There was never a Minor Clan more peculiar than the Tanuki. Inveterate cheerful, drunken pranksters, the Tanuki were formed by the whim of a Hantei Emperor and assigned to unlocking the mysteries of the Shinomen Forest. But after the Emperor’s son took the throne, he regarded the Shimazu family as nothing more than an embarrassment, summoning them to court in order to disband them. When Imperial Heralds arrived, though, the Tanuki had vanished, their villages abandoned. The Emporer, in a fit of pique, had all mention of them erased from the Imperial Histories... but the Tanuki didn’t actually cease to exist.
Throughout the generations, they spread throughout the Empire, gathering in secret and preserving their clan’s traditions. It was only many centuries later that the lost history of the Tanuki was discovered -- and the Tanuki thus came out of hiding. Their clan had never been disbanded, they noted; they had simply gone about their duties in different ways -- oh, and wouldn’t the Imperial court love to enjoy this fine sake? And therein lay the secret to the Tanuki’s resurrection: in the intervening centuries, they had worked hard to become the finest sake brewers in the Empire.The breweries of Friendly Traveler Village were all run by secret Shimazu, as were the sake works at Maneki Neko; a Tanuki samurai had even recovered and safeguarded the fine Cherry Blossom Sake recipe thought lost during the Third Yasuki War. The Imperial court quickly became enamored of the Tanuki and their exquisite beverageering, and they were granted their old lands on the outskirts of the Shinomen -- no other clan particularly wanted them, after all.
The Tanuki only rose in prominence when Rokugan took to the stars, granted a verdant forest world they came to call Toshi Enoda. Their capital, The Wicket Woods, became the center of Sake production in the galaxy, bringing them frankly shocking amounts of wealth. Today, they are one of the richest minor clans (rivaled only by the Tortoise and the Boar), with various grades of Shimazu sake considered a requisite for any self-respecting bar throughout the Empire of Emerald Stars. Through it all, they’ve never abandoned their reputation for cheerful prankery and honest folk wisdom; many of the Great Clans may often find the Shimazu irritating on a personal level (though the Mantis, Scorpion, and Unicorn seem to find them amusing), but they’ll always have a place at court thanks to the fine product they bring with them.
Shimazu Family Bonus: +1 Stamina