>Previously
>"This is my first time at Winter Court and I've already been the subject of two separate assassination attempts. The second took place in a village outside of Toshi Ranbo that had it's entire populace was massacred by the Hateru Ninja Clan. Lured there by a message sent from my senpai, the famous duelist and magistrate Uesugi Seijuro no Mirumoto, I ended up fending off a huge team of shinobi killers by myself and succeeded, though I was poisoned nearly fatally for my efforts. Seijuro-senpai and his wife (whom I have yet to meet) are nursing me back to health. I have discovered that the Hateru Ninja serve someone called the Shogun of the Dark, and that this mysterious figure has a group of elite killers under his service called the Rokki-Dan.
>From the Journal of Toku Jubei, 1406 Isawa Calender
>PS: If my handwriting is different in this entry, it is because I'm dictating it to my senpai as I am still bedridden and unable to properly write.

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"I can't believe you're making me do this," Seijuro says as he delicately uses your borrowed sumi set in the small cabin to write the post-script of your journal entry. "Why can't you just write this out yourself later?"

"Because I could die at pretty much ANY time. I've been fighting bandits and ninjas and ronin and yakuza for years now, how the hell am I gonna know when I next have time to write in my journal? Your handwriting had better be decent too, this is already a serious bit of trust I'm giving you senpai," you say severely.

"I don't even know why you insist on doing it. You've been writing in this ever since I first met you," he notes, frowning as he concentrates on the calligraphy.

"Because it's a family tradition. All of the Toku family keep journals that we might pass onto our descendents and keep the journals of our ancestors. That way we can know the true thoughts and feelings of those of us who came before rather then rely purely on oral history, rumors, and hearsay. And in MY case that's especially important because there's so much misinformation out there about me!" you explain with absolute seriousness.

>WDYS?
>"Where's your wife anyway?" [Mirumoto Kiyoko]
>"Let's go over what we know about the Ankoku Shogun again." [Conspiracy]

>>45377222
>>"Where's your wife anyway?" [Mirumoto Kiyoko]

>>45377222
>>"Where's your wife anyway?" [Mirumoto Kiyoko]

>>45377299
Oh good, SOMEONE's here.
I thought I'd started too early. Which would suck because early is about the only free time I have these days.

>>45377222
>"Where's your wife anyway?" [Mirumoto Kiyoko]

>>45377299
>>45377347
Oh good. I'd wondered if I'd started too early again. Early is about the only free time I have anymore it seems like.

>>45377349
>>45377401
Internet, why for you say I no post message and when I post message again I look like retarded?
WHY FOR INTERNET?

>>45377349
glad to have you back.

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"Where's Kiyoko-san anyway?" you say as you look at the door, struggling with the urge to just go look yourself. Logically you know you almost died, but it still bugs you that you have to rest.

"Kiyoko is fine, Jubei-kohai," Seijuro reassures. "She's an excellent fencer and an onmyoji to boot; her magic will keep her safe more then we could honestly. Besides, I know you just want to eat some of her cooking anyway."

You smile sheepishly.
"So I appreciate good cooking; shugeyosha like me don't often have a chance to eat decent food in the road. I've had to grill frogs to survive before sometimes," you point out.
Seijuro winces. "Are you serious? That's revolting. Not to mention unclean."
"Says the guy who admitted that sometimes the Dragon have to eat goat when food gets low," you point out with a raised eyebrow. "You gotta when you gotta eat, right?"
"Yes, I suppose so," he admits reluctantly. "How is Ryoko-san's cooking anyway?"

It's your turn to wince now.
"It's...serviceable?" you say diplomatically. Seijuro smiles a bit.

>>45377576
>It's your turn to wince now.
I guess there's the real disadvantage in having True Love.

>>45377401
I'm present too. Also:
>>45377576
It's mountain tuna baka monkey!

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"Okay you got me," you admit. "Her cooking's awful. She's worse at it then I am. I dunno, maybe she focused too much on her warrior's training or something. She plays at politics and being a Yamato Nadeshiko, but she lacks anything other then superficial mastery over the more feminine skills. She's an oni with her short blade though!" you say approvingly.

