Way of the Crab Changes in the Second Printing
Pg. 49
Blood of Osano-wo. This advantage now costs 5 points, and 3 for Crab and Mantis characters.
Crab Hands (6 points; Crab and Mantis Only)You have a familiarity with many forms of weapons, and can wield most of them with some degree of effectiveness. You fight with any weapon, even weapons you have no skill rank in, as if your skill ranking were 1 higher. All weapons skills must still be purchased as normal. Example: Hida Shitoki has the Crab Hands advantage, a Kenjutsu Rank 3 and no Tetsubo Rank. He fights as if he has a Kenjutsu Rank 4 and a Tetsubo Rank 1. If he purchases a Tetsubo Rank through experience, he will fight as if he had a Tetsubo Rank 2.
Hands of Stone. This advantage is restricted to the Crab Clan only.
Kaiu Sword. This advantage is 5 points for Crabs, 8 points for characters of other Clans.
Ratling Ally. This Advantage is restricted to the Crab Clan.
Pg. 50
Shadowlands Taint. This disadvantage now gives you 2 points of taint per CP.
Hiruma Scout. The scout's beginning honor is 2, plus zero boxes.
Pg. 51
The Kaiu Family. The family daimyo is identified as Kaiu Utsu.
Kaiu Engineer. The engineer school is considered a bushi school. The engineer begins with an honor of 2, plus zero boxes.
Kuni Witch Hunters
Kuni Witch Hunters (tsukai-sagasu) do not join a school per se, but are trained on the road with a witch hunter sensei. Hunter characters have passed their master's strenuous requirements, as well as an early rudimentary education from the Kuni shugenja school. For this reason, Kuni Hunters have a wide variety of skills. Although they do not begin with it, and although they are not shugenja, they may learn the Spellcraft skill, which is ordinarily restricted to shugenja (see sidebar).
New Skill: Spellcraft (Intelligence) (Kuni Witch-Hunters only) This skill provides the tsukai-sagasu with enhanced knowledge of magic and the kami. A witch hunter with this skill can roll Intelligence + Spellcraft versus a TN of 20 to sway a kami's view of them from hatred to mere dislike, or neutral to friendly. Further, it can be used to identify spells being cast in the area, and to understand complexities about an unfamiliar spell. Lastly, a successful use of Intelligence + Spellcraft at a TN of 25 can determine if a spell has been cast in the area recently, or to identify what spell has been cast on a person. This skill can be used to identify the residual effects of a spell that was cast in the recent past (up to 1hour per level of Spellcraft). This is a High Skill.(This skill originally appeared in Way of the Phoenix.)
Pg. 52
To Repel the Darkness. This technique has been broadened:
Rank 4: To Repel the Darkness. At this level, the hunter can focus his will to resist the effects of dark magic. He or she becomes immune to maho and can make another character resistant for one round by rolling Willpower + Maho-Tsukai Lore TN 25. Raises allow the hunter to extend this resistance, one round per 5 TN raise. The hunter can also make himself resistant to any magic being cast by a character with the Shadowlands taint; add 5x the hunter's School Rank to the Tainted caster's TN to cast a spell targeting the tsukai-sagasu.
Yasuki Merchant School. Yasuki merchants are not considered bushi.
Pg. 54
The Berserker "School" A berserker's rage now lasts for a number of rounds equal to his Earth Ring x 2, plus one round per school rank.
Pg. 57
Crab Fortune Tables. A roll on the fortune table costs 3 CPs.
Pg. 69
Ancestor: Yasuki Fumoki. This ancestor does not affect combat rolls based on Agility.
Pg. 73
Ancestor: Kaiu Gineza. Believed to have died in 511. This ancestor's benefit has been changed slightly:
Characters who choose Gineza as an Ancestor may sacrifice their own Wound points to inflict additional Wound points to creatures and characters with the Shadowlands Taint. Before damage is rolled, the character can sacrifice a number of Wounds less than or equal to his Earth. The target creature or character takes as many Wounds as were sacrificed by the character, on top of whatever damage was inflicted on it from other sources. Gineza's ability can cause Wounds to creatures with Invulnerability.
Pg. 80-87
The character templates have the full school names listed.
Pg. 108
Crab Sensei. The side-bar from page 51 now appears here.
Way of the Crane Changes in the Second printing
Pg. 51
Political Maneuvering. The TN has been changed:
The Crane rolls his Skill + Intelligence against a TN of his opponent's Awareness + Courtier x 5 (The character gets a free raise if his opponent has the Gullible disadvantage, and is penalized by 5 if his opponent has the Clear Thinker advantage).
Pg. 55
Test of Honor. This technique has been further clarified:
Rank 3: Test of Honor Beginning at this rank, the courtier has the ability to challenge another person's action with a test of honor. The courtier can do this a number of times per day equal to the courtier's school rank. Before an action has been rolled by the target (any action, from an etiquette roll to an attack roll), the courtier may challenge the target, either verbally or through more subtle means such as a sneer or frown. If the courtier's honor challenge is successful, the action of the other character immediately becomes a failure, no matter what the roll. Characters and creatures with 0 Honor may ignore a Test of Honor.
