TEXT:  
   
  Lotus 
  Blossom’s 
  Bridal Path 
   
   
  A Scenario for “Tenra Bansho Zero” by Albert Hwang 
   
   
  Tenra Bansho Zero is © 2000 by Jun’Ichi Inoue/Far East Amusement Research Co, Ltd.; ©2000 ENTERBRAIN, INC.; Tenra Bansho: Tales of Heaven 
  And Earth Edition is ©2012 Kotodama Heavy Industries. 
  
  Introduction 
  Toki wa Sengoku – an age of warring states. The world 
  is stained by hundreds of years of continuous war, with 
  no end in sight. This is but one tale of many in the land 
  called Tenra. . . a tale of war, loss, and struggle. . . a tale 
  of pain and bravery. . . the tale of Lotus Blossom’s 
  bloody bridal path. 
   
  The Ayanokoji and Takatsukasa clans have been at war 
  for many decades. It is a war that has cost the lives of 
  many men, destroyed many rice fields, caused much 
  pain and suffering. It is a war that has cost Lord 
  Ayanokoji the life of his son. It is a war that must end. 
  Lord Ayanokoji is so convinced of this fact that he has 
  made a decision to sacrifice one of his most precious 
  treasures: the kugutsu named Lotus Blossom. He is 
  sending this priceless treasure to the lands of his long-
  time enemy to marry the young lord of the Takatsukasa: 
  the dashing Lord Shinji. It is the hope of Lord Ayanokoji 
  that this gift will serve as such a gesture of goodwill that 
  the heart of his enemy will be softened, and that this 
  bloody war may be brought to a final conclusion.  
  But there are those who wish to see the war continue. 
  Bandits who prey upon the dead and dying. Neighboring 
  kingdoms rightfully fear a possible alliance between 
  these two powerful nations. Samurai and warriors who 
  have given themselves to hate and cannot let go of their 
  swords. Even the inscrutable Shinto Priesthood have 
  their own reasons to oppose the coming peace. 
  Lotus Blossom’s bridal path will be paved in blood. 
   
  Synopsis 
  Lotus Blossom’s Bridal Path is a scenario for Tenra 
  Bansho Zero in five acts, plus a Zero Act. It is intended 
  to be played over the course of four to six hours, with 
  each Act representing about an hour of gameplay. 
  The scenario is written for three to six players, but four 
  or five are the optimal number. Six pregenerated player 
  characters are included with this scenario, but you can 
  your own characters if you and your players so desire. 
   
  How to Use This Scenario 
  A traditional roleplaying game “module” generally 
  resembles either a series of maps or a movie script. The 
  Gamemaster is presented either with a bunch of 
  locations and monsters to challenge their players, or a 
  series of events for them to experience. 
  Lotus Blossom’s Bridal Path is written a little differently. 
  Rather than a hard-and-set series of directives, think of 
  them more as goals to be reached and guidelines to 
  spark the imagination. You will notice that many of the 
  Big Questions do not get definitively answered here. 
  Instead, the scenario will bring up the question, and 
  perhaps provide a few possibilities.  
  Over the course of the scenario, you and your players 
  will find those answers out for yourself. Most likely, the 
  answers you come up with will be far different than the 
  ones that another group might, playing the same 
  scenario. That’s okay. There is no right or wrong answer. 
  Feel free to ignore or change anything in this scenario 
  to better fit your personal play style and that of your 
  group. If your group doesn’t like combat so much, then 
  turn down the number of times that flying cyborg 
  ninjas1 show up to ruin their day. If they prefer more 
  combat, then add more encounters with the enemy. If 
  they come up with an idea that’s better than this 
  campaign, then toss this entire document out and play 
  something completely different! 
  After all, this is your game of Tenra Bansho Zero. Not 
  mine. 
                                                             
  1 I know they’re not really ninjas, but “Flying Cyborg Ninjas” 
  has such a nice ring to it, don’t you think? 
  
  Regarding Names and Places 
  You may notice that there are few physical descriptions 
  of places, persons, or things. I’ll leave that to you and 
  your group to decide.  
  Same with distances and times: in general, things 
  should travel “at the speed of plot,” or at a speed and 
  pace that best fits the drama of the situation. If your 
  group is fine with that, then that’s the only answer you 
  need to give.  
  However, if they prefer more concrete numbers, tell 
  them it’s 120 km between the castles, and that the 
  Floating Butterfly travels at around 7 kph. This allows 
  for a decent distance between the two castles, while 
  still allowing for a single messenger to be sent back 
  home in a reasonable time if the group decides to go for 
  that option.2 
   
  The Scenario Structure 
  The Scenario is divided up into five Acts. Each Act 
  consists of between two to five scenes focusing on one 
  or more player characters.  
  The Zero Act will introduce the player characters. The 
  focus of the Zero Act is to introduce the important 
  players in the story, to give a bit of exposition about the 
  world, and to drive home the pain and suffering that 
  has been endured by both kingdoms during the course 
  of this long war. Six suggestions for Zero Act scenes 
  (one for each pregenerated character) are included with 
  this scenario. 
                                                             
  2This distance and speed were calculated on the assumption 
  that you are using the pregenerated characters, particularly 
  “Chie the Scarlet Blade.” The Blackhawk’s Shadow ninjutsu 
  allows one to travel at 132 kph, or 2.2 km per minute. With 6 
  Spirit and 20 Soul, Chie can keep this up for 54 minutes, for a 
  total of 118.8 km.  
   
  Why Chie doesn’t just carry Lotus Blossom over to the 
  Ayanokoji in the first place is a question best left to those 
  persons who can figure out why Gandalf didn’t just ask the 
  Giant Eagles to help deliver The One Ring to Mount Doom. 
  Act 1, “A Gathering of Flowers” sets the stage for the 
  rest of the story. During this act, the player characters 
  will gather at Ayanokoji Castle in preparation for their 
  mission of peace. 
  Act 2 is called “Things Fall Apart.” During this Act, the 
  player characters will set out from Ayanokoji Castle on 
  the kingdom’s fastest and most luxurious airship, the 
  “Floating Butterfly.” At the end of this Act, the airship 
  will be attacked and shot down, causing it to crash. 
  In Act 3, “The Pursuit,” the party has been separated. 
  Lotus Blossom has been taken from her protectors and 
  is alone, beset by bandits. This Act ends with the party 
  rallying once more and proceding to Takatsukasa Castle 
  Act 4 is called “Under Siege.” During this Act, the 
  players will discover Takatsukasa Castle under siege, 
  and will make plans to finish their mission. 
  Act 5 is called “The Bride.” This is the climax of the story, 
  when we find out the final fates of our heroes. . . and 
  the kingdoms of the Ayanokoji and Takatsukasa. 
   
  Scene Format 
  Each Scene is organized in the following manner:  
   
  The name of the scene. 
   
  Player characters (from the pregenerated 
  characters list) that the scenario can focus on. 
   
  Any important antagonists or NPCs 
   
  A short description of the scene itself. In 
  particular, the description focuses on how to 
  begin and end the scene, as well as how to 
  transition into the next one. 
   
  Some suggestions for the gamemaster on 
  different ways to play out the scene, as well as 
  different ways to prompt players for roleplaying 
  or world suggestions. 
  At the end of each Act, some suggestions are provided 
  for alternate scenes or variants thereof, as well as some 
  suggestions on what to do in case the scenario derails 
  from the pre-written structure. 
   
  
  A Word on Pregenerated 
  Characters 
  There are six pregenerated characters included with this 
  scenario. These are based on the original six characters 
  that ran the scenario the first time it was played. 
  However, they aren’t the only characters that can be 
  used. Feel free to alter or replace them as you wish. 
  That said, it’s my opinion that two characters should be 
  used in this scenario if at all possible: General Kaneyori 
  and Lotus Blossom herself. General Kaneyori serves as a 
  solid foundation upon which the rest of the scenario 
  can be built: he in particular embodies the themes of 
  war, loss, and a yearning for peace that this scenario 
  seeks to explore (between robot ninja battles). 
  As for Lotus Blossom, this is a character that, in most 
  scenarios, would be presented as an NPC. I can think of 
  several ways that this scenario could be played without 
  her (for instance: the PCs could simply be traveling to 
  Takatsukasa as peace envoys), but I feel that it loses 
  something if you do so. She’s a good choice for players 
  who don’t really like combat, but enjoy soap-opera style 
  drama. 
   
  Emergencies 
  The first rule of Gamemastering is that your campaign 
  will never survive first contact with your players. In 
  most cases, I recommend that you go with the flow and 
  keep playing, rather than trying to railroad your 
  characters back onto the path: It’s more fun, your 
  players will feel empowered, and you might find that 
  their journey takes them back to the place where you 
  were intending to go anyway.  
  There are, however, a few decisions your players might 
  make that could cause the campaign to end early or in 
  an unsatisfactory manner, if not handled carefully.  
   
  Lotus Blossom’s player may decide to abandon 
  her responsibilities and run away. If the other 
  players decide to pursue her, then step back 
  and let it play out. If, however, she escapes or 
  they decide to let her go, then you might have a 
  slight problem. One option is to have Lotus 
  Blossom leave the campaign, give her player a 
  stock character and have the group continue 
  onwards. Another is to follow Lotus Blossom as 
  she explores her new freedom. There might 
  come a moment where she may decide to 
  continue her original mission, and that could be 
  a moment of high drama in itself. 
   
  A player character may end up killed during an 
  early battle: the most likely one where this will 
  happen is the pivotal fight at the end of Act 2. 
  This usually isn’t too bad, except that it might 
  cause the player to feel left out. I recommend 
  giving them an “emergency character” (one of 
  the stock characters from the Tenra Bansho 
  Zero rule book) and have the group press on, 
  (after an appropriate interlude to mourn and 
  reflect on their loss). 
   
  The party may simply lose an early battle. In 
  that case, I recommend having the bad guys 
  abduct Lotus Blossom and play out the rest of 
  the scenario as either rescuing her from their 
  evil clutches or rallying the troops to do so. 
  Meanwhile, skip back every once in a while to 
  Lotus Blossom herself being menaced by the 
  bad guys. If possible, try to have the bad guys 
  bring at least one other player character along 
  so that her player will have at least one other 
  player to interact/plan an escape with. Chie, the 
  ninja disguised as her maidservant, would be a 
  good candidate for this. 
   
