The Crab Clan are known as guardians and warriors—slayers of monsters and protectors of the realm. Even those who do not fight with weapons often wage war with their minds and words, securing key supplies for their clan, maintaining alliances to guarantee support of the Wall, or engineering new technologies to turn back the endless hordes of the Shadowlands. However, the Crab Clan’s task often weighs heavily upon the disciples of the Kami Hida. They are known as taciturn, battle weary, or even disillusioned. The glories of the battlefield are scant reward, and surviving to fight another day can seem its own punishment at times when facing such a relentless threat. Still, these people find ways to live and express themselves, and many revel in the small joys that life provides them.
In comparison with the rest of Rokugan, the Crab Clan is rowdy, direct to the point of rudeness, and tends to look for pragmatic solutions. Weakness of the individual is weakness of the group, for a single failure could bring down disaster upon all. After all, what honor or respite can be expected from the foe when your enemies are goblins, demons, and other monstrosities?
Crab Families
Hida: +1 Strength
The Hida family stands guard against the Shadowlands, its task an eternal vigil to keep the Empire safe from the dark forces of Jigoku. Like the family’s founder, the Kami Hida, they are large and strong, tough and enduring, with little patience for the weaknesses of others. Their harsh duty makes the Hida exceedingly pragmatic, with little time for the polite fictions of court. They bitterly bear the mocking condescension concerning their manners and dress from the clans they shield.
Hiruma: +1 Agility
The Hiruma are the eyes and ears of the Crab beyond the Wall, warning of attacks and staging spoiling raids on the unending hordes, a desperate and unrewarding task. The warnings facilitated by the skills of the Hiruma allow the Crab to respond quickly to any threat. Due to the ceaseless danger of the Shadowlands, the Hiruma rotate between service beyond the Wall and service inside the Empire, where they function as scouts, messengers, and yōjimbō (bodyguards). Slender and quick, the Hiruma are a contrast to the staunch Hida, relying instead on speed and precision
Kaiu: +1 Intelligence
Monuments to the skill of the Kaiu are everywhere in the Crab lands, from the vast Kaiu Wall itself to the armor and weapons used by those who stand guard over it. The Kaiu are responsible for the road network supporting the fortifications, the siege engines that crush and shatter the Shadowlands forces, and defensive works spread across the interior of the Crab holdings. There are very few problems that the Kaiu will not try to solve with applied engineering
Kuni: +1 Intelligence
No shugenja family is more feared in the Empire than the Kuni, who root out any sign of corruption. The Kuni use all means at their disposal in their hunt; even Hida samurai sometimes pale at their methods. The Kuni are willing to delve into the secrets of the Shadowlands using study, observation, and even dissection, even though such close contact with its dark creatures risks their very souls.
Yasuki: +1 Awareness
The slim and loquacious Yasuki do not fit the Crab stereotype, but they provide a vital service to their clan all the same. The first masters of markets in the Empire, the Yasuki use the tools of trade and industry to keep the Crab armies well equipped and fed, even if it means the occasional shady deal. The Yasuki trade network extends throughout the Empire; members of this family can be found just about anywhere, looking for the next arrangement.
Crab Schools
The Crab Clan is stalwart and practical in a way most other clans are not. Crab samurai cannot afford frivolity or distractions to nearly the same degree that most others can, for a single gap in the Kaiu Wall can spell death to hundreds, and a single missed shipment of goods can doom valiant defenders. Despite their grim circumstances, the Crab are not without hope. Heroes arise every generation to strike down the monsters that threaten the realm, great engineers invent new solutions to combat the armies of the Shadowlands, and scholars uncover new secrets that might turn the tides of battle. The Crab Clan schools must prepare their students for the worst. They seek to draw out the best in their charges so that they can vanquish the dreadful challenges they will inevitably face
Hida Defender School [Bushi]
- Hida Bushi, Core Rulebook & replace rank 3 with Rajya ke Varisa, Second City, modified to use Lore: Shadowlands
Producing the most stalwart protectors of Rokugan against the horrors that mass beyond the Kaiu Wall, the Hida Defender School teaches its disciples fortitude, courage, and practicality in equal measure. Goblins, demons, and the unliving are not honorable foes, and Hida Defenders cannot afford to behave as though the fight against these creatures is fair. While any warrior with a strong will can attempt to slay a stone-skinned oni or die in the attempt, the Hida Defenders know their duty is to endure. From their heavily plated armor to their techniques for shattering iron hides with mighty hammer blows, Hida Defenders have developed an armory and fighting style that gives them the utmost advantage and greatest chance of not just victory, but survival.
