Beast Courts

Court of Twisting Smoke Adrift, and without a sense of direction, we’re lost, like twisting smoke. The Way of Emerald Virtue * Shirk not the tasks which have been given you. * Guard the wheel that it may turn in fullness. * Presume not to instruct your cousin in his task. * Honor your territory in all things. * Let mercy guide you in our August Mother's court. * Honor your ancestors and your elders. * Honor the pacts with the spirit world. * War not upon human or beast. * Let no one violate the sacred places.

Court Members Active PCs Shifters Hakken Miko Boli Zouhisze No pages meet these criteria. Stargazers No pages meet these criteria. Tengu No pages meet these criteria. Zhong Lung Kozue Same-Bito No pages meet these criteria. Kitsune Kaori Khan No pages meet these criteria. Unspecified No pages meet these criteria. Kinfolk Hakken No pages meet these criteria. Boli Zouhisze No pages meet these criteria. Stargazers No pages meet these criteria. Tengu No pages meet these criteria. Zhong Lung No pages meet these criteria. Same-Bito No pages meet these criteria. Kitsune No pages meet these criteria. Khan No pages meet these criteria. Unspecified No pages meet these criteria. Gai'nan Regent: TBD The regent is essentially the highest-ranking caern elder; the ultimate authority figure of the court. He is the keeper of the laws, the arbiter of disputes, the one who ultimately decrees the court's responsibilities. The regent is typically chosen by the court's acclaim and by petitioning the Court of Ancestors to recognize the most worthy candidate. It is an office few ask for, as the temporal influence gained is nothing compared to the burden of justly overseeing the affairs of a court. The eyes of all are upon the regent, and he must cleave the closest to the Mandates or lose face before his courtiers. The regent can be supplanted in times of crisis by the other Gai'nan. In accordance with the Mandates, this must only be done if the regent is clearly ignoring the recommendations of his fellow magistrates, instead embarking on a plan of action sure to cripple the court. Removing the regent from power, even temporarily, can lead to great losses of Renown if the other Gai'nan cannot prove that it was absolutely necessary. The regent is never chosen lightly, and circumstances must be grave indeed to go against the will of the Emerald Mother. General: Open The general, or warmaster, fulfills a role similar to that of a Garou caern Warder. Her duty is to ensure that the hengeyokai of the court are properly trained in war and are prepared to defend the caern should it become necessary. Of course, in modern times the general's particular preference of tactics can vary widely; depending on the general involved, the court's hengeyokai may find themselves required to learn the tactics of SunTzu, practice arts of stealth that would shame ninja, or undergo instruction in the latest Red Army commando tactics and weapons training. The general's influence with the court is not invariable, but most can call on a great deal if need be. As the Hakken proverb runs, "Peacetime is a pretty poem, but the world is illiterate." With the hengeyokai almost incessantly at war to varying degrees, the general can count on her talents being constantly in demand and her advice rarely ignored. Seer: Open The seer of a court fulfills a role much like the Master of the Rite. He is the keeper of the rites, the one who dictates to the spirits, the master of summonings. The seer is usually the courtier who summons spirits to ask favors, bind sentai, teach Gifts or perform other tasks. As could be expected, the seer wields a great deal of personal power. It's not unheard of for a seer to become overproud of his importance, and thereby corrupted. Such individuals can easily play the role of the archetypal wicked vizier, using their influence to turn the regent into a puppet figurehead. What's more, the position of seer is one with many innate risks. As the court's representative to the spirit community, the seer is highly visible in all Umbral affairs; he is often the first one marked for temptation or elimination in a Yama King's scheme. A seer will almost always have at least one potential successor in training, if a young hengeyokai with promise is available at all. It would be too easy for a seer to be carried off by powerful demons before he had passed on even as much as half his lore; therefore, ensuring that the seer has an apprentice is a high priority to any right-thinking court. If more than one potential candidate exists, the court may well assign both or all to the seer, in the hopes that he will be able to weed out the most worthy successor over the course of their training. A great number of rivalries start this way. Historian: Open Like all shapechangers, the hengeyokai keep an oral tradition that stretches back to the days of prehistory. It is the historian's task to learn and know the story of the caern and its court from the very beginning, as well as to know the tales of the battles fought against the Mother's enemies. The historian is a necessary reservoir of legend, but also the person to whom the scouts report. By analyzing the patterns of what has gone before and comparing them to current events, the historian provides the other Gai'nan with all the knowledge they could require. Obviously, retaining all this information is a monumental task. Some historians are trained to accept the role almost from the day after their First Change. Zhong Lung are found in the role of historian in many courts, for obvious reasons. In many others, the historian is a metis of varying race; the advantage of being raised in the court from birth makes metis a natural choice for such an office. Notable NPCs Person Blurb about Person Person Blurb about Person Person Blurb about Person Person Blurb about Person Plot Threads Plot Blurb Plot Blurb Plot Blurb Plot Blurb Decrees The Court of Twisting Smoke is housed at the Tsubaki Grand Shrine in Idyllwyld, though they also conduct business with shen at secular locations in both Chinatown and Barrio Chino. References Hengeyokai Renown Hengeyokai Gifts