"You know, some men would prefer their wives have domestic skills," he says with some humor in his voice.
"Why bother? I'm hardly domesticated myself," you say with a shrug.
"By the way Kohai, what's this I heard about you loosing an eye?" he asks, quirking his head to one side.

You sigh. That again.

>WDYS?
>"Forget it. A stupid rumor." [Short Version]
>"Man, that is a LONG story." [Long Versio]

>>45377654
>>"Man, that is a LONG story." [Long Version]
I'm curious!

>>45377654
>>"Man, that is a LONG story." [Long Versio]

[Insert sigh here]

>>45377676
Sorry; without meandering exposition I often barely have anything to write I feel like.
Maybe I should get better at writing before I do quests; I already struggle with staying focused enough on one story or genre....

>>45377654
Oh hey it's new Rokugan Quest time.

>WDYS?
I'm kinda tempted to act like Sky and say "It grew back"

>>45377741
Jubei can be sacrastic, but his sense of humor is considerably less developed then Sky's.
This actually makes him HARDER for me to write, which probably says something about me as a person.

>>45377654
>"Man, that is a LONG story." [Long Versio]

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>>45377715
But I enjoy exposition.

>>45377715
Wut?

Nah, m8, I meant to greentext it. It seems like Jubei would be exasperated.

I like this shit mang.

>>45377715
Feel free to come back to that later or such, really we love your writting, and if you don't feel up for that bit right now then thats fine.

>>45377805
Oh! Sorry. Kinda self-conscious about my writing flaws I guess.

>>45377837
Nah, I wanna do just ONE thread after getting my phone up and running at least, though 7th Sea has me hyped so much that I am resisting to not just do a "Theah Quest".
It's like I have ADD, except instead of for everyday tasks it's for storytelling genres.

>>45377868
I'd love it if you would stick with this for a while....

>>45377843
It's cool, we all have something that gets under our skin like that.

Like painting. Really irks me.

>>45377868
Man this quest has my hyped when ever i see you running it.

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"It's kind of a long story," you say with a sigh.
"It's a small cabin and there's nothing else to do. I've got time," he reassures.
"Okay....well...," you ponder on how to begin this story...

>THE TALE OF THE FIEND OF AKAGI
"So I was in the Daidoji provinces doing my usual thing when I decided to take a detour through Akagi Mori and maybe catch a boat to the Isles of Spice and Silk at Lonely Shore City on the other side. I ended up getting attacked by bandits and injured badly when one of them shot me," you begin after a deep breath. "The peasants and local samurai there nursed me back to health, but while I was recovering there I learned that the forest was under threat by something a lot worse; a Nue, which had been plaguing the area for months, killing people left and right."
"Wait," Seijuro says, interrupting. "Didn't the Crane write a play about all this?"
"Yeah, well I'm about to tell you the real version. ANYWAY, I decided that killing a Nue wasn't something I'd done before and that I could lend my sword to slaying it. I spent days with them tracking it and fighting bandits in the woods, all of whom were suspiciously well-armed, like the one with the teppo who shot me. It turns out that the 'bandits' I'd discovered were actually samurai from the Hiramitsu family of the Daidoji, the splinter family from the Hiramori who controlled the forest."

>>45378096
Deception! That's dishonorable!

IRL I'd probably do it too, but it's not acceptable here.

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"The Nue attacked just when I found out that I'd basically been tricked into getting involved in a family feud. It was pretty much the fiercest thing I've ever had to fight; it killed five samurai before we had a chance to act, and I only managed to wound it with my sword before it ran off. One of the other samurai who hit it was a shugeyosha, though I use the term VERY lightly here; Jirozame In'ei of the Shark Clan."
"I've heard of the Shark Clan," Seijuro says darkly. "Fierce warriors, but they have a very bad reputation."
"Yeah, well this guy fit the profile; he was a stone-cold bastard. Made a show of being fancy and artful, but he was at heart a ruthless murderer. He had been hired by the Hiramori to aid them in their feud against the Hiramitsu thanks to his skills, but he was so vicious that I honestly would have preferred the Nue. There was only one member of the Hiramori who disliked this continuing feud with the Hiramitsu, and he helped me out as we tried to resolve it. Eventually with the help of a priest I discovered that the Nue was being DRAWN to the bloodshed caused by the feud, and that it kept getting stronger by feeding off the strife of the embittered families."

