Legend of the 5 Rings- 1 Year of Rokugan- Campaign Journal [Archive]

Easy e

2023-01-09, 01:26 PM

Greetings all,

I am about to start GMing a Legend of the 5 Rings campaign using 3rd edition, and wanted to leave a few notes about it here. I guess you could call it a Campaign log, but it is more of an overview and a few particularly interesting bits and bobs.

First Things First
1. Why 3rd edition? - Because I have it.

2. Backgrounds- I have GMed a variety of RPGs, but never L5R. The players mostly have background with D&D 5E. They enjoyed getting their hands dirty in character creation and quickly started trying to wrap their heads around the new rules and world.

3. This is a short campaign I created called One Year in Rokugan. It takes place in a valley at the edge Crane, Scorpion, and Lion territory. I purposely put it "out of reach" so I could avoid knowing everything about the background of Rokugan while learning the rules. I don't know everything about Rokugan, and never will.

The campaign has 4 adventures, 1 in each season. Each season also has a different theme for things to learn about Rokugan. Spring is to teach the basics of Bushido and the tension between Honor, Status, and Glory. Summer introduces them to the idea of the Shadowlands and Jingoku. Autumn is about Obligation to your lord, Clan politics, and duels/non-combat resolution. Winter is all about Court, investigation and the Law. This is expected to take about 12-15 3 hours sessions to complete.

4. There was a Session 0 for character creation, and part of Session 1 was some of the ground rules about Rokugan. However, at least half of the group had read up on their clan, family, and the general background of Rokugan culture.

Characters
There are 6 players, with a mix of folks from different ages, backgrounds, and the like. I wanted at least 1+ Crane, 1 Lion, 1 Scorpion, and asked for 2+ Bushi, 1 Shugenja, and 1 Courtier. All of the characters are second or third born children, and not eligible for inheritance at the moment.

1. Doji family Shugenja (Crane) - Caster
2. Akodo family Bushi (Lion)- Trained in the Kakita school, so a duelist
3. Bayushi family Bushi (Scorpion) - Tank
4. Hiruma family Scout (Crab) - Stealthy
5. Shinjo family Bushi (Unicorn) - Archer
6. Togashi family Tattooed Order (Dragon) - Monk

The players had a lot of fun loading up on Disads so they could do other fun stuff with the characters. However, no one chose to be a Courtier and I did not "force" anyone to take that role. The Scorpion and Crane trained characters both have some Etiquette and Courtier skills, but no one dedicated to it.

The Hook
The players have graduated from their respective schools and celebrated their Gempukken over the autumn and winter. However, spring is coming and the new Patrol Season is fast approaching. However, the head of their families each received a letter from an old family friend, asking for their aid. Instead of going on a "regular" Spring Patrol the players have been sent by their families to assist Doji Hansei with his request for aid.

I left it up to the players on why each family would choose to help Doji Hansei, and what their connection was to him. They travelled by foot to his small estate and eventually met Hansei at a reception dinner. There they discovered that he needed the players to escort his 4th daughter to her wedding in the Valley of the Emerald Stairway in the Seikitsu Mountains at the border of the Crane/Lion/Scorpion lands. His daughter was to marry the Yasuki Crane Lord of the Valley.

The PCs are informed that to access the pass to the Valley takes 2 days of travel to a cross roads, and then 1 day from the cross roads to the foot of the mountains, 1 day up the pass, and a 2nd day down into the valley. At the crossroads, there is an inn. This adventure is taking place in early spring, so the snows are still melting along their route and have not been cleared by Spring Patrols.

Hansei's own Samurai are busy with Spring duties in his own estates and territories, hence why he sought the aid of the player's family, knowing they had children who recently graduated.

To be continued
We will continue the adventure soon......

Easy e

2023-01-11, 10:50 AM

Well, we had out first session last night after a bit of housekeeping early on.

The party all gathered at the estate of Doji Hansei and were given the adventure hook. The D&Disms started to show right away as the party wanted to "get paid" and also tried to ask for stuff from Hansei.

I think one of my favorite moments was when a player asked if they could get some Heavy armor and the Crane said,

"I am sure you do not mean to disrespect your father and lord by implying that they have not provided everything that you need to complete your task."

That put them on notice right away that things were going to be a bit different in this game!

I also tried to set them up with various D&Disms in this first adventure, so they could see just how different things were going to be. In addition, these quick, easy encounters were put in place to demonstrate how the game works and let them play around with the dice mechanics a bit.

They encountered a unknown group of warriors approaching, and I wanted to see what they would do. One hid and prepared an ambush just in case, while the others waited, confirmed that the approaching samurai were Crane, and then simply provided their traveling documents.

They stayed a night at an inn, and got all bent out of shape about how to pay. Again, their travel documents were all they needed to avoid that whole mess. They were travelling on behalf of the local lord.

The party got to move a downed log blocking a narrow mountain path. In addition, they encountered a deer, and the party hunters got to hunt it. This allowed me to introduce the idea of not touching dead things, and that led to some discussion about how to properly dress it and make use of the animal.

The party finished their travels to their destination. It was a small village, where they started to notice that something was a miss. The group all really seemed to enjoy interacting with peasants, as I as the GM demonstrated how peasants feared Samurai and tried to avoid them as much as possible. Despite the peasants and Kami telling them the truth, it was clear that something else was going on.

The session ended with the suspicion that things were not as they seemed. The party had brought the Lady Doji Ao to the valley, but still needed to escort her to the her Bethrothed's residence.

Character Interactions
The players themselves loaded up on Disads for their characters, so their was immediately some friction between characters.

The whole idea of escorting Lady Ao to an arranged marriage ended up being much more controversial than I expected. The Crane and the Unicorn both had arranged marriages (of some dimension) in their back story and it led to some discussion about how it fit in with Bushido and one's proper duty.

In addition, their was some Clan rivalry that popped up as well. The Scorpion in particular had no fondness for Unicorns. In addition, the Lion member was contrary, so that caused a bit of friction as well.

I think their were only two big "misses" as a GM. One, as new players in a new system their was still hesitancy on "what could be done" instead of doing things and finding out the outcome. In addition, the players barely interacted with Lady Doji Ao, their escort. They seemed to treat her with suspicion, like she was in on some sort of plot. A failure on my part.

Final Thoughts
Overall, a fine opening session that got across the objectives I wanted. It was relatively low key, and a good practice and reminder for me about how to balance play between 6 characters at a table, and cut through table talk to action.

The party was introduced to the ways of the world, we got to exercise some D&Disms, we played around with mechanics overcoming some simple obstacles, and the hook is firmly set for the next adventure.

Telok

2023-01-11, 11:27 AM

Wonderful. I love doing these as I often get some useful suggestions when I do logs. I also love hearing how games go that I'd like to, but will probably never get to, play.

Keep up the great work.

Ameraaaaaa

2023-01-12, 09:25 PM

Nice read so far. Btw from what I've seen most people put their campaign journals in roleplaying general since that get's more traction. You don't need to put campaign journals in the specific systems journal since they don't focus on mechanical discussion. Feel free to correct me.

Easy e

2023-01-18, 11:30 AM

Thanks for the heads-up. I will see if the Mods can move it to General for me.

Session Two.

After coming to the conclusion that something was amiss in the village, the players decided to continue their journey and complete their mission to deliver their charge to her betrothed.

When they arrive, things are clearly not right. There are a ton of armed peasants loitering around in the courtyard. When they are finally met at the gate by a fellow Samurai, it is revealed to them that Yazuki Ito, the man Lady Ao is supposed to marry; is dead. He died over the winter of an illness.

As they waited for an audience with the Chamberlain, two PCs decided to spar. They got their first taste of how deadly L5R combat is, when one combatant made a lot of fancy feints and maneuvers, and the other simply Downed Sugar Ray with a single hit. That was eye-opening to the entire party! Then, getting him back up was not easy.

They are invited to dinner to meet with the chamberlain and the Lord's chief vassal. At the dinner, they meet the Chamberlain and his three Samurai. They explain how their was unpleasantness in the Valley, that Ito toured the valley, became ill and passed over the winter. No one notified Doji Hansei because they did not know Ito had arranged to be married!

They also find out that the unpleasantness was Bandit attacks being led by a Ronin. The Chamberlain then maneuver the PCs into helping him deal with the bandits and Ronin as they are technically on Spring Patrol.

Character Thoughts
There were two big D&Disms that became a challenge. The first was when the Duelist was one-shot KOed by the Scorpion Tank in a sparring match. That was eye-opening to the party. The second was trying to recover the health after a "friendly, non-lethal" sparring match took a lot of effort from the Monk and Shugenja. They had damage carry-over into the next day still.

The second was during their conversation with the Chamberlain. The PCs wanted to do "insight checks" to determine if he was telling the truth. I said, "You would doubt he word of a fellow Samurai? You can choose to believe what you want to believe." I let them roll some Awareness checks here, but for the most part it was only to remind them of information they all ready knew, or to give them insight in how a samurai was supposed to act in these situations. The players really struggled with handling this conversation and how to frame it in the terms of etiquette and bushido. They said afterwards that they felt very constricted and suffocated by it. I said, "Welcome to Rokugan." The players familiar with Japanese culture (who lived in Japan for a year or two, one military and one as an instructor) said, "Yeah, this all checks-out so far." Therefore, I do not think I am getting the feel wrong, but who knows?

All the players are doing a good job playing their Dis-advantages, characters and clans. The Duelist is a contrary hot head and eager for a fight. The Scorpion is focused on Duty above all other parts of Bushido, and trying to turn Lady Ao into an asset for his clan as best he can. The Crane Is evasive and trying to be polite. The Monk is learning to be a go-between and "face". The Unicorn is actually trying to keep the peace between everyone, while strongly against arranged marriages and trying to influence Lady Ao away from participating in it.

GM Challenges
The campaign so far is unfolding exactly as I had planned it to. The first session was the basics of undoing some of their D&Disms about travel, camping, dealing with NPCs, etc. They also got to experience and participate in some attribute and skill checks to get them use to the system and set the tone. However, the players referred to that session as "The Fellowship of the Ring.... we walked alot" which boded poorly. The second one was designed to force them to come into conflict with Bushido and understand how it impacts play. However, post game comments were that it was "restricting", which also bodes poorly. Based on their feedback, they are "learning the lessons" that these two sessions have been set-up to do, but I would not saying that they have been "enjoying" it.

And that is the problem. It is clear, that they are chafing under the confines and not embracing them. Our Hiruma Scout is clearly bored with most of it. He didn't want to do much in the RP, and did not participate much in the intrigue or planning. This is unlike the player in other games I have played with them in before, but they also expressed reluctance to do something other than D&D 5e. So far, I think I have failed to engage him very well in the game as he has said, "There is nothing we are doing here, that we could not have done with 5e." He is not wrong, but it would have required a ton of heavy lifting by me to make a 5e campaign work in this context.

The players are starting to get a better feel for their roles as characters, in the party, and the world of Bushido. I could see light bulbs going off with some of them at this session. For example, at dinner they engaged in an impromptu Haiku battle with the other Cranes and each other! That was fun. I saw them start to play around with their dialogue to frame things differently, and in alignment with Bushido. They are still feeling out who and what they are, and what they can and can not do. This stage can be painful in any game, but I feel like in this one; it has been especially challenging as they do not have their D&Disms to fall back on.

Any advice on how to transition through this before it is too late would be appreciated. There is probably one climactic session to end Spring next, when they go back to confront the Chamberlain and determine who to align themselves with, the "Ronin" or the Chamberlain. Then, Spring is over, and we will discuss if we want to continue in Rokugan. I have three more seasons, and about 8 more sessions planned to complete the 1-year in Rokugan campaign. However, I am not sure we will get that far.

Thanks for reading!

Ameraaaaaa

2023-01-18, 05:10 PM

Easy e

2023-01-25, 12:54 PM

Session Three

The Story so far......
This was the denouement for Spring. If you recall, the players were sent by their families to help an old family friend, Doji Hansei. He asked the party to attend tot heir Spring Patrol duties, while escorting his daughter to the Valley of the Emerald Stairway, in order to unite her with her intended husband.

Once in the Valley, they discovered that the husband to be, and the Lord of the Valley died over the winter. Instead, they met with his Chamberlain who explained that the Lord had passed from illness, and did not tell anyone about his nuptials.

The Chamberlain then explained that the Lord became ill while touring the Valley in winter, as the valley had been attacked by Bandits and Ronin. He then asked for their help to complete their Spring Patrol and remove the Ronin and his band. They agreed to help, and left Lady Ao with the Chamberlain.

They then went to the camp of the Ronin, with some of the Chamberlain's men and one of his Samurai (Shiro) in support. Shiro encouraged the PCs to attack the Ronin. His encouragement actually led to a duel between him and the Lion, as he implied the Lion was afraid to fight. This led to Shiro being injured. However, the party uncharacteristically, sent a Dragon Monk in to talk to the Ronin, with a Crab scout in support.

They discovered that the "Ronin" was named Diagetsu and was the former Samurai of a Valley's village. He was driven out of the village by bandits, and had been being supported secretly by the peasants of the valley. He claimed the Shiro and his group were the true "Ronin and bandits".

This led to a confrontation with Shiro and his troops. The PCs killed Shiro and were able to scatter or kill most of his men. Diagetsu was injured, and a few PCs mildly injured in the battle.

Session Three Details
The PCs finished up clearing up the last few scattered bandits. Some they killed, and some they let flee into the woods. The main thing was they want to stop them from getting back to the Estate before them.

Half the group ran ahead to chase down stragglers, while the other half spent time healing and taking care of Diagetsu. As the Lion-player missed the session, they got to baby-sit the older, injured samurai. Things worked out pretty well there.

The others high-tailed it to the estate. The plan was to go into the estate, talk to the Chamberlain and try to figure out what was going on. Therefore, they walked right up to the the Estate and announced their presence. This led to a huge group of bandits attacking them in a huge, skill challenge based fight.

They carved their way through the peasants, and into the estate. The Bandits scattered. This led them to a final conflict with the Chamberlain, who had Lady Ao at spear point. The chanberlain tried to get them onside to work with him, but the PCs tried to negotiate. Meanwhile, the Scorpion and Crab Scout tried to get behind the chamberlain via the outside of the building.

Before their plans could completely unfold, Lady Ao said, As a Doji, I will show you the meaning of duty" and threw herself onto the chamberlain's spear. This gave the players the time they needed, and the Dragon Monk and Unicorn were able to kill the Chamberlain. The Crane Shugenja rushed forward and used healing magic to stabilize Lady Ao, and keep her from dying.

Thus, the Spring Session ended. Diegetsu retired to a monastery after the death of his family in the Valley. Lady Ao and Doji Hansei decided to make a claim on lordship of the Valley, and the Hatamoto of the region agreed to them temporarily taking over. Afterall, they were all ready there. Ownership of the Valley would be decided by the regional Crane Family Daimyo at his Winter Court. In addition, the PCs who were Lady Ao's protectors were "asked" to stay as her retainers until the situation could be resolved fully.

The two remaining Samurai who aided the Chamberlain in his plot had been seen in the battle, but their bodies were not recovered. They avoided justice..... for now.

Onto Summer!

Character Details
It was interesting as the Dragon Monk, Crab Scout, and Scorpion Tank were all about slaying their way through the peasants/bandits, while the Crane Shugenja and Unicorn Samurai were focused more on avoiding killing them unnecessarily. After all, they were drafted peasants and more useful alive and working the land than dead. The Crane and Unicorn thought that their would be some bad negatives in Glory/Honor etc for killing all these guys.

As a D&Dism, the Crab clan scout wanted to lie to the Chamberlain that they had completed their mission to kill the Ronin, and that Shiro and his men were taking care of the camp and would be back soon. Meanwhile, the Crane Shugenja who had all the Courtier skills was less keen on lying, as he was unsure how to go about phrasing things and still follow the tenants of Bushido. It was an interesting discussion.

