#The Five Guardians — Those Who Keep the Treasures [Variant]

This document belongs to the front. Every being is a Variant of co-99-01 — used only when the table adopts it. The stat blocks follow the canonical co-08-02 yoma catalog format (Wounds, Defense, Energy, technique, special, Scent). Grade classification follows the co-11-14 enemy catalog.

How to read: strength is matched to treasure difficulty. The Dragon of the Five-Colored Jewel is shu-grade (high); the rest are sho-grade to ren-grade (mid/low). The reason all five noble suitors failed at all five is — some guardians were too strong, and some were in a place that could never be reached in the first place.

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#Data — The Five Guardians

#1. Dragon (龍) — Master of the Five-Colored Jewel

The strongest of the five guardians. A dragon who governs sea, sky, and rain. Five jewels of light (Five-Colored Jewel) are set in its neck. When Otomo no Miyuki led his retainers and approached by boat himself, the dragon did not even show itself and merely raised a storm to drive them off. It is not that a man captures the dragon — it is that the dragon lets the man live and sends him home.

Dragon (龍) — shu
Wounds 10, Defense 17, Energy 14
Might+4, Finesse+2, Physique+4
technique:
  [Water Dragon Coil 水龍捲](4, all enemies in target zone 2d10+Might(4) >= Defense / 2 Wounds + forced relocation) /
  [Thunderstrike 雷擊](3, 1 target 2d10+Might(4) >= Defense / 3 Wounds + paralysis(no action next breath)) /
  [Dragon Scales 龍鱗](defense, reserve1/improvise2, Defense +4 / underwater or in rain +6)
special:
  [Storm Sovereignty] — the battlefield automatically becomes a "storm/waterside" environment. Enemy ranged/flight -2. The body itself is exempt from the penalty.
  [Weather Dominion] — worsens the weather by 1 stage each lull (Clear→rain→storm). At the storm stage all dragon techniques +1 Wounds.
  [Five-Colored Neck] — only against a [Pierce N]/aimed-focus attack targeting the neck jewels, Defense -3 (weak point). Otherwise Defense stays the same.
Domination +1.5 + Grace aura

• Grade/classification: shu-grade (solo boss, equivalent to the co-11-14 "faction head axis"). 7~9 dan squad recommended.
• Negotiation axis: the dragon may not be an enemy. With a Negotiation backed by an offering, courtesy (禮), and a just cause (2d10+Grace+Negotiation >= 17), it may even lend the jewel — but a borrowed jewel carries the Dragon's Wrath curse.
• Weak point: Defense drops only against precise attacks aimed at the jewel itself ([Five-Colored Neck]). A frontal flurry almost never pierces Defense 17.

Balance caution (GM). Wounds 10 is the exceptional value of the shu-grade ceiling (the level of the sealed great-evil-oni Enmadoji) — ordinary shu-grade is 6~8 (Shuten-doji 8, Arahabaki 8, nine-tailed fox 7). Defense is 17 (upper-mid), so it is lower than Enmadoji (19), and cumulative damage is fast. Be sure to keep the 7~9 dan squad recommendation, and avoid a drawn-out fight without exposing the weak point ([Five-Colored Neck]). If it feels too heavy for a 7-dan squad, the GM can lower Wounds to 8 to use it on the Shuten-doji/Arahabaki line.

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#2. Fire-Rat (火鼠)

The source of the Fire-Rat Robe. A rat of fire said to live on the Mount of Flames beyond Tenjiku or Morokoshi (唐土, China). The fire on its body never goes out, and when it dies its hide becomes a robe that will not burn in flame. Small — but it cannot be caught within fire.

Fire-Rat (火鼠) — sho
Wounds 5, Defense 14, Energy 9
Might+2, Finesse+4, Physique+1
technique:
  [Flame Charge 火炎突進](3, 2d10+Finesse(4) >= Defense / 2 Wounds + "ignite" on the target(1 Wounds each breath until the next lull, extinguished with Medicine 15)) /
  [Spark Scatter 火粉散](2, all enemies in the same zone 2d10+Finesse(4) >= Defense / 1 Wounds + "flames" gimmick in the zone) /
  [Hiding in Ash 灰隠れ](defense, reserve1/improvise2, instantly enters concealment in a flames zone — evades the next attack)
special:
  [Fire Body 火身] — the body itself takes zero damage from flame/heat. Defense -2 against water (水)/ice (氷) attribute or Barrier/Exorcism [Incorporeal] attacks.
  [Flame Affinity] — in a "flames" zone all Fire-Rat techniques +1, and recovers 1 Wounds each lull.
Domination +4 (independent unit)

• Grade/classification: sho-grade (independent unit). 4~6 dan squad recommended.
• Core of the strategy: putting out the fire. Removing the "flames" gimmick with water/Barrier makes the Fire-Rat's recovery and bonus vanish together. Try to catch it head-on in the heart of the flames and — you fail, like Miushi's retainers.

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#3. Spiritual Being of Tenjiku — Guardian of the Bowl

A spiritual object from Tenjiku that guards Buddha's Stone Begging Bowl. The shadow of the Venerable Binzuru (賓頭盧尊者), one of the Sixteen Arhats — it appears before those who would carelessly carry off the bowl and tests their heart. It does not love fighting, but it is resolute toward greed.

