/L5RG/ Legend of the Five Rings General

Well, the most obvious would be to admonish the clan he's visiting. The full logistical requirements will leave them absolutely scrambling just to house their guests in appropriate rooms for all the high ranking people showing up. The highest level daimyo present will be giving up their own quarters to the Emperor and there probably aren't enough fancy rooms for all the other daimyo or near-daimyo samurai who came along with him. And then you've got a couple hundred extra high ranking mouths to feed and entertain, along with however many lower ranking servants they brought along, which means supplies need to be diverted so that the surprise host doesn't get shamed. And there's no telling how long he's going to be sticking around for, which means a lot of emergency planning needs to happen to make sure that the right level of supplies are on hand at all times for the next few months at least. Just putting that burden on them for a week or two is enough to say "I think you need to clean up your act".

On the other hand, if he shows up with his own supplies, makes most of his entourage camp outside, and spends a lot of time being friendly with his surprise hosts, that can send a powerful message of praise that will make other clans start working favorable deals towards the host just to fit in with the Emperor.

There were a handful of cards that could only be played after you did "X number of actions from X number of cards with different names."

Anyone care to explain the joke and why he has a crab and unicorn symbol?

He's the Unicorn who married Hida O-Ushi. He's got Crab and Unicorn symbols because he's proven himself loyal to the Crab and the two clans are friendly enough that nobody in the Crab cares that the Champion's husband still openly wears his old clan symbols. Their wedding was a pretty big piece of fiction. Basically, O-Ushi was so adamant against getting married that her older brother arranged a free for all combat tournament, with whoever won marrying her. She entered herself for the right to not get married. A big brawl happens and the last two fighters to fall are O-Ushi and some Crane who really wanted to fuck O-Ushi, leaving the scrawny Yasamura (Who had been entered by his father and was pretty much clueless as to what was going on) standing because nobody paid him any attention during the fight. Her brother had them married right then and there, even though she was knocked out, and when she woke up, she assessed Yasamura (Who was genuinely concerned for her well being and tied to her at the wrist) and decided that he would "make a good little wife." Generally speaking, it was a good deal for everyone involved.

thanks for clearing that up user

I like to use the Shadowlands stuff indirectly. I don't use oni or goblins much, but I do a lot with tainted spirits and general corruption. My favorite investigation revolved around a Scorpion opium smuggling operation based in a "monastery." Leader of the ring had been exposed to the taint, started lacing the opium with stuff from the Shadowlands to taint other people.

Solving the plot was easy, doing anything about it was hard. Nobody expects evil monks, so attacking the monastery makes it look like they're the bad guys unless they come up with massive evidence. Operation is hugely profitable, so higher Scorpions have an incentive not to discover anything, which keeps the Kuroiban out of it.

Is there an online website or community where you can play l5r rpg? Can you play it in Roll20?

Roll 20 has games. First L5R game I played formed here, played on roll 20.

Is the roll20 community any good?

No more places than any other game. L5R does seem to have a larger "Everyone's a player, nobody's a GM" problem than many games, but games still happen.

Roll20 is a complete crapshoot no matter what you're playing. Caution is advised until you actually make it to the third or fourth session of any Roll20 game you find.

>Roll20 is a complete crapshoot no matter what you're playing. Caution is advised until you actually make it to the third or fourth session of any Roll20 game you find.

What do you mean by caution? Too many magical realms and edge lords? Is getting an roll20 account even worth it then?

Magical realms, edgelords, and flakes are the three big things that might happen.
Three or four sessions in is a good place to start being optimistic about your game, because by then magical realms will be obvious (Or at least completely unnoticeable and irrelevant), edgelords will have outed themselves as such, and flakes will stop showing up.

I just came here to say OP has great taste

Whats a good clan and bushi school for first time players?

Any really. Bushi schools only differ really in techniques, which are not too hard to wrap your head around. Skills are much more important, and much more universal. That being said, avoid specialists and anything spider clan related. Ronin are doable, but just know you will always be at a disadvantage.

>Recommending Ronin to first time player
>Ever

It is like you want him to hate the game. Also many of the specialist bushi schools are totally good for a first time player if they get they are specialist. A beginner player could play Tsuruchi Archer or Utaku Battlemaiden pretty easily. You are spot on anything Spider related, fuck the Spider.