>>45378096
crane pretending to be bandits? that must hurt their pride a bit. but yeah, super dishonorable move guys

>>45377654
>"Man, that is a LONG story." [Long Versio]

>>45377715
Oh chill, Sage. I like reading your meandering exposition. It builds history, world and character.

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"Anyway, I found out that it wasn't just the Nue; Jirozame In'ei had been butchering peasants on the side to keep the feud going, though I couldn't prove it. I don't even know why he did it. He told me that he didn't even NEED a reason. Eventually I arranged for a duel to be had between the Hiramitsu and Hiramori to resolve the feud, and I acted as the second for the Hiramori, defeating the Hiramitsu representative. Then I publicly challenged In'ei to a duel for his dishonorable conduct," you say, closing your eyes as you remember the scene in the clearing.....

>You stood across from each other, swords drawn, crowd watching as blood from your forehead leaks over your right eye, leaving it closed.
>Jubei: "I'll ask one more time; why?"
>In'ei smiles, showing his many teeth, all perfectly arranged.
>In'ei: "Everyone always asks 'why'. Everyone wants reasons. But 'how' is always so much more fun, isn't it?"
>You grit your teeth at his callous response, then you charge at him

"It was a draw. Neither of us won," you say in shame. "But the feud was resolved."
"And the Nue left?" Seijuro asks. You sigh again.
"Actually NO, it turns out that the priest was all wrong and the Nue wasn't going to leave by resolving the feud. I had to kill the fucking thing anyway."

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"Fascinating," Seijuro said. "But how does that explain the rumor about the missing eye?"
"Oh! Right, forgot. When I fought In'ei my forehead was cut from the earlier duel and it was bleeding down into my right eye, so I had to close it. I think everyone watching thought I had LOST the eye, so when the playwright came around after I'd left they must've told him I was one-eyed. After that I kept traveling that the rumor followed me."
With no help from Shinzo spreading it more just for a laugh at your expense of course.

"What happened to In'ei?" Seijuro asks.
"I dunno. After my duel with him and the fight with the Nue I was so injured that I wasn't able to get him. He probably slinked off into the forest. I doubt he's dead though, despite how badly I hurt him."
"What makes you say that?"
"Men like him don't die easily. Not before inflicting as much pain as they can on the world before they go. Bleeding out quietly in the forest isn't gruesome enough, not bloody enough. Men like him are like the sharks his family takes his clan name from; they keep moving and taking life, and they only ever stop when they finally meet something too strong for them to kill that kills them first," you say bitterly.
"You sound like you've thought about it a little," Seijuro notes.

You say nothing.
You don't know if you have it in you to hate; anger and righteous fury, yes. But the kind of lasting, smoldering hate that some samurai have for their enemies? You have a hard time really holding onto things with that much intensity.

Jirozame In'ei, The Fiend of Akagi, might actually be the exception for you.

>>45378539
using Genjuro's picture for this guy is a great idea. It fits this In'ei nicely.

After you finish Kiyoko walks in, sighing.
"Twenty-four funeral rites. The world is an emptier place this day. I hope their spirits are at rest," she says sadly, sitting down by the fire and placing her swords next to her.
"Thanks Kiyoko-san. I didn't know the villagers, but they deserved better," you say with a nod of your head.

Mirumoto Kiyoko is a handsome woman. She lacks the radiant grace of Ryoko or the grace of a Doji, but her beauty is approachable and down to earth. She has a modesty about herself that you admire, likely coming from her days as a mountain hermit learninh her fighting skills and magic. She's a good match for Seijuro-senpai.

>WDYS?
>"Was there any trouble while performing the rites?" [Hateru Ninja]
>"Did you ask around about the Rokki-Dan?" [Rokki-Dan]

>>45378843
>"Was there any trouble while performing the rites?" [Hateru Ninja]

>>45378843
>>"Was there any trouble while performing the rites?" [Hateru Ninja]

>>45378843
>>"Was there any trouble while performing the rites?" [Hateru Ninja]


Yes we hateru the ninjas

>>45378843
>>"Was there any trouble while performing the rites?" [Hateru Ninja]

>>45378843
>"Was there any trouble while performing the rites?" [Hateru Ninja]

>>45378823
Yeah, they aren't precisely the same type of character, but the image gets the message across.
Also, apologies if the posting is slow, the internet is going full Skynet on me today for some reason.

