Draft: Ronin Advanced Disciplines

While I'm going through and giving the Teishin chapter some research, I thought I'd hand over some Advanced Disciplines for Ronin while you wait. Pretty neat, ne?

Ronin Advanced Disciplines

Advanced Discipline: Veteran Bushi

Uji/Profession: Bushi

Requirements:

Rings: Fire 3, Water 3

Skills: Athletics 3, Battle 3, Kenjutsu 3, Kyujutsu 3, Yarijutsu 3

Qualities: Crab Hands

Special: Must have survived at least 2 Battles.

Okuden

Cunning of the Wolf: The wolf survives not by force, but cunning. You can spend a Void Point to add +Xk0 to any Bugei Skill roll, where X is your Intelligence.

Strike of the Wolf: The wolf uses its whole body to attack. When you spend an Action to make an attack, you can also make an additional attack.

The Wolf Survives: A wolf adapts to its terrain. When making a Bugei Skill roll you can trade dice rolled for dice kept at a 2 for 1 rate; a 9k3 roll could become a 7k4 roll, or even a 5k5 roll.

Advanced Discipline: Veteran Gambler

Uji/Profession: Teishin

Requirements:

Rings: Air 3, Fire 3

Skills: Athletics 3, Commerce 3, Etiquette 3, Games 3

Qualities: Luck

Special: Must have a Glory Rank of 2 or more.

Okuden

Play Your Game: Every game is a duel. When playing games using the Games Skill, you may choose to make the game a duel. Treat it as an Iaijutsu duel, replacing “Iaijutsu” with “Games” in all instances. There is no damage roll, nor are there any Honor gains. In fact, if money is wagered, the duel is an Act of Vice. If both duelists fail their Strike rolls, they keep trading opportunities to make rolls against each other, the TN lowering to the last Focus. The victor gains Glory Points equal to their Games Skill and negates any Glory losses from playing the game. The loser doubles all Glory losses from the game.

Play Your Foe: True players don't worry about the odds; they play the person across the table. You can spend a Void Point while playing a game to learn any of your opponent's Traits or Rings. You also can spend a Void Point to defeat any attempt to learn your own Traits and Rings using Skills or Okuden; chiefly supernatural abilities cannot be so blocked.

Fortunes' Favored: When you lay a wager, the Fortunes favor you. You can spend a Void Point to reroll any contested Skill roll once.

Advanced Discipline: Veteran Kenshi

Uji/Profession: Bushi

Requirements:

Rings: Fire 3, Void 3

Skills: Etiquette 3, Iaijutsu 3, Kenjutsu 3

Qualities: Balance

Special: Must have survived at least 2 Iaijutsu duels.

Okuden

Eyes of the Wolf: A keen-eyed wolf studies his prey. When in a duel or skirmish, you can spend an Action to study an opponent, gaining a +1k0 bonus to your next attack roll against them. You can study the opponent even when in Full Defense, but lose the bonus after your attack. During a duel, each Focus counts as an Action spent studying.

Jaws of the Wolf: A wolf does not lose his prey easily. When rolling for damage, you may spend a Void Point to double your Strength.

The Wolf Pounces: The wolf chooses when to strike, not the prey. You may spend a Void Point to force an opponent to Strike in a duel or lose their highest Action Die in a Skirmish.

Advanced Discipline: Veteran Yojimbo

Uji/Profession: Bushi

Requirements:

Rings: Air 3, Earth 3

Skills: Athletics 3, Iaijutsu 3, Kenjutsu 3, Yarijutsu 3

Qualities: Combat Reflexes

Special: Must have an Honor Rank of 2 or more.

Okuden

Loyalty of the Pack: A wolf protects the pack. You can designate a number of allies up to your Insight Rank during combat; each ally cannot have attacked or made any hostile threat to you during the combat, and ceases to be an ally if they do so. Each ally gains a +1k1 bonus to all Active Defense rolls.

Tactics of the Pack: A wolf never fights alone. When fighting alongside or defending an ally (including in a duel), you gain a +1k1 bonus to all Skill rolls.

The Pack Survives: A wolf's life belongs to the pack. If an ally within sight is reduced to Down, Out, or Dead, you can spend a Void Point to transfer the Wounds bringing them to that state to yourself by intercepting the attack, drinking the poison, or whatever other means are available.

Lil'Bits

Some thoughts that have been running through my head. One bit is a need to realign the Trait Bonuses worked out. I just revised a more elemental based chart. That will be worked out a bit.

Another is a major change to the Defense and Athletics Skill. I'm eliminating Defense, and rolling it all into Athletics. Which means changing all the combat references to Athletics, too. So you still Active Defense, you just use Athletics.

Draft: Bushi Advanced Disciplines

Tonight, here's a slew of Advanced Disciplines. Almost all of the ones for bushi are here, minus two. The Mirumoto and the Shiba do not have Advanced Disciplines. Yet. The Shiba I have a solid idea for, but I haven't worked out the implications of all the mechanics yet, and I want to look at converting some Spider stuff (which I'm not a fan of) to possibly some other supersecret empire-wide organization...

Think on that.

For the Mirumoto, I know broadly what I want: The Inkyo Kenshi. A swordsman who indulges in kiho use. However, I have yet to contemplate how I'm going to handle kiho and gakusho in particular, so until I write that chapter the Mirumoto will have to wait. Even if I think of something else, I'd rather save it for Phase 2.

I had a general though for the Advanced Dsiciplines: Be specific in setting origin, but not in mechanic origin. So no Advanced Discipline is specific to a single Basic Discipline, just convenient. There are may be more Bayushi-trained Honor's Lesson Tacticians out there, but don't be surprised to find others, particularly Akodo, Hida, or Shinjo. The same could be said for any of them.

Thoughts on the ones I did complete a draft of:

Akodo: They look really strange, don't they? And I worry the extra stuff I slipped in is overpowering for the broad Okuden base they already have. But overall it fits the flavor. Which of course you don't have yet, so here's the vague picture:

At Seven Thunders Seido, a loose order of bushi who revere the original Thunders and hope to emulate their adherence to Bushido and status as heroes congregates. They came singly and slowly over the centuries, vowing to embrace all the ryuu as a unified philosophy. Those who submit themselves to the rigors of both martial and spiritual training by the monks must be chosen by another Disciple, after a period of fasting and meditation. They believe they practice other Okuden by opening themselves up to the guidance of the original Thunders. Their numbers are increasing as Akodo Toturi announced official support after his ascension to daimyo.

Bayushi: I wanted something that would point out how good a cunning general trained by the Bayushi could be. I pictured George Washington. A general who, frankly, wasn't all that great a genius, but was brilliant in conceiving just what a ragtag Continental Congress Army could accomplish, not by winning, but by taking the field and not losing. It was a tricky feat, and he excelled.

Hida: No big surprise there. I tweaked the Defender of the Wall (or the Crab Avenger, as I fondly recall).

Kakita: The Kakita are great duelists and one-on-one fighters because of their speed. But their "one strike" philosophy takes a beating from multiple opponents. And overall I wanted someone to take advantage of Yowamushi rules and decimate them. I picture them as Tai Chi swordsman, flowing through complex moves meant to constantly defend and attack hordes of enemies.

Shinjo: I was having a hard time coming up with something at first. How many ways can you really ride a horse? I thought of using the old Unicorn Magistrate, but there will be plenty of magistrates running around. I though of converting old schools, like the Battle Maiden (but decided they were better as a Path for Phase 2) or the Moto (but decided they have enough uniqueness to justify being their own Discipline in Phase 2). Then I ran across the White Guard. YES. I meshed it with the original Moto School, and I like these crazy religious fanatics wandering around and hoping to wipe out the Dark Moto one day. Lot of potential there.

