[Resources] Kosei

[Vathe]

[The following is an in-work document of Kosei, the setting of a potential oriental-themed 'warring states and woodland spirits' game. The system assumed is Pathfinder 2e.]

Core Fantasy: The core fantasy of games in Kosei is samurai-and-spirits. Players can involve themselves in the honorable and shady dealings of urban Kosei, explore the disparate, sword-and-spirit troubled villages, or plunge headlong into the source of the odd: the cursed forest of Onimori.

---

Game Restrictions: Due to the genre and themes, I want to keep Kosei comparable to a fantasy Japan. Kosei is isolated from the rest of the world and characters that don't fit the theme simply won't be there.

Listed below are creatures and classes that are seen as Native to, or accepted by, the people of Kosei.Kojin.

• Dominant Ancestry: Kojin Humans
• Common Ancestries: Before their empire fell, the Kojin people were close to goblinoids. When they fell from grace, many of their old allies went with them.
  
  The hobgoblin warrior culture has had a specifically pronounced impact on the Kojin. Most see hobgoblins as true brothers.Goblinoids and The bond between orcs and the