Character Generation Discussion

[jemmus]

For discussing things that come up during CharGen

[jemmus]

Here's a character sheet Excel that a player in the Frank's Bushido game made. I found it really useful. I believe it calculates everything correctly, but everyone should double-check.

Character Sheet
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/ ... sp=sharing

[Marullus]

So, for characters...

This is the land of Nippon that the rather motley band of fellow travelers set out on, seeking practice at their professions, wealth perhaps, honor and glory. For this one, a sword quest, to test his mettle against the weapons and claws of all of the world. For that one, an escape from the dull, crass life of a merchant. For another, something beyond a life spent in a gambling den, hustling for coins every day and surrendering most of them to the bosses, the gang, and the local rulers and their samurai police. And for yet others, perhaps a chance to erase the family’s shame at their lord’s defeat in battle, and become not criminals, but samurai once again.

I'm excited to see what kind of Motley Band we end up with.

I'm batting around ideas. Currently, Genyo, the Low Ronin Bushi (or maybe Temple-sworn Sohei). I made him with a previous version of the spreadsheet but can update into the new version when it's finalized. He's a strong, heavy hitting tank type whose softer side is as a chill musician following Buddhism and practicing Zen by playing the Samisen and finding joys in life (Musical Instrument, Courtly Dance, Popular Dance).

I'm happy if he ends up being a wandering ronin/musician, or if we take up a temple angle as a Sohei (once Jemmus clarifies that for us).

These are just initial ideas; I don't want to finalize him until we get some other concepts on the table so we can mesh them better.

[Enoch]

Well, I lucked out and rolled an 86 on birth status, so if nobody has a problem with a ninja in the party, I don't have to beg to switch the status. Ninja get a weapon for each of their Bugei (at least the ones that use a weapon). It doesn't specify, but I'm assuming that the blowgun would be a single-length blowgun (the most basic sort).

[jemmus]

In the old Japanese movies they're maybe a little less than a yard long. They double as a breathing tube for ninja stealthily walking under water. They also use them to blow poison powder into people's faces and into rooms. All screenwriters' imagination, of course. Your ninja can decide how long he wants his blowgun to be.

[Enoch]

Current-unnamed high-rank ninja:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/ ... sp=sharing

I'm thinking something along the lines of the son of a clan leader who struck a deal or alliance with a samurai clan or temple that's linked to our group. My character objected a little too forcefully and a little too publicly, so his father has dispatched him as the clan's representative. Now I may not like it, but I cannot dishonor my clan or my father.

I'm happy to adjust any or all of it to fit the party, though!

[ffilz]

Ok, still some work to do, but I'm working up a Shinto Priest (Gakusho),

Birth Table roll was 83 Middle Merchant. ON 2 (20 after Gakusho), Money 4, RF 2
Age roll 20.

STR 8 (13 - 5)
DFT 7
SPD 10
HLH 10
WT 20 (10+10)
WL 25 (10+15)

Hirigana 60* (initial from Merchant)
Katakana 80* (initial from Heimin)
Commerce 45* (initial from Merchant)
Herbalist 40* (initial from Merchant)
Calligraphy 34* (initial from Gakusho)
Meditation 20* (initial from Gakusho)
Rhetoric 65* (initia from Gakusho)
Theologoy (Shinten) 45* (initial from Gakusho)
Popular Dance 37* (initial from Heimin)
Sacred Dance 37* (initial from Gakusho)
Bojutsu 35* (initial from Gakusho)
Magic 45*

Still need to choose a Yoga and figure out some numbers.

[Marullus]

We have tidbits scattered across the threads - I pulled together all these facts and will reply shortly with an updated character accordingly.

~The PCs will start off in a Minamoto province, perhaps two weeks or so travel from Kyoto.

We'll likely start in the province of Shinano, which is a little east of the center of the map.

A mountainous area, like most of Nippon.

...individual bushi ride forward and issue challenges. "I am Ikeda no Tsuneyoshi, son of Ikeda no Tsunehiro, who took six heads at the Battle of Uji Bridge. My grandfather was Seta no Hideteru, who slew the great earth spider of Izumo. I challenge any one of you to single combat!"