Hiruma Scout School [Bushi, Shinobi]Techniques:
- Benefit: +1 Stamina
- Skills: Athletics, Defense, Heavy Weapons (Tetsubo), Intimidation, Kenjutsu, Lore Shadowlands, Any One Bugei Skill
- Honor: 3.5
- Outfit: Light or Heavy Armor, Sturdy Clothing, Daisho, Heavy Weapon or Polearm, Traveling Pack, 3 koku
- Rank 1: Way of the Crab
Ignore TN Penalties for wearing Heavy Armor for all skills except Stealth- Rank 2: The Mountain Does Not Move
Gain Reduction equal to Earth Ring- Rank 3: Legacy of the Kshatriya
Twice per combat, you may spend a Void Point to add unkept dice to your damage roll equal to your Lore: Shadowlands skill- Rank 4: Devastating Blow
Once per combat when wielding a Heavy Weapon, lower target enemy's Reduction by 4. If the Attack succeeds, Daze target. Target may recover by making an Earth Ring vs TN equal to your damage during the Reactions Stage of each round. This TN decreases by 5 for each failed roll.- Rank 5: The Mountain Does Not Fall
May spend a Void Point during the Reactions stage. During next turn, take actions as if Healthy. Ignore Dazed, Fatigued, and Stunned. This lasts until the Next reactions stage.
-Hiruma Scout, Imperial Histories & replace rank 4 with Falcon's Strike, Book of Air
The Shadowlands never sleep and neither can those who watch them. Scouting the Shadowlands is a dangerous task and one that requires intense preparation. The Hiruma saw their lands swallowed by the forces of demons, and they will die before seeing more of the Empire lost beneath their shadow. Trained to observe and get out, only striking when the reward exceeds the risk, samurai of the Hiruma School are about patience and endurance above all. They are masters of survival and mobility. When a Hiruma Scout is rotated out to serve within the borders of the Empire, their haunted look and wary demeanor marks them as a veteran.
Kaiu Engineer School [Artisan, Bushi]Techniques:
- Benefit: +1 Reflexes
- Skills: Athletics, Hunting, Kenjutsu, Kyujutsu, Lore: Shadowlands, Stealth (Sneaking), any one Bugei skill
- Honor: 4.5
- Outfit: Ashigaru or Light Armor, Sturdy Clothing, Daisho, Bow and 20 arrows or Knife, Traveling Pack, 3 koku
- Rank 1: Dance The Razor's Edge
Add your Stealth Skill rank to Initiative rolls (unless caught by surprise or otherwise unaware). You can make all food, water, and jade rations last twice as long as normal for a number of people equal to your Hunting Skill Rank. While in the Shadowlands, you gain +1k0 to Stealth rolls
and always know the direction of the Empire and roughly how far away it is.- Rank 2: Run Like The Wind
You may make Free and Simple Move actions while in the Full Defense stance. You can run at high speed for a number of hours equal to your Stamina + School Rank, after which you are Exhausted until you have one hour’s rest.- Rank 3: Veil Of The Spirits
Spend a Void point to adds a number of kept dice to your Stealth roll equal to School Rank. This effect lasts until you move or make noise.- Rank 4: Spotting The Prey
When making a range attack with a bow, you may use your Perception in place of your Reflexes for attack rolls. When using a yumi, you may also use your Perception in place of the bow's Strength for damage rolls.- Rank 5: Strike Of The Stalker
If you are attacking a surprised or unaware foe, your Raises are not limited by Void, Attack ignores 10 points of Reduction (from any source).
