Please comment and critique . I would like to make these as favorable to the playerbase as possible. If you feel any of these should have gotten different bonuses or if my description is too lacking, I am happy to change the details. Feedback on this will also obviously be taken into account when I work on the future clans. Also, if you have created a vassal family for the crab of your own that you would like to add to this project, I would be happy to add it to the list.
The purpose of this project is to add additional lore-friendly families to every Great Clan. These are all vassal families that serve the main families of the Great Clans. The family these families serve is includes as often within Rokugan, they are referred to by their lord's family name followed by their own name, for example "Endo Ujimasa" would be called "Hiruma no Endo Ujimasa", sometimes even just calling him "Hiruma Ujimasa". However, if you want to play in a Rokugan that has a bit more diversity then you may drop the first part and simply refer to such a character as "Endo Ujimasa" under all circumstances.
The distinction here between "branch family" and "servant family" is not an official designation, but indicates whether the family came from outside the family they serve (usually entirely outside the clan, and often from ronin or peasant backgrounds) and were adopted by the family as permanent servants, which I have referred to as "Servant Family" or where a family designated some of its own members to focus on specializing in a certain task, which I have called "Branch Family". While these have never been used as terms within Rokugan canon, there is every indication that those from Branch Families get treated better than those from Servant Families.
Mechanically all of these families are a bit worse than the 4 to 5 you will find in the main RPG book. This is because these families are canonically of lower status within the clan. In fact, these characters should start off with 5 less status than regular member of their clan in addition to the lower glory and usually lower wealth found here. If GMs find that these few points of honor, glory and wealth are too great of a detriment for players to consider even playing these families, then they are encouraged to bump the glory here by 5 points, the wealth by an extra koku and not implementing the status loss for being from a branch family. The ultimate goal here is to increase the options for both PCs and NPCs-- obviously a balance between realism and enjoyment should be struck.
The Chukan Family
Asako Branch Family
Ring Increases:
+1 Air or +1 Earth
Skill Increases:
+1 Composition, +1 Sentiment
Glory:
39
Starting Wealth:
5 Koku
The Chukan family dates back to the early days of the empire. As early as the second century, the Phoenix Clan libraries were becoming quite disorganized and were in dire need of an improved filing system. Asako Chukan was put in charge of the task with a few assistants. He reached out to the Otomo, Miya, Ikoma and Doji for assistance and ultimately created a system that has since been applied to all libraries, both in the Phoenix lands and beyond. To this day it is common to see Chukan within the libraries in Phoenix lands—they also continue to have a close relationship with the lesser members of the Imperials and often join the Imperial bureaucracy.
The Iga Family
Shiba Servant Family
Ring Increases:
+1 Earth or +1 Water
Skill Increases:
+1 Fitness, +1 Tactics
Glory:
34
Starting Wealth:
3 Koku
The Iga are a family of ji-samurai who have served the Shiba since at least the 5
th
century. They are in many ways stock warriors, specialists with the spear and defensive combat, and often sent to deal with minor threats like bandits. However, the Iga family has spent most of its existence under a dark mark, for their most well-known member was the wayward son of an early daimyo of their family who became the bloodspeaker Jama Suru, right hand of the infamous Iuchiban. Because of this, members of this family have been known to recklessly pursue any rumors of bloodspeakers in hopes of making any impact to try to redeem their family. If you hunt bandits or bloodspeakers in Phoenix lands, you may come across an Iga.
The Koganshi Family
Shiba Servant Family
Ring Increases:
+1 Air or +1 Fire
Skill Increases:
+1 Aesthetics, +1 Smithing
Glory:
37
Starting Wealth:
5 Koku
The Koganshi are perhaps the finest smithing family in all of the Phoenix Clan. They are particularly known for their beautiful, radiant armor with dramatic flares that it makes the wearer appear to be on fire. Despite the wonderous beauty of their armor, it is nonetheless just as effective as armor made by anyone else, not a single aspect of defense is sacrificed for their beauty. If you wish for some of the most beautiful armor in the empire, seek out the Koganshi.