GM Challenges
The Spring session went pretty much exactly as I planned it with two major exceptions.

1. Shiro was not suppose to die at the Camp site, but escape to face the PCs again at the estate. However, after he was injured in the duel and based on how the scene played out I opted for the PCs to be able to kill him as to do otherwise would have probably left the players feeling cheated.

2. Diagetsu was suppose to be at the final battle in the estate, and get killed fighting one of the other Ronin. That would have allowed for a climactic death scene to raise the stakes, clean up any old vestiges of the old order, and allow for a PC to have a nice dramatic 1-on-1 with an enemy Ronin during a larger swirling battle. However, since the PCs ran ahead without him.... he survived and I had to think fast on why he would not become the new ruler of the Valley instead of Lady Ao.

I was surprised, but the players seemed very happy to easily cut their way through the bandits at various points in the game. I had not expected that. I also ran the combats very quickly, I would ask player 1 what they were doing, they would tell me, I would tell them what to roll, and then I would got to Player 2 and have them tell me what they were doing while Player 1 rolled dice; then I went back to Player 1 to get the results after I knew what Player 2 was doing. I kept rolling through the initiative this way so the combat went very, very quickly with almost no down time. One player specifically said that they liked this approach while another said that they did not like it at all as they were unsure exactly what was going on. The chaos of combat. I ran it that way specifically to avoid boredom at the table, but it was very different to how we did our D&D combat.

I also got feedback from the Scorpion player that the NPCs had been uninteresting to them. I asked why, and he said that they were all 2-dimensional. I asked him what would have made them interesting, and he said they were all doing their duty all the time, or had nothing else to add to the story. Peasants had no new information and Lady Ao was focused on following her duty to father and house. I reminded them that none of the Samurai they dealt with in this game really told them the truth, just what the PCs needed to hear; and that as we go forward you can not take what other Samurai say to you at face value. Lady Ao was to eventually get control of the valley, the Chamberlain was to get you to do his dirty work for him, Diagetsu wanted your help to get revenge for his family, and Shiro tried to goad you into fighting an honorable Samurai for him. Despite the code, Samurai have their own agendas too. You can not trust what they tell you, you can trust but verify...... unless of course they are passively aggressively insulting you, then you should believe it.

Overall, the players are still feeling out how Bushido works and how it applies to them and the game, and what they can and can not do within its strictures. They are struggling a bit, and it leads to some good table discussion. Personally, as the GM I am glad to see this "friction" as I think it adds to the game experience. They had the game mechanics down pretty well at this point though.

I significantly mis-judged the timing of this session as I had it in my mind that we were ending an hour earlier than we actually were. Therefore, I wrapped it all up 1 hour sooner than I needed to. Therefore, I removed a battle with the two remaining Ronin, and sped up the big melee with the Bandits in the courtyard too. Woops. I asked a player to be my time keeper to help avoid this scatterbrained error in the future.

Finally, I forgot my white board for this game. One of the players asked me for more Maps to help them get a better feel for distance and space. So far, I have been using narrative space but it seems like this player would prefer to at least get a better spatial feel for the areas they are in. No theatre of the mind going forward.

Final Thoughts
The players felt much more comfortable with this final session rather than the first travel session, and the second RPG heavy session. They wanted to lean into the combat, which will be something I need to consider.

I need to further drive home the importance of honor, and I look forward to Autumn and Winter when they will be dealing only with fellow Samurai in 90% non-combat encounters. I am interested to see how the group reacts, as they prefer combat to solve their issues. Perhaps another D&Dism?

However, at the end of the day; they want to continue into Summer and keep playing. We will have 1 week off due to some absences. However, then we will be back into Summer in Rokugan.

Ameraaaaaa

2023-01-25, 04:35 PM

Session Three

I also got feedback from the Scorpion player that the NPCs had been uninteresting to them. I asked why, and he said that they were all 2-dimensional. I asked him what would have made them interesting, and he said they were all doing their duty all the time, or had nothing else to add to the story. Peasants had no new information and Lady Ao was focused on following her duty to father and house. I reminded them that none of the Samurai they dealt with in this game really told them the truth, just what the PCs needed to hear; and that as we go forward you can not take what other Samurai say to you at face value. Lady Ao was to eventually get control of the valley, the Chamberlain was to get you to do his dirty work for him, Diagetsu wanted your help to get revenge for his family, and Shiro tried to goad you into fighting an honorable Samurai for him. Despite the code, Samurai have their own agendas too. You can not trust what they tell you, you can trust but verify...... unless of course they are passively aggressively insulting you, then you should believe it.

If i had to deal with characters this sneaky in games I'm in I'm pretty sure i wouldn't notice a thing. Tho to be fair I'm pretty bad at subtle social encounters. Or at least i think i am.

Easy e

2023-01-25, 05:15 PM

If i had to deal with characters this sneaky in games I'm in I'm pretty sure i wouldn't notice a thing. Tho to be fair I'm pretty bad at subtle social encounters. Or at least i think i am.

That is a good point. We just finished Curse of Strahd, and no one in that game is subtle about who or what they are. Perhaps as GM I am being to subtle with these characters and not over-the-top enough?

Plus, I can't do voices so they probably all seem the same to them. LOL!

Duff

2023-01-25, 08:03 PM

Respect. You've got a really elegant and thematic structure for your campaign

Pauly

2023-01-26, 02:11 AM

Speaking as someone who has lived in Japan for the last 10 years.

1. No complaints about how you’ve handled things so far.

2. Re: arranged marriages. Marriage in Japan is basically seen as a business arrangement to have children. It’s more important to find someone you can trust to fulfill their obligations than someone you love. It’s very common for a married couple with grown up children to live together more or less as co-tenants than husband and wife.
Arranged marriages are still common although in a much less formalized way, couples get introduced to each other by their sempais with an understanding that you 2 should really get together.
Your players getting bent out of shape over arranged marriage was for me the biggest inaccuracy in the game play, but that’s nothing on you.

3. Re Honesty. It’s very rare to have a Japanese person lie to your face. The preferred way to be dishonest is to lie by omission - not tell you something, leave out key details, not answer questions by talking around in circles. Another very common way of misleading people here is not correcting misconceptions. Also common is the use of passive language [“the ball was kicked” not “Hiro san kicked the ball”] to intentionally be vague.

A resource that you and your players may find useful is the old RPG Sengoku, available from drivethru RPG for a few dollars. It has a very good potted history of Japan at the relevant time and how society worked.

Easy e

2023-01-26, 10:40 AM

Pauly

2023-01-26, 03:46 PM

Thank you for the input, I found it very valuable as I have not lived in the culture that the games asks you to "emulate and borrow" from. Not sure if "emulate and borrow" is the correct word choice, but that is what I am going with.

I am lucky to have two players who have though, and that has also been really helpful. They have been very supportive to this game, which I appreciate greatly.

The players are used to just murder-hoboing around in D&D type worlds where you can just move onto the next town with no consequences. So, this very geographically focused, family structured, and very political world is posing a big challenge for them. Exactly as intended! <Insert maniacal GM laugh!>

A few other important things I’ve picked up on from living here.

- Harmony is the key cultural value. Although harmony doesn’t mean we all agree, it means you don’t bother your neighbor and you do do what has been agreed. For example I know for a fact that if your neighbor hits his wife and you hear him hitting her and she has bruises on her face the Police won’t get involved because it is contained in the 4 walls of their home, but if you have a loud verbal argument with your spouse the Police will get involved and will drag you to jail because you spread your argument outside the 4 walls of your house. That didn’t happen to me but to friends of mine.

- Keeping promises is very important. However the promise is kept strictly to the agreement, not necessarily what the person who wants the promise delivered to be. Also people are very careful to limit their promise to what they 100% know they can deliver. A Japanese person won’t make a commitment that they are 95% sure they can keep, they will only make a commitment they 100% can keep.

- Obligations are discharged as soon as possible. Keeping obligations is a very serious business, so to have an unfulfilled obligation hanging over your head is terrifying because you don’t want it called in at an inconvenient time.

- Japan is both bigger and smaller than you imagine. There is a lot of unproductive mountain land, so the distance between cities is large and wilderness areas are huge. The productive land is small and very tightly packed, so everything in civilized areas is smaller and more compact.

Easy e

2023-01-30, 01:39 PM

Very interesting. I am glad that I am handling Lying about right. The concept of harmony and obligation is also really interesting.

In the meantime, I ran across some old Wargame Foundry samurai miniatures while sorting some stuff in my game room. Therefore, I decided to give them a coat of speed paint. These models look nothing like the actual characters anymore, but I did paint them in clan colors so we can tell who is who. This might help the players that were interested in Maps and such a bit.

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtPHuuO_ENGC45pLRCs6fPzedP9Bnk23cvpbj8uT3iu2 DXKjnJHfR2dq7P3bH065Ap8vjvweB94_zBkpqtxawU8p2J0Tur 9yg4ejc8seFyHixO4iBg8cBSy80wrqGbBLcyvKazhN5dnFM7QZ K10nG_4YiDadbHKbY50u2mCsiY0LPquv-iOLJIKbRV/w640-h326/IMG_3034.HEIC

I have also started writing another adventure for these characters that utilizes their Ads, Disads, and backstories a bit more. The campaign I was running now was set up to be a bit more "generic" and to show them some key aspects of Rokugan.

Easy e

2023-02-08, 12:56 PM

Session Four

The Story So Far
You may recall that the PCs were asked to escort Lady Doji Ao to the Valley of the Emerald Stairway. Once there, they discovered that her soon-to-be-husband had died before arriving. Instead, the Chamberlain was making a play for control of the Valley using Ronin and Bandits.

The PCs were able to eventually see through the deception, run off the Ronin and bandits, and confront the Chamberlain. The man was killed, but not before it looked like Lady Ao was mortally wounded.

Session Four Details
Thanks to the party Shugenja, the group was able to stabilize Lady Ao with the help of the Kami. For three weeks using a combination of magic and medicine, the Crane Shugenja and her Yojimbo nursed her back to health. Once healthy enough, Lady Ao started writing feverishly. The Unicorn samurai became a valuable way to move messages quicker than anyone else from the Valley.

The last remaining Samurai from the valley, led the PCs on a final purge of the bandits and showed them around and introduced them to the various important NPCs of the valley like the village heads, the blacksmith, various peasant servants, etc. This samurai then got permission to retire to a nearby monastery due to his long service and death of his family. The last Yasuki Samurai in the Valley was now out -of-the-picture.

By mid-June, the party had received word from the head of the Crane family, that Lady Ao was to maintain control over the Valley with the PCs acting as her retainers; until the matter could be sorted out properly at the Winter Court. In the meantime, a Lion, a Scorpion, and the Yasuki family were all pressing claims of their own.

It was in this backdrop, that Lady Ao received word of the arrival of a powerful Dragon family lord coming to the valley. This lord's family held great sway in the Crane family courts due to trading relationships and personal relationships. She had her "noble Samurai" go forth and locate appropriate gifts and meet her at the entrance to the Valley in a few days.

The PCs went and gathered their gifts, and met the Dragon entourage when they arrived. The group was led by a high-ranking Dragon eldest son, who was all ready betrothed to marry the Crane Shugenja in the player's backstory. His bride-to-be had been whisked away by duty, and he came to gather her up and complete the nuptials. With him in his entourage came his younger sister, who was the sworn enemy of the players' Dragon Monk character, due to unspecified past transgressions. He also had his own Yojimbo, his own Tattooed Order Monk from a rival branch to the PCs Monk, and three other samurai retainers.

The PCs did their best to interact socially with the group, and escorted them back up to the Estate. The fact that the Crane was betrothed to marry this guy was a source of great mirth and some backstory related friction. In addition, the PCs were trying to figure out what their Dragon Monk did to get the Lord's sister so mad at him.

After doing some RP, sight seeing, and character development work eventually the players all had their Welcome dinner at the Estate. There were great toasts made, and then dinner was served. Then, one of the servants promptly died of poison. <Record scratch> Thankfully, no one tried the Mushroom sauce yet!

This led to the PCs investigating, interrogating the kitchen staff, and the Dragon entourage talking some smack about their hosts. As the peasants from the kitchen answered the questions, all of these incidents almost led to some fist-i-cuffs. In addition, they ran headlong into Rokugani law and the Code of Bushido about testimony and physical evidence.

The night ended with the PCs having some suspects, but the Dragon's retiring, and creating an sense of obligation from their hosts to "protect them appropriately".

One remaining D&Dism that has been a bit of an issue, has been a continuing fascination with gear. This led to the Scorpion PC basically harassing and threatening the Valley's one NPC blacksmith for heavy armor, which he was clear he did not have the skill to make.

Character Details
Oh boy, I think the players are starting to settle into their characters a bit better! I gave them plenty of opportunities to RP, and I saw more of it in this session than in any of them yet.

First, their was a lot of in character discussion about the Crane's upcoming wedding. There was good natured ribbing as the man she was to marry was a fat, lazy rich boy coasting on dad's reputation and family station. So, the player's found that hilarious. However, the Unicorn players back story had her older sister being forced into a loveless and unpleasant arranged marriage because the father was injured in a riding accident and could no longer lead the family. Therefore, she was passionate about how these type of political marriages were not good. Meanwhile, the Crane was adamant that it was her duty to do what was best for the family, and that Dragon's family connections would be a strong benefit for her family. It was a really good discussion.

I had also been concerned about my Hiruma Scout player, but I think during his week off he determined what his character was going to be. He leaned into the idea of his character having a tough childhood with food insecurity, and is now a bit of a food hoarder and also a bit of an uncouth and low-brow samurai. He has bad manners, because he really does not know any better. This led to much hilarity as he bumbled around trying to RP with the others in a formal setting.

Now, I sense that my Dragon Monk player is struggling the hardest. That is why I chose to focus one of the key sub-plots on him. However, he rarely engaged with it and tried his best to avoid it. When I threw the spotlight to him in RP, he declined to do much with it. I think the root cause is that he is still unsure how his character fits into the group and how to make him unique and interesting as a Monk. However, he did learn in the last few sessions that when it comes to fighting, he is not the lead character for such activities, and that is new to him as a player.

GM Challenges
I had initially planned to run a completely different adventure than the one I ran. After the resolution of the Spring season, I decided that I needed to create an adventure that was closely linked to the PCs backstories and Dis-ads, instead of a generic ""Learn about Rokugan" adventure I had previously written. Therefore, I took a close look at the characters and started writing an adventure that could hook all of them in.

1. Arranged Marriage plot line - That tied in with my Crane Shugenja's back story, and I knew from session 1 was a trigger for the Unicorn player's back story.

2. Sworn Enemy- Trying to tie in the Dragon, and attempting to generate RP and interaction with this character.

3. Rival Order- Again focusing on the Dragon Monk, and getting him to interact and RP with this character.

4. Poison Plot- The Hiruma Scout was a very "kitchen focused" character so a poison plot from the kitchen gave him a chance to be "implicated" and also to have to protect/defend characters that he had built a connection with earlier in the game.

5. The Bride is the target- Since the Crane Shugenja is the target of the poisoning, it involved them and the Lion duelist who is her Yojimbo.

6. Scorpion Clan Involvement? - One of the suspects is a Dragon clan samurai, who was revealed to have been trained in the Bayushi school when they were a hostage in the Scorpion clan territories. In addition, a poisoning was right up the Scorpion player's alley.

The hardest part, is running a low combat, RP heavy, and investigation based game for players who are used to D&D combat levels, RP, and investigation. I am always worried about the pace, and how to throw the spotlight onto the players. I never want them to feel like they are simply "spectating" the interactions between the DM's NPCs and instead are active participants in what is going on.

