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By Shawn Carman
With each new base set, new characters are introduced into the Legend of the Five Rings mythos. Samurai Edition will be no different, but what will be different is the approach we are taking with these new young samurai. These individuals have a great destiny to fulfill, each and every one, and we are going to be there to watch it unfold from the very beginning. Fresh from their gempukku, these young men and women will be some of the characters through which we will witness the events of the upcoming arc. And to kick things off, we thought we’d give you a glimpse of some of these individuals, fully detailed through the L5R RPG, Third Edition.
Hiruma Aki
Air: 2 Earth: 3 Fire: 2 Water: 2 Void: 2
Stamina: 4
Glory: 1.0 Status 1.0 Honor: 2.5
School/Rank: Hida Bushi 1
Advantages: Absolute Direction, Bishamon’s Blessing, Death Trance
Disadvantages: Driven (kill the oni that slew his parents). Unlucky (3 pts)
Kata: Striking as Earth
Skills: Battle (Specific Enemy: Shadowlands) 2, Defense 2, Heavy Weapons 3, Juijutsu 1, Kenjutsu 3, Kyujutsu 1, Lore: Shadowlands 3
Hiruma Aki was just a child when his parents died in service atop the Great Carpenter Wall. He remembers the day his uncle came and informed him of their death, and that he would be living with his cousins until he could earn a place in the dojo. On that day, Aki’s lint died. Every day since then, he has prepared for his body to follow suit.
Aki craves battle. He longs for the chance to kill goblins, ogres, trolls, and oni. He despises the lull between combats, because then there is nothing to distract him from the emptiness he feels. He has known nothing but battle, or preparation for battle, his entire life. He has no friends, no close family to speak of, and no one he can confide in save for his sensei. It is perhaps for that reason that his sensei has begun to find other duties for the young berserker to fulfill, hoping that he will find something in life that he can enjoy before he finally meets his end in the same manner as his parents.
Kakita Hideo
Air: 2 Earth: 2 Fire: 2 Water: 2 Void: 3
Reflexes: 4 Agility: 3
Glory: 1.0 Status 1.0 Honor: 3.5
School/Rank: Kakita Bushi 1
Advantages: Sacred Weapon (Kakita Blade)
Disadvantages: Bad Reputation (Arrogant). Lechery (1 pt)
Kata: Kakita’s First Stance
Skills: Courtier 2, Defense 2, Etiquette 1, laijutsu 3, Kenjutsu (Katana) 2, Kyujutsu 1, Meditation 1. Storytelling (Bragging) 1
Kakita Hideo was a popular child because of his natural athletic ability. This lasted for many years until the other children began to grow jealous of his ability, and the fact that he never seemed to lose. Hideo was not particularly concerned. His parents had made arrangements for him to study at the finest Crane dojo in Tsuma, so convinced were they of their son’s natural ability. They were not disappointed, and neither was the boy’s sensei. Hideo is the perfect Crane warrior. He is confident, athletic, and his natural charm and arrogance drives his foes to fury, forcing them to make mistakes which Hideo can then exploit to his own benefit. He has only been in a handful of duels, and never one to the death, but despite his youth. Hideo is already developing a reputation as a man to be feared within the duelist’s circle.
Kitsuki Taiko
Air: 2 Earth: 2 Fire: 3 Water: 2 Void: 2
Awareness: 3 Perception: 3
Glory: 1.0 Status 1.0 Honor: 3.5
School/Rank: Kitsuki Courtier 1
Advantages: Clear Thinker
Disadvantages: Wrath of the Kami (Water)
Skills: Courtier (Gossip) 3, Etiquette (Bureaucracy) 3, Investigation (Notice) 4. Lore: Heraldry 2, Meditation I Theology 1
Kitsuki Taiko is a young woman with a simple elegance that has always made her quite appealing to young men. It is likely that she would have been the object of countless suitors even at this young age. If it were not for the fact that her fierce intelligence and independence have intimidated the vast majority of young men that have attempted to get close to her. For all her intelligence, for all her vaunted powers of perception, Taiko has never noticed this tendency; matters of romance and marriage have never been important to her, and she has never paid them any attention.
Taiko is a brilliant judge of character, and can often deduce complex interrelations between others simply by observing them for short periods. Her sensei among the Kitsuki expect great things of her, and she expects great things of herself. To Taiko, the world is a riddle that is awaiting discovery. Every challenge set before her in court or otherwise, is a riddle to be solved, and she commits herself fully to them. Once committed, she does not stop until it is solved. In another life, perhaps she was a great huntress. In this one, she is a merciless advocate of her family and clan.
Taiko favors tattoos, but not in the traditional Dragon style. She commemorates each major victory or discovery with a small tattoo somewhere on her body, most of which cannot be seen by others. In this way, she has chosen to create a history of her life that will be with her always.
Akodo Shunori
Air: 2 Earth: 2 Fire: 3 Water: 3 Void: 2
Glory: 1.0 Status 1.0 Honor: 3.5
School/Rank: Akodo Bushi
Advantages: Balance, Hotel’s Blessing
Disadvantages: Idealistic
Kata: Striking as Fire. Striking as Water
Skills: Battle (Mass Combat) 3, Defense 2, Kenjutsu 2, Kyujutsu 1, Lore: History 2, Storytelling 1, War Fans 1
Akodo Shunori was always a strange child. When he was young, he never showed particular interest in the games of other children. Kemari, chasing one another through the forest, and even pretending to fight with katana simply did not hold his attention. Go and shogi were his passion, even as a child, and he spent many long afternoons sitting quietly with his grandfather in the garden, watching every tactic, every strategy that the players made. Afterwards his grandfather would take him aside and explain what had happened, and years before his formal training as a samurai began, Shunori could be found playing men fifty years his senior. He did not often win, but he never played badly.
