Roleplaying game

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Chapter 9: A Ronin’s Path
Part I: To the Third Watchtower
Once the PCs have declared they are pursuing the rōnin and have made 
any desired checks, read the following text aloud to the players:
You’ve tracked Keinosuke all the way to the Kaiu Wall. It looms 
in the distance well before you reach it, towering one hundred feet 
above the ground and stretching beyond sight. The imposing struc-
ture is matched by the dour Crab samurai who barely spare you a 
glance, too busy with their eternal duty. Why has he come here, of 
all places?
The PCs can speak to nearly any Crab samurai they come across, but 
the likeliest individuals to talk to are a unit of samurai on guard duty at 
the nearest of the Kaiu Wall’s great gates. As the PCs ask about Keino-
suke, they are told he went to Kyūden Moshibaru, a small stronghold 
situated close to the Wall. With a TN 3 Culture (Earth) check (TN 2 for 
Crab samurai), the PCs can recall that the Moshibaru are a vassal family 
of the Hida. More specifically, they are the vassal family of samurai whose 
new members must complete a Twenty Goblins Winter before becoming 
full-fledged members of the Crab Clan.
Any character from the Crab Clan is familiar with the tradition, and 
the Crab NPCs present are happy to explain it: during times of hardship, 
the Crab can declare a Twenty Goblins Winter, an ongoing challenge that 
states that any samurai can come to the Wall and join the Crab Clan after 
killing at least twenty goblins. These foul creatures are among the most 
common—and weakest—denizens of the Shadowlands. This by far the 
most reliable way for a rōnin to obtain a place within any of the Great 
Clans, although it is by no means an easy one. Although the tradition 
emerged during a winter season, the Crab Clan Champion can declare it 
at any time, and in fact, it can last well beyond the span of a season if the 
champion desires it.
The characters do not need to travel all the way to Kyūden Moshibaru, 
however, as they are told Keinosuke quickly moved on to one the twelve 
great watchtowers of the Wall. It is the Third Watchtower, the first being 
the easternmost, and the PCs need to travel for two more days to reach it.
When they reach it, the PCs are directed to speak to the watchtower’s 
commander, Hida Hiromichi. Hiromichi is quite familiar with Keino-
suke. He informs the PCs that the rōnin arrived roughly ten days ago, and 
that he has just completed the Twenty Goblins Winter. Keinosuke is now 
a part of the Crab Clan.
The Duel
The fact that Keinosuke is now a member of the Crab Clan complicates 
the task of the PCs, as the Crab are unlikely to be pleased with being 
deprived of one of their own, particularly as the PCs lack any testimony 
proving Keinosuke’s involvement in the murder. If they confront him, he 
refuses to go with them and abandon his new comrades-in-arms. If they 
insist, he grows angry and challenges them to a duel to the death, saying 
they have accused him of a grave offense. However, if the PCs argue that 
they only wish to bring him back for questioning, and if they succeed on 
a TN 2 Courtesy (Earth 1, Air 3) check, they can convince Keinosuke to 
limit the duel to first blood.
The PCs may try to persuade Keinosuke to come back with them with-
out the duel, or even to persuade Hida Hiromichi to give him up because 
he is a criminal wanted by an Emerald Magistrate. If they pursue this line 
of argument, eventually Hiromichi takes the PCs aside and explains the 
following in a low tone:
“Do not mistake the Crab Clan for fools—we understand all kinds 
of criminals use the Twenty Goblin Winters to join our clan and 
hide within its fold. If you are right, and this man has collaborated 
with a mahō-tsukai to murder one of us, then he deserves whatever 
fate you have in mind for him. But as of now, he is a samurai and a 
Crab. He deserves the right to defend his honor, and I am bound by 
duty to stand by him and defend that right. Therefore, I request a 
duel to first blood; let steel show us who is in the right.”
Use the rules for Duels, on page 160, to resolve the conflict scene. 
Keinosuke’s NPC profile is included in the Appendix on page 220. As 
the PCs have been challenged as a group, they can choose any one of 
themselves to fight against Keinosuke.
Whether to the death or to first blood, the duel takes place on the 
top of the Kaiu Wall. In this duel, both Keinosuke and the PC are ex-
pected to fight with katana, and they may only use the armor they are 
currently wearing.
Depending on whether the duel is to the death or first blood and on 
whether Keinosuke wins or loses, the following can happen:
•  If Keinosuke loses a duel to the death, he is declared guilty of abet-
ting Michiru, and his body is cremated without a ceremony. This is a 
shameful death, and the Crab are forced to thank the PCs for reveal-
ing the criminal in their midst.
•  If Keinosuke wins a duel to the death, his honor is proven beyond 
question, and the Crab refuse to let him leave the Wall. The deceased 
player character is granted funeral rites and is not spoken ill of, but 
the Crab insist the matter is now closed. In case of such a result, the 
player of the deceased PC should be allowed to create a new character 
to be introduced in the next scene, perhaps as reinforcement sent by 
Seppun Hirohide or by one of the other Crab samurai on the Wall.
•  If Keinosuke loses a duel to first blood, his involvement is proven, and 
the Crab allow the PCs to interrogate him and bring him to Seppun 
Hirohide (see Debriefing, on page 210).
•  If Keinosuke wins a duel to first blood, his honor is proven, and the 
Crab refuse to let him go (see Debriefing, on page 210). They do offer 
medical assistance in treating any injuries the PC suffered in the process 
of the duel, along with their general—if somewhat gruff—hospitality.
The Kaiu Wall
The Kaiu Wall was built in the year 716 at the site where the forces 
of a powerful oni known as the Maw had pushed back the Crab’s 
line of defenses. It has remained the greatest accomplishment in 
Rokugani engineering ever since. One hundred feet tall and run-
ning the entire length of the border between Rokugan and the 
Shadowlands, it is always garrisoned by thousands of Crab samurai 
and ashigaru. It is set just north of the River of the Last Stand, 
which runs in parallel with it along its entire length, all the way to 
the sea. The Wall has twelve great watchtowers at intervals along 
its length, with large doors that can be opened to allow warriors 
to sally into the Shadowlands. Passage over the border also occurs 
through tunnels bored under the Wall and the river. The Crab have 
filled these tunnels with traps and false ends to confuse the crea-
tures of the Shadowlands.
Many cities and villages are situated only a small distance north 
of the Wall, to provide the Crab armies with the extensive support 
they need. Siege weapons such as ballistae and catapults can be 
found atop the Wall, where the walkway is large enough for entire 
units of samurai to pass by one another. The Wall is the greatest 
responsibilities of the Kaiu family, whose name it bears; the Kaiu 
constantly repair and improve it. But it is also a symbol of Crab 
determination and courage, and it often serves as a metaphor for 
the whole Crab Clan.

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