L5R - Unity - Chapter 1 - Winter Solstice

[PupSage]

Character given to DM.  

[Plainsfox]

Naohiko would return Kaichiyo's wave as he continued walking with the talkative Moshi. "I understand. My mother was born amongst the Komori and speaks to the same kind of spirits I do." The Kraken gave a weak smile. "City full of biwas, and we cannot find a one.
Naohiko would go into deep concentration as he did his best to search out a place to find a decent biwa.

OOC: Roll to find a biwa 6k3+3 (Void point spent+Moshi Ruri) +3 dice rolled in case of explosions. First 9
TN: 25
Results: 23
Raises called: 0
Dice chosen: 6, 6, 8


Willpower: 2k2 w/ 1 dice to handle explosions: next 3
Results: 7
Dice chosen: 6, 1  

[Paidi tou Selini]

Kaichiyo glanced back at the Spider attentively before nodding, "You're probably right. And with how long it took us to find this place we're probably behind enough as it is."

And with that she took a charm at random, bowed and gave a silent prayer to Benten begging for forgiveness from whatever deed she had committed to earn this fate, and asking for a blessing to free her from this man - vowing to come back after the event and offer proper tributes - and turned about to address the next item on the list.

"So! We're here at a temple. I think it shouldn't be too hard to find something touched by a kami." she declared before taking a moment to search about as she tried to determine what such an item might be.


[[Intelligence/Lore: Kami to find an item the judges might recognized as "touched" w/ 1 void point spent for a trained roll vs TN??
Roll 4k3
8, 7, 1, 7 = 22]]  

[Rain Yupa]

The Scavenger Hunt

The Teams
Himura Naohiko & Moshi Ruri - 1 items collected, 2 Banked Raises
Himura Kaichiyo & Daigotsu Shoichi - 1 items collected, 1 Banked Raises
Himura Gendo & Suzume Kiyo - 0 items collected, 2 Banked Raises
--------------------
(+2)Utaku Bayarma & Shinjo Hideki - 2 items collected
(+0)Suzume Kayoko & Agasha Mai - 1 items collected
(+1)Kaiu Taniko & Hiruma Shigemasa - 1 items collected
(+0)Kakita Mitsuko & Shiba Noburo - 1 items collected
(+1)Daigotsu Josuke & Daigotsu Arisa - 1 items collected
(+2)Kakita Otsu & Isawa Marihito - 1 items collected
(+0)Ide Urako & Mirumoto Katsunan - 1 items collected
(+0)Ide Seibei & Kuni Sanjiro - 1 items collected
(-1)Akodo Masaru & Daigotsu Danjuro - 0 items collected
(+2)Matsu Koji & Akodo Tamafune - 0 items collected
(+1)Yoritomo Mamoru & Yoritomo Katsue - 0 items collected
(+0)Bayushi Kojiro & Bayushi Masuyo - 0 items collected
(+2)Yoritomo Kiyonobu & Daidoji Takahashi - 0 items collected
(+1)Toku Seiichi & Ide Chieko - 0 items collected
(+2)Tamori Aritomo & Ikoma Tadao - 0 items collected
(+2)Kitsuki Senzo & Mirumoto Otsu - 0 items collected
(+2)Shosuro Hyobe & Shoruso Kazu - 0 items collected
(+2)Shosuro Nene & Shosuro Tamiyo - 0 items collected

--------------------

@ Gendo:

As you pick up the parchment and read it, it is a wish for the writer to become a worthy husband to his betrothed, signed simply, "-S".

"Y-yes, that should probably count. But I don't know how the judges will be able to tell..." Kiyo seems to have some doubts, but ultimately, in favor of the item.

--------------------

@ Naohiko:

You stand in the square, flustered at your inability to find a simple instrument. You're confident that you've seen one since you arrived. If only you could just place it................

Then it hits you! You remember seeing the very stall that... what the jigoku?

Ruri's gone, and you are clutching a written note in your hand. If you were to read it, it would say:

Quote:

I've gone ahead to work on the list some. I hope you're okay, you're kind of creeping me out.

-Ruri

Temporarily lose your +3 from Ruri, since she's not in your presence now to assist. Also, the list itself is gone, so how good's your memory? On the plus side, you bank a free raise.

--------------------

@ Kaichiyo:

Shoichi notices your piety to Benten, and bows and gives a silent prayer of his own, culminating with a smile.

"Ah, I'm... not really... that attuned to matters of the kami," Shoichi would confess. "There's five, right? Air, Earth, Fire, Water, and Kansen?"

