The New Winds

With six terrible words, the Kami Bayushi set his followers in the newly founded Scorpion Clan on a dark and dangerous path. Enemies loomed beyond Rokugan’s borders, but they also lurked within them. Bayushi swore to protect the Empire by any means necessary. Where the Code of Bushidō tied the Emperor’s Left and Right Hands—the courtiers of the Crane and the mighty legions of the Lion—the Emperor’s Underhand could still reach. To combat the liars, the thieves, and the traitors within the Great Clans, Bayushi’s followers would have to lie, steal, and cheat in turn. The weapons of the Scorpion became blackmail, poison, and sabotage. The Scorpion dirtied their hands so that others’ could remain pure.

Yet, in spite of—and perhaps because of—the clan’s fearsome reputation, there is none more loyal than a Scorpion. In a clan of deceivers and manipulators, trust is a hard-earned treasure to be cherished and guarded. Betrayal is punished with swift retribution, the souls of the treacherous forever bound into the horrific limbo of the place known as Traitor’s Grove. Such fierce loyalty is a small consolation, at least, given the dangerous but vital role the Scorpion have played in the Empire from the moment their Kami spoke his fateful words: “I will be your villain, Hantei.”

Bayushi’s successors are known for their insidious skill at scheming, but also the potential benefits of partnering with them—for without offering the proper incentives to their allies some of the time, they could never maintain their position as the great schemers of the Empire. People expect members of the Scorpion to be equal parts alluring and treacherous—and loyal only to the Emperor.

Scorpion Families
Bayushi: +1 Agility
The motto of the Scorpion Clan’s primary lineage, “I can swim,” comes from a cautionary tale about their treacherous nature. Charming, ruthless, deceitful, and vicious, the Bayushi appear as the villains they claim to be. They are the sinister side of power, using the arts of blackmail, poison, and seduction to control the enemies of the Empire, all while dancing a fine line to avoid falling to true villainy themselves. For the Bayushi, the means are justified by the ends: a stable and prosperous Empire.

Shosuro: +1 Awareness
When the Shosuro family is known to outsiders, it is for their acting talent and theatrical skills. Little does the Empire realize how fully the Shosuro embrace their roles; many of the finest Scorpion spies are Shosuro living as other people among the clans. While they are master entertainers, they are often asked to turn their skills in acrobatics, acting, and other arts to darker and bloodier ends for their clan.

Soshi: +1 Intelligence
The Soshi are often overlooked, and that is how they prefer things to be. They are most effective when unseen, offering up prayers in silence for the Scorpion. The Soshi live for subtlety: the gentle nudge, the whispered word that sets everything into motion. Sometimes this comes at a price, however, for their preference for acting at the perfect moment often makes them exceedingly cautious and prone to excessive planning and information gathering.

Yogo: +1 Willpower, must take Bad Omen: Yogo Curse disadvantage. This disadvantage does not give bonus XP.
The Yogo family is the most unfortunate family in the Empire: each scion of their line is cursed to betray the one they love the most. They try to ignore the curse by burying themselves in their work and devotion to duty above all. To try to lift this curse, they have relentlessly studied prayers of protection and especially wards, through which they have mastered many techniques to identify and fight evil magic. The Yogo are the most diligent and unappreciated servants of the Scorpion.

Scorpion Schools
Bayushi Deathdealer School [Bushi, Shinobi]
-Bayushi Bushi, Core Rulebook. Replace Rank 4 with Scorpion Weaponmaster, Strongholds of the Empire
The school of warriors Bayushi founded trains under the principle that it is always better to be underestimated. Its doors are open to any aspirant who can survive its rigors, but its secrets are concealed to those who are not cunning and inventive enough to uncover them. Its curriculum includes the bow, the sword, and subtler weapons still. The school also teaches iaijutsu— but students are always reminded that it is merely a tool of power like any other. Every tool has its proper place and proper uses, and the Bayushi Deathdealer school gives its students the widest arsenal available.

• Benefit: +1 Intelligence
• Skills: Courtier (Manipulation, Defense, Etiquette, Iaijutsu, Kenjutsu, Sincerity, any one Skill
• Honor:2.5
• Outfit: Light Armor, Sturdy Clothing, Daisho, any 1 weapon, Traveling Pack, 5 koku

