to the cloying humid heat of the 
  Colonies.  
  Ichiko is polite but not friendly, and will not ad-
  mit anything improper to the PCs. If they ask about 
  Kappako’s bandit troubles, she blandly points out she 
  has only two yoriki to uphold the law in the entire 
  town, while the garrison is barely adequate to ensure 
  the security of the town itself – she can hardly take 
  a squadron off into the hills to protect the interests 
  of a single merchant. Ichiko is lying, and perceptive 
  PCs may be able to tell, but without evidence the only 
  thing accusing her will accomplish is getting the PCs 
  thrown out – or possible challenged to a duel, if they 
  are high enough Status that she cannot simply shrug 
  off their accusation. 
  Ichiko generally takes the view that “rivalries of 
  commerce” are beneath her notice so long as no laws 
  are being broken. Thus she claims to take no inter-
  est in the various clashes and maneuvers of Iyashi, 
  Kappako, and Hokare. She dismisses the idea that 
  Iyashi could be behind the attacks on Kappako’s mine: 
  34
  Chapter Three
  Kalani’s landing
  
  “Daidoji Iyashi is a respectable samurai. To suggest that he 
  would engage in such activity is shameful. You should be 
  fortunate I do not take this more seriously, since such a 
  comment could easily be answered by a duel.”
  If the PCs ask about Doji Chonitsu, Ichiko will be puzzled. 
  She vaguely knows of the man by reputation – “a courtier of 
  some influence, I think” – but has never met him. However, 
  if the PCs ask about Otomo Akio, she will instantly become 
  more cautious in her answers. She will admit Akio is “a 
  good friend” (he is her patron in the Colonies) and the man 
  who got her this appointment as a magistrate, but will not 
  share anything further and will sharply deny Akio has any 
  influence over her policies or decisions.  
  miya iChiKo, CorrupT magiSTraTe
  Air: 3
  EArth: 3
  FirE: 3
  WAtEr: 3
  Void: 3
  AWArEnESS: 4
  pErcEption: 4
  Honor: 4.2
  Status: 4.5
  Glory: 3.2
  School/Rank: Miya Herald 3
  Skills: Athletics 4, Calligraphy 2, Courtier 3, Defense 
  2, Etiquette (Courtesy) 4, Horsemanship 3, Hunting 
  (Survival, Trailblazing) 4, Iaijutsu 4, Investigation 3, 
  Kenjutsu 3, Lore: Law 2, Lore: Heraldry 5, Lore: Theology 
  2, Sincerity 4
  Advantages: 
  Ally 
  (Otomo 
  Akio), 
  Social 
  Position 
  (magistrate), Strength of the Earth
  Disadvantages: Obligation (Otomo Akio)   
  the magistrate’s yoriKi
  Some PCs may try to bypass Ichiko (or investigate her) 
  by speaking with one or both of her yoriki. Neither Hogai 
  nor Choro will say much while they are on-duty; they 
  refer all questions about Yasuki Kappako’s problems to 
  their superior. They are in and out of the office frequently, 
  responding to crime reports from various parts of the 
  town, so persistent PCs may be able to speak with them 
  while they are traveling to and from the magistrate’s 
  residence. The PCs can also try to meet with them when 
  they are off-duty; Hogai often spends his free time at a 
  sake house called the Drunken Orochi, throwing dice and 
  trading tales with fellow Mantis, while Choro spends his 
  evenings training at a local dojo.
  Choro is completely loyal to Ichiko, who has given 
  him a secure and respected place in society by enlisting 
  him as her yoriki. He will refuse to listen to even the 
  suggestion that her behavior might be improper – indeed 
  he will readily fight a duel rather than endure an insult 
  to his patroness. Any attempt to bribe or bully him 
  will likewise provoke a duel. Choro does his best not to 
  actually know anything about Ichiko’s sand-bagging of 
  the investigation; in effect, he deliberately closes his eyes 
  and avoids learning anything about the issue.
  Yoritomo Hogai is all-business when he is on duty, but 
  if the PCs track him down at the Drunken Orochi he is 
  friendly, cheerful, and gregarious. He is fully aware that 
  Ichiko has deliberately shut down the investigation into 
  the bandits at Kappako’s mine, and believes she is doing 
  so at the direction of her patron in the Second City, an 
  influential Otomo courtier. Of course, he has no intention 
  of testifying to any of this unless Ichiko is already in 
  trouble from other sources. “My word against an Imperial 
  and a magistrate? Yes, I’m sure that would go well for all 
  of us. Ha! Let’s have another drink.”
  Choro, ronin yoriKi
  Air: 2
  EArth: 3
  FirE: 3
  WAtEr: 2
  Void: 3
  rEFlExES: 4
  StrEngth: 3
  Honor: 5.3
  Status: 0.0
  (functionally 2.0 when 
  acting as yoriki)
  Glory: 2.5
  School/Rank: Gaze of Sun Tao (Insight Rank 2)
  Skills: Athletics 3, Courtier 1, Defense 4, Etiquette 
  2, Iaijutsu (Focus) 3, Intimidation 2, Investigation 2, 
  Kenjutsu 4, Kyujutsu 2, Lore: Law 1, Lore: Colonies 2, 
  Meditation 3, Sincerity 2 
  Advantages: 
  Ally 
  (Miya 
  Ichiko), 
  Social 
  Position 
  (magistrate’s yoriki)
  Disadvantages: Idealistic 
  Solving Kappako’s Problem 
  Whether or not the PCs are sympathetic to Yasuki 
  Kappako’s problem, they may well eventually decide 
  to visit his mine if for no other reason than to try to 
  interrogate the bandits. They will need a guide to reach 
  the mine – both Hokare and Kappako can arrange this, 
  or the PCs can hire one of the former mine workers on 
  their own. One silver bu will be enough for the peasant to 
  overcome his fear and lead the PCs there, so long as he is 
  not required to stay and fight.
  The mine is located about a half-day’s walk into the 
  jungle, in a large bowl-shaped depression on the upper 
  side of a heavily forested hill. One of the ronin will always 
  be on watch on the high side of the depression, keeping 
  an eye out for any approaching danger. PCs who scout 
  ahead with magic can easily detect the ronin before he 
  (or she) can spot them, but if the PCs approach physically 
  they will have to win a Contested Roll of Investigation / 
  Perception against the ronin to spot him before he detects 
  them. (Some GMs may prefer to use Hunting / Perception 
  instead.) PCs who are trained as scouts (or shinobi) may 
  decide to scout ahead for danger – such PCs must defeat 
  the guard’s Investigation / Perception with their Stealth / 
  Agility to avoid detection.
  The guard carries a bow and a signal arrow (humming-
  bulb arrow), which he will fire if he spots approaching 
  danger. PCs who manage to detect and silence/eliminate 
  the guard before he can fire the arrow will be able to 
  approach the mine undetected – otherwise, the “bandits” 
  will intercept the PCs before they can get within sight of 
  the mine.
  35
  Kalani’s landing
  Chapter Three
  
  The five ronin comprise four men – Itto, Cheong, 
  Bunta, and Koitsu – and one woman – Yasha. They are 
  all reasonably experienced ronin in their twenties and 
  thirties, with an array of scars to match their skills. The 
  leader is Itto, a heavy-set but muscular and capable man 
  of nearly forty years; Yasha, a woman with a long and 
  somewhat plain face, is his lover. The other three were 
  recruited by Itto to assist with this mission. All of them 
  have fairly decent-quality light armor, swords, spears, and 
  bows with a variety of arrows. Much of this equipment 
  was supplied by Iyashi as part of their payment for this 
  mission.
  These ronin are neither fanatical nor suicidal. They are 
  performing a job – admittedly a rather unpleasant job, but 
  as wave-men they can’t be too picky – and intend to live 
  to get paid for it. If they spot the PCs, they will confront 
  them in a strong position – such as from uphill with trees 
  and boulders for shelter – and fire a “warning shot” to 
  wound one of the PCs, followed up by a shout: “Get out 
  of here, samurai, this is our place now!” Conversely, if the 
  PCs manage to evade or disable the guard and catch the 
  ronin by surprise at the mine, they will try to quickly rally, 
  gather themselves, and confront the PCs with as much 
  bellicosity and bluster as they can manage.
  There are several possible ways for the PCs to deal with 
  the bandits:
   
  c
  Combat/Death: The simplest answer is to kill the 
  bandits, either in combat or via ambush. This 
  is likely to be the approach favored by highly 
  honorable PCs as well as by more ruthless types 
  like Crab and Spider. The ronin are brave and 
  capable but ultimately have no intention of dying 
  for Daidoji Iyashi – if the PCs are clearly winning 
  decisively, the surviving ronin will try their best 
  to break off and flee. They will not voluntarily 
  surrender but it will be quite possible to take 
  some of them prisoner, either by wounding them 
  so severely they cannot flee or by using magic, 
  Grappling attacks, or similar methods to disable 
  them non-lethally. 
   
  c
  The Lovers: It should be noted that Itto and Yasha 
  are devoted to each other, and if either of them is 
  killed, the other will fly into a rage of grief and 
  fight to the death. However, this is also a weakness 
  if the PCs spot it in time – a credible threat to one 
  of the pair may be used to threaten/blackmail the 
  other into reluctant cooperation. PCs, of course, 
  may take this as a lesson in how love subverts the 
  courage and loyalty of samurai.
   
  c
  Negotiation/Intimidation: The PCs may try to 
  persuade or threaten the ronin into abandoning 
  or betraying their patron. This certainly has the 
  potential to succeed, since the ronin are self-
  preserving types and are willing to switch sides if 
  they can be persuaded it is in their best interest to 
  do so. However, this should not be easy – the ronin 
  know Daidoji Iyashi is a wealthy man himself 
  and has connections to more powerful figures. 
  The PCs will have to make strong and persuasive 
  arguments, backed up by Social Skill Rolls and/
  or Courtier Techniques. Failed negotiations will 
  probably result in the ronin dismissing further 
  discussion and preparing for a fight. 
   
  c
  Bribery: The ronin are doing this for pay, and 
  thus PCs who have a lot of money can try to buy 
  their loyalty away from Iyashi. This will require 
  a pretty substantial amount of money, since 
  Iyashi pays well – as a baseline, the GM should 
  assume the PCs will need to offer at least 5 koku 
  per ronin to persuade them to change sides. The 
  GM can allow this number to be modified by 
  other factors, such as eloquent speeches 
  (backed by Skill Rolls) or offers of less-
  tangible but still appealing rewards, 
  such as political favors or a chance 
  for long-term employment (the latter 
  can be especially appealing since ronin 
  normally live wholly without any kind 
  of security in their lives).  
  At the GM’s discretion, certain 
  types of characters may have better 
  luck at persuading the ronin to switch 
  sides or accept a bribe. In particular, 
  PCs who are obviously possessed of 
  political influence (such as members of 
  the Imperial families) should probably 
  find it easier to overawe or bribe the 
  ronin. Conversely, PCs who are obviously 
  lacking in political skills or wealth should 
  have a harder time of it. Finally, it 
  may be noted that Itto is moderately 
  religious, so a monk or shugenja should 
  have a slightly easier time persuading 
  him to change his loyalty. 
  36
  Chapter Three
  Kalani’s landing
  
  Cheong, bunTa, yaSha, and KoiTSu, ronin
  Air: 2
  EArth: 2
  FirE: 2
  WAtEr: 2
  Void: 2
  rEFlExES: 3
  Agility: 3
  StrEngth: 3
  Honor: 2.0
  Status: 0.0
  Glory: 1.0
  Infamy: 2.3
  School/Rank: None (Insight Rank 1)
  Skills: Athletics 3, Defense 3, Etiquette 1, Hunting 
  (Survival) 3, Intimidation 2, Investigation 2, Kenjutsu 3, 
  Knives 2, Kyujutsu 3, Spears 3, Stealth 2 
  Advantages: Cheong, Bunta, and Koitsu have Strength of 
  the Earth. Yasha has Quick.
  Disadvantages: Infamous (bandits), Social Disadvantage 
  (ronin). Yasha has True Love (Itto)
  iTTo, ronin Leader
  Air: 3
  EArth: 3
  FirE: 3
  WAtEr: 3
  Void: 3
  rEFlExES: 4
  Agility: 4
  Honor: 2.0
  Status: 0.0
  Glory: 1.0
  Infamy: 3.4
  School/Rank: Forest Killers (Insight Rank 2)
  Skills: Athletics 3, Defense 4, Etiquette 1, Hunting 
  (Survival) 3, Intimidation 5, Investigation 2, Kenjutsu 4, 
  Knives 2, Kyujutsu 4, Lore: Theology 2, Spears 3, Stealth3 
  Advantages: Ally (Daidoji Iyashi), Quick, Strength of the 
  Earth  
  Disadvantages: Infamous (bandit), Social Disadvantage 
  (ronin), True Love (Yasha)
  What the ronin KnoW
  The ronin have a fair amount of knowledge about the 
  situation, which the PCs can extract either by questioning 
  prisoners (captured ronin will try to bargain their informa-
  tion in exchange for being released) or by getting them to 
  switch sides.
   
  c
  Itto was hired by Daidoji Iyashi, with the specific 
  task of recruiting a team of “bandits” who would 
  drive everyone away from Yasuki Kappako’s mine 
  and then protect it while Iyashi’s people extracted 
  the jade. They received equipment, weapons, and 
  three koku each for this task. (Itto got six koku, but 
  aside from Yasha his comrades don’t know that.)  
   
  c
  A team of workers, identified as working for Iyas-
  hi, showed up a week later and started digging in 
  the mine. The jade is collected periodically by a 
  group of smugglers led by a man named Gozu. The 
  next visit by Gozu and his men should be in a 
  couple of days.
   
  c
  The ronin still have most of the koku which Iyashi 
  paid them (they haven’t gone back to civilization 
  to spend it yet). The coins are of Crane Colonial 
  mint. 
   
  c
  Iyashi has not visited the mine since the ronin took 
  possession of it. However, when Gozu and his men 
  made their first visit, they were accompanied by 
  another Crane, a very handsome and cultured man 
  with a pleasant voice. He called himself “Chonitsu” 
  and claimed he was an associate of Iyashi. They 
  haven’t seen him since.
  The Mine
  If and when the PCs finally get to see the mine, they find a 
  gaping hole in the ground at the bottom of the depression in 
  the hillside. The remnants of old Ivory Kingdoms construction 
  surround the pit, marking the original mine structure; these 
  have now been replaced by new Rokugani-style construction, 
  complete with walkways of wooden ramps leading down the 
  muddy red-brown slope of the depression to the edge of the 
  pit. Several ladders descend into the pit itself. 
  Daidoji Iyashi has sent about two dozen laborers to work 
  in the mine, and they have occupied the small encampment 
  which was originally built by Kappako’s workers. This 
  comprises several crude huts for sleeping and a larger 
  building to store supplies and the extracted jade. Water is 
  fetched from a stream in the valley below the hill. The ronin 
  occupy two of the huts, keeping themselves apart from the 
  “peasant filth” who are doing the work. 
  If the PCs arrive by surprise, the ronin will be sitting about 
  idly (talking, tossing dice, eating, etc) while the laborers are 
  hard at work in the mine. If the PCs confronted the ronin 
  before reaching the mine, the laborers are out of the pit and 
  standing by their encampment, nervously waiting to see 
  what happens – they will likely try to flee when the PCs show 
  up, though it will not be too difficult for trained samurai to 
  chase down and capture at least a few of them. 
  The laborers know only that they were hired by Iyashi 
  to do some mining for a few weeks. They spent a couple 
  of weeks waiting idly in a camp in the woods before they 
  were brought here (this was while Iyashi’s ronin were 
  chasing away Kappako’s men). They have not been back 
  to Kalani’s Landing since they were hired, and thus do not 
  know about what happened to Kappako’s laborers or that 
  they are working someone else’s mine. They can confirm that 
  a group of commoners led by a man named Gozu comes 
  to the camp every week or two with a wagon, which they 
  use to haul away the jade. The first time they came, they 
  were accompanied by a strange Crane, a very well-dressed 
  and handsome man with a “beautiful voice.” Some of the 
  laborers shiver involuntarily when they discuss this Crane; 
  if questioned, they say something about the Crane disturbed 
  them, though they cannot define just what it was.  
  37
  Kalani’s landing
  Chapter Three
  
  Self-preservation is the first goal of Gozu and his men; 
  they will do whatever they must to save their own skins. 
  They will not admit to being smugglers, claiming they are 
  “merchants” working for Daidoji Iyashi. They will readily 
  explain Iyashi hired them to carry jade from his mine and 
  deliver it to another Crane merchant to the north. They 
  claim to have no idea this is actually Yasuki Kappako’s 
  mine. They freely admit the “other Crane merchant” 
  accompanied them here on their first trip, and identify 
  him as having called himself Doji Chonitsu. 
  The smugglers carry the jade two days to the north, 
  to a way-station on the main north-south road (the Ki-
  Rin’s Path) through the Colonies, where they rendezvous 
  with a small merchant caravan which serves Chonitsu. 
  The caravan is led by a commoner named Hinjo. (Chonitsu 
  introduced them to Hinjo’s caravan during their first trip, 
  to make sure they would know what to do.) They receive 
  payment each time. PCs can easily determine Gozu and 
  his men are getting paid quite well for the relatively 
  simple task of hauling goods from one remote part of the 
  Colonies to the other, although not anywhere close to the 
  actual value of the jade they are transporting. 
  If the PCs decide to follow the trail to the merchant 
  Hinjo, see Chapter Eight for details. 
  The Smugglers
  The PCs can catch Gozu’s smugglers if they wait a couple 
  of days at the mine site. Both the ronin and the laborers 
  can confirm the next visit should be in a few days. Clever 
  PCs may decide to stage an ambush or otherwise make 
  sure they can capture the smugglers.
  The smugglers comprise six men, led by Gozu himself 
  – a portly commoner in his thirties, with a fantastically 
  ugly scar creasing the center of his face and replacing 
  most of his nose. They are accompanied by a large wagon 
  drawn by a team of four horses. Confronted by the PCs, 
  they will most likely either flee or surrender, depending 
  on what seems likelier to keep them alive – they do carry 
  an array of peasant weapons to protect themselves from 
  the dangers of the Colonial jungle, but will not try to fight 
  against armed samurai if they can avoid it. 
  38
  Chapter Three
  Kalani’s landing
  
  daidoji iyaShi, CorrupT merChanT
  Air: 3
  EArth: 2
  FirE: 3
  WAtEr: 2
  Void: 3
  AWArEnESS: 4 WillpoWEr: 3 intElligEncE: 4 pErcEption: 3
  Honor: 3.9
  Status: 3.0
  Glory: 4.7
  School/Rank: Doji Courtier 3/Daidoji Trading Council
  Skills: Calligraphy 3, Commerce (Merchant) 5, Courtier 
  (Manipulation) 5, Defense 2, Etiquette (Courtesy) 6, 
  Iaijutsu 3, Investigation 2, Kenjutsu 2, Lore: Heraldry 3, 
  Lore: Law 2, Lore: Theology 2, Sincerity 5
  Advantages: Benten’s Blessing, Gentry, Social Position 
  (Daidoji Trading Council), Wealth
  Disadvantages: Dark Secrets (several), Sworn Enemies 
  (several)
  Exposing the Truth?
  Some PCs, especially those of a more idealistic character, 
  will probably want to try to expose Daidoji Chonitsu and/
  or Miya Ichiko for their improper behavior or perhaps even 
  have them arrested. This will be difficult because all of the 
  testimony they have comes from commoners and ronin, 
  whose word is worth less than that of proper clan samurai 
  like Iyashi, let alone a magistrate like Miya Ichiko. At best, 
  the PCs might be able to pressure Iyashi into fighting a 
  duel to protest their accusations.
  However, clever PCs may realize a direct confrontation 
  is not the most optimal approach here. Instead, 
  blackmail and threats may be much more effective. 
  (If the PCs share their information with Kappako and/
  or Hokare, they will both advocate for the blackmail 
  approach.) If the PCs try this gambit, they don’t have to 
  actually name their witnesses and can essentially bluff 
  Iyashi and Ichiko with the implication of completely 
  destroying their names and honor. This sort of approach 
  will probably require the use of Skills such as Sincerity, 
  Intimidation, and possibly Temptation; certain types of 
  Courtier Techniques, especially those of the Scorpion, 
  will be quite useful as well. 
  If the PCs can get these two NPCs to start telling the 
  truth, whether through blackmail or some other method, 
  they can reveal the following key information: 
   
  c
  Iyashi has been funneling jade and crystal to Doji 
  Chonitsu for some time, in return for various po-
  litical and financial favors. Recently Chonitsu be-
  gan asking for these substances with much greater 
  urgency, which prompted Iyashi to undertake his 
  gambit against Kappako. 
   
  c
  Iyashi was initially reluctant to take such drastic 
  action, since it might backfire on him badly. How-
  ever, Chonitsu promised the local magistrate would 
  not interfere, and he was as good as his word.
   
  c
  Iyashi has known Chonitsu for several years and 
  they have had a fruitful alliance. He does not really 
  know what the Doji’s true position in the Empire or 
  the Colonies might be, but the man is clearly quite 
  influential and has allies in many places. He sug-
  gests to the PCs that it would be unwise for them 
  to make Chonitsu their enemy. 
   
  c
  He does not know what Chonitsu is doing with 
  these substances, and oddly it has not really oc-
  curred to him to wonder about this before now. 
  Chonitsu is so charming the topic simply never 
  came up. 
   
  c
  Miya Ichiko knows nothing about Doji Chonitsu, 
  but she will confess that her sponsor in the Sec-
  ond City, Otomo Akio, sent word she should not 
  look into what was happening to Kappako’s mine. 
  She does not know why he ordered this, but given 
  that her current station and success are entirely 
  due to his sponsorship she felt she had no choice 
  but to obey.
  39
  Kalani’s landing
  Chapter Three
  
  40
  Chapter Four
  Journey’s end Keep
  
  Ide Uchi is a wealthy and self-indulgent Unicorn merchant 
  patron based in Journey’s End Keep, the main Unicorn 
  stronghold in the Colonies. He specializes in rare gaijin 
  items from the Burning Sands, including the extraordinarily 
  rare substance known as Ashalan Crysteel. Raniyah the 
  Sly needs the esoteric spiritual powers of crysteel to help 
  break the prison housing her fellow rakshasa, so her ‘Doji 
  Chonitsu’ alias has been using Uchi to acquire a few crysteel 
  items; in return, Chonitsu uses political contacts in the 
  Second City to enhance Uchi’s mercantile success. 
  However, Doji Chonitsu’s most recent visit to Journey’s 
  End Keep had an unexpected result. Among the local 
  commoners are a few Ivinda, survivors from the old Ivory 
  Kingdoms population, living quietly alongside the Rokugani 
  peasants who have been brought in to work the land. One 
  of these natives, an old man named Gopti, is actually a 
  guru – a monastic holy man – and he was able to see 
  through Chonitsu’s human guise and recognize the demonic 
  creature within. The confrontation between Chonitsu and 
  Gopti resulted in the old man and his family being exiled 
  to a less-settled and more dangerous province to the south. 
  If the PCs pick up on what happened, they may be able to 
  follow Gopti and his family there and learn vital clues about 
  the rakshasa and its plans. 
  The PCs will most likely be investigating here due to 
  having researched the public connection between Doji 
  Chonitsu and Ide Uchi (as described at the end of Chapter 
  One). They may also have learned about Chonitsu’s 
  connections to Uchi at Kalani’s Landing (in Chapter Three) 
  or in the Second City (in Chapter Five).      
  Journey’s End Keep
  Journey’s End Keep is the terminus point of the Ki-Rin’s 
  Path, the long caravan route which connects the Colonies 
  to the lands of the Unicorn Clan via the Western Wastes. It 
  rests on the edge of a jungle-choked plateau from which 
  a long stretch of grass and scrub-plain slowly descends 
  north. To the northwest is the true desert of the Burning 
  Sands, which stains the horizon in that direction a smudgy 
  yellow; to the northeast, the Ki-Rin’s Path travels into the 
  bleak emptiness of the Western Wastes. 
  Due to the proximity of the desert, the weather here 
  tends to be hotter and drier than elsewhere in the Colonies; 
  the summer is longer, monsoon shorter and less fertile, 
  and drought is more frequent. The abandoned palaces and 
  cities of the Ivory Kingdoms are fewer and more widely 
  scattered in this region, but perversely the survivors among 
  the native Ivinda population are somewhat more numerous 
  – the Cult of the Destroyer reached this part of the land last, 
  and thus was not able to wipe out the population quite as 
  comprehensively as it did elsewhere. The PCs will notice a 
  fair number of natives living at Journey’s End Keep, and 
  see a few curls of smoke rising from within the jungle, 
  marking the locations of settlements. 
  Journey’s End Keep itself is constructed in a mixture of 
  Unicorn and Rokugani styles, with some influence from the 
  native architecture. The ruler of the place is Moto Jafiq, 
  a bold and adventurous man who believes the future of 
  Rokugan is to have much more open 
  relations with her neighbors; 
  Chapter FOur
  41
  Journey’s end Keep
  Chapter Four
  
  accordingly, he has turned Journey’s End Keep into a trade 
  hub for commerce with the gaijin of the Burning Sands. 
  His fortress sits atop a steep hill, affording it a view of both 
  the plains to the north and the rivers and jungles to the 
  south. Below the hill is very large enclosure, protected by 
  a high wooden stockade and comprising several acres of 
  space, where trade caravans (both Unicorn and gaijin) make 
  camp. A sizable town has grown up outside this caravan 
  park, spreading southward into the jungle and eventually 
  reaching the banks of the Shinano River, from which 
  riverine traffic connects to the Second City. 
  Crops here are a mixture of rice, legumes, and grains – 
  the erratic weather makes it dangerous to rely too much 
  on any one crop. There are also many gardens growing 
  a mixture of Rokugani and native fruits and vegetables. 
  Seafood is of course difficult to get here – the river produces 
  only a limited amount of freshwater fish – so the Unicorn 
  have quietly allowed the local peasants (whose ranks, as 
  noted, include a fair sprinkling of Ivinda natives) to raise 
  small herds of goats for their meat. 
  the marKetpLace
  At any given time the interior of the caravan park will 
  boast dozens of tents, a mixture of Rokugani yurts and 
  the white conical tents of gaijin traders from the Burning 
  Sands. More exotic things may be seen as well, such as 
  the colorful wagons of the Ra’Shari people (which resemble 
  the wagons of gypsies from our own world) and a few 
  conventional Rokugani silk tents for merchants from the 
  south of the Colonies, come here to share in the lucrative 
  trade with the gaijin.
   In the center of the park is a 
  bazaar where all of the merchants 
  meet, trade, buy, and sell. White and 
  purple cloth pavilions cover dozens 
  of booths, and merchants circulate 
  like leaves in the wind, money and 
  goods changing hands in a welter 
  of conversation in both Rokugani 
  and various foreign tongues. To 
  traditionalist PCs from the Empire 
  this will be a very unsettling scene, 
  as Rokugani and gaijin speak 
  and trade together openly and 
  to all appearances equally. The 
  overwhelming presence of commerce 
  and trade will likely also be offensive 
  to any PCs who are not themselves 
  dedicated to such matters. The 
  Unicorn samurai here are accustomed 
  to seeing this marketplace, and many 
  of them wander through the aisles 
  between the booths, looking over the 
  exotic foreign wares and picking up 
  trinkets. The PCs can do the same if 
  they wish, or stay away from such dubious activity and 
  focus on their investigation. Either approach can work 
  during this part of the adventure, although the GM will 
  probably find it more entertaining if the PCs do visit the 
  bazaar.
  The gaijin here are primarily from Medinaat al-Salaam, 
  the great city and trade hub that lies far to the north 
  across the Burning Sands. They may be described as 
  loosely “Aladdin/1,001 Nights” in appearance, and their 
  skin tone varies widely, from light tan to dark brown. 
  They wear loose-fitting robes of white cotton or silk, and 
  cover their heads with scarves or burnooses; their women 
  wear silken veils to shroud their features. Most of them 
  carry short curved knives at their belts, but they have no 
  other armament – it is their custom not to carry martial 
  weapons while at a trade market. Unicorn merchants are 
  also numerous in the marketplace, and most of them are 
  fluent in Mekham (the language of Medinaat al-Salaam) 
  to facilitate their trade. The other Rokugani merchants here 
  are a mixture of Crane, Mantis, and Crab; the Crane and 
  Crab usually place themselves at the edges of the bazaar 
  where the “contamination” of gaijin influence is minimized. 
  Aside from these groups, there are a scattering of many 
  other exotic types in the bazaar. The GM can introduce 
  almost any kind of NPC, whether Rokugani or gaijin, to 
  increase the appeal of Journey’s End Keep or to entertain 
  the players. One specific aspect of the market which should 
  be mentioned, however, is the presence of the Ra’Shari, 
  since there is the potential for the PCs to receive a prophecy 
  from a Ra’Shari mystic. 
  The market is patrolled by pairs of Unicorn bushi armed 
  with sasumata (man-catchers). They make sure the market 
  remains safe and do not allow any disagreements or 
  arguments between Rokugani and foreigners to escalate 
  into open violence.  
  42
  Chapter Four
  Journey’s end Keep
  
  gaiJin goods
  If the PCs decide to explore the marketplace in search of 
  interesting baubles, they will find scores of merchants eager 
  to sell to them. The gaijin generally speak only a crude 
  patois of Rokugani, and moreover those from Medinaat al-
  Salaam are great believers in the importance of bargaining 
  and haggling when making a sale, all of which will 
  probably be very unpleasant for most Rokugani PCs. (A PC 
  who fails to haggle will of course end up paying far more 
  than proper value for whatever they buy, as well as earning 
  the contempt of the gaijin for their lack of bargaining skill.) 
  Nonetheless, the PCs can find a wide range of exotic 
  goods here, including jewelry (earrings, necklaces, bracelets, 
  etc), cotton cloth, beautiful woven rugs, spyglasses and 
  magnifying glasses, metal lanterns, scissors, glass goblets, 
  spices, strange fruits and vegetables, liquers made from 
  fermented fruits or dates, furs from exotic animals, foreign 
  weapons, and many other oddities. PCs can find almost 
  anything that could conceivably be imported from the other 
  cultures of the Burning Sands – most notably anything that 
  would be appropriate for an “Arabian Nights” setting, but 
  also including Roman-type goods from the Yodotai Empire, 
  gypsy weaving and jewelry from the Ra’Shari, papyrus from 
  the Senpet Empire, and so forth. One thing the PCs will 
  not find, however, is Ivory Kingdoms art and goods – all 
  the worthwhile items in this part of the Colonies have long 
  since been snatched up by collectors.
  Because the surviving native Ivinda population is higher 
  in the territory of Journey’s End Keep than it is elsewhere, 
  there is a good chance PCs visiting the market or the town 
  will see elephants being used as beasts of burden, with 
  native mahouts riding and controlling them. The PCs may 
  even spot a few of the more daring local samurai enjoying 
  rides on elegant howdahs while a native mahout dressed 
  only in a loincloth guides the beast from atop its neck.
  drinKa the soothsayer
  If the PCs do choose to explore the marketplace, at some 
  point they should encounter Drinka, a stooped old Ra’Shari 
  woman wearing a multi-colored ankle-length skirt, a white 
  long-sleeved blouse, and a red head-scarf. Large hoop 
  earrings hang from her ears and cosmetics darken the 
  skin around her eyes, but her hair is gray-white and her 
  dark-tan face is deeply grooved. She normally sits on the 
  back step of a Ra’Shari wagon, knitting and occasionally 
  stirring the coals in a low-set copper brazier resting on the 
  ground before her. However, whenever the PCs walk by, 
  she suddenly rises to her feet, speaking in a thin quavering 
  voice and clutching at them with desperate strength.  
  Drinka will grab at the sleeves of the PCs, speaking 
  to them urgently in the Ra’Shari language. The PCs will 
  probably react with at least irritation if not outright fury, 
  but before violence can erupt a pair of Unicorn guards will 
  arrive, gesturing with their sasumata and demanding peace 
  be upheld. While this is happening, a much younger Ra’Shari 
  woman emerges from the wagon and, after speaking with 
  Drinka for a few moments, addresses the guards and the PCs 
  in broken, halting Rokugani. Her grandmother is a prophet, 
  she explains, and senses something of great importance 
  about the PCs. Will they not allow her to tell their fortune? 
  Unfortunately this will require letting the old woman touch 
  their hands, since she wishes to read their palms; the girl 
  will swear her grandmother means no insult and begs the 
  PCs to listen to her prophecy. “Great-mother never wrong. 
  Never. Not about us or other peoples.”
  It is up to the PCs how they react. It is of course perfectly 
  legitimate for proper Rokugani samurai to dismiss this as 
  nothing more than a distasteful gaijin spectacle, and the 
  adventure will not be derailed if the PCs move on without 
  listening to Drinka. However, if they do agree, they will get 
  an atmospheric hint and warning as to what lies in front 
  of them. 
  A translator will be needed to understand Drinka’s 
  prophecy. Her granddaughter can perform this role 
  (although she will be greatly alarmed at the idea of having 
  to translate her revered grandmother’s prophecies) or the 
  PCs can ask around and eventually find a Unicorn merchant 
  who understands the Ra’Shari tongue. 
  “I see the great tiger arise from the jungle, and upon its 
  face is the visage of your folk, the folk of the yellow skin 
  and slanted eyes. The tiger dreams of its kin, locked away 
  at the dawning of all time, locked away by one now dead. 
  It dreams of the day when they shall spring forth to hunt 
  once more, ravaging the world and drinking the blood of 
  all men. Close, now, close is the day when the tigers will be 
  free and the world shall become their hunting ground. The 
  shadow of the tiger lies upon your spirits. Perhaps you are 
  destined to stand against it, to hunt it in turn, or perhaps 
  you are destined to be its prey. The signs are unclear. The 
  signs are unclear.” Her prophecy finished, Drinka sighs and 
  sags down, almost fainting; her granddaughter leads her 
  carefully into the wagon.
  Drinka does not know what her vision means and cannot 
  explain it. Her granddaughter apologizes, explaining that 
  Drinka is old and ill and has difficulty understanding her 
  visions, but assures the PCs they are always true. 
  43
  Journey’s end Keep
  Chapter Four
  
