The Crab are the defenders of the Empire, manning the Kaiu Kabe (Kaiu Wall, or Great Carpenter Wall) against the demons and monsters of the Shadowlands. They see themselves as pragmatic and stalwart, but others may perceive them as artless, crude, stubborn, and even barbaric. They are also often held in suspicion for their proximity to the corruption of the Shadowlands, though their own magistrates are vigilant in rooting it out.
NB: The Toritaka family is still its own Minor Clan, the Falcon.
The leading family of the Crab produces its archetypal warriors, masterful defenders with great brute strength.
The Hiruma family have no lands and no mon, having lost Kyuden Hiruma centuries ago to the assault of an Oni Lord. The family remains, and produces grim, dutiful scouts who hate the monsters of the Shadowlands.
The founder of the Kaiu was the architect of the Great Carpenter Wall, and the family carries on the traditions of siegecraft, engineering, and construction, maintaining the Wall against the Shadowlands.
The Kuni have a sinister reputation. They train the Crab shugenja, but over the centuries, many prominent examples have cropped up of Kuni shugenja being seduced by the Shadowlands, often giving their names to oni. Their knowledge of the Shadowlands is an invaluable weapon, however.
The Yasuki were originally a Crane family, but joined the Crab in the third century of the Empire, causing one of its first great internal wars. They are slight and devious in comparison to other Crab, and are a clan of courtiers and merchants. Other Clans see them as inappropriately interested in commerce—this perceived dishonorable avarice is what led them to break with their Doji masters—but the Crab appreciate their practicality and the supplies they provide.
This school focuses on enduring attacks until the opportunity comes up to crush the enemy. It focuses on heavy weapons, heavy armor, and endurance.
Their preferred weapons are the tetsubo, dai tsuchi, ono (at STR 4+), masakari, katana and wakizashi, no-dachi, and naginata.
You may ignore TN penalties for heavy armor for all skills except Stealth. When using a heavy weapon, you gain +1k0 to damage rolls.
You gain Reduction equal to your Earth Ring.
You may make attacks as a Simple Action instead of a Complex Action when using heavy weapons or Samurai keyword weapons.
Once per encounter, when wielding a heavy weapon, when you are about to make an attack, you may elect to lower your target's Reduction by 4. If the attack hits, the target is Dazed (and the TN to recover starts at equal to your damage roll).
You may spend a Void Point during the Reactions Stage, and on your next Turn, you may take Actions as if you were at the Healthy Wound Rank, and ignore the Dazed, Fatigued, and Stunned Conditions. The benefit lasts until the next Reactions Stage.
The Hiruma bushi have the unenviable task of acting as scouts and warriors inside the Shadowlands themselves, and they are taught to deal death with speed and stealth, with a great focus on survival and avoidance.
Their preferred weapons are the katana and wakizashi, the bow, and sometimes the naginata.
While in the Attack Stance, you gain +1k0 to the total of all attack rolls. You can make all food, water, and jade rations last twice as long for a number of people equal to your Hunting Skill Rank.
While in the Attack Stance, you add +5 to your Armor TN every time you hit with a melee weapon. This stacks a number of times equal to your School Rank, and lasts until the end of the combat.
Once per Round, when an opponent targets you with an attack, you may activate this Technique: you gain a bonus of 2× School Rank to your Armor TN for that attack, stacking with other bonuses.
You may make attacks as a Simple Action instead of a Complex Action when using Samurai keyword weapons.
If you deliver more Wounds than necessary to kill your opponent, you may apply the excess Wounds to the next target you hit in that combat. This Technique does not activate two attacks in a row.
The Kuni Shugenja hae a sinister reputation as madmen who delve into forbidden secrets of the Shadowlands, but they know that their sacrifices are necessary for the protection and service of their Clan and the Empire.
The Yasuki balance between courtier and merchant, and are extremely successful at commerce. The merchant's trade is beneath samurai, so walk a tightrope above dishonorable conduct—and many other samurai, particularly those who find themselves in debt to the Yasuki, say they have fallen into it.
The school's focus is finding the one thing that your opponent must have, and providing it to them. In theory, this is done to gain gratitude and favor, but in practice, it is often used to obtain profit or to put someone in your debt.
You gain a Free Raise when using the Commerce Skill, and do not lose Honor or Glory for using it, even in public. When speaking with someone, you can make a Contested Roll of your Commerce/PER vs. their Etiquette/AWA to discern some material object or service they need or desire.