Techniques

• Rank 1: TThe Way of the Scorpion
  You gain a bonus +1k1 to your Initiative Rolls. You also gain a bonus of +5 to your Armor TN against any opponent with lower Initiative.
• Rank 2: Pincers and Tail
  You may make the Feint Maneuver for one Raise instead of two.
• Rank 3: Strike at the Tail
  When you assume a Stance at the start of your Turn, you may choose a target within 30'. If you successfully hit him during your Turn, the target is Fatigued as if he had gone without rest for 24 hours. During the Reaction Stage, an affected opponent may attempt an Earth Ring roll against a TN of 25 to negate the effects of this Technique. If he fails, the effects of this Technique end during the next Reactions Stage (the second Reactions Stage after he was struck).
• Rank 4: I Am A Weapon
  When wielding any melee weapon, a number of times per skirmish equal to your school rank, you may as a Free Action use any other melee Weapon Skill you possess for attack rolls using your current weapon. For example, you could spend a Void Point to use Kenjutsu when wielding a tetsubo if you had no ranks in Heavy Weapons. You gain no benefits from any Mastery Abilities or Emphases when utilizing this Technique. The effect lasts a number of Rounds equal to your School Rank.
• Rank 5: The Pincers Hold, The Tail Strikes
  Once per encounter, you may spend a Void Point as a Complex Action to attack your opponent with a melee weapon. If the attack is successful, the target is Stunned. During the Reactions Stage, an affected opponent may attempt an Earth Ring roll against at TN equal to the amount of damage dealt to end the Stun effect. If he fails or does not attempt this roll, the Stun effect ends during the next Reactions Stage (the second Reaction Stage after he was struck).

Bayushi Manipulator School [Courtier]
-Bayushi Courtier, Core Rulebook
Through the adept use of deception, temptation, and espionage, Bayushi-trained courtiers are the masters of finding and exploiting the weaknesses of others. No method is too dishonorable as long as it is effective and untraceable. The Bayushi Manipulators are the shadow to the Doji Diplomats’ light, and they are justly feared by all. Yet, no court is complete without its Scorpion scoundrel. The Bayushi Manipulators accept their roles as villains in the play that is Rokugan, and in doing so, they help ensure that no true villains rise to threaten the Emperor.

• Benefit: +1 Awareness
• Skills: Calligraphy, Courtier (Gossip), Etiquette, Investigation, Sincerity (Deceit), Temptation, any one High skill
• Honor: 2.5
• Outfit: Extravagant Clothing, Wakizashi, any 1 weapon, Calligraphy Set, Traveling Pack, 5 koku

Techniques

• Rank 1: Weakness Is My Strength
  When you are making a Contested Social Roll against someone else, you gain a Free Raise to your roll for every 3 points of Mental or Social Disadvantages (rounded off) he possesses. Disadvantages which did not award Experience Points still count for their normal point value for the purposes of this Technique. This technique cannot award more than 5 Free Raises.
• Rank 2: Shallow Waters
  By conversing with someone for a few minutes, you can make a Contested Roll of your Investigation / Awareness against their Etiquette / Awareness. With a success, you learn the identity and rank of their lowest Mental and their lowest social Skill that has at least one Rank (The GM chooses in the case of ties). You may spend a Void point to also learn their next lowest Mental Trait and next lowest Social Skill.
• Rank 3: Secrets are Birthmarks
  By speaking with someone for a few minutes, you may make a Contested Roll of your Courtier (Manipulation) / Awareness against their Etiquette (Courtesy) / Awareness to force them into revealing one Mental or Social Disadvantage they possess. If they have no such Disadvantage, this will instead reveal one Mental or Social Advantage. (Note this will only reveal the rulebook title of the Advantage / Disadvantage, not the specific nature of it. For example, you might learn that the target has "Dark Secret," but not the specific nature of the secret.) If the roll succeeded in revealing a Disadvantage, with the GM's permission you may take a 2-point Blackmail Advantage against this individual, for no cost in Experience Points.
• Rank 4: Scrutiny's Sweet Sting
  Any time you make a Contested Social Skill Roll against someone on whom you have Blackmail, his dice cannot explode. In addition, any time you make a Contested Social Skill Roll against someone, regardless of whether you have Blackmail on them or not, you may spend a Void Point to force them to use a mental Trait of your choice (instead of the normal Trait used for the roll).
• Rank 5:No More Masks
  A number of times per session equal to your School Rank, you may make an Opposed Social Roll of Courtier (Gossip) / Awareness against an opponent's Etiquette (Courtesy) / Awareness. If you have Blackmail on the person you are targeting with his technique, you gain a bonus of +5k0 to the total of this roll. With a success, you may inflict one Social Disadvantage on the target: Social Disadvantage, Sworn Enemy, or Obligation (to someone of your choice). The Disadvantage lasts for one month, unless the GM judges that the target has taken action which can expunge it sooner. (This Technique cannot be used on the same target until its effect expires.)