Akodo Bushi Ryuu

Advanced Discipline: Disciple of Thunder

Uji/Profession: Bushi
Requirements:
Ring: Void 5
Skills: Bajutsu 5, Battle 5, Iaijutsu 5, Kenjutsu 5, Lore 7
Other: You must already know one of the following Okuden: Way of the Crab, Way of the Crane, Way of the Dragon, Way of the Kiirin, Way of the Lion, Way of the Scorpion, or Way of the Phoenix.

Okuden
Rank 1, The Call of Thunder: Your communion with the souls of original Seven Thunders provides you with insight into the different bushi styles famous throughout Hachigoku. Choose two of the following Okuden from another Bushi Discipline that you have not already learned: Way of the Crab, Way of the Crane, Way of the Dragon, Way of the Kiirin, Way of the Lion, Way of the Scorpion, or Way of the Phoenix. By spending a Void Point, you can use one of those two Okuden for the rest of the Scene. You cannot use more than one such Okuden granted by this Discipline at a time; if you activate a second during the Scene, you lose all benefits from the first.

Rank 2: The Strength of Thunder: Your penetration into the mysteries of the Seven Thunders continues. You choose two more Okuden from the list provided in Rank 1 that you can invoke. When you invoke these Okuden by spending Void Points, you can now maintain two at a time, taking whatever benefits are most advantageous.

Rank 3, Thunder Calls to Thunder: You can now awaken the Thunder in other bushi. You choose two more Okuden from the list provided in Rank 1 that you can invoke. By spending a Void Point, you can target another bushi who can now use any Rank 1 Bushi Okuden you know for the rest of the Scene. You cannot target the same bushi twice in a Scene.

Bayushi Bushi Ryuu

Advanced Discipline: Honor's Lesson Tactician

Uji/Profession: Bushi

Requirements:

Traits/Rings: Intelligence 5, Water 4

Skills: Battle 4, Sincerity 7

Qualities: Scorpion's Touch, Tactician

Other: Must have a Glory Rank of 3 or more, and be on good terms with the Bayushi uji.

Okuden

Rank 1, The Better Part of Valor: After reading the original Akodo's Leadership, you understand the role guile plays in warfare, and that victory goes to the cunning, not the glorious. When making any Battle Skill roll, you can use your Sincerity in place of Battle. You can still benefit from Battle Emphases and Mastery Abilities according to your Battle Rank. During a Wave, you can cancel any Battle Action targeting you by spending a Glory Point.

Rank 2, Bayushi's Wager: Deception in war is everpresent; even a crushing defeat can lay the groundwork for later victory. During a Battle, you can spend 2 Glory Points when making a Skill roll to use your Sincerity in place of the actual Skill; you can still access Emphases and Mastery Abilities of the original Skill, though. When rolling for Wounds at the end of a Wave, you may target your force and a number of larger forces up to your Discipline Rank. All forces double the number of dice they roll and keep for Wounds.

Rank 3, Fog of War: The terrain is yours to choose. By spending 3 Glory Points at the beginning of a Battle, you automatically gain the Advantage bonus for the terrain, even if you lose the Advantage of Strategy. During a Wave, you can now cancel any Battle Action targeting anyone in your force by spending a Glory Point.

Hida Bushi Ryuu

Advanced Discipline: Defender of the Wall

Uji/Profession: Bushi

Requirements:

Rings: Earth 4, Water 3

Skills: Battle 5, Defense 5, Shadowlands Lore 5, any two Bujutsu skills at 4

Advantage: Strength of the Earth

Other: Candidate must enter the Shadowlands and return with the head of an oni, ogre, or any Shadowlands beast no smaller than a man.

Okuden

Rank 1, Soul of Jade: Any creature that bears the Taint has earned your wrath. Any creature with the Shadowlands Taint rolling damage against you does not have their 10's explode, and you gain a +1k1 bonus all damage rolls if you are aware of the Taint.

Rank 2, Be the Wall: The spirit of the Kaiu Kabe infuses your flesh. You add your Earth x 2 to your TN to be Hit at all times. Also, when you spend an Action to make an attack against a target you are aware has the Taint, you can also make an additional attack against the same target. If you have an Okuden that already gives you two or more attacks when spending a single Action, you can make two additional attacks against the same target.

Rank 3, Hida's Final Lesson: You gain a supernatural level of toughness. You gain Carapace equal to your Earth, and generate Fear equal to your Earth that affects only those with the Shadowlands Taint.

Kakita Bushi Ryuu

Advanced Discipline: Sword Dancer

Uji/Profession: Bushi

Requirements:

Traits/Rings: Agility 4, Reflexes 4, Water 3

Skills: Athletics (Acrobatics) 4, Iaijutsu 6, Performance (Dance) 4, any Karate Skill 5

Okuden

Rank 1, Stepping Between the Notes: You listen to the rhythm of combat and slip away in the notes your enemies do not hear. When wielding any sword, you reduce the maximum number of human-sized opponents who can attack you at once (normally six) by your Discipline Rank, gain Free Raises to attack any Yowamushi equal to your Discipline Rank, and add your Performance to your TN to be Hit.

Rank 2, Melody of the Blade: Your steel moves to a melody all its own, dancing from one target to the next. As long as you are not immobilized, you have the Highest Initiative Total in any Phase. You can use Performance (Dance) as an Active Defense; if you use it successfully to dodge an attack and are wielding a sword, you may spend a Void Point and immediately attack a foe within melee range, but not the original attacker, without spending an Action.

Rank 3, The Song Remains: You no longer need the blade in your hand to dance with death. You can use all of this Discipline's Okuden benefits and abilities even if you are unarmed. You can now spend Interrupt Actions to make attacks either with a sword or unarmed, and can move up to 10' after any successful attack without spending an Action.

Shinjo Bushi Ryuu

Advanced Discipline: White Rider

Uji/Profession: Bushi

Requirements:

Traits/Rings: Strength 4, Agility 4, Willpower 5

Skills: Bajutsu 4, Theology (Shi-Tien Yen-Wang) 5, any two Bujutsu Skills 5

Advantages: Combat Reflexes, Death Trance

Other: You must swear your soul, but not necessarily your fealty, to the Shi-Tien Yen-Wang. You must have an Honor of 3 or more.

Okuden

Rank 1, Pale Face of Death: The White Riders march into battle with their faces painted deathly white, in honor of the Lords of Death who bless their might. You may spend both a Void Point and an Action to make a Full Attack, producing Fear equal to your Theology until your next Action. Also, you are gifted with a Fine Quality steed who possesses the Death Trance Quality.

Rank 2, Blessings from the Book of Iron: Your faith in the Shi-Tien Yen-Wang is your sword and armor. You add your Theology to all attack and damage roll totals, and to your TN to be Hit at all times.

Rank 3, Vengeance of the Shie-Tien Yen-Wang: The Shi-Tien Yen-Wang grant you victory even in death. When you roll for the Advantage of Heaven in a Battle, you can spend a Void Point to automatically gain the Advantage, as if you won the roll with Free Raises equal to your Honor. When you die, being reduced to Dead, a pure light envelops your body and destroys it utterly. All those within 5' x your Honor take Wounds equal to your total Wounds suffered, unless they have an Honor of 3 or more. If they have the Shadowlands Taint or no Honor at all, they suffer additional Wounds equal to your Honor x 5. All items and equipment near you (including your steed) are destroyed utterly, unless they are nemuranai.

