It has often been said that the mortal realm reflects the spirit realm, and in many ways it does.
There is a clear hierarchy that is similar to that of Rokugan, or perhaps it is better to say that Rokugan’s hierarchy is reflective of the Celestial hierarchy. In any event, nearly every aspect on Ningen-do is reflected in the other realms. One of those aspects is the war between Jigoku and Tengoku.
On Ningen-do, this is seen in the endless war between the Empire of Rokugan and the Shadowlands. The armies of the demons and Lost swarm against the Empire and a thin line of Samurai holds them off so the rest of the world can sleep safe and sound, play in their courts, and enjoy their life. So important is this duty that a great wall, the Carpenter Wall, was built to protect the Empire and the mighty Crab clan was charged with the duty of protecting the Empire.
In Tengoku and Yomi, there is a wall, too, and a great war. But like anything else in the Heavens, it is bigger, better, and more impressive than anything seen on the mortal world. The wall stands two miles and more high, studded with mighty battlements, atop a cliff impossibly tall. Manning it are part of the Heavenly Celestial Legions, an army made up of all the greatest heroes of the Empire, famed samurai, great shugenja, enlightened monks, and master strategists, all of whom are led by the immortal servants of the Sun and Moon; minor gods and spirits that live in the Court.
Far, far below this wall lie Jigoku and the terrible spirit realms of the underworld. They swarm and push, fight and struggle every day to surmount that wall and storm the Heavens. So far, no demon has ever pushed past the wall, though a few have come close. Most notably, the closest the assaults have ever come was during Fu Leng’s attack on Tengoku. So many soldiers and gods were pulled from the wall to fight back that threat that the demon army very nearly pushed across.
Which thrust was the feint and which the truth is still up for debate among many in the Celestial courts; although most suspect the forces of hell were using each other as a feint. Perhaps if they had been unified…
In any event, one of the Principle Oni Lords of these attacks has been Daikirai-Hiko, the Demon Prince of Hate and Fury. He is to Oni Lords what Kakita, Mirumoto, and Matsu are to Rokugan.
The Oni of the Mortal realm look to him with a reverence that borders on outright worship, and mortal scholars are still debating whether he is “just” a demon or if he is a God in truth.
Daikirai-Hiko stands at nearly thirty feet tall with skin the color of fresh blood. Massive horns made of pure obsidian jut from his skull and gleam like diamonds. His eyes are solid orbs of opal and glow with a fierce heat. His breath is a noxious cloud of toxic gas that can instantly etch steel, rusting it within minutes. The maw that splits his face is filled with row upon row of jagged shark’s teeth and are normally filled with the torn flesh of those he slays. His massive arms usually clutch a bone and bronze tetsubo. His legs are hairy, but still that of a man, and wrapped about his body is a wondrous suit of armor. Some say that his arms and armor were forged for him by a dread immortal smith, some say he is that dread smith; no one knows for sure.
Inside of combat, those few immortals that had the misfortune of fighting him have found that he is the physical embodiment of rage and fury. He moves like a whirlwind of death, slaughtering everything that crosses him. Wounds, if he receives any through his marvelous armor, only seem to make him angrier and more spiteful. It is that armor that has kept him alive for so long; it is rumored to be the best armor forged by the forces of Hell, and given the durability of it few contest that claim.
His mighty tetsubo is also worth mention, as aside from his armor it is the greatest item he owns.
Forged from the bones of a lesser dragon, it is bound in bronze strips taken from monasteries and temples that have become corrupted and fallen. Each strip is a testament to the growing power of hell in tainting and subjugating the world. Temples and shrines that have become sites of battles, crimes, taint, terror and death each have one or more temple icon taken to Jigoku by kansen and added to this club. Daikirai-Hiko claims that when it is entirely sheathed in bronze, he will use it to topple the cliffs of Heaven and destroy the Celestial wall. From that rubble-made ramp, he will lead the charge into the home of the Gods and bring about the victory of hell. The scholars of the Heavenly Court are concerned about that club, and they have cautioned for it to be taken from him if possible. Whether or not the club can truly bring down the cliffs, it is a powerful tool and one that should be removed if at all possible.
Outside of combat Daikirai-Hiko is a master tactician and he has been the principle architect of the war against heaven for the last few eons. It is certain that he has been fighting the war since he was born, fully formed from the stuff of malice and hate that rests in the deepest reaches of Jigoku. He himself claims that that pool is the raw hate-stuff formed by Onnotangu’s hatred for his children and jealousy of his wife. This is probably true as Daikirai-Hiko’s only goal has been to destroy the Heavens and spread the despair of Jigoku across the cosmos.