Your Life is Mine. Characters with Willpower equal to the courtier are now able to roll to resist the courtier's charms.
Pg. 56
Favor Tables. Receiving favors takes due consideration from a lord:
If there are other things which a courtier wishes to offer as gifts or favors, the character should approach their daimyo, or a courtier of higher rank, and ask that such an item be given to them for a certain purpose. The time to approve such favors varies, depending upon how difficult or important the request is. If the gift is approved, the courtier will be given permission to offer it as a favor. (The rank of such favors is determined by the Gamemaster.)
Pg. 57
Rank Two. As a second rank favor a courtier may offer a normal horse, not a fine one.
Pg. 58
Kakita Blades. A slight change in text:
The Master Smiths of the Kakita family claim that they produce the finest blades in the Empire. A Kakita blade is exceptionally fine steel, durable and flexible, and able to withstand the passage of a thousand years...
The Force of Honor. This technique has been changed:
Rank 1: The Force of Honor At the first rank, the Daidoji bushi adds his Honor rank to the number of wounds he can take for each level. Round all fractions down.
Pg. 60
Acrobat Maya Rank Three. An additional roll is required to use this ability: [begin quoted text]
If the acrobat chooses a Full Defense and selects a target to defend themselves against, they cannot be hit by any targeted weapons or spells from that individual. This maya requires a skill roll each round the character declares their Full Defense maneuver. The TN to succeed is the attacker's appropriate weapon skill + bushi school Rank times 5.
Dancer Maya Rank One. The number of free raises given by this maya is equal to the artisan's level in dance maya.
Pg. 61
Dancer Maya Rank Three. This maya has been changed:
When using the mizu-do skill and facing more than one attacker, the dancer may make an additional defensive maneuver each round. (See mizu-do, Appendix II).
Ikebana Maya Rank Two. This maya has been changed:
With a successful Intelligence + Ikebana roll (TN 20), the Artisan can grant a single Free Raise to any individual who sees the arrangement, for any one task (stated by the artisan while in the presence of the arrangement) which must be performed within the hour.
Pg. 62
Jester. These may be used without any special costume:
Jesting does not require any preparation, but it also cannot be "held." Anyone who uses this maya is immediately recognizable as a jester, whether wearing the appropriate costume or not.
Jester Maya Rank One. This maya has been changed: [begin quoted text]
A character may only be targeted with this once per day, and will know that he or she is being tampered with.
Jester Maya Rank Two. This maya has been clarified:
The Jester must perform for two actions, after which the victim must roll their Intelligence against a TN of 15, or charge the nearest individual, whether friend of foe. If the Jester wishes to raise this TN, they must make a performance roll (Intelligence + Jester) at a TN of 20, plus raises for every 5 they wish to add to their victim's TN. Conditions must be "right" (tense, or combat-ready) for this to work. It cannot cause anyone to act against her or her basic nature (i.e. pacifistic monks will not attack)
Pg. 64
Noh/Kabuki Acting Maya Rank Two. The TN to resist this effect is 15 and targets may spend a void point to resist the effects.
Pg. 65
Noh/Kabuki Acting Maya Rank Three. This maya has been changed:
Rank three: At this rank, the dramatist has gained the ability to physically alter their entire body, so that the dramatist can assume the form of animals: able to carry objects, bark, etc. but unable to fly or perform any action beyond the physical capacities of human beings. The forms which the actor chooses to become may not exceed the mass of a heavy war horse, and be no smaller than a medium-sized dog. No items (including clothes or weapons) change with the Artisan, and the illusion is broken if an onlooker touches the artisan.
Pg. 66
Painter Maya Rank One. This technique has been clarified and the example changed:
Some examples of appropriate calligraphic characters are given below, but players should be encouraged to create their own glyphs and effects. Any powers should be mild and unable to affect any great changes, as the examples below: Confusion: When the painter creates this glyph, he confers the essence of chaos and disorder into his calligraphic character. When someone looks at it, they must make an Intelligence roll against a TN of 15 or become confused for a number of turns equal to (5 - their Intelligence). A confused individual will alternately wander about, attack blindly, recite poetry or stand still. The GM will decide the appropriate reaction. Spending a Void point negates the effect.
Pg. 67
Painter Maya Rank Three. The painter must now meditate upon the painting for at least two hours before attempting to step through it.
Pg. 69
Storyteller Maya Rank Two. This effect now lasts for one week and must be renewed with another rendition of the story to have further influence over the target.
Storyteller Maya Rank Three. The underlying stats for the created characters are explained:
These creations cannot have a Ring score higher than the storyteller's school rank and his total Rings cannot be higher than 15. It can have a maximum of four skills, and a score no higher than 4 in any one. The total number of skill points cannot be higher than ten.
Pg. 76
Doji Satsume. Now has Hunting skill at rank 5.
Pg. 77
Ancestor: Lady Doji. Her benefit has been changed slightly:
Characters who choose Lady Doji as an ancestor are considered to have a rank of 1 in all High Skills (excluding Horsemanship, Investigation, Lore and Medicine). If the character wishes to advance in a High Skill, they must pay for rank 1 before continuing to rank 2.