To do this, I have been specifically throwing the spotlight to them at various points such as:
- Gathering and presenting their gifts
- Opportunities to engage with fellow Samurai and these NPCs addressing them personally
- Asking them how does X feel about what just happened
- Tossing the story back to the players to fill in details (Like why are they enemies, why were you supposed to get married, who would be trying to kill you, etc)
- Asking to engage with toasts, poetry, stories, acting, etc. during meal times or travel

I think they are finally starting to understand what I am doing, and some of them have come prepared with some Haiku's or other things written down ahead of time. So far, in 4 sessions, I think we have had 3 dinner scenes so now they are starting to prepare for them a bit and are realizing that "formal dinner parties" are a staple of the game I am running.

At the end of the session, I was relieved to hear that the players felt like this was the best session yet. They agreed that it started slow, and then slowly built up as they went along. Even though much of the session was "Fellowship of the Rings: Walking Edition" from my perspective and I was afraid they were getting bored. They felt like there was a slow build of tension, as the wedding narrative was revealed, the sworn enemy was revealed, and then the big reveal of the poisoning that led to an explosion of tension between the two factions, where they felt a level of stakes since what was happening was linked closely to many of their characters.

Now, by design; this campaign is not a sandbox at all. It is a relatively linear roadmap, while the players "figure out" what is going on. When it came to running the game, Investigation/Mystery games are always tough. I typically try a "gumshoe" approach where I lay out the key clues players WILL find. I do not gate these details behind skill rolls, but I do make sure that the players have skills in their inventory that would reveal the details in order to make skill selection relevant. I may call for a roll on the skill, but do not let a low roll stop them from getting the key details they need. Sometimes, low rolls just have the information trickle into the character over time, instead of all at once. This part is not a huge problem.

The harder part is dealing with how to keep the mystery in place, when players are very clever with the use of magic/communing with the Kami. Thankfully, I have set the tone that the Kami are relatively uninterested in human affairs, and have a non-humancentric thought process, so can not always articulate with any detail. You may ask them, "who poisoned the food" and their response will be something like, "One of you, I can not tell you apart well; however I think it was one of the new ones to the valley?"

The real challenge in Rokugan is that physical evidence and testimony from peasants or Kami doesn't mean anything. You need testimony from Samurai or a confession in order for it to have any teeth to it. So, PCs can have suspicions, but have to figure out how to act on those suspicions. This came up clearly when interrogating the kitchen staff, and led to some delightful and clever attempts to get to the truth. Of course, these attempts also had to de-escalate the situation that was all ready at high tension.

Overall, I think scrapping my previous generic session and writing one very specific to the characters and players was a wise idea. I will have to consider if I want to do that with Autumn and Winter as well. However, I think instead of a scrapping, I will just need to tweak them a bit.

Thanks for reading so far. Let me know what you think. I am always eager for advice on running the setting and the game.

Telok

2023-02-08, 03:41 PM

Session Four
The harder part is dealing with how to keep the mystery in place, when players are very clever with the use of magic/communing with the Kami. Thankfully, I have set the tone that the Kami are relatively uninterested in human affairs, and have a non-humancentric thought process, so can not always articulate with any detail. You may ask them, "who poisoned the food" and their response will be something like, "One of you, I can not tell you apart well; however I think it was one of the new ones to the valley?"

The real challenge in Rokugan is that physical evidence and testimony from peasants or Kami doesn't mean anything. You need testimony from Samurai or a confession in order for it to have any teeth to it.

Sounds wonderful. Keep up the good work.

I find asking the kami "who" interesting because my first instinct would have been to ask what the poison was or where it was, then work from that back to the person to get a confession or push them into a mistake.

Pauly

2023-02-09, 12:10 AM

In the meantime, I ran across some old Wargame Foundry samurai miniatures while sorting some stuff in my game room. Therefore, I decided to give them a coat of speed paint. These models look nothing like the actual characters anymore, but I did paint them in clan colors so we can tell who is who. This might help the players that were interested in Maps and such a bit.

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtPHuuO_ENGC45pLRCs6fPzedP9Bnk23cvpbj8uT3iu2 DXKjnJHfR2dq7P3bH065Ap8vjvweB94_zBkpqtxawU8p2J0Tur 9yg4ejc8seFyHixO4iBg8cBSy80wrqGbBLcyvKazhN5dnFM7QZ K10nG_4YiDadbHKbY50u2mCsiY0LPquv-iOLJIKbRV/w640-h326/IMG_3034.HEIC

I have also started writing another adventure for these characters that utilizes their Ads, Disads, and backstories a bit more. The campaign I was running now was set up to be a bit more "generic" and to show them some key aspects of Rokugan.

If you are interested in getting some Oni figures the Nihon Orcs from the old Grenadier range
Link https://www.mirliton.it/fantasy-25-28mm/mercenaries
are very good.

I like very much how you are shifting your players out of D&D thinking. Not every plot hook is being engaged with, but it is coming together.

Pauly

2023-02-09, 08:50 PM

Session Four

Session Four Details.

One remaining D&Dism that has been a bit of an issue, has been a continuing fascination with gear. This led to the Scorpion PC basically harassing and threatening the Valley's one NPC blacksmith for heavy armor, which he was clear he did not have the skill to make.

.

Been thinking on this for a day or so now.

Some cultural issues you can feed your Scorpion player either IC or OOC.
I will assume for the purpose of discussion that the blacksmith actually has the skills to make the lamellar plates for the armor, but the helmet is beyond his skills.

1) If the samurai claims the armor is not up to standard in any way he is perfectly entitled to kill the blacksmith. At the least claim a full refund whilst retaining the armor. If the blacksmith was part of an armorer’s guild or had a master armorer to attest to the quality of his work he would be more protected. Asking the blacksmith to make armor is asking him to put his head on the chopping block. The blacksmith might consider doing it for someone he had a decades long relationship with and built up a lot of trust with, but not for someone he barely knows.

2) Trade is tightly regulated and you are only entitle to trade under your license. For example in modern Japan barbers and hairdressers are separate trades and there are services you can get from a barber but not a hairdresser (eg a shave) and services a hairdresser can give but not a barber (eg a perm). Trading outside his license could mean he loses his blacksmith’s license.

3) If the blacksmith can make heavy armor for the Scorpion player it means he can make it for peasants, bandits and wandering ronin. That isn’t going to please the new lord of the valley whoever it is. It puts the blacksmith’s head on the chopping block as a potential threat to the legitimate power.

It’s a little hard to introduce 1,2 and 3 without making it sound like an exposition dump, but in Japan you are expected to know these things without being told.

4) The real skill of an armorer is in the harness and fitting plates together, not the forging of the individual pieces.
As a compromise the blacksmith may offer to forge the metal plates that can make up the armor.
He will require the Scorpion player to specify in writing the number, size, thickness, curvature, placement of holes of the lamellar plates. (20 of this dimension, 14 of this specification, 17 of another and so on). It will then be up to the scorpion player to find an NPC who is willing and capable to put the plates into a harness and make any buckles etc. needed for proper fitting.
NB good luck finding a reputable armorer willing to make a harness for a village blacksmith’s lamellar plates in Japan.

5) The blacksmith might feel so anxious about the situation he will pack up his hammer and tongs and disappear in the night.

Edit to add.
Ao sama, of course, is already PISSED with Scorpion kun. He is disturbing the harmony of her valley because he can’t show respect to his elders who sent him on the mission equipped with what they thought was appropriate gear. She will hold scorpion clan responsible because they chose this guy for their mission, and if anything happens to the blacksmith it will be on scorpion clan to replace him.

The Japanese way of dealing with this is for her to have already sent a message to Scorpion’s bosses and said nothing to scorpion.

This actually gives you a few plot hooks you may want to play with such as:
1) Scorpion clan sends heavy armor to Ao sama along with a publicly read message that of course scorpion clan are not so destitute as to harass village blacksmiths for armor and apologizing for sending such an ill equipped samurai on such an important mission. Privately scorpion kun gets a message saying if he’d like to continue to be a member of scorpion clan he’d better win back at least the amount of honor he’s lost before the end of winter.;
2) the blacksmith gets executed or runs away. Scorpion player gets ordered to find a replacement at his own expense;
3) the blacksmith gets accused of supplying the bandits and ronin. Scorpion gets praised for exposing the blacksmith because he kept asking the blacksmith for armor when (a) surely scorpion clan aren’t so destitute, (b) everyone knows a blacksmith shouldn’t be able to make armor and (c) scorpion clan are well known for being shrewd and cunning so he must have been trying to expose the blacksmith. The players then get an investigation/trial set piece to determine the guilt ir innocence of the blacksmith. Scorpion gets a secret message saying the blacksmith had better be found guilty and executed for his crimes because it would cause great loss of face to the clan if he isn’t guilty.
Whether or not the blacksmith is a co-conspirator is up to how mean you feel as a GM.

Easy e

2023-02-13, 02:00 PM

Snip a lot of good stuff.

Great stuff, and it got me thinking about the issue. Here is how I will handle it, as Lady Ao is technically in charge of these folks for the moment.

1. Lady Ao will pull Scorpion boy aside, and advise him that he is disrupting the harmony of the Valley, and that the village heads are concerned how this could disrupt the harvest if the Blacksmith is not available to support them.

2. Disrupting the harvest is the worst thing that can happen right now for harmony, and the groups future prospects.

3. In addition, it has been established that the Scorpion, Lion, and the Yasuki family are all making claims to the valley. Any failure with harvests is bad and strengthens their claims.

4. In addition, implying that Lady Ao herself can not meet the needs of her retainers, is huge blow to her credibility, and also tarnishes the Scorpion PCs reputation.

5. Therefore, once the harvest has been collected, and taxes paid, she will have the armor made and prepared for sizing while at the Winter Court. This makes the armor a factor in the climax of the campaign, but not before.

6. However, the Scorpion is expected to do something for Lady Ao as her vassal; in return:
- Stop harassing the poor blacksmith
- Find out what is the basis for the Scorpion claims on the Valley, prior to Winter Court

This should help with this D&Dism, without being too mean to the player. However, if it continues I can escalate with some of the pieces you laid out. The one about framing the poor Blacksmith for being part of the bandit/Ronin Coup is.... deliciously wicked and devious, so that will be in my back pocket if approach A does not work.

In the Autumn adventure, the Scorpions/Lions/Yasuki all make their appearance known in a more direct way when the PCs try to deliver the Taxes of the Valley. However, that is foreshadowing for you the reader. The party still has to figure out the potential assassin, who the target was, and what they are going to do about it during these summer sessions.

Pauly

2023-02-13, 03:02 PM

Great stuff, and it got me thinking about the issue. Here is how I will handle it, as Lady Ao is technically in charge of these folks for the moment.

1. Lady Ao will pull Scorpion boy aside, and advise him that he is disrupting the harmony of the Valley, and that the village heads are concerned how this could disrupt the harvest if the Blacksmith is not available to support them.

2. Disrupting the harvest is the worst thing that can happen right now for harmony, and the groups future prospects.

3. In addition, it has been established that the Scorpion, Lion, and the Yasuki family are all making claims to the valley. Any failure with harvests is bad and strengthens their claims.

4. In addition, implying that Lady Ao herself can not meet the needs of her retainers, is huge blow to her credibility, and also tarnishes the Scorpion PCs reputation.

5. Therefore, once the harvest has been collected, and taxes paid, she will have the armor made and prepared for sizing while at the Winter Court. This makes the armor a factor in the climax of the campaign, but not before.

6. However, the Scorpion is expected to do something for Lady Ao as her vassal; in return:
- Stop harassing the poor blacksmith
- Find out what is the basis for the Scorpion claims on the Valley, prior to Winter Court

This should help with this D&Dism, without being too mean to the player. However, if it continues I can escalate with some of the pieces you laid out. The one about framing the poor Blacksmith for being part of the bandit/Ronin Coup is.... deliciously wicked and devious, so that will be in my back pocket if approach A does not work.

In the Autumn adventure, the Scorpions/Lions/Yasuki all make their appearance known in a more direct way when the PCs try to deliver the Taxes of the Valley. However, that is foreshadowing for you the reader. The party still has to figure out the potential assassin, who the target was, and what they are going to do about it during these summer sessions.

I like it a lot. The traditional Japanese way would be for Lady Ao to work through cutouts not talk directly to scorpion boy directly, but for convenience and secrecy/subtlety it works. I love the idea of Ao offering scorpion boy a brightly colored doodad and all he has to do in return is such a minor thing it’s barely worth mentioning - betray his own clan.

If you do have to go down the path of framing the poor blacksmith, I was thinking you could get the PCs appointed as prosecutors, then have the rival NPC group volunteer to defend the blacksmith. The PCs will assume the rival NPCs are trying to hide something or need the blacksmith for some other nefarious purpose.

Easy e

2023-02-13, 03:38 PM

I like it a lot. The traditional Japanese way would be for Lady Ao to work through cutouts not talk directly to scorpion boy directly, but for convenience and secrecy/subtlety it works. I love the idea of Ao offering scorpion boy a brightly colored doodad and all he has to do in return is such a minor thing it’s barely worth mentioning - betray his own clan.

If you do have to go down the path of framing the poor blacksmith, I was thinking you could get the PCs appointed as prosecutors, then have the rival NPC group volunteer to defend the blacksmith. The PCs will assume the rival NPCs are trying to hide something or need the blacksmith for some other nefarious purpose.

Cut-outs..... hmmmm..... I have not left a lot of space for cut-outs but perhaps I can use the Dragon's that are currently visiting for that purpose?

Great insights.

Pauly

2023-02-13, 04:10 PM

Cut-outs..... hmmmm..... I have not left a lot of space for cut-outs but perhaps I can use the Dragon's that are currently visiting for that purpose?

Great insights.

Maybe save up the use of cutouts as messengers for the next campaign. Keep it simpler for the first campaign. There's a whole cultural shift your players have to make, so concentrate on getting rid of the D&Disms first.
Also Ao is asking for something big, betrayal of his own clan, so that is something she might do in person. If your scorpion player is switched on the fact that Ao is speaking to him in person and in private should be a warning bell.

Edit to add: Going down the rabbit hole of obligations.
In Japan when a member of a company receives a gift they are expected to pass it on up the chain. For example in the restaurants in the hotel I work in waiters are expected to pass tips up to their manager.
The stated reason is that the client/customer is rewarding the company for the company’s effort. The owner for supplying the location, the manager for training the waiter, the other front of house staff for creating a harmonious environment, the chefs for cooking the meal.
The unstated reason is that it creates an obligation in the waiter to provide better service to that customer and can lead to outcomes like heavy pours of wine, items getting complemented when they should be paid, the waiter not paying proper attention to other tables.
It is up to the manager how much, if any, of the tip goes back to the waiter. Usually the managers keep the tip for themselves, which is why gifts in Japan are usually things like cookies or chocolates, which the boss isn’t going to keep for themselves and can be shared by the whole crew.

So if the scorpion player receives heavy armor from Ao, scorpion clan will expect him to pass it up to his boss. The boss may hand it back to scorpion player, or he may not. It is considered a test of loyalty that generous gifts are passed up the chain.
This creates an obligation on Scorpion Clan to make sure any scorpion retainers they send to Ao to be equipped in heavy armor (or gear with a cash value of at least heavy armor) on top of their normal equipment. Since heavy armor is reserved for the best fighters in the most important places having to give a rookie sent to a remote valley heavy armor is something Scorpion clan doesn’t want to be obliged to do.
Scorpion clan can discharge this obligation by giving Ao a gift with a cash value equal to the value of heavy armor, by relinquishing their claim to the valley if it is flimsy, assisting Ao against Lion and the other claimant to the valley.

If scorpion player keeps the armor for himself he then has an obligation to Ao that can only be properly discharged by service. Either some extraordinary feat or becoming her loyal retainer. If Ao wants to be mean she can squeeze him by saying “if you weren’t betraying Scorpion why did you accept the armor? Scorpion know you’ve accepted the armor.”