  Sumajii The Thief 
  If the PCs spend any time in either the marketplace or 
  the town outside Journey’s End Keep, they will run afoul of 
  Sumajii, a skinny and dirty little boy from the native Ivinda 
  population. Sumaji is a skillful sneak-thief and will target 
  one of the PCs, attempting to steal his/her money (note that 
  Rokugani normally carry their coins on a string inside their 
  kimono sleeve or under their obi).
  Technically, Sumajii’s attempted theft is a Contested 
  Roll of his Sleight-of-Hand / Agility against the PC’s 
  Investigation / Perception. However, for story purposes the 
  GM may prefer to simply let the PCs spot the theft attempt. 
  Caught with his hand in the wrong place, Sumajii attempts 
  to flee, but the PCs can easily catch him (perhaps assisted 
  by an Agility roll if the GM prefers – a missed attempt 
  could lead to a chase through the bazaar, which could be an 
  amusing diversion from more serious adventuring). Sumajii 
  is much too small, frail, and spindly to break free of the 
  PCs by force, but he will try to slide out of his tattered 
  knee-length shirt and escape that way, perhaps leading to 
  a second Agility roll or additional chasing. Alternatively 
  Sumajii could be caught by the Unicorn guards, who 
  recognize him as a recurring thief and will be delighted to 
  finally get their hands on him.  
  Sumajii speaks a crude, disjointed patois of Rokugani, 
  making it difficult to convey complex ideas, but he 
  understands well enough what happens to someone who 
  gets caught stealing from a samurai, and he will beg for his 
  life in the most pathetic and sniveling manner, grubbing 
  in the dust, trying to kiss the PCs’ feet, showing his ribs 
  to indicate how hungry he is, and so forth. Several of the 
  merchants (Rokugani and gaijin), meanwhile, will recognize 
  him as a thief who has been plaguing them, and the gaijin 
  gather around trying to beat and kick him.    
  Sumajii is actually a member of Gopti’s family, which 
  was exiled a couple of months ago – he was left behind 
  when the samurai swept up the rest of the family, and has 
  no idea how to find his people again. It will be up to the PCs 
  how to deal with him. If they hand him over to the Unicorn 
  authorities, he will be hanged for thievery, an outcome 
  which soft-hearted PCs may find unpalatable. If the PCs 
  do spare Sumajii’s life, he will throw himself at their feet, 
  promising brokenly to be their servant for life and to do 
  anything they want. The PCs can use Sumajii as a source 
  of information about his family, as a translator (though he 
  cannot read), or can even enlist him to steal something for 
  them, although this will certainly cost them Honor.  
  Investigating Ide Uchi
  The most likely reason for the PCs to explore the market 
  or the town at Journey’s End Keep is to search for Ide Uchi, 
  the Unicorn merchant who is associated with Doji Chonitsu. 
  Any investigation into Chonitsu’s contacts and allies will 
  come up with Ide Uchi’s name. If the PCs seek more detailed 
  information about Uchi once they arrive in Journey’s End 
  Keep, they can learn the following: 
   
  c
  Uchi’s family runs a major Unicorn caravan based 
  out of Journey’s End Keep. It follows a route to 
  Medinaat al-Salaam and back. He deals exten-
  sively in exotic goods from that remote and semi-
  mythical city. 
   
  c
  Uchi is rumored to be able to acquire the extraor-
  dinarily rare substance known as Ashalan Crysteel, 
  crystal which is as hard and resilient as the finest 
  forged Rokugani steel. Supposedly, it is this prod-
  uct which interests Doji Chonitsu.   
   
  c
  Ide Uchi himself lives in the town. His sons handle 
  most of his business, including his booth in the 
  marketplace. 
   
  c
  Uchi faced strong competition for several years 
  from another Unicorn merchant patron, Ide Sad-
  ao. However, recently he seems to have won out 
  against Sadao, apparently due to political sponsor-
  ship from the Second City.
   
  c
  Supposedly Uchi has recently been complaining 
  about the surviving Ivinda (Ivory Kingdoms gai-
  jin) who still live in this area, claiming they are 
  harassing his business and asking the local lord to 
  deal with them harshly. The local clan magistrate, 
  Shinjo Juntao, ordered some Ivinda exiled from 
  Journey’s End Keep in response to Uchi’s com-
  plaints. No one is sure whether his complaints were 
  actually true or merely the result of some personal 
  grudge. (Clever PCs may be able to draw a connec-
  tion between this and the rumor that Doji Chonitsu 
  got into a confrontation with the local gaijin a few 
  months ago.)
  ide uchi’s sons
  If the PCs decide to search the marketplace for Ide Uchi, 
  they will find a large booth manned by two portly young 
  Unicorn men; these are Uchi’s two youngest sons, Ide Ikue 
  and Ide Asagi, who handle his affairs in the market. They 
  are friendly in a slightly greasy mercantile way. Asagi, 
  the older of the two (in his mid-twenties) is developing a 
  double-chin which he has a tendency to stroke whenever 
  he is talking. 
  The two brothers do not know there is anything remotely 
  dangerous about Doji Chonitsu, who they describe as “one 
  of father’s good friends and business associates”; they say 
  he is a fine man and a credit to the Crane Clan. They freely 
  admit Chonitsu is interested in crysteel and their father has 
  managed to supply him with a couple pieces of it. They 
  are only vaguely aware of the incident between Chonitsu 
  and the local gaijin, but claim those same “uncouth locals” 
  are the ones that have harassed their father more recently. 
  “They have been exiled to the province to the south, but 
  they keep sneaking back and giving us trouble!” If the PCs 
  ask for details of what the Ivinda are doing, the brothers 
  claim they have broken into their warehouse on a couple 
  of occasions. They also pass on a rumor that the gaijin 
  killed a samurai in the province to the south, and hold up 
  this incident as proof that these particular Ivinda are very 
  44
  Chapter Four
  Journey’s end Keep
  
  bad fellows indeed. “The sooner our lords dispatch those 
  criminals, the better – including for the other gaijin whose 
  name is besmirched by these acts.”  
  If the PCs ask about Ide Uchi’s competitor Ide Sadao, 
  the brothers cheerfully recount several stories of past 
  commercial rivalries and quarrels. They know their father 
  brought political pressure to bear against Sadao but do not 
  know how he managed it, other than that he now has the 
  support of an “influential Otomo” in the Second City.
  Visiting ide uchi in person
  If the PCs decide to meet with Ide Uchi himself, they can 
  find his house easily enough. It is located in the wealthiest 
  district of the town, and is a strange and memorable blend 
  of Rokugani and Ivory Kingdoms architecture. The most 
  notable influence from the local architecture is the presence 
  of many elaborate wooden screens in place of the sliding 
  paper windows favored by the Rokugani – the myriad holes 
  in the screens allow air to flow through the building more 
  easily, mitigating the suffocating heat of the Colonies’ 
  summer season. Similarly, the large garden in front of the 
  house contains many native plants and flowers and almost 
  no Rokugani plants, nor is there a koi pond. 
  If the PCs request a visit, Uchi will invite them to attend 
  him in the evening, explaining that his advancing age 
  makes it difficult for him to stay active during the heat of 
  the day. He is a very overweight man, an unusual problem 
  for a samurai and one which the PCs will probably find off-
  putting. Uchi meets the PCs in a room with a high-arched 
  ceiling (another gaijin design element) where he half-sits, 
  half-sprawls on an array of pillows, dressed in a light silk 
  yukata (bathrobe). He sips at a cup containing a strange 
  fruit drink which he will offer to share with the PCs – it is 
  made from mango fruit, and will probably strike the PCs 
  as cloyingly sweet. Uchi sweats constantly and, despite the 
  efforts of servants who fan incense through the room, the 
  PCs pick up some of his body odor – including an odd spicy 
  note, the result of his Colony-influenced diet. 
  Uchi will start out assuming the PCs are here due to 
  business or commercial interests, and will be friendly, polite, 
  and even a bit charming (in a fat-old-man sort of way) so 
  long as he believes this to be the case. Once he realizes 
  the PCs are engaged in some kind of investigation, he will 
  become much more abrupt and unfriendly, fanning himself 
  irritably with a large sandalwood fan and complaining of 
  having a bad memory in his old age whenever he wants to 
  avoid answering a question. Given the chance, he will look 
  for an opportunity to take offense and have the PCs thrown 
  out of his house. Until that happens, he will reluctantly 
  share the following information:
   
  c
  Uchi does not deny his friendship with Doji Chonit-
  su and claims the Crane is a “fine and honorable 
  man” for whom he has been happy to acquire sev-
  eral crysteel items. He dismisses any suggestion 
  there is anything untoward about Chonitsu, and 
  shrugs off any accusations by the PCs as “absurd 
  slanders.”
   
  c
  If the PCs ask why he was so willing to help 
  Chonitsu, he replies the Crane smoothed the way 
  for many of his mercantile ventures and opened 
  markets for him in the Second City itself. “He’s a 
  highly influential man. I can’t imagine why you 
  would harbor any questions toward his honor.”
   
  c
  He claims the Ivinda gaijin harassing him are the 
  same ones who were expelled from Journey’s End 
  Keep for attacking and insulting Chonitsu. “Obvi-
  ously, they know of my associations with my good 
  Crane friend. Since he does not live here and I do, 
  they are taking out their anger on me.” He claims 
  they have confronted him in the streets (a lie) and 
  have broken into his warehouse on two occasions 
  (truth – they were trying to intercept crysteel 
  items). 
   
  c
  If the PCs ask for details about the incident with 
  Chonitsu and the Ivinda, Uchi shrugs. “I was not 
  there, but I do not doubt my friend’s account. An 
  old gaijin man confronted him in the marketplace, 
  shouted at him, shoved him even! Chonitsu-san 
  called for the guards, of course. Our lord’s mag-
  istrate was far too generous, merely exiling the 
  old man and his family from Journey’s End Keep 
  rather than executing them outright.” 
   
  c
  He has heard rumors these same Ivinda are now 
  accused of murdering a samurai in the province 
  to the south, the lands ruled by Mirumoto Kokure. 
  He takes considerable relish in repeating the ru-
  mor. “You see? These gaijin cannot be trusted. Too 
  many of them are still mad from that great disaster 
  a generation ago.” 
   
  c
  If the PCs ask about his rivalry with Ide Sadao, he 
  initially dismisses it as a “friendly rivalry” in which 
  he has prevailed, thanks to his political contacts in 
  the Second City. He will also use the existence of 
  those contacts to try to intimidate the PCs if they 
  are pressuring or threatening him: “I will have you 
  know I enjoy the sponsorship of Otomo Akio, the 
  trusted karo to the Chancellor of the Left himself!”
   The Gaijin Incidents
  The PCs may decide to look more into the incident 
  between the Ivinda gaijin and Doji Chonitsu, or the 
  subsequent incidents with Ide Uchi. They can question the 
  local Unicorn guards easily enough, or arrange a meeting 
  with the clan magistrate, Shinjo Juntao.
  Shinjo Juntao is a mild-tempered, dedicated, warm-
  hearted man, in many ways a perfect example of the 
  compassionate traditions of the Unicorn Clan. He serves 
  Lord Moto Jafiq with complete dedication and does an 
  excellent job of maintaining the peace in a province where 
  there are unusual challenges created by the presence of so 
  many gaijin merchants. 
  45
  Journey’s end Keep
  Chapter Four
  
  From either Juntao, the guards, or the local gossip 
  circuit the PCs can learn that the initial incident with Doji 
  Chonitsu involved an elderly Ivinda man who lived in the 
  town with his extended family. They had caused no trouble 
  prior to this incident and indeed seemed quite glad to live 
  under the protection of Rokugani law. However, on that 
  occasion the old man suddenly walked up to Doji Chonitsu 
  and began shrieking at him in his own tongue, then striking 
  at the Crane with his gnarled fists. No one knows what he 
  was saying – the guards on duty that day did not speak 
  Ivindi. The rest of the old man’s family ran up, pulled him 
  away from Chonitsu, and prostrated themselves, begging 
  for mercy. Shinjo Juntao reviewed the case and concluded 
  the old man was probably mad; in keeping with Rokugani 
  traditions of reverence for the elderly, and the principle 
  of Compassion which has been central to the clan since 
  its founding, he ordered the old man beaten, then had the 
  family exiled from Journey’s End Keep. It is believed they 
  traveled south into the lightly-settled province that lies 
  between Journey’s End and the Second City, a region ruled 
  by a Dragon lord named Mirumoto Kokure. 
  The more recent incidents are all based largely on reports 
  from Ide Uchi and thus far the guards have not been able to 
  catch any of the gaijin in the act. Someone definitely broke 
  into Uchi’s warehouse on at least one occasion, but left no 
  conclusive evidence behind. However, they have sent word 
  to Lord Mirumoto Kokure to keep watch over the Ivinda in 
  his lands.
  Very recently, within the last week, Shinjo Juntao has 
  heard a rumor that a gaijin is accused of murdering a 
  samurai in Kokure’s domain. He hopes this is not someone 
  from the same family, since that would be a poor repayment 
  for the mercy he showed them.  
  ide uchi’s Warehouse
  The PCs may be intrigued by the tale of gaijin breaking 
  into Ide Uchi’s warehouse. Naturally Uchi will not allow 
  the PCs to investigate his warehouse, 
  but Shinjo Juntao might let them do so 
  under his authority if the PCs present 
  a compelling reason or strike him as 
  honorable and compassionate samurai. 
  (Helping the boy Sumajii may play a key 
  role here.) Alternatively the PCs can 
  just investigate on their own and hope 
  to avoid trouble with the authorities.
  The warehouse is a large building 
  constructed from heavy wooden 
  beams, with a broad tile roof and a 
  pair of huge wooden sliding doors. 
  The main storage chamber is a vast 
  open space two stories high, with 
  a set of stairs that goes up one wall 
  to a quartet of small rooms – offices 
  and residences – behind a wooden 
  balcony. Due to the warmer climate 
  of the Colonies, the warehouse is 
  stiflingly hot inside for two-thirds 
  What Did the Old Man Say?
  Some PCs may decide they should try to learn what the old Ivinda man said to Doji Chonitsu. This will not be easy, but creative PCs should be 
  able to figure out a way. With diligent effort the PCs can search out the specific guards who arrested the old man and ask them to recall the sounds 
  he made – these could then be presented to a translator (perhaps even to Sumajii) for a rough guess at what the old man said. Similarly, the PCs 
  could spend some time asking around the town to find commoners who happened to witness the incident and get an account of the old man’s words 
  from them. More creatively, a shugenja who Communes with the Air spirits might be able to get them to recall the unusual sounds which the old 
  man made when he struck the man in blue. 
  It is highly unlikely that the PCs can get a literally accurate translation out of any of this, but with diligence and effort they should be able to 
  pick up a few key words: “tiger,” “demon,” “cannibal,” “liar,” and “illusion.” This should be enough to motivate the PCs to try to learn more about 
  this gaijin. 
  46
  Chapter Four
  Journey’s end Keep
  
  of the year, and Uchi has learned to use 
  it only to store goods that will not be 
  harmed by the heat: cloth, lumber, dried 
  foods such as rice and legumes, metal goods, 
  and various luxury items such as sculpture, 
  jewelry, and so forth (the latter usually stored 
  inside wooden barrels or crates). The place is normally 
  staffed by a couple of commoners who live in one of the 
  upstairs rooms, keep the books on goods coming in and 
  out, and do at least some work on keeping the warehouse 
  clean. They carry tonfa to deal with unwelcome visitors. 
  More recently, Uchi has also hired a ronin, a hugely fat 
  man named Otchu, who carries a tetsubo and is constantly 
  munching on rice balls. Otchu sits outside during the day, 
  eating and watching the world go by, and sleeps in one of 
  the upstairs rooms at night. 
  The workers were present for both break-ins. The first 
  time, they were awakened by the gaijin trying to beat down 
  the front door. The second time, the gaijin were sneakier – 
  they slipped in through one of the windows of the second-
  floor rooms, then went down to the main floor and began 
  breaking open the crates. Otchu was on the premises by that 
  time (he was hired after the first attempted break-in) and he 
  came down with his tetsubo and chased the gaijin around 
  until 
  t h e y 
  managed 
  to 
  get the front doors open 
  and escape into the night.
  Otchu can recount the story of the second break-in, 
  although he will do so in a more gregarious and dramatic 
  manner than the commoners. He snorts that the gaijin 
  were “skinny little cowards.” Both witnesses can confirm 
  the gaijin were Ivinda natives, but can offer no further 
  identification or information about them – they don’t 
  know for sure if these were the same gaijin who got exiled 
  a couple months ago. Otchu may go so far as to crudely 
  remark, “These foreigners all look alike to me. All smell 
  alike too – bad.”
  47
  Journey’s end Keep
  Chapter Four
  
  48
  Chapter Five
  The SeCond CiTy
  
  Otomo Akio is one of the more powerful courtiers in the 
  Second City and, by extension, the Colonies. He is very 
  much a product of his Imperial family – which is to say 
  a cunning, manipulative, and ruthless politician, expert 
  in identifying and intensifying existing political rivalries 
  and resentments. He creates divisions and then steps in 
  to play the peacemaker and conciliator, appearing to be 
  a veritable rock of reason in the turbulent political seas 
  that he himself created. As a result, Akio has quickly risen 
  through the Second City bureaucracy and secured a senior 
  position in the Governor’s Court, that of karo (executive 
  assistant) to Otomo Takama, the Chancellor of the Left. 
  Not yet thirty years old, Akio hopes to eventually suc-
  ceed Takama to that lofty office, which would give him 
  tremendous power over the Ivory Court and its agenda. He 
  already exercises significant influence on the workings of 
  the Court, so much so that lesser nobles have learned to 
  speak with Akio if they wish an audience with the Chan-
  cellor or even the Governor. Getting on Akio’s bad side, 
  on the other hand, ensures that audiences are unavailable 
  or only possible at inconvenient times, petitions are mis-
  placed, meeting times are abruptly changed, and so on. 
  Whether Otomo Akio has designs on even higher station 
  still, in the Second City or perhaps in Rokugan proper, is 
  anyone’s guess. His ambition is obvious, though, and what 
  is abundantly clear is that Akio will not tolerate interfer-
  ence in his power.
  If Otomo Akio has any weakness at all, it is a pro-
  nounced fondness for the artwork, sculpture, jewelry, and 
  other artifacts of what used to be the Ivory Kingdoms. A 
  fascination with anything gaijin, particularly in a mem-
  ber of one of the Imperial families, would be normally 
  be considered unseemly, perhaps even repugnant. But in 
  the Colonies such attitudes are tolerated, especially in a 
  powerful karo. 
  It was through Akio’s interest in gaijin artifacts that the 
  rakshasa Raniyah the Sly approached him in her guise as 
  Doji Chonitsu. Although the Otomo is beginning to sus-
  pect there is something sinister about Doji Chonitsu, the 
  putative Crane continues to provide him with ever more 
  breathtaking and valuable items, and seeks only a few fa-
  vors and some of Akio’s lesser pieces of gaijin work in 
  return. He is unaware as yet that these “lesser pieces” are 
  vital to the rakshasa’s plan to awaken and free her kin, 
  nor does he realize the “favors” are carefully calculated to 
  further the rakshasa’s dark agenda.
  Chapter Five
  49
  The Second ciTy
  chapter Five
  
  The Setting
  The action in this chapter takes place primarily in the 
  Second City and particularly in the Governor’s Palace. 
  Much of what happens will be focused on the various 
  personalities in the Governor’s Court. Whether the PCs 
  come to the Colonies by the sea or via the Ki-Rin’s Path, and 
  whether or not they have already learned of the connection 
  between Doji Chonitsu and Otomo Akio, they are likely 
  to eventually end up visiting the Second City, since it is 
  the epicenter of Colonial politics, commerce, and culture. 
  Alternatively, if the GM has decided to start the campaign 
  in the Colonies, with the PCs either being native-born or 
  previously arrived from Rokugan, they will already be 
  familiar with the Second City and may even live in or close 
  to it. In any case, it shouldn’t be difficult to arrange for the 
  PCs to attend the Second City and get themselves immersed 
  in its turbulent political landscape.
  The Second City is detailed in Book One of this boxed set, 
  and the GM should refer to that book for a comprehensive 
  description of the setting as a whole. Both that volume and 
  Book Two: The People will provide the GM with more than 
  enough general and background information to be able to 
  portray the Governor’s Court in considerable detail.
  the goVernor’s court 
  The best way to describe the Governor’s Court is as a 
  throng of courtiers and their various vassals and staff who 
  meet on a regular basis, usually in elegant quarters, in 
  the presence of senior officials such as the Chancellor of 
  the Left or, more rarely, the Governor herself. Proceedings 
  are staid and reserved, as is the Rokugani way, with 
  much precise bowing, whispered discussions, the use of 
  fans to hide expressions or convey specific meaning, and 
  formal proclamations with accompanying expressions 
  of surprise, delight or dismay (most of them feigned and 
  simply designed for public effect). Things are rarely what 
  they seem, with multiple meanings and intent layered 
  onto every action and statement; in turn, every word and 
  nuance of body language is scrutinized and analyzed, every 
  utterance studied for a possible misstep, every opportunity 
  for advantage seized and exploited. Court is every bit as a 
  much a battle as any field of clashing armies, except worse 
  – on a battlefield, it is usually clear who one’s enemies are, 
  and failure brings only death. Failure in court can lead to 
  shame, ridicule, and ruin of one’s reputation, which are far 
  worse fates than simple death to those who live by their 
  words and their honor.
  It is into this deceptively elegant quagmire of dealing, 
  double-dealing, gossip, rumor, and innuendo that the 
  PCs are thrust in this chapter, as they attempt to tease 
  out the truth about Otomo Akio and his relationship with 
  the enigmatic Doji Chonitsu. Success will greatly advance 
  their quest to stop the threat posed by the rakshasa. 
  Failure, on the other hand, will lead to death if the PCs are 
  fortunate…or much worse, if they are not.
  Otomo Akio, Karo  
   
  and Art Collector
  Otomo Akio is handsome man. He shows some of the 
  slim elegance of a Crane, but toughened into a broader, 
  more muscular physique. In fact, he has more Bayushi in 
  his blood than Doji, thanks to a Scorpion grandmother, 
  but prefers to accentuate his more distant Crane heritage 
  in how he presents himself. He moves with the smooth 
  grace of a skilled courtier and smiles constantly, all of 
  which helps draw attention from his eyes, which are 
  always mobile, flicking about and taking in every nuance 
  of who and what surrounds him. Nothing about the man 
  is ever out of place, unless he chooses it to be – in which 
  case the wise person should wonder why.
  Akio’s reputation precedes him. Not quite thirty years 
  old, he has nonetheless quickly risen to a position of great 
  prominence. Only a year ago, he was appointed karo to the 
  Chancellor of the Left. It was unheard of for someone so 
  young to rise so rapidly, even in the sometimes-unsettling 
  world of Governor Otomo Suikihime’s court, and fans 
  snapped and rose like a startled flock of colorful birds 
  hiding a hundred variations on shock and dismay. In an 
  instant Akio had gone from a good person to know to an 
  essential person to know, while those who had already 
  earned his disfavor groaned quietly in dismay. As for Akio 
  himself – his smile never changed, not even a fraction.
  Too Much Intrigue?
  In approaching this chapter, the GM should be 
  aware it is focused primarily on political scheming 
  and careful investigation; the situation is designed 
  to challenge the PCs in ways that do not necessar-
  ily involve combat or physical exploits. However, 
  not all players will enjoy a lengthy exercise in social 
  interaction and intrigue. There are situations present-
  ed that can, at the GM’s option, offer more martial 
  role-playing opportunities, but they are not the main 
  thrust of the chapter. The GM should gauge how well 
  and for how long his players, both individually and 
  collectively, will enjoy this sort of role-playing envi-
  ronment. The GM certainly has opportunities to move 
  the action back and forth between this chapter and 
  the others in order to vary the pace of the game; he 
  should not feel compelled to run this entire chapter 
  as one continuous block of story.
  50
  Chapter Five
  The SeCond CiTy
  
  motiVes for an inVestigation
  If the PCs conducted research into Doji Chonitsu’s 
  activities in the Colonies, they should have already 
  heard the name “Otomo Akio” as a prominent courtier 
  and a collector of gaijin artifacts. Depending on where 
  they started their investigations in the Colonies, they may 
  also have come across some connections between Akio 
  and events in outlying regions, such as his sponsorship of 
  the magistrate Miya Ichiko and of the Unicorn merchant 
  Ide Uchi. However, if they have begun their adventures 
  in the Second City, or traveled directly to the Second City 
  on arrival in the Colonies, they may not yet have much 
  reason to be particularly interested in the prominent 
  young Otomo. This may leave the GM wondering how to 
  hook the PCs into this part of the plot. There are a couple 
  of possible ways to deal with this problem:
   
  c
  Do nothing, and simply allow the PCs to wander 
  around the Second City without any particular 
  attention fixed on Akio. Book One of this boxed 
  set provides a wealth of information about the 
  City, and it may be worthwhile to just allow the 
  party some time to explore it and come to know 
  the place. Raniyah the Sly will be continuing her 
  scheming and nefarious dealings in the back-
  ground, but as long as the players are content to 
  investigate the City, there’s no particular reason to 
  accelerate the plot. When the GM judges that the 
  action needs to move forward, he can hook the PCs 
  into the plots at Kalani’s Landing or Journey’s End 
  Keep in Chapters Three and Four respectively, and 
  subsequently have the action return to Second City 
  and Otomo Akio.
   
  c
  Use the setting of the Second City and its Court 
  more directly, focusing the players’ attention on 
  Otomo Akio immediately. Once they investigate 
  him, this can lead them back to the other plotlines 
  in Chapters Three and Four, or the later ones in 
  Chapters Six and Seven. 
  meeting With otomo aKio 
   
  The PCs will have no difficulty seeing Otomo 
  Akio; he is present in the Ivory Court virtually every day, 
  kneeling at the right hand of Chancellor Otomo Takama, 
  watching the proceedings with keen eyes, directing a 
  scribe to take notes or occasionally taking personal notes 
  of his own, and bowing and nodding to instructions from 
  his superiors. 
  Actually meeting with Otomo Akio is another matter. 
  In general, he has little interest and even less time for 
  low-ranking clan samurai, and is likely to assign one of 
  his underlings to attend to them. If, however, the PCs 
  pique his interest, he will be willing to meet with them 
  personally – albeit briefly. The following are the things 
  most likely to arouse Akio’s interest:
   
  c
  PCs who are recently arrived from mainland 
  Rokugan. If Akio believes they may have news and 
  information from the Empire not yet possessed by 
  others, he will be keen to hear it, if only so he can 
  exploit it before others can. Note that the longer 
  the PCs have been in the Colonies, the less likely 
  their news will be “fresh” and thus the less inter-
  ested he will be.
   
  c
  PCs who possess or have information about gaijin 
  artifacts. They may have acquired such things on 
  their own (especially if they came to the Colonies 
  by means of the Ki-Rin’s Path), or the GM can ar-
  range for them to get such materials or informa-
  tion in order to provide a hook for them meet with 
  Akio. Note that Akio is discerning and reasonably 
  well-versed in the artifacts of the former Ivory 
  Kingdoms; he will not be easily fooled and will be 
  most displeased if believes the PCs are wasting his 
  time or, worse, attempting to dupe him.
   
  c
  The PCs are brought to his attention for other rea-
  sons. This could include a report from Miya Ichiko, 
  the magistrate from Kalani’s Landing to whom he 
  is a political patron, or reports from his agents in 
  Journey’s End Keep about PCs looking into gaijin 
  artifacts or investigating Doji Chonitsu. If the PCs 
  have been snooping around affairs Akio considers 
  sensitive and this is reported to him, he will be 
  eager to meet with them in order to find out their 
  motives and what they know (or suspect). 
  Irrespective of why he meets with the PCs, it will be 
  in a place of his choosing, normally a private audience 
  chamber he maintains near his own office in the 
  Governor’s Palace (he will not meet with the PCs in his 
  residence within Faun-ti’s Tower). The room will be small, 
  discreet, and decorated with a mix of tasteful Rokugani 
  artwork and more exotic Ivory Kingdoms items. He will 
  generally avoid meetings of any substance elsewhere, 
  preferring to always meet the PCs on his “home ground.” 
  51
  The Second ciTy
  chapter Five
  
  Akio’s demeanor in any meeting will be essentially 
  the same: a calm and gracious host, mildly interested 
  in whatever the PCs may have to say, but in no way 
  informative or committal. He is the consummate politician 
  and is quite capable of speaking for long periods without 
  saying anything of substance. Akio will employ all of his 
  considerable skill in attempting to discern what lies behind 
  the PCs’ words without giving anything away of his own. 
  He will not admit anything of significance, although he 
  will freely say he is a friend to Doji Chonitsu (“Doji-san 
  and I share an interest in the art of this new land”) and 
  a patron to Miya Ichiko (“I do my best to look out for 
  those honorable individuals whose service is worthy of 
  reward”). He will not admit to anything involving politics, 
  nor will he admit to his efforts to pressure the Spider into 
  destroying all Ivory Kingdoms temples within the Colonies.   
  Unless the PCs are extremely cautious in any meeting 
  with Akio, it is likely their questions and interests will 
  cause him to mark them as potential enemies. See later 
  in the chapter for a discussion of how Akio will react to 
  perceived threats.
  Rumors in Court
  The Ivory Court is a complex, swirling dynamic of 
  deals, double-deals, agreements, insults, gossip, toadying, 
  back-stabbing, and innuendo. Needless to say, finding 
  useful information about anyone, let alone someone as 
  prominent as Otomo Akio, is difficult at best. The GM 
  should offer descriptions of the Governor’s Palace bustling 
  with sycophants and hangers-on chattering earnestly 
  among themselves; bureaucrats and lesser functionaries 
  hurrying to and fro carrying messages, letters, and 
  miscellaneous paperwork; clan delegations seeking and 
  awaiting audiences with important persons or even with 
  each other; not to mention servants weaving through 
  the crowd delivering food and drink, clearing away the 
  remnants of same, and performing all 
  the menial tasks that keep the Court 
  running. Once the PCs start actively 
  seeking information (most likely aided 
  with Courtier or Investigation rolls), 
  the GM can provide them with an array 
  of rumors that are both useful and 
  distracting – see the sidebar “Other Clues 
  and Rumors of Court” for material – 
  requiring them to sift through and find 
  what is helpful. However, the GM should 
  be wary of overwhelming the players 
  with too much information or too many 
  distractions, lest the entire campaign 
  become derailed. 
  The following pieces of information 
  are the ones important to this chapter 
  of the campaign; these are the clues the 
  PCs need if they are to make progress 
  against Otomo Akio. It is up to the GM 
  how much effort and role-play (and how 
  many Skill rolls or Courtier Technique 
  applications) to require before the PCs can locate these 
  clues; the search for clues could easily take up an entire 
  game session if so desired, and the GM should not feel 
  compelled to point the PCs at all of these clues at once; 
  the PCs could gradually become aware of them over time, 
  or even overlook some of them completely. Each of the 
  clues here points to an NPC who has information that will 
  assist the PCs greatly, but none are absolutely essential to 
  moving the plot forward.
   
  c
  Bayushi Toshiko, a relatively senior Scorpion 
  courtier-ko, was recently snubbed by Otomo Akio. 
  Akio made an announcement as to which mem-
  bers of the Court were invited to a formal dinner 
  honoring the anniversary of the Governor’s ascen-
  sion to rule of the Colonies, and while doing so he 
  pronounced Toshiko’s name incorrectly. When he 
  was discreetly corrected, Akio bowed his apology, 
  but many believe the bow was insufficiently deep 
  to be considered sincere.
   
  c
  Ide Sadao, a low-ranking member of the Unicorn 
  delegation, was recently seen leaving Akio’s meet-
  ing chamber with a look of barely-concealed fury 
  on his face. Of course, Sadao is considered rather 
  brash and uncouth by many of the “proper” mem-
  bers of Court, so such a failure to maintain his on 
  is of no great surprise.
   
  c
  Otomo Shigeo, an older but relatively minor mem-
  ber of the Otomo family’s delegation, abruptly ex-
  cused himself during a proclamation being made 
  in Court by Akio on behalf of the Chancellor of 
  the Left. Apparently, he sent a message of apology 
  immediately thereafter, explaining he has recently 
  been ill and had no choice but to take his leave. 
  Akio reportedly accepted the explanation with 
  good grace and wished his cousin a speedy recov-
  ery. However, the PCs will hear rumors that Shigeo 
  was being considered for the position of karo to 
  the Chancellor before the post was suddenly given 
  to Akio.
  52
  Chapter Five
  The SeCond CiTy
  