-Kaiu Engineer, Great Clans
Since the Crab Clan’s founding, the Kaiu’s duty has been to arm the clan’s samurai to defeat their enemies, be it with weapons, siege engines, or insight. As the inventive arm of the Crab, the Kaiu Engineer supplies all of these things. Trained in logistics, versed in tactics, and filled with ingenuity, the Kaiu dōjō is not only a warrior college, but also the foremost engineering school in the Empire. It is the Kaiu engineers who support the foot solders of the Crab, building bridges over inhospitable terrain, crafting armor strong enough to withstand even an oni’s blow, and forging the rare Kaiu blades, which are among the greatest swords in the Empire. If the situation is bleak, and there is no clear path to victory, then the Kaiu Engineer will forge one!
Kuni Purifier School [Shugenja, Bushi]Techniques:
- Benefit: +1 Intelligence
- Skills: Battle, Craft: Armorsmithing, Craft: Weaponsmithing, Defense, Engineering (pick one Emphasis), Lore: Architecture, War Fans
- Honor: 4.5
- Outfit: Light or Heavy Armor, Sturdy Clothing, Daisho, Heavy Weapon or War Fan, Traveling Pack, 3 koku
- Rank 1: The Kaiu Method
+1k0 when making any School Skill Roll. When spending a Void Point to augment a School Skill Roll, you gain a bonus of +2k2 instead of +1k1. These effects are not cumulative.- Rank 2: The Path Of Stone
When constructing large structure (temple-sized or larger), you may make an Engineering Skill Roll TN 25 to add an additional number of Wounds to the structure equal to your School Rank x 100. When commanding a siege engine, may re-roll once any of the siege engine’s damage dice that roll below your School Rank.- Rank 3: The Path Of The Shell
When crafting any set of armor, you may double the crafting time and cost in order to add your School Rank to the armor’s Reduction value. You may also add half your School Rank (rounding up) to the armor’s Armor TN bonus.- Rank 4: The Path Of War
When you roll on the Mass Battle Chart, you may modify your result (up or down) by an additional amount equal to half your School Rank.- Rank 5: The Path Of Steel
When crafting any weapon, you may choose to confer either a +1k0 bonus to all attack rolls made with that weapon, or a +0k1 bonus to all damage rolls made with that weapon. If the weapon is a katana, you may expend all your Void Points (a minimum of one point must be spent) to make the blade unbreakable (as per the Sacred Weapon: Kaiu Blade Advantage). Doing so renders you unable to recover Void Points for one week.
-Kuni Shugenja, Core Rulebook
The Kuni Purifiers master knowledge and prayers to deny the Shadowlands forces any foothold inside the Empire. To this end, they have specialized in invocations to the earth kami to strike down or banish the evil servants of Fu Leng. From the time of their school’s founding, the Kuni Purifiers have sought to understand the nature of the threat the Crab fight against. This has led them down dangerous paths, and no small number have fallen to the very corruption they study. The Kuni Purifiers paint their faces in stylized Kabuki-like patterns to protect their true identities from the insidious tendrils of the Shadowlands. Eternal vigilance, shading into unending paranoia, is the lot of the Kuni Purifiers.
Kuni Warden School [Monk]Techniques:
- Benefit: +1 Willpower
- Skills: Calligraphy (Cipher), Defense, Lore: Shadowlands 2, Lore: Theology, Spellcraft, Any One Weapon Skill
- Honor: 2.5
- Outfit: Robes, Wakizashi, Knife, Scroll Satchel, Traveling Pack, Any One Weapon, 3 koku
- Affinity/Deficiency: Earth/Air
- Spells: Sense, Commune, Summon, 3 Earth, 2 Fire, 1 Water
- Rank 1: Gaze Into Shadow
You gain +1k0 to all Spell Casting Rolls when the target is any non-human creature, and any spell that inflicts damage inflicts and additional +1k1 damage when used against a target who possesses the Shadowlands Taint. You gain a Free Raise on any spell with the Jade keyword.