Draft: Path Disciplines

Well, now that all the Basic Disciplines are up, here's a big fat Friday gift: Path Disciplines. One big difference in the way I'm handling Paths different from 2-3rd editions is the lack of a Path of Entry or Path of Egress. I just use a Discipline Requirement, since the Season Action method of character advancement does away with the need for two different qualifiers. And really, wasn't it funny that your Path had two other fiddly bits called Paths? Bad nomenclature.

4th ed. had the Paths replace, instead of add to, your School Ranks. Don't like it. For one thing, it logically follows that if you don't really need one Technique to continue to the next Technique after all, what's really holding the School together? It's just a collection of Techniques around a theme that can be switched in and out with any other Techniques. Hard to argue for tradition's integrity and discipline if that's the case.

Some of these Paths reflect old ones; some are fairly original or heavily modified. I gave each O-Shosei three Paths, and the other three Basic Disciplines have two each. Why? I figure the older, larger, more prominent Shosei have the prestige and resources to field more Paths, but also to limit the beginning choices to a manageable selection for a Player. 27 choices is pretty good, I think.

This isn't the limit to all Paths, or even all Basic or Advanced Disciplines, of course. Certainly more exist (that's part of Phase 2). The mechanics are here, and they suggest flavor and context I'll write later.

The Akodo Bushi Ryuu

Path Discipline: Ikeda Metsuke

Uji/Profession: Ikeda Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Akodo Bushi 2

Okuden
Rolling Thunder: None can run from justice when you're in the saddle, even if you're under a sky black with arrows. When mounted, you can spend an Honor Point to negate a ranged attack against you; the foe's attack roll fails automatically. Additionally, any attack roll against you  by someone with lower Honor has a TN penalty equal to your Honor x 2. 


Path Discipline: Seizuka Sekko

Uji/Profession: Seizuka Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Akodo Bushi 2

Okuden
Honor in the Shadows: If it be your daimyo's will, there is honor in the shadows. The Stealth Skill is considered a Bugei Skill for you, if your use of it is in service to your superior. Additionally, you can spend Actions in a round observing a foe unseen (this can include a Yowamushi group or force). For every Action spent this way, you gain Free Raises on your attacks against the foe until the end of the Scene.


Path Discipline: Tsume Yari-sha

Uji/Profession: Tsume Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Akodo Bushi 1

Okuden
None Shall Pass: A foe only succeeds in burying their blade in your flesh after you have buried your yari in theirs. If successfully attacked with a melee weapon while wielding any weapon using the Yarijutsu Skill, you can spend an Action to make an Active Defense. You roll Yarijutsu/Reflexes. Unlike a normal Active Defense, this does not negate the initial attack. Instead it acts as an attack roll against your foe, who cannot attempt an Active Defense in response. If successful, you not only deal damage but have impaled the foe as well. You both roll damage against each other simultaneously. The foe remains impaled unless they spend an Action to disentangle themselves, taking an additional 1k1 Wounds in so doing. You, as an Action, can twist the blade in deeper or remove it, causing an additional 1k1 Wounds in either case. Except for the initial damage roll, none of your damage rolls add your Strength.

The Bayushi Bushi Ryuu

Path Discipline: Kochako Yojimbo

Uji/Profession: Kochako Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Bayushi Bushi 3

Okuden
Salvation From Darkness: From the shadows you defend your charges. When you spend an Action to perform the Guard Defense Maneuver, instead of the normal defense you may attempt an attack against the original attacker. You must make a Stealth/Agility roll as an Active Defense against the attacker’s TN to be Hit as if they were unaware of you. If they already were unaware of you before the attack, you gain Free Raises equal to your Stealth Rank. If your roll succeeds, you roll damage as normal and the original attack is canceled. But if you fail your attack, the attacker's roll is applied against the original target's TN as normal.


Path Discipline: Kuroban Infiltrator

Uji/Profession: Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Bayushi Bushi 2

Okuden
The Face of Evil: You are trained to sense and simulate the Shadowlands Taint with your spirit. By spending a Void Point as an Action, you can detect Shadowlands Taint within 5' x your Awareness. With a successful Stealth (Disguise)/Awareness roll (TN 20), and sufficient time and materials, you can mimic the visual and mental degradations of the Taint, fooling any physical observation. You can choose any single Shadowlands Defect, plus one per Raise. By spending a Void Point, you also shift your spiritual aura so that magic and other unorthodox means detect a Shadowlands Taint Rank equal to 1, plus a rank per additional Defect your are mimicking. It's important to note that this is not the same as actually having the Taint; you will not be harmed by magic that only harms Tainted targets, for instance.  


Path Discipline: Ujina Kenshi

Uji/Profession: Ujina Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Bayushi Bushi 1

Okuden
Thunder's Tanto: A foe who keeps his eye on your sword instead of you dies. If you successfully Feint, you can immediately attack with a weapon in your off-hand, drawing and attacking in one action if necessary. This weapon must be smaller than a katana (such as a wakizashi or tanto). You can even perform this Feint in an Iaijutsu duel, but doing so is gravely dishonorable.

The Hida Bushi Ryuu

Path Discipline: Hida Kimabushi

Uji/Discipline: Hida Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Hida Bushi 1

Okuden
Overrun: On horseback you are a mountain of metal crashing down on the enemy. When mounted, you gain Free Raises on all Yarijutsu rolls equal to your Earth. Additionally, if you make a Full Attack using Yarijutsu and use the Charge Maneuver, you can spend remaining Actions in a round to increase the damage roll of a successful attack. Each Action so spent gives you a +2k2 bonus.


Path Discipline: Moshibaru Tetsubo-sha

Uji/Profession: Moshibaru Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Hida Bushi 2

Okuden
Avalanche of Iron: Your devotion to subojutsu brings you martial and spiritual excellence. Your Subojutsu Skill gains the Mastery Abilities of the Iaijutsu Skill. In addition, when using Subojutsu in a duel you gain Free Raises equal to your Earth and using Subojutsu in an Iaijutsu duel is considered legally honorable.


Path Discipline: Raikuto Sumatori

Uji/Profession: Raikuto Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Hida Bushi 2

Okuden:
Smiling Upon the Wall: The sumatori are taught to use their great strength as an asset both in and out of the sumai duel. In a Sumai Duel, you may Focus additional times equal to your Strength. Additionally, you can add your Strength to all Social Skill roll totals.

The Kakita Bushi Ryuu

Path Discipline: Asahina Yojimbo

Uji/Profession: Asahina Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Kakita Bushi 1

Okuden
Blade of Water: For the Asahina, steel is no substitute for spirit and flesh. You can learn the Mizu-do Skill even if you are not a Doji or Kakita samurai, and can use it instead of Defense when performing the Guard Maneuver. You also add your Iaijutsu to all unarmed attack roll totals.


Path Discipline: Kakita Kenshinzen

Uji/Profession: Kakita Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Kakita Bushi 5

Okuden
A Single Moment: There is no past or future once your blade is drawn; only victory exists. There is no limit to the number of times you may Focus in a duel. In a Skirmish, you can sacrifice all remaining Actions in a round to gain a bonus to a single damage roll. Each sacrificed Action grants +2k2.


Path Discipline: Kenshin Teishin

Uji/Discipline: Kenshin Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Kakita Bushi 2

Okuden
Blade of Whispers: You see no difference between excellence with blades and excellence with words. You add your Iaijutsu to all Social Skill roll totals, and you can Focus additional times equal to your Insight Rank on all duels not involving Bugei Skills.