  Other Clues and Rumors in Court
  This sidebar presents a mixture of clues and gossip the PCs can pick up in the Second City – either within 
  the Ivory Court itself, or in less formal settings such as tea-rooms and geisha houses where people share stories 
  over cups of sake. Some of these items are wholly unrelated to this campaign and are presented here simply 
  as “fluff” to fill out the City’s courtly chit-chat and give a sense of life and greater purpose to the ongoing 
  political scheming. Such items are dead-ends from the perspective of this campaign, but the GM could easily 
  develop them into sub-plots or side-adventures, or even use them as concepts for later campaigns of his own. 
  The Colonial setting is expansive enough for many adventures, after all! 
  In addition, some of these gossip items are actually clues to help connect the PCs to events in the other chap-
  ters of this book. These can be especially useful if the players chose to come to the Second City first instead of 
  investigating at Kalani’s Landing or Journey’s End City. 
  A Mantis courtier is overhead mentioning the price of certain Rokugani commodities – especially Kaiu 
  steel, which must be imported from Rokugan because iron ore in the Colonies isn’t suited to producing it – is 
  expected to rise. The reason is related to a large shipment that was lost somewhere along the “safe lane” 
  leading through the Sea of Shadows. The Mantis Clan, however, will insist publicly that no shipments have 
  been lost.
  There are rumors of a samurai murdered by one of the Ivinda natives in the province of Shiro Hebi, just to 
  the north of the Second City. Supposedly the local lord, Mirumoto Kokure, has ordered all the Ivinda in his 
  province killed in retaliation.  
  A pair of Scorpion courtiers are overhead discussing a recent attempt on the life of a senior member of 
  their delegation, and speculating it is somehow related to a political scandal involving an affair between the 
  spouses of two high-ranking clan members back in Rokugan. This is completely false; the two courtiers are, 
  in fact, conducting a “social experiment” in how rumors propagate, and intend to track the progress of this 
  one through the Court. At least, if they’re seriously challenged on it, that’s what they’ll claim...
  A Dragon shugenja-ko named Tamori Tamanako recently departed the Second City to return to Rokugan 
  for an arranged marriage. However, there are persistent rumors she recently bore a child from a secret 
  affair. Somehow the matter was hushed up and the child sent away.      
  A Yasuki courtier is overhead telling a Mantis bushi that a shadowy figure was seen leaving a scroll outside 
  the door of a certain Phoenix courtier’s bedchamber last night—or it may have been the night before. The 
  next day, the Phoenix was visibly troubled, spoke very little, and retired from Court early. The shadowy 
  figure was clad in dark robes, but the person who witnessed it was sure they caught a flash of blue – or it 
  may have been green – as the figure turned away.
  A Kakita maiden with a reputation as a skilled duelist was approached by an Otomo and asked if she would 
  be willing to stand as the Otomo’s champion in the event of a duel... or so says a rumor the PCs will hear 
  from several different sources, each time with slightly different details. It may have been a Daidoji instead 
  of a Kakita, and it may have been a Miya or Seppun instead of an Otomo, and the duel may have been 
  imminent rather than merely possible.
  Supposedly the Unicorn at Journey’s End Keep are allowing greatly expanded trade with the gaijin of the 
  Burning Sands, so much so that the Keep has become practically a foreign settlement. However, they are 
  paying a price for this leniency, as many of the gaijin have been committing crimes. For example, supposedly 
  a gaijin attacked a Crane courtier in the street, and a prominent Unicorn merchant named Ide Uchi has 
  been robbed – twice! – by gaijin criminals.  
  A rumor is circulating that a prominent member of Court – apparently a senior member of either the 
  Lion or Unicorn delegations – has reclused himself (or herself) from Court proceedings, without giving an 
  indication as to why or when they intend to return. From here, the rumor spins into speculation, ranging 
  from an unexpected pregnancy, to a sudden bout of serious illness, to a petulant fit of rage over some slight 
  (real or imagined) from one of the the Chancellors, the Ivory Champion, or even the Governor herself.
  The latest set of maps and reports of the frontier from the Imperial Explorers and the Spider Clan prompt 
  a series of rumors about the surviving Ivinda natives supposedly having a great temple hidden somewhere 
  in the jungle. Some rumors claim this alleged temple is a remnant of the Ivory Kingdoms civilization, while 
  others suggest it is a hideout for the remaining members of the Cult of the Destroyer.  
  A prominent member of the Spider Clan is supposedly about to announce he is renouncing his clan, as 
  well as Fu Leng and Daigotsu, and will be seeking redemption and “purification” among the Dragon 
  as a monk. The Spider, it is said, are furious at this “betrayal” and seek nothing less than the death 
  of this individual, who is, the story goes on, in hiding somewhere in the Second City or nearby. 
  53
  The Second ciTy
  chapter Five
  
   
  c
  Doji Shumiko is Otomo Akio’s own karo, and is 
  known as a quick and clever young woman. How-
  ever, she has lately been seen looking pensive and 
  distracted. Further investigation reveals the young 
  Doji has been seen attending the Shrine to Fuku-
  rokujin in the Temple District several times in the 
  past few days, and one on occasion twice in the 
  same day.
  Following upon these rumors and bits of gossip will 
  likely lead the PCs to attempt to speak further with 
  Bayushi Toshiko, Ide Sadao, Otomo Shigeo, and Doji 
  Shumiko. Each possible discussion is outlined in the 
  following sections.
  Bayushi toshiKo
  Bayushi Toshiko is a handsome woman in her early 
  thirties. She was born in Rokugan and came to the Colonies 
  immediately after her gempukku, one of a group of young 
  courtiers dispatched by the Scorpion to this new world 
  in order to get and maintain an early grip on political 
  power. She dresses in a non-traditional fashion for a 
  Scorpion, eschewing the usual blacks and reds in favor of 
  kimono of pale green, grey, or blue, usually embroidered 
  with images of lush mountains or jungle flora. Her mask 
  is simple and spare, with its only ornamentation a series 
  of abstract shapes obviously designed to draw the viewer’s 
  eyes directly to hers. The PCs will find her gaze to be keen 
  and searching, perhaps disconcertingly so. Toshiko is a 
  consummate Bayushi courtier and therefore a dangerous 
  political adversary; the fact that she is consistently 
  outmaneuvered in court by Otomo Akio should underscore 
  his political acumen. 
  Akio seems to have turned their rivalry into something 
  of a game, publicly goading Toshiko (by, for example, 
  “incorrectly” speaking her name during a formal 
  pronouncement) while privately working against her and 
  her courtly interests. She has no idea why the Otomo has 
  singled her out for his particular attention. The reason 
  is actually quite straightforward: Akio does not like the 
  Scorpion generally, considering them underhanded and 
  responsible for much of the political unrest that has 
  plagued the Empire throughout its history. Worse, they are 
  still widely seen as the natural political counterbalance to 
  the Crane — a position Akio believes should belong to his 
  own family, the Otomo. If Akio had his way, the Scorpion 
  would remain a minor force in the Colonies, allowing the 
  Otomo to evolve into the political force they should be. 
  The best he can otherwise do is work at undermining their 
  attempts to further their own interests. Thus he chooses to 
  disrupt and keep off-balance the woman he considers to 
  be their most competent politician in the Colonies. 
  If Toshiko knew this, she would probably be flattered… 
  to a point, anyway. As it is, she has come to despise 
  Otomo Akio. However, she is a canny enough courtier 
  that she doesn’t let her feelings show; she simply rides out 
  his numerous little outrages with bland grace. However, 
  if an opportunity presents itself for her to humble Akio 
  – even better, to ruin him utterly – she will not hesitate 
  to capitalize on it. It would have to be a near-certain 
  opportunity, however; Toshiko did not get to where she is 
  by taking ill-considered risks.
  If the PCs meet with Toshiko, they find her a charming 
  hostess. However, she will be cool to any group that doesn’t 
  include at least one Scorpion; such a group will 
  require time to build up her trust and even 
  then will have to make her assistance 
  worth her while in some fashion. (The 
  only commodity that matters to her 
  is information; material bribes will 
  earn little from her but scorn.) She 
  will warm more quickly to a group 
  that 
  includes 
  Scorpion 
  characters, 
  particularly if they are known to her 
  either personally or by reputation (e.g. 
  having Status or Glory close to hers). 
  In any case, Toshiko will not rush into 
  a trusted relationship with anyone, 
  and will certainly seek something of 
  value in return for any information she 
  provides—even if it is simply a promise of 
  future favors. 
  Bayushi Toshiko can provide the 
  following pieces of information, in 
  ascending order of the level of trust 
  required for her reveal them. The GM 
  54
  Chapter Five
  The SeCond CiTy
  
  will have to judge whether the PCs have gained sufficient 
  credibility with Toshiko for her to provide the next piece 
  of information.
   
  c
  Her initial small talk is just that — small talk. 
  However, Toshiko will use the opportunity to 
  discern the PC’s motives and intentions, rolling her 
  Courtier (Manipulation) / Awareness, opposed by 
  either Sincerity (Honesty or Deceit, as appropriate) 
  / Awareness or perhaps Etiquette (Courtesy or 
  Conversation, as appropriate) / Awareness. If the 
  PCs prevail, Toshiko will accept their assertions at 
  face value, but will remain wary. If Toshiko wins 
  the contested roll, she will realize the PCs are 
  seeking more than they are letting on. This won’t 
  necessarily put her off (she’s quite used to hidden 
  agendas), but it will make her even more cautious.
   
  c
  If the PCs bring up the matter of Otomo Akio’s 
  difficult relationship with her, she won’t deny it 
  – it’s actually common knowledge – but she will 
  try to pass it off as just another facet of court 
  life, attributing it to a tacit acknowledgement by 
  Akio that the Scorpion are a political force to be 
  reckoned with. She won’t, however, rise to any 
  baiting by the PCs regarding Akio, nor will she 
  openly reveal her true hatred for him – she’s too 
  smart for that. If the PCs want to penetrate the 
  veil she places over her feelings, they will need 
  to make Courtier (Manipulation) / Awareness 
  rolls, contested by Toshiko’s Sincerity (Deceit) / 
  Awareness. If they succeed, they will catch a brief 
  glimpse of the venom behind her words when she 
  speaks about Akio.
   
  c
  Toshiko has no particular opinion on Akio’s 
  reputed fascination with gaijin artifacts. If pressed, 
  she will acknowledge it as somewhat peculiar, 
  but notes that the habits of many in the Colonies 
  seem “peculiar” from a Rokugani point of view. 
  During the course of the conversation, she may 
  offhandedly offer there are others who share 
  Akio’s interest in gaijin trinkets, such as a Crane 
  named Doji Chonitsu. It is up to the GM if he wants 
  to provide a hard link between Akio and Chonitsu 
  at this point, but if the PCs haven’t yet made the 
  connection, this is a good opportunity to give it to 
  them. Toshiko doesn’t know any details (although 
  she does know that Akio himself has been breaking 
  the law to smuggle his artifacts into the city – see 
  below), but she can confirm that the two have met 
  and have discussed at length the “barbaric bits of 
  pottery” that seem to fascinate both of them. If 
  the PCs seem greatly interested in this connection, 
  they will pique her interest and prompt her to begin 
  asking what they know about the matter. This may 
  call for further Contested Social rolls. If the PCs at 
  this point really do know something substantially 
  problematic about the relationship between Akio 
  and Chonitsu, and Toshiko senses that, she will 
  press them even harder. She’d be thrilled to bring 
  Otomo Akio down and won’t pass up a potential 
  opportunity to do so.
   
  c
  If the PCs manage to build a significant degree of 
  trust with Toshiko, she may offer the information 
  that she’s far from the only person in court who 
  finds Otomo Akio “off-putting.” This is hardly 
  earth-shaking news, of course; to some in 
  Rokugani politics, a courtier’s success is measured 
  by the number of enemies he has made (and how 
  many of them are still alive). If the PCs want 
  specifics, she suggests they may wish to speak to 
  Ide Sadao of the Unicorn delegation. She will offer 
  little detail other than the notion that Sadao has 
  some issue with Akio related to “crass commerce” 
  (said with a dismissive hand-wave). This is, in fact, 
  true; Toshiko has attempted to learn more about 
  Sadao’s problems with Akio, but is completely put 
  off by the gruff Unicorn, not to mention matters of 
  commerce which she considers base and uncouth.
   
  c
  She may also offer that some among the Otomo 
  family itself have issues with Otomo Akio. However, 
  she will have to have developed a solid base of 
  trust in the PCs before she’ll name Otomo Shigeo. 
  What she knows is that Shigeo despises Akio as 
  much as she does, if not more, and it is a hatred 
  born of resentment and thwarted ambition. She 
  has no interest in Shigeo beyond his usefuleness 
  as a tool against Akio; frankly, she believes Shigeo 
  is a buffoon, who probably deserved to be passed 
  over in favor of more capable people. If she can 
  use him to strike at Akio, and it happens to bring 
  Shigeo to final ruin in the process, she won’t lose 
  any sleep over it. And if the PCs appear, to her, as a 
  way to further manipulate Shigeo, while allowing 
  her to stay at arm’s length…so much the better.
   
  c
  Finally, Toshiko has one truly devastating piece of 
  information: she knows that Seppun Toriko, the 
  Mistress of the Gates, has on several occasions 
  allowed Otomo Akio’s gaijin artworks to pass 
  through the gates of the Imperial District without 
  proper inspection. This is a very valuable piece of 
  information which Toshiko has been holding for 
  several months, waiting for an opportune time to 
  use it – the PCs will have to truly impress her for 
  her to share it with them. 
  The bottom line is that Toshiko will appear to be a 
  gracious paragon of courtly charm, and a potentially 
  powerful ally to the PCs, but she is first and foremost 
  a cunning and ruthless Scorpion courtier. She will not 
  hesitate to manipulate the PCs, use them to further her 
  own and her clan’s interests, take whatever she can from 
  them, and leave them owing her favors — and most of all 
  she will not put herself out for them or expose herself to 
  any significant risk on their behalf. If she believes turning 
  on the PCs will be to her advantage, she won’t hesitate a 
  heartbeat in doing so.
  55
  The Second ciTy
  chapter Five
  
  bayuShi ToShiKo, SKiLLed CourTier
  Air: 3
  EArth: 2
  FirE: 3
  WAtEr: 2
  Void: 3
  AWArEnESS: 4 WillpoWEr: 3
  pEEcEption: 3
  Honor: 3.0
  Status: 3.5
  Glory: 5.6
  School/Rank: Bayushi Courtier 4
  Skills: Acting 3, Artisan: Poetry 4, Calligraphy (Ci-
  pher) 4, Courtier (Rhetoric, Manipulation) 6, Defense 1, 
  Etiquette (Conversation, Courtesy) 6, Games: Letters 3, 
  Games: Sadane 3, Investigation (Interrogation) 4, Lore: 
  Heraldry 3, Lore: Theology 3, Meditation 2, Perform: Ora-
  tory 4, Perform: Storytelling 3, Sincerity (Honesty, Deceit) 
  5, Temptation 5 
  Advantages: Allies (many), Blackmail (many), Crafty, So-
  cial Position (prominent courtier)
  ide sadao
  Ide Sadao is short, squat man, with leathery 
  weatherbeaten skin, a scruffy beard, and a drooping “Fu 
  Manchu” moustache. He lumbers about on bandy legs 
  bowed from a life in the saddle, and when he smiles, he 
  grins, exposing a gleaming tooth of gold. He is every bit 
  the uncouth barbarian many proper Rokugani believe the 
  Unicorn to be; in fact, some of this image is clearly played 
  up for effect. Ide Sadao is actually a clever and resourceful 
  man, well-versed in Rokugani political etiquette, which is 
  why he knows just how far he can bend the conventions 
  without entirely breaking them. He is a wealthy merchant 
  patron and caravan owner, a veteran of more than a dozen 
  crossings of the Ki-Rin’s Path to Rokugan. 
  It is Sadao’s commercial interests which lie at the heart 
  of his problems with Otomo Akio. For reasons he has yet to 
  fathom, Akio has endorsed Sadao’s fiercest rival, Ide Uchi, 
  in the trade of gaijin and other goods through Journey’s 
  End Keep (see Chapter Four for more details). Sadao has 
  found himself effectively shut out of the lucrative trade 
  with the Burning Sands. Moreover, because this has left 
  him essentially idle in the Second City, the head of the 
  Unicorn delegation to the Ivory Court has seen fit to 
  appoint Sadao to a relatively minor court position. It’s 
  bad enough that the adventurous Ide now finds himself 
  relegated to tedious bureaucratic duties, but he has to 
  perform them daily under the lofty gaze of Otomo Akio, 
  the very man he blames for his predicament in the first 
  place!
  In short, Ide Sadao is not a happy man. However, he 
  does a good job of hiding his frustration and resentment 
  behind a veneer of gruff congeniality. He is actually a 
  reasonably skilled courtier — Sadao long ago learned the 
  same people skills that serve so well in court are just as 
  applicable to the mercantile world — but usually conceals 
  this by playing up his persona as a coarse, crude, and 
  sometimes outright rude “outsider.” While this makes 
  Sadao colorful and definitely unforgettable, it also leads 
  others to underestimate him or take him for granted — 
  errors in judgment which he is only too happy to exploit.
  The PCs will find that in the Ivory Court (or close to 
  the Governor’s Palace in general) Sadao is brashly genial 
  but also entirely uncomittal. He doesn’t especially like 
  politicians and certainly doesn’t like being around them, 
  so he will tend to be evasive and abrupt. Nor is he the sort 
  to chat to over tea. If they persist in trying to engage him 
  in this sort of setting, the PCs will have to make a Courtier 
  (Manipulation) / Awareness roll against a high TN to 
  persuade Sadao to have a substantive meeting with them. 
  Even then, he will prove less than gracious and will not 
  provide any information beyond a few basics, as follows:
   
  c
  Sadao makes no secret of the fact that he 
  doesn’t like being “stuck” in the Ivory Court. He 
  considers himself an adventurer, a trader and if 
  circumstances demand a warrior, not a politician. 
  If the PCs explore this, they will learn Sadao has 
  made numerous trips to and from Rokugan via 
  the Ki-Rin’s Path and in the past has taken a trade 
  caravan into the Burning Sands as far as the fabled 
  city of Medinaat al-Salaam. He clearly wants out 
  of his courtly duties so he can go back to Journey’s 
  End Keep and resume his “rightful place” as an 
  explorer and trader. (If he’s asked about the sea 
  route to Rokugan, he’ll scoff and snap a comment 
  about “wasting time wafting across an endless 
  expanse of water and boredom.”)
   
  c
  If the PCs mention Ide Uchi (most likely due to 
  having already played through the events of 
  Chapter Four), a dark scowl will cross Sadao’s face, 
  but other than acknowledging Uchi as a “business 
  rival” he won’t elaborate. He will have a similar 
  reaction regarding Otomo Akio but will say even 
  less.
   
  c
  On the other hand, if the PC’s bring up the events 
  of Chapter Three (the issues in and around Kalani’s 
  Landing), Sadao will offer a blank shrug. He has 
  heard of some of the individuals involved, but 
  knows nothing about the situation and cares even 
  less. His interests clearly lie north of the Second 
  City.
  If the PCs really want to communicate with Ide Sadao, 
  they will need to meet with him in the sort of surroundings 
  he prefers — the dim anonymity of a sake house or noodle 
  shop will do fine, as long as it’s well away from the Palace, 
  so the various establishments of that sort in the Merchant 
  and Artisan Districts will do well. If the PCs do some 
  digging, however — perhaps by surreptitiously following 
  Sadao in the evening after he leaves the Ivory Court, or by 
  rolling Investigation or Courtier (Gossip) against a fairly 
  high TN – they can learn that Sadao frequents a geisha 
  house on the Artisan District’s Licensed Quarter: the House 
  of Radiant Fog. If the PCs choose to meet with him there, 
  they can potentially find him at his most communicative.
  56
  Chapter Five
  The SeCond CiTy
  
  The houSe of radianT fog
  Although it is depicted here for the specific purpose of 
  giving the PCs a less formal venue in which to meet Ide 
  Sadao, the House of Radiant Fog can be used for many 
  other purposes as the GM sees fit – meetings with other 
  NPCs, an informal base of operations for the PCs, or 
  simply a locale for some light-hearted roleplaying (which 
  is especially valuable in a campaign that may otherwise be 
  full of unrelenting tension and menace).
  The House of Radiant Fog is a large two-story wooden 
  building, set back from the street. It is fronted by a small 
  courtyard with a lush garden of native plants, including 
  a single large date palm that predates the Second 
  City’s construction, as well as leafy ferns, broad-leafed 
  succulents, and a riot of flowering shrubs and vines. The 
  flagstone path from the gate to the front door winds an 
  S-turn through the foliage, making it impossible to see the 
  door from the street. The place is otherwise unremarkable, 
  with no signs or markers to advertise it other than a large 
  paper lantern hanging over the gate; the lantern has the 
  kanji for “fog” stenciled onto it.  
  The front of the House is essentially a restaurant, 
  offering a mix of traditional Rokugani food and a few 
  native dishes based on fish, vegetables, and fruit. The 
  sake and tea are supplemented by a native liquor called 
  taadi, made from fermented palm sugar. Quality of both 
  food and drink are middling – decent, but not exceptional 
  by any means. The front of the House of Radiant Fog is 
  typically busy, but there are several discreet tables tucked 
  into the back and separated by teak screens, offering a 
  reasonable amount of privacy for groups of up to six. 
  If the PCs want to get deeper into the House, they 
  will have to consult with the matron (also called the 
  “mama-san”), a dour older woman named Satoka (Wise 
  Flower). Satoka generally hovers about the front room, 
  keeping an eye out for customers, trouble, or both. If 
  she is approached about the services of geisha, she will 
  take such customers to a private room in the back of the 
  house, on either the first or second floor. While there is no 
  fee for this, Satoka expects the samurai to offer a gift of 
  some sort (koku are fine) to “honor the House.” The rooms 
  are rather plain, but discreet and private, with wooden 
  walls stout enough to prevent all but the most determined 
  eavesdropping. The geisha themselves are charming young 
  woman, skilled in serving food and drink and in various 
  sorts of performance, including singing, playing musical 
  instruments, and dancing. 
  57
  The Second ciTy
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  c
  Given the chance, Sadao will bemoan his lot in 
  life, stuck in the stuffy confines of the Ivory Court 
  when he truly wishes to be traveling the open road 
  and feeling –as he rather poetically puts it – “the 
  night wind” on his face. He hastens to add that he 
  is not disloyal and will do as his lord commands. 
  Nonetheless, his heart is clearly that of a wanderer. 
  If the PCs ask him why he isn’t journeying or 
  exploring, his face will darken and he will mutter, 
  “the Fortunes have decreed otherwise for me…and 
  by Fortunes, I really mean certain men who are 
  best left unnamed.”
   
  c
  If he is pressed on this issue, Sadao will finally offer 
  up the name of Ide Uchi, his rival in Journey’s End 
  Keep. The PCs will also begin to learn that Sadao 
  is motivated by more than simple wanderlust; he 
  is also interested in profiting from his travels. 
  (Indeed, his interest in this is such that a proper 
  samurai would probably find unseemly – Sadao 
  often sounds not unlike a money-grubbing Yasuki 
  or Yoritomo.) It soon becomes clear that Sadao is 
  most bitter at being shut out of a very lucrative 
  trade in foreign goods from the Burning Sands 
  – not because Ide Uchi is the better businessman 
  or more canny merchant, oh no, but because he 
  has the unfair advantage of patronage from high 
  places, right here in the Second City.
   
  c
  Sadao won’t hesitate to name Doji Chonitsu as part 
  of that slippery knot of patronage that grants Ide 
  Uchi trade opportunities “too good for the likes 
  of him.” However, he becomes more reticent if 
  asked who else is involved, and will initially try 
  to avoid naming Otomo Akio. Sadao knows Akio 
  is a cunning and ruthless politician and is wary 
  of crossing him. If the PCs have managed to give 
  Sadao any sense that they aren’t playing straight 
  with him or are just too eager to get information, 
  he may get spooked. It wouldn’t be beyond Akio, 
  after all, to plant agents to ferret out those who 
  might be his enemies. The GM will have to play 
  this carefully, and if the PCs have made Sadao 
  nervous they’ll have to work hard to get any more 
  out of him. Fortunately, Sadao is desperate for any 
  opportunity to break free of his current situation.
   
  c
  Ultimately, the PCs will have to earn Sadao’s trust 
  to get him to name Otomo Akio or to acknowledge a 
  connection between Akio and Doji Chonitsu. This is 
  ultimately up to the GM’s judgment, but in general 
  if the PCs are meeting Sadao in the comfortable 
  surroundings of the House of Radiant Fog, if he 
  has been put at ease (such as with sake and good 
  food), if they have said or at least intimated that 
  they are prepared to assist him in disentangling 
  himself from the politics of the Second City, and 
  most of all if they haven’t given him reason to 
  distrust them, he will eventually be forthcoming. 
  Sadao hasn’t been a merchant patron as long as he 
  has without making connections. He has learned 
  Doji Chonitsu is an associate of Otomo Akio, and 
  that Akio is behind Ide Uchi’s rise to fortune at his 
  expense. He isn’t sure why the Otomo has chosen 
  Geisha of the House of 
  Radiant Fog
  Geisha are first and foremost entertainers, devoted 
  to providing samurai with companionship and relax-
  ation. Geisha occupy a unique place in the social or-
  der; they are hinin, non-persons, and yet are treated 
  with courtesy and respect by most samurai. They pro-
  vide a vital service by giving tightly-wound samurai 
  a means of regaining their humanity and venting 
  pent-up emotions without the embarrassment of do-
  ing so in the presence of an actual person. They also 
  can become a “safe” object of romance for passionate 
  samurai, since keeping a concubine does not carry 
  the same social disapproval as a romance with a fel-
  low samurai.
  Geisha traditionally have simply, playful names 
  that are easy for their customers to remember. GMs 
  who wish to give the population of the House of Ra-
  diant Fog some character and depth can use the fol-
  lowing list of names:
  Ichimitsu 
  First (or Best) Light
  Ichisumi  
  Most Refined
  Koito 
  Little Thread
  Koyuki 
  Little Snow
  Miu  
  Little Feather
  Teruha 
  Shining Leaf
  meeTing ide Sadao aT   
   
   
  The houSe of radianT fog
  Since the whole point of geisha and the companionship 
  they provide is based on privacy and discretion, the PCs 
  will have to be similarly discreet about how they go about 
  finding Ide Sadao. The GM may wish to facilitate this 
  by allowing the PCs to catch a glimpse of him through 
  a door as it closes, or hear his voice from inside a room. 
  In any case, the PCs may then attempt to engage Sadao 
  in conversation. The GM should emphasize this is highly 
  irregular; generally, a samurai in a geisha house is 
  considered by unspoken etiquette to be “off-limits” for 
  official business with respect to everyone but his lord. A 
  smart approach would be to have a message delivered to 
  Sadao that they will be waiting for him in the front of the 
  House, or in another room. If they simply knock on his 
  door and interrupt, however, Sadao is unlikely to be well-
  disposed to them and will certainly expect an apology for 
  their rudeness.
  Assuming the PCs are ultimately able to sit down with 
  Sadao – in the House of Radiant Fog or somewhere similar 
  – under more-or-less amicable circumstances, they will 
  find him relaxed and readily approachable. As a result, he 
  has significantly more information he can share:
  58
  Chapter Five
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  to favor Uchi and doesn’t really care. He simply 
  wants in on the action — or, more to the point, he 
  wants Uchi out of the action so he can take it over.
   
  c
  If the PCs continue questioning Sadao about Akio 
  and Chonitsu, he can offer two other pieces of 
  information they may find useful. First, although 
  Doji Chonitsu is (as far as Sadao knows) Akio’s 
  political junior, the relationship reported back 
  to him portrays them more as equals. Certainly 
  Chonitsu wields much more influence with Akio 
  than one would expect from a mere merchant 
  patron. Second, Akio apparently has something 
  Chonitsu wants. Sadao isn’t sure what it is, other 
  than it is some item (or items) of Ivory Kingdoms 
  origin. It would appear Chonitsu is expending 
  considerable effort on Akio’s behalf, presumably as 
  part of a deal to obtain whatever it is he is seeking 
  from the Otomo. Sadao knows nothing more than 
  this, but would be extremely interested in learning 
  more details, if only as a way of insinuating 
  himself into the Akio-Chonitsu-Uchi triangle and 
  gaining leverage over some or all of them. 
  ide Sadao, Cunning merChanT
  Air: 3
  EArth: 3
  FirE: 2
  WAtEr: 3
  Void: 2
  AWArEnESS: 4
  intElligEncE: 3
  Honor: 4.2
  Status: 2.5
  Glory: 3.8
  Infamy: 2.1
  School/Rank: Ide Diplomat 3
  Skills: Athletics 2, Commerce (Merchant) 5, Courtier 3, 
  Defense 2, Etiquette 3, Horsemanship 5, Hunting (Sur-
  vival) 3, Investigation 3, Kenjutsu 2, Lore: Burning Sands 
  4, Lore: Law 2, Lore: Theology 2, Medicine 3, Sincerity 3 
  Advantages: Servants, Way of the Land (Ki-Rin’s Path), 
  Wealth
  Disadvantages: Bad Reputation, Compulsion 
  (geisha, sake), Sworn Enemy (Ide Uchi)
  otomo shigeo
  Otomo Shigeo is short balding man in 
  his forties who stands and walks with a 
  perpetual hunch, as though he’s always 
  carrying a tiresome burden. His face tries to 
  maintain the bland affability of a practiced 
  courtier, but his eyes are a touch too hard, 
  his thin mouth a little too quick to switch 
  from empty smile to pinched frown. A whiff 
  of sourness leaks around the edges of his 
  blank charm, like a plate of food that looks 
  appetizing at first but is clearly about to go 
  bad. Shigeo is a man whose unhappiness is 
  profound, and he has been that way for a 
  long time — indeed, for what amounts to 
  all of his life.
  and personal way. He blames Akio for stealing from 
  him his final and greatest chance to vindicate a career 
  of undeserved failure and lost opportunities. A lifetime 
  of thwarted ambition has been distilled to a bitterness so 
  concentrated it is like acid, and it eats away at Shigeo, 
  hollowing him out beneath his detached mask of courtly 
  dignity. Shigeo is an explosion of outrage, perhaps even of 
  violence, just waiting to happen.
   
  If the PCs approach Shigeo, their first impression 
  will be that of just another relatively minor courtier of 
  limited skill and ambition. Even without Social Skill rolls, 
  however, this initial impression will quickly give way to 
  that of a man who is deeply angry about something, trying 
  hard to suppress it and not quite succeeding. Any attempts 
  to probe further will encounter little to no resistance, 
  and the GM may even wish to award bonuses to PCs 
  using Skills or Techniques against Shigeo; for example, 
  a Bayushi Courtier using “Secrets are Birthmarks” could 
  receive a Free Raise when attempting to glean information 
  from Shigeo about his true feelings or motives. Shigeo isn’t 
  entirely an open book, but it takes little effort to discern 
  that his anger and bitterness are particularly focused 
  on Otomo Akio. However, while he’s a relatively poor 
  courtier, he isn’t truly stupid; he’ll refrain from openly 
  saying anything especially incriminating or insulting 
  about Akio. For example, he will not say anything like, 
  “Otomo Akio stole the karo position that was mine by 
  right,” but he will certainly say things like “Otomo Akio’s 
  shadow looms large over this court,” or “I am honored 
  to follow my esteemed cousin Otomo Akio as he rises to 
  greatness” in a tone of acidic hatred. 
  The question for the PCs, of course, is what to do with 
  this information. It should not be difficult to manipulate 
  Shigeo into overtly turning against Akio and speaking out 
  against his cousin. However, aside from getting Shigeo 
  shamed and forced to commit seppuku, this will probably 
  59
  The Second ciTy
  chapter Five
  
  Other Approaches to the NPCs
  Throughout this chapter, it is assumed the PCs are likely to approach the various NPC personalities — Bayushi Toshiko, Ide Sadao, 
  Otomo Shigeo, and Doji Shumiko — in a diplomatic and rather “soft” way, using social persuasion to uncover what they know. However, 
  not all interpersonal relationships are so amicable, and some PCs may be tempted to try other approaches. Perhaps such methods better 
  fit their characters’ personalities, or perhaps they believe they are facing a time constraint and don’t have the luxury of using the “soft 
  approach.” A Yoritomo Courtier may be inclined to use bluster and intimidation, a Yasuki may prefer bribery, a Bayushi may want to 
  dig up some dirt for blackmail purposes. The GM shouldn’t feel bound to restrict the players to any particular approach; this is colonial 
  Rokugan, after all, and dirty underhanded politics are as much a part of the setting as persuasive chats over tea. The following points 
  may be useful if the PCs choose a less diplomatic approach to each of these NPCs.
  Bayushi Toshiko – As a skilled Scorpion courtier, Toshiko is a tough nut to crack. She comes from the clan that is essentially synonymous 
  with dirty politics, and would not be where she is if she wasn’t good at burying the skeletons of her past rather than just hiding them in 
  the proverbial closet. She is also resistant to threats or violence, since she knows she has the backing of the Scorpion Clan against anyone 
  foolish enough to resort to such methods. The PCs will probably have to deal her in the way she prefers if they are to get anywhere. 
  Ide Sadao – The gruff Ide is far from morally pristine and has underlying motives the PCs should be able to exploit. He is greedy by 
  nature, so he is probably open to bribery. That said, he is a wily merchant, so while he may have his price it will be steep. If the GM 
  wants to dangle a hook for potential blackmail, assume Sadao has begun a romance with one of the geisha in the House of Radiant Fog; 
  perhaps she is even carrying or has born his child. While this is far from rare in Rokugan, it would still be an embarrassment in court 
  and the last thing Sadao wants while trying to escape the drudgery of that self-same court. Mechanically, the Intimidation Skill would 
  be the most relevant here.
  Otomo Shigeo – The hapless Otomo presents a different problem: he has committed so many well-known gaffes and blunders it’s hard 
  to imagine anything that would further embarrass the man. However, Shigeo’s vices include envy and lust – not for carnal or physical 
  rewards, but for validation, for recognition of the talents and abilities he believes he actually possesses. Ruthless PCs should have little 
  trouble manipulating the man and offering him the things he wants, even if they have no way of making good on what they promise. 
  This would most likely involve the use of the Temptation Skill. Another approach would be the use of Intimidation against the weak-
  willed Shigeo. The PCs should beware, however, of pushing Shigeo too far and causing him to lapse into irrational actions.
  Doji Shumiko – The young Doji will be immune to bribery, and attempts to intimidate her are likely to end with her taking insult and 
  challenging the would-be intimidator to a duel (through a champion, of course—probably a Kakita kenshinzen). But she is also a young 
  woman, so attempts to sway her through romance (via the Temptation (Seduction) Skill, perhaps backed up by Advantages such as 
  Dangerous Beauty or Benten’s Blessing) may be fruitful. The GM may require such a suitor to use Sincerity (Deceit) to convince her 
  of the “truth” of his feelings for her. An infatuated Shumiko may become open to suggestions for assistance as long as they are not too 
  obvious or egregious. How to subsequently disengage from the relationship without dire consequences is another problem, of course. A 
  heartbroken courtier can cause considerable damage to her foes...
  Otomo Shigeo is actually a relatively recent immigrant 
  to the Colonies, arriving from mainland Rokugan only 
  three years ago. At one time or another he has been 
  appointed to almost every court in the Empire, which on 
  the face of it sounds like an impressive record. However, 
  each appointment has been a step downward from the 
  last. An initial station as a novice diplomat in the Imperial 
  Court of Toshi Ranbo led to ever more menial assignments, 
  ending with a posting as a minor bureaucrat supporting 
  the small Imperial delegation to the Tortoise Clan. But 
  even that ignominious posting wasn’t the end; Shigeo’s 
  next appointment was a “promotion” to become a junior 
  Otomo delegate in the Second City. 
  The simple fact is that Otomo Shigeo is incompetent 
  — enough so that he threatens to harm the standing of 
  the Otomo in important places, but not so much as to 
  require seppuku. Worse, he fails to recognize his own 
  incompetence – he is probably too incompetent to do so 
  – and more importantly, neither do his influential parents. 
  His masters among the Otomo have therefore chosen to 
  deal with Shigeo in the time-honored custom of pretending 
  to promote him so as to move him as far away as possible 
  and make him someone else’s problem.
  Otomo Shigeo’s bitterness already ran deep when he 
  first set foot on Colonial soil. He believed himself a victim, 
  forever kept down by the ambitions of others. His transfer 
  to the Colonies was nothing more than an elaborate form 
  of exile. He was stunned, therefore, when he was appointed 
  karo to the head of the Otomo delegation in the Second 
  City. This was a seemingly prestigious appointment, and 
  Shigeo had no idea this was simply a way of keeping 
  him under close scrutiny. When the position of karo to 
  the Chancellor of the Left came open, Shigeo somehow 
  managed to convince himself it was the next logical step 
  for him; his superiors had finally begun to recognize and 
  appreciate his talents. And then out of nowhere came 
  his cousin Otomo Akio, a relatively minor courtier with 
  nowhere near his own clout. Shigeo could feel the weight 
  of Akio’s foot pressing him down as his cousin stepped into 
  the position of Chancellor’s karo, the position that should 
  have been his – and his bitterness was back, magnified like 
  the sun through a gaijin spy-glass and focused squarely 
  on Otomo Akio.
  Unlike Bayushi Toshiko, who detests Otomo Akio as a 
  political rival, or Ide Sadao, who despises him for meddling 
  in his business affairs, Shigeo hates Akio in a very visceral 
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  Chapter Five
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  accomplish little. If the PCs are wise they will attempt 
  to pump Shigeo for more information about Akio. He 
  actually possesses some important information, although 
  he isn’t aware of its significance. This is because Shigeo 
  benefits from a character flaw of Akio’s that isn’t unusual 
  in ambitious men of high station: Akio has so little regard 
  for Shigeo that he takes him entirely for granted. He 
  thinks of Shigeo as little more than a scribe if he thinks 
  about him at all, and has thus let slip things he would 
  never reveal to someone he respected. Thus if the PCs 
  probe what Shigeo knows, they may uncover some or all 
  of the following, at the GM’s discretion:
   
  c
  Otomo Akio has frequent dealings with the Crane 
  delegation, more than with any other clan or 
  family. Shigeo doesn’t know this is because Doji 
  Chonitsu has manipulated him into dealing closely 
  with the Crane. Chonitsu has done this both to 
  solidify his own relationship with Akio and to be 
  able to blunt any political moves the Crane make 
  that might disrupt the rakshasa’s secret plans.
   