Pg. 79
Ancestor: Doji Hotei. This ancestor's benefit has changed:
Descendants of Doji Hotei may spend a Void point in combat to ignore the penalties of all wounds for one round. They still suffer damage; it simply doesn't affect them right away. The player must declare before the round begins if he wishes to use this ability.
Pg. 81
Ancestor: Doji Taehime. This ancestor's benefit has changed:
When making a roll using Persuasion, Manipulation or Etiquette skills, descendants of Doji Taehime may add (but not keep) an additional number of dice equal to their Void. They must spend a Void point in order to do this.
Pg. 82-83
Ancestor: Kakita Rensei. This ancestor now costs 5 CPs and his benefit does not negate the effects of monster type armor.
Pg. 84, 86
Ancestor: Kakita Wayozu. This ancestor now costs 12 CPs. Her ability may only be used once per week.
Doji Shizue. Her intelligence is now 5.
Pg. 85
Kakita Yoshi. Yoshi's Air is now 6
Pg. 87-88
Ancestor: Kakita. This ancestor's benefit has changed:
The descendant of Kakita may choose to re-roll any failed roll once per day, in or out of combat, including an iaijutsu strike.
As has the penalty:
The Kakita descendant's battle prowess will be tested, their honor challenged, and they will never find solace in the house of the Lion. In effect, the entire Clan hates her, although only the Matsus act without provocation. Treat the character as if he or she has the disadvantage Sworn Enemy (Lion). He or she receives no points for the disadvantage.
Asahina Tamako. Tamako's Water is now 4, and his Fire is 3.
Pg. 90
Ancestor: Daidoji Yurei. This ancestor now costs 5 CP, and allows you to roll but not keep additional dice equal to the character's Fire Ring on Battle rolls.
Pg. 91 Ancestor: Daidoji Masashigi. This ancestor's benefit has been clarified:
A character with this ancestor gains a Major Ally in the Crab house, and their TN to Be Hit is increased by 3 for each Wound Rank they take after the first. For example, a character with Daidoji Masashigi as their ancestor would have a +6 to their TN to Be Hit if they were at the -2 Wound Rank.
Pg. 99
Daidoji Bodyguard. The wound ranks should each read '7'.
Pg. 113
Mizu-do Techniques. Changes were made to each of Mizu-do's techniques:
Bend Like a Reed: In order to evade the blow, the practitioner must successfully make a Reflexes + Mizu-do versus the opponent's Kenjutsu/ Bojutsu x 5. If successful, the opponent's strike misses.
Catch the Shadow: A common tactic of Mizu-do practitioners is to escape other hand-to-hand grappling attempts. This technique is commonly called a feint; a movement designed to avoid the attacker's strike. Although difficult, a successful feint can be done with practice and sharp reflexes. If another person attempts to grapple with a practitioner of Mizu-do, the Mizu-do artist may make a contested Reflexes roll to avoid the grappling attempt before the attacker makes their roll to hit. He must be aware of the attack before he may do so, however.
Dragon Claw: If the defensive maneuver is successful, the opponent is subdued unless they win a contested Agility roll against the Mizu-do practitioner'sAgility in order to break away from the hold.
The Farther you Fall: Much of the success of Mizu-do as a defensive style is based on the throws which the school teaches. This particular throw is one of the more effective, engaging the opponent's own force to hurl them a sizable distance from the Mizu-do practitioner. As the opponent charges (attempts a strike), the character must make a successful reactionary grappling roll (Reflexes + Mizu-do versus their opponent's Agility + Weapons skill times5) in order to grab them and redirect their movement...
The distance of the throw is based on the Strength of the Mizu-do practitioner x 3 in feet. Any damage taken by the attacker is due to their rough landing, and results in a stun lasting for 1 die of turns minus their Earth x 2. Both characters spend the end of the turn regaining their footing. Remember: the TN to hit an immobile or prone character is 5.
Flight of Dragons: The Mizu-do practitioner must make a reactionary grappling roll (Agility +Mizu-do versus their opponent's Agility + Weapons skill x 5). If successful, the thrown character must make an Agility + Hand-to-Hand (or Athletics) roll at a TN of 20, plus one raise for each raise the thrower made. If the thrown character fails, they lurch to a deadfall at the defender's feet, and take an amount of damage equal to the original attacker's (Strength)k1 plus one die of damage from the fall.
Hammer of Earth: As the attacker charges, the character makes a reactionary grappling roll(Agility + Mizu-do versus their opponent's Agility x 5) in order to grip the attacker, then leans back until both the attacker and the Mizu-do practitioner fall. Ideally this will cause the opponent to land on the crown of their head. The original attacker must make a simple Earth roll against a TN of 25 or lose consciousness. Helmeted characters are not affected. Both attacker and Mizu-do practitioner will take damage from this technique. The Mizu-do practitioner will inflict 1k1 to his opponent as usual, and will take 1k1 damage, without adding his own strength to the attack.