  The group might decide to suddenly and 
  inexplicably murder one of your key NPCs, like 
  Lord Ayanokoji. They might even decide to 
  murder each other. In that case, you’re no 
  longer playing Lotus Blossom’s Bridal Path, but 
  The Hunt for the Murderers of So and So. I 
  can’t really help you there, but I hope you have 
  fun playing your new story. 
  
  Key NPCs 
  Lord Ayanokoji 
  Lord Ayanokoji is the leader of the Ayanokoji clan. He is 
  the one who has ordered the party to escort Lotus 
  Blossom to the Takatsukasa. 
   
  Lord Ayanokoji could be a tired old man who 
  has seen too much war, and sincerely wishes for 
  the war to end. 
   
  Lord Ayanokoji could be a conniving monster 
  who is sending Lotus Cloud to secretly 
  assassinate Lord Shinji. 
   
  It could even be that Lord Ayanokoji is sending 
  the PCs to their deaths, so that he can have an 
  excuse to escalate the war even further with 
  the blessing of the Shinto Priesthood. 
   
  Lord Takatsukasa 
  Lord Takatsukasa, also known as Lord Shinji, is the 
  young leader of the Takatsukasa Clan. He is pledged to 
  marry Lotus Blossom as a sign of reconciliation between 
  the two kingdoms. 
   
  Lord Shinji could be just a young lord who also 
  sincerely wants to see the war to end. His 
  personality could be anything from quiet and 
  bookish to boisterous and loud. 
   
  Lord Shinji could be an evil, calculating bastard 
  who has ordered Lotus Blossom murdered so 
  that he can have an excuse to escalate the war 
  with the Ayanokoji. 
   
  Lord Shinji could be a kugutsu himself, 
  masquerading 
  as 
  the 
  (murdered? 
  lost?) 
  Takatsukasa Clan heir to prevent the Clan 
  generals from attempting a play for the throne. 
  Flying Razor 
  The main villain of the story, Flying Razor is a Kongohki 
  who wields two cursed blades. He is a master of Dragon 
  and Tiger-style swordplay, and the leader of the Kijin 
  and Kongohki army that seeks to kill or capture Lotus 
  Blossom. 
   
  Flying Razor was hired by the neighboring 
  Kusanagi clan (who fears an alliance of their two 
  strongest neighbors) to disrupt peace talks 
  between the Ayanokoji and Takatsukasa. 
   
  Flying Razor was hired by the Shinto Priesthood 
  to maintain a state of war between the 
  Ayanokoji and Takatsukasa, for their own 
  mysterious reasons. 
   
  Flying Razor was secretly hired by either Lord 
  Ayanokoji or Lord Takatsukasa to disrupt the 
  peace talks and place the blame on the other 
  kingdom. 
   
  Flying Razor was hired by someone to kidnap 
  Lotus Blossom and make it look as if she died. 
  Perhaps he is being hired by a kugutsu collector 
  who wants her for his own, or just a greedy 
  young nobleman who wants to make her his 
  bride. 
  In addition to his motives, Flying Razor’s identity is also 
  up for grabs. 
   
  Flying Razor could be the soul of a person one 
  of the PCs knew in life, turned Asura and 
  returned from the grave to live a life of chaos 
  and killing. 
   
  Flying Razor could be the soul of a person who 
  was wronged by one of the two clans, and could 
  be seeking to disrupt the peace talks as an act 
  of revenge. 
   
  Flying Razor could be a member of the Hyakki 
  Swarm. All of this could simply be collateral 
  damage from their campaign of death and 
  destruction. 
  
  The Zero Act 
  General Kaneyori 
  General Kaneyori walks through a battlefield littered 
  with the dead and dying. His army is broken and 
  shattered, his men dead or dying. And now, in this place, 
  in this time, his Lord, Lord Ayanokoji, comes bearing 
  congratulations. . . or perhaps censure. 
   
  Focus: What happened at the Battle of the Lake 
  of Fire that caused General Kaneyori to give up 
  his sword? 
   
  Emotion Matrix: Lord Ayanokoji 
   
  Lotus Blossom 
  Lord Ayanokoji commissioned Lotus Blossom as a gift 
  for his son, young Lord Hiroyuki. However, Lord 
  Hiroyuki was killed in battle before the two could marry. 
  What was their relationship like? What was it like on 
  the day that Lotus Blossom got word of his death? 
   
  Focus: What is life like for a kugutsu who was 
  created and lived her early life pledged to a 
  purpose that was suddenly taken away from her? 
   
  Emotion Matrix: Lord Ayanokoji, Chie 
   
  Chie, The Scarlet Blade 
  Chie is a kunoichi, a shinobi who kills by deception and 
  deceit. She was assigned to guard Lord Ayanokoji’s son, 
  the young Lord Hiroyuki. She failed in this mission. 
  What happened?  
   
  Focus: What was the cause of Chie’s greatest 
  failing, and how has it changed the way that she 
  views the world? 
   
  Emotion Matrix: Lord Ayanokoji, Lotus Blossom 
  Soujiro, the Steel Viper 
  Soujiro is a monster, a shinobi assassin who was 
  deliberately infested with hellish creatures to give him 
  bizarre and terrifying powers. How came he to become 
  this monster, and what are his feelings towards those 
  who turned him into one? 
   
  Focus: What sort of thing could cause a man to 
  become a monster? And what sort of man turns 
  a human being into a weapon of war? 
   
  Emotion Matrix: Lord Ayanokoji, Chie 
   
  Akizuki  Nobutaki 
  Nobutaki was not always a samurai. He made the 
  decision to become one, and then came into the service 
  of Lord Ayanokoji. How came this young samurai into 
  the service of his lord, and what are his feelings towards 
  his master? 
   
  Focus: 
  Why 
  does 
  Nobutaki 
  follow 
  Lord 
  Ayanokoji? How deep are the bonds between 
  samurai and master? 
   
  Emotion Matrix: Lord Ayanokoji, Ryuunosuke, 
  General Kaneyori. 
   
  Ryuunosuke 
  A mercenary lives off of war. What is it like for a man 
  such as this to serve an honorable lord? And what are 
  his feelings now, on the verge of peace? 
   
  Focus: When killing is what you do, how do you 
  feel when peace is drawing near? 
   
   Emotion Matrix: Lord Ayanokoji, Nobutaki, 
  General Kaneyori. 
  
  Act One: A Gathering of Flowers 
  In which we are introduced to our cast of characters as they set out on a mission of peace in a time of war. 
   
  The Lion In Winter 
  Cast: General Kaneyori, Nobutaki, Ryuunosuke 
  Lord Ayanokoji sends an envoy to General Kaneyori, the 
  hero of the Battle of the Lake of Fire. He requires his 
  services one more time, in a mission that could help end 
  this war forever. 
   
  What do Ryuunosuke and Nobutaki discuss on 
  their way to General Kaneyori’s home? 
   
  What are their opinions of the General? This is 
  another good chance to use the Emotion Matrix, 
  if they haven’t already. 
   
  What is General Kaneyori doing when the envoy 
  arrives? What has he done since he put down 
  his sword and ended his life of war? 
   
  What is his reaction to being told that his Lord 
  requires his services once more? 
   
  An Audience With Lord 
  Ayanokoji 
  Cast: Lotus Blossom, Chie, Soujiro 
  Lord Ayanokoji sends for the kugutsu, Lotus Blossom. 
  He tells her that he has pledged her to marry the young 
  Lord Takatsukasa and end this war. 
   
  What was Lord Ayanokoji’s relationship with 
  Lotus Blossom after his son’s death? Romantic? 
  Parental? Distant? Open dislike? 
   
  How has the war and the death of his son 
  affected the Ayanokoji Lord? 
  Return to the Castle 
  Cast: Everyone 
  The envoy returns. General Kaneyori has returned to 
  Ayanokoji Castle for the first time in many years. He will 
  meet up with Lotus Blossom and the others members of 
  the peace envoy, who are nearing the end of their 
  preparations. 
   
  What was the journey back to Ayanokoji Castle 
  like? Did Ryuunosuke and Nobutaki have a 
  chance to converse with the Great General? 
   
  What are Lotus Blossom’s feelings when she 
  first meets the man who will escort her to her 
  new husband? 
   
  What are General Kaneyori’s feelings when he 
  returns to the castle for the first time in many 
  years? 
   
  The Night Before 
  Cast: Anyone 
  It is the night before the peace envoy sets out on their 
  mission. . . what do our heroes do on the night before 
  their quest begins? 
  Some ideas you might suggest: 
   
  Does anyone go for a quiet walk in a moonlit 
  garden? Perhaps they meet another person 
  under the stars or the falling cherry blossoms? 
   
  Does anyone go out drinking or carousing with 
  friends? 
   
  Any last-minute trysts with lovers? Any final 
  nights spent with loved ones or family? 
  
   
  Any preparations for battle? Swords to be 
  sharpened? Armor to be cleaned? Any clothes 
  to be mended or wills to be written? 
   
  Maybe some of the more martial characters 
  decide to spend some time practicing their 
  techniques? This could be a good chance to 
  introduce the combat system with some short 
  sparring exercises. 
   
  The Departure 
  Cast: Everyone 
  The Act ends with the Ayanokoji skyship “Floating 
  Butterfly” setting out for the Takatsukasa lands. This is a 
  perfect chance for player characters to give some 
  introspective speeches, or perhaps make some dire 
  predictions as to what the coming journey will be like. . . 
   
  The nature of the Ayanokoji skyship is up to you 
  and/or your players. It’s probably going to be 
  the fastest and the most luxurious of the 
  kingdom’s vessels. It should not be heavily 
  armed or armored. Aside from that, it can be 
  anything from a steampunk-style propeller-
  driven zeppelin to a massive shiki-powered 
  vessel, to a magical boat rowed by servants. 
   
