Oriental F.A.Q. version 1.0---------------------------------------- ---------
1 - What do I have to do to join ROKUGAN?
---------------------------------------- ---------
Joining Rokugan is quite easy - just send a devnote to the community (please don't send it to the founder or any of the other members, because there is always the chance of the note getting forgotten or lost). As soon as the note is read, we will send you a note back, welcoming you into our fold, and as soon as possible, you'll be added to the growing list of samurai members of our community -- which is present in our "The Legion of Two Thousand: Mwmbers".
After you receive the note confirmation (please be patient, our lazy bastardess of a founder has lots of exams to work for), choose a Clan to join, and inform the Founder of your choice, so that she can set you under the correct clan section in the Member Journal. If you don't know or care about that, you'll be listed as Unaligned -- this is just something for flavor, it doesn't bring any advantages or obligations.
You can change your Clan as you wish, just inform the Founder by note of our change of allegiance -- be ready to bear with the challenges to duel from your former fellow clanmates. But don't worry too much -- your new clan will be there to fight by your side.
---------------------------------------- --------------------
2 - Can't I simply leave a post stating I want to join?
---------------------------------------- --------------------
The founder doesn't read all the posts in the community, as she (the lazy bastardess) only enters this account to manage art sumissions, clean up, and generally organize things. This is not her account, this belongs to all the members -- so it will be very easy for a post to go by unnoticed... plus, it isn't that much harder to send a note than is to post a post.
---------------------------------------- ---------------------------
3 - What the hell is Rokugan and Legend of the Five Rings?
---------------------------------------- ---------------------------
Legend of the Five Rings is a card and RPG game produced by Alderac ([link]), set in a world similar to, but not quit the same as our own: L5R (Legend of the 5 Rings) is set in a pseudo Feudal Japan, with high sorcery, samurai, heroic battles and dastardly deeds. Instead of Japan, the story happens in a fictional kingdom called Rokugan (hence the community's title), also known as the Emerald Empire. The most powerful families in the Empire gather under clans, each with its own view of the world and unique capabilities. Each Clan has an animal as namesake and coat of arms: Crab, Crane, Dragon, Lion, Mantis, Phoenix, Scorpion and Unicorn.
All the clans face a common enemy in the form of the Shadowlands, a bleak and corrupted portion of the kingdom claimed by the minions of Fu Leng, the god of evil.
--------------------------------------
4 - Clans? What Clans are there?
--------------------------------------
Outside the above mentioned 8 Great Clans, there are many minor ones - which will not be listed (if someone REALLY wants to be a Ratling or a Naga, or even Ninja, I'll try to oblige with a new clan). There is a lot of information about each Clan, and you can find far more information on the L5R section of the Alderac homepage (see above), but here is a short description of each clan:
Crab:
------- The strongest (and brutest, some say) fighters of Rokugan, they are the Empire's first line of defense against the Shadowlands, as the great Kaiu Wall that they built and patrol cuts off almost completely the lands of the Shadowlands from the rest of the realm.
Crane:
-------- The most able artisans, courtiers and duellists are Crane - the masters of excellence, finess and elegance. Their tongues are as sharp as their blades -- and the Crane blades are the deadliest of the Empire.
Dragon:
--------- Monks, Mystics, Illuminated, the Tattooed. The clan Dragon has many names, and many views, but both in meditation and unarmed combat they are unparalled. Their two sword fighting technique is also well known and feared.
Lion:
------ The master strategists and the most able warriors of Rokugan. They are the most able in both militar and mental battle.
Mantis:
-------- Some call them sailors, some call them pirates, but all agree that the Mantis are the masters of the sea. This clan is the only one who doesn't live in mainland Rokugan, but instead in a cluster of islands.
Phoenix:
---------- The masters of magic, they hold many secrets and a lot of power.
Scorpion:
----------- Courtiers, Liars and Masters of Secrets extraordinaires, this clan has sacrified what none of the other clans did to keep the Empire safe: their honour. Mistrusted and even hated, they bear their burden of watching over the Empire from the shadows alone.
Unicorn:
--------- After spending years living in gaijin (foreign) lands, they returned to Rokugan bearing many secrets and inventions. But their main power lies in the might of their cavalry.
---------------------------------------- ----------------------------
5 - What if my art has nothing to do with Rokugan and L5R?
