DO NOT ACT LIKE AN ASSHAT. This is a hard-ish sci-fi setting. There is no magic, no thing like Ki or the like. I will allow two charachter a player, but you gotta make me one and get it accepted before you can make your second. Do not meta game. Your charachter is not all knowing, he should not be acting on information he couldn't possibly know, such as a commoner knowing the intricate dealings of a Company Court. Please respect one another, this is a place of roleplay and community, not high school. Leave whatever personal qualms and drama at the door. As the GM, I reserve last say in conflicts and matters of the RP.
---------------------- What is this RP? ---------------------- Sengoku Space Opera is "A neo-feudal Space Setting". That is to say, society has regressed into a feudal corperate state, while technology and science has progressed. Lords and Ladies rule as proto-monarchs, warring with one another for power and the title of Shogun. The privileged class are Samurai and similair, while those below live in indenture and debt. ----------------------- Why you should join? ----------------------- This rp is gonna be openended and expansive. I plan on tailoring the world around you players, taking in consideration your backstories and personal goals. I hope to create a vibrant, violent world together with you. If you like space battles, political intrigue, feudal japanese aesthetics and social dynamics, then this is the RP for you. ------------------------ Mood Setters: youtube.com/watch?v=jrTMMG0zJyI
We can escape a dying earth, we can withstand an alien horde. But in the end, when power is dangled in front of a man and when a throne is vacated. The Dying of Man does not matter, and we fight each other more fiercely than any alien horde could ever muster.- Aiko Takeda, Daughter of President Takeda of the Takeda Corperation.
Humanity made it to the stars, we transcended our homeworld and spread like only humans do. We spanned the galaxy, terraforming dead rocks, inhabiting and taming wild and alien worlds. We grew, we expanded, we harvested. Earth became a memory and then our home all but vanished from the collected conscious. We had no problem making new earths, new homes. Megapolis worlds and factory worlds. Minecrews working asteroid belts and interstellar jumpgates putting systems at hours distance.
But even so, when humans spread and over large distances, they end up sowing the seeds of isolation and distrust among their own. And when distrust grow to outright animosity, humanity do what it always do. It wars with itself. For a while, this was kept at bay due to the first contact with a truly extraterrestrial species. The Eintri was a threat to all of humanity, and so we banded together. A legendary commander stepped up, and he was given full control of every companies private army, every planetary recruit and under his leadership we survived. We, humanity, briefly looked upon him as a sort of savior.
Others, the more militant and more hungry for power saw him as the highest of aspirations. A lord who united all, to turn back the barbarian or in this case alien hordes. There was a term for those kind of leader who had survived the blending of language as humanity travelled the stars and cultures melded together. It was sei’i taishõgun.
And all of them, from every corner of human space, wanted to be the next Shogun.
And it is the nature of the human soul, to ever want more. To ever crave something we do not possess. Humanity, in its stretched out and constantly fractured state needed a leader to keep it from eating itself. So when that leader died?When there was no longer a brilliant Shogun around? There was suddenly a void left to be filled. And everyone with a claim, a ideal, a vision, rushed in like air out a spaceships hull breach. And so, humanity began to eat itself once more.
The question has now been asked: Who will claim that title, who will seize the throat of the galaxy itself? The religious Tengi Sect, who had taken to worshipping the remains of a dead alien civilization? Or the fearsome Obucorp, whose contact with more peaceful aliens had given them a edge in technology. Or was it perhaps the IgaCorp, with their million eyes and ears and corporate assassins and spies.
As lines are draw, factions have descended into a almost feudal mindset. Smaller company ceo or faction leaders follow one of the big mega corps and their leaders into battle like modern day samurai. In fact, while the elite corporate soldiers don exoskeletons and top of the line equipment, the indentured men and women drafted to fight for them go into battle with far less impressive gear.
What we do know, is that a new era of war descends upon the human race.
Welcome to Sengoku Space Opera:
I stand upon the edge of all, overlooking nothing. Ruin at my back, ruin before me. They call me Demon, but I strive only to unite us. Only the strong may lead, only the cunning may rule, only the true of character may survive. President Nobunaga of Nobonaga Zaibatsu
This RP will see you take the role of masterless samurai, ninja, warrior monks or similair in a era of constant war. This of course, with the twist of it all taking part in the far far future, and the katanas and Yari you wield being energized crystal blade or monobladed. I aim to blend futurism and the typical tone of old samurai fiction with this. Expect some crazy anime level duels and samurai movie style battles.
Factions:
With humanity fracturing and breaking at the seems, new borders and loyalties were drawn. The many corporations of the human reaches began fighting one another for resources and power. A lot of this fighting took place in courts and trough trade as well, and trough a shrewd combination of wet work, black ops teams, blackmail and good ol space capitalism, a few giants emerged. These Zaibatsus or Mega Corporations soon consolidated their very own territories. In many ways, they reflect the past feudal lords of old earth. Ruling with absolute power, where the Execs and CEO’s have taken the role of Lords while their security commanders and commodores live as privileged class, helping them rule over the working class.
These regions and their rules would end up being split between a a few powerhouses. These factions do everything in their power to expand and subjugate and erase one another as the war grow ever more intense.
Saika Unions:
In the farthest, most remote regions you find the Saika Unions, a group of banded together mining corporations and merchants that found they did not like any of the mega corporations or their terms. They have amassed a rather impressive if a bit outdated fleet, and have adapted a very guerrilla like mindset when fighting of invading companies.
Nobunaga-Zaibatsu:
Referred by common folk as the Obuzai, they are one of the true powerhouses of the war. A massive corperation with hundreds of smaller companies that all but spit out high end weaponry. Many of the other regions find themselves prey to incursions and strikes from the Nabunaga-Zaibatsu with their high tech “Rifle Class” ships and superior shock troops. Especially feared are the crimson armored “samurai” that have sworn to lay down their lives to protect the Zaibatsu leader, A man referred to only as “The Demon”. Its these crimson guardians that were first to set the trend of armed retainers and who made common folk refer to all such retainers as Samurai, like in in distant times, back when humanity was not blended beyond recognition and nations still existed on a earth that still glimmered like a amethyst in the vastness of space.
Tenki-Ikki:
Found in the farthest reaches of human space lie the super sized battle station and home of the Tenki-Ikki, a sect that was founded upon the discovery of a still unknown alien race. The Tenki-Ikki have managed to acquire a large following, and their remote location makes them less desirable as a target. None the less, Obu-Zaibatsu has long tried to lay siege on their holdings, as they view the sects influence among the more common folk a dangerous and insidious thing.
Minamoto Zaibatsu
The Minato Corporation is a family affair, and heralds from the man who first bestowed someone with a title of Shogun. They consider it a near divine mandate that they should shoulder the role as humanities great commander. They are a sizable and respectable faction, one of the four biggest ones and their fights with the Nobuzai have been bloody costly for both sides. They are stronger in numbers then Nobunaga, but their adversaries tactics and superior technology has evened out the battlefield between them.
Tokugawa Corporation
Allied with the NobuZai. The Tokugawa are a rising power, using their alliance with NobuZai to aquire equipment and and resources while amassing a formidable army on their own. Out of all the alliances the TokuCorp-NobuZai alliance is angling to be the most powerful of them all. They are loyal to their allies and together both Companies have grown and expanded aggressively.
IgaCorp:
The IgaCorp is shrouded in mystery and thrive in a climate were trust is hard to come by, and your friends and enemy all look very much the same. IgaCorp rose to prominence during the prelude to the Sengoku Era when the current Shogun were in need of en and women who could run point and infiltrate deep into enemy territory. There were two corporations that took to this task better then any, IgaCorp and Koga.Inc. Iga had long been known for somehow acquiring patents not their own, for closing deals where the competition suddenly went missing or pulled out. Everyone knew, that IgaCorp while not outwardly impressive, had more assassins and corperate hitmen then anyone. Infact, IgaCorps greatest export appeared to be high value elimitation, payed at a premium.
Koga Inc:
Where IgaCorp act as shadows within the affluent and protected sphere, where a nanostilleto is more needed then a gun, where synthetic poison is better then a samurai barging in the door. Koga share a similair yet different approach. KogaInc are experts in wetwork, sending teams of 3-4 men and women who infiltrate and sow disarray within even the most disciplined of ranks before perpetuating what is only described as small scale massacres. Where Iga is the boogyman for CEO and Company Presidents, Koga is the bane of samurai and conscript alike. Several attempts to eradicate the company has been made, legal actions as well as brute force assault on their small but well protected territory.And yet Koga remains.
Takeda Corperation:
The Takeda Corperation is known as one of the most tactical sound and possibly the only thing that stopped NobuZai from winning the war in its infancy. The Corperation prides itself on its super class gunboats that are so fast and maneuverable that they have been used to break trough formation at high speeds, getting to priority targets. Likewise, their Samurai favors lighter exosuit equipped with booster jets for short, blindingly fast charges into battle.
Uesugi Conglomerate
The Uesegis Samurai some of the fiercest and most well thought of combatants of the new Sengoku Era. Owig their success and admiration from the way they practice and hone their skill, the Uesugi Samurai Corps are a force to be reckoned with. Just as NobuZai has become known for their blood red samurai, the Uesegis pure white armor can be recognized anywhere. There is word of a very specific Iron Samurai, piloted by the highest commander himself. This state of the art exosuit is believed to be entirely unstoppable and is reffered to as “The God of War” or Bishamonten.
“The Date Dragons”
Like the Uesugi, the Date have a fierce reputation. But where the Uesagi are a large corperation with a honed but powerfull private army, The Date Dragons is a private army that happens to run a large company. One of the most feared of all Factions, the blue samurai of the Date favors hitting their enemy hard with numbers and fast, extremely mobile exosuits.
"What good is 10 ryu to a dead man Iso, get the guys cash and lets book it." Harleen Izawaga, Yakuza.
Humanity in the Post Earth era.
Cultural Melting Pot: Humanity have melded and mixed and formed new languages out of the old. The common language of the galaxy is a mix of many different dialects and languages. Some old words such as samurai and shogun has resurfaced to prominence but there is no reason to mix other languages in there. Even though the setting is inspired on the Sengoku era and we are going by japanese aesthetics, I don't expect all of you to play japanese looking people. This is the one setting where you can play a pasty white, european samurai and we won’t blink an eye. As I said, the galaxy harbors all kinds and humanity is a melting pot.
Society: With corporations taking the place of goverments and power more or less falling to near singular focal points, the world is now more or less divided into corperate territories that often are split into “vassal states” that are run by sister and daughter companies loyal to the main branch.
It should be noted, while the system feels and operates a like feudalism, its entirely driven by profit. And as a result, many people end up as indentured servants and conscripts. Loans, regulatory debts and financial dependency are the chains which the corporations hold the people accountable with.
The rich remain rich, and live life of indulgence while the Corporations maintain their status cue as long as they field samurai and ashigaru (Foot Soldiers) to aid in the war efforts. The living standards for the common folks is by no means abysmal, the average person may live a life of implied servitude, but living standards are reasonable high, luxury goods and entertainment is plenty.
The Rise of The Warrior Class: As you may have noticed, the samurai have pretty much made a comeback. Samurai are almost all from wealthy families, able to afford exosuits to outfit their sons and daughters. But there are cases of ashigaru who are elevated after heroic and exemplary service, NobuZai in particular is know for this practice. Two of their foremost commanders are people who risen in the ranks from virtually being considered nobodies.
The Underbelly of Society: With war and power comes corruption and crime. There is a lot of mercenary ronin and ashigaru about, who cant go into service for their own reasons. Instead they end up doing oddjobs and becoming enforcers for Oyabuns (Yakuza leaders). These men are more or less accepted by the powers to be, provided they keep the underbelly from getting to bold and to disruptive.
Humanity found that it was not alone among the stars. Over the years, The Eitreri ammassed a massive swarm of soldiers and ships in an attempt to subjugate and devour humanity. Others, Like the Avanti, is more interested in trading with us.
With a buzzing like a million angry flies, I saw them descend. The humming of a thusand starship engines all going into fullspeed as brave men and women engaged the alien horde. In the end, we didn't really win, we just stalled them enough so they lost to. - Isoef Landri, second in command of the 10th Nobuzai attack fleet, promoted to first of command after his predeccessor was eaten alive by Eitreri at the battle of Yomugai.
Eitreri: Buglike and single minded, the Eitreri was a real threat to humanity when they first appeared. Their ships were lighly armed but much smaller in profile and far faster then ours. They would descent like swarms, obliterating unsuspecting targets and rout event the most battle tested of the corporate armadas.
Avanati: Humanoid and not entirely unpleasant to the eye, they are the one race to actually have members of their species live and mingle with humans. The Avanati have a long history of trade with some of the human corporations and Avanati engineers and weapon makers are very sought after. They find the human ingenuity driven mindset and quick adaptability extremely interesting.
Kieto: The Kieto have are a race of rather large, bipedal creatures while vaguely humanoid in shape, are largely silicone based, harboring a form of sentient energy within themselves. Their grasp of energy conservation and energy weaponry is unmatched but they guard their secrets very closely.
"We call it the Emperors Crystal. Because to rule as shogun, you needed the blessing of the Emperor, and so, you must possess enough of the Emperors crystal if you wish to be Shogun. -Ryu Tanaka. Head of RnD for the Tanaka Corperation.
Occular Neuro Interface(ONI)
The Oni is the means of which one interact with most advanced technology, be it a iron Samurai, ship or advanced optic camouflage. Every citizen is fitted with some sort of ONI, it integrates into everything in society. There is a backside however, several different occasions of ONI users going stark raving mad have popped up more frequently. And there is a rumor that something is using the ONI to jump brain to brain. Something bad. Something really, really bad.
Exo-Suits/Iron Samurai:
With the advent of space warfare and the return of more personal, close quarter fighting, the exo-suit became like a modern day knight or samurai armor. Expensive to maintain and own, not to mention illegal unless expressly given the go ahead, a exo-suit is a status symbol. The specs and size for a exo-suit or Iron Samurai vary, but they are without fail equipped with a energy blade for anti-Rai purposes and likely some form of Rai itself.
Reflective Anti-Ballistic Inertia Shields(RAIS)
One of the game changers in warfare was the RAIS systems, a personalized shield generator that could be shrunk to encompass a exosuit or supersized and put in a system to shield an entire battlecruiser. Of course, the technology is beyond expensive and not without it faults. A RAI shield works in such a way it projects a energy field of sorts. This energy shield is referred to as “Active Inertia” in that seemingly any projectile that hits the shield, has all its kinetic energy immediately dispersed and neutralized.
Emperors Crystal and Monoblades
Due to the prevalence of Inertia Shields both on ships and in armor, there's a need for weapons of a different nature. Energy weapons were long the work of sci-fi, many have tested and made variations on everything from high energy beam weapons to mini-nukes. The problem with nuking a enemy combatant is that you need enriched uranium or similar, stored onboard the ship in the form of missiles. And while railgun barrages can weaken a RAIS eventually, its terribly inefficient energy wise.
The best Anti-Rai ammunition was actually aquired from the Keito, salvaged from a Keito science vessle that had been destroyed by Eitreri. We found a ore with a very specific energy signature had been worked into the ships missiles and railgun slings. If the ore hit a inertia field, it would all but drill trough it. This crystal ore became commonly known as “The Emperor Crystal” as its the most valuable and rare mineral in all of human space. Due to its useful nature in combat, its almost exclusively used for ships as they are the most expensive to make and the worst to loose. The other exception being Samurai melee weapons. A “Emperor Blade” is the show of ultimate wealth and power.
There is another kind of weapon employed for taking down Samurai and their RAI shields. The Monoblade. Monoblades work such that they have an exceptionally sharp and thin edge, down to the molecular level. Monoblades are far more brittle than a Emperors Blade, but is able to cut near anything with a properly executed swipe.
Ballistic weapons:
Ballistic weapons still have their place, the average person does not posses a RAI or the weapon to deal with it. Ballistic weapons are more commonly used on planet rather than inside ships. Ship combat tend to not utilize any heavy guns as there are to many delicate systems that can and will be damaged. And when you are boarded, your guns wont do much to a Iron Samurai.
Space Stations, Space Ships and Faster Then Light Travel
The new frontier cannot be reached without means of travel and this means the use of space ships. The different companies and conglomerate all have different design philosophy and specializations but two things are constant. The RAI system and the way one travel faster then light.
FTL can only really be achieved from fixed points. Hyper Gates are a system of portal like stations that let you cross into a sort of galactic highway. Navigating such a highway is tricky and thus, you only really travel from gate to gate. You can use a gate to sling you at a set point without a gate, of course. But you better be damn sure you know where you will show up.
Often, these gates are well guarded by fortress like space stations.
-----------
Our Story Begins:
You, the players take the roles of various small time players in this era of strife. Wandering monks, lordless ronin or deserting, runaway ashigaru. Assassins who fallen out of favor with the corporation due to failed contracts. Whatever your path, you have congregated on Kaisen Station, right at the outskirts of Date Territory. Here our story will begin, as a event is about to change the course of the current struggle and put our fortunate few in a position to profit and make a name for ourselves.
Character creation.
Some notes on character creation. While this game is freeform, I will have a little bit of game mechanics incorporated. These are pretty much entirely to help craft a personal narrative for all of you as I want to make sure to work with everyone to craft as good a story as possible. These narrative mechanics will be known your Origin.
They are as follows:
Samurai/Ronin: Someone who was once a samurai is technically a Ronin. A Wandering samurai would be knowledgeable regarding various things such as duels, etiquette, combat strategy and similar things. The obvious downside is that a you would be without your Exo-Suit, as nobody would be allowed to roam freely with one of those.
Conscript/Ashigaru:The ashigaru are the footsoldiers, the ones not afforded fancy samurai armor and who are conscripted or pressured into service. Deserters are commonplace and many ashigaru live as low end mercenary for highest bidder. They would know about basic handlings of weapons, infantry tactics and have a much closer relationship and knowledge about what goes on and is spoken about the most among soldiers.
Iga Shinobi: A former Iga shinobi, you likely found it easy to slip away. Your skills have lent themselves way to remain under the radar of your former employers. There might be that you are called upon to redeem yourself, the Iga always have use of a good field agent. Your knowledge lies in infiltration on a social plane. Disguises, sneaking, cracking security systems. There is no place you cant get inside. Not target to distant or heavily guarded.
Kaga Shinobi: As a Kaga, your name and face is unknown, you lived a life as a shadow. Now, no longer affiliated, your skill set lends itself to the dirty work of people with money. Your skills lies within stealth and guerilla warfare. Of taking down targets quickly and silently, and to leave no trace.
Commoner: All your skills are self taught. You never seen the halls of noble, never worked for any Yakuza syndicate. You have never been part of a sect or a cult. You would have been entirely unremarkable had it not been for your talents and will to carve a better life for yourself.
Yakuza: You are the lowlife of the world. You known only the hardships of the space station streets or the dirty offworld capitals. You have scrapped and conned, threatened and extorted your way trough life. A yakuza would know who to talk to on the street, know where to get things banned or illegal. And is handy in a less formal scrap.
Monk/Priestess: The many warrior monks and the many great priestesses who followed the old ways have pursued a way of enlightenment. They have an air of mysticism and wisdom about them as a result. But it has also spawned expert warrior who wield both fist and martial weapons such as the Naginata or Yari with ease. Monks would know about the various cults, sects and religions that span human space and can generally find lodgings and similar for free.
Charachter Sheet.
Name:
Age:
Appearance: (No pictures from actual animes and mangas or games) A picture and a decent written description.
Former Faction: (What company did you serve/lived under its rule.)
Skills: (Pick I primary skill, two secondary. IE: Primary: Swordmanship, Secondary Stealth and Acrobatics.
Fighting Style: (Feel free to give it some fancy name. Describe in short detail how your charachter approaches combat. This is after all, a samurai flick in space)
Weapons: (Please provide a brief description of its appearence. This is essentially a samurai movie set in space, weapons tend to be a calling card.)
Motivation: What drives your charachter. Does he or she have a larger goal in mind, revenge? The retrieval of family heirlooms?
This character took awhile, but overall I'm happy with him!
Name:
Hitoshi Honda | "The Lone Wolf"
Age:
37
Appearance:
Hitoshi stands at 1.77 meters tall (5'10") and weighs in at 69 kg (154 lbs). He is a rugged individual, his features hardened by the elements and conflicts he had endured over the years. Yet his appearance in the grand scheme is rather average, sporting little specific traits that would make him stand-out against the crowd. His face is well-chiseled, with healthy caucasian skin as well as light wrinkles, and his mesomorphic body is well maintained in sporting significant muscle growth thanks to his countless years of harsh training. His messy black hair is fixed into a traditional man bun and sports a healthy thick beard with two thin braids running down to the bottom of his neck. He also sports greyish-green eyes and bushy eyebrows.
Origin:
Ronin
Former Faction:
Uesugi Conglomerate
Skills:
Primary: Swordsmanship
Secondary 1: Acrobatics
Secondary 2: Durability
Fighting Style:
Kodokuna Ōkami no Michi (孤独なオオカミの道, Way of the Lone Wolf) is a balanced style that revolves around a combination of strength, speed, and strategy. Hitoshi uses this method to unleash a volley of swift yet powerful strikes to purposely counter through an enemy's own fighting style, but only provided that he studies his opponent's own fighting style. In order to feel the opponent, he often lets himself be on the defensive during the first half, perhaps briefly being more aggressive in certain circumstances before he refrains from attacking. Once he roughly gets the sense of the opponent's movement and attack patterns, he'll try to counter that ability by looking for openings within the user's form and unleashing swift and powerful attacks to catch the opponent off-guard.
Hitoshi still retains some of his previous samurai honor, although he has no quarrels in killing most low-life thugs if it deems necessary to his survival or if it's going to hurt an innocent bystander. He'd give the chance for his defeated foes, whom he deems worthy in a duel, to surrender and be let go as part of the honor, which can only be compensated if the user continues to attack him after being defeated or if your name happens to be Taro Honda.
Weapons:
Monoblade Katana: Hitoshi's blade is an average monoblade katana supplied by the Uesegi Conglomerate. Despite it's average appearance, it's still a very powerful weapon in the hands of an extremely talented swordsman. It's extremely lightweight yet durable, allowing the user to wield it with extreme accuracy and power based on their own physical strength and speed.
FL-287 Blunderbuss: Hitoshi's flintlock pistol was stolen off a fallen mercenary and is used to shoot down weaker armed thugs or when he refuses to reveal his sword.
Motivation:
Other than simply to survive, Hitoshi seeks revenge against his eldest brother, Taro, and the atrocities that he committed against he and his siblings. While preparing himself for that inevitable final battle, he simply takes any job he can as a mercenary for money. At the same time, he protects the innocent people from harm and is not afraid to help others whenever he can.
Backstory:
The Hondas was a wealthy family that had been a long time member of the Uesugi Conglomerate since it's inception 70 years ago. They were one of the major families that helped fund the corporation, for they had close connections with the head CEO and had immense abhorrence over the Eintri who had recently invaded their planet of Han'ei. Over that course, they had enlisted four proud warriors to don the exclusive white armor of their Samurai Corps, each being the children of Takahiro and Masami Honda respectfully. Yet it wouldn't be until shortly after the war that they would be trained for several long years until becoming official samurai warriors. All four were trained by their own private sensei, each having contributed to their unique style of combat upon their students. And after several harsh years of training, the Uesugi Conglomerate had produced four fine samurai warriors. You had:
Taro - The eldest son. He embodies a fearsome persona of determination and undying loyalty for his corporation. He'd do just about anything to secure his position and complete any order that is given to him. He is also the favorite of both his parents and that of the CEO. He wields a naginata monoblade, with a bleeding crimson stripe that stretches down the entire blade, as well as an Ono to hack through enemy lines as a secondary weapon. Many fear Taro's great strength, especially when he goes on brutal rampages that seems to amplify his power, with many comparing his wild ferocity like that of a bull.
Osamu - The second son. He is a cold, enigmatic, individual that sacrifices petty conversations into swift action. He never questions any order from the Usegi and attempts to finish his mission as hastily as possible, often timing himself to see how fast he can finish them. He wields a pair of Daishō blades, each blade glowing a venomous green, and stores a specialized "Yoroi-dōshi" blade to pierce through thick armor when fighting in close quarters. He is marveled as the fastest of the Honda family, specializing in quick and fast strikes like that of a Mantis.
Suzume - The third child, as well as the Honda family's only daughter. At peace, she is a kind and soft-spoken young woman, yet in battle she's a silent huntress that uses her wits and cunning to her advantage. She uses the environment around her to get close to her enemy and strike when they least expect it. Many tend to confuse her tendencies to solely that of a ninja, however her techniques are in fact a hybrid of both traditional samurai and ninjutsu training. She wields a twin pair of specialized war fans, a unique weapon used to both conceal her identity and used in close combat, yet also carries a variety of shuriken, each being designed and used for specific situations. Her expertise in stealth and concealment, as well as her graceful acrobatics, have compared her to that of a crane.
And then you have Hitoshi, the youngest son. He is a humble, yet practical, man that recognizes his place in the Conglomerate. Being the rut of the family, he ultimately lives under the shadow of his older siblings. He may not be as strong as Taro, nor as swift as Osamu, and perhaps not even as acrobatic as Suzume, however he has shown to take a lot of punishment and is extremely persistent in overcoming the odds planted against him. Hitoshi was often bullied by his older brothers, especially by the loud-mouth Taro who often beats him and claims that he is 'weak'. Osamu, on the other hand, rarely speaks to him, often ignoring him outright as if he didn't exist at all. Yet his parents do little to stop the infighting and usually punish the brothers with a 'slap' on their wrists. The only sibling he can turn to is Suzume, who is the only sibling that genuinely cares for him, for she too was once in his shoes. However, she remarks that he is different compared to his brothers, for he has good character and is far-less pretentious then they ever could be.
The other person Hitoshi can turn to is his sensei, whom also tries to comfort him. He always reminds him about how he has simply overcome every obstacle that has been thrown at him, that every time life seemed to push him down, he would always get up and keep on going. He believes that he mustn't accept his current position and that Hitoshi can prove to his brothers how capable he can become. He can ultimately prove how better he is compared to them. With mental assurance coming from his sister Suzume and the physical assurance from his sensei, Hitoshi began to grow confident in his abilities and sought to improve his capabilities to the maximum. At the same time, while training with his sensei, he'd have special training and advice from Suzume as well, who knows the two brothers' fighting techniques rather well and how to counter them with her own skills. Soon enough, Hitoshi was ready to prove his worth and respect towards his older brothers, adopting a skill that utilized the skills of each of his siblings.
One day, he approached his two brothers and challenged them each to a friendly duel to test their might. Both would mock and doubt his chances at winning against them, but Hitoshi stood firm and confident in his abilities. And so did their duels take place and both the "Bull" and the "Mantis" were beaten by the youngest Honda. Osamu honorably recognized his younger brother's skills having improved significantly and respected him afterwards, comparing his ferocious tenacity and skill to that of a wolf. Meanwhile, Taro was absolutely insulted in being beaten by the "rut". Fearing his reputation was at stake, he proceeded to plan in regaining his honor and to get rid of his rival. He proceeded to slander Hitoshi, claiming his victory was achieved through illegal means and that he planned to take over the corporation by force. When that wasn't enough, he did the unthinkable. Knowing his sister's involvement in helping the 'rut' after overhearing their conversations, he was able to steal Hitoshi's monoblade and assassinated Suzume while she was asleep in her room. He then blamed it all on him and provided them 'proof' that he did it. Somehow, the corporation believed Taro's claims, and proceeded to exile Hitoshi, even though his Sensei objected his claim. And what about the Honda parents? Considering that they adored and favorited Taro, they too believed him. Hitoshi was to be contained in a cell and was expected to execute himself through seppuku in front of his family and the CEO personally within 12 hours. It was absolute corruption at it's finest.
Stripped of his armor and belongings, the now "Lone Wolf" awaited for the time he would be summoned to his untimely demise. Suddenly, Osamu showed up and helped Hitoshi escape, while also giving him his katana back. Hitoshi initially refused, for it was the weapon that killed his sister and he felt it was cursed, however the Mantis believed that as long as it wasn't wielded by his hand, it was still fit for him to use. Eventually, Hitoshi was forced to agree and the two brothers attempted to escape the building. Yet before they could escape, Taro found them and proceeded to shoot them on sight. Osamu kept the forces at bay long enough to allow his brother to escape. The Mantis eventually faced off against the Bull and while the former seemed to have the upper hand at first, he was soon overpowered as the blade cut off his sword arm. The last thing Hitoshi saw before he exited was the Mantis kneeling at the feet of the Bull, who prepared to decapitate his traitorous brother. He stole a small cargo ship that was situated nearby and left the facility.
Now without a master, and with barely any money, the ronin had to survive on his lonesome. He eventually found a new job as a wandering freelance mercenary, helping wealthy merchants just so he can get paid. Yet not a moment did he think about the atrocities that took place within that cursed Conglomerate. He even began to blame himself that he didn't do anything more to help them. Perhaps he should've taken the chance to commit seppuku. Yet his instincts told him that he didn't do anything wrong. It was the selfishness of his eldest brother and the ignorance of his family who failed to believe his innocence. He swore to one day return to the Conglomerate and kill Taro, thereby putting the souls of Osamu and Suzume to rest. But until that day, the "Lone Wolf" must simply survive on what is yet to come...
It's currently been ten years since that fateful event.
Appearance: Haruka stands at 180 cm(just shy of six foot) and weighs in at a willowy 63.5 kg(140 lbs), and yet does not look gaunt, only graceful. Her hair shows evidence of being cared for in the past, and is kept in a long ponytail or a large bun most of the time. Pale of skin, she appears to fairly exude nobility, something she has tried to hide unsuccessfully. Dark eyes, shadowed by weariness and stress, stare into the middle distance most of the time, though her fighting spirit is obvious when she focuses.
By tiny mannerisms, such as how she stands, the way she looks imperiously over others when observing, the way she holds herself, she is clearly a former samurai, though she has tried to disguise this by wearing only the most common of clothing. Attempts to appear as a born ronin are frequent, though not constant in execution. She can sometimes be observed to check herself and then slouch or otherwise attempt to appear less than she is.
Movement-wise, her long legs carry her quickly, and the strength and speed by which she moves belie augmentation even though none is visible. She also tends to, as most samurai, move as though nothing but her goal matters, cutting through crowds and obstacles with disdain. In combat, her augments become even more obvious, as she moves far faster than a natural human should, and can strike quicker than any but another trained samurai could react.
Armour-wise, without her exosuit, Haruka prefers classically designed raiment with modern material, in the hon kozane dou style. The scales are all made with lightweight alloyed metal, though she forgoes the sode in favour of manueverability, leaving her shoulders exposed but with a much greater range of motion. She owns them, and will don them for ceremonial purposes.
Despite her dour exterior, Haruka is quite warm in personality, and this shows sometimes when she is relaxing. A small smile or a lifting of the brows at something a child shows her, or a hearty laugh at a joke. And when drunk, something she has fallen into the habit of doing recently, she can in fact be boisterous and rather ignorant of personal space, tending to hang off of others with abandon to keep herself either standing or in the conversation. Her favourite topics include poetry, music, and small, furry animals, no matter the species or world of origin.
Fighting Style:Ten Kara no Kaminari (天からの雷, Thunder from Heaven) is a fast and brutal combat style, perfected by Morishige Kaito, as befitting his unit's role as a shock force. There is no pause for reading your opponent as in most styles, no standing back and waiting. The fighter is trained through a harsh regimen to read their opponent as they react to the charge, and fight appropriately. Strikes are aimed to maim, disable, or kill outright as quickly as possible, with little artistry if it gets in the way of efficiency. Major joints and the neck are typical targets. Training happens with katana, naginata, masakari, wakazashi, and even tanto. When unarmed, the style relies on closing fast, inside the opponents range, and striking with forehead, elbow, and knee, savaging the opponent too quickly for him to react well. Throws are rare, as it defeats the purpose, though joint locks with the aim of breaking bones are common. Inside an exosuit, the style remains mostly unchanged, though the use of booster jets and utilising the RAI as an offensive tool against unarmoured opponents come into play. The style demands a very small exosuit, compared to others, barely more than an armoured flightsuit, allowing the Iron Samurai to move lightning fast compared to larger, bulkier opponents.
Weapons:Yume no Hana o Karu(夢の花を刈る, Dream-cutting Blossom), when expanded to it's full length, is a five and a half foot naginata with a monoedged blade that glitters blue when struck by the right light, but otherwise looks mostly just like a normal blade. The pole features cleverly disguised ridges inside a sakura blossom motif, pink and black on a white background. The ridges themselves are the result of the weapons functionality, designed to fit inside a fighter crafts cockpit without getting in the way. It telescopes down to merely a foot and a half, with the blade sliding down into the haft. It can be flicked open remarkably fast, though a safety catch near the base is what releases the blade itself, allowing the super-strong alloyed pole to be used as a staff if desired.
Standard daisho set: Though monoedged, the katana is a simple affair, bearing a simple black scabbard and hilt with silver highlights. The wakizashi, however, bears the same motif as the naginata.
Kurēnburēdo class fighter craft: This specialty of the Takeda's is a long, narrow, blade-like ship, cockpit near the rear, with a twin mounted rear impulse engine and extremely powerful manuevering jets. Several heavy rapid-fire auto-cannons, not as powerful as railguns but in the same neighbourhood, spread along the “crosstree” of the craft, pointing forwards. The crowning point of the thing, however, is the finely tuned balance. It turns on a dime and moves extremely fast. In formation they can tear apart most other fighter craft, when well piloted, and does very well even in dogfights.
Measuring twelve metres from nosecone to exhaust, when fully loaded it carries enough fuel for three days of low-grade impulse travel, or around twelve hours of combat. The ammunition bay holds thirty-six thousand rounds of caseless 30mm slugs, in batches of six-thousand for each of the six cannons, mounted hexagonally around the midline "crosstree". The whole of the ship weighs in at around fifteen tonnes, and can easily hide in the silhouette of most other ships when needed, which is how she got it on board the station to begin with.
Motivation: With her expulsion from the ranks of the Takeda samurai, Haruka has lost direction. No stranger to being by herself for periods of time, she has kept herself in shape, and currently does odd-jobs to earn money or food. However, her honour pulls her two ways. First, with the dishonour and execution of her lord, society demands that she commit seppuku, but as the last of her fighting style, she cannot let it die with her. To that end, she is painstakingly saving up to start a dojo, teach one student, and then she can decide whether she should live or not.
Backstory: Born to a minor family inside a subsidiary company of a subsidiary company of the Takeda Corporation, Haruka was the only child of the Kitamura primary line. Without a son, her father decided that she must be better than anyone else, to bring glory to their name, and thus she was trained as soon as she could walk in all that bushido aimed to be. Her father, an idealist and of a low enough rank to not be dangerous to his superiours, used much of his money getting her trained with the main Takeda samurai, purchasing favours where he could to earn her place. She did him very proudly, taking to both combat and courtly behaviour quite easily, and was selected for her lord's main body, assigned to the illustrious Morishige Thunders. Here, under Morishige's watchful eye, she became the top student of Ten Kara no Kaminari.
Serving from fifteen years old, Haruka distinguished herself in combat multiple times over, survivng being stranded in enemy territory on several occasions, once even successfully taking control of a small military vessel after being taken prisoner. Several times, she earned direct praise from her Lord Sawada, who gifted her the naginata she now carries.
However, just one year ago, in an unprecedented assault on the Takeda holdings by Nobunaga-Zaibatsu, Morishige's unit was called in, but failed to arrive in time, resulting in a minor lord's death. Morishige himself was found dead drunk the next day, and the whole unit was arrested, saving that Haruka was sent away just before the arrest, and while technically is wanted by Lord Sawada for arrest and judgement, she refuses to come in and has fled to Kaisen Station. In the past year, she has poorly attempted to disguise her true nature, removed all identifying labels of her former corporate overlords, and now works to survive on the station, taking jobs she inwardly seethes at having to do. Morishige's final words to her were to not let the Ten Kara no Kaminari die with him, so she is honour bound now to find a way to further the school.
Her fighter craft is now stashed in an abandoned docking bay, where it sits idle until she can one day regain enough of her sense of honour to allow herself to fly it again. The outer insignia have all been masked, and much useless junk added to disguise its sleek lines. She actually lives in the docking bay as well, keeping to herself when not working or drinking at a local sake house.
I know people hate this, but WIP. I swear it will be done soon.
Name: Joseph "Hakujin Joe" Correia
Age: 44
Appearance: If one were to remove the tattoos hidden under his suits and replace the missing half of his right pinkie finger, one would never know Hakujin Joe is a lifetime member of the worst of society. Joe Correia looks to most like a base foreman or office manager, standing tall and being of average build. His balding rust colored hair and glasses only adds to this image, one that he has cultivated over the years to put his opponents at ease before he strikes.
As if to further the image of an unassuming citizen, he moves at only three speeds outside of immediate action; amble, lope and still. The only threatening thing in the man's appearance is in the piercing green eyes behind those thick glasses. They are the eyes of a predator sizing up their prey, scanning for any weakness to exploit at a later date.
Origin: Yakuza
Former Faction: Tokugawa Corporation (Listed under "Security Consultant")
Skills: Pistol Marksmanship, Small Unit Tactics, Underworld Navigation
Fighting Style: ラットの道 Ratto no michi(Way of the Rat), is a style favored among the Yakuza and those who live in the underbelly of society. While most samurai would refuse to acknowledge it as a legitimate style, it none the less makes for a dangerous opponent. A cornered rat fights as savagely as any wolf or tiger, and this mentality is reflected in the style's practitioners; No quarter is shown to the enemy, attacks coming in quick jabs and kicks directed at the softest parts of the body. Gouging of the eyes and biting off chunks of the ear are not only acceptable but encouraged. Pinning is preferable to throwing, as it allows the fighter to fully take advantage of their opponent's weakness. The style lends it self to unarmed combat or with small weapons such as a tanto or ono, though some richer Yakuza also incorporate wakazashis and, in extremely rare occasions, katanas.
Weapons: ラットの牙 Ratto no kiba (Fang of the Rat) is an unusual weapon to must, but similar to many of the weapons the Yakuza implement in their bloody work. Looking to most like the blade of a tanto knife attached to a pistol grip, there is actually a functional barrel on the right side of the blade, letting the weapon function at both ranged and close quarters combat. Further, there is a mechanism that allows the blade to spin, adding a viscous, almost chainsaw like action to the weapon. This does mean however that the pistol half of the weapon cannot function until the blade is back in its original position. (In other words, Russell Crowe's weapon in The Man with the Iron Fists.)
Motivation: Joe is angry to say the least. Spending a lifetime as an enforcer for the Yakuza, working his way up through the ranks and carving out a niche for his own power, only to see it taken away by a jealous rival's words in the wrong ear, leaving him scraping the bottom of the barrel. He wants to see that bitch pay in blood and tears, and to see all that let it happen rue the day they thought they could fuck with Hakujin Joe. He's going to be the Oyabun, and he doesn't care how many will die to make that happen.
Backstory: Joseph Correia does not come from any noble family or line or warriors, and holds no title recognized in any legitimate court. Hakujin Joe came from the lowest of society, born in the slums to petty workers in a subsidiary of the Tokugawa Corporation. With meager prospects and a future that held nothing but toiling away under the corporations, Joe took to the streets early in life in desperation to carve out his own future. Supplementing his family's pathetic income with petty crime, he graduated to extortion and armed robbery as he grew older.
This kind of activity of course caught the attention of the Yakuza clan operating in his district, and he was given a simple choice by the local Oyabun; Put his talents to work for the clan, or he would be executed on the spot. He chose the wiser of the two options. From that day onward he set himself to proving himself to his new masters, seeing at long last a purpose in life, and a way out of the dead end that fate had thrown at him, and it didn't take long until he had proven that they had made the right choice in sparing his life. By age 25 he was leading small gangs of enforcers in their duties, by 30 running his own protection and prostitution rackets, and by 36 being the clan's representative to the Tokugawa Corporation.
It seemed that he had reached the peak of his life here, gone from a punk kid on the street to an Isao (laudable man) with the money and influence to command respect even from the Samurai he cut his backroom deals with. It stayed this way for 8 years until the clan's Wakagashira (second-in-command) grew nervous of Joe's rising power, and saw fit to cut him down to size. Several leaks of classified information spread from Tokugawa Corp's servers, and while there was never proof to definitively tie it to Joe, there as enough circumstance for him to be a prime suspect. The disgrace ended career with the clan and he was forced back to the level of a lowly street enforcer. Humiliated and watching those that had taken what was rightfully his, he's taken to the streets to build a new clan.
”A journey must end, otherwise its beginning is without purpose. I will find my end no matter how it comes to me.”
A P P E A R A N C E
A lean built and well toned man, Kuroguro--as was his appointed name, originally Edgerin Bembe--has not once in his life used an artificial weight to gain the muscle his body presently wears. He is also not a man of exceptional height, the length of his body ceasing at 5’9. Otherwise, Kuroguro’s most notable physical feature are his worn knuckles and the callouses that have formed from his years of field combat.
Dress is nothing with flash, sometimes typical monk robes, and sometimes a yat-sen. When he is not teaching, Kuro wears the yat-sen. His hair is almost always worn with its long locs wrapped up and are only down when he is meditating. His locs run down his back and stop at his buttocks.
G E N E R A L L Y
ORIGIN Kaga FORMER FACTION Koga Inc. [A.K.A. “The Lotus of the East”, “The Shadow of Koga”, “Faceless”.
F I G H T I N G S T Y L E
THE COBRA MAW Centered not around striking as little as possible, the Cobra style in the Maw fighting family focuses on evasion and relaxation of the entire kinetic chain. Expend little to no energy and keep one’s base moving with careful steps, typically circling around the opponent but this is, of course, not the only manner of movement present. Slips, head movement, use of the elbows, wrists, and palms for strike deflecting and counter-shifting of an opponent’s weight and stance against them are the core tenets of the Cobra Maw style. Let one’s opponent strike for him. When chained together, the movements are reminiscent of several other families of dance-styled martial arts.
SLITHERING MOUNTAIN The complimentary style to the Cobra Maw technique, slithering mountain brings its practitioner short, explosive movements when on offense and makes up for what it lacks in outright power in the use of controlling and manipulating an opponent’s ability to gauge the depth and distance of the practitioner and his adversary. One is not ‘ever-moving’, for that is a waste of energy. Rather, before one ever arrives at beginning of use of the slithering mountain technique, he is taught the limits of human sight and how perception corresponds to angles and space. As such, the Slithering Mountain technique’s sharp, subtle changes in stance and the positioning of the body aim not to confuse the opponent, rather to manipulate what he sees first before the practitioner glides in to strike.
WEAPONS None. Kuroguro fights completely unarmed.
SKILLS I. Unarmed Combat II. Acrobatics III. Stealth.
BACKSTORY
Bembe grew up stealing. Sectioned in the slums of his respective sector, Bembe was a pickpocket of no great order, but was skilled enough at the craft to ensure he and his mother and siblings would eat. Hi ways manifest from his father, with whom Bembe would sometimes travel alongside in search for victims. Morality and compass were not existent.
His talent for picpocketing landed him in jail more times than he could count. As happens to all criminals, careful tact gives way to comfort and comfort finds slop. Soon, he was arrested for more unsuccesful attempts and theft than he was at succeeding at his unsavory profession. A representative--Tokugawa Misashi--of the lords--the Koga--of Bembe's respective fief saw for himself a promotional opportunity if he could conscript the young Bembe into his lords’ ranks.
Thus, Bembe spent the first half of his youth learning how to become more than just a pickpocket; he became a master of subterfuge, assassination, deception, combat (unarmed combat in particular, for weapons left too much a trace). His twenty years of service as the “shadow” of Koga Inc. gained him a reputation--one that, unlike most reputations, is not necessarily associated with him; few have seen the Lotus’ face, fewer have lived to report the sighting.
After two decades of violence, however, his heart and mind have recently begun to shift, and now the Shadow of Koga is looking for a way out and a new start. His ties are deep, and he remains one of the Koga’s most valuable assets; will he survive and find himself happily retired somewhere, or will he die? This is where his story begins.
✾ Maramusa Feline SR-3 10mm HP/AP/HPT While the onset of RAIS has seen firearms fall out of favor, there is still a case to be made for a good firearm. The Feline SR-3 is a machine pistol that spits out lead at an astonishing rate. Designed to act as a force-multiplier or when precise aiming isn't desired, it's a small, compact gun that can quickly fill a room with lead.
Tomoe keeps her pistol locked to her hip using a magnetic holster, ensure quick weapon switching.
✾ Monoblade Katana & Wakizashi & Tanto Used in her fighting style, Tomoe employs a standard, single edged Monoblade Katana and Wakizashi. They are respectively 60 and 30 cm in length. Both are worn at the hip in standard daishō style. The Tanto is merely a back-up weapon and is worn horizontally across her lower back. It's blade is 15 cm in length. Each sword and scabbard is entirely black, including the blades; nothing bearing any distinctive markings.
ᴀᴘᴘᴇᴀʀᴀɴᴄᴇ Tomoe stands at an average 1.7m, though her exo-suit pushes her well above 2.2m. Her eyes are a dark brown, glimmering with a soft redness if the light catches it at the right angle. Her body always seems to be tensed, her skin marred with years of abuse and combat; with plenty of scars that each holds a tale. While not one to show off skin eagerly, her body is built for combat; featuring sleek but defined muscles. Thanks to her parent's genetic disposition towards weak lungs due to coming from a mining lineage, her lungs are weak and require help in the form of respirators. While she can perform without the device, it will severely impair her performance.
ꜰɪɢʜᴛɪɴɢ ꜱᴛʏʟᴇ Hyoho Niten Ichi-ryu (兵法二天一流 - Two Heavens, One School) Employing both her Katana and Wakizashi at once, Tomoe can deliver a staggering amount of attacks in just a short time; effectively allowing her to overwhelm an opponent's defenses. While mostly used as an aggressive form of attack, designed to quickly fell an opponent; the use of both swords also opens up some surprising disarming techniques, such as catching an opponent's blade between crossed swords. It's not uncommon for Tomoe to drop a sword in the midst of battle to switch to a secondary if needed, such as a firearm or her Tanto, as this often throws opponents off guard.
