Rokugan, dawn of the 12th century

Sixteenth Day, Month of Sowing, 10 Jodan

For over a thousand years, the blood of divine Hantei line has sat upon the throne of Rokugan, presiding over 38 divine generations of prosperity. Even through times of hardship and strife, the cities have risen stone by stone and the people have prospered and grown in wealth and piety. Even through the war against the Shadowlands, the attacks of foreign barbarians, the return of the Unicorn, and even the tyranny of the Steel Chrysanthemum, the pillars of Heaven have stood unshaken and Heaven's blessing rained down onto the earth.   But now, as the 12th century begins, winds of change blow through Rokugan. Magistrates grow venal and corrupt, nobles grow vain and superficial, scholars question sacrosanct dogma, and the merchant class grows in power. Tokai and bandits stalk the wilds, while in the shadows cursemongers and warlocks ply their vile trade and the downtrodden sharpen their tools into weapons to use against their oppressors. Oracles read the omens and proclaim that the words of the great sages holds true: the full must become empty, and even the most prosperous must decline.