Posted a quick rerecruitment. Hopefully everything is going well for Hikonaga.
In the grand scheme of things, everything is going marvelously. In the short-sighted, self-centered view, things are kinda sucky. My seasonal allergies are on enough of a rampage that WITH antihistamines AND decongestants, my sinuses are full of mucous and I'm having trouble seeing, breathing, or thinking.
But since I know it is all allergies, I know full well that this shall pass and I'm not going to suddenly be diagnosed with a huge tumor in my nose doing all of this to me.
It's not a tumma.
Sorry folks. Last couple of days went sideways. I will have a post up around 8 hours from now.
Hey guys, making this character is taking a little longer than I hoped. I think the mechanical stuff is done. Do we get points from taking the Ronin disadvantage or not?
You are still disadvantaged by it, it is just a mandatory one. So, yes, you still get poi ts for ronin.
Ok, I'm all finished now.
I like him, I will be getting him in as quickly as possible.
Got to say Nakadai, I'm liking the character. He will fit right in.
Hello! I'm seeing that 4th edition is quite a bit different than the version I played nearly 20 years ago. I'm having a bit of a hard time puzzling out character creation.
I'm hoping I might be able to get some help building a character around my concept.
Here are my answers to the 20 questions, which might help guide what directions I should take the character, what skills to buy, if I should take a Ronin path or go freeform, etc.
True Ronin
WHAT FAMILY DOES YOUR CHARACTER BELONG TO?
None
IS YOUR CHARACTER A BUSHI, A SHUGENJA, OR A COURTIER?
Bushi
HOW WOULD OTHERS DESCRIBE YOUR CHARACTER’S APPEARANCE?
Cheerful, but focused. A closely cropped haircut. He takes himself very seriously even when others might not.
WHAT IS YOUR CHARACTER’S PRIMARY MOTIVATION?
Although it's clearly impossible, he wants the honor of a samurai. Even if he can't be revered in society as a samurai, if he makes a difference in someone's life then THEY will think of him highly.
WHO IS THE PERSON YOUR CHARACTER TRUSTS MOST IN THE WORLD?
His older brother Kuga. Kuga has recently turned to bandrity to support himself and his wife, a fact which dismays Hojo.
WHAT IS YOUR CHARACTER’S GREATEST STRENGTH AND WEAKNESS?
Hojo's greatest strength is his desire to help others. Sacrifice of what's right for him in the place of what's right for someone else is often his greatest weakness as well as he frequently makes choices that put him into danger.
WHAT DOES YOUR CHARACTER THINK OF BUSHIDO?
Hojo reveres Bushido and tries to live up to the code as closely as possible. Jin is the trait he most closely tries to embody.
WHAT IS YOUR CHARACTER’S OPINION OF HIS CLAN?
He has nothing but contempt for Clan Ronin, those who had what he dreams of and cast it away. He is far more tolerant of True Ronin like himself, those who find themselves on the outside as mere accident of birth.
IS YOUR CHARACTER MARRIED?
He is not, though he is sweet on Jimyoin Izuko, a young lady from his village.
DOES YOUR CHARACTER HAVE ANY PREJUDICES?
He despises Clan Ronin, for the reasons stated above. They could have been great, failed and then didn't even have the decency to die afterwards.
TO WHOM DOES YOUR CHARACTER OWE THE MOST
LOYALTY?
He is loyal to the people who need his help. He'll do anything to protect anyone weaker than he.
WHAT ARE YOUR CHARACTER’S FAVORITE AND LEAST
FAVORITE THINGS?
He has a corn husk doll given to him by a Samurai that passed through the village when he was a child. It's barely scraps now, but he carries it wherever he goes. He hates water chestnuts, though he misses the days when he had the luxury of being picky about what food to eat. Given the chance, he'd eat a thousand water chestnuts.
DOES YOUR CHARACTER HAVE ANY RECURRING
MANNERISMS?
Hojo has a lot of nervous energy, constantly playing with his hands or worrying a river stone he keeps in his pocket.
WHAT ABOUT YOUR CHARACTER’S EMOTIONS?
