A minor clan was a clan recognized by the Emperor of Rokugan that was formed after the foundation of the Empire. Minor clans were officially under the Emperor's protection, and the Great Clans were forbidden to begin an offensive war against them. The minor clans were all considerably smaller and less powerful than the great clans, and most had only a single recognized family name.

Contents 1 Creation of a Minor Clan 1.1 Ancestral Weapon 1.2 House name 1.3 Unofficial Minor Clans 2 First Minor Clan 3 Most Recent Minor Clan 4 Ascension to Great Clan Status 5 Minor Clans 6 Schools & Paths 6.1 Schools 6.2 Paths 7 References

Creation of a Minor Clan Edit

Only the Emperor might create a new minor clan, and the formation of a new minor clan was a very rare event. If a samurai had performed a great service for the Empire or had gained unusual and valuable insight, the Emperor might choose to allow him to gather samurai into his service and form a new minor clan, settling upon a tract of land granted to the new Champion by the Emperor. ^[1] This small bands of samurai were called Jizamurai, ^[2] and the new minor clan daimyo was expected to teach those who entered into his service to follow his example. This new minor clan would quickly form their own bushi or shugenja school to teach and develop the techniques of their founder. ^{[citation needed]}

Ancestral Weapon Edit

When a group attained the Minor Clan status, they were formally given a katana from the Emperor's hands, a weapon which would become their ancestral weapon. If the Minor Clan was ever disgraced and had their Clan status revoked, their clan weapon was broken by the Emperor's hand. ^[3]

House name Edit

Not all Minor clans had family names, and some had no 'first' or house name. House names were given separately by the Emperor's command, and only on rare occasions. In the early 12th century only seven family names were recorded to had been given to Minor Clans. ^[3]

Unofficial Minor Clans Edit

In the past, several minor clans were created without the Emperor also recognizing a family name for the clan. The Tortoise and Mantis clans were examples of minor clans that through most of their history had no recognized family name. Emperor Toturi III ended this practice when he granted a family name to the Ox Clan, the only minor clan left that did not also have a family name. ^{[citation needed]}

First Minor Clan Edit

The first minor clan, as acknowledged by the Emperor, was the Fox Clan ^[4] in 90. ^{[citation needed]}

The founding of the Mantis Clan did occur in 80, a full ten years prior, but they were not recognized as a minor clan until some time later in 429. ^[5]

Most Recent Minor Clan Edit

The most recent creation of a minor clan was that of the Oriole Clan in 1167 in recognition of the Tsi family's (a family of ronin) service to the Empire. ^[6]

Ascension to Great Clan Status Edit

For most of Rokugani history no minor clan managed to attain anywhere near the strength or influence of a great clan. This changed on the Second Day of Thunder, when Yoritomo, through the power gained from his alliances with other minor clans, forced the other great clans to accept the Mantis Clan into their ranks. ^{[7] [8]} This was the only example of a minor clan ascending to Great Clan status in history. The only other instance of a group ascending to Great Clan status was that of the Spider Clan, although in this instance they group had not been a minor clan prior to their ascension.

Minor Clans Edit

There were thirteen Minor Clans in Rokugan during the reign of Hantei XXXVIII. ^[3] The known minor clans recognized by the Emperor's court were:

Minor Clan	Founded	Founder
Badger Clan	110	Hida Domogu
Sparrow Clan	400	Doji Onegano
Tortoise Clan	442	Agasha Kasuga
Dragonfly Clan	704	Mirumoto Asijin and Isawa Maroko
Hare Clan	750	Reichin (ronin)
Monkey Clan	1129	Toku (ronin)
Ox Clan	1158	Shinjo Morito
Bat Clan	1165	Yoritomo Komori
Oriole Clan	1167	Tsi Zutaka (ronin)

There were also several clans that were once minor clans, but which had since been destroyed or absorbed by other clans:

Minor Clan	Founded	Founder	Dissolved	Reason
Mantis Clan	80	Hida Kaimetsu-uo	1128	Became a Great Clan
Fox Clan	90	Shinun	1169	Joined the Mantis Clan
Tanuki Clan	Unknown	Unnamed Badger Clan Samurai	Unknown	Unknown
Snake Clan	339	Isawa Chuda	401	Destroyed by the Phoenix Clan
Centipede Clan	347	Unnamed Phoenix Clan shugenja	(1127) 1133	(Allied to the Mantis Clan) Fully joined through marriage
Boar Clan	447	Heichi	501	Disappeared (sacrificed to create the Anvil of Despair)
Falcon Clan	834	Yotogi	1125	Joined the Crab Clan
Wasp Clan	1109	Tsuruchi	1128	Joined the Mantis Clan
Snake Clan	1159	Refounded by Asako Mishime as Chuda family	c.1159	Joined the Lost, then later the Spider Clan, then later diverged from the Spider.

Sources Conflict The sources relating to this article are in conflict with each other.

There is some contention as to whether the Falcon's absorption into the Crab Clan occurred in 1125 or 1129. Most sources point to 1129, but the official word from Unicorn Marketeer and Shawn Carman in the two threads linked in the Talk:Toritaka family Talk Page indicates 1125

Schools & Paths Edit

Schools Edit

The following were the basic Schools available within any Minor Clan:

• Minor Clan Diplomat
• Woodland Tracker

Paths Edit

The following were the Paths available within any Minor Clan:

• Minor Clan Defender
• Minor Clan Explorer
• Minor Clan Sumai Master

References