"Did you have any trouble?" you inquire as she sits down and lights a small fire with a flick of her wrist, using no fire-starting tools except the wood.
"From the Hateru Ninja? No. I appears we have slain all of them. I buried them as well, said funerary rights as best I could," she says, as she begins to place rice in a steaming tub.
"For the ninja even?" you ask, surprised.
"Hai. While they led sinful lives they shall still be reincarnated along the Celestial Wheel, and this should always be remembered. Besides that, leaving their bodies untended might create gaki out of their souls, which would be even worse."
You hadn't thought of that. You'll need to to to remember to pray more over the bodies of enemies you slay.
"I can't figure out how they managed to forge a letter from you, even with the Mirumoto sigil on it," you wonder.
"They didn't," Seijuro notes. "I DID write that letter that summoned you. I believe they intercepted the messenger and stole the letter itself, then did their best to mimic my handwriting and added the bit saying to come to the village. Since the rest of the letter was still my handwriting exactly and the wax sigil of my clan was intact on it you likely simply overlooked the slight change in style at the end of the letter, guessing it was done hurriedly. Very clever."

>WDYD?
>"How did they get ahold of a Miruomoto seal?"
>"Why exactly would someone want you dead?"

>>45379926
>>"Why exactly would someone want you dead?"

>>45379926
>>"Why exactly would someone want you dead?"

>>45379926
>How did they get ahold of a Miruomoto seal?"
This is important. Seals are hard to make, this isn't something you whip up in a day.

>>45378246
Hiramitsu and the Hiramori are Daidoji branch families that are more Harrier in style. Which pretty much means that both families are Crane Ninja.

>>45379926
>"How did they get ahold of a Miruomoto seal?"

>>45379926
>"How did they get ahold of a Miruomoto seal?"

>>45380356
>Harrier in style
I need a drawfag, STAT!

>>45381344
Ack, just realized that some people in this thread might not know what a Daidoji Harrier is.

The Daidoji Harriers were a secret group of the Daidoji whom specialized in asymmetric guerrilla warfare. The main idea is that they had ways to win when outnumbered 10 (usually Lion) to 1. These "Scouts" fought dirty. Ambushes, traps (such as pitfalls and tripwires, not Bridgets), snipers, sabotage, and "worst of all" gunpowder explosives were all tools they used to win battles and wars.

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"How did they even get ahold of a Mirumoto seal anyway?" you wonder aloud. "Did they use a hot blade to remove the wax and then re-affixed it after reading?"

There's a pause between Seijuro and Kiyoko before your Senpai answers.
"We don't know. I suspect they may have stolen an official seal from one of our castles. The Hateru Ninja are, as far as my investigations have revealed, most likely based out of the mountains where my Clan lives, hidden between the valleys and cliffs," he admits.
"What, really? How is that possible?" you ask in total surprise.
"It's a big mountain range kohai. Even we cannot claim to know all of it's secrets. That they might have access to our fortresses so easily as to seal one of our seals is disturbing however. This means any message is, in theory, suspect. They could capture, read, and alter any letter sent by one of my family and then re-seal it and none would be the wiser."
"Not too often, Anata," Kiyoko adds. "If they used such a trick too frequently the tampering might be discovered, especially as it would almost certainly require the death of the original messenger to get ahold of the letter. We are not so numerous as to discount a messenger every time he vanished on his task as might a clan with greater numbers."

"In either case, that's pretty disturbing. Ninja are tricky, but I never heard of them doing that before," you admit. "I've fought ninja clans before, but I never thought of them as being much more then particularly dangerous ambush fighters."
Kiyoko nods as she comments. "The first tenant of the ninja is deciet; this does not apply only to their methods of attack, but to all their other methods as well."

You'll have to ask Ryoko about it you suppose.

>WDYS?
>"No chance that the Rokki-Dan are Hateru Ninja then?"
>"Is there any way to figure out who they might serve?"

>>45381817
>>"Is there any way to figure out who they might serve?"