He is a generally positive person, even in the face of adversity. He tries to slip into his "game face" when he's doing "samurai things" but it's hard to take him seriously. This often infuriates him and his responses often fuel the ridicule.
HOW WOULD YOUR CHARACTER HANDLE A
SUBORDINATE’S IMPROPER BEHAVIOR?
Bushido is everything to Hojo, and he'd attempt to correct someone who acts outside of the code.
HOW WOULD YOUR CHARACTER’S PARENTS DESCRIBE
HIM?
Kind, but foolish. They'd never EVER admit it, but they'd prefer him to go into bandrity where he could live a comfortable (if precarious) life as opposed to his mad goals to help others.
WHAT IS YOUR CHARACTER’S HIGHEST AMBITION?
If you asked him directly, he'd say "To help others and relieve suffering in this world" but if you were to look into his mind the answer would be "to be a Samurai." It is a sad thing to have an impossible ambition.
HOW RELIGIOUS IS YOUR CHARACTER?
He pays lip-service to religion, but never truly believed.
HOW WILL YOUR CHARACTER DIE?
Protecting someone else. He would trade his life for just a few moments of someone else's.
Mechanically, I don't have strong feelings. He can fill a role that is lacking. Is this campaign mostly social, mostly combat? Do we need an agile sword fighter? A talented archer? A social wizard who can smooth over problems?
But yeah, any help guiding my character would be a plus!
Social will still be a thing, but this is not a winter court game. By and large playing whatever you want is the important part in this. If you give me an idea what you want to build, I can help out.
My recent experience is in PBTA games, where there is mechanically no difference between a ranged fighter and a melee fighter. In D&D it’s very hard to make a predominately ranged character work.
Does an archer work well in L5R 4e? That could be fun, provided that it’s a viable build. Failing that, a deft swordsman would work too. I’m also open to suggestions for other builds.
Archer is very viable in L5R. You can make it work by just building a normal samurai and focus on Kaijutsu.
Ok, but I think I need more guidance that that. Reflexes should be my best stat, I presume but should I dump all my xp there or spread it out and raise a few attributes to 3? How much should I save for skills? How broad should my skills be?
For a skill to be absolutely killer you need the attribute and the skill high. If you know you're going to use a specific weapon then you should purchase an emphasis in that weapon. That'll all cost a big piece of your point total but since you can't get a skill past 4 anyway you'll still have a couple of points to play with. You'll still be only passable at other skills which may or may not fit your concept.
Early characters are not experts. That's not how the game was envisioned, but it is how the game plays.
You can afford to wait to purchase an emphasis. You really can.
The attributes tied to what you want to be better at out of the gate should be at least a 3. 4 is really expensive, but as much use as an archer gets out of Reflexes it COULD be an acceptable cost.
I recommend not buying many 1 rank skills. They are cheap enough to get later, and you want to have a chance to succeed at the things you start out knowing how to do.
4K2 is really not much worse than 5K2. As a rule, 5K3 is much better than 4K2.
That’s very helpful, thank you
Ok, I hope I did this right!
2 Earth
Stamina 2
Willpower 2
3 Air
Reflexes 4
Awareness 3
2 Water
Strength 2
Perception 3
2 Fire
Agility 3
Intelligence 2
2 Void
Honor 4.5
Infamy 0.0
Status 0.0
Taint 0.0
Insight 126
Rank 1
Experience 0
4k1 Iajitsu
Athletics: 2k1
Defense: 4k3 (Mastery: Keep defense/reflex roll for subsequent rounds of Full Defense Stance)
Hunting: 3k1
Kenjutsu: 3k1
Kyujitsu: 4k4 (Mastery: Stringing a bow is a simple action)
Sincerity: 3k3
Lore (Bushido) 2k2
Benefit: +1 Reflexes
Technique: The Gaze of Sun Tao – Students of Sun Tao understand the relationship between honor and skill. You may add your Honor Rank to the total of all Iaijutsu Skill Rolls.
