#Tsuchigumo and the Oni of Rashomon
Contents
Fiction-Only + Canon (fc04-internal only). This document contains new sheets for two yoma. They are two NPCs without separate sheets in co, and these sheets follow the format of
co-11-appendix/co-11-18-monster-template.md. The two yoma are set as bosses one step below Shuten-doji.
#Why the Two Events Are Treated Together
Both are subjugation tales of Yorimitsu's side, and are shorter episodes than the Shuten-doji subjugation tale. They are treated together in a single document.
- Event A — Tsuchigumo: A giant spider-type yoma that appeared when Yorimitsu lay sick in bed.
- Event B — The Oni of Rashomon: The Ibaraki-doji whom Watanabe no Tsuna met at Rashomon.
The two events stand as a "side story" or "before-and-after episode" to the Shuten-doji subjugation. If Shuten-doji is the subjugation party's greatest enemy, then Tsuchigumo and Ibaraki are other yoma met within that party's daily life.
#Opening Fragment — The Sickbed and the Gate Tower
On one side a sick monk looked at the ceiling, and on the other side rain fell beneath the roof of Rashomon. The two events were far apart, but the scent of the night was the same.
The monk on the sickbed whispered, "I see threads on the ceiling."
The warrior nursing him raised his head. There was nothing. Yet on the monk's wrist a blue mark was forming, as if something unseen were coiled there.
That same night, beneath Rashomon a beautiful woman stood clutching a wet sleeve. "I have lost my way," she said. Watanabe no Tsuna, struck by the rain, looked at her hand. The hand was white and slender, but its shadow was longer than the wrist.
In both scenes the sword arrives late. What comes first is a sensation upon the body, an unseen thread, the wrongness of beauty.
The yoma of the Heian do not come tearing down mountains. They begin from the ceiling of a sick room and from beneath a rain-soaked gate tower — at a distance where a person cannot help but let their guard down.
#Event A — Tsuchigumo (土蜘蛛)
#Scent — The Monk at the Sickbed
Yorimitsu lies in bed with a fever. A fever that has not broken for days. The Four Heavenly Kings come to visit by turns, but none can help him. Medicine, divination, prayer — none have effect.
One night, into the bedchamber where but a single lamp is lit — a monk enters. He is of aged appearance, his robe in tatters, and he holds a single medicine bottle in his hand. "This is a medicine that works on fever," he says. "Please drink."
Yorimitsu looks at him. The Four Heavenly Kings are all asleep. No one in the bedchamber knows that the monk has entered.
Yorimitsu lays his hand for a moment on his own sword, "Hizamaru." Hizamaru is beside his pillow. He swiftly draws the blade — and cuts the monk. The blade does not touch substance. The monk vanishes. But — a single drop of black blood clings to the blade's tip.
Yorimitsu calls the Four Heavenly Kings. The five follow the trail of blood. The trail of blood leaves the bedchamber, crosses the garden, and leads to a small earthen storehouse at the garden's edge. Within the storehouse — a giant spider lies dying, its legs trembling. The length of its legs is the height of a person.
This is the Tsuchigumo (土蜘蛛) — "the earth spider."
#Core Data — Tsuchigumo
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Name | Tsuchigumo (土蜘蛛) — "the earth spider" |
| Alias | Yamagumo (山蜘蛛) — "the mountain spider" |
| Nature | A giant spider-type yoma. Powers of transformation and illusion |
| Era | Middle Heian (Yorimitsu's active period, around 1000) |
| Event | Yorimitsu's sickbed — transforms into a monk and offers medicine → is cut and its identity revealed |
| End | Subjugated by Yorimitsu + the Four Heavenly Kings |
#NPC Sheet — Tsuchigumo (Canon, fc04-internal only)
Canon (fc04-internal only). Uses the format of
co-11-appendix/co-11-18-monster-template.md. One step below Shuten-doji — Elite-rank ~ lower end of Lord-rank.