  Intermission 
  In the next act, the skyship “Floating Butterfly” 
  continues on its journey towards the Takatsukasa lands. 
  The PCs will encounter a dangerous and mysterious new 
  foe, and the “Flying Butterfly” will be shot down and 
  crash. 
  Before your players make their Kiai rolls, make a note of 
  their Aiki totals. Write this down and make a note of it 
  going into Act 2. 
  Notes and Advice 
  This first Act is intended to introduce the player 
  characters, get the group together, and set them off on 
  their mission. It’s short on action, so focus mostly on 
  character development. Keep the pace slow and relaxed: 
  things will pick up soon enough. 
  This first Act is a good time to get the players rolling on 
  the Emotion Matrix towards each other. Look for 
  opportunities to hand out new Fates involving the other 
  player characters. 
  Try to make sure that everyone has a fairly good 
  number of Aiki going into intermission. They’ll need the 
  Kiai in Act 2, which is the first of the major set-piece 
  battles. If you see a player who is a bit short on Aiki, try 
  to draw them into a conversation with someone else in 
  “The Night Before.” You can then give them an Aiki chit 
  for being in the scene, and give them a chance to earn 
  more by good roleplaying. 
  One idea that worked well for me was to intersplice 
  “The Lion in Winter” with “An Audience With Lord 
  Ayanokoji.” I started The Lion In Winter with Nobutaki 
  arriving at General Kaneyori’s home. When the General 
  asked why Nobutaki had come, I then cut to “An 
  Audience With Lord Ayanokoji” as a flashback. After 
  that scene was over, we cut back to General Kaneyori’s 
  home and played out the rest of that scene. 
  Be sure to give plenty of character development to Lord 
  Ayanokoji. After this Act, he kind of disappears from the 
  campaign, so you want to make sure that he leaves an 
  indelible impression.  
   
  
  Act Two: Things Fall Apart 
  In which darker forces emerge, the mission is intercepted, and the skyship destroyed. 
   
  The Journey Continues 
  Cast: Anyone 
  It’s been about a day or so since the skyship set out 
  from Ayanokoji Castle. The journey has been peaceful 
  since then, and things are calm. 
  Choose the player who had the fewest Aiki chits at the 
  end of Act One to start off: Have them give a brief 
  description of what they have been doing, then play off 
  of that. Try to draw characters who were low on Aiki at 
  the end of Act One into this scene as well. Use this 
  scene as a means of handing out Aiki to players who 
  may not have had very much so far. 
  Feel free to stretch this out to two or even three scenes 
  if you want, but if things start to feel dull, that’s the 
  time to move on to the next scene and attack everyone 
  with flying cyborg ninjas. 
   
  Suggestions: 
   
  The ship’s crew are playing a game of dice, and 
  invite one of the player characters to join in.  
   
  The ship’s captain asks Lotus Blossom if she will 
  sing a song or dance for the crew’s enjoyment.  
   
  The ship overflies an area of land that has been 
  ravaged by the war, which sparks reminiscing 
  and discussion. 
   
  One of the player characters may want to hold a 
  tea ceremony or a poetry reading or some other 
  stereotypical Japanese pastime. 
   
  And, of course, simply having a conversation 
  between player characters is good too. 
  Flying Cyborg Ninjas 
  Cast: Everyone 
  Antagonists: 2x Kijin Assailants for each player 
  character, attacking in two waves. 
  The attack can happen in daytime or nighttime, 
  whichever you feel is more appropriate. Nighttime is 
  better if you’re going for a sneak attack, whereas 
  daytime is better if you want a brutal frontal assault. 
  However it happens, a black skyship, faster and smaller 
  but more heavily armed than the “Floating Butterfly,” 
  will rapidly close in. Once the two ships close to around 
  200 meters3, two waves of Kijin will fly over to the 
  Floating Butterfly and attempt to take it over. Send over 
  half of them in the first wave, then the other half one or 
  two rounds later (depending on how quickly the players 
  dispatch the first wave). 
  To keep things interesting, try to split the party: It could 
  be as simple as one group of kijin attempting to disable 
  the ship’s engines, while a second group attempts to 
  capture Lotus Blossom. In the case of a nighttime sneak 
  attack, it could just be that the party is split up to begin 
  with: some of them are below decks sleeping, others 
  were awake when the attack began. Another idea is to 
  have the enemy fire a cannon volley that blasts several 
  holes in the “Floating Butterfly’s” hull: the enemy kijin 
  can then climb in through the hull breach to reach the 
  lower decks, while another group attacks the top deck. 
  If any players think of flying over to the black skyship, 
  let them do so: Flying Razor will be standing on the deck 
  of the other ship, ready to fight them. At this point in 
  the game, with the amount of Kiai they have, it should 
  be difficult to impossible for them to actually defeat 
                                                             
  3 The distance the Kijin can fly in one round. 
  
  him. If, however, it looks like that’s going to happen, 
  that might not be a bad time to move on to the next 
  scene. (Or you could let the PCs kill Flying Razor and roll 
  up a new Big Bad Evil Guy for the final battle. Your call.) 
  If you feel that the battle is going too quickly, feel free 
  to send a third wave of kijin. If the battle turns out to be 
  too hard. . . well, keep in mind that the kijin are not 
  trying to kill the player characters. They have two goals 
  in mind: 
  1. Bring down the “Floating Butterfly” 
  2. Capture Lotus Blossom. 
  Having a few of the Kijin break off from the battle to go 
  rig explosive charges on the engines, or try to drag off 
  Lotus Blossom, might not be a bad idea. 
  In any case, don’t drag out the combat too long. Keep 
  things exciting and moving quickly. If  
   
  Things Fall Apart 
  Cast: Everyone 
  The battle ends with the skyship “Floating Butterfly” 
  being shot down.  
  How it happens is up to the GM. If the battle with the 
  Kijin is going badly for the good guys, it could be as 
  simple as the enemy blowing up the ship’s engines and 
  bringing it down. Alternatively, Flying Razor could pick 
  up a ZAKT-8 sword that happens to be lying around, 
  leap over, and cut the “Floating Butterfly” in half. Or the 
  black skyship could fire a second volley of cannon fire to 
  bring the ship down when the battle starts going badly 
  for them, abandoning any hope of capturing Lotus 
  Blossom in favor of destroying the evidence. 
  It could even be that the players’ own actions will cause 
  their ship to crash, especially if one of them gets it into 
  their head to ram the other vessel.  
  When the crash happens, everyone passes out. (If you 
  want to be really mean, you could make it an arbitrarily 
  large amount of Vitality damage, and kill off everyone 
  who has checked off their Dead Box.) 
  Intermission 
  In the next Act, the survivors of the crash will gather 
  together. They will evade the patrols of their new 
  enemy and complete their journey to the Takatsukasa 
  lands. . . where they will discover a new threat to the 
  peace between the two nations. 
  As in Act One, make a note of the Aiki totals going into 
  the next act. 
   
  Notes and Advice 
  The scene structure for Acts 2 and 4 are rather more 
  loose than the other three: this is because, in my 
  experience, combat tends to introduce a lot of 
  randomness, and it’s difficult to predict what will 
  happen next. Just go with the flow and improvise.  
  One thing to watch for is that the Kijin may succeed in 
  abducting Lotus Blossom. If Lotus Blossom is an NPC, 
  then that’s fine: it will change the arc of the next Act 
  somewhat (as Lotus Blossom will need to be rescued), 
  but that’s not necessarily a bad thing.  
  If Lotus Blossom is a PC, then you have a few different 
  options. You can run with it and interject a few scenes 
  into the next act of Lotus being menaced by her captors, 
  perhaps as they are in the middle of carrying her off 
  somewhere. Or you can choose to have Lotus get flung 
  free from her captors when the “Floating Butterfly” gets 
  shot down. Either way, it’s not necessarily the end of 
  the campaign. 
  
  Act Three: The Pursuit 
  In which the mission goes on, and those who survive struggle to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat 
   
  Beset by Bandits 
  Cast: Lotus Blossom, Others 
  If Lotus Blossom is a PC, start with her. Otherwise, begin 
  with the player who had the lowest Aiki total going into 
  Act Three. 
  The skyship has crashed, and the player characters are 
  among the survivors. Among the rest of the crew, those 
  who are alive are in no condition to continue the 
  journey. 
  Meanwhile, a group of bandits has seen the skyship go 
  down, and have descended upon the wreckage to loot 
  the dead. 
   
  What does Lotus Blossom do? Does she take 
  this moment to try and escape? Does she care 
  for the wounded? 
   
  Are there any wounded survivors among the 
  enemy? What do the PCs do when they come 
  across a dying man who had recently been 
  trying to kill them? 
   
  How do the PCs respond to the bandits?  
   
  If any player characters died during Act Two, 
  now is a good point to bring in a replacement 
  character: a good-hearted bandit, maybe, or a 
  soldier from the besieged Takatsukasa Castle 
  who comes to the aid of the crash survivors. 
   
  The Escape 
  Cast: Anyone 
  The enemy is still near, and the party must move quickly. 
  The ship’s crew will remain behind to care for the 
  wounded. The PCs must continue on to Takatsukasa 
  Castle on foot. 
  Give the players a few minutes to plan their escape. 
  Listen carefully and jot down ideas on how to play out 
  the upcoming pursuit. 
   
  How does the party plan to evade their 
  pursuers?  
   
  Do they plan to evade their pursuers? They may 
  decide to stand and fight instead.  
   
  Now is a good time to establish the identity of 
  Flying Razor. Have one of the players do so, and 
  award them an Aiki and a 2 point Fate relating 
  to Flying Razor. 
   
  The Chase 
  Cast: Anyone 
  Antagonist: Flying Razor, Kijin Assailants. The total 
  number of antagonists should be equal to the number 
  of people in the party. 
  At some point after the party leaves the wreck, they 
  should see that Flying Razor has picked up their trail and 
  is now following them. If you are feeling sadistic, wait 
  until the PCs get far enough away that they can’t run 
  back in time to help, then have the enemy descend 
  upon the wreck and begin murdering the survivors they 
  just painstakingly rescued. 
  After establishing that Flying Razor is in pursuit, play out 
  the rest of the pursuit. The scene should take place as a 
  series of opposed skill checks, dependent on how the 
  party plans to evade the Kijin. For example, if they plan 
  to try to outrun their pursuers, have them make Body: 
  
  Movement checks. If they try to evade them by stealth, 
  have them roll Agility: Stealth vs. Senses: Pursuit.  
  Add up the total number of successes for each group, 
  and use these totals to judge how to adjudicate the rest 
  of the scene. If the party is heavily outstripping the 
  pursuers, then they should easily evade and escape. If 
  the enemy quickly defeats the players, then they should 
  catch up, resulting in another battle.  
  The exact margins of success and/or failure are left up 
  to the GM to decide, but a good rule of thumb is that a 
  margin of 2 successes per party member is sufficient to 
  immediately lose their pursuers. The reverse (a margin 
  of 2 failures per party member) will result in the party 
  getting caught. Don’t let the pursuit go on for more 
  than three or four rounds at most: at the end of that 
  time, whoever has more successes will have an 
  advantage (you decide what) going into the next scene. 
  If the party tries to hide, remember that Flying Razor 
  has a 900m “Lifepulse” range. That’s something they’ll 
  have to deal with if they want to evade their pursuers. 
   
  The Arrival 
  Cast: Everyone 
  In any case, the rest of the journey passes without 
  incident. They arrive at Takatsukasa Castle (or a nearby 
  town overlooking it), only to find it under siege. 
   
  Who is besieging the castle? What do the 
  armies look like? What are they doing? Are they 
  simply camped outside, or are they actively 
  attacking the castle walls? 
   
  What is their relationship to the Kijin that have 
  been pursuing the party thus far? 
  Intermission 
  In the next Act, the player characters have rallied 
  together and regrouped. Now they face a new 
  challenge. . . to find a way to break the siege of 
  Takatsukasa Castle and rescue their erstwhile nemeses. 
  As usual, make a note of player Aiki totals before any 
  Fate Rolls are made. 
   
  Notes and Advice 
  The trickiest part of this Act to adjudicate is The Chase. 
  You’re going to have to walk a fine line between making 
  it seem too short and insignificant, and letting it drag 
  too long. Simply put, if it’s not fun for you and your 
  players seem distracted, it’s time to end the chase and 
  move on. 
  If a battle ensues and goes badly (either because the 
  party chose to stand and fight, or because they failed to 
  evade the patrol) you may want to end it by having the 
  cavalry (in the form of two Armour-Riders and some 
  soldiers from Takatsukasa Castle) come to the rescue (a 
  bit deus ex machina, but certainly genre-appropriate). 
  This would also be a good chance to introduce 
  replacement characters, to make up for any PC deaths. 
  If Lotus Blossom was captured in Act Two, then Act 
  Three is going to be very different. It could be that the 
  PCs are the ones doing the pursuing, rather than the 
  enemy. If so, Flying Razor will not stand and fight to the 
  death: once the battle starts to turn against him, he will 
  attempt to escape and fight another day. It could be 
  that the players even end up failing to catch up to Lotus 
  Blossom’s captors. In which case, instead of breaking 
  the siege of Takatsukasa Castle, they may instead have 
  to besiege a castle themselves.  
  
  Act Four: Under Siege 
  In which a castle is besieged, a battle is begun, and the final fight for peace begins. 
   
  Battle Lines 
  Cast: Everyone 
  Takatsukasa Castle is under siege. The siege must be 
  broken if the alliance is to take place. But the enemy 
  numbers in the thousands. How can a few stand against 
  so many? 
   
  The players may decide that they want to send 
  a messenger back to Ayanokoji Castle and ask 
  for reinforcements. Chie should be able to run 
  back to the castle and deliver the message in 
  about an hour’s hard running, using all of her 
  ninja skills (though she may need to rest up and 
  recover some Spirit first. They could also 
  dispatch an NPC or try some other means such 
  as Onmyou-Jutsu. 
   
  The players may decide to break the siege 
  themselves. I recommend against letting six 
  heroes kill the entire besieging army, mostly 
  because if these few guys could have killed an 
  entire army by themselves, the war would have 
  been over long ago! But one or more of 
  themmight be able to fight their way through 
  and make it into the castle. (Of course, that 
  means they still need to deal with the army 
  outside. . . ) 
   
  They could try seeking allies elsewhere. Maybe 
  they can rally the local bandits, or maybe there 
  is another neighboring kingdom they could turn 
  to for help. 
   
  Whatever they come up with. . . There Has To 
  Be a Boss Fight. Take a moment to think of how 
  Flying Razor could get involved in their plans, 
  and come up with a way to introduce him for 
  the final confrontation. 
  The Hour of The Wolf 
  Cast: Anyone 
  Whatever is decided, take a moment to catch your 
  breath before jumping into the action. In the calm 
  before the storm, give the heroes some time to reflect 
  on the challenge to come. 
   
  Were any PCs killed in the prior Acts? How does 
  this make the survivors feel? Are there any 
  oaths of vengeance taken, or promises made? 
   
  What final preparations do our heroes make on 
  the eve of this great battle that they may not 
  survive? 
   
  Do any PCs have personal connections to Flying 
  Razor? What are their thoughts, considering the 
  fact that they are almost certain to face that 
  monster in battle? 
   
  Engage 
  Cast: ???? 
  Antagonists: ???? 
  Execute on the plan. Play it out. 
  Since I don’t know what your group will decide to do, I 
  can’t really give you any scene names or directions here. 
  All I can really do is wish you good luck, and have fun! 
  The important thing is to keep up a decent pace, but try 
  not to escalate too hard. Try to alternate between 
  moments of frenzied excitement and eerie calm, to give 
  people a chance to catch their breaths.  
  
  If the plan involves pitched battle, begin with a wave of 
  mooks equal in number to your player characters. Make 
  the second wave twice as large, and toss in additional 
  waves as needed. Also try to include one or two “elites” 
  with each wave to spice up the combat.  
  Make sure that combat doesn’t come down to everyone 
  just swinging randomly at generic bad guys for too long. 
  Try to add at least one complication to keep things from 
  degenerating into just rolling dice. Some suggestions: 
   
  The Bandits of the forest join the battle: either 
  on your side or the enemy’s. 
   
  Lord Shinji emerges from the castle at the head 
  of his personal bodyguard, in full battle regalia, 
  and joins the fight. The reinforcements are 
  appreciated, but now Lord Shinji is in danger! 
   
  A powerful siege engine arrives and must be 
  dealt with: it will open fire in two turns, causing 
  something bad to happen (the castle walls will 
  fall, a bunch of people will die) unless someone 
  manages to deal at least thirty points of damage 
  to it. 
   
  A person who was thought dead suddenly 
  shows up again, bearing a grudge. 
   
  It all Ends Now! 
  Cast: ???? 
  Antagonist: Flying Razor 
  Once this Act has gone on long enough, it’s time to 
  introduce Flying Razor.  
  Now is the time for any last-minute exchanges of words, 
  any pleas for reason. Now is the perfect time to say 
  things like, “I know you’re in there,” and “This ends 
  now!” Make sure that anyone who has a Fate related to 
  Flying Razor has a chance to say their piece. 
  End the Act with the very first attack being made. Do 
  not roll dice yet, though. . .  
   
  Intermission 
  It all ends in the next Act. The fates of the player 
  characters will be decided. The final fate of Flying Razor 
  will be revealed. And we will finally answer the question: 
  Can peace truly come in the midst of so much 
  bloodshed? 
   
  Notes and Advice 
  This Act is going to be a real challenge for the GM to 
  adjudicate, because it is so player driven. Hopefully your 
  players are now at a point where they feel comfortable 
  enough in their characters that you can sit back a bit 
  and let them drive it. 
  There are two traps that a Gamemaster can fall into 
  when dealing with player-driven plans. The first is to 
  allow everything that they have planned for to happen. 
  Try to come up with at least one or two unforeseen 
  complications that the players will have to deal with in 
  order to carry out their plan. 
  On the other extreme are the Gamemasters who stymie 
  everything the players try to plan for. If players feel like 
  anything they plan will end up never happening, they’ll 
  eventually stop bothering with making cool plans 
  altogether, and that’s boring. 
  A good rule of thumb is the “Yes, and. . .” or “Yes, 
  but. . .” rule. Basically, if you can’t think of any obvious 
  reason why a plan should fail, let it succeed. . . but add 
  a complication. For instance: the players decide to send 
  a messenger back to get help. You might say, “Yes, but 
  they’ll have to evade Flying Razor’s patrols to get to 
  Ayanokoji Castle.” 
  In general, let the players take the initiative in setting 
  the terms of the final battle. The only time you should 
  have the enemy actively attack is if their plan involves 
  sitting around and waiting a lot. In that case, have Flying 
  Razor track them down to wherever they are hiding and 
  launch his attack. But if the players are being proactive 
  and coming up with interesting ideas, you should 
  reward them for it by having their plans come to 
  fruition. 
  
  Act Five: The Bride 
  In which it ends. 
   
  Flying Razor 
  This is it. The boss fight. The final battle against the guy 
  that’s been pursuing the party since at least Act Two. 
  Take off the kid gloves. Don’t hesitate to kill player 
  characters. Force them to spend their Kiai. Make them 
  flirt with falling over the edge to Asura. Make them 
  burn their Dead Boxes. Make it a fight to remember. 
  (Now’s a good time to introduce the “Moment of Truth” 
  rules, if the players don’t know about them yet. You 
  should also remind them about things like Aiuchi Strike, 
  which can help to offset Flying Razor’s significant dice 
  advantage.) 
  Use a few mooks to keep things from turning into 
  everyone surrounding Flying Razor and just beating up 
  on him. Remember, this duel is just one piece of the 
  battle: there will probably be other elements of the 
  enemy forces who are still trying to carry out their 
  mission. 
  Play off of your player characters’ actions. If they break 
  his swords, have him pick up new ones (so your players 
  can break those too!) If they try to turn a cannon on 
  him, have them make Body checks to wrestle the huge 
  gun around. If they try to crash a skyship into him, have 
  them fight some mooks for control of the ship, then 
  make some skill checks to steer the ship into its collision 
  course. 
  If at any time your players come up with a plan really 
  awesome (but the dice don’t agree) don’t let it fail 
  outright just because of one bad dice roll. Maybe their 
  idea to collapse a house on top of Flying Razor doesn’t 
  work the first time, requiring the Samurai to burn tons 
  of Kiai and draw upon deeper reserves of strength or 
  something. 
  It’s likely that someone is going to try to talk Flying 
  Razor down. There are really no rules for that in Tenra 
  Bansho Zero, so I recommend having them make a 
  (whatever skill they choose) roll against Flying Razor’s 
  Spirit: Willpower. There are two ways you can 
  adjudicate this: 
   
  For every success, reduce Flying Razor’s dice 
  pools by one. Once Flying Razor reaches zero 
  Spirit, he puts down his swords and stops 
  fighting. This is suitable if you’re playing Flying 
  Razor as a lost soul who can still be redeemed, 
  and you want someone to be able to fully talk 
  him out of fighting. 
   
  For every success, you can “bank” one die that 
  can be subtracted as penalty dice from the next 
  combat roll that Flying Razor makes. This is 
  better if you feel that Flying Razor is a hardened 
  killer who can’t be talked down, but you want 
  to reward good roleplay by giving your PCs a 
  brief advantage. 
   
  Wrapping Up 
  Rather than instructions on how to play out the ending, 
  here are some questions that you may want to address. 
   
