L5R - City of Lies (A Set of Generators)

People who know me know that Legend of the Five Rings has been my wheelhouse for about half a decade now. I enjoy it, despite how terrible it is at times and despite how it handles its setting (which is at times offensive or just utterly stupid). But it is a great system, and when put in a single place at a time, it can be a lot of fun.

What follows are a set of generators for use with an L5R game set within the Scorpion Clan's City of Lies. The generators cover basic samurai appearances by way of hair, physique, and miscellaneous features; as well as some general fashion/tattoo choice, and some masks. Should've done a sword one too, but that'll be important maybe in the future. If you roll a 1 on these charts, because you used a d20 instead, that's a dealer's choice situation.

art by petarvee.tumblr.com

2d10	Hair Color	Men's Hair Style
2	Tawny brown	Bound up in a chonmage with a shaved pate, slightly stubbly.
3	Cedar brown	Short chonmage in the ginkgo leaf style.
4	Umber brown	Long queue of hair, braided in the back, with the front portion of ones head being shaved into a tonsure.
5	Cloud white	Prominent forelock of hair, like a horse.
6	Silvery white	Wild full mane of hair, billowing out like smoke rising from a bon fire.
7	Charcoal black	Short hair, bound up into a small top knot as a show of self-control and minimalism.
8	Iron black	High pony-tail of the chasen style, which looks like a tea-mixing brush.
9	Slate black	Full head of hair kept short where it can, but often defying such discipline.
10	Deep auburn	Long uncut bound up hair that has never once been cut in the life-span of the samurai.
11	Smokey grey	Balding or extremely short hair, either through misfortune, age or shame.
12	Oaken brown	Prominent pompadour in the front, styled up and obnoxiously.
13	Midnight black	Patchy hair, as though someone took the effort to cut the samurai's hair while he slumbered.
14	Crow blue-black	An unflattering bowl cut, which no one has ever claimed to look good.
15	Sooty brown	Long hair on the fringes but bald upon the scalp.
16	Russet brown	Shaved sides of head with a small wolf's tail of a top knot.
17	Grease black	Hime-cut with heavy bangs, almost obscuring to the point of feminine allure.
18	Ink black	Tightly pulled back, looped ponytail.
19	Betel nut black	Loosely feathered hair, which drapes lavishly on his shoulders.
20	Wheat blonde	Short, tame, tightly groomed courtier's hair and top knot.

2d10	Women's Hair Style
2	Simple pony-tail tied with ribbon in the back.
3	Bound up in a top bun, bound in ribbon and pinned.
4	Long hair, divided down the middle, with straight-cut bangs.
5	Loose long hair, arranged with wide hairloops that fall on the shoulders.
6	Wild hair that grows uneven, as though it has been cut often by forceful hands.
7	Tall wild hair, as though she shapes it by leaping up and down.
8	Long locks of hair, with cheek-length sidelocks and a heavy frontal fringe of bangs.
9	Dango-looking bun in the back, braided and plaited into place.
10	Plaited hair, adorned with flowers.
11	Extremely short hair cut almost to the point of masculinity.
12	Shorn head, to show indifference and implies her a widow.
13	Curly long hair that bounces playfully with her movements.
14	A long, braided tail of hair; bound with lace and ribbon.
15	Rough mane of bristling hair befitting a warrior on a battlefield.
16	Tight roll of plaited hair on the top of the scalp, long and draping in the back.
17	Short, wavy hair which gives off a carefree sense of style.
18	Long hair with double ponytails which do nothing to tame the wild length.
19	Shorn on the scalp, tied in tight plaits on the side; likely a Unicorn style.
20	Thin, loose, stringy hair that would imply sickness at some point in her life.