The Kitsune Bushi Ryuu

Path Discipline: Hiramori Shinobi

Uji/Profession: Hiramori Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Kitsune Bushi 2

Okuden
Truth In Shadows: The honor of your uji is paramount; yours is dispensable. When acting to protect your uji, you lose no Honor Points for Acts of Vice. Also, all of your Okuden are usable even in urban environments.


Path Discipline: Hiruma Sekko

Uji/Profession: Hiruma Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Kitsune Bushi 2

Okuden
Dance the Razor's Edge: A Hiruma is your only hope for survival deep in the Shadowlands. You gain a bonus to your TN to be Hit equal to 5 x your Insight Rank, but only versus Shadowlands creatures. When rolling to resist gaining Taint Points, you gain a +XkX bonus, where X is your Insight Rank. Finally, no matter how deep you are in the Shadowlands, you can spend a Void Point to know which way the Wall lies, and where the quickest paths back survive.

The Mirumoto Bushi Ryuu

Path Discipline: Goraiku Ito

Uji/Profession: Goraiku Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Mirumoto Bushi 3

Okuden
Dragon's Flame: The fire from beneath the mountains flows up through your bow; no one can get near you or yours without being scorched by arrows. When firing a bow you can spend a Void Point to awaken the dragon within and burst your arrow into flame. The arrow gains a +XkX damage bonus, where X is your Fire. It continues to harm any target it strikes at the end of the round, dealing Xk1 Wounds, losing after each roll until it is extinguished (0k1). In addition, all cover bonuses to your TN to be Hit are doubled. 


Path Discipline: Shiba Kenshi

Uji/Profession: Shiba Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Mirumoto Rank 3

Okuden
Down Dragon's Teeth Road: To strike you, one must travel down the maw of the dragon. You can wield a naginata instead of a katana in your primary hand, and a katana instead of a wakizashi in your off-hand, and still use all of your previous Mirumoto Okuden concerning the daisho. However, all damage rolls with either weapon suffer a -1k0 penalty when wielded in such a manner.


Path Discipline: Togashi Musha Shugyo

Uji/Profession: Togashi Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Mirumoto Bushi 1

Okuden
Blades of Mercy: You are a wanderer, placing mercy and the protection of the weak before the tenets of Bushido. You gain the Musha Shugyo Advantage for free, but can continue to learn Mirumoto Okuden without renouncing the Advantage. You can spend a Glory Point to negate any Honor or Glory loss if you are defending or serving a non-samurai, non-Shadowlands Tainted individual, group, or even cause. In addition, you add your Honor + Glory to all Social Skill roll totals when dealing with non-samurai, non-Shadowlands Tainted individuals. If you ever commit any act that changes your Glory to Infamy, you lose all benefits of this Okuden.

The Shiba Bushi Ryuu

Path Discipline: Kitsu Bushi

Uji/Profession: Kitsu Bushi
Path Discipline: Shiba Bushi 2

Okuden
Dance of the Elements: You can feel the elements dancing around you, and can even protect others from their energy. You can use the Sense and Counterspell Emphases of the Spellcraft Skill even though you cannot cast magic, but only as regards elemental magic. In addition, any Ashram, Seido, or Shinden Holding you possess grants you free shelter in any Season. You can extend this boon to a number of individuals (including Wa members) up to your Insight Rank.


Path Discipline: Seppun Yojimbo

Uji/Profession: Seppun Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Shiba Bushi 2

Okuden
No Illusions: You allow nothing to separate you from those under your protection. You may spend one hour meditating with an individual and spend a Void Point to put that individual under your charge. Afterward, you will always know in which direction your charge lies, as long as the charge remains alive and in the mortal world. This will not, however, inform you of distance or exact location. In addition, you gain Free Raises equal to your Insight Rank on all Perception rolls.


Path Discipline: Shiba Naginata-sha

Uji/Profession: Shiba Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Shiba Bushi 1

Okuden
One With the Strike: Your naginata becomes one with your spirit and flesh. Your Yarijutsu Skill gains the Mastery Abilities of the Iaijutsu Skill, but only if you are wielding a naginata. In addition, when wielding a naginata you gain Free Raises equal to your Void and increase your TN to be Hit by your Yarijutsu Skill.

The Shinjo Bushi Ryuu

Path Discipline: Ide Kenshi

Uji/Profession: Ide Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Shinjo Bushi 2

Okuden
Cunning of the Seas: Your katana can block as well as attack. You can spend an Action using your katana to block an incoming Iaijutsu, Kenjutsu, or Yarijutsu attack as an Active Defense, making a Kenjutsu/Agility roll against your foe's attack roll. If successful you negate the attack, and can immediately counterattack with a thrust of your own, rolling Kenjutsu/Reflexes.


Path Discipline: Matsu Beastmaster

Uji/Profession: Matsu Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Shinjo Bushi 1

Okuden
Tongue of the Beast: Wild animals loyal to you are fierce avengers. You gain animal Yowamushi loyal to you, a pack whose TR is equal to your Insight Rank. These are all animals of the same kind from the following list: bear, falcon, tiger, or wolf. In a Skirmish, this pack acts as one per your command whenever you spend an Action. If any animal dies under your care, you cannot replace them by spending a Season Action to train a new one, assuming one can be acquired.


Path Discipline: Onshigawa Sekko

Uji/Profession: Onshigawa Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Shinjo Bushi 1

Okuden
Onshigawa's Grace: Your steed understands the need for silence and shadows. Stealth is considered a Bugei Skill for you, and you are given a steed specially trained to allow you to use the Stealth Skill while mounted (with the understanding that there is only so stealthy a large horse can possibly be). In addition, when mounted and in a Battle, your commander gains bonus Battle Actions equal to your Water on Phase 1 of the first Wave, but can only assign them as “ground” Actions (“Deadly Ground”, etc.).

The Tsuruchi Bushi Ryuu

Path Discipline: Koritome Ito

Uji/Profession: Koritome Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Tsuruchi Bushi 3

Okuden
Cherry Blossom Arrows: You fill the sky with arrows and your enemies drop like blossoms in spring as you speed past. When mounted, you can spend an Action and a Void Point to make a number of Kyujutsu attacks with a daikyu equal to your Void; each attack roll gains Free Raises equal to your Void. You can combine this with the Charge maneuver (even at a gallop) without needing a Raise.


Path Discipline: Yasuki Bounty Hunter

Uji/Profession: Yasuki Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Tsuruchi Bushi 1

Okuden
The Emperor's Hunt: Your pursuit of the Celestial Order's enemies is as keen and focused as an arrow flying from your bow. You can spend a Glory Point when making Skill rolls versus those who have Infamy to gain a bonus equal to your Kyujutsu on the roll total. Also, you can spend a Void Point and an Action to scan your location and visually identify any known criminal or individual with Infamy when you step into a room or space.

The Yoritomo Bushi Ryuu

Path Discipline: Hogosha Kama-sha

Uji/Profession: Hogosha Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Yoritomo Bushi 3

Okuden
Way of the Mantis: When wielding a kama in either hand, you gain a TN to be Hit bonus equal to your Nofujutsu. You can sacrifice this bonus until your next Action to make two simultaneous attack rolls instead of one against a foe with your kama. You can make these two rolls any time you could have made a single attack roll with your kama.


Path Discipline: Watanabe Anjin

Uji/Profession: Watanabe Bushi
Discipline Requirement: Yoritomo Bushi 1

Okuden
Blessing of Suitengu: You soul is only free at sea. When aboard ship, you gain a bonus to all Skill roll totals equal to your Water. Double this bonus when using Athletics or Sailing. When not aboard ship, you still gain a bonus to all Social Skill roll totals equal to your Sailing if the target also has ranks in the Sailing Skill.