Shunori is a quiet young man whose keen eyes miss nothing. He could have been a courtier or an ambassador, but his love of battle and tactics is far too great for such a life. He thrives within the great Lion military, and works hard to prepare for the leadership position he hopes one day to achieve.
Yoritomo Eriko
Air: 2 Earth: 2 Fire: 2 Water: 2 Void: 2
Reflexes: 3 Agility: 3
Glory: 1.0 Status 1.0 Honor: 1.5
School/Rank: Yoritomo Bushi 1
Advantages: Ambidextrous. Daredevil
Disadvantages: Contrary, Overconfident
Kata: None
kills: Athletics 2, Battle 1, Commerce 2, Craft: Sailing 3, Defense 2. Kenutsu 2, Peasant Weapons (Kama) 5, Stealth 2
Yortiomo Eriko’s parents were from a particularly poor branch of the Yoritomo family, and her mother died of an illness when she was only four. With no other options save to give up his only daughter. Eriko’s father instead chose to take her with him when he served at sea for months on end. Many feared the tiny girl would perish, but in fact she flourished. Eriko has almost literally spent her entire life at sea. She does not recall the years before she took to the ships with her father, and the longest period of time she has lived on dry land has been no more than six months at most. In her mind, her recent gempukku ceremony was a formality, nothing more: she has been a Mantis samurai for more than a decade.
Eriko resents the Great Clans from the mainland. They have no understanding of what it means to struggle as the Mantis have. They take so much for granted, and they desperately need someone to show them the truth. Eriko is more than willing to be that samurai.
Isawa Takesi
Air: 2 Earth: 2 Fire: 3 Water: 2 Void: 3
Willpower: 3 Intelligence: 4
Glory: 1.0 Status 1.0 Honor: 2.5
Advantages: Ally (Kakita Hideo: 1/1), Blessings of the Elements (Fire)
Disadvantages: Bitter Betrothal
Spells: Sense, Commune, Summon, Counterspell, Aura of Flame, Burst, Extinguish, Fires form the Forge, Reversal of Fortunes, Tempest of Air
Skills: Calligraphy 2, Courtier 2, laijutsu 1, Lore: History 1, Meditation 2, Spellcraft (Fire) 3, Tea Ceremony 1, Theology 2
The kami have smiled upon Isawa Takesi since the day he was born. His parents, both shugenja, could see the way he stared at the spirits those around him could not. They saw how he smiled at them, and how they swarmed around him protectively in return. However, they had learned history’s lessons well and knew that those who are particularly strong in the elements are often led to hubris and disaster, and Takesi was raised with these lessons in mind.
Takesi is not an arrogant young man, but it is difficult for him to identify with others that cannot see the majesty of spirits that surrounds them at all times. He struggles daily to remain grounded and centered, but at times is difficult not to get caught up in it all.
Bayushi Ietsuna
Air: 3 Earth: 2 Fire: 3 Water: 2 Void: 2
Glory: 1.0 Status 1.0 Honor: 1.5
School/Rank: Bayushi Bushi 1
Advantages: Dangerous Beauty
Disadvantages: Cruel
Kata: The Tail’s Reach
Skills: Courtier (Political Maneuvering) 2, Defense 2, Etiquette 3. laijutsu 2, Keniutsu 3, Kyujutsu 2, Stealth 2
Bayushi Ietsuna is a dangerous man. His every action, movement, and word serves as a warning to those around him. He is inscrutable, charming, and seethes with an understated menace that puts everyone in his presence ill at ease. To Ietsuna, it is a game. It is the subtlest form of manipulation, and only those who can overcome the aura of danger he exudes are truly worth of his respect.
The irony is that Ietsuna is not as dangerous as he appears. He is a talented warrior, but not a prodigy. He is a cunning social opponent, but not brilliant. And he is talented in arts that others would find disgraceful, but he rarely puts them to use. Rather, Ietsuna’s duty is to present a diversion for his clan’s enemies. He uses his gift, the gift of presence, to put others on the defensive, allowing his more subtle clanmates to operate with a reduced chance of detection. As he gains experience, however, there is no doubt that Ietsuna will become a force in his own right, and one day the fear others seem to have of him will be well-deserved.
Utaku Kohana
Air: 2 Earth: 2 Fire: 3 Water: 2 Void: 3
Reflexes: 3
Glory: 1.0 Status 1.0 Honor: 3.5
School/Rank: Utaku Battle Maiden 1
Advantages: Daikoku’s Blessing. Quick Healer
Disadvantages: Small
Kata: None
Skills: Battle (Skirmish) 2, Defense 2, Horsemanship 3, Kenjutsu 3, Kyujutsu 2, Lore: Heraldry 1, Polearms 2
The Utaku family has a well-deserved reputation for grim and humorless samurai. Utaku Kohana is a paragon of the beliefs and practices the battle maidens maintain, but she does not share those personal qualities. She is a bright and gregarious young woman who makes friends quickly and easily. There are those among her family who believe she is a flighty young woman, but even they cannot deny her gifts in the skills practiced by their school.
Kohana’s current assignment is as a yojimbo to a seasoned Ide diplomat serving in the capital city. She has enjoyed visiting the capital and experiencing the different traditions of other clans, but she longs to return to the open plains. She hopes that one day soon, her charge will travel to the courts of other clans, and give her the opportunity both to travel the Empire as well as to meet new and exciting people as part of her duties.
