[5] You will go to the lands of the Crane, there to attend upon a samurai's court and offer sage advice. Assuming you can restrain yourself from strangling the pompous fools.
[3] You will go to the lands of the Crab, there to join the retinue of a Kuni witch-hunter and hunt down the tainted. The irony is worthy of a play.
[2] You will go to the lands of the Scorpion, there to assist in rooting out a pernicious criminal syndicate... even if your hosts would rather you not.
[1] You will go to the lands of the Dragon, there to participate in theological debates and/or sparring matches with the tattooed monks... and to make sure that fucking Togashi is actually dead.
[4] You will go to the lands of the Unicorn, there to assist the local peasants with... whatever kind of problems a peasant faces in day to day life, you suppose.
[4] You will go to the lands of the Crane, there to attend upon a samurai's court and offer sage advice. Assuming you can restrain yourself from strangling the pompous fools.
[2] You will go to the lands of the Crab, there to join the retinue of a Kuni witch-hunter and hunt down the tainted. The irony is worthy of a play.
[3] You will go to the lands of the Scorpion, there to assist in rooting out a pernicious criminal syndicate... even if your hosts would rather you not.
[5] You will go to the lands of the Dragon, there to participate in theological debates and/or sparring matches with the tattooed monks... and to make sure that fucking Togashi is actually dead.
[1] You will go to the lands of the Unicorn, there to assist the local peasants with... whatever kind of problems a peasant faces in day to day life, you suppose.
Options:
You will go to the lands of the Crab, there to join the retinue of a Kuni witch-hunter and hunt down the tainted. The irony is worthy of a play.
You will go to the lands of the Crane, there to attend upon a samurai's court and offer sage advice. Assuming you can restrain yourself from strangling the pompous fools.
You will go to the lands of the Dragon, there to participate in theological debates and/or sparring matches with the tattooed monks... and to make sure that fucking Togashi is actually dead.
You will go to the lands of the Scorpion, there to assist in rooting out a pernicious criminal syndicate... even if your hosts would rather you not.
You will go to the lands of the Unicorn, there to assist the local peasants with... whatever kind of problems a peasant faces in day to day life, you suppose.
Winner: You will go to the lands of the Dragon, there to participate in theological debates and/or sparring matches with the tattooed monks... and to make sure that fucking Togashi is actually dead.
First Runner Up: You will go to the lands of the Crab, there to join the retinue of a Kuni witch-hunter and hunt down the tainted. The irony is worthy of a play.
Second Runner Up: You will go to the lands of the Unicorn, there to assist the local peasants with... whatever kind of problems a peasant faces in day to day life, you suppose.
Third Runner Up: You will go to the lands of the Scorpion, there to assist in rooting out a pernicious criminal syndicate... even if your hosts would rather you not.
Honorable Mention: You will go to the lands of the Crane, there to attend upon a samurai's court and offer sage advice. Assuming you can restrain yourself from strangling the pompous fools.
Bah, no one else wants the excellent adventures of a man who can detect lies and lie without fail in Scorpionland apparently.
EDIT: Actually, does Perfection of Understanding apply to Kiho? I know we can learn any of it but I don't remember if you said if the speed up of PoU counted for it.
[4] You will go to the lands of the Crane, there to attend upon a samurai's court and offer sage advice. Assuming you can restrain yourself from strangling the pompous fools.
[5] You will go to the lands of the Crab, there to join the retinue of a Kuni witch-hunter and hunt down the tainted. The irony is worthy of a play.
[3] You will go to the lands of the Scorpion, there to assist in rooting out a pernicious criminal syndicate... even if your hosts would rather you not.
[2] You will go to the lands of the Dragon, there to participate in theological debates and/or sparring matches with the tattooed monks... and to make sure that fucking Togashi is actually dead.
[1] You will go to the lands of the Unicorn, there to assist the local peasants with... whatever kind of problems a peasant faces in day to day life, you suppose.
Actually, does Perfection of Understanding apply to Kiho? I know we can learn any of it but I don't remember if you said if the speed up of PoU counted for it.
[3] You will go to the lands of the Crane, there to attend upon a samurai's court and offer sage advice. Assuming you can restrain yourself from strangling the pompous fools.
[5] You will go to the lands of the Crab, there to join the retinue of a Kuni witch-hunter and hunt down the tainted. The irony is worthy of a play.
[2] You will go to the lands of the Scorpion, there to assist in rooting out a pernicious criminal syndicate... even if your hosts would rather you not.
[1] You will go to the lands of the Dragon, there to participate in theological debates and/or sparring matches with the tattooed monks... and to make sure that fucking Togashi is actually dead.
[4] You will go to the lands of the Unicorn, there to assist the local peasants with... whatever kind of problems a peasant faces in day to day life, you suppose.
