お前はもう死んでいる- An Arthurverse Tale (Open to Newcomers)

JBO · Jul 29, 2018

お前はもう死んでいる- An Arthurverse Tale

A Blood Soaked Sun - A History From the Hojo Regency to the Amaterasu Rebellion

Nippon during the Kamakura Period

Minamoto no Yoritomo, the Archtraitor and blessed Ancestor

To begin, two families are bound in battle. What drove them to this? Was it hate for one another? Was it loyalty to their Holy Tenno? Was it ambition for power? Nobody knows, as those men are long gone from this world, yet they still live in it, as nothing that is now in Nippon would have come about without the war between Minamoto and Taira.
During the Heian period, the holy Tennos, formerly truly rulers of the land, had come increasingly under the sway of their close relatives of the Fujiwara clans, who among themselves passed on the offices of regents, ruling the Empire in the name of the sons of the sun. Peace reigned until civil war errupted over a question of imperial succession. What would be known as the Hogen rebellion ended with the Fujiwara, like the Emperor of divine blood, being sidelined in favour of the ascendend families of Minamoto and Taira. Yet as the Chuka sensei Laozi tells, while opposites need each other to endure, they may as often fall into imbalance, as did these two clans of warriors (or as the class they created is known today Samurai). Thus only four years after the Hogen, followed the Heiji rebellion, where the Taira sought to rid themselves of their Minamoto rivals once and for all. And indeed they almost did.
It would take another twenty years, the betrayal of the Hojo branch of the Taira clan and the ingenious leadership of the young and ruthless Minamoto no Yoritomo, but as the sages of today tell, as the Taira showed mercy to their rivals, they failed to root them out, leading to their downfall in the cataclysmic Genpei War.
Following a coup by the Taira, involving the installation of a two year old boy as Emperor, the Minamoto, long waiting for their opportunity, rallied their allies, culminating in the disposal and slaughter of their Taira, paying them back for years of degradation and slaughter. What followed is today called "The Stab of the Traitor" or "The Ascencion of the Ancestor" depending on which side of the Sakura War one falls on. Minamoto no Yoritomo gained from the Emperor (against his will and Yoritomos oaths, according to his enemies) the right to raise taxes, reform the government and rule from Kamakura, along with the newly minted title of Sei-i Taishōgun.
Yet, while many a man would hold this title after him, it quickly lost its great power. Yoritomo died and his sons spent their years fighting with and as the puppets of their grandfather Hojo Tokimasa, who had betrayed his Taira kin only to know hold absolute power as the Shikken of the realm. After the main line of the Minamoto had died out, nothing stood in the way of Hojo dominance, as Fujiwaras and Emperors arranged themselves with the new regime, backing them as Kamakura expanded ever more and more, soon threatening to overshadow Kyoto.
Yet throughout this period of rebuilding and stability, there always remained the uncertainty of power as Emperor, Shogun and Shikken each could claim rulership for themselves. There remained the animosity between Taira and Minamoto, now continued in their cadets Hojo and Ashikaga. And there remained the fact, that outside of the realm of the rising sun, time did not stand still.

The Tenno - A Caged God

During the Kamakura period the role of the Tenno as a powerless figurehead, that had already started under the rule of the Fujiwara, was further entrenched, as the double alienation of power from him, through the offices of shogun and shikken, put the Tennos of this period as far away from actual power as they ever were. However, with the increasing powerlessness of the office came ironically also a greater and greater symbolic role, as the already existant focus on religious and cultural works meant that Nippon without a Tenno became an increasingly untennable idea. While this development would not have any effects for another century, as Emperors continued to go into cloisters and abdicate the throne, slowly but surely, a new sort of power and connection between the son of Amaterasu and his subjects was growing.

1183-1198 Emperor Go-Toba (d.1239)
1198-1210 Tsuchimikado, eldest son of former (d.1231)
1210-1221 Juntoku, younger half-brother of former (d.1242)
1221-1232 Go-Horikawa, first cousin of former two (d.1234)
1232-1242 Shijo, only surviving son of former (d.1242)
1242-1246 Go-Saga, sixth son of Tsuchimikado (d.1272)
1246-1260 Go-Fukakusa, son of former (d.1280)
1260-1274 Kameyama, younger brother of former (d.1277)
1274-1278 Go-Uda, only son of the former (d.1278)

The Shogun - A Powerless Despot

The office of the Shogun during this period was one of contradictions. Through the legal precedent set by Yoritomo and the continued ritual positioning of him at the centre of political protocol he was still the highest positioned subject of the divine Tenno. Yet, through minority, murder and unclear succession, it was little more than a puppet, whose strings lay in the hands of the Hojo regents. Yet, while the Shogun of this period had little actual power of their own, they did represent two big trends. Firstly, they represented the reintroduction of the Fujiwara and the Imperial family into offices with at least ceremonial wordly, instead of ritualistic power. Secondly and perhaps more importantly, through the continued fiction of the Shogun as the ruler it cemented a quasi division between the profane and holy, creating a niche of absolute ritualistic and political power, just waiting for the right figure to fill it.

1192-1199 Minamoto no Yoritomo, established the Kamakura Shogunate following the Genpei War (d.1199)
1202-1203 Minamoto no Yoriie, eldest son of the former (d.1204)
1203-1219 Minamoto no Sanetomo, younger brother of the former (d.1219)
1226-1244 Kujō Yoritsune, son-in-law of Yoriie (d.1256)
1244-1252 Kujō Yoritsugu, son of the former (d.1256)
1252-1266 Prince Munetaka, son of Tenno Go-Saga (d.1274)
1266-1278 Prince Koreyasu, son of the former (d.1279)

The Shikken - An Absolute Regent

The Shikken were a curious office. Far from the opportunistic snakes that the current Ashikaga shoguns like to portray them as, they ruled the Empire capably and peacefully for many decades, providing stability in the wake of the Genpei war. Yet their position was ever a precarious one. Acting as regents for an officer appointed by the divine Emperor, their source of power was ritualistically seperated from them by three degrees. Further, their status as a Taira remnant in a regime formed by the Minamoto ever gave them the taint of outsiders, not aided by their often brash treatment of the Tennos under their care.
However, despite being the most lowly of the three offices, they may have created the greatest impact of all. Not only did they built the foundations of the feudal state still in existance, not only did they create a great centre of power in the east around Kamakura, nor did they just once and for all realize and codify the concept of despotic power wielded by one clan. Most importantly for the history of Nippon during the coming decades, they had created the ideological foundation for a state ruled by outsiders, as long as they held by the blessing of the Tenno.

1203-1205 Hojo Tokimasa, father-in-law of Minamoto no Yoritomo, grandfather of Yoriie and Sanetomo (d.1215)
1205-1224 Hōjō Yoshitoki, eldest son of the former
1224-1242 Hōjō Yasutoki, eldest son of the former
1242-1246 Hōjō Tsunetoki, grandson of the former
1246-1256 Hōjō Tokiyori, younger brother of the former (d.1263)
1256-1264 Hōjō Nagatoki, first-cousin once removed of the former
1264-1268 Hōjō Masamura, younger half-brother of Yasutoki (d.1273)
1268-1278 Hōjō Tokimune, eldest son of Tokiyori (d.1278)

The Gaijin Invasion and the Slaughter of the Princes (1275-1280)

Geegen Khan, later known as Shogun Gaijin no Arata leading the invasion of Japan

The Gaijin had long warned of their impending invasion. For years they sent letters to the Shikken and Imperial court, demanding Nippon enter a relation, as they put it, "of father and son". Yet, despite advise of caution by the Imperial court, the Hojo Shikken again and again rebuffed offers of tributary status. Eventually the letters ceased. At first Hojo Tokimune sought that he had been proven right in his decision to rebuff the western barbarians, even more so when a gigantic storm cut Japan off from the Chinese mainland, a sign that the kamis themselves wished for Nippon to remain seperate from that empire.
Yet in the next year news came in of sails being spotted in the west. Sails without count. On them an army without number. On horses that made the ground tremble as if Mt. Fuji itself was to errupt. Armed with enough arrows to blot out the light of Amaterasu herself. Too late did the Hojo realize, that there were other powers in this world than court intrigue and the swords of samurai. For three years raged the war, but at no point was there much doubt as to how it would end. By the end of the first year all of Kyushu was in the hands of the invaders. By the end of the second the Imperial capital had fallen into the hands of the Gaijin. By the end of the third Kamakura was burning, her lands salted, her women raped, her children carried off into slavery and the last Shikken had been deposed. Geegen Khan, son of the Yuan Emperor Kublai rode in grand ceremony to Kyoto, before in front of the assembled court in the name of the "falsely deposed" Emperor Go-Fukakusa, executing Tenno Go-Uda. He then took the name Gaijin no Arata, to ever remind his family of their foreigness of the land they would rule "until the sun rose in the west". The time of the Gaijin Shogunate had dawned.
The first act of the new Shogun would be to bow before the Tenno, proclaiming that the days of false Shikken and powerless Shogun was over. The Emperor once more would be the ultimate authority and all power in the state unquestionably derived from his position at the apex of Nipponese spiritual life. His second was the slaughter of the princes, as he had all but one of the male relatives of the Tenno along with many noteable members of the Fujiwara clan put to the sword. The message was clear. Kneel and you shall reap rewards and status. Defy and there shall be no mercy.

The Gaijin Shogunate (1278-1315)

Indeed the era of the Gaijin Shogunate is one of contradictions. On the one hand the Mongols were foreigners and went out of their way to remind everyone of it. On the other, they like few others before promoted the supreme authority of the Tenno (not least since they justified their power through association with him). On the one hand the land for thirty years was in a state of perpetual warfare leading to the slaughter of all war worthy horses north of Kyushu, yet on the other the Gaijin promoted a form of organized rulership with clearly delineated responsibilities and tasks that had previously often not been present. Indeed the Gaijin sought in any sense of the word to integrate their rule into accepted forms of rulership in the islands of Nippon, while still retaining their ruthless streak to maintain power in these chaotic and foreign lands.
Best exemplified is this probably with the story of Emperor Fushimi. Only ten when the Gaijin took power in Nippon, he and his brother Prince Hisaaki, were handpicked to survive the slaughter of their brothers and cousins to be put in place as puppet rulers. Yet when Fushimi sought to make himself a voice independent of the Shoguns, he soon found himself tripping when ascending the stairs to his favourite shrine, breaking his neck. He was replaced with his brother Hisaaki, a boy so young and traumatized, that he often seemed to live in a world of his own, fascinated with flames, the arcane and worship of the past. In one word, a perfect puppet for the Gaijin to continue their war against the people of Nippon, continously trying to make them finally yield.
That is not to say that they were unsuccesful in their ultimately doomed rule. The Fujiwara especially benefitted greatly from their association with the newly ascendant imperial throne, being granted hereditary ministerial roles for each of their five branches, kept in perpetual rivalry for the Mongol's benefit, but still a far cry from their relative obscurity during the Kamakura period. The Ashikaga, enemies of the slaughtered Hojo, were married into the Shogun family and granted vast lands around Osaka. Indeed for many it seemed but a question of time until the last holdouts of resistance would be snuffed out and Timujins family would rule supreme over yet another corner of the world.

1278-1280 Go-Fukakusa, restored
1280-1286 Fushimi, son of former
1286-1323 Daigoro, half-brother of former, continued rule after expulsion of the Gaijin

1278-1284 Gaijin no Arata
1284-1301 Gaijin no Katsu
1301-1308 Gaijin no Kenta
1308-1315 Gaijin no Kyou

The Amaterasu Rebellion 1312-1315

The Fujiwara preparing the slaughter of their Mongol Masters

Yet an absolute grip on power as the one held by the Gaijin was not one that could be broken solely by wolvish bandits and rice loving monks. A realm build on treachery, madness and blood, could only be destroyed by the same. The first strike did not come from the Nipponese, squabbling and weakened as they still were. Instead it came from the heavens as Kublai Khan passed. His grandson Külüg was no friend of his Gaijin cousins, seeing the drain of his coffers and potential rivalry to his power they represented. Slowly but surely he started to distance his regime from theirs, only occasionally sending them reinforcements, telling them that after decades of rule and with many loyal subjects by their side, they should be able to take care of "some bandits" on their own. If this was a severe miscalculation or an open attempt to get rid of his rivals is anyones guess. What is known is that in the following decade violence in Japan became greater and greater as lacking any support from the mainland the Gaijin had to rely on what power and support structures they had built up on the islands. And indeed had it not been for the unexpected death of Shogun Kenta during a hunt with his brother-in-law Ashikaga Yoshiteru, there might still had been a chance to salvage the Gaijin situation. Yet, with his death the reigns of power passed to his young son Kyou, who was little more than a pawn in the political maneuverings of his uncles Hideyoshi, Haru and Meiji. All this tension, rebellion and disunity finally came to a head when Emperor Daigoro, ever an extreme and unpredictable man, gathered the court to hold a speech, speaking of the unbroken line of Tenno, stretching back to Amaterasu, the strength of her fire and the righteous fury with which she would burn all those that would stand against her and her family or deny them their position of absolute rule.
Haru and Meiji naturally realized what this meant, immediately moving to imprison the imperial family. Yet, thanks to the valiant heroism of the Emperor's nephew and heir Prince Tanehito, Daigoro and his family managed to escape. This was the start of the Amaterasu rebellion. For three years it raged, claiming the life of prince Tanehito, sending his uncle only further down the path of madness, that of Hideyoshi during the battle of Osaka, when the Ashikagas revealed their true loyalties, turning on their Mongol in-laws and finally that of most of the Gaijin princes, when the Fujiwaras slaughtered the last remaining children of Hideyoshi and Kenta including the teenage shogun during a feast in Kyoto. Seeing the tides turning Haru and Meiji fled Honshu. The rebellion was over.

The Years of the False Peace - The Ashikaga Shogunate 1315-1323

The Duel of the Snake and the Pig

What followed is what later poets would dub the "years of the false peace". The war on Honshu had been won, but Kyushu remained in Mongol hands. Attempts to invade it came to none and the Emperor and Shogun only decided to abandon attempts to reclaim the island when they heard that Haru and his sons had been imprisoned by Külüg Khan after daring to go to China and plead for support from the main family.
Yet while the Mongols had been banished for now, their thirty years of rule had thrown open many open questions. Namely, whose right it was to rule. That of the Emperor? After all even the foreigners had respected his supreme divine authority, maybe even more than the Shikken and Minamotos before them. That of the Shogun? After all it had been the Ashikagas who had saved the rebellion from certain doom during the battle of Osaka and had lead it during the years of war afterwards. That of the Fujiwaras? After all they ever had been imperial regents even before the Genpei war and had been vital in both the rule and deposition of the Mongols, retaining their offices even in the new regime. Or was it that of the individual Shugo the feudal lords that had popped up and assumed power all over Nippon during the past century? For the first eight years, these questions were for the most part pushed to the back as all settled into an uneasy peace, with two courts, two rules and two modes of thought only occassionally disrupted such as when the Shogun alerted of a duel between two branches of the Fujiwara intervened to prevent bloodshed and decades long feud, only to have his decision reversed by the increasingly unstable Emperor. The shogun retaliated by raising an army in Osaka, reportedly aiming to have the sons of the late Prince Tanehito replace the madman on the Chrysanthenum throne. Only the intervention of the other three branches of the Fujiwara clan prevented civil war to break out then and there. Three years have passed since. And still it seems like only a spark is needed to set off a civil war. What the Empire got was far worse. It got the Night of the Black Flame.

Nippon at the Start of the Sakura no Sensō

As the year 1323 started many expected the cautious peace of the past years to continue as such many came unprepared for the violence that broke lose soon after the tragedy that killed the Emperor, like a rose petal that suddenly turned from pink to deep crimson, earning the explosion of war the name of Sakura no Senso.

