Storm Rising - A Pre-Scorpion Clan Coup L5R Campaign.

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KakitaKaori
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Storm Rising - A Pre-Scorpion Clan Coup L5R Campaign.

Postby KakitaKaori » Thu Jan 14, 2016 11:43 am

This is a summary style writeup of a fairly long L5R campaign run by my friend, Brigham Bentley in Wilmington, DE. All Kudos to him. I've tweaked some details, probably have some names wrong, etc, and filled in some background and explanations based on guess work. This is a fine campaign to run with your own characters, though you will need at least one Shugenja in the party and a skilled courtier would be helpful. In all these campaigns, you're playing in the big leagues in terms of rank..if you believe that no one of less than the most noble family's birth would ever be invited to a significant championship or a winter court, the characters would need to be able to act in those circles and be of a rank to be in those circles. This is heroic L5R, and your characters have the opportunity to become very important people in the world.

Game Background.

This game was set 12 years before the Scorpion Clan Coup in year 1111, though of course none of the actors within the tale had any idea what was to come. Rokugan had generally known peace, at least from threats of maho-tsukai and similar cults within the Empire, for many years, though the clans were still in their perennial squabbling. The Emperor Hantei the 38th was reigning, and his young son had not yet quite reached gempukku. The Empire was on the verge of chaos, but it did not know it yet.

Like many things involving the Scorpion, the chaos began with a single drop of poison.

It began when the word spread that the aged daimyo of the Scorpion had died in his sleep, leaving his son, Bayushi Shoju, in his place. For most of the Empire, this was considered a natural event, but those most high up in the ranks of the Scorpion knew otherwise. A Bayushi from within the most dedicated ranks of the family, Bayushi Joro, had assassinated his own daimyo and disappeared, taking with him one of the precious Black Scrolls that had been entrusted to the clan’s possession. Despite being a skilled assassin, talented in all arts of stealth, Joro had left clear evidence of his involvement and gone on the run. He seemed proud of his treason.

Shoju was livid. It was better for the security of the Scorpion for all to believe his father had died naturally, but Shoju wanted the traitor bound to the grove and the missing scroll retrieved. The Phoenix knew of the scrolls, and the Phoenix inquisitors would be prying into his affairs if he began a search. They needed a distraction, so he began to plan one. He got his courtiers, and support from the Crane, Lion, and Unicorn, to begin to agitate for renewing the Office of Jade Champion, at least on a ceremonial level, to ‘assist’ the Crab and Phoenix in guarding the Empire against the perils of maho without or within. The Phoenix, naturally, boycotted the tournament, arranged to hold the tournament in a middle-of-nowhere location in mid-winter, and convinced most of the most powerful shugenja of the Empire to ignore it. They would not allow any true power or magistrates to go with the position, and convinced all that the position could not be held by one person for more than a year. But Shoju had put enough ‘face’ on the position that no one felt that they could ignore it completely.

So it was that the Jade Championship became a farce, only a tournament for a small number of junior-level shugenja from the various clans to compete in, and a ceremonial title.
Kakita Kaori
Kenshinzen of Golden Petal Village and overly prolific fiction writer
http://craneclan.weebly.com/
[Kakita Kyoumi/WC5]

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Part 1 - A new Jade Champion

