[L5R] Minor Clan Quest
- Thread starter storybookknight
- Start date
"Hey, so why did your parents decide to publicly disown you at the Super Bowl?"
About that big.
To try to make a formal vote of it:
[X] Exchange news and gently probe Hanzo's background and character, but otherwise keep conversation on light matters.
- [X] If there's no red flags raised in the conversation, suggest that Hanzo may find a more hospitable reception and honorable work in the Catfish lands.
I don't think we want to jump right to formally offering membership in our Clan, but given the makeup of the Catfish, the fact that he's being given an opportunity to get such an offer once we know him better should be obvious.
[X] Exchange news and gently probe Hanzo's background and character, but otherwise keep conversation on light matters.
- [X] If there's no red flags raised in the conversation, suggest that Hanzo may find a more hospitable reception and honorable work in the Catfish lands.
I don't think we want to jump right to formally offering membership in our Clan, but given the makeup of the Catfish, the fact that he's being given an opportunity to get such an offer once we know him better should be obvious.
A Nation's Virtue
南國山河南帝居
[X] Anowack
[X] Anowack
Fairly regularly?
We exist as a clan for less than a year, one time is not regularly.
But by offering one position every year we would be able to only get the very best.
Maybe make a year of service for the chance to compete for the one spot every year.
If we make the contest happen during winter... it could be one more reson for tourism to our lands...
[X] Anowack
The very best spies maybe. If I was the Scorpion I'd send a guy every year, and I bet plenty of other clans would too.
[X] Exchange news and gently probe Hanzo's background and character, but otherwise keep conversation on light matters.
- [X] If there's no red flags raised in the conversation, suggest that Hanzo may find a more hospitable reception and honorable work in the Catfish lands.
Last edited:
[X] Exchange news and gently probe Hanzo's background and character, but otherwise keep conversation on light matters.
- [X] If there's no red flags raised in the conversation, suggest that Hanzo may find a more hospitable reception and honorable work in the Catfish lands.
- [X] If there's no red flags raised in the conversation, suggest that Hanzo may find a more hospitable reception and honorable work in the Catfish lands.
One a year is PRECISELY how you don't get the best ronin. You're looking first, second and last, for honorable and just ronin who don't deserve their condition. By making it one a year, it means that there are years where your standards are lowered...because unsurprisingly, there are many more ronin who have that status for being actually violent thugs, or who were banished as ronin by offending someone important(e.g. you do NOT want to adopt that shugenja who the Emperor personally stripped of his position even if he was unrelated to us) than good people in bad circumstances.
This is not a competition. Not something you win, but something you earn.
Thus, any ronin adoption is entirely by merit and strength of character, judged on an individual basis. For all the rest? We provide avenues of honorable work through which they can earn a living and prove themselves. That is all.
Wade Garrett
Just trying to do the right thing
- Pronouns
- He/His/Him
[X] Anowack
[X] True Wind
- Pronouns
- She/Her
[X] Exchange news and gently probe Hanzo's background and character, but otherwise keep conversation on light matters.
- [X] If there's no red flags raised in the conversation, suggest that Hanzo may find a more hospitable reception and honorable work in the Catfish lands.
- [X] If there's no red flags raised in the conversation, suggest that Hanzo may find a more hospitable reception and honorable work in the Catfish lands.
- Location
- Perth, Western Australlia
[X] Exchange news and gently probe Hanzo's background and character, but otherwise keep conversation on light matters.
- [X] If there's no red flags raised in the conversation, suggest that Hanzo may find a more hospitable reception and honorable work in the Catfish lands.
Additional items assuming they are not covered under exchange news.
1) Try to find out if there have been any sightings / issues with Bandits or other undesirables on the way to our destination / in the surrounding region.
2) Tying in to this, see of we can find a polite way to get the Ronin to share with us any advise / recommendations on the route to travel / places to avoid.
I'm not sure is there is a polite way to encourage him to do this in exchange for dinner.
On the matter of recruiting Ronin. Would it be possible to organize an Annual tournament open to even Ronin, and use it to set a precedent that those that compete well may be offered adoption into the clan?