  Was the mission successful? Will there be 
  peace 
  between 
  the 
  Ayanokoji 
  and 
  the 
  Takatsukasa? Or will Lotus Blossom’s Bridal 
  Path be just another bloody chapter in a story 
  of endless war? 
   
  If the mission was successful, the lords of the 
  two realms will almost certainly wish to reward 
  these brave and faithful subjects. How would 
  they do so? 
  
  Some suggestions if you are using the pregenerated 
  characters: 
   
  General Kaneyori’s mission of peace has turned 
  into yet another battle. How does this affect his 
  hatred of war, and how does he now view his 
  decision to retire from the battlefield? 
   
  Chie once failed in an important mission. Has 
  she redeemed herself from that failure now? 
  How has her relationship with Lotus Blossom 
  changed? What will she do now? 
   
  Has Soujiro come to accept the worms he hosts? 
  Has he come to appreciate their power? Or will 
  he now take the opportunity to rid himself of 
  them forever? 
   
  Nobutaki wished to prove himself to his lord. 
  Has he done so? How has his opinion towards 
  Lord Ayanokoji changed? Does he wish to 
  remain in the service of his lord. . . or will he 
  move on? 
   
  Ryuunosuke has made a living off of war for all 
  his life. Can he make a new life in an era of 
  peace? Or will he leave the lands of the 
  Ayanokoji and seek new battlefields? 
   
  Finally. . . Lotus Blossom. The woman who has 
  inspired so much hope, and so much bloodshed. 
  Will she carry through with her wedding to 
  Lord Takatsukasa? Or will she vanish into the 
  pages of myth, never to be seen again? What 
  will she choose? Duty? Freedom? Love? 
  Something else? 
  In the end, it’s all up to you. . . and your players. . . to 
  decide. 
   
  Continuing the Adventure 
  “Lotus Blossom’s Bridal Path” is intended to be a single-
  shot campaign. However, it doesn’t necessarily need to 
  be the end for these particular characters. 
  One possibility: the events that occurred here have 
  revealed new enemies to fight, and new threats to deal 
  with. Certain characters could end up rallying an army 
  to fight against whoever was besieging Takatsukasa 
  Castle, or to track down and punish those behind the 
  kidnapping of Lotus Blossom. 
  You could also follow the lives of any heroes who chose 
  to leave the service of Lord Ayanokoji. Perhaps 
  Nobutaki becomes a ronin, or Lotus Blossom herself 
  goes on the run. Perhaps they go off in search of 
  happiness somewhere else. . . or perhaps they end up 
  evading Lord Ayanokoji’s soldiers, who are sent to bring 
  them back.  
  A third possibility might even involve switching 
  perspectives to the enemy. Who are the Kijin who 
  attacked the skyship, and what do they do after the 
  events of this campaign? What were their motivations? 
  Perhaps we can even follow Flying Razor himself (if he 
  survived). 
  You could even try going into the past, and looking, at 
  the events that turned these characters into the 
  persons that they are. You could play out the Battle of 
  the Lake of Fire, when General Kaneyori laid down his 
  sword, or the death of Lord Hiroyuki, or the beginnings 
  of the decades-long war between the two clans. 
  At the very least, make the events of this scenario part 
  of the lore of your “personal” Tenra. Maybe a 
  barkeeper in some far-off land in a future session 
  repeats some gossip about “some bandits that tried to 
  kidnap a kugutsu near Takatasukasa.” Perhaps a 
  character from a future campaign would have been a 
  witness to these events. Lord Shinji or Lord Ayanokoji 
  could make an appearance in future campaigns as 
  antagonists or patrons. If there’s one thing that can 
  make a campaign world feel alive, it’s encountering the 
  consequences of choices from a prior session. 
  
  Conclusion 
   
  The Original Campaign 
  The original RPG.NET thread about “Lotus Blossom’s 
  Bridal Path” can be found here: 
  http://forum.rpg.net/showthread.php?666677-Tenra-
  Bansho-Zero-Lotus-Cloud-s-Bridal-Path 
  You may notice some key differences: the most obvious 
  being the name of the main character, and several 
  others. They were changed for various reasons: in the 
  case of Lotus Cloud, her name was changed because I 
  realized that I had directly stolen it from Barry Hughart’s 
  excellent novel Bridge of Birds. 
  (Side note: If you have not read Bridge of Birds, do so. 
  It’s excellent. The sequels aren’t quite as great, but still 
  very good reading.) 
  Most of the differences between my original scenario 
  and this revised version is in the pacing. I originally had 
  the party set out from Ayanokoji Castle immediately 
  after General Kaneyori arrived: in retrospect, that was 
  much too rapid, and the game really needed a moment 
  for everyone to get to know each other better before 
  the mission began. Secondly, I had a battle at the end of 
  Act Three against a pair of Armour Riders that I cut from 
  the actual game: on the heels of the skyship crash and 
  subsequent desperate chase, it just felt like too much. 
   
  Final Thoughts 
  I originally set out to write up “Lotus Cloud’s Bridal Path” 
  as a refined version of the very first Tenra Bansho Zero 
  adventure I ever ran for my friends. It didn’t work. The 
  essence of Tenra (some would argue the essence of all 
  roleplaying games) is changing it and making it your 
  own. Telling other people exactly how to play things out 
  the way I had didn’t feel right. 
  That’s why I’ve chosen to write up the scenario as a set 
  of questions and possibilities instead. If you need more 
  detail, feel free to fill in the blanks on your own. If you 
  dislike anything I’ve written, feel free to ignore it and 
  come up with your own ideas.  As I have said over and 
  over until you’re probably sick of it: this is your session. 
  Take ownership of it. 
  If you run “Lotus Blossom’s Bridal Path,” I would be 
  interested to hear your thoughts on it. You can respond 
  to the RPG.NET thread for the original campaign, or 
  send a private message to “themocaw” at the RPG.NET 
  forums. You can also try emailing me at albyhys (at) 
  hotmail (dot) com, but there’s a good chance that it will 
  be filtered as spam, so sending me a PM at RPG.NET is 
  probably the best idea. 
   
  Acknowledgements 
  Special thanks to: Jordan Byers, Jason Bjorklund, Garrett 
  Fox, Kirk Oliver, and David Silberstein for participating in 
  the original game session.  John Beattie and “Doc Burns” 
  provided some proofreading and readability suggestions. 
  Special thanks to Larry and Candace Byers for many 
  long years playing host to long nights of dice-rolling, 
  arguments over arcane rules, and miniatures-slinging.  
  Last but not least, a big bro-fist to Andy K, not only for 
  spending the time to translate and localize this fantastic 
  game for us gaijin, but for putting in a ton of work 
  building a community around it. The pretty-looking font 
  used for the section headers was provided by him.  
  Albert Hwang 
  January 21, 2013
  
  Appendix A: Generic NPCs 
  Kijin Assailants 
  Your generic bad guy mooks. They aren’t much of a 
  challenge and die really fast. 
  Physical 5; Non-Physical 5; Station 3 
  Combat 3, Evasion 2, First Aid 2, Notice 2, Pursuit 2, 
  Willpower 3, Information 2 
  Spiked Knuckles: +2 (+5) Damage4, Melee Weapon 
  5-Barreled Gatling: +3 Damage, ROF 5, Range 20m, 
  Ammo 30 (gunpowder) 
  Flight: A Kijin Assailant can fly 200 meters per round for 
  2 rounds. 
  10 Vitality each. 
  1. OOOOO|OOOOO 
  2. OOOOO|OOOOO 
  3. OOOOO|OOOOO 
  4. OOOOO|OOOOO 
  5. OOOOO|OOOOO 
  6. OOOOO|OOOOO 
  7. OOOOO|OOOOO 
  8. OOOOO|OOOOO 
  9. OOOOO|OOOOO 
  10. OOOOO|OOOOO 
   
  11. OOOOO|OOOOO 
  12. OOOOO|OOOOO 
  13. OOOOO|OOOOO 
  14. OOOOO|OOOOO 
  15. OOOOO|OOOOO 
  16. OOOOO|OOOOO 
  17. OOOOO|OOOOO 
  18. OOOOO|OOOOO 
  19. OOOOO|OOOOO 
  20. OOOOO|OOOOO 
                                                             
  4 Numbers in parentheses include Melee Damage bonus for 
  Mechanica Limbs 
  Kijin Elite 
  A slightly tougher bad guy mook. Suitable if you need a 
  lieutenant or leader type, or as mooks at the end of the 
  campaign. 
  Physical 7; Non-Physical 7; Station 4 
  Combat 3, Evasion 3, First Aid 2, Notice 3, Pursuit 3, 
  Willpower 3, Information 3 
  Grudge Blade: +5 (+8) Damage 
  5-Barreled Gatling: +3 Damage, ROF 5, Range 20m, 
  Ammo 30 (gunpowder) 
  Flight: A Kijin Elite can fly 200 meters per round for 2 
  rounds. 
  14 Vitality each. 
  1. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  2. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  3. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  4. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  5. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  6. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  7. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  8. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  9. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  10. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
   
  
  Bandits / Soldiers 
  Use these if you’re looking either for generic bandits to 
  menace people, or as enemy or allied footsoldiers. A bit 
  tougher than Kijin Assailants, but not as tough as Kijin 
  Elites. 
  Physical 7, Non-Physical 7, Station 4 
  Combat 3, Evasion 2, Notice 2, Willpower 2, Information 
  2 
  Katana: +3 Damage 
  Bow and Arrow: +3 Damage, ROF 2, Range 100m. 
  14 Vitality each. 
  1. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  2. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  3. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  4. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  5. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  6. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  7. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  8. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  9. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  10. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
   
  11. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  12. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  13. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  14. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  15. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  16. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  17. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  18. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  19. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  20. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
   
  Bandit / Military Leader 
  Suitable for representing a generic leader of either a 
  bandit gang or enemy army, or as an allied military 
  sergeant. 
  Physical 9, Non-Physical 7, Station 6 
  Combat 3, Evasion 2, First Aid 2, Notice 3, Strategy 3, 
  Willpower 3, Information 3 
  Greatsword: +5 Damage 
  Bow and Arrow: +3 Damage, ROG 2, Range 100m. 
  18 Vitality each. 
  1. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOOO|OOO 
  2. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOOO|OOO 
  3. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOOO|OOO 
  4. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOOO|OOO 
  5. OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOOO|OOO 
   
  Kimen Armour-Rider 
  A generic Kimen Armour-Rider (enemy or ally).  
  Physical 7, Non-Physical 7, Station 5 
  Interface 3, Notice 3 
  Longspear: +8 Damage 
  Long Cursed Lancer: +9 Damage, ROF 1, Range 400m, 
  Ammo 10 (soulgem) 
  Heavy Repeater: +3 Damage, ROF 5, Range 50m, Ammo 
  30 (gunpowder) 
  22 Vitality Each (8 on the Armor, 14 on the Rider) 
  1. OOOOO|OOO      |OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  2. OOOOO|OOO      |OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  3. OOOOO|OOO      |OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  4. OOOOO|OOO      |OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  5. OOOOO|OOO      |OOOOO|OOOOO|OOOO 
  
  Appendix B: Flying Razor 
  Flying Razor is a monster. A kongohki soaked in blood, 
  with a demonic face and cruel, scarlet eyes, he is a 
  master of the Ryuuko-Itten-Ryu “Dragon and Tiger 
  Under One Sky” style of swordplay (TBZ Rules, p310). 
  He is fond of taking the swords of his slain foe and 
  adding them to his collection, and regularly marches 
  into battle carrying a dozen swords slung across his back. 
  At least one player character should have a personal 
  connection to Flying Razor, whether from before he 
  died or during his days as kongohki. Aside from that, I 
  leave the details up to you. 
  Try to use up Flying Razor’s Overdrive turns evenly: you 
  should probably reserve around half of them for the 
  final confrontation, but use the rest early. This serves 
  both to demonstrate his power and might to the other 
  players, and to give them fair warning for when he 
  starts using it in earnest in the final battle. 
   
  Modifying Flying Razor 
  Flying Razor’s stats are included at the end of this 
  scenario. Feel free to modify them in order to better fit 
  your version of Lotus Blossom’s Bridal Path. 
  One modification is mandatory: the Vitality total for 
  Flying Razor needs to be adjusted for the size of your 
  group. Add 5 Vitality for every player character in the 
  party to get the final amount. 
  The next most obvious change is to alter Flying Razor’s 
  Attributes. Per the “Tenra Bansho Zero” rulebook, I 
  recommend keeping them between three to five dice 
  higher than the player characters, in order to force 
  them to spend Kiai against him. 
  If your party includes multiple characters who have 
  Level 5 War Arts, you may consider raising Flying 
  Razor’s War Arts skill to 5 as well. If you’re not trying to 
  kill your player characters, I don’t recommend using 
  Dragon Strike, Tiger Storm against players who have not 
  yet checked off their Dead Box: this technique is almost 
  invariably lethal given the power levels of the 
  pregenerated characters. If you are trying to kill your 
  player characters, then use it often, and have Flying 
  Razor draw new weapons or pick them up off the 
  battlefield as a Half-Action every turn to replace the 
  ones that he shatters using this technique.5 
  You could also consider changing Flying Razor’s War 
  Arts skill to something different. “Fist of the Celestial 
  Kongohki” (TBZ Rules, p312-313) is a good one, as is 
  “Crescent Moon Blade Tactics” (TBZ Rules, p310-311) 
  and “Ancient Style Lightning Strike” (TBZ Rules, p314-
  315). If you want to make a statement about “guns vs. 
  swords,” you could even trade out Flying Razor’s swords 
  for gem pistols and give him “Black Wing Gun Style” 
  (TBZ Rules p319), although in that case, you may also 
  wish to change his name to something else (Hail of 
  Bullets? White Dove of Death?) 
  Flying Razor doesn’t even need to be a kongohki. A kijin 
  or Armour-Rider could easily fill this role as well. An 
  Onmyouji could be an interesting take if you want a 
  more supernaturally-oriented campaign. A rogue 
  Samurai is also a good choice, and could provide some 
  decent drama if the villain’s past turns out to be related 
  to Lord Ayanokoji in some way. 
   
                                                             
  5 You bastard. 
  
  Appendix C: Notes on Pregenerated Characters 
  General Kaneyori 
  General Kaneyori was inspired by “old general” 
  characters like Shimada Kambei (both from the original 
  “Seven Samurai” movie by Akira Kurosawa and it’s 
  “Samurai 7” anime reimagining), and Toshiro Mifune’s 
  character “General Makabe” from Akira Kurosawa’s 
  “The Hidden Fortress.”  
  Mechanically, he is intended to be a less physical 
  combatant, relying on old age and cunning to make up 
  for his lack of youth and speed. He is also the only 
  character with the “Strategy” skill, which allows him to 
  provide bonuses to other party members. 
   
  Optional Rule: The Path of Death 
  General Kaneyori is a man who has rejected war in 
  search of inner peace. If you want, you could reflect 
  that struggle mechanically as well. 
  If General Kaneyori chooses to sublimate or alter his 
  Fate “Emotion: Hatred of War,” he loses all of his ranks 
  in “Clarity of Heaven Style” (TBZ Rules p307-308) and 
  replaces them with an equal number of ranks in another 
  combat style. I suggest “Southern Seas One-Blade Style” 
  (TBZ Rules p306-307), “Empty Mind Style” (TBZ Rules 
  p309) or even “Dragon and Tiger Under One Sky Style” 
  (TBZ Rules p310). 
  If this new style replaces Agility with a different 
  Attribute at Skill Level 2, then swap Kaneyori’s Senses 
  with whatever that Attribute happens to be. Otherwise, 
  swap Senses with Agility. 
  Whether or not Kaneyori can go back to “Clarity of 
  Heaven” style by once again rejecting bloodshed is up 
  to the Gamemaster and the player. 
   
  New War Art: Clarity of Heaven Revised 
  Clarity of Heaven Style has a slight problem: it wasn’t 
  designed to interact well with the NPC rules. Namely, 
  two of its ranks focus on allocating damage to Wounds 
  or to Vitality. However, NPCs don’t have Wounds, only a 
  Dead Box.  
  If you choose to use my revised version of Clarity of 
  Heaven style, add the following paragraphs to Skill 
  Levels 3 and 4:6 
  Advanced Rank (Skill Level 3): Four Limb Strike 
  Add this paragraph at the end: 
  If fighting against an NPC opponent with no Wound 
  Track, first check to see if the amount of damage 
  inflicted is greater than or equal to their Physical dice 
  pool. If so, then the opponent begins to bleed out, 
  losing one Vitality point every round until they are 
  defeated or flee. 
   Master Rank (Skill Level 4): Critical Chakra Pierce 
  Add this paragraph at the end: 
  If fighting against an NPC opponent with no Wound 
  Track, check to see if the amount of Vitality they have 
  remaining (after damage is dealt) is equal to or less than 
  your rank in Clarity of Heaven style. If so, then the 
  opponent loses all their remaining Vitality and is 
  knocked unconscious for a number of minutes equal to 
  twice your Melee Weapons skill. 
                                                             
  6 I make no guarantees as to whether these new abilities are 
  balanced, or even good. 
  
  Lotus Blossom 
  Lotus Blossom is the “innocent” of this scenario. She is 
  inspired by characters such as Princess Leia from the 
  original “Star Wars” trilogy, the Princess from “The 
  Hidden Fortress,” and a vast number of female leads 
  from action-oriented anime series who are not trained 
  fighters, but have great strength of personality and will.   
  Lotus Blossom is intended to be a social character, with 
  very high levels in Empathy and its related skills. Her 
  physical stats are low, making her vulnerable in close 
  combat, but she does possess certain talents in archery, 
  allowing her to at least participate in combat.  
   
  Variant: The Aikido Courtesan 
  Lotus Blossom was originally trained in Unarmed 
  Combat and “Empty Fist” (TBZ Rules 317-318) style 
  martial arts. If you prefer to have Lotus Blossom beating 
  up people with her bare hands rather than coolly firing 
  arrows, you can swap out her ranks in “Centered Soul 
  Archery” with “Empty Fist,” and replace her ranks in 
  “Marksman” with “Unarmed Combat” 
   
  New War Art: Centered Soul Archery 
  As there is no real “Zen Archery” War Art in Tenra 
  Bansho Zero, I’ve taken the liberty of writing up one of 
  my own.7 
  Skill used: Marksman 
  Archery is one of the oldest and noblest war arts, sadly 
  neglected in this age of gunpowder and soulgems. The 
  “Centered Soul” school of archery treats the bow and 
  arrow as an extension of the user’s inner self. Rather 
  than training the eye and the hand, it focuses on 
  training the mind and soul. This is exemplified by its 
  motto: “When the soul sees truth, the arrow strikes 
  true.” 
                                                             
  7 Again, I make no promises as to whether this is balanced or 
  any good. 
  Skilled Rank (Skill Level 2): The Inner Eye 
  Centered Soul Archery relies on inner peace and calm. 
  Practitioners often blindfold themselves to train 
  themselves to rely not on the eye and the hand, but on 
  their inner senses to see their target. 
  With this technique, you can choose to use Spirit when 
  rolling to hit with a Bow and Arrow. 
  Advanced Rank (Skill Level 3): Distant Lightning 
  The first step to mastering Centered Soul Archery is 
  seeing the target using the inner eye. The second step is 
  seeing the path of the arrow in flight. An adept of 
  Centered Soul Archery can now predict the path of the 
  arrow through the air, giving it much greater range and 
  power. 
  When you use a Bow and Arrow in combat, its range is 
  now 150m, and its Damage Rating is goes up by 2 (to a 
  base rating of +5). 
  Master Rank (Skill Level 4): Rapid Lightning 
  Your mastery of Centered Soul Archery has now 
  advanced to the point where the bow and arrow is now 
  an extension of your very soul. When you use this 
  technique, your ROF with a bow and arrow is increased 
  to 5, but its range is reduced by 100m (to 50m in 
  combination with Distant Lightning). 
  Supreme Rank (Skill Level 5): The Soul Strikes True 
  It is said that the greatest of all Centered Soul Archers, 
  the 
  legendary 
  “Lightning-Beyond-The-Mountains,” 
  could fire a single arrow from the back of his horse and 
  strike the enemy general in the chest from across the 
  entire battlefield.  
  When using this technique, you may spend any number 
  of Soul points before rolling to hit with an attack. Each 
  Soul point spent increases the range of the attack by 
  10m, or its damage result by +1. There is no limit (aside 
  from the expenditure of Soul itself) to the amount of 
  Soul that can be spent on this technique. 
  