  c
  Conversely, Akio works actively against the 
  Scorpion in every possible way. Shigeo has 
  gleaned, from conversations between Akio and 
  the Otomo delegation head, that Akio despises the 
  Scorpion, ostensibly because the Clan of Secrets 
  represents the most serious threat among all 
  clans to the standing and interests of the Otomo. 
  Again, although Shigeo doesn’t know this, this is 
  Chonitsu’s work; he has taken the natural Otomo 
  distrust of the Scorpion and carefully focused and 
  magnified it. He is using Akio to keep the Scorpion 
  off-balance and thus neutralize what he sees as 
  one of the more serious threats to his plans.
   
  c
  Shigeo has seen Akio in Doji Chonitsu’s company; 
  in fact, Chonitsu has attended several meetings 
  involving Akio. He has noted that Akio tends to 
  listen to Chonitsu closely on those occasions when 
  the Doji offers to speak, and typically gives great 
  weight to whatever Chonitsu has offered to the 
  discussion. Shigeo was present, for example, when 
  Chonitsu suggested in a meeting involving both 
  the Otomo and the Crane that Akio would benefit 
  from taking Doji Shumiko on as his own karo. 
  Such a decision would naturally belong 
  solely to the head of the Crane delegation, 
  but once the suggestion was planted, all 
  present seemed to quickly agree. (It is, 
  unfortunately, typical of Otomo Shigeo 
  that he has failed to attach any significance 
  to the relationship between between 
  Akio and Chonitsu. Instead, he tried to 
  emulate Chonitsu’s approach during a 
  meeting, openly offering a suggestion 
  about a petition about to go before the 
  Chancellor; Akio casually dismissed 
  Shigeo’s comment, humiliating him 
  before many important members of 
  the Court.)
  oTomo Shigeo aS LooSe Cannon
  The PCs must be careful in dealing with Otomo Shigeo. 
  If they say the wrong thing they may raise suspicions 
  in the volatile Otomo’s mind, perhaps even causing him 
  to “connect the dots” in a way that suggests something 
  is amiss in Otomo Akio’s behavior. Since Shigeo is 
  desperately anxious to strike back at his hated cousin 
  in any possible way, this may prompt him to rash and 
  probably disastrous action. 
  If the GM wants to throw a serious curveball at the 
  PCs, he could have Otomo Shigeo speak out against Akio, 
  either through clumsily planted rumors or even openly in 
  court, accusing Akio of being corrupt, of unduly favoring 
  the Crane, or of working against the Scorpion. Of course, 
  the word of a minor and rather contemptible courtier 
  is nothing against that of someone like Otomo Akio, so 
  Shigeo may turn to others to support his case. The Crane 
  and Scorpion, of course, will want nothing to do with the 
  man, and no one else is likely to take his side — which 
  leaves only the PCs. Thus if the GM really wants to put 
  the PCs on the spot, he could have the desperate Shigeo 
  turn and point to them as backing his case. This leaves 
  the PCs with two options: they can disavow Shigeo and 
  leave him to his fate (probably a forced public apology 
  to Akio, followed by seppuku), or they can try to support 
  him. Cutting him loose is the smarter choice, albeit a 
  ruthless one, but over-bold and/or soft-hearted PCs 
  may try to support Shigeo’s accusations. In fact, if the 
  PCs have accumulated hard evidence or useful testimony 
  during other parts of this campaign, information that 
  actually implicates Akio in dishonorable affairs, they may 
  choose this moment to show their hand. (If so, the action 
  should move to the section “Next Steps” at the end of this 
  chapter.) However, if the PCs aren’t able to quickly put 
  forward a strong case, they will be in serious trouble. 
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  The Second ciTy
  chapter Five
  
  Akio could demand, and the Governor would likely 
  grant, a demand for them to recant their accusations and 
  commit seppuku right along with Shigeo. This is a harsh 
  outcome and one that likely ends the campaign in failure 
  (for these PCs, anyway), but Rokugani politics can be 
  harsh and unforgiving. 
  Alternatively, Akio could demand satisfaction through 
  a duel between his appointed champion and that of the 
  PCs. Normally Akio will be unlikely to go this route, 
  since it carries the possibility of failure and offers him 
  no particular benefit in return. But if it suits the GM’s 
  story, he should feel free to have a smug if somewhat rash 
  Otomo Akio decide the theatrics of a duel better suit his 
  purposes. Akio’s champion, Seppun Hoitsu, is detailed at 
  the end of this chapter. He is a deadly duelist as designed, 
  but the GM should feel free to modify him so he presents 
  a proper challenge to whatever PC will be engaging in 
  the duel. In any case, the outcome of the duel will be 
  the same — if the PCs’ champion loses, they are bound to 
  offer their seppuku. If their champion wins, however, they 
  have turned the tables on Akio and the action once more 
  advances to “Next Steps” at the end of the chapter
  Finally, Akio may choose to have the PCs exiled from 
  the Second City. In the Colonies, exile normally takes 
  the form of banishment into the jungles with the Spider 
  Clan. This fate, which is generally viewed as a particularly 
  vile, humiliating, and protracted form of death sentence, 
  is detailed in Chapter Seven. If the GM does not want a 
  failed action by the PCs to result in their deaths, this is 
  the best option, since it allows the possibility for the PCs 
  to continue their quest to save the Colonies from Raniyah 
  the Sly.  
  oTomo Shigeo aS uSefuL aLLy
   
  If the PCs are careful in their handling of Otomo 
  Shigeo, none of the dire circumstances described in the 
  previous section need come to pass. If they are able to 
  win Shigeo’s trust — which won’t be hard if they seem 
  sincerely interested in pursuing some sort of investigation 
  of Otomo Akio — without setting him off, they will find 
  him an eager and willing ally. He is well positioned to 
  ferret out additional information about Akio, benefiting 
  from having access to meetings and court activities as 
  the Otomo head’s karo. He also has the advantage of still 
  being largely beneath Otomo Akio’s notice and concern. If 
  they are able to coax Shigeo into this role, he can provide 
  them with the following information and assistance:
   
  c
  Otomo Akio meets regularly with the head of the 
  Otomo delegation, seeking support for a variety of 
  political matters and offering various support of his 
  own in return. At the end of the latest meeting, right 
  before they were to adjourn, Akio said, “Oh, yes…
  one other matter,” and went on to ask the Otomo 
  head for an additional favor. It involved obtaining 
  assistance in dissuading the Ivory Champion 
  from redirecting Magistrates from the region 
  around the Second City southward to Kalani’s 
  Landing. When asked for details, Akio explained 
  the Ivory Champion had heard reports suggesting 
  that a trade dispute in the city was threatening 
  to spiral into criminality; Akio suggested these 
  reports were exaggerated and said he personally 
  knew the Magistrate in Kalani’s Landing, one 
  Miya Ichiko. She had already assured him the 
  whole affair was overblown and easily handled 
  by the resources at her disposal. Akio expressed 
  worry that the Ivory Champion was being fed false 
  information, perhaps as a larger plot to deplete 
  the law enforcement capability in and around the 
  Second City. This bit of information can serve 
  two purposes – to draw the attention of 
  the PCs to Kalani’s Landing and the trade 
  conflict in Chapter Three if they are not 
  already aware of it; and to demonstrate 
  the extent to which Akio is involved 
  in manipulating events around that 
  trade conflict.
   
  c
  Shigeo knows Akio 
  has lately had several meetings with 
  the Spider Clan delegation. This is 
  unusual because Akio, like many of 
  the traditionalist Otomo, abhors the 
  Spider and tries to have as little to 
  do with them as possible. In fact, the 
  Spider had to reschedule a conflicted 
  meeting with the Otomo delegation 
  head in order to attend an “urgent” 
  meeting with Otomo Akio. The Otomo 
  head directed Shigeo to draft a suitably 
  outraged letter over the slight, but was 
  actually clearly relieved to not have to 
  endure the unpleasantness of a meeting 
  with the Spider.
  62
  Chapter Five
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  c
  At the GM’s option, Shigeo may know about 
  Seppun Toriko and her family’s obligation to 
  Otomo Akio. He does not know Toriko has 
  been allowing Akio to bring gaijin artifacts 
  into the Imperial District without inspections 
  – if he learned this it might well push him into 
  rash action – but he can be another way to 
  push the PCs to investigate Toriko.
  oTomo Shigeo, embiTTered imperiaL
  Air: 2
  EArth: 2
  FirE: 2
  WAtEr: 2
  Void: 2
  AWArEnESS: 3WillpoWEr: 3
  pErcEption: 3
  Honor: 3.6
  Status: 3.0
  Glory: 2.2
  Infamy: 2.6
  School/Rank: Otomo Courtier 2
  Skills: Artisan: Poetry 2, Calligraphy 3, Courtier 
  (Gossip, Manipulation) 4, Etiquette (Courtesy) 3, 
  Intimidation (Control) 3, Lore: Heraldry 2, Lore: 
  History 2, Sincerity 3, Temptation 2
  Disadvantages: Bad Reputation (inept), Contrary, 
  Jealousy (Otomo Akio)
  doJi shumiKo
  Doji Shumiko is a prim young woman just a few years 
  past her gempukku. She is everything one would expect 
  from a young Crane: demure and unobtrusive, impeccable 
  in her appearance and manners. Her eyes are quick and 
  bright, showing her intelligence, and she is charming, 
  graceful, and precise – the ideal, almost archetypical Doji 
  courtier in the making. She would be perfect in the role of 
  an apprentice politician, holding the position of a minor 
  diplomat or court functionary under the supervision of 
  a seasoned mentor. Why, then, has she been appointed 
  to the relatively demanding and independent position of 
  karo to Otomo Akio, himself the karo to the Chancellor 
  of the Left?
  Well out of Akio’s earshot, the rumormongers spin their 
  speculative tales. The most popular view is that Akio is 
  charmed by the young Doji, seeking to have her close as he 
  evaluates her worth as a lover or even a potential spouse. 
  Others suggest her parents have exercised influence 
  behind the scenes, seeking to have their daughter elevated 
  quickly to a position of influence even if it risks earning 
  her rivals among those left behind. In any case, the girl 
  is where she is, and finds herself close to the focus of 
  the most convoluted and high-stakes Ivory Court politics. 
  She seems to be acquitting herself well, but the strain 
  of adapting to such a demanding and relatively senior 
  position is starting to show on her young face.
  The PCs may have learned from Otomo Shigeo that 
  elevating the young Shumiko to the position of Akio’s 
  karo was Doji Chonitsu’s idea, and that it received—
  rather oddly—almost no dissent from anyone involved. If 
  they haven’t learned this from Otomo Shigeo, they may 
  choose to investigate another way, perhaps by speaking 
  to members of the Crane delegation. The Crane can be 
  just as much a pit of political vipers as the Scorpion 
  (although they are far less menacing about it), so the 
  PCs will be challenged to role-play well and use their 
  Courtier, Etiquette and other Social Skills to glean 
  anything of use. Having a Crane PC in the party will 
  definitely be an advantage here. If they are successful, 
  they will learn essentially the same thing Shigeo could 
  have offered above — Shumiko being Akio’s karo was 
  Doji Chonitsu’s idea.
  If the PCs attempt to speak to Doji Shumiko, they will 
  encounter some obstacles that don’t apply to the older 
  courtiers described previously. First, Shumiko knows 
  she occupies a sensitive position in court, so she will 
  be reluctant to speak with anyone about her superior. 
  Moreover, Otomo Akio has instructed her to reject any 
  formal meetings he hasn’t approved. If the PCs attempt 
  to meet with her informally — for instance, encountering 
  her by chance in the gardens of the Governor’s Palace, 
  or making sure they are at the Shrine of Fukurokujin 
  when she visits it next — not only will she be reticent, but 
  another issue will arise: as a young unmarried girl, it is 
  considered quite improper for her to meet with any male 
  without a chaperon present. This obviously won’t apply to 
  female PCs, but they will still have their work cut out for 
  them trying to get her talk about anything beyond simply 
  niceties.
  No matter what approach they use, if the PCs do 
  manage to get Shumiko to open up, she will initially offer 
  little information — and nothing about Otomo Akio’s 
  business matters in court, which she considers strictly 
  confidential. What she does offer, however, will probably 
  be of considerable interest to the PCs:
  63
  The Second ciTy
  chapter Five
  
   
  c
  It will be clear that she takes her duties as Otomo 
  Akio’s karo very seriously, inclduing protecting the 
  confidentiality of information she overhears and 
  records on his behalf. Moreover, the job takes up 
  essentially all of her time, leaving her with little 
  opportunity for leisure (not that she considers that 
  important) or even visiting with her family. The 
  only other individual she sees with any regularity 
  is Doji Chonitsu.
   
  c
  Shumiko believes Doji Chonitsu is infatuated 
  with her and is attempting to become her suitor. 
  She is flattered by the attention and finds the 
  man extremely charming. However, the formal 
  arrangement of suitors and subsequent negotiation 
  of marriage is a complex matter to which she has 
  turned little thought. She is certain her clan will 
  determine what is best for her. In the meantime, 
  she continues to see Doji Chonitsu from time to 
  time, sharing pleasant conversation over tea or 
  dinner — properly chaperoned, of course.
   
  c
  Shumiko of course knows nothing whatsoever 
  about Chonitsu’s true nature, nor is she aware 
  the rakshasa is manipulating her, charming her to 
  subtly reveal what it wants to know about Otomo 
  Akio. In this way it is using Shumiko to keep tabs 
  on Akio even when it cannot be present in its “Doji 
  Chonitsu” guise.  
   
  c
  If the PCs are able to get Shumiko to reveal this 
  much, they may also be able to get her reveal 
  an additional fact: Chonitsu is very interested 
  in something he believes Otomo Akio has in his 
  extensive private collection of Ivory Kingdoms 
  artifacts — specifically, a single gaijin 
  missile, a crossbow bolt. She knows 
  Chonitsu is also a collector of gaijin 
  artifacts, and thus accepts his claim that 
  he is curious if Akio in fact has this item 
  but is hesitant to bring it up himself, since 
  if he does Akio will know he is interested 
  in it, making the price go up. As a favor, 
  he has asked Shumiko to determine if 
  the item is in Akio’s collection in his 
  residence at Faun-ti’s Tower. She has, 
  and it is, but she has not yet met with 
  Chonitsu to inform him of this. 
  It is possible the PCs will be able to 
  get Shumiko to become more actively 
  cooperative. 
  A 
  romantic 
  seduction 
  would be one way to accomplish 
  this, as outlined in the sidebar “Other 
  Approaches to the NPCs” earlier in 
  this chapter. Barring that, another way 
  would be to convince Shumiko that she 
  is serving a dishonorable lord – such 
  as by revealing some of Akio’s improper activities, like 
  stifling the investigation in Kalani’s Landing. This would 
  probably require good role-playing and a suitable Social 
  Skill Roll to persuade her of their truthfulness. Another 
  variant on the same theme would be to convince her that 
  Doji Chonitsu is a sinister individual or perhaps even a 
  Shadowlands creature – this would again require skillful 
  persuasion and high-TN Skill rolls, since the PCs are 
  offering a rather improbable tale. (On the other hand, 
  Shumiko is a very sincere and pious young woman, so 
  PCs who display similar traits will have an advantage 
  in winning her over – especially in the contrast they 
  make with Akio and Chonitsu.) If the PCs do manage to 
  gain more information from Shumiko, she can share the 
  following additional clues:
   
  c
  Shumiko is aware that many of the gaijin items in 
  Akio’s residence are the sort which would normally 
  require extensive inspections before being allowed 
  into the Imperial District. She has always assumed 
  Akio arranged for such inspections but has no 
  knowledge as to whether they have actually been 
  done.
   
  c
  She knows Akio sponsored the former herald Miya 
  Ichiko to be Magistrate of Kalani’s Landing. She 
  also knows he arranged for Ide Uchi to gain the 
  advantage over his rival Ide Sadao in the Burning 
  Sands trade. She assumes these are normal 
  activities for building political alliances and 
  networks of favors.
   
  c
  Shumiko knows Akio has had several recent 
  meetings with the Spider Clan, but did not attend 
  those meetings personally. She finds it somewhat 
  disturbing that an Imperial of Akio’s importance 
  would meet privately with the Spider but has 
  assumed he had suitable reasons. 
  64
  Chapter Five
  The SeCond CiTy
  
  doji ShumiKo, Karo To oTomo aKio
  Air: 2
  EArth: 2
  FirE: 2
  WAtEr: 2
  Void: 3
  AWArEnESS: 3
  intElligEncE: 3 pErcEption: 3
  Honor: 5.3
  Status: 3.0
  Glory: 3.4
  School/Rank: Doji Courtier 2
  Skills: Artisan: Ikebana 1, Calligraphy 2, Courtier 
  (Rhetoric) 3, Etiquette (Courtesy) 3, Games: Letters 2, 
  Investigation 2, Lore: Heraldry 3, Lore: History 2, Lore: 
  Theology 2, Meditation 2, Perform: Dance 2, Sincerity 
  (Honesty) 3 
  Advantages: Benten’s Blessing, Social Position (karo to 
  Otomo Akio)
  Disadvantages: Small
  seppun toriKo
  Although there are no rumors which point directly to 
  Seppun Toriko, the PCs may be able to learn about her 
  from Bayushi Toshiko or Doji Shumiko; at the GM’s option, 
  Otomo Shigeo might also know something about her.
  Seppun Toriko, the Mistress of the Gates, is described 
  in Chapter One: The Imperial District in Book One of this 
  boxed set. She is an honorable woman but her family is 
  under an obligation to Otomo Akio, and he has used this to 
  force her into allowing his gaijin artifacts through the gates 
  without prior inspections. If the PCs speak with Toriko, 
  her honorable and dutiful nature will be easily apparent, 
  but PCs who make a suitable Social Skill Roll (Courtier or 
  Investigation would both be appropriate) may be able to 
  sense the underlying conflict within her soul. Convincing 
  Toriko to speak the truth about Akio’s activities will not 
  be easy, since she feels herself caught between her duty 
  to her family and the demands of Bushido; the GM must 
  adjudicate whether the PCs are making effective appeals, 
  but in general the best approach will be to invoke the 
  requirements of Honor. She is, after all, helping Akio to 
  break the law and is thus behaving dishonorably herself, 
  the source of her emotional torment.
  Toriko’s testimony is not intrinsically devastating 
  enough to completely ruin Otomo Akio, but it can 
  potentially be a very serious problem for him, and can 
  also serve as a method of blackmail against him.  
  the spider cLan
  The PCs will most likely learn about Otomo Akio’s 
  meetings with the Spider Clan from the various pieces of 
  information and accusations provided by the NPCs listed 
  above. They may also be able to find out simply by seeking 
  out gossip about Akio and/or the Spider Clan in the Second 
  City. On the surface, these meetings may not seem overly 
  unusual; the Spider Clan may be viewed with caution, 
  suspicion, or even barely-veiled hostility by the delegates 
  from the other clans, but they are officially considered 
  to be legitimate inhabitants of the Colonies, and it falls 
  within Akio’s purview as karo to the Chancellor of the Left 
  to ensure that issues and petitions brought forward by the 
  Spider are given due consideration in the scheduling of 
  audiences and court activities. In fact, from time to time 
  he meets with all of the various Great Clan delegations. If 
  the PCs haven’t learned about Akio’s strong distaste for 
  the Spider, the most they are likely to determine is that 
  Akio meets somewhat less frequently with the Spider than 
  he does with other delegations.
  However, if the PCs have met with Akio or looked 
  into his reputation with care, they may have learned he 
  despises the Spider and has a history of trying to avoid 
  meeting with them if at all possible. This makes a series of 
  meetings in recent days seem noteworthy. The PCs could 
  also learn that not only has Akio been meeting with the 
  Spider more frequently but is doing so with more-than-
  usual good grace, arranging gifts, dinners, meetings over 
  tea, and so forth. 
  There are several ways the PCs could attempt to 
  investigate this. They could attempt to glean more 
  information from the general assembly of Ivory Court 
  delegates. This is, however, simply likely to result in a 
  series of conflicting rumors, as well as alerting others that 
  the PCs are interested in Akio’s dealings with the Spider. 
  Alternatively, they may attempt a more direct approach, 
  attempting to obtain information from Akio’s karo Doji 
  Shumiko. This is also likely to be a dead-end, however. 
  As noted previously, Akio has deliberately kept Shumiko 
  in the dark about his dealings with the Spider, so she has 
  no useful information to share beyond the fact that the 
  meetings have taken place.
  This leaves the PCs with essentially two options: 
  approach the Spider directly and try to get information 
  from them, or else attempt to spy on the interactions 
  between Akio and the Spider.
  Significance of the     
  Crossbow Bolt
  The crossbow bolt in Akio’s collection is a very 
  specific and special item: it was blessed by the priests 
  of Vishnu, and thus is potentially extremely deadly 
  to rakshasa. The nature of the blessing prevents a 
  rakshasa from even coming in contact with the 
  weapon. It represents a serious threat to the creature’s 
  plans. Thus, if Shumiko later confirms the item’s 
  location to Doji Chonitsu (most likely while the PCs 
  are off investigating somewhere else), the rakshasa 
  will arrange to have it stolen and disposed of by 
  ronin hirelings – potentially creating a new avenue 
  of investigation for the PCs if they have not yet 
  resolved the campaign by that time. 
  Barring that, the PCs may or may not recognize the 
  significance of the bolt, depending on to what extent 
  they have completed other sections of the campaign, 
  so what they do with the information about it is up to 
  them. At the very least, they will know Doji Chonitsu 
  is for some reason interested in this particular artifact.
  65
  The Second ciTy
  chapter Five
  
  approaching the spider
  As noted in Book One of this boxed set, the Spider 
  delegation does not maintain an official embassy in the 
  Imperial District; instead, they have a modest presence 
  within the Dragon Clan Embassy. If the PCs visit the 
  Spider quarters there, they find them to be surpisingly 
  pleasant and decorated in a fairly traditional manner. 
  Furnishings are done in a mix of pale and dark Colonial 
  woods, set against neutral-colored walls and shoji screens 
  and polished hardwood floors. Astute PCs may note the 
  only colors are black, white, and shades of grey, aside 
  from a few vibrant splashes of red on wall-hangings 
  and sumi-e ink drawings. They will be met by a minor 
  Spider functionary who wears the mon of the clan in such 
  a discreet way that it is barely noticeable. Eventually, 
  if the PCs do not give insult, they will be shown in to 
  another monochrome sitting room where they meet with 
  Susumu Minoru, the head of the Spider Clan delegation in 
  the absence of its Champion, Daigotsu Kanpeki. (Kanpeki 
  spends most of his time in the jungles with his conquerors, 
  and his personal residence in the Peasant District is not 
  open to minor visitors like the PCs in any event.)
  Over pungent black tea, Minoru offers the PCs cordial 
  greetings and expresses polite false regret that Daigotsu 
  Kanpeki-sama himself could not greet them. He is away 
  attending to the “ongoing labors of the Spider as they seek 
  to win control of the Colonial wilderness in the glorious 
  name of the Empress.” He will engage in dutiful but 
  precisely appropriate small-talk, then enquire as to what 
  the Spider have done to deserve the honor of receiving a 
  visit from such esteemed guests as the PCs. 
  The PCs find Susumu Minoru a charming and gracious 
  host, impeccably versed in the correct customs and 
  traditions of Rokugani etiquette. His manner and dress are 
  flawless and his smile effusive and disarming, even if it 
  doesn’t quite always reach his eyes. He is a reasonably 
  skilled politician, so the PCs will have their work cut out 
  for them obtaining information about what has transpired 
  between him and Otomo Akio. Still, the PCs may well be 
  able to get Minoru to open up somewhat, either through 
  good role-play, lucky die-rolls, or by offering arguments for 
  why he should help them. This is not as difficult as it may 
  seem: Minoru is well aware Otomo Akio actually despises 
  the Spider and is wondering exactly why the Otomo has 
  lately become such a “friend” of the clan, not to mention 
  making the peculiar requests he has. Moreover, disrupting 
  the smooth function of the Governor’s Ivory Court and 
  causing consternation and confusion among its members 
  fits with the long-term Spider agenda of undermining the 
  Empire’s institutions. If Minoru senses Otomo Akio has 
  somehow left himself politically vulnerable, especially if 
  that vulernability can be exploited at arm’s length through 
  the hapless PCs, he will not hesitate to take advantage of 
  the opportunity. 
   
  c
  Otomo Akio has, indeed, been in direct contact 
  with the Spider lately. Minoru notes he is proving 
  to be a “true friend” to the Spider Clan. Most of 
  what he wanted to discuss were simply mundane 
  matters of court. Minoru won’t hesitate to subtly 
  emphasize the word “most” if the GM is having 
  him attempt to draw the PCs in.
   
  c
  If the PCs manage to get Minoru to open up fur-
  ther (or if the GM simply chooses to have him do 
  so), he will reveal Akio has taken to discussing the 
  employment of Spider forces in the wilderness re-
  gions of the Colonies. In particular, he is interested 
  if they have found any lost or abandoned temples 
  or similar types of structures from the Ivory King-
  doms. Minoru has heard that Akio is a collector of 
  Ivory Kingdoms artifacts, and muses this might be 
  “one reason” he is interested in old temples. Again, 
  if he is trying to keep the PCs hooked, he will coyly 
  put an emphasis on this being only “one” reason 
  for Akio’s interest.
   
  c
  If the PCs are able to press further or, again, Mino-
  ru is trying to string them along, he will eventually 
  reveal Akio has made an “interesting” request of 
  the Spider: that any such temple, shrine, or similar 
  structure be destroyed. Moreover, any native Ivin-
  da found in the area are to be killed. Akio justi-
  fied the request by noting such temples could 
  house remnants of the Destroyer Cult. This is 
  not an unreasonable concern, although an as-
  tute PC may enquire as to why such a request 
  would come from the karo to the Chancellor 
  of the Left rather than from the Governor or 
  the Ivory Champion. Minoru has no answer 
  to this, other than noting he has no reason 
  to question “such an esteemed officer of the 
  Ivory Court as Otomo Akio-sama.” 
  spying on otomo aKio
  There are a number of reasons why the PCs 
  might choose to begin spying on Otomo Akio, 
  although his interactions with the Spider are 
  the most obvious motive. Spying may be an 
  especially appealing options to players who 
  are running characters built around themes 
  of reconnaissance or espionage – the various 
  Scout schools, the Shosuro Infiltrators and 
  Shosuro Actors, and so forth. And any 
  66
  Chapter Five
  The SeCond CiTy
  
  character who is willing to forsake honor in favor of using 
  the Stealth and Acting Skills for improper pursposes may 
  likewise view spying as a alternative to more conventional 
  investigations. Alternatively, players may have characters 
  who don’t need to use covert means to get near to Otomo 
  Akio and gather information. For example, a character 
  from the Spider Clan could legitimately be in the Spider 
  quarters at the Dragon embassy while Akio is there, and 
  then take advantage of that to eavesdrop. 
  The GM shouldn’t discourage characters from attempting 
  such subterfuge; spying and espionage are, after all, well 
  represented in the L5R setting. That doesn’t mean it should 
  be easy, however. Otomo Akio is an experienced courtier, 
  used to engaging in sensitive conversations while prying 
  ears may be nearby. The reader may note that while Akio 
  has not been specifically given a bodyguard, it would in 
  fact be entirely reasonable for a person of Akio’s stature 
  to have a yojimbo nearby, at least while traveling away 
  from the Governor’s Palace or his residence. The GM 
  can use Seppun Hoitsu, the potential dueling champion 
  mentioned earlier, for this role. Thus any Skill Rolls made 
  to spy on Akio would be opposed by both his own Skill 
  Rolls and those of Hoitsu as well. In the case of the Spider 
  ambassadorial quarters, any would-be spy is further going 
  to have to contend with the Dragon and Spider guards 
  as well as potential warning systems such as squeaking 
  floorboards called “nightingale floors” and possibly even 
  magical wards.
  If the would-be spy avoids detection, though, the GM 
  can allow him or her to gain a great variety of information. 
  Spying on Akio’s meetings with the Spider would yield 
  all of the information that could be provided by Susumu 
  Minoru above. Spying on Akio during other activities 
  could yield a host of other clues, as follows:
   
  c
  The spy could witness meetings between Akio and 
  Seppun Toriko, the Mistress of the Gates, in which 
  she allows gaijin artifacts into the Imperial District 
  without inspections.
   
  c
  The spy could learn about Akio’s support for Ide 
  Uchi, his sponsorship of Miya Ichiko, or his intefer-
  ence in the events in Kalani’s Landing. 
   
  c
  An exceptionally bold spy could break into Otomo 
  Akio’s personal quarters in Faun-ti’s Tower. This 
  would allow a chance to steal the notorious blessed 
  crossbow bolt, as well as the opportunity to look 
  through Akio’s personal belongings and corre-
  spondance. Clues reinforcing all of Akio’s ques-
  tionable dealings could be found in this way. 
   
