Yasu was my idea of an honorable Daimyo who has had strong ties to the Imperial lineage. As the old emperor died and the country started to fall into warring factions, the Daimyo of the North did her best to maintain order.

Masami operates differently than most of his peers. Rather than adhering to the shadows, the Ninja of Extinguished Light hides in plain sight in mundane garb, concealing the tools of his trade beneath straw rain cloaks and simple mud stained robes.

What strange circumstances led Sayaka to her power? The Geisha of Tangled Strands is a master of influence and information, as well as less conventional means of guarded whispers, stories of dark magic, writhing webs, and bizarre puppets the size of men.

An emperor in name alone, Nobu’s unfortunate reign came at a time of upheaval following the death of his predecessor. Now forces fight in secret to rule through the boy emperor at the same time as others fight in the field in countless military clashes.

Long before the current tumult of war, there was a period of peace and prosperity. Even so, Aguri met a terrible and violent end. The peace went on without her, rolling over any memory of the poor girl. Then she rose again, a ghost from a time of excess.

Yuu, Shogun of the Rising South is the idea of a man of hunger. Hunger for anything and everything from fine foods, extravagantly precious metalworks, to political and military might. Yuu has risen within the power vacuum of the previous emperor’s demise.

I intended for Katsuo to be an example of a Samurai untested by actual battle. Rather than martial force, he opts to focus on being a presence about town and in court society. As such he’s made a name for himself as the Samurai of the Summer Breeze.

A hard life was promised and delivered for Takara. As a peasant, this was already the norm, but adding to the struggle was a past life invested in a failed revolution. Much has been lost, but much can also be endured.