Thumb Wrench: As the attacker strikes the defender, the defender must make a reactionary roll to grapple and disarm their attacker. This roll is the customary grappling roll (Agility + Mizu-do versus their opponent's Agility + Weapon skill x 5) and an additional roll of (Agility + Mizu-do versus their opponent's School Rank + Weapons skill x 5) in order to disarm them - if they have a weapon. Once this is accomplished, the practitioner of Mizu-do has gripped the opponent's thumb and used it to wrench their arm behind their back, into a painful and debilitating lock. If their opponent wishes to break the hold or struggle against it in any way, they may do so by rolling a contested Agility roll against the holder's Agility. Whether this attempt is successful or not, the person in the hold will take an amount of damage to their arm equal to their own (Strength)k(Strength).
Changes to the Third Printing of Way of the Dragon
Pg. 26
Battle of Kyuden Tombo. The Isawa shugenja is indeed from the Isawa family, and not from the Agasha.
Pg. 40
Ichi Miru skill. This skill is restricted to the Kitsuki Magistrate school.
Mountaineer skill. This is a bugei skill for Samurai-caste.
Kagaku skill. This skill is restricted to the Agasha and Kitsuki families.
Mitsugusuri skill. This skill is now correctly called 'Mizugusuri' and is restricted to the Agasha Shugenja school.
There is a new skill:
Leadership (Willpower): The Leadership skill (not to be confused with the Natural Leader Advantage in Way of the Lion) allows a character to be a charismatic commander and a leader of men. With each point in this skill, the character may effectively lead and govern the actions of up to 10 NPCs, usually a military squadron or underlings provided by the PC's position (lesser Magistrates, etc.).These NPCs are not automatons - they simply wish to follow any reasonable orders and perform well in their command structure. If the GM feels they are being mistreated or abused, the PC must make a successful Leadership +Willpower roll to maintain his control over the soldiers. A highly unusual order might have a TN of 10, while a blatantly suicidal order (one with no honor or reason) might have a difficulty of 20. An order which directly disobeys a higher authority than the PC's own (Go kill my daimyo!) will be very difficult (TN 30 or 35) and will certainly not go unnoticed. In times of war, a higher TN may be called for, due to the stress and chaos of the battlefield. This is a Bugei Skill.
Pg. 41
Noble Birth. This advantage is restricted to Ise Zumi and includes a clarification:
They do not have a samurai's obligations, nor do they command the respect of that class. Ise zumi who wish to retain their daisho and samurai status must take this advantage.
Pg. 43
An explanation of the interaction between the Kitsuki and Shosuro Techniques:
Kitsuki Magistrates and Shosuro Actors
Can a Rank 5 Kitsuki Magistrate use The Eyes Betray the Heart to "see through" a Shosuro Actor's persona? Sometimes. The GM should make this roll, so as not to tip the Kitsuki that something's up. Make a contested roll: the Magistrate's Awareness + Ichi Miru against the Actor's Awareness + Acting. If the Magistrate fails the roll, he doesn't notice anything amiss. If he succeeds but rolls lower than the Actor, he knows something's strange, but can't put his finger on it; this might be a good place for the GM to mislead him in an entertaining way. If he succeeds and beats the Shosuro's roll, he sees through the disguise.
Ise Zumi school skills:
Skills: Nazodo, Shintao, Hand-to-Hand or Kaze-do, Meditation, any one Craft skill, any 2 other Skills
General clarification of ise zumi tattoos:
Many tattoos are constantly in effect; others must be activated. Effects of the tattoos that must be activated last for a number of hours equal to the ise zumi's School Rank, unless stated otherwise. A tattoo which must be activated can be called on only a number of times per day equal to the ise zumi's School Rank.
Arrowroot tattoo. This tattoo may only be used to heal others.
Pg. 44
Bellflower tattoo. Benefit is clearer: By summoning the power of the bellflower, the Ise zumi may substitute his Void Ring for any Trait for a number of Rounds equal to his School Rank.
Butterfly tattoo. Benefit is based on the ise zumi's School Rank.
Pg. 45
An explanation of making ise zumi from other clans:
Non-Dragon Ise Zumi Player Characters who begin character creation as a member of a different clan, or family, are allowed to become ise zumi under rare circumstances - although there is no going back. Once a character has chosen to follow Togashi, they renounce their original family and clan, and become one with the most enigmatic family of all. Never again will they be called by their original family's name, nor will their family 'recognize' them as anything other than a servant of the Dragon Champion. Their former life is over. A character who joins the Togashi at generation gains the bonus of their old family's name (Shosuro, for example). They must change their surname to Togashi, although they do not gain the bonus trait of that family's surname, and will never be given any more of the family's advantages. Afterwards, they must purchase the Advantage 'Different School', and take the school 'Ise zumi'. Ise zumi can never take the Multiple Schools Advantage (seen in Way of the Crane), but they may roll on their old family's Heritage Tables, ignoring any result which would have been 'given up' in order to join the Togashi (such as a family member/ancestor's glory bonus, or land or items which are passed down only within the family).
Pg. 47
Phoenix tattoo. The cost has been clarified slightly:
Cost: Ise zumi with this tattoo embrace the philosophy of the Phoenix. They cannot initiate any attacks whatsoever, although they may defend themselves and counterattack an attacking enemy.
Pine tattoo. This tattoo is now constantly in effect.
