The game begins on the island of Shikoku, in the province of Sanuki.  While I’ve borrowed elements from history, it is a complete mash-up and so many liberties are taken that there is not even a vague historical relationship for this game.  Officially, the province Daimyo is Sugawara no Michizane.  He is a poet and politician and a devotee of Confucianism since it dovetails well with Shinto beliefs.  However, the province is actually run by the Buddhist monk Kukai.  Kukai established a magic-based Buddhist philosophy in a monastery school on Mt. Koya and his movement has many followers across not just the province, but the island, and Nippon itself.  The emperor himself is said to be in regular correspondence with Kukai.  Sugawara is attempting to slowly ease the province away from Buddhism by establishing Shinto run schools, and codifying the laws of the province with a firm Confucianism grounding.  There is tension between the two religions as a result.  The people are largely a mix of Buddhist and Shinto so control for them changes direction as the wind blows.

The province economy is more stable than any of the four provinces on Shikoku.  It trades the most with the main Nipponese island of Honshu because of proximity, and since Tosa province is largely lawless at this point, and a haven for Waku (pirates), there is a thriving black market trade which goes through Sanuki back to Honshu.

The pirates, and yakuza, have a firm presence in the province but Sanuki is the only province on the island which has them clearly subservient to the ruling Samurai.  The provinces of Awa and Iyo go back and forth of who controls it, and Tosa is firmly in the hands of the pirates.

Shugenja are often looked upon with suspicion on the main island of Honshu.  Shikoku, however, is steeped in the idea that the power of Nippon is magical in nature.  They often do not differentiate between the power of a Gakusho and a Shugenja, feeling both forms of power come from the divinity of the Land itself.  The waku, in particular, employ Shugenja regularly and their services are sought.  Brother Kukai is actually both a Gakusho and a Shugenja, and because of this, the entire island views the two as more of a mesh rather than discrete things.

Shikoku Island is often pummeled by nature.  Earthquakes, tai-funs, tsunamis, and even volcanoes are fairly regular occurrences.  Luckily, Sanuki itself is protected from the ocean by the other three provinces and is slightly more stable so when there is a natural disaster, they tend to weather it better than the other provinces.

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This message was last edited by the GM at 18:24, Wed 10 Oct 2018.

Caste system:  In this game, the culture has a definite caste system for social interactions.  It has no real ‘social’ skills (Rhetoric is more for debates rather than social interaction) so where you are on the food chain greatly colors your social interactions.

Since this world is fairly structured.  Almost every person in it answers to someone.  Eta villages have a town leader, children answer to parents, samurai have lords, and peasants have community leaders; even masterless Ronin are technically in the charge of all samurai of the province.  So, if you don’t know who is in charge of your character after you make him/her, let me know and we’ll create something.

Tangent to this, the group itself will have a social hierarchy.  This, however, can be enforced as much as the team would like when the group is just dealing with each other so there is room to maneuver if desired.  Something you should talk about in the OOC thread before the game starts.  If not, there’s nothing wrong with keeping the cultural structure either.  Just keep in mind that if the group decides it wants looser social rules between themselves, if the rest of the world is watching, they’ll be judged accordingly.  Being a team rather than having a leader is fine when by yourselves, but if the Money-grubbing merchant gets uppity in public when speaking to the Buke Samurai in Service, not only might the merchant be attacked, but the Samurai will take a hit in ON if he refuses to deal with the situation.

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STATUS
This was not used much in previous games but will be used in this one.  The rules are very GM dependent so I’ll ask everyone to simply roll with decisions as we get used to it.  This is more a role-playing flavor system for me than hard/fast rules.  This is not diplomacy.  You are not convincing anyone of anything.  This is how receptive to favors and influence people are from you; either to place you in their debt, or to curry favor with you by being useful to you.