This gives us a way to judge the skills and character of the Ronin without forcing us to commit to accepting them.
In time it may also serve to attract a better quality of Ronin to us.
- [X] If there's no red flags raised in the conversation, suggest that Hanzo may find a more hospitable reception and honorable work in the Catfish lands.
Additional items assuming they are not covered under exchange news.
1) Try to find out if there have been any sightings / issues with Bandits or other undesirables on the way to our destination / in the surrounding region.
2) Tying in to this, see of we can find a polite way to get the Ronin to share with us any advise / recommendations on the route to travel / places to avoid.
I'm not sure is there is a polite way to encourage him to do this in exchange for dinner.
On the matter of recruiting Ronin. Would it be possible to organize an Annual tournament open to even Ronin, and use it to set a precedent that those that compete well may be offered adoption into the clan?
This gives us a way to judge the skills and character of the Ronin without forcing us to commit to accepting them.
In time it may also serve to attract a better quality of Ronin to us.
- Location
- Washington
Personally I'm fairly convinced that yeah anything organized is a recipe for great clans to game the system to put in people in their pocket, the best way to get good Ronin is use our own judgement and have an environment that's not shitty to Ronin to attract them in the first place.
EtchedSteel
*mumble mumble*
- Location
- Lima. Peru
[X] Anowack
- Location
- Connecticut
- Pronouns
- He/Him
OK, seems pretty unanimous. Sadly, I'm a bit burnt out today - might not get the whole update done before I get to bed.
On a unrelated topic, what happened to the Crab bushi who helped us return, and did we buy hat one a drink?
- Location
- Connecticut
- Pronouns
- He/Him
You did indeed buy Tamayo a drink, and they all returned to Crab lands - sorry, I couldn't figure out a good way to include it in the Turn Plan. In any case, you'll be seeing all four of them again.
Winter 913 - Turn 2.3 - Arrival
- Location
- Connecticut
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] Anowack
Hanzo is a font of interesting news. Apparently the Face Of The East castle is a bit of a haven for ronin in the Crab lands. Caravans often pass between the western lands of the Unicorn and the Crab, choosing a longer overland route to avoid paying Scorpion tariffs, and in many cases those caravans will hire ronin. According to Hanzo, there's also a market for 'other goods' as well; the tone of voice that he uses allows you to read between the lines and understand that he means to say that contraband may also find its way to Crab markets through the Face Of The East as well, but is cautious enough not to accuse the Crab of doing so openly.
In recent weeks, however, all ronin have been asked to leave the Face Of The East, and there has been a great deal of construction taking place there - apparently in order to house additional guests. Knowing what you know about the Winter Court, it makes sense to you why they might have to do that; yet at the same time you cannot help but exchange a significant glance with Yu. You have been looking at cost projections with him for potentially building a Clan Castle in the future, and it requires a significant amount of money. If there were enough guests invited that the Yasuki are having to complete additional construction, added to the cost of that construction itself... the typically wealthy Yasuki may be much less flush than usual, a piece of information that will probably be useful to someone, somewhere.
Hanzo himself seems a bit rough around the edges, but otherwise a genuine sort. Your inner gift gives you no flashes of strong emotion coming from him, no intemperate rage or contempt that would make you cautious of a lack of honor, but instead get the sense of a weary anxiety over the circumstances of his life, and a few flickers of hope that are tamped down with the long practice of someone who has been disappointed enough times to know better. After a raised eyebrow to Koibu, and his nod of assent, you let Hanzo know that there may be work for him in Catfish lands, and recommend that he make his way to the Wave Plains. He thanks you profusely and soon afterwards retires, using the excuse of weariness to avoid displaying his emotions of relief.
The samurai of the Dragon are boisterous and talkative in their rooms from strong drink, their voices carrying even into your rooms across the hall. When you hear from the heimin that the Dragon are planning to stay an additional day in the Village of Oolong Tea to avoid needlessly traveling in the rain, you decide to set out immediately the next day and avoid conflict with the overly proud Mirumoto Kaien, especially if - as seems likely - he will be hungover when he awakes. As usual, Chouko does not protest despite her clear discomfort, but you can feel resentment lingering in everyone's hearts, including your own.
