ＩＳＬＡＮＤ　ＯＦ　ＯＵＴＣＡＳＴＳ．

Welcome to the village.

It happens swiftly and without warning.

Perhaps you’re stepping into the threshold of your home after a weary day of travel when it happens. Perhaps you’re walking into a heavily crowded street or by yourself on a splintered sidewalk, mindfully avoiding the cracks. Maybe you’ve stepped into another room, a hall, or past a swaying curtain. Perhaps you’re merely walking over a line drawn in sand.

Wherever you are hardly matters, because you’ve crossed a boundary.

Gathering your bearings and following the signs of life will lead you to this quaint village entrance which is currently being guarded by a human and youkai. They only need to take one glance at you to know you’re one of the newcomers and easily step aside to allow you through. They won’t answer your questions and won’t ask why you’ve come – what matters is that you’re here. After all, there is meaning in everything.

Setsubun is a holiday harkening back to the days of the old calendar, and is celebrated in a variety of ways throughout the country. On the cusp of dark winter and early spring months, it is believed the supernatural world is closer, and demons, which represent misfortune and disease, need to be driven away.

Here in the village, youkai and human alike have found their own ways to enjoy the holiday, and you've landed yourself right on the tide of new beginnings.

"You’re just in time," one of the guards quips as you pass by. Just time for the beginning of what will be the kick off of a three-day festivity, the first of the year and one of many. You’re just in time to celebrate in the festival of Setsubun.

It’s a busy day in the village, what with the suddenly dour and quiet neighborhood suddenly bustling with life.

A zashiki-warashi appears before you, wrapped in a red kimono standing at the beginning of a footpath that leads deep into the forest, outside of the village. She beckons you closer and grins nearly ear to ear as she points at the sign she’s messily put together with her small hands.

FIND YOUR OWN LUCK!
She explains the rules with barely concealed excitement. You, brave soul, must venture into the woods and look for three children. One represents fortune, one represents hope, and the last represents spring, as the little wooden blocks around their necks will read.

The children are somewhere in the depths of the woods, patiently waiting for you to rescue them and bring them back to the village. If you bring them all back you’ll be sure to receive a marvelous sort of prize.

Sounds easy enough, right? It may very well seem that way but don’t forget that the forest is an entity all on its own, and there may be youkai who live outside the village that might want to play a nasty trick or two. One would hope they don’t have a hankering for the flesh of children – or yours, for that matter.

“Don’t worry, don’t worry.” One elderly tanuki waves at you. “The ‘children’ are just dolls. No one is in any real harm here.”

Zashiki-warashi interjects. “Huh? Of course they’re real. You told me to use real children.”

“What?” A nearby woman with a bandana responds. “No, Fumi. We all said that wasn’t a good idea. Don’t you remember? You didn’t actually put three real kids in the woods, did you?”

“Umm.” A disconcerting pause sits between the three of them. Zashiki-warashi shakes herself loose of the gravity of her error and points at you. “It’s fine! You’ll handle this, right?”

Perhaps you ought to take this matter into your own hands.

The good news is you’ll find that the three children really are just dolls, their limbs knobbed and wooden.

The bad news — they can become animated like real children, and they’ve scurried off much farther than anyone had anticipated. They are karakuri and they can giggle, run and simply disobey your requests, which may make rescuing them a little more difficult. You may be able to get them to comply with sweets or promises of games later on — really, you should come up with anything to get them and yourself out of danger.

a. ON THE BEAUTIFUL SEA

One may be found on a small boat anchored out at sea. The boat itself is still visible from the shore and you can either decide to swim or find another means to reach it. The doll will wait patiently for you to reach it, as will something else. An ominous black lump will slowly rise from the waves and a pair of lantern-like eyes will flash out at you, bright and blinding.

Umibozo's territory is not easily intruded on, as you soon discover once he begins kicking up the waves. Umibozo cannot be killed but he can be pushed away or even knocked unconscious where he’ll submerge himself once more into the sea. Test your mettle against him and rescue the wooden child.

b. IN HER CLUTCHES

One doll can be held captive by yama-uba. Yama-uba, also known as mountain hags are demons with the visage of old women. The old stories say that they will often kidnap young children from their beds and devour them, and unfortunately the wooden ones are also no exception. You’ll need to climb the mountain and find the yama-uba’s lair in order to save the doll and return it to the village safely.

