#Kagura Domain in the Edo Period
Contents
Canon. Defines Kagura Domain's position in the Edo period.
#Scent — A Bound Banner
Kagura Domain's banner still remembers the blood of yoma. But in Edo that banner cannot fly freely. The shogunate fears the power it needs, and Kagura Domain must prove why it is still necessary every time it draws a sword.
#Law — Using Kagura Domain
- Kagura Domain is the most direct affiliation for deploying combat-role PCs into Edo incidents.
- Military force is strong, but movement, reporting, reputation, and official records are subject to shogunate constraints.
- Even when Kagura Domain resolves an incident, the credit may be erased. Use this as campaign conflict.
#Scene Commentary — A Sword That Is Strong but Not Free
Kagura Domain is an easy faction to deploy combat roles into. The problem is that it can too easily become the convenient answer. If Kagura Domain can always charge in and cut down every yoma, the tension of the Edo campaign disappears. So in this period, Kagura Domain must be strong but constrained.
That constraint does not make them weak — it makes them more dramatic. Deployment orders arrive late, the record of accomplishments is erased, and a shogunate inspector is attached to every operation. A PC affiliated with Kagura Domain can rely on their combat capability, but they will frequently face the humiliation of not being credited for their victories.
Conflicts in Kagura Domain scenes:
- Using force resolves it, but the fact of using force becomes the problem.
- The shogunate asks for help while attaching a watchdog.
- The ancient exorcism oaths and Edo's order pull in opposite directions.
#Session Application — Making Force Arrive Late
- First scene: the Kagura Domain dispatch unit has already arrived at the scene, but official deployment authorization has not yet come.
- Complication: the yoma is moving now, and the shogunate inspector is ordering them to wait.
- Closing question: will the PCs draw a sword without authorization to save lives, or wait for authorization to preserve order?
#Opening Vignette — The Scabbard's Permission
Kagura Sanenori did not draw his sword in front of the warehouse door. From inside came the sound of a child crying; from the gaps in the wall came the sound of beast claws scraping wood. But the inspector's sealed letter had not yet arrived.
"Sanenori-sama," a young domain samurai whispered. "We must go in now."
"I know."
"Then why—"
Sanenori could not lift the hand resting on his sword hilt. In Edo, the swords of Kagura Domain are watched from the scabbard onward. Exorcism without authorization is not a tale of valor but a domain overstepping its authority, and overstepping authority gets called by another name in shogunate councils. A sign of rebellion.
The sound of the child crying stopped inside the warehouse. A low voice came instead.
"Do not open the door. Open it and your lord bears responsibility too."
At that moment the PCs arrived. One carried an unsealed shogunate letter; one was already on the roof counting the movements inside. Sanenori gave a short laugh.
"Good. Tonight Kagura Domain has not yet done anything."
He drew his sword. The domain samurai followed, and the warehouse door opened from the inside on its own. Afterward the report read: warehouse collapse, no casualties, no Kagura Domain involvement. But the child saw the light of a sword that night, and the PCs learned why Kagura Domain is still necessary.
#Organization Card
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Surface | A special domain under constraint in the Tokugawa order |
| Interior | A military organization responsible for anti-yoma combat and securing sealing sites |
| Leadership | Domain lord, Edo resident official, dispatch unit commander, sealing military scholar |
| Field | Elite domain samurai, spear units, sealing assistants, highway escorts |
| Strengths | Combat capability, military order, exorcism precedents, cohesion |
| Weaknesses | Shogunate surveillance, movement restrictions, reputation control, lack of urban intelligence |
Kagura Domain is not "an organization that lacks strength." It is an organization so strong that it is suspected. Maintaining this distinction lets Kagura Domain PCs experience both the frustration of being unable to use their abilities freely and the satisfaction of finally drawing the sword.
#Command Structure
| Level | Representative | Role | How to Play |
|---|---|---|---|
| Domain lord | Kagura Nobuaki | Holder of the ancient exorcism oaths | Apply pressure through orders and prestige rather than direct appearances |
| Edo resident official | Kagura Sanenori | The face of the Edo dispatch unit | Use as a strict superior who moves alongside the PCs |
| Sealing military scholar | Asahina Gensei | Battlefield placement and barrier interpretation | Let them read the danger before combat, but keep them weak in politics |
| Dispatch samurai | Elite warriors and spear soldiers | Field combat | Strong, but make them unable to move without orders |
| Supply and medical | Lower domain samurai, herb monks | Wounded retrieval and materiel | Show casualties and accountability after combat |
Sanenori is the person who keeps the domain alive rather than becoming a hero. He respects the PCs' courage, but never forgets that "that courage might also cut down the entire domain tomorrow."
#Faction Trait
[Aptitude] Formal Military Order (正規軍律)
Kagura Domain soldiers operate under military discipline passed down from the Warring States era. They do not break without orders, and they remember their formation without a banner.
Effect: When a friendly squad in the same zone would receive a cohesion reduction effect, apply -1 to that reduction amount (minimum 0). Applies to all cohesion reductions including roars, fear, and cohesion drop.
Additional effect (Standard-Bearer Team built in): Kagura Domain squads inherently possess the Standard-Bearer Team effect. Cohesion for friendly squads in the same force is maintained uniformly without a separate Standard-Bearer Team.
When a PC acquires this: Applies to all squads the PC commands. "Military order is in the body."
Application: Minion–Elite units and companion squads belonging to Kagura Domain carry this as an innate trait. Lord-grade NPCs such as Kagura Sanenori place this in 1 General Trait slot.
#Companion Squads
All squads below apply the Faction Trait [Aptitude] Formal Military Order.
#Kagura Domain Samurai Unit — Minion
Wounds 1, Defense 13. Domination +2 (5 members).
Techniques:
- Formation Spear Strike [Attack] — When directed. 2d10+Courage(+1) ≥ Defense. 1 Wound.
- Maintain Military Order [Stance] — Sustained. Reduce the first cohesion loss of a friendly squad in the same zone by 1.
#Kagura Sealing Spear Squad — Veteran
Wounds 2, Defense 14. Domination +3 (4 members).
Techniques:
- Sealing Spear Thrust [Attack] — When directed. 2d10+Courage(+2) ≥ Defense. 1 Wound. If the target is a spirit or onryo, roll +1.
- Formation Lock [Stance] — Sustained. Ignore forced-movement effects from enemies in the same zone for 1 breath.
#Command NPC: Kagura Sanenori — Lord
Kagura Sanenori (神楽実矩) — Lord
Wounds 6, Defense 16, Energy 12
Courage+4, Finesse+2, Physique+3, Wisdom+2, Presence+1, Fate+1
Domination +5| Technique | Type | Energy | Roll | Effect | Limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Demon Gate Slash | [Attack] | 4 | 2d10+Courage ≥ Defense | 2 Wounds. If the target is a spirit or yoma, roll against Defense -1 | 1/breath |
| Banner Realignment | [Upkeep] | 0 | — | During the lull phase, 1 Kagura squad gains cohesion +1 | 1/lull |
| Unauthorized Charge | [Kata] | 2 | — | Immediately move to an adjacent zone; next attack +1 | shogunate relations worsen after use |
| Armor Intercept | [Technique] | Reserve 2 / Improvise 3 | 2d10+Physique ≥ enemy attack | Negate hit. On success, 1 ally in the same zone also takes no damage from the same attack | — |
Special:
- Bound Banner: In combat with official shogunate authorization, Sanenori and Kagura squads gain Domination +1. Moving without authorization removes the combat bonus but grants +2 to first-round Initiative.
- Faction Trait: Sanenori holds [Aptitude] Formal Military Order in 1 General Trait slot.
Even when Sanenori reprimands PCs, he does not abandon the field. Play him not as "a person who loves rules" but as "a person who knows his domain dies without them."
#Light and Shadow
| Light | Shadow |
|---|---|
| Can actually stop powerful yoma | Easy to rely on combat resolution and miss the root cause |
| Gives PCs honor and a sense of belonging | May hide the truth because of shogunate and domain prestige |
| Military order reduces civilian casualties | When the command chain is slow, people die |
| Upholds the ancient exorcism oaths | A tendency to treat all yoma as targets for elimination remains |
#Using as a PC Faction
A Kagura Domain campaign runs as "a story of enduring until the moment the sword must be drawn." Give PCs clear combat capability and companion squads, but attach deployment authorization, shogunate inspectors, domain residence prestige, and casualty reports alongside them. The structure where having power creates dilemmas is the core.
#Using as a Primary Antagonist
When Kagura Domain is the antagonist, depict them not as a runaway warlord but as an organization whose good intentions and oaths have fallen out of alignment with the times. They may attack the Hundred-Tale Society for sheltering dangerous yoma, or launch independent operations in anger at the shogunate's lukewarm concealment. PCs must prove a better solution before Kagura Domain draws its sword, not defeat the domain itself.
#Key Changes
| Warring States | Edo |
|---|---|
| Open yoma-extermination military faction | A special domain under surveillance, handling matters covertly |
| Centered on battlefields | Centered on incident scenes, highways, and domain boundaries |
| Territorial expansion | Prestige, survival, and tension with the shogunate |
#The Kagura Domain Dilemma
Kagura Domain is one of the human factions that knows yoma best. The problem is that this power is also dangerous to the Edo shogunate. In the Warring States era, that military capability proved its legitimacy against great yoma and on battlefields. In the Edo era, the same military force becomes a source of anxiety for the peace order.
The shogunate needs Kagura Domain's power but does not want Kagura Domain to independently earn renown. So Kagura Domain's missions are often unofficial, and even success leaves no record.
#Kagura Domain PCs
| Role | Description |
|---|---|
| Dispatch warrior | Goes to the field on shogunate orders, but never appears in the official record |
| Squad commander | Leads a small elite to secure sealing sites |
| Domain watchman | May actually be the eye the shogunate placed inside Kagura Domain |
| Heir to the ancient oath | Follows an exorcism oath older than the Tokugawa order |
#Kagura Domain and Other Factions
| Counterpart | Relationship |
|---|---|
| Shogunate | Necessary but watched |
| Hundred-Tale Society | Generally hostile; temporary negotiation with some city yoma is possible |
| Black-Tag Office | Erases or distorts Kagura Domain's records |
| Hidden Hannya | The most direct adversary because of how they exploit yoma |
| Black-Tag Gang | Clashes over yoma artifact and famous blade distribution |
#Campaign Usage
Kagura Domain is the easiest affiliation for naturally deploying combat roles into incidents. It can accommodate samurai, ronin, shinobi, onmyo practitioners, esoteric monks, Pure Land monks, mountain ascetics, scholars, and artisans alike. However, they must not become the answer to every incident. Kagura Domain is strong in sword and sealing, but weak against urban rumors and document manipulation.
"Kagura Domain's sword is still sharp, but in Edo it also needs the scabbard's permission."