Editing Dragon Clan (section)

==Culture & Role==
As mentioned above, the Dragon Clan was given the vague duty to watch the Empire and separately record its true history, with the implication that all of their studies and contemplations are part of this responsibility. One more concrete way of looking at this is that they were meant to be an unknown quantity to the Empire, outside observers who will challenge and shake the status quo when it is necessary; while change comes at a glacial pace in Rokugan, the Dragon Clan subtly works to challenge the very foundations of the Emerald Empire's civilization simply by doing things their own way and letting their thoughts and actions be seen by everyone. They usually act only when they must, or when Togashi commands them that something absolutely must be done.

True to the philosophical natures of their founders, the Dragon Clan's personal culture revolves around studies of the spiritual and metaphysical: most of them rigorously examine and live by the Tao of Shinsei, study the elements, and speculate on how their findings relate to the material world, then pursue those lines of thought according to their temperaments (usually either isolation or application). However, while it might be tempting to say that their contemplations are more like personal hobbies than actual duties (a common view among Clans who question how spending centuries on a mountain helps them "watch" the Empire), their studies play a vital role: they hone them to think critically, deeply, and laterally. It doesn't hurt that the world of L5R ''does'' in fact bind so many different parts of reality together (the most prominent being the elements themselves), meaning the Dragons are objectively on to something.

In their day-to-day life, the Dragon Clan is an unorthodox and seemingly contradictory mix. They value independent thought and questioning the status quo, whether through critical thinking or philosophical musings, yet are also strictly devoted to their duties and traditions. The average encounter with a Dragon tends to be with either an inscrutably serene riddle-spouting sage or a samurai who has a knack for wrongfooting you in the things you took for granted as 'normal'. Either way, though, they will more often than not be someone with an unconventional worldview who is much sharper than expected. And while they're just as vulnerable to the conventions of samurai drama, they also have the mental framework to give tradition the finger if it offends their own sense of morals. Incidentally, this gives them a fairly harmonious relationship with their peasantry: the samurai defend the peasants and are more likely to treat them fairly in defiance of convention, so the peasants loyally serve them with the small stuff so that their masters are free to continue with their contemplations.

That being said, it's not like they're all caricatures of mystic sage contrarian stereotypes. The Dragon Clan can still feel and live like everyone else (having experienced such concepts as love, family, pride, and vengeance throughout their history), and in fact take great care to assign their most relatable samurai to diplomatic duties, even if they still seem incredibly unconventional to most of the other Clans. They also aren't completely isolationist; while many are content to sit in their mountains and contemplate the universe's mysteries, others believe that to grasp Enlightenment, they must go out and face the world. And it should be noted that while they may play loose and easy with the customs and views of other Clans, they can be just as stubborn and pedantic with their own ways like their cousins, such as the initial condescension the first Kitsuki faced or their own martial pride in ''niten''.

===Tactics===
The Dragon Clan army is of average size and seldom seen in full-on wars; most conflicts with them are confined to either the courts or minor skirmishes, making the times they show up for a scrap that isn't territorial defence stand out in everyone's memories. Even then, while they acquit themselves well, the question that sticks out even more is "But why, though?" because their motives are seldom clear. And because their lands don't produce much food, they can seldom afford to supply an offensive force of their own.

The military tactics of the Dragons are mostly applied in the context of defence; because they seldom invade other Clans, most of their battles involve an aggressor marching their army into Dragon lands. They soon learn why that's a classic blunder on the level of invading Russia in winter. See, the Dragons are already expert pathfinders and survivalists who are able to nimbly navigate the thickly forested and steep mountain terrain they call home. Their martial and magical skills are admirable and make them a fierce and versatile combined-arms force beyond their lands, even earning a reputation as fighters above more scholarly Clans, but their true specialty lies in exploiting these talents to lethal effect against any would-be conquerors when they fight on the mountains.

Invaders have to contend with the mountain forests of Dragon lands slowing their movements to a crawl and making them easy pickings for the locals. In fact, the climb up is so dangerous that it's no exaggeration to say that the terrain does half their work for them: soldiers fall to their deaths, get separated from their units, lose track of supply convoys, die of exposure to rough weather, or worse. Meanwhile, spread throughout the forests, the Dragons wait for the right time to strike, whether by cutting off and eliminating enemy squads piecemeal in ambushes or luring them into bottlenecks to limit how much force they can project. They may be specialized for their own lands, but the unorthodox mindset and skills of the Dragons serve them well as experts in terrain and guerrilla warfare that would make the [[Catachan Jungle Fighters]] proud.

===Bushido & Religion===
From their founder Togashi to their very culture, the Dragon Clan stands out as one of the most mystical and devout of the Great Clans. Shinsei's teachings are the dominant school of thought throughout Dragon lands (though it must be noted that the Togashi family are still Dragon samurai, separate from the actual Brotherhood of Shinsei while maintaining their own monastic traditions), and their contemplations of the elements and magic have led them to possess a good amount of respect for the Kami, which in turn produces better than average shugenja. The philosophical and individualistic culture of the Clan as a whole lends itself well to the mindset of Shinseism, which promotes thinking past the mundane and into the metaphysical with a certain galaxy brain frame of mind that doesn't get stuck in tradition. As such, Dragon Lands host and send out a large number of monks and teachers representing the Tao of Shinsei throughout both their own lands and the Empire.

Their level of knowledge and piety is comparable to the Phoenix Clan, the Empire's magic and religion specialists, but they differ greatly in how they express their devotion: the Phoenixes behave like more conventional believers with open reverence and plentiful festivals and traditions, while the Dragons are more reserved and individualistic. Given their culture and lands, they aren't given to ostentatious displays, nor in rigidly devoting themselves to even their most cherished beliefs; Enlightenment is a process, not some bit of knowledge you can record in a scroll and apply equally to everyone, and everyone must find their own way to it.

As for the guiding principles of Bushido, the Dragon Clan has a diverse range of views among its families, but they are all seen as unorthodox by mainstream adherents. More monastic or mystical families like the Togashi and Agasha are neutral on the subject as they prefer to follow their own schools of thought, while the more worldly Mirumoto and Kitsuki respect it as a guide for self-improvement on the road to Enlightenment. However, even the most overtly devoted Dragon only gives Bushido so much reverence; they [[Captain Titus|accept that they're useful guidelines but it's still up to them how best to do their duties or interact with others]], weirding out traditionalists who can't process when they pragmatically use stealth or treat peasants with respect bordering on equality.