The Imperial Household

From Kyoto reigned Emperor Daigoro increasingly turning his gaze away from actual rule and towards ritualistic praying to fire and sun, seeking to birth an instrument for him to use to strike down the traitorous Shogun. In the past this may have been easily remedied as the Emperor was but a figurehead and could be easily pushed into a monastery. Yet the precedents of the Gaijin era and the rebellion had changed that. Now the Emperor, while not holding the reigns of the public administration did lead a gigantic personal host loyal to him and his family. Thus any time the Fujiwaras or Ashikagas even considered deposing the increasingly deranged god, they thought better of it, praying he would simply kill himself in peace. They came to regret their prophetic calls.

The Five Fujiwaras

The Hokke branch of the Fujiwara clan has come under new prominence during the age of the Gaijin. Fed up with the multilayered and ritualistic nuances of the imperial court the Mongols simply declared all major imperial offices abolished fusing most of their roles into that of "Minister" of which there were five, one for each direction of the compass and one for the Imperial household itself. To ensure some form of continuity they appointed the heads of the Fujiwara to these positions, often shuffling their cabinet depending on which of the Hokke was favoured at the time. After the fall of the Gaijin and with both Shogun and Emperor desperate for quick taxation of the countryside, neither has been willing to disestablish this system, leading to the clan after centuries again enjoying a position apart from all other nobles. While all barely having a thousand retainers in their courts, they are still richer and more influential than all but the mightiest Shugo being responsible for maintaining the imperial administration. This gives them both great leverage and immunity as they can bargain their talents easily to whichever side they prefer, while protecting them from reprisal. After all, chaos would become even more unleashed if the central administration were to come apart.

The Court in Osaka

Where former Shoguns held supreme authority or none at all, the Ashikagas are something in between. While the reins of the civil administration are with the Fujiwara and supreme authority still lies with the Emperor, they are recognized at least in theory as the supreme military commanders of the Empire, holding her second city as personal fief, along with a host that knows no peers from any rival Shugo. Yet Yoshiteru knows, that having only half the power is not enough. After all so did the Minamoto, the Hojo and the Gaijin. And where were they now? Humbled, slaughtered and all but forgotten. The Ashikaga he had sworn to himself would be different. Yet while he tried to do his best, while he was villified as a turncoat and opportunist, as he tried to bring order and peace to the empire, there was always this man on the throne, stabbing him ever in the back, ever trying to tear down what he built in his name. Yet he endured in stoic rage, waiting and praying for an opportunity to finally ascend to the position he knew the gods had chosen for him.

The Ikko Ikki

The Ikkō-ikki, or "Devoted League", were once monks, peasants, lowly samurai, and ninja that banded together in the wake of the Mongol Scourge to resist these barbarian invaders to the last. Wielding religion as a weapon to lead the masses the progenitors to these warrior monks led ambushes, struck at patrols, infiltrated Mongolian castles, and disrupted the invaders' hold over Japan as much as they could.
As the violence receded they found themselves holding temples and islands across the Empire, along with a military force that made even the greatest of Shugo cover. Like all religious radicals however they soon found both the new order wanting and their allies even more so, leading to a threeway split in the movement, each searching to follow the will of the universe in their own way. The past eight years they have spent meditating and training their followers, secluded in their temples, cautiously watched by the nobles around them. For all know it is only a question of time before once more crimson robes pour forth from their halls to bring the wrath of god to the mortals.

The Hokubu-ō

Hokubu-ō, Northern King, a name for traitors and outlaws, men who deny the supreme spiritual (and political) authority of the Emperor (and his mortal Shogun instrument). Seven clans, some honourable, some treacherous, but all united by one simple idea: The Empire died with the Gaijin conquest. What remains of it, be it Emperor or Shogun has no legitimacy, tainted as their lines are by their collaboration with the southern menace. Accordingly, the only authority left in these lands of the north is that of the seven kings, former lords, now supreme rulers in their own right, who for decades repelled both Mongol invasion as well as Ainu raids. Now, as the false Empire is tearing itself apart they see their chance. To become more than petty warlords. To become kings in truth. Across the entire archipelago can their warcry be heard: "Death to the False Yamato!"

The Kyushu rebellion

From the way the Japanese poets of the time are writing it would seem almost like the Mongols are a concern of the past, telling of the "glorious, final repulsion of the Gaijin". Yet nothing could be further from the truth. Far from being a simple "rebellion" against imperial authority Kyushu never even yielded to imperial overlordship, still being held by the Gaijin and other "bastard lords" as they are called by the other Shugo. Half-bloods, men brought up as hostages or simple opportunists. They see no place for themselves in the new regime, declaring themselves their own lords. Some still pay lip service to the Gaijin, others see them as a remnant of a shameful past. What unites them are two things: Mutual disdain with Honshu and the last remnants of warready horses found in the archipelago.

Primitive Rebels

Little attention has been paid to movements of social protest which fall outside the classic patterns of labor or socialist agitation, and even less to those whose political coloring is not modernist or progressive but conservative, or reactionary or, at any rate, rather inarticulate. Two examples of such more inarticulate rebellion against exploitation, tyranny and general bad governance are the incursions of pirates and Ainu "savages" into the core of Japanese power during this period. Already having grown in power over the past three decades due to the general disarray the Gaijin occupation had generated, as the civil war broke out for good, they made themselves known on the political stage almost immediately, raiding all across the peninsula from their island and frozen refuges. But as the poets tell that may have just been the prologue for an even greater reckoning. In the north, which was filled with skinchangers and onis according to the singers, tales went around of a unification, of a person that would unite all north of the Akita palisades and lead the Ainu into the warm woods of the south. And among the pirates even more strange tales were told. Of a great treasure found at the end of a long line of islands. A treasure beyond not any man's dreams, but beyond any's comprehension. A treasure worthy of a god.

The Night of the Black Flame

It was the sixth of February of the year 1323 (of the Christian Julian calendar), when the imperial palace in Kyoto burst in black flames, consuming most of it within a matter of hours. The Emperor was dead, his heir severly scarred by the flames, the Fujiwara administrative apparatus severly crippled by the loss of men and documents. For a whole week Japan was frozen in shock. Then came the letter that changed it forever. Kiguri, the son of Amaterasu, Emperor of the realm, openly accused Yoshiteru of murdering his father to remove him in a precursor to a coup that would see the Ashikaga scum replace the holy imperial family as the ones ruling the land. He declared henceforth the life of all Ashikaga forfeit and all that aided them would suffer the same fate. Yoshiteru did not wait long to reply, calling the Emperor false and henceforth exiled to a monastery. The war all of the realm had long been waiting for, was finally here.

An European Artist's Impression of the Tragedy ca.17th Century

JBO · Jul 29, 2018

An Exhaustive List of Prominent Families

List of Content

The Imperial Family and bureaucracy
1. The Boy on the Chrysanthemum Throne (A)
2. The Monastery Princes
3. The Hokke Fujiwaras
  1. The Selfish Pig
  2. The Jealous Monkey
  3. The Stubborn Tiger
  4. The Naive Goat
  5. The Petty Snake
4. The Shogun Ashikaga (B)
The Northern Kings
1. Akita Clan (1)
2. Uesugi Clan (2)
3. Date Clan (3)
4. Toshimasa Clan (4)
5. Gamo Clan (5)
6. Uchiha Clan (6)
7. Satomi Clan (7)
Imperial Clans
1. Declared for the Tenno
  1. Taira Clan (15,17)
  2. Sanada Clan (16)
  3. Maeda Clan (18)
  4. Yamaguchi Clan (23)
  5. Nagatsuka Clan (25)
2. Declared for the Shogun
  1. Toshinaga Clan (19)
  2. Minamoto Clan (21)
  3. Azai Clan (50)
3. Undeclared
  1. Hojo Clan (10)
  2. Nakamura Clan (12)
  3. Mori Clan (13)
  4. Yagami Clan (14)
  5. Hatakeyama (20)
  6. Sasuki Clan (22)
  7. Midoriya Clan (24)
  8. Tobita Clan (26)
  9. Suzumiya Clan (28)
  10. Ikari Clan (29)
  11. Kikkawa Clan (30)
  12. Koide Clan (31)
  13. Ukida Clan (32)
  14. Shiba Clan (33)
  15. Morihei Clan (34)
  16. Sakura Clan (35)
  17. Abe Clan (36)
  18. Umezawa Clan (38)
  19. Nara Clan (41)
  20. Kasami Clan (43)
4. In Private War
  1. Oda Clan (8)
  2. Yuki Clan (9)
  3. Takeda Clan (11)
  4. Urakami Clan (27)
  5. Chosokabe Clan (39)
  6. Ouchi Clan (37) & Kusanagi Clan (40)
  7. Kinoshita Clan (42)
Southern Clans
1. Naito Clan (44)
2. Hyuga Clan (45)
3. Shimazu Clan (46)
4. Kikuchi Clan (47)
5. Gaijin Clan (48)
6. Toosu Clan (49)
Pirate Crews
1. The Crew of the Flag (P1)
2. The Darkwater Pirates (P2)
3. Jar Pirates (P3)
4. The Sweet Pirates (P4)
5. The Red Reader (P5)
6. The Redwater Pirates (P6)
7. The Animal Crew (P7)
8. The Posing Pirates (P8)
9. The Fearful Pirates (P9)
10. Kuma "The Truthteller" (P10)
11. The Lighting Stone Crew (P11)
12. The Whitebeard Pirates (12)
13. The Playful Pirates (P13)
14. The Sea Snakes (P14)
15. Yatowa reta ken (P15)
16. The Dreadpirate (P16)
17. The Man Wearing a Blanket (P17)
Ainu Clans
1. The Shadow Over the Islands (α)
2. The Men of these Woods (β)
3. The Daughter of the Wolf (γ)
4. The Black Bird (δ)
5. The Grey Horde (ε)
6. Isoun (π)
7. The Blunt Dog (θ)
The Orders
1. Order of the Monkey (m)
2. Order of the Shadow (S)
3. Order of the Mask (ma)

The Imperial Family

The Boy on the Chrysanthemum Throne (A)

He is the rightful ruler of all Japan by virtue of the godly blood that runs in his veins, and by the swords and spears of the nobles who do him homage. Child of the Sun, nephew of the Storm, a divine being among mortal chaff.

He is seventeen years old and fear is his constant companion. His father, now...his father was strong. Fearless and confident, the Emperor who walked among the Khans and made them kneel after the Shogun's failure (a failure that was easily foreseen, what good could have come of letting one without the blood of Heaven command Heaven's armies?)

Yamato Daigoro was a strong man, reveling in his divine might, dominating the newcomers to his court as easily as he had the native born (newcomers who hid their laughter behind lying smiles, all too willing to humor a mad fool as long as he was a useful tool).

His father was strong, but now he is dead. Taken by the flames, fires set by traitors and blasphemers. (Some say the blaze was started by the late Emperor's own...unique rites to honor Mother Amaretsu. Liars and fools. As if they don't all hate the House of Yamato. As if they aren't all consumed by spite, hollowed out by envy of the gods in their midst).

The traitors took his father, scorched his flesh...but he is still the Emperor. Still a child of Amaretsu. Still obeyed by loyal servants.

So let the traitor Shogun show his true colors. Let them all defy him. He is the child of the Sun, they will all kneel or they will all burn.

{Emperor Daigoro} (1276-1323), seventh and second eldest surviving son of Emperor Fukakusa following the Slaughter of the Princes, born as Prince Hisaaki, took the throne following the disposal and murder of his elder half-brother Fushimi in 1286, died during the Night of the Black Flame

Emperor Kiguri (b.1306, a.17), by Empress Takatsukasa no Yui (b.1281, a.42), born as Prince XXXX, took the throne following the Night of Black Flame
Imperial Prince Tsubai (b.1303, a.20) by Imperial Consort Konoe no Asuka (b.1279, a.44)
Imperial Princess Hanako (b.1304, a.19), by Asuka

The Monastery Princes

Emperor Fushimi was a weak puppet. A boy taken to fill the place of a man he was used by the Gaijin as a proxy to prop up their regime right until the point where he thought to challenge them. Then he was deposed and replaced by his half brother, who while far less stable was a far more palpable alternative to a man who actually knew what he was doing. Yet Fushimi's legacy lived on in his son Tanehito, a man beloved by all of the realm, rallying Shogun and Emperor alike to his cause when he lead the united Nipponese forces in the fight against the Gaijin. Yet as fate would will it, he was cut down in the hight of his youth, never to ascend the throne promised to him, taking the last shreds of his imperial uncle's sanity with him to his grave.
Yet, like his father he too left behind children. Akihito and Hirohito, two young boys, the elder already understanding their unique position in the political maneuverings of the Empire, imprisoned in a monastery right on the border between Osaka and Kyoto. Doubtless with the war between Shogun and Emperor now all but declared both will race to seize them. What shall Akihito do in this situation? His guardians doubtlessly will offer him up to whomever comes to them first. He may just have himself and his brother escape the side of his choice. Or make his own path, like his father would have. Beyond Imperial madness, beyond figurehead irrelevance. A truly imperial path.....

{Emperor Fushimi} (1265-1286), second and oldest surviving son of Emperor Fukakusa following the Slaughter of the Princes, born as Prince Hirohito. Deposed and murdered by Shogun Gaijin no Katsu.

Imperial Prince {Tanehito} (1286-1313), by Empress Ichijo no Itsuko (1271-1307), fell during the Amaterasu Rebellion
1. Imperial Prince Akihito (b.1310, a.13) by Ichijo no Kana (b.1291, a.32)
2. Imperial Prince Hirohito (b.1312, a.11) by Ichijo no Kana (b.1291, a.32)

The Hokke Fujiwaras

The Selfish Pig

Fuyuhira, the head of the Takatsukasa branch of the Fujiwaras is ceremonially, by blood, rank and prestige the second man in the Empire after the Empire. He is one of the two hungry young men of the Fujiwara clan. Hungry for power. For recognition. For vengeance. Yet despite his theoretically firm position behind his imperial nephew few can tell what is going on behind the eyes of the fattest man of Nippon. Ever carefully guarding his wealth and feasts, Fuyuhira has not taken well to the death of his brother during the Night of the Black flame. Even less well has he taken to the favouring of his nephew's bastard brother during the days following the incident. He sees his branch's ambitions threatened by a man as deranged as his father. As much a god seperated from the things that actually matter. Even worse he knows that war is coming. With only one son to his name, one relatively unassuming brother who refuses to wed on the side to carry on the name, he knows of the danger to his legacy. The Fujiwaras have often enough been swept from power by internal or external rivals and allies. Fuyuhira is determined not to let that happened. He has fattened himself on the riches of the imperial court and he does not plan to end that any time soon.

{Takatsukasa Kanetada} (1262-1302), Minister of the Palace, m.{Yui Konoe} (1264-1307)

Takatsukasa Yui (b.1281, a.42) m.{Emperor Kazuki} (1276-1323)
Takatsukasa Fuyuhira (b.1281, a.42), Minister of the Palace, Uncle to the Tenno, m.Hatakeyama Fumika (b.1281, a.429
1. Takatsukasa Fumito (b.1305, a.18)
2. {Hisako, Yui, Jinshi, Fumika} (1303, 1309-10, 1317, 1319), died young
{Takatsukasa Fuyutsume} (1282-1323), bodyguard of Emperor Daigoro, died during the Night of the Black Flame
Takatsukasa Motonori (b.1286, a.35), imperial bureaucrat
1. Yui (b.1312), a bastard
2. Ieyasu (b.1320), a bastard

The Jealous Monkey

Tsunehira is the other amibitious young man of the Fujiwara clan. Yet where his juniour branch cousin is officially bound to the Emperor, Tsunehira is bound to the imperial heir, Prince Tsubai. His father for a long time promoted the liasion and eventual formal affair between his sister Asuka and Emperor Daigoro and now finally it seems like the Konoe branch long cast aside is bound to reep the benefits from their years of investments. Already they were promoted from the relatively minor ministry of the north to the rich ministry of the west, making them the richest of all the Hokke branches. Further with the Nijo branch being virtually their puppets they are per defenition the strongest faction of bureaucrats at the imperial court. Yet while their fates are well for now, the future looks bleak. The Emperor seems determined to increasingly sideline them, as while he promoted Tsubai as his heir, it is only a question of time until his unnatural urges make him father a child of his own. Worse Tsunehira for all his ruthlessness and wealth has so far been cursed in the bed of marriage, only fathering a misbegotten dwarf to carry on his family name, making him already look for an adoptive heir to continue to legacy of the sons of heaven.