As a few days of travel pass without any other sightings of the samurai of the Great Clans, your moods become more pleasant, as does the weather. Lady Amaterasu shines clearly overhead, and though the wind is still chill it bites less deeply, allowing you to notice the clean scents of pine and fallen leaves that it bears. The Twilight Mountains grow larger and larger before you as you travel further and further to the north and west, and it is a few hours after dawn on your third day of travel that you catch your first sight of Shiro Kaotsuki No Higashi. Unlike the squat defensive fortress of Maemikake, the Face Of The East is designed like a kyuden; even from a distance you can see the sweeping lines of its construction, the elegant bridges and magnificent spires that are so beautiful to look at but which make the structure so much more vulnerable to attack. Elegant balconies hang out of the towering spires to face the morning sun, and to look upon the beauty of the plains below and the vastness of Shinomen Mori beyond. Yet as you get closer, you realize just how much of that apparent weakness is in fact a cleverly disguised strength. The castle sits beside a steep gorge, with the only access to it regulated by a narrow and winding path. Many of the bridges lie high in the air over hard stone, and you are certain that they could be demolished to deny an invading army their use with ease. And the balconies have high walls that could be very easily used by archers standing upon them for cover. The biggest difference, however, is in the castle's construction. While Shiro Kaotsuki No Higashi has the appearance and elegance of any kyuden, unlike every other such palatial structure in the world that you know, the Face Of The East is built purely from stone.
Whereas most castles have a town surrounding them, in this case the town that supports the Face Of The East lies below it on the trail up to the castle, and is abuzz with activity. Traveling merchants have set up displays of their wares in tents and roofed carts, the permanent inhabitants of the town have put fresh paint on all of their signs and are noisily hawking their wares, and everywhere you look there are samurai on various errands, or simply enjoying the fresh air. There are so many colors, shapes, and family mon that you feel hard pressed to identify them all. The Crane are identifiable from a distance with their bleached hair, but the differences between a Doji and a Daidoji escape you, and they are among the easiest to place!
You eventually make your way through the town and up to the Castle proper. The guards at the front gate bear the Hida mon, and despite the fact that you do not recognize any of them individually they give you a warm welcome. You are soon ushered to your rooms - sadly, not ones that have the elegant balconies that you noticed from afar, but they are at least relatively spacious for the ten of you.
It will be three days until the Winter Court truly begins. What do you do?
PICK THREE
[ ] Explore the town.
[ ] Explore the castle.
[ ] Look for someone in particular (write-in) (can be chosen multiple times).
[ ] Make contact with a delegation (write-in) (can be chosen multiple times).
[ ] Avoid contact with a delegation (write-in) (can be chosen multiple times).
[ ] Spend time with one of your advisors (write-in) (can be chosen multiple times).
Hanzo is a font of interesting news. Apparently the Face Of The East castle is a bit of a haven for ronin in the Crab lands. Caravans often pass between the western lands of the Unicorn and the Crab, choosing a longer overland route to avoid paying Scorpion tariffs, and in many cases those caravans will hire ronin. According to Hanzo, there's also a market for 'other goods' as well; the tone of voice that he uses allows you to read between the lines and understand that he means to say that contraband may also find its way to Crab markets through the Face Of The East as well, but is cautious enough not to accuse the Crab of doing so openly.
In recent weeks, however, all ronin have been asked to leave the Face Of The East, and there has been a great deal of construction taking place there - apparently in order to house additional guests. Knowing what you know about the Winter Court, it makes sense to you why they might have to do that; yet at the same time you cannot help but exchange a significant glance with Yu. You have been looking at cost projections with him for potentially building a Clan Castle in the future, and it requires a significant amount of money. If there were enough guests invited that the Yasuki are having to complete additional construction, added to the cost of that construction itself... the typically wealthy Yasuki may be much less flush than usual, a piece of information that will probably be useful to someone, somewhere.