Draft: The Yoritomo Bushi

Okay, the last of the Basic Disciplines is thWAIT WAIT I JUST FIGURED SOMETHING OUT!

Sorry. I was just thinking of the Tsuruchi again, and that I didn't want the Bounty Hunter Path to be all tied up in the same base uji, so I gave it to the Sakura since they like tracking down ninja, but I was giving it back to the Tsuruchi because that didn't feel right...

But then...

then...

YASUKI BOUNTY HUNTER! Makes perfect sense.

Anyway. Yoritomo. He's looking at me funny, so let's get on with it. Absolutely useless background: Yoritomo was looking to seed the Yoritomo dojo ten years ago and jumps off a ship in Cold Wind City. His comrade asks him how we going to get permission to start a dojo there, and he says, "The way all legends begin. Pick a fight."

He picks a particularly arrogant Kakita duelist by the dock and humiliates him. The Kakita reacts dishonorably, attacking Yoritomo from behind after the duel; Yoritomo still dunks him in the harbor. The samurai is dishonored and made ronin.

Two years later the ronin Dairya begins slicing up opponents. Draw your own conclusions.

So, the ryuu. I tried to make them more focused on unorthodox weapons and tactics, and sailing. Less focused specifically on the kama. I always felt that, unless you have really cool kama (like Yoritomo's massive magic ones), doing the kind of damage the old school called for just didn't make sense. And it was way too one-note. "So I'm a kickbutt sailor and misunderstood samurai, yes?" "Yep." "What are my weapon options?" "Kama." "Kama?" "Well, you can use anything you want, but your techniques really only use kama." "Kama?"

This continues for several more hours.

***

The Yoritomo Bushi Ryuu

Basic Discipline: The Yoritomo Bushi

Uji/Profession: Yoritomo Bushi

Benefit: +1 Willpower

Honor: 1

Skills: Athletics, Commerce, Jiujutsu, Kenjutsu, Nofujutsu, Sailing

Outfit: Daisho, any 2 weapons, light armor, 1 kimono, traveling pack, 8 koku

Okuden

Rank 1, Fight Without Steel: Yoritomo bushi have an unofficial motto: “Whatever works.” You treat all Bujutsu and Karate Skills as Bugei Skills. Also, a preference for maximizing nontraditional weapons allows you to use Nofujutsu weapons without any off-hand penalty. Finally, the rolling style of footwork taught to you allows you to ignore all penalties for unsure footing, whether on a precarious, gravel-covered ledge or a ship tossed about by sea and storm.

Rank 2, Voice of the Storm: The fury of Osano-wo leaves others trembling before you. You can spend a Void Point when spending an Action for Full Attack to negate all Free Raises opponents gain against you and generate Fear equal to your Discipline Rank until your next Action.

Rank 3, Claws of the Mantis: Your extensive experience with unorthodox weapons and tactics has taught you to exploit other samurai's reliance on tradiotion. Whenever you spend an Action to make an attack that does not use Kenjutsu, Kyujutsu, or Yarijutsu, you can also make an additional attack. In addition, you gain a +1k0 bonus to all Bugei Skill rolls when engaged in a Battle with Precipitous terrain.

Rank 4, Yoritomo's Rolling Wave: You have mastered Yoritomo's own contribution to the ryuu, a method of defense that focuses on flexibility and fluidity. When rolling for Full Defense or an Active Defense, you add +XkX to your roll, where X is your Water Ring. You can also move normally during Full Defense, and can move up 5' when making an Active Defense.

Rank 5, Typhoon Strike: You can hurl yourself into combat, striking savagely from all directions at once. Spend Actions equal to your Water Ring (only one need be in the current Phase), then make a single attack roll against everyone nearby. Everyone, friend or foe, is targeted, unless you spend a Void Point to avoid a specific individual in your field of fire. This attacks everyone within 5' x your Water Ring. You can make Raises as normal, or even benefit from Free Raises. However, you cannot spend Raises or perform Attack Maneuvers other than Increased Damage, Knockdown, or declaring Bonus Effects. All Yowamushi are targeted individually by the attack roll. Likewise, you roll a single damage roll, applied to all targets successfully struck. Any modifiers a target applies to the total Wounds inflicted only concerns themselves, but any modifiers to the dice themselves (including altering kept or unkept dice, etc.) concern all targets.

Draft: The Tsuruchi Bushi

Ah, the Tsuruchi. This isn't in the mechanics, but one change is that Tsuruchi is considerably older. As in, dead. It's been several generations. Because having that great a legendary archer around is just really intimidating to all the other wannabe archers.

And, y'know, this is your word to have fun in. So let's just assume his fun was had.

Mechanically... I dunno. It's the archer ryuu. There needed to be an archer ryuu. There's not all that much to with that, okay? I didn't want to push up the magistrate angle because it feels too specific, not general enough to break the Clan Monopoly Problem. I leave that for a Path (yes, there's a Bounty Hunter Path).

Hopefully it's not overpowered; I did try to dial it back to feel like 1st edition.

***

The Tsuruchi Bushi Ryuu

Basic Discipline: The Tsuruchi Bushi

Uji/Profession: Tsuruchi Bushi

Benefit: +1 Reflexes

Honor: 2

Skills: Athletics, Defense, Hunting, Investigation, Kyujutsu, Nofujutsu

Outfit: Daisho, daikyu or yumi, any 20 arrows, any 1 weapon, light armor, 1 kimono, traveling pack, 2 koku

Okuden

Rank 1, Never Let the Blade Reach You: If you let the enemy get near enough to hit, you die. When on Full Defense, you can still spend Actions to attack with ranged weapons. In addition, when wielding a bow you gain Free Raises on your attack roll equal to your Discipline Rank.

Rank 2, Sting of the Wasp: Tsuruchi was famous for blackening the sky with arrows. When you spend an Action to make an attack with a bow, you can also make additional attacks with that bow equal to your Discipline Rank.

Rank 3, The Arrow Knows the Way: Your technique collapses you, the arrow, and the target into a deadly unity. You can spend a Void Point before making an attack with a bow. The arrow automatically hits, but with no Raises other than Free Raises.

Rank 4, Flight of No-Mind: The unity between archer and target has erased all boundaries. When firing an arrow, you ignore all TN penalties, including the target's armor; a Raise is not a penalty. You also reduce Carapace by your Discipline Rank when firing an arrow.

Rank 5, Tsuruchi's Final Lesson: Every archer strives for that one, perfect shot. You can spend an Action and a Void Point to fire an arrow; it automatically hits, ignoring all armor, Carapace, protection from spells, or nemuranai. You gain 10 Free Raises on this attack. You cannot do anything else with this Action but take the single perfect shot.

Draft: The Kitsune Bushi

The Kitsune Bushi are a replacement for the Hiruma Bushi originally planned. After looking over the Hiruma, it occurred to me that they're just too niche. And expecting them to give up the niche to spread their dojo across Hachigoku seemed unrealistic.

So I took the basics of the Hiruma, looked through various "scout" type Paths (which are really pretty identical": Shinomen Guard, Kitsune Tracker, Wilderness Explorer), and cobbled up this ryuu. I think it fits the niche of needing a scout, wilderness-based Discipline without trampling all over ninja territory, just getting uncomfortably close.

Plus, I can put the Hiruma niche back in with a Path, so they still get love, and I can make an interesting three-way history dynamic between the Kitsune, Shinjo, and Hiruma.

This is the first of the Shosei ryuu, seeing as I can give them a mythical origin without being directly attached to Thunders or Kami.

