Editing Unicorn Clan (section)

==Families==
The main families of the Unicorn are the descendants of Shinjo and her followers, as well as one family of ''gaijin'' they adopted who rose to prominence. Among them, there are varying degrees of integration with Rokugan. Some like the Ide and Utaku are able and willing to adopt and adapt to the Empire's culture, while others like the Moto hold their own Unicorn customs in higher regard and don't care about fitting in. The majority of the others tend to fall somewhere in-between, trying to follow social norms while still seeming rather alien to the average Rokugani. Despite these differences and each family's strong individual identity, however, the Unicorn families tend to be united in culture, purpose, and direction. Ambitions and tensions do exist in overlapping areas like the Shinjo and Moto for leadership, the gendered roles within the Utaku, and the Ide's peacemaking versus the Clan's desire to expand their territory FAST, but their shared culture (and persecution by conservatives) gives the Unicorn a good deal of solidarity. Each family is trusted to serve in their specialties with speed, initiative, and loyalty, regardless of personal reservations with the Khan's will.

===Shinjo Family===
Descendants of Shinjo's first servants as well as her one son who assumed a human form while the rest of his siblings remained spirit-fire ki-rin horse things (look, divinity is weird, alright?). Shinjo are renowned as expert scouts and outriders, as well as skilled archers and upright rulers. Depending on the time period, they are either the current leaders of the Clan, or its former leaders after their disgrace when a large number of them were purged for being members of the Kolat conspiracy which sought to overthrow the divine rule of the Kami.

Whatever their standing, though, the Shinjo keep their spirits high. In a Clan which stands out for its cooperative nature, the Shinjo are known as some of the fairest and outright nicest of the families, though the Ide could also lay claim to that distinction as the Unicorn's courtiers. Even among other Clans, they're known for treating their allies and enemies with mercy and fairness. This doesn't make them soft, however; they know how to perform a cavalry charge as well as the more militant families of the Unicorn, and have fielded some of the best mounted archers in all of the Empire, made doubly potent by their mastery of ''yomanri'', the ''gaijin'' archery art of aiming <s>down your sights</s> carefully rather than firing <s>from the hip</s> quickly. Their fighting techniques also combine ''gaijin'' tricks and traditional ''kenjutsu'', prizing mobility and using techniques like ripostes to combine offense and defense.

===Moto Family===
The Moto are descendants of the [[Mongols|Ujik-hai]], a ''gaijin'' clan the Unicorns encountered and defeated. [[Weeaboo|Inspired by the valor and skill of the Ki-Rins]], they joined up with them and proved their worth as warriors. Worthy doesn't mean nice, though; while they embraced their new family and legitimately earned their place, Moto are one of the most militant bushi families of the Unicorn Clan, and tend to provide the majority of its heavy cavalry. Their warriors are known for death-defying brutality as they [[Rip and tear|politely make their differences of opinion known to their enemies]]. In their more controlled aspect, that means using mobility to move from foe to foe, avoiding attacks while relentlessly attacking. But when going full monke, Moto heavy cavalry are known to just flat-out charge into enemy lines, sacrificing their mounts to break spear walls and go full-on berserker in charges that require extensive training of their steeds and an utter disregard for personal safety. Basically, if the Shinjo use hit-and-run with agility and archery, the Moto use run-up-and-hit-them, and favor heavy weapons in a similar fashion to the Hida and Matsu.

Their OTHER most defining feature is the [[Black Rage|Moto Curse]], which comes in two flavors: a spiritual sense of doom and foreboding that comes from their ancestral death gods cursing them for letting their religion fade to obscurity, and a bleak reputation in society due to one of their ancestors leading a large army into the Shadowlands to try and purge it [[FAIL|only to get the majority of them corrupted]] into the [[Possessed Marine|Dark Moto]]. Despite that, however, their pride, courage and ambition also made them the Unicorn's natural leaders when the Shinjo were disgraced.

Don't mistake their aggression for barbarism, though. Despite their public image ranging from "[[World Eaters|weeb Khornate Berserker]]" to "[[Slayer|dour deathseeker]]", the Moto are in fact [[Space Wolves|extremely disciplined in how and when they unleash their fanatical fury]], and these [[Kharn|pretty swell guys and gals]] are fully capable of forging bonds of respect, family, and love the way most people would understand them. So basically mounted Hidas, or [[Star Trek|Rokugani Klingons]] (both Original Recipe Hearty Warriors and Dour Disciplined Worfs).