You’re free to read all the rules on it, but since we haven’t used it much before, here are the basics:

Personal Status is derived and is a function of level, social rank, and current ON.  This creates a score.  When using status, divide it by 5, round down, for your BCS.  There are situational modifiers.  You use this when asking for a favor from someone.
Group Status:  You can be a part of many groups and they will be assigned during the game.  If you think you are part of a group but do not have a group status, let me know and we’ll work it out.  There is interplay between Personal and Group status but more of either never hurts.  Examples include Ryu (school), clan, gang, Temple, etc.
Status factor:  Just a heads up that not all samurai families, ninja clans, gangs, or schools are created equal.  So when the leader of a powerful gang is trying to interact with a junior member of a small samurai clan, there needs to be a way to compare these two different people.  Obviously the samurai ‘outranks’ the gang leader, but that does not mean it is wise to ignore or insult him.  So, every Group you belong to will have a status factor.  A number from 0 to 1 that you multiply your status by just for comparing with people outside your caste or group.  E.g. the Elder Yakuza leader in the province where yakuza have better than average power might have a 90 status, and a yakuza clan status factor of .4.  He’s asking a minor bureaucrat who is samurai to allow him to file papers to change a real estate designation to allow gambling.  The samurai has a status of 10, but his clan status factor is .7.  So when they interact concerning this favor, the yakuza starts with a score of 36 while the samurai is 7.  It is very likely the samurai will want to make the yakuza happy barring any unusual circumstances.  Keep in mind that since it is the powerful person asking for the favor, it is likely that the samurai will be looked on with more tolerance in the future because he has ingratiated himself a little with the yakuza.

So, during game play, players might want to be picky about what groups they join.  If you’re a Ronin and join the worst samurai clan out there because they’re taking anyone who has all his limbs, you’re status will have a lower ceiling.  Conversely, if you make your life goal being offered to pledge yourself to the current Shoguns clan, while harder, it will increase your status for the rest of your affiliation with it.
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SANUKI’s MAJOR CLANS  (This post will be added to as the game evolves and the world is developed. Important PC’s are encouraged to create their own clans. They are welcome to jump into one presented fi they are high enough rank, but if they desire to create their own, I’ll approve it and add it below)

Samurai:
Michizane Clan:  Sugawara no Michizane is the current Daimyo of Sanuki.  He came to power after receiving the backing of several prominent Honshu Shinten Temples who lobbied the Emperor.  He is a devote Shinto, currently unmarried, and fields a larger than normal force than previous Sanuki Daimyo.  It is rumored that he plans to conquer the entire island eventually.  It is rumored that he is planning to assault the Singon Monestary.  It is rumored he is planning to clear waku and yakuza from the island and establish true Daimyo in the other provinces.  Thus far, no evidence of any of these rumors exist beyond the fact that he has a large army.  The clan itself is known for its archery, as well as its horsemanship.  Since Sugawara himself is a poet and Confucius philosopher of some note, many wishing to curry favor within and without the clan study these arts.  The clan, with him at the head, is rigid, just, but largely without mercy.  Law is the rule and there is no bending from it safely.  This clan has a status factor of .8.

EDIT: Jizai, his son, has no taken over as head of the Clan.  While Shinto, he is at least sympathetic to Buddhism, and has forged at least a tenuously working relationship with one of the Chosokabe.

Takamatsu Clan:  A name old in tradition of the island and the province, The Takamatsu clan ruled for decades through the middle ages.  While its political power and wealth have waned a bit, their family name is still a force to be reckoned with.  They are also Shinto and enjoy an amicable relationship with the Michizane Clan.  With the ebbing of their fortunes, though, they do not field a great many men.  They are working diligently to marry their ancient name to the newer powers within the land to climb back into prominence.  The Takamatsu are known for their swordsmanship and bravery.  They carved out a great deal of this land from the yakuza in ancient times and have retained that adventurous spirit.  They are law abiding but more country chaos rather than city law.  Personal initiative is encouraged.  Their clan Okuden involve techniques to help spot Hidden Things.  This clan has a status factor of .7

Chosokabe Clan:  While stronger in the province of Tosa, this clan has a small presence in Sanuki as well.  They are Buddhist and are trying, without much success, to ingratiate themselves with the Singon Monestary.  They have spawned a few traps for the Michizane, to make them lost face from time to time, but their efforts are more nuisance than threat.  The clan is known for politics over combat and they actively seek shugenja and gakusho to bolster their small forces.  Because they are a stronger presence in Tosa, they are rumored to be in league with the waku.  While there has been no evidence of this, their finances do seem to be on the rist.  Their status factor is .6.

Baki Clan:  The Baki are fighters.  They do not study poetry, philosophy, or Tea Ceremony.  Instead, they simply wish to be a martial force.  Their numbers are limited by what is allowed by Sugawara, but they often bolster their ranks with Ronin, which often do not count against their allowed number of followers (if they don’t get caught).  Honor is nice, but not essential.  They have very little money and see martial power as their path to prominence.  They gather money two main ways.  First, through extortion.  They keep various roads and paths free of bandits for a fee for example.  Second, through training.  They will train fighters and often add them to their ranks as they are allowed to, for a cost, and often for a requirement to serve a set number of years.  While this is unconventional in these times, the Baki have not been punished for this practice so continue to do it.  They are known for bravery, hand to hand combat, and a generous flexibility in honor.  Their Status factor is .6.

Others:  There are numerous other samurai clans within the province but Shikoku is not the same as the main island – it is essentially ‘the country’ or ‘the frontier’.  It is away from the niceties of court although they have their own, more direct version of court.  So samurai families here tend to be those who prize independence and perhaps has less use for etiquette (of course all things are relative).  It is not often a sought after post or fief although the clans that actively moved here are either ones that are tired of politics, more comfortable with independent hardship living, or even those who have more comfort being in proximity of thieves.  Their Status factor are always .6.
This message was last edited by the GM at 13:34, Thu 11 June 2020.

Ninja:
Baado Piiparu Clan:  While there is likely several ninja clan operating on the island of Shikoku, there is only one that is common knowledge – the Baado Piiparu.  Born from a tragic love triangle, the Baado Piiparu have a reputation of taking contracts against oppressors and the unjust rather than just for coin.  While not truly a Sanuki province clan, the Baado Piiparu are based somewhere on the island and likely have bases in all four provinces.  Their legend is common ale-house storytelling fodder and most everyone on the island has heard the Epic of the clan’s birth.  The Heroic samurai, the Florence Nightengale love of his caretaker, the suspicious daimyo and his jealous wife, and most importantly, the spirits of Nippon itself, who came in the last hour to spare the peasants from this tragic drama by turning them into birds so that they could fly to safety asn the battle between the four raged.  It is from these peasants that the Baado Piinaru clan grew and now, in modern times, their calling card is the release of a bird for all to see when a job is done by them.  Such is their confidence and audacity.  This clan has a status factor of .7.  It operates all across Shikoku, and through large swaths of Honshu as well.

Doji Clan:  The Nipponese, in general, do not like the open waters.  They are excellent sailors within sight of land, but not so comfortable otherwise.  Water is not the typical Nipponese persons friend.  Many do not even know how to swim despite living on an island (and one rife with waterways).  One of the things Ninja are good at is finding the things others won’t do and doing them.  Nestled on Shikoku, with at least one base rumored to be in Sanuki, there exists the Doji clan.  They are ninjas trained within the relative safety of Shikoku (away from the main island of Honshu where the iron fist of the law is more prominent), and surrounded by waku and yakuza.  They have excelled at using the waters of the land to their advantage.  Nippon has treacherous geography and people need to move about constantly.  Water roads are common.  And if there is an assassination, or intelligence gathering, aboard a boat, it was probably done by the Doji.  They excel and intelligence, water adaptive skills, and while small in number, they are wealthy.  Status factor is .5.

Shinka Clan: Shikoku is strong in the spirit world.  Kami abound and are more interactive with the populous than everywhere but the far north of Nippon.  The Shinka Clan started as the worship of a Shadow Spirit who called itself Boshi.  Over the years, since Boshi was never a ‘human interested’ spirit, various daimyo tried to squash this worship and establish a more formal worship of Shinten.   As with many things that people attempt to squash, it just went underground and grew quietly.  It grew into the Shinka ninja clan due to a Doji Ninja who became a devotee of Boshi.  This clan is slightly unique is that not all of it’s members are of the ninla ‘profession’.  They have a contingent of members, and their own school, which trains ninja in the magic school of Water.  They even train other ninja clan members for a fee.  The jobs the clan does seems chaotic.  It is a combination of the whim of Boshi, as well as the needs of having a cash flow and a reputation in the ‘human’ world.  This clan has a status factor of .3.

Others: Any other Ninja operating on the island is from a clan from Honshu (the main island).  They are almost always here with permission of any of the three clans above and vary greatly in focus and intent.