/g/ question but can a xbox one headset be used on a mac to play on roll20?

Here are some build ideas I have:
1) Akodo Bushi: Classic honor bound samurai/paladin who along with his school skills will have Iaijusu (focus or assessment?) skill and some type high skill (tea ceremony, mediation, poetry or etiquette?)

2) Hida Bushi: Loud and loyal fighter, think Kikuchiyo. Will have Jiujutsu but is grappler or martial arts better?

3) Moto Bushi: A gaijin/barbarian warlord in the mold of Kublai Khan. He'll have the hunting (trail blazer), animal handling (horse), spear (yari) skill and I'm leaning on making him cultured like Kublai Kahn was. Looking to give him some type of high skill, leaning on poetry since Genghis Kahn held writing to very important.

4) Yoritomo Bushi: I would like to make him be a marine so any good skills that'll reflect that? Thinking of making him dual wield a katana and tanto or twin sais. If I take the gaijin gear, would I be able to give him a flintlock pistol?

Since I'm new to the lore, would it be better to first make a Crab or a gaijin clan like Mantis or Unicorn rather than a clan like the Lions who rely more on lore fluff?

>some type high skill (tea ceremony, mediation, poetry or etiquette?)
Etiquette should be considered mandatory for every character unless you're specifically trying to make a character who is really not polite at all. Poetry is a pretty common choice for dipping into art and other such things because it's widely applicable to courtly situations and you don't need special supplies like paint or flowers. Tea Ceremony and Meditation are good for getting Void back, but your success rate will be spotty until you actually get Void 3.

>f I take the gaijin gear, would I be able to give him a flintlock pistol?
Probably not, and I wouldn't recommend doing so. Firearms are really, really illegal outside of specific alternate history settings. Seriously. You will actually be executed for having it.

Always take an artistic skill of some type, samurai are supposed to be masters of the pen and the sword. Even super pragmatic clans like the Crab will do so, nothing raises morale like a good song or the fact that orders are less likely to be misunderstood when printed with clear calligraphy. Also Courtier and Etiquette should be on every character's sheet.

As for your character ideas.

1. If you want to make a duelist, you'll want both, but raw skill is better early on.

2. There is a whole Hida school about fisticuffs, the Hida Pragmatist. If you want to be a punchy Crab that is the place to go. As for Punchan vs Wrasslin, both are strong, the latter especially if your opponent isn't prepared for it.

3. Be warned, Spears are kinda poopy in 4e. The only spear worth using for a Moto is a Lance and even then you only want to use it on horseback. Otherwise, you'll want your trusty scimitar or a big weapon like a No-Dachi.

4. The ever popular Athletics governs climbing, jumping, and swimming so a naval combatant will want it. Basically any peasant weapon with a Katana is the king shit for a Yoritomo, you'll rarely be attacking with your off hand so go for what you think looks cool. Guns are double-extra-heretical in canon Rokugan, you don't want one unless your GM says it is otherwise.

Of those, the Moto would be the one I'd play. That said all are fine for new players. For some people full on immersion is the best way to learn.

>Also Courtier and Etiquette should be on every character's sheet.
I'll be sure to add both to any of my PCs then.

>Spears are kinda poopy in 4e.
That's disappointing, I thought a yuri would have worked as a great weapon on or off the horse. I was even thinking of him emphasizing in throwing so he could throw the yuri at enemies when he isn't using the yuri as a lance.

>Of those, the Moto would be the one I'd play.
Thanks! out of curiosity, what made you pick the Moto Bushi? I admit he's a bit more fleshed out compared to my other PCs. Since he's a gaijin, was thinking of giving him burning red hair.

Fluff wise I'm enjoying the Moto bushi but mechanic wise, what clan/school makes a better commander/general for a player party?

I get what you mean, but spears are crippled by their really crappy damage and mastery abilities. The Mai Chong can passable on a high Strength character, but is pretty much snowflake tier unless you are a Boar. The Lance can be insane in the membrane as a starting Moto PC will be inflicting 7k4 damage while mounted.

I picked the Moto partly because I am an old 'Corn player in the CCG and love the Mongol direction they took from the Hidden Emperor arc onwards. Khan4Life!

Depends on what you mean by commander. The Unicorn have a long tradition of being tacticians, so if you want to make a commander type, take up the Battle skill, bump your Perception, and take the Tactician and Leadership advantages.