Only landowning samurai and ronin have family names. For example, Neno no Saburo ("Saburo of Neno," with Neno being the name of a place). It's the same as aristocratic European names (de Tocqueville, von Richthofen, etc.) Other castes have only a given name ("Saburo")

At this point in Nippon's history an Okinawan would be considered a foreigner. He/she would probably be assumed to be Chinese. The character would probably speak Japanese with an accent. If you roll a high rank, we could maybe assume that the character is a delegate from Okinawa's ruler or a big trading house. In that case, you would have an appointed madoguchi ("window"), which is a kind of local chaperone who helps a foreigner adjust to Japan.

*Not exactly historically accurate for this period, but this is Nippon, not 12th century Japan. We haven't gotten to the yokai and bakemon yet. Which are historically accurate(!)

Let's not forgot the other source of friction in Nippon-- monsters. Because they haven't forgotten about you.

Kwaidan ("Ghost Stories"), an old 1965 Japanese film, is great for getting the feel of Nippon of this era. ... Not the urban part, but the foggy, chilly, northern backwater part facing the sea to Korea.

Related links for Shinano:
Period map - https://www.classicalimages.com/product ... nce-nagano
Wiki - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shinano_Province

Also, providing a focus within Shinano on Mount Togakushi and its five shrines.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Togakushi_Shrine

[Marullus]

Given the setting details elucidated above, I adjusted to take my character out of the Kyoto temple and instead build him as local to our starting region as a Low Ronin, not temple-Sohei. His family was minor Buke with responsibilities over sparsely-populated mountains and their shrines -- their stripping was likely an afterthought by the conquering Minamoto. Knowledge of the mountains translates into hunting down criminals trying to flee there, still executing their duty for the new Daiymo (but as Ronin, without the honor), but also connected to the Heimin local woodcutters and shrine clergy with whom they still have a legacy of respect. Kentaro's personal penchant for folklore (an added non-canon skill, but hopefully fitting our "monsters in the hills" storyline!), and zen in the joy of music leave him with some respect in the Heimin community as a quintessential local, in addition to being the closest thing to a Buke protector that they might have...

Togakushi no Kentaro ("the Strong Thick Son")

Born to a Low Ronin family, displaced from their place of honor as the Samurai of Mount Togakushi after the Minamoto defeated and replaced the Daiymo his family served. Their honor was broken and their lands disbursed as spoils to the Minamoto's loyal families.
Genyo was born proud, taught the honor of his grandfather, (Togakushi no Daisuke "the Great Help"), and the duties of his father, (Togakushi no Katashi "the Hard one". He trained at the hand of his father who made ends meet by tracking down offenders for greater families, and bears no love for the Minamoto and little more for the Taira. He watched his father struggle and when he recently died, took up his father's no-dachi and function to serve the greater families and survive. To gain honor for service, his father served as madoguchi to Okinawa no Ryō, a Buddhist who visited the Togakushi Shrines for seven years, hosted in young Kentaro's home. His influence balanced the father's severity with his buddhist nature, love of music, and fascination with every tale of the rich local folklore. He gifted the boy Kentaro his Samisen when he returned to his native land.
Kentaro is skilled in three areas: His grandfather's legacy as a Buke [sword, bow, and horse] for which he bears his heavy armor and dai-sho; his father's hard life as a bounty-catcher for greater families [Sumai, Hojojutsu, and Tracking] for which he bears his father's poweful No-Dachi; and his passion for music which he uses to provide entertainment and convey local folklore traditions (a passion from his Buddhist mentor for which he himself has mediocre skill) [Musical Instrument, Folkore, Court Dance, Popular Dance], for which he carries the Samisen.

Character Sheet

For those who find it helpful, my sheets have a lot of updated equations: calculation of Zanshin, a toggle to incorporate encumbrance, etc. You can borrow them if you like.

Photo from the Togakushi Shrine...

[Enoch]

Are we all assumed to be native to Shinano Province?

[spanningtree]

I think I am getting closer with this: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1z28jSK ... sp=sharing

I have some questions though:
Any ruling on armor and mages? I was intending to move the character down to partial samurai but am not sure where the standing is on that.
How is initial Ki derived?
The birth table indicates 5 dice for this character, is that 5d6? What coin type is the resulting number?
How are initial spells from the chosen schools determined?

Please excuse the questions! Getting there!

[Enoch]

I think I am getting closer with this: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1z28jSK ... sp=sharing

I have some questions though:
Any ruling on armor and mages? I was intending to move the character down to partial samurai but am not sure where the standing is on that.
How is initial Ki derived?
The birth table indicates 5 dice for this character, is that 5d6? What coin type is the resulting number?
How are initial spells from the chosen schools determined?