A number of times per session equal to your School Rank, you may re-roll a failed Intimidation or Sincerity Skill Roll. You must keep the results of the second roll.
You may roll Commerce/AWA (TN 20) to locate a rare or useful item for someone else, and call Raises to locate higher-quality or rarer items. This is at the GM's discretion, and using it to benefit other PCs is discouraged; it is intended to curry favor for the advantage of the Yasuki and Crab.
Anyone making a Social Skill Roll to lie to you or deceive you must increase the TN by 5× your School Rank.
If you know of a material item someone needs, and arrange for them to get it, you gain +5k0 to any Contested Social Rolls against that person for 24 hours.
Kobo Ichi-Kai's dojo lies in Clear Water Village, and teaches unarmed combat. Even other Crab consider it unusual. Their lack of reliance on weapons makes the Pragmatists good yojimbo, and the best among them can even kill Shadowlands monsters—indeed, the origin of Kobo Ichi-Kai lies in adapting Jiujutsu for use against the creatures of the Shadowlands.
You get +1k0 to any roll to resist Intimidation or Fear. You get +1k0 to attack and damage rolls when fighting unarmed or with improvised weapons, but you must always keep the highest dice on any attack or damage roll that benefits from this Technique.
When fighting unarmed or with an improvised weapon, you can make the Extra Attack Maneuver for 3 Raises instead of 5.
You may make attacks as a Simple Action instead of a Complex Action when fighting unarmed, with an improvised weapon, or wielding a Samurai keyword weapon.
A number of times per skirmish equal to your Void, immediately after you are attacked with a melee weapon (after damage is rolled if the attack hit), you can take a Free Action to make a Contested Roll of your Jiujutsu/AGI against the attacker's Weapon Skill/AGI. If you win, you immediately strike the opponent with their own weapon (using your own STR). You can make Raises on the Contested Roll to perform the Increased Damage Maneuver. This Technique cannot be used in an Iaijutsu Duel.
At the start of your Turn you can spend a Void Point to allow you to make an attack as a Complex Action that ignores your Wound Penalties (including Down and Out) and any restrictions or penalties from Status effects or physical Disadvantages you are suffering. You get +3k1 to attack and damage rolls on this attack.
In the early 8th century, Shiro Hiruma fell to a Shadowlands army led by the Oni called the Maw. This led to the loss of the Hiruma Bushi School's dojo, and most of its practitioners died in the battle. The Unicorn Clan and the Shinjo family offered taid, helping the Hiruma establish a new school focusing on stealthy warfare: this became the Hiruma Scout School.
You can add your Stealth Skill Rank to your Initiative Roll total (unless caught by surprise or unaware). You can make all food, water, and jade rations last twice as long for a number of people equal to your Hunting Skill Rank. In the Shadowlands, you get +1k0 to Stealth rolls and always know the direction and rough distance to the Empire.
You can make Free and Simple Move actions while in the Full Defense stance. You can run for a number of hours equal to STA + School Rank, after which you are Exhausted until you rest for an hour.
As long as you do not move and have some cover, concealment, or camouflage (GM's discretion), you can spend a Void Point to add your School Rank in kept dice to Stealth rolls, until you move or make noise.
You may make attacks as a Simple Action instead of a Complex Action when using bows, knives, or Samurai keyword weapons, or when attacking Shadowland creatures or known Tainted nonhumans with any weapon.
If you are attacking a surprised of unaware foe, your Raises are not limited by your VOID, and you can ignore 10 Reduction.
The Kaiu engineers are masters of construction, siegecrafting, and making arms and armor. Their skills are essential for the defense of the Empire.
You get +1k0 when making any School Skill Roll. When you spend a Void Point to enhance a School Skill Roll, you get +2k2 instead of +1k1. These effects are not cumulative.
When constructing any temple-sized or larger structure, you may make an Engineering Skill Roll (TN 25) to add additional Wounds to it equal to your School Rank ×100. When commanding a siege engine, you can re-roll any damage dice that roll below your School Rank. (See the Siege rules.)
When crafting any set of armor, you can double the crafting time and cost to add your School Rank to the armor's Reduction, and half your School Rank (rounded up) to the Armor TN bonus.
When you roll on the Mass Battle Chart, you can modify your result up or down by half your School Rank. When fighting with a katana, dai tsuchi, or war fan, you can make melee attacks as a Simple Action rather than a Complex Action.