Shosuro Infiltrator School [Shinobi, Courtier]
-Shosuro Infiltrator, Core Rulebook. Replace Rank 3 with Shadow Blades, Strongholds of the Empire
The Shosuro Infiltrators have perfected the art of deception. With their well-honed abilities in acrobatics, disguise, and stealth, these Scorpion agents encounter very few places to which they cannot gain access. As agents of surprise and disruption, they do not stand and fight, but instead sow chaos and vanish—usually to disguise what their mission actually was. Many a yōjimbō has thwarted an apparent assassination attempt that was merely a distraction from the target the Shosuro Infiltrators truly sought. Such infiltrators can vanish into shadows or, with equal skill, mingle with peasants to become invisible to the eyes of samurai.

• Benefit: +1 Reflexes
• Skills: Acting, Athletics, Ninjutsu, Sincerity, Stealthy (Sneaking) 2, any one Skill
• Honor: 1.5
• Outfit: Ashigaru or Light Armor, Sturdy Black Clothing, Daisho, Bow or Knife, Traveling Pack, 5 koku

Techniques

• Rank 1: The Path of Shadows
  You lose no Honor for use of Low Skills or Ninjutsu Weapons in the service of the Scorpion Clan (subject to GM approval). You gain a bonus of +2k0 to the total of all Stealth Skill rolls.
• Rank 2: Strike From Darkness
  Whenever you declare an attack against an opponent who is unaware of your presence until the moment of the attack, your Raises are not limited to your Void and you roll additional dice equal to your School Rank on the attack roll. You also roll half this number of additional unkept dice on an attack roll made against an opponent who is suffering from a Condition effect (such as Stunned or Fatigued). These two effects are not cumulative, and if both could apply, you must choose one of them. (You do not add one and one half times your School Rank in dice to an attack roll against an opponent who is both Blinded and unaware of your presence, for example.)
• Rank 3: Never Beyond My Reach
  When wielding a weapon with the Ninja keyword, you may also add +1k1 to your attack and damage rolls with that weapon.
• Rank 4: Whisper of Steel
  After attacking a target, your opponents and bystanders must succeed at a Contested Roll using Investigation (Notice) / Perception against Stealth / Agility to detect you. You may only use this Technique if you make a single attack per round. (The GM may rule that this technique does not work in situations where concealment is impossible.)
• Rank 5: The Final Silence
  After you make a damage roll as a result of a successful attack, you may spend a Void Point to increase any two dice to show 10s. These 10s do not explode. You may spend multiple Void Points in this manner, with each Void Point spent increasing the result of up to two damage dice.

Soshi Illusionist School [Shugenja, Courtier, Shinobi]
Soshi Shugenja, Core Rulebook
The Soshi Illusionist School is the school of whispers and shadows. “Subtlety” is the illusionists’ watchword as they go about their tasks. Even their religious rituals and duties tend to be understated, though they are no less faithfully executed. When the Scorpion need spiritual aid in court, their subtle invocations and keen understanding of the kami allow them to work their prayers unseen and unheard. The Soshi Illusionists are among the most practical shugenja in the Empire, preferring discriminating and effective use of invocation over pomp and ceremony.

• Benefit: +1 Awareness
• Skills: Calligraphy (Cipher), Courtier, Etiquette, Lore: Theology, Spellcraft, Stealth, and one Skill
• Honor: 2.5
• Outfit: Robes, Wakizashi, Knife, Scroll Satchel, Traveling Pack, 5 koku
• Affinity/Deficiency: Air/Earth
• Spells: Sense, Commune, Summon, 3 Air, 2 Fire, and 1 Water

Techniques

• Rank 1: The Kami's Whisper
  You may sacrifice an additional spell slot (of the same Element) when casting any spell with no potential to inflict damage in order to eliminate all visible signs of the spell having been cast. All spell effects take place normally; there is simply no outward sign of what has happened. You also gain a Free Raise on any spell with the Illusion keyword.

Yogo Preserver School [Shugenja]
-New School, created from scratch
Like all Scorpion, Yogo Preservers view their duty to the Emperor as being beyond the considerations of honor. Theirs is a special task, bound to the cursed destiny of the original Yogo—protecting shrines that contain artifacts best lost to history, such as the Black Scrolls. Using their paper servants called shikigami, these somber individuals poison, murder, and thieve—in the name of staving off the darkness that threatens all Rokugan.