2d10	General Feature	Body
2	Jagged scar over their lips.	Fat broad body, like a firm stone.
3	Single sunken eye, bruised.	Short ill-proportioned body, more like that of a child than an adult.
4	Brutally broken nose.	Barrel-chested and muscular, like a wild boar.
5	Long drooping ears.	Skeletal thin and lithe body.
6	Dumb dead eyes like a carp.	Average height, chicken-thin limbs, and a slightly pudgy belly.
7	Several broken teeth.	Robust but burly, like a badger or a toad.
8	Bright shining teeth.	Short and muscular, such that their strength can be hidden in loose clothing.
9	Rapturous eyes.	Obese and ill-postured, perhaps a former sumai wrestler who has lost their strength.
10	Brutal intensity in their expressions.	Withered and tired in build, prone to leaning and slow monotonous motions.
11	Missing their pinky finger.	Built like a tiger, strong of limb and center.
12	Hooked nose.	Lanky-limbed and of strange gait, like a monkey.
13	Teeth like an Oni.	Regal stature and calculated in movement, as though prone to perfectionism.
14	Smokes a pipe.	Slightly hunched over, with a bow-legged gait.
15	Harelip.	Built like a stag, strong of chest and made to run.
16	Wide, expressive eyes.	Vaguely tortoise-like, with a broad chest, and stump-like limbs.
17	Burn wounds.	Of normal proportions but a slightly long neck, as though they've been strung up before.
18	Tapestry of scars from many conflicts.	Heroic stature, build and proportion; destined to be a hero or play one in the theater.
19	Rough calloused hands.	Long of limb but short of torso, almost like a crab you'd find in the river.
20	Long, prodding fingers.	Tall, lanky, and of uncomfortable deft momentum; like an eel or a weasel.

2d10	Facial Hair
2	Long stringy moustache braids, like a catfish.
3	Thick burly beard, well-groomed and of fine sheen.
4	Bristly goatee, rough like a poorly-kept calligraphy brush.
5	Large and wild sideburns, though the rest of the face is cleanly kept.
6	Firm moustache in the shape of a whalebone comb.
7	A long braided beard which has seen the abuse of fire and many meals.
8	Shortly trimmed moustache with a cleanly shaven jawline.
9	Barely visible peach fuzz on the upper lip, and an almost pubic strip of hair on the chin.
10	Scratchy chin beard, complimenting a stubbly face.
11	Midday shadow of stubble, that never seems to grow longer or disappear after shaving.
12	Faded stubble, all that could be grown in months of beard-cultivating attempts.
13	Bristling chin strap of beard hair, to define a chin (or where one should be).
14	Prominent moustache, with thinned sideburns and stubble.
15	Rebelliously long sideburns connecting into a neckbeard and a powerful moustache.
16	Full rough beard, belonging to the sort of yamabushi who has never seen a razor.
17	Clean shaven, with obvious though faded, scars from poor shaving in the past.
18	Full goatee and moustache which obscures the mouth almost completely.
19	Wispy beard that billows out from the face like smoke from a fire.
20	Full horseshoe style moustache.

2d10	Clothing Pattern	Tattoo Design/Clothing Embellishment
2	Seigaiha Wave Pattern	Oni in storm clouds, brandishing lightning as wildly.
3	Asanoha Leaf Pattern	Rats interlocking and climbing, wearing headbands.
4	Shibori Dot Pattern	Koi of opposing colors, surrounded by steam and waves.
5	Kiku Floral Patterm	Ocean scene of great crashing waves and stars.
6	Shippou Repeating Pattern	The hundred eyes and folds of a hyakume.
7	Nami Wave Pattern	Chains and flames of spectral blue.
8	Karakusa Vine Pattern	Mountains that pierce the clouds, birds in flight.
9	Shima Stripe Pattern	Fearsome and twisting dragons, claws brandished.
10	Komon Dot Pattern	Regal Vahana emerging from cresting waves.
11	Hexagonal Kikko Pattern	Clan/Family/Personal Mon, exaggerated and overly detailed.
12	Koushi Lattice Pattern	Dancing tanuki and head-tilted kodama spirits, garbed only in leafs.
13	Koi Fish Pattern	Whales and dolphins, butchered and cut with blood flowing like water.
14	Checkered Ishidatami Pattern	Great fanged serpents coiling and striking.
15	Unki Cloud Pattern	Tiger in violent momentum, claws brandished and striking.
16	Tachiwaku Steam Pattern	Horned Oni devouring light and exhaling flames.
17	Yagasuru Arrow Pattern	Shisa Lion baring its fangs and gazing with striking intensity.
18	Sakura Blossom Pattern	Umibozu looming over darkened seas.
19	Interlocking Sayagata Pattern	Budding lotus flowers in various colors.
20	Uruko Scale Pattern	Clothing Pattern if Tattoo, additional Clothing Pattern is Clothing.

