Legend of the Burning Sands RPG - Kaze no Shiro

Legend of the Burning Sands RPG Campaign Settingenmity of the Senpet and the grudging respect ofthe Sultanate.The Fourth Age: theJourney of the Ki-RinThey came from across the Southern Mountainsfifty years after the beginning of the Fourth Age.They wore strange armour, spoke a tongue nonecould understand, flew a flag of a horned horse,and didn't seem to understand the way of thedesert.The Ujik-hai came down out of the steppes, leadby a young woman know as Martazera, andengaged these strange people. Several battlesoccurred till the leader of the strangers cameforth to do battle. Dozens of people died by theleader's hand alone and the Ujik-hai fell backfearful of the power of the strangers. Over thecourse of the next weeks, several Ujik-haijourneyed to the strangers in order to make peaceand teach them the ways of the desert andsteppes. They learned that the strangers calledthemselves the clan of the Ki-Rin and hailedfrom a distant land called Rokugan, far to thesouth beyond the Great Barrier Mountains.The Darkness GrowsTime passed almost uneventfully. A fewassassinations within Medinat al-Salaamoccurred, perpetrated by a group known simplyas the Assassins. Lead by a person know as theOld Man of the Mountain, who in reality was theimmortal ex-sultan, the assassins would becomeone of the dark tales of the great city.The Senpet cities were still slowly beingdevoured by the desert and its people journeyingto Medinat al-Salaam to start new lives awayfrom the ever encroaching sands.Several scouts reported that large hostilecreatures had been spotted in desert, preying oncaravans, small groups of travellers and tribes ofnomads. Named giants because of their immensesize, these vile creatures seemed to take pleasurein pain and torture and it was rumoured that theyhad a dark city deep in the desert where theykept hundreds of slaves for mining silver andcopper, as well as to entertainment them and feedthem.Within the cities of the Sultanate another evilreared its ugly head. Deep in the sewers andruins of sunken cisterns and ancient passagewayscame a race known as Ghuls. They fed on flesh,fresh or dead, finding it wherever they could.Some crept up into the city looking for livebodies to take, especially children.The clan of the Ki-Rin stayed with the Ujik-haifor nearly a hundred years, teaching them theirways while learning of the desert. When theydecided to leave they traveled further west,taking with them the blessings and warnings ofthe Ujik-hai, as well as a large number oftribesmen who had joined their clan and formeda new family within it called the Moto.The remaining Ujik-hai split into two factions.The more militant, the Moto, continued their lifeas raiders, striking at caravans from hidden oasis.The second, peaceful faction took the name ofRa'Shari and wandered into the deep desert,becoming nomads, traders, storytellers andkeepers of the amassed knowledge of history.The Coming of the DarkGodThe Dark God finally made his presence knownto the Burning Sands by sending out a vast armyof evil creatures. Giants, Ghuls, skeletons,mummies and other things terrible to behold laysiege to the cities of the Burning Sands.Hundreds died and were enslaved. Even with thecombined armies of the Senpet and Sultanate andthe tribes of the Moto forged into a singlefighting force, the minions of the Dark God weresteadily reaching out to claim all.It was as the inner cities were starting to fall thata man called Mekhem appeared out of nowhereproclaiming that he could stop the Dark God andhis forces. He walked out onto the battlefield andinto the army of the Dark God. He calmlydeclared that he would face the Dark God on hisown ground and defeat him there. The general ofthe army laughed and took the man to the DarkGod.The people of the cities shook their heads,knowing that the man was destined for agruesome and horrible death at the hands of theDark God. They took hope, though, from theman's courage and in some outer areas, the man'ssacrifice bred faith in the human spirit.As the forces of the Dark God pressed theirattack a new fever ran through the human armies.Bolstered by the sacrifice of one man for thegreater good, they surged forward to destroy6Legend of the Five Rings Fan Book