{Konoe Iemoto } (1261-1298), m.{Takatsukasa Takeko} niece and adopted sister of Kanetada

Konoe Asuka (b.1279, a.44), Imperial Consort, see above
Konoe Tsunehira (b.1287, a.36), Minister of the West, Uncle of Prince Tsubai, m.Nijo Nonoka (b.1291, a.32)
1. {Karin} (1309)
2. {Kanemoto} (1311)
3. Konoe Chiho (b.1320, a.3)
4. Konoe Futoshi (b.1321, a.2) a dwarf

The Stubborn Tiger

Tadanori refuses to die. He fought during the Gaijin invasion, losing a hand. He fought during the Amaterasu rebellion, losing the arm of a son. Yet he refuses to pass. He is the shield to the east of Kyoto ruling the lawless lands bordering the northern rebels. His is a family of fighters, his second son Kazuchika counting among the three strongest men of Nippon, his branch being generally renowned for their fighting prowess and undying loyalty to the Empire. He of course has ambitions of his own, as does his family, ambitions to humble his Fujiwara cousins and supplant them, but for now he greatest ambition is to continue to live. If not for pride, then out of spite.

Kujo no Tadanori (b.1248, a.75), Minister of the East m1.{Yuno Saionji} (1251-1311), mother of Karin and Moronori m2.Gaijin Kana (b.1263, a.60), mother of the rest

Kujo Karin (b.1270, a.53), m.Nijo Kanemoto (b.1268, a.55)
Kujo Yuno (b.1271, a.52), m.Uesugi Yoshinori (b.1263, a.60), Shugo
Kujo Moronori (b.1273, a.50), m.Ashikaga Ayami (b.1281, a.42)
1. {Kujo Nagahide} (1300)
2. Kujo Nagamichi (b.1300, a.23), twin of the former
3. {Kujo Mari} (1305-1313), died of an illness
4. {Kujo Mika} (1306)
5. {Kujo Nagatomi} (1309)
6. Kujo Naganao (b.1311, a.12)
7. {Kujo Nagamasa} (1316)
Kujo Kazuchika (b.1282, a.41), m.Nijo Yuno (b.1289, a.34)
1. {Karin} (1311)
2. Kujo Eiko (b.1314, a.9)
3. {Hiroshi} (1319)
4. {Hirohide} (1321)
{Kujo Kaguya] (1285)
Kujo Megumi (b.1288, a.35)

The Naive Goat

The Nijo are a lost cause. That at least is how their enemies see them. Their lord is an old man, who due to his love to a retainer never wed, their heir a boorish old man, next in line a hotheaded whoremonger. Indeed they are seen despite their greater power and wealth than the Ichijos as the true laughing stocks of the Empire, claiming for themselves divine blood, while being bootlickers of the Konoe's. Yet looks can be deceiving. After all Morotada was the brains behind the slaughter of the Gaijin, who saw in him their greatest ally among the Fujiwara clan. So it might just be a question of time until another song is played in these imperial halls as arrows fly to fell his enemies.

{Nijo Yoshizane} (1216-1270), m.{Konoe Kana} (1230-1299)

Nijo no Morotada (b.1254, a.69), Minister of the South
Nijo Kanemoto (b.1268, a.55), adopted son of his elder brother, m.Kujoi Karin (b.1270, a.53)
1. Nijo Yuno (b.1289, a.34), m.Kujo Kazuchika (see above)
2. Nijo Nonoka (b.1291, a.32), m.Konoe Tsunehira (b.1287, a.36)
3. Nijo Motonari (b.1300, a.23)
{Nijo Tomoko} (1271-1321) by a mistress

The Petty Snake

The Ichijo by title are the lowest of all regent clans. They held the longest to their Gaijin overlords, feared the most the return of Shogun and Emperor to their rightful place, lost their only advocate the beloved prince Tanehito during the rebellion. Worse regent Uchisane also lost his nephew Uchisane during the rebellion fighting for the wrong side, forcing him to adopt his quarelling grandnephews as heirs, trying to see to an orderly transition to his titles and honours before his passing. Yet, where others would see despair and dishonour, Uchisane sees opportunity for ascension and vengeance. He is truly a snake, lying patiently in the grass, never forgetting who tread on him, ready to strike at any ankle that presents itself to his jaws.

{Ichijo Sanetsune} (1223-1283), founder of the clan, fourth son of {Kujo Michiie} (1193-1252), m.{Shunshi Bomon} (????)

{Ichijo Ietsune} (1248-1295) m.{Momo Fujiwara} (1250-1310)
1. Ichijo no Uchisane (b.1273, a.50), Minister of the North, m.{Nijo Tomoko} (1271-1321)
  1. Ichijo Kana (b.1291, a.32), m.{Tanehito} (1286-1313), Imperial Prince, died during the Amaterasu rebellion
  2. Ichijo Atsuko (b.1293, a.30), m.{Taira Chikazane} (1260-1311)
{Ichijo Saneie} (1250-1310)
1. {Ichijo Tsunemichi} (1279-1314), a bastard, adopted son of Uchisane, died during the Amaterasu rebellion, m.Gaijin Mei (b.1286, a.37)
  1. Ichijo Katsu (b.1304, a.19), adopted son of Uchisane
  2. Ichijo Isao (b.1307, a.16), adopted son of Uchisane
  3. Ichijo Tsutomu (b.1312, a.11), adopted son of Uchisane

Ashikaga (B)

When the Mongols invaded, the Ashikaga wound being one of their prime supporters after the old Hojo Shoguns met a series of unfortunate accidents involving several suicides, a lynching or three, a couple of murders, and their ultimate overthrow, and would assume a position at the right side of the Gaijin shoguns. Yet as history tells that would not last as when the forces of Takeda, Oda and Urakami came to Osaka, putting the Gaijin under siege it would be the Ashikaga blades in the Gaijin's back that struck the decisive blow. Yoshiteru head of the clan indeed made himself a legend, when he burst out of the doors of the besieged castle wielding half a dozen swords bound together, all drenched with Mongol blood crying out to his former foes "Kneel to the heir of Minamoto or share the fate of his slayers".
Establishing themselves in Osaka, which was vacant after the Mongols were removed, the Ashikaga have since been involved in a struggle for power with the Imperial clan, which reluctantly had declared them their Shoguns, due to their far greater power than all other clans. Since then Yoshiteru has made constant efforts to extend Imperial rule across the length and breadth of Japan once more. Yet now he stands accused of murder. An accusation he cannot let slip. Not when it gives him the opportunity he always craved, the opportunity to truly become unchallenged in his rule of the empire.

{Ashikaga Ietoki} (1254-1292), m.{Uesugi Fumino} (1252-1300)

Ashikaga Yoshiteru (b.1279 a.44), Shogun of Nippon, m.Gaijin Hinata (1281, a.42)
1. Ashikaga Yurina (b.1297, a.26), m.Hatakeyama Yoshikane (b.1282, a.41)
2. Ashikaga Otoha (b.1301, a.22), m.Azai Toshitaka (b.1292, a.31)
3. Ashikaga Terumi (b.1302, a.21), m.Nara Shikamaru (b.1278, a.45)
4. Ashikaga Rika (b.1304, a.19)
5. {Ashikaga Yoshihito} (1305)
6. Ashikaga Yoshihise (b.1307, a.16)
7. {Ashikaga Yoshiie} (1310)
8. {Ashikaga Anzu} (1318)
Ashikaga Ayami (b.1281, a.42), m.Kujo Moronori (b.1273, a.50), see above
Ashikaga Iemasa (b.1288, a.35), m.Midoriya Umeko (b.1300, a.23)
1. Ashikaga Kenta (b.1320, a.3)

The Northern Lords

Akita Clan (1)

The Akita as the northernmost lords of Honshu have been largely unaffected by the Gaijin invasion. While at times they followed the call of their neighbours to rally against the foreign raids, they for the most part stuck to their own lands. Once a region of penal colonies, Mutsu had not much improved in wealth since the trickle of southern migrants had died down. Consequently the men who rule this cold land are a hardened people, much concerned with keeping the savage Ainu out of the Empire, guarding a makeshift palisade they have constructed along the northern border, ever reminding all that would hear them, that the northern winds were coming.

Akita Yamiyo (b.1288, a.35), Shugo m.Uchiha Sarada (b.1293, a.30)

Akita Haruki (b.1309, a.14)
{Akita Kotoe} (1312-1320), a blind girl, got lost in a snow storm
{Aika} (1316)
{Akimasa} (1319)

Uesugi Clan (2)

War defines men. It writes upon them with a heavy brush, every stroke of victory and defeat indelible upon their soul. The conflict controls them, directs their action and reaction, shaping and forming the path of their legacy as they walk the way it lays out for them.

Uesugi no Yoshikado was not one of those men. Originally Uesugi no Saborou, he was never intended to inherit his father's seat and rule. Echigo Province had been the domain the family took through marriage with the Nagao clan when the Mongols invaded and the Uesugi power in Kanto was broken along with the shogunate, and Kasugayama stood in stern defiance to the barbarians, a legacy intended for his elder brothers. When fever took father and sons however, there was no choice but for young Saborou to step forward.

In his elevation to Shugo Yoshikado faced opposition from his uncles and cousins, opposition he crushed in the first fortnight of his rule. They expected weakness, indecision, but the daimyo disappointed on that count. With his power base secured and the beginnings of reform and improvement to the province's administration underway he turned his attention outward. Leading cavalry raids across the border in to Mongol controlled territory the young lord proved a ruthless warrior and incisive tactician. He remained undefeated, though one clash between his command and mounted bandits in the hills of Kai remained annoying close, with both sides withdrawing in good order, but with no decisive victor.

Uesugi no Yoshikado embodied war. There was none more devoted to Bishamonten than he, and whispers among the ranks spoke of strange lights from the daimyo's tent at night, times when the lord seemed to listen to words on the wind than no others could hear, and a few who had stood shoulder to shoulder with him in the throng of battle swore he fought with the ferocity of a god. Shrines dotted the lands under his command as he sought to elevate his appearance beyond that of merely a warlord, holding lands by force, but as a patron of the arts, culture, and spiritual matters (albeit one with a very particular taste in theme).

Uesugi Yoshikado (b.1263, a.60), m.Kujo Yuno (b.1271, a.52)

Uesugi Sakura (b.1290, a.33), m.Satomi Keisuke (b.1287, a.36)
Uesugi Umeko (b.1292, a.31), m. Toshimasa Tadao (b.1288, a.35)
Uesugi Yoritomo (b.1294, a.29), m.Akita Ai (b.1302, a.21)
1. {Uesugi Yataro} (1319)
2. Uesugi Kenshin (b.1320, a.3) a very bright young boy
Uesugi Kagemochi (b.1298, a.25)
{Uesugi Kageie} (1303)
Uesugi Toyomori (b.1307, a.16)

Date Clan (3)

Established by descendants of Fujiwara no Uona who seized power in Date during the chaotic period that followed the Mongol Invasion, the Date Clan stands as one of the most powerful and fiercely independent of the Northern Lords, a Clan that is decidedly in love with the idea of having to answer to no one. Expanding outwards from the Mutsu Province over the course of several hundred years, the Date would expand their power northwards, subjugating a number of lesser powers in the process, while fending off any attempts from the south to do the same to the Date.

Led by the second son of Date Yoshitsune, Tadamasa lost sight in his left eye from disease at a young age. To keep an enemy from using this against him, he tore the damaged organ from his head with his own hands, so that no man could use it against him. With the death of his father in combat against the southern horse-lords, Tadamasa has nursed a grudge against the Mongols, one that drives him to see all of Japan restored to the Japanese, and so south into battle he must go...

However, some whisper that his dream is not his own. His wife, Nakamura Tamao, holds much sway over him and his court, and rumors say that those opposing her meet untimely, and inauspicious, deaths.

Date Tadamasa (b.1277, a.46), Shugo m.Nakamura Tamao (b.1278, a.45)

Date Eizo (b.1299, a.24)
Date Naotora (b.1302, a.21), m.Uchiha Itachi (b.1291, a.32)
Date Muneto (b.1303, a.20)
Date Terumune (b.1303, a.20)
{Date Tadamune} (1306)
{Date Tsunamune} (1308)

Toshimasa Clan (4)

When the tide of Mongols came, it fell to the Toshimasa to hold the way. Cut off from the mainland of Honshu, they were largely left forgotten on their small peninsula. Yet as the years carried on, they proved to be quite a thorn in the Gaijin's side, as living on a peninsula meant that only three key castles were enough to ensure that the Toshimasa could ignore any outside attacker, while annoying their foes with constant raids. This unique geography has enabled them to even in the days of restoration to remain the only independent northern lords not to border any of the others. It has however also bred great overconfidence in the family, which these days by many accounts think of themselves as untouchable, undefeated and beyond question in their destiny to rule Nippon.

Toshimasa Tadao (b.1288, a.35), m.Uesugi Umeko (b.1292, a.31)

Toshimasa Miyu (b.1313, a.10), b.Gamo Gamabunta (b.1291, a.32)
Toshimasa Taiki (b.1315, a.8)
Toshimasa Taka (b.1319, a.4)
Toshimasa Takafumi (b.1319, a.4), tripled of the former
{Toshimasa Takahiro}(1319), tripled of the former
{Toshimasa Tasuku} (1322)
Toshimasa Tsuru (b.1323, a.0) a sickly girl

Gamo Clan (5)

The Gamo are a reasonably old clan, descending from the Fujiwaras. Yet where their ministerial cousins sought a place within the Mongol realm, the Gamo sought one outside it. They found little success in it. Cut off from the seas, a buffer state between their more powerful neighbours from both north and south, without the prestige of their mainline cousins, the Gamo these days are a shadow of their former selves. Yet despite their comparatively lowly status and position, they are still a line of old power, their lord a man of great physical strength. And they are eager to see the south taught what the true wrath of a free lord can bring.

Gamo Gamabunta (b.1291, a.32), b.Toshimasa Miyu (b.1313, a.20)

Uchiha Clan (6)

When the Mongols came, the Uchiha were but a clan among many, backstabbing their Hojo lords for gain from the Gaijin. Then they slaughtered a Gaijin ambassador and his troops, when the Mongols tried to raise taxes from them. Their history for the past thirty years has been one of blood and betrayal, cutting out a path of their own, stabbing each that would trust them in the back, be they friends, allies or even family, as poor Shisui can attest to. Nowadays they stand as one of the stronger and richer of the independent lords, but at what price? Their gold was minted from blood, their castles build on sand, their power paid for with hatred. And it is only a question of time before their debtors come to collect.

Uchiha Madara (b.1266, a.57), Shugo, m.{Uesugi Umeko} (1267-1300), died in childbirth

Uchiha Itachi (b.1291, a.32), m.Date Naotora (b.1302, a.21)
1. {Umeko} (1319)
Uchiha Sarada (b.1293, a.30), m.Akita "The Black Fan" Yamiyo (b.1288, a.35), Shugo
Uchiha Sasuke (b.1295, a.28), a ronin
{Uchiha Shisui} (1300-1310), died in an "accident"

Satomi Clan (7)

Though not as famous or as powerful as the Date clan, the Satomi clan was established by the proud Minamoto clan that is descended from Emperor Seiwa. Through out the years the clan was able to prosper into a relatively rich province, and is able to expand out into the Kazusa province, where they were able to build a string of key fortifications on the numerous mountains.

What soon followed was the Mongol invasions, leading the nation into chaos. However the North did not bend the knee, leading to hardened veteran soldiers and led to the fierce idea of independence and loyalty through out the nobles and lords, they would bow to no other than their Daimyo. Their loyalty to their Daimyo is great, as they would follow him anywhere, even to the gates of death.

The chaos also led to the ambition of Satomi Keisuke, Shugo of the Satomi clan. Who, seen that the South had only threw of the invaders merely months ago, maybe now is his chance to become the divine Emperor and Shogun and go down in the history books as the one who united Japan.