2d10	Clothing (or Mask Color) Colors	Mask (Scorpion)
2	Clan Colors.	Okina Style Noh Mask
3	Family Colors.	Onna-Kei Woman Mask
4	Lightening Red Maple.	Otoko-Kei Man Mask
5	Lightening Green with Red Base.	Old Man Jyo-Kei Mask
6	Paling Scarlet with White Base.	Fierce Oni Mask
7	Layered Pine with Red Base.	Bearded Oni Mask
8	Sumac Foliage with Red Base.	Long-Nosed Tengu Mask
9	Green Maple Foliage with Red Base.	Shishi Lion Mask
10	Yellow Chrysanthemum with Green Base.	Kitsune Mask
11	Paling Purple with White Base.	Long-tongued Akaname Mask
12	Layered Plum with Violet Base.	Three-eyed Ao Bozu Mask
13	Uncovering Snow with Green Base, under White.	Cloth Bandana
14	Orange Blossoms with White Base.	Semi-translucent Veil
15	Persimmon Bud with Red Base.	Nue Mask
16	Eight-Layered Maple, from Red to Pale Yellow.	Great Horned Oni Mask
17	Scattered Mapple with Orange Base.	Domino Mask
18	Violet Cherryblossom over Orange Base.	Facial Tattoo
19	Greenfinch with Nightingale color.	Snarling Mempo
20	Coral Red with Black Kite Base.	Komuso Basket Mask

Treasures of the Tomb (a d30)

At the behest of some randos, here's a d30 list of weird objects found in a tomb which might be worth something to the right buyer. Might use these if I ever go back to my big Katapesh/Osirion Sandbox campaign idea.

Tomb-raiding can be a beautiful life-style.