Please excuse the questions! Getting there!

• As far as I know, the system has no restrictions on casting in armor.
• Initial ki is generally 1, unless you've mastered a skill at chargen, which shugenja usually do, I suspect. It looks to me like you max out all 3 scripts and would start at ki 4 (though I'd love somebody to verify).
• What that number means is hidden in the text on Inheritance. You get Xd3 Gold, Xd6 Silver, and (Xd6)*10 Copper. So you'd get 5d3 gold, 5d6 silver, and (5d6)x10 copper.

[Marullus]

Are we all assumed to be native to Shinano Province?

I don't assume EVERYONE is. I chose to make my character intensely local, with a healthy dose of superstition driven by his knowledge of local folklore.

Any ruling on armor and mages? I was intending to move the character down to partial samurai but am not sure where the standing is on that.

Did you roll your initial status from the Birth Table on page 39? Not sure what you mean by "move down to partial samurai."

I think your high-samurai start is good (with the "tutor" background already discussed by Jemmus.)

I think it's clear there's no armor restriction for spellcasting like D&D. The Shugenja getting a -5 to STR is what matters. You can dump enough points into STR to wear armor if you wish, but 20+ points in STR is going to be a detriment to his mental attributes. If you aren't "unencumbered" by your STR score, it will hinder Deftness and Speed and give a -1 or -2 to all your BCS, including magic.

...your Samurai begins with a 2d3 Armor Class and a 30% chance of a horse. (Plus automatically a Dai-sho set and garb.) See what armor you inherit by armor class then look on page 56 to see what armor it actually means. It will weigh 15-30lbs from the roll. Decide your Strength accordingly, if you want to be able to wear it, at what Encumberance penalty is it worth doing so, etc. (With your Strength of 9, you can wear AC 3, carry a wakizashi, and nothing else. If you roll AC 4+ you need to be lightly encumbered and accept that -1 BCS.)

How is initial Ki derived?

Initial Ki is basically "number of skills at 99 plus your level" with some fine tuning circumstances later on in play. That means almost all characters start with a Ki of 1, EXCEPT for Shugenja - since they are mental-based and multiply all literacy scores by x2, they can potentially start with up to 4 KI based on what literacy skills their caste gives them and what level they begin at.

The birth table indicates 5 dice for this character, is that 5d6? What coin type is the resulting number?

That's under "1083.0 INHERITANCE" - you are going to roll x dice for each coin type. So with a 5, that is:
5d3 gold 5d6 silver 5d6x10 copper

How are initial spells from the chosen schools determined?

Your initial spell schools have a score equal to your Wits. So, compare your Wits score to p. 68 and you can know the spells at your score or lower within your discipline.

So, with Wits 23 and schools of Fire and Metal, you have:
Bind Fire
Fire Shield
Fireflash
The Smokes of Nai
Fire Eyes
Bind Metal
Metal Shield
Omnipresent Sword
Bar Beasts
Armor of Heaven

[spanningtree]

Thanks a bunch everyone! I think I am sorta good to go. Dropped the armor and moved some points from strength to some other areas. I have not detailed the spells yet nor the inventory.

[Marullus]

At STR 7 your damage modifier is -1 (same at 5-7, it goes back to 0 if you go back up to 8).

I am super impressed you rolled a Master Quality Katana and Wakizashi; it's honestly a shame you don't have the strength to wield them (with +3 BCS and +3 damage). Might be worth considering STR 10 to at least wield the Wakizashi with it being such rare legendary quality...

Don't forget to buy your other gear.

[jmacatty]

Before I can create a character, there is an issue I would like to get clarified: armor. When I've played Bushido in the past, we never wore armor above AC 3, unless we were actually in battle, or anticipating same. One time a member of the party donned AC 5 to assist a town protector and had to explain to the protector why he was behaving like a bandit. Rule 1103.2 notes, "Any Armor Class up to 3 may be worn publicly. Wearing heavier armor without legitimate cause (and legal right) will bring suspicion of banditry or other evil intent upon the character." I'm not much of a stickler for rules, I just got used to these rules. Can I get clarification on when we can wear AC 4/5 without issues?

[Marullus]

Jemmus posted that last week over here.