His plans are always long term, for he knows that this war will probably not end before the next eon is over, and he usually puts forth several layers to his plans. Feints and counter feints are his norm, and any attack is probably a ruse to draw strength away from another region of the Celestial defenses. To be fair, this has been a hard earned set of skills, and were only learned from fighting the best men, women, and gods that the Heavens can field. His opponents are admiring of his ability to learn and change, but derisive of the time it has taken him to do so. So, while Daikirai-hiko is a skilled general, it should be said that he is skilled for an oni. When compared to the skill and finesse of the divine and human (or formerly human) generals such as Sun Tzu, Akodo, Moto Tsume, Ikoma Sume, Hida Kisada, Hida Tsuneo, or Bayushi Shoju, Daikirai-Hiko comes up wanting. For the most part, he will keep trying the same tactics over and over again applying ever more force and power until he is certain that he needs a new tactic. This may take hundred years, and a thousand times a thousand lives, but he will change. The same can not be said of the other Oni Lords.
How to Use Daikirai-Hiko
This is a monster that the PCs can never defeat; he has killed lesser gods and the best heroes of all time. His armor makes him nearly impervious to all damage, and his weapon is already strong enough to instantly slay immortals. To top it off, he spends the vast majority of his time striding about the fields of Jigoku rallying his troops for another assault on the Celestial Wall. There are times, however when he comes to the Mortal world. Sometimes this is because he is foolishly summoned by someone seeking power, sometimes the Oni themselves need a hand and will give some of their own power to him.
When he does arrive on the mortal plane, he never comes in his full power; he always sends an aspect or spawn, and the very fact that his spawn is the match for many other full demons should be warning enough to not go seeking his full form. Even in this lesser form, his attention is needed elsewhere, so he rarely stays long; invariably he is gone within a few hours at the utmost and seldom stays longer than a few minutes.
Thus fighting him should be a group of PCs trying to destroy his spawn or stop one from being summoned. Very similar to a good Call of Cthulhu adventure, he should be used more as a set piece for low-level PCs, and objective to be prevented. For mid-level PCs he should be used as an
endurance fight, defeating him means simply outlasting him (perhaps by running about and forcing him to chase them, perhaps by standing and taking his blows). High-level PCs can expect to stand toe-to-toe with the Spawn and try to foil him directly.
Alternatively, if the PCs are ever in the Spirit realms an entire adventure could be designed around stealing his armor, without it he is much weaker, perhaps weak enough for one of the Celestial Legions to stop. Maybe his club is nearing completion and the PCs must storm the forge where it is being added to and they will remove those strips (or more). Maybe they find him sleeping and introduce a potion to his diet that will make him sleep for a long time or remove his memory (perhaps forgetting some of the tactics he has learned?).
Daikirai-Hiko Spawn
Air: 7 Earth: 7 Fire: 7 Water: 7
Rolls when Attacking: 10k10+10+1 Free raise (Tetsubo) Rolls for Damage: 7k7
TN to be Hit: 60 (Armor = +25, already figured into the TN.) Wounds Per Level: 12
Shadowlands Taint: 10
Skills: Battle (Siege) 9, Lore: Jigoku 10, Lore: Oni 9, Lore: Tengoku 5, Lore: Yomi 6, Heavy Weapons (Tetsubo) 10, Know the School: All Existing Schools 2, Know the School: Hida, Akodo, Matsu, Kakita, Shiba, Mirumoto, Hiruma 5, Theology (Apocalypse, Fortunes, Gods) 3, Shadowlands Lore 5.
Special: Carapace 9, Invulnerable, Oni Qualities, Fear 7. Corruption Breath: The spawn may breathe a cloud of corruption that instantly rots silk, leather, and most cloth. Metal weapons will be rusted and will lose 1k0 damage in the first round, 0k1 in the second round, and another -1k1 in the third round. If this reduces the DR to 0k0, the weapon is destroyed. Metal armor will lose 2 points of protection each round for three rounds, if this reduces the protection to 0, the armor is destroyed. This attack takes up all his actions for the round, and he may not breathe again for three more rounds. Wound Rage: Instead of taking wound penalties, Daikirai-Hiko and his spawn instead gain a bonus to all attacks, damage, and initiative equal to the current wound penalty (Down and Out equal a +30 to those Rolls). Blinding Rage: When raging Daikirai-Hiko reduces his TNtbH by the same amount to a minimum of 5 TNtbH. Shadowlands Powers: As many as the GM wants. For a typical Spawn, 5 Minor, 3 Lesser, and 3 Greater is solid.