  c
  At the GM’s discretion, a spy could even potential-
  ly witness a meeting between Akio and the elusive 
  Doji Chonitsu.
  The GM should be careful to ensure what a spy learns is 
  something that could realistically be seen or overheard; a 
  spy is not a mind-reader, after all. If a spy is detected, there 
  is the potential for a chase scene, with the spy using Skills 
  such as Athletics and Stealth to evade capture. Factors 
  such as the familiarity of the area, the extent to which the 
  spy has prepared for escape, and the time of day will come 
  into play – obviously it is easier to escape in the shadows 
  of night than under the blazing sunlight of a Colonial 
  noon. If the spy is recognized or worse, apprehended, he 
  The Public Face of              
  the Spider Clan
  In the years after its founding, the Spider Clan 
  was an implacable foe of the Empire. Created by the 
  Dark Lord Daigotsu, the Spider worked covertly, 
  seeking to undermine Rokugan from within as 
  infiltrators; later, after the ascension of Empress 
  Iweko I, they fought openly against Imperial 
  authority. Their leader Daigotsu was determined 
  to seize control of Rokugan on behalf of his then 
  infant son Kanpeki. At the end of the Destroyer 
  War, however, Daigotsu ascended to become the 
  new ruler of Jigoku. He struck a bargain with the 
  Empress, whereby the Spider would be recognized 
  as a Great Clan of the Empire in exchange for a 
  withdrawal of certain evil influences from Rokugan 
  — most notably the involuntary contamination of 
  its people by the Taint of Jigoku. The agreement 
  has endured to the present day era depicted in the 
  Second City box set.
  It is important for the GM to ensure that 
  encounters with the Spider such as the one in 
  this chapter do not become contaminated by 
  “metagaming.” The players likely know Daigotsu’s 
  son Kanpeki still plots to take the Throne and 
  control the Empire, the Spider harbor agents of 
  the insidious Shadow Dragon, and the Spider in 
  general are hardly the paragons of loyalty to the 
  Empire that they profess to be. However, their 
  characters would almost certainly know none 
  of this. From their perspective, the Spider have 
  apparently been loyal Imperial subjects, working 
  diligently to fulfill the duties given to them by the 
  Empress and, here in the Colonies, the Governor. 
  It would be appropriate for their characters to be 
  wary and suspicious (particularly if they are from 
  the more traditional clans, such as the Lion, Crane, 
  and Phoenix) but behaving with anything other 
  than good grace and etiquette would be considered 
  as insulting to the Spider as it would be to any other 
  Great Clan.
  This does not mean the Spider aren’t dangerous. 
  Spider such as Susumu Minoru would have no 
  qualms about seizing on a slight or insult in order 
  to embarrass or discomfit a clan PC; in an extreme 
  case, the satisfaction of a duel would be a fine 
  outcome. The threats from the Spider here in the 
  Second City, however, will only be political and 
  social in nature. The PCs would know, for instance, 
  it is no longer possible to be involuntarily Tainted, 
  so consuming food and drink offered by the Spider 
  offers no threat of the Taint. Moreover, the Spider 
  themselves are seeking to present a “proper” public 
  face to Rokugan, so there are few Tainted Spider in 
  the Second City – almost all of them are far away, 
  laboring in the jungles. 
  Some GMs may wish to have the PCs meet with 
  Daigotsu Kanpeki himself, rather than Susumu 
  Minoru. Kanpeki is a far more imposing individual 
  than Minoru and should be portrayed as such, but 
  for the purposes of this campaign he can provide 
  the same information to the PCs as Minoru, in 
  essentially the same way.
  67
  The Second ciTy
  chapter Five
  
  faces a dire fate. Spying is a highly dishonorable activity 
  and a captured spy is certainly going to be imprisoned, 
  probably tortured to determine who may have employed 
  him and what he overheard, and then executed. This fate 
  should come as no surprise to the player; the risk is, after 
  all, implicit in being a spy in the first place. However, the 
  GM could also use this situation as another opportunity to 
  have one or more of the implicated PCs exiled to join the 
  Spider on the frontier.
  Some spells, such as the Rank 2 Air Spell “Secrets 
  on the Wind,” allow a shugenja to remotely eavesdrop 
  on conversations. This may strike the PCs as an “easy” 
  and relatively risk free means of obtaining information. 
  Certainly, a GM may allow a PC to obtain some information 
  this way, but when such methods are overused they risk 
  overturning any sense of challenge for the PCs. In point of 
  fact, while the majority of the Second City is not protected 
  against such spells, the most important places – such 
  as the various Great Clan embassies and the Governor’s 
  Palace – are warded against improper uses of the kami. 
  It is in fact common knowledge that powerful wards are 
  employed in such places to prevent things such as magical 
  spying. Accordingly, a PC attempting to use such methods 
  against warded locations should face much high Spell 
  Casting TNs – at least +20 to +30 for clan embassies and 
  most of the Governor’s Palace, with especially important 
  locations such as private meeting rooms having even 
  higher TNs. Failure could potentially alert the authorities, 
  release bound kami to find, track, or even attack the 
  transgressor, or even unleash magical backlashes against 
  the offending shugenja. Such is the price of meddling with 
  Imperial protections!
  Otomo Akio Responds
  At some point Otomo Akio is quite likely to become 
  aware the PCs are digging into his affairs. He has numerous 
  contacts not only in the Governor’s Court and among the 
  clan delegations but also throughout the Second City and 
  even beyond. The section on “Otomo Shigeo as a Loose 
  Cannon” offers some guidance as to how Otomo Akio 
  may react if he becomes aware of the PCs’ snooping. Note, 
  however, that section presumes the PCs have made or 
  are implicated in specific accusations against Akio. If he 
  knows only they been making enquiries about him, his 
  reaction is going to be more subdued. Initially, he is likely 
  to simply send word through their own clan delegations to 
  mind their own business. A man of Otomo Akio’s stature 
  tends to attract both detractors and admirers, and both can 
  be equally annoying. It is up to the PCs how they respond 
  to this, mindful of the fact that if they keep poking about 
  anyway they may also face the ire of their clan’s lord in 
  the Colonies. 
  If the PCs are magistrates or yoriki, or are known to be 
  recent arrivals from Rokugan, Akio is likely to become 
  more interested in their interest in him. In this case, he 
  will invite the PCs to meet with him, dispatching such an 
  invitation through his karo Doji Shumiko. Such a meeting 
  68
  Chapter Five
  The SeCond CiTy
  
  will unfold as described in the earlier 
  section entitled “Meeting With Otomo 
  Akio”: he will be a charming and gracious 
  but somewhat detached host, while 
  trying to learn why the PCs are nosing 
  about in his affairs and what they have 
  learned (or think they’ve learned). If the 
  GM wishes to add a mechanical element 
  to such a conversation, he can require 
  the PCs to make Etiquette (Conversation) 
  / Awareness or Sincerity / Awareness 
  rolls to blunt or deflect Akio’s probing 
  questions. 
  Success 
  means 
  they’ve 
  convinced Akio they intend no harm, 
  whereupon he will lose interest in them 
  and simply suggest they pursue other 
  interests. Failure, however, means Akio 
  is alerted to the fact the PCs know (or 
  think they know) something potentially 
  incriminating or harmful about him. He 
  will certainly try to have them put under 
  surveillance and may even take harsher 
  action (see below). 
  In either case, if the PCs have been warned off or 
  convinced Akio they are of no consequence and then 
  continue digging into his affairs anyway, he will 
  eventually become aware of it once again and will take 
  stronger action.
  STronger aCTion by oTomo aKio
  One of Akio’s first choices will be to have the PCs placed 
  under surveillance. Two or three agents will begin to tail 
  the PCs, deploying themselves to keep as many of them 
  under watch as possible. These agents are freelance ronin, 
  hired through an intermediary for such purposes. They will 
  seek to avoid detection and report back information on 
  the PCs activities; if they are detected, they will attempt to 
  flee. They are brave but not fanatical, and are armed only 
  with knives; a cornered agent has at least some chance 
  (assume roughly 30%) of surrendering if they reach the 
  Injured Wound Rank or worse. If they are taken alive they 
  can identify their sponsor, someone they simply call the 
  “Boss,” but tracking down this person and learning who 
  hired him will be an exercise in frustration; it is up to the 
  GM whether or not to allow the PCs to follow the trail all 
  the way back to Otomo Akio.  
  If Akio becomes convinced the PCs are a growing 
  problem for him — most likely because surveillance 
  reports indicate they are delving ever more deeply into 
  his affairs — he will try to get rid of them. In this case his 
  first plan will be to try to disgrace the PCs and have them 
  exiled to the border of the Colonies with the Spider Clan. 
  The information from his spies may allow him to do this, 
  but more likely he will have to try to maneuver them into 
  some kind of public incident in court that will ruin their 
  reputations. The exact form of such a political attack will 
  vary greatly depending on the identity and nature of the 
  PCs themselves, so the GM will have to adjudicate any 
  such efforts, but obvious avenues of attack will include 
  secret romances, Dark Secrets, and characters who suffer 
  from Disadvantages like Brash.  
  If disgrace is not an option, Akio may resort to 
  assassination. This allows the GM an opportunity for some 
  combat action in the midst of what is otherwise a very 
  social-oriented political setting. However, the GM must 
  decide to what extent he wants the PCs to actually be 
  harmed by assassins sent after them. The lethality of the 
  default combat system in L5R means if the assassins are 
  effective, one or more PCs could be critically wounded 
  or killed with little opportunity to respond. Of course, 
  one could argue the PCs should be expecting trouble and 
  prepare for it. 
  In any case, Akio will send a squad of ronin assassins 
  (a number of them equal to one less than the number 
  of PCs is a good starting point) to attack the PCs. They 
  are armed with ninja-to and knives, and will generally 
  choose to strike when the PCs are at their most vulnerable: 
  asleep, drunk, or otherwise off-guard. The assassins will 
  not, however, attack the PCs within the confines of the 
  Governor’s Palace or a clan embassy. GMs should feel 
  free to adjust the number of assassins, their mechanical 
  statistics, and the circumstances of attack according to 
  how much of a challenge is desired. Since the assassins 
  are ronin and not fanatics, they will attempt to flee when 
  reduced to the Injured Wound Rank; however, unlike the 
  spies they will fight to the death if cornered, since they 
  know their fate can only be execution.
  oTomo aKio’S agenTS
  Air: 2
  EArth: 2
  FirE: 2
  WAtEr: 2
  Void: 2
  rEFlExES: 3
  Agility: 3
  pErcEption: 3
  Honor: 1.5
  Status: 0.0
  Glory: 1.0
  School/Rank: True Ronin (Insight Rank 1)
  Skills: Athletics 2, Defense 3, Investigation 4, Kenjutsu 2, 
  Knives 3, Stealth (Sneaking) 4 
  Advantages: Crafty 
  Disadvantages: Social Disadvantage (ronin)
  69
  The Second ciTy
  chapter Five
  
  oTomo aKio’S aSSaSSinS
  Air: 3
  EArth: 3
  FirE: 3
  WAtEr: 3
  Void: 3
  rEFlExES: 4
  Agility: 4
  Honor: 1.5
  Status: 0.0
  Glory: 1.0
  School/Rank: True Ronin (Insight Rank 4)
  Skills: Athletics 3, Craft: Poison 2, Defense 4, Iaijutsu 2, 
  Investigation 3, Jiujutsu 3, Kenjutsu 4, Knives 5, Spears 
  2, Stealth (Sneaking) 4 
  Advantages: Quick
  Disadvantages: Social Disadvantage (ronin)
  Next Steps
  At this point, the PCs should have collected a 
  considerable amount of information on Otomo Akio, 
  which may or may not include his close relationship with 
  Doji Chonitsu. In itself, a friendship or political/business 
  relationship based on a mutual interest in Ivory Kingdoms 
  artifacts isn’t particularly damning. Moreover, the other 
  facts they may have accumulated — for example, Akio’s 
  meddling through the magistrate Miya Ichiko in the trade 
  dispute between Yasuki Kappako and Daidoji Iyashi, his 
  mis-use of influence to get his artifacts into the Imperial 
  District without inspection, his manipulation of trade at 
  Journey’s End Keep involving Ide Uchi and Ide Sadao, 
  or his insistence that the Spider locate and destroy any 
  Ivory Kingdoms temples they find in the jungle — are not 
  individually all that damning. However, the totality of all 
  this information should lead the PCs to conclude that Akio 
  is under Chonitsu’s influence and is working on the Doji’s 
  behalf in many ways. The question now is, so what?
  The critical piece of information, of course, is that Doji 
  Chonitsu is actually the rakshasa Raniyah the Sly. No one 
  in the city, including Otomo Akio, knows this, and while 
  Akio is many things he is not overtly a traitor to the Empire. 
  If he knew the truth about Chonitsu, he would be horror-
  struck. This leads to one possibility for the PCs’ next step: 
  challenging Akio with the truth – or at least something 
  close to the truth – about Chonitsu. It is possible the PCs 
  have actually learned what Chonitsu really is, most likely 
  in Chapter Six, but even without that they have probably 
  realized from Yogo Tanaka’s journal that Chonitsu is some 
  manner of inhuman entity. However, the PCs will have to 
  be extremely wary of how they approach Akio with their 
  accusations. Claiming his friend and ally Doji Chonitsu 
  is a shapeshifting monster or a gaijin “tiger demon” on 
  the word of a dead Scorpion and a few Ivinda natives is 
  probably going to backfire badly; Akio is likely to dismiss 
  such an accusation and then, in order to prevent any 
  further trouble from the meddling PCs, have them exiled 
  from the Second City. They will be sent to spend their 
  remaining days laboring in the wilderness with the Spider 
  Clan — whereupon the action moves to Chapter Seven.
  Wise PCs will take a more restrained approach and try 
  to convince Akio something is amiss with Doji Chonitsu 
  without making the most extreme accusations. There 
  is actually a good basis for them to do so, since the 
  totality of Chonitsu’s actions is more than a little odd. 
  This approach can be especially effective if the PCs have 
  already investigated some of the events in other chapters 
  and thus can present Akio with evidence that Chonitsu is 
  doing some extremely questionable things – smuggling 
  jade, using a blackmailed Tamori to murder another 
  samurai and frame harmless Ivinda natives for it, using 
  Shumiko to snoop after Akio’s gaijin crossbow bolt, and so 
  forth. In the face of such evidence, eloquently presented, 
  Otomo Akio will become somewhat more cooperative. This 
  will open a window of opportunity in which the PCs can 
  potentially convince him to forsake Chonitsu – the GM 
  may wish to call for a Contested Social Roll here, with 
  Akio’s final attitude riding on the outcome. If the PCs 
  ultimately can’t win him over, Akio will decide this is a 
  problem he can do without and, again, have the PCs exiled 
  to the Spider. 
  The more ruthless sorts of PCs may decide to take a more 
  aggressive approach to Akio and try to apply pressure to 
  him. Their best tool in this regard is Seppun Toriko, the 
  Mistress of the Gates, whose testimony can potentially 
  prove Akio has been subverting Imperial law in order 
  to bring his gaijin artifacts into the city. Miya Ichiko’s 
  testimony that she was ordered to subvert justice in 
  Kalani’s Landing is also a fairly damning incident. Skillful 
  PCs can potentially use these discoveries to blackmail 
  Akio into cooperation, especially if they know about both 
  of them. This will gain Akio’s involuntary assistance, but 
  also makes him a bitter and permanent enemy who will do 
  whatever he can to destroy them.  
  If Akio does finally cooperate, he can share the 
  following information:
   
  c
  Doji Chonitsu has helped him on many occasions 
  to locate rare and spectacular Ivory Kingdoms arti-
  facts he could not find anywhere else. On a couple 
  of occasions he asked Akio to return the favor by 
  locating items for him, which Akio was more than 
  happy to do. If asked to describe the items he ac-
  quired for Chonitsu, he describes them as both be-
  ing statues of the same native god, “a man with 
  four arms.” PCs can potentially identify this being 
  as Vishnu the Protector if they acquire the proper 
  information or speak with a knowledgable native. 
   
  c
  Akio admits to supporting Ide Uchi in Journey’s 
  End Keep at Doji Chonitsu’s urging. He does not 
  know why, although he believes it has something 
  to do with Chonitsu’s general interest in gaijin ar-
  tifacts. 
   
  c
  Doji Chonitsu also asked him to use Miya Ichiko 
  to cover for Daidoji Iyashi in Kalani’s Landing. 
  Chonitsu asked for the intervention as a personal 
  favor and explained it as a “matter of commerce” 
  whose details were beneath Akio’s concern. 
   
  c
  It is at Chonitsu’s urging that Akio has been pres-
  suring the Spider to destroy any Ivory Kingdoms 
  temples they might find in the jungle. Chonitsu 
  was attacked by an Ivinda native in Journey’s End 
  Keep, and has told Akio he believes the attacker 
  70
  Chapter Five
  The SeCond CiTy
  
  was actually a member of the Cult of the Destroyer. 
  Chonitsu claims the Cult still has bases within the 
  jungle that need to be rooted out and destroyed, 
  and Akio is happy to cooperate. For that matter, 
  Akio has heard the rumors of an Ivinda murder-
  ing a samurai near Shiro Hebi, and takes them as 
  further proof that he is right to urge the Spider to 
  stronger action.
   
  c
  Akio knows Chonitsu is a merchant patron and 
  can identify a commoner named Hinjo as his prin-
  ciple merchant – it is Hinjo who has delivered the 
  various artifacts which Chonitsu located for Akio. 
  Akio has a vague understanding that Hinjo runs 
  a caravan through the Colonies, between Kalani’s 
  Landing and Journey’s End Keep.  
   
  c
  Akio knows there is an item in his collection of 
  gaijin artifacts that Chonitsu wants, but does not 
  know what it is. “He can be cagey when he wishes,” 
  Akio says with a smile.  
  At the GM’s option, if Akio has become an ally (or at 
  least been forced into cooperation), Raniyah could return 
  to the Second City and kill him, then flee with the PCs in 
  hot pursuit. This gives this part of the story better closure, 
  and can also be a useful development if the PCs are having 
  trouble figuring out where to find Raniyah’s lair. If this 
  seems like the best option, the GM shouldn’t hesitate to 
  say Otomo Akio’s story is now done.
  The CroSSbow boLT in   
   
  oTomo aKio’S reSidenCe
  Irrespective of any information he might supply, Otomo 
  Akio can potentially provide the PCs with his blessed 
  crossbow bolt. He will normally not be willing to part with 
  one of his much-loved Ivory Kingdoms artifacts, but if the 
  PCs have convinced him Chonitsu is a supernatural threat, 
  he will reluctantly do so. PCs who are blackmailing Akio 
  can force him to hand over the item, of course.   
  On first inspection the crossbow bolt appears to be a 
  simple, plain projectile for an Ivory Kingdoms crossbow. 
  The shaft is actually made from intertwined pieces of 
  exotic wood, and it is carved with the symbols of Vishnu. 
  The head is made of iron and is inlaid with ivory and 
  silver. As noted in Chapter Eight, such missiles may or may 
  not have retained the actual potency of Vishnu’s blessing 
  which makes them lethal to a rakshasa, but Raniyah the 
  Sly does not know whether the weapon is still potent or 
  not, and thus was anxious to dispose of it. 
  opTion: pubLiC aCCuSaTion
  Not all PCs will wish to convince Akio of the error of 
  his ways – some of them will want to destroy his public 
  reputation and position. The evidence they can find within 
  the Second City – Akio’s meddling in matters of law 
  and trade, his evasion of restrictions on gaijin artifacts 
  – is enough to embarrass him badly in court, though 
  probably not enough to completely destroy him. If the PCs 
  present a well role-played public accusation, backed up 
  by testimony from Miya Ichiko and Seppun Toriko, they 
  will force Akio to publicly answer their charges, probably 
  resulting in a Contested Social Roll against Akio – the 
  obvious Skill choices here would be Courtier (Rhetoric) or 
  Sincerity  (Honesty or Deceit). A successful roll results in 
  Akio being deeply humiliated and probably stripped of his 
  office as karo; however, a failed roll means Akio prevails, 
  the PCs are disgraced, and they probably wind up exiled 
  to live among the Spider Clan.  
  If the PCs have defeated Raniyah the Sly, they could 
  potentially return to the Second City to condemn Akio as 
  the agent/dupe of a gaijin demon. This will again entail a 
  Contested Social Roll, but the stakes are higher – if Akio 
  fails, he is utterly ruined and must immediately commit 
  seppuku. This will open a power vacuum in the Ivory 
  Court, providing a hook for future politically-oriented 
  gaming.
  On the other hand, victorious PCs could decide to 
  keep the truth to themselves, giving them future leverage 
  against Akio. They could even quietly notify him that the 
  matter has been dealt with. In this manner they could gain 
  either a powerful ally or a highly-placed pawn (depending 
  on their approach), which again opens up new gaming 
  opportunities for the future. There is also the possibility 
  that someone else eventually discerns the truth, which 
  could put both Otomo Akio and the PCs in a difficult spot 
  for having covered up such a menacing scandal.
  oTomo aKio, imperiaL
  Air: 3
  EArth: 2
  FirE: 2
  WAtEr: 2
  Void: 3
  AWArEnESS: 4WillpoWEr: 3 intElligEncE: 3 pErcEption: 3
  Honor: 3.4
  Status: 4.0
  Glory: 7.3
  School/Rank: Otomo Courtier 3
  Skills: Calligraphy 3, Courtier (Gossip, Manipulation) 
  6, Etiquette (Bureaucracy, Courtesy) 6, Games: Sadane 
  3, Intimidation (Control) 4, Investigation 2, Lore: 
  Ivory Kingdoms Art 3, Lore: Heraldry 3, Lore: Law 2, 
  Meditation 2, Sincerity (Honesty, Lying) 5, Temptation 4 
  Advantages: Allies (many), Gentry, Servants, Social 
  Position (karo to the Chancellor of the Left), Wealthy
  Disadvantages: Compulsion (collect gaijin artifacts), 
  Sworn Enemies (many)
  Seppun hoiTSu, dueLiST and yojimbo
  Air: 3
  EArth: 3
  FirE: 4
  WAtEr: 3
  Void: 4
  rEFlExES: 4
  StrEngth: 4
  Honor: 6.0
  Status: 2.0
  Glory: 3.8
  School/Rank: Seppun Bodyguard 4
  Skills: Athletics 3, Courtier 2, Defense 5, 
  Etiquette 3, Iaijutsu (Focus) 6, Investigation 2, 
  Jiujutsu 3, Kenjutsu (Katana) 5, Kyujutsu 3, Lore: 
  Bushido 3, Meditation 2, Sincerity (Honesty) 3 
  Advantages: Combat Reflexes
  of her conflicted feelings—and Toturi survived, 
  ultimately leading the counterattack to retake the capital 
  from the Scorpion.) With Yaruma, the Scorpion decided 
  there was simply too much danger that he might 
  recognize something was amiss and 
  71
  The Second ciTy
  chapter Five
  
  72
  Chapter Six
  A Murder At Shiro hebi
  
  Chapter Six
  If the PCs investigated at Journey’s End Keep, they 
  should hopefully have realized the Ivinda gaijin who 
  confronted Doji Chonitsu there may know something 
  important, and if they managed a fragmentary translation 
  of the old man’s words, they will have an even stronger 
  incentive to find him. However, the available information 
  about him is initially quite slim – most likely they just 
  know that the magistrate Shinjo Juntao exiled a gaijin 
  family from Journey’s End Keep to the south, to a province 
  ruled from Shiro Hebi. They may also suspect that some 
  of these gaijin may have been sneaking back to the Keep 
  to harass Ide Uchi.
  The rumor that gaijin in Shiro Hebi killed a samurai is 
  available in both Journey’s End Keep and in the Second 
  City, and may provide a “hook” for the PCs whether or not 
  they recognize the connection to the gaijin in Journey’s 
  End Keep. 
  Regardless, this is an important chapter, since it allows 
  the PCs to make contact with the native guru, Gopti, and 
  thereby finally start to learn what sort of enemy they are 
  really facing. If the PCs seem to be missing the clues that 
  would lead them here, the GM should feel free to add more 
  hints to encourage them.
  The Setting: Mirumoto 
  Kokure’s Province 
  The lands between the Second City and Joruney’s End 
  Keep are only lightly settled by Rokugani, who have 
  established a few key villages along the Shinano River and 
  the associated roads, centered around a pair of small castles. 
  The seat of power in this loosely-organized province is 
  Shiro Hebi, home of the local daimyo, Mirumoto Kokure. 
  Appointed ten years ago by the previous governor of the 
  Colonies, Kokure is an ambitious and rather harsh man 
  who found the ascetic and self-denying lifestyle of the 
  Dragon lands in Rokugan unsuited to his temperament – 
  he came to the Colonies seeking something more in tune 
  with his nature, and has enjoyed considerable success. 
  Shiro Hebi lies roughly two days’ travel by river from 
  both the Second City and Journey’s End Keep, and about 
  three times that by land. All of the major settlements in 
  this region are located on the riverside, at road crossings 
  close to the river, or at the two castles in the province 
  – Kokure’s seat at Shiro Hebi and a smaller, supporting 
  castle a few miles downstream called Shiro Chigiri. The 
  73
  A Murder At Shiro hebi
  Chapter Six
  
  local population is primarily Rokugani immigrants but 
  contains a fair sprinkling of Ivinda natives who are trying 
  to survive by adapting themselves to the demands of their 
  new rulers. The coastal towns each have a small riverside 
  dock, which tends to get rather crowded whenever more 
  than one boat shows up – at the village by Shiro Hebi, a 
  large number of laborers are busy constructing a second 
  dock to serve the growth in river traffic. 
  Shiro Hebi itself is a small four-story castle built atop 
  a low hill, the highest ground available near the riverside. 
  It is primarily of wood construction, although the lowest 
  level is made from stone. The upper floors have unusually 
  large arched windows, an adaptation to the weather 
  conditions in the Colonies.  
  Between the castle and the river is the town, surrounded 
  by a wooden stockade wall and housing roughly a 
  thousand people. In contrast to the more secure lands to 
  the south and east, here in the less settled portions of the 
  Colonies the town is kept fully within the walls, with only 
  the farmlands themselves outside. The Dragon garrison 
  actively patrols the fringes of the surrounding jungle, 
  keeping a sharp eye out for bandits, gaijin holdouts, 
  and dangerous animals (of which there are many in the 
  Colonies, especially tigers). At the edge of the jungle 
  treeline, about a mile from the town, is a smaller cluster of 
  buildings that appears to be a barracks, a stable, and a few 
  other supporting structures. Banners of the Spider Clan 
  flutter above them. This is the headquarters for a Spider 
  squadron which is exploring the jungles to the west; the 
  men and women there keep their distance from the rest of 
  the settlement, although a few of them come into town 
  when they are off-duty to drink or carouse. The Dragon 
  keep a careful eye on them, as per their mandate in the 
  Colonies. 
  the gaiJin prisoners
  Whenever the PCs arrive at the town, the guards at the 
  town gates will check their travel papers and ask their 
  business in Shiro Hebi. If the PCs mention gaijin or the 
  rumors of a samurai murder, the guards smirk and say, 
  “Lord Kokure-sama is about to solve that problem. Go to 
  the castle gate if you wish to see.”
  Outside the front gate of Shiro Hebi, about a dozen 
  Ivinda are being held prisoner inside a large iron cage, 
  watched over by a bored castle guard. They are all adults, 
  probably between their twenties and forties, although the 
  PCs will find it difficult to estimate their exact ages due 
  to their foreign appearance. The prisoners are exhausted, 
  dirty, and disheveled, with expressions comprised for 
  the most part of blank despair. It is evident that many 
  of them have undergone rigorous interrogation – which 
  in the Rokugani context means torture. The exception to 
  their general bleak aspect is one much older man, with 
  an egg-bald head and a long gray-white beard, dressed 
  in nothing more than a cotton loincloth. This worthy is 
  seated cross-legged in the back corner of the cage, in a 
  pose of meditation, his eyes closed and his hands resting 
  palm-up on his knees. He is Gopti, the guru, and the 
  patriarch of the family.
  Several of the younger family members speak Rokugani 
  to some extent, but they will not normally volunteer 
  conversation unless the PCs speak to them first. However, 
  if the boy Sumajii (from Chapter Four) is accompanying 
  the PCs, a sudden commotion erupts among the natives as 
  they rush to the edge of the cage, crying out and sobbing, 
  reaching through the bars to touch their missing child. 
  The guard will react with alarm to this incident and will 
  start trying to beat the prisoners’ limbs back into the cage 
  with the butt 
  of his spear. 
  The prisoners for the most 
  part believe they are doomed 
  (although the sudden recovery 
  of their one surviving child 
  will give some of them a 
  renewed sense of hope). 
  Given the chance they 
  will beg and plead with the 
  PCs, insisting “old Gopti” 
  is innocent of killing the 
  samurai he is supposed 
  to have killed. They do 
  freely admit Gopti assailed 
  a samurai in blue clothing 
  at Journey’s End Keep two 
  months ago, resulting in their 
  being exiled. Old Gopti said 
  the man was actually a tiger-
  demon, a rakshasa, though 
  he had no way to expose the 
  creature. Two of the younger 
  family members can also be 
  persuaded to admit they tried 
  to break into the warehouse in 
  Journey’s End Keep; the old 
  74
  Chapter Six
  A Murder At Shiro hebi
  
  man said the tiger-demon was getting powerful artifacts 
  from that merchant, and they were trying to stop them. 
  (They do not know what the artifacts were, other than 
  “things of power.”) 
  If the PCs show serious interest in the prisoners’ claims 
  about a rakshasa, the old guru will finally begin to pay 
  attention. He cracks one eye open and regards the PCs in 
  the manner of an ancient raptor observing some impudent 
  mice. Finally he opens both eyes and begins to speak. 
  It is possible by this time that the PCs have decided to 
  start learning Ivindi, the language of the Ivory Kingdoms, 
  but if not the other family members (and Sumajii if he is 
  here) can offer a rough translation. Old Gopti will explain 
  the following:
   
  c
  The man in blue clothing is a rakshasa, a “tiger 
  that walks,” a demon that can take many forms 
  and commits all manner of evil deeds. Long ago 
  his kind were sealed away by Vishnu the Protec-
  tor, but a few managed to escape Vishnu’s gaze 
  and still walk the land. They are evil in every way: 
  malignant, treacherous, cruel, and tyrannical. They 
  can take the form of any man or woman, but in 
  their true shape they are tigers which walk upon 
  two legs.
   
  c
  The old man saw the tiger-demon leave the house 
  of a wealthy man dressed in purple. The man in 
  purple gave the demon a bundle containing an 
  item of mighty power, so strong that Gopti could 
  sense it from many yards away. To put such a thing 
  in the hands of a rakshasa is the greatest possible 
  folly.  
   
  c
  If the PCs ask for more information about rak-
  shasa, Gopti sighs. Most of the ancient texts have 
  been lost, he says, but some of his order – he calls 
  himself a “guru” – are said to still survive in the 
  jungle and they may have some of the old scrolls 
  and writings.
   
  c
  If the PCs ask how he knew the man was a raksha-
  sa, Gopy replies that while the deceptions of rak-
  shasa are powerful, those of pure spirit can some-
  times see the demon hiding behind the false eyes 
  of its human shape. The priests of Vishnu once had 
  other ways of exposing the creatures, artifacts that 
  could pierce their illusions, but such things were 
  lost when the Destroyers came.
   
  c
  If the PCs share any of their information about 
  Doji Chonitsu’s activities – e.g. his acquisition 
  and theft of various Ivory Kingdoms artworks and 
  relics, his collecting of jade, crystal, and crysteel 
  – old Gopti becomes agitated. The demon is plot-
  ting something, he mutters, something terrible. He 
  urges the PCs to free him from this cage so he can 
  seek out his surviving brethren in the jungle and 
  learn what can be done to stop the creature.
  Visiting Lord KoKure
  Much as in the earlier sections of the adventure, the PCs 
  are obligated to make a courtesy call on the local lord. In 
  this case, however, they may also have concrete reasons to 
  try to speak with Mirumoto Kokure, in order to learn about 
  the recent incidents with the gaijin – and perhaps to seek 
  mercy for Gopti and his family. 
  The audience chamber of Shiro Hebi is relatively small 
  and plain, as one might expect in a modest castle. It is on 
  the second floor and thus does not benefit from the large 
  windows on the upper floors, meaning it will probably 
  be stiflingly hot (unless the campaign is taking place 
  during the winter season). Mirumoto Kokure is a muscular 
  shaven-headed man with a short stature and a square, 
  blunt face. He wears a simple loose yukata and leggings, 
  looking more like someone dressed for the dojo than a lord 
  – another adaptation to the local climate. 
  Lord Mirumoto Kokure is not a very nice man, being 
  ambitious and disrespectful of his clan’s traditional beliefs. 
  However, unlike many of the other troublesome NPCs the 
  PCs have dealt with up to this point, he is not actually 
  an agent of Doji Chonitsu – he is simply a harsh and 
  not-especially-honorable man who Chonitsu is indirectly 
  using to dispose of the inconvenient guru and his family. 
  Kokure will be brief but maintains the minimal 
  requirements of courtesy until and unless the PCs mention 
  Gopti and the other gaijin. At that point his face darkens 
  and he begins to speak more forcefully. “I have shown 
  great toleration for these gaijin remnants, allowing 
  them to live in my villages and serve alongside my own 
  peasants. This is how they repay me! One of my samurai 
  lies dead, his murder seen by a samurai witness, and these 
  gaijin scum still dare to plead innocence! No, I will hear 
  no more on this. The gaijin is guilty, his family is guilty of 
  protecting his crime, and they will be hanged tomorrow.”
  Kokure will cut the audience short once the PCs broach 
  this topic. However, if the PCs politely request further 
  information on the incident (perhaps assisted by a Social 
  Skill Roll, such as Courtier or Sincerity) he will reluctantly 
  agree to let them speak with his magistrate, Mirumoto 
  Retsu.  
  the magistrate: mirumoto 
  retsu
  Mirumoto Retsu resides in the town, in a modest house 
  located right outside of the castle. He is an older man with 
  a salt-and-pepper goatee and a heavy limp from an injury 
  endured during youthful experiences in the War of Dark 
  Fire. He is assisted by a young samurai dressed in a light, 
  loose-fitting kimono in a mixture of black and dark blue 
  – the colors of the Spider Clan, as PCs can determine with 
  a Lore: Heraldry roll. This fellow is Daigotsu Zurui, and 
  functions both as Retsu’s yoriki and as his liason with the 
  Spider garrison. 
  75
  A Murder At Shiro hebi
  Chapter Six
  
  a “woman” in a “green robe” who stabbed it into another 
  man – the victim. 
  GMs should remember that magical evidence is 
  inadmissible. However, it can at least provide a clue as to 
  the true culprit: Tamori Tamanako.   
  Investigating the Murder
  If the PCs are going to save Gopti and his family from 
  execution (and use them to continue the pursuit of Doji 
  Chonitsu) they will have to prove his innocence on their 
  own – the magistrate sees no purpose in further pursuing a 
  case that is clearly “solved.” Of course, not all PCs may be 
  willing to put themselves on the line for gaijin, no matter 
  how important those gaijin might be to the problem 
  of Doji Chonitsu. However, the rest of this section will 
  assume the PCs are indeed pursuing an investigation; they 
  have one day to pull it off, before Gopti and the rest of his 
  family are executed.
  If the PCs go to the side-street by the Inn of the Brass 
  Fan, it is a rather unpleasant place – grubby and dark, 
  with a large wooden barrel where the employees of the 
  Inn dump refuse, trash, and garbage to be collected every 
  morning by the city’s eta. There is one physical clue 
  which can be found here if the PCs search the alley-way 
  thoroughly and make a suitably difficult Investigation 
  Skill roll. (The spell By the Light of the Moon could also 
  work here.) This is a crumpled, tattered piece of rice paper 
  with a few kanji written on it in charcoal. The paper is 
  damp and the charcoal smudged, but if the PCs can puzzle 
  it out (probably a Perception roll, perhaps supplemented 
  with the Calligraphy skill) they see it reads, “Meet me in 
  the alley in an hour.” The writing style is feminine. 
  A shugenja can learn more by Communing with the 
  spirits here, though (again) this information will not be 
  legally usable. There are Earth spirits in the alley which 
  can say the dead man came here alone, waited for a little 
  while, then was stabbed by a woman who wore green 
  robes. There are of course Air spirits in abundance, but 
  they are transient so the PC will have to call four Raises to 
  get an Air spirit that was here when the attack took place. 
  With a success, the spirit describes a “woman in robes the 
  color of leaves” who came into the side-street “wrapped 
  in air” and stabbed the man in the back. Any shugenja 
  who hears this description can make a Spellcraft or Lore: 
  Shugenja roll to realize the woman was using Air magic 
  to conceal herself. 
  the inn empLoyees 
  The PCs may well think of going inside to question the 
  innkeeper and his servants. They did not witness the crime 
  itself, of course – their first knowledge of the murder was 
  when the magistrates showed up outside. They remember 
  Mirumoto Bakane coming in that evening to drink, and 
  also remember Tamori Tamanako, who arrived the day 
  before and is still staying at the inn. They will not initially 
  say anything about the evening of the murder other than 
  that Bakane spent the evening drinking and left around 
  midnight, but if the PCs question them carefully (and use 
  If the PCs ask for information on the recent murder, 
  Retsu explains that one of the local off-duty Dragon 
  soldiers, Mirumoto Bakane, was killed in the narrow street 
  behind the local inn, the Inn of the Brass Fan. The crime 
  was initially reported by a commoner messenger, but when 
  Retsu and Zurui arrived, they met the samurai witness: 
  a woman named Tamori Tamanako, a shugenja passing 
  through the city on the way north from the Second City. 
  She said she saw an old gaijin man with a bald head and 
  a long beard (Gopti) stab Bakane in the back with a knife. 
  Sure enough, the samurai lay dead in the side-street with 
  a knife of Ivory Kingdoms design sunk hilt-deep into his 
  back.  
  The description clearly matched Gopti (who has been 
  a known figure in the town since his arrival two months 
  ago) and they went promptly to arrest and question him. 
  His family resisted, with violence, so ultimately they were 
  all arrested as well. Confession has not been forthcoming, 
  despite rigorous questioning, but given that they are 
  not only commoners but also gaijin, Lord Mirumoto 
  Kokure has chosen to waive the normal requirement for a 
  confession to close out the investigation and has ordered 
  them hanged. 
  If the PCs ask for more information about the dead man 
  (Mirumoto Bakane), Retsu says he is a soldier in the local 
  garrison who was apparently visiting the inn to drink 
  sake during his off-duty hours. Retsu does not approve of 
  such frivoloity (he is a bit of an ascetic) but understands 
  many young men feel the need for such things. Bakane 
  has already been cremated and his belongings sent to 
  his family; if the PCs ask about these, Retsu frowns but 
  then turns to Zurui, who calmly lists them off: a daisho 
  set, a chop, a string of coins (clearly the motive was not 
  robbery), and a personal sake cup. 
  They do not know why Bakane was in the side-street, 
  and given the clear-cut nature of the crime they did not 
  see any need to ask. 
  If the PCs ask about the witness, Retsu says that as far 
  as he knows Tamori Tamanako is still in town, staying at 
  the Inn of the Brass Fan – they ordered her to remain until 
  the investigation is concluded, although they have not 
  actually needed to bring her back to repeat her testimony. 
  They assume she is still here but have not actively looked 
  for her in the last couple of days. 
  If the PCs ask about the murder weapon, the magistrates 
  do still have it. It is a short dagger with an odd triangular 
  blade and a horizontal handle mounted between two 
  irregular metal posts: a kukri, although the PCs will not 
  recognize it as such and will simply see it as a gaijin 
  item. A suitable Lore skill (or asking the right people) can 
  confirm this type of knife is native to the Ivory Kingdoms 
  and is specifically designed for killing – it is a weapon, not 
  a tool. There are no other physical clues to be gained from 
  the blade, but a shugenja PC may be able to learn more by 
  Communing with the Earth spirits in the metal. Since this 
  is a gaijin device the spirits within it are deeply asleep – it 
  is suggested the GM require at least two Raises to awaken 
  them enough to hear the shugenja’s questions. Regardless, 
  once awakened the spirits can say the knife was carried by 
  76
  Chapter Six
  A Murder At Shiro hebi
  
