Monday, September 22, 2008

Supergoober's L5R Game

So supergoober ran a game on Saturday, and here is a brief recap of what happened:



Back in the City of Toshi Ranbo, the local fall harvest festival was beginning. Rumors of the defeat of the evil in the Valley of the Mists are beginning to trickle through the peasant population, and the mood surrounding the festival is decidedly upbeat. The harvest has been good so far, and a bounty of crops have yet to be gathered. But for two days, work is forgotten, and the city is filled with celebrating peasants and pleased but reserved Samurai, and everyone is enjoying the festivities. Taiko drummers, puppet shows, peasant song and dance all accompany the boisterous mood, and the sake and shochu are flowing freely.



And at the end of the festival, several heroes are invited to tell the story of the Valley of the Mists to an assembled throng. An awed hush silences the crowd when they realize that the mighty and renowned Mirumoto Shogu is the one to tell the story. Seeing him, with his friends Shinjiro the Ronin carpenter (man of many secrets), Tsuruchi Kasena, first swordsman of the Wasp Clan, and the noble and dedicated Matsu Tengu, the entire assembled throng swells with pride at the inspiring presence of these paragons of the virtues of bushido.



Mirumoto Shogo tells the inspiring story of how the virtues of bushido can overcome any evil, and shows the bonds that can be formed by adherents to the code of bushido by people otherwise separated by clan and class. Everyone from the lowest heimen to the noblest buke is moved by the story, and feels the unifying bond of being fellow travellers on the Celestial path to enlightenment, knowing that the Tao of Shinsei unites them all. In this rare moment, when people are feeling this unusual level of camaraderie with the people of Rokugan, an unusual occurrence disrupts the mood.



Shogo has finished, and people are quietly reflecting on his words, when a number of peasant runners deftly and silently move through the assembled crowd, and handing sealed messages to all of the magistrates in the crowd. One magistrate in particular, a scruffy-looking young man, just past his gempuku ceremony, looks at the seal on the message and notes that it bears the seal of Takezo Fuhito, the Imperial Governor of the area, and wastes no time in opening it.



It contains a simple summons, requiring the presence of all magistrates at the governor's estate at the beginning of the Hour of the Boar. He quickly folds the letter and tucks it into the sleeve of his kimono. Wistfully, longing for more of these peaceful moments, he looks over at his wife, an attractive young Scorpion samurai-ko named Bayushi Harue. Her gaze meets his, and she nods slightly towrds the note in his sleeve. Wordlessly, he bows to her and she bows back, and he slides away into the crowd and moves towards his destination. As he leaves, he catches a glimpse of his wife leaning over and talking to his mother, telling her of the need for him to attend to his duty.

At the meeting, Kurekita notices all of the magistrates who are gathered for the Autumn Festival and Winter Court are attending. Takezo Fuhito is there as well, and two large wooden bowls are sitting in front of him.

"As you all know," he begins, in his powerful and commanding voice, "the evil in the Valley of the Mists has been defeated. However, the evil had deep roots, and she had been drawing powers from Jigoku and the Shadowlands to establish her blight upon the lands of Rokugan. Now she is dead, and her will no longer binds the creatures to her - they are leaving the valley, and spilling out throughout the lands. Of course, this means that the danger has become more diffuse, and our lands and peasants are in jeopardy. Each of you has been assigned a town to protect, and will have a group of capable men and women assigned to you from various clans. It is your duty to protect the lands, the harvest, and the people from this evil, and may Shinsei preserve you."

He then rises, and walks out of room, leaving his attendants to begin pulling the pieces of parchment with Magistrates' names and towns to which they have been assigned, as well as the number of samurai assigned to them.
________

It finally got to Toku Kurekita, and he was assigned to the village of Haniko Ranbo, with 3 men to support him. Three chops were drawn out of the other bowl, and he heard the names - Isawa Hitoshi, an experienced Phoenix shugenja, known for his uncouth behavior with ladies, but also for his prowess in entreating the aid of the kami; Kasuga Rei, a diplomat and courtier from the Tortoise Clan, she of the clan favored by the Emperor; and little Ninjai, an all but unknown Ronin, who must have been forced to grow up quickly, given his age - listed as 10 - but yet, one who was still in this lottery for a reason.

Kurekita quickly penned three letters, which he sent off with runners, arranging to meet the others at a nearby inn, where he laid out the details of their assignment to his fellows. Not wanting to delay, they decided to travel at night so that they could be at Haniko Ranbo by sunrise.