>>45381817
>"No chance that the Rokki-Dan are Hateru Ninja then?"

>>45381817
>>"No chance that the Rokki-Dan are Hateru Ninja then?"

>>45381817
>"No chance that the Rokki-Dan are Hateru Ninja then?"

>>45381817
>>"No chance that the Rokki-Dan are Hateru Ninja then?"

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"So the Rokki-Dan are different from the Hateru then?" you wonder.
Kiyoko nods. "Yes. Our investigation has turned up their name several times, but in every other case separate from the Hateru Ninja. It is likely they are seperate tools used by the Shogun of the Dark."
"Until now we had no idea that there even WAS a connection between the Six Demons and the Ankoku Shogun," Seijuro notes. "Though this fits their assumed modus operandi of being hired assassins."
"Who are they?" you ask.
"That I cannot say for sure. They are a small ototoudake that takes coin for killings, the group itself never larger then six men. It's possible that their affiliation is a loose one beyond convienanice, as each is rumored to be an individualist, but a killer of nearly peerless skill. All we know of them are their pseudonyms."

"And what are they?" you ask.

>"JINRAI THE BLADE"
>"This is one of the more notable and recognizable members of the group. A highly skilled swordsman and, he favors using heavy blades like odachi in his kills. He tends to use a mild amount of stealth approaching the target before cruelly butchering the target's guards and all of the immediate witnesses. He seems to relish the art of killing, and uses his profession as an assassin as an excuse to hone his combat skills. He frequently gives his foes a chance to fight back, but kills them all the same, cutting through them like his namesake, the hurricane. Most of our information suggests he's a former Crane samurai, possibly a duelist."
"Jinrai" literally means "Hurricane".
>"HAZAMA THE LANCE"
>"The newest addition to the gang. As his name suggests he is an expert in fighting with polearms of all kinds, including using them as missile weapons. He's much more precise then Jinrai but not less effective in combat, and he's killed several samurai who underestimated him based on his choice of weapon. We have no information on his previous identity."
>"URUMA THE ARROW"
>"No one has even seen this one. He kills from great distance with archery, sniping his targets and escaping before anyone knows he was there. Arguably the most dangerous because his attacks are all but impossible to see coming. Based on his skill with a bow, he is likely a Tsuruchi family samurai."
>"HIGA THE AXE"
>"The least frequently seen and the most notable; he uses no stealth or subtly at all. Every one of his kills has involved mass slayings, with the survivors (what few there are) speaking of a giant of a man wielding a huge Ono as a weapon. His size and brute strength make him a fearsome foe for any samurai facing him, and his speed is often underestimated. Likely a Crab, based purely on his weapon choice and physical description."

>>45381634
I kinda figured what they did, I just wanted to see an anthropomorphic Harrier Jet Samurai.

Because what's the point of puns if you don't make them?

>"AZUMI THE EYE"
>"We know the least about her. She seems to be a spymaster, the one who filters out informs about their targets to the others and gets in contact with gangs they work for. She is called the eye because supposedly nothing relevant escapes her sight. A Scorpion, maybe, based on her skill set."
>"AOSHI THE DEVIL"
>"A famous bandit swordsman even before joining the Rokki-Dan, which he probably created himself. He appears to have no special skill beyond his ferocity with the sword and his intelligence used in plotting out the killings. Each scene where he has been personally involved has been one of carnage; he is clearly extremely physically strong and fights like his namesake. Nobody knows exactly what he looks like despite his fame as a bandit, which makes him difficult to locate. Our guess is that he met Azumi and together they realized their skills could form an effective assasin team before meeting up with the others. If the Rokki-Dan can be said to have a leader, Aoshi is it."

>>45382900
>>"AZUMI THE EYE"
Ryoko?

>>45382940
That's reaching a bit

"Man, they sounds like a bunch of freaks," you decide after listening to the roll-off of their pseudonyms.
"They ARE hired killers. Some social deviancy is to be expected in their behavior I should think," Seijuro says rationally as he takes a cup of tea Kiyoko hands him and takes a sip.

>WDYS?
>"So has anyone ever fought one and lived?"
>"Hired killers means they'd be in the area, logically, to kill someone, right? They aren't just checking up on the Shogun of the Dark's plans?"