d30	Item Found
1	Papyrus-woven box of black sand which painfully drains away the heat from anything it touches, to the point that a hand coated in the sand could grip a red iron and feel only the faintest of heats. All damages from the extreme cold do not negate damages from touching extreme heat.
2	Forty finger bones from slaves, wrapped in their tendons so as to obscure fortunes written in an ancient cuneiform language. By tossing the bones and picking up the two lowest crossing bones, one can determine the wills of fate.
3	Ceramic domino mask of beautiful stylized eyes, potentially used for oracles in ancient times. Small leather loops on the interior of the mask could've been used for banding, but closer inspection reveals the imprints of bite marks from scarabs, meaning it was likely a torture implement.
4	Burial shroud of woven sheddings of serpent skin, beaded with eye in tourquoise stone. When worn the voice of those slain by the wearer's hands speak softly between breaths. They speak of eternal torment.
5	Canoptic jar with a bestial maw design sculpted on its lid. Within it are ashes of many colors and fangs of stone. If impaled by a fang, the victim quickly dehydrates and becomes a bestial worm-faced vampire who subsists only on water.
6	Glass statuette of a bob-haired maiden holding aloft a basin of water. The head can be removed and liquid poured into her, when tipped forward it pours a dosage into the basin. Liquids poured into this and consumed from the basin have a reverse effect; alcohol brings clarity, poison brings health, et cetera.
7	Squirming mummified hand, actually a bound torture graft of lichleech; undead leeches which consume brain matter through ones blood. If attached to a stump, one would suffer a painful death. It grasps towards warmth and moisture.
8	Brass phylactery box filled with a glowing yellow-blue sand which conceals a tiny stripe of paper written in an alien tongue. The items origins comes from ancient times when Sorcerer-Kings spoke to moon-dwelling demigods.
9	Ancient red-ware amphora filled with a scintillating liquid of azure which turns bright pink when an object is submerged in it. It whispers in ancient tongues when the lid is askew of ancient primordial worship and true knowledge of governance.
10	Hourglass of red sand with a time length of three hours and thirty three minutes. If tipped during a full moon on the third day of the third month at the third hour, the sand forms a red minuscule city. Opening the top of the hourglass at such a time will shrink and consume all creatures within 500' feet and take them to an alien cityscape at the bottom of the glass.
11	Prosthetic leg made out of oddly flexible glass, which radiates vibrations and sounds from all individuals within 60 feet that are touching the ground. A skilled wearer may learn to understand and decipher the vibrations.
12	Drinking bowl of ancient red water, which to all but the most scrutinizing gaze will simply appear stagnant. If consumed the imbiber will understand the secret language of fire and serpents until their dying days. Such things seldom have things of import to say, however, and are never silent.
13	Ten thousand strangely dented at the edges coins of gold. If one is curious enough or able to obtain the whole set they will see it as a puzzle, which if properly stacked, form the head of an ancient deity. It will speak three truths and grant wishes of greed, so long as virgins are sacrificed atop its pate.
14	Stave made from an ivory tusk of a great swine, carved with glyph that have been kintsugui-filled with gold. If the wielder shouts "By the Lords of Eternal Dusk" while casting a spell in the desert, they will be able to cause their spell to appear anywhere upon the winds and conjure up storms. Learning this command word requires proper study of dead languages and a blood sacrifice for each word.
15	Mummified head of a barbarian warlock, lopped off half-during some ghastly transformation. If unbound it cackles with glee in a dead tongue and promises glory at the destruction of his enemies. If somehow granted a body, it will bind itself to the service of any who seek to undo civilization or the race of his ancient foes.
16	Brass sword with seven additional small blades branching off from the main like branches on a tree. If buried in the ground after taking seven lives it will grow into a tree of solid brass within a fortnight, sprouting oxidized fruit shaped like the heads of mewling imps. Consuming such fruit is rough, but allows one to breath underwater until it is fully digested.
17	Origami antelope made from folded sandstone and basalt. Those who throw the item to the ground will cause it to explode into mist and smoke, causing an illusory stampede of antelope that swirl around the area of effect madly for hours.
18	Mummified basilisk whelp, its eyes long since shriveled and venom sacs drained. Its tongue still yet has fluid in it and the taste of raw flesh brings it joy and a since of loyalty. A wizard who takes it as a familiar can read scripts of petrification and venom magics upon its bindings, but such use risks destroying the whelp.
19	Linen shield with a scorpion emblem of brushed lodestone dust upon the center. Lightweight, if waved towards blades or flying arrows, there is a chance the lodestone scorpion will magnetically rip them out of the air and to the shield. Effectively it could be used to disarm others, but it is a risky maneuver.
20	Ruby ibis brooch, within are the trapped souls of sixty-six immortal warriors who betrayed an ancient cult of sorcerers. By pinning the brooch through ones flesh, the ancient fighting art of the immortals can be channeled; but only for one minute for each soul. Souls are destroyed upon use, but may be refilled through profane ritual binding of new sacrifices.
21	An onyx statue the size of a youth, with the angular cut head of a jackal. It whispers demands in the ears of any who sleep or fall unconscious near it, but has no actual power. Its god is long dead, and the part within it that demands to be free is little more than curse dust rather than divine potential.
22	Bone-spear made from the bound femurs of a warrior kings, the sharpened hand of a king-slayer for the tip, and adorned with the jangling toe bones of ten princesses. Impaling a target through the heart with this spear puts their corpse into a state of torpor; removing the tongue of such a being turns them into an undead slave of the wielder.
23	Copper and gypsum girdle emblazoned with the painted faces of laughing cyclopes in black. When worn by a smith or a philosopher, great insight into the workings of their trade can be found. If the wearer is missing an eye, they can speak to metal and earth.
24	Ivory kerambit carved from the jaw of a child. When pressed against the throat of a victim, they will view their most vile and painful childhood memory; weeping. The wielder who uses this blade to take the life of a youth will be hounded by the soulless form of ten disfigured children who seek to peel away the bones of the user.
25	Mud-submerged round sarcophagus coated in bronze scarabs. Within is the honey-mummified body of a frog-like chaos sorcerer. If freed from the honey it will try to undo all creation; if eaten with the honey it is a potent aphrodisiac which allows greater oneness with the primordial vibrations of existence.
26	Cursed silver mattock found under collapsed stone and deep quicksand. Holds the souls of all miners who died before their time at the cruel lash of slavers within the ancient culture. If used against nobility, it causes all wounds inflicted to boil up with mud and magma.
27	The pickled tongue of a fallen god-empress, acupuncture at various points to allow for consultation with the astral powers. If smoked in a hookah, pickle water and all, it will grant the smoker the ability to speak to elementals--but their voice will be dry and feminine for the rest of their life.
28	Jarred quicksilver ooze in a shedu-topped canopic jar. It can speak any word it has heard spoken in the voice of the original speaker, and it possesses an alien but tragic intelligence. If given enough words it wants to be made human again, it was made this way by her cruel sorceress husband in life.
29	Thimble of ceramic painted with dolphins in exquisite detail, found with rotten leather straps near a skull. If placed on the tongue it allows a trickle of fresh, sweet water to pour down the throat of the user.
30	Canopic jar of ancient eyes, dehydrated and dried to look like raisins. If burnt in a pipe, the smoke will display the most beautiful memories such eyes had ever beheld.