Postby KakitaKaori » Thu Jan 14, 2016 11:44 am

One of those shugenja was a Crab, Kuni Kotori, and she won the title of Jade Champion. As an Imperial Champion, she had independence to go ‘fight maho and magical evil within the Empire as she wished’, and the Crab had little interest in using her victory to make a power play, so the Jade Champion was cut lose. She had managed to win as friends and allies: a tattooed monk from the Dragon Clan, Togashi Hachi, a ronin shugenja, Dairu, and a young Bayushi, Bayushi Kyono. Of course, the monk had been sent by Togashi to aid her, the ronin liked the meal ticket, and the Bayushi had been sent by Shoju to make sure she didn’t become a political annoyance while he sent his scouts looking for Joro and the missing black scroll. But Kuni Kotori did not need to know that.
Kotori was intelligent, skilled (for her experience) and, most of all, relentless. It didn’t matter to her if her position was purely ceremonial or not…she was going to use it to fight some evil, wherever she could find it. Rumors came to her of some sort of cult targeting horses in Unicorn Lands and she and her small group of companions left immediately to investigate.
She did not find a whole cult of maho at that time, but a single traitor, Iuchi Kyoru, who they managed to engage in battle before she could destroy the Otaku stables. As they were closing in, and Iuchi Kyoru was making her final stand, the Jade Champion was very surprised when the beleaguered Shugenja opened a large black scroll, and a vast iron citadel erupted from the grasslands around her. The group decided to wait her out, knowing she was without food or support. After a week, they finally pushed the door of the citadel open and entered. The area was badly tainted, but empty. They found an iron statue of the Unicorn Clan traitor, frozen mid-scream, with the now-closed black scroll at her feet.
Bayushi Kyono realized that the scroll must be the one that Bayushi Joro had stolen and he knew nothing of the assassination. He convinced Kotori that the scroll must be quietly returned to the Scorpion Champion. A Moto of the Unicorn who lived in the area, Moto Tsolmon, asked leave to accompany them, for he wished to see more of the Empire, and this was granted. The party headed back towards Kuyden Bayushi.
They were travelling in a deeply forested area in Hare Clan lands when they were intercepted by Bayushi Joro, accompanied by a small number of black clad ninja, and captured. The traitor taunted them, claiming that the Wall would fall soon, and when the ronin, Dairu, attempted to start a fight, he was killed. But the fight was enough to attract the attention of two Crane who were in area, an artist and painter, Kakita Toshiki, and his sister and yojimbo, Kaori. The two were travelling towards Kuyden Miya on their first trip away from Crane lands.
The two, rather than risking a direct rescue, instead set a string of torches, rock falls, and some other creative tricks nearby, managing to keep their activity secret from Joro. After nightfall, they sprung their trap, first lighting all the torches and springing traps that would shoot arrows from a number of directions at once, giving and receiving commands to make it seem to the captives and captors that they had been intercepted by a whole Crane patrol. They then were able to shoot and kill at least two of the ninja, and Joro fled without first killing the rest of their prisoners. The two Crane were able to free the prisoners.
Although Joro may have thought he’d left with the scroll, the scroll case that he had taken was empty, for Kyono had moved the Black Scroll to one of Kotori’s own scrollcases. The Crane decided to accompany the Jade Champion for her protection (and, perhaps, to chronicle her adventures). They moved quickly to Ryoko Owari, where Bayushi Kyono left them to return the black scroll to his Daimyo. The rest travelled south, towards the Great Wall.
It seemed odd, that a single traitor from the Scorpion would steal a black scroll and give it to a single traitor in the Unicorn lands, and then speak of the Wall falling. And Kotori was determined to find the truth of it, despite losing two of her companions.
Kakita Kaori
Kenshinzen of Golden Petal Village and overly prolific fiction writer
http://craneclan.weebly.com/
[Kakita Kyoumi/WC5]

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Re: Storm Rising - A Pre-Scorpion Clan Coup L5R Campaign.