Hanzo himself seems a bit rough around the edges, but otherwise a genuine sort. Your inner gift gives you no flashes of strong emotion coming from him, no intemperate rage or contempt that would make you cautious of a lack of honor, but instead get the sense of a weary anxiety over the circumstances of his life, and a few flickers of hope that are tamped down with the long practice of someone who has been disappointed enough times to know better. After a raised eyebrow to Koibu, and his nod of assent, you let Hanzo know that there may be work for him in Catfish lands, and recommend that he make his way to the Wave Plains. He thanks you profusely and soon afterwards retires, using the excuse of weariness to avoid displaying his emotions of relief.
The samurai of the Dragon are boisterous and talkative in their rooms from strong drink, their voices carrying even into your rooms across the hall. When you hear from the heimin that the Dragon are planning to stay an additional day in the Village of Oolong Tea to avoid needlessly traveling in the rain, you decide to set out immediately the next day and avoid conflict with the overly proud Mirumoto Kaien, especially if - as seems likely - he will be hungover when he awakes. As usual, Chouko does not protest despite her clear discomfort, but you can feel resentment lingering in everyone's hearts, including your own.
As a few days of travel pass without any other sightings of the samurai of the Great Clans, your moods become more pleasant, as does the weather. Lady Amaterasu shines clearly overhead, and though the wind is still chill it bites less deeply, allowing you to notice the clean scents of pine and fallen leaves that it bears. The Twilight Mountains grow larger and larger before you as you travel further and further to the north and west, and it is a few hours after dawn on your third day of travel that you catch your first sight of Shiro Kaotsuki No Higashi. Unlike the squat defensive fortress of Maemikake, the Face Of The East is designed like a kyuden; even from a distance you can see the sweeping lines of its construction, the elegant bridges and magnificent spires that are so beautiful to look at but which make the structure so much more vulnerable to attack. Elegant balconies hang out of the towering spires to face the morning sun, and to look upon the beauty of the plains below and the vastness of Shinomen Mori beyond. Yet as you get closer, you realize just how much of that apparent weakness is in fact a cleverly disguised strength. The castle sits beside a steep gorge, with the only access to it regulated by a narrow and winding path. Many of the bridges lie high in the air over hard stone, and you are certain that they could be demolished to deny an invading army their use with ease. And the balconies have high walls that could be very easily used by archers standing upon them for cover. The biggest difference, however, is in the castle's construction. While Shiro Kaotsuki No Higashi has the appearance and elegance of any kyuden, unlike every other such palatial structure in the world that you know, the Face Of The East is built purely from stone.
Whereas most castles have a town surrounding them, in this case the town that supports the Face Of The East lies below it on the trail up to the castle, and is abuzz with activity. Traveling merchants have set up displays of their wares in tents and roofed carts, the permanent inhabitants of the town have put fresh paint on all of their signs and are noisily hawking their wares, and everywhere you look there are samurai on various errands, or simply enjoying the fresh air. There are so many colors, shapes, and family mon that you feel hard pressed to identify them all. The Crane are identifiable from a distance with their bleached hair, but the differences between a Doji and a Daidoji escape you, and they are among the easiest to place!
You eventually make your way through the town and up to the Castle proper. The guards at the front gate bear the Hida mon, and despite the fact that you do not recognize any of them individually they give you a warm welcome. You are soon ushered to your rooms - sadly, not ones that have the elegant balconies that you noticed from afar, but they are at least relatively spacious for the ten of you.
It will be three days until the Winter Court truly begins. What do you do?
PICK THREE
[ ] Explore the town.
[ ] Explore the castle.
[ ] Look for someone in particular (write-in) (can be chosen multiple times).
[ ] Make contact with a delegation (write-in) (can be chosen multiple times).
[ ] Avoid contact with a delegation (write-in) (can be chosen multiple times).
[ ] Spend time with one of your advisors (write-in) (can be chosen multiple times).
Last edited:
[X] Explore the town.
[X] Explore the castle.
Both of these, definitely.
But I have no idea about the third option, maybe either make contact with the Crab or avoid the Dragon?
Spending time with either Koibu or Chouko would also be good.
[X] Explore the castle.
Both of these, definitely.
But I have no idea about the third option, maybe either make contact with the Crab or avoid the Dragon?
Spending time with either Koibu or Chouko would also be good.
Last edited: