Character Generation
The following section is a very general overview of character creation. At the bottom of the page, click on the CharGen link for a more in depth guide to the process.
Step 1: Pick Your Clan
This is the most defining aspect of any Legend of the Five Ring character, and the one that will most impact your roleplaying experience. Select the Great Clan or Minor Clan from which your character originates. Characters from the Imperial families requires GM approval beforehand.
Step 2: Pick Your Family
Even within a single clan, the various families offer a wide variety of characters that can be created. Once your clan is chosen, pick one of the families that make up the clan in order to receive additional benefits. The mechanical benefits of individual families are listed under the Great Clans to which they belong.
Step 3: Heritage Table
Heritage Tables are an optional mechanic to help players develop interesting backgrounds for their characters. By rolling on their clans’ Heritage Tables, players can create connections between their characters and the past, as well as planting plot seeds that may germinate in the future.
Step 4: Pick Your School
Within the families of the Great Clans there are various Schools that teach ancient, secret Techniques of considerable power. These give characters an edge over their enemies and identify them as a trusted member of the clan.
Step 5: Customize Your Character
Experience Points are given to characters to represent the improvement of their abilities over time based upon the hardships they have faced. They are given to characters at the end of adventures, but also at the time of character creation in order to represent all that a character has learned during their lifetime up to the point that the campaign begins. A normal starting character begins with 40 Experience Points to spend on purchasing Traits, Advantages, and Skills. Additional Experience Points may be acquired by purchasing Disadvantages.
Step 6: Derived Attributes
Certain abilities or traits that a character possesses are determined based upon other things. To complete your character, note his Honor (defined by School), Status (1.0 by default), Glory (1.0 by default), and calculate his Insight Rank. The character's Insight is equal to ten times the sum of all their Rings, plus the sum of all their Skills. The character's Insight Rank (which determines his School Rank) is equal to the following:
- Insight 000-149 : Insight Rank 1
- Insight 150-174 : Insight Rank 2
- Insight 175-199 : Insight Rank 3
- Insight 200-224 : Insight Rank 4
- Insight 225-250 : Insight Rank 5
and so forth.