===Utaku Family===
A matriarchal bushi family descended from Shinjo's stoic samurai-ko follower Otaku (who have since rebranded as the Utaku [[Neckbeards|for obvious reasons]]) who more closely look like Rokugani samurai. [[Spiritual Liege|They strive to emulate their founder]], and so tend to be stoic and determined, [[Sisters of Silence|preferring to let their actions speak for them]] instead of making flowery oaths or war cries (though in supporting stories, they can chat just fine if they need to). Their [[Sisters of Battle|Shiotome Battle Maidens]] form the [[Howling Banshees|shock troops]] of the Unicorns, and in the cavalry clan, they are THE elites with much more stringent training and a near-mystical connection to their steeds which are superior to even the Unicorn's ''gaijin'' horses. The Shiotome school's curriculum is the most "orthodox" in terms of technique, and besides mastering the cavalry charge, they also train their warriors to [[Paladin|maintain their Honor and focus to such a degree that it literally makes them hit harder]]. Only women are allowed to ride these mighty beasts in battle, and their speartip charges are among the deadliest military threats you can face among the Great Clans. Be very afraid, and very <s>aroused</s> impressed.

That being said, their men are not to be underestimated either. While they're not the rulers of the clan, Utaku men are usually the ones to breed and train their steeds, which necessitates actually riding them (just not to war). This was initially something of a [[Chapter Serf|consolation prize]] for [[Black Furies|second-class clanmates]], but later editions reinforced that Unicorns would naturally hold their horse breeders and stable masters in high esteem. And those that go to war tend to form the Unicorn's elite infantry, playing vital roles in supporting the cavalry, whether by pinning enemy forces in place or following up their charges. Most male bushi in this family become Utaku Mounted Infantry, riding to a battle and then dismounting to become the indomitable anvil that the Clan's cavalry hammer crushes their foes against, with martial technique worthy to stand beside the other schools.

===Ide Family===
Descended from Shinjo's most diplomatic follower, the Ide are courtiers, mediators, and caravan masters. They are marvelously adaptive, whether negotiating goods and services with cultures beyond the Empire or navigating the murky waters of a Winter Court. They have a reputation as impartial outsiders, helping to resolve conflicts and indebt both parties to the Unicorn, and most Clans respect them enough to listen when they speak. This is partly because they're outsiders with a unique perspective that others fall back on as "the token neutral third party", and partly because the Ide are trained to be both agreeable, helpful friends and charismatic masters of rhetoric. Politicians from other Great Clans might look down on them as idealistic peacemakers, but few are able to actually use that as a weakness against them; a skilled Ide's collection of allies and wealth can give pause to even the most well-connected Doji or Bayushi. It wouldn't be far off to say they're like a cross between the Yasuki's business sense and the Doji's diplomacy.

Ide believed that diplomacy should always be the first option to resolve conflict, and that idealism carries over into their approach. That doesn't make them soft, easy marks, however; Ide are trained to carefully study the people and cultures around them. Preferably to reach agreements, but also to take note on whether they plan to betray or butcher you. They can read a room with the best of them, and like any courtier, they are fully prepared to bring the weight of their wealth and connections down on their enemies. They also host the Calm Heart dojo, one of the only ''iaijutsu'' dojos in Unicorn lands whose duelists focus on causing as little excess damage as possible, seeing as they needed to be prepared to defend their honor on the other Clans' terms. They'd just rather talk it out first.

===Iuchi Family===
The shugenja family descended from Shinjo's magic master who dealt with practically all magical matters on their exodus. Iuchi are wild and carefree nature priests whose signature spells work mostly with movement/travel magic, and communing with animals (especially horses, duh). They also stand out in the Empire for two things. Firstly, thanks to their history, they have a pretty open-minded and experimental perspective of magic as a whole and would readily study and experiment with even foreign styles, which rankles conservatives to no end. And secondly, their signature style of magic: ''meishodo''. By inscribing spells into talismans and convenient devices, an Iuchi is able to cast spells with incredible speed through their spell focuses, extending this benefit to any other caster entrusted with it.

There are trade-offs for this power, though. A spell cast via ''meishodo'' can never be modified with further effects such as increasing its power or range. It is also viewed with suspicion as blasphemy because it doesn't derive power from the Kami and Fortunes, but from the power of Names and words used in the creation of the world. And finally (and also unknown to everyone including their own Clan), practicing this art has an unfortunate tendency to further weaken a shugenja's connection to the native magic of Rokugan, making it harder or downright impossible to cast the conventional way even if they wanted to. But despite these drawbacks, the Iuchi still play an important role as the Unicorn's spiritual experts, and are potent force multipliers for their military who prefer subtler buffs such as letting an army march with great speed, silence, or supernatural cover.