OK, I have now had enough time to give a fairly detailed review of the new L5R 4th Edition. I will be doing this by section, mostly to organize my own thoughts
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I was not there for the L5R LARP you and Caitlin ran, but the costuming in this LARP is pretty amazing. Everyone has fulls costumes, no bathrobes or anything, and the accessories are pretty great. Most people are wearing kimonos/hakama/other costuming make specifically for this LARP, and even the lower end of costuming involves at minimum kimonos from Ragstock.
1) do all the bushi characters have both a katana and wakizashi, or can I get away with just a katana? 2) how are they running the tensai? I noticed that one of the PCs has the tensai school, but it is no longer a school, so how are they running it?
1) The STs are not clear on how that is working. Most of the shugenja are walking around without even wakizashi, so I don't think anyone will care. That bit is kind of fungible, so it won't be a gigantic faux pas if you don't have one or something
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wow, 2 ishken already? No I had decided to chose a character that wouldn't step on too many toes. I haven't actually talked to the STs yet, but given what I have read of other characters on the wiki I want to play a phoenix shugenja (not tensai) specializing in Air. out of curiosity how fighty are the phoenix shugenja currently in game?
Well, yes, there are two Ishiken, but the other Ishiken does not have Void affinity (as I said, Soshi Shugenja school).
There are only two Phoenix Shugenja, my brother and myself. I am almost entirely un-fighty, focusing mostly on the spells that help me find out stuff (plus Jade Strike, and I'll maybe grab 1 combat spell in the future for self-defense, but nothing fighty beyond that). My elder brother is a Fire Shugenja planning on being a Fire Tensai, so he's pretty much "BOOOOOM!!!" So pretty damn fighty. Besides 'finding out stuff' and 'BOOOM!!,' however, we don't have much covered magic-wise. No movement or hiding stuff or communication or talking to animals or anything Air-spell related at all, really (my only Air Spell is 'By the Light of the Moon'). How old are you thinking your character is going to be? What family? I'm just wondering if we've previously met.
(assuming ST Approval) Asako family, Isawa shugenja school, probably around 18 or so, maybe as old as early-mid twenties. I don't really want to come into play with a wife, so younger is probably the way to go. I'm seriously considering eventually going for Asako Inquisitor, but I don't know how they are handling that. And is your brother physically fighty as well as magically fighty?
Okay, right now the only Asako is Diana's character, and she's a courtier. I have no idea how they are handling Asako Inquisitor, though I suppose I should probably find out eventually, considering it is something my character may also be interested in (though I am not as sure about this as you seem about your character... it depends on how my character develops). My Fire Shugenja brother is not physically fighty at all, though my Shiba Bushi brother is. I don't think we have any Shugenja that are even half-way decent with a blade.
yeah, I was noticing that one of the new merits was being cursed by the realm of the hungry dead, and I started thinking about Maho-Tsukai necromancers and their curses and I ended up deciding to play an Asako primarily due to the inquisitors, plus I have a soft spot in my heart for the Asako.
Being cursed by Gaki-Do (especially if it is because of an encounter with a maho-tsukai) will certainly give you plot, at least. Is it only Asako that are allowed to be Asako Inqusitors, or is it any Phoenix Shugenja who hates maho?
I'm considering taking Cursed by Gaki-do as well as a sworn enemy (Maybe up to a Nemesis) with a necromancer. The Inquisitors are run by and under the command of the Asako family, but Isawa have occasionally joined. That being said the whole reason that the Asako run them is that the Isawa obviously couldn't be trusted to do this (the Inquisitors were a response to Isawa Akuma and his Oni blowing up huge chunks of a phoenix city).
Well, that'll certainly be fun for you (and by 'fun,' I mean 'probably fatal if you're lucky, perhaps tainted-tastic if you're not,' but interesting nonetheless). And geez, a family member destroys one city and suddenly we're not trusted with anything (I say in true Isawa-mode).
Hey, it's not the destruction of a city, look at Asako Satogen and Isawa's Last Wish! You can rebuild a city, creating a massively powerful Oni Lord that has plagued the empire ever since is the real issue.
Well yeah... but we never really liked Akuma much anyway, including his mother. Who names their kid 'Akuma' anyway?
At least Asako Satogen did something noble in the end, anyway. Akuma just kind of fucked up and died.
I looked it up. At least one Isawa trained as an Asako Inquisitor became one of the Elemental Masters, so it's not a dead-end path by any means. Could be interesting if the STs figure it out.
Yeah, I always wondered why on earth he would choose to be named Akuma upon the completion of his Gempuku. Anyone else who choses an obviously evil name when they come of age should be executed then and there.
Quick question: how common is the changing of the name upon completion of a gempukku? This is mostly related to the given name, but do people change their surname as well terribly often, transferring allegiances to another family or perhaps another Clan entirely? How kosher is that? Is it even allowed without a daimyo's permission?
As far as I know it is quite rare. I know that among the phoenix it is uncommon (leading to master of the void Shiba Ningen) unless it indicates an actual transfer of loyalty from one family to another (Kitsu Taiko became Isawa Taiko when he joined the phoenix clan and ascended to Elemental Master of Fire). Maybe the STs are ruling it diferently, but I was under the impression you kept your family name until you were no longer a member of that family, by marriage or a few other fairly rare events.
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2) how are they running the tensai? I noticed that one of the PCs has the tensai school, but it is no longer a school, so how are they running it?
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There are only two Phoenix Shugenja, my brother and myself. I am almost entirely un-fighty, focusing mostly on the spells that help me find out stuff (plus Jade Strike, and I'll maybe grab 1 combat spell in the future for self-defense, but nothing fighty beyond that). My elder brother is a Fire Shugenja planning on being a Fire Tensai, so he's pretty much "BOOOOOM!!!" So pretty damn fighty. Besides 'finding out stuff' and 'BOOOM!!,' however, we don't have much covered magic-wise. No movement or hiding stuff or communication or talking to animals or anything Air-spell related at all, really (my only Air Spell is 'By the Light of the Moon'). How old are you thinking your character is going to be? What family? I'm just wondering if we've previously met.
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At least Asako Satogen did something noble in the end, anyway. Akuma just kind of fucked up and died.
I looked it up. At least one Isawa trained as an Asako Inquisitor became one of the Elemental Masters, so it's not a dead-end path by any means. Could be interesting if the STs figure it out.
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