The only schools I can think of that have commander/general stuff are Lion Paths and Advanced Schools.

>Depends on what you mean by commander.

Game mechanic-wise, somebody that'll buff the party and protect party members by taunting enemies away to attack him. I play D&D 5e so something similar to Purple Dragon Knight, which is just a revision of 4e's warlord.

>The Lance can be insane in the membrane
Is the lance a spear or pole arm skill?

>buff the party and protect party members by taunting enemies

Buffing is pretty much the realm of shugenja. The Leadership advantage does provide an initiative bonus to an ally once/round and the Guard maneuver let's you add to an allies Armor TN at a cost to your own, but that is about it as far as most buffs. Taunting simply does not exist as a mechanic in L5R.

Lances are under the Spears skill.

If you're going to go completely off topic, at least post a pic, model #, or something for what you're asking.

Also, if you already have it ... try it.

>is grappler or martial arts better?
Grappling ability is king of 1v1, or if the group can tie up other opponents.

>spear (yari)
This is generally considered a poor choice, fwiw. Moto Bushi do help with two-handed weapons, though.

Do all loli demons have incredibly small hands and large feet?

It was just a bit better than Yupiels servant I think, though I liked Yupiels consensual vanilla angle more.

Depends what kind of samurai you wanna play senpai.

Eloquent philosopher? Crane or Pheonix. Brash and honorable warrior? Crab or Lion.

I forget what the others are like and scorpions are the ones everyone expects to be liars and are surprised when they aren't

All the better to penetrate your urethra, fiddle your prostate, and footjob you with, dear

First-time poster in this general.

Just wanted to know; is there a preferred order to reading the official fiction on the provided link?

>Scorpion Coup
>Clan War
>Hidden Emperor
>Gold Edition
>Diamond Edition
>Lotus Edition
>Samurai Edition
>Celestial Edition
>Emperor Edition
>Ivory Edition
>Onyx Edition

The official timeline is as written, but you don't really need to read the Dawn Of The Empire stuff straight off.

I started with Diamond edition and picked up earlier stuff later, but so long as you know the tenets of Bushido, basic etiquette, and how your clan/family behave, you can get by with almost zero historical knowledge.

Thanks, I'll get right on that.

You can use this to delay an important action and force your opponent to play his hand (allowing you to react and change plans if necessary).

Actually stopping at the end of Diamond is the way to go. Everything else is just the "Let's Wank to Daigotsu Show."

I'd say stop after he's killed by Tsudao, but YMMV.

The final notes for Onyx edition, with the true blood daughter of the Emperor and half blood brothers being useless shits, malcontents, etc was kinda cool for a campaign basis.

Iuchiban going full Megatron on the Empire is pretty amusing though. I kinda wished he'd have won against Daigotsue and became the permanent leader of the lost as sub-type within the Shadowlands.

> he's a gaijin
You better be playing a more tolerant Rokugan... Because canon Rokugan is more xenophobic than Trump.
Like, even their liberal candidates for Emperor support the Kaiu Wall, and as soon as the Shadowlands gets an economy we'll make them pay for building it.

He's a Moto, they pretty much are gaijin as most of them moved into the Empire when Shinjo gave them the Unicorn.

So I'm a weeb new to these threads. Please don't hurt me.

winter-court.com/wc5/index.php

I was wondering, is it worth it to join the new Winter Court 5? I'm okay with the rules of the game and know the setting basics, but I don't really know the nitty gritty of everything.

I'm afraid I might get eaten alive if I join this.

I've also read that the official Winter Court 4 was really corrupt and shady with the GMs. What more of something unofficial?

>Magical realms, edgelords, and flakes are the three big things that might happen.

Add in weeaboo tryhards and you have the quintessential player base for L5R. If you play L5R, your game is not a magical realm, and your party is not an edge lord, a special snowflake, a weeaboo archetype, and an Average Joe, then you are playing it all wrong.

At the time Iuchiban came across as somewhat silly and ineffectual compared to his reputation, and the imagery of the rain of blood suffered for it. It wasn't until they were just about pulling Itchy off stage that they reversed that and wrote some cool stuff for him.