As they left the inn, they were apparently not the only ones with this idea. The streets leaving Toshi Ranbo were knotted with small groups of samurai, carrying paper lanterns which cast an unusual pall over the faces of the men and women, all of whom bore looks of grim determination. As the procession snaked out of the city and down the hill, and spilt out onto several roads, it looked as if a cascade of lights was spilling over the countryside. Kurekita could not recall having ever seen anything quite like it - he could not help seeing the bobbing lanterns on the ends of spears and remembering the stories of lights that would lure unsuspecting people to their deaths at night. Of course it was just an old ghost story, but a part of him knew that these lights may well be leading them to their deaths in confrontations with the most horrifying spirits that Jigoku could conjure. Still it was his duty to die for the preservation of the empire, and he would if necessary, but like so many other Monkeys, he steeled his will for only success - death would come eventually, but it would come on his terms, and only when his duty was complete - the Monkey clan does not succumb to death.

Such were his thoughts as he left Toshi Ranbo, and he could not know the thoughts of his companions, though he could guess what Hitoshi was thinking as he repeatedly glanced at the outlined form of Kasuga Rei. Toku hoped that this distraction would not cause the Isawa trouble, but his reputation for overcoming long odds was comforting. Indeed, he noticed that, while Rei was not as beautiful as his wife, there was something mysterious and alluring about her. No wonder a man with weaknesses such as Hitoshi would notice her.

Rei, herself, was silent and stoic as she marched into the night. If she was thinking anything, then she did not betray it - and given her training as a courtier, Toku knew it would be foolish to try and discern further. Still, he was certain that she must know her affect on Hitoshi, and he hoped that she was not trying some courtier trick to advance her own position at the cost of the Isawa. That kind of action could get them all killed, but he would not expect her to be mindful of that, given her lack of experience on the battlefield.

And then there was little Ninjai - a boy of no more than 10, whose katana looked ridiculously oversized compared to his slight frame. He was near a trot to keep up with their pace, but did not seem to tire, and the ease of his movement and the casual way in which he carried himself spoke to a level of grace and experience that Kurekita could not quite fathom.

(Part 2 forthcoming)

Now-

As the group marched uneasily through the crisp autumn air, feeling the oncoming rush of winter with every breath into their lungs, the different groups of samurai gradually dispersed throughout the countryside, their lanterns flickering into the distance like so many fireflies fading in the night.

As Toku Kurekita assessed his group with the others, he noticed immediately how inexperienced they were by comparison - he saw proud Lion bushi - instructors for their clan schools; there were Crane duelists who had survived many duels, and Asako Shugenja well-versed in their supplications to the kami. The myriad of talents that graced the province for its protection spoke to the quality of samurai in the area, but the men and women he was assigned, including himself, seemed woefully inadequate to the task at hand. The kami would provide, he was sure, and what they did not provide, he was sure that he could make up for with zeal, if not with actual training.

Apparently, he was not the only one to notice the lack of experience in the group, as a tall Lion Samurai sidled up next to him and struck up a brief conversation.

"I am Akodo Nagano, assistant instructor at the Lion dojo in Toshi Ranbo. I have the honor of protecting a small village Northeast of here - Komitsu Ranbo. Should you need any assistance in your task, please send a runner, and I will respond as soon as duty permits," he stated brusquely, almost as though the lack of standard pleasantries caused him more pain than the idea of coming conflicts with the unholy beasts that were ravaging the land.

Toku, awed by the generosity and compassion of the noble man, paused briefly before responding with utmost sincerity, "I am touched deeply by your offer, and I will most assuredly contact you should the need arise. Our duty to this land and its people transcend pride, and I will not hesitate to subjugate mine should the occasion warrant it. Thank you, sir."

Almost before Toku had time to finish, the Lion was sliding away into the night - rejoining his compatriots as they journeyed to the town of Komitsu Ranbo. Isawa Hitoshi, having overheard the conversation, came up to him and whispered, "I mean you no disrespect, noble magistrate, but it is important to maintain the custom of declining a gift offered before assenting. I would feel great pain for you were you to disgrace yourself because of such a faux pas."

"I understand, Isawa Hitoshi, and were the situation not otherwise pressing, I would not hesitate to abide by our long standing traditions. But this is a desperate time, and I would rather bear the blemish on my pride than refuse a noble samurai expressing such compassion. I do appreciate your concern, and humbly thank you for pointing out my social miscue."

