|
Jaime Lawrence
Australia
Sydney
New South Wales
See Below.
Evil Bob: Lawful good since 2038!
-
The Great Clans is probably as important to a new player of Legend of the Five Rings as the Core Rulebook for the system. I can’t say it more plainly than that. This book is a vital resource for both players and GMs who are new to the game, simply because it is the most detailed examination of the different clans of Rokugan since The Way of the Clans series.
The L5R 4th edition line has made an issue of quality production values – the folks at AEG are big on delivering exciting, well-made, inspirational products to their clientele and the Great Clans fits this bill in many ways. It’s a sturdy hardback on glossy paper and illustrated in colour throughout – the art itself is breathtaking and for me, as a fan of the card game, it’s a tour of history (“Hey, I know that guy, he was part of my Berzerker Deck pack at Kotei ’02!”). Content-wise, the quality is also very high. Even for an L5R scholar such as myself, there are new tales or interesting retellings in the book. For a new player, I could only imagine that the vistas of possibility this text opens up are breathtaking.
The structure is straightforward; the book works through the clans alphabetically, giving a detailed outline of each.
First, you get a history of the clan with about half a dozen major events plus the events surrounding the clan at the Dawn of the Empire. Each of these generally contain suggestions of campaigns that could work in the era or based around the clan.
A detailed look at the families of the clan follows, connecting them back to the history of the clan and explaining the role of each in the clan structure.
Each clan’s heroes from various eras get both stats and biographies – usually about 6 or 7 pages’ worth.
Major holdings of the clan that haven’t already been covered in the Core Rulebook get attention here, again designed to inspire games.
Each clan’s specific powers, talents and missions are detailed, such as the Crab’s Seige Warfare or the Scorpion’s Ninja. The reasons for their differences from the ‘normal’ world of the Rokugani are explained both mechanically and in storyline terms.
Finally, new mechanics for each clan are detailed, including the last of the ‘family schools’, ancestors, alternate paths and advantages/disadvantages.
At the end of the book, appendices cover the vassal families of the different clans and their roles and the infamous L5R heritage tables receive an update.
As I said earlier, the level of detail in the book is excellent. The reader comes away with a satisfying sense of the clan, its place in the history of Rokugan and its flavour. You can get this from the core rulebook, but not to the same level – this book is like the history of another reality and is just packed with ideas for an L5R campaign. It scores a healthy 4.5 Doji Storytellers out of 5!
 
-
|
|
|
See Below.