Wearing armor in civilized areas
Wearing armor in civilized areas makes NPCs suspicious (unless, of course, the wearer is a part of the local soldiery). There is a -15 penalty to Initial Attitude rolls for characters who are over-armored. 2010.2 (p.2 of the GM's section). I'm going to say that the penalty also applies on roads between major towns. (People will suspect armored characters of being bandits or otherwise not having peaceful intentions). The penalty won't apply if the character is on a minor road to a wilder place, such as the mountains or a swamp. But a lesser penalty may apply when passing through villages along the way.

In some urban areas, wearing any armor is prohibited by law. Carrying weapons may also be prohibited or restricted, especially for non-buke. 1090.2 (p.42 of the player's section) Characters will probably learn of any prohibitions through Rumors well before entering an area with a ban.

My character wears his AC 8, 40lb, heavy armor at the unencumbered level, usually in his dangerous mountain home area. I also hope that his status with the local mountain village Heimin is sufficient that he's recognizable and perhaps considered a town protector. I personally look forward to playing through the occasional -15 penalty to Initial Attitude as he ventures elsewhere.

[spanningtree]

At STR 7 your damage modifier is -1 (same at 5-7, it goes back to 0 if you go back up to 8).

I am super impressed you rolled a Master Quality Katana and Wakizashi; it's honestly a shame you don't have the strength to wield them (with +3 BCS and +3 damage). Might be worth considering STR 10 to at least wield the Wakizashi with it being such rare legendary quality...

Don't forget to buy your other gear.

I think I got some pretty good roles on birth and weapons, maybe instead of trying to wedge a square peg into a round hole I should retool as a Bushi? Thoughts? I would have fun with either but feel like I'm looking a gift horse in the mouth.

[ffilz]

At STR 7 your damage modifier is -1 (same at 5-7, it goes back to 0 if you go back up to 8).

I am super impressed you rolled a Master Quality Katana and Wakizashi; it's honestly a shame you don't have the strength to wield them (with +3 BCS and +3 damage). Might be worth considering STR 10 to at least wield the Wakizashi with it being such rare legendary quality...

Don't forget to buy your other gear.

I think I got some pretty good roles on birth and weapons, maybe instead of trying to wedge a square peg into a round hole I should retool as a Bushi? Thoughts? I would have fun with either but feel like I'm looking a gift horse in the mouth.

A Bushi might make more sense, but I think it could also be interesting, you have inherited a nearly legendary daisho yet you have chosen a path other than the warrior. Why?

My character's path is more obvious. 2nd son of an herbalist who will not inherit the business, so he goes off to join the priesthood.

On attribute point spending, looking things over, I decided I did want to spend the 13 points to have an 8 STR to be able to use the bo, but that meant something had to give. Looking at things, it seemed like skimping on Deftness wouldn't negatively impact him TOO badly. I sure didn't want to skimp on Wit and Will...

[Marullus]

I mean... you can have and use your armor, swords, and high status regardless of the class you choose.

If you rolled Middle tier Samurai in Service with Master-quality swords, you're basically a member of the Minamoto or Taira clans or their immediate cadets. You can embrace that no matter what follows! There's great roleplay there and lots of hooks - perhaps your family is the honored clan who usurped all my family's lands and titles and barely noticed because they were that minor to you?

If you're a Bushi, you are upholding all that family honor stuff and the rest of the group (a secret ninja, a rural ronin bounty hunter, a Shinto priest who gave up his family ties, and another Shugenja) are all more ne'er-do-wells. The GM said he has glue to stick us together, and there's plenty of angles for you to take that story, but your role becomes distinctly alpha-male and that has to be what you want.

If you're a Shugenja, you have all the privileges of that birth but dropped your On in half by taking the less honorable magical road. In that case your story allows you more ne'er-do-well options of your own.

Your choice of Metal (heck, and Fire) also lends well to a hybrid character. It is reasonable to play a character with a little less magical oomph who can hold his own with a blade (especially as you are able to summon magic Katanas and enhance your armor class mystically). It's possible for you to do both. If you go that route, I recommend -
-Str 10 so you can use the Wakizashi fully (Total -2 BCS on Katana so you can do it, but your magical Katana conjuring is better.)
- Speed to 15 gets you two actions around - blades, spells, or combination
- that's 12 points from elsewhere. You can take 2 points from Wit and not lose spells (and Armor is an important spell) and 10 from Will which lowers your spells per day for the benefit of getting some swordsmanship.