  Chie, the Scarlet Blade 
  Chie is a ninja maid. She serves as a confidante to Lotus 
  Blossom, and (along with Soujiro), as a foil to the more 
  straightforward, honorable characters like General 
  Kaneyori. She is inspired by every single female ninja 
  character in pop culture. 
  Chie is a stock Shinobi with some skills moved around 
  and reassigned. She is intended to be a skirmisher: 
  although not quite as able as some other characters in a 
  stand-up fight, she is one of the better hit-and-run 
  combatants. Her ninjutsu abilities can also help her 
  serve a key role as a messenger and scout for the rest of 
  the party. 
   
  Variant: Changing Chie’s Ninja School 
  Chie was originally built using the School of Shadow 
  (Kage-Ryu) school of ninjutsu for two reasons: first of all, 
  Kage-Ryu has access to the “Four Fold Shadow Form” 
  power, which is useful to a ninja whose main job is to 
  act as a disguised bodyguard. Secondly, it has the 
  “Blackhawk’s Shadow” power, which is useful if the 
  party needs a messenger to race back to Ayanokoji 
  Castle when they discover Takatsukasa Castle under 
  siege. Thirdly, its Paths increase Pursuit and Movement, 
  both of which can come into play during Act Three, 
  when the party has to evade Flying Razor. 
   “True School of Shadow” (Shin Kage-Ryu) has access to 
  Blackhawk’s Shadow as well, although it sacrifices the 
  disguise powers in favor of more combat-oriented 
  powers like Wind of Menace. “School of Dream (Oboro-
  Ryu) could be an interesting choice for someone who 
  wants to be more of a seductive kunoichi rather than a 
  speedy ninja. “School of the Shore” (Migawari-Ryu) 
  doesn’t have Blackhawk’s Shadow, but it does have 
  Shadowflight, which is almost as good, and you can 
  have a lot of fun leaping around and flinging tons of 
  shuriken. 
  Most of the others I can’t recommend for this scenario, 
  but don’t let that stop you. 
  Soujiro, the Steel Viper 
  Soujiro is one of the more “Tenran” characters, and 
  really emphasizes some of the more bizarre aspects of 
  the setting. In the grand tradition of the body horror 
  genre, he’s also a good character for anyone who wants 
  to emphasize battling the “monster inside.” 
  Soujiro’s primary asset is the “Demon of Battle” annelid 
  he possesses. Make sure the player understands exactly 
  how that works, including the fact that the 
  “wormcharm” skill is used for most combat skill checks.  
  Soujiro is one of the more challenging characters to play, 
  as the player will need to understand how both 
  Annelidists and Shinobi work. I recommend him for 
  players who are either quick to pick up the system, or 
  for veterans of Tenra Bansho Zero. 
   
  Variant: Original Soujiro 
  Soujiro was originally built as primarily a shinobi, as I 
  thought the entire concept of an Annelidist would be 
  too strange for my group. It turned out I was wrong, so 
  he’s been rewritten as a full Annelidist with only minor 
  Shinobi powers.  
  If you want to use the original Soujiro, here are some 
  guidelines: 
   
  His archetypes were Shinobi, Annelid-Infested, 
  and Assassin, for a total of 80 Karma. 
   
  He used a variant of Oboro-Ryu ninjutsu, 
  swapping out “Path of the Kunoichi” for “Path 
  of the Falling Leaf.” 
   
  The “Venom Eater,” “Annelid Body,” and “Rain 
  of Blood,” powers were fluffed as side effects 
  from the poisonous annelids living in his body. 
   
  His starting Fates were “Hatred of Annelids” 
  and “Keeper of a Cursed Sword.” 
   
  He possessed the Feyblade Katana “Poisoned 
  Fang” (+7 Damage Rating). 
  
  Akizuki Nobutaki 
  Nobutaki is a stock samurai straight out of the book. He 
  can end up being either a young hero who matures and 
  grows throughout the scenario, or a scrappy young 
  sidekick to the older or more experienced party 
  members. 
  Nobutaki is the best stand-up combatant in the party. 
  He is the only one with a soulgem sword, and 
  (especially in Samurai Form) can blast apart large 
  numbers of enemy mooks with ease. He is somewhat 
  weak against ranged attacks, especially those that can 
  only be dodged with Evasion, so if you want his 
  character to worry, start using cannons and gatling guns 
  against him. 
   
  Variant: A more thoughtful Nobutaki 
  If you want a samurai who’s more of an introspective 
  martial artist than a loud-mouthed warrior, you could 
  try this alternative build: 
   
  The Archetypes are Samurai, Paragon, and 
  Vassal Servant for a total of 70 Karma 
   
  There is a fair amount of skill overlap. I 
  recommend the final skill set be: Etiquette 3, 
  First Aid 2, Art of War: Ki Manipulation 4, 
  Willpower 3, Notice 2, Movement 2. 
   
  I recommend spending at least one Attribute 
  point to buy Nobutaki a 3 in Melee Weapons. 
  I’d also considering spending some Attribute 
  points and Karma for a gemblade Greatsword or 
  Katana. 
   
  His starting Fates will be “Other: Seeking Death” 
  and “Goal: To Know What is True Strength.” 
   
  Since he starts off the game with his Dead Box 
  checked off, be sure to have a backup character 
  in case things go badly, and let the player know 
  that character death is a real possibility. 
   
  Consider spending 10 Karma and an Attribute 
  point on a gemblade or other customized 
  weapon. 
  Ryuunosuke 
  Ryuunosuke is intended to be a foil to all of the other 
  pregenerated characters in the group. Unlike the others, 
  Ryuunosuke is motivated less by intangibles such as 
  honor and duty: he fights for a living. He’s the epitome 
  of the “cynical mercenary” archetype. 
  As a gunlancer, Ryuunosuke has the possibility for 
  exciting sniper battles against the antagonists. He has 
  the single longest-ranged weapon in the party, and one 
  of the most powerful. If he is present in the party, it 
  does mean that any scenes involving pursuit or evasion 
  could turn into a stalemate. Keep in mind, though, that 
  even Ryuunosuke’s sniper rifle isn’t THAT long ranged: 
  your average Kijin Mook can close the distance within 
  two turns. . . if they find out where he is. In addition, 
  ammunition for the gun lance is expensive and difficult 
  to find. The best sniper can still be overwhelmed by 
  sheer numbers until they run out of bullets. 
   
  Variant: The Hard-Boiled Killer 
  Let’s take Ryuunosuke and turn him from a cold-eyed 
  sniper to a two-guns-and-rifle wielding badass. This will 
  make him less useful at long range, but a much more 
  capable combatant at close to medium range. 
   
  Archetypes: Mercenary, Soulgem Rifleman, and 
  Paragon. Add on two Soulgem Pistols for a total 
  of 75 Karma and 2 Attribute points. 
   
  Consider adding on “Hard Lunk,” “Kabukimono,” 
  or “Playboy” archetypes if you want to give him 
  a little more character. 
   
  Give him Black Wing Gun Style (TBZ Rules 319) 
  as his War Art style. 
   
  His starting fates are “Emotion: Ambition” and 
  “Goal: Attain Ultimate Skill.” 
  
  Stock Characters  
  Some thoughts on using the Sample Characters from 
  the Tenra Bansho Zero rules in this scenario: 
   
  Armour Rider: Probably not suited for a starting 
  character, but could be useful as an “emergency 
  character” starting in Act Three. For an 
  interesting twist, the Armour Rider could be 
  Lord Shinji himself. 
   
  Onmyouji: Could take on the role of General 
  Kaneyori, as a former war-mage who has retired 
  from the battlefield. Alternatively, could play as 
  Lotus Blossom’s creator, or as yet another 
  vassal of Lord Ayanokoji. 
   
  Samurai: Nobutaki is a stock samurai. Adding a 
  second could be fun in a buddy-cop sort of way. 
   
  Buddhist Monk: Again, could take on the role of 
  General Kaneyori, after he’s retired from battle 
  and decided to take up meditation. 
   
  Kijin: Although most of the bad guys are Kijin, 
  it’s not impossible to have one as a player 
  character. Perhaps one of the enemy decides to 
  defect and help Lotus Blossom out. Or perhaps 
  you could just have one of the players take on 
  the role of a sympathetic enemy in the scenario 
  where Lotus Blossom gets kidnapped. Or they 
  could just be a kijin in service to Lord Ayanokoji. 
   
  Kongohki: Again, the main villain of this 
  scenario is a Kongohki. You could use this one 
  as a variation of Nobutaki, or even for Chie: 
  imagine if Lotus Blossom’s protector weren’t a 
  ninja, but a terrifying Kongohki. 
   
  Shinobi: Chie’s basically just a stock Shinobi 
  with some skills and powers moved around. 
  Like Samurai, two Shinobi could be an 
  interesting take on the scenario.  
   
  War 
  Maiden 
  Kugutsu: 
  Here’s 
  another 
  interesting twist on the Chie role: Lotus 
  Blossom’s protector could be a kugutsu herself, 
  but one trained for battle. She may even 
  secretly be the kugutsu that has been pledged 
  to marry Lord Shinji, rather than Lotus Blossom: 
  the mission could be a double blind! 
   
  Annelidist: This could be an interesting 
  variation on Soujiro: a battlefield healer rather 
  than an unwilling killer. 
   
  Oni: What if the bandits who come across the 
  crashed skyship in Act Three are not humans, 
  but Oni? What if one of them decides to help 
  these humans in their quest in exchange for. . . 
  something? 
   
  Miko/Gyoshi: The Shinto Priesthood could be 
  interested in the results of Lotus Cloud’s 
  journey. This agent could be acting to hinder 
  the rest of the group, or she could be acting to 
  help them. 
   
  Armour Hunter: Can easily fit into Ryuunosuke 
  or Nobutaki’s roles as the combat character. 
   
  Ayakashi: Again, a useful stock character to toss 
  in during Act Three if you need a replacement 
  character: a curious Ayakashi who comes across 
  the crashed skyship and decides to help out for 
  their own reasons.  
  
