Editing Crab Clan (section)

==Families==
While they may seem extremely different side-by-side, all Crab families are united by two things: they are regarded as crude and ill-mannered bullies by the majority of the Empire, and they are absolutely united in their shared duty to stand against the Shadowlands. As a pragmatic lot, the Crabs defer a great deal to their specialist families in their fields of expertise, though all of them bow to the Hida when it comes to executive overarching decisions or when a judgement call needs to be made. An arrangement that is, ironically, quite similar to the council of the cultured, soft Crane families.

===Hida Family===
The heads of the Clan, descended from the Kami himself. The Hida are a martial family and represent what the average Rokugani thinks when they imagine a Crab. On the one hand, they are among the Empire's largest, toughest, and bravest warriors who face a lifetime of horrors with stiff determination, heavy armor and weapons, and godly levels of stamina. On the other hand, they are also regarded as blunt, rude bullies who act slovenly and violently at all times. And to be honest, Hida tend to start out living up to the stereotypes; they are first exposed to the war against the hordes of Jigoku, and then likely to the less than grateful reactions of their cousins. Doesn't give them much incentive to play ball.

However, despite their reputations as rowdy rough ruffians who are too swole to control, Hida who live past the initial shitty realities of being a Crab can become some of the most pragmatic and level-headed leaders of Rokugan. Those who don't lose themselves to their egos or their PTSD will have the chance to fully discover the philosophical legacy of Hida: self-awareness, recognizing the many forms of strength, and understanding what it truly means to be Dutiful in their war. Thus, even setting aside their inherited position as the Kami's descendants, it's this culture which ultimately makes them best-suited to lead the rest of the Crab Clan.

===Hiruma Family===
The right-hand family and the scouts of the Crabs, exceptionally skilled at navigating treacherous terrain and hit-and-run tactics. Even in a Clan which has quite possibly the worst duty to uphold in all of Rokugan, the Hiruma have arguably been through the most out of everyone. The loss of Shiro Hiruma to the Shadowlands has left them as [[Slayer|dour, grim hunters with a death wish to avenge their loss or die trying]]. It isn't always the attitude they grow into, but with the stakes of their duty made abundantly clear at all times, the pressure is always hanging over their heads.

Nevertheless, despite their fatalistic approach to life, they're dependable lieutenants who still hold onto the gritty determination shared by all Crabs: they believe that they can hold the line and win the war (or at least the immediate battles), but the Hiruma are just more keenly aware that they'll always have to pay a steep price for victory. They even help maintain good relations with the Unicorns, with the Shinjo hosting Hiruma scout training within their own dojos.

===Kaiu Family===
Architects, engineers, and master smiths. The Kaiu are the most cerebral of the Crab, and turn their training and gifts towards shoring up their defenses and coming up with the best tactics and weapons to wield against either Shadowland beasts or rival Clans. Their mentality leans towards seeing the big picture and thinking many steps or even years ahead, which is derided by their more hotheaded cousins, but all of them appreciate the engineering expertise and siegecraft of the Kaiu. And while they're as aware of the stakes as the rest of their Clan, the Kaiu might be the most outright optimistic of the founding Crab families, looking at life as one big engineering project and looking forward to seeing what solutions they can come up with.

The Kaiu are also the masterminds behind the great Kaiu Wall, from its labyrinthine layout to its lethal deathtraps and artillery emplacements. Across the Wall, sections are continuously under threat of being damaged, destroyed, or overtaken, with Crab teams sent to repair, reinforce, or recover them, leaving large areas as forgotten fortifications [[Dungeon|filled with monstrous creatures and lethal deathtraps]]. Kaiu graduates are expected to design a siege engine fit for service on the Wall, and if they succeed, their first task is to build the damn thing. As a fun aside note, they're also artisans of such skill and precision that they can create little clockwork mechanisms and toys.

===Kuni Family===
The shugenja of the Crabs. Kuni are held in fear and respect in equal measure, seen as part mad wizard and part mad scientist, with spells largely focused on detecting and exterminating Shadowlands Taint (through the purifying power of jade and crystal) and monstrosities (through overwhelming firepower). Kuni are infamous for the makeup/war paint they use to give themselves a fearsome visage, serving to hide their true nature and souls from mystical threats...and in some cases, to obscure the horrific scars and injuries they suffer in the line of duty. They obsessively study their enemies, and as a result, have become masters of autopsies and biology (a huge taboo in Rokugan which sees contact with dead bodies as unclean) in order to find weaknesses or recognize signs of the Taint. Only one other family, the Kitsuki of the Dragon Clan, practice similar methods of studying the dead.

Because of the destruction of their lands (which they are only just starting to magically heal), the Kuni are not a unified body of knowledge like other shugenja families. Instead, they are highly decentralized, each keeping their own stash of accumulated knowledge and only occasionally meeting up (often at the Hida daimyo's request) to compare notes or swap information. The obvious downside is that each Kuni only has their own knowledge at hand and no resources, but it does also serve to protect the whole of their information from being destroyed in one fell swoop, which is a bigger concern than one would think given the foes they face.

===Yasuki Family===
The Yasuki are the odd ones out, namely because they weren't originally of the Crab. These merchants were once part of the Crane Clan's financial empire, but faced flak because their black markets were a huge source of scandal. Facing persecution and embargoes from their own brethren, the Yasuki promptly decided to take their business elsewhere and create their own markets [[Meme|with blackjack and hookers.]] The Crab took them in, and they proved to be a surprisingly good fit, honouring the protection of their new home with their wealth and loyalty. And loyal they remain, being entirely willing to give their lives on the Wall despite their origins and specializations.

The Yasuki are merchants first and foremost, and their back-alley black market used-car-salesman style is seen as crude, greedy, and dishonorable by most Rokugani who already treat merchants with contempt as money-grubbing parasites who buy their way into polite society. They'll sell almost anything (including wares deemed dishonorable as long as they don't jeopardize their laws and markets) and haggle about the price the whole way, and their courtly negotiations tend to come down to providing gifts and goods in exchange for promises and agreements, yet they are also honest about their intent to make a profit without any of the more flowery trappings of negotiation in Rokugan. As a result, between their actual trade deals, smuggling operations, and black markets, the Yasuki are ludicrously wealthy, and use all of their gains in court to keep their new brothers and sisters supplied against the Shadowlands. They take these attitudes and their assets to court, and are seen as the most "civilized" of the Crabs that most Clans (other than the Cranes) would prefer to deal with...even if most samurai think their preferred style of gift-giving and favor-trading is crude, almost peasant-like, and bordering on bribery. The Yasuki, of course, see it differently: they're masters of trade, and they're making sure everyone gets what they want. You scratch their back, and they'll scratch yours.

Just make sure you're not the Crane Clan, who want them dead, or the Daidoji family, who want them deader. The Yasuki and the Daidoji have been locked in an economic war with their markets, which has the unfortunate side-effect of giving rise to organized crime in Rokugan...as well as spaces where the Kolat conspiracy seeking to overthrow the Kami-ordained society can thrive.