***

The Kitsune Bushi Ryuu

Basic Discipline: The Kitsune Bushi

Uji/Profession: Kitsune Bushi
Benefit: +1 Perception
Honor: 2
Skills: Athletics, Hunting, Investigation, Kenjutsu, Kyujutsu, Stealth
Outfit: Daisho, yumi, any 20 arrows, any 1 weapon, ashigaru armor, 1 kimono, traveling pack, 2 koku

Okuden
Rank 1, The Hidden Path: The wilderness holds few secrets for those who run with foxes. You add your Hunting to your TN to be Hit and attack roll totals when in non-urban environments. Additionally, you gain Free Raises equal to your Discipline Rank when using the Hunting, Investigation, or Stealth Skills, and Stealth is considered a Bugei Skill for you.

Rank 2, Run Like the Wind: Those who reach this rank can push their endurance past normal limits. You can maintain a running pace for a number of hours equal to your Discipline Rank x 2, assuming a speed of 10 m.p.h. Afterwards you must spend an equal amount of time resting, engaging in no strenuous activity (nothing that requires combat or Complex Actions. Additionally, you can double the overland travel speed of yourself and a number of other individuals equal to your Discipline Rank x 5. This only applies in non-urban environments as you pick your way through unused passes and trod little-known paths across the wilderness of Hachigoku.

Rank 3, Moving the Shadow: Nothing can impede a Kitsune intent on fulfilling his mission. You can always move at full speed, even if normally hampered by Full Defense, Stealth, or Wound penalties. If magically impeded, you can spend a Void Point to still move at full speed for the rest of the Scene. This will not enable you to move if immobilized for any reason, but you do gain a +1k1 bonus to all rolls to escape bonds or entanglement. Your memory, too, is heightened. At any time you can hold an image in your head and recount the details perfectly, as if you were standing there. You can only hold one such image in your head at a time.

Rank 4, Harness the Wind: Your attacks howl like a cutting wind. When you spend an Action to make an attack, you can also make an additional attack.

Rank 5: Veil of Spirits: Your mastery of seeing unseen is complete. When making Hunting or Stealth rolls, your 9's explode as if they were 10's. Also, you can spend a Void Point when attempting to avoid detection and automatically succeed against any attempts to detect you. You must remain completely still, only breathing, or the okuden fails. If magic is used to detect you, you may spend an additional Void Point to foil each specific instance until the end of the Scene.

Draft: The Shinjo Bushi

And now for the My Little Pony Bushi. I mean, the Shinjo. This has always been a fairly solid, cavalry-dominating niche. I don't mind that, especially after breaking the Clan Monopoly Problem. There's not too much different here, except some Battle buffing, some Charge addition, and the Parrying part is gone.

Wait! Wait! Let me explain.

The parrying ability has been somewhat upgraded to offensive status (because if you really know fencing, you know that parrying without a riposte is a rookie thing to do) and placed in a Path. So it's there, it's different but still cool, so put down the katana...

Also, this is the last of the O-Shosei ryuu to be statted. The next three are two Shosei (the Kitsune and Yoritomo) and a Shodai (Tsuruchi).

***

The Shinjo Bushi Ryuu

Basic Discipline: The Shinjo Bushi

Uji/Profession: Shinjo Bushi
Benefit: +1 Awareness
Honor: 2
Skills: Athletics, Bajutsu, Hunting, Kenjutsu, Yarijutsu, Yomanri
Outfit: Daisho, daikyu, any 20 arrows, any 2 weapons, light armor, 1 kimono, traveling pack, steed, 10 koku

Okuden
Rank 1, Way of the Unicorn: A Shinjo rider learns to trust his steed's instincts above his own desire. When mounted, you add your Bajutsu to all Skill roll totals and TN to be Hit.

Rank 2, Across the Dusty Plains: You are taught that speed is no excuse for carelessness. You can perform the Charge Attack Maneuver without making a Raise, and when making a Full Attack others gain only 2 Free Raises against you until your next Action. If mounted, your opponents gain only 1 Free Raise against you.

Rank 3, Four Winds Strike: When you spend an Action to make an attack, you can also make an additional attack.

Rank 4, One Spirit: You and your steed react as one. When mounted, your steed uses your TN to be Hit. If the steed's TN to be Hit is higher, you use its. Your steed also has access to all of your Shinjo Bushi okuden while under your direction. When assigned a Battle Action during a Wave, your bond with your mount allows you to take an additional Battle Action, assuming you are mounted.

Rank 5, Dancing With Fortunes: The luck of Lady Shinjo be with you. After any roll, you may spend a Void Point to reroll, even if was successful. After any roll made against you (be it an attack, a spell, etc.), you may spend a Void Point to force the foe to reroll. This can only affect rolls directly made against you, not environmental effects or collateral damage.

Draft: The Shiba Bushi

Get ready. Tonight I'm flooding you with the rest of the Basic Bushi Disciplines. Because I've been very inspired lately, and almost finished the Path mechanics. I don't want to wait so long!

So now you'll get all the Basic Bushi out of the way. then I'll toss the Paths at you when they're finished. And then some Advanced Disciplines (Disciple of Thunder, Sword Dancer, etc.) Excited yet?

So. The Shiba. It's surprising how little they changed through the editions. 1st and 2nd are almost identical. 3rd tried to incorporate the 2nd ed. Shiba Yojimbo (which always seemed odd to me, as if the Shiba Bushi for a thousand years had been incapable of doing its most important function), and to its credit did a much better job than the Mirumoto incorporation did. 4th is, well, fluffy.

I wanted to bring out the yojimbo/bodyguard nature of the school while keeping its meditative Void-crazy inspiration intact. And took the opportunity to grab from some other yojimbo layabouts left scattered around L5R history. Overall, I think it's pretty strong. One of the things I wanted to focus on was the question of "Why would I play this instead of something else?" I've met or talked to very few who have played Shiba Bushi, much like with Akodo Bushi. You played one because you liked the Phoenix flavor, or left it to NPC territory.

That was the problem with the Clan monopolies: you played characters from certain Schools because you liked the Clan, not the School. And it's hard to really care about your character in that situation. Not impossible, but certainly it's unnecessarily more difficult.

***

The Shiba Bushi Ryuu

Basic Discipline: The Shiba Bushi

Uji/Profession: Shiba Bushi
Benefit: +1 Reflexes
Honor: 3
Skills: Defense, Kenjutsu, Kyujutsu, Meditation, Theology, Yarijutsu
Outfit: Daisho, any bow, any 20 arrows, naginata or yari, light armor, 1 kimono, traveling pack, 5 koku

Okuden
Rank 1, Way of the Phoenix: The insight and wisdom of the Phoenix flows through you. You gain a bonus to your attack and damage roll totals equal to your Void. In addition, you add your Honor Rank to the number of Wounds each Wound Level can hold.

Rank 2, One With Nothing: The calm of the Void guides your movements. When on Full Defense, you can spend a Void Point to gain Actions in the Phase equal to your Discipline Rank. These Actions cannot be spent to make attacks, but do not end your Full Defense unless you wish. In addition, you can spend as many Void Points on enhancing a roll as you wish, up to your Void Ring.

Rank 3, A Single Life: Your life does not belong to you; it belongs to the service and protection of others. When on Full Defense, instead of the normal benefits, you can spend an Action to intercept any attack against someone within melee range; the target of the attack becomes you, blocking the original attack with your body. This is not considered a use of the Guard maneuver. In addition, you gain Free Raises on all Defense Maneuver rolls equal to your Discipline Rank.

Rank 4, Everywhere and Nowhere at Once: The Void moves your weapon where it needs to be. When you spend an Action to make an attack, you can also make an additional attack.