Religious Temples/Shrines/Monasteries:
Singon Monastery.  True Word Buddhism:  Founded by the monk Kukai, this temple is difficult to get to nestled in Mt. Koya.  It has a small garrison of Buddhist yamabushi, but the real danger to an enemy approaching is that Kukai was a master of both Buddhist and Shugenja arts and spent his entire life attempting to mold them together in the defense of Nippon.  Here, both Buddhist Gakusho and Shugenja go to train in their arts.  And despite it being difficult to gain admission to the school, the few adepts present are a force to be reckoned with when combined with their yamabushi.  Their reputation alone has staved off all enemies from attacking the school itself thus far.  It is said that Kukai himself is still alive but rarely seen now.  All yoga can be learned here, as well as the schools of metal, soil, and wood.  It is rumored that Kukai has developed Okuden specifically for users of Power although no apprentice has ever been able or willing to prove it.  This Monastery has a status factor of .5 as a temple but .6 as a school.

Benkoi, Unega, Jiten, and Kakumsa Shrines:  Shikoku is strong with nature.  As such, it is strong with Spirits.  The Shinto religion is part of almost every person’s life on the island; even those who are also staunchly Buddhist.  Generations of tradition cannot be washed away here.  These four shrines are in various parts of the province and are listed because they have at least on head priest in permanent residence (not common since most Shinto shrines are small structures out in nature).  Benkoi is by a waterfall and gives thanks for the purity of the islands waters.  It has a head priest knowledgeable in Gnana-yoga as well as one apprentice.  Unega is in a mountain crater.  It has a small school for yamabushi (numbering around 5-8) and a head priest skilled in both Raja and Karma yoga.  Jiten sits in the middle of a pirate bay and sees to the spiritual health of the yakuza and wak of Shikoku.  It has no school, but there are a total of 4 gakusho who live there.  All four often spend their days out among the docks.  They have a variety of yoga’s, but have not taken on apprentices.  Lastly, the Kakumsa shrine is one step shy of a monastery.  It lacks the cash flow and funds to become one, as its members usually go out among the Buke to beg for prayers to the Kami, but the shrine itself boasts one priest, but over 30 lay people.  The priest is a master of Prana-yoga.  It is this shrine, due to proximity to the population, which is most often sought out for healing by Shinto’s.  Their status factors range from .3 to .4.

Binka Temple:  Binka is a martial temple of Buddhist Sohei (Priests who can fight, rather than yamabushi who are fighters who are devote).  They train in all the samurai arts of war but concentrate on Senjo and Chikujo jutsu.  They pride themselves on efficient and intelligent fighting rather than impetuous honor-reactionary fighting, and that is reflected in their tactics, as well as their martial bugei styles.  They tend to draw out combats and fight conservatively, patiently waiting for their opening.  Calm and cool is their trademark.  They sport several priests and actively recruit more as long as your mental abilities, and temperament, match their philosophy.  Their head priest is a man named Joshin who is revered as the islands greatest healers.  No small feat on an island sporting the monk Kukai.  Thte temples relationship with Singon Monastery is neutral at best.  Binka was here first and is ancient.  Singon is the new comer, filled with money and political influence.  Resentment abounds, and ‘competition’ can get intense.  But when the dust clears, they go to their corners with respect for each other, if not affection.  Status factor is .5.

Po Nunnery:  An oddity.  A nunnery staffed by a 50/30/20 mix of Chinese, Nipponese, and Indian. They have been here longer than anyone can remember and act as a combination of old wise women, as well as oracles, to the islands inhabitants.  They live on the charity of the island but are also often sought for advice –  usually similar to that of counselors.  It is said they pursue the Ryobu-shinto doctrine (combining both Buddhism and Shinten), and some rumors fly that the also are attempting to include Hindi into their theology.  While this is blasphemous from all quarters, they do not preach this doctrine and only rumors exist at this point.  The Mother Superior is a master of Prophesy.  Status factor is .3.

Peasant clans:
General:  For the most part, peasant clans are nothing more than villages on Shikoku.  Peasants lack the desire to organize for the most part since they are away from Big Brother more than most.  They work their land, pay their low taxes (compared to Honshu), pay their protection money (high compared to Honshu), and are left alone by all. Which is how they like it.  If they were to organize or feel a need to gather for a purpose, it would be to fight off the claws of the waku and yakuza rather than the caste system.  And none are foolish enough to want to try to do that.  Fighting “The Man” is not the same as fighting “The Mob”.  But, abuse actually runs low because the waku are pirates, not yakuza, and the yakuza know they have a limited base one which to prey so are thoughtful about their machinations.  While Budoka still train together, it is often village by village and their techniques are often guarded from the other villages since when hard times come, villages have to look to their own families and towns and are in danger of thugs and neighboring towns more than Samurai.  Status factors of villages are generally .1.