Satomi Keisuke (b.1287, a.36), Shugo m.Uesugi Sakura (b.1290, a.33)

Satomi Shinji (b.1306, a.17)
{Satomi Sarada} (1309)
Satomi Sadayoshi (b.1309, a.14)
{Satomi Makiko} (1312)
Satomi Saburo (b.1313, a.10)
Satomi Sanji (b.1313, a.10)
Satomi Motozane (b.1318, a.5)
Satomi Tadamoto (b.1322, a.1)

Imperial Clans

East of Osaka
Oda Clan (8)

The Oda Clan began as offshoot of the Taira Clan. This small samurai clan had no home during their origins but the Mongol Invasion changed much. The Oda fought against the Mongol Horde and were forced to watch as Japan fell to these invaders. However, the Oda Clan plotted revenge. Soon another offshoot of the Taira Clan, the Edo Clan had perished after the Mongols slew the last member of the clan. the Oda's claimed the castle and town of Edo as their own. Easily seizing Edo as the Mongols preferred easier ports to use in the south, the Oda Clan soon grew in power in their small fortified port.

However, once the Mongols were successfully removed did the Emperors proclaim themselves rulers of Japan once again. Oda Naruto refused to serve those who had failed Japan and has since thrown his forces in with the Shogun. As the Oda Clan prepare to march to war, many see Naruto's son, Nobunaga as one to look out for. Wielding a bloodlust that few can match, Nobunaga seeks even more then his father to unite Japan, even if he must slaughter all those who cannot understand this. This bloodlust is a noted trait within the Oda clan and many blame the ancestral sword of the clan for it, swearing it is cursed and seeks to bathe in the blood of life itself. For now, Oda Nobunaga shall walk the battlefields wielding Tamashī-en and remake Japan in blood, or die trying.

Oda Naruto (b.1267, a.56) m.{Taira Rubi} (1271-1316)

Oda Nobunaga (b.1290, a.33), m.Nakamura Otome (b.1287, a.36)
1. {Oda Nobutada} (1310)
2. Oda Nobuko (b.1312, a.11)
3. Oda Nonoka (b.1313, a.10)
4. Oda Nagako (b.1315, a.8)
5. {Oda Nobukatsu} (1317)
6. Oda Noa (b.1322, a.1)
7. Oda Nobutaka (b.1322, a.1)
Oda Tsukiko (b.1293, a.30), m.Yagami Soichiro (b.1284, a.39)
Oda Naruhito (b.1293, a.30), m.Azai Asako (b.1295, a.28)
Oda Otohime (b.1296, a.27), m.Minamoto Masahiro (b.1292, a.31)
Oda Naoko (b.1299, a.24), m.Maeda Michihisa (b.1292, a.31)
{Oda Omi} (1301)

Yuki Clan (9)

The Yuki clan is a comparatively young one. Already having made a name for themselves under the Hojo, they rose even further in service under the Gaijin, before falling from grace upon the Amaterasu restoration. With the passing of their respected Shugo Yukitoshi rule has fallen to his weak and in decisive son Yukiteru, a fearful man by many accounts ruled by his wife Yuno, a stunningly beautiful, yet somewhat off putting woman. Deeply in love with her husband, she seems not to have taken too well to the miscarriages their marriage produced so far (though some rumour she murdered her own children in the crib for not conforming to the perfection of her Yuki), but still manages to be a greater authority and presence than her husband in their castle and lands, leading her new family with an iron fist, sidelining Yukiterus brother and heir, not the least because of his comparatively childrich union with a Minamoto a clan her own has ever been in feud with.

{Yuki Yukitoshi} (1257-1318), m.{Toshinaga Tokiko} (1255-1284)

Yuki Fuyumi (b.1276, a.47), m.Hyuga Hizashi (b.1274, a.49)
Yuki Yukiteru (b.1282, a.41), Shugo, m.Hatakeyama Yuno (b.1289, a.34)
1. {Yuki Yukiko} (1316)
2. {Yuki Yukiteru} (1319)
3. {Yuki Yukiteru} (1321)
4. {Yuki Yukiko} (1323)
{Yuki Yukihiro} (1284)
Yuki Yukitaka (b.1284, a.39), twin of the former, m.Minamoto Mihoko (b.1282, a.41)
1. {Yuki Yuto} (1304)
2. {Yuki Yusei} (1306)
3. Yuki Yoshimasa (b.1309, a.14)
4. Yuki Yuri (b.1312, a.11)
5. {Yuki Yurina} (1314)

Hojo Clan (10)

With the fall of the Hojo shogunate at the hands of the Mongols, a vicious reprisal was lead against the Hojo dynasty leading to the massacre of every last man, woman and child, along with the burning to the ground of Izu city. The clan was believed to be wiped out. However a single survivor of the genocide against the Hojo lived, Hojo Ikue was visiting her mother's family in southern Izu and was able to disguise herself as a simple peasant. Hojo Ikue spent 7 years in hiding under a false name during which time she fell in love with a humble family retainer more skilled with the hammer than the sword bearing him two sons Daishin and Fuyuki and two daughters Hina and Michiko. In the 7th year of her exile among the peasants she was recognised by one of her father's forma retainers whilst he was living of the land trying to disrupt the efforts of the Mongols to assert dominance over Izu province. Upon seeing that there was still a legitimate Hojo dynasty still remaining even if it was a remnant of its former glory. Using Hojo Ikue as a figure head he gathered what few Hojo retainers were left and encamped with them in the ruins of Izu city leading guerrilla raids against the occupying Mongolians. It is said that the ancestors of the Hojo marched to war alongside their descendants, the warriors faces as white as their funeral ashes. This lead to a demoralising effect running through the occupying forces.
When the time came for a more organised insurrection against the Mongols Hojo Daishin marched an army through the Izu City, the warriors of the Hojo supplementing their numbers with new blood, their faces still dirty from the roads and fields they once wandered.

Hojo Ichigo (b.1275, a.48), m.Hojo Ikue (b.1273, a.50)

{Hojo Hina} (1288-1315), m.Nakamura Shinsuke (b.1291, a.32)
Hojo Daishin (b.1295, a.28), m.Mori Ran (b.1307, a.16)
1. Hojo Ikue (b.1323, a.0)
Hojo Fuyuki (b.1300, a.23)
Hojo Michiko (b.1303, a.20), m.Takeda Katashi (b.1291, a.32)

Takeda Clan (11)

During the invasion of the Mongols during the 1270s, the Takeda family faced destruction at the hands of the invaders limitless numbers. Despite their valour in the ferocious resistance to the invaders as they entered the Takeda homeland of Kai, the family soon found themselves forced from their stronghold of Kōfu, a garrison placed within to guard the strategic Kōshū Kaidō road through the mountain passes. Unwilling to surrender nor cease the war till the invaders were driven from his home, the newly inherited leader of the clan, the still young Takeda Shinobu gathered together the remainder of his warriors and withdrew into the edges of the mountain valleys, ambushing enemy patrols and preventing the collection of taxes. Their actions have since ingrained themselves into local folklore, the tale of the young lord's righteous struggle against a larger force occupying his home having been romanticized with many an element extravasated to the point of what was often a minor skirmish having become a larger full scale battle in which the often heavily outnumbered Takeda either defeat their enemies through sheer skill and willpower or a clever trick, before disappearing into the mountain paths before a response can be mustered by the Mongolian occupiers. The ability to hide from those whom meant Shinobu and his men ill can be summarized due to the factors of local knowledge and support from the local peasantry, ever uneasy with the more tyrannical foreign occupiers, the Takeda attacks on tax collectors often mistaken as a form of benevolent guardianship, rather than the means to sustain a force of samurai despite lacking a formal power base beyond the token gestures given to the now entrenched bandit chief. It is also rumoured that he was given the aid by a spirit of some kind, though the details vary from a Kenku impressed with his ability,to a Snow Maiden having fallen in love with the young man, giving her blessing to guide him through the mountains and to keep her lover safe. In this time Shinobu managed to acquire several children of his own, though details of his wife's origins and her fate are fragmentary at best.

As a more coordinated rebellion against Mongolian rule took place, Shinobu took the opportunity to seize back control of his family's stronghold and organised a general uprising across Kai Province, cutting off the escape Mongolian forces within the Kantō region and preventing their access to the mountains, where the terrain favored the more adept infantry of the Samurai. From there on the Takeda forces supported the Japanese rebellion in forcing the Mongolians out, acting in concert with the other warlords. As victory was achieved, Shinobu changed his name in celebration to one that marked the occasion, rechristening himself in true Japanese nobility fashion as Takeda Katsu, the Mountain Wolf of Kai.

{Takeda Kenta} (1242-1284) Lord of Kofu, slain in battle with Mongols, m. {Miwa Asa} (1250-1285)

Takeda Katsu (b.1269, a.54), Mountain Wolf of Kai, Shugo, m."Yuki-onna"/ Takeda Yuki (MIA)
1. Takeda Katashi (b. 1291, a.32) m. Hōjō Michiko (b. 1303, a.20).
  1. {Takeda Youta} (1320)
  2. Takeda Michi (b. 1323, a.0)
2. Takeda Ryou (b. 1298, a.25) m. Nakamura Akasuki (b. 1301, a.22).
  1. {Takeda Yuki} (1317
  2. Takeda Daisuke (b. 1319, a.4)
  3. {Takeda Tomaya} (1320)
  4. Takeda Akasuki (b.1322, a.1)
3. Takeda Fuyoko (b. 1305, a.17) Married to Yagami Haruki (b.1308, a.15)
Takeda Jirou (b. 1275, a. 48), Karo to the Takeda Clan, married to lesser retainer
1. {Takeda Temari} (1300)
2. Takeda Toru (b.1304, a.19)
3. Takeda Asa (b.1307, a.16)
4. {Takeda Takeko} (1310)
Takeda Asuka (b.1276, a.47), m.Sanada Matsumoto (1266-1321)
Takeda Akihiko (b.1277, a.46), Yojimbo to Takeda Katsu, married to lesser retainer
1. Takeda Fumi (b.1302, a.21), m.Midoriya Izuku (b.1299, a.24)
2. Takeda Tadakatsu (b.1306, a.17) a member of the order of the monkey
3. Takeda Tsukiko (b.1308, a.15)
4. Takeda Takehito (b.1310, a.13)

Nakamura Clan (12)

For a long time the Nakamura clan were mostly known for their renowned artists. Talented with the brush and musical instruments they became virtual rock stars of the Empire, Shugo Nobunao often playing even at the imperial palace despite his comparatively humble origins. Yet this reputation swiftly changed when Shinsuke was given the opportunity to make a name for himself. Having succeeded in place of his confused elder brother he proved during the Amaterasu rebellion to be while still appreciative of the finer arts much more prone to using his sword when settling disputes including one legendary duel with Kikkawa Minoru himself. While the young Shugo would lose this encounter he was shown great praise by the Lonely Warrior, leading to his reputation spreading across all of Japan. Yet with that also come trouble. After all if one is a legendary warrior, many a young eager swordsman seeks to prove themselves by defeating you. And with no suitable heir to your lands and castle in your line, it may not be long until the Nakamura are once more reduced to being the ones singing the songs, not the ones being immortalized in them.

{Nakamura Nobunao} (1258-1302), Shugo m.{Oda Otome} (1261-1312)

Nakamura Tamao (b.1278, a.45), m.Date Tadamasa (b.1277, a.46)
{Nakamura Natsumi} (1280)
Nakamura Shinkichi (b.1282, a.41), a simpleton
1. Nakamura Akasuki (b.1301, a.22) m.Takeda Ryou (b. 1298, a.25)
{Nakamura Shingo} (1286)
Nakamura Otome (b.1287, a.36), m.Oda Nobunaga (b.1290, a.33)
{Nakamura Hana} (1288)
{Nakamura Shitaro} (1289)
Nakamura Miki (b.1290, a.33), m.Mori Kogoro (b.1280, a.43)
Nakamura Shinsuke (b.1291, a.32), m.Hojo Hina (1288-1315)
1. Nakamura Toru (b.1305, a.18), a fat fun loving man
2. Nakamura Nami (b.1305, a.18), m.Sanada Seiya (b.1294, a.29)
3. {Nakamura Shinako} (1309)
4. {Nakamura Shiina} (1311)
5. Nakamura Shuta (b.1313, a.10), a simpleton
6. {Nakamura Sayako} (1315)
{Nakamura Shinzo} (1293)

Mori Clan (13)

Kogoro is a highly intelligent man. After all it was he who bravely figured out mere months before the end of the Amaterasu rebellion that it had been the Mongols who had murdered his parents all those years ago! Further he also flawlessly deduced that his daughter Ran had run off with the Hojo heir after she left a letter in her room saying that she left to be with the man he loved! Indeed he is even capable enough to figure out that clearly the farmer pleading that a storm destroyed his crops during one of the calmest seasons in years clearly had been the victim of a spirit, sparing the poor man from any punishment for not paying his taxes. Kogori is the smartest of all people, unlike his bore of a son, who keeps trying to tell him how to do his job, what does he know after all? He only reads all the time.

Mori Kogoro (b.1280, a,43), m.Nakamura Miki (1290-1311)

Mori Ran (b.1307, a.16), m.Hojo Daishin (b.1295, a.28)
Mori Shinichi (b.1308, a.15)
{Mori Yusaku} (1308) twin of the former
Mori Matsuo (b.1311, a.12)

Yagami Clan (14)

Soichiro is a man known for his honour, his integrity and his loyalty. When during the Amaterasu rebellion his Oda in-laws laid siege to his castle, he refused to give it up for months only surrendering when the news of the fall of Osaka reached his ears. And even then he was ready to commit honourable seppuku until talked down by the pleas of his young son Haruki. This has earned him the admiration and respect of many of his neighbours, even his foes and rivals never speaking ill of his character. Indeed for the Yagami clan things seem to be moving only in the best of directions as young Haruki is proving a quite bright young man, quite fittingly given his name's meaning. And indeed he always seems to have a keikaku laid out for any situation.

Yagami Soichiro (b.1284, a.39), m.Oda Tsukiko (b.1293, a.30)

Yagami Haruki (b.1308, a.15), m.Takeda Fuyoko (b.1301, a.22)
{Yukiteru} (1311)
{Tsukiko} (1313)
Yagami Sayu (b.1315, a.8)
{Yuri} (1316)

Taira Clan (15,17)

The Taira have fallen a long way. Once one of the four noble families of Nippon, they are now but one of many Shugo, surviving by praising whoever happen to hold sway in Kyoto at the time. Worse, the main branch under their boy ruler Takeshi and his castle have become public jokes, being little more than the military arm of their Ichijo Fujiwara cousins.
Takeshi's uncle Teruki to the far north meanwhile has been burdened with the far poorer half of the family lands along with a boorish, friendly son, far removed from such things as ambition or hunger for power, mostly seeming content to let the world trot on him as he smiles back at the boots stomping on his heart and back. Yet, Teruki has not given up hope that one day Goro shall realize that he deserves more than being the best friend of the main character, that he himself can grasp hold of his family's destiny and forge it as he sees fit.

{Taira Yamabe} (1230-1282), m.??????