-Due to their unique training, Kuni Purifiers may not take Multiple Schools to enter any other Shugenja or Bushi school, and no Bushi or Shugenja may take Multiple Schools to become a Purifier.Additionally, when you select this school, please note Bushi or Shugenja
--If you select Shugenja, you do not gain the Bushi discounts for Advantages or increases for Disadvantages, and may not buy Kata.
--If you select Bushi, you do not gain the Shugenja discounts for Advantages or increases for Disadvantages, and you may not buy Kiho (Essentially rendering Friend of the Brotherhood mechanically useless)
-Kuni Witch Hunter, Great Clans & replace rank 3 with Rajya ke Varisa, Second City, modified to use Lore: Maho
A number of Kuni who lack the aptitude to become shugenja are trained in the tradition of the Kuni Wardens. These grim monks maintain the Barracks of the Damned, a massive hospital, laboratory, and prison that is also their temple. Experts at subduing Tainted humans and overcoming sorcery, even without weapons, many serve at or near the Wall, but some Wardens occasionally make their way into the wider world. The order sometimes sends its agents to “tend to the spiritual needs” of those who have been exposed to the corruption of Fu Leng. This can include offering the mercy of death, should their charge be fully consumed by the Taint.
Yasuki Merchant School [Courtier]Techniques:
- Benefit: +1 Willpower
- Skills: Investigation, Jiujutsu, Kenjutsu, Lore: Shadowlands, Lore: Maho, Meditation, any one skill
- Honor: 5.5
- Outfit: Rugged Clothing, Daisho, Knife, Jade Pendant, Traveling Pack, 3 koku.
- Rank 1: To See Darkness
You may attempt to detect the Taint in another person by holding your jade pendant (or another piece of jade) and staring intently at them. This is a Complex Action and requires you to make a Contested Roll of your Investigation (Interrogation) / Awareness against the target’s Sincerity (Deceit) / Willpower. You gain a +1k0 bonus to this roll for every full Rank of Taint the target possesses. If you succeed in the roll and the target is Tainted (has at least 1 Rank of Taint), you are able to sense the presence of the Taint and its approximate strength. If you fail the roll or the target is not Tainted, you gain no information. In addition, you gain +1k1 to your rolls to resist the Shadowlands Taint and to your attack rolls when attacking a foe who is a Shadowlands creature or who you know to be Tainted.- Rank 2:To Ride The Darkness
Any time you are confronted by a Shadowlands creature, you may take a Free Action to roll Lore: Shadowlands / Intelligence at TN 20 to recall either one specifi c strength (such as Invulnerability) or one specific weakness (such as jade) for that creature. You choose whether you recall a strength or a weakness, but the GM chooses the exact information. You may Raise on this roll to learn additional pieces of information—one strength or weakness per Raise.- Rank 3:Legacy of the Kshatriya
Twice per combat, you may spend a Void Point to add unkept dice to your damage roll equal to your Lore: Maho skill- Rank 4: To Repel The Darkness
You gain a +3k0 bonus to the roll for your Rank One ability to detect the Taint and to the roll for your Rank Two ability. In addition, you may learn one Kiho. (this Kiho does not count against the maximum number of Kiho you can learn, although it is subject to their other mechanical limitations such as Mastery Level.)- Rank 5: To Shatter The Darkness
You gain a +4k1 bonus to your attack and damage rolls against Shadowlands creatures and against foes you know to be Tainted. This stacks with the attack bonus from your Rank One technique.
-Yasuki Courtier, Core Rulebook
]Enemies of the Crab say the Yasuki are little more than merchants—the Yasuki would counter that they are much more. They are masters of the arts of commerce and the flow of commodities, considered an uncouth and deplorable set of skills in Rokugan. The Yasuki can acquire goods and services, even ones that a person may not yet know they need, in exchange for promises of assistance for their family and clan in the future. The Yasuki always keep their bargains, and they ensure that their partners do the same.
