Hello, everyone! Sorry to be a little late and a little short this month, but it’s convention season and my little one has an ear infection so my schedule is painfully truncated. So let’s get into it and get back to the grind.

The Second City Boxed Set

Well, this is our last chance to talk about this book before it comes out at the convention, and everywhere else shortly thereafter. It feels kind of like… well, not a family member, but maybe a kid I used to babysit a lot or something. I guess that’s weird. But you get what I mean! I’m so eager to hear what people have to say about this product, and I’m so beyond ready to see the various add-ons that are going to be included in the box. We designed this sucker so that every single gaming group out there would want to have one for their L5R RPG experience, and I think that the final product is nothing short of incredible. I can’t wait to share it with you.

Okay, one last time, here’s a couple of little tidbits you can expect to find in the boxed set. For players, how about one of these:

New Alternate Path: Lion Clan: De Bellis Legionnaire A generation ago the Lion Clan came into possession of a most curious gaijin artifact, one of those things called a “book.” But this was not simply any book, but rather a copy of De Bellis Yoditorum: an ancient treatise on the many tactics and strategies employed by the Yodotai, a vast and ruthless culture of warriors that lies far north and west of Rokugan. After significant difficulty, the Lion scholars were able to translate the text into the Rokugani language, and examination of its contents began in earnest.

Although the Lion have considerable appreciation for the information in the book, its existence has only enhanced their disgust toward cultures other than their own. Nevertheless, they have carefully studied everything within, training special units of their soldiers to employ and to counter the gaijin tactics on the field of battle. Some among the Lion believe their understanding of the book has placed them in a unique position to defeat the Yodotai, should those conquerors ever trouble the Empire. However, scholars who are more familiar with the text are deeply troubled by references that imply it is but one of a larger series of works.

And for GMs, a little bit of this:

Red Hunger
Like the Great Death that haunts the ocean, the Red Hunger is a blessedly unique creature that appears to lair somewhere within the unknown lands along the western edge of the Colonies. The beast is a serpent of almost unimaginable dimensions, capable of consuming elephants in a single bite. Humans are of such small size they are hardly worth the beast’s attention, but the Red Hunger seems to enjoy consuming them regardless, and perhaps takes some sort of malicious joy in the fear and death it causes.

The origins of the Red Hunger are better understood than those of the Great Death, due to an almost complete text recovered from a tomb found near the ruins of the Ivory Palace. According to the beliefs of the Ivory Kingdoms, the Red Hunger was once an inhabitant of the divine realm. There were few entities the serpent could prey on in that realm, and it was a greedy, deceitful scavenger that constantly burned from an internal hunger it could never quench, eventually turning red in color. When the mortal world was born, the snake slipped away into the new world in search of easier prey. It devastated entire villages until the gods gave their followers the tools needed to defeat and imprison the beast. The Red Hunger has spent most of its existence imprisoned, escaping a handful of times throughout the Ivory Kingdoms’ existence. It was not until the Kingdoms were destroyed that it gained true freedom, and since that time it has gorged itself repeatedly on the creatures and people of the Colonies. Fortunately, the beast seems to spend much of its time hunting in the enigmatic lands beyond the western boundaries of the Colonies.

Air: 3, Earth: 8, Fire: 2, Water: 8
Reflexes 4, Agility 5

Initiative: 4k1
Attack: Bite 10k5 (Complex), Grapple 10k8 (Complex)
Damage: Bite 8k8, Constrict 10k8
Armor TN: 30
Reduction: 8
Wounds: 200: +5; 300: +10; 400: +15; 600: +20; 800: Dead
Skills: Jiujutsu 7, Stealth 3

Special Abilities:

• Fear 4
• Huge
• Squeeze: When using a Grappling attack, the Red Hunger will always choose to inflict damage while it controls the Grapple (which it rolls 12k10 to control). A victim who suffers Grappling damage for a number of consecutive Rounds equal to its Stamina will begin to suffocate, suffering an additional 2k2 Wounds in the Reactions Stage of each Round.
• Swallow Whole: If the Red Hunger hits with a successful Bite attack, it may attempt to swallow its prey whole. The two make a Contested Strength roll. If the Red Hunger wins, the creature is swallowed. Swallowed creatures suffer 5k5 Wounds per Round during the Reactions Stage. Swallowed creatures may attempt to escape either by climbing out of the beast’s throat (an Athletics (Climbing) / Strength Roll at TN 25, followed by a Strength roll at TN 30 to fight clear of the mouth) or by hacking out of the beast’s stomach with a weapon (requiring a total of 50 wounds inflicted).

The Book of Earth

We’re a little behind schedule on this one, unfortunately, but such is the peril of convention season, I’m afraid. I think we can get back on track, though, so I’m hoping there won’t be any delay in the release schedule. Things are good with the content, though, and I’m looking forward to seeing the final product come out of layout. In the meantime, here’s a little fluff/mechanics combination that my good friend Seth Mason cooked up for the book.

The Order of the Nameless Gift
“Mankind is both flawed and perfect, weak and strong. Born of divine substance, yet subject to the basest passions. An enigma, yet at the same time as simple as can be. No subject could be more important.” – Abbot Mako Early in the fourth century, a sect of the Shrine of the Seven Thunders broke away over philosophical differences regarding the nature of humanity and the universe. It is not clear exactly when the sect began operating autonomously, but it is known the abbot of one particular shrine engaged in a years-long campaign of letters with his superior before finally declaring his temple’s official withdrawal from the Order. So great was the dissonance between the abbot and the rest of the Order, however, that by the time the letter was sent the temple was already effectively on its own.