  Social Skill Rolls to tell when they may be shading the 
  truth), the following information can be extracted:
   
  c
  Bakane spent some time speaking (and sharing 
  drinks) with Tamori Tamanako. The serving-maids 
  at the inn are pretty clear she was flirting with 
  him; the innkeeper refrains from speculation. 
   
  c
  If the PCs ask, Tamanako left the common room 
  about an hour before Bakane did. Oddly she did 
  not go upstairs to her room, but instead went 
  out onto the street. “Perhaps she was planning to 
  meet the honored Mirumoto-sama elsewhere?” the 
  maids speculate. 
   
  c
  The inn workers confirm that none of them found 
  the body or knew about the murder; their first 
  warning was when the magistrates arrived. 
  soLVing the mystery
  The villain in this piece is Tamori Tamanako, who has 
  been blackmailed by Raniyah the Sly into murdering 
  Bakane and pinning the blame on Gopti. If the PCs meet 
  with her, they find she is a fairly attractive shugenja-ko in 
  her mid-twenties, unmarried, with a tense and brittle air. 
  She will repeat the same story she told the magistrates: 
  she went out for a walk after dinner (she claims she 
  needed to clear her head after drinking so much sake). She 
  insists there was no impropriety about her evening with 
  Bakane: “We merely talked and shared drinks, in full view 
  of the entire common room. No different than any other 
  two samurai talking over sake.” She walked for a while 
  and returned around midnight. By chance she looked into 
  the alley and saw, by the moonlight, the old gaijin man 
  stabbing Bakane in the back with his strange knife. She 
  screamed and he fled; then she flagged down a commoner 
  and sent him for the magistrates. “I do not have the power 
  of the kami to heal injury, or perhaps I could have saved 
  him.” 
   
  c
  PCs who successfully test her veracity with Inves-
  tigation rolls or Courtier Techniques 
  will be able to sense she is lying 
  about most of the story, especially 
  the crime itself, but she will firmly 
  insist she is truthful and may even 
  threaten a duel if the PCs are too 
  aggressive. (She is a Tamori yama-
  bushi and carries her own swords.)
   
  c
  If the PCs try to figure out her mo-
  tives, they will realize she is greatly 
  emotionally burdened but is keep-
  ing it under control. 
   
  c
  If the PCs ask why she happened to 
  be traveling through here, she says 
  she is on her way north to Journey’s 
  End Keep to join a caravan head-
  ing for the Empire; her family has 
  arranged a marriage for her with a 
  Unicorn back in Rokugan. She has 
  spent the last four years as part of 
  the Dragon embassy in the Second 
  City. 
   
  c
  PCs may wish to look further into Tamanako’s 
  background or find out if there are any rumors 
  about her. Unfortunately, because she has spent the 
  last four years in the Second City, the only place 
  where the PCs can get that sort of information 
  would be in the gossip circuit of that city. A side-
  bar in Chapter Five discussing gossip in the Ivory 
  Court includes the rumor associated with Tamori 
  Tamanako, but if the PCs failed to pick up that 
  rumor, the GM may wish to save some time by 
  letting them make a Skill Roll to remember gos-
  sip about Tamanako (perhaps by rolling Courtier / 
  Intelligence, for example). In this case, the PCs can 
  recall hearing a story that Tamanako had borne a 
  child from a secret affair, but the matter was some-
  how hushed up.      
  If the PCs found the scrap of paper in the alley, they 
  have concrete evidence that can link Tamanako to the 
  murder. The paper and ink match the writing paper and 
  writing kit in her room at the inn, and the writing style and 
  brush-strokes match hers. If the PCs confront Tamanako 
  with the note, they can potentially break her down and 
  force a confession; however, this will not be easy, and 
  she will try to laugh off or dismiss their accusations, 
  perhaps even demanding a duel against them. Breaking 
  her down should require both effective role-play and a 
  successful Contested Social Roll and/or the use of Courtier 
  Techniques. Alternatively, a PC who beats her in a duel to 
  first blood could thereby shatter her spirit and lead her to 
  confess. 
  If she does break down, Tamanako’s brittle façade 
  suddenly collapses and she begins weeping uncontrollably, 
  eventually confessing the truth in a dull and exhausted 
  voice. She admits she murdered Bakane and falsely testified 
  against Gopti, framing him for the crime. Presumably the 
  PCs will ask her why (and where she got the kukri dagger); 
  she will say she was given the dagger and told to carry 
  77
  A Murder At Shiro hebi
  Chapter Six
  
  on the land as bad as the rise of the Destroyers – perhaps 
  worse. 
  If the PCs manage to save Gopti’s family, some of them 
  will be willing to accompany the PCs on such a quest, to 
  serve as translaters (they cannot really work as “guides” 
  since they do not know where Gopti’s fellow guru live, 
  other than a general impression of “somewhere in the 
  western jungles”). They will be even more willing to do 
  this if the PCs saved Sumajii. Conversely, if the family is 
  executed, the PCs will have to either rely on Sumajii for 
  translation, recruit a translator from the local population, 
  or learn to speak Ivindi themselves. 
  If Gopti is saved, on the other hand, the PCs have 
  more options. The old guru will speak with the PCs at 
  further length about rakshasa and the threat from them. 
  In addition to reiterating the information he may have 
  shared with them earlier while he was imprisoned, he will 
  offer the following: 
   
  c
  Rakshasa are not only shapeshifters but are also 
  cunning sorcerers and masters of illusion and de-
  ception. You can never be sure whether the man 
  or woman you speak to is a mortal or a rakshasa. 
  However, those of noble soul or who have walked 
  the path of the guru, purifying the body and spirit 
  for many years, can sometimes see the evil tiger-
  spirit looking out of the eyes of its false form, and 
  smell the bloodlust in its heart. This is how he saw 
  the “man in blue” was a rakshasa. 
   
  c
  In ancient times, the wise men of the Ivory King-
  doms knew a great many secrets about the raksha-
  sa demons and their ancient wars with Vishnu the 
  Protector. Alas, with the passage of centuries much 
  of that knowledge was lost, and almost all that re-
  mained was destroyed when the Cult of Kali tore 
  the kingdom apart. Most of the guru died in those 
  years. After the Dark Daughter finally perished, 
  the surviving guru met and discussed what they 
  should do. Some of them proposed to travel back 
  into the jungle and seek out one of the temples 
  of Vishnu, hoping to live there and save as much 
  knowledge as possible. Others, Gopti among them, 
  chose to remain among the other survivors of their 
  people, helping them to deal with the world left 
  behind by the death of their country. 
   
  c
  Gopti does not know exactly where his brethren 
  ended up, or even if they are alive. But he does 
  know several of the order’s ancient temples were 
  located in the jungles to the west, including a great 
  temple to Vishnu, and this is where he believes any 
  search should take place. 
  If Gopti survived, he can also serve one other role in 
  the campaign: at the GM’s option, he can potentially teach 
  his martial and spiritual techniques – the Sainika Fighter 
  School – to a PC who he considers a worthy successor. Of 
  course, this should only be allowed if the PC in question 
  is an open-minded sort who has role-played a sincere 
  interest in the ways of the Ivory Kingdoms. Needless to 
  say, characters of this sort should be rare even within the 
  Colonies. 
  out the frame-up by a hooded man who reminded her of 
  obligations she had in the Second City.
  These obligations are, in fact, to Doji Chonitsu, who 
  protected her from the consequences of her out-of-wedlock 
  child (the result of an ill-considered love affair). The PCs 
  will probably have to pressure her some more to get her 
  to admit to this and to name Chonitsu as the one who 
  originally covered up her terrible indiscretion. It should be 
  noted that Tamanako is only Status 1, and her word will 
  thus not be sufficient to accuse Chonitsu directly. 
  Tamori TamanaKo,  
   
   
  moraLLy CompromiSed Shugenja-Ko
  Air: 3
  EArth: 4
  FirE: 3
  WAtEr: 3
  Void: 3
  Honor: 2.7
  Status: 1.0
  Glory: 1.5
  Infamy: 1.0
  School/Rank: Tamori Shugenja 4
  Skills: Athletics 2, Calligraphy 4, Courtier 2, Craft: 
  Alchemy 3, Defense 3, Etiquette 2, Iaijutsu 3, Kenjutsu 
  3, Lore: Shugenja 3, Lore: Theology 4, Meditation 4, 
  Sincerity 3, Spellcraft 4 
  Disadvantages: Dark Secrets (illegitimate child, murderer), 
  Obligation (Doji Chonitsu)
  The Outcome:   
  Execution or Salvation? 
  In order to save Gopti and his family, the PCs will 
  have to force Tamori Tamanako into confession. This will 
  most likely require them to find the note in the alley-
  way, although skillful and clever PCs might be able to 
  trick or intimidate her into confessing without that clue. 
  Regardless, if they present her confession to the magistrate, 
  Mirumoto Retsu will (somewhat reluctantly) agree he must 
  accept her confession and call off the execution of Gopti 
  and his family. However, he will still order the family 
  beaten for resisting arrest.   
  If the PCs cannot get a confession from Tamanako 
  (either because they did not find the note or because they 
  are unable to break her down), they will not be able to 
  legally prevent the execution of Gopti. They can still plead 
  for mercy on Gopti’s family, on the grounds that they were 
  not involved in the murder and are really guilty of nothing 
  more than resisting arrest – if this option is undertaken 
  with sufficient dedication and eloquence, the GM can 
  allow the PCs to make some Social Skill Rolls to try to 
  win over the magistrate and/or the daimyo. With success, 
  the family members are spared from death, though they 
  are still beaten severely as punishment for resisting arrest. 
  They watch tearfully as old Gopti is taken out and hanged. 
  If the PCs are ultimately unable to save Gopti, he will try 
  to speak with them one more time before he is executed. 
  He tells them to go into the jungle and find his brothers, 
  his fellow guru, who may still have some of the ancient 
  wisdom on how to deal with the terror of the rakshasa. 
  Otherwise something terrible will happen, bringing doom 
  78
  Chapter Six
  A Murder At Shiro hebi
  
  Plot Option: The Doomseeker
  The Doomseekers are an ancient gaijin order that appears to have originated within the Senpet Empire 
  as a response to the emergence there of the khadi – evil sorcerers who remove their own hearts in order 
  to make themselves immortal. The Order takes as its purpose and motto to “bring death to the deathless,” 
  and while its primary goal has always been the destruction of the khadi, it has also pursued other immortal 
  terrors such as rakshasa. Ironically, it was actually a rakshasa – Adisbah the Cruel – who brought 
  information on the Doomseeker Order to Rokugan in the early twelfth century, where Iuchi Karasu 
  became the first of the Unicorn Clan Doomseekers.
  If the GM wishes to add some additional depth to this campaign, he can introduce the character of 
  Suwat the Doomseeker, a man from the Senpet Empire who has followed hints of an immortal demon 
  back to the Ivory Kingdoms. Suwat is a short, swarthy man with dark eyes and straight black hair; aside 
  from the lack of a curve to his eyes, he can usually fit in fairly well among Rokugani, and dresses in 
  a peasant kimono and a wide-brimmed straw hat to help him avoid notice. He wears a strange golden 
  amulet on a chain underneath his kimono, marking him as a member of the Doomseeker Order. Suwat 
  speaks several languages, including Rokugani, but has a noticeable accent; combined with his lack of 
  official travel papers, this has led him to associate mainly with commoners, avoiding interactions with 
  samurai as much as possible.  
  Suwat will be very hesitant about approaching the PCs directly, since they are samurai. However, his 
  pursuit of Raniyah the Sly will lead him into the same investigative paths as them, and it is likely over 
  time he will realize the PCs are potential allies. Whether he ultimately speaks to the PCs or not is up to 
  the GM; in general, Suwat functions as a “backup plan” for GMs whose players are unable to find key 
  information to advance the plot.
  Suwat is not hugely knowledgeable about rakshasa – he is from the Senpet Empire, after all – but 
  he does know they are demonic immortal shapeshifters, extremely intelligent and dangerous, and quite 
  difficult to unmask. Through his extensive discussions with commoners, he has picked up rumors that 
  some of the Ivory Kingdoms priesthood are still alive and in hiding at a temple within the deep jungles of 
  the Colonies. He knows these holy men supposedly preserved a great deal of information about rakshasa, 
  and hopes to eventually seek them out and ask to share in their secrets. Thus, if the PCs fail to pick up on 
  Gopti’s information or the clues in the Second City pointing at a temple in the jungle, Suwat can serve as 
  a “plot rickshaw” to send the PCs in search of the Temple of Vishnu.
  At the GM’s option, Suwat can also be a vehicle for introducing the Doomseeker Technique into the 
  campaign, since he is willing to teach his secrets to anyone who seems worthy of carrying them on. 
  Mechanically, the version of Suwat presented here is not a spellcasting shugenja, though he is still 
  considered to have “spell slots” for the purpose of using the Doomseeker Technique. GMs who wish to 
  present Suwat as a sahir – a gaijin spellcaster – may opt to give him one of the Ronin Shugenja Schools 
  from the L5R 4th Edition supplement Enemies of the Empire. Alternatively, a GM may also choose to use 
  one of the Sahir Schools from the Burning Sands web update PDF (located on the L5R website at www.
  l5r.com). 
  SuwaT The doomSeeKer, gaijin aLLy
  Air: 3
  EArth: 3
  FirE: 3
  WAtEr: 2
  Void: 2
  WillpoWEr: 4
  intElligEncE: 4
  pErcEption: 3
  Honor: N/A
  Status: 0.0
  Glory: 0.2
  Infamy: 1.5
  School/Rank: None/Doomseeker Technique (Insight Rank 4)
  Skills: Athletics 3, Calligraphy 2, Courtier 2, Defense 3, Etiquette 
  (Conversation) 2, Hunting (Survival, Tracking) 4, Investigation 5, 
  Knives 3, Lore: Burning Sands 5, Lore: Khadi 3, Lore: Rokugan 2, 
  Sincerity 4, Staves 3.   
  Advantages: Bland, Forbidden Knowledge (khadi)
  Disadvantages: Social Disadvantage (gaijin)
  79
  A Murder At Shiro hebi
  Chapter Six
  
  80
  Chapter Seven
  The Temple of ViShnu
  
  Chapter Seven
  There are three possible ways for the PCs to learn 
  about the Temple of Vishnu maintained by guru Gopti’s 
  brethren in the deep jungles to the west. The first and most 
  straightforward is for the PCs to meet Gopti and his family 
  at Shiro Hebi. The second is in Chapter Five in the Second 
  City, where the PCs may come across Doji Chonitsu’s 
  efforts (via Otomo Akio) to manipulate the Spider Clan 
  into finding and destroying the surviving Ivory Kingdoms 
  temples in the jungle. Finally, the PCs may meet the 
  Doomseeker Suwat and win his trust, in which case he can 
  set them on the path to the guru refugees and their temple. 
  Some intelligent PCs may think of asking the Spider 
  whether they know of such a temple, since they are tasked 
  with exploring the deep jungles of the Colonies. The 
  Spider have not yet found an inhabited temple (though 
  they have located several abandoned and ruined ones), 
  but they do say they have encountered a fair number of 
  scattered natives in the western jungles and some of them 
  have spoken of a great temple somewhere that remains 
  unspoiled. Much of the area is still unexplored so it is 
  entirely possible these rumors are true. 
  In order to safely explore the western jungles and 
  seek out the Temple of Vishnu, the PCs will most likely 
  need the cooperation of the Spider Clan. The Spider are 
  responsible for exploring the “barbaric” regions of the 
  former Ivory Kingdoms under their new Imperial charter 
  as a Great Clan, and are supposed to destroy whatever 
  threats may lie within so as to render them safe for the 
  Rokugani to inhabit. PCs who travel into the jungle will 
  be entering the domain of the Spider Clan and may be 
  opening themselves up to attack if they encounter the 
  Spider in remote locations; wise PCs will instead approach 
  the Spider beforehand. If necessary the GM should let the 
  PCs make an appropriate Skill Roll (most likely some form 
  of Lore) to be aware of the general situation regarding the 
  Colonies and the Spider.
  It is also possible for the PCs to wind up in the company 
  of the Spider for another reason: if they completely fail in 
  their efforts against Otomo Akio in the Second City (see 
  Chapter Five), the Otomo may well retailiate by having the 
  PCs exiled to duty alongside the Spider, hoping thereby to 
  permanently remove them from any ability to influence 
  events in the Second City or elsewhere. However, once 
  the PCs are exiled they will also have the potential of 
  persuading the Spider of the threat from the rakshasa 
  and perhaps even getting them to seek out the Temple of 
  Vishnu. (If the PCs have not gained any clues as to the 
  possible existence of the guru order and the temple, this 
  would be the time to introduce Suwat the Doomseeker as 
  a “clue rickshaw” to guide the PCs back into a potentially 
  successful story path.)
  Meeting With the Spider
  If the PCs are seeking out the Temple on their own 
  initiative, they will most likely need to meet with the 
  Spider to gain cooperation and assistance. The easiest 
  place to do this is at the Shiro Hebi garrison, but there are 
  many other such small Spider garrisons located along the 
  edge of the explored territory in the Colonies, so the GM 
  can potentially get the PCs into communication with the 
  81
  The Temple of Vishnu
  Chapter seven
  
  Spider almost anywehere. The PCs could also approach the 
  Spider in the Second City, especially if they already met 
  with them during their investigations into Otomo Akio. 
  The various Spider border garrisons have a certain 
  similarity: all of them are stark, almost ascetic military 
  barracks, supplemented with various basic necessities such 
  as storage, dojo, bathouses, and offices. Each of them has 
  a small shrine to Daigotsu – the Spider do not flaunt their 
  worship of the Dark Kami, but they do not hide it either. 
  Many of the Spider garrisons are associated with a small 
  peasant village which provides them with food, crafts, and 
  other necessities, but those located near a larger settlement 
  (such as the garrison near Shiro Hebi) instead rely on the 
  adjacent community for such needs. Many of the Spider 
  garrisons are placed near Dragon Clan settlements in order 
  to facilitate the Dragon Clan’s responsibility of watching 
  over the Spider; those which are too remote for this 
  are instead visited periodically by inspection patrols of 
  Dragon samurai and tattooed men. 
  In general, the Spider garrisons tend to keep to 
  themselves. They are silent, hard-faced men and women 
  who dress in the drab dark blue, gray, and black colors 
  of their clan. (Individual Spider samurai, of course, will 
  show much greater range in their personalities, especially 
  if the PCs get to know them personally.) The Spider know 
  their status as a “Great Clan” is not really accepted by the 
  rest of the Empire and that they are still regarded with 
  deep suspicion by many samurai, especially the Crab and 
  Scorpion. It should be noted that many of these Spider 
  samurai are Tainted (though not Lost) – the Spider’s 
  Tainted elements were exiled from the Empire two decades 
  ago when they were recognized as a clan. PCs who visit 
  the Spider in their garrisons will have the unsettling 
  experience of noticing evidence of Taint on many of them 
  – sunken eyes, pallid skin, patchy hair, and so forth. 
  If the PCs approach the garrison at Shiro Hebi (the most 
  likely choice, given its convenient proximity to the PCs’ 
  meeting with Gopti), they will meet with the commander, 
  Daigotsu Kobara, a tough-looking older man with several 
  ugly scars on his face and arms. He listens quietly to the 
  PCs and then tells them: “Our duties within the jungles 
  are dangerous, and we cannot afford to be weighed down 
  by those who cannot protect themselves.” He glowers 
  at any unimpressive-looking PCs such as courtiers with 
  clear contempt. “Our duty is to seek out and destroy any 
  threats to the Empire – we have no time to be searching 
  for some half-mythical band of gaijin priests. Why should 
  we divert valuable resources to such a task?” PCs who 
  go to other Spider garrisons will most likely encounter 
  a similar response there, although if any of the PCs are 
  Spider Clan samurai themselves they will meet with a 
  much more positive response. 
  82
  Chapter Seven
  The Temple of ViShnu
  
  The PCs can try to pressure the Spider into accepting 
  them by citing political connections (if they have any), 
  or they can reveal what they know about the rakshasa 
  and argue the Spider should be willing to assist them in 
  confronting a threat to the Empire (after all, a rakshasa 
  commanded the Destroyer army that invaded Rokugan a 
  generation ago, and the Spider fought alongside the rest 
  of the Empire against that threat). As a last resort, the PCs 
  can simply try to be persuasive, perhaps with promises 
  of future favors. Naturally, all of these approaches should 
  be backed up by a suitable Social Skill roll, and Courtier 
  Techniques can be quite helpful as well. 
  on duty With the spider
  If the PCs were disgraced in Chapter Five, Otomo Akio 
  will have them punished by getting them assigned to the 
  Spider on the frontier. This will obviously be a major loss 
  of face for the PCs, as well as a dangerous assignment in 
  itself. 
  In this case, the PCs are sent to a minor garrison far out 
  on the border of the settled zone. It is home to an oversize 
  squadron of Spider troops, commanded by a thin hard-
  faced woman named Daigotsu Kumiko. She is a harsh, 
  demanding commander and will show open contempt for 
  any PCs who have been assigned to her command – after 
  all, they have been disgraced and politically ruined. She 
  assigns the PCs to a patrol squad commanded by Kazuo, a 
  Tainted monk from the Order of Venom. Kazuo maintains 
  discipline in his squad through force, and will not hesitate 
  to physically abuse any PCs who earn his ire. (Fighting 
  back is not tolerated, but a formal challenge for control 
  of the squadron would be acceptable – the Spider respect 
  strength and generally hold the view that a commander 
  must be powerful enough to justify his command. 
  However, such a challenge will be to the death, so the 
  PCs had best be sure of themselves before launching on 
  this course.) 
  The PCs will have to live in the garrison barracks 
  alongside the Spider bushi, many of whom are Tainted – a 
  highly unpleasant prospect, even in the post-Destroyer War 
  environment where Taint no longer spreads to those in the 
  vicinity. The PCs will also see the Spider making prayers to 
  Daigotsu at the small shrine outside the barracks. Needless 
  to say, the Spider will not tolerate insults to their revered 
  Dark Kami, and they will either challenge offensive PCs 
  or simply trap them in a dark alley and beat them bloody 
  with clubs.    
  The PCs will be required to accompany the Spider 
  patrols into the jungle, where they must face the assorted 
  threats and dangers associated with the duty of slowly 
  “clearing” the jungle for Rokugani settlement. Patrols 
  typically last several days, with the Spider living off travel 
  rations (rice balls, dried fish, etc) and camping outdoors at 
  night. Nighttime in the jungles of the Ivory Kingdoms are 
  eerie, with strange noises echoing through the darkness 
  and a bloated moon barely shedding any light through 
  the tangle of tropical vegetation overhead. Nor is it 
  free of danger – venomous and constrictor snakes may 
  slither into a night-time camp, drawn by the body heat of 
  sleeping samurai, and bandits roaming the jungles may try 
  for a late-night ambush.
  Getting Stalled?
  If the PCs fail to win the assistance of the Spider, 
  there is the potential for the campaign to ‘stall out’ 
  as the PCs are effectively blocked from searching for 
  the Temple of Vishnu. This is obviously a problem, 
  since the PCs are unlikely to be able to defeat Raniyah 
  without the information they can find at the Temple. 
  Herewith a number of suggestions for ways the GM 
  can deal with this problem:  
  Allow the PCs to make multiple attempts to win 
  over the Spider, let them try again at different 
  garrisons, or encourage them to negotiate directly 
  with Susumu Minoru in the Second City. 
  Let the PCs call in political favors or Allies to get 
  permission to explore the jungle on their own without 
  Spider accompanyment. 
  The PCs can simply set out on their own without 
  permission and try to avoid the Spider patrols, or 
  try to smooth-talk their way past the patrols if they 
  encounter them. This could make for some interesting 
  encounters as the PCs employ Stealth and evasion 
  techniques to avoid Spider troops, or conduct tense 
  quick-talking negotiations with them in the event of 
  an encounter. 
  The second and third options will make the 
  explorations themselves more dangerous, especially 
  if none of the PCs have good ranks in Hunting – the 
  jungles of the Ivory Kingdoms are not a safe place. 
  Suwat the Doomseeker has decent ranks in the 
  Hunting Skill and thus could potentially serve as a 
  guide for the PCs if they lack the Skills or nerve to 
  go into the jungle on their own. Alternatively, if the 
  PCs have one or more of guru Gopti’s family along as 
  translators, they could serve in this capacity as well.
  Kazuo, paTroL Leader and TainTed monK 
  Air: 3
  EArth: 4
  FirE: 3
  WAtEr: 3
  Void: 3
  rEFlExES: 4
  Agility: 4
  StrEngth: 4
  Honor: 1.6
  Status: 3.0
  Glory: 2.6
  Infamy: 3.0
  Taint Rank: 3.2
  School/Rank: Order of the Spider Monk 4
  Skills: Athletics 5, Battle 3, Defense 5, Etiquette 1, Heavy 
  Weapons (Bisento) 5, Hunting 4, Investigation 2, Jiujutsu 
  5, Knives 3, Lore: Ivory Kingdoms 3, Lore: Theology 4, 
  Medicine 3, Meditation 5, Sincerity 2, Spears 3, Stealth 4
  Advantages: Languages (Ivindi), Social Position (patrol 
  commander), Strength of the Earth
  Disadvantages: Bad Fortune (Shadowlands Taint)
  83
  The Temple of Vishnu
  Chapter seven
  
  Searching the Jungles
  Once the PCs are in the jungle, they will likely have 
  to spend many days or weeks, perhaps even a couple of 
  months, searching for the Temple of Vishnu. If the PCs are 
  still acting as free agents (presumably with Spider escorts), 
  they will be able to search as they please and will thus 
  likely take less time to find the Temple; if they are stuck 
  on punitive duty with the Spider, it will take much longer.
  As a general rule, for each week the PCs spend exploring 
  the jungles, allow them to make a Hunting roll (most likely 
  with the Perception Trait) to find evidence of the Temple 
  of Vishnu – e.g. signs of human habitation, glimpses of 
  woodsmoke in the distance, and so forth. Two or more 
  successive weekly rolls might be needed to focus in on 
  this evidence and track down the Temple. In general, the 
  longer and more difficult the GM wants the search to be, 
  the higher the TNs should be and the more successive 
  rolls should be required to succeed. If the PCs are stuck 
  on punitive patrol duty, the TNs should be significantly 
  higher since the PCs can only search as a side-effect of 
  their normal duties. 
  Obviously, exploring the deep jungles of the Ivory 
  Kingdoms is not in any way a safe occupation. The GM 
  can inflict a host of different challenging encounters on 
  the PCs during this part of the campaign. (How many, how 
  frequent, and what sort of encounters should depend on 
  the tastes of individual GMs and the preferences of their 
  players. Some players may enjoy having a few combat 
  encounters to liven up their game, while others will be 
  impatient with such distractions.) As a baseline, the GM 
  should consider one to three encounters for each week the 
  PCs spend exploring the jungle. 
  Following are suggestions for a variety of challenges 
  the PCs can face while in the jungle:
   
  c
  Swamp. The PCs and their companions must 
  traverse a swamp, wading through knee-deep or 
  waist-deep water. During this venture the PCs may 
  come under attack by dangerous marsh-dwelling 
  wildlife such as crocodiles or constrictor snakes.   
   
  c
  Poisonous Snake. The jungles of the Ivory King-
  doms contain several varieties of venomous 
  snakes, some of which are extremely deadly. A 
  snake may ambush a random PC or NPC, poten-
  tially requiring emergency medical treatment (or 
  magic) to escape death by snakebite. 
   
  c
  Constrictor Snake. Constrictors are less common 
  than venomous snakes, but potentially much more 
  dangerous, since they view humans as prey. The 
  GM may wish to use the dangerous Bonedrinker 
  snake from the Appendix for one of these encoun-
  ters.
   
  c
  Cultist Remnants. There are still a few small pock-
  ets of the Cult of the Destroyer roaming through 
  the jungles, looking for the chance to take ven-
  geance for the defeat of their dark goddess. The 
  PCs might be ambushed by such a group, or (con-
  versely) the PCs might find the tracks of a cult 
  group and have the chance to hunt them down and 
  destroy them. The latter option is especially ap-
  propriate if the PCs are on punitive duty with the 
  Spider. Mechanically, cultists are Rank One Ronin 
  with no techniques – the GM may opt to use the 
  “Simple Bandit” template from page 206 of 
  Enemies of the Empire as a shortcut.
   
  c
  Rogue Elephant. The 
  Ivory Kingdoms is home to a species 
  of medium-large elephants. Prior 
  to the rise of the Destroyer Cult, 
  most of these were domesticated 
  and used by the natives as beasts 
  of burden, but the death of most of 
  the population resulted in many ele-
  phants going feral. An angry bull el-
  ephant is a very aggressive animal, 
  able to run faster than a man, and 
  likely responds to injury with rage 
  and aggression rather than retreat.    
   
  c
  Native Village. There 
  are still a few small villages of the 
  Ivory Kingdoms’ native people, the 
  Ivinda, scattered through the deep 
  jungles. These are typically “composite” 
  villages formed by small groups of 
  survivors who managed to come 
  84
  Chapter Seven
  The Temple of ViShnu
  
  together, often under the leadership of a few 
  kshatriya-caste warriors. The villagers will be 
  fearful and somewhat hostile toward Rokugani, 
  especially if there are Spider present – the Spider 
  Clan’s general policy is to treat such villages as 
  potential threats and force their inhabitants to 
  return to the settled areas to live under Rokugani 
  authority. How the PCs react to such a situation can 
  pose an interesting moral quandary for them. If the 
  PCs are trying to avoid violence, a non-threatening 
  approach can avert danger – especially if the PCs 
  have Gopti or some of his family with them.  
   
  c
  Native Bandits. Not all of the surviving natives 
  want to live in peace. The PCs may encounter a 
  group of Ivinda who are surviving through violence 
  and theft, preying on the edges of the Rokugani-
  settled areas. This could lead to an ambush, or the 
  PCs could wind up following the trail of bandits 
  who have already raided the border, setting up a 
  possible chase and/or counter-ambush. The bandits 
  know the jungle well and thus could be a serious 
  challenge. This could be an especially interesting 
  encounter if the PCs are on punitive assignment 
  with the Spider; what happens if the Spider patrol 
  gets wiped out in a bandit fight, leaving the PCs 
  on their own? Do they return and report, or do 
  they take the opportunity to strike out on their 
  own? Mechanically, these opponents can be 
  represented with the mixture of “Simple Bandits” 
  and “Experienced Bandits” from Enemies of the 
  Empire; for a real challenge, put the PCs up against 
  a few surviving kshatriya, using the Kshatriya 
  Warrior School presented in the Appendix of Book 
  Two: The People. 
   
  c
  Tiger Attack. Real (non-rakshasa) tigers are 
  often maneaters and are quite aggressive toward 
  anything in their territory. They are also good at 
  staging ambushes or sneak attacks – for example, 
  a hungry tiger may stalk a patrol for hours, then 
  try to snatch away one victim when he becomes 
  briefly separated from the rest.  
   
  c
  Wandering Golem. The Ivory Kingdoms civilization 
  included a number of ancient magical constructs, 
  golems, the secret of whose manufacture has been 
  lost to time. A handful of these creations still exist, 
  wandering randomly through the jungles. Game 
  mechanics for golems are found in the Appendix.  
   
