Moreover, over the centuries various Emperors have A particularly pious Emperor, especially during a time
created other short-lived Minor Clans, some lasting only of turmoil or ill fortune in the Empire might create a Crow
a few years, others a few generations at best. Some are
created for specific tasks which are later completed,
rendered them superfluous. Others suffer tragedies in the
manner of the Boar Clan, while still others simply fall out
of favor with the Emperor and are disbanded and removed
from the records. These clans are seldom remembered after
their brief lifespans conclude, and no one really knows
how many of them have existed through the centuries.
For example, in the twelfth century a scroll was found
which detailed the brief history of one of these lost clans,
the Tanuki Clan. The Tanuki Clan was founded by a member
of the Badger Clan, making it the only known Minor Clan
to itself be founded by a member of a Minor Clan. The
Tanuki founder, whose name has been lost to history,
wandered out of the Shinomen after having disappeared
into the forest over a year earlier. He related the things
he had seen to the Emperor, who allowed him to form a
The Way of the Minor Clans
Minor Clan for the purpose of exploring the Shinomen
Forest and sending reports of their findings back to Otosan
Uchi. However, when a new Emperor came to power, he
decided the project was absurd and ordered the whole clan
summoned to the Imperial Court. The order was never
obeyed, however, because the entire clan had vanished
into the Shinomen; the Emperor spitefully ordered all
records of the Tanuki removed from the Imperial Histories.
Many other similar events have doubtless occurred over
the Empire’s history, and the possibilities for Minor Clans
12
are only limited by the hubris of individual Emperors.
GMs seeking inspiration can consider the following
Chapter One
possibilities:
In an era where the Emperor is paranoid or rules with
an iron fist, he might create a clan of spies and assassins,
perhaps the Ferret Clan or the Rat Clan. Such a clan would
likely not survive a later change in leadership.
The Price of Being
a Minor Clan Samurai
A samurai in a Minor Clan is, essentially, a second-
class citizen of the Empire. He will never be as well
respected as a Great Clan samurai of similar rank. He
will always be treated as ranking lower in the Celestial
Order, always considered a person of little importance.
He will have to work harder to make the same political
gains, to gain the same glory or the same respect. His
word will be treated as though it is worth less and his
accomplishments are considered less praiseworthy. He is
also less well-protected than members of a Great Clan,
since many samurai who would be wary of gaining the
enmity of someone from a Great Clan will think little
of offending a Minor Clan samurai. Ultimately, being
a Minor Clan samurai is a constant uphill struggle for
dignity and respect.
Clan whose duty was to protect mendicant monks. Once
times stabilized, there would be no further need for such
a clan, which would most likely be absorbed into the
Brotherhood of Shinsei.
An equestrian Emperor might create a Horse Clan
charged with stocking and maintaining the Imperial
Stables. Such a clan would be unlikely to survive the
return of the Unicorn Clan.
So You’ve Founded a
Minor Clan. Now What?
What happens after a samurai manages to do
something so amazing as to be named founder of a
Minor Clan? Most of the time, the Emperor grants the
new Minor Clan some land. Sometimes the land is taken
from a Great Clan; sometimes it is land that is unaligned
or has been left uninhabited. Whatever the case, the
clan founder must recruit followers – both samurai and
heimin – to live on, tend to, and administer his lands.
Recruiting samurai is fairly easy, since there are always
a few samurai willing to swear fealty for a chance at
glory and advancement within a new clan, even a Minor
Clan. Peasants can actually be harder to recruit, since
they are usually tied to the lands where they were born.
In some cases a clan founder may actually have to beg
the Great Clans for permission to take a few of their
heimin for his own use.
Once the founder has recruited his initial group, he
must begin turning his lands into a proper home for his
nascent Minor Clan. In some cases there will already
be villages or a castle on the lands gifted to the Minor
Clan by the Emperor, but more often the new clan will
need to build its own villages, dig its own rice paddies,
and construct its castle from the ground up. Such
construction is both time-consuming and expensive;
although the Emperor may sometimes gift the new clan
with the resources for its initial work, this is by no means
assured. Most clan founders must struggle to acquire the
resources they need, which can again lead to becoming
indebted to a nearby Great Clan.
Finally, the Minor Clan must survive. It is easy for a
new clan to be swept up and destroyed by the tides of the
political seas, or become so subservient to a great Clan
that it loses its individuality and is absorbed. Few Mi-
nor Clans have skilled courtiers, so finding political allies
without overcommitting oneself is the key. Isolation can
also work, although this limits the availability of outside
resources and trade.
For any Minor Clan, surviving these first few years of
existence is the key to long-term success. A GM seeking
a compelling high-stakes challenge for a group of PCs
may find the origins of a Minor Clan the ideal setting.