When crafting any weapon, you can grant it either +1k0 to attack rolls or +0k1 to damage. If it is a katana, you can expend all your Void Points (a minimum of one) to make the blade unbreakable (as the Sacred Weapon: Kaiu Blade Advantage), but are rendered unable to recover Void Points for one week.
The Kuni Witch-Hunters are a small group of mystical warriors who hunt maho-tsukai and Shadowlands corruption within the Empire. They travel where their calling takes them, placing borders and jurisdictions second to their sacred duty. Other samurai generally regard them as superstitious brutes, but the Crab and commoners regard them with fear and respect.
As a Complex Action, you can hold a piece of jade and stare at a person to try to detect the Taint in them. You must make a Contested Roll of your Investigation (Interrogation)/AWA against their Sincerity (Deceit)/WIL. You get +1k0 for every full Rank of Taint the target has. If you succeed and the target has at least 1 Rank of Taint, you sense the Taint and its approximate strength. If you fail or the target is not Tainted, you get no information.
You get +1k1 to resist the Shadowlands Taint, and to attacks against Shadowlands creatures or enemies you know are Tainted.
As a Free Action, you can make a Lore: Shadowlands/INT Roll (TN 20) to recall a one strength or weakness (your choice which, but the GM chooses the information) of a Shadowlands creature you encounter. You learn an additional piece of information per Raise made on this roll.
You can make melee attacks as a Simple Action against Shadowlands creatures or enemies you know are Tainted.
You get +3k0 to the rolls for your To See the Darkness and To Ride the Darkness Techniques. You learn one Kiho (not counted against your usual limit).
You get +4k1 to attack and damage rolls against Shadowlands creatures and enemies you know are Tainted. This stacks with To See the Darkness (for a total of +5k2 to attacks and +4k1 to damage).
The Defenders are perfect guardians of the Kaiu Wall, who will let the world end before they let an attacker get past.
Requirements:
Creatures with the Shadowlands Taint may not reroll 10s on attack or damage rolls against you.
You gain Reduction 8, stacking with other Techniques or armor.
Once per round, you may immediately negate one condition on yourself (other than Mounted or Grappled).
Crab Berserkers fight without limits, until they or their enemy is dead. Their vicious rage is said to match that of the Shadowlands creatures that they fight. Their powers manifest after time spent manning the Kaiu Wall—some enter a maniacal fury, while others enter the infamous "dead eye"-trance.
The Unbreakable Blade Dojo trains a dueling tradition that emphasizes the second strike, rather than the first, focusing on lethal duels.
The Crab Clan have some sensei who specialize in knife-fighting—mostly Yasuki sailors. Their signature style involves using the empty hand to grab and control the opponent.
The Crab have a long history with sumai, and have not forgotten its origins in combat. Promising students are taught at the Grip of Earth Dojo. Those who earn respect and fame may be sent to the Stone Tower Dojo in the Imperial Capital.
The Hiruma appreciate the masakari for its smaller size and its ability to deal devastating blows to monsters. The Slayers hunt down Shadowlands monsters, and may number among the Hiruma "dead eyes" berserkers.
Hiruma Snipers are trained to calmly target the weak spots of terrifying monsters.
The Hiruma have often served as bodyguards for the Crab Champion and key daimyo of the clan. They excel at noticing threats and reacting quickly.
The Crab are masters of siege and fortification, and the Kaiu Siegemasters are the best at it.
The Kuni have researched the powers of crystal—while it does not protect from Taint as jade does, the fact that it can harm Shadowlands creatures has convinced some of the Kuni it has value.
Kuni shugenja dedicate themselves to fighting the Shadowlands. The Oni slayers specialize on dealing with oni, monsters too strong to fight directly, using magical wards to trap them so they may be dealt with.
The Severed Hand is the term for Crab warriors forced to serve in the courts because of injuries that that render them incapable of military service.
Hida Tsuru, younger brother of Hida Kisada, created a legion of cavalry focused on speed and power.
The Yasuki cultivate the art of intimidation, and ruthlessly employ it in their business dealings. Their enforcers must be able to make good on these threats, whether implied or explicit.
Yasuki moneylenders are not well-regarded, but their practice is both useful and profitable.
The Yasuki serve as quartermasters of the Crab armies, and even train the Taskmasters, who specialize in supervising and commanding ashigaru.