As for your roll, there's one immediate thing that comes to mind: Snow, and winter itself, strongly associates with Water. Plus, the Crane tend to be all about the Air, so one of those two would be your best bet. Generally, anything involving an element that's interacted with your physical environment should be considered touched by the kami.

Since that was Intelligence instead of Perception, it's less of an actual 'finding' and more of a 'pointing you in the right direction', though. While you might be able to find something belonging to the temple for this, such as a set of windchimes dangling from a window, some options might technically be considered 'theft'.  

[Plainsfox]

.....YAY! Naohiko was creeping out the only friendly Mantis he's seen thus far! Ah well. Coming up with things to win the event *should* put Naohiko back in Ruri's good or neutralish graces, right? One would hope so....

Off to find a biwa!

OOC:
Perception/Investigation 4k2 w/ 2 dice to handle explosions
TN: 25, 2 free raises used to reduce to 15
Results: 16
Dice chosen: 9, 7  

[Raganui Minamoto]

He stashes the wish, nodding. "So, snow is very interesting. First time I've seen it."

He smiles at Kiyo and continues walking.

3k2 Void/Investigation - 11  

[Paidi tou Selini]

"And heart..." she commented idly as she considered her options. She was pretty sure Void kami were a thing, but had to admit that Dragon ancestry didn't necessarily give her inherent knowledge on them. Still, in this case she knew exactly what to get, and swiftly made her way to the meditation pond to retrieve a stone. Or slightly large pebble.

"Two down~!" she declared, upon finding one, in her usual sing-song voice.  

[Rain Yupa]

The Scavenger Hunt

The Teams
Himura Naohiko & Moshi Ruri - 1 items collected, 0 Banked Raises
Himura Kaichiyo & Daigotsu Shoichi - 2 items collected, 1 Banked Raises
Himura Gendo & Suzume Kiyo - 1 items collected, 3 Banked Raises
--------------------
(+2)Utaku Bayarma & Shinjo Hideki - 2 items collected
(+1)Kaiu Taniko & Hiruma Shigemasa - 2 items collected
(+2)Kakita Otsu & Isawa Marihito - 2 items collected
(+0)Ide Urako & Mirumoto Katsunan - 2 items collected
(+0)Suzume Kayoko & Agasha Mai - 1 items collected
(+0)Kakita Mitsuko & Shiba Noburo - 1 items collected
(+1)Daigotsu Josuke & Daigotsu Arisa - 1 items collected
(+0)Ide Seibei & Kuni Sanjiro - 1 items collected
(+0)Bayushi Kojiro & Bayushi Masuyo - 1 items collected
(+2)Tamori Aritomo & Ikoma Tadao - 1 items collected
(-1)Akodo Masaru & Daigotsu Danjuro - 0 items collected
(+2)Matsu Koji & Akodo Tamafune - 0 items collected
(+1)Yoritomo Mamoru & Yoritomo Katsue - 0 items collected
(+2)Yoritomo Kiyonobu & Daidoji Takahashi - 0 items collected
(+1)Toku Seiichi & Ide Chieko - 0 items collected
(+2)Kitsuki Senzo & Mirumoto Otsu - 0 items collected
(+2)Shosuro Hyobe & Shoruso Kazu - 0 items collected
(+2)Shosuro Nene & Shosuro Tamiyo - 0 items collected

--------------------

@ Naohiko:

You begin to retrace your steps from yesterday, at first unsure if you're in the right part of town... until you heard the somewhat familiar pluck of strings. Tracking down the source, you find one peasant guy, a few years your junior, trying out an instrument an elderly merchant man was showing him. It was definitely a biwa!

Also, you think you might have been followed, but whomever is on your trail is keeping their distance from you, for now.

--------------------

@ Gendo:

Item get!

You continue walking (and not posting something from the list as your 'goal'), and start to make small talk about the weather.

"I-Interesting?" Kiyo repeated back to Gendo, seemingly taken aback by it. "I never thought of it that way before..."

A moment's pause.

