KYŌZŌ

This is an adventure for the RONIN role-playing game. RONIN is a playset for the PARAGON system. You will need a copy of both RONIN and the AGON rulebook to play this adventure. Learn more at agon-rpg.com

Premise

As escorts to a caravan of nuns, the ronin hear the new edict issued by the local lord, banning missionaries of the "new god". Just outside the village, a general and some samurai stop the caravan. They suspect there are fanatics among the nuns and will test them to find out.

In this adventure for RONIN, high priestess Murazaki begs you to disrupt the test. She gestures to a shrouded nun among the girls. 'They'll put Manina to death.' Now you're on the run for the general and it seems Manina's faith has put everyone's life on the line. What if she's more than just a converted nun? How much does Murazaki know about Manina? And why is there a foreign machine hidden within the nuns' sacred litter?

Inspiration

You might know of the Jesuits' missionary efforts in a closed down Japan from the 2016 movie Silence. I really wanted to do something with this piece of history but this adventure only started to come together once I read Ryuji Hiraoka's great article on the Jesuits' use of Western mechanical clocks as gifts to gain access to the ruling class.