Since the publication of the L5R RPG, we have been besieged with questions regarding vague rules, missing pages (gulp) and movement rates.

Here are answers to all of your questions, one by one. But remember, the Game Master always has final authority when it comes to rules and rulings. If you don't like the answers, feel free to make up your own. Remember, the only rule you can't break is: "Have fun."

Q: Do you or do you not drop dice for a Contested Roll?

A: You do not drop dice from a Contested Roll.

Q: Do the negatives given by Wound Levels affect the dice rolled or the number of dice kept?

A: When your character is wounded, you must drop dice equal to his Wound Level before you roll. So, if your samurai is rolling seven dice with a Wound Level of -2, he's only rolling 5 dice. Wounds do not directly affect the number of dice kept - unless you are rolling less dice than you keep due to Wounds, in which case, you keep the dice you roll.

Q: What and where is the Survival Skill?

A: It's a hold-over from beta playtesting. The only character that gets the Bureaucracy Skill is the ronin, and this is his new Skill list: Hunting plus any other six Skills. (Remember, Survival does not exist It's only Hunting in disguise.)

Q: What do Fine quality items do?

A: (I'm suddenly reminded of a favorite film of mine:"Did you just order a five dollar milk shake?") A fine quality fan doesn't necessarily do anything different than a regular quality fan, it's just . . . well, better quality! Of course, the big question is: what does fine quality armor do?"

I initially put down Fine quality stuff as flavor and a tool for game masters to give their characters nicer stuff (you know, replace the regular quality kimono with a Fine quality kimono).

As a GM, I'd say that a samurai dressed in Fine Quality stuff makes a much bigger impression than one who isn't (I'd give him an extra die to roll or a Free Raise).

Q: I've got my grandfather's katana and my daimyo gives me another one as a gift. I'm stuck! What do I do?

A: Sounds like a great roleplaying opportunity. Everything depends on your daimyo. I think its fair to say that a daimyo would not expect his samurai to replace his family sword with another, but he would expect to see the gift katana displayed proudly on a mantle when he comes to visit. Or perhaps your samurai can wear his daimyo's katana during court but wear his family katana during battle and duels. If you use your daimyo's katana in duels and battles, it shows him that your respect for him is greater than even your love for your family. In some cases, that may be the correct thing to do. It all depends on the circumstances.

Q: I've got a player who has a Lion samurai with an Honor of 4 and a Compulsion (for sake). He keeps putting himself in situations where he has to make an Honor roll against a 15 so he can get Honor Points. What do I do?

A: The smartacre answer to this question is: 'You mean you LET somebody do this?!? Sounds  dishonorable to me. I'd deduct Honor Points for abusing the system." The correct answer is: Unfortunately, a roleplaying game isn't like a card game: the rules really can't cover every situation. However, unlike a card game, the Game Master has game balance in his back pocket. I have a policy when it comes to players who choose to abuse the system. I show them I can abuse the system, too. In fact, I can abuse it better than they can. If you've read the Game Master's Pack, you know what mean. Let's let Lion boy go to a geisha house. He sees the sake, rates an" Honor check and gets an Honor Point. He refuses the sake but gets approached by a lonely geisha who offers him sake. By a strict reading of the rules, this is not a test of his Compulsion, this is a test of his Willpower (or Awareness, however you want to do it). The geisha is seducing him (Awareness + Seduction) so you can have him make a Contested Roll against that. Sure, he also wants to make an Honor roll. We'll let him. Make the TN be equal to her Awareness plus Seduction roll. Good luck, Lion boy. And as he sticks around, the Target Numbers will be higher ... and higher ... Sooner or later, he'll fail. Then, he'll wake up with a bad headache. And blood on his hands. And a dead body on the floor. And a magistrate with arrest papers at the door. What's his Honor now?

Q: The Rank 1 Scorpion Technique allows me to roll two dice for Initiative. Does this mean I get to act twice?

A: No, it means you get to roll two dice, add them together and that's your initiative total for this Round. By the way, it's official: A Scorpion with the Quick Advantage rolls three dice, keeping two.

Q: You answered mv question about the Crab Technique in the Game Master Pack, now what about the Lion?

A: We thought we were clear, but apparently we botched it, so here's some clarification. The Rank 1 Crab and Rank 2 Lion read: "add Earth/Honor to the roll" This means that you roll the dice, then add the bonus. You do not - repeat - do not add the Crab's Earth in dice to the role nor do you add the Lion's Honor in dice to the roll.

Q: In order to increase any Skill above 5, you must have a Shintao of 3. Are there any other restrictions?

A: First off, you cannot increase Traits, not Skills, higher than 5 without Shintao. Skills cannot be increased beyond 5.

Q: How do ronin advance in Techniques? Can they pick and choose which School to go to at each Rank. Can they learn from Ratlings and Ogres? What are their Techniques?

A: Ronin do not advance in Techniques. They have to find someone to teach Techniques to them if they wish to learn them. It would be dishonorable for a family school to teach a ronin a family technique that is supposed to be passed down only to other family members. Sorry, ronin. Hope you liked those 45 character points. As for Ratling and Ogre techniques ... The Techniques listed in the rulebook are family secrets, passed down and refined for a thousand years. Ogres have enough trouble remembering their own names, let alone learning a Technique that requires years of practice and discipline to acquire. If your GM wants Ratlings and Ogres to have Techniques, that's up to him. I could possibly see Ratlings having Techniques (and you may even see them in our upcoming Shadowlands book), but Ogres. Come on folks ...

Q: Was it intentional for a trained Unicorn to be nigh- impossible to hit? I mean, assume Reflexes 3, Kenjutsu and Defense of 4 and light armor ... we're talking a TN of 60 to be hit! And does that count as his Full Defense? 