Spiritual Being of Tenjiku (賓頭盧の影) — sho
Wounds 6, Defense 15, Energy 10
Wits+4, Grace+3, Finesse+1
technique:
  [Precept Shout 戒喝](3, all enemies in the same zone 2d10+Grace(3) vs enemy 2d10+Might / loser 1 Wounds + Energy -2 next round(shame)) /
  [Bowl Seal 鉢封](3, 1 target `[Incorporeal]` 2d10+Wits(4) >= Defense / 2 Wounds + cannot use weapons for 1 round(hands stiffen)) /
  [Fearlessness 無畏](defense, reserve1/improvise2, Defense +3 / grants immunity to Fear and charm)
special:
  [Test of Non-Possession] — all techniques +1 Wounds against greedy (覇)/malicious (魔) Three Ways and Six Hearts PCs. Does not attack compassionate (慈)/pure (虛) PCs (Negotiation only).
  [Shadow Body] — incorporeal ([co-08-02 incorporeal unified rule](../co/co-08-gm-tools/co-08-02-monster-templates.md#비실체-통일-규칙)). Normal hits with Novice-or-above Exorcism or an [Incorporeal] attack.
Domination +4 (independent unit)

• Grade/classification: sho-grade (independent unit, negotiable axis). 3~6 dan squad recommended.
• Negotiation first: the spiritual object guards the treasure; it does not fight. To the bowl's true owner (one who holds compassion) it opens the way of its own accord. Only when one approaches with greed does the shadow then rise.

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#4. Guardian of Horai — Warden of the Jeweled Branch

A crane (鶴) that guards the immortal land (仙境) where the Jeweled Branch of Horai grows — the messenger of an immortal sage (靈仙) who has lived a thousand years. To those who would break off the jeweled branch it shows illusions (幻) and makes them lose their way. Rather than fighting directly, it chooses to confuse and send them back.

Crane of the Immortal Land (仙鶴) — ren
Wounds 4, Defense 14, Energy 10 (wandering)
Grace+4, Finesse+3, Physique+1
technique:
  [Immortal Dance 仙舞](2, 1 enemy in the same zone 2d10+Grace(4) vs enemy 2d10+Wits / no damage, on defeat 1 round "beguilement"(can take no action)) /
  [Mist Rending 霧裂](2, grants a "thick mist" gimmick to the zone / enemy ranged/Perception -2) /
  [Circling 旋回](defense, reserve1/improvise2, flying evasion — automatically evades one melee attack)
special:
  [Lure of the Immortal Land] — the zone the crane is in is "environment: immortal land". A PC not of the Way of Mystery (眞) who fails 2d10+Wits >= 13 when relocating loses the way into an adjacent zone.
  [Thousand-Year Vigil] — it lets through those without killing intent (those who do not start a fight). It turns hostile only at the moment one tries to break off the jeweled branch by force.
Domination +1 (solo) / squad +3 (applies the same to a small group of 2~3, the co-08-02 standard squad is 3~4)

• Grade/classification: ren-grade (solo/small group, wandering Energy 10). 2~4 dan squad recommended.
• Core of the strategy: not combat but a straight approach (正攻). What breaks the Lure of the Immortal Land is not the sword but a clear heart (Way of Mystery 眞) or a Barrier/Prophecy. If you do not lose the way, the crane opens the way. (Wounds 4 is higher than the ren-grade standard of 2~3, a staging value for a "spiritual object not easily felled" designed to be resolved by lure/passage checks rather than combat.)

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#5. Things of Sea and Sky — Warden of the Koyasugai

The Swallow's Easy-Birth Shell is deep within the swallow's nest, or on the rocky shore at the mouth of the sea. What guards it is not one giant yoma but — the flock of swallows, the sea wind, and the slippery height itself. What killed Isonokami no Marotari was not a sword but the fall.

Things of Sea and Sky (海燕の群) — sotsu squad + environment
Wounds 1 (individual), Defense 12, Energy 8 (wandering, weak flock)
Finesse+3
technique:
  [Swarming Dive 群舞急降下](1 on Command, 1 target 2d10+Finesse(3) >= Defense / 1 Wounds + balance shake — triggers a fall check from a high place) /
  [Wingbeat Storm 翼風](2 on Command, all enemies in the zone balance check 2d10+Physique >= 13, 1 Wounds on failure)
special:
  [High Place] — the spot where the koyasugai is becomes "environment: high/slippery". On a failed balance check (2d10+Physique >= 13) each breath, a fall (2 Wounds + cannot act for 1 round). A Fumble is a fatal fall (GM discretion).
  [Flock's Edge] — a lone individual has Wounds 1 and scatters at once. The threat is the accumulation of flock and environment.
Domination squad (4~5) +2

• Grade/classification: sotsu-grade squad + environmental threat. A 1~3 dan squad is also possible, but the environment (the fall) is the main body.
• Core of the strategy: the enemy is not the swallows but the height. Prepare for balance/climbing (Unarmed Combat/Perception), or an information war that targets the times the swallows leave the spot (night, gale). Climb recklessly and — you fall, as in the original tale.

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#Table — The Five Guardians at a Glance

Design intent. The five guardians show the five textures of combat — there is frontal breakthrough (Dragon), environmental control (Fire-Rat), a moral test (spiritual object), mind/lure (Crane), and the environment itself (the fall). When one campaign runs the five treasure quests, the party naturally passes through five different challenges. The point that none of them is resolved by frontal combat is — the essence of the Kaguya tasks.

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You have seen both the treasures and the guardians. Last comes the one who set them all out, and the elixir burned at the very end. → 04 Kaguya and the Elixir of Immortality