"In the winter there's not actually much farming to be done. We actually get a lot of snow in the Suzume Hills, much more than what you see right now. So much so, that it's practically an impossible task to clear it all. This is the time of the year where we handle a lot of the smaller tasks that aren't directly involved with farming the land. While we're not obligated to follow these paths exactly, a lot of Suzume and heimin women spent a good deal of time mending worn clothing, while the men work more on carpentry as well as maintenance of the tools they'll use for the rest of the year. These are all tasks that need to get done, we rarely get the time once spring comes around, plus there's very few options save for a mild winter to get out of our homes, so it's kind of tradition to save as many of these tasks until the winter months to stave off boredom. I suppose it's not as much of a concern in the Colonies though? Cabin fever is a very real threat in the Empire, so we utilize as many different tasks as possible to keep it together. Our diet becomes kind of routine at this point too, because while a lot of the roots and tubers stay good for a long time after they are harvested, a lot of the fruits and vegetables do not, so the menu is really quite limited. You'd be surprised at the amount of different ways one can learn to prepare meals with the same set of ingredients! But yeah, we typically have little to trade so we have to make and maintain our own clothes, since we have little in the way of new materials to make more. This kimono I'm wearing now, like my sister's, were actually purchased though, our family saved up a long time to get us these for this winter court, and I think this is the first truly 'new' garment I've received in my life that wasn't a hand-me-down. But there was this one winter where our father had broken his arm, and Kayoko and I are the only children to our parents, so we actually got a lot of first-hand experience that year with the tasks involved of maintaining our actual house and our family's tool set."

Around this point, Gendo, another one of the teams catches your eye, walking down the same street you're on, in the opposite direction. It isn't until you near that you recognize them as Agasha Mai and Kiyo's sister, Kayoko. But you probably hear her first.

"-spend a lot of time harvesting them, because of the amount of water they contain. They are simply delicious in the summertime, as long as you raised them with tender love and care in the months prior! However, because of how fickle they can be, there's only certain parts on the Suzume Hills where they can be planted; if you plant them anywhere, they either never fully ripen, or they simply dry out and are no good then. That's why-

"-can rust if you just give it a once over with water and leave it to dry. If you make sure to dry them properly and store them correctly, a decent sukotupu will last you generations. And that's without the touch of a practiced craftsman! Now, as far as the makiwari...-

"- to make sure you check for dens, because weasels love to eat them, the scent when they're near the point of harvesting attracts them. If we're attentive and alert enough, there's actually a lot of pastry-like treats we can make out of them, which is usually one of the things the kids look forward to at the Festival of Autumn Harvests. Probably the follow-up to that would be daifuku filled with sugar beet paste as filling, instead of red bean paste. You'd think that the kids would like those more, but if you eat too many of them you can get quite the stomach ache. Also, during the festival-

Agasha Mai shoots you a 'please shoot me' look as she and Kayoko pass you and Kiyo.

"-you can actually re-use the hemp from the rope to make a much more durable handle if you and cross-stitch the material together, but you have to be aggressive with the pattern or it will just fall off after minimal use. But I think any farmer anywhere, not just within our hills, would testify as to the gift of a reliable kama. If you're going to put in any effort, you might as well give it your all or it's really just a waste of otherwise valuable materials. A lot of the items we use on a daily basis have a patchwork appearance, but the items themselves, be they the original ones or the recycled remnants of items past, get a much longer lifespan. We do offer prayers to Kuroshin to bless the spirits residing within them. There was this one time Hirobu-san fibbed about the prayers he made on behalf of the recycled kumade, and that turned out to be a disastrous afternoon with entirely too many bruises, for everyone involved. That's why, because of the Hirobu Incident, we always-"

Gendo, you don't make progress on your collection, but you bank a free raise!

--------------------

@ Kaichiyo:

Item get!

Shoichi looked on as he watched Kaichiyo pick up a piece of ground from the edge of a frozen pond, and looked at the list again. "Um... Himura Kaichiyo-san, darling? I'm not entirely sure where this fits in. This this just a souvenir for the road?" He seemed positively unsure about this, and would finally ask the important question:

"What, pray tell, does a stone have to do with hearts?"  

[Raganui Minamoto]

Gendo would chuckle a bit after they passed, doing his best to keep his face straight for Mai. "Seems you're a lot like your sister, if Agasha-san's reaction was anything to go by. Though, I thoroughly enjoy listening. Aside from the little bit I've seen of this city, the only stuff I know of the Empire mainland are things taught to all growing up and what you've said to me about Suzume Hills. Of course, having you for a lecturer does make it better."

Void/Investigation - 3k2 - Free Raise to lower TN by 5 - 13
Target: Something the Emperor would like.  

[Plainsfox]

The exchange of goods and services between merchants and samurai was something that was always a bit tricky to handle. Ideally, Naohiko would have his own servant interact with the merchant to get what he needed. Never the less, it looks like the kami provided.

"Peasant." The samurai addressed the boy. "If you would please tell merchant-san to present his best available biwa for sale, I would like to purchase it."

With that, Naohiko discretely tried to ascertain who was following him and if they were following him.