  c
  Destroyer. Not quite all of the Destroyer demons 
  were slain at the end of Kali-ma’s invasion twenty 
  years ago – a few of them scattered into the 
  wilderness, where they remain. A GM who wants 
  to give the PCs a truly alarming challenge can have 
  them encounter one (or more) of these entities. 
  Their mechanics are presented in the Appendix. 
  Spider Personalities
  If the GM wishes to create more depth in the depic-
  tion of the Spider Clan, the best way to do so is to cre-
  ate a greater variety of NPCs for the players to meet 
  and interact with while they are living and patrolling 
  alongside the Spider. The following NPCs can serve 
  as a starting point or inspiration for GMs who wish 
  to take this route: 
  Daigotsu Buso: A large man with a broad belly, mus-
  cular shoulders, and a pronounced limp. Buso started 
  life as a ronin with a clubfoot and consequently grew 
  up in an environment of prejudice and contempt. In 
  his late teens he joined the Spider Clan and found 
  acceptance there, especially since he had learned to 
  fight despite his handicap. Buso normally has an exu-
  berant and even slightly playful personality, making 
  him an enjoyable man to be around, a good conver-
  sationalist with a subversive sense of humor. Howev-
  er, he also has a darker side, a sense of grievance and 
  anger that comes out if he is ever mocked or insulted. 
  Tauku: This man is a monk of the Order of the Spider 
  and normally dresses in the full-body garments and 
  head-wrappings of his order, showing only a narrow 
  strip of his face to the outside world. He is very self-
  controlled and calm, polite to anyone who approaches 
  him, but with a tense anger lurking beneath the sur-
  face. He is always completely self-controlled until he 
  goes into combat, whereupon he suddenly erupts in 
  terrifying bloodthirsty fury. Ironically, Tauku is also 
  a bit of a scholar and theologian, and will freely and 
  openly discuss and debate the Spider Clan’s religious 
  and philosophical views (e.g. the code of Shourido, 
  worship of Daigotsu) during his off-duty hours. 
  Daigotsu Kizu: A raffish and rather charming man in 
  his twenties, with a smooth tongue and a gleaming 
  smile. Kizu is not Tainted; he is the son of a well-
  intentioned ronin who joined the Spider Clan during 
  the Race for the Throne a quarter-century ago. Kizu 
  is outspoken and cheerful and has a way with the 
  peasant ladies – most border towns the PCs may visit 
  contain one of Kizu’s women, more than one of them 
  with an illegitimate child. Despite his playboy nature 
  Kizu is not wholly without a sense of responsibility, 
  and usually gives money to his lady-loves whenever 
  he passes through.
  85
  The Temple of Vishnu
  Chapter seven
  
  the tempLe of Vishnu
  Eventually, if the PCs make a steady effort and manage 
  to avoid getting killed by bandits, snakes, Destroyers, or 
  other jungle threats, they should be able to locate the 
  Temple of Vishnu. (If they don’t, they will face a much 
  harder time trying to ultimately prevail against Raniyah 
  the Sly.) 
  The Temple is located in a hillside clearing deep within a 
  rugged region of the jungle, above a narrow river (more of 
  an overgrown stream) that winds through the landscape. 
  There are about a hundred natives living here, some in the 
  Temple itself and some in newly constructed huts around 
  it. Some of the surrounding land has been cleared for 
  the raising of crops, primarily vegetables although there 
  is a single rice paddy in the bottomland near the river. 
  Eighteen of the inhabitants are brahmin priests and guru, 
  wise men and women who have gathered here to try to 
  preserve what remains of the Ivory Kingdoms’ mystical 
  knowledge and religion. The rest are ordinary folk, 
  including women and children, who have drifted here over 
  the last twenty years, seeking a place where they can still 
  live in a manner resembling their old culture. All of the 
  adults carry weapons for self-defense, but none of them 
  are trained warriors and none of the old kshatriya warrior-
  nobility caste live here.
  The Temple itself is constructed very differently from 
  Rokugani architecture. It is made entirely of stone, the 
  ground floor boasting several high archways between 
  narrow pillars, while vaguely onion-like domes rise from 
  the upper floors above. The entire front of the building is 
  covered with detailed carvings and bas-reliefs depicting the 
  gods and legends of the Ivory Kingdoms; most prominent 
  among these is Vishnu the Protector, who is positioned 
  directly above the main entry arch. He resembles a tall 
  and handsome man with four arms; a conical headdress 
  surmounts his handsome face. 
  The Temple and its carvings have clearly suffered 
  heavy damage in the past – the Cult of the Destroyer 
  vandalized it and then tried to burn it down – but it has 
  since undergone substantial repairs, giving it a somewhat 
  half-completed look. 
  The initial reaction of the Temple residents will be fear 
  and hostility, but since the PCs are armed samurai (and 
  are quite likely accompanied by armed Spider samurai as 
  well), they will not try to immediately initiate violence. 
  If the PCs have a translator, they will be able to ease the 
  initial tensions fairly quickly; naturally, this will work 
  even better if the PCs have been able to bring along guru 
  Gopti himself. If Gopti is present, he will quickly win over 
  the inhabitants of the Temple and full cooperation will be 
  forthcoming within less than an hour. However, if Gopti is 
  dead, the PCs will have to convince the Temple residents 
  to cooperate on their own – a task that will be especially 
  difficult if the PCs are operating with the Spider and have 
  none of the native population traveling with them. In 
  general, this will entail convincing role-play and Social 
  Skill rolls (most likely Sincerity or perhaps Courtier), but 
  the PCs’ potential success will also be impacted by their 
  approach and by how they communicate:
   
  c
  If the PCs have brought along members of Gopti’s 
  family as translators, this can either help or hurt 
  depending on whether the family views the PCs 
  as good or bad people. (Most likely the PCs will 
  be viewed positively if they made sincere efforts 
  to save the family, but it is possible the PCs came 
  across as cruel or unfeeling.) 
   
  c
  If the PCs specifically say they are threatened by a 
  rakshasa and seek information on such creatures, 
  the locals will be more favorable.
   
  c
  If the PCs uniformly come across as regarding the 
  Ivinda with contempt or disgust, this will make it 
  harder to win their cooperation. Conversely, if the 
  PCs come across as generally showing respect and 
  compassion toward the gaijin, they will find coop-
  eration much easier to elicit. 
   
  c
  If the PCs are operating under the authority of the 
  Spider, they will generally have a harder time with 
  this encounter since they will have to convince 
  both the Spider and the natives not to resport to 
  violence. 
  86
  Chapter Seven
  The Temple of ViShnu
  
  the Lore of the tempLe
  Once the PCs gain access to the Temple, they will be 
  allowed to speak with the priests and potentially even to 
  peruse the scrolls and documents – many of them quite 
  ancient and fragmentary – within the Temple’s inner 
  chambers. Translation will probably be necessary (unless 
  one or more PCs has learned to read Ivindi). This can be 
  done through a member of Gopti’s family, through some 
  other NPC who speaks the language (many of the Spider 
  do), or through one of two local priests who speak (very) 
  fragmentary Rokugani. 
  Regardless, once the PCs gain access, they can learn the 
  following information:
  generaL informaTion on The ivory 
  KingdomS’ reLigion and beLiefS
  Vishnu the Protector was one of the greatest of the 
  gods of the Ivory Kingdoms. He was associated with light, 
  power, and wisdom, and was the supreme master of past 
  and present. He guarded the world against the power of 
  asura (demons), rakshasa, and other such evil entities. His 
  closest association among the other gods was Indra, the 
  God of War, with whom he allied to do battle with evil.
  The priests always speak of their gods in the past tense. 
  If the PCs ask about this, or simply inquire as to whether 
  the power of Vishnu can be invoked against the rakshasa, 
  the priests explain – with clear evidence of grief – that 
  Vishnu and the other gods of the Ivory Kingdoms perished 
  when the Cult of the Destroyer overran the land two 
  decades ago. “All of the gods perished before the onslaught 
  of Kali-Ma, for she drew on the power of countless human 
  sacrifices in her name. Vishnu fought bravely and well, 
  but he fell with all the others.” 
  The priests have gathered all the remaining sacred 
  writings and holy artifacts they could find here in this 
  temple, in the hope that in some future cycle of time the 
  gods may be reborn and their religion restored. However, 
  they know their efforts have saved only a tiny fraction of 
  the whole. Many of their sacred artifacts are now held by 
  the Rokugani, who see them as nothing more than artistic 
  curiosities.
  SpeCifiC informaTion on raKShaSa 
  The rakshasa are said to have been particularly wicked 
  humans in previous incarnations, transformed into 
  demons to punish them for their sins. In the ancient days, 
  when rakshasa roamed freely through the land, they were 
  notorious for disrupting religious rituals, desecrating 
  graves, harassing priests, possessing humans, and similar 
  atrocities. They feed on human flesh.
  Rakshasa are shapechangers, illusionists, and sorcerers. 
  Some tales claim they had the power to fly, to 
  vanish into thin air, and to change their size 
  at will. Only those of pure spirit could see 
  through their illusions and identify them for 
  what they are.
  In the early days of the Ivory 
  Kingdoms, the rakshasa were 
  very 
  numerous 
  and 
  wrought 
  terrible 
  suffering on the 
  p e o p l e . 
  87
  The Temple of Vishnu
  Chapter seven
  
  The people prayed to the gods for succor, and finally 
  Vishnu the Protector intervened. He hunted down 
  the rakshasa and began to seal them away in a 
  great prison. The rakshasa fled from Vishnu, hiding 
  wherever they could, but only a few of them – the 
  most cunning and the swiftest – managed to escape. 
  All the rest were imprisoned. 
  Rakshasa are demonic entities and thus extremely 
  difficult to kill. Their bodies will reform from any 
  normal injury. Ivory can harm them, as can crystal; 
  some of the priests believe the Rokugani substance 
  called jade can hurt them as well. However, the tales 
  seem uncertain as to whether these things can actually 
  truly kill a rakshasa. Likewise, there are stories of the 
  ancient race from the Burning Sands, the so-called 
  Ashalan, killing rakshasa with their strange crysteel 
  weapons. However, the documents claim the one true 
  way to kill a rakshasa is to shoot it with a missile 
  which has been blessed and consecrated with the 
  power of Vishnu the Protector.  
  deciphering raniyah’s pLot
  Wise PCs will reveal all they know about ‘Doji 
  Chonitsu,’ including his efforts to systematically 
  collect jade, crystal, crysteel weapons, and ancient 
  Ivory Kingdoms artifacts. The priests and holy men 
  in the Temple will be horrified if they learn this. 
  They conclude there can be only one reason for 
  the rakshasa to be collecting so many items and 
  substances of spiritual power: he is hoping to break 
  Vishnu’s prison and free the rest of the rakshasa 
  race, hundreds or perhaps thousands of immortal 
  shapeshifting demons. It would be a scourge of 
  evil worse than even the Cult of the Destroyer. 
  The priests fear the rakshasa must be 
  getting close to success, given how long 
  it has been working on its schemes 
  and how fiercely it tried to eliminate 
  guru Gopti after he recognized it.  
  If the rakshasa is plotting to 
  set its brethren free, how would 
  it do this? The priests explain 
  their ancient writings speak of 
  the rakshasa being imprisoned 
  behind 
  “the 
  rainbow 
  wall,” 
  supposedly a waterfall which fell 
  88
  Chapter Seven
  The Temple of ViShnu
  
  from a mountainside to cover the seal created by Vishnu. 
  Looking through the documents in the Temple can deduce 
  a probable location for this place: a side-branch of the 
  Shinano River that emerges from a jungle-shrouded 
  mountainous zone to the west, a place which the old Ivory 
  Kingdoms referred to as the Vindhyas Mountains. Any 
  native of the land can potentially guide the PCs to this 
  place, although it will take many days of travel. 
  A more important question than “where,” however, is 
  “how can we stop it?” The priests will explain the difficulty 
  of killing a rakshasa if they have not already done so, and 
  remark that in better days they would have summoned 
  kshatriya warriors and equipped them with arrows and 
  crossbow bolts blessed by the power of Vishnu. But 
  Vishnu is now dead, and the priests can no longer invoke 
  his power. The temple does retain a number of old missile 
  weapons, but no one knows whether they were blessed or 
  whether those blessings still carry power today. The priests 
  are quite willing to let the PCs take all of the weapons, 
  and will offer prayers and well-wishes for their efforts, 
  but ultimately the PCs will have to go into action without 
  assurance of success. 
  a magiCaL gifT
  If the PCs have greatly impressed the priests of the 
  Temple, and if they saved the life of Gopti, eventually one 
  extremely old and fragile priest will emerge from an inner 
  room and, with trembling fingers, present the PCs with a 
  unique artifact: a small mirror of polished metal, set in a 
  frame of exotic woods carved into a likeness of Vishnu 
  holding the mirror in outstretched arms. This is the Mirror 
  of Vishnu’s Truth, and it has a special power – it reveals 
  things exactly as they really are, insofar as they are known 
  to the followers of Vishnu. In other words, the mirror 
  has no power to pierce an illusion woven by a Rokugani 
  shugenja or to reveal a deception perpetrated by a Burning 
  Sands sahir, but it will reveal the true nature of a rakshasa 
  or a Destroyer cultist.
  Figuring It Out                     
  On Their Own
  The baseline assumption of this campaign is that 
  the PCs will eventually locate the last functioning 
  temple of Vishnu, there learning about the rakshasa 
  race and, more importantly, realizing what Raniyah/
  Doji Chonitsu is plotting and where he is planning to 
  release his brethren. However, not all PCs may be able 
  to follow the trail of clues to the Temple of Vishnu, or 
  they may find it but not fully realize what they have 
  learned. Or, conversely, the GM may simply wish to 
  make the campaign slightly less “linear” and offer the 
  PCs multiple options for learning the truth.
  In this case, the best option is to let the PCs learn 
  more by conducting research into the history, reli-
  gion, and superstitions of the Ivory Kingdoms. The 
  Second City contains countless documents, artworks, 
  and other resources scrounged from the ruins of the 
  now-defunct Kingdoms, and PCs who have a scholarly 
  temperament can potentially learn huge amounts by 
  studying these – an activity that might potentially re-
  quire Intelligence rolls to represent the research effort. 
  The PCs might also be able to seek out other Rokugani 
  scholars within the Second City who specialize in these 
  topics – studying gaijin lore in this way would be con-
  sidered highly dubious in the Empire, but is much less 
  controversial among those living in the Colonies. 
  Depending on the GM’s preference, the PCs might be 
  able to learn about the history and nature of rakshasa, 
  about Vishnu’s imprisonment of the race in ancient 
  times, about their spiritual and magical vulnerabilities, 
  or even deduce Raniyah/Doji Chonitsu’s plan from the 
  accumulated evidence. The PCs could also research the 
  location of the ancient rakshasa prison (the “rainbow 
  wall” in the Vindhyas Mountains region), or scrounge 
  up an ancient Ivory Kingdoms arrow or crossbow bolt 
  which was reputedly blessed by Vishnu. (Otomo Akio’s 
  extensive collection of gaijin artifacts includes just 
  such a weapon, of course.)
  89
  The Temple of Vishnu
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  90
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  Ultimately, the PCs’ goal is to locate the lair of Raniyah 
  the Sly and prevent her from breaking Vishnu’s seal and 
  releasing the rest of the rakshasa race. There are several 
  different routes the PCs can take to try to find and reach 
  Raniyah’s lair. The simplest of these is to locate the Temple 
  of Vishnu in the deep jungles, where the PCs can gain 
  important clues to where the tiger-demon’s lair is most 
  likely to be found. A second choice is to follow Doji 
  Chonitsu’s merchant, Hinjo, who can be found via Gozu’s 
  smugglers in Kalani’s Landing, via the direct trade route 
  in Journey’s End Keep, or simply by asking around about 
  Chonitsu’s mercantile activities. Finally, a third option – as 
  discussed in the sidebar in Chapter Seven – is for the PCs 
  to conduct their own research into the Ivory Kingdoms’ 
  legends of rakshasa; this can be done most fruitfully in the 
  Second City itself, where the greatest quantities of relics 
  and writings from the defunct gaijin may be found.  
  How easy or difficult the GM wants to make this part 
  of the campaign should depend in part on how long he 
  wants the campaign to run and hence how quickly he 
  wants the PCs to ultimately track down Raniyah the Sly 
  in her lair. The nearby sidebar “Slowing Things Down” 
  allows some additional options for making the PCs work 
  harder and investigate further before reaching the climax 
  of the campaign. 
  tracKing doWn chonitsu’s 
  merchants: the gozu route
  If the PCs manage to capture Gozu’s smugglers in 
  Chapter Three and learn where they are passing their jade 
  off to Chonitsu’s men, they may well decide to seek out 
  that location and try to follow the trail of clues farther 
  along. In fact it would be foolish for the PCs not to do so, 
  given what they know at that point.
  The waystation where Gozu rendezvouses with 
  Chonitsu’s merchants lies two days’ travel north of Kalani’s 
  Landing, on the main road that traverses the southern 
  Colonies from the Landing to the trade hub of Twin Forks 
  City and from there north to the Second City itself. The 
  waystation is a wooden stockade built across the road, 
  which passes through large gates on each side. Travelers 
  are allowed through the gates into a large courtyard, where 
  the waystation guards check their travel papers and, if 
  necessary, search them and their belongings. Waystations 
  exist in the Empire as well, of course, but on the highly 
  civilized roads of Rokugan they are generally little more 
  than glorified offices; in the wild and hazardous Colonies, 
  where samurai are spread thinly and law-breaking is more 
  common, this more martial approach is required. 
  Chapter eight
  91
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  Slowing Things Down
  It is theoretically possible for the PCs to find their way to Raniyah’s lair in the Vindhyas fairly quickly if they follow the trail of Hinjo 
  the merchant from either Kalani’s Landing or Journey’s End Keep. There are a number of ways for the GM to throw spokes into the 
  PCs’ wheels and force them to explore the other adventure paths before they reach the finale. In fact, if the PCs have not yet figured 
  out what Raniyah really is, the GM may well want to make quite sure they don’t stumble into the final battle with no weapons and no 
  idea what to do.
  Remote Surveillance. The GM can allow Raniyah to conduct magical surveillance on her cult followers, either through her own 
  sorcerous abilities (who knows what strange powers a gaijin tiger-demon might have?) or through the amulets which mark them as her 
  followers. If the PCs manage to capture some of the merchants and use them as guides to her lair, she will have them killed – this could 
  be a magical effect, such as the amulet suddenly burning its way into its wearer’s body, or Raniyah herself could show up and conduct a 
  surprise ambush or late-night assassination.
  Mental Control. Perhaps Raniyah has a direct link to the very minds of her cultist followers, and when she senses some of them are 
  leading enemies to her lair, she erases their memories. The PCs are left deep in the jungle with a group of commoners who don’t remem-
  ber how or why they got there. 
  A Barrier. Perhaps Raniyah has created a magical barrier around her lair, or – better yet – perhaps the ancient protection of Vishnu 
  the Protector still is partially effective. Certain ancient relics of the Ivory Kingdoms are needed to penetrate this barrier, which is part of 
  why Raniyah has been hunting these so assiduously. She has one now and uses it to pass her followers in and out of the area; when the 
  merchants lead the PCs to her lair, she won’t let them in and thus the PCs will be stuck until they can acquire such a relic themselves. In 
  this case, the obvious place for the PCs to do so is from the Temple of Vishnu in Chapter Seven. 
  Defeat. Finally, GMs interested in a more story-oriented dramatic approach to the campaign may choose to allow the PCs to locate 
  Raniyah in her lair, only to be decisively defeated because they lack the knowledge and resources to fight her effectively. The PCs are 
  forced to flee for their lives; perhaps even one or two of them are killed. This will hopefully leave the PCs highly motivated to continue 
  on their quest and to learn more about rakshasa any way they can. 
  tracKing doWn chonitsu’s 
  merchants: Journey’s end Keep
  If the PCs are investigating at Journey’s End Keep, they 
  should be able to figure out fairly easily that Ide Uchi 
  is selling crysteel items to Doji Chonitsu. Uchi and his 
  family will not readily share any detailed information 
  on their trade with Chonitsu, of course, but the PCs have 
  other options. They can ask around the other merchants 
  in the city, perhaps with the help of a few Commerce or 
  Investigation rolls, to determine how often Chonitsu’s 
  merchants arrive to trade – the answer being roughly once 
  every four weeks. The PCs can also potentially learn this 
  by questioning the local garrison or the magistrate, Shinjo 
  Juntao, about traffic in and out of the city.
  If the PCs wait around for Chonitsu’s caravan, it will 
  arrive after ten days. It will essentially be the same as 
  the caravan the PCs can encounter via the southern 
  waystation; however, if the PCs have not yet investigated 
  the situation in Kalani’s Landing, there will be six fewer 
  drovers in the caravan as they are off delivering jade to 
  Raniyah’s lair in the Vindhyas. 
  What the pcs can Learn from 
  chonitsu’s merchants
  Most of the people in Chonitsu’s merchant caravan 
  are quite ordinary and undistinguished folk with no 
  dark secrets. However, Hinjo and six of the drovers are 
  dedicated cultist followers of Raniyah the Sly, and it is 
  they who know the route to Raniyah’s lair deep within the 
  jungle. Each of them wears a small golden amulet under 
  their clothes – it resembles a stylized tiger’s head, mout 
  agape with fangs. Naturally, the cultists will lie to the 
  PCs, deny any knowledge of smuggling or of mysterious 
  shipments of jade or crysteel, and above all deny any 
  Chonitsu chose this particular waystation deliberately, of 
  course; the commander is one of his allies. Hida Dokumaru 
  is an inveterate gambler who has gotten deeply into debt 
  on more than one occasion; Chonitsu has managed to 
  retrieve him from such troubles, and Dokumaru is duly 
  grateful. He turns a blind eye to the various transactions 
  which happen here, and the waystation functions as a 
  major point for Chonitsu to transfer his various substances 
  and rarities to where they are ultimately needed – the 
  Vindhyas Mountains, deep in the jungle.
  If the PCs spoke with Gozu, they will have a description of 
  who is supposed to meet him at the waystation: a merchant 
  named Hinjo and his caravan. PCs who wish to wait at the 
  waystation itself will likely attract unfriendly attention 
  from Hida Dokumaru, who accuses them of disrupting 
  the operations under his responsibility and demands to 
  know why they are loitering here. Unless the PCs can cite 
  some higher authority, present a believable reason why 
  they should stay here (claiming to be investigating Doji 
  Chonitsu will not be helpful here, obviously), or find a 
  lever to manipulate Dokumaru (Scorpion courtiers might 
  be able to do this), they will likely wind up being expelled 
  from the waystation. 
  Wise PCs will either come up with a good cover story to 
  explain their presence, or lurk in the jungle nearby so as to 
  avoid Dokumaru’s attention. If they have shugenja, they 
  may be able to come up with ways to conceal themselves 
  with magic. 
  Hinjo’s caravan will arrive at the waystation three days 
  after the PCs ambush Gozu’s smugglers, so if the PCs wait 
  too long they will miss it – it won’t be back for almost 
  four weeks. If the PCs do manage to locate the caravan, 
  it consists of a dozen wagons bearing the Doji mon; each 
  wagon has three peasant/merchant drovers aboard, and 
  the caravan is guarded by a quartet of ronin riding on 
  ponies. 
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  sinister purposes – while also citing the protection of 
  their influential patron, Doji Chonitsu. If the PCs confront 
  them at the waystation, they will call on Hida Dokumaru’s 
  garrison for protection against over-aggressive samurai, 
  while at Journey’s End Keep they will call for help from 
  the local magistrate, Shinjo Juntao.
  Clever PCs may think of speaking separately with the 
  ronin, who are simple swords-for-hire with no particular 
  loyalty to Hinjo or Doji Chonitsu. The ronin can confirm 
  that some of the drovers on the caravan sometimes leave 
  and carry bundles of goods into the jungle; when the 
  caravan returns four or so weeks later, they are waiting to 
  rejoin it. The ronin find this a bit puzzling but don’t see 
  any need to question it too closely and thus endanger their 
  secure jobs as caravan guards. Their basic assumption is 
  that this is another leg of a smuggling route that also 
  includes Gozu and his men.  
  Ultimately, if the PCs want to follow the merchants to 
  Raniyah’s lair in the Vindhyas, they have two options:
   
  c
  Covert Surveillance. The PCs can track the 
  merchants covertly and then follow the drovers 
  when they break off from the road and head into 
  the jungle. This will probably require some use 
  of the Stealth skill, or perhaps Hunting if the PCs 
  are holding back and following the trail without 
  keeping the drovers in sight. Magical spells and 
  abilities will also be helpful here, especially 
  illusion magic that can conceal the PCs while they 
  trail their prey.
   
  c
  Interrogation. If the PCs manage to identify the 
  cultists, they can take a more ruthless approach and 
  try to break them down through threats, intensive 
  questioning, or even torture. This will not be an 
  easy approach since the cultists are essentially 
  brainwashed followers of Raniyah – mere physical 
  threats are unlikely to have much impact. PCs 
  who focus more on spiritual threats (“your soul is 
  doomed to Jigoku for serving this demon!”) may be 
  able to gain some success with the drovers, though 
  not with Hinjo himself. Sufficient physical pain 
  can ultimately break down any of the cultists, but 
  obviously a PC who engages in torture personally 
  is dishonoring himself and should suffer significant 
  Honor loss and Infamy gain – smart PCs will try 
  to find a way of enlisting an experienced hinin 
  torturer, perhaps by citing their status as yoriki to 
  gain cooperation from a local magistrate who has 
  a torturer on staff.    
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  Locating the Rakshasa
  chapter eight
  
  To the Vindhyas
  The Vindhyas Moutnains are an extremely rugged semi-
  mountainous region of the Ivory Kingdoms that divides 
  the eastern and western halves of the old kingdom. It lies 
  beyond the Frontier zone which is being explored and 
  settled by the Rokugani, and for the most part not even 
  the Spider patrols have penetrated its depths. The ruins of 
  Ivory Kingdoms towns and castles are scattered throughout 
  this territory, rapidly crumbling as the aggressive jungle 
  reclaims and consumes them. Travel through this region is 
  slow and difficult, traversing rugged slopes and following 
  the crumbling remains of roads and trails that have not 
  been maintained in two decades. 
  PCs who traverse the Vindhyas will need supplies for 
  two or three weeks, or else they will be forced to hunt and 
  scrounge for food – this can be represented with Hunting 
  rolls, with the PCs taking Raises to generate more food 
  per roll. It should be noted that traditionalist PCs will 
  likely balk at the thought of eating wild game, but if the 
  choice is between that or starvation they may be forced to 
  compromise their principles.
  If the GM wishes to make the journey more challenging, 
  there are a host of potential encounters and obstacles that 
  the PCs could meet while traversing the Vindhyas. The 
  encounters listed earlier (in Chapter Seven) can be used 
  here as well, and the rugged environment of the Vindhyas 
  can also pose physical obstacles for the PCs:
   
  c
  River. Many streams and rivers, narrow but usu-
  ally deep and fierce, run through the valleys in 
  between the forested demi-mountains of the Vind-
  hyas. Traversing these by swimming can be diffi-
  cult (suggesting an Athletics roll at TN 20 or high-
  er), although magic may allow the PCs to bypass 
  the problem. Alternatively, the PCs could use Craft 
  skills to build a raft or boat, or fell a tree to create 
  a temporary bridge. Rivers in the Colonies are, of 
  course, home to crocodiles and snakes…
   
  c
  Rockfall/Landslide. This is a particular risk during 
  monsoon season, when torrential rainfall results 
  in sudden mudslides and similar threats. The PCs 
  might need Perception rolls to notice the danger 
  in time, or Strength rolls to avoid getting swept 
  away or buried.
   
  c
  Mountain Climbing. Although the Vindhyas are 
  not true mountains in the sense of Rokugani moun-
  tain ranges like the Spine of the World, there are 
  still plenty of areas where progress will require the 
  PCs to make their way up or down very steep and 
  rugged slopes – especially if they are not directly 
  following Doji Chonitsu’s merchants and are sim-
  ply trying to locate the “rainbow falls.” Climbing 
  will require Athletics / Strength rolls, with dam-
  aging or possibly even fatal falls as the price for 
  failure; a wise GM will allow falling PCs chances to 
  mitigate the disaster with additional Skill or Trait 
  rolls (e.g. a Reflexes roll to catch the edge before 
  falling, for example).
  94
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  the rainBoW faLLs
  Eventually, the PCs should find the legendary “rainbow 
  falls,” either by following Doji Chonitsu’s cultists or by 
  seeking the location on their own.
  The PCs pass through a saddle between two forested 
  hills and find themselves looking across a valley at a 
  nearly-sheer rockface, half-covered in greenery from 
  smaller trees and vines that are clinging to any purchase 
  they can find on its slope. Diving down from the top 
  of the pseudo-cliff is a waterfall that thins out into a 
  diaphanous sheet of water-vapor as it descends toward 
  the bottom; during much of the day, from early morning 
  to mid-afternoon, sunlight hits the waterfall and creates 
  a perpetual coruscating rainbow effect. At the bottom 
  of the waterfall, the PCs can see a large pool that feeds 
  into one of the many small but vigorous rivers traversing 
  the narrow valleys of the Vindhyas region. The cliff-face 
  to either side of the waterfall and pool is carved in the 
  ancient bas-relief style of the Ivory Kingdoms, and in the 
  small clearing to one side of the pool is what appears to 
  be the shattered ruins of a large statue. 
  This is the site of Vishnu’s ancient victory over the 
  rakshasa, and his triumph was recorded by priests who 
  carved images into the cliff-face and erected a massive 
  statue to Vishnu himself. However, the remote location 
  of the site meant it was all but forgotten even during 
  the heydey of the Ivory Kingdoms, and the carvings 
  and statue gradually wore down. When Raniyah the Sly 
  came here twenty years ago, she vindictively smashed the 
  crumbling statue and vandalized the remaining carvings. 
  Now she makes her lair here, sallying forth to gather her 
  materials and make her plans, awaiting the day when she 
  can finally break Vishnu’s seal and release her brethren. 
  The PCs may suspect there is a cave behind the waterfall, 
  but there is not. Instead, the waterfall screens a perfectly 
  flat and circular section of rock, into 
  which is inscribed a mandala with an 
  array of words and religious symbols 
  of the Ivory Kingdoms. This is the 
  seal that holds the rakshasa race at 
  bay, as the PCs can determine by 
  translating the wording. 
  Raniyah’s supplies and gear, 
  including her vast accumulation of 
  jade, crystral, and ancient artifacts, 
  are stored in several crude buildings 
  hidden underneath the forest canopy 
  to either side of the waterfall. These 
  buildings also house her loyal 
  cultists when they visit, and include 
  simple sleeping facilities, storerooms 
  with rice and dried beans, and a few 
  other basic necessities. Whether any 
  of the cultists are present when the 
  PCs arrive is left to the discretion of 
  the GM.
  Climax: The Great Ritual
  The GM can, of course, simply have the PCs confront 
  Raniyah here in a straightforward throw-down fight. 
  (If the PCs have come here too soon or without proper 
  knowledge and preparation, this may actually be the best 
  option, the battle concluding with the PCs fleeing for their 
  lives.) However, from a storytelling point of view it will 
  be far more dramatic and interesting if the PCs arrive just 
  as Raniyah is beginning her long-prepared ritual to break 
  down the barrier and release her people.
  How Many Obstacles?
  In a traditional fantasy RPG campaign, a scenario 
  like this – in which the PCs are exploring a dangerous 
  wilderness in search of a key location – means a host 
  of physical challenges, violent encounters with dan-
  gerous creatures, and so forth. However, in a story-
  driven game like L5R, these sorts of extra dangers can 
  easily cross over the line from exciting to gratuitous 
  or even tedious. Accordingly, we have not specifically 
  listed any suggestion as to how often these encoun-
  ters should take place. Each GM will have a feel for 
  how many of these sorts of problems his group would 
  enjoy confronting, and thus each GM should tailor 
  the challenges of the Vindhyas to the needs of his 
  group.
  95
  Locating the Rakshasa
  chapter eight
  
