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History

The Cormorant was a notable gambler in the Imperial City, a ronin who had history with a number of fireman gangs and other criminal enterprises. During the youth of a fledgling Emperor (no one is willing to say which) who was known to smuggle himself out of the Imperial Palace to engage in less than noble activities that these two crossed paths. Despite being warned by his advisers and courtiers that spending time with the less reputable folk of the City would not see the Fortunes smile upon him; the young Emperor had faith and confidence in his luck.

A strange twist of fate saw the Emperor and the Cormorant throwing dice behind a geisha house one late autumn night under an auspicious moon. Fate also saw a brutish thug (perhaps someone the Cormorant owed money to, no one is willing to say the truth of this) come there way and accost them for the pool of zeni they were gambling over. The thug brandished a tanto and sought to gut the young Emperor, but fate saw the thug miss and instead dig the blade deep into the gut of the Cormorant. Enraged and in horrendous pain, the Cormorant drew his katana and brutally executed the thug.

It was then the young Emperor gained a moment of insight, and in his divine wisdom he proclaimed the Cormorant as an agent of fate, a chosen savior brought to this exact situation by the Heavens in order to provide both entertainment and the lesson that perhaps his advisers were the sort he should listen to.

The following day as the Cormorant paid away his winnings over a bottle of cheap sake and an eta with a cute enough face to stitch up his chest wound, that he found himself being dragged to the Imperial Palace by a detachment of the Seppun. The young Emperor declared him the head of a new Minor Clan, a man whose fate was clearly seen and whose purpose in life would be to better illuminate the fortunes of others. He was to catalog various phenomenon, omen, and strange divination for the benefit of the Empire.

The Cormorant, stunned, vaguely inebrieted, and having expected the worse (having assumed the disguised young Emperor to simply be another criminal with delusions of grandeur) said a quick prayer to the Heavens and gladly accepted this newfound luck and station. He viewed his charge as a sign from the Heavens that luck would always be on his side, so long as he pursued it.

But the task of the Cormorant Clan has never been easy. The Clan lacks any shugenja blood of note, and the Cormorant originally inducted into his clan only those he personally liked, found attractive, or owed money to (as they were lucky enough to beat them). Over time and many generations of strange fortune, a technique was developed based on relying on the way fate sees fit to throw them and opening oneself up to the possibilities.

Of course, this true history of the Cormorant Clan are seldom spoken of and the public truth is far more embellished. Those who know the true story often use it as a point of mockery against the Clan, though certainly not in public. To mock the origins of the Cormorant is to mock an Emperor who enjoyed games of bầu cua cá cọp, and an Emperor is allowed to have a bit of fun; especially in his youth.

Lands

The Clan is still small, even in later eras. They are barely a footnote in history, present during ominous tidings and taking note. Their feeble holding is a small village near Scorpion Lands, known for its geisha house and dens of vice. The Lucky Village experiences things a little easier than other holds. Its people are devout and willing to be malleable to change.

Customs

The Clan's sacred artifact is "the Brute's Bones", a set of dice and holy bones for divination made from the spine of the thug who had attacked the Emperor and the Cormorant. This artifact may also be the Clan's undoing.

The Phoenix do not enjoy the truth of the Clan's origins, something most are not aware to the full truth of. The use of bones from a slain criminal as a vaunted artifact leads easily to accusations of Maho. Compounding the issue is the habit of Cormorant Clan samurai finding themselves in the middle of Maho-Tsukai incidents, following where Fate takes them of course, which leads to easy accusations. The Cormorant being present where disaster might fall is far more damning than being present where blessings might occur, and bad press by the Great Clans easily leads to them being slandered; losing station, and falling into even further obscure history.

They do research mystical knowledge and esoteric traditions, and they do a good job and are responsible for making sure peasants are able to observe many of their rituals in peace. But their origins are meager, borderline insulting, and their mystical sword style comes entirely out of luck and being able to roll with the wheel of kharma rather than remaining steadfast and trying to ride it. But for a Cormorant, this is enough.

Families
Umiu: +1 Intelligence

The scions of a notable gambler who fate provided the means to save an Emperor. You are of a small house built around the study of folk magic, divination, omen, and strange phenomenon. You have few friends and are far from notable, but you have the means to travel far and wide to fulfill your purpose. You are quick, malleable, and adaptive.

Umiu Bushi (Bushi)

Benefit: +1 Reflexes

Skills: Defense, Games: Dice, Kenjutsu, Divination, Meditation, Lore: Omens, Any one Bushi or Merchant Skill.

Starting Honor: 3.5.

Starting Outfit: Sturdy Clothing, Ashigaru or Light Armor, Daisho, Any one Weapon, Dice and Cup, Kawaru Set, Travelling Kit, 2 Koku.

Rank 1: Throw the Bones

Once per day you may choose to make a Divination/Void roll against a TN of 20. If you succeed this roll, you may reroll any one roll until dusk.

Rank 2: Fickle Fortune

Prior to rolling for an attack you may choose to ignore Exploding Dice. If you do so, and still hit the enemy, you may count any 10 you've rolled as a free Called Raise for the purpose of maneuvers. These free Called Raises cannot exceed your Void Ring.

Rank 3: Pull the Strings

If an enemy attacks you and misses, you may choose to impose a penalty to the total of their attack rolls equal to your Divination Skill for the remainder of the battle. This ability may affect a number of enemies equal to your Void Ring.

Rank 4: Slip Beneath

You may attack with Samurai weapons as a simple action. If your enemy has the Disbeliever Disadvantage or is Cursed by a Fortune, Increased Damage maneuvers grant +1k1 on the initial called raise.

Rank 5: Break the Surface

When in Center Stance or upon immediately exiting Center Stance, you may add your Divination Skill Rank to your Armor TN and to Attack Rolls. If you have successfully performed your Rank 1 Technique, you gain +2k1 rather than +1k1 when spending Void Points.