New Player Options in Hand of Secrets

Take the stage as a Shosuro Actor, employ deadly poisons to eliminate your enemies, or seek the darkness with new inversions and shadow brand mechanics. Capture criminals and fugitives as a clan magistrate or Wasp Clan bounty hunter, or clandestinely serve one of Rokugan’s many secret societies and institutions. Whether you are a veteran of Legend of the Five Rings Roleplaying or just beginning your journeys in the Emerald Empire, you will find a host of interesting and novel character options in Hand of Secrets, the new sourcebook coming November 20 from Edge Studio. 

Ten New Schools 

The school or tradition in which a player character trains defines much about them: the role they play in Rokugani society, the skills they learn, the techniques they employ, and perhaps most of all, the perspective with which they view the wider world. As with the previous Great Clan supplements, Hand of Secrets offers new options for schools to train in—three from the Scorpion Clan, three from other Great Clans, two from the minor clan featured in the book, plus two more unexpected schools and traditions from across the Emerald Empire. Let’s take a look at three of the ten schools found in the upcoming sourcebook: 

• Asako Path of Man Adept Order: Will you follow a “shortcut” to enlightenment as an adherent of the Path of Man? Known as “henshin,” the members of a tiny monastic order are privy to the secret of enlightenment that no other order possesses. If you want to play a monk that combines elemental power and the wisdom of Shinsei, this is the school for you. 

• Shosuro Actor Tradition: Are you looking to become the face that can both blend in with the crowd and take center stage? The Shosuro actors are experts at maintaining disguises and adopting personas as needed. All the world’s a stage, but as part of the Shosuro Actor Tradition, you can become the only expert among a cast of amateurs. 

• Wasp Bounty Hunter School: Are you willing to chase your prey to the ends of the empire as part of the Wasp Clan bounty hunters? They are master trackers, hunters, and scouts with a reputation for questionable methods and undeniable results. With this school, you can explore the skills and tactics of the empire’s newest and most unconventional minor clan. 

Twelve New Techniques 

New and experienced characters alike benefit from twelve new techniques offered in Hand of Secrets. The supplement provides the tools and methods for magistrates, bounty hunters, and investigators to find, catch, and subdue targets without resorting to lethal force. Kata for finding hidden enemies, catching fleeing suspects, and ensnaring targets with tools of arrest help player characters keep the peace. Ranged combat characters and Wasp Clan players will find plenty to love with several powerful new ranged combat kata that serve the same purpose, enabling even the bow to be used in subduing targets with efficiency and style. 

New Shadow Brand Mechanics 

Not since the release of Celestial Realms have we learned more about the strange and sinister powers of the Void. Now, the powers of the shadow are expanded and available to more than the lucky few born with the potential. Through the power of “shadow brands,” anyone can be granted the power of the Void. Nine new inversions grant you, as a void practitioner, a vast array of powerful options to do such things as see in the dark, animate your own shadow to aid you, curse your target with consuming visions, and even teleport! But be careful, for the shadow brand is dangerous. Use your new powers judiciously, lest you be claimed by the Nothing. 

Nine New Titles 

Maintaining order requires the service of those who are sworn to uphold it. These titles are granted to those who are involved with upholding the law of the empire, even if they will never receive official recognition for doing so. The following are just a few of the nine new titles available: 

• Jade Magistrate: The Jade Ministry does not exist, at least not officially. As a Jade Magistrate, you are tasked with rooting out shadow plots without revealing your actual position or allegiance. 

• Justicar: Your job is to track down those marked for death and give them an honorable end. You offer no mercy, and you acknowledge no limits in pursuit of your targets. 

• Shadow Branded: You are one who has been granted the power of the Void. You are bound to the Nothing and will serve as a covert agent who commands the darkness itself. 

• Shadow Watch: You are a member of the Scorpion Kuroiban. You operate secretly and without assistance, watching silently for signs of forbidden practice and corruption. 

Tools of the Shinobi 

Learn all about shinobi practices and their most effective tool of death-dealing: poison. Six new poisons give some players a new arsenal and present others a new slate of threats. Poisons that prevent blood clots and exhaust their victims, toxins that render victims blind, and others more than double the number of poisons available to players. 

Keep the Law, Watch the Shadows 

Hand of Secrets is an essential book for players to expand their collection of available character options, whether you are well-versed in Legend of the Five Rings Roleplaying or new to the game. So ready your catchpole, keep a watchful eye, and snare Hand of Secrets when it emerges from the shadows on November 20!