>>45382985
>"Hired killers means they'd be in the area, logically, to kill someone, right? They aren't just checking up on the Shogun of the Dark's plans?"
We should focus on the present, I'd say

>>45382985
>"Hired killers means they'd be in the area, logically, to kill someone, right? They aren't just checking up on the Shogun of the Dark's plans?"

>>45382776
>"JINRAI THE BLADE"
>"This is one of the more notable and recognizable members of the group. A highly skilled swordsman and, he favors using heavy blades like odachi in his kills. He tends to use a mild amount of stealth approaching the target before cruelly butchering the target's guards and all of the immediate witnesses. He seems to relish the art of killing, and uses his profession as an assassin as an excuse to hone his combat skills. He frequently gives his foes a chance to fight back, but kills them all the same, cutting through them like his namesake, the hurricane. Most of our information suggests he's a former Crane samurai, possibly a duelist."

I would not be surprised if this guy is actually Jirozame In'ei. >>45382985
>"Hired killers means they'd be in the area, logically, to kill someone, right? They aren't just checking up on the Shogun of the Dark's plans?"

>>45382985
>"Hired killers means they'd be in the area, logically, to kill someone, right? They aren't just checking up on the Shogun of the Dark's plans?"

>>45382985
>>"Hired killers means they'd be in the area, logically, to kill someone, right? They aren't just checking up on the Shogun of the Dark's plans?"

>>45383032
Jirozame In'ei could also be the Shogun of the Dark himself

>>45383032
To be honest, In'ei sounds like a pretty typical Jirozame. They're all a bunch of hedonistic nihilists with a callous and violent bent, because that's what the founder was like and everyone he recruited were of similar mindsets. It's an entire clan of part-time bandits that only exists and survives by Imperial fiat because Jirozame was the bastard son of a Hantei.

"So if they're assassins...," you begin.
"Yes. Logically they're in the area to kill someone. The problem is with half of the notables in the Empire at Winter Court it could be practically anybody, though one assumes that the assassin that killed his target would never escape the city," Kiyoko adds.
"Yes. One WOULD assume that," Seijuro says in a doubting tone of voice.
There's a pause as you ponder that statement...no hired killer would take a job like murdering an official in Winter Court without first being sure they could survive.

>>45383333
That's one of the possible explanation anyway.
I REALLY liked the Shark Clan; they were pretty great ready-made villain samurai.

I must take a break here, not the least of which is that I simply don't know where to take the plot next.
I have to spend more time fleshing out my ideas AFTER I have them, I swear to fucking God.

>>45382940
I'll spoiler a bit and just tell ya that this is a "no", mostly so that folks don't go trying to investigate down paths that lead nowhere.

>>45383436
Well, I'd like to see us have plenty of court participation in addition to the mystery, if that's in any way (which it probably isn't) helpful.

>>45383951
Every little bit help.
Only after QMing did it occur to me that my RPG group's GMing style (where we round-robin around the table so that everyone who wants to gets a chance to play or GM the game) that has given me much experience as a player AND a GM has left me very ill-equipped for long storylines. That and my love of every genre on planet Earth rather than just a specific few means my interest shifts too quickly to stay interested, causing my ideas to fall apart after long.

I don't think I'm particularly well-equipped for QMing, as one anon said once; I rather doubt I could ever get a quest into the high double-digits of installments.

>>45384047
>as one anon said once; I rather doubt I could ever get a quest into the high double-digits of installments.
Oh hey, that was me! I was just being a grumpy little shit though (I miss wulin shenanigans)

>>45384047
Quite honestly, I hope I achieve your level of skill someday. I've got ideas for games, but I'm not good at improv, and I have no idea how to scale enemies yet. Last game I ran we had a TPK first session.

>>45383436
Still running?
Either way, thanks for what youve done so far.

>>45384047
Most great storys get felt out as you go.

If you look at most media, the most logical step for events is either a) we speak to officials (and our wife nearly murders us for dying) and security is tightened even more.
b) we stumble into an attempt and get embroiled. Maybe running into an assasin before hand maybe not.
c) Utterly nothing happens for a time and we get dragged into court politics for a bit (good place to lay clues as to assasins goals).