Satisfied, they both lapsed into silence again, and Toku was relieved that the Isawa was not solely concerned with the kami, but had his mind on honor and the code of bushido as well. As these musings were wandering through his tired mind, he noticed a light and voices up ahead on the road. The voices were hushed, and he caught just a glimpse of a light before it was covered again.

"Someone is on the road ahead, follow me," he hissed at his companions, then dashed up towards the noise. Before he had gotten more than a few steps, little Ninjai darted past all of them and streaked ahead, easily outpacing the full grown men and women with him. In the distance, Toku heard Ninjai's voice, calmly calling the people to a hault. Toku, Isawa, and Kasuga soon caught up.

Ninjai was there with an old peasant man who was obviously frightened and babbling, "They are dead, there is blood everywhere, we must get away..." and Toku saw the cart that they had bore two small children, a woman, several chickens, and some rice. Just the few things that they could gather before fleeing their home in terror.

"Old man, why are you straying from your home at night? This is not the way that decent folk should act," Toku questioned. "What is wrong?"

"Noble sir," the man replied nervously, "we had to flee. Our neighbors were killed by something terrible. I saw the bodies... they were torn to pieces. I cannot risk my families lives, so we fled... I am sorry, but I have no choice..." he finished, looking around as though he were waiting for the fiends of Jigoku to descend on him at any moment.

"Kasuga Rei, check these peasants for any signs of Taint. Ninjai and Isawa Hitoshi, keep them under guard. I must speak further with this man to remind him of his duties."

Toku motioned for the peasant to follow him, and began speaking to him quietly, "I understand your concern for your family, but you cannot abandon your duty to the land or its people. If all were to adopt this attitude, the land of Rokugan would be lost in but a day. I must insist that you abandon this foolish flight, and accompany us back to your home."

"I am sorry, sir. I understand that we all have duties, and mine is to my family first. I cannot let the evil take them..."

Toku interrupted, harshly, "Your first duty is to the Empire, not to your family. It is my duty to protect you, and yours to harvest the land that sustains all of us. If you choose to abandon your humanity and take up the path of an animal fleeing in fear, then I will be forced to take your life. It is not a duty I cherish, but if you persist in abandoning your duty and behaving like a frightened dog, I will have no choice. For your family's sake, do not kill yourelf in front of them by carrying on this foolishness. We will escort you back and protect you, and you will continue the harvest."

"Of course, we will," he said with a hitch in his voice, and his eyes were rapidly filling with tears, seeing death on one side and damnation on the other, and given no choice, he turned to his family and began laboring to turn the cart around. Toku began to help him, and Ninjai and Kasuga attempted to calm the children, who showed no evidence of the Taint, but had begun wailing in fear as the cart was turned back towards the village.

As they began the last part of the journey to Haniko Ranbo, with the faintest hints of light coloring the eastern sky, indicating dawn was about an hour ahead of them, Toku began to tell a story to the two wailing children in an effort to calm them. It was a tale of the peasants noble calling to toil in the land, and how the entire world depended on their passionate labor, and that the duty of a peasant reaps rich rewards on the celestial wheel. This was a tale the older one had heard before and he eventually calmed down, and listened with rapt attention, all the while trying to quiet his younger brother. Kasuga took out a zeni, and held it in her hand and did a number of dextrous manipulations that even Toku's trained eyes could not entirely follow, and this finally seemed to mollify the child. And finally, as the sun crested the horizon, they saw the fields of Haniko Ranbo in the distance.

Part III forthcoming soon.

5 comments:

supergoober said...

My goodness. I ran THAT game? Sounds awesome the way you put it. 2XP for the write-up.

theprofessor said...

I haven't quite finished yet, but I'll take the two xp when I actually finish. I can't really do a game summary, I just sort of hybridize a summary and a story from my character's perspective.

I'll probably do this fairly regularly, so don't feel the need to give me xp every time (I don't want to end up with a bunch more than everyone else).

mentality said...

you forgot the part about when you told the farmer he needed to turn around or die i started to unsheath my wakizashi to make sure he would choose the right answer. ANNNND i need the last part to find out what happened!!! can you game this sat?

theprofessor said...

Good call, I'll add that in. I can't game saturday - poker tourny in reno.

mentality said...

I say your poopy then HMMPHHH possible cash for gaming??? bad trade my friend but i'll be here when you need to lick you wounds anyway!! hahhhahaha...... no but seriously GL. although ditching scott... But GL. being antisocial (probably wearing sunglasses while playing poker)... no no JK heheh GOOD LUCK!!! ^_^