Stuart
May 21st, 2006, 21:10
Shinano province, 1562 (Mutsuki) - Spring.
Mochizuki Castle (a small fort and centre of the Mochizuki lands)
“I go, and it is done; the bell invites me.
Hear it not, Duncan, for it is a knell
That summons thee to heaven, or to hell”
The 4th Battle of Kawanakajima is only a few months old, Takeda Shingen and Uesugi Kenshin have fought a bloody battle with Takeda ("The Tiger of Kai") gaining a pyrrhic victory. Much of the province is in Takeda hands; the Yoshihuru and Ogasawara clans have been pushed to the edges of their holdings and effectively expelled (they have allied themselves to the Uesugi). The once powerful Mochizuki allied themselves to the Takeda but their daiymo (Mochizuki Moritoki) was killed in the battle.
Takeda Shingen has installed his nephew (the eldest son of his younger brother, Nobushige) as daiymo. Mochizuki Nobamusa was vociferously supported by the important and powerful samurai Mochizuki general, Sakai Masatada.
The widow of Moritoki has been in counsel with the great Takeda Shingen for much of the winter and has announced that she will be retiring to the village of Nazu that nestles securely (if somewhat remotely) in the mountains. Katsura Nakahito (if Sakai Masatada was Moritoki's "right hand" then Nakahito was surely his "left") has informed you that the Lady Chiyome is to be escorted with all due care to her new home on the orders of Takeda Shingen himself. Onr installed in the village you are to take further orders from her.
The remnants of the Yoshihuru and Ogasawara are a threat that you are well aware of. Bandits in the hills who have thrived on the carnage of the numerous battles and skirmishes in the area are also going to be a nuisance. As you gather for one last game of cards with friends you are accosted by Kido Harumoto, an experienced samurai who has survived a a crippling injury and been rewarded for his valor in the recent battle with a small holding of land not far from the castle. Harumoto is rather drunk and eager to retell his part in the battle, as the evening wears on he keeps coming back to you to repeat his story but you sense he is disturbed about something and wishes to reveal something far more important. Outside the inn, Harumoto begins to tell you of the death of Moritoki; the spear he took certainly drove him off his horse as the Uesugi finally fled but Harumoto was one of the first warriors to reach Sakai Masatada's small band of retainers and he saw the body of the daiymo.
"My Lord did not die of that Uesugi spear !"
Harumoto will not be drawn on exactly what he saw despite his drunken state but before he collapses he adds that he is worried about the well-being of Moritoki's only surviving male child, Takeshi (now aged 4 years old).
There is little you can do, in the morning you are to escort Lady Chiyome (and her daughter) to the village. A week's journey up into the mountains with bandits and enemy soldiers a genuine threat.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
I hope that whets the appetite - a ruleset is being put together to help with this semi-historical game set in the Sengoku period of feudal Japan. Those players with "Legends of the Samurai" (rpgnow.com) will find things easier to begin with but no real experience of the details are necessary.
Please pm me if you need more information.
A start date is still very much "up in the air" but Devinnight (fum) has made some wonderful looking generic tokens and I'm hoping for a start some time in Summer.
Saturday evening (GMT) looks to be ok for the three players I think I have so far, looking at three sessions per month (one off for good behaviour).
Mochizuki Castle (a small fort and centre of the Mochizuki lands)
“I go, and it is done; the bell invites me.
Hear it not, Duncan, for it is a knell
That summons thee to heaven, or to hell”
The 4th Battle of Kawanakajima is only a few months old, Takeda Shingen and Uesugi Kenshin have fought a bloody battle with Takeda ("The Tiger of Kai") gaining a pyrrhic victory. Much of the province is in Takeda hands; the Yoshihuru and Ogasawara clans have been pushed to the edges of their holdings and effectively expelled (they have allied themselves to the Uesugi). The once powerful Mochizuki allied themselves to the Takeda but their daiymo (Mochizuki Moritoki) was killed in the battle.
Takeda Shingen has installed his nephew (the eldest son of his younger brother, Nobushige) as daiymo. Mochizuki Nobamusa was vociferously supported by the important and powerful samurai Mochizuki general, Sakai Masatada.
The widow of Moritoki has been in counsel with the great Takeda Shingen for much of the winter and has announced that she will be retiring to the village of Nazu that nestles securely (if somewhat remotely) in the mountains. Katsura Nakahito (if Sakai Masatada was Moritoki's "right hand" then Nakahito was surely his "left") has informed you that the Lady Chiyome is to be escorted with all due care to her new home on the orders of Takeda Shingen himself. Onr installed in the village you are to take further orders from her.
The remnants of the Yoshihuru and Ogasawara are a threat that you are well aware of. Bandits in the hills who have thrived on the carnage of the numerous battles and skirmishes in the area are also going to be a nuisance. As you gather for one last game of cards with friends you are accosted by Kido Harumoto, an experienced samurai who has survived a a crippling injury and been rewarded for his valor in the recent battle with a small holding of land not far from the castle. Harumoto is rather drunk and eager to retell his part in the battle, as the evening wears on he keeps coming back to you to repeat his story but you sense he is disturbed about something and wishes to reveal something far more important. Outside the inn, Harumoto begins to tell you of the death of Moritoki; the spear he took certainly drove him off his horse as the Uesugi finally fled but Harumoto was one of the first warriors to reach Sakai Masatada's small band of retainers and he saw the body of the daiymo.
"My Lord did not die of that Uesugi spear !"
Harumoto will not be drawn on exactly what he saw despite his drunken state but before he collapses he adds that he is worried about the well-being of Moritoki's only surviving male child, Takeshi (now aged 4 years old).
There is little you can do, in the morning you are to escort Lady Chiyome (and her daughter) to the village. A week's journey up into the mountains with bandits and enemy soldiers a genuine threat.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
I hope that whets the appetite - a ruleset is being put together to help with this semi-historical game set in the Sengoku period of feudal Japan. Those players with "Legends of the Samurai" (rpgnow.com) will find things easier to begin with but no real experience of the details are necessary.
Please pm me if you need more information.
A start date is still very much "up in the air" but Devinnight (fum) has made some wonderful looking generic tokens and I'm hoping for a start some time in Summer.
Saturday evening (GMT) looks to be ok for the three players I think I have so far, looking at three sessions per month (one off for good behaviour).