>>45384047
I hope you continue this one for as long as you can. I like the characters already

>>45384119
You were probably correct anyway.
I mean, if you could see the crazy number of RPG PDF's I have you'd see that I never had that ONE genre I got really good at and really liked. Instead I had the thirteen or so genres I liked.

I actually used to assume most folks on here played two dozen different games, but colour my surprise when it's almost always just different forms of D&D.

>>45384167
Most folks dont get the chance. Folks on /tg/ are almost invariably here because we have little better to do other than play the nth time in a campaign in a setting we most likely know back to front.

>>45384167
Any recommendations? I'm already learning L5R, Shadowrun, pathfinder/4/5e, and PTU, along with a handful of assorted homebrews.

>>45384131
There is a lot of ass-pulling in my games. I have been accused often of not doing enough planning.
>>45384147
My problem is most of those things would barely get us up to 50 posts in almost cases before they got dealt with.
>>45384151
>I like the characters already
If there's ONE thing I'm proud of, it's my characters. My plots may be for shit and my planning may be awful but I'll be damned if I'm not good at interesting casts. It's harder to do that with some genres though.
Samurai stuff is tricky because I want it to FEEL like samurai stuff but there is a ridiculous small allowance of acceptable behavior in that culture.

>>45384201
Traveller for modular science fiction games; it's the D&D of scifi games. Also, I'm like 98% sure that Firefly was based off of a game of Trav Joss Whedon played.
Spirit of the Century for NAZI PUNCHING and other Pulp Hero Shenanigans.
All Flesh Must Be Eaten for zombies.
The One Ring for ACTUAL Tolkien stuff (as in like the books, not the films).
Mutants and Masterminds for superheroics of any kind.
The Dresden Files RPG (a FATE system) for urban fantasy, though it's geared most specifically towards replicating the novel series.
7th Sea (getting a new edition 11 years later in October) for Swashbuckling Advdnture in Not-Europe, which is sort of the companion game for L5R, using many similar mechanics and sharing the dickweed lead writer.

And that's just for starters. But really, do what interests YOU first and don't necessarily follow my recommendations.
Maybe you wanna just pick a generic system and run with it; that's okay too!

>>45384199
Yup. I always assumed my group was normal, but seeing as I've never had the kind of horror stories I hear on here for the most part I eventually realized I'm kind of an oddity.

>>45384228
I honestly think you could make a ton of interesting plot points with these characters, even after the winter thing. Shit just having scorpions for family members should make it somewhat easy to come up with random plots

>>45384370
Probably.
I'm just not sure how long I myself am capable of focusing on the genre that long, especially with all the other crap I gotta do with my time these days.

>>45384332
>though it's geared most specifically towards replicating the novel series.
I'm not sure what the problem is that you found it necessary to point out. Nevertheless, this is very helpful. Thanks Wulin!

>>45384389
Notebook + pen.
Carry it around and just jot down plot ideas and other random shit whenever you think about it. After that your asspulling skills are good enough to make a story, really we dont care if its a rehashed plot so long as its told well.

>>45384389
I think you kinda screwed up by infodropping a bunch of the shadow shogun related info so soon. If you hadn't we'd have a clear "alright try to figure out more" without figuring out more leading to too much info to early.

>>45384448
>I'm not sure what the problem is that you found it necessary to point out.
Some people don't like the books.
And I actually left out the mecha genre options, of which I have TWO depending on which type of mecha you want to play.
Or the Song of Ice and Fire RPG.
These companies should pay me to make quests and spam their bloody settings or something.
>>45384454
My writing teacher once told me that all plots are rehashed; we've just tricked ourselves into thinking otherwise most days.
>>45384459
It sounds like it, but I wasn't planning to make this a long quest at all.
You were never going to confront the Shogun of the Dark (who is meant to be a recurring shadow-villain in case I wanted to pick this up again); it was basically just the Rokki-Dan who are the primary threat.

>>45384572
Yeah that still applies, we already know all there is to know about the rokki-dan. So we can't try to learn more without learning about the shogun of the dark, who isn't actually supposed to be part if things.

>>45384686
I was gonna FOXHOUND it, basically.
You know everything about them and the rest is advancing through the plot and wasting them one by one by spamming Claymores.