OOC:
Perception/Investigation 4k2 w/ 2 dice to handle explosions
Raises called: 1 to make it look like I'm not looking.
Dice chosen: 9,7
Results: 16-5  

[Paidi tou Selini]

Kaichiyo winced at the affectionate name, but held up the stone with a confident smile, "This is our item touched by the kami. Surely there's no more likely place for earth and water kami to touch than the stones of a Temple's meditation pond~"

With the poor, slow Shoichi brought to the same page, she went about determining the next step. "Hmm... well, we're at a temple. It seems pretty reasonable that we should be able to get something blessed. Shall we go find the keeper? Or any monk? ...can monks bless things?"

Not that she would wait around for his response.


[Perception/Investigation (Search) for anyone in the temple who can bless something.
Roll 3k2 + 2 vs TN ??
1, 3, 9 = 14]  

[Rain Yupa]

The Scavenger Hunt

The Teams
Himura Naohiko & Moshi Ruri - 1 items collected, 0 Banked Raises
Himura Kaichiyo & Daigotsu Shoichi - 2 items collected, 1 Banked Raises
Himura Gendo & Suzume Kiyo - 1 items collected, 3 Banked Raises
--------------------
(+2)Utaku Bayarma & Shinjo Hideki - 2 items collected
(+1)Kaiu Taniko & Hiruma Shigemasa - 2 items collected
(+2)Kakita Otsu & Isawa Marihito - 2 items collected
(+0)Ide Urako & Mirumoto Katsunan - 2 items collected
(+0)Suzume Kayoko & Agasha Mai - 1 items collected
(+0)Kakita Mitsuko & Shiba Noburo - 1 items collected
(+1)Daigotsu Josuke & Daigotsu Arisa - 1 items collected
(+0)Ide Seibei & Kuni Sanjiro - 1 items collected
(+0)Bayushi Kojiro & Bayushi Masuyo - 1 items collected
(+2)Tamori Aritomo & Ikoma Tadao - 1 items collected
(-1)Akodo Masaru & Daigotsu Danjuro - 0 items collected
(+2)Matsu Koji & Akodo Tamafune - 0 items collected
(+1)Yoritomo Mamoru & Yoritomo Katsue - 0 items collected
(+2)Yoritomo Kiyonobu & Daidoji Takahashi - 0 items collected
(+1)Toku Seiichi & Ide Chieko - 0 items collected
(+2)Kitsuki Senzo & Mirumoto Otsu - 0 items collected
(+2)Shosuro Hyobe & Shoruso Kazu - 0 items collected
(+2)Shosuro Nene & Shosuro Tamiyo - 0 items collected

--------------------

Note to Self: Rolls pending...

@ Gendo:

Kiyo would blush profusely as Gendo would cut her off to say that. "I... I'm extremely sorry, Himura-san, I've told you so much about my home and have heard so little about yours. It was incredibly rude of me! I'll shut up now..." she would say, bowing several times in apology, obviously flustered.

You spent a Free Raise but did not reach your target; however, you gain a Free Raise in response!

--------------------

@ Naohiko:

The peasant would jump as Naohiko addressed him, almost... no, actually dropping the Biwa. Luckily, the old man was spry enough to catch it! Fortunes be praised!

As the old man sighed in relief, the young man gave a panicked look. "Uh... um... yes, ah, of course, samurai-san. It would be my pleasure..." He would turn to his right, and look nervously back at Naohiko before returning his gaze to the old man. "Um... th-this noble samurai would like to see one of your other... I mean, your other biwas... uh, merchant-san..."

The man never broke his gaze with the young man. "This is the only biwa I have in stock right now, Hiro."

As for who might be following you, you can't tell. Right now, there's no sign of them.

--------------------

@ Kaichiyo:

"Oh! I see now!" Shoichi would nod sagely as Kaichiyo explained the purpose of the stone.

At her questions, however, he would in fact have an answer. "It depends on the Monk. Those trained in the Brotherhood would be able to, if sanctioned. Not so much with the samurai monks. Not even the Spider ones."

While you investigate, Kaichiyo, you find a sign that the monk will return in an hour's time. It looks like it's been ripped from the wall and replaced once. It's a small temple, and right now it's only the two of you.  

[Raganui Minamoto]

"It's fine. The Kraken clan is still very new, so there is not as much to speak of. I also spent much more time learning smithing, so I am not the best teller of how other things are dealt with there. While it cools in the winter, it is not as cold as here. However, summer is very hot there, meaning that you try to avoid overworking yourself in the heat and have to make sure that the rice doesn't wilt. Most of the work in the area is fishing management, mostly of the puffer fish that are found there." He continues smiling as he walks.

Void/Investigation: 3k2 - 24
Target: Something the Emperor would like.  

[Plainsfox]

Naohiko managed to barely avoid facepalming."And I take it that this biwa is accounted for?" The Kraken got the feeling that Hiro here was about to obtain it.