The abbot, a man named Mako, reasoned that the Seven Thunders were not merely expressions of fate and balance in the Celestial Order made flesh. He believed such a view robbed the Thunders of their true significance as examples of Shinsei’s teaching: that mortal will could shake the foundations of creation. The counterargument was that such a thing had been accounted for in the Order’s views, stating it was mortal will that lent drove the Thunders to their great deeds, but their special nature was also required. The argument was effectively at an impasse. Which was more significant, the Thunders’ mortal will or their harmony with the universe? While there was agreement that both were necessary, the masters of the Shrine of Seven Thunders were uncomfortable with the idea that the gifts inherent to humanity could be unlocked by those unwilling or unable to attain a state of spiritual harmony.

When Mako’s sect broke away, there were little resentment and no violence. After all, both orders believed mortal man’s freedom to choose and direct his own path was exceptionally important. The new order reaffirmed its determination to meditate on the very nature of humanity and what the spark of the mortal soul meant when compared to the rest of the universe. However, Mako’s monks were much more worldly than their counterparts in the Shrine of the Seven Thunders, believing that while the soul and spirit were important, humans were basically physical creatures. They acknowledged humans were formed from the stuff of Sun and Moon, but believed there was something unique and powerful within every man or woman that was not merely the touch of divine origin. What it might be, though, was hard to identify.

And thus the Order of the Nameless Gift was born.

The Order is first and foremost a group of scholars and introspective thinkers, examining topics from the inside out and learning whatever they can. However, unlike many philosophers and other seekers of wisdom, they believe the truth is often obvious and simple. The world’s mysteries, much like humanity itself, are often expressed physically and not in riddles or hidden invisible truths. Monks of this Order, in surprising contrast to those of most other branches of the Brotherhood, prefer to speak plainly and find the surface of an answer as useful as its hidden side.

Other Orders, especially those not very familiar with the monks of the Nameless Gift, often dismiss their attitude as childish and naive. After all, many of Shinsei’s teachings warn against seeing things too simply, and the world contains many layers that bear investigation and understanding. A true master of the Nameless Gift responds to such criticisms by splitting an onion and pointing out that sometimes each layer of reality is simply more of the same. He would also point out that Shinsei warned against seeing complexity when there was none.

Since the sect that founded the Order of the Nameless Gift was located on the southern edge of the Phoenix lands, the Asako family took a great interest in them – not least because their beliefs were uneasily close to the secret teachings the Henshin order. By the fourth century the Asako knew there were a great many False Paths that could lead to corruption and ruination. The Phoenix made cordial approaches to the Order and quickly estblished a friendly dialogue. The Asako appreciated the enlightened simplicity of the monks and soon became confident the men and women of the Order were not seeking anything other than true understanding for its own sake.

Because the monks of the Nameless Gift are a physically-oriented sect, they train extensively in hand-to-hand combat, much like the sohei orders. They are far less militant than the monks of Osano-Wo, but when finally stirred to violence they are exceptional combatants. Due to their beliefs, their physical training is heavily Earth-oriented, with a great deal of endurance testing and sustained exposure to the elements. The monks accept physical sensations both good and bad, though they certainly do not enjoy pain and try to avoid truly injuring themselves. Nonetheless, they are far more open to experiencing all the physical world has to offer than their cousins in the Order of Seven Thunders, and if they do not seek pain they certainly do not shy away from enduring it.

Monks from the Order of the Nameless Gift are frustratingly difficult to seriously wound or to bring down quickly. They can shrug off painful blows that would leave others doubled over in pain, and some of them have been known to continue to fight when the most hardened bushi would have succumbed to their wounds. Some members of the Order even seem to draw strength from their pain, using the intense physical sensation to focus their minds and draw upon the namesake of their Order. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the Order tends to attract retired samurai from the more physically-oriented clans, such as the Crab, the Mantis, and the Lion.

In modern times the Order of the Nameless Gift remains relatively small, although its teachings are easier to grasp than typical monk philosophies. Many Rokugani find the Nameless Gift monks somewhat offputting, if only because they are more accustomed to hearing metaphors and high-minded philosophical rhetoric from members of the Brotherhood. For their part, the members of the Order simply accept this as part of the world, and endure.

New School: Order of the Nameless Gift [Monk]
Devotion: Shintao
Benefit: +1 Stamina
Honor: 4.5
Skills: Athletics, Defense, Jiujutsu, Lore (pick one), Meditation, any two Skills.
Technique: Shinsei’s Gift - A monk taught by the Order of the Nameless Gift can be an endless well of endurance, patience, and insight. Because they are much more worldly than many other monks in the Brotherhood, their training and experience add to a typical monk’s canny mind and strength in combat. The monk gains a number of Void Points per day equal to their Earth Ring, but these Void Points may only be spent to reduce damage or raise the monk’s TN to be hit. These Void Points may not be spent simultaneously with other Void Points or in any other fashion.

That’s a little more information than we normally share in these previews, but I wanted to make up for the brevity of my comments. Convention season! I need a nap.

Imperial Histories, Volume 2

So I think I’ve gotten all the entries I’ll be getting for Imperial Histories 2. Several people took advantage of my slightly extended deadline. Turns out that might have been a bad idea because now I have about three dozen of these things to try and sort through. My plan is to send out an email immediately after GenCon (earlier if I can, but I’m realistic) to all the winners and we can get started on this book immediately.

At present it looks like we are going to have about a dozen chapters of new eras, including some great stuff that we’ve not seen yet, including the Reign of the Steel Chrysanthemum, the Return of the Unicorn, and the Destroyer War, among many, many others. I can’t wait to see what kind of goodies we have in the submissions folder. I think everyone would agree that the first book had some amazing stuff in it, and I am very excited to add new and fresh ideas to the tapestry of Rokugan’s history.

That’s all for now, guys! See you at GenCon!