School for everyone?

By Nitenman, in Lore Discussion

Actually both our numbers of samurai seems quite low. According to some sources, there would be 30 millions + living in Rokugan and samurai would account for 10%.

Ten percent samurai seems like a very large strain on the economy to me, but real life numbers for feudal Japan often indicate someting like 6-10%. Ours might be a little low, yes. I think it works a bit better for me to keep them low though: with the clans offering a more cohesive support structure, it feels like the average life standard for samurai would be substantially higher (fewer poor or struggling holdings). That probably means a more robust economy overall, but also a larger demand from the non-productive kuge.

10% is a very large strain indeed, but mostly if they all have an average to high standard of living. Let folks be poor and unschooled and it works ,?. Kuge will take what they need and even more anyway. That's how high nobility act in a feudal world as history showed us ( I'm French, one of the European country the most pressured by sycophant nobility before the people cut them heads)

The reason why it's almost alike Japan numbers is probably because 1st ed designers took those numbers and tried to make it fit their setting instead of reflecting on how to make their setting sustainable and coherent. (Japan yet not japan). One of the reason why I did my own number and repartition.

My take is somewhere between @Nitenman 's and @nameless ronin 's. The clans are clearly nations under an empire, and always at cold-war or so, but also currying favor with the empire, and cooperating grudgingly at best, at least post 1000 IC.

The families are generally cooperative within the clans, but also generally not fully in accord, either. The amount of plotting and scheming between them varies - the Crab simply argue it out, or go to a sumo match or warriors duel, to solve internal disputes. The Crane generally talk it out; each has their field, and deference to specialization generally carries it; when it doesn't, champions resolve it. The Dragon rely upon meditation and compromise. Daimyō and Gokenin hold while they are profitable, and are encouraged to retire or "promoted" to court functionary if they don't pay the taxes and maintain the requisite troops. Each holds from his family, not from the clan; the clan can remove (by promotion, banishment, or call to monasticism) but not dictate appointment of replacement - the family daimyō does. If the clan sees recurrent failures, the family may be deprived of the holding and it assigned elsewhere - but it's done as a "public acknowledgement of a gift.

4 hours ago, Nitenman said:

10% is a very large strain indeed

Not necessarily if you count that Rokugani samurai are the "high education class" of their world and not strictly warriors. A Rokugani samurai is closer to a person with a university degree and extensive military training rather than their historical counterparts. This way, it is safe to assume that they kinda occupy the same spot in their society as white collars and their numbers are probably even too few for the various in-setting demands.

4 minutes ago, AtoMaki said:

Not necessarily if you count that Rokugani samurai are the "high education class" of their world and not strictly warriors. A Rokugani samurai is closer to a person with a university degree and extensive military training rather than their historical counterparts. This way, it is safe to assume that they kinda occupy the same spot in their society as white collars and their numbers are probably even too few for the various in-setting demands.

There's also the issue of house-spouses - many samurai families - I'd estimate at least half - will have one member stay at home to raise the small children. (at least until the youngest is of school age.)

Shugenja can easily be house spouses, and some courtiers, as well. Bushi, far less so. Still, a home-guard to lead the peasant rabble when needed is not untoward, so some bushi, as well.

12 hours ago, AK_Aramis said:

Bushi, far less so. Still, a home-guard to lead the peasant rabble when needed is not untoward, so some bushi, as well.

I would imagine that 'house spouses' who stay at home would also be the sort of individuals you'd see as low-to-mid-tier sensei in schools, as well. After all, the more samurai you have, the more space you need in the generic schools, and the more instructors said schools need.