Idealistic: 2
Ronin: 3
Can't Lie: 2
Gullible: 4
Initiative 5K4
4K4 Yumi for (varies, see arrows)
Arrows:
Armor
Health/Wounds: 0
Healthy (+0) 10
Nicked (+3) 14
Grazed (+5) 18
Hurt (+10) 22
Injured (+15) 26
Crippled (+20) 30
Down (+40) 34
Out (--) 38
I'm not sure how to buy gear for my guy, so some things are left blank.
Is he ok? Will he be outclassed? Hikonaga is clocking 6k3 for his bow.
Nakadai, since we're both "Sun Tao" ronin, maybe we could start out traveling together?
Your skills are obviously wrong.
As you didn't list the skill ranks, I can't tell you what they should be, but . . ..
Skill rolls are (Skill Ranks + Attribute Ranks + anything special) K (Attribute Ranks)
So, if your Kyujutsu is 4 ranks of skill, the skill roll is 8K4, which is amazing for a beginning character.
Your school identifies your starting gear. My book is buried, or I would look up what the Sun Tao ronin start with.
Hikonaga is as capable as he is because I bought an outrageously expensive advantage that adds +1K0 to all school skills. His school technique also adds +1K0 when in an Attack stance.
Edit: Your skill "keep" values total 16, which is the amount of insight your skills should be providing you, so, assuming those are skill ranks, your skills should be more:
1 Iajutsu 5K4+4
1 Athletics 3K2
3 Defense 7K4
1 Hunting 4K3
1 Kenjutsu 4K3
4 Kyujutsu 8K4
3 Sincerity 6K3
2 Lore (Bushido) 4K2
I'm a Sun Tao ronin so I know you start with
Light Armor, Sturdy Clothing, Daisho, One weapon of your choice, Traveling Pack, 1 koku
And, generally, when you pick a bow for an "any weapon" choice, you get arrows to go with it. 10 or 20. I know mine was specified by the school.
Ok, let me try this again. I see I also misread how XP and Ronin school works so I was clocking in at a much too high XP. Is this correct now?
Rings and Attributes
Earth: 2
Stamina: 2
Willpower: 2
Air:3
Reflexes: 4
Awareness: 3
Water: 2
Strength: 2
Perception: 2
Fire: 2
Agility: 3
Intelligence: 2
Void: 2
Honor: 4.5
Status: 0
Infamy: 0
Taint: 0
Insight 125
Rank 1
Experience 0
Skills
1 Hunting: 3k1
2 Kenjutsu: 5k3
4 Kyujutsu: 8k4 (String Bow as simple action)
3 Defense: 7k3 (Keep defense/Reflex roll for subsequent rounds in full defense action)
3 Sincerity: 6k3
1 Iaijutsu: 5k4
1 Athletics: 3k2
Sun Tao
Benefit: +1 Reflexes
Technique: The Gaze of Sun Tao – Students of Sun Tao understand the relationship between honor and skill. You may add your Honor Rank to the total of all Iaijutsu Skill Rolls.
Disadvantages
Can't Lie: Can't lie. Must pass a TN 20 Will roll to not correct other liars (if I know)
Gullible: Opponents attempting to use Sincerity (Deceit) against you gain a bonus of +1k1 to the total of their rolls.
Idealistic: Whenever I lose Honor, the loss is increased by 1 point.
Combat
Initiative 5K4
5k3 Katana for 3k2
5k3 Wakizashi for 4k2
8K4 Yumi for (varies, see arrows)
Arrows:
Willow Leaf (7): 5k2
Humming Bulb (1): 3k1
Rope Cutter (2): 4k1
Armor
Light Armor: +5 TN, Reduction 3
Health/Wounds: 0
Healthy (+0) 10
Nicked (+3) 14
Grazed (+5) 18
Hurt (+10) 22
Injured (+15) 26
Crippled (+20) 30
Down (+40) 34
Out (--) 38
Gear
Light Armor, Sturdy Clothing, Daisho, Yumi, 7 Willow Leaf arrows, 1 Humming Bulb Arrow, 2 Rope Cutter arrows, Traveling Pack
hunting is 3K2
defense is 7k4
Thanks! Not sure how I got that turned around on this. Five years of exclusively playing PBTA games, I guess.