What you are setting up is a great RP finale for the scorpion player. At some point in Winter he will have to choose between his loyalty to his clan or to Lady Ao. All powered by him being a D&D loot rat.

Easy e

2023-02-14, 12:28 PM

Nice edit..... I love that idea.

Sadly, tonight's session was called due to bad weather in the area that made travel to our in-person gaming hazardous. That gives me another week to plan how I want this all to play out.

I think I am going to have the Dragon Clan very suspicious of our Hiruma Scout PC because he spends a lot of time in the kitchen, and is an obvious non-Dragon suspect to try to pin the poisoning blame on. They will manifest this "suspicion" by having a member of their Retinue literally follow him around at a respectful distance and simply watch him.

I also considered having the true poisoner, plant evidence on the Dragon Monk PC that would then put him on the horn's of a dilemma. If he comes forward with it, the actual poisoner could simply come forward and incriminate the PC with testimony and shift blame away from themselves immediately. The PCs will probably also suspect the Dragon PC's Sworn Enemy, but they are not the actual Poisoner.

So much fun, I look forward to the next session to play all these threads out!

Pauly

2023-02-14, 03:03 PM

Having the dragons delegate someone to follow the hiruma scout, but not say anything directly is a classical Japanese way to send a message. It invites observers to ask the question “why are the dragons following this person?” then let the observer make the obvious conclusion.

If you want to go down the path of the scorpion clan/lady Ao loyalty contest. When the scorpion player gets his armor, or just before send him a message from his direct scorpion clan boss, to the effect of “Thank you for winning a set of heavy armor for scorpion clan. Your efforts on behalf of scorpion clan have brought much honor to you. Please send the armor to this address.”
If the PC sends the armor to his boss then the boss gives it back to him it shifts scorpion player’s personal obligation from Ao to his boss. Which would be fine in a follow up campaign where there are competing factions within scorpion clam.
[edit to add: The source of his current armor is an important point. If it was provided by Scorpion clan they have a stronger right to claim the upgrade than if the scorpion player’s family provided his current armor.
If the scorpion player gets heavy armor through his own efforts - paid for by himself/family, looted from an enemy he personally killed then the clan doesn’t have a claim on it. If it was from general battlefield loot divvied up after the battle between the players then scorpion clan may make a claim to it].

As a side bar Japanese workers in traditional companies that follow this model of passing gifts to the boss resent being given any nice presents. Even if the boss passes it back they still have the anxiety about wether their boss will keep it for themselves and then being forced into an obligation to their boss if he or she does pass it back.

Pauly

2023-02-15, 01:41 AM

Making Lady Ao a bit more of a schemer.

Disclaimer. On reading your Cliff’s notes version of what has transpired so far Lady Ao comes across as a ‘damsel in distress’ type. To be fair that’s what the campaign has needed her to be so far and there is still a lot of the plot left to reveal. However, having the players treat Lady Ao as a damsel in distress is a good thing.

Lady Ao will want to consolidate her control of the valley. She’s too young and too junior to be involved in the big boy’s games outside the valley, but inside the valley she’s going to scheme and plot.
Her immediate aim is to tie her retinue (the PCs) to her as tightly as possible, and the first thread in the web is scorpion boy’s armor. Which fits the Japanese concept of soft power, which is controlling people by getting them to do what they want to do, not forcing them to do what you want them to do.

One suggestion.
Lady Oa’s family retinue includes a famous duelist/reacher. This master duelist comes to the valley scouting for a location of a remote winter dojo. He wants a special school for his best and most dedicated students free from distractions. Lady Ao will ask for a volunteer to show the master around the valley [subtext who would like to spend a week of one on one quality time with an expert teacher of the art of dueling]. Your Akodo family duelist should jump at the opportunity. As a reward the master will give the duelist a brief lesson and a training scroll, and tell him that if he can master the technique by the end of Winter and Lady Ao is confirmed in her position he will be accepted as a student. Like Scorpion’s armor this bonus skill comes into play at the finale of the campaign, but not before.
The PC has been given something of value which creates an obligation, and has a promise of future benefits if he is loyal to Ao.
Lady Ao, of course, had written to her father suggesting the master duelist’s visit for this very purpose.

The important thing is for Ao to not directly suggest anything. She lays out an opportunity and it’s up to the PC to pick it up. And once they do they’re putting themselves in her web. Sprinkling them throughout Summer and Autumn so they come to fruition in Winter. It doesn’t have to be a mechanical benefit it might be a RP reward (revenge for a past wrong, an opportunity to create a cooking school that will outlive you).

Also if everybody gets an opportunity to have a brightly colored doodad at the Winter court it removes the “why is scorpion getting something special?” whines.

Easy e

2023-03-01, 11:15 AM

....and we are back!

Last Time
You may recall that the Valley of the Emerald Stairway was tentatively under the control of Lady Doji Ao, with the PCs as her Retainers until the matter could be resolved at the Winter Court. Therefore, for political reasons, Lady Ao and the PCs needed to prove that they could effectively run the Valley. During the Summer, Lord Kitsuki Takoe arrived with his entourage of Dragon clan samurai (and Monks) in order to meet with his bride to be, our Crane Shugenja. After awkward moments of gift giving, flirting, and some travel, the group all arrived at the Stone Walled Estate and their ceremonial arrival dinner. There, a serving servant promptly died of poison!

The PCs and the Dragons interrogated the kitchen staff, and discovered that a number of samurai had been in the kitchen that day. As the interrogation went on, one of the Dragon PCs tried to kill the chef with a iajitsu strike, which was blocked by the Lion Duelist. This revealed that the Dragon had been raised in Scorpion lands as a hostage. The PCs were immediately suspecting her. At the end of the session, the Dragon's reminded the PCs of their obligation to make sure that they were protected and safe, as they were guests.

Session 5 Details
The PCs start the session with the Dragon clan retiring for the evening, and tensions high. Lady Ao asks the PCs to escort her around the estate to survey their security, and for a private conversation. During this conversation, she re-states the stakes of this visit as Lord Takoe's father has the ear of their Lord Kurihito, who will be deciding the various claims on the Valley. She also reminds them of their duties as hosts to level set what is required of the PCs. She also lays out that if any of them are caught in acts that are obviously against the Code, she will be forced to punish them in order to maintain the good graces with her visitors. She also reminds them that her retainers will suspect a Dragon, while the Dragon will naturally suspect one of them; it is in each groups best interests to do so.

Suitably reminded of the rules of Bushido, the PCs set-up their security perimeter and begin the evening of Long Shadows. That night, a PC patrolling notices a flicker of light, perhaps a lightning bug or perhaps the flash of a candle in Lord Ito's room. No one has been in the room except cleaning servants since his death during the winter; before the PCs arrived. They sealed off the exits and rush in.

The Unicorn and the Lion find that the room has an assailant inside. The assailant throws a candle at the Unicorn who dodges it and tries to grapple the intruder. He dodges away, but the Unicorn notices that they are wearing a Wakazashi, signaling that they are a fellow Samurai. She calls out this information. The Lion rushes in and attacks with his katana, and manages to strike the man in the thigh and cripple him. The intruder immediately falls into a low, bow and surrenders.

To the PCs credit, they do what they can to heal and help the man with magic and medicine while they gently interrogate him. He is a Crane samurai of the Yasuki family, sent by his clan to locate the former Lord Yasuki Ito's will. He will not reveal his master, but is open that his master wishes to have the will in order to use it to press their claim to the Valley in the Winter Court. The Scorpion, Lion, and Yasuki family are all making claims on the Valley too. The PCs offer to provide the will if they find it, after they read it, and send him on his way with it. A quick search with the aid of the Kami, and they uncover some private papers from Lord Ito, but not his will. Instead, it is the private correspondence between Ito, and Lady Ao's father Doji Hansei about the wedding.

Yasuki snuck into the Valley disguised as a peasant bearer of the Dragon's. One of the Dragon watch the interrogation, and insinuate that the Yasuki maybe the poisoner. The PCs take this under advisement, and gain his word he will not try to escape. They then confine him to the kitchen where he is being watched by the Hiruma scout.

The next day, over breakfast the PCs discuss what to do with the Yasuki and determine to hold him for now. Lady Ao also announces two pieces of news. The first is that Lord Takoe wants to hold his wedding here in the Valley in Autumn before the Harvest Festival. So, about 3 months away. She also tells the Scorpion who has been harassing the Blacksmith that she has written to his Father and between the two of them have made arrangements to procure Heavy Armor for them. It will be available at the Winter Court IF the Scorpion can determine the nature of the Scorpion clan's claim to the Valley. He is strategically non-committal. In addition, Lord Takoe wants to meet his Bride-to-Be for a picnic lunch with just him and her, plus Yojimbo off course!

As the PCs split up to go deal with their duties, three key things happen:
1. The Scorpion manages to slip into the Dragon's room and search them. He realizes most of their baggage is still with their peasant porters in the village attached to the Estate.
2. The Hiruma realizes that one of the Dragon retinue is following him everywhere. He wants to go check their baggage, but can not due to this man following him, and because peasants are delivering food to the estate that he must inspect and make sure stays poison free.
3. The Dragon Monk PC finds a mortar and pestle used to grind up the poisonous mushrooms used in the attack. However, it is in the room he was the only samurai to use. He immediately brings the discover to his Scout friend, and this is all observed by the Dragon following the Scout.
4. The Unicorn and the Scorpion set up to "observe" the picnic meeting at a discrete distance.

The Crane Shugenja and their Yojimbo go to the picnic. There, Lord Takoe is very nervous as he tries to serve tea. There is the twang of a bow, and the Lion Duelist jumps in front of his Crane charge in time, and takes an arrow. He is injured badly, but more importantly he realizes that the dreaded Red Coral Mushroom poison is now raging through his system.

The Scorpion springs from hiding in pursuit of the attacker, and finds a bow and arrows with green fletching. He picks it up and gives chase to the assailant that leads back to the Estate. He rushes after the attacker, and turns the corner into the garden. There he finds three of the Dragon playing Go. They immediately ask him what he is doing with one of their Bows?

He explains the attack and they all gather in the courtyard. The PCs try to heal the Lion, but they can do nothing about the poison racing through his system. The PCs spin on the visitors and the Scorpion girl/Dragon is the only one not present. The unicorn goes and finds her in the village, where she immediately reports that her bow is gone. The PCs strong suspect Scorpion/Dragon girl is the attempted assassin, but they have no proof. The Dragon calmly point out that there are no witnesses, and then point at all the circumstantial evidence pointing to a conspiracy being hatched by Lady Ao's agents. The session ends with tensions on the brink of breaking out into outright conflict between the two groups, but no one sinks to an outright accusation of the other, as that would clearly lead to immediate blood shed. A bright red line was drawn on the subject of accusations without testimony.

Character Details
Everyone played their part in the drama pretty much as anticipated. The Hiruma Scout was very distrustful of the Yasuki spy, and treated him just along the lines of being dishonorable; but never crossed over. Meanwhile, the Crane Shugenja tried to play the peace maker all night, and scored honor points for helping a potential enemy in an honorable way. The Yojimbo bodyguarded as needed, because if the Crane Shugenja had been hit by the poison arrow, her bad health disad and low Stamina probably would have killed them relatively quickly. Instead, the Lion is facing the effects of the Poison, and the PCs now have time to figure out the assassin and possibly get the antidote from them.

The PCs quickly determined that the Will side quest was a secondary concern compared to the poisoning quest. They started the session pretty confident who the poisoner was, and nothing that happened dissuaded them. However, they were still struggling with how to balance keeping he Dragon safe, finding the assassin, and doing it all while being polite. Exactly the struggle I wanted them to feel!

Some D&Disms showed, as their initial gut reaction was to just kill the person they suspected. However, as they said it; they also realized what a terrible idea it was. They also briefly considered just killing all the Dragons. However, again they knew that was not a solution; they only said it to work it out of their system. I was also surprised that no one suspected Ichiko, Lord Takoe's younger sister; since she clearly hated the Dragon PC, he was potentially framed, and she had the most to gain if Lord Takoe died. Surprisingly, no one mentioned just framing Yasuki for the crime and being done with it. So, after the session the players were no closer to revealing the potential assassin.

GM Notes
The adventure is pretty much going as intended. The players are being forced to think outside of the normal "Kill them all and let the gods sort them out" mentality. They are on the horns of a dilemma, and I raised the stakes a lot when the Lion got poisoned. I have to say, they have played right into my hands of throwing smoke in the air as we lead up to the final act of the adventure. The stakes have never been higher as one of their own is in mortal peril, and tensions between the two groups are at the highest they have been.

I have managed to use the obligations of Bushido to maneuver the character's to make compromises and to question their own approaches, and as the GM I am loving watching it all play out. There were a few instances that really stuck out to me in this session:

1. When Lady Ao told the Scorpion that she had written to his Father about the heavy armor, his eyes literally went wide in fear.
2. When the PCs honorably handled the situation with Yasuki.
3. When at the end of the session, they walked right up to the edge of an accusation, but pulled back before it was too late.
4. When the the Scorpion/Dragon lady stated that her bow was missing, the Hiruma said "I knew I needed to check their luggage!"
5. When the Dragon PC went to the Hiruma scout, told him about the damning evidence he found in his own room, right in front of the Dragon watching the scout.

The PCs have mostly unwittingly played right into my hands of giving the Dragon's all the plausible deniability they need. This has caused the PCs no end of frustration, and it will make the final comeuppance all the sweeter for them. They really, really want to get this assassin, and do it cleanly!

My Dragon Monk PC has been reluctant to take the spotlight, even though I have thrown it to him multiple times in this adventure. I do not think they are comfortable with the heavy role-play going on in the adventure, and are waiting to just to get in and throw some fists. The Unicorn was also a bit withdrawn, but took the spotlight when it was presented. The Hiruma scout has really settled in despite my previous concerns, and is loving it.

We had not played for a few weeks due to weather, so I kept a loose hand on this adventure. We spent a great deal of time in side conversation and general friendship. This was needed to help them "break the ice a bit" as if we had played this straight, I think the tension would have led the group to frustration more than fun. The light hand helped keep it from going too far, but when the climax of the night came.... they were all dialed in for it.

I was also happy, that they were embracing the system a bit. I run an ability/skill check light approach to games, but they were using dice checks, Void Points, Kami, and their special abilities appropriately and when needed. That was refreshing. I think we have shown that learning a "new system" does not have to be a hard task, just the normal ramp up time whenever you have a new character. This will help pave the way for future games, as the next one will be Avatar; but with a different GM.

Until next time. Let me know if you have any questions.

Ameraaaaaa

2023-03-01, 10:35 PM

Sounds like everyone had fun.

Since your worried about the dragon monk player have you considered that perhaps he fits into Robin d laws interpretation of a casual player.

"The Casual Gamer is often forgotten in discussions of this sort, but almost every group has one. Casual gamers tend to be low key folks who are uncomfortable taking center stage even in a small group. Often, they're present to hang out with the group, and game just because it happens to be the activity everyone else has chosen. Though they're elusive creatures, casual gamers can be vitally important to a gaming group's survival. They fill out the ranks, which is especially important in games that spread vital PC abilities across a wide number of character types or classes. Especially if they're present mostly for social reasons, they may fill an important role in the group's interpersonal dynamic. Often they're the mellow, moderating types who keep the more assertive personalities from each other's throats -- in or out of character. I mention the casual player because the thing he most fervently wants is to remain in the background. He doesn't wnat to have to learn rules or come up with a plot hook for his character or engage in detailed planning. You may think it's a bad thing that he sits there for much of the session thumbing through your latest purchases from the comic book store, but hey, that's what he wants. The last thing you want to do is to force him into a greater degree of participation than he's comfortable with. (Of course, if everybody in the group is sitting there reading your comic books, you've definitely got a problem...)"

