Nine brothers and sisters of the Sun and the Moon, the Kami, fell to the earth 1,000 years ago. Eight swore to protect and teach the Rokugani. One become corrupted and swore vengence on his siblings. A simple peasant and seven samurai defeated the corrupt Kami at the dawn of history to make Rokugan safe.
The twisted madness of Fu Leng has begun to grow
in power. The first Black Scroll has been opened and read, and the
corruptive influence of the Dark Kami has begun to be felt in the
Empire. Word comes from the outer provinces that a great illness
has hit many small towns, killing hundreds. No treatment seems to
be able to stop the disease, and the shugenja and monks who have
been trying to stop the plague have fallen ill as well.
Hida Kisada, the Great Bear, Diamyo of the Crab Clan has long contemplated
a change in the Imperial Dynasty. Locked out of the politics of
the Imperial Assembly by the crafty Crane, unable to marshall enough
force to destroy the Shadowlands once and for all without the combined
might of the Dragon and the Lion, and wary of Phoenix magic and
Unicorn tactics, he has brooded for many years.
On recieving word of Shoju's coup, and shortly thereafter receiving word that Shoju asks for his assistance in consolidating the Scorpion's power, Kisada knows that the time is right for his greatest military campaign ever. With simple but clean brush strokes, he composes a reply to Shoju, then tells his sons Yakamo and Tsukune to ready the Clan armies for a march across the Emerald Empire.
Sitting on the Emerald Throne, contemplating the massed warriors surrounding the Imperial Palace, Shoju takes heart when he hears that at last Kisada is on the move.
Shoju's doom is at hand. He will either be the greatest of the Scorpion Diamyos, or the last of the Scorpion line.
This is the Scorpion Clan Coup!