---------------------------------------- -----------------------------
Don't worry about that. We like any oriental-themed art, even if it has nothing to do with the world of L5R - a landscape, a random samurai/geisha/ninja or other are what we are looking for as well. Chinese, Korean or other Eastern country-inspired art if fine too.
---------------------------------------- ------
6 - So, how can I submitt a piece of art?
---------------------------------------- ------
If you have your art piece in your Deviantart Gallery or in any other site online, simply send a note to the community with the link to it. The founder will then download and post the piece in the community gallery, featuring your name, the original link where the piece is posted, and or original comments to it.
If your piece is not online, simply send it by e-mail to the community's email address: rokugan@iol.pt , together with any comments you want to see added to the Comments.
---------------------------------------- ---------------------------------
7 - I don't have time to do new pieces regularly. Can I still join?
---------------------------------------- ---------------------------------
Of course. We do not have "Minimal Production Stardards", that is, you don't have to present a new piece of art every month -- there are no deadlines here! Just send them when you have them -- and you don't have to make original work _JUST_ for the community -- just send us your picces from the gallery.
Of course, I'd still prefer people to actually take part of the fun and share their art with the community, and not just use us as a means to get free advertising to their own galleries. However, The Lazy Bastardess (aka the Founder, *LadyEntropy) is not going to act like a first grade teacher, and go around checking who did or did not do their homework. This is something she will leave to your own sense of honour.
---------------------------------------- ------------------------------
8 - HELP! I love L5R, I'd love to join, but I can't draw a thing!
---------------------------------------- ------------------------------
Not to worry. Many of our samurai are here without knowing which side of the pencil is used to draw. Your presence is quite welcome, whether you could be the next DaVinci or your last rendition of the Lion Clan Daimyo's face resembled a life drawing of a X-mas Pudding. The goal of this community is to gather people who enjoy the Oriental Cultures, L5R, and have fun - you can notice quite some word sparring in the community. Choose your enemy (aka the one person you want to annoy) then just start the battle of words and wits. May the best (wo)man win!
You can also have another way out, if you really want to participate and share something with the community besides your presence: art shows up in many forms, so instead of drawing or painting, show us how you write - fanfiction, humor, poetry, roleply adventures, characters, etc. Anything goes!
---------------------------------------- ----------
9 - Daimyos, Champions And Clans, Oh My!
---------------------------------------- ----------
The position of Clan Daimyos was given to a group of people who first joined and supported the neonate community - the only advantage it has is... you get to lord it over the rest of the community members (unless that person is a Daimyo too, then the taunting doesn't work as well). The founder also relies on the Daimyos to suggest her pieces of people outside the community that should be chosen as favs by the community. When a Daimyo finds a pic worthy of a fav, s/he'll just have to send a devnote to the founder, tipping her off. All the Daimyo positions are filled, so, unless one of them gives up from their position, we won't have any new Daimyos.
A Clan Champion is a member of this community whose work has participated on competitions here, so this is a difficult title to get, and an even more difficult to maintain, but the good side is that your work will get all the exposure it deserves! The member of each clan who has more voted artwork will be the champion until another member of his clan surpasses him/her on the following contest. This title, of course, only will be given to those who chose a clan - and if you belong to one clan, you can't be the champion of another.
A Clan Champion cannot be the Clan Daimyo as well... there are few titles, so we want the maximum of people to get them. If a Clan Daimyo wants to get the Clan Champion title (or vice-versa), he must forfeit his former title. The same way, Imperial Champions (Emerald, Jade, etc) cannot have more than that title.
Concerning Clans, please refer to point 4 of this FAQ, to know more.
---------------------------------------- ------------------------------
10 - So, it's true that the Founder is really a lazy bastardess?
---------------------------------------- ------------------------------
Yes.
---------------------------------------- -----------------------------------
11 - Then, why the hell did she write such a long and boring FAQ?
---------------------------------------- -----------------------------------
Because she is not only a lazy bastardess, but also totally unexperienced where FAQ-Writing is concerned.
----------------------------------------
12 - That's one stupid explanation!
----------------------------------------
Yes. And it's also the truth.
---------------------------------------- ----------
13 - Isn't her problem being a bit pedantic?
---------------------------------------- ----------
Go away.
Devious Comments