{Taira Chikazane} (1260-1311), m.Ichijo Atsuko (b.1293, a.30)
1. Taira Takeshi (b.1310, a.13) Shugo "The Imperial Cousin"
2. {Taira Eri} (1312)
3. {Taira Miho} (1314)
4. Taira Taketo (b.1317, a.6)
5. {Taira Tetsuya} (1320)
Taira Teruki (b.1266, a.57), Shugo m.Toshinaga Junko (b.1275, a.48)
1. {Taira Tetsu} (1295)
2. {Taira Mikiko} (1296)
3. Taira Junko (b.1299, a.24), m.Maeda Mitsuru (b.1292, a.31)
4. Taira Amane (b.1300, a.23), m.Suzumiya Kyon (b.1299, a.24)
5. Taira Goro (b.1304, a.19)
{Taira Rubi} (1271-1316), m.Naruto Oda (b.1267, a.56)

Sanada Clan (16)

Eita was once a friendly, courteous young man. Eager to please, to smile and dance. Indeed while Japan slaughtered itself during the Amaterasu rebellion, he was busy staying in a monastery refusing to take the side of anyone, content to meditate on the fate of young tigers in the times of meagre game. Then two years ago his father tried to reason with the Shugo of Toshinaga to open up their trade routes to Sanada men. He came to their court carrying gifts and friendly words. He returned home, with everything beneath his neck removed, the Haiku he had written for the Toshinaga stuffed into his mouth. Eita has not been the same man since that day. He has had his father's skull preserved, presenting to any guest as a reminder of the injustice done to his clan, adopting for himself the title "The Skull of the Cold Mountains", swearing eternal vengeance on those that wronged him, be they the Shugo who gave the order, the samurai who made the chop or the Emperor and Shogun who looked the other way in the name of peace. There is only one loyalty he knows anymore and it is to the Azai, who eagerly have fed his cold hate for these past two years. And now finally he feels like it is time to paint the snows of the north red with Toshinaga blood.

{Sanada Matsumoto} (1266-1321), m.Takeda Asuka (b.1276, a.47)

Sanada Seiya (b.1294, a.29), m.Nakamura Nami (b.1305, a.18)
{Sanada Asa} (1296)
Sanada Eita (b.1298, a.25), m.Azai Amane (b.1301, a.22)
1. Sanada Kankuro (b.1317, a.6)
2. {Sanada Katsuji} (1319)
3. Sanada Katsuki (b.1319, a.4), twin of the former
{Sanada Hideo} (1300-1310)
Sanada Asao (b.1301, a.22)
{Sanada Asuka} (1303)

Maeda Clan (18)

The Maeda have always hated the Gaijin. Yes, they lead many attacks on the Toshimasa during the days of the Shogunate, but that was in the name of reuniting the Empire. Yes, they accepted honours and priviliges a plenty, but that was only to prepare for their eventual betrayal of their foreign masters. Yes, they only switched sides once the Gaijin had been slaughtered in Kyoto and when the Taira threatened to burn down their castles, but that was only because young Mitsuru had not yet realized his great love for the young Taira daughter. No man can doubt the true devotion the Maeda hold for the new regime now holding sway in Kyoto, and if one does, he best does it far away from their lands, as it is not unheard of for many a man to lose their tongues and eyes for speaking ill or looking wrong and this noble family.

Maeda Hidemasa (b.1271, a.52), m.Kikkawa Kumiko (b.1270, a.53)

Maeda Mitsuru (b.1292, a.31), m.Junko Taira (b.1299, a.24)
1. Maeda Ai (b.1316, a.7)
2. Maeda Aiko (b.1317, a.6)
3. Maeda Akio (b.1319, a.4)
4. Maeda Aimi (b.1321, a.2)
5. Maeda Airi (b.1323, a.0)
{Maeda Ichiko} (1294)
{Maeda Masae} (1296)
Maeda Mika (b.1299, a.24), m.Yamaguchi Yataro (b.1298, a.25)
Maeda Michihisa (b.1292, a.31) a bastard, m.Oda Naoko (b.1299, a.24)
1. Maeda Haruko (b.1320, a.3)
2. {Maeda Kozue} (1322)
3. Maeda Asuna (b.1323, a.0) a dim girl

Toshinaga (19)

The Toshinaga are a particular people. Their avarice is legendary, with them proverbially and often literally turning over every coin in their possesion thrice to ensure its authencity.
This comes from their key position in the lands east of Kyoto. Lying at the crossroads between four greater families, it falls to them to control the flow of trade between those regions and indeed that towards the capital, often seducing their Shugo to raise arbitrary and often spontaneous tolls on any wares that happen to cross their borders. What would have earned others long ago swift and brutal retribution has in these troubled times only lead to greater and greater accumulation of wealth in the halls of the Toshinaga as they have ever maintained a position of neutrality to nearly every fight that arose, aiding both the Gaijin as well as providing swords to Takeda bandits during the occupation, sending one son to fight for the rebellion and one for the Mongols during the rebellion and now being wed to all noteable families that surround them, while flipping their nose at all of them. There is no telling if this shall last or if for once it shall be the Toshinaga who shall have to pay their outstanding debts.

{Toshinaga Ryo} (1252-1307), m.{Minamoto Rin} (1254-1309)

Toshinaga Junko (b.1275, a.48), m.Taira Teruki (b.1266, a.57)
{Saburo}
{Rin}
Toshinaga Tsunemoto (b.1281, a.42), m.Azai Akemi (b.1286, a.37)
1. Toshinaga Yasu (b.1306, a.17)
2. Toshinaga Tsubasa (b.1309. a.14)
3. {Ume} (1314)
4. Toshinaga Yamato (b.1316)
5. Toshinaga Yoshiro (b.1319)
Toshinaga Takuma (b.1282, a.41), m.Sasuki Sayu (b.1292, a.31)
1. Toshinaga Tomomi (b.1312, a.11)
2. Toshinaga Shun (b.1317, a.6)
3. Toshinaga Taro (b.1321, a.2)
4. {Sora} (1323)
{Rin}
{Suzume}

Hatakeyama (20)

Hatakeyama Yoshikane is a conflicted man. As cousin of the Shogun, he owes him his loyalty, as his son-in-law he owes his daughter his love, as his geographic ally he owes him his support. Still did he not owe these same things to the Gaijin? DId they not enable his late father and with that his whole minor branch of a minor branch of the Minamoto clan to climb as high as they did? And how did that end? With the betrayal of the Hatakeyama, with their complicity in the murders the Fujiwara perpetuated. With the siege of Osaka, where Yoshikane personally beheaded the garrison commander after that man with greater loyalty than he had surrendered. Once Yoshikane believed in causes. In people. In kamis. Now he does not know. He just stares in flames as black as those that consumed the imperial palace but a few weeks ago and ponders the world. And what he should do. Caught between his Emperor and his family he waits for an answer. And now it seems like a strange woman, brought to these lands by the Mongols. carrying a strange pendant around her neck showing the symbol of a dead man claims to have the answer for him. A new kami. One that came to this earth to wash away all sins. A cleansing Yoshikane is eager to accept.

{Hatakeyama Hiro} (1258-1292), m.Minamoto Mina (b.1260, a.63)

Hatakeyama Fumika (b.1281, a.42), m.Takatsukasa Fuyuhira (b.1281, a.42)
Hatakeyama Yoshikane (b.1282, a.41), m.Ashikaga Yurina (b.1297, a.26)
1. Hatakeyama Hiraku (b.1316, a.7)
2. Hatakeyama Cho (b.1319, a.4)
Hatakeyama Yuno (b.1289, a.34), m.Yuki Yukiteru (b.1282, a.41)
Hatakeyama Souma (b.1290, a.33), m.Sasuki Natsuki (b.1287, a.36)
1. Hatakeyama Hibiki (b.1308, a.15)
2. Hatakeyama Ichiro (b.1309, a.14)
3. {Kaito} (1310)
4. Hatakeyama Ken (b.1316, a.7)
5. Hatakeyama Emi (b.1321, a.2)

Minamoto Clan (21)

The Minamoto are the rightful Shoguns. They know it, the Emperor knows it, their Ashikaga cousins know it. By the kamis even the Gaijin knew it, while even they were ever eager to shower favours and titles on this eldest of the noble families to guarantee their support during the years of the occupation. After all it was not just the rights from the old Kamakura days that supported the Minamoto prestige, it were also the many cadet branches of this family, including Odas, Hatakeyamas and more. Now, as the Sakura wars are breaking out, the Minamoto stand at the edge of the greatest opportunity of the past decades of their rule. They are rich, lead by a strong charismatic young man, married to their Oda cousins, with plenty of heirs, while maintaining a close friendship to their distant cousin the Shogun himself.
And yet in all this seeming utopia there is one issue. As while the marriage of Masahiro and Otohime has been blessed with many children over the years, it was never a warm one. And the Oda have long ago noticed that no friend or favourite stands as close to the Shogun as Masahiro does.

Minamoto Masahiro (b.1292, a.31), m.Oda Otohime (b.1296, a.27)

{Yoriyasu} (1313)
Minamoto Mitsuyuki (b.1314, a.9)
{Yorifusa} (1314)
Minamoto Kayoko (b.1315, a.8)
{Yorito} (1318)
Minamoto Mika (b.1320, a.3)
{Yoritoshi} (1322)
{Shigemune} (1323)

Sasuki Clan (22)

In a land ruled by betrayal and brutality the Sasuki are a strange exception. They are content. They grow flowers. They write poetry of love and beauty. And to many, they are already sure to be the first to be slaughtered by the wolves that circle these foolish lambs.

{Sasuki Reiji} (1259-1314), m.{Nagatsukasa Noa} (1263-1315)

Sasuki So (b.1286, a.37), m.{Yamaguchi Fuyumi} (1292-1310
1. Sasuki Shunji (b.1310, a.13)
Sasuki Natsuki (b.1287, a.36), m.Hatakeyama Souma (b.1290, a.33)
Sasuki Sayu (b.1292, a.31), m.Toshinaga Takuma (b.1282, a.41)

Yamaguchi Clan (23)

The Yamaguchi have come a long way. Wataru once had been little more than a kingpin, smuggling weapons, drugs and other contraband in the times of the Gaijin empire. Then slowly his influence grew, until one fateful day during the Amaterasu rebellion where he came face to face with Emperor Daigoro himself. After tasting some of Wataru's product the son of heaven immediately declared the Yamaguchi a long lost noble clan, raising them to the eastern shield of the capital, to protect the Emperor both from enemies and nightmares. Now they stand as vicious lapdogs to the Yamato clan, looked down on by all but the holy throne itself, but they are content with that as it reminds them of their origins and the value it can have to somehow imply a threat instead of speaking openly. After all those are some nice castles their neighbours have. And it would be a shame if someone were to set them on fire.

Yamaguchi Wataru (b.1273, a.50), m.Urakami Chitose (b.1274, a.49)

{Yamaguchi Fuyumi} (1292-1310), m.Sasuki So (b.1286, a.37)
Yamaguchi Megu (b.1297, a.26), m.Tobita Tetsuya (b.1282, a.41)
Yamaguchi Yataro (b.1298, a.25), m.Maeda Mika (b.1299, a.24)
1. Yamaguchi Miiko (b.1320, a.3)
2. {Yahiro} (1321)
Yamaguchi Choki (b.1300, a.23), m.Ikari Asuka(b.1303, a.20)
1. {Yugi} (1323)
Yamaguchi Banri (b.1301, a.22), m.Kikkawa Kaguya (b.1307, a.16)
Yamaguchi Ichiro (b.1303, a.20)

Azai Clan (50)

The Azai are a family of honour integrity and loyalty. They ever supported the side that currently has power. They are great warriors that never stabbed anyone in the back, only ever in the front. Young Toshitaka lost his right eye defending a poor Mongol maiden from being raped during the liberation of Kyoto, not as others claimed to that same girl. Most importantly they would never, ever dream of worshipping the shadows or seek to gain for themselves powers that men are not meant to hold.

Azai Kin (b.1268, a.55), m.{Koide Kanako} (1271-1312)

Azai Akemi (b.1286, a.37), m.Toshinaga Tsunemoto (b.1281, a.42)
Azai Toshitaka (b.1292, a.31), "The Bloodeye" m.Ashikaga Otoha (b.1301, a.22)
1. Azai Hisamasa (b.1319, a.4)
2. Azai Mao (b.1320, a.3)
3. Azai Sukamasa (b.1322, a.1)
Azai Asako (b.1295, 28), m.Oda Naruhito (b.1293, a.30)
Azai Amane (b.1301, a.22), m.Sanada Eita (b.1298, a.25)

Midoriya Clan (24)

The Midoriya rule lands which were heavily devasted during both the Gaijin invasion, occupation and eventual repulsion. Which makes their situation even worse is that they have become the laughing stock of Nippon after their heir Izuku broke his arm in a common tussle with some bandits instead of a great battle with a rival or Mongol savage. Since then five years have passed, the Midoriyas have lived their lives quietly, shying away from any grand stage, merely content with having wed one of their daughters to the family that through sheer luck happened to become Shoguns. Now war is on the horizon and it remains to be seen how much things for the perpetual underdog of Japan have changed.

Midoriya Katamori (b.1272, a.51), m.Kinoshita Kanna (b.1273, a.50)

Midoriya Mayura (b.1295, a.28), m.Kasami Kazuhisa (b.1288, a.35)
Midoriya Izuku (b.1299, a.24), m.Takeda Fumi (b.1302, a.21)
Midoriya Umeko (b.1300, a.23), Ashikaga Iemasa (b.1288, a.35)

Lands West of Osaka

Nagatsuka Clan (25)

The Nagatsuka are a clan that thinks of family. After all, wedged into a small circle of land next to Emperor and Shogun, surrounded by more noteable and powerful clans it is best to look towards family, to ones wife, ones children and siblings. What happens though if siblings disagree? What happens when children are plenty on one side of the family and sparse in the other? What happens when bonds of family fail and causes greater than blood interfere? What indeed will happen when Seika and Sakyo turn on each other?

{Nagatsuka Eiji} (1239-1279), m.{Morihei Tsukiko} (1240-1311)

{Nagatsuka Noa} (1263-1315), m.{Sasuki Reiji} (1259-1314)
{Nagatsuka Riasa} (1266-1312), m.Ikari Gendo (b.1260, a.63)
{Kazunori} (1268)
Nagatsuka Ririho (b.1269, a.54), m.{Koide Kentarou} (1258-1311)
Nagatsuka Seika (b.1271, a.52), Shugo m.{Ukida Acha} (1282-1308)
1. Nagatsuka Asuma (b.1301, a.22)
2. {Atsuma} (1302)
3. {Acha} (1304)
4. {Atsumu} (1308)
Nagatsuka Sakyo (b.1273, a.50), m.Shiba Kanna (b.1288, a.35)
1. {Sayu} (1308)
2. Nagatsuka Eiichi (b.1310, a.13)
3. Nagatsuka Eijirou (b.1311, a.12)
4. Nagatsuka Erino (b.1312, a.11)
5. {Kanna} (1314)
6. Nagatsuka Einosuke (b.1316, a.7)
7. Nagatsuka Eisuke (b.1318, a.5)
8. Nagatsuka Eita (b.1321, a.2)

Tobita Clan (26)

Tetsuya doesnt care about the civil war. To be perfectly true he did not care much for the last one. Or the years of fighting before that. He does not even care much for his wife, not having left his room for the birth of their two latest children. He spends his days reading ancient scrolls, admiring art and eating cheap food. In the beginning servants and retainers tried to get him to leave his room. These days the smell keeps them away. Tetsuya is happy with that. It gives him more time to read and fantasize about maidens from old stories.

Tobita Tetsuya (b.1282, a.41), m.Yamaguchi Megu (b.1297, a.26)

Tobita Dino (b.1316, a.7)
Tobita Taikuu (b.1318, a.5)
Tobita Takagi (b.1319, a.4)

Urakami Clan (27)

Mango Urakami is a serious man. Determined to make his family respected he does not put up with any foolishness, childishness, dreams or fantastic talk. Which of course has left him quite at odds with his disinherited elder brother, who claims to speak to cats, spending his days tending to some koi in the family gardens, not even flattering his brother's hatred by responding with any form of political rivalry or intrigue, just happily stroking his cats and feeding his fish. And yet for some strange reason any and all attempts to have Nakata killed have failed miserably. Almost like reality itself is protecting him.