Postby KakitaKaori » Fri Jan 15, 2016 7:47 am

A Plague of Treasons – Part 2
Bayushi Kyono had arranged passage for Kuni Kotori, Moto Tsolmon, Togashi Hachi, and the Kakita twins south to the Wall where the traitor, Bayushi Joro, had hinted that Kotori might find a traitor among her own family. They travelled swiftly by boat down the river past Scorpion, Crane, and Kitsune lands until they arrived at Kuyden Hida. Kotori sent word to her daimyo, Kuni Yori, but was directed to await his response by serving on the Wall near Shiro Kuni and that he would meet her there.
Kotori travelled to that section of the Wall and waited for the opportunity to meet with her daimyo. Her guests, not under similar orders, but feeling the need to protect the Jade Champion in such a dangerous place, marveled at the unfamiliar warfare and the perpetual vigilance of the Crab, and took the opportunity to make friends among the Crab warriors. It took some doing, but Toshiki was friendly and jovial and quick to win friends despite his background, while Tsolmon was exotic, and the local Crab appreciated his stories. And they had never met anyone like Kaori before.
They were there for several weeks when, out of nowhere, there was a concerted effort from the Shadowlands to attack that section of the Wall. The valiant Crab defenders kept the non-Crab toward the reserves while they took the most challenging brunt of the attack, but the battle was fierce, and all were called on to defend.
The leader of the reserves was a huge shugenja by the name of Kuni Genru. He worked with Kotori to defend from the rear, supporting the front lines. But, two days into the pitched battle when the fighting was fiercest and the reserves were depleted, he summoned the wrath of Osano Wo, calling down lighting and striking through the heart of the defenders. The lightning struck at Kotori in particular and badly wounded her. It would have killed her, but Moto Tsolmon was able to shield her just in time with his body, and Kakita Toshiki was able to pull her to safety. The oni and goblins attacking the wall seemed to be expecting the act, because they took advantage of the betrayal by throwing all their forces into a single attack. Kuni Genru raised his hands to cast another spell that would cut down the front lines of the defenders from behind, but Kakita Kaori streaked across the battlefield and slashed with all her strength at the Kuni traitor, her blade cutting a deep blow. The two then sparred for a few moments, the Kuni swinging a mighty Warhammer. Kaori took a shattering blow, but it was enough for the Hida defenders to realize what had happened and throw the Kuni from the top of the wall. The Crab managed to hold the line…but just barely.
It took a long time for Kaori and Kotori to recover from their injuries. Kuni Yori, the daimyo of the Crab, did pass through the area, but Kotori was not conscious to meet with him. Genru’s body was not found. The locals began to nickname the twins Silk and Steel. During their slow recovery the group managed to put together a theory. Some force, some conspiracy that they did not understand, had been forged out of an individual traitor from each clan, each performing an act of treason that, by its very nature, was symbolic of the very essence of the clan they were betraying. They didn’t understand why. Still, it seemed likely that a traitor from the Lion, Crane, Phoenix, or Dragon might be next.
In just one month, there was to be a treaty brokered between the Lion and the Crane, with the Emerald Champion, Doji Satsume presiding. If ever there was a time for a traitor to either the Lion or the Crane to cause havoc with a single act of treason, it would seem to be there. As soon as Kaori and Kotori were well enough, the group decided to travel to the place where the accord was to be made. If nothing else, they could warn the Emerald Champion of the conspiracy and prevent the chaos from spreading further.
Once the party had recovered, the Jade Champion and her companions made haste toward the site where the treaty was to be signed. A Phoenix Inquisitor was there and looked on the Jade Champion with disdain, dismissing her concerns. The Emerald Champion, though, was courteous enough and sympathetic enough to the foolishness of the Jade Champion’s position that he permitted her and those with her to stay and observe the proceedings as long as they did not interfere. They did so, quietly watching all of the proceedings and looking for signs of treason. There was no sign until the day of the signing itself, where Kitsu Bashu, a well-ranked Shugenja, fired upon the Emerald Champion at the moment of signing with a poison dart. Kuni Kotori intercepted the dart with her tessan, only because she was looking closely for such a sign. There were some tense moments as the Lion and the Crane began preparing for a fight, but Satsume quickly nipped that in the bud and the Lion soldiers were able to capture their compatriot.
When he was questioned, the man was raving with fanaticism, blaming the Crane for bringing down the greatness of what was once the mighty Lion clan and telling Doji Satsume that he has no idea of the terrors that were to come or the plans that were in store for the Empire. The shugenja then, somehow, turned himself a swarm of bees and disappeared before he could be struck down. The Inquisitor, Asako Monoro, protested that this was clearly a case for the Phoenix inquisitors to address and pursue. Satsume agreed and suggested the Inquisitors begin their pursuit, but pulled Kotori aside. He said he feared that the most harm that such a treason could cause, especially if it were a traitor from his clan, would occur at the upcoming Winter Court, where most of the Imperial Court would be present. He extended to Kotori and her companions an invitation to Winter Court, based on her title and the fact that Kotori had saved his life.
Kakita Kaori
Kenshinzen of Golden Petal Village and overly prolific fiction writer
http://craneclan.weebly.com/
[Kakita Kyoumi/WC5]