Countless Rice Group:  This is a small consortium of village elders (mostly from the 10 largest villages in the province) who get together occasionally to discuss issues.  Mostly this is marriage from one town to another, or setting rice prices, or determining province peasant needs rather than village peasant needs.  The group is not particularly strong, nor wealthy, but when someone is pushing their noses into the grindstone, they often manage to find a way around their problem together.  They do have occasional access to ruling lords to both inform them of issues as well as ask for favors.  But for day-to-day lives of peasants, they mean very little. Status factor is .2 for members.


Merchant Clans:
Candle Clan:  There is no real merchant clan on Shikoku that is not run by the waku or yakuza.  The Candle clan is the only one that is considered independent from them, and therefore is used by Samurai of the island, but the claim of independence is dubious at best.  At best, they pay off the yakuza, and worst, they are the yakuza with a good public relations guy.  Still, the clan is oft abused by both the Samurai (who are annoyed that they are the only game in town and annoyed to have to deal with them in the first place), and the yakuza (who keep them insignificant so they never cut into their real businesses).  Their social status factor is .1.

Artists:
Gna Village:  There is one village in the fishing village of Gna on the northern coastline which is a communal artist colony.  Each member is responsible for a daily task, and the rest of their time can be given over to their art.  The mediums vary wildly and many of them habitually eat together at night for conversation, laughs, and to pitch and get ideas for whatever they are working on.  The village has a 3 person headman council that sets tasks which can change wildly from day to day and week to week.  While they get along with each other decently, there are rather diverse personalities in town and often they chaff each other.  This is one area where the yakuza have the least amount of sway both because of how it is set up, but also because the ruling samurai clan has always extended its protection here and have sold their goods in Honshu – more for prestige than money.  For while many of the artists are not particularly good, it only takes one master to add prestige to the village and Gnan has had more than its share over the years.  Gna artwork is often prized on Honshu.  Their status factor is .2
This message was last edited by the GM at 12:58, Fri 12 Oct 2018.

Gangs:  (When talking about yakuza and waku, there isn’t really a Sanuki-specific group of clans.  Yakuza and Waku are so wide spread that they are simply Shikoku sized organizations with various levels of presence in all four provinces on the island.  For the most part, the smallest presence is Sanuki province itself.)

Seaweed, Gajin, Tsunami, Subtle Breeze, and Justice Gangs: There is no ‘lead’ waku (pirate) gang.  There are five who have chaotic relationships between them that shift constantly.  Sometimes they’re helpful to each other, most often they are viciously competitive, and sometimes they outright war on each other.  These five are the major players and although there are smaller groups and independents, all of them have some form of relationship with one of these five.  Seaweed has the strongest land presence and an actual fortress.  They field a small standing army of both Ronin bushi, budoka, and yakuza and are the main fencers with Honshu.  They are active on the sea, but have a more balanced approach to business and have an eye to being a ruling class eventually so are cultivating land power as well as water power.  The Tsunami Waku are deep sea specialists.  They raid the trade vessels that move back and forth from China and Korea to Nippon and while they pull fewer hits, they are almost always bigger ones.  They are hard men who spend the most time on decks and practically live on the sea.  They also are the most willing to put into ports around the country and use Shikoku as merely a main base.  Subtle Breeze are newcomers and filled with disaffected youths out for adventure and often to escape capture for crimes on Honshu.  Not particularly skilled, and not particularly wealthy, they are numerous and relatively obnoxious.  Their leaders are focusing all their energy on gang internal stability rather than external work since, with their numbers, if they can tame and harness these youths, they will be a real force.  The Gaijin gang is a more international group.  They take misfits from all countries and rake the shores of Nippon.  The other waku do treat them as second class citizens, but they are more skilled at sailing and raiding then the rest, and DO have at least 50% Nipponese in their ranks.  The Justice Gang are the crazy bastards.  They gravitate toward risky crap that thumb noses at the Samurai and Merchant gangs.  They make huge enemies, have massive turn over, but recruit disenfranchised as easily as pouring water from a pitcher.  They are often kept in check by the other gangs whom have no wish to have samurai raid the island en-masse.  All five of these gangs know how to party hard.  Gang held forts, ports, and villages are dens for vice, violence, and debauchery.  One quick note: Women in these gangs hold a unique place.  Counter-intuitively, the leaders treat women more respectfully than many other poor areas of Nippon.  Prostitution abounds throughout the island but the non-‘professional’ women are often judged by their worth to the Gang first, and while violence against them still happens, the rates are surprisingly low.  This is also a function of the gender ratio.  While women are not recruited, those few that take up the life actually have a unique position of privilege if they are skilled.  They are protected by their brethren.  The social status factors of these gangs are around .35.