{Urakami Nakata} (1251-1286), Shugo, m.Kusanagi Kokoro (1250-1313)

{Neri} (1271)
{Urakami Nishi} (1272-1308), m.Abe Shinzo (b.1275, a.48)
{Urakami Masahiro} (1273-1288) Shugo
Urakami Chitose (b.1274, a.49), m.Yamaguchi Wataru (b.1273, a.50)
{Urakami Manoto} (1276-1302), Shugo m.Nara Tamako (b.1280, a.43)
1. Urakami Uchisane (b.1298, a.25)
2. Urakami Chihoshi (b.1300, a.23)
Urakami Nakata (b.1278, a.45), a strange man
{Reikai} (1282)
Urakami Mango (b.1283, a.40), Shugo, m.Nara Tamako (b.1280, a.43)
1. Urakami Amari??? (1303, a.20)
2. Urakami Mama (b.1304, a.19)
3. Urakami Tsurugi (b.1305, a.18)

Suzumiya Clan (28)

The Suzumiya clan are a happy family. The parents are in love. They care greatly for their children, especially their eldest daughter a beautiful, talented young girl, spending their time going on educational adventures with them, never leaving the confines of the happy family lands. Any interloper is immediately caught. They just wish to be left alone as time ticks by. After all, there is nothing beyond their borders that would interest them or their beloved little girl. Indeed the Suzumiya Clan are a happy family. The parents are in love. They care greatly for their children, especially their eldest daughter a beautiful, talented young girl, spending their days going on educational adventures with them, never leaving the confines of the happy family lands. Any interloper is immediately caught. They just wish to be left alone as time ticks by. After all, there is nothing beyond their borders that would interest them or their beloved little girl. No man can doubt that the Suzumiya Clan are a happy family. The parents are in love. They care greatly for their children, especially their eldest daughter a beautiful, talented young girl, spending their days going on educational adventures with them, never leaving the confines of the happy family lands. Any interloper is immediately caught. They just wish to be left alone as time ticks by. After all, there is nothing beyond their borders that would interest them or their beloved little girl.

{Suzumiya Itsuko} (1249-1308), m.{Umezawa Umeko} (1258-1311)

Suzumiya Saburo (b.1278, a.45), Shugo m.Chosokabe Chiho (b.1280, a.43)
1. Suzumiya Kyon (b.1299, a.24), m.Taira Amane (b.1300, a.23)
  1. Suzumiya Haruhi (b.1321, a.2)
  2. {Hinata} (1321), twin of the former
  3. Suzumiya Amane (b.1322, a.1)
  4. Suzumiya Kairi (b.1323, a.0)
2. Suzumiya Kankuro (b.1303, a.20)
3. Suzumiya Haruhi (b.1306, a.17)
4. {Kintaro} (1307)
5. Suzumiya Kirito (b.1310, a.13)
6. {Hinata} (1312)
7. Suzumiya Hiro (b.1313, a.10), a bright boy
Suzumiya Haruhi (b.1280, a.43), m.Ikari Shinji (b.1282, a.41)
Suzumiya Shiho (b.1284, a.39), m.Koide Kiba (b.1283, a.40)

Ikari Clan (29)

Gendo's life has been dominated by disappointment. His wive hates him. His only son a whiny little boy, even in his adult age, somehow getting himself a beautiful intelligent wife Gendo had picked more for himself to look at than for Shinji to bed. And then that woman went on to give Gendo only granddaughters, one a bratty numbskull, the other a deadeyed puppet and the last an insane bitch believing herself to be a man. Nothing of this is of course Gendo's fault or that of his parenting. He has just been disappointed by incompetent fools.

Ikari Gendo (b.1260, a.63), m.Nagatsuka Ria (b.1266, a.57)

Ikari Shinji (b.1282, a.41) m.Suzumiya Haruhi (b.1280, a.43)
1. {Yoko} (1299)
2. {Hayahiko} (1300)
3. Ikari Asuka (b.1303, a.20), m.Yamaguchi Choki (b.1300, a.23)
4. Ikari Rei (b.1306, a.17), m.Morihei Matsuda (b.1302, a.21)
5. Ikari Kamina (b.1307, a.16), a rebellious maiden

Kikkawa Clan (30)

The Kikkawa Clan is synonymous with one man, Kikkawa Minoru. The Lonely Warrior. The Cold Wind. The Monster of the Red Coast. The One in Ten Thousand And One. The Bald Demon. The Butcher of Hiroshima. There have been many names given to this legendary warrior, but few manage to truly capture his legend. One of the three foremost fighters of this era he has by legend killed over four hundred men in personal combat, being the only man in all of Japan to claim to be undefeated in personal combat, often even claiming that his back has apart from sleep never touched the ground of this earth. This is according to a life long goal to "Become like the wind", breaking the shackles of the ground and fly free as a bird would.
The Monkey of the Mount fights for the fun of it. Kujo Kazuchika because he believes it falls to him to carry the Empire on his shoulders. Minoru knows no such limits or lowly contentness. He fights because he wants something for himself. Because of something he knows. That he is the best. And that any who step up to challenge that are only deserving of the most creative death he can give them.

{Kikkawa Kiguri} (1249-1311), m.{Ouchi Otohime} (1250-1302)

Kikkawa Kumiko (b.1270, a.53), m.Maeda Hidemasa (b.1271, a.52)
Kikkawa Minoru (b.1276, a.47), "The Lonely Warrior", m.Sakura Sakura (b.1280, a.43)
1. Kikkawa Kaguya (b.1307, a.16), m.Yamaguchi Banri (b.1301, a.22)
2. Kikkawa Shieru (b.1310, a.13)

Koide Clan (31)

The Koide clan is particular for Nippon as it lacks one clear Shugo that leads the family. Kiba, the elder of the two brothers is of course given the due respect by his younger partner, but he is merely the political face of the clan, a man more given to speaking publically, to inspire the men, to care for the common folk. Dark skinned from his frequent riding through the lands of the family and personal attention given to matters of every person, Kiba is indeed among the most beloved Shugo of the Empire. Still he is a man followed by constant melancholy. His father passed shortly before the rebellion of an ill stomach, his mother, already signed by the birth of his brother went mad from grief, rejecting both of her sons to lock herself in her chambers, denying that she ever brought forth "such children of shadow that stalk the halls of their Father Light". And indeed while the common folk and their retainers love them, some of their neighbours would quite agree. After all did not the kamis strike Kintaro with the milky white skin and red eyes of a demon? Is he not a man ruled by a seeming unquenchable thirst for blood, even taking from his brother the position of leader of the clan military? Is he not spiteful, cruel and petty, forever cursing the world that as he claims rejects him for what he is?
Thus even as the sons of the mother in the dark chambers have the love of their people, they are like lepers to their neighbours and peers only knowing each other and the hope that one day their mother shall return to them.

{Koide Kentarou} (1258-1311), m.Nagatsuka Ririho (b.1269, a.54)

Koide Kiba (b.1283, a.40), "The Black Bow" m.Suzumiya Shiho (b.1284, a.39)
1. {Ko} (1302)
2. Koide Yoshine (b.1303, a.20), m.Sakura Yuki (b.1289, a.34)
3. {Yukii} (1306)
4. Koide Kodai (b.1307, a.16)
5. {Konoha} (1310)
6. Koide Koju (b.1311, a.12)
7. {Yukia & Yuino} (1314) twins
Koide Kintaro (b.1287, a.36), "The White Blade" m.Nara Temari (b.1292, a.31)
1. Koide Shigemi (b.1312, a.11)
2. Koide Shitora (b.1314, a.9)
3. {Sayami} (1318)
4. {Suzuki} (1320)

Ukida Clan (32)

The Ukida clan are one of the more recent additions to the noble families of Japan. Once having served as the personal ninja of the Emperors themselves they were key to the Feast of Blood which saw the last Gaijin shogun slaughtered along with most his family. Afterwards they had hoped to enjoy a lengthy retirement as things settled back into peace and orderly rule. However it seems like the gods do not wish for the story of these ninjas to end here as messengers from both emperor and shogun arrive at the Ukida clan asking for the services of their men, to maybe end this war before it even started.

Ukida Raizo (b.1251, a.72), m.KIode Kana (b.1252, a.1299)

Ukida Otohime (b.1272, a.51), m.Kinoshita Kota (b.1270, a.53)
Ukida Masahito (b.1278, a.45), m.Shiba Sayami (b.1280, a.43)
1. Ukida Negai (b.1301, a.22), m.Abe Chuhei (b.1300, a.23)
2. Ukida Uchisane (b.1302, a.21), m.Kinoshita Kana (b.1302, a.21)
  1. {Kana & Sayami} (1319) twins
{Ukida Ukida} (1282-1308), m.Nagatsuka Seika (b.1271, a.52)

Shiba Clan (33)

Eisuke is just a young man, indeed the youngest Shugo in all Japan that rules in his own right. Yet already he has the temper of a man four times his age, by many being referred to as "The Red Pixie" for his eternally enraged face. His grandfather died fighting the Mongols, as did his father. Eisuke was brought up believing in justice, truth and the Nipponese way and yet, after all the sacrifices that his family made, it seems like the fools in Osaka and Kyoto are hell bent on pissing all the gains away, just inviting a return of the Gaijin to their throne. Eisuke for one will not stand for it. As he smokes his long pipe to calm him down, he reminds all that he is the law in these lands and that any return to the anarchy and banditry of past shall not be tolerated in the lands of his family.

{Shiba Sasori} (1260-1298), m.Morihei Miyu (1260, a.63)

{Shiba Ryota} (1278-1313), m.Umezawa Nui (b.1285, a.38)
1. Shiba Eisuke (b.1308, a.15)
Shiba Sayami (b.1280, a.43), m.Ukida Masahito (b.1278, a.45)
Shiba Kanna (b.1288, a.35), m.Nagatsuka Sakyo (b.1273, a.50)

Morihei Clan (34)

The Morihei are a strange people. They live on an island far off from the mainland, tasked with protecting its holy shrines. Often their home is hard to find, so thick is the fog covering the seas around them. And indeed many claim that once there in that holy place, one tends to forget about the world outside, just basking in the presence of spirits and ghosts, meditating on the nature of live. The Ice Eyed lords of those lands are most eager to encourage their guests staying. Father after son they host generals, monks and scholars, their castles and the faces of the lords hardly changing. Only one thing is strange. No man can remember the names of the lord's wives for long. People are sure they existed. But the names seem to get lost in the fog.

{Morihei Morio} (1258-1317), m.?????

{Morihei Reiho} (1278-1317), m.??????
1. Morihei Matsuda (b.1302, a.21), m.Ikari Rei (b.1306, a.17)
Morihei Mina (b.1281, a.42)

Sakura Clan (35)

The Sakura clan was among those that suffered the most during the Amaterasu rebellion, losing two of their Shugo's in quick succession during the war.
Since the end of the war their lot has not increased much, as Shugo Yuki proved to be a weak willed indecisive man, only worsening the lot of his family. This has become so bad that many already are wishing for the fast ascension of his nephew Hiroomi a strong brute. However until such time many more years will likely pass and more and more power shall be squandered.

{Sakura Minato} (1258-1292), m.{Abe Ayusa} (1261-1299)

{Sakura Naruto} (1279-1312), m.Morihei Mina (b.1281, a.42)
1. Sakura Sen (b.1299, a.24), m.Abe Chouki (b.1298, a.25)
2. {Sasuke}
3. {Nayuki}
4. Sakura Hiroomi (b.1310, a.13), a strong boy
Sakura Sakura (b.1280, a.43), m.Kikkawa Minoru (b.1276, a.47)
{Sakura Hozumi} (1282-1314), m.Shiba Nina (b.1295, a.28)
1. Nina (b.1312, a.11)
Sakura Ayusa (b.1286, a.37), m.Kinoshita Kakuji (b.1290, a.33)
Sakura Yuki (b.1289, a.34), m.Koide Yoshine (b.1303, a.20)

Abe Clan (36)

Shinzo is obsessed with purity. That of his line. That of his women. And most importantly that of Nippon. Do not search in his past. It is without doubt that his family is without foreign Gaijin taint. He will tell you that on any occasion. And point to his large number of descendants telling you how you need to do your part to repopulate Nippon following the past decades devastation and then maybe you can question a man of his intellect and integrity. Corruption is beyond him, tyranny too, glorification of past treacheries of his family and people even more so. He is the model of the Nipponese man in the days following the rebellion, only concerned with bringing glory to the Emperor and his realm.

Abe Shinzo (b.1275, a.48), m.{Urakami Nishi} (1272-1308)

Abe Ayusa (b.1295, a.28), m.Chosokabe Seikuu (b.1296, a.27)
Abe Chouki (b.1298, a.25), m.Sakura Sen (b.1299, a.24)
1. Abe Sen (b.1317, a.6)
2. Abe Sakura (b.1320, a.3)
3. Abe Sayami (b.1322, a.1)
Abe Chuhei (b.1300, a.23), m.Ukida Negai (b.1301, a.22)
1. Abe Shinzo (b.1322, a.1)
2. Abe Sadakazu (b.1322, a.1), twin of the former
{Daito} (1304)
Abe Sakuto (b.1306, a.17)
Abe Kihana (b.1308, a.15)
Abe Kiena (b.1308, a.15), a bright girl, twin of the former

Ouchi Clan (37) & Kusanagi Clan (40)

Akihiko is a smart young man, small even for Nipponese standards, but resourceful, dutiful and loyal. Which for many makes him a pansy and worse a cuckold as he leaves his wife, who towers him by almost a head, to rule the lands of her family as the only independent female Shugo of Japan. Yet this situation had already been put in question years ago when her father passed. Now with civil war brewing both of them realize that it is only a question of time before the various claimants to her lands shall crawl out of their holes, taking from them what is rightfully theirs. Luckily Motoko's father left her the family sword along with the lands. And unlike her husband she knows how to use it.

{Ouchi Manoto} (1268-1314), m.{Abe Asuke} (1270-1311)

Ouchi Akihiko (b.1292, a.31) Shugo, m.Kusanagi Motoko (b.1295, a.28), Shugo
1. Ouchi Makoto (b.1318, a.5)
Ouchi Ume (b.1293, a.30), m.Umezawa Toshiro (b.1290, a.33)

Umezawa Clan (38)

The Umezawa are a clan of rats. Once a slur thrown at them by the Mongols for their hiding in the Mountains surrounding their ancestral lands, Toshiro has since adopted it as a badge of pride as his father and him have managed to keep alive the southern most noble rebellion against the Gaijin for near three decades, capturing even their castle in the dark of night with nary a sound during the waning days of the rebellion, cutting off a vital supply and retreat route to the foreigners. Indeed these days Toshiro boasts that if one would wish to transport a whole realm to another world, no Shugo other than him could do it better. What truth lies in such boasts is hard to determine. What is true is that the Umezawas are gifted with ungodly amounts of luck and a talent for surviving where others would perish. A talent that in the coming years would prove quite vital.

{Umezawa Yasuji} (1263-1299), m.{Ouchi Ume} (1272-1311)

Umezawa Nui (b.1285, a.38), m.{Shiba Ryota} (1278-1313)
Umezawa Toshiro (b.1290, a.33), m.Ouchi Ume (b.1293, a.30)
1. Umezawa Ieyasu (b.1311, a.12)
2. Umezawa Hideyoshi (b.1313, a.10)
3. Umezawa Nobunaga (b.1315, a.8)
Umezawa Ume (b.1292, a.31), m.Nara Tsubasa (b.1288, a.35)

Chosokabe Clan (39)

The Man in Black fled through Nippon and the Gaijin followed. Thus starts the epic poem "The Dark Palace" a long cycle of warriors tales of the Amaterasu rebellion still in the stages of being written during this time. Much of it would be lost during the Sakura wars, but this sentence would ever remain preserved. It summarizes the life Chosokabe Katakuri, a man gifted with dead eyes and an eternal grin, who spent decades sowing dissent anarchy and banditry in Gaijin Japan. With his work done, rewarded with the fat slice of an island as personal fief, he thought he could spend the last of his years in this world putting up his feet and enjoying the good things in life. Yet in seems like his personal kami had other plans for him, as the black flames the messengers talked of could only mean one thing. Katakuri has called for his banners to be assembled. Banners showing a red eye on black ground.

Chosokabe Katakuri (b.1260, a.63), m.{Kusanagi Kana} (1270-1311)

Chosokabe Choji (b.1295, a.28), m.Kasami Hana (b.1303, a.20)
1. Chosokabe Shouma (b.1323, a.0)
Chosokabe Seikuu (b.1296, a.27), m.Ayusa Abe (b.1295, a.28)
1. Chosokabe Shingo (b.1318, a.5)
2. Chosokabe Rinon (b.1321, a.2) a deformed boy
3. {Shizuya} (1323)
Chosokabe Chiho (b.1280, a.43), a bastard, m.Suzumiya Saburo (b.1278, a.45)

Nara Clan (41)

The Nara are a clan known for their seclusion, some would even say anti-sociality, their intellectual insight, some would say arrogance and their love, some would say obsession, with the concept of shadow. The late Shugo Shikaida had been the chief strategist of the Shogun during the rebellion and his son seems determined to fulfill all these past reputations, filling the role his father left at the court of Osaka, while also distancing his family more and more from the Urakami, who are rumoured to have killed their own brother just to have Shikamaru's sister Tamako for themselves. This has however created some animosity with Shikamaru's brother Tsubasa a much more headstrong and less calculating man than the new Shugo who sees in family and alliances the only key for the further survival of their family, particularly due to their somewhat endangered position between many potential rivals and with a position many a man would envy them for.

{Nara Shikaida} (1250-1320), m.{Kasami Kana} (1262-1307)

Nara Shikamaru (b.1278 a.45), m.Ashikaga Terumi (b.1302, a.21)
Nara Tamako (b.1280, a.43), m1.{Urakami Manoto} (1276-1302), m2.Urakami Mango (b.1283, a.40)
Nara Ino (b.1283, a.42), m.Kasami Kisame (b.1278, a.45)
Nara Tsubasa (b.1288, a.35), m.Umezawa Ume (b.1292, a.31)
1. Nara Minene (b.1311, a.12)
2. Nara Koga (b.1312, a.11)
3. {Mine} (1313)
4. {Kinoko} (1320)
5. {Maiya} (1323)
{Miki} (1289)
Nara Temari (b.1292, a.31), m.Koide Kintaro (b.1287, a.36)

Kinoshita Clan (42)

The Kinoshita are "The Golden Family" to both friends and foes. So far spreads the legend of Kota the elder, warrior extraordinaire, that slew a hundred Mongols on his own when defending his home, earning him an imperial burial paid for by Kublai Khan himself. So far spreads the legend of Kenji, the aerial assassin, who slew four dozen Mongols when expelling them from his father's castle earning him an imperial funeral paid for by Emperor Daigoro himself. Now Kota the younger and his adopted son and heir Kakuji see themselves once more called out, once more challenged. A family of gold can after all only produce gold, right?

{Kinoshita Kota} (1250-1279), m.{Ouchi Nobara} (1251-1279)

Kinoshita Kota (b.1270, a.53), m.Ukida Otohime (b.1272, a.51)
1. Kinoshita Haruhi (b.1290, a.33)
{Kinoshita Kenji} (1271-1314), m.{Kusanagi Kana} (1269-1321)
1. Kinoshita Kakuji (b.1290, a.33), m.Sakura Ayusa (b.1286, a.37)
  1. Kinoshita Ayusa (b.1308, a.15)
  2. {Kinoshita Kota} (1309-1319)
  3. Kinoshita Sakura (b.1310, a.13)
  4. Kinoshita Kenji (b.1312, a.11)
  5. Kinoshita Kana (b.1314, a.9)
  6. Kinoshita Otohime (b.1316, a.7)
2. Kinoshita Kana (b.1302, a.21), m.Ukida Uchisane (b.1302, a.22)
Kinoshita Kanna (1273, a.50), m.Midoriya Katamori (b.1271, a.52)

Kasami Clan (43)

The Kasami are pure. They love the colour white. Their lands were an island of tranquility during the rebellion. Nothing ever happened here. The red leaves of the family garden trees are just like that because of a biological quirk. Not because of any particular fertilizer they used.
That they turned red the Mongol garrison of the castle departed for China is just a coincidence.

{Kasami Ichigo}, (1259-1311) m.{Kinoshita Kanna} (1258-1294)

Kasami Kisame (b.1278, a.45), m.Nara Ino (b.1283, a.40)
1. Kasami Hana (b.1303, a.20), m.Chosokabe Choji (b.1295, a.28)
2. Kasami Kana (b.1310, a.13)
3. {Ino} (1313)
{Kasami Shisei} (1286-1314), m.Kinoshita Haruhi (b.1290, a.33)
1. Kasami Shunhei (b.1309, a.14), b. Kasami Kana (see above)
{Kasami Shosuke} (1286-1314)
Kasami Kazuhisa (b.1288, a.35), m.Midoriya Mayura (b.1295, a.28)
1. Kasami Kanna (b.1315)
2. {Sakura} (1318)
3. {Hana} (1320)
4. {Mayura} (1321)

Southern Clans
Naito Clan (44)

Naito Tetsuya had once been a great hopeful of the empire. Strong, tall, beautiful and gifted, he was seen as the vanguard of a new type of ruler, a class of loyal Mongol sergeants that would keep the people in line for the Gaijin shogunate. Yet when he was needed the most, he stayed home, only tending to the built up of his personal forces. Many have taken to calling him lazy or even a coward, but Tetsuya is of a different opinion. To him, all is destiny. And one cannot take grasp of one's own as long as one is not calm. And he, uncaring, mocking and arrogant, is calmer than most.

Naito Tetsuya (b.1282, a.41), m.Sanada Mie (b.1279, a.44)

Naito Nonoka (b.1302, a.21), m.Shimazu Tadataka (b.1304, a.19)
Naito Hiromo (b.1304, a.19)
Naito Nodoka (b.1305, a.18)
{Naito Hiroshi} (1308)
Naito Sanada (b.1314, a.9)
Naito Sawako (b.1316, a.7)

Hyuga Clan (45)

The Hyuga are a strange people. Having come to these lands with the Gaijin, rewarded with a bride of high birth, only to have her kill herself out of desperation, they have ever been the foreigners that paid most dearly for the ambitions of the Gaijin, losing father, brother, lands, glory and pride as they attempted again and again to hold up the failing Mongol regime. Now the war seems over and at long last Hizashi hopes to turn inwards, heal what has been destroyed. Yet black flames are flaring up in the north and the Gaijin may once more call on him to go to war. What he shall answer he does not yet know.

{Hyuga Haruto} (1251-1304), Mongol Commander and Shugo, m.{Hisae Hojo} (1254-1288), committed suicide

Hyuga Hizashi (b.1274, a.35), Shugo m.Yuki Fuyumi (b.1276, a.33)
1. Hyuga Hanabi (b.1303, a.20), m.Kikuchi Suenaga (b.1294, a.29)
2. Hyuga Himawari (b.1305, a.18), m.Hyuga Nobunari
{Hyuga Hiashi} (1274-1314), twin of the former, m.Maaya Guchugut (b.1284, a.39)
1. Hyuga Nobunari (b.1300, a.23), adopted son of Hizashi, m.Hyuga Himawari (b.1305, a.18)
  1. Hyuga Hirotada (b.1320, a.3)

Shimazu Clan (46)

The Shimazu clan are the southern most members of the gigantic Minamoto clan descending directly from Shogun Minamoto Yurimoto. As such they have spent the last few decades first getting their family slaughtered when defending against the Gaijin rebellion and afterwards made to growel at the feet of their butchers, ever asking if their masters needed anything else. Now, after decades of dishonour there is finally an opportunity for vengeance. The Gaijin are close to extinction, the Mongols all but repelled from Japan. All one needs to do is reach out and grab the opportunity presented.

{Shimazu Tadamune} (1262-1304), Shugo, m.Shimazu Otoha (b.1271, a.52), his first cousin and adoptive step sister

{Shimazu Tadakuni} (1292)
{Shimazu Otoha} (1296)
{Shimazu Tadayoshi} (1300)
Shimazu Tadataka (b.1304, a.19), m.Naito Nonoka (b.1302, a.21)
1. Shimazu Akio (b.1321, a.2) a cripple
2. Shimazu Osamu (b.1321, a.2) a bright young child, twin of the former

Kikuchi Clan (47)

As all Kyushu clans, the Kikuchi were at the center at the defense effort during the Mongol invasion. Kikuchi Takefusa and his sons led their host courageously and made a name for themselves. Unfortunately, the japanese defense would not hold. Takefusa and his host were overrun trying to contain the Mongol beachhead. He and his sons died on the beaches of Hataka bay, leaving his infant grandson Jiro as heir of the clan.

When Kumamoto castle fell to the Mongols two weeks later, Jiro became a hostage of the Mongols. He was raised at the invader's court and married to a mongol princess as part of the ongoing effort to tie the local elite to the Yuan. Like his ancestors, Kikuchi Jiro rules Higo province from Kumamoto castle. With the Yuan retreat from Japan, Kikuchi Jiro's ties to the former rulers has suddenly become a liability.

Kikuchi Takamori (b.1274, a.49), m.Guchugut Bolarmaa (b.1272, a.51)

Kikuchi Suenaga (b.1294, a.29), m.Hyuga Hanabi (b.1303, a.20)
Kikuchi Mikuru (b.1307, a.16)

Gaijin Clan (48)

The Gaijin are the highest family of Japan, the true conquerors, the warriors from out of the son. They are vile foreigners, who raped, slaughtered and betrayed their way to power. They are the Jochids of the east, the black sheep of the Borjigin clan. They are the Gaijin.
Almost eight years have passed since the clan has been expelled from Honshu almost six since Meiji's elder brother Haru and his family were put under arrest in Dadu. For many it would seem obvious that the time of the Gaijin has passed. Not for Meiji.
Yes, he is the last of his family. Yes he is exiled from both his ancestral and adopted homeland. Yes, he rules less land than any other warlord on the island he claims overlordship of.
Yes his in-laws and allies have abandoned him. But the same was true for his legendary great-great-great-grandfather before his rise to rule his homeland. And Meiji thinks he is capable of that too. Of a restoration.

Gaijin no Meiji (b.1291, a.32) fourth son of Shogun Katsu, claimant to the Shogunate, claims overlordship over Kyushu, m.Tamao Toosu (b.1288, a.35)

Musashi (b.1316, a.7)
Hikari (b.1318, a.5) a sickly girl
{Hayate} (1321), stillborn

Toosu Clan (49)

When Kublai Khan led his glorious invasion of the foolish samurai, the great warrior Tsogt Ganbaatar was in the vanguard. Throughout the campaign he showed his pathetic opponents that he was the embodiment of the war god, striking down foe after foe with lance, arrow, and blade. When he stood beside his Khan at the submission of the Emperor it was clear to all that he was amongst the finest warriors the Empire had ever produced. For his efforts he was given the land of Hizen to rule, where he was given a daughter of the former Shugo as his wife and given the important task of ruling the port of Hirado and ensuring a constant stream of horses and gunpowder from the mainland. However, in the years since the invasion the Tsogot were neglected by those who ruled through the Emperor. Their service was not repaid with more land and the Tsogt grew discontent finally leaving their forces in Hizen when the Shogun marched against Kyoto. Now the Empire has withdrawn but no matter. As the samurai turn on themselves the Tsogt will unify the lands around them. This island of Kyushu is valuable and the samurai will be willing to make a deal with whoever rules it. Wherever the Emperor or the Shogun rules the Tsogt will survive.

{Ganbaatar Tsogt} (1242-1299), Mongol Commander and Shugo, m.Ryūzōji no Sakura (b.1265, a.58)

Toosu no Tamao (b.1288, a.35), m.Gaijin no Meiji
Toosu no Gan (b.1289, a.34), Shugo, m.Shimazu no Fuyumi (b.1284, a.39)
1. Toosu no Muunokhoi (b.1308, a.15)
Toosu no Temür (b.1290, a.33)

Pirate Crews

The Crew of the Flag (P1)

Once Rokuro had been but a simple bureaucrat in the imperial offices. That was until the pleasure barge he was stationed on was capture by a small pirate ship crewed by an insane Onna-bugeisha, a giant captain and a Mongolian planner. Rokuro was given a simple choice then and there: Join or have his entrails fed to the sharks. He never looked back again, now ruling as the eastern most pirate lord over the waters south of Edo, his calm and somewhat womanly manner of presenting himself hiding the blood thirst and hate for the ruling class that decades inside the Japanese maschine have built up in him.

The Darkwater Pirates (P2)

When the Mongols invaded, the native armies suffered greatly yet while the navy was also defeated, parts managed to slip away. Several such ships under the command of captain Murakami escaped after strong winds held off the mongol fleet. They then found a secluded cove occupied by a small band of pirates, though tensions ran high at first neither side wanted a destructive battle and they had a common enemy in the form of the Mongols.

Throughout the occupation they launched raids on mongol ships stealing grain, rice and other trade goods, as well as leading out small groups of fishing boats for sustanense, they had the good fortune to escape without losses in most raids and began steadily stockpiling weapons and resources while also training pirates, sailors and local dissidents into being capable fighters both at sea and at launching shore raids.

When the mongol armies turned to leave thier raids became more eager then ever, securing weapons, funds and horses and securing the island from their initial cove, however on one especially ambitious the previous leader fell to storm of Mongol arrows while leading the charge. This left Kairi in a tenuous position with deep divides between those wishing to restore the naval heritage and serve Japan against those pirates in it purely for profit, yet the time fighting together has made bond that will not break easily and the Samurai became more accepting as they fought alongside lowborn pirates.

Jar Pirates (P3)

The Jar Pirates are insane. They will be the first to tell you that. Their captain once was stranded on an island in the lands of the Ainu for almost two years before through some untold means escaping (he claims to have ridden a sea turtle). Since then they have become a scourge of the seas of Nippon, seemingly always having favourable winds, good currents and open view. Indeed where it for their immense brutality one might even confuse them for capable sea men. That and of course the jar of dirt their captain almost obsessively keeps on his person at all times.

The Sweet Pirates (P4)

Lin "The Fat" is the most powerful female pirate in the entire Japanese archipelago. A former courtesan of a Gaijin shogun, when she heard that her lover had tired of her and planned to put her down, she escaped with both their children and a large part of the treasures he had gifted her over the years. Now almost sixty years of age, she has dedicated the last thirty years of her live to bring down all her former darling had built, proving an invaluable asset to the Shogun when he sought to invade the southern islands. Yet so far she has not returned to the peace of the Emperor, after all, there is far more profit outside the law. And then there are of course the rumours of an ultimate treasure. Once beyond the dreams of any man or woman outside the law.

The Red Reader (P5)

Shinkichi was once a man of learning, tending to the library of his master with no concern other than to see learning spread across the land. Then came the Mongols, slaughtering his assistants, setting his library on fire, destroying his life's work. Shinkichi was supposed to die in those flames, yet he escaped, some claim by simply running ever deeper inside his vast library until eventually arriving in another. What truth there is of this tale few can tell. What is true is that Shinkichi is a captain less concerned with gold and silver, but with treasures of the mind, knowing the value of a hundred year old scroll if sold to the right buyer. Further he even seems to have retained a bit of the mercy of a commoner, often offering to spare a victim if they can define a kanji or term correctly. Just pray for those that incurr his wrath when using the wrong word.

The Redwater Pirates (P6)

Lead by a swashbuckling captain, who lost his left arm to a sea serpent, the Redwater pirates are among the greatest scourges of the Imperial and Shogunate navy in the region, focusing most of their efforts on breaking the power of the state itself, seemingly driven by an unclear grudge their captain himself carries against them.

The Animal Crew (P7)

The king of beasts is without peer. He towers above any man by at least a head. His sword strikes truer than any other. His flagship carries more battlescars than any other captains. Yet he still seeks death. Why no one knows, but he speaks often of it. As if the trail of blood he leaves behind is a deliberate provocation of the kamis.

The Posing Pirates (P8)

Once they were an elite squad of five samurai recruited from across the Empire to protect the Shogun. When they failed in that task they became outlaws in the face of both their masters and adversaries. Yet they did not think to be brought down by such simple matters, finding unity and purpose in each other, and their often practiced battle pose, which strikes fear in their enemies far and wide. Over the past years their captain has gotten into an intense rivalry with the head of the Monkey Order once even trying to impersonate him to plunder a temple.