[5] You will go to the lands of the Crane, there to attend upon a samurai's court and offer sage advice. Assuming you can restrain yourself from strangling the pompous fools.
[2] You will go to the lands of the Crab, there to join the retinue of a Kuni witch-hunter and hunt down the tainted. The irony is worthy of a play.
[4] You will go to the lands of the Scorpion, there to assist in rooting out a pernicious criminal syndicate... even if your hosts would rather you not.
[1] You will go to the lands of the Dragon, there to participate in theological debates and/or sparring matches with the tattooed monks... and to make sure that fucking Togashi is actually dead.
[3] You will go to the lands of the Unicorn, there to assist the local peasants with... whatever kind of problems a peasant faces in day to day life, you suppose.
The Cranes are fantastic because they exemplify the high court of Rokugan.
Admittedly, the questers-in-aggregate would get Fu Leng killed within 2 updates because of an inability to grok how Rokugan works, but still. Cranes are fun time.
You know what I realized while making breakfast sausage today, @Maugan Ra? Young Furumaro either said nothing about or (quite unlikely) was taught nothing about the Little Teacher.
Considering Shinsei is more or less emblematic of Terry Pratchett's Rule One ("Do not act incautiously when confronting little bald wrinkly smiling men!") and Rule Nineteen ("Always remember Rule One and ask yourself, why was it created in the first place") and was right there on the First Day of Thunder, I assume that Furumaro has few good things to say about him, but still.
Apologies for a late update, and not a particularly long one at that. I blame the Steam summer sales, really, and more specifically the Geneforge series, which I have been playing through for the past several days. It's always good to find out that a game matches up to one's nostalgic memories...
Humming softly to yourself, you finish packing up the last of your meagre possessions. Everything you own fits into a single satchel that can be slung over one shoulder; a far cry from the magnificent wealth you enjoyed in Heaven or the decadent opulence of your infernal palace, but you cannot find it in yourself to care all that much. The monks of your order largely rely on the charity of others to sustain themselves, repaying such generosity by regular patrols and work parties sent through the nearby lands to provide whatever aid and assistance they might to the local peasantry.
At first you had thought this a relatively straightforward arrangement; the monks work for and protect the local populace, and in exchange they are paid for their services in food and other useful supplies, but as with so many things in Rokugani culture the truth is apparently a little more complicated than that. Monks are supposed to be spiritual individuals, after all, and there is apparently some rather remarkable stigma attached to the idea of actually making a holy man work for pay like a common labourer, so instead everyone just pretends that the two halves of the transaction are entirely unconnected and coincidental.
Smiling faintly, you fold your spare set of robes into a neat bundle and stow them within the satchel. There are so many little quirks to Rokugan's culture and society that you do not yet understand, a surprising number of which appear to be observed solely because your siblings did something similar over a thousand years ago. The monks here have tried to prepare you as best they can for such things before sending you out into the wider world, of course, but there are so many complicated layers of etiquette to consider that you highly doubt anyone here really understands them all. The fact that the only former samurai among your order are drawn from the children of Hida and his followers merely compounds the issue, really; the Crab have never been much known for their grasp of traditional etiquette.
They were too busy trying to prevent you and yours from killing them all.
Nodding to yourself, you spare one final moment to scan the rest of your cell for anything you might have missed. It is a small space, barely even large enough for you to stretch your arms out without scraping against the bare stone walls, but even this much personal space is considered a mark of prestige among your order. Until you could prove that you had mastered the Kiho that the order taught to its aspirants you were confined to the communal barracks, after all, and compared to that experience even a miniscule bit of privacy becomes a prize well worth fighting over.
There is nothing missing, so you shoulder your pack and depart without so much as a backwards glance, making your way down through the halls of your new home at a brisk pace. The wooden haft of your staff taps against the ground in a regular rhythm, the sharp note echoing slightly in the empty passageways, and for a moment you consider the possible merits of taking some other kind of weapon with you on your journey. Between your divine strength and the martial Kiho of your order you hardly need the additional protection, but appearances can be important, and there is always the risk that appearing unarmed will invite more trouble than it is worth.
After a moment's thought, you shrug; if people want to underestimate you based on mere physical appearance that is their problem. You will just break their legs and keep moving.
Sakura meets you at the entrance to the monastery, arms folded over her chest and an expression of both pride and sorrow on her face. Of all the other monks here at the monastery she is the one who has taken the most consistent interest in your upbringing and progress, driven by some kind of maternal instinct you are at a loss to really explain, and while her affectionate mannerisms make you moderately uncomfortable you have long since learned to tolerate them.
"So young, yet already setting out to explore the world," she says in a soft tone, having to tilt her head up to meet your eyes as you draw closer. "You are sure you do not wish to remain for a bit longer, Furumaro? We could still use your aid in teaching the younger novices."
