#Core 18-Class Edo Adaptation Guide
Contents
RP Guide. A guide for placing the core 18 classes in the Edo period. No new classes are created.
#Scent — Same Class, Different Name
Those who stood on the battlefields of the Warring States era do not vanish in Edo. They become hatamoto, household guests, record-keepers, and theater craftsmen. The skeleton of each class remains intact, but the era gives them new registries and new clothes.
#Law — Class Translation
- The traits and stats of the core 18 classes are not changed.
- Each class receives one official face, one hidden face, and one incident-entry authority.
- Classes that seem out of place are not banned; instead, translate their affiliation and role.
#Scene Commentary — Translate, Don't Ban
The easiest mistake when running core 18 classes in an Edo setting is declaring "this class doesn't fit the era" and blocking it. But ex3's goal is translation, not prohibition. Shift the vocabulary of the battlefield into the vocabulary of the city, the road, and the ledger, and most classes come alive.
For example, the Gaijin becomes a witness to Dejima and Dutch Learning; the Puppeteer takes on the face of a Bunraku or karakuri craftsman. The Arahitogami is no longer a public deity but a being bound between local faith and shogunate order. What matters is not concealing a class's function, but deciding what suspicion and authority that function draws within Edo society.
Standards for class translation:
- Keep combat functions intact; change the social face.
- Separate the official affiliation from the hidden affiliation.
- The more anachronistic an ability appears, the stronger the witness and record-blowback it should carry.
#Session Application — First Question per Class
- Opening scene: Ask each player "What name do you introduce yourself by in Edo?"
- Complication: A character's true abilities clash with their official face. The Performer is an informant; the Artisan conceals a sealed weapon; the Gaijin is both witness and suspect.
- Final question: Does this character hide within Edo society, or does this character expose a power Edo society cannot contain?
#Writing Standard
Each class is written using the following format.
| Field | Content |
|---|---|
| Edo face | What kind of person they appear to be socially |
| Affiliation examples | Shogunate, domain, dojo, temple, merchant house, Hundred-Tale Society, etc. |
| Active scenes | Role in combat, investigation, negotiation, and concealment |
| Caution | Standards that prevent anachronism or over-extension |
#Points Modern Readers Often Confuse
Edo-period class faces differ from modern job titles. A "samurai" is simultaneously a warrior and a bureaucrat; a "merchant" is considered low-status yet drives the city economy; a "monk" is a believer and also the administrative channel for funerals, registration, and sealing. For this reason, a PC's class must carry both a combat role and a social face.
For first-time players, the following explanation helps.
| Function the player knows | Face visible in Edo |
|---|---|
| Warrior who fights at the front | Hatamoto attendant, dojo guest, domain escort |
| One who handles magic and sealing | Onmyo record-keeper, temple ward-keeper, mountain ascetic |
| Information and infiltration specialist | Oniwa-ban-style agent, pleasure-quarter liaison, merchant spy |
| Crafting and device specialist | Karakuri craftsman, swordsmith, sealed-tool repairman |
| Social and negotiation specialist | Merchant house agent, performer, kodan storyteller, Inspection Tour party attendant |
This translation changes no stats. It only determines which doors the same character can open and in front of which doors they are suspected. A samurai opens official gates easily but struggles to hear the truth from common folk; a performer gathers rumors easily but is taken lightly in formal interrogation. These differences are the role divisions of an Edo party.
#Core 18-Class Summary Table
| Class | Edo Face | Affiliation Examples | Active Scenes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Samurai | Hatamoto, domain warrior, inspection attendant | Shogunate, domain, Kagura Domain | Arrest combat, escort, formal duel |
| Ronin | Dojo guest, hired swordsman, avenger | Dojo, merchant house, Black-Tag Gang, unofficial contracts | Duel, pursuit, dangerous force resolution |
| Shinobi | Fuma remnant, oniwa-ban-style agent | Shogunate shadow org, Fuma line, conspiratorial factions | Infiltration, witness retrieval, document theft |
| Onmyoji | Record-keeper behind a faded office | Onmyo registry, shogunate archive, temple | Spirit Gate reading, shikigami, seal analysis |
| Esoteric Monk | Temple ward and ritual specialist | Temple, mountain temple, secret exorcist network | Onryo suppression, sealing, ritual defense |
| Pure Land Monk | Monk of funerals and popular relief | Temple, village, Inspection Tour party | Grudge resolution, commoner protection, Kaidan investigation |
| Shugenja | Guide for mountain Spirit Gates and tengu borders | Mountain temple, Kagura Domain, independent ascetic | Mountain paths, abandoned villages, Spirit Realm interface |
| Feng Shui Master | Reader of ill-omened sites in the city and manors | Shogunate construction, merchant house, domain | Wells, bridges, roads, manor investigation |
| Scholar | Neo-Confucian official, Dutch-learning scholar, document decoder | Shogunate, domain school, Dejima, Black-Tag Office | Record cross-checking, logic, banned-text interpretation |
| Merchant | Master of Osaka capital and logistics | Merchant house, Sakai line, Black-Tag Gang | Information, supply, black-market tracking |
| Artisan | Swordsmith, karakuri craftsman, repairman | Craftsman guild, Kagura Domain, Hidden Hannya | Device disassembly, famous-blade appraisal, sealing tools |
| Performer | Kabuki, kodan, joruri, pleasure-quarter performer | Theater, pleasure quarter, Hundred-Tale Society interface | Rumor circulation, disguise, Kaidan propagation |
| Gaijin | Outside witness connected to Dejima | Nagasaki, merchant house, Dutch-learning scholar | External observation, foreign goods, language barrier |
| Wildlander | Mountain dweller, islander, Ezochi native, outsider beyond civil order | Independent, Kagura Domain, shugenja | Remote guide, survival, tracking |
| Hanyo | One who hides between the registry and the status system | Hundred-Tale Society, temple, Kagura Domain | Border negotiation, yoma detection, identity concealment |
| Arahitogami | Living deity caught between local faith and shogunate order | Shrine, village, ancient family | Sacred-ground defense, judgment of curses and blessings |
| Automaton | Heir to karakuri and Spirit Realm technology | Craftsman guild, shogunate warehouse, Hidden Hannya | Non-human evidence, mechanical devices, sealed weapons |
| Puppeteer | Bunraku, puppet theater, combat-puppet operator | Theater, craftsman guild, Hundred-Tale Society interface | Boundary of stage and battle, remote operation |
#The Core of Era Adaptation
Edo class interpretation asks not "is it possible?" but "by what name does it exist?" The Onmyoji still reads Spirit Gates — but not as a battlefield sorcerer of the Warring States era. Instead, they appear as an advisor lurking behind an obsolete office and dusty archive. The Artisan still builds machines — but not as battlefield weapons. They enter as karakuri, sealing devices, famous-blade repairs, and theater mechanisms.
Each class must carry at least one official face and at least one hidden face. The official face allows movement within Edo society; the hidden face allows entry into yoma incidents.
#Translate, Don't Ban
Even classes that seem out of place in the Edo period are not banned. Instead, translate them into the era's language.
- A battlefield commander becomes an inspection attendant or dojo master.
- A mountain yoma hunter becomes a guide for roads and abandoned villages.
- A Spirit Realm engineer becomes a craftsman of karakuri and sealing devices.
- A yoma bloodline becomes someone who hides between the registry and the status system.
"A class does not change. Edo simply attaches a new name-tag to it."