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Re: Storm Rising - A Pre-Scorpion Clan Coup L5R Campaign.

Postby KakitaKaori » Fri Jan 15, 2016 1:10 pm

The Explosive Ending – Part 3.
Winter Court began, and with it the final months of Kotori’s year as Jade Champion. There were many of the normal Winter Court distractions and hijinks unrelated to the main story. Kotori and her companions did their best to survive in the cut throat environment, mostly by keeping as far away as possible from the politics of the upper echelon and looking for any behavior that might be suspicious. They did find some things, but it was mostly unrelated.
It was not until the final day of Winter Court that the traitor revealed himself. A large fireworks display had been prepared to celebrate the end of court. An elevated viewing area provided all the members of the Imperial Court access to view the fireworks as they shone over the ocean. Kotori and her companions discovered hints that the display might be targeted, and followed the clues until they discovered a Daidoji preparing the stands. They found barrels of gunpowder packed beneath the stands and were able to avert the destruction before anything further occurred, with only minutes to spare.
While the destruction of the Imperial Court was averted, the end of Winter Court marked the end of Kuni Kotori’s time as Jade Champion. The Phoenix stepped in to immediately take her place as being in charge of the investigation, though that was the last anyone heard of the matter through most of the Empire. (This was likely because Asako Monoro was the Phoenix Clan traitor and stifled the investigation completely.) Bayushi Shoju, having secured the missing black scroll, no longer cared if the Phoenix investigated or not, since his hunt for a traitor within his clan was not likely to reflect badly on the Scorpion. Therefore, he made no effort to retain the Jade Championship. , The Jade Championship fell back into complete obscurity.
Kuni Kotori and Togashi Hachi travelled and settled down in Unicorn Lands, giving the remainder of their lives to guarding the tainted remains of the Iron Citadel that had been created. Moto Tsolomon returned to his homeland with them, and became a magistrate there. The Crane samurai-ko wed a Hida who had overcome many challenges to seek her hand after she had won his great admiration for her actions on the wall, while her brother wed an Otomo he had wooed at Winter Court. All was forgotten, except, perhaps, in the memories of Doji Satsume and Bayushi Shoju, and so it would be for the next twelve years.
And at that point, everything would change.
Kakita Kaori
Kenshinzen of Golden Petal Village and overly prolific fiction writer
http://craneclan.weebly.com/
[Kakita Kyoumi/WC5]

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Re: Storm Rising - A Pre-Scorpion Clan Coup L5R Campaign.

Postby Doji Pheelyp » Fri Mar 18, 2016 8:03 am

Fascinating. :O
Courtier * Doji Innocent * Loyal

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Re: Storm Rising - A Pre-Scorpion Clan Coup L5R Campaign.

Postby KakitaKaori » Tue Dec 20, 2016 5:58 am

Continued in: Storm Breaking (Scorpion Clan Coup to Test of the Emerald Championship): viewtopic.php?f=3&t=827
Kakita Kaori
Kenshinzen of Golden Petal Village and overly prolific fiction writer
http://craneclan.weebly.com/
[Kakita Kyoumi/WC5]


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