Background

[ffilz]

I'll start this with a repeat of the background information from the chargen thread:

Era will be late Heian period, some 25 years before the Genpei war with things starting to go haywire with the Hogen and Heiji rebellions. The capital at this time is Heian-kyō (now Kyoto).

Since we will be starting with Valley of the Mists, it may make sense for characters to come from Hida province, though I also hope to have some focus on the central mountains and areas along the Nakasendo (which appears to be named the Tosado after the circuit it traverses) so Shinano, Mino, or Kotsuke provinces may also be a good choice.

This will be an anachronistic Nippon, so if something is a bit out of place for the actual Heian period, well, this is Nippon not Japan...

And here's some links:

Here's a particularly nice map of Japan (though definitely from a later time):
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File ... yeyasu.jpg

General History
https://jref.com/articles/categories/history.3/

Heian Period
https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Heian_Period
http://www.ijparker.com/about_heian_japan.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heian_period
https://www.britannica.com/place/Japan/ ... d-794-1185

Roads
https://www.nakasendoway.com/the-early-road-system/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edo_Five_Routes
https://wiki.samurai-archives.com/index ... e=Highways
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/w ... 180975196/

[Marullus]

This is the actual map for the game module. It doesn't have any plot locations on it, so I'm sharing it so we're on the same page (literally) as players/GM regarding where are adventures are taking place. I will orient using terms from this map in IC updates.

Hida Province Map.png (300.35 KiB) Viewed 644 times

The scale of the map is 8-mile hexes, which is the standard for how far you can see at ground level and roughly how far you can walk in a day.

I'll post separately about IC knowledge.

[Marullus]

General: Things Everyone Knows

• The Daimyo of Hida province is Washima Fuhito, who rules from Takayama.
• The Washima are the highest status Buke clan in Hida province (as the Daimyo's family), with the Tadamasa, Satake*, and Oguroyumi families of middle rank.
• The pre-eminence of the Washima began about 10 years ago when Washima Fuhito came to power after a multi-year struggle amongst the families.

Things that Buke of Hida Province Know (Ha, Taka)

• The Washima rule the city of Takayama and the prime lands which surround it (the best for rice and also for breeding horses) and are recognized by the Shogunate as being a full Daimyo over the province. The situation is otherwise more complex, with the Washima wielding influence through a coalition of near-peer clans. These councils meet in Takayama.
• The landlocked mountain valleys of Hida province import a significant amount of rice but are blessed with large amounts of lumber, which is known throughout Nippon for its durability and beauty.
• Relations by the Washima (and thus all of Hida) are unfriendly with clans of Mino province and Echizen province.
• The most recent military clash of arms in the province was on the southern border - the hostility of Ishiyama Hosomune towards Washima Fuhito make clashes here common.
• Tensions are currently high with the Mizobara (the rulers of Etchu province), who are levying high tolls on goods entering Hida province. The Washima want all families to apply pressure to the Mizobara to reduce these tolls.

Things Outsiders Know

• Eiji: is from the Enryaku-ji temple outside of Kyoto, and grew up as an Eta gravedigger for the imperial city. Having been socially invisible, he can bring in observations of the imperial family or Kyoto politics/life.
• Toshi: is from the Shinano province. He likely knows of the mountains and the conflicts with the Ishiyama. Open to other suggestions.

* The book has the Sakawa family, but I recommend mapping as the Satake family for mid-rank Samurai, being Taka's character.

[Marullus]

Dates and Weather

I'm benchmarking to 2012 and using real weather for reference when it matters, since I don't know anything about the climate of Hida province.
https://www.worldweatheronline.com/taka ... fu/jp.aspx

At the start of thread [003], we will be on 4/11/2012.

Calendar
https://www.nippon.com/en/japan-glances ... endar.html
Since they had a 12 month calendar that started on the Lunar New Year (borrowed from China), and I need to map it to the Gregorian calendar above using 2012 weather, I'll use a Gregorian calendar with Japanese names so I don't go crazy.

Calendar.png (32.76 KiB) Viewed 625 times

[Marullus]

The Province's high-status families:

• Washima: Overcame infighting 10 years ago and now rules a coalition of families, creating lasting peace through intermarriage.
• Tadamasa: Second-most powerful in the province, they control the road leading to Takayama (the Washima capital) and interaction with Etchu province. The heir to clan leadership is married to a member of the Washima as are several high ranking clan members. The integration of the two clans is well underway although the current clan head will not, due to pride, admit it.
• Satake: (Motoyuki/Taka's clan) They rule the northcentral portion of the province and are least-happy of the current situation and solidarity among the Washima and Tadamasa. The clan believes their elders should be ruling the province and are a voice of opposition to the Washima in the councils. However, the internal clan politics are fraught in the past few months. The clan head is Kwanran, formerly Satake Takuan, who caused ripples by taking Buddhist vows. His eldest son, nominally positioned to lead rather than uncles or cousins, was then assassinated and his sister (Taka, now eldest) went to seek the culprit (suspected to be Tadamasa) in a blood oath or vengance. Whether Taka returns and tries to stake a claim or another family member steps in to lead the clan is to be determined...
  Motoyuki is a brother of Takuan and uncle to Taka. He is in service to the Daiymo but avoiding leadership within the family.
• Oguroyumi: They rule the mountainous terrain in the northwest and like their territory they are a rough-hewn and rugged clan. The Wahsima find their martial strength and vigor a pillar in the support of provincial policies. The daimyo, himself, is said to favor warriors from this area for his own bodyguard.