Tsuchigumo (土蜘蛛) — giant yoma, Elite-rank ~ lower Lord-rank
Wounds: 6 (3 + Physique 3)
Defense: 13 (carapace)
Energy: 12 (10 + Finesse 2)
Attributes: Courage +1, Finesse +2, Physique +3, Wisdom +1, Presence +1, Fate +2
Domination contribution: +2 (spider-web control)
Weakness: under a [Purify] or [Bright Light] effect, Defense -2 for 1 breath#Key Maneuvers
- Monk Transformation — transforms into human form. While transformed, attributes -1, the next blow is an automatic Critical Hit
- Giant Carapace — on a hit from an ordinary weapon, Wounds -1 (the carapace absorbs it)
- Multiple Legs — 8 legs. Can attack in 8 directions simultaneously in one breath
- Affinity for the Dank — within an earthen storehouse or cave, Energy +1 for that breath
#Signature — Spider Web and Poison
| Technique | Type | Energy | Effect Class | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Web Binding | upkeep | Energy 3 | Energy effect (action restriction) | "Binds" the Energy of 1 target PC — at the start of the next breath, Energy -1 (if the PC acts to free themselves, an additional Energy -1). Evade: 2d10+Physique+Hardiness ≥ 13 (hard). No change to Wounds. |
| Poison Shot (毒射) | Kata (Finesse) | Energy 4 | Wounds damage | 2d10+Courage+Unarmed Combat ≥ Defense. On a hit, 3 Wounds. An additional 1 Wounds on the next breath (poison lingers). |
| Monk Transformation | upkeep | Energy 2 | mental effect | Transforms into human form. Until the identity is detected, the PC's Perception checks -3. Receiving a blow exposes the identity. |
- Spider web = Energy effect (the PC cannot act)
- Poison / a blow = Wounds effect (the PC's Wounds decrease)
A notation like "spider web for PC Wounds -1" = wrong. A notation like "poison for PC Energy -1" = wrong.
#Event B — The Oni of Rashomon
#Scent — The Beautiful Woman of a Rainy Night
A certain spring night of Choho. Rain falls. Watanabe no Tsuna passes before Rashomon (羅城門), the southern main gate of the capital. He is a warrior of Settsu, on the night watch of the capital's outer wall by Yorimitsu's order.
Rashomon is the main gate of the Heian capital, but in the late Heian it has fallen to ruin. Those seeking to escape the rain would go inside it. As Tsuna passes by it — from behind him he hears the voice of a woman.
"Excuse me — the night road is dangerous, might you not see me home?"
Tsuna turns. A beautiful woman emerges from the shadow of Rashomon. Her robe is slightly wet with rain, and her hair is long and black. Her expression is courteous.
Tsuna hesitates. A beautiful woman who has come out of Rashomon in the dead of night — this is no ordinary matter. But her robe is neat, and her speech sounds like that of one of noble birth.
"Yes, let us go," he says.
She mounts the horse together with him. The moment her hand grips Tsuna's shoulder — the hand is not a person's hand. It is long, its nails like hooks, its skin black. Tsuna instantly draws his sword "Higekiri" — and cuts off that wrist.
The severed arm falls. The woman's form collapses in an instant — and turns into a giant oni. Its height is twice over. Its face is long, its mouth split. She — that one — flees up onto Rashomon with a scream.
Tsuna takes up the severed arm. A black arm. The identity of that one is — Ibaraki-doji (茨木童子), the one who had been Shuten-doji's deputy chief.
#Core Data — Ibaraki-doji
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Name | Ibaraki-doji (茨木童子) |
| Rank | Shuten-doji's deputy chief. One step below a Shuten-doji-class boss. |
| True Form | A giant oni (about 3 meters tall, black skin, split mouth) |
| Transformation | Beautiful-woman form — the figure of a Heian noblewoman |
| Era | Middle Heian (contemporary with Yorimitsu) |
| Place | Rashomon (羅城門) — the southern main gate of Kyoto |
| Event | Transforms into a beautiful woman to approach Tsuna → wrist cut off → flees → later transforms into an old woman to reclaim the arm |
#Aftermath — Recovering the Severed Arm
Tsuna took the severed arm and carried it home. A few days later — an old woman visits Tsuna's dwelling. The old woman claims to be Tsuna's foster mother, and asks, "Let me see that severed arm for a moment."
Tsuna, without suspicion, shows the arm. The moment the old woman takes the severed arm in her hand — her identity appears. It was Ibaraki-doji. She (he) recovers the severed arm and flees beyond Rashomon.
Tsuna cannot catch her again. Ibaraki does not appear again in the late Heian thereafter — where she went is unknown.
#NPC Sheet — Ibaraki-doji (Canon, fc04-internal only)
Canon (fc04-internal only). A one-step weakened variant of Shuten-doji (the co-08-02 sheet).