Spider tattoo. This tattoo is now constantly in effect.
Pg. 48
Tiger tattoo. The benefit is clearer: When the Ise zumi summons the power of the tiger, he increases the number of dice he keeps (without increasing the number of dice rolled) for weaponless to-hit and damage rolls by his School Rank.
Pg. 54
Togashi Mitsu. Mitsu now has a Void Ring of 5, and his tattoos are no longer referred to as techniques.
Pg. 55
A new explanation of NPC stats vs. School Rank (this column appears in the Who's Who chapter of all of the new editions):
Insight Perceptive readers will note that the statistics given for the characters described in this Who's Who do not necessarily add up to the insight total given for that character's School Rank. This is deliberate. For some games, it may be necessary for Hida Kisada, the Crab Clan Champion, to have a Horsemanship skill of 4. For others, such a skill would not only be highly inappropriate, but may ruin a well-thought out campaign or adventure. Therefore, we have only mentioned the most prominent skills for each character, leaving gaps in their insight totals where other skills and abilities can be determined by your GM as he feels is appropriate. GMs should feel free to fill in whatever skills and abilities are needed for any Who's Who character (up to their insight maximum for their given School Rank), or simply allow them to develop in time, as the PCs interact with the character.
Pg. 56
Togashi Yama. This talented shugenja's collection of scrolls has been greatly expanded:
Spells: Sense, Commune, Summon, Transform, Counterspell, Amaterasu's Blessing, Biting Steel, Earthquake, Earth's Stagnation, Elemental Ward,Evil Ward, Fires From the Forge, Fires of Purity, Inflame, Castle of Earth (from Walking the Way)
Pg. 57
Ancestor: Mirumoto. Those who leave the Mirumoto Bushi school now lose the benefits of this ancestor's guidance.
Pg. 63
Mirumoto Hitomi. Her Great Destiny now specifies that she is destined to be the Clan's Thunder.
Pg. 64
Mirumoto Sukune. This great samurai has been trained at the Mirumoto bushi school, not as a Togashi
Pg. 67
Ancestor: Agasha. The lady Agasha was rescued by Mirumoto's son Hojatsu.
Pg. 73
Kitsuki Magistrate template. The Magistrate now has Bad Health instead of Small.
Pg. 91
A further explanation of the manufacture and use of Mizugusuri:
Mizugusuri
Mizugusuri are difficult to make, and even more difficult to store and protect. The typical procedure for making mizugusuri involves collecting the herbs and powdered stones in a safe-room, where dangerous explosions and the like can be contained, and then spending as much as three weeks until the mixture is of proper potency. Even for a known potion, the process still takes at least two weeks. Carrying mizugusuri can also be tricky - they can be highly volatile. The mixture is definitely stable for a number of days equal to the Agasha's mizugusuri skill, but each time that number of days is passed (every 3 days for an Agasha with mizugusuri of 3, for example), a secret check must be made by the GM, using the character's mizugusuri skill against a TN of 10(greater, if the potion has been jostled or unwisely handled). Make a check immediately if the potion is extremely poorly handled (tossed about, watered down, poured into a sake works' bins). If the potion does not make the check, it becomes unstable. Unstable mizugusuri are unpredictable. They may simply do nothing, they may explode, they may become poisonous, or have completely unusual abilities, unlike anything the mizugusuri expert has ever encountered. The result of such an unstable mizugusuri is entirely up to the Game Master.
Way of the Lion Changes in the Second Printing
Pg. 29
The Measures. The missing measure of Water is included:
The Measure of Water: You must make your actions flow like a stream, passive and formless, then strike like a wave, powerful and overwhelming. Rigidity breeds stagnation, and on the battlefield, stagnation is death. Keep your armies fluid and prepared for change; understanding chaos is the key to victory.
Pg. 49
The Leadership Advantage has a new name: Natural Leader.
Pg. 51
The Ikoma Family benefit is +1 intelligence. The school also gives a +1intelligence benefit.
Pg. 53
Summoning Ancestors. Sodan-senzo may only summon ancestors whose cost is less than twice their school rank.
Pg. 107
Why Only Losses? Readers may notice that most of the battles we cover here result in losses for the Lion Clan. How can that be? The Lion are strongest and most powerful army in Rokugan. How come they keep getting their butts kicked? The answer is this: they actually learn more from their defeats than their victories. Make no mistake, the Lion have won a lot of battles. For every loss we cover here, there are dozens of Clan triumphs, where they crushed their foes and sent them screaming into the Void. Because there are so many, Lions tend to pay more attention to their defeats. After all, a Lion is expected to win. He has to vanquish his enemies. It happens so often, it becomes second nature. Defeats, on the other hand, receive a great deal of scrutiny. Somewhere, something went wrong, and if they don't find out what, it might happen again. Lion children learn the stories of battles won, and study the tactics of victorious generals, but it's the mistakes they pore over time and again. Remember this failure. Mark how it happened. And ensure that it never happens again As for the other Clans, they trumpet every victory against the Lion to the skies. It just doesn't happen that often.
