Pick a Story Axis

In my previous blog post, I talked about how anti-LGBTQ discrimination was not a story axis built into Legend of the Five Rings, while Classism was a a story axis.  And I defined a story axis for an RPG as ' a line along which story conflicts are intended by a game system to take place. '
I think it is important for players to know what story axes a game they are getting into is going to cover, so I thought I'd list out common story axes for L5R, and common optional ones, with maybe a few notes.

Built-In
These story axes are baked into L5R and its mechanics.  A GM can choose to avoid them, but they have significant system support.

Story Axis	Game Mechanic
Conflicts between desire and duty	Ninjo and Giri
Conflicts between humanity and the otherworldly	Shadowlands, spells, etc, impacting the otherworldly, elemental imbalance, Crab, Phoenix, D
Conflicts between higher and lower social classes	Status, Courtesy vs Command
Conflicts between the good of the self and the good of the community	Glory and Honor, Ninjo and Giri
Conflicts between humanity and the darkness within	Shadowlands Taint, Maho, the Paragon and Disdain advantages and disadvantages
Conflicts between people with competing values	Intrigues, Skirmish, Mass Battle, various advantages and disadvantages

Supported
These story axes have mechanics in L5R should they be used, but they are easily avoided if this is not a story axis chosen by the party. Usually these mechanics come in the form of advantages or disadvantages that are chosen by a character at character creation. If one of these advantages or disadvantages is chosen, the GM and the players should definitely discuss if they truly want this story axis to be used and how they want to tackle it.  A GM should not assume that if a certain advantage or disadvantages was selected, that requires a supported story axis to be part of the game.  A player may select a certain advantage or disadvantage for other reasons.

Story Axis	Game Mechanic	Notes
Romantic Love vs. Lack of Romantic Love	Benten's Blessing, Blissful Betrothal, Dangerous Allure, some Allies, Bonds, Benten's Curse, Bitter Betrothal, Irrepressible Flirtation, Bluntness	Stories of love and loss are common. Well done and fully embraced, they can be very powerful, but a GM and players must be extremely careful that these are chosen by the parties, and not have romantic relationships or challenges forced on any player, or they can verge on harassment.
Physical strengths vs Physical challenges	.Ambidexterity, Bishamon's Blessing, Flexibility, Jurojin's Blessing, Keen Balance, Keen Hearing, Keen Sight, Keen Smell, Large Stature, Quick Reflexes, Small Stature, Bishamon's Curse, Blindness, Clumsiness, Damaged Heart/Organs, Deafness, Discomfiting Countenance, Fractured Spine, Incurable Illness, Jurojin's Curse, Lost Arm or Lost Hand, Lost Eye, Lost Fingers, Lost Leg, Maimed Arm, Maimed Visage, Muteness, Nerve Damage,  the Critical Hit table and Healing mechanics.	This is integrated into the system more than other supported Story Axes, but definitely requires consent to emphasize and use as anything other than an inconsequential side note.  If engaged, it can be engaged on a purely personal character level, which is supported, or it can be engaged with regards to how NPCs and the world respond to those with physical challenges, which is not supported.  If NPCs and the world alter their perceptions based on physical challenges, that story axis should definitely be approved by all the players beforehand. Overemphasizing this story axis, even positively,  can indulge in ableism. (And it can get overdone)
Insider vs Outsider	Gaijin Name/Culture/Appearance, Qamarist and Ivory Kingdoms schools, items, titles, and techniques, "Gaijin pepper"	Stories of Rokugani vs Gaijin, if used carelessly, can easily fall into the trap of making the "Western ways are better" ...letting your character bring new abilities and skills into Rokugan and having them be better because they are new as a way to make the PC characters special.  On the flip side, making Rokugan overly xenophobic makes the Rokugani seem less human, without an inherent combination of diverse understanding and curiousity about the world. It's there, but handle with care.
Good and Bad Relationships	Blackmailed By, Haunting, Lost Memories, Scorn of , Support of, Kharmic Tie, Blackmail On, Blessed Lineage, Ebisu's Blessing, Kisshoten's Blessing, Kisshoten's Curse, Ebisu's Curse, Sworn Enemy, Some Allies, Bonds, Clans, Giri	Relationships are the bread and butter of the game system, but that does not mean that every relationship is able to used in any way without player input. Some relationships , like those between parent and child, or between a character and their community, might require review and consent.  A player who selects Kisshoten's Blessing to indicate they wish to interact positively with children, may feel very strongly about any story axis that could put children in danger, for example.   A relationship with a parent in game might be selected for the joy of such of a relationship, and it might turn out to be very difficult for a player if the parent was found to have engaged in a bad actions as a story axis.
Past vs. Future	Seasoned, Lost Memories, Famously (Honest, Reliable, Lucky, Successful, Wealthy), Blackmailed By, Haunting, Whispers of (Cruelty , Doom, Failure, Poverty, Treachery), Path of Waves Past vs Future	One's plans for the future verses the implications of the past are not necessary, but are a common element for L5R.  Most of these are fairly safe to use for a story axis, but can touch on themes that might be problematic depending on what the past event was that caused the advantage/disadvantage.
Gifted vs Hindered	Bluntness, Cognitive Lapses, Daikoku's Blessing, Fukurokujin's Blessing, Indomitable Will,  Precise Memory, Sixth Sense, Subtle Observer, Daikoku's Curse, Discomfiting Countenance, Fukurokujin's Curse, Momoku,	Privilege or Hindrance is generally accepted in RPGs as a given (PCs are always exceptional, talents not withstanding), so it is very rarely used as a story axis. If an intellectual or social challenge were to become a story axis, that would require discussion.

Not Supported
There are other story axes or conflicts around which story can be generated. They do not need to have game backing.  However, none of these are required just because a game is set in a Japan-like world.  NONE of the conflicts of historic or modern Japan need to be included in your game just because they were sources of injustice or social tension historically.

The phrase "Rokugan is not Japan" is often used as an excuse by players who want to make Rokugan more extreme, more dark, more "other" than historical Japan.  This is misuse, because it's not respectful to the society that inspired it or people from those cultures. Depictions that exaggerate or emphasize the negative features of a group, a society, or an individual become caricature.  Even if that caricature has some basis in the complexity of real life.  But a depiction can portray a fair representation without highlighting every wrinkle, and a depiction of a game society does not need to drill in and make negative aspects of a fictional society a story axis, or even a story trace, in order to make a fantasy world.  A D&D campaign does not require witch burnings.  A D&D campaign focused on witch burnings starts to shift over into caricature.  And it is caricature that must be avoided.

At least that is my thoughts.