Storyteller, other than that, am I good? If so, I’ll copy it over to my profile today,
Nakadai, shall we be traveling companions?
Also, just so no one worries, Hojo isn’t Lawful Stupid. He just reveres honesty and has never really had to test the tenets in real life. I don’t know if L5R let’s you buy off disadvantages, but if so I expect he’ll find himself in situations where being honest and being good are at cross purposes.
"Ronin? Are you challenging this clan samurai's testimony and honor?"
DID YOU ORDER THE CODE RED”
I DON'T GIVE A DAMN WHAT YOU THINK YOU ARE ENTITLED TO!
YOU CAN'T HANDLE THE TRUTH.
Jojo is looking pretty good. Sorry for forgetting to tell the group I was going to be away for Pesach, but let's get this show on the road gather the party. To our two new players, I will slot you in as quickly as possible. Just bear with me... ok, that was terrible, I blame the day.
Hello everyone, I'm a new player, and please forgive me if my character sheets don't exactly work out. I've had the books for a while, but have never found anyone to play them (also looking at you exalted and cthulutech!).
I am going to give Hawksw0rd a couple of days to finish his character and then slot the three of you in by Wednesday.
Sorry everyone, but due to real life issues I don't feel I can properly contribute to this game. I'll have to drop out.
Sorry to hear that. Hope things settle down for you.
It happens. If things calm down, feel free to check back and join in the fun.
Will happily do. Thanks everyone!
Hello everyone, saw this game and messaged Havocprince to see if he'd be up for someone new joining. From what is see above, looks like someone else just joined as well.
I'd be interested to hear what the group needs. Unfortunately when I made the offer to join, I forgot I'd be travelling this week and away from my books and computer. For that reason I might have trouble making a character before I get back home next Wednesday.
Last time I played L5R was a few years back in 3rd Editiom. Loved the setting, so I'm looking forward to trying out 5th.
Sorry for the railroading Inoue, figured we needed to get momentum going or we might Peter out. I refuse to let this die before we even get in full swing.
I don't mind railroading. Especially in this case - I wasn't sure what the Spirit wanted.
Yeah, it worked better with Ryouk because it tied in a little to what he planned on doing already and his background with L5r lore. I was so hoping you would get a better roll than the 12 you managed.
Yeah, I'm starting to understand that it's better to get a few skills as max as possible, and defaulting for the rest.
Ok, back home and have my main book. My usual M.O. is see what roles are taken and what niche might be left open...
Hikonaga = Crab-born Bushi (Hiruma School)
Hojo Kosaku = Ronin Bushi (Sun Tao)
Inoue Souma = Ronin Shugenja (Kanosei Furudera Order)
Nakadai = Ronin Bushi (Sun Tao)
Ryuk = Ronin Self-Taught Fire Shugenja
Takishiro of the Osano-Wo = Monk
So, I count 3 Bushi, 2 Shugenja, and one monk. That means we have no Courtier yet, but I'll be honest and say that playing that kind of character is no my forte. Archer occurs to me, but that appears to be Hojo's specialty. The last time I played it was a Shugenja, so I could investigate that to bring the numbers to 3:3.
I'm rereading through the families and trying to get up to date on the changes between 3rd and 4th Ed. Any suggestions for what the group is presently lacking would be appreciated.
Going in for surgery tomorrow, be gone till Sunday.
Wow. Good luck!
Don't worry about the mythical party balance. Play what you think will be fun.
Sorry for being gone longer than expected. There were complications, but I should be ok now. I'm going to pick over my games and interact later to day. Thank you all for the support.
That's good to hear. Get better!
Alright folks, it looks like naga hasn't posted anywhere since the first of this month. Hoping he is ok and gets back to us, but I am going to push ahead with the game yet again. Will be updating gameplay tomorrow.
Sorry guys. Ive got a new shift at work thats 16 hours Wednesday 16 Thursday 8 friday and got kind of Shanghaid into 16 today too thats why I haven't been posting.
No worries Nakadai. I think we lost everyone else...
I’m still here. I didn’t realize paizo ate my reply a few weeks ago.