Way of the Phoenix Changes in the Second Printing
Pg. 52
Enlightened Madness. This disadvantage has been clarified:
Each shugenja's madness is unique and personalized. The player should workout its details and detrimental effects with the GM at the beginning of the campaign.
Forgotten. This disadvantage is only available to Phoenix characters.
Pg. 66
Heritage Table 2.1. This result gives your character 3 points of insight.
Pg. 83
Shiba Tetsu. Tetsu now has an Intelligence of 4.
Pg. 84
Shiba Tsukune. Tsukune now has an Intelligence of 4.
Pg. 87
Ancestor: Asako Ingen. Ingen no longer affects a character's insight totals or requirements in any way.
Shiba Ujimitsu. A new sidebar explains Ujimitsu's curious Trait vs. Rings:
Ujimitsu's Water Ring
Shiba Ujimitsu's Water ring has remained 5 while his Strength has dropped to 3. Once his Strength was higher, but an incident involving his daughter, the Shiba ancestral sword, and his ancestors debilitated him. See Winter Court: Kyuden Seppun (p. 114) for details.
Pg. 111
The Phoenix Clan Armor. This side bar has moved from pg. 110 to 111.
Way of the Scorpion Changes in the Second Printing
Pg. 41
A Heart of Vengeance. This advantage now causes you to gain a minor enemy from the targeted clan.
Pg. 44
Scrutiny's Sweet Sting. This technique has been clarified:
For every one hour of game time spent interacting with a character, the Scorpion gains 1 point of the Blackmail Advantage on that character (maximum 5). He must make a successful Contested Awareness + School Rank roll versus the character's Awareness each hour in order to use this Technique - 5 points of Blackmail takes five rolls over five hours.
Pg. 49
Scorpion Fortune Tables. A roll on this table costs the character 3 CPs.
Pg. 52
Insight. The insight sidebar (as seen in WotD) appears on this page.
Way of the Unicorn Changes in Third Printing
Pg. 27
Loyalty and Fealty (Continued). This portion of the sidebar was deleted.
Pg. 37
To Face the Darkness. When the Unicorn enter the Shadowlands, they are lead by Shinjo Nishijin, not Hiroki.
Pg. 50
Horse Archery skill. This skill has been clarified: The Horse Archery skill is based on the Unicorn art of Yomanri (and uses the same mechanics), and so is not generally available to non-Clan members. A character who knows Yomanri or Archery (Kyujutsu), but not Horse Archery, has his TN raised by at least 10 when firing from the back of a horse; characters who don't know how to handle a bow at all probably ought to hope for divine intervention. A similar penalty would apply if, for some reason, a character trained solely in Horse Archery were forced to fire from the ground. Unicorn bushi can shoot at a gallop, and can fire at targets up to 90° to their right or at anything to their left side, even at targets straight behind them. Few other bushi are this skilled at horse archery, and the only shugenja so skilled are found in the Unicorn clan.
Lance (Uma-Yari) (Strength) (Unicorn Bushi schools only) Unicorn bushi (and occasionally shugenja) use this skill when trying to lance, e.g. with a yari. Obviously, lancing an enemy can only be done from on top of a moving horse. If the Unicorn samurai succeeds in hitting his target with a lancing attack, he does not add his own strength to the roll. Instead, if his mount is charging, he rolls the weapon's DR plus the number of rounds he's charged for damage. He must also make a Strength + Lance check against a TN equal to five times the number of rounds he charged. This extra roll is not considered an action. If the bushi fails this roll, he loses his grip on his pole-arm. If he fails it badly (Game Master's discretion), he can even be unhorsed.
Yomanri skill. The Unicorn style of Agility-based archery has been re-named Yomanri.
Pg. 51
Greed. This disadvantage may only be taken for 1-3 CPs.
Pg. 52.
Lechery. This disadvantage may only be taken for 1-3 CPs.
Never Sat on a Horse. This disadvantage is restricted to Unicorn characters only.
Overconfident. This disadvantage is now worth only 2 CPs.
A new side-bar describes the Moto family's daimyo:
Moto Terumori
Moto Terumori is the current Moto daimyo, an aging but stern leader. To his men, he is the epitome of dedication, having spent his entire life in the study and pursuit of the Dark Moto, and to his son, he is a hero. Terumori was the firstborn son of the Moto daimyo, but he was not chosen as the house leader simply because of his birth. From the beginning, he has proven that he has the skill and dedication, and his loyalty to the clan has never been questioned. Although he is aging, he still rides firmly, his only son, Soro, at his side. Soro does not look forward to inheriting the responsibility of daimyo - not because he is not ready, or because he is afraid, but because he feels that his father is the greatest Moto that ever lived.
When Terumori passes the position to his son and enters retirement, it is certain he will be deeply missed.
Pg. 53
The Heart Speaks. The second portion of this technique now includes an example:
Also, the emissary is taught to reflexively mimic and be responsive to local customs. She may make an Awareness + Etiquette roll against a TN of20 to avoid making a faux pas, even if the character is not aware of the existence of a taboo. This extends to normal social situations; a successful roll will warn the emissary not to ask about the daimyo's son (who has just expired from the flu), even if she didn't know of his illness and without knowing why she shouldn't ask.