Of course i don't know your players more then yourself. So feel free to tell me what you think.

Pauly

2023-03-01, 11:47 PM

Very well handled. I love that the players are getting the feel for the setting. I was a little surprised at scorpion’s reaction to the offer of heavy armor, but we’ll see if the mouse takes the cheese.

Re dragon monk.
Caveat I don’t know how L5R handles religion/spiritualism, but I will assume it is generally along the lines of Buddhism or Shintoism.
Maybe Lady Ao can come to him with a spiritual problem [as in the local spirits not her soul] and ask the monk as the senior religious person available to deal with it.

One suggestion, although I think it may be better suited to year 2 if there is one in the future than year 1.
Lady Ao has a vision that reveals the site of a hot spring to her. [hot springs aka onsens are a big deal in Japan].
If the vision is confirmed it strengthens her claim as it is proof the local gods support her.
If evidence is found that other people knew of the spring then it becomes neutral as it can be interpreted that gods wanted somebody, anybody not Lady Ao in particular to find the spring.
If evidence is found other people knew about the spring and communicated that to Lady Ao’s household, no one will say anything but adverse inferences can be made.

Of course Lady Ao has the power to grant land for the site of a temple close to the onsen to the order that confirms the vision, so that would be a huge amount of honor and prestige if the monk was able to confirm it.

The reason I say it may be better suited to year 2 of a campaign.
Development of the onsen. Onsens in Japan are a huge deal and they often layer attractions together to make it more attractive for a visit.
1) Bathing. Any onsen with a good story and connection to the local gods is treated as more worthy of a visit. There will be stories about the waters having healing or restorative effects.
2) Temple. People will make a pilgrimage to the local temple, especially if it connected to the history of the onsen. Which makes these temples more visited and more prosperous.
2a) Temple gardens. Temple gardens that are designed to attract tourists are often devoted to one type of plant (Ume, Sakura, Fuji, Momoko, Momiji, Ginko) and look spectacular for 2 weeks of the year.
2b) Temple art. People will travel to temples to see sculptures or paintings by famous artists. Often the earliest pieces of art in a temple are early works of artists who later became famous - as the temple becomes more famous the artist’s reputation increases, as the artist becomes more famous the temple’s reputation increases. Masters get well paid to make art in famous temples, so it’s their apprentices who are starting out that make art in new temples.
3) Food. Food tourism is a big thing, and to attract visitors an onsen needs a very good restaurant.
3a) Food festivals. Often timed to co-incide with 2a. Normally a local specialty or using an ingredient associated with the temple garden.
3b) Omiyage. Often translated as ‘souvenir’ but it’s a different concept. This is food or drink that you bring back with you from your travel so you can share the experience of your travel with your friends/family. Traditionally it’s a regional delicacy. It is also proof that you went where you said you went,
4) Local arts and crafts. A regional style of pottery, small statues, weaving, ohashi, sake cups, Pick one as the local specialty

So if Lady Ao has a vision that may be a role playing spotlight for the monk in year 1, but the development of the onsen has many possible hooks for side quests in years 2 and beyond that can be tailored to give each member of the party a chance to be in the spotlight.

SoulSalvage

2023-03-03, 11:26 AM

I'm normally a lurker on these forums, but I wanted to say that I've been really enjoying this campaign journal. L5R is my favorite tabletop setting I've ever experienced, and unfortunately I haven't had a group that's been willing to run it in close to a decade now. These posts have definitely made me crack open my books again and dive back into the lore.

Gotta say, I was a little disappointed when the posts stopped for awhile, but I'm really happy to see the adventures continue!

Easy e

2023-03-06, 09:28 AM

Cheers Soul Salvage, I am enjoying running it and playing it!

Thanks to some players travelling, new adventure update posts will miss the next couple of weeks. However, do not despair as the campaign is not over yet! It will be back soon.

The next couple weeks will be some other games, but still TBD, and then back at it in Rokugan when the full party returns.

Ameraaaaaa

2023-03-06, 05:09 PM

Easy e

2023-03-22, 09:20 AM

After two weeks off due to travel, we are back. One of our players actually returned from a work trip from Japan.

Last Time
Dragon envoys came calling to the Valley of the Emerald Stairway. Their leader, Lord Takoe came to collect his bride, our players Crane Shugenja to unite the two families. With him was his younger sister who despised our Dragon clan monk. He also brought a political assassin, who tried twice to kill the Crane Shungenja, once at dinner with poison, and a second time at a lakeside meeting with a poisoned arrow. Both were thwarted.

In addition to bringing an assassin, the Dragon party also brought in a Yasuki Crane spy, who snuck into the former Lord's room and tried to find his will. This Yasuki was caught byt he PCs, and he revealed that his lord sent him to find the will in order to boost their claim to the Valley during the Winter Court.

At the end of the last session, the PCs were pretty sure that the culprit was one of the Dragon entourage, but they had no testimony. In addition, their Lion clan duelist was poisoned when they intercepted the poisoned arrow intended for the Crane Shugenja. Things were at a boiling point, but just short of accusations in the courtyard of the Stone Walled Estate.

The Final Session of Summer
The players found additional tertiary evidence about who they suspected was the poisoner. However, they could not find any testimony. The Poisoner and the PCs had done enough to muddy the waters, so the Testimony was critical. They had various ideas about how to find additional evidence, but struggled with the concept of Rokugani law about testimony vs evidence. Evidence means nothing, only the eyewitness of a fellow samurai mattered.

The Dragon tried to convince the Crane Shugenja to simple leave with them to the safety of their own lands. However, the Crane artfully dodged such advances, instead compromising to let one of the Dragon become her Yojimbo since the Lion Duellist was out of commission, wandering around in a hallucinogenic state, be escorted around like a mad-relative from the poisoning.

They considered challenging the suspect to a duel, BUT backed off because their best Duelist was out sickened. They had seen the suspect use Iajitsu dueling techniques previously, and the second best duelist was not confident they could win. They knew this was the worst possible outcome was to challenge and lose. They also contemplated the idea of allying with the Yasuki in their custody in an attempt to gain the Testimony they needed, but realized that their plan would only lead to more evidence and not true Testimony.

Finally, they settled on a plan. They knew their Crane Shugenja was the target, so she decided to use herself as bait. They set a trap for the assassin. They forced the killers hand, in order to lure them out into the open to try and kill them again. The plan worked well enough, but almost got the Crane Shugenja killed. However, they were able to apprehend the suspect alive, and they confessed to the crime as the Dragon Yojimbo and other PCs could provide the necessary testimony. The assassin let the PCs know that they were following the orders of... (edit to add this part in)Lord Takoe's father, who ordered the hit on his son's potential bride. It was unclear why.

Lord Takoe agreed to post-pone the wedding until the ownership of the Valley was resolved at Winter Court. He and his colleagues left the Valley with the assassin. In addition, the PCs decide to let the Yasuki go back to his lord, empty-handed. However, the PCs did locate the documents to help solidify their claim that the Yasuki had been looking for.

We wrapped up Summer, and the characters gave quick epilogues on what they did from the end of Summer, through the Harvest, through a Harvest Festival and then into the start of our next Autumn session. The Unicorn leaned into her background and talked about how they were starting to write a play to prove they were as good as their great-aunt. The Crab leaned into his character about helping gather food for the harvest, help the peasants, and start canning stuff for winter. The Crane and Lion leaned into their background about looking for his lost sister, and finding clues to her location in the City of the Winter Court. The Dragon Monk and Scorpion were less sure what their characters would be doing.

For Autumn, the PCs were instructed by Lady Ao to collect the taxes from the three villages of the Valley and then take them to her Father's estate in 12 days time. They travelled up and down the valley and collected the taxes with no incidents. They suspected treachery or challenge from the Peasants along the way, but it was an easy collection process. They then began the trek up the pass that lead out of the valley.

Once they got to the top, they realized what the complication was going to be. A group of 10 or so Lion Samurai were waiting for them at the top of the Pass. They had blocked off the trail and demanded that the party turn back by order of their Lord Matsu Katari. The Lion were claiming that they were the rightful owners of the Valley, and that none were allowed to leave. The PCs ended the night facing this latest challenge.

Character Details
The Crane Shugenja is very weak, and the other PCs nicknamed them Origami-Chan. Therefore, it was a surprise to me when they came up witht he plan to use themselves as bait to draw out the assassin. I did not expect them to develop this plan, and was assuming that Lady Ao would have to suggest it to them. The other PCs tried to come up with other ways around using them as bait, but ultimately the Crane insisted. I gave them a bonus to their Honor and glory for such a bold and self-sacrificing move.

The poisoned Lion also did a good job of making his character spout feverish nonsense, and wander around causing complications for the party. However, he also studied up on the rules and discovered a clever way to use his Void and Medicine skill to potential off-set the effects of the poison for the final showdown. They players were not sure if they would have to fight all of the Dragon retinue or not. In addition, the player spent time understanding the rules for grappling in order to subdue the poisoner alive. They are trying to learn the actual game.

The Crab and Scorpion are doing a fine job actually role-playing. I think they have discovered who their character is and applied it in the game. The two of them did give me some guff about my GMing skills, but it was good natured ribbing. I don't do voices at all. Plus, they were joking about how the game was too much like a drama and not enough Fantasy. Again, good natured fun as they dialed in and played detective, their characters, and focused in when the big showdown occurred. The group also was challenged by Rokugani law as they really just wanted to use combat to solve their problems, which seems to be a theme with this group.

My biggest concerns were with my Unicorn and Dragon Monk players. The Dragon Monk is still struggling to wrap his head around his character, and decided that he is a reactive fellow. He has few goals of his own. The Unicorn was just having a tough time getting into the game after being off for a few weeks. I will need to think about how I want to engage them further, or if I want too. It maybe enough that they were not distractions.

GM Notes
This was a really tough game to GM. After being off for two weeks, the group was a bit rowdy and tough to keep on point. I have a pretty light hand as a GM, and generally let them go about what they wanted to do and then corralled them back when I was ready to move forward. The group is large, and I really have to force the spotlight to move around. They do not generally move it around to each other. If I let them, a few of the Players would keep the spotlight on themselves all night.

They were really struggling around Testimony, and that evidence literally means nothing. However, I was pleased that they eventually figured out a dangerous way to get what they wanted on their own and finally overcame their block on Testimony. I was open to any solution they wanted, but reminded them of a few key points to help spur their creativity. That the assassin was targeting the Crane, that the poison antidote was not available except for a few weeks away, that the only antidote was probably with the poisoner in case they accidentally poisoned themselves, etc.

I am happy how a few of my players have gotten comfortable and are leaning into the game. However, not everyone is there yet. That is fine, if I have over 50% of the group the game can continue. My biggest concern is my Dragon Monk, as he has not found his character's spirit yet. He has no goals for the character at all, and we he said he was having a hard time. I will nudge him a bit next time, and give him a few options based on his characters advantages, disadvantages, and being a member of the Tattooed Orders. The Unicorn knows, but was just off their game last night. It happens.

However, I think the biggest challenge of the game was keeping the stakes high and interesting after a few weeks off. I had spent the previous two sessions ramping up the tensions, building the stakes, and ultimately all the effort was wasted. We came into this session cold, and ultimately I had to try and build all of it back-up again but quicker. I do not think it worked very well.

I got some good natured ribbing about the nature of the game and my GM style. I laughed along with it, and leaned into the jokes myself. However, these good-natured jokes I also filed away as a warning. The players maybe telling me what they want more of, or need. I may have to adjust what I have planned going forward to meet those needs. Not sure about the voices though, I never was good at those, but I think they are asking for more theatricality and possibly tools to differentiate NPCs in an NPC heavy game.

In addition, I think they want more katana action and less drama. The big showdown tonight lasted about 15 minutes, and less than 2 turns in initiative and no one died. I think they are looking for more Red Meat, and that might impact how they approach some of the political problems they will face as they themselves get restless.

However, we are onto Autumn. I expect this to last about 2-3 more sessions, and then maybe 3 session in the Winter Court. Assuming we can stay on track, I should have it wrapped up by June.

Ameraaaaaa

2023-03-22, 09:50 AM

The assassin let the PCs know that they were following the orders of

1st sounds like a good session. Nice gming and good you noticed the ribbing and planning to adjust.

2ed who was the assassin following the orders of. You forgot to type that part.

Easy e

2023-03-22, 03:52 PM

LOL..... I got pulled away and got distracted apparently!

The assassin was working for Lord Takoe's Father, who had ordered the hit in the first place! The reason why is still unclear.

Edit: I also went back an added it into the full text above.

Pauly

2023-03-23, 02:10 AM

Sounds like another really good session.

With the tattoed dragon monk - what is his tattoo? Is there some hook that you can work in around the tattoo?

Easy e

2023-03-23, 09:20 AM

Pauly

2023-03-23, 02:54 PM

He has Arrowroot (for Healing) and Cloud(the one that allows him to commune with the Kami). However, he has not made use of that one much. It was not entirely clear if the group would have a Shugenja when he picked that tattoo.

Maybe you can give him a chance to RP a way to change his cloud tattoo, since that doesn't seem to be useful to him.
In the L5R wiki it says the cloud tattoo allows him to communicate with all spirits, but I’m not sure if that is how it works in 3rd edition. Maybe some of the local spirits can start engaging with him? Kind of like in Ghost when Whoopi Goldberg’s fake medium turns out to be a real medium and then she gets all the spirits lining up to get her to speak to the living.

Easy e

2023-03-28, 09:54 AM

Oof! COVID has struck our group, so it seems unlikely we will get in our normal game this week.

I am starting to think this campaign is cursed! Cursed I tell you!

Ameraaaaaa

2023-03-28, 10:14 AM

Oof! COVID has struck our group, so it seems unlikely we will get in our normal game this week.

I am starting to think this campaign is cursed! Cursed I tell you!

Sorry to hear that. Covid sucks. I know. I had it.

Easy e

2023-04-05, 01:54 PM

Well, this campaign has been a bit choppy with lot's of starts and stops. I think this has hindered the players ability to understand the rules and "get into it" very well. After another week of missing, we got back at it and picked up where we left off. Sadly, we are going to miss next week as well due to travelling. The general rule is if more than 2+ people are out, we do something else other than the campaign. Next week, we know 2+ people are out. Like I said, I think this campaign is cursed.

Last Time
The players managed to wrap up the poison plot of Summer with the Dragon Clan they were hosting. We then time skipped to autumn, just after the harvest. Lady Ao asked the PCs to collect the rice taxes from each village in the Valley and take it to her father's house for pick-up by the Crane authorities. The PCs went up and down the Valley and easily collected the prepared taxes from each village and then proceeded to head out of the Valley.

At the top of the Fumiko Pass at the Traveler's Shrine, their way was blocked when they came across a large group of Lion samurai led by Akodo Kafur. The young Lion insisted that the PCs return to the Valley by the order of his father. The Lion had laid claim to the Valley. The PCs explained that Lady Ao was in charge and that she had ordered them to bring the taxes for collection. They were at an impasse.

Session 7
We started the session with the stand-off. The Players had a quick discussion and decided they were in "the right" in this case and proceeded to just try and move through the Lions. Kafur restated that the orders from his Lord were that no one can leave the Valley through the pass. The Lions responded by pulling out their weapons, restating their orders and asking the players to de-escalate. The players did not, and violence erupted as their was no face saving way for the Lions to avoid fighting, and the Players did not think their was a face-saving way to avoid conflict.

About 2 and a half hours of real time later, and all 10 of the Lions were dead. The Characters were in rough shape too. They had used all their Void points, and all of their spell slots. The Hiruma Scout and Scorpion Tank were on the verge of death, the Lion Duelist and Crane Shugenja were Crippled, the Unicorn was Hurt, and the Dragon Monk was unharmed thanks to the Defense Stance. The players then decided to terminate with extreme prejudice any of the Lions that were not dead, and burned the bodies. The Hiruma Scout and Scorpion advocated looting them as well, but the Lion Duelist instead gathered up their Daisho to be returned to their families.