Yasuki Yōjimbō School [Bushi]Techniques:
- Benefit: +1 Perception
- Skills: Commerce (Appraisal), Courtier, Defense, Etiquette, Intimidation, Sincerity (Deceit), any one Merchant Skill
- Honor: 2.5
- Outfit: Traditional Clothing, Wakizashi, Knife, Calligraphy Set, Traveling Pack, 5 koku
- Rank 1: Way Of The Carp
You gain a Free Raise when using the Commerce Skill, and you do not lose Honor or Glory for using the Commerce Skill even in public. Also, Yasuki are taught from youth to be adept at sizing up their potential customers. When speaking with someone you may make a Contested Roll of your Commerce/Perception against their Etiquette/Awareness to discern some material object or service they want or desire.- Rank 2:Do As We Say
A number of times per session equal to your School Rank, you may re-roll a failed Sincerity or Intimidation Skill roll. You must keep the results of the second roll.- Rank 3: Treasures Of The Carp
You may roll Commerce/Awareness at TN 20 to locate a rare or useful item, subject to GM discretion, for someone else. You may track down higher-quality or rarer items by calling Raises.- Rank 4:Wiles Of The Carp
Anyone making a Social Skill Roll for the purpose of lying to you or deceiving you has their TN increased by an amount equal to 5 times your School Rank.- Rank 5: What Is Yours Is Mine
If you known of a material item someone needs, and arrange for them to get it, you gain a bonus of +5k0 to any Contested Social Rolls you make against that person for the next 24 hours.
-New School, takes from Hiruma Bushi, Core Rulebook, Hiruma Yojimbo & Yasuki Enforcer, Secrets of the Empire, Crab Defender, Book of Earth
Skillful and cunning warriors, the Yasuki Yōjimbō protect people traveling to, from, or within the Crab lands and escort caravans and shipments bringing vital supplies to the front lines. These skilled bodyguards travel alongside Yasuki Merchants and other courtiers across Rokugan. To combat any threat to their charges, the Yasuki Yōjimbō employ keen awareness and strong knowledge of the terrain they travel through. If a situation looks untenable, these warriors prioritize the safety of those under their watchful eye, cleverly using the terrain to lose pursuers or force groups of enemies to face them one at a time.
Techniques:
- Benefit: +1 Reflexes
- Skills: Athletics, Commerce, Defense, Kenjutsu (Katana), Investigation, Intimidation, and any 1 skill.
- Honor: 2.5
- Outfit: Light Armor, Sturdy Clothing, Daisho, Bow with 20 Arrows or Knife, Traveling Pack, 5 koku
- Rank 1:
After making a successful melee attack, you may immediately perform the Guard Action as a Free Action (if your charge is close enough for you to Guard). If you do so, you may add the amount by which your attack roll exceeded your opponent’s Armor TN to the Armor TN of your charge until your next Turn.- Rank 2:
While you assume the Attack Stance, you gain a bonus of +1k0 to the total of all attack rolls. All food, water, and jade rations last twice as long for a number of people equal to your Commerce Skill Rank. While fighting with your charge, you ignore terrain movement penalties- Rank 3:
You may make a Contested Roll against any individual, using your Willpower / Intimidation against their Willpower / Etiquette. If you are successful, you gain a bonus of +1k0 on all attack rolls made against that individual until they attack you. Each successful Raise made on this Contested Roll increases your bonus by an additional +1k0. If this Technique is activated during a skirmish, the initial Contested Roll is a Complex Action.- Rank 4:
During the Strike step of an iaijutsu duel, you are considered to have additional Reduction equal to your Earth x 3.- Rank 5:
If you deliver more Wounds than necessary to kill your target, you may apply the excess Wounds to the next target you hit. This Technique does not activate two attacks in a row. The carry-over effect does not last beyond the end of the current skirmish.