Rank 5, Touch of the Void: Your resonance with the Void expands the limits of your abilities. You can spend a Void Point to add your Void to any Trait or Skill when making a roll. Additionally, you can sense when Void is being used around you, and attempt to block access. When a Void Point is spent in your presence, you can spend a Void Point to make a contested Void roll with the spender. If you succeed, the Void Point is spent for no effect. If you fail, the Void Point is spent normally.

Draft: The Mirumoto Bushi

Today, we have the Mirumoto Bushi up on deck. Looking through the four editions, my favorite Miyamoto Musashi homage has quite a roller-coaster history. It was mechanically the "kill'em quick, kill'em dead, kill'em all school" that threw in a magic-based technique for flavor in 1st ed., remembered how all the flavor text talked about how great duelists the Mirumoto were and tossed in the Swordmaster School in 2nd ed., then threw them both together for 3rd ed. for an incredibly overpowered tactical nuke of a bushi.

4th ed. sort of tried to separate them and make the bushi a bit of old school killer and new school duelist, and just looked like it nerfed it overall.

I decided to take that 4th ed. direction, which was well-intended after the God-mod of 3rd ed., but went way too far. I attempted to rediscover the original Mirumoto, with some tweaks to bring out the dueling aspect. This may yet need further revision, Rank 3 always seems out of place, but the flavor of linking shugenja and bushi together for historical reasons is too strong.

***

The Mirumoto Bushi Ryuu

Basic Discipline: The Mirumoto Bushi

Uji/Profession: Mirumoto Bushi
Benefit: +1 Awareness
Honor: 2
Skills: Athletics, Jiujutsu, Kenjutsu, Kyujutsu, Meditation, Theology
Outfit: Daisho, any bow, any 20 arrows, light armor, 1 kimono, traveling pack, 2 koku

Okuden
Rank 1, Way of the Dragon: Mirumoto bushi train in a unique style that employs the katana one-handed, with the wakizashi warding off threats in the off-hand. When wielding the daisho in such a fashion, you gain a bonus to your TN to be Hit of 5 + your Discipline Rank. In addition, the Mirumoto are trained to draw both swords quickly in combat. When making any attack roll wielding a katana, you can use your Kenjutsu in place of Iaijutsu. You can still benefit from Iaijutsu Emphases according to your Iaijutsu Rank.

Rank 2, Strong and Swift: The bite of a dragon is as deadly as its tail. When you spend an Action to make an attack using a katana, you can also make an additional attack with your wakizashi.

Rank 3, Blood of My Brothers: Mirumoto bushi are trained alongside shugenja, learning to sense the flow of magic. If you are aware of a shugenja casting a spell targeting you, you may spend a Void Point to increase or decrease the TN by 5 points. You can also attempt to disrupt a spell you are aware of affecting a person after a successful attack. After dealing Wounds, spend a Void Point and make a Void roll (TN 5 x Mastery Level of the spell). The effect is canceled until the end of the Scene.

Rank 4, The Unrighteous Will Fall: A dragon's wrath does not end until all of its enemies are fallen. When a foe falls to Down, Out, or Dead from your attack, that attack does not count as spending your Action. This applies even if the attack was not the first attack taken with the spent Action.

Rank 5, Heart of the Dragon: The speed and power of a dragon flows through you to the steel in your hand. When you spend an Action to make an attack, you can also make an additional attack. This is cumulative with the okuden Strong and Swift. Thus, after attacking with a katana, you gain an additional attack with a wakizashi, and an additional attack with whatever weapon you choose.

Draft: The Kakita Bushi

Next up is the Kakita Bushi. Well, there's not all that much different here. What I did do is to make their techniques less Iaijutsu-specific, and more duel-specific.

So any time it says dueling, that means dueling.

You may have noticed there are a lot of duels in Hachigaku that don't involve drawing a katana first.

You're welcome, Kakita.

***

The Kakita Bushi Ryuu

Basic Discipline: The Kakita Bushi

Uji/Profession: Kakita Bushi

Benefit: +1 Awareness

Honor: 3

Skills: Bajutsu, Defense, Etiquette, Iaijutsu, Kyujutsu, Oratory

Outfit: Daisho, any bow, any 20 arrows, light armor, 2 kimono, traveling pack, steed, 10 koku

Okuden

Rank 1, Way of the Crane: Iaijutsu is not merely a skill, or even an art; it is life. When making any attack roll wielding a katana, you can use your Iaijutsu in place of Kenjutsu. You can still benefit from Kenjutsu Emphases according to your Kenjutsu Rank. Also, you always add your Iaijutsu Rank to your Initiative Total.

Rank 2, The Sudden Strike: You breathe ritual and ceremony; forms bend to the will of a Kakita. When in a duel, you can Raise by any amount, instead of being limited to multiples of 5. Also, all changes to Glory and Honor from dueling are increased by your Discipline Rank.

Rank 3, Strike from the Void: The Kakita find the swift strike in the depths of the Void. During a duel, you can spend as many Void Points for any use as you wish. Thus, you can spend multiple Void Points on a roll, or repeatedly spend Void Points to Focus again.

Rank 4, One Strike, Two Cuts: Your blade moves so quickly that two strikes blur into one. When you spend an Action to make an attack using Iaijutsu, you can also make an additional attack. Also, you can add your Iaijutsu Rank to your TN to be Hit at all times.

Rank 5, Strike With No Thought: The swiftness of Kakita's reflexes and instinct to strike are legendary. At the very beginning of a combat, before Initiative or even the Challenge of a duel, you can attempt an attack roll. Choose a target and spend a Void Point to immediately make an attack roll; the target is considered unaware. If done at the beginning of an Iaijutsu duel, this attack is considered highly dishonorable.

Draft: The Hida Bushi

Tonight, let's address the Hida Bushi. I always think of the Hida as these giant masses armor with huge weapons bearing down on horrible monsters. Well, that's sort of what they are, but of course for my purposes the Hida must be something that is needed to translate throughout Hachigoku as a base Discipline. So when revising them, I focused on their imagery of heavy infantry focusing on defense. That gave them some Battle focus, but still makes them massive monsters themselves who understand pain, take it, and give it back.

I always though there were some anti-Shadowlands stuff in there, but there really isn't in any of the editions. So, good for that. Cool anti-Shadowlands stuff is better suited for Path and Advanced Disciplines, not for Basic Disciplines.

(But what about the Hiruma Bushi, you say? Well... that bit in the Preview may have been premature. You're gonna love the Kitsune Bushi, promise!)

This is perhaps the least altered Discipline compared to all their official incarnations. I got rid of things like added Void Points you could only use for Technique use. Why bother calling them Void Points if they don't act like them? These were later additions made to beef up the Hida withnout actually monkeying much with them anyway, trying to keep up with the Joneses.