Ginaki Family/Gang:  The Diamyo of the province of Awa is also the leader of the Ginaki yakuza gang.  The entire province is under his sway and no other yakuza would dare operate within its borders (although waku gangs are free to).  They have a mild presence in Sanuki and are actively trying for more.  They focus on extortion within their province and straight theft in the other provinces.  They almost all have dual roles as both yakuza gang members and farmers, merchants, artisans, etc.  The province is surprisingly little different from other provinces.  Their status factor is .5 within their province of Awa and .3 outside the province.

Three Mountain Gang:  Based in Iyo, this is one of the stronger gangs, but disorganized.  They are little more than a group of independent yakuza who’ve managed to carve out a territory but aren’t large enough to hold it against all comers, so they have banded together.  They have a weak gang leadership although some individuals and their followers are quite powerful.  Mostly, they run prostitution, gambling, transportation, and drugs, but the ratios vary wildly depending on the ‘boss’.  They have a mild presence in Sanuki due to their drug access and a few gambling houses.  Status factor is .3.

Beppo Gang:  Based in Iyo, they are dealers in information.  They have tendrils in all four provinces on the island, as well as on Honshu.  Some have their hands in the bureaucrat’s pockets, some create large networks of informants, many are tied into the waku so that they learn and understand the trends of political activity far and wide.  They trade on this information in several ways: sometimes they are sought to procure a particular piece of information, sometimes sought for advice (even given positions of advisors), and often hired as spy’s (especially for those not wanting to employ ninja.  Their power off island is greater than their power on the island.  Status factor is .2

Funaki Gang:  Based in Iyo, their presence in Sanuki is minor and it’s usually crass muggings and simple lawless rabble.  They are actively hunted but know that safety often lies in Iyo if they can flee their crimes quickly enough.  Status factor is .1

Ryu (schools):

Martial Schools:  There are no martial schools or dojo which are unaffiliated with a samurai clan, temple, monastery, or gang in the province of Sanuki.  Both the samurai and the yakuza would prefer to control who learns what if possible – and since this is the country, independent schools have been highly discouraged.

Esoteric Schools:  Again, since this is the country, academia is not put front and center.  But since magic is more accepted here, there are numerous masters, hermits, witches, and sages peppered around the province.  They are not always easy to find, but they are out there.  Some of the most famous are:
Master Chang:  A retired fire shugenja from China living as a hermit in the mountains.  Several legends about him exist, including one where he purportedly responsible for blowing the top off of Mt Fuji (even though everyone knows that the crater was due to it being volcanic).  His home is incredibly difficult to find for two reasons, first, one cannot get there without magical aid, and two, there are reportedly many ninja-styled traps on the route to his place which are unpleasant.
O-Fudo:   A master of two schools of magic: Wood and Air.  O-Fudo wanders the woods of the province and island, carrying very little, living off the land, and usually sleeping under the canopy.  He has been met often over the years, but usually not recognized until after the encounter.
The witch Cawti:  Despite the moniker, rumor is she is a thoroughly pleasant woman who lives in the southern caves where she has a small silver mine she works alone.  Many yakuza have attempted to forcefully become her partner, but the province is waiting for a success story.  She practices the school of metal.
Paka Ryu:  An actual academy in Sanuki.  It is small, it is cheap, and it has few students.  It teaches the basics of language, literature, and philosophy and boasts the largest library on the island (such as it is).  It has three teachers, all low level shugenja, who, while having all the schools of magic covered and are willing to teach, are not particularly skilled in their craft.