Ibaraki-doji (茨木童子) — deputy-chief-rank oni, lower Lord-rank
Wounds: 7 (3 + Physique 3 + Tough 1)
Defense: 14 (oni carapace)
Energy: 13 (10 + Finesse 3)
Attributes: Courage +3, Finesse +3, Physique +3, Wisdom +1, Presence +2 (when transformed), Fate +1
Domination contribution: +3
Weakness: highly vulnerable to an orthodox onmyoji's Barrier or Divine Treasure (Defense -3 vs Divine Treasure / Purify)#Key Maneuvers
- Beautiful-Woman Transformation — human form. Perception checks -3. For one breath, a -2 penalty to the PC's suspicion checks
- Monstrous Strength — on a hit without a weapon, 2 Wounds
- Regeneration — at the start of every breath, Wounds +1 (reabsorbing a severed body part)
- Master of Flight — in a familiar place like Rashomon, Energy +1 / flight distance +2
#Signature — Transformation and Recovery
| Technique | Type | Energy | Effect Class | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beautiful-Woman Transformation (precise) | upkeep | Energy 3 | mental effect (Wounds) | Forces a fascination check on one PC (Target Number: 2d10+Presence+Negotiation ≥ 13, hard). On failure the PC is [Charmed] or [Defenseless] for 1 breath (handled as an existing condition from co-11-02-conditions.md) — the PC's own evasion -3. No new condition is created. |
| Ambush Blow | Kata (Finesse) | Energy 3 | Wounds effect | A blow right after the beautiful-woman transformation. On a hit, 3 Wounds (the greatest effect of the transformation). |
| Regeneration | upkeep (automatic) | automatic | Wounds recovery | At the start of every breath, own Wounds +1 (reabsorbing a severed part). Separate from another PC's recovery. |
| Recovery of a Severed Part | upkeep | Energy 4 | mental effect | When a severed body part is in a PC's hands, transforms into another form (an old woman, a traveler, etc.) to approach the PC. The PC's suspicion checks -3. On a successful recovery, flees. |
- "Beautiful-Woman Transformation (precise)" = Energy 3 (caster) → the PC's own evasion -3 (a defense penalty against the next blow)
- "Ambush Blow" = Energy 3 → enemy Wounds -3
- "Regeneration" = own Wounds +1 (Wounds recovery)
- "Recovery of a Severed Part" = Energy 4 → information / mental effect (no change to Wounds)
#This Volume's Treatment — The Meaning of the Two Events
The two events are side stories to the Shuten-doji subjugation tale, but they show the diversity of Heian yoma culture.
- Yoma are everywhere — at a capital main gate like Rashomon, at Yorimitsu's bedside.
- Yoma transform — into a monk, a beautiful woman, an old woman. To see through the identity is a human's first trial.
- A named blade cuts a yoma — the two named blades "Hizamaru" and "Higekiri" are the decisive tools of the two events.
#Scenario Seed
When the PCs walk Heian Kyoto, near Rashomon or near an earthen storehouse — there is no telling what may occur. For detailed scenarios, see Seed 3 "The Tsuchigumo of the Mountain Village" and Seed 4 "The New Guest of Rashomon" of fc04-06-02-mountain.md.
#Tone — Two Swords of a Rainy Night
The rain of Rashomon. The spider web of the storehouse. Both events are archetypes of J-horror. Nearly every scene of later Japanese horror, mystery, and ghost tale — the beautiful woman of a rainy night, the giant spider, the black blood of the storehouse, the old woman's identity — is already all here in these two Heian episodes.
The weight of a single named blade. The moment Tsuna draws his sword at Rashomon, the moment Yorimitsu draws his sword from his bed — those two moments are the essence of the Heian subjugation tale.
#In One Line
"Yoma transform. A named blade cuts the transformation."
#References
#co — Sheet Format · Scenarios
co-11-appendix/co-11-18-monster-template.md— Monster sheet format (the format of the Tsuchigumo and Ibaraki sheets)co-11-appendix/co-11-14-enemy-catalog.md— Enemy catalog classificationco-08-gm-tools/co-08-02-monster-templates.md— Shuten-doji sheet (reference for the rank one step above Ibaraki)
#co — Masterworks
co-07-weapons/co-07-02-masterworks.md— Masterworks (Tsuna's "Higekiri," Yorimitsu's "Hizamaru")
#Within fc04
fc04-03-02-yorimitsu.md— Yorimitsu and the 4 Heavenly Kings (Tsuna's Higekiri signature)fc04-04-01-shutendoji.md— Shuten-doji (Ibaraki = a subordinate of Shuten-doji)fc04-06-02-mountain.md— Mountain scenario (Seeds 3 and 4)
#External Sources
- Konjaku Monogatari (今昔物語)
- Uji Shui Monogatari (宇治拾遺物語)
The spider web of the sickbed and the wrist of Rashomon are different knots of the same night.