  In this case, Raniyah will have created a huge circular 
  mandala pattern in the clearing, constructed from pieces 
  of jade and crystal, with Ivory Kingdoms artifacts and 
  crysteel items placed at key locations throughout the 
  pattern. Raniyah dances around the mandala, followed 
  by several of her most loyal cultists, and as the pattern 
  begins to glow with spiritual power she begins sacrificing 
  the cultists, slitting their throats and spilling their blood 
  into the mandala. With each sacrifice the mandala glows 
  brighter and brighter, and as the final victims perish, 
  arcs of energy begin to fly between the mandala and the 
  ancient seal behind the waterfall. 
  Obviously, the PCs will try to intervene before things get 
  that far. Once a fight gets underway, Raniyah will initially 
  try to continue her ritual while contemptuously ignoring 
  the PCs (she is confident they cannot hurt her). Those of 
  her cultists who are not directly involved in the ritual will 
  try to fight the PCs, although they will probably not be 
  able to do more than serve as delaying sword-fodder.    
  Raniyah’s attitude will change quickly if the PCs reveal 
  the capability to do serious harm to her or potentially 
  kill her. At that point she will break off the ritual – it 
  can always be re-started later, and a cruel GM may even 
  choose to let it be “paused” for a time without losing the 
  effort already put into it – and unleash her full power on 
  the PCs.
  Fighting a rakshasa is a nightmare. In the canonical L5R 
  timeline of the Destroyer War, the rakshasa who commands 
  the Destroyer army repeatedly defeats and kills some of 
  the most powerful samurai in the Empire. Although the 
  PCs should be fairly experienced and effective individuals 
  by the time they reach this climactic battle, they are still 
  going to be overmatched by Raniyah. Her full mechanical 
  abilities are described in the “Rakshasa” entry in the 
  Appendix. She can move far faster than mere humans, 
  turns invisible as a Free Action, and delivers agonizing 
  venom through her claws and fangs. She can likewise 
  shapeshift as a Free Action and her cruel nature means she 
  will use this ability to trick, confuse, and hurt the PCs – for 
  example, turning into a character’s True Love right before 
  he strikes at her, or taking a PC’s form and leaving them 
  unsure who is the rakshasa and who is real. On top of that, 
  most physical and magical attacks have no effect on her 
  – she is essentially an evil spirit given flesh, and her body 
  reforms near-instantly from most injuries, no matter how 
  severe. If she is grappled, she simply shapeshifts out of it, 
  slipping through the grapple like smoke. 
  There are, however, a few ways in which the PCs can 
  cause her meaningful harm. Jade, ivory, and crystal 
  weapons (and spells with the Jade or Crystal keywords) 
  can cause damage that takes her considerably longer to 
  heal; there is a remote chance this could actually kill her, 
  and regardless such weapons will give her pause and can 
  buy the PCs time to figure out something else or to disrupt 
  the ritual mandala. Crysteel weapons can not only inflict 
  real injuries but their injuries cannot be healed; there are 
  a total of four crysteel weapons (two sword-like blades, 
  one large dagger, and one vaguely axe-shaped cleaving 
  weapon) scattered around the mandala. They are Ashalan 
  weapons and are not familiar to Rokugani, but PCs could 
  potentially use similar Rokugani Skills (e.g. kenjutsu, 
  knives, heavy weapons) and weild them with a suitable 
  TN penalty. 
  At the GM’s option, extremely powerful spells (Mastery 
  Level 5 or 6) which are not tagged Jade or Crystal could 
  potentially also inflict damage that can be healed but 
  is potentially lethal. However, if the PCs have shugenja 
  capable of casting such spells they are very much an 
  above-average group and Raniyah should probably be 
  made more formidable in return.  
  Finally, and perhaps most importantly, a missile (arrow 
  or crossbow bolt) blessed by the power of Vishnu can inflict 
  a lethal blow to a rakshasa. The PCs could potentially have 
  found such a missile in the Temple of Vishnu in Chapter 
  Seven, or in the collection of Otomo Akio in Chapter Five. 
  If they researched the question of rakshasa vulnerability 
  on their own, they may have been able to scrounge up 
  such a missile elsewhere.
  Because Vishnu died along with the rest of the Ivory 
  Kingdoms’ gods two decades ago, the power of his 
  blessings has begun to fade. The GM should secretly 
  decide whether any particular missile still carries Vishnu’s 
  power (there is no way for the PCs to find out, since the 
  blessing of an Ivory Kingdoms god is not something which 
  Rokugani magic can identify or detect. The PCs will thus 
  have to find out whether the blessings are intact in the 
  heat of combat, frantically shooting or hurling them at a 
  seemingly unstoppable opponent.
  CuLTiSTS of raniyah
  Air: 2
  EArth: 3
  FirE: 2
  WAtEr: 2
  Void: 1
  rEFlExES: 3
  Agility: 3
  Honor: 0.0
  Status: 0.0
  Glory: 1.0
  School/Rank: Commoner (Insight Rank 1)
  Skills: Athletics 2, Commerce 3, Courtier 1, Defense 2, 
  Etiquette 1, Knives 3, Lore: Raniyah Cult 3, Spears 2, 
  Staves 3 
  Advantages: Ally (Raniyah the Sly/Doji Chonitsu)
  Disadvantages: Social Disadvantage (commoner)
  96
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  97
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  The Colonies are a vast land, larger even than Rokugan, 
  and teeming with life. There are a variety of animals 
  there, both mundane and supernatural, that can pose 
  a significant threat to those who call the region home. 
  Among the mundane animals commonly found in the 
  Colonies and for which previous mechanics exist (either 
  in the Legend of the Five Rings RPG Core Rulebook or the 
  sourcebook Enemies of the Empire) are apes, bats, boars, 
  cats, crocodiles, dogs, elephants, falcons, goats, hares, 
  monkeys, oxen, snakes, tigers, Unicorn riding horses, and 
  wolves. 
  The following section provides descriptions and game 
  mechanics for some of more unusual and in some cases 
  otherworldly creatures found in the Colonies. 
  behemoTh
  The creatures the Mantis have chosen to call Behemoths 
  are thankfully incredibly rare, and it is possible there is 
  actually but a single creature responsible for the handful 
  of sightings since the clan began operating within the 
  Colonies. The physical appearance of the Behemoth 
  is something of a mystery, since looking at it causes 
  madness in those who see it – an affliction which can 
  become permanent for those exposed to the beast for too 
  long. It was a single Behemoth that caused a months-long 
  separation of the Mantis expedition to the Colonies from 
  the mainland Empire, since no ships could get past its 
  hunting waters to return. Some scholars have hypothesized 
  the beast might have a migration pattern that allowed the 
  Mantis passage initially but then cut them off shortly 
  thereafter, while others believe the creatures might be 
  from the Sea of Shadows and were deliberately isolating 
  the Mantis in hopes of seeing them destroyed. 
  It is believed the Behemoth in question was slain via 
  an incredibly dangerous tactic employed by Moshi Kalani, 
  commander of the first Mantis expedition, but there is 
  no way to know for certain if the beast is in fact dead. 
  Regardless, concern over the possible appearance of 
  additional Behemoths is one of the primary reasons the 
  Mantis established the twin watchtowers that oversee the 
  southern coastline.   
  Air: 3
  EArth: 8
  FirE: 3
  WAtEr: 7
  Agility: 5
  Initiative: 2k1
  Attack: Bite 6k5 (Complex)
  Damage: Bite 7k7
  Armor TN: 25
  Reduction: 8
  Wounds: 100: +5; 200: +10; 300: Dead.
  Special Abilities:
   
  c
  Aquatic: Behemoths cannot leave the ocean which 
  is their home.  
   
  c
  Huge
   
  c
  Madness: Any intelligent creature that looks 
  upon the Behemoth’s horrible physical form must 
  make a successful Willpower Roll at TN 35 or 
  go temporarily insane, losing all control of their 
  actions and reverting to an animal-like state. 
  This roll may be made every five Rounds, with 
  a successful roll allowing the creature to regain 
  control, but if three consecutive rolls are failed the 
  condition becomes permanent.
   
  c
  Swallow Whole: If a Behemoth hits a human-sized 
  or smaller target with a successful Bite attack, it 
  may attempt to swallow its prey whole. The two 
  make a Contested Strength roll. If the Behemoth 
  wins, the creature is swallowed; otherwise the 
  creature breaks free. Creatures that are swallowed 
  whole suffer 3k3 Wounds during the Reactions 
  Stage of each Round. They can attempt to escape 
  the beast’s stomach; this is a Complex Action, 
  requiring a roll of Athletics (Climbing) / Strength 
  at TN 25 to force their way free of the creature’s 
  massive gullet. Cutting one’s way free requires a 
  Small or Medium weapon (Large weapons cannot be 
  used in the confined space), inflicting a minimum 
  of 25 Wounds to create a hole large enough to 
  escape. On the plus side, the Behemoth does not 
  have Reduction on the inside of its stomach.
  98
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  bonedrinKer
  The serpents called Bonedrinkers are at least a familiar 
  threat to the samurai of the Colonies, since they are similar 
  to the various types of constricting serpents present in the 
  Empire and its island holdings. The primary difference 
  between the Bonedrinkers and more familiar forms of 
  constricting snakes is size; an immature Bonedrinker is 
  the size of the largest recorded constrictor ever found in 
  the Mantis Isles. Bonedrinkers appear to be significantly 
  more intelligent than common animals as well, and are 
  capable of using rather advanced tactics (by the standards 
  of animals, at least) to ambush and capture their prey.   
  Air: 2
  EArth: 4
  FirE: 2
  WAtEr: 4
  Agility: 3
  Initiative: 5k3
  Attack: Bite 5k4 (Complex),           
  Grapple 8k4 (Complex)
  Damage: Bite 4k2, 
  Grapple 6k3
  Armor TN: 25
  Reduction: 0
  Wounds: 32: +5; 64: +10; 96: Dead
  Skills: Jiujutsu 4, Stealth 4 
  Special Abilities:
   
  c
  Huge
   
  c
  Squeeze: When using a Grappling attack, a 
  Bonedrinker will always choose to inflict damage 
  while it controls the Grapple (which it rolls 9k4 to 
  control). A victim who suffers Grappling damage 
  for a number of consecutive Rounds equal to its 
  Stamina will begin to suffocate, resulting in an 
  additional 2k2 Wounds per Round thereafter.
  99
  An Ivory KIngdoms BestIAry
  Appendix
  
  goLemS
  Golems are not living creatures, but rather artificial 
  creations that predate the fall of the Ivory Kingdoms – 
  and perhaps predate the Kingdoms themselves. They 
  are in many respects similar to Earth-based entities 
  created through powerful magic in Rokugan, such as 
  the legendary Army of Clay that accompanied the Four 
  Winds into the Shadowlands. The golems found in the 
  Ivory Kingdoms are powerfully enchanted statues that are 
  capable of animation and obedience to those who hold the 
  secrets of their creation. The samurai of the Colonies have 
  discovered these surviving in various ruins throughout the 
  region as well as a few active ones wandering the jungles; 
  it is theorized the cultists who laid waste to the land lacked 
  the power to destroy them. A small number of Rokugani 
  scholars, primarily Mantis and Phoenix, have carefully 
  researched and experimented to discover a means of 
  controlling these creations, with occasional success. The 
  secrets of their creation remain elusive, however.   
  Air: 1
  EArth: 9
  FirE: 1
  WAtEr: 2
  rEFlExES: 2
  Agility: 2
  StrEngth: 8
  Initiative: 2k2
  Attack: Unarmed 5k2 (Complex), 
  Weapon 6k2 (Complex)
  Damage: Unarmed 8k2, 
  Weapon 10k3
  Armor TN: 25
  Reduction: 10
  Wounds: 50: +1; 100: +3; 150: +5; 
  200 Destroyed
  Skills: One appropriate Weapon Skill at 5
  Special Abilities:
   
  c
  Huge
   
  c
  Ritual of Animation: Upon completion, golems 
  usually fall into an inactive state, and can only 
  become active after a special ritual that animates 
  them. The Ritual of Animation is the equivalent 
  of a Mastery 3 Earth spell, and can only be cast 
  by those familiar with it. When a golem becomes 
  active, it normally remains active for a number of 
  hours equal to the caster’s Earth Ring (although 
  there have been instances of golems remaining 
  active for much longer). A golem will follow 
  any orders given to it by the ritual caster, up to 
  and including taking action that will lead to its 
  destruction, and sometimes also carry out long-
  term commands such as attacking intruders.
   
  c
  Stone Weapon: Most golems were created with a 
  large stone weapon, the equivalent of a tetsubo 
  or scimitar. These weapons are far too large and 
  heavy for any human to use, and their tremendous 
  weight allows them to ignore 3 points of Reduction 
  in their targets.
  deSTroyerS
  The name Destroyers is something of a misnomer, 
  but given the experiences of the Great Clans during the 
  Destroyer War a generation ago, the misunderstanding 
  is certainly understandable. During that conflict, the 
  Great Clans faced an almost limitless legion of metallic 
  monstrosities created by the Cult of Ruhmal for the 
  purpose of universal conquest. A much smaller subset 
  of the invasion, generally perceived to be the more elite 
  forces of the enemy, were large bipedal beast-men who 
  bore a striking resemblance to various mundane creatures 
  such as elephants and tigers (although there were many 
  other forms documented during the war). It is these 
  creatures who are described here. Since the conclusion 
  of the war and the death of the demon goddess Kali-Ma, 
  whatever malevolent force drove these creatures to war 
  has faded, and they have returned to a more animal-like 
  state. Small numbers of these man-beast creatures can be 
  found in the Colonies, typically in the wildest and most 
  dangerous regions.
  Destroyers are large creatures, typically two to three 
  times larger than a normal warrior and larger even than 
  the ogres of the Shadowlands. They are enormously 
  physically powerful, but do not actively seek conflict with 
  humans. Indeed, the creatures seem to prefer to avoid 
  humans altogether, perhaps as a vestigial instinct from a 
  previous existence as mundane animals. When cornered 
  or provoked, however, they are incredibly dangerous and 
  can devastate entire squadrons of samurai.  
  Air: 2
  EArth: 4
  FirE: 1
  WAtEr: 4
  rEFlExES: 3
  Agility: 3
  Trait Bonuses: Tiger Destroyers gain one additional rank 
  in Reflexes and two ranks in Agility. Elephant Destroyers 
  gain one additional rank in Strength and two in Stamina.
  Initiative: 4k3 (elephant), 
  6k5(tiger)
  Attack: Bite 5k5 (Complex),     
  Claw 8k5 (Complex, tiger only), 
  Gore 6k3 (Complex, elephant only)
  Damage: Bite 4k4,    
  Claw 5k4, Gore 6k6
  Armor TN: 20 (tiger), 25 (elephant)
  Reduction: 3 (tiger),        
  6 (elephant)
  Wounds: 35: +0; 70: +2; 105: +4; 
  140: Dead
  Skills: Jiujutsu 3, Stealth 4 (tiger only) 
  Special Abilities:
   
  c
  Fear 2
   
  c
  Huge
  100
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  greaT deaTh
  The nightmarish catastrophe known as the Great Death 
  has been sighted only a handful of times by Mantis ships 
  in the deeper regions of the sea, engaging in the most 
  long-range of the clan’s naval sorties. Most of what is 
  known about the entity was recovered from partially 
  destroyed texts the clan scouts have found in various ruins 
  throughout the Colonies, but enough has been discovered 
  to confirm the worst fears of the Mantis sailors who have 
  lain eyes on the thing. It was considered by the people of 
  the Ivory Kingdoms to be a manifestation of divine evil, 
  a malicious and unstoppable force created in the mortal 
  realm for an unknown malignant purpose.
  The Great Death appears to be a remnant of the massive 
  sea creatures the people of the Ivory Kingdoms called 
  “whales,” but larger by orders of magnitude than the 
  largest living specimen ever seen by mortal eyes. If the 
  Great Death ever had flesh attached to its bones, that flesh 
  has long since been eroded away by the sea, and all that 
  remains are the bones themselves. The bones that make up 
  the Great Death are harder than any steel that has yet been 
  discovered. While no samurai have yet fought the creature, 
  records of disastrous conflicts with the Ivory Kingdoms 
  navy indicate most weapons simply shattered on the 
  beast’s skeleton. Moreover, the vast strength of the beast is 
  clearly supernatural and may be effectively limitless. One 
  recovered account (whose veracity is a matter of debate 
  among Mantis scholars) suggests that on one occasion 
  the fury of the Great Death allowed the beast to literally 
  shatter an entire island by swimming through it, its bones 
  shearing through soil, bedrock and ocean floor.
  In addition to the sheer physical threat posed by the 
  Great Death, its supernatural abilities are significant as 
  well. The entity appears to feel relentless hunger despite its 
  skeletal form, and any creatures it consumes are frequently 
  returned to a semblance of life as undead monstrosities in 
  their own right. Mercifully, this is rare since only creatures 
  of significant size even attract the beast’s attention in the 
  first place, and the effects of this curse appear to be short-
  lived, so these lesser undead usually perish after a few 
  weeks.   
  101
  An Ivory KIngdoms BestIAry
  Appendix
  
  Air: 2
  EArth: 20
  FirE: 2
  WAtEr: 6
  StrEngth: 15
  Initiative: 2k1
  Attack: Bite 8k4 (Complex), Ram 
  8k6 (Complex)
  Damage: Bite 10k10, 
  Ram 15k10
  Armor TN: 30
  Reduction: 20
  Wounds: 500: +5; 1,000: Dead
  Skills: Athletics (Swimming) 2
  Special Abilities:
   
  c
  Fear 6
   
  c
  Huge
   
  c
  Resurrect: Creatures swallowed by the Great Death 
  almost invariably die, and most are resurrected as 
  undead. Typically they become skeletal creatures 
  similar to zombies or revenants (as described in 
  the L5R RPG Core Rulebook) but occasionally they 
  exhibit greater powers. 
   
  c
  Swallow Whole: If the Great Death hits with a 
  successful Bite attack, it may attempt to swallow 
  its prey whole (assuming the prey survives the 
  bite). The two make a Contested Strength roll. If 
  the Great Death wins, the creature is swallowed. 
  Swallowed creatures suffer 5k5 Wounds per Round 
  during the Reactions Stage. 
   
  c
  Unearthly Power: The unknown supernatural 
  power that animates the Great Death allows it to 
  have Earth and Strength higher than the normal 
  limit of 10.
   nagah
  The Naga race as a whole and their accursed kin known 
  as the Naar Teban are both found in the pages of the L5R 
  4th Edition sourcebook Enemies of the Empire. The feral 
  abominations found within the former Ivory Kingdoms, 
  however, are an entirely new form of Naga with which 
  the Rokugani have no experience. These creatures are 
  sometimes referred to as Nagah, the term by which they 
  were known in Ivindi, the language of the Ivory Kingdoms. 
  They are a constant threat for those who venture too far 
  beyond the established frontier of explored territory in 
  the Colonies.
  Although nothing is known of the Nagah’s culture 
  (assuming such even exists and that they are not simply 
  feral monstrosities), they do seem to have a connection 
  to the Naga race, and when the entity called the Dark 
  Naga appears in the Empire it is able to control the Nagah 
  despite the vast distance between the Colonies and the 
  Empire. There are a few investigators who even suspect 
  Nagah were somehow responsible for the murder of the 
  first Imperial Governor at the Dark Naga’s behest.  
  Air: 3
  EArth: 4
  FirE: 1
  WAtEr: 4
  AkAShA: 1
  rEFlExES: 4
  Agility: 5
  Caste: 0.0
  Infamy: 3.3
  School/Rank: None
  Skills: Athletics (Climbing, Swimming) 6, Hunting 
  (Survival) 5, Jiujutsu 6, Stealth (Ambush, Sneaking) 7
  Advantages: Prehensile Tail, Strength of the Earth (2 
  levels), Way of the Land (Colonies)
  Disadvantages: Compulsion (kill humans), Wrath of the 
  Kami (Air)
  Special Abilities: 
   
  c
  Camouflage: A Nagah’s coloration and body blend 
  in perfectly with the canopy of trees in which 
  they often hide. Nagah gain one Free Raise on all 
  Stealth rolls made in the jungle.
   
  c
  Natural Attacks: A Nagah may make claw attacks 
  as a Simple Action (attack 6k5, damage 5k4), or a 
  bite attack as a Complex Action (attack 5k5, dam-
  age 4k4).
   
  c
  Swift 2
  raKShaSa
  The rakshasa are a race of semi-immortal demonic 
  entities whose true forms resemble bipedal tigers with 
  human-like hands and a dark and sinister light of 
  intelligence in their eyes. According to the beliefs 
  of the Ivory Kingdoms, rakshasa are said to have 
  been particularly wicked humans in previous 
  incarnations, transformed into demons by the 
  gods to punish them for their sins. In the ancient 
  days, when rakshasa roamed freely through the 
  land, they were notorious for disrupting religious 
  rituals, desecrating graves, harassing priests, 
  possessing beings, and similar. The people prayed 
  to the gods for succor, and finally Vishnu the 
  Protector intervened. He hunted down the rakshasa 
  and began to seal them away in a great prison. The 
  rakshasa fled from Vishnu, hiding wherever they 
  could, but only a few of them – the most cunning and 
  the swiftest – managed to escape. All the rest were 
  imprisoned.
  Rakshasa are shapechangers, illusionists, and 
  sorcerers. They feed on human flesh. Some tales 
  claim they had the power to fly, to vanish into 
  102
  Appendix
  An Ivory KIngdoms BestIAry
  
  thin air, and to change their size at will. Since they are 
  demonic entities rather than normal living beings, they 
  are extremely difficult to kill. Their bodies will reform 
  from any normal injury. Jade or crystal can harm them, 
  as can magic which calls on the essence of either of 
  those substances, although the tales seem uncertain as to 
  whether these things can actually truly kill a rakshasa. 
  Likewise, there are stories of the ancient race from the 
  Burning Sands, the so-called Ashalan, killing rakshasa 
  with their strange crysteel weapons. However, the legends 
  of the Ivory Kingdoms claim there are only two true ways 
  to harm or kill a rakshasa: strike it down with weapons 
  of ivory which has been blessed and consecrated with the 
  power of Vishnu the Protector, or shoot it with a missile 
  (typically an arrow or a crossbow bolt) which has been 
  similarly blessed and consecrated.
  Rakshasa are cunning and sadistic creatures with 
  cruel senses of humor; they are also known as schemers, 
  sometimes developing plots and plans that last for 
  centuries. Although they prefer to operate on their own, 
  they sometimes serve more powerful masters – either 
  out of fear or due to shared goals. They are treacherous 
  followers, being utterly selfish, and have been known to 
  betray their masters when it suits them.  
  Air: 5
  EArth: 6
  FirE: 5
  WAtEr: 5
  rEFlExES: 6
  intElligEncE: 7
  pErcEption: 6
  Initiative: 10k6
  Attack: Claws 10k5 (Simple), 
  Bite 10k5 (Complex), or  
  weapon (Simple)
  Damage: Claws 7k2, Bite 
  8k3, or by weapon 
  Armor TN: 40
  Reduction: 5 (0 against 
  weapons blessed by Vishnu)
  Wounds: 80: +5; 160: +10;    
  240: Dead
  Skills: Acting 6, Athletics 5, Battle 5, Courtier 5, Defense 
  6, Etiquette 3, Investigation 6, Sincerity (Deceit) 8, any 
  three Lore Skills at 5, any three High Skills at 5, any three 
  Weapon Skills at 5
  Special Abilities:
   
  c
  Invisibility: A rakshasa can turn invisible as a Free 
  Action and likewise can reappear as a Free Action. 
  It becomes visible again automatically when it 
  attacks.
   
  c
  Poison: The claws and fangs of a rakshasa are 
  poisonous, delivering an agonizing venom. Those 
  struck by its Claw or Bite attacks are afflicted 
  with terrible pain that shoots through their limbs 
  and bodies. They suffer a +20 TN penalty to all 
  actions for the next hour; a Stamina roll at TN 
  25 can reduce this to a +10 TN penalty. Multiple 
  poisonings do not “stack” the TN penalties, but do 
  extend the duration for one hour each time.
   
  c
  Regeneration: A rakshasa which takes actual 
  damage (from an attack type that does not 
  instantaneously heal) will heal 25 Wounds during 
  the Reactions stage of each Round; in order to kill 
  it, it must be injured so severely that it cannot heal 
  itself to positive Wounds at the end of the Round. 
  Damage from crysteel weapons and from weapons 
  of blessed ivory cannot be healed. 
   
  c
  Shapeshifting: A rakshasa can change its shape 
  any number of times per Round as a Free Action. 
  It can take any human form and any animal or 
  monstrous form that is reasonably close to human 
  in size and mass. It can imitate any human it has 
  seen, although it cannot match their voice.
   
  c
  Sorcery: A rakshasa can cast Air and Fire spells 
  as though it is a Rank 4 shugenja with no Affinity 
  or Deficiency. 
   
  c
  Superior Invulnerability: A rakshasa is effectively 
  immune to all mundane attacks and to all spells 
  that do not have the Jade or Crystal property; he 
  heals all damage from such attacks instantaneously. 
  It takes normal damage from jade, crystal, blessed 
  ivory, crysteel, or obsidian, and from spells that 
  have the Jade or Crystal keywords.
   
  c
  Swift 5
   
  c
  Unique Vulnerability: If a rakshasa is hit by 
  a missile weapon which has been blessed and 
  consecrated by Vishnu the Protector, it must make 
  a Willpower Roll against the total damage from 
  the missile or die instantly. Regardless, it cannot 
  regenerate the damage from this weapon.
  Unmasking a Rakshasa
  Although the shapeshifting powers of the raksha-
  sa are outwardly perfect, the underlying malignant 
  bloodlust of the creatures sometimes “leaks” through 
  their outward deception and supposedly can be de-
  tected by those of a pure nature. To simulate this, 
  the GM can allow any PC with a high Honor (Honor 
  6.0 or better) or a high level of spiritual harmony 
  (represented by a Void Ring of 4 or higher) a chance 
  to sense the true nature of a concealed rakshasa. The 
  character makes a Contested Roll of his Willpower 
  against the rakshasa’s Awareness. With a success, 
  he detects a malignant and terrible spirit lurking be-
  neath the rakshasa’s mundane exterior.  
  It should be noted that this is not a deliberate ac-
  tion that a character can undertake voluntarily – it is, 
  rather, a spontaneous reaction to the presence of the 
  rakshasa. Thus it is entirely at the GM’s discretion as 
  to whether the character can make this roll or not, 
  even if he “qualifies” to do so.
  103
  An Ivory KIngdoms BestIAry
  Appendix
  
  red hunger
  Like the Great Death that haunts the ocean, the Red 
  Hunger is a blessedly unique creature that appears to 
  lair somewhere within the unknown lands along the 
  western edge of the Colonies. The beast is a serpent of 
  almost unimaginable dimensions, capable of consuming 
  elephants in a single bite. Humans are of such small size 
  they are hardly worth the beast’s attention, but the Red 
  Hunger seems to enjoy consuming them regardless, and 
  perhaps takes some sort of malicious joy in the fear and 
  death it causes.
  The origins of the Red Hunger are better understood than 
  those of the Great Death, due to an almost complete text 
  recovered from a tomb found near the ruins of the Ivory 
  Palace. According to the beliefs of the Ivory Kingdoms, 
  the Red Hunger was once an inhabitant of the divine 
  realm. There were few entities the serpent could prey on 
  in that realm, and it was a greedy, deceitful scavenger that 
  constantly burned from an internal hunger it could never 
  quench, eventually turning red in color. When the mortal 
  world was born, the snake slipped away into the new 
  world in search of easier prey. It devastated entire villages 
  until the gods gave their followers the tools needed to 
  defeat and imprison the beast. The Red Hunger has spent 
  most of its existence imprisoned, escaping a handful of 
  times throughout the Ivory Kingdoms’ existence. It was 
  not until the Kingdoms were destroyed that it gained true 
  freedom, and since that time it has gorged itself repeatedly 
  on the creatures and people of the Colonies. Fortunately, 
  the beast seems to spend much of its time hunting in the 
  enigmatic lands beyond the western boundaries of the 
  Colonies.   
  Air: 3
  EArth: 8
  FirE: 2
  WAtEr: 8
  rEFlExES: 4
  Agility: 5
  Initiative: 4k1
  Attack: Bite 10k5 (Complex), 
  Grapple 10k8 (Complex)
  Damage: Bite 8k8, 
  Constrict 10k8
  Armor TN: 30
  Reduction: 8
  Wounds: 200: +5; 300: +10; 400: 
  +15; 600: +20; 800: Dead
  Skills: Jiujutsu 7, Stealth 3 
  Special Abilities:
   
  c
  Fear 4
   
  c
  Huge
   
  c
  Squeeze: When using a Grappling attack, the Red 
  Hunger will always choose to inflict damage while 
  it controls the Grapple (which it rolls 12k10 to 
  control). A victim who suffers Grappling damage 
  for a number of consecutive Rounds equal to its 
  Stamina will begin to suffocate, suffering an 
  additional 2k2 Wounds in the Reactions Stage of 
  each Round.
   
  c
  Swallow Whole: If the Red Hunger hits with a 
  successful Bite attack, it may attempt to swallow its 
  prey whole. The two make a Contested Strength roll. 
  If the Red Hunger wins, the creature is swallowed. 
  Swallowed creatures suffer 5k5 Wounds per Round 
  during the Reactions Stage. Swallowed creatures 
  may attempt to escape either by climbing out of the 
  beast’s throat (an Athletics (Climbing) / Strength 
  Roll at TN 25, followed by a Strength roll at TN 30 
  to fight clear of the mouth) or by hacking out of the 
  beast’s stomach with a weapon (requiring a total of 
  50 wounds inflicted).
  104
  Appendix
  An Ivory KIngdoms BestIAry
  
  Shojo
  The creatures called shojo are strange, 
  enigmatic spirits native to the sea and areas 
  along the coastline of the Ivory Kingdoms. They 
  are at least mildly hostile to anyone who is not 
  native to the land, although the reason for this 
  is not well understood. The beasts are intelligent 
  in their own way, able to communicate with 
  humans without great difficulty – although very 
  few choose to do so. Due to their hostility and 
  reticence, most of what is known about the shojo 
  comes from the small community of surviving 
  Ivory Kingdoms natives and from a single 
  shojo that happily engages with the Mantis, an 
  entity known as En’you. En’you possesses two 
  characteristics at least partially representative of 
  the shojo as a whole.
  The first is a gift for prophecy, which includes 
  not only foreseeing events of great importance 
  but also very minor events and events at 
  great distances. In the first days of the Mantis 
  occupation, individual samurai would speak to 
  En’you to gain information concerning their families 
  back in the Emerald Empire.
  The second characteristic is an unquenchable thirst for 
  alcohol of any kind. The Mantis forged their bond with 
  the spirit through gifts of sake and other such beverages. 
  In the case of En’you, it appears intoxication greatly 
  enhances its gift for prophecy. It is likely other shojo 
  desire alcohol as well, but it is not known whether or not 
  it will have the same effect on their divination abilities. 
  Air: 3
  EArth: 3
  FirE: 2
  WAtEr: 4
  AWArEnESS: 4
  intElligEncE: 3
  Initiative: 3k3
  Attack: Unarmed 4k2 (Complex) 
  Damage: Unarmed 4k4
  Armor TN: 20
  Reduction: 4
  Wounds: 20: +0; 40: +2; 60: +4; 
  80: Dead
  Skills: Divination 4, Jiujutsu (Wrestling) 2 
  Special Abilities:
   
  c
  Alcoholism: All shojo have an inherent weakness 
  for any sort of alcoholic beverage, and when 
  offered one they must make a Willpower roll at TN 
  25 to resist agreeing to the requests of whoever is 
  offering the alcohol. Each bottle’s worth of alcohol 
  (or the equivalent) a shojo imbibes increases any 
  attempt at a Divination Skill Roll by +1k0.
   
  c
  Prophecy: Shojo may make a Divination Skill Roll, 
  but instead of receiving the normal information 
  for such a roll, they instead gain information as 
  described for the Lesser Prophecy Advantage in 
  the L5R RPG Core Rulebook. The difficulty for 
  this roll is determined by the GM, depending on 
  the distance from the subject and the specificity 
  of the attempted divination, but shojo are capable 
  of almost limitless acts of prophecy if they make 
  exceptionally high Skill Rolls.
   
  c
  Spirit
  105
  An Ivory KIngdoms BestIAry
  Appendix
  
  106
  Appendix
  An Ivory KIngdoms BestIAry
  
  The Campaign
  LEGEND OF THE FIVE RINGS 
  aND aLL RELaTED maRkS aRE © aND ™ aLDERac ENTERTaINmENT GROup 
  INc. aLL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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  CREDITS
  Second City: The Campaign
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  Vohwinkel, Mario Wibisono, Matt Zeilinger
  PlAytesters: 
  Team 1 (Dave Smith, Patrick Chen, 
  Aien Elmi, Jason Kang, Ki Chang Kim, Roger Liang, 
  Arthur Nguyen); Team 4 (Becca Hobart, Kevin Blake, 
  Todd Stites, Daniel Briscoe); Team 6 (Timar Long, Erykah 
  Fasset, Chad Kirby, Mike Brodu, Maxime Lemaire, Ray 
  Rupp); Team 7 (Jason Shafer, Nathan Shafer, Matt Strout, 
  Liza Strout, Joe White, Terry Moore, Eric Newlin); Team 
  8 (Edward Reynolds, Brebouillet Mathieu, David Whitney, 
  Richard Whitney, Stuart Biggs, Robert Knight); Team 8b 
  (Michael Hill, Shane Pheeney, Chaedy Ritherdon, Tarl 
  Cowly); Team 8c (Thomas Atwood, Ryan Castilla, Henry 
  Joiner, Brandon Woodmen); Team 17 (Tom Lewis, Jamie Kipp, 
  Gavin O’Hearn, Shawn MacLean, John Taylor); Team 18 
  (Dave Laderoute, Mike Clark, Chris Talarico, Chris Masdea, 
  Lee Vollum, Richard Hewitt, Bill Hrenchuck); Team 19 
  (Charles Caswell, Vincent Stantion, Eddie Sweeden, Chuck 
  Sweeden, Justin Cross, Fox Whitworth); Team 20 (Matt 
  Tyler, Timothy Hill, Stephen Mumford, Matthew Linkswiler, 
  Paul Casagrande, Robert Zapf); Team 21 (James Freeman-
  Harris, Sarah Koz, David Wright, James Mosingo); Team 
  22 (Scott Shepard, Dawn Dalton, Andrew Doud, Justin 
  Davidson, Jon Huskey, Trista Lillis); Team 23 (James 
  Wagner, Kevin Pason, Ryan Bataglia, Chris Foster, Jim 
  Friedman, Jason Whiston, Phil Jenicek, Dan Sulin, Izzy 
  Lombardi-Friedman); Team 24 (Tony Love, Kassandra 
  Mullin, Brian Tieken, Kimberly Wajer-Scott, Phillip Scott, 
  Nicholas Love, Jerry Fleenor, Patrick Williams)
  DEDICATIONS:
  Rob would like to thank:
  Our freelancers, for working hard under the deadline to make 
  this project succeed. Special thanks to Maxime “Daigotsu 
  Max” LeMaire, who stepped in to fill a hole and wrote three 
  chapters in barely two weeks!
  The playtesters, for their continued efforts to make L5R’s 
  mechanics the best!
  My wife Rebecca, who finished the maps for this project despite 
  the ultra-distracting presence of our newborn baby!
  Shawn would like to thank:
  Z, for putting it on the line and approving such an ambitious 
  project. You’re the best, boss!
  Rob “Spooky” Denton, for stepping up and making the graphic 
  design even better.
  Max, for being a champ.
  John Wick, Greg Stolze, Pat Kapera, and Rob Vaux, for giving 
  us such a high standard of L5R boxed sets to compare ourselves 
  against. We stand on the shoulders of giants.
  written by:
      Kevin Blake, Daniel Briscoe, 
  Shawn Carman, Robert Denton, 
  Robert Hobart, Dave Lauderoute, 
  Yoon Ha Lee, Maxime, LeMaire, Seth 
  Mason, Ryan Reese, Nancy Sauer
  edited by:
  Robert Hobart
  Art director:
  Shawn Carman
  box Art:
  cover design:
  Alayna Lemmer
  Robert Denton
  cover Art:
  Llyn Hunter
  lAyout
  Robert Denton
  originAl grAPhic 
  design:
  Edge Entertainment
  Production mAnAger:
  David Lepore
  senior brAnd mAnAger:
  Todd Rowland
  chief executive 
  officer:
  John Zinser
  heAd PlAytester:
  Brian Bates
  technique cArd Artists: 
   
  Michael Phillippi, 
  Hector Herrera, Oliver Specht, Fares Maese, Conceptopolis, 
  Jorge Matar, Edwin David, Thomas Denmark, April Lee, Britt 
  Martin, Drew Baker, Matt Zeilinger, Carlos NCT, Anthony 
  Grabski, Florian Stitz, Carlos Cardenas, Mario Wibisono, Glen 
  Osterberger, Richard Garcia, Stu Barnes, Gemma Tegelaers, 
  Wen Juinn, Jason Engle, Manuel Calderon, Jeff Hill, William 
  O’Conner, Jonathan Hunt, Diego Gisbert Llorens 
  stAnce cArd Artist: 
   
  Steve Argyle
  LEGEND OF THE FIVE RINGS and all related marks are ™ 
  and © Alderac Entertainment Group, Inc., All rights reserved.
  www.l5r.com
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Legend of the Five Rings (d20) [multi]/4th Edition/L5R 4e - Second City - The Campaign.pdf