***

The Hida Bushi Ryuu

Basic Discipline: The Hida Bushi

Uji/Profession: Hida Bushi
Benefit: +1 Stamina
Honor: 2
Skills: Battle, Defense, Kenjutsu, Kyujutsu, Subojutsu, Sumai
Outfit: Daisho, any bow, any 20 arrows, any 2 weapons, heavy armor, 1 kimono, traveling pack, 2 koku

Okuden
Rank 1, Way of the Crab: The bushi train extensively in their heavy armor, and visualize themselves as mountains on defense, avalanches on attack. They ignore all heavy armor penalties when making attack or Bugei skill rolls, and add their Earth to all attack and damage roll totals.
Rank 2, The Mountain Does Not Move: A Hida must be hard as stone to tear down. When taking damage from a single source, you can spend a Void Point and attempt to ignore the Wounds. Roll your Earth (TN equal to the Wounds about to receive). If successful, the Wounds (and any other effect tied to the damage roll) are canceled. If unsuccessful, you suffer the Wounds normally (and any other effects).
Rank 3, Two Pincers, One Mind: In battle, your weapon and you become one. When you spend an Action to make an attack, you can also make an additional attack. Also, during a Battle, any Battle Action assigned to you allows you to take an additional Battle Action, but only if it is against a member of a force with greater Advantage.
Rank 4, Fury of Hida: You can spend an Action to conserve your energy and await a perfect strike, exploding like a volcano. If you are successfully attacked and take Wounds before you spend another Action, you automatically attack and hit your foe in return. No roll is needed, but both the original attack and yours must be melee attacks. You roll damage simultaneously with the attacker; if you deal less Wounds than your attacker does to you, your damage roll is increased to equal the Wounds you suffer (calculate this after all other modifiers take effect). You cannot use this okuden if you are Down, Out, or Dead already.
Rank 5, The Mountain Does Not Fall: Duty is heavy as a mountain, death light as a feather for the Hida. Even when Down or Out, you can spend a Void Point to immediately gain an Action in the current Phase. If Dead, you can still spend Void Points to gain Actions, but only until the end of the Scene. You can also spend Honor Points equal to your Honor Rank to activate both the Rank 2 and Rank 5 okuden instead of Void Points.

***

As an additional thing, I'm making a slight alteration to the Rank 3 Okuden for the Akodo Bushi:

Rank 3, Strength of My Ancestors: The Akodo bushi is never alone. Your ancestors are everpresent, and when you strike, the past echoes into the present. When you spend an Action to make an attack, you can also make an additional attack. Also, during a Battle, any Battle Action you assign to a member of your force allows the target to take an additional Battle Action.

Draft: The Bayushi Bushi

Tonight, we tackle the Bayushi bushi. My original problem was that these sneaky bastards occasionally lacked cohesion, being mostly a collection of cheap tricks. That's pretty much their style, though, but as the rules that those cheap tricks functioned under changed wildly (especially, say, Feint) in my revision, the Discipline had to follow suit. And the original, in all its edition incarnations, always lacked both the stealthy and dishonorable edge I felt the Bayushi should wear on their sleeves.

If everyone is going to treat you like a conniving villain, act like it a bit more.

I dropped in an element of the ol' Bayushi Saboteur for good measure to heighten their emphasis on battlefield sneakiness. I'd really like feedback on Rank 2.

***

The Bayushi Bushi Ryuu

Basic Discipline: The Bayushi Bushi

Uji/Profession: Bayushi Bushi
Benefit: +1 Intelligence
Honor: 1
Skills: Defense, Iaijutsu, Investigation, Kenjutsu, Kyujutsu, Sincerity
Outfit: Daisho, any bow, any 20 arrows, any 2 weapons, light armor, 1 kimono, traveling pack, 5 koku

Okuden
Rank 1, Way of the Scorpion: A Bayushi's wits must be as sharp and quick as his sting. You gain additional dice to your Initiative roll equal to your Intelligence; these extra dice are not kept. Also, when operating near a large distraction (such as a riot, explosion, natural disaster, etc.), you add your Intelligence to all dice roll totals for attempted actions (such as attack or Skill rolls).
Rank 2, Sharp Sting of Honor: Samurai praise honor; you understand it. It is not a shell protecting you, but a weapon. After you make a successful attack (one in which Wounds are dealt), you may sacrifice any number of Honor Points to force the opponent to lose an equal number of Honor Points; this is not an Act of Vice for you. If the opponent has less Honor Points than you sacrifice or no Honor at all, the excess is taken as Wounds by the opponent.
Rank 3, Pincers and Tail: Through timing and misdirection, your attacks seem to come from two directions at once. When you spend an Action to make an attack, you can also make an additional attack.
Rank 4, Beware the Tail: Learning the tricks of the Scorpion himself fortifies you against the cleverness of others. You have developed a sixth sense against danger; when spotted while attempting to hide, you can always tell and discern from which direction, if not the actual discoverer. Nor can you be surprised in an ambush. When using Defensive Maneuvers in combat, you gain a +Xk0 bonus to your rolls, where X is your Intelligence.
Rank 5, Pincers Hold, Tail Strikes: Distracting techniques gain precious moments before the strike to determine where the blow is deadliest. When making an attack roll, you may declare Raises after the roll is made.

WELCOME BACK! Draft: The Akodo Bushi

So, we have returned! By we, I hope I mean both you and me. To my disappointment (I don't think a Fanproject should really induce shame), this blog has languished for the last few months. Many factors contributed to the suspension of both posts and the background work involved. However, the last week has inspired me to return to Hachigoku. I always said there was no schedule or time-limit to this project, so at least I'm living up to that.

When last we left off, I had given a preliminary flavor-text description of how bushi and ryuu ("schools") are organized, and also some previews of ideas for ryuu mechanics. Now I have a first draft of each ryuu's Basic Discipline. This is stripped down, no frills description. I'm going to try to roll out one each day over the next ten days, so as not to clutter the posts with a huge infodump.

First up is the Akodo Bushi. The good ol' stalwarts of L5R, the Akodo have always focused on tradition and precision. They were never all that impressive. when you played an Akodo, it was mostly because you loved the Lion Clan, not because the School impressed you all that much. And for the greatest generals Rokugan ever knew, the introduction of the Lion War College and later the Ikoma Tacticians seems unnecessary. They were trying to bridge over the dissonance between what the Akodo said they did and what their mechanics actually provided for.

But then, that's a pretty common tale throughout L5R's history.

This revision takes into account their emphasis on Honor as a real force, the precision that has long been their standard (and rightly so), and gives them a Battle edge.

Hope you enjoy, and please feel free to comment, question, and gripe!

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The Akodo Bushi Ryuu

Basic Discipline: The Akodo Bushi

Uji/Profession: Akodo Bushi
Benefit: +1 Perception
Honor: 3
Skills: Bajutsu, Battle, Etiquette, Kenjutsu, Kyujutsu, Lore
Outfit: Daisho, any bow, any 20 arrows, any 2 weapons (each must use a Bugei Skill), light or heavy armor, sashimono, 1 kimono, traveling pack, 5 koku

Okuden
Rank 1, Way of the Lion: Precision is the aim of the Akodo bushi. When making an attack roll, you can ignore armor (but not Carapace) or gain Free Raises equal to your Discipline Rank.
Rank 2, Strength of Purity: The righteous heart guides the righteous strike. You can spend a Void Point instead of Honor Points when channeling your Honor to gain a bonus to any roll made to resist an action that would lose you Honor or aid an action which would gain you Honor.
Rank 3, Strength of My Ancestors: An Akodo bushi is never alone. Your ancestors are everpresent, and when you strike, the past echoes into the present. When you spend an Action to make an attack, you can also make an additional attack. Also, during a Battle, any Action you spend to take a Battle Action allows you take two instead.
Rank 4, Hand of Destiny: There is no such thing as luck; all success is preordained. When attempting an action with a roll, you may spend Honor Points equal to your Honor Rank to automatically succeed. You gain the benefit of no Raises, except for Free Raises, when doing so. This cannot be applied to opposed rolls or those with no set TN.
Rank 5, The Final Lesson: There are no failures. If you attempt a roll with Raises and fail, you still succeed if you meet or beat the original TN. However, you do not gain the benefit of any Raises, except for Free Raises. Also, you can now spend Honor Points equal to your Honor Rank to automatically succeed at opposed rolls using the Rank 4 Okuden.