"Wait, wait, I know this one," you mutter with a pensive frown, "I'm supposed to say something about the turning of the seasons here, right? Maybe flavour it with a quote or two from the tao..."
"Oh, the Dragon are going to hate you," Sakura says with a laugh, "Which is not a bad thing, by any means. They could stand to take themselves a little less seriously, I think. Just... try not to antagonise the entire Clan while you are up there?"
"No promises," you say with a smile, thinking of Togashi and how much you want to piss on his corpse. "Besides, they were the ones who invited me. If they can't handle what that means in practice, well, that's really not my problem."
To be completely fair you doubt the Dragon had any idea about your heritage or personality when they extended their invitation, since as far as you can tell the message was light on specifics. One of their senior members has apparently heard of your order and found themselves curiously intrigued, and as a result the order has decided to send one of its most skilled prodigies north to answer any questions the noble samurai might have. Since you are without a doubt one of the finest warriors and debaters that the order possesses, the decision on who to send was really more of a formality.
"Ah, I only hope the world does not contrive to teach you otherwise, my student." Sakura says with a wistful smile. "In any case, have you decided on a route? It will take quite some time to reach the Dragon lands from here, after all, especially if you stop and help people on the way."
Article:
The Order of Tengoku's Fist is based within the Crab lands, at the opposite end of the Empire to your destination. Choose a route.
[ ] You will head east, along the length of the Crab territories, and arrange passage with the Crane along the coast to the lands of the Phoenix. There you will disembark and cross the mountains to the lands of the Dragon.
[ ] You will head north-east, through the lands of the Scorpion, aiming for the major trading hub of Beiden Pass. From there you will need to cross the lands of the Lion Clan to reach your destination.
[ ] You will head north, skirting the borders of the mysterious Shinomon Forest, until you reach the lands of the Unicorn. From there, you will head north-east again to reach your destination.
Anyone with more knowledge about setting van explain how bad is Shinomon Forest?
Because I want to pick option with land of unicorn but I don't know much about this verse.
[x] You will head north-east, through the lands of the Scorpion, aiming for the major trading hub of Beiden Pass. From there you will need to cross the lands of the Lion Clan to reach your destination.
Shinomon is home to the Naga and probably haunted and spirit-ridden. It's probably still safer than the Scorpion Clan is... thus my vote above!
[X] You will head north, skirting the borders of the mysterious Shinomon Forest, until you reach the lands of the Unicorn. From there, you will head north-east again to reach your destination.
Mysterious forest sounds like fun. Hmm, I wonder what we can do with the snek-people....
[X] You will head east, along the length of the Crab territories, and arrange passage with the Crane along the coast to the lands of the Phoenix. There you will disembark and cross the mountains to the lands of the Dragon.
This looks like the most varied path. Getting a little impression of three other clans before arriving at our target.
Anyone with more knowledge about setting van explain how bad is Shinomon Forest?
Because I want to pick option with land of unicorn but I don't know much about this verse.
It is the very bad forest to walk through, with monsters, spirits, the very worst bandit group (The Forest Killers) making a base within it and considering the current date, more than likely Naga.
Think your traditional dark forest and add tears in reality bleeding into other spiritual realms.
[X] You will head north, skirting the borders of the mysterious Shinomon Forest, until you reach the lands of the Unicorn. From there, you will head north-east again to reach your destination.
It is the very bad forest to walk through, with monsters, spirits, the very worst bandit group (The Forest Killers) making a base within it and considering the current date, more than likely Naga.
Think your traditional dark forest and add tears in reality bleeding into other spiritual realms.
Well with our traits I think we can deal with anything that can appear on borders of forest. Also thank you for your insight
[X] You will head north, skirting the borders of the mysterious Shinomon Forest, until you reach the lands of the Unicorn. From there, you will head north-east again to reach your destination.
[X] You will head north-east, through the lands of the Scorpion, aiming for the major trading hub of Beiden Pass. From there you will need to cross the lands of the Lion Clan to reach your destination.
[X] You will head north-east, through the lands of the Scorpion, aiming for the major trading hub of Beiden Pass. From there you will need to cross the lands of the Lion Clan to reach your destination.
[X] You will head north, skirting the borders of the mysterious Shinomon Forest, until you reach the lands of the Unicorn. From there, you will head north-east again to reach your destination.
[X] You will head north, skirting the borders of the mysterious Shinomon Forest, until you reach the lands of the Unicorn. From there, you will head north-east again to reach your destination.
[X] You will head east, along the length of the Crab territories, and arrange passage with the Crane along the coast to the lands of the Phoenix. There you will disembark and cross the mountains to the lands of the Dragon.
[X] You will head east, along the length of the Crab territories, and arrange passage with the Crane along the coast to the lands of the Phoenix. There you will disembark and cross the mountains to the lands of the Dragon.