What do you think would best represent what Tetsu-Dou looks like? From the Book of Earth:

"A unique form of heavy armor that is worn almost exclusively by Crab samurai, the tetsu-dou is an innovation created by Kaiu armorsmiths for the purpose of withstanding an oni’s attack. At its core it is simply an altered form of o-yoroi. However, it is crafted entirely out of iron. Instead of the lamellar plates that comprise most Rokugani armor, the tetsu-dou is laminar, made from very thin plates of cast iron that are overlapped to provide layered protection. However, it is the dō that truly sets this armor apart: a hinged cast iron cuirass made from two individual pieces."

Asking for a commission.

Probably something like this. Within the standard limits of L5R being written by people with only the vaguest understanding of historical tools, of course.

Thanks, mate.

Damn that helmet looks retarded.

Retardedly awesome helmets are what Japan is all about.

...

Why did plate armor only start being incorporated in Japanese breastplates and helmets after the Portuguese showed up?

Were they unable to make plates large enough prior to them arriving? Even your picture shows they used rivets to attach the lower bit.

...

Mobile Samurai Gundam

...

...

Look at all my repeating digits.

Smaller plates in a laminar pattern worked out just fine for them before that. Big, solid plates are somewhat better, but I think their manufacturing style was heavily geared towards connecting a lot of small plates and they probably didn't see the effort of switching over as necessary.

It is because japanese were not exactly exemplars of technological progression. And they also had a pretty darn shitty approach towards warfare.

Are the Yoritomo Bushi any good?

Yup. To fight in taverns.
Oh and they're pretty efficient when drunk too.

Typical Mantis.

Can confirm: grappling is OP. Once grappled a guy and threw him so hard that he died and killed another enemey that I threw him into.

God I love Mantis

Would pole arm skill better for Moto bushi? Any pole arms that can be used on horseback?

Are nunchucks any good for Yoritomo? Would twin pair nunchucks work or is a katana and sai/kama combo the way to go?

The funny thing about using a nunchuck as a Yoritomo is that you'll be able to knock a horse off its feet with only a single raise once you hit rank 4.

It was more their steel creation process that limited them. The steel they created from ironsand was non-uniform.

Anyway I can make a good-hearted Scorpion rather than the usual token evil teammate? Using court, stealth and bushi skills to help the downtrodden. Pic related

Would a Mantis work better?

Currently planning to run a small campaign with a few friends, one of which has never played an rpg before. I've never touched the system before this however, and am currently reading through the core book (4e if that matters) for the first time.

Are there any issues/ things I should watch out for or be wary of with the system? Something the game doesn't handle well at all? And I know the setting is incredibly important to the game and am wondering how much I should learn of the setting before prepping for the actual campaign.

You need not to forget that the Scorpion Clan is based on the idae that the Empire needs an ennemy within itself that takes blames and sacrifices itself in order to maintain balance.

"Good" in the sense of defending the little ones and working towards equality is almost absent from L5R. "Good" in a Scorpion way would be a character ready to let go of his honor, status and confort for the sake of stability. Like taking the blame for a murder perpetrated by someone else to prevent two other clans from declaring war on each other.

A "Good" Mantis would be closer to that Zorro comparison, since they all come from minor clans they have better consideration for people of lower status, and they consider honor secondary enough to make their hands dirty in the process.

If you're looking for a more honorable kind of being "Good", look no further than the Unicorn, the universal clan of being nice and honest while remaining brave and honorable. (and a bit weird seriously guys stop eating cow meat that's disguting)

Remember that characters are fragile and plan fights accordingly. Every fight should be meaningful because you can never be sure you'll walk away from it.

For someone who has never played an RPG before, L5R can be a pretty rough start, so you should lean less on the diplomatic side of things in the beginning (all the court and honor talk will confuse them believe me I've been there)

...

>If you're looking for a more honorable kind of being "Good", look no further than the Unicorn
Who would've thought the Clan based on the

Mongols would be the nice one of the lot. Then again they did promote meritocracy and religious tolerance when they weren't pillaging and conquering.

What about the Lion clan?

Can't a player simply take Hero of the People advantage for any clan and become one?

Yeah, but the Lion are stereotypically total dickbags to those they deem "lower" than them, as evidenced by the Lion Clan official sport of "Shit on the Minor Clans."

>What about the Lion clan?
They're a good point to start learning about Rokugan from, as you can be a bombastic braggart, ham it up (so long as you don't break the Bushido code), get things wrong, and still be properly Lion. The stereotypical Lion is a completely honourable asshole, whose favourite punchline to jokes is, "and then I killed everyone!"