The Fearful Pirates (P9)

The Black sails of the west are among the most feared crews of the seven seas. After all many a man whispers that since their plundering of a particular treasure they have been haunted by a particularly ironic curse. Finding never satisfaction, never sating their hunger, clenching their thirst or fulfilling any desire, they are like the living dead. Yet if they can only find this new treasure. A new one. A true one. Maybe they could be saved.

Kuma "The Truthteller" (P10)

Nobody knows the name of this pirate. A giant mass of muscle and hair, he soon earned the nickname "Kuma" when he arrived in these waters fifteen years ago. Yet if one were to believe him, he had ever been here. He is after all the bastard son of both Emperor Daigoro and the late Gaijin Shogun. He is the lover of Amaterasu herself, the conqueror of Korea (though only for a day before a strange tale involving a pig, a hatchet and a harp), the greatest swordsman in the service of the Sultan of Delhi and of course a follower of the western Kami Allah, honoured by the guardian of their two holy cities themselves. Most of all, he is the most truthful man that ever walked this earth, sworn by holy oath to fall over death, should he ever so much as stretch the truth. Hence few dare to doubt his word when his blue flag descends on their ship.

The Lighting Stone Crew (P11)

Akuru was once a student at the imperial court, training his blade again and again, pursuing perfection in the hopes that one day he would be made member of the imperial bodyguard. Yet on the day that he would be ceremoniously added to their ranks came the news of the Gaijin rebellion. The ceremony was interrupted, Akuru dishonoured, his opportunity was gone, as more pressing matters than lavish ceremony were put in front of the Emperor. Outraged Akuru decided that if he would gain no recognition following the path of honour, then he would seek it in infamy, vowing to break the Empire "like a lightning cracks the stone". And indeed he lived up to that vow, assembling a crew of outlaws, Gaijin and even two bears to terrorize the waters of Japan. Still there remains a semblence of honour and determination in this man. And when he heard of a treasure left behind by the gods he knew what he had to do. Find it, less another use it for ill gain.

The Whitebeard Pirates (12)

Whitebeard is an old man. For almost five decades he has sailed the seas of the east, now aged at seventy-two years old. He has fathered children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren, adopting even more, creating a family of literal hundreds all devoted to him. He has made a network of ships, ports alliances and protection rackets, making him the most powerful pirate in all of Japan. But he is aging now. Indeed he is barely able to leave his own room. And as the sickness is spreading in his body, his sons, biological or not are putting themselves in position. After all, once a whale dies, sharks ever eagerly circle the giant.

The Playful Pirates (P13)

Once Bumi was but a simple jokester. Dancing, juggling, sword swallowing, he was the best at it all. Yet he soon realized that bringing simple joy to people was not something tolerated or wanted in this world. When his circus was expelled from these lands, his family slaughtered by the warrior of a Shugo Bumi realized that error of his ways. Taking his knives, his flames and his red nose he formed a pirate crew, dead set on seeking vengeance for had been done to him. Moreso he realized more and more, that there was far more money to be made in piracy than in honest play. Nowadays Bumi has all but forgotten his wife and children. After all now he has four times what he used to. And all know his name. Surely, there is no pleasure greater than what he has now.

The Sea Snakes (P14)

Hebi-sama is a man of greed. Once he had greater ambitions. Once he sought to make himself king or even Emperor, making daring raids and attacks. Then he faced a man he could not beat. He realized his place in the world. He realized his new ambition. To make a kingdom of his own. Cut off from the rest. Small protected, controllable. Yet as the years went on, he grew tired of this existance, his hook hand ever a reminder of past glory. And then came the news. A new treasure. One send by the gods. One that could change the world for its owner in whatever way he saw fit. Hebi, chewing on his ever lit pipe grinned to himself. Maybe, just maybe seeking the crown was still something he longed for.

Yatowa reta ken (P15)

Before the Mongol invasion he was part of a small clan of naval experts who excelled in boarding boats going into close combat. When the mongol invasion came his clan was among the first to set sail against them. Unfortunately they were outnumbered and defeated. His ship was rammed and he was thrown from the boat and knocked unconscious. When he awoke he was aboard one of his ships that had escaped but he could not remember a thing. His crew told him who he was and everything else they could they also unfortunately told them that their clan was destroyed by the Mongols and he was the last remaining member. His lands burned his family gone all that stuck with him was his immense talent for sword fighting and a few of his ships that managed to escape.

They fled to the small island of Yakushima where they would call home. As the invasion continued he raided their supplies sank ships and harassed the Mongols anyway he could. As time passed he started to make Yakushima his new territory bringing people who lived on his lands from before the invasion that he managed to find. By the time the Mongols had started to turn for home he had made Yakushima into a thriving little port town that he now claimed his new home. Still when the invasion was truly done he saw what his home was becoming and new war was coming. He would not see his lands burned again nor his people killed but he still wanted to do his part to hopefully bring peace to his homeland. He trained his men hard sailing and fighting alike he would become a roving band of mercenary's for hire or a band of raiding pirates whatever he saw was more beneficial.

The Dreadpirate (P16)

Forty years ago appeared a man dressed in all black, calling himself simply "the Dread pirate". For ten years he pillaged and slaughtered his way across the seas, before retiring to Ayyuthaya. Then his first mate took over the ship and the title, spreading his own brand of chaos and pillage. By now the forth generation has taken over in the form of a young wide eyed pirate captain, prone to poetry and love songs, but no less brutal in his theft, which is often targetted at those that can go without some riches. Reportedly there is something he wants to set right, someone he wishes to find. And he hopes that the treasure shall help him accomplish that.

The Man Wearing a Blanket (P17)

Atsuhiro may be the richest man in the entire empire. Few would think that when looking at this unassuming little man. He is dirty, attended only by a perpetually non-plussed old manservant, wears only a blanket and by all dear kamis he just will not shut up. Further he lives at the very edge of the empire a collection of small islands to the far south far off from any of the major trade routes. Yet still many a ship seeks his port, many a lesser captain his approval for a trade or raid. For Atsuhiro has his fingers everywhere. From the ports of Guangzhou to the isles of the Ainu. It was he who first heard tales of a treasure beyond measure and it was he who spread this rumour among pirate kind. Atsuhiro has little problem with sharing such secrets with his rivals. After all, the waves are at his side.

Ainu Clans

The Shadow Over the Islands (α)

The lands are strange so far north. Strange even to other tribes of the northern people. The land is barren, the game few. The only things that nurture men is what they pull from the sea. The sea is man's constant companion so far north. It guards him. It feeds him. And sometimes, the men of other tribes whisper, it even mates with him.

The Men of these Woods (β)

These men are peaceful. These men wish for no struggle. They hunt the deer, the fear the wolf, the worship the spirits. They see the demon. They respect it. They do not mate with it. They seek not to kill it. They simply observe. Their way is one of freedom. One of wildness. They know it cannot last. Hence they stay as they are. As fighting that fate would only call it down on them faster.

The Daughter of the Wolf (γ)

Toitoi is the a strong woman of five and twenty winters. The northern most tribal leader of the people of these islands she is also by far the most savage. Having grown up among wolves it was not until her fifteenth year that she met other people. From there she immediately experienced what it meant to be human, not an animal, being raped, bartered and almost killed by her "kin". Yet she did not die. Gifted with the savagery of the wild she prospered, taking her time, gathering allies around herself, before slowly but surely hunting down all that had wronged her, her two animal siblings by her side, oft having them be the judges if a defeated enemy should be granted life. Now she stands as ruler of the furthest north. Yet she knows what waits in the waters. She knows what whispers in the woods. She knows what is in the far north. Her people cannot stay here. Soon she will gather them. For one last great hunt.

The Black Bird (δ)

Mansu Rada was once one of them. A bastard of some Akita retainer he was brought up among them, a sword made to slay the people of the north. Yet one day he realized the potential in them. They were more than savages. They were his way out of his position. Here he was but one sword among many. With them he could be so, so much more. He hesitated for only a day, then he stole away. He sought out a clan, challenged their champion, slew him and took his women as his. From there he went to work. Whichever savage he met, he would slay, ever increasing his host. Once he had five hundred men assembled he started to drill them as he had learned in the south. His men are no longer men of the north. Yet they are also not men of the south. They are his men. And he plans to soon descend on those that turned their nose at him with a host without number to make a new realm, one like his men, completely of his own making.

The Grey Horde (ε)

Resak the Hunter is a legend of his own people. Once dubbed "The Emperor beyond the Sea" by some southern poet, it was he who forty years ago united all tribes into one people, leading them southwards, leading to the settling of the north of Honshu and expelling of all Nipponese settlers. Yet Resak grew arrogant and greedy, tried to make the people kneel to him, make himself greater than the leader acclaimed by his equals. Thus he was cast aside, bound to a float so that the seas and what dwelled in them could claim him. Yet it seems he survived. Four years ago in the harshest winter his tribe had ever experienced he returned to them. He is old now, more than seventy winters having marked his body, his muscle and skin being held together solely by the scar tissue crisscrossing his chest. Yet he still draws breath. And he still dreams of one day being Emperor.

Isoun (π)

These lands were theirs 100,000 years before the Children of the Sun came, and shall be theirs for 100,000 more. The Ainu people dwell upon the land of Ezo, and a separated from the Japanese in blood, faith and in war. It was many generations before this one, when the People began active contact with the Japanese, peaceful trading at first, but soon whispers of conflict between the two peoples began to spread, for both trade and land.

However it was not to be, for the Children of the Sun were invaded by the Sons of the Plains across the Great Ocean, and their lands descended in a blaze of fire and chaos. At that time, the People were willing to stay silent in their isolation, but refugees, bandits and ambitious lords set the border ablaze, with raids and counter raids endemic in the north.

But now the scent of battle is in the air, the pretentious Northern Lords prod at our borders, coveting our lands, our very birthright. But they forget who we are, we are the Isoun, the Hunters, the followers of Kim-un Kamuy, the God of Bears, who gives us the strength and fury to burn their rotten foundation to the ground.

The Blunt Dog (θ)

Pasekur is a strange man. The only Ainu to wield a sword made from southern craftsmanship, he is far travelled having earned his keep as a mercenary in many a court, yet holding loyalty to none. He is no smart man. Indeed he is not even a well spoken man. When he returned from abroad and others sought to tarnish his reputation, he almost got himself killed with his clumsy explanations. Yet more so than any other Ainu, he represents their connection to the wild. And thus when his lover's brother sought to challenge him, it was but a blink of an eye before Pasekur had torn his throat out. Pasekur lives within the white flames in his mind and the white dog by his side. And while he is too dumb to understand it, he did see what the flames promised him and his people.

The Orders

Order of the Monkey (m)

Historians are split on what the Order of the Monkey represents. What most agree on is that it's master Goku went on a long pilgrimage to the west, returning with a style of martial arts heavily influenced by the Gaijin monkey style. He went on to create a massive popular following founding several heavily defended temples manned with his disciples. Here however is where spirits split. Some see in him a wise man, who through his travels has realized the meaninglessness of existance, preaching sufficiency, asceticism and focus on the simple discipline of self improvement, others see in him a man barely capable of stringing together a sentence, a buffoon who only thinks of fighting and eating. Whatever the truth, few can tell. What is true is that Goku is one of the three most respected fighters in the Empire. And he plans to soon enough be in a group of his own, apart from all others.

Order of the Shadow (S)

Legends speak of monks empowered by the holy aura of the Buddha who have accomplished inhuman feats of strength or valour, it be one warrior fighting off multitudes of foes, infiltrating the most heavily guarded of fortresses and slipping out without discovery, and other such rumours and hearsays. More pragmatic outsiders merely point to the merging of the ninja and Ikkō-ikki into one, and tenacity and devotion to training of the mon and the skill and cunning of the ninja combined into something greater.

The League fought for the freedom of the common Japanese people, even people of no particular birth or rank as peasants, and just as the Shogun might have lead the Shugo and lords of Japan against the Mongols it was the Ikkō-ikki who lead the smallfolk of Nippon to cast the invaders back into the sea. Yet even as Japan celebrated its newfound freedom, the Ikkō-ikki despaired, for it seems their work is not yet complete.

Japan will soon fall into chaos and bloodshed, and it is the duty of the League to uphold the people and liberate them from the yoke of tyranny, whether it be Mongolian or Japanese, for it is no less then the will of the Buddha Himself.

Order of the Mask (ma)

The order of the Mask are a secluded, secretive collection of monks. They rarely speak, they barely leave their island, only occasionally do they trade with the outside world. While the outside world is drowning itself in blood and battle, they are studying the blade. Where the monkeys are egalitarian and competitive and the shadows are secretive and synergetic, the Masks is rigid and specialist. Each man wears a mask, the highest member of the order one of perfect white, the one below him one with a single black strip, the one below one with two red streaks and so on. Yet despite their inherent creepiness and hostility to outsiders few have dared to make them kneel so far. After all, the only way to earn a mask is to beat one above you in a dance of swords. And those at the top have nothing to spent their time on, but on silence discussions in steel.

Ronin

Kenneth O'Murphy, the Young Buck @JBO

A mercenary from a far away land brought here by the Mongols, he has decided to create a "Sword brotherhood" whose membership shall be "For life". Nobody knows him or pays much attention to him.

JBO · Aug 23, 2018

Update complete. Deadline is Friday next week 6 pm German time.

JBO · Sep 6, 2018

Deadline is Friday 14th 8 pm German time.

JBO · Sep 25, 2018

Deadline is Friday October 5th 6 am German time.

JBO · Oct 21, 2018

Friday 26th 8 pm Greenwich time

JBO · Oct 24, 2018

Sidheach said:
So when does some random kid reveal that the civil war isn't actually happening and that a supercomputer is behind it all?

3003 AD

JBO · Feb 13, 2019

Discord - Free voice and text chat for gamers

Deadline is for plans is Saturday the 16th.

JBO · Mar 7, 2019

Current factions for current and interested players:

Ainu

Various Clans

Brotherhood of the Sword

Nights Watch @Tiberius

Kingdom of Winter

Uesugi

Kingdom of the North

Date @Theravis

Takeda Shogunate

Takeda @Dovahsith
Hojo @sirmax023
Oda @Deathwing

Taira Shogunate

Taira @firepelt123
Azai

Oni Kingdom

Morihei
(Maeda)

Imperial Court

Fujiwara Regency @CommandoHowizter
Imperial Fleet
Kusanagi @Texan

Kingdom of Dreams

Suzumiya

Kingdom of the Wind

Kikkawa @ZealousThoughts

Kingdom of the South

Toosu @Ankh

Kingdom of the Island

Kinoshita

Army of the White Sun

The Pillars of the Tenno @AAAHero

Splinters of the Spiral

II
IV
V

Minor Realms

Lin kingdom
Hou-Ou kingdom
Yonkou of Hokuzan
Yonkou of Chuzan

Deadline: Sunday March 17th 11 pm Berlin time.

Just getting this out of the way.

JBO · May 8, 2019

Ainu

Bear Clan (@Sidheach already told me he is dropping them, but I like bears)
Other Various

Brotherhood of the Sword

Nights Watch @Tiberius

Kingdom of Winter

Uesugi

Kingdom of the North

Date @Theravis

Takeda Shogunate

Takeda @Dovahsith
Hojo @sirmax023
Oda @Deathwing

Oni Imperial Court

Morihei
Maeda

Regency Imperial Court

Fujiwara Regency @CommandoHowizter
Imperial Fleet
Kusanagi @Texan
Taira @firepelt123
Azai

Kingdom of Dreams

Suzumiya

Kingdom of the Wind

Kikkawa @ZealousThoughts

Kingdom of the South

Toosu @Ankh

Kingdom of the Island

Kinoshita

Army of the White Sun

The Pillars of the Tenno @AAAHero

Splinters of the Spiral

II (formerly IV)
remnants of II

Minor Realms

Lin kingdom
Hou-Ou kingdom
The Brotherhood of Ryukyu

お前はもう死んでいる- An Arthurverse Tale (Open to Newcomers)

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