The PCs then spent the next two days hobbling down to the closest Inn, and trying to heal up as they went. When they got to the Inn two days later, they still had some light injuries despite magic. There, they ran across Bayushi Shoko, a female Scorpion courtier with her 4 Yojimbos waiting for them. She treated them to a meal and alcohol and they talked a bit. The Players decided to rest at the inn. Shoko re-iterated who was making claims on the value, and covertly tried to find out what the PCs claims were based on, and the Crane told her exactly what she wanted to know.

The Scout and the Dragon Monk decided to stay with the taxes and peasants outside to guard it, while everyone else went inside to rest for the night. We ended the session there.

Character Details
Well, the combat was the focus this week, so not much in the way of character details that I recall. I think after the last 3 or so sessions, the players themselves were spoiling a bit for a fight. Not 100% sure why, but they left the last session and came into this one ready to rumble. Maybe because they did not get to solve the Poison Plot with much of a fight.

The Scout seemed unusually blood thirsty as he normally likes to talk before attacking, and my Dragon Monk was very passive-aggressive about fighting. He pretty much instigated the fight by ignoring the Lions blockade and then spent the whole fight in Defensive stance, avoiding blows. Not sure what was going on with him, but afterwards he said he really enjoyed the fight itself.

When they arrived at the Inn and met the Scorpion courtier, they were very wary. They were careful not to over-indulge in alcohol and wary of the food they received, eating only enough to be polite. The Scout and Dragon Monk did not trust her at all, because they shouldn't have. Meanwhile, the Crane was all about chumming it up with them. The rest were a bit more interested in healing up before the next leg of the journey.

GM Challenges
Well, this was the first peer-vs-peer fight in the system, and it was a lot to juggle as the GM. I was basically running 10 characters with Void Points, various weapons, abilities, injury levels, initiatives, and special tricks. It was a challenge to say the least. I am not sure the players enjoyed it much when the enemies were using Raises and Void Points on them! I know the Crane Shugenja was really disappointed when they tried to heal the Lion Duelist and their heal got counter-spelled by the enemy Shugenja! Leaving them very vulnerable. It was a touch-and-go battle with the PCs having an initial success, to see it ebb away as the Lions re-grouped and started using stances, Void, and other tricks. The PCs also quickly learned that injury could really hamper your ability to do things and were a bit less cavalier about it as the battle went on.

I think this week, I saw a lot of D&D-isms. The whole instigation of the fight with the Lions in the first place. The displeasure at having peer enemies use the PCs own tricks against them effectively. A desire to kill every last enemy, instead of helping them and sending them after defeating them which is actually rewarded in L5R. The desire to loot the bodies which is not rewarded in L5R. The PCs did not even really try to de-escalate, which is classic D&D thinking. I think after the last 6 sessions that have been relatively RP heavy, too much time away from the game, and long held beliefs about how to RPG really came to a head in this session.

Feedback afterwards, was that they really enjoyed the combat. The players must have felt challenged, because at one point they were begging a fellow player to "use Void Points now" because they felt like they were getting their arse handed to them. It must have been close, because of how they reacted when all the Lions were down. The Crane did ask for surrenders when the Lions fell to being out-numbered but the Lions had no real face saving way to back out of the battle. In previous sessions, enemy Samurai had given up; but not this time. I had them fight to the bitter end, because the Players were so beat up too. However, I was surprised when they then decided to basically "headshot" each of the downed fighters and kill them all.

I did not enjoy the combat. It was a huge chore to run, and frankly 2 and a half hours of real time for a 36 second game time fight felt really boring and like the waste of a session to me. Where the fight took place, wasn't even that interesting to me. It was a clearing at the top of a pass, with a blizzard pressing in.

The players said they enjoyed the fight, but were not impressed with how L5R's combat worked and found it cludgy. I honestly think the problem was more that they did not know how to optimize the combat, and they did NOT like the idea of being hurt made it harder to do things. They also were not keen when the enemies used the players own combat tricks against them. What do you mean other samurai have Void points, combat stances, and Katas? Also, I am not a GM that is easily buffalo'd about things, and I heard it mention in the table talk between the players. It was no more-or-less cludgy than D&D combat, perhaps even less so as maneuver was a bit freer.

I also do not think they like that I frequently have the person who's initiative turn it is declare what they are doing, then when they are rolling, I go to the next person to see what they are doing, then go back to the person who finished rolling, and get results. I think they want me to wait until they are completely done with their spotlight moment. It really slows things down, but I get the thinking behind it from their perspective. Since this group is not great about sharing and moving the spotlight in the first place.

Finally, there was something about this session that I can not put my finger on, but after leaving I was ready to wrap up the campaign and not continue it further. I left feeling like I was not delivering the players the experience they wanted. I have asked for feedback every session, added more maps per request, more minis, and printed out images that I can hold up when talking to NPCs per request. I have adapted to what they have told me. We have had a lot of starts and stops and that has disrupted the "vibe" of the campaign and I do not think all the players have settled into what this campaign is about or even what their character's niches are. The fact that their are all these starts and stops makes me think that the players are not all that into it. I think I am going to finish off Autumn, and wrap the campaign. If they are not vibing with what has happened so far there is no way they will enjoy a Winter Court scenario I have written up and I would rather just go to the next game than play a difficult to GM Winter Court scenario that they aren't that into.

We will see what the players say when I broach the subject of ending after Autumn. I feel like I need to follow THE MOST IMPORTANT RULE and that is to make sure all players are having a good time. I get the feeling that is not happening. Therefore, it is time to end the game. Too bad, I had all ready started writing some scenarios up for Year 2 in Rokugan.

Ameraaaaaa

2023-04-05, 03:38 PM

Agreed about rule zero but if running long combats like this isn't fun for you like you said maybe you should be straight forward about your desires. If your players like combat and you like rp try and find balance for it. If the combat wasn't fun because of 5 rings itself then perhaps find a combat system you really like and stick with that. Afterall gm burn out is a real issue these days.

Pauly

2023-04-07, 10:04 PM

Sorry to hear things went south the way they did.

This is the sort of situation where I’d be tempted as a GM to offer the players a one time only offer of a retcon. This is because there appears to be a big discrepancy between the player’s decisions and what the characters would have chosen for [reasons]. The player’s decision feel wrong because it is both against the lore and the game mechanics [specifically not getting the bonus for healing foes].
If you feel you want to try to salvage the campaign you could offer the players to bring the situation back to where they have the defeated enemies before them before they liquidated them or offer them that instead of necking them that they healed up the defeated Lions and sent them back to their master with a suitable message.

In this type of situation I find it valuable to try and analyze where things went wrong. So I’ll offer some observations/suggestions/ideas.
- The players being in a D&D mind space of “kill the monsters and steal their stuff”.
- The players believing they were in a fight to the death because their opponents wouldn’t back down from the fight and declined an offer of surrender during the fight.
- players are often more vicious to near peer enemies that are tough opponents than easy opponents they ROFL stomp.
- players might have been thinking historical Japanese warfare not the romanticized ideals of Bushido/L5R, kind of like how real 13th Century European warfare had little in common with the code of chivalry or Arthurian legends.
- the players were looking for a fight for a number of reasons (length of time between fights, curiosity as to how fights go in L5R, not wanting to do diplomacy because diplomacy is hard).

From a GMs perspective.
- What could the Lions have done to avoid combat? Is there something they could have suggested to the PCs other than ‘right let’s have on’? No one wants to go around starting fights especially when the outcome is far from certain.
- Maybe you could have offered a trial of champions to settle the dispute rather than let it escalate into a full scale blooodbath.

Re the length of time for the fight
- what caused it to take 2 1/2 hours? I don’t know the system but that seems excessively long.
Unfamiliarity with the rules causing players and GM to spend time looking things up?
Player indecision causing players to take too long on their individual turns?
Can the dice rolling be sped up by rolling chains of dice together rather than rolling one dice then rolling the next and so on?

Easy e

2023-04-10, 09:43 AM

The odd part is, I do not think the Players yet perceive that "things went south". However, I have had some distance, and am in a different place. I think part of it was just personal fatigue going into the session so I was just not 100% on my GM game for this one. As far as what went wrong.....

- D&D-isms. They have never faced negative consequences for these behavior
- Gaps in play about the nature of this game
- The NPCs did not back down because there was no face-saving way to do so, and the PCs did not recognize this or care. On my part, I never explicitly said this was the case either.
- I did not have the NPCs offer an alternative, such as an honor duel, game of GO, or a story-telling contest. The PCs pushed and I pushed back.
- I did not stress enough how much a fight would be "bad for politics"
- The post-combat killings went very fast, almost an aside during a hectic wrap-up close to the end of a session. I did not stop what was happening and explain properly why that was a bad idea.
- A misunderstanding of Bushido and their Duty
- I did not properly align the players on how Civilized Rokugan is and how they would view this turn of events.

I do not think I will offer a retcon. To be honest, I'm not even sure the players were completely out of character. Instead, I want them to perceive that their actions had potentially negative consequences as they start to interact with more NPCs and the story of the Fumiko Pass starts to spread with folks they need to influence. I full expect the Lion, and the families whose kids got killed; to start a pretty aggressive grievance campaign and use this "tragedy" as leverage for the PCs and Lady Ao's unfitness to rule the Valley. Not fully sure how this will play out yet.

I think a big part of how it plays out will be how they decide to handle the return of the Daisho's of the slain. I can see 1 character wanting to take it on as a full on side quest, 3 not bothering to return them at all, and 2 willing to handle it as an epilogue action for Autumn. How they decide to handle this step will influence what happens next. As after Autumn is the Winter Court intrigues, if we get there; that will really show how this stuff all ties together in a meaningful way when they run into old NPCs again to make their final case in front of the Crane Lord.

The next challenge they face involves the Scorpion clan trying to sabotage their tax delivery in a non-lethal way. Some sneaking about, sabotaging the carrying handles of their taxes to delay them, and some performative offers for help. If their response to this is murderous..... well..... then perhaps I will wrap it all up after autumn. This might not be the game for them. :)

As for why combat took so long. There were 6 PC combatants and 10 Lion combatants. The Lions were not merely mooks, they were Peer Enemies. Therefore, anything a PC could do so could the Lions. That meant there were a lot of tricks like stances, Kata, Void Point usage, techniques, etc that were all in play. That is part of the reason it was so dangerous for the players too. Two of them were down, and the others were all roughed up pretty good. They consumed all their expendable resources. They all hobbled into the next part of the adventure with some injuries still. It just took a long time for peer-to-peer combat. It was tactical not in the sense of positioning, but choosing what resources and abilities to use when so the players and I were using a lot of brain power. Some of the mechanics also bogged things down a bit such as many rolls are opposed rolls and then damage afterwards and that just takes up time, you get worse the more hurt you are, drawing or changing weapons takes a turn, you can't change your stance until it is your turn, penalties from doing X can carry over, deciding on Raises before rolling, etc.

Overall, I still can not shake the feeling that the players are not vibing with this game because they just want to kill stuff and take their stuff. We spend plenty of time making jokes, laughing, and bantering; so it is still a very social experience with the folks at the table. However, I do not think this is the game experience they want to have. They feel that the Code of Bushido is restricting, worrying about the law is restricting, and social interactions in Rokugan are hard. Therefore, I think this might not be the game for these players. Perhaps they will prove me wrong still.

Pauly

2023-04-10, 04:13 PM

Thanks for the very thoughtful reply.
I must admit if I was DMing there’s a 99% chance I’d have handled the fight the same way you did, but it’s only afterwards I’d start thinking about how I could have managed it better.

If the players are happy then it’s about handling the fallout as stories about “the massacre at Fumiko pass” start to circulate. [NB I had a side job teaching young kids English a few years back and Fumiko is a common girl’s name, but the Fumiko I taught was a very cute and innocent 7 year old, so I find the phrase “the massacre at Fumiko pass” hilarious].
Some random thoughts on the situation
- How will the party react if a traveling bard equivalent starts singing the song “the massacre at Fumiko pass” at the ryokan they're staying at?
- does Lady Ao send them a letter saying she heard you got ambushed by bandits pretending to be Lion clan, please tell me all the details ASAP?
- does the Scorpion player think the heavy armor will be more necessary now?
- Will the players try to lean into a reputation of badasses not to be f**ed with? Will they get offers of work from less savory elements?
- How will the PC’s families react to the news?
- Will any of the spirits of the slain Lions contact/harass the dragon monk via his cloud tattoo?

As for combat. It seems to be more an issue of becoming familiar with the rules than anything else. Hopefully future combats should speed up.

Finally if the players really want at least some elements of “kill the monsters and take their stuff” is there a chance to sprinkle some fights with oni or hunt the bear thats on a man killing rampage into year 2? Maybe as something they can do in the down time between seasons.

Easy e

2023-04-11, 02:17 PM

Well, that second point for a Retcon does apply here. Hmmm, I will have to think about it.

We are currently two days from the incident in-game, and the events in the pass will probably not become more widely know until after the Autumn adventure is over. There were no survivors so it might take a bit until the dispatched Lions fail to report in, the Peasants that witnessed it start spreading the word around, and other NPCs get an idea of what actually happened.

I imagine most of the "fall-out" will happen between Autumn and Winter. With the Valley being relatively isolated the players may not even really know the reactions of the larger community until they are on the way to the Winter Court and almost there.

Finally, I planned for the Characters to start the process of going to Rank 2 in their various schools while at Winter Court as well.

As I was thinking about a potential Year 2, the first Spring session involved a Bear and an Oni. LOL. We will see if we get that far. If we do, there will probably be an actual year between this session and any sequels.

Pauly

2023-04-11, 04:20 PM

The main reason I would consider offering a retcon is that it seems to have been a collective misunderstanding of the setting. If it was just one player going murder hobo I would let the players deal with it IC. For me it’s a really rare situation , something that comes up maybe once per decade of gaming. But if the players are happy with what they’ve done I’d be less inclined to offer a retcon, but foreshadow the future fallout either by a letter from Lady Ao asking WTF dudes?! or spirits haunting the dragon monk. As long as the players have an idea that there is a storm on the horizon and it is headed their way they can prepare for it IC.

On the bear front, I assume you’re aware of the Sankebetsu incident. On a hunt the dangerous critter a really good source for ideas is Jim Corbett’s trilogy of Man Eaters of Kumaon, The Man Eating Leopard of Rudraprayang and The Temple Tiger.

As a group the players seem to be heading towards the right headspace even if they’re not quite there yet. The dragon monk player appears to be the one who is having the most difficulty, which is why I think making the spirits of Rokugan engage with him if he isn’t engaging with Rokugan could help him get to the L5R frame of mind.

For any confrontation with onis I have the perfect battle music:-
https://youtu.be/z99ajcyaeyo

This is my 2 and a half year old son’s favorite song right now. A rough translation
Oni’s underpants are good underpants
They make you strong, they make you strong
They are made of tiger skin
They make you strong, they make you strong
You can wear them for 5 years and they won't tear
They are strong, they are strong
You can wear them for even 10 years, they still won't tear
They are strong, they are strong
Let's put them on, put them on oni’s underpants
Let's put them on, put them on, oni’s underpants
You, and me, and you, and you,
Everyone let's wear oni underpants!

Duff

2023-04-18, 11:12 PM

Easy e

2023-04-19, 10:25 AM

Yes, that is my concern..... and then the whole setting goes out the window and the game eventually ends in them all getting TPK'd as outlaws and renegades.

Which might be what they want to do? Who knows.

I think instead of haunting them, they will have some folks who approve of their actions, some who are ambivalent, and others who do not approve of their actions. Plus, the Lion lord who's son got killed will just make another good antagonist in addition to the planned antagonists.