• Benefit: +1 Intelligence
• Skills: Spellcasting, Craft: Shikigami, Lore: Black Scrolls, Stealth, Calligraphy (Cipher), Sincerity (Deceit), Any one Bugei or Low skill
• Honor: 1.5
• Outfit: Robes, Bo, Paper (10), Scroll Satchel, Any one small weapon, Traveling Pack, 3 koku
• Affinity/Deficiency: Air/Water
• Spells: Sense, Commune, Summon, 3 Air, 2 Fire, and 1 Earth

Techniques

• Rank 1: Shikigami Creator
  You may create Shikigami, which are small origami paper dolls. In order to do so, you must spend a spell slot and make a Craft:Shikigami/Intelligence roll with a TN of 20. A Shikigami has 1 in all skills and rings except Void. They have an Earth 1 for wounds (regardless of Earth ring), a TN of 10 (Regardless of Reflexes). and a damage of 1k1. They may wield Small weapons. You may spend additional spell slots (Except Void) to increase the ring of the Shikigami that matches the spell slot spent by +1. The limit to the number of spell slots you may expend in this manner is equal to your school rank per ring. Once created, Shikigami will do whatever you instruct them to do, but you must be within 100ft of them, or they die, leaving behind a simple paper doll. You may have a number of Shikigami equal to your School Rank. While you have Shikigami alive, you do not regain the spell slots used during its creation. You not lose honor for using a Low skill. You gain a free raise on spells with the Illusion keyword.

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Yogo Wardmaster School [Shugenja]
-Yogo Wardmaster, Great Clans
Founded by Asako Yogo when he joined the Scorpion clan, the Yogo Wardmaster dōjō is the Empire’s foremost school of gyosetsudō, the art of supernatural warding through mystical calligraphy. Entrusted with the protection of the twelve Black Scrolls, the Yogo developed their founder’s techniques to prevent the scrolls’ detection by dark forces and contain their corrupting power. By inscribing sigils of power onto slips of paper imbued with their ki, masters of this school can erect invisible barriers, bind spirits, and foil incantations. For the Yogo, an ounce of preparation is more than enough.

• Benefit: +1 Intelligence
• Skills: Calligraphy (Cipher), Etiquette, Investigation, Lore: Theology, Spellcraft, Stealth, any 1 High or Low Skill
• Honor: 1.5
• Outfit: Robes, Wakizashi, Knife, Scroll Satchel, Traveling Pack, pack of twenty paper wards, 3 koku
• Affinity/Deficiency: Yogo Shugenja do not have an elemental Affinity or Deficiency. Instead, they have an Affinity for all non-Void spells with the Wards keyword, and a Deficiency for all spells with the Travel or Craft keywords. They may treat certain spells as having the Wards keyword - see below.
• Spells: Commune, Summon, 3 Ward Spells, 3 other spells (may not be Void Spells)

Techniques

• Rank 1: Way of the Wardmaster
  When you cast any spell with the Wards keyword, you may Raise a number of times equal to the spell's Mastery Level to instead place the spell into a paper ward. Once this is done, the paper ward will hold the spell "latent" until you activate it (as a Simple Action) by placing it on a target. Only you may activate your wards. The ward sticks to the target and immediately discharge the spell, whose duration is measured normally from that moment. If an area-effect spell is discharged onto a living target, it will only affect that target. Placing a paper ward on an unwilling target requires an unarmed melee attack using a roll of Spellcraft / Agility. An active ward may be physically torn/destroyed, which instantly ends any ongoing spell effects; this requires a Simple Action. You cannot recover the spell slot of a spell which has been cast into a paper ward until after the ward is discharged. If a ward is damaged or destroyed before it is discharged, it loses all power and you may regain the spell slot normally. The following spells are treated as having the Wards keyword for purposes of spell selection and use of their technique:
  
  Air - To Seek the Truth, By the Light of the Moon, Benten's Touch, Summon Fog
  Earth - Armor of the Earth, Courage of the 7 Thunders, Force of Will, Wholeness of the World
  Fire - Extinguish, Fires of Purity, Disrupt the Aura, Haze of Battle, Globe of Everlasting Sun
  Water - Reversal of Fortunes, Rejuvenating Vapors, Wisdom and Clarity, Near to Ice

What Does Your Character Know?
All Scorpion Clan characters have a greater awareness of the following topics:

You have a strong awareness of the politics within Scorpion lands. You can name major family heads and other leaders, and you know their respective positions and allegiances.

You know about the general state of political affairs between the clans.

You are aware of the most substantial criminal cartels in the Emerald Empire, especially as their interests overlap or conflict with those of the Scorpion Clan.

You know the state of court matters in the Imperial Capital.

What Does Bushidō Mean To Your Clan?
Duty and Loyalty is the core tenet of the Scorpion Clan. They must be prepared to do— and sacrifice—anything and everything in the service of the Empire. Honor and Righteousness fall by the wayside for most Scorpion. While they are not wholly unimportant, obsessing over such matters would make many vital tasks impossible.