A: Yes, that does count as a Full Defense maneuver. Yes, Unicorns are very hard to hit when they don't want to be hit. But then again, it's hard to go before the Scorpion goes. And it's hard to hurt a Crab. And the Lion always seems to hit what he's aiming at. And the Phoenix always gets more Raises than anybody else. And the Crane always wins iaijutsu duels. Find your advantage and stick to it. That's the surest path to victory.

Q: The Outfits on page 62 are different than the Outfits on the Clan pages (the color pages). Which one do I use?

A: Ignore the Outfits on page 62. Besides, we forgot to include the Scorpion on that page.

Q: The Dragon Technique "the Unrighteous Will Fall" ... if his attack doesn't count, when does he attack again?

A: If the Dragon kills his opponent with his strike, that doesn't count as his attack, and he may attack again ... immediately. Have you seen Seven Samurai? If you have, you know exactly what we're talking about

Q: Is it possible, and exactly how would a character become a Shugenja AND a Samurai (like Togashi Yokuni, for example)?

A: A character spends eleven years learning to be a bushi or a shugenja If he wants to spend another eleven to learn the other profession, well ... I guess that's up to the Game Master (let's see, eleven plus eleven plus nine would make your character ... thirty on' years old. Just about retirement age, I'd say). If a player asked me to do the bushi/shugenja thing, I'd probably say, "Sure! The rest of the party can adventure while you go train. Have fun.

There is a specific reason Yokuni is a samurai/shugenja and that he's the only samurai/shugenja in the entire game. I can't tell you why, but I will tell you it has something to do with his ancestry.

Those of you who are too curious for words can check out Time of the Void and Way of the Dragon for details.

Q: If a school gives you "plus 2 extra High skills" is it possible to get one extra High skill at level 2 instead?

A: Certainly. but you'll want to ask your GM before you go ahead and do that. It's his game aher all.

Q: The book says that a person's Glory Rank is "almost always at least the same as the School Rank. Is it solely up to the GM to give out Glory, or are there some guidelines set out? If there are no guidelines, for example it should be possible to have a 5th Rank Samurai with Glory l it would be tough, but possible.

A: Yes, it's very possible to be School Rank 5 and still only have a Glory Rank of 1. On the other hand, it's also possible for a Glory Rank 5 character to have a School Rank of 1.

Q: When spending Void points for a roll, are the extra always kept? Specifically, the Void adds to the trait, but when casting spells, you use the Ring value, NOT the trait.

A: Dice gained from spending Void Points are always you keep.

Q: Do you have estimations on how many scrolls or spells you should be able to write into one book? I understand the wide variety of book sizes out there, but is it 5 or 25 or 100 or 500? A. One. There are no books, only scrolls. 

Q: Do you have an idea yet on exactly what a First Aid Kit should do? Does it heal wounds or allow wounds to heal faster or something else? A First Aid kit should give anyone using the medicine skill to do their job better. I'd give them two free Raises for using a First Aid but that's just me.

Q: Can spells that have Raises to the Casting Time have their Casting Time "raised" to "0 Actions" or Instantaneous?

A: No. All spells require at least a single action.

Q: Are there any plans for Void spells in the future? If so, can you give any kind of rough general description of the type? If not, is it a possibility?

A: Void is a tricky thing to play with, mainly because no one can really agree on what it really is. Some shugenja say that "Void" (which should really be interpreted as "emptiness") is the moment of clarity, when you are unclouded by perception. Because we are fallible imperfect creatures, our perceptions are also fallible and imperfect. However, there are times when we are able to sense passed our perceptions to touch what is "most real" or "most true" in the world. This, some shugenja would argue, is when we are in touch with emptiness, or Void.

Others would argue that the other Four Elements are truly one element, and when we realize that, we are in touch with the deepest element, and that is Void. There are no Void spells because Void is something both greater than and lesser than the other elements. It is somethine that is unique to humanity (which is why monsters and creatures don't have Void), a gift from Amaterasu. Void may or not be an element, but its easier to call it that until we understand what it truly is. (Sounds like a good campaign quest for a shugenja party, doesn't it.?)

Q: There are no rules for movement. How do characters move? A: A character may move a number of feet per second equal to his Agility +5.

Q: How about some damage ratings for ninja weapons.

A: Ninja? What ninja? Any information on Ninja should be reported immediately to ork@lightside.com. Burn the evidence after it's sent and pretend you have no knowledge of it if asked. (Thanks Andy)

Q: Shiro begins life as a "Clan Ronin" learning the first level Dragon skill before being thrown out. He gains enough skill and insight to reach second rank and is accepted at the Hida School. Does Shiro learn the first or second bushi level ability from the Crab school?  He learns the first Technique. You have to make your first step before you can make the second.

Q: Let's say a Rank 3 Phoenix bushi begins learning at the Lion bushi School. Does that mean he can't use his Phoenix abilities until he reaches Rank 3 Lion?

A: No. He doesn't have to put his memory on hold until he "catches up."

Q: Using the Inheritance Advantage how much do magic items cost?

A: That's the GM's call. I'd say it would cost at least 5 points for a magic item of consequence (a sword that delivers more damage, armor that reduces Wounds take etc), but your GM may want a high magic campaign. If you want to keep magic to a minimum, give magic ilems an even higher point cost. On the other hand, here's a good question: How much does your grandfather's sword cost? How much gold is the Ancestral Sword of the Dragon really worth.?" That's it for now. lf you have any questions regarding the roleplaying game, you can send them to us here at AEG, but be sure to send along a self- addressed stamped envelope, so we can send answers back to you. We can't guarantee any answers to questions sent without a self- addressed stamped envelope. Also, you can e-mail questions to ork@lightside.com.

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