We'll see what happens.

Resileaf

2023-04-19, 11:13 AM

It feels natural to me that the Lions engineered the situation to make a battle between their squad and the PCs, if not a likely event, then definitely not an unexpected one. When one faction decides to blockade a road and threaten samurai from another faction(s) that they will kill them if they try to pass (especially when the PCs have legitimate reasons to want to pass through that road), they are fully prepared to do the killing part of the blockade.

That the Lions want to call this skirmish as an unwarranted massacre is also completely natural. They want the valley and they want to stake their claim on it, so portraying the current occupiers as violent usurpers lets them build their casus belli, at which point it's up to the Cranes to decide how much they want to counter the Lions' claims and seek allies among the other clans to try and make the Lions back off. Alliances change with the seasons and wars between clans are fought and forgotten within years as the balance of power shifts between each clan.

It's up to you to decide how each clan will take advantage of the situation and how they'll assist the belligerents for their own gain. It's fine to have a change in scope of the campaign, to take advantage of the players knocking the first domino piece and see if they try to stop the pieces from continuing to fall as the chain grows or if they revel in the increasing chaos.

Angelalex242

2023-04-20, 02:11 AM

Rokugan works a little better when you have people who play Paladins in D&D involved. Bushido is slightly different from the Paladin code, but it's similar enough that playing a very honor character works with minor modifications.

I once had a GM let me play an Akodo Daimyo's son. (2nd son.) The whole campaign was about being the best tactician and general around, instead of my individual accomplishments on the battlefield. Also politics were important, because I represented the entire Lion clan most of the time I said anything. I had to be really careful about that.

Pauly

2023-04-20, 03:55 PM

Worth considering with the retcon...
Would having the massacre as part of thier record make engaging with the game in the "Rokugan way" more fun?
I feel like haunting the characters with that may make the players feel like playing by society's rules is too hard, creating more calls for bears and oni

Yes, that is my concern..... and then the whole setting goes out the window and the game eventually ends in them all getting TPK'd as outlaws and renegades.

Which might be what they want to do? Who knows.

.

These replies have made me realize that I’ve been living in Japan for too long. Japan has a much more complex relation with ghosts, spirits and haunting than doesn’t map onto the English language in a way that I properly convey, but I will try to give a simplified explanation.

In Japan attitudes to spirits are based off 2 cultural norms. Firstly the ideal of harmony, which extends to being in harmony with the spirit world, which carries an obligation to try to placate spirits where possible. Second is the personal responsibility aka you broke it, you bought it value. For example in Japan there are essentially no public trashcans, if you create trash it is your responsibility to deal with it, it is not the city hall’s responsibility to provide you with a trashcan for your rubbish. So if a spirit contacts you specifically then it is your duty to deal with the spirit.

The Japanese word that most closely tracks to ghost in English describes a spirit that is the soul of someone who died and the soul is trapped on Earth and can’t leave to be reincarnated again. This is usually because of some unfulfilled obligation, not a vengeful or seeking justice soul which is the normal western idea. [NB vengeful ghosts do exist in Japanese folklore, but are much less common]. A Japanese ghost can be placated by either fulfilling the duty, demonstrating that the duty has already been fulfilled or showing that the duty is no longer necessary.

So using the Lions killed in the Massacre of Fumiko Pass as an example. Let’s say one of them was an orphan who was working with the Lions in order to earn enough money so his sister could have a dowry to marry a samurai status husband. His soul becomes trapped because his sense of duty to her is so strong. His soul isn’t going to be angry or seek vengeance on the PCs as the risk of getting killed in battle is part of a Samurai’s life, but he will want the PCs to solve the dowry problem. There are many ways the PCs could placate this ghost including:
- pay the dowry themselves
- Persuade a senior Lion to pay the dowry in honor of the brother’s bravery.
- Have the sister enter a nunnery
- Persuade the suitor’s family to accept the sister as a bride without a dowry on the promise of [?].
- One of the samurai PCs marry the sister
- Kill the sister.

Also just to be clear, EasyE’s plan of having the PCs encounter varied responses to the event is a perfectly good plan.

Easy e

2023-04-25, 09:34 AM

If all goes well, we will be playing again tonight. A handful of the players seem legit eager to continue, so that has boasted my confidence a bit.

Easy e

2023-04-26, 01:40 PM

Welcome back to Rokugan. Thanks to those reading along and those who are giving me great advice!

The group was back in action with a full 6 players. As a recap, we have a crane shugenja, a Lion duelist trained in the Kakita style, a Unicorn horse archer, a Scorpion tank, a Hiruma scout, and a Dragon Tattooed Monk in our party. We are playing L5R 3rd edition because that is what I had handy.

I have to say, going into this session I was pretty blasted. I personally had done a lot of travelling, work stuff, and non-game related stress. Therefore, I went into this session with trepidation that I could bring my A game. I hate it when real life gets in the way of make-believe life!

Last Time
As a recap, the party was asked by Lady Ao to ensure the taxes for the Valley of the Emerald Stairway were successfully taken to Doji Hansei's estate to be collected, the party had 12 days to complete this task. They went out and easily collected the taxes from the valley's villages. They proceeded to leave the Valley, when at the top of the Fumiko Pass they were halted by Lion Clan samurai tryign to blockade the Valley.

This led to an altercation in which all the Lion were defeated by the party. However, the party then proceeded to make sure all the downed samurai were dead. They then gathered up their daisho and limped away.

At the bottom of the pass, they came to the Inn on their journey. There they met with a Scorpion courtier and her escorts. They parlayed a bit and then decided to call it a night.

Session 8
We started the session with a recap. I also used this time to remind them that they killed all the Lion and gathered their Daisho to return to their families. At this point, the group shared that they killed all the samurai as they did not want any testimony about what happened at the pass to be given by survivors later. They only wanted their side of the story to be seen as "facts" based on what happened with the importance of testimony with the Dragon Poisoner.

We then sorted out who was doing what and where after leaving the Scorpion for the night. The Scorpion Tank and the NP Scorpion had an impromptu meeting in the bath house. The NPC tried to learnt he true story of the Pass from the PC, and the PC artfully ducked the questions. However, I think they forgot that part of the bargain for the armor was to find out the Scorpions claim on the Valley, as they did not try to get the information in return.

While the PCs were sleeping, the scout was awoken when he heard the call of a bird. However, the call was from a day bird, not a night bird. Finding this suspicious, he awoke and roused the Unicorn and the Dragon Monk. They went to check-up on the Rice. They saw some shadowy figures moving around at the edge of the camp.

The scout decided to try to sneak-up on the skulkers, but rolled all ones on their dice pool! I had them describe their failure for me, and they essentially fell into a nearby tinker's shed and through a collection of pots, pans, bells, and other items he was repairing. Thinking fast, the Unicorn used their acting skill to loudly talk about how drunk they were, and how they should not have drunk so much!

Despite this quick thinking, and face-saving ploy the shadowy figures had used this time to slip away into the woods. The Dragon grabbed the Scorpion form the bath house and the Scorpion, Dragon, and Crab gave chase. The Unicorn stayed back to act as a rearguard.

The figures easily outdistanced the Crab and Scorpion, but the Dragon monk was catching up fast. Then, he was hit by a dart that caused his limbs to get sleepy and him to slow down dramatically. His friends caught up, and were able to escort him back to the Inn. He acted like that famous scene from Ace Ventura after getting darted. Back at the Inn, the Unicorn watched as three men in black snuck back into one of the Scorpion's room through a window.

Once the others returned, they checked and their Rice taxes were still secured. In addition, the Scorpion Samurai on guard outside of the Courtier's room stayed in position the whole time. Later that evening, they switched off guards, who were all dressed to look identical. The PCs decided to set up a watch and went to bed.

The next day, as they prepared to leave the peasants put the poles in the carrying cases for the rice. As they lifted them to move out, the poles snapped in two. The Scorpion Courtier and her bodyguards offered to help the PCs out, but the PCs declined. They artfully managed to leave the impression that they knew what the Scorpion was up to, without outright accusing or accepting her help. The Scorpions then left. The PCs spent the rest of the day sourcing new materials, using magic, and generally repairing the poles. They were 1 day away, with only 2 days left to deliver on time.

They continued their journey, and a half day away they were attacked by a large group of bandits led by their old Ronin friends that escaped the valley in session 3. Their was a big climactic fight, where over half of their peasant bearers were killed, dropping the taxes on the ground. However, they did manage to drive off the bandits and kill the Ronin without losing any of the taxes. However, the Unicorn was put Out of Action, with the other party members having light to moderate injury. Again, the Dragon avoided injury but also mostly avoided getting hit the entire time.

However, now they had to figure out a way to move half the taxes cargo without their peasant laborers. Thankfully, they had a day and a half before they taxes needed to arrive, and they managed to push, pull, and drag the taxes into the Doji Estate at twilight before the deadline.

There, they were treated to a good bath, a welcome dinner, a new pair of shoes as gifts, and Doji Hansei provided them with their formal invitation to Winter Court from Lord Kurohito. We also discussed returning the Lion Daisho to their lord who was going to be at the Court as well, possible Sensei for leveling up being at the court, etc.

That left us set-up for the final season of 3-4 sessions; Winter Court.

Character Details
The Unicorn was the most active they have been all campaign. They really tried to play a bigger part in the game in this session, and bounced off the Crab and Scorpion players very well. The Dragon Monk also must have gone and watched the old Kung FU show with David Carradine as he was much more in character this game.

That said, I am not sure they felt overly engaged with the mission itself or the challenges I put in front of them. Again, they seemed to enjoy the battle with the bandits the most. The challenges of logistics and diplomacy did not seem to interest them as much as a party. However, the Crane Shugenja seemed to enjoy their encounters with the Scorpion Lady Courtier.

Players seemed to have better grasp of the rules. They more effectively applied their skills this game, and tried to lean into what their players were good at. In the battle, they were using their advantages, their special abilities, and making use of Void. I think they understand this a bit better now and the combat was much quicker. They still struggled a bit with the Theatre of the Mind fighting, lack of "non-lethal" damage, and a few other carry-overs from D&D; but they seemed to settle in a bit better.

I was also glad they explained their thinking behind the massacre, and I advised them to look at the tenets of Bushido and think about how "Dead Men Tell No Tales" may not be a good fit. They seemed to understand that their actions may lead to some blow back, but were confident no other testimony was worth it.

GM Challenges
There were two big elements that were a challenge this time:

1. I was wiped out and not at my best. My time keeper advised me that they could not tell, but I was feeling it.

2. I still do not think I am giving them what the majority of players want out of the game.

Two threads of conversation I heard come up. One was how they wanted to try L5R 5th edition as it looked pretty innovative, as opposed to 3rd edition. Fair, but I could not source a copy and learn it before the game started. Maybe for next time. The second thread of a conversation I heard was that there was nothing that L5R was doing that could not be done in 5E D&D. Fair as well, as EDGE Studios made Adventures in Rokugan. I had also considered using 5E, providing the players a "code of Nobility" to be followed, and then have them each make their own Noble House in addition to a character but ultimately discarded it as too much work. I all ready had 3rd edition.

Therefore, I feel like they are not getting what they want out of the game. What they want seems to be "more combat", more leveling up for toys, more looting the bodies, and less social restrictions. If that is what they want, I can see why they play 5E primarily.

Final Thoughts for Session 8
I am glad that is over. It maybe a few weeks until we can start Winter Court due to our schedules. :( However, the consensus seems to be to complete L5R Winter Court. I warned them that it was going to be combat light, heavy RP, social heavy, and more intrigue but they still want to go for it. One player said, "Not sure if it is a sunk cost fallacy, investment, or FOMO driving my decision." Fair.

Our next game is Avatar: Legends and I feel for our next GM as the PbtA system is great; but even a bigger departure from 5e D&D than L5R 3rd Edition. I will be interested in watching how it fairs with the larger group. Honestly, L5R 3rd maybe a good bridge to Avatar Legends. In between the two games in terms of crunch, style, and themes.

Onto Winter Court! Hopefully, I can bring my A game.

Resileaf

2023-04-26, 02:20 PM

From what I'm reading, it looks to me that the hardest thing for your players is that they're presented with obstacles that they have to handle with their hands tied behind their backs due to the code of bushido. They like the setting, but they don't like the complications of limiting their ability to adapt to a given problem because the code is so strict. The enjoy the way it makes them RP, but not the way it makes them approach obstacles.

They figured out a good way to prevent the biggest issues with the battle against the Lions. No one can contradict their version of events and even if that's not very bushido of them, it's going to make their case stronger if the Lions push for punishment. Clans who are rivals with the Lions will be that much more eager to take the side of the Cranes because they get to oppose the Lions and accuse them of being instigators without shame. It could be valuable to let the PCs have opportunities to keep getting hits on the Lions during winter court, encourage the rivalry they've started to build with that clan and increase Lady Ao's legitimacy against them.

Angelalex242

2023-04-26, 07:53 PM

I still think it's a good idea to, with all the D&D parallels, to present Bushido as kinda like a Paladin code.

Pauly

2023-04-28, 06:08 AM

Sounds like the players are slowly getting the hang of the setting. Although there seems to be a level of disconnect between your understanding of the setting and the player’s understanding, which I think is driving your unease.

Maybe give your Scorpion player another hint about the deal for the armor. It is possible he forgot the conditions in the heat of the moment or he may have decided not to betray his clan. Just try to make sure he is actively committing to a path.

Easy e

2023-05-15, 11:24 AM

Thanks all.

Due to some medical stuff, I have to delay the Winter Court. During this time, I have made some "cards" with various NPC names, clan and family affiliations, high level relationships to the PCs, and pictures of the NPCs on them. There are 15 NPCs on the list!

This does not include incidental NPCs. It also excludes some of the "retinue" of some of the representatives or potential Sensei that PCs may use to "level-up" while at Winter Court. I expect that to access the Sensei, they will need to work with the Clan delegate who I do have a card for.

However, I plan on handing these cards out to the players as new NPCs are introduced. Then, when they are interacting I can hold up the card, and they can reference them with notes on the back in game. Hopefully, this will help them keep all the folks in order, build a "relationship map" with the cards, and jus take notes one them as they go.

Pauly

2023-05-15, 07:49 PM

Thanks all.

However, I plan on handing these cards out to the players as new NPCs are introduced. Then, when they are interacting I can hold up the card, and they can reference them with notes on the back in game. Hopefully, this will help them keep all the folks in order, build a "relationship map" with the cards, and jus take notes one them as they go.

That sounds like a great idea, especially for well known NPCs that the PCs know by reputation at least.

I’ve done the old give the players a cheat sheet of major NPCs and the players tend to read it once and then disregard it. Doing it this way will help the PCs not just keep track of the NPCs but should help how they interact with them. I’d make sure there is enough white space on the front of the card to encourage the players to take notes.

Maybe for the card you hold up all the PCs need to see is the portrait and name. You can add your own notes/key words on the back with the stuff you as a GM need to keep track of, especially secrets the players don’t know.

Another idea is to use a color bar (e.g. use a highlighter on one side of each card) to distinguish each faction. Or a color border around each portrait. That way the players can keep theNPCs organized by faction. Any unaligned NPCs can be kept white.

I think I might steal this idea for my campaigns. Obviously not every NPC gets this treatment. I can see it being very useful in investigative and diplomatic campaigns.

Easy e

2023-05-16, 08:53 AM

Funny you mention the color bar, as I did color code the cards by Clan.

Easy e

2023-05-17, 07:59 AM

Welcome to Session 9

We managed to all get together for session 9 of the campaign.

Last Time
The PCs wrapped up the delivery of the taxes after dealing with the Scorpion's tricks, and then fighting their way through a group of bandits led by Ronin seeking revenge on the party for being ejected from the Valley.