The Yama-uba can be driven away by show of strength or by merely taking the child away from them and leaving them to their despair. They warrant some pity for their tortured existence, maybe even listening to one’s woes might convince them to give you the child back? Take extra care when you’re leaving the mountain, for something has been watching your interactions this entire time…

You are free to determine where the three dolls are on the island, search high and low! Just treat them well and bring them back safely for a worthy prize.

II. SHADOW OF THE PAST

New outsiders of the village will gradually feel something lingering at their backs, something like a gaze but not quite.

When they turn to look they will find nothing but their own shadow. Nothing too strange about that, but should you be seeing it even with the sky so overcast? And not just that but it seems to be moving independently, as though suddenly un-tethered to your form.

It truly is your own shadow, but now it’s got a mind of its own. In addition to that, you also notice your shadow has grown two new horns on its head and a mouth with a row of teeth. Those privy in the knowledge of familiars and spells have probably guessed correctly – you’ve been given a shadow demon. The reason?

You must take care of it for the duration of the three days of Setsubun.

The shadow demon represents your misfortunes and regrets from the past year and you either have the choice to nurture into something better or abandon it completely. The demon doesn’t mind one way or another but it will follow you wherever you go, like a bad memory made tangible. You have three options in handling your shadow:

a. HAVE A GOOD MEAL

The shadow’s mouth isn’t just there for show. Like most demons and spirits of this world it is inflicted with a perpetual hunger and will happily eat whatever you decide to feed it, though it seems to have a preference for sake & meat.

The shadow’s demeanor will remain mild and good-matured as long as you continue to feed it, but it won’t disappear or leave you alone for some privacy no matter how often you do. It’ll stick to you for as long as it can and upon the sun setting over the mountains on the third day of festivities it will finally disperse and leave you with a gift: a small bag of money.

b. AIR YOUR DIRTY LAUNDRY

You could actually do the shadow a favor and help it along to the other world by means of purification. The theme of entering the new year with luck and good faith will determine how quickly you can assist the shadow and acknowledging your past mistakes is the first step.

Any of the villagers will gladly explain the process: you first must admit one of your past sins to three people.

It matters not who the people are, only that there are three of them to hear your terrible secret. For each secret you speak, one paper talisman will appear in your hand.

Once you've collected three of them, head to the temple where Tsuda and his assistants will provide you one peach wood arrow to affix the talismans to in order to create a purification arrow to shoot your shadow with. It will not feel pain and will not react, other than shifting into something light and glinting. What shape do your regrets take? The flight of a bird, the scurrying of a rabbit? This time, the shadow only leaves you alone with your thoughts, the shape of your past made manifest.

c. BE CONSUMED

Too afraid to admit what you've done? Well, that shadow will continue to follow you even if you decide to ignore it entirely. Gradually, it becomes an entity of starvation, a distended void that will begin to feed.

The first thing it's going to try and eat? Yes, you. You gradually lose energy, and by the end of the third day, if you've continued to ignore the shadow, you will be utterly consumed in darkness. Better luck when you're next summoned.

III. FESTIVAL & FUKU-MAME

Of course with any kind of festival there’s sure to be rows of food stalls waiting to take on their next customer and this village is no exception. You’ll find that many of the homely occupants that will become your neighbors have already set up their own booths for the outsiders to explore. You can find snacks and other filling meals as well as games that both humans and youkai alike have come up with to make your visit more enjoyable. Keep in mind that most of the stalls will be open during the day and once the sun sets the vendors will leave their stations to join everyone else in the main event for the night. A certain ritual has become a hot topic as the evening transits into night and soon you may see both youkai and humans gathering in the central area of the village.

In the familiar spirit of celebrating Setsbun the village has come up with a peculiar way to incorporate soybeans into these rituals. An open space lit aglow with torches sits surrounded by the villagers and in the middle stands a raised platform with the resident monk Tsuda standing upon it. In his hands is a box of soybeans and for a few moments he stands silently before lowering his head. He mumbles something or another about how even the smallest hope may bring a blessed change upon this place… or maybe it won’t… maybe we’ll all fall into a sinkhole and that’ll be the end of us…and no one will find the corpses of this cursed island…

Someone in the crowd clears their throat. Tsuda pulls himself from his gloomy reverie and proceeds to toss the soybeans in the center of the empty area.

What happens next is a strange sort of pandemonium. Humans and youkai alike rush forward to snatch as many beans as they can, but this isn’t some simple kind of good-natured grabbing. People are pushing, shoving— some are even biting to get to these beans! Why is this?

