9 minutes ago, shosuko said:

But let's say I'm an Emerald Magistrate and I am the deciding voice over charges against a samurai from my clan. Do I side with this samurai because they are part of my clan? Likewise if I am the deciding voice in charges against a samurai from a clan that is an enemy to my clan, do I side against them? If the other Emerald Magistrates are divided it's not like I'm deviating from my duties, but my decision could certainly be colored by these factors.

While Loyalty is a high virtue I think it's also important to realize that everyone isn't a holy knight. There are many lies in courts and temples about the virtues and how best to act on them. History is full of embellishments, virtues ascribed to fit the narrative whether they were real or not.

Sure, the Emperor is #1 but that is a distant power with no direct lines of communication to me. My direct lord is who I would receive orders from and the will of those superior to my lord would be understood through my lord's descriptions and orders. Is my loyalty really to the Emperor #1? Or is it to my direct commander #1, and I simply trust their loyalty to the Emperor?

What if my commander ordered me to join the Emerald Magistrates to track down an ill-serving magistrate that has wronged him. Am I now supposed to be most loyal to the Emerald Champion just because I've joined the ranks? Or would my true nature be to server my commanding lord who sent me there?

Ultimately it's your story in your RPG - but these things are very common in my RPG because I find them interesting... Little wonder why I play Scorpion...

Yeah you wouldn't do very good Lion

In general, I would recommend reading about chinese magistrates and wandering judges - I think it's a fantastic inspiration for making Rokugani "law system" work, with many interesting cases and stories about how judges capitalized social harmony and "virtuous conduct" first and letter of the law second - in Rokugan, you basically just need to map that virtuous conduct to Bushido.

5 minutes ago, Kuni Katsuyoshi said:

Yeah you wouldn't do very good Lion

idk - I think all clans employ such means, it's just that the Scorpion are honest about them. I don't believe the Lion clan can even be tactically brilliant with out their own spies and informants. They would need to know the size and nature of the garrison, or the tendencies of their opposing general to lead to a convincing defeat. The Crane are quite deceptive in court as well, and the trick of goading an opposing general to accept terms of a duel instead of combat? Practically open assassination.

Sure, the Scorpion spy and trick and cheat, but I think all clans do. The Scorpion are just honest about it. From Bayushi Tangen's Lies:

28 minutes ago, WHW said:

A failure of duty might piss off your lord, but your lord has his superiors, and his superiors might decide that your decision was more honorable than your lords and praise your actions. You know, stuff like "Why you murdered your lord and presented yourself to me, samurai sama?" "Well, my story is this, Magistrate-sama" (10 sessions later of retrospection) "Ah, I see now, Samurai-sama, your actions were just, no need to cut yourself."

What made the magistrate so impressed with the murdersamurai? Dunno, maybe murdersamurai figured out his lord was a mahoman and killed everyone to save the empire. Or his lord was driving peasants crazy to the point where it was kill the lord or suffer a massive peasant uprising that would cost the empire more than a life of a cruel and honestly dumb and greedy local big man. Or maybe he was possessed by a demon. Or he was planning to betray. Or...

And so on. This actually plugs in into the Lion fiction, I think - if Toturi decided to punish Tsuko for her behavior, there was probably a whole legion of Matsu who would cry foul play and support her instead of him. You know the trope where a greedy lord has a very honorable yojimbo who spends the story tormented by having to follow a rotten man and after seeing true honor in actions of the protagonists, defies the lords final order by cutting him down? Yeah, this kind of stuff.

EDIT

I don't remember if Rokugani judges and magistrates follow a strict code of law in the today sense of it or if they do the older "law by man" method where it's less about the "if X, then Y" and more of a putting a moral and educated person in a spot where they judge individual situations and lay judgement based on their moral superiority and knowledge.

There is a legal code with specified punishments based on crime and social class

As killing one's lord is the Ultimate Transgression in samurai society, having the sam in your example NOT commit seppuku would be'inappropriate' at best.

3 minutes ago, shosuko said:

idk - I think all clans employ such means, it's just that the Scorpion are honest about them. I don't believe the Lion clan can even be tactically brilliant with out their own spies and informants. They would need to know the size and nature of the garrison, or the tendencies of their opposing general to lead to a convincing defeat. The Crane are quite deceptive in court as well, and the trick of goading an opposing general to accept terms of a duel instead of combat? Practically open assassination.

Sure, the Scorpion spy and trick and cheat, but I think all clans do. The Scorpion are just honest about it. From Bayushi Tangen's Lies:

Force And Fraud Edit

Akodo tells you: “Pure force cannot succeed alone. One needs strategy as well.” I tell you: If you are wise, fraud alone is necessary. As noble Akodo has said, “It is right and proper to use fraud on the battlefield, for it saves the lives of those who follow us.” I say this: if a man has used fraud against me, I consider him a wretch and a scoundrel, and I will not adhere to rules that he ignores. I will not put myself at the disadvantage of free action. The world is filled with evil men, my lord. To refuse an advantage because it is “underhanded” is not only disrespectful of those whom you protect and lead, it is also the most selfish act I can think of.

You express a very 'scorpion' viewpoint. I doubt other clans would agree.

Note Akodo says 'on the battlefield'

Note#2 Parts of Leadership were labeled heretical

5 minutes ago, Kuni Katsuyoshi said:

You express a very 'scorpion' viewpoint. I doubt other clans would agree.

Note Akodo says 'on the battlefield'

Note#2 Parts of Leadership were labeled heretical

I doubt Rokugan would be any fun without us...

Just now, shosuko said:

I doubt Rokugan would be any fun without us...

Yeah I Loves me some Scorpions

sidenote: There are probably more Scorpions and Cranes as Emerald Magistrates than Lions.

The Imperial Legions have bunches of Lions though.