Mantis Bushi School: Mantis Bushi

Reprinted w/out permission from Way of the Minor Clans

Benefit: +1 Agility

Beginning Honor: 1 + 0 boxes

Outfit

  

(All items are of average quality)

Any one weapon (no swords, bows, or daggers), light armor, helm, traveling pack, kimono, 3 koku

Skills

Athletics, Battle, Commerce, Defense, Kenjutsu, Sailing, any 1 Bugei skill

Note

Unlike other Minor Clan samurai, all Mantis begin with a Glory of .5, as the Mantis is one of the most well-known Minor Clans in the Empire.
Editor's note: A 5th Rank Mantis Clan Technique was published in Time of the Void, and I've not got it set down yet.
The Mantis pride themselves on their seamanship and their unpredictability, as well as their long-standing tradition of mercenary gain and being swords-for-hire. They do, however, have a code of honor: once a job has been accepted, it will completed, and all aspects of the conract will be fulfilled. This keeps them from being seen as mere ronin, or being destroyed as a matter of course by their employers. Once a Mantis has been paid for, he has been permanently bought. No questions asked.

Techniques

Rank 1

  

Thhe origins of the Mantis are noble, but their lives have been spent mixed with the simple heimin of the Islands of Silk. Beacuse of this heritage, Mantis Clan members have a great familiarity with improvies, unusual, or "peasant" weapons, such as the tonfa, nunchaku, or kama. Mantis bushi may use any Low weapon Skill as if it were a High Skill. In addition, mantis bushi fight with any weapons they do not have a Skill Rank in as if they have a Skill Rank of 1. This is not a substitute for regular Skill Ranks, and all weapons skills must be purchased as normal. Also, Mantis bushi train for years on the unstable footing of the Silk Islands and the rolling boats of the Mantis fleets. This training allows Mantis bushi to ignore any penalties for unsure footing and imbalance during combat.

Rank 2

  

Mantis live knowing that they are the true heirs to the strength of Osano-Wo. Using the storm within their souls, they fuel their ferocity against an opponent. The Mantis bushi may spend a Void point when declaring a Full Attack, so that the bushi's TN to be hit stays at its normal level and is not reduced due to the Full Attack.

Rank 3

  

Long ago, it is said that the son of Osano-Wo, Kametsu-uo, learned a style of fighting from a traveling Dragon monk. If the bushi has a medium or smaller sized weapon in each hand, he rolls initiative separately for each, and gets an attack with each weapon every round. If the character is already ambidextrous, he may use the higher initiative for both weapons.

Rank 4

  

The bushi masters of the Mantis Clan have developed a weaving and dodging style of fighting that is perfectly suited to the rolling waves of Rokugan's wide oceans. This movement is hypnotizingly slow and unpredictable, and causes the Mantis to be more difficult to hit. While making a normal attack, the Mantis bushi's normal TN to be hit is increased by the bushi's Water Ring x5. It is said that the newest Mantis daimyo, Yoritomo, created this technique on his own, and has taught it to his followers.
The Mantis are the only Minor Clan with even four techniques in their school; a fact that they prize highly. They guard the secret of this fourth technique with their lives, and have sworn not to teach it to anyone that was not born of their clan.