Pg. 54
Barding. This side-bar has been changed: [begin quoted text]
Barding
The protection afforded by horse armor is similar to that of human armor:+5 TN to hit for light armor, and +10 for heavy. Like human armor, barding is supplied by the rider's daimyo, but since it requires a greater commitment of materials and time, it is consequently rarer.
Piercing the Veils. The second half of this technique has been clarified:
Furthermore, whenever someone tells a lie to the emissary, she may make an opposed Investigation versus Sincerity skill check to discern what the other person believes to be the truth of the matter. For each five points of success the emissary scores, she learns one true fact.
Pg. 55
Your Outfit. The Moto no longer have a separate starting outfit for their shugenja.
Purity of Breath.
The Moto Bushi no longer add their School Rank to all skill rolls. They now add their School Rank to all their damage rolls.
Pg. 56
Bloodied but Unbowed.
The modified Wound Chart has changed:
The bushi may also stay alive through indomitable force of will. On the Wounds chart, replace Down and Out with -4, and replace Dead with a -5Wound Level, followed by -6 level, then -7, etc. The bushi cannot be killed, and can remain alive past the -4 state for a number of turns equal to his Void Ring. During this time, he can continue to move, fight, take damage, etc., but he must be healed to -4 or better by the end of his last turn or he dies.
Otaku Battle Maiden School.
There are several changes to the school: Skills: Horsemanship 2, Defense, Kenjutsu, Battle, Lance, and any High or Bugei Skill
Honor: 3, plus 5 boxes
Outfit: Kimono, katana, wakizashi, lance, bow, 30 arrows of any type(s), heavy armor, traveling pack, Otaku steed, any 3 weapons, 10 koku. Three items are fine quality.
Riding in Harmony. This technique has been modified:
Rank 1: Riding in Harmony Her fiery ancestral blood yearning to be free, the battle maiden is one with Otaku when riding, preferably fast. Whenever the battle maiden uses one of her six school skills while mounted, she can roll and keep an extra die.
Sensing the Breeze. This technique now reduces damage received on the Battle Table.
Rank 4: The Wind Never Stops The battle maiden has learned the secret of the continuous strike. This has two advantages. First, when making an attack from horseback, she can angle her weapon to make two attacks in a single round. Second, if a battle maiden happens to kill an opponent with any attack (even if she is not mounted) she may attack another foe at the end of the round. Each attack the battle maiden makes in a given round can have a second attack associated with it, but if she kills her enemy with the secondary attack, she does not get a third.
Otaku's Blessing. This technique may be used on foot as well as while mounted.
Pg. 57
Heritage Tables. Unicorn characters are limited to a maximum of three rolls on the heritage tables. Table 3.2:
Worthy pedigree: Due to marriage, the blood of a different family's ancestor flows in your veins. If you are a shugenja, gain a Unicorn Clan Secret Spell (see Appendix III). Otherwise, gain the rank 1 technique of any Unicorn school other than shugenja or battle maiden.
Table 3A.10:
Battle of White Shore Plain Before this battle, the Scorpion made a concerted effort to prove to the Empire that the so-called "Unicorn" were not Shinjo's children at all, but barbarian impostors. In the battle itself, however, they were defeated suspiciously easily by a small Unicorn force mostly made up of Battle Maidens and a handful of Lion samurai. Immediately thereafter, they publicly recognized the legitimacy of the Unicorn Clan. Gain 1 Glory rank, a Minor Ally in the Akodo (Lion) family, and a Minor Enemy in the Bayushi (Scorpion) family.
Pg. 62
Insight. Same side-bar as in WotD.
Archery vs. Yomanri. All references to Unicorn NPCs with the Archery skill have been replaced by Yomanri.
Shinjo Yokatsu. He now explicitly has a Horsemanship skill of 5, History(Unicorn Clan) 3, .
Pg. 63
Shinjo Yasamura. Added an Iaijutsu skill of 3.
Pg. 64
Shinjo Morito. The ronin no longer makes any claim on a Unicorn family name.
Pg. 66
Shinjo Hanari. Increase his Rings to Earth 4, Water 3, Fire 3, Air 3, and Void 3. Add the Yomanri skill at rank 4.
Pg. 70
Ide Tadaji. Tadaji's rings are higher: Water 3, Fire 4, and Air 4. His school now reads 'Ide Emissary'. He has gained the Oratory/Rhetoric skills at rank 3, History (rokugan) 2, Lore (Shugenja) 2, and Lore (Dragon Clan)at rank 2. He now has Iuchi Daiyu as an ally.
Pg. 72
Iuchi Karasu. Now has the disadvantage Benten's Curse.
