What do you guys think will be the story rewards for the upcoming tournament? And also what do you hope they do and don't do with story rewards in the FFG era.
Nu5R Story Rewards
"Who becomes Emerald Champion" will probably be one of them.
I could see tournaments based around "Which clan will get X weapon/title" for any generic reward, with a card just getting that clan's boarder slapped on.
As for major stories, we will have to see, but I'm guess never more then a closed "Chose X, Y, or Z" option system.
It is a good thing I think if it always ends up being a more closed system of choices. I want the tournaments to give us agency in the story, but I don't want the writers to have to explain away BS just to make the tournaments exciting.
22 minutes ago, TheItsyBitsySpider said:"To which clan does the Emerald Champion belong" will probably be one of them.
I edited this with the likelier scenario highlighted.
I play a game called Ashes, Rise of the Phoenixborn. Wicked game. They do story prizes too and have just finished a series where everyone entering got to vote Light or Dark(with the winners getting more votes)and that decision went towards not only deciding the nature and flavour of the next Phoenixborn, but also their deck and the cards coming with them.
I would be 100% pleased as punch if FFG took a note from their new sister company on that one.
"Does this blood ritual succeed or fail? Which clan will play the pivotal moment?"
"Does the Nezumi chief want war or trade? And which clan will be the benefactors or victims?"
But major story points being decided by players is probably going to end badly.
3 minutes ago, Daigotsu Steve said:"Does the Nezumi chief want war or trade? And which clan will be the benefactors or victims?"
If this race returns, I hope that the term "Ratling" is emphasized. Whenever they were referred to as Nezumi (rats), I couldn't help wondering what actual rats were called in Rokugan.
6 minutes ago, Ide Yoshiya said:If this race returns, I hope that the term "Ratling" is emphasized. Whenever they were referred to as Nezumi (rats), I couldn't help wondering what actual rats were called in Rokugan.
Weren't they in the crab fiction or do you mean return as in playable?
8 minutes ago, Ide Yoshiya said:I edited this with the likelier scenario highlighted.
Yeah, I think allowing a specific person to be declared champion would likely be too problematic, especially since most of the characters we could name by name so far probably have other roles they still need to play.
3 minutes ago, Ide Yoshiya said:If this race returns, I hope that the term "Ratling" is emphasized. Whenever they were referred to as Nezumi (rats), I couldn't help wondering what actual rats were called in Rokugan.
What would be the Japanese Rokuganese Rokugani word people in Rokugan would use that would equate best to "Ratling"? "Nezumijin"?
If they let us just pick a character to be EC I'm campaigning for Yakamo. Go to the capital and bust some heads Yakamo 
5 minutes ago, phillos said:If they let us just pick a character to be EC I'm campaigning for Yakamo. Go to the capital and bust some heads Yakamo
I'm rooting for Tsuruchi, naturally.
16 minutes ago, JJ48 said:Yeah, I think allowing a specific person to be declared champion would likely be too problematic, especially since most of the characters we could name by name so far probably have other roles they still need to play.
What would be the
JapaneseRokuganeseRokuganiword people in Rokugan would use that would equate best to "Ratling"? "Nezumijin"?
I think Ratling is fine. It's not like Courtier is a term native to Japan either but it gets the meaning across effectively.
33 minutes ago, Ide Yoshiya said:If this race returns, I hope that the term "Ratling" is emphasized. Whenever they were referred to as Nezumi (rats), I couldn't help wondering what actual rats were called in Rokugan.
Pretty sure "Ratling" is used in Warhammer so is probably copyrighted and not allowed to be used.
34 minutes ago, Ide Yoshiya said:If this race returns, I hope that the term "Ratling" is emphasized. Whenever they were referred to as Nezumi (rats), I couldn't help wondering what actual rats were called in Rokugan.
I imagine they call the rats, rats. And were one to come across a Nezumi, and call it a rat, one would be hip deep in trouble.
33 minutes ago, phillos said:If they let us just pick a character to be EC I'm campaigning for Yakamo. Go to the capital and bust some heads Yakamo
Aren't there some tests of Etiquette and Strategy in the test for the Emerald Champion? I'm not sure Yakamo would be the best Crab Clan's best bet for both of them... And no, breaking heads with a tetsubo is not a valid skill in Etiquette tests... 
17 minutes ago, wolfien8 said:Pretty sure "Ratling" is used in Warhammer so is probably copyrighted and not allowed to be used.
Battle uses Skaven (which I bet is copyrighted). GW didn't have much success claiming trademark infringement for "space marine", so I doubt they'd be able to claim it for "ratling".
1 hour ago, Ide Yoshiya said:If this race returns, I hope that the term "Ratling" is emphasized. Whenever they were referred to as Nezumi (rats), I couldn't help wondering what actual rats were called in Rokugan.
We already have a reference to Nezumi in the FFG fiction. Hiruma Yoshino asks them to build pit traps to help bolster the defenses at the wall. I'm okay with them being called Nezumi. At this point I'm too familiar with the term to let it go anyway. Also the Japanese have been plenty guilty of just the opposite. There are tons of examples of English being used goofily for proper nouns in anime. For example in Dunbine there is a dude ridiculously named "Shot Weapon". In Jojo's Bizarre Adventure there is a dude superficially named "Smokey Brown".
