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Message: <blockquote data-quote="aramis erak" data-source="post: 8809824" data-attributes="member: 6779310">Nice to see I succeeded in conveying my disagreement with my peers without actually stating it...Seriously, I will note that the value of Tolkien isn't what he intended (even as he's succeeded at his once stated intent - a new English mythology) but how the ongoing fanbase accepts and interprets it. Especially his biggest fan-fiction author, Christopher Tolkien...L5R was intended for players to go full-weaboo and as much Pre-Shogunate Imperial Japan as they can do, while setting it in a fantasy land so that it's not using the classic names, and encourages full on cultural appropriation while excusing error via "Rokugan is Not Japan." (Capitalization important.) (Rokugan can be translated, depending upon kanji, 6 eyes, 6 rot, 6 cancer... 6 rocks (tho that mixes reading types - kunyomi vs onyomi- tho' I've seen evidence that John has used mixed readings in charcter names.)  John's intent was mixed parties across the clans, either on the wall or in the winter courts, at each other.  He succeeds at conveying this "intraparty strife" to only a few... but the rest is well conveyed. Did he fail? NO! He didn't fail. He wrote something that (A) fed him and his spouse for a while, and (B) is still generating more fans. And fiction.On a commercial scale, John's intent was meaningless. The company's intent was: to sell books about making cool samurai and having them have adventures putting duty, glory, and honor at odds with each other as calls for character actions... many glorious acts fail at Duty or Honor; Many honorable acts fail duty or are inglorious; many dutiful acts are dishonorable or inglorious. Only if it fails to generate meaning for the reader.  After all, billions of people derive meaning quite divorced from the probable intent of the authors of various "rules for living." With the exception of Abū al-Qāsim Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib ibn Hāshim,  and of Moses ben Amran, most of those using the rules enshrined in writing do not even read them in the original languages.As a GM, I really don't care what the author's intent was - I care how the rules impact my play, and if they're playable in my playstyle range and tolerable to my players. (Who won't hesitate to tell me  when they dislike the game.)</blockquote>

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