There, they received the invitation to Winter Court at Lord Doji Kurohito's palace in the City of the Warm Breezes. He was the Lord of the Doji Family and would ultimately decide the claims of ownership of the Valley of the Emerald Stairway.

Session 9
The session started with a recap of the Tax Adventure, as it had been three weeks since our last session. With everyone back up to speed, we got to travelling through the winter to the City. On the way, they were met by an Doji Hanshiro, Lady Ao's brother and one of Doji Hansei's sons.

They arrived at the castle of Lord Kurohito and got settled in. Over the next few days, they ran into several "old friends" including Lord Takoe and his sister (and friends), Bayushi Shoko and her maid, and were introduced to Akoda Kaizou the older brother of Kafir (Who the PCs killed in the Fumiko Pass). They also learned that no one was entirely certain about what happened in the Pass, and there was enough smoke to keep rumors and gossip flying around the court.

The Lion Duelist and Crane Shugenja took the opportunity to return the Daisho of the fallen to the Lion clan. It was an honorable thing to do, and the player played it coy enough to avoid directly answering what had happened. The Lion made a big show of handing the Daisho to a fallen family member and swearing to "close the book" and "make things even" in the future. It was a high tension and threatening situation, but everyone player it cool.

The Scorpion also picked up his armor and was content. There was a breif, and untruthful exchange with his lady Ao about the Scorpion designs on the Valley. Then Lady Ao again reminded everyone the importance of their conduct and that their Stipends going forward depended on her and acquisition of the Valley.

They also ran into Yazuki Kanada, the man that they had caught trying to steal the will in Summer. Their was a brief exchange where they recapped who was trying to make claims on the Valley, and who had what evidence.

Three days later, Lord Kurihito held a welcome banquet and the PCs were thrown into a social situation with all of the NPCs. Here the Scorpion acted particularly loutish towards a Unicorn Moto as a Gaijin and also was obnoxious during a Noh performance. He was put in his place by Doji Hanshiro very bluntly and rudely, and it worked!

In addition, the Crane Shugenja noticed something unusual about the Scorpion maid, Soshi Hana. They used subtle casting to create a breeze that disrupted the Scorpion masks at the party. This was enough to realize that the Maid was their Sister in disguise, which tied into their own backstory! In addition, it revealed to some of the sharp-eyed that their own Scorpion may not be who they appeared to be!

The Dragon Monk went out and actually engaged with his plot hook of Ichiko the Dragon who they had a shared past. The Crane Shugenja and her sister had a role-play moment. Then, the Scorpion player and the Hiruma scout launched a "Honey-pot" scam to try and get information from Soshi Hana. This led to some fun role-play between all of them as the Hana gained more information from the Scout, than he did of her. The Scout got to keep Hana's fan as a token. In addition, the PC Scorpion managed to sneak away and find some evidence in the Scorpion guesthouse and burn it.

The next few days, they got to present their case and the Crane Shugenja eloquently spoke and provide evidence to the Lord and his Hatamoto. In addition, the Scorpions, Yazuki, and Lion also made their cases. Most of this was abstracted but it gave them a chance to RP a bit with their rivals.

The session ended dramatically when at breakfast the next day, they learned that Akoda Kaizou; one of their chief antagonists and rivals so far; had been murdered in the city last night. Suspicion naturally fell on them and the Emerald Magistrates were being summoned.

Character Details
This was a RP heavy session, and probably one of the best sessions we have had yet. Everyone had a good time interacting with the various NPCs, and made an effort to lean into their backstories and characters. They were all interested in trying to uncover who had what evidence and how to counter-it. Some more "polite" ways than others. The characters especially had fun with the "sister" reveal as it coincided with their "Honey-pot" plan so well.

Every player got a chance to be in the spotlight and leaned into it pretty heavily. The NPCs present were not there by accident, and they almost all tied into either their back story or past adventures. This gave the Winter Court a lot more weight and the players enjoyed the set-up phase of this scenario more than previous ones. I did to.

GM Challenges
The cards were a life-saver. Without them, the players would have quickly gotten lost with who was who and what was what. It also helped them a lot when I held up the card when I was talking as NPCs. Holding up pictures as I talked was something I did before, but this upped the ante. The players were also engaged with "collecting" the cards of the NPCs like some sort of Pokemon game, which was a big change of pace to how they had been approaching NPCs. They wanted to talk with them and find out who they were.

I had been very nervous going into this session. I felt rusty and I was unsure how the players would engage with the content. Previously, they had been more fighting focused. However, this session felt the best yet from my perspective. The prep of the cards, bringing a basic map of the compound, and tying everything to their own backstories, advantages, disadvantages, and previous adventures really brought them into it effectively.

Pauly

2023-05-18, 01:14 AM

Sounds like a great session with everybody in good form.

I’m happy to hear the cards worked well because I will be stealing the idea.

The Scorpion player keeping the armor but not being truthful to lady Ao is the only part that seemed off to me. Then again that probably has more to do with my views/expectations regarding obligations in Japanese culture. It appears that the scorpion player is trying to have his cake and eat it too by keeping the armor and keeping his loyalty to his clan. If he had a devious and devilish GM it could spell trouble in the future, but I’m sure a sweet kind GM like you wouldn’t dream of anything like that.

Easy e

2023-05-18, 05:05 PM

Yeah, I have not really figured out what if any fall-out I want to have for that. It might be a situation for the next L5R season (if we come back to it)

As a side note, I picked up the 5th edition book. We will not switch over, but if we revisit the setting we might try those rules.

Resileaf

2023-05-19, 08:59 AM

The fallout need not be immediate. If you do end up playing more of this campaign after winter, then it will be a good time to bring up that armor deal, once the player has been lulled in a false sense of security. And if you don't, you can keep it as something of an end of campaign cliffhanger, to make the player wonder if he's really gotten away with it at the very end.

Pauly

2023-05-19, 03:40 PM

I think it’s a situation where in one setting (D&D) it’s clever play by the PC but in a different setting (L5R) it’s something that the setting demands fallout.

The reason I say the setting demands fallout is that L5R is built around honor and obligation as a brake on PCs going murder hobo/loot rat.

The fallout can take many forms including
- Scorpion clan thinking that the PC has betrayed them because he has acquired the armor which is obviously a reward for something they don’t know about.
- Scorpion clan getting upset with the PC because his clumsy muddling has interfered with their subtle and carefully crafted plans.
- Scorpion clan demanding the armor be passed up along the chain as a test of loyalty because they see it as a gift to the representative scorpion clam not to the PC personally.
- Lady Ao revealing the PC has taken payment but did not deliver the service the payment was for. This will lead to loss of Honor for the PC and his clan.
- Lady Ao’s family sending their heavies to the PC with a threat that he delivers the service he has been paid for ‘or else’.

The balancing act is trying to get the fallout to match the deed. Too light and the player will think he got away with a slap on the wrist and it was totally worth it. Too heavy and the player will feel resented.

One important consideration is that the whole sub plot of the heavy armor was clearly signposted to the player as being a significant issue.

Easy e

2023-05-19, 04:07 PM

Pauly

2023-05-19, 04:20 PM

Good question about the signposting. Based on the situation, I am not sure it was sign posted that well. I am unsure they realize the significance and they also totally forgot that there even WAS a catch for getting the armor.

If they’ve forgotten the catch then an ominous foreboding about the catch may help.
That can be a Scorpion mentor type saying “what’s going on, why are you defecting?” or Ao’s family threatening the ‘or else’ if the PC doesn’t come through. Possibly both f you really want to give the player the yips.

Edit to add:
Re: Signposting. 2 factors to think about
- are you the GM much more au fait with the setting than the player? Something that seems obvious to someone with a deep understanding of the setting may be less obvious to someone without the same understanding
- people generally see the benefits of something while wishing away the downsides, which is why pay day lending is a thing.

If you run with ominous foreboding, I”d suggest tying the foreboding directly to the blacksmith. e.g. Scorpion clam saying ‘we thought you suspected the blacksmith of secretly supplying the ronin because you wouldn’t embarrass us by hassling a village blacksmith for armor” and Lady Ao’s family saying “We gave you the armor to protect our investment in the valley which requires the village to have a blacksmith”.

Easy e

2023-06-07, 09:28 AM

Session 10

Last time on L5R- The Valley of the Emerald Stairway campaign, the PCs were summoned to winter court with the Doji Family head in order to settle the ownership claims of the Valley of the Emerald Stairway. The PCs were the retainers of Lady Ao, a Doji and Crane. The PCs were from a variety of clans and families, but were all "second sons" at best.

At court, they met and interacted with a wide variety of NPCs. So many NPCs that I used color coded cards with images of the various samurai on them. When they interacted or spoke with them I held up the card to help keep them straight. It was a useful tool.

There were three other claims on the Valley coming from The Lion Clan, The Scorpion Clan, and the Yazuki Family of the Crane clan. In addition, the Crane Shugenja who was looking for their missing sister discovered that she was with the Scorpion clan! The Lion Duelist returned the Daisho of the Lions killed at the Fumiko Pass Massacre to the Lion representatives in a tense scene. The Scorpion finally got their heavy armor and located the evidence that the Scorpions were using for their claim and destroyed it. The session wrapped when the Lion ambassador was found murdered in the streets of the city!

Session 10- In the Court of the Crane
The Dragon Monk player was absent, so he got stuck baby-sitting Lady Ao.

The session started with the players deciding to investigate the Lion ambassador's death. They started by paying a visit with the remaining Lion clan entourage to see what they knew. The Lions beseeched their fellow Lion to avenge their comrades death, as they had been order confined to quarters for fear of what they would do in the city. The PCs agreed to help.

They then went and investigated the body. There was a great deal of confusion at this point, as they wanted to search the body. Of course, in Rokugan it is very bad form for a Samurai to touch dead flesh. The Lion and the Scorpion almost got in an altercation over it. However, with the help of the officials at the morgue they determined that the Lion had been killed by a precise, single blow to the back. He had been summoned by a secretive note offering aid in their claim.

Finally, they went to the Saki House where the Lion had been killed. There the PCs surprisingly showed kindness and generosity to the Peasant owners, and they were eager to help. The peasants had expected to be killed as scapegoats. Here our Hiruma scouts easy-going and peasant focused ways paved the way to information. The peasants saw Lord Akodo meet a large, wide cloaked figure who he went with into the alley. They thought the cloaked man had a Daisho.

From there, they returned to the Castle. The Scout had been courting the Scorpion Maid, who was also the sister of the Crane Shugenja, so they made plans to meet after dinner. The PC Scorpion also met with the Scorpion reps to get a read on if they were involved in the killings. They had a nice meal together, but the PC was convinced they were not involved.

Sadly, having a meal with the Scorpions led to the PC being gravely poisoned, and almost dying. Only the intervention of the Dragon Monk and the Lion Duelist kept him alive. They suspected an act of betrayal against them, but when they went to confront the Scorpions, they were all dead from poison. Only the Maid/Sister survived, in a coma thanks to healing magic.

All this poisoning put the players on edge. They then came up with two brilliant plans. First, they made an alliance with the remaining Lions to help them find the killers and negotiated their release from house-arrest. The collateral was the PCs lives for the Lion's good behavior. Second, the Crane Shugenja took on the identity of the Scorpion that was her sister to fool everyone into thinking that the Scorpion's were not all killed.

The rest of the party then went and met with and started eliminating suspects who may of matched the description of the large, wide samurai Akodo had been seen with. At this point, they were suspecting their "old friend" Kitsuki Takoe and the Crane Shugenja's future husband. However, after some meetings with a Crab Kuni and then Kitsuki Takoe they felt that the only one who could have done it was Aritomo Yazuki from the rival Crane family.

With fears of Double Dealing high, the Crane Hatamoto invited the PCs and Lady Ao to a banquet with the Yazuki. That was a tense meeting, with lots of veiled threats, and passive aggressive barbs. The players considered challenging Aritomo right then and there, but his reputation as a bad ass kept them at bay.

That night, a fire broke out in the guesthouses and spread towards Lady Ao's apartment. Several players ran out to fight the fire. However, the Scorpion, Unicorn, and Crab scout did not fall for it. They immediately noticed that Lady Ao was still in her room. There they found assassins using the cover of the fire to attack! Lady Ao had been paralyzed by a poison in her sleep, and the PCs had to use a combination of guard actions and other tricks to avoid the assassins hitting her and trying to fight them off while the fire slowly started to consume the house they were in. It was rather tense.

At the end of the session, the assassins had been dealt with, and the Scorpion revealed that one of them was from the Yazuki family. Lady Ao was very badly injured but to safety and the guesthouses eventually went up in flames.

That is where the session ended. There are about 20-30 minutes of loose ends to wrap up next session, but we planned on wrapping up and then doing Session 0 for our Avatar game next session.

Player Stuff
I think they finally came to terms with the nature of the L5R campaign and really leaned into the politics and double-dealing in the last few games. The Scorpion/Sister twist was a particular highlight as it tied into a few characters motivations and back-stories. Plus, the idea of the Scout trying to date the Crane's sister (who technically was engaged all ready) was a fun plot twist they enjoyed a lot.

They also worked on creating alliances, leaned into some of their Clan connections too. They also spent time enjoying the investigation. They had a good idea of who the baddies were, and enjoyed playing it out in the war of subtle insults at the Hatamoto's table.

My one disappointment was that I had laid out some side story hooks for the Unicorn and the Dragon Monk. The Dragon was absent and could not engage with them, even after starting too last game. The Unicorn intentionally avoided the plot hooks I laid in order to keep the focus on the main story. Admirable, but I was going to have some fun with them as they tied into the "hot button" issues of arranged marriages as it related to their own family. Plus, I could set-up the brother-in-law she hated as the potential bad guy.

The GM side
The players did express challenges over the sheer number of NPCs, Clans, and Names to keep track of. However, they said the cards really helped. From my perspective, they did a great job managing it all and the players had a good handle on who-was-who and the overall plot line. With some of the gaps in between sessions, I had expected it to get lost; but with only some small reminders from me they kept it pretty straight. I was impressed.

Despite having five players vs. 3 bad guys I think I kept the stakes of the "final battle" pretty high. I think I only had 1 enemy attack the PCs once, the rest of the time the PCs were too busy trying to keep Lady Ao from getting killed. They were on the horns of a dilemma between attacking the threat vs. defending her meanwhile, the fire was a "death clock" that they also had to beat. In addition, the PCs were split up with some fighting the fire and the others trying to stop the assassins.

The players surprised me with their "Fake Scorpion" gambit and the "Lion Allies" gambit. The Lion gambit was rewarded with fighting the fire. However, I do not think the "fake Scorpion" gambit paid off as well as I should have made it. Perhaps the assassins should have come after the "fake Scorpion" BUT I really wanted the PCs to deal with Lady Ao being directly in danger. However, the Scorpion/Sister/Love interest did survive the campaign so I will be interested to see how they Epilogue that.

Final Thoughts
This was the end of the Campaign and the final battle did get a bit rushed due to time. Next session will be only 20-30 minutes of wrap and epilogue. At the end, I feel like the PCs started to understand and lean into the campaign and setting much better. I am interested in seeing if they would want to do more in Rokugan. However, my goal was to force them away from some D&Disms and introduce them to a different style of RPG. I think it largely worked. I think playing L5R will make the transition into a PbtA system with Avatar a bit easier. We will see.

The campaign itself proceeded about as I envisioned it. I expected it to take about 12 sessions, and we finished in 10.5. I expected it to be wrapped up in early April, but travel, absences, and other details caused us to take 6(!) months to complete 10 sessions! Considering we try to meet weekly, that was slower than usual.

Next campaign I run, I think I might have each player make two characters. When the group is all together we run plotline A with the main character. If people are out, we will run Character B with Plotline B that will drive discoveries or impacts on Plotline A. That way, we can keep momentum even when folks are out. Sounds hard though.

I will return after our next session and fill you all in on the wrap-ups and epilogues. Until next time.