10 minutes ago, KerenRhys said:Aren't there some tests of Etiquette and Strategy in the test for the Emerald Champion? I'm not sure Yakamo would be the best Crab Clan's best bet for both of them... And no, breaking heads with a tetsubo is not a valid skill in Etiquette tests...
No probably not but it would be very entertaining if he did win We'd need a Yakamo training montage where he's boning up on his courtly courtesies and practicing tea ceremonies and stuff. Some dude is there hitting him with a stick every time he fails to recognize the symbolic significance of a flower or picks an inappropriate gift to give a visiting diplomat.
1 hour ago, Ide Yoshiya said:If this race returns, I hope that the term "Ratling" is emphasized. Whenever they were referred to as Nezumi (rats), I couldn't help wondering what actual rats were called in Rokugan.
"Rats"
AFAIK, Low Rokugani (what people use) is English while High Rokugani is Japanese.
45 minutes ago, JJ48 said:Yeah, I think allowing a specific person to be declared champion would likely be too problematic, especially since most of the characters we could name by name so far probably have other roles they still need to play.
What would be the
JapaneseRokuganeseRokuganiword people in Rokugan would use that would equate best to "Ratling"? "Nezumijin"?
Well Rokugan is not Japan, but that out of the way, 鼠人 would be the most likely analogue. I'd say the reading would be "Sojin", but "Nezumibito" would also work. If it *were* Japanese, to make a guess as to which is more likely one would need to know during which period the word came into usage and whether the combination of characters was borrowed from Chinese or not. So that's where the theorycrafting kinda falls apart -
applying modern Japanese to a fantasy blend of east asian cultures and time periods is always going to be a bit awkward. ^^
Just now, ShosuroSora said:Well Rokugan is not Japan, but that out of the way, 鼠人 would be the most likely analogue. I'd say the reading would be "Sojin", but "Nezumibito" would also work. If it *were* Japanese, to make a guess as to which is more likely one would need to know during which period the word came into usage and whether the combination of characters was borrowed from Chinese or not. So that's where the theorycrafting kinda falls apart -
applying modern Japanese to a fantasy blend of east asian cultures and time periods is always going to be a bit awkward. ^^
This is why I'm an avid opponent of the gratuitous Japanese. It's a setting inspired by Japan, and other East Asian cultures to a lesser extent, so it makes sense for the names of characters to be composed of the phonemes found in those parts of the world (Toturi, et al aside). But beyond terms familiar to the Western audience (e.g. samurai, oni, kami), and the honorifics that so define conversation in this context, I believe we are better off avoiding excessive Japanese vocabulary, especially when not everyone involved with the creation or consumption of this property is fluent in the language. YMMV on all of this of course, but it's my take.
TL;DR: Less Shiro Utaku Shojo, more Seven Stings Keep.
I think in old L5R lore, they are the Nezumi. Similar to the Kenku, Kitsu, etc, though I think these don't have real meanings (At least according the google translate). The Kitsune Family is based on the shapeshifting fox spirits, who also exist in the game as shapeshifting fox spirits called Kitsune.
28 minutes ago, Mirith said:I think in old L5R lore, they are the Nezumi. Similar to the Kenku, Kitsu, etc, though I think these don't have real meanings (At least according the google translate). The Kitsune Family is based on the shapeshifting fox spirits, who also exist in the game as shapeshifting fox spirits called Kitsune.
Kenku exist in D&D in a form that is mildly analogous to what they are in L5R.
The closest analog to Kenku are Tengu.
Most of the speculation has been that the Story Prize for the inaugural storyline tournament will be "The Test of the Emerald Champion". Exactly how it will be determined is to be determined.
I favor the "Choice of 3" approach, because that gives us 3 solid candidates, with the winning Clan being the group responsible for the Emerald Champion's victory. I also would like to see the "Choice of 3" be a general vote, so that everyone who participates in the tournament gets a voice in who becomes the next Emerald Champion, and not just the person who wins it.
Kenku are likely a late 70s/early 80s corruption of Tengu submitted to GW for their Fiend Factory column in White Dwarf. They were later printed in the Fiend Folio.
Wick borrowed a lot of stuff from D&D (primarily Oriental Adventures) when making L5R.
7 hours ago, JJ48 said:Yeah, I think allowing a specific person to be declared champion would likely be too problematic, especially since most of the characters we could name by name so far probably have other roles they still need to play.
What would be the
JapaneseRokuganeseRokuganiword people in Rokugan would use that would equate best to "Ratling"? "Nezumijin"?
Hmm. Maybe.
I always thought it might have worked better if L5R had, right from the get-go, simply made hengoyokai a fairly major part of the setting, and just said that certain hengoyokai 'sub-types' had become bound to Ningen-Do and were humanoid animal races. That could include Nezumi-Hengoyokai, Kitsu-Hengoyokai, and even the Kenku as Karasu-Hengoyokai.