  Appendix D: Stats 
  General Kaneyori 
  A former general who seeks to put down the sword and 
  live a life of peace. 
  Archetypes: Swordmaster, Paragon, Elder, Tactician 
  Attribute Cost: 0 
  Karma Cost: 90 
  Attributes: BOD 4, AGI 4, SEN 7, KNO 6, SPI 6, EMP 6, 
  STA 7 
  Vitality/Wounds: 10 Vitality, 4 Light, 2 Heavy, 1 Critical, 
  1 Dead 
  Soul: 24 
  Skills: Melee Weapons 4, Information 3, Strategy 4, 
  Etiquette 3, Art of Rule 3, War Arts (Clarity of Heaven 
  Style) 4. 
  Weapons:  
   
  Weathered old Katana (+3 Damage) 
   
  War Fan (+2 damage) 
  Fates: Emotion (Hatred of War) 3, Emotion (Times are 
  Changing) 2 
  Destiny: Goal (Bring Peace to the Land) 2. 
  Possessions: Brush and ink, seal of office, secret martial 
  manuscripts, katana, war fan, old clothing, formal 
  kimono, portrait of wife and child. 
  Clarity of Heaven Style: 
   
  Use Senses instead of Agility when rolling to hit 
  in combat, both in attack and defense. 
   
  Can assign all damage to Wounds and choose 
  where to assign the damage. 
   
  Can also choose to assign damage to Vitality as 
  well as wounds. 
   
  See optional revised Clarity of Heaven rules in 
  this pamphlet. 
  Lotus Blossom 
  A kugutsu, pledged to marry the daimyo of a 
  neighboring kingdom 
  Archetypes: Kugutsu, Princess, Concubine 
  Attribute Cost: 1 
  Karma Cost: 60 
  Attributes: BOD 3, AGI 4, SEN 5, KNO 5, SPI 7, EMP 8, 
  STA 6 
  Vitality/Wounds: 10 Vitality, 3 Light, 2 Heavy, 1 Critical, 
  1 Dead. 
  Soul: 24 
  Skills: First Aid 3, Marksman 3, Information 3, 
  Persuasion 2, Pillow Arts 3, Perform 3, Etiquette 3, Art 
  of Rule 3. War Arts (Centered Soul Archery) 3. 
  Weapons:  
   
  Masterwork Bow and Arrow (Damage +7, ROF 2, 
  Range 150m) 
  Fates: Emotion (Loyalty to the Ayanokoji) 3, Emotion 
  (Loneliness) 2 
  Destiny: Goal (Choose between freedom and duty) 2. 
  Possessions: Gold jewelry, makeup kit, masterwork bow 
  and arrow, formal clothing, fancy silk kimono 
  Centered Soul Archery: 
   
  Use Spirit instead of Senses when rolling to hit 
  with a bow and arrow. 
   
  +50m to range and +2 to damage when using a 
  bow and arrow (already incorporated). 
  Butterfly Dream: Use Performance or Pillow Arts to pull 
  a target into the Butterfly Dream. 
  
  Chie, the Scarlet Blade 
  A female ninja who serves as Lotus Blossom’s 
  handmaiden and bodyguard. 
  Archetypes: Shinobi, Thief 
  Attribute Cost: 1 
  Karma Cost: 80 
  Attributes: BOD 5, AGI 9, SEN 6, KNO 4, SPI 6, EMP 5, 
  STA 4 
  Vitality/Wounds: 11 Vitality, 5 Light, 3 Heavy, 2 Critical, 
  1 Dead 
  Soul: 20 
  Skills: Unarmed Combat 3, Melee Weapons 3, Evasion 3, 
  Stealth 3, Ninjutsu (Kage-Ryu) 4, Criminal Arts 2, Notice 
  4, Marksman 4. 
  Weapons:  
   
  Ninja Sword (+3 Damage) 
   
  Shuriken (+1 Damage, ROF 5, Range 10m, 
  Ammo “a lot.”) 
  Fates: Emotion (Hates Hypocrisy) 3, Misfortune (Owned 
  by the Clan) 2. 
  Destiny: Misfortune (Failed to protect the Lord’s Son) 2. 
  Possessions: Ninja stealth gear, maidservant’s costume, 
  merchant’s clothes, ninja sword, 500 mon and 8 silver, 
  Shinobi Dark Arts (4),  
  Ninjutsu: 
   
  Use Ninjutsu in place of Movement and Pursuit. 
   
  Ninjutsu 
  powers 
  include: 
  Shadowflight, 
  Blackhawk’s Shadow, Smoke and Mist, Shadow 
  Form, Mind’s Eye, Possessed by the Inner 
  Demon, Four-Fold Shadow Form 
   
  Shinobi Dark Arts reduces Soul Cost by 4 to a 
  minimum of 1. 
  Soujiro, the Steel Viper 
  A shinobi annelidist who also serves as Lotus Blossom’s 
  servant and bodyguard.. 
  Archetypes: Annelid Hunter, Ninja Apprentice 
  Attribute Cost: 85 
  Karma Cost: 0 
  Attributes: BOD 8, AGI 6, SEN 5, KNO 4, SPI 8, EMP 5, 
  STA 3 
  Vitality/Wounds: 14 Vitality, 8 Light, 4 Heavy, 2 Critical, 
  1 Dead. 
  Soul: 24 
  Skills: Unarmed Combat 3, Wormcharm 3, Evasion 2, 
  Ninjutsu (Kage-Ryu) 2, First Aid 2, Willpower 2 
  Annelid Attacks: 
   
  Clawed Hands (+8 Damage) 
   
  Clawed Feet (+6 Damage) 
   
  Acid Spit (+4 Damage, ROF 1, Range 10m, Acid 4) 
   
  Electrostatic Cannon (+8 Damage, ROF 1, Range 
  18m, can only be dodged by Evasion). 
  Fates: Emotion (Hatred of the Worm) 3, Misfortune 
  (Owned by the Clan 2). 
  Destiny: Goal: (Be rid of the Demon-of-Battle) 2. 
  Possessions: Ninja stealth gear, manservant’s costume, 
  Demon-of-Battle Annelid. 
  Ninjutsu: 
   
  Use Ninjutsu in place of Movement and Pursuit. 
   
  Ninjutsu power: Shadowflight. 
  Annelid: In order for the transformation to successfully 
  take place, you must make a Spirit: Wormcharm (Diff. 3) 
  or Spirit: Willpower (Diff 4) check. On a failure, you 
  blindly attack anything perceived by the annelid as an 
  enemy. Use Body: Wormcharm when attacking with the 
  claws or Electrostatic Cannon. 
  
  Akizuki Nobutaki 
  A young samurai, and one of Lord Ayanokoji’s most 
  inexperienced warriors. 
  Archetypes: Hard Luck, Samurai, Kabukimono, Playboy 
  Attribute Cost: 1 
  Karma Cost: 85 
  Attributes:8 BOD 6 (9), AGI 8(11), SEN 5 (8), KNO 3, SPI 6, 
  EMP 6, STA 5 
  Vitality/Wounds: 12 Vitality; 6 Light, 3 Heavy, 2 Critical, 
  1 Dead 
  Soul: 18 
  Skills: Evasion 2, Melee Weapons 3, First Aid 2, Notice 2, 
  Marksman 2, Pursuit 3, Information 3, Willpower 3, 
  Perform 2, Pillow Arts 3 
  Weapons:  
   
  Gemblade Greatsword (+5 Damage, ROF 3, 
  Ammo 12) 
   
  Kunai (+2 damage, ROF 3, Range 10m, Ammo “a 
  lot”) 
  Fates: Emotion (Hatred of Weakness) 3, Misfortune 
  (Loss of your Most Precious Thing) 2. 
  Destiny: Goal: (Prove Yourself as a Warrior) 2. 
  Possessions: Gemblade Greatsword “Willow-Cutter”, 
  damaged breastplate, garish kimono, 10 additional 
  soulgems, jug of cheap sake. 
  Samurai Abilities: 
   
  Costs 5 Soul to Activate, lasts 6 rounds. 
   
  +3 dice to Body, Agility, and Senses 
   
  Regeneration 1 
   
  Soulfind, 10 meter radius 
   
                                                             
  8 Number in parentheses represents stats when under 
  Samurai Transformation. 
  Ryuunosuke 
  A mercenary and gunlance sniper who works for the 
  Ayanokoji Clan as a skirmisher. 
  Archetypes: Gunlancer, Mercenary 
  Attribute Cost: 1 
  Karma Cost: 90 
  Attributes: BOD 6, AGI 7, SEN 9, KNO 4, SPI 4, EMP 3, 
  STA 6 
  Vitality/Wounds: 10 Vitality; 6 Light, 3 Heavy, 2 Critical, 
  1 Dead 
  Soul: 16 
  Skills: Stealth 2, Melee Weapons 3, Notice 3, Marksman 
  4, Pursuit 2, Information 3, Willpower 3. 
  Weapons:  
   
  Gunlance (+10 Damage, ROF 1, Range 400m, 
  Ammo 8) 
   
  Explosive Spiker (+4/+6 Damage, ROF 1, Ammo 
  1) 
   
  Short Sword (+2 Damage) 
  Fates: Emotion (Ambition) 3, Taboo (Disloyalty) 2. 
  Destiny: Goal (Live the Good Life) 2. 
  Possessions: Gunlance, 15 additional soulgems/rounds, 
  shortsword, jug of fine quality sake, memento of a 
  former love interest, 750 mon and 9 silver,  
  
  Flying Razor 
   
  The main antagonist: A Kongohki Hunter who seeks to 
  capture Lotus Blossom. 
  Archetypes: Kongohki, Paragon 
  Attribute Cost: 0 
  Karma Cost: 100 
  Attributes:9 BOD 9 (13), AGI 11 (15), SEN 9 (13), KNO 7, 
  SPI 6, EMP 6, STA 7 
  Vitality: 25 + 5 points for each player character in the 
  party. 
  Soul: 26 
  Skills: Unarmed Combat 3, Movement 3, Stealth 3, 
  Evasion 2, Melee Weapons 4, Notice 3, Marksman 3, 
  Pursuit 3, War Arts (Ryuuko-Itten-Ryu) 4 
  Weapons:  
   
  Gemblade Katana (+3 Damage, ROF 3, Ammo 6) 
   
  Double-Edged Sword (+2 Damage, ROF 2, 
  Ammo 6) 
   
  Hooked Fang Dagger (+1 Damage) 
   
  Shuriken (+1 damage, ROF 5, Range 10m, 
  Ammo A Lot) 
  Lifepulse: Can detect all living things human-sized and 
  larger in a 900m radius 
  Self Destruct: 30 damage, 15m radius 
  Overdrive: 13 times per session. 
                                                             
  9 Number in Parentheses includes the +4 Meikyo Bonus for 
  100 Karma. 
   
   
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Deduped  Shit/Tenra Bansho Zero/Tenra Bansho Zero - Lotus Blossom's Bridal Path.pdf