The beans are known as fuku-mame, literally lucky beans, and in this place you need to take all the luck you can get. If your eyes are sharp enough you might find red soybeans in the mix — those are particularly lucky and it's advised to hold onto them if you’re able to.

IV. NIGHT PARADE OF ONE HUNDRED DEMONS

With various game's afoot and shadows to keep occupied, beans to catch and food to try– it's no wonder that the youkai of the village are appearing in full force and ready for fun. They’re all, quite literally, in good spirits and ready to indulge in any kind of event or even to have a lengthy conversation with you. Amongst the lively chatter is a particularly exciting anticipation from humans and youkai alike. On the final day, food and game stalls pop up once more and the residents begin to clear what appears to be a parade route. You have to stay until the very end, they say, we end Setsubun with a bang here.

As the night continues, the youkai become a little more animated than usual, louder and perhaps even a bit rambunctious. This seems to be what everyone was anticipating. They become rowdy and pushy, and even the calm and collected Matsu seems to be afflicted by this sudden rush of energy. Her antlers begin sprouting blossoms and shedding leaves with every step she takes, and it's only when she nearly swings her claws in the direction of a human does she realize something is wrong.

“Oh, dear.” Is all she says before turning to you.

The culminating energy in the air, the mingling of vitality which naturally exists in both humans and youkai is reaching an unknown critical level. The youkai are accelerating to a state of almost hysteria and in their blind glee they are dangerously close to tipping over the edge – the one that encourages them to consume or kill humans. The village chief is now turning to you, the outsiders, for help.

You must calm the youkai down before they break free of the barrier and wreak havoc on the island. The village chief, in her expertise, offers a few ways on how to accomplish this — for remember, you cannot maim or kill the residents on the island:

a. BE GENTLE

You can start off by offering the youkai soybeans to snack on — the ones you had gathered from Tsuda earlier in the day should be more than sufficient. And remember those red beans we mentioned? Those will be guaranteed to calm the youkai down significantly.

Make sure you have plenty on hand, for there are enough youkai that one box of beans could mean more than a handful of youkai assisted.

Don’t fret if the youkai are so far gone that they won’t even listen to you– just try and throw some beans in their mouth!

b. WELL, THAT DIDN’T WORK …

Another trick the chief offers is the hanging of lucky charms on a twine. She encourages you to cooperate with your fellow newly-arrived outsiders to find the ingredients for sardine head talismans.

Sardine-heads attached to a holly branch are a sure fire way to bring the youkai back to their senses. Hang them on an overhand (doorway, arch, etc.) and coax or taunt the affected youkai to step, or charge, under it.

Should any outsiders be familiar with the mystical arts of spirit/youkai placation, they are encouraged to use their own personal charms to bring the youkai back to their senses. Charms, spells, etc. Even a little knock on the back of the head should suffice for now, so long as the youkai can stay down…

As the night stretches on, so do the efforts of the outsiders to try and calm the youkai. Gradually, the youkai return to their senses. For many of them it's like coming down from a particularly pleasant high, and to show their appreciation they all gather at the center of the village, willing the residual energy in their bodies for one more dance.

Outsiders and humans alike will then bear witness to the Hundred Demon Parade – an apt celebration for the conclusion of Setsubun. Beasts and ghosts fall together in a practiced march that some might say will send a delightful yet eerie chill down your spine. The youkai clap together, each voicing their own jubilation in the forms of gleeful cackling or deep-throated growling. By the end of the night the village is once more at peace, with the ever present moon hanging high above it, the only outside witness to the night’s events.

LUCK CHANCE

Every holiday, players have a chance to roll for a ✨ rare youkai sighting ✨. Comment below to see how your luck is looking, and if you happen to encounter it, you may claim a bounty of luck for the duration of the holiday. Feel free to use this however you like! We're not your boss.

This month's youkai is a tsuchinoko, with a 1 out of 9 chance of appearing.

This youkai dwells somewhere outside the village. Its home is a mystery, but every once in a great while, it can be spotted slithering through the grass, or taking a drink from the rice fields ... Does an auspicious meeting await you on this year of the snake?

WELCOME TO KISHIMA

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• This is a sandbox community. There are no applications, and relatively few limits on what you can play.


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• Please use the FAQ for any general questions you may have, and the Mod Contact page for concerns.


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• Character powers are free game except, of course, for world-breaking ones. There is a mysterious protective magic that prevents PCs from killing or severely maiming NPCs and causing widespread destruction.

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