Expanding the reach of Rokugan to the stars also expanded the need for military protection of its assets and citizens. The Empire of Emerald Stars is far from safe, given clan rivalries, pirates, and innumerable strange creatures on alien worlds. For the Lion Clan, this has often meant war on a heretofore unknown scale, and they would not have it any other way.
More than any other clan, the Lion have had difficulty over the centuries accepting the changes in society and technology, their traditional warrior mindset chafing at every new idea or disruptive invention. However, as consummate tacticians, the Lion also know a beneficial idea when they see it, so even if they might not like new technology or the concept of interstellar travel, they are loth to reject them.
The exploration of the galaxy ultimately gave them renewed purpose, and the other clans were surprised at how aggressively the Lion took to settling new planets. Maybe they shouldn’t have been, for what the Lion truly desired was new worlds to conquer, and the age of space exploration gave them plenty of that. It heralded a new era for the Lion, a time of glorious battles between the stars and across the surfaces of whole planets. In fact, the Lion are so busy fighting enemies of the Empire on various systems that they are no longer as aggressive towards the other clans as they often were in the past. Their long-held rivalry with the Crane is, while not forgotten (particularly the enmity between the Matsu and Kakita families), lessened significantly by the rise of their new great rival: the Mantis Clan. War comes calling between the Lion and Mantis more than between any two clans in the Emerald Stars, and when it does, the near-endless fleets of the Lion answer. Their soldiers number in the millions, vastly greater than any other clan’s forces, and while their fleet is second in size to that of the Mantis, their superior weaponry means the two are a near-even match.
The Lion control many star systems, second only to the Mantis. The seat of their power is Katana’s Edge, the home of the Akodo family and the location of the famed Akodo War College. The planet is also nominally the home of the Kitsu family – although they tend to spend most of their time exploring the galaxy as they seek to understand alien worlds’ connection to the Spirit Realms. Another huge base of operations is Shori, a planet which has been converted in a massive training ground for the Lion armies; though few are stationed on Shori permanently, all have been there at some point. Another planet, which the Lion have named New Rokugan, is completely pacified and engineered to look like the Rokugan of old, and is a popular destination for those with a strong taste for tradition. No complex technology is allowed on the planet save the filming technology necessary to shoot the Lion’s wildly popular action movies there. For many clan samurai in the fourth millennium, the sight of peasants toiling in the fields without machinery and samurai fighting with mundane bows and arrows is often more bizarre than soothing, but for many of the Lion, it is a much-needed change to experience the past of their glorious ancestors. Another extensive operation of the Lion is currently on the world of Red Fields, a large planet dominated by a relatively advanced but cruel alien culture which has responded very violently to attempts at pacification.
Families: Akodo, Ikoma, Matsu, Kitsu
Naval Philosophy: It’s perhaps surprising that the Lion took to
space travel as well as they did, but their long history of martial prowess certainly hasn’t slacked when it
comes to starship combat. Lion ships possess solid toughness and decent maneuverability, but where they
really shine is in weapons systems. Thanks in large part to the efforts of the Nakamura family, Lion
starships hit like a train. Their (usually) Akodo and Ikoma captains also know how to use them; Lion fleet
actions are known for remarkable coordination, and only overwhelming Mantis numbers and ship design tend to
keep battles between the two great rivals close.
Ship Bonus: Gain +1k0 damage with Grasers. Gain +2k0 damage
with Lasers.
New Family: Nakamura
Nakamura Family Bonus: +1 Perception
The Nakamura vassal family had long served the Matsu as their specialized archery division; respected in
combat as were all Lion, but not nearly on the level of the Tsuruchi or Dragon’s Flame. The age of galactic
exploration changed things: the Nakamura grasped the complex calculation and aiming techniques necessary for
space combat faster than anyone, even their old Mantis rivals. As such, they played more than a small role
in the surprising Lion pre-eminence among the stars. Ultimately, the clan of Akodo chose to recognize the
Nakamura’s achievements by elevating them to the status of a Great Clan family. Though the Tsuruchi (and to
an extent the Kaito) remain the best archers in the Empire in ground combat, none can match the Nakamura’s
prowess in handling the Lion Clan’s plentiful radiant cannons.