I also think there is some interesting stuff established in the original material which could do with some expansion and development. For instance:
- In the original material, not-China is split into two kingdoms - functional and harmonious (Shou Lung) and corrupt and divided (Tu Lung). This reflects some periods of Chinese history, but also means you can have your cake and eat it too about having a good Emperor who holds the Mandate of Heaven who is served by a functional bureaucracy, and having a corrupt Emperor who is constantly at civil war against rival warlords and evil sorcerers. You can have a warlord era and a Tang dynasty at the same time. Develop both kingdoms and make them reflections of each other - the Shaolin Temple in Shou Lung are mostly moral and righteous defenders of the common people, while the Sorim Monastery in Tu Lung are corrupt venal monks who pretend to be righteous but will serve any warlord for money or power, that sort of thing.
- Who are the ancestries? Hengeyokai are based mostly on Japanese shapeshifters, so play that up. What benefits do you get from being a nine-tailed fox? Do some of them prey on people and eat their livers and others have gained human form through enlightenment and contemplation? Who are the spirit folk? Where do they come from, which myths are you actually drawing on (heavenly fairies? Orang bunian?) and which aspects do you want to play up?
- You want ninja? Let’s talk ninja. We’re well past the tedious 1980s black-clad action film cliche at this point. Modern ninja do include skilled assassins and infiltrators but also those with a wide range of overt magical powers such as controlling the weather, shapeshifting, mind control, and teleportation, all with a few nifty kuji-kiri hand gestures. Culturally they’re commonly used as representing all the many misfits who don’t fit into highly conformist Japanese culture and so can include all sorts of marginalised themes, especially LGBTQI+ people. Go to town on that!
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