>CRAB: They are formidable, but they conduct themselves strangely and seemingly without thought for their honor.
>CRANE: Cowards and manipulators who face threats with words rather than steel.
>DRAGON: They are beneath our notice.
>MANTIS: They are insignificant in every regard.
>PHOENIX: [Squandered] with their obsession with peace. Samurai are born for war.
>SCORPION: Their blatant disregard for honor is an offense that cannot be borne.
>UNICORN: Their ways are strange, and therefore inferior.
>MINOR CLANS: The Minor Clans exist only through the generosity of the Emperor and the mercy of the Great Clans. They should always remember this.

Assholes.

>Can't a player simply take Hero of the People advantage for any clan and become one?
Nothing stopping you; it's the difference between the expectations and 'face' of each clan vs the reality of each individual.

>female bushi

lol

Yupiel is a cooler loli, but the opening bit of Suzaka is funnier.

Also, it gave us this.

I'm leaning more towards the latter, but with elements of the former.

Ok so we know what are the stereotypes and tropes the Clans are...lets talk about their fanbase.

List stereotypes or personality traits you see from clan players from either the role-playing, card game or both.

I've noticed that, between duelmongering Kakita and harriers in general, the Crane attracts a lot of asshole edgelords.

Thinking about rolling a Akodo bushi with a trained falcon similar to pic related. I want the PC to be able to use the falcon to scout and deliver messages.

Would I be able to use the tactician and leadership advantage and the battle skill to coordinate or capitalize on the falcon's attack?

On that note, Is mass control or skirmish better for the battle skill?

The Skirmish emphasis does literally nothing. Literally. No mechanical effect whatsoever. Don't take it.

>Is mass control or skirmish better for the battle skill?
I meant mass combat

Ok so I should take mass combat instead?

>Would I be able to use the tactician and leadership advantage and the battle skill to coordinate or capitalize on the falcon's attack?
See 321 & 143 Core, but also 121 Book Of Air, and 10 Enemies Of The Empire.
Generally, you're going to use Animal Handling (Falconry) / Awareness.

>RANK 5: Trained animals still in possession of the trainer may be commanded to attack a target of his choosing. The animal will flee for its life if badly wounded regardless of commands issued.

Emphasis is necessary per animal type.

>On that note, Is mass control or skirmish better for the battle skill?
Skirmish emphasis for Battle skill has no rules.

Considering that it's a game about nobility, it itches me a little that people considers lions assholes for acting like that. It's literally how 90% of the characters would actually behave and what they would believe. I know we're less classist today, but still.

Except for the kill and war everything part of course.

>Considering that it's a game about nobility
Not really. The standard PC is of the buke, not the kuge. Even without taking that into account, the Lion are the furthest extreme of stubborn asshole interpretation of honour.

>They have the temperament of angry children and the flexibility of a stone sculpture.
>Small-minded bigots incapable of seeing the reality of the world that surrounds them.
>We all exist under a mandate of peace, yet that is the one Imperial decree the Lion seem to conveniently forget.
>etc.
Every other clan can cede a point long before the Lion even start to think anyone else might be right, especially when interpreting Bushido or a grudge is involved. The Lion have long lists of grudges.

Making a Unicorn and thinking about getting the animal handling skill, what would emphasis with horses contribute that horsemanship won't or can't?

I would rather have the emphasis with dogs so I can get me a Unicorn War Dog

Winter Courts are without a doubt some of the shadiest, most corrupt cliquey shit ever.

These people have been secretly shitting up the game with their ERP for decades now.

You will get eaten alive for the slightest misstep and be outright ignored at best.

It's the difference between riding a horse (horsemanship) and training one (animal handling.) I'd go with the dog emphasis unless you're training your own horses.

I cannot sanction their buffoonery.

Isn't one of the Advanced Schools female only?

Is l5r an easy RPG to get into for tabletop newbies?

>winter-court.com/wc5/index.php
Is that an online RPG forum? Are there forums for l5r that isn't Winter Court?

Is this a better option for those looking to play with a group or is roll20 the way to go?

There are, but they're usually small. Maybe a little clique-ish. Most of them definitely know each other in some way, either personally or via other L5R games.