Pg. 73
Iuchi Daiyu. Daiyu's Fire Ring is now 3. His skills now have ranks: Skills: Astrology 3, Calligraphy 4, Kenjutsu 3, Lore (Prophecies) 4, Lore(Woodland Animal 4), Medicine 2, Meditation 3, Shintao 5, Theology 4
Iuchi's Inner Gift. This has been replaced with the Inner Gift Advantage seen in WotCn:
Inner Gift (6 Point Advantage from Way of the Crane)The character with Inner Gift has been blessed with an uncontrollable talent, perhaps empathy, precognition, or the ability to sense when danger is near. It is up to the GM to let the character know when their gift activates, and what that means to the current situation. A character with the inner gift of precognition, for example, might have a series of dreams about a bloody knife, only to wake up one morning and find their dearest friend has been assassinated. A character with empathy might be able to tell when someone is lying to them, or a character with a gift of psychometry (reading emotions from objects) might gain a flash of insight when they pick up a samurai's katana. The gift must be clearly defined at the time a character purchases this Advantage. The Gifts a character can choose are: precognition, animal speech, psychometry, and empathy.
Pg. 74
Horiuchi Shoan. She now has an Intelligence of 4. Shoan has many new skills: Skills: Calligraphy 3, Etiquette 4, Herbalism 3, History (Land of theWinds) 4, History (Rokugan) 3, Horsemanship 2, Kenjutsu 1, Lore (Wizardmagic) 3, Poetry 4, Shintao 2, Singing 3, Storytelling 4
Pg. 79
Ide Diplomat. Add Benten's Blessing to this template.
Pg. 85
Shinjo Caravan Master. Add Kenjutsu 2 to his skills.
Pg. 88
Otaku Battle Maiden. Remove the horse Archery skill and add Lance 2.
Pg. 99
The Three Breeds. Stats have been included for the three types of horses found in Rokugan:
The Rokugan Pony
Height: 10 Hands (3'4")
Weight: 90 Ken-o (700lbs)
Life Span:30+ years
Earth 2
Stamina 4
Water 3
Strength 6
Fire 1
Agility 2
Air 2
Rolls when Attacking (Kick): 2k2
Rolls for Damage: 4k2
TN to be Hit: 10 (15 while at a gallop)
Wounds: 8: -1; 16: -2; 24: -3: 40: -4; 48: Down
The Gaijin Riding Horse
Height: 17 Hands (5'8")
Weight: 160 Ken-o (1300lbs)
Life Span: 25 years
Earth 3
Water 3
Strength 6
Fire 1
Agility 2
Air 2
Rolls when Attacking (Kick): 3k2
Rolls for Damage: 6k3
TN to be Hit: 10 (15 while at a gallop)
Wounds: 12: -1; 24: -2; 36: -3: 60: -4; 72: Down
The Otaku Warhorses
Height: 16 Hands (5'4")
Weight: 125 Ken-o (1000lbs)
Life Span: 25-30 years
Earth 3
Water 3
Strength 6
Fire 2
Air 2
Rolls when Attacking (Kick): 3k3
Rolls for Damage: 6k3
TN to be Hit: 10 (15 while at a gallop)
Wounds: 24: -1; 48: -2; 84: Down
A rider on an Otaku Warhorse gets a single free re-rolled die for any action involving the Horsemanship skill.
A Word on Costs. This side-bar has been deleted.
Pg. 100
Gaigin Gear. All references to cost for buying these items have been deleted.
Pg. 101
Barding. The reference to barding costing a flat 4x normal armor has been removed. See pg. 54.
Pg. 104
Clan Spells. Clan Secret spells no longer indicate a specific family of origin.
Reprint Thanks For the updated printings of the Way of the Clans books, we asked to hear about things people really wanted to see changed. Those who answered thecall included Chris Bigg, Ray Colina, Corinth, Lucien Cristofaro, David JDolph, Tim Ellis, Luc Gadioux, David R. "Sanzo" Henry, Thomas Iverson, G Michael Jacobs, Ron James, Shosuro Kanzaki, Kathleen, Rob Kenny, David V Krieger, Otaku KunLiu, David E. Loewen, Stewart MacWilliam, Richard Maddy, Ian McAuliffe, Andrew McGregor, Craig Mercer, Andrew Meyer, Wayne Ogle James Ojaste, Scott M. Parrish, Chris Payne, Dieter Pearcey, Ramón Peña, Devon E. Sanders, Skid Marxst, John Stepp, Martin Sweeney, Jay Swygert, Tengu, Foxtrot & Vex, Kyle Voltti, and Jay Wrobel. (If we've left your name out, we're very sorry - we tried not to miss anybody from the 2.5 MB of email you sent us!) Special thanks go to Scott Gearin, who went way above and beyond the call of duty in his contribution.
I'm beginning to post the collated changes from the Way of the Clans books. The credits page follows separately as well. Since we had several additions and the occasional extensive revision, these diffs files include chunks of new text as well as simple explanations of rules changes. The diffs don't point out every time we tightened a section, deleted an extra period, of fixed a misspelling. They do cover rules changes and significant story changes. Directly quoted text is marked as such with [square bracketed] flags. Although these diffs are free, they still contain our copyrighted text. They'll be up on l5r.alderac.com soon; if you want to post them on your website as well, write us and ask permission first, please. (Send requests odjt@alderac.com and I'll get them taken care of with my usual alacrity.)
Legal Boilerplate: This text is copyright 1999 by Alderac Entertainment Group; all rights reserved. You may make a copy of this document for personal use only. Not for redistribution without permission from Alderac Entertainment Group. Collated from the L5R mailing list.