The Nani Family
Asako Servant Family
Ring Increases:
+1 Air or +1 Water
Skill Increases:
+1 Command, +1 Meditation
Glory:
36
Starting Wealth:
4 Koku
The Nani are one of the first families of the Phoenix, formed by a companion of Lady Asako by the name of Nani. He sought enlightenment with desire for personal glory in his heart and faltered, but with the help of Lady Asako his madness was healed. The family is publicly one of historians who travel the land to record important events. But in truth the family has a far more important role to play. Those of the Nani family are tasked to find Asako Henshin who have strayed down a false path on their way towards enlightenment and lead them back to the Path of Man. Just as the man they are named for was given a second chance, those of this family seek to provide the same to others. The Nani family can be found just about anywhere in the empire that monks may be found.
The Nasu Family
Shiba Servant Family
Ring Increases:
+1 Air or +1 Water
Skill Increases:
+1 Courtesy, +1 Seafaring
Glory:
33
Starting Wealth:
5 Koku
The Nasu were originally formed as a new Imperial Family during the period that an alliance known as the Gozoku, made of the Phoenix, Scorpion and Crane, attempted to seize control of Rokugan with a puppet Emperor. The Nasu were formed to oversee the Imperial Bureaucracy and turn it to the favor of the Gozoku clans and they outranked the other Imperials, forcing the others to bow to their whims and manipulation during their brief period. However, the alliance was dissolved before long and the Nasu family was removed from power. Instead they became a family of the Phoenix and though still charming and manipulative, their name is nonetheless poisoned in the minds of many. Over the centuries they have shifted their focus from the courts to that of shipcraft and seafaring. This may be because the Mantis, Tortoise and foreign traders do not hold their past against them. If you find yourself at ports in the empire, you may come upon the Nasu family.
The Sesai Family
Shiba Branch Family
Ring Increases:
+1 Air or +1 Water
Skill Increases:
+1 Courtesy, +1 Skulduggery
Glory:
32
Starting Wealth:
4 Koku
The Sesai was formed by Shiba Sesai who found that those the Shiba were charged to defend always had secret plots against them by those who were jealous of their power. It was not enough to react to such threats, but he felt that the threats must be proactively dealt with. The Sesai are not spoken of openly for they are a family of Shinobi who use means to eliminate their enemies most Phoenix would disavow. They have more in common with the Shosuro than most other Phoenix.
The Shingon Family
Isawa Servant Family
Ring Increases:
+1 Earth or +1 Fire
Skill Increases:
+1 Culture, +1 Theology
Glory:
37
Starting Wealth:
5 Koku
The Shingon are a family charged with tracking, cataloging and protecting, powerful and dangerous artifacts called nemuranai whose elemental spirits have been awakened. The travel the land following up on rumors of such artifacts being created or used. In addition, the family studies the uses and effects of jade, obsidian, crystal and other substances that demonstrate mystical properties with the assumed goal of perfecting their use against the forces of darkness. The Shingon go wherever their research may lead them, so they can be found anywhere in the empire. However, recently they have taken a particularly keen interest in the Unicorn’s meishodo magic.
The Sodona Family
Shiba Branch Family
Ring Increases:
+1 Earth or +1 Water
Skill Increases:
+1 Command, +1 Sentiment
Glory:
38
Starting Wealth:
5 Koku
The Sodona were formed in response to the Lion Clan killing a Phoenix Clan Champion during the time of chaos that erupted with the return of the Kirin clan to Rokugan. Instead of starting a war due to this incident, the Phoenix chose the path of peace. However, the Sodona family was created in order to protect important members of the Shiba family to prevent a repeat of this incident. However, such direct threats rarely manifest and over time the Sodona family has become one that hunts down far more shadowy threats to the safety of the Phoenix. They are one of the greatest threats in the Empire to those conspiracies that threaten the safety and unity of Rokugan. Because of their expertise, they are found not only hunting down such threats in Phoenix lands, but across the empire—and members of this family are also found among the Emerald Magistrates.