ᴍᴏᴛɪᴠᴀᴛɪᴏɴ Tomoe is a wild dog, seeking nothing but bloody revenge on the Date Dragon's for abandoning her and her men; while also seeking blood from Nobuzai for causing her abandonment in the first place. And while not openly admitting it, she yearns for a leash to hold her back once more; to direct her anger.
ʜɪꜱᴛᴏʀʏ Tomoe Gozen was born to a boring miner couple, who lived on a boring mining colony in some boring part of space. So unimportant, the moon didn't even have an official name other than it's scientific designation. Tomoe was always a boisterous child, always running off, getting into fights with the few other children. With no prospect of getting off the barren rock, Tomoe was all but destined to follow her parent's footsteps and become a miner as well. To die an ungrateful death on an unnamed rock, working for a corporation who didnt even know her name.
The galaxy however had different plans for the wild child. At age 7, the Date Dragon's landed on the small moon. A rivaling company had gotten wind of the remote mining colony and saw fit to hire the mercs to purge the facility. The armored soldiers worked through the facility with ruthless efficiency, finding only minor resistance from the few under-trained guards acting as security. Tomoe had kept hidden in the rafters, watching in horror and anger as the soldiers cut down the defenseless civilians. Overcome with anger, the small child launched herself at a soldier; attacking the man like a wild dog.
The man in question happened to be the leading commander, Taishi Maruhito. A veteran in the field, not to mention outfitted in an exo-suit, Tomoe was of course no match whatsoever for the man. Beating her down and breaking her arm in the process, the accompanying soldiers were about to sever the girl's head; when Taishi ordered them to stand down. He joked how even though she was but a child, she had shown more ferocity than most of his own men, and ordered her to be taken alive.
On board the Date's ship, the girl was offered a simple choice. Either she was to be sold to the next mining colony as slave labor, or she'd join the Date Dragon's. Having no intention on rotting away on some distant rock, Tomoe took the only offer she could take and was taken under the tutelage of Taishi.
The man was ruthless and strict. It mattered little that Tomoe was merely 7 at the time, a girl or had a debilitating condition. She was grilled and trained like any other of the men and received the same punishment for failing to life up to expectations. For years she was the Date's kicking dog, treated as little more than amusement for the men. Few understood why Taishi had brought the girl onboard, but he knew, he saw a fiery temper in her eyes that begged to be tamed.
When puberty finally hit, it hit hard. With her muscles finally developing, Tomoe pushed past most men and violently fought back against anybody who pushed her buttons in the wrong way. It wasnt long before the girl had garnered quite the following among the ranks of the Date Dragon's. Known simply as "the mad dog of Taishi" she was considered a rising star among the fresh recruits. Years of abuse had made her unflinching in the eyes of danger and pain, pushing her past limits most men didnt dare to tread past.
Within years she had command of a small squad of devout men. A sledgehammer the Date commanders eagerly used when trying to break down entrenched forces. Employing aggressive and unconventional tactics, Tomoe fit right into the Date doctrine of striking fast and hard.
Things took a hard turn when she was deployed on what was supposed to be a milk-run. A small mining colony, not unlike the one she hailed from, had to be pacified. Resistance was supposed to be low, with merely some engineers and lightly armed peacekeepers. What actually happened, was that her team was ambushed by a regiment of Nobuzai samurai. Their ship had lain in wait on a nearby asteroid. Outgunned and outnumbered, Tomoe desperately called for reinforcements from the orbiting ship. Taishi Murahito saw things differently.
Cutting his losses, the ship sped away before the Nobuzai cruiser could close the distance; leaving Tomoe and her rapidly dwindling forces stranded on the barren rock. Overwhelmed by the Nobuzai, Tomoe was forced to surrender. Not because she wanted to survive, she was more than willing to die fighting, but because Nobuzai had specific orders to take the commanding unit alive.
Tomoe was taken onto the Nobuzai cruiser for interrogation. The Nobuzai were obviously hoping to grill her for information pertaining to the Date's whereabouts and plans. The girl simply laughed at their pathetic excuses of torture. Years of abuse at the hands of her own faction had left her dangerously close to psychotic. Still, the Nobuzai were nothing if not patient. After all, every man, woman and child had their breaking point.
Tomoe broke free before she reached that point. Emaciated by weeks of detention, torture and horrid food, the bonds that once gripped her so tightly had gotten loose enough for her to dislocate a wrist and slip free. Overwhelming her guard with a ferocity born out of anger, she quietly made her way through the ship's interior. By the time the alarms rang, she had already made her way to the armory; using the guard's ID to open the doors and arm herself with one of the Nobuzai's own exo-suits.
Any veteran can attest that an Exo-suit rampaging through a ship can be a terrifying thing to behold. Unable to properly arm themselves in the armory, the Nobuzai soldiers proved little challenge for the girl. Leaving the ship a bloodied spacehulk, Tomoe spirited away on one of the dropships; though not before scuttling the exo-suit inside the engine room and leaving the cruiser adrift in space. Using the auto-pilot to set a course to the planet of New Niigata, Tomoe planned on hunting down Taishi Murahito for leaving her and her men for dead; as well as any Nobuzai she would come across... Her escape and rampage would no doubt put her on some wanted list.
Great work. So watch me ruin it for you a bit. We do not start out with exosuits, sorry. And you need to put one of the six origin types in. For the skills you chose one primary, two secondary.
You're writing is exemplary, I think mayhaps you got a bit to excited and glossed over the charachter creation notes. haha.
Great work. So watch me ruin it for you a bit. We do not start out with exosuits, sorry. And you need to put one of the six origin types in. For the skills you chose one primary, two secondary.
You're writing is exemplary, I think mayhaps you got a bit to excited and glossed over the charachter creation notes. haha.
That's fine! I figured if I went with a less technologically advanced suit, it might pass... But I don't mind stripping it!
As for origin, I did put that in her sheet. It's all on the left side: originally born into Saika Unions, she then became a Date Robin.
As for skills, that's now easily solved by stripping her of her Exo suit :D
Name: Eleanor "Nora" Kanno, often called Sister Nora by others in her order.
Age: 25
Appearance:
Nora has short black hair, that almost never falls past her shoulders, a fair complexion, and dark almond-shaped eyes, that calmly observe the world around her. Of average height, the young woman has a lithe, athletic build, the product of years of rigorous physical training and a lifetime spent as a shinobi, traveling across the known galaxy and making a name for herself in the shadowy world of black-ops operations.
Years spent as a monk have not softened her, but merely afforded her greater degrees of martial training, and Nora still moves with the grace of a predatory creature, every one of her movements swift, effortless, efficient and silent in the inhuman ways that only a true Koga or Iga shinobi can seem to manage.
Dressing in the traditional manner of her order, Nora appears to be no different from any of the other mendicant Buddhist monks that travel across the galaxy. She wears a woven rice-straw hat, a takuhatsugasa, a large hat in the shape of a mushroom that covers the upper half of her face, helping to mask her identity and allowing her to travel without being distracted by the sights around her. She wears a light-brown rakusu, the mark of a teacher, over her black robes and a simple white kimono, tailored in the five-crested mon-tsuki style.
To protect her limbs, more from weather, insects, and underbrush than from weapons, Nora wears cloth leggings (Kyahan) and hand-and-forearm covers (Tekou). Despite living in the future, Nora favors white tabi, ankle-high socks with a separation between the big toe and other toes, that dates back to 15th Century Japan. Although she keeps her hair short, Nora wears a stylized white headband bearing a Buddhist slogan from her beloved order around her head.
Wrapped around her waist, Nora has a length of rope ending in an elaborate fusa tassel, a talisman, gifted to her by the abbess of her monastery, in the hopes that it would offer Nora protection in her travels.
Instead of the swords of a samurai, Nora carries two shakuhachi or bamboo-flutes on her hip. Strapped to her back she has a Gebako, nominally a box for collecting alms and holding documents, but the secret compartment expertly built into her particular container hints at other more covert uses.
She can frequently be found holding a set of handcrafted prayer beads, beautiful crystals shaped into perfect spheres that sparkle with a deep jade light.
Origin: Koga Incorporated Shinobi
Former Faction: Koga Incorporated
Current Faction: Nora belongs to The True Essence of the Eternal Self, a notable group of Space Buddhists prevalent across the galaxy. Famed for the skilled warrior monks they produce, the order is rumored to be building close ties with a coalition of religious fundamentalists, chiefly peasants, who have begun to fight against samurai rule, calling themselves the "Devoted League".
Skills:
Primary: Kusarigama, Whips, Chains, and other similar exotic weapons
Secondary: Stealth and Acrobatics
Fighting Style:
No samurai bound by honor and constrained by years of rigid training, Nora fights in a highly unorthodox manner, free from the limitations of any formalized system of combat. When asked, Nora describes fighting as merely a very particular, if often deadly, form of dancing and she approaches it accordingly, emphasizing agility and movement over brute strength.
Nora fights in a graceful, flowing manner, dancing in and out of range in sudden waves of motion, delivering crippling strikes and deadly blows from strange, unexpected angles, binding the limbs and weapons of her enemies, deftly retreating when pressed and relying on her lightening quick reflexes to dodge blows that she has no business avoiding. Fond of subterfuge, she utilizes deceptive movements and occasional flourishes to create openings in the defense of her opponents.
Weapons:
Monoblade Kusarigama: Nora wields a spectacular weapon, an advanced and heavily modified chain-sickle kusarigama with an incredibly long reach. Disguised as a simple bamboo-flute, the weapon appears to be nothing more than an instrument, even when closely examined, but contains a a hidden sickle (kama) monoblade and a chain (kusari) with a heavy weight at one end. A fearsome, highly destructive weapon, it is ideal for entangling the limbs or weapon of an opponent so that Nora can attack at a full advantage with the monoblade sickle. Unlike more traditional kusarigama, the chain of Nora's kusarigama is located within the shaft of her weapon and can be launched with great force across an impressive distance and retracted by a complex helix mechanism.
Monofilament Wire: Tucked within the sleeve of her left arm, Nora keeps a carefully spooled length of monofilament wire. Composed of a small weight and a simple handle, the atomically sharp monofialment extends up to two meters when fully unraveled. An exotic melee weapon, most often used by shinobi, it strikes fear into even the bravest of samurai due to the horrific injuries it inflicts. When wielded by a skilled combatant, the monofilimanet wire can cut through bone and armor like hot butter (ideally without also cutting off the fingers, hands, limbs, or head of the wielder).
Fukiya: Disinterested in the notion of Space Bushido, Nora carries a blowgun disguised as yet another bamboo-flute. A capable weapon at moderate distances, Nora uses it to covertly launch poison-tipped darts at her foes. Favoring a wide variety of rapid acting neurotoxins, with a mere pinprick from one of her poison-tipped darts Nora can easily slow, weaken, paralyze, render unconscious or even kill a foe.
Modifications: Courtesy of her former Koga overlords, Nora sports an array of subtle biological modifications that are undetectable by scanners.
Synaptic Booster: A favorite among the Koga shinobi, with the implantation of a synaptic booster, the neural cells, which make up the spinal cord and other main nerve trunks, are encouraged to replicate and broaden, allowing for more neural bandwidth. Despite a high degree of danger, the end result is a much faster reaction time those lucky enough to survive the procedure.
Muscle Toner: Pioneered by Tenki-Ikki a mere decade ago, this treatment incorporates vat-grown elastic muscle fibers into existing muscle tissue, increasing muscle tension and flexibility. Users of this augmentation are quicker and more limber than unmodified individuals.
Motivation:
Nora seeks atonement, traveling from system to system, planet to planet, city to city, in order to right wrongs, protect the weak, and to bring about a more enlightened society, a galaxy free from inequality, unnecessary suffering, and the pointless wars of the current corpocratic overlords.
Backstory:
Once a loyal Koga retainer, Nora was a talented shinobi who spread terror among the ranks of any samurai and ashigaru that stood against her clan or those that had paid for the bloody services of Koga Incorporated. Presumed dead following the botched assassination of a leading Nobunaga-Zaibatsu general, Nora found solace in the ancient teachings of Shin Buddhism, joined a monastic order on Mars, and has spent the last several years as a traveling nun.
"Sister Nora."
"Abbess Iwasaki," Nora offered, bowing deeply as she slowly rose to her feet, her muscles stiff from the unmoving and unyielding rock on which she had perched for the better part of the day, lost in her own thoughts and meditations. "To what do I owe this unexpected honor?"
"Relax, child, you needn't be so formal with me."
"Old habits die hard, Ma'am."
"Mmm, change is never easy," the old woman agreed with a sympathetic nod, "But sit, sit, let us speak for a moment."
"As you wish, Abbess," Nora conceded, resuming her cross legged pose on the rock. Though, she did not speak often or for very long with the ancient abbess of the monastery, she knew her to be a kind woman. Approaching some eighty five years of age, the old nun was a legendary religious figure, a true believer who had spread Buddhism across most of the known galaxy and a wizened old woman who commanded the attention and respect if not true affection, of powerful daiymo even in the lengthy twilight of her life.
"Master Ōta speaks very highly of you, he sees great potential in you," the abbess began taking a seat alarmingly close to Nora.
"I'm glad to hear it."
"Still, in all the five years you have been here, we have learned very little about your past, child," the abbess said with a wry smile and a lengthy glance, that sent a familiar pang of emotion and adrenaline racing through the young nun. "You possess training and skills that one rarely finds in the usual commoners and wandering samurai or ronin that seem to find their way to the doorstep of our order."
Drawing a deep breath, Nora scarcely had time to reply before the Abbess interrupted her with a gentle wave of a hand, "Do not worry, child, your past matters little to us, nor do we begrudge you past loyalties, distasteful as they may have been. Only your faith and only your desire to bring salvation to the galaxy matters now."
"My faith does not waver, Abbess," Nora desperately answered, feeling a blush of emotion overwhelm the skin of her cheeks. "And concerning my past-"
"Sister Nora, you are not the first nun to find her way here through a different, perhaps bloody path," The abbess again interrupted, chuckling to herself, and smiling kindly as she took a hold of Nora's hand, surprising her with the strength and warmth of her grip. "You do not need to explain yourself to me."
Moving closer to Nora, the old woman spoke barely above a whisper, "As it so happens, I have a job for someone of your...particular talents."
"Oh?"
"I need you to meet with a group of faithful," the Abbess continued.
"I see. Who are they?"
"A group of peasants, low-ranking samurai, and all manner of cut-throats. They call themselves the "Devoted League", they are lead by a former priest, Susumu Yokota, and they have asked for our aid through mutual friends."
"I am at your service, Abbess, what would you have me do?"
"Make contact with them, find out if they can be trusted, see if they can successfully carry the heavy burden of true faith, and then report back to me through the usual channels."
"As you wish, Ma'am."
Fishing into the sleeve of her robe, the Abbess handed Nora a her a carefully tied scroll of rice paper,"We have procured the appropriate documents for you, as well as a digital copy, of course. There is a small temple located in Okani Fortress Station, Brother Tanaka, the ranking monk, has been told to expect you, he will provide you with anything that you require."
"Oh, and Nora..."
"Yes, Abbess."
"If the good Brother Tanaka or anyone else should inquire, it would be best if you avoided mentioning anything about shinobi, warrior monks, and peasant uprisings."
"Of course," Nora replied with the faint ghost of a smile dancing across her lips. "I am but a humble pilgrim, searching for the Pure Land, and the salvation of all."
"Quite so," the Abbess replied, patting Nora gently on the shoulder as she rose to her feet, and offering the most conspiratorial of winks as she began to shuffle away with a brief wave.
"The captain of the Merciful Path has generously offered to provide you with transportation, it is a venerable ship humbled by time, so expect no great comforts, but I have been told it is surprisingly fast for a ship of its impressive age."
1x Thank
