9:10 PM �82604� Thursday

This RPG is set in Heian Japan. Not Sengoku Japan.

First of all, the two eras are hardly the same. The Heian era lasted from 794 to 1192 AD. The Sengoku era I think is from 1467 to 1615 AD, when order was finally achieved.

Next, the difference is easily spotted if you look at the names. Why? Well, the Heian period was one of general peace, and the name itself means peace or tranquility, which was true. There was little to no dissension in the government or between the government and provincial governors. Now for the Sengoku Jidai: it pretty much translates to the Warring States Era. See the contrasts already? This is probably the more famous period of the two, seeing as a lot of anime and stories are set in it. There were daimyou [feudal lords] and the samurai most people think of today (minus the Bushidou since it was invented in the proceeding Tokugawa era) and the shogunate and all that jazz. Basically, unlike the Heian times, these years were nice and bloody and gory and death and�yeah.

I see that people are referring to Monogatari as a feudal Japan RPG. For most people who know Japanese history (or watch Inu-Yasha), they think of the Sengoku era, which might be the cause of a lot of the confusion in time periods. However, from what I gather from Genji, the Heian era was, in a way, feudalistic. After doing a little research, I think that historians don�t consider Japan feudal until the samurai usurp the Emperor�s power in 1185 when Minamoto no Yoritomo seized power from the imperials and established the Kamakura shogunate. However, in Heian Japan, Governors ruled separate provinces which were slightly autonomous (I ought to check this but I�m lazy), which somewhat resembles what a daimyou did, minus the military crap. So, I pretty much think that feudal - used loosely, of course - could be a proper term for this RPG.

Next, just to vent a bit, I�d like to know why the hell people don�t bother to read the goddamn rules for advertising. Everyday I�ve had to delete a post because they didn�t follow the guidelines set and hell, I don�t even read inside the message. And a majority is from people changing the size of the subject line. Ugh. Sweet Ra, people annoy me - what are they, illiterate?
Now, don�t go taking that remark the wrong way. I�m a highly irritable person. I get angry too easily. And when I get frustrated, there�s no gray, I either am not frustrated at all or want to bang my head against the wall, chop my left hand off, strangle someone, and so on. Now you know why I might blow up at you if you do something annoying.

There. Now that that�s out of the way, you can be less (or more, possibly) confused about the time in which this is set. If you�re confused, either ask me or research yourself. Remember: HEIAN not SENGOKU. The only thing Sengoku about this RPG is that clothes and weapons and junk from up to the Sengoku era are allowed, and that does NOT include guns because that�s just unrealistic. They were introduced to the Japanese in either the late 1500s or 1400s. My mind can�t remember which one it is.

I�ll stop ranting now.

�(. ._a) Kuro

Monogatari opened August 19, 2004.