Rightchere, courtesy of the Kolat Informant

Of note to my Phoenix-loyal self- no elemental imbalance appears present in this tale, with its dueling shugenja pulling off just about every trick they try.

This is what you get for working with amateurish pirates. They should have sunk the ship. No survivors, no witnesses.

Mantis honestly grosses me out.

4 hours ago, shineyorkboy said:

This is what you get for working with amateurish pirates. They should have sunk the ship. No survivors, no witnesses.

Now you need to let one get away every once in a while to spread your notoriety, plus there was no point in wasting lives pursuing a boat full of bricks. Nothing ties this back to our good friends the Crab as it was just another Mantis raider raking advantage of fat target, and the pursuit went wrong this time but it will just further spread the fame of the Mantis and stoke fear in the other clans of us.

Is it just me, or does it really sound like Yoritomo plans on ramping up their raids on the Crane? Like possibly sacking some coastal villages/ports?

37 minutes ago, Kaito Kikaze said:

Is it just me, or does it really sound like Yoritomo plans on ramping up their raids on the Crane? Like possibly sacking some coastal villages/ports?

All your Shiro are belong to us.

2 hours ago, Schmoozies said:

Now you need to let one get away every once in a while to spread your notoriety, plus there was no point in wasting lives pursuing a boat full of bricks. Nothing ties this back to our good friends the Crab as it was just another Mantis raider raking advantage of fat target, and the pursuit went wrong this time but it will just further spread the fame of the Mantis and stoke fear in the other clans of us.

Freaking glory-seekers. Can't be content to know they did a good job, they've got to overplay their hand by trying to get everyone to acknowledge it.

It's much easier to undermine an enemy when they don't know that you're doing it.

Just now, shineyorkboy said:

Freaking glory-seekers. Can't be content to know they did a good job, they've got to overplay their hand by trying to get everyone to acknowledge it.

It's much easier to undermine an enemy when they don't know that you're doing it.

But our goal is not to simply undermine the Crane it is to strengthen our position in the empire and force the clans to recognize us as an equal. That means shaking some branches and in this case forcing the Crane to acknowledge that we are a threat to them and that they are unable to protect themselves from us, after all consider the shame that the mighty Crane clan can't protect themselves from a ragged group of pirates like the Mantis clan, why it almost might call into question their worthiness to manage their own lands, maybe someone more suitable should be given the option to take over that role, I hear the Yasuki have a certain skill in managing resources and have ancestral ties to many potentially disputed Crane territories that they could start pressing in the court.

Plus there is the question of wasted resources, the Crane had put enough distance between themselves and Kudoka's ship, plus had proven that there was no plunder worth taking from them, that all a further pursuit of them would have accomplished would be potentially endanger the lives of Kudoka's crew, and given the proficiency that Maeko showed in managing air kami would not guarantee catching her before they were able to either relay a message or draw the Mantis into a greater Crane controlled area even further endangering her crew..

Look, as long as the Mantis are beating up on the Crane (picking on the most physically weakened of the Great Clans- especially since the Phoenix have been keeping a lid on their "elemental imbalance" problems- is directly in keeping with the Universal Truth that Yoritomo Is A Scumbag), I fully intend to clap and laugh with glee at their criminal misdeeds.

Kyuden Doji Delenda Est.
Kakita Yoshi Is A Fool.
#PleasenotIntheFaceOurMagic'sActingUpPunchThoseGuysOverThere

Hmm, now I'm wondering if this takes place before 'Her Father's Daughter'.

12 hours ago, Schmoozies said:

But our goal is not to simply undermine the Crane it is to strengthen our position in the empire and force the clans to recognize us as an equal. That means shaking some branches and in this case forcing the Crane to acknowledge that we are a threat to them and that they are unable to protect themselves from us, after all consider the shame that the mighty Crane clan can't protect themselves from a ragged group of pirates like the Mantis clan, why it almost might call into question their worthiness to manage their own lands, maybe someone more suitable should be given the option to take over that role, I hear the Yasuki have a certain skill in managing resources and have ancestral ties to many potentially disputed Crane territories that they could start pressing in the court.

Plus there is the question of wasted resources, the Crane had put enough distance between themselves and Kudoka's ship, plus had proven that there was no plunder worth taking from them, that all a further pursuit of them would have accomplished would be potentially endanger the lives of Kudoka's crew, and given the proficiency that Maeko showed in managing air kami would not guarantee catching her before they were able to either relay a message or draw the Mantis into a greater Crane controlled area even further endangering her crew..

Yes, I'm sure disrupting trade and harassing the Clan of the Emperor's wife and mother will endear him to the idea of making the Mantis a Great Clan.

Besides, if Kudoka hadn't wasted time toying with her opponent and open the fight by destroying the Crane's sail and/or mast then they wouldn't have been able to escape at all. And when the cargo was discovered to be not worth stealing they should have sunk the ship (most easily either by having a diver drill a hole in their hull or, since they're children of Osano-Wo, summon a lightning bolt to set their boat ablaze) and let the Crane die at sea.

After all, what was the point of disguising themselves as a storm if not to keep people from finding out that the Mantis were raiding Crane shipping? So once their cover as blown the priority of every Mantis should have become leave no survivors to report that to the authorities.

Quote

....whatever we do, however neatly we try to fight - there are consequences to everythin' around us.

She gets it.

10 hours ago, shineyorkboy said:

Hmm, now I'm wondering if this takes place before 'Her Father's Daughter'.

Yes, I'm sure disrupting trade and harassing the Clan of the Emperor's wife and mother will endear him to the idea of making the Mantis a Great Clan.

Besides, if Kudoka hadn't wasted time toying with her opponent and open the fight by destroying the Crane's sail and/or mast then they wouldn't have been able to escape at all. And when the cargo was discovered to be not worth stealing they should have sunk the ship (most easily either by having a diver drill a hole in their hull or, since they're children of Osano-Wo, summon a lightning bolt to set their boat ablaze) and let the Crane die at sea.

After all, what was the point of disguising themselves as a storm if not to keep people from finding out that the Mantis were raiding Crane shipping? So once their cover as blown the priority of every Mantis should have become leave no survivors to report that to the authorities.

Sinking was likely not an option as the boat was too far away for divers to approach to try and drill it, and as for using lightning to sink it there are two potential obstacles to that. The first would be that we don't know for sure how Thunder Magic works in this version of the game but its very likely that in order to summon lightning you need a storm of some sort as a base (whether natural or Kami derived) and Maeko had already dispersed the existing storm and we don't know how long it may take to brew a big enough new storm to get lightning where she needs it, and second given Maeko abilities to manipulate Air Kami she may have been able just counter or redirect the lightening herself.

This story actually causes some story headaches as we know that the Crane are already aware that the Mantis are raiding them per "Her Father's Daughter" and "A Difference of Lanterns" but Kudoka makes reference the alliance with the Crab which doesn't exist until after "Beneath, Below, Beyond" which is after those two stories so there should be little surprise that the Mantis are raiding them.

As to how this potentially plays into the Mantis grand plan. This is about strengthening our allies the Crab and giving them an excuse to exert pressure on the Crane. After all they now have an argument, we are in need of food and supplies for our troops on the wall, something the Crane seem unable to provide, perhaps it would be best if we took over management of a portion of their lands, perhaps lands that were seized from our Yasuki brethren when they were forced from the Crane and joined the Crab, that we may better manage and defend them from the Mantis, a role the Crane seem unable to fulfill. I'm sure the Lion would be supportive of such a motion to weaken their traditional rivals and potentially open a second front that the Crane must divert resources towards and away from Toshi Ranbo. The Scorpion would also I'm sure be in favour of weakening their chief rivals at court, and potentially building relations with their equally important neighbour to the South. The Emperor faced with three clans in support, likely two (Crane and their Unicorn allies) opposed and two who would likely be neutral on the matter (barring any snap decisions by Yokuni or the Elemental Masters to get involved) would have to assess the political value in declining the request and could very easily come down on the side that its more trouble than its worth to oppose the petition. And once the Crab have their foothold in Crane lands it was amazing how quickly the Mantis raiding on those coasts ended, and yet still the lands that the Crane are controlling continue to be raided, why perhaps the Crane are not as worthy of the lands they claim as it was believed. Its war by Proxy and the Mantis are offering themselves as the helpful tool for the Crab to undermine a rival which means sometimes you need the world to know who is actually causing the mayhem so that you can use the notoriety for other purposes.

The Lady Takako that was mentioned....

Lady Takako makes a good point on her card there.

Also, Gunichi, don't think I didn't catch that libelous vandalism regarding the Imperial Chancellor earlier, you rapscallion!

1 hour ago, Manchu said:

Lady Takako makes a good point on her card there.

Also, Gunichi, don't think I didn't catch that libelous vandalism regarding the Imperial Chancellor earlier, you rapscallion!

But how can it be libel when its true?

Such impertinence !

On 6/27/2018 at 2:56 AM, Shiba Gunichi said:

Of note to my Phoenix-loyal self- no elemental imbalance appears present in this tale, with its dueling shugenja pulling off just about every trick they try.

Of course, that probably just indicates the kami are specifically mad at us

The thing about the elemental imbalance is that it appears to be localized. For some reason, this started in Phoenix lands...so it could be that it's something that happened on our turf, or it has to do with the concentration of shugenja in our area and the increased sensitivity to imbalance. There is signs mentioned in the fiction that this is starting to be noticed by other clans as well, and that the area it's affecting is growing. However not all areas appear to be affected. Which means there's no reason to believe that way out at sea off the coast of Crane lands is going to be affected at all yet.

On 6/28/2018 at 12:24 PM, Schmoozies said:

This story actually causes some story headaches as we know that the Crane are already aware that the Mantis are raiding them per "Her Father's Daughter" and "A Difference of Lanterns" but Kudoka makes reference the alliance with the Crab which doesn't exist until after "Beneath, Below, Beyond" which is after those two stories so there should be little surprise that the Mantis are raiding them.

We can conclude that Mantis are doing more traditional piracy in addition to Kudaka's disguised as a storm operation.

I dunno. The tsunami hit the Crane lands, not Phoenix. I'm not sure how accurate the suspicions are that the kami have been growing more and more dissatisfied/imbalanced, though. I don't really put a lot of stock in the idea that the Emperor has lost favor, I feel like that's too obvious. It sounds more like an excuse for powermongers to rally their supporters. This seems to me something more long-reaching, conspiracy style. Either Fu Leng or some other nebulous enemy tainting the land somehow.

Then again, nobody really knows right now I guess, so it's all pointless speculation. It is suspicious that everything seemed to work just fine for the shugenja in this story, though. And apparently the Mantis have been using their shugenja with no significant problems. Maybe it's something related to the ground itself? But on that level, shugenja are practitioners all over Rokugan, and it seems like only on large-scale offerings that we see disasters like the Phoenix. Either they're mad at us, or writers aren't bringing in information from separate plot arcs. Maybe the author for Breath of the Kami didn't know there was an elemental imbalance, or didn't think to make it relevant. Makes it hard to gauge whether it's a data point or just negligence, unfortunately. My money's on some sort of conspiracy that's bearing effect now, though.

32 minutes ago, AradonTemplar said:

Maybe the author for Breath of the Kami didn't know there was an elemental imbalance, or didn't think to make it relevant. Makes it hard to gauge whether it's a data point or just negligence, unfortunately. My money's on some sort of conspiracy that's bearing effect now, though.

It's not negligence. The writers and their work are overseen by Katrina, the Story Lead, who reviews and edits everything; there are several others involved in the writing/editing/publishing process who also ensure continuity (among other things). Now, I'm not saying anything about this situation particularly i.e. the kami being or not being "imbalanced", nor am I saying that small inconsistencies won't sneak through despite everyone's best efforts. But major plot points are scrutinized pretty carefully!

2 hours ago, AradonTemplar said:

I dunno. The tsunami hit the Crane lands, not Phoenix.

1 hour ago, Shiba Gunichi said:

But it was the result of Phoenix actions.

2 hours ago, DGLaderoute said:

It's not negligence. The writers and their work are overseen by Katrina, the Story Lead, who reviews and edits everything; there are several others involved in the writing/editing/publishing process who also ensure continuity (among other things). Now, I'm not saying anything about this situation particularly i.e. the kami being or not being "imbalanced", nor am I saying that small inconsistencies won't sneak through despite everyone's best efforts. But major plot points are scrutinized pretty carefully!

Thanks for weighing in. I apologize for the choice of words and didn't mean to imply incompetence at all. I meant more, neglected to bring it into the story because it's an irrelevant and/or unnecessary complication to that particular story. But it's good to know there's organization making sure everything's cohering on a high level like that too. Worldbuilding's complicated enough when it's just one person's ideas, and spreading that across several teams of writers seems rather tricky.

13 minutes ago, AradonTemplar said:

Sure, but it's odd that the wrath would impact people not responsible. Unless the kami are blind to allegiances and factions. I don't know my lore that well there.

1 hour ago, AradonTemplar said:

Thanks for weighing in. I apologize for the choice of words and didn't mean to imply incompetence at all. I meant more, neglected to bring it into the story because it's an irrelevant and/or unnecessary complication to that particular story. But it's good to know there's organization making sure everything's cohering on a high level like that too. Worldbuilding's complicated enough when it's just one person's ideas, and spreading that across several teams of writers seems rather tricky.

There's some truth to the "unnecessary complication to that particular story" angle. Especially as we build up a greater mass of narrative, I know I've had to make some decisions about what can and cannot be fit into a particular fiction -- our wordcounts are pretty tight (just 3000 words, with a little wiggle room if it's a web fiction instead of being printed with a pack), which doesn't leave a lot of extra space for things that don't contribute to the characters and conflict that are the focus of that specific piece. And yet, at the same time, it feels weird if we don't acknowledge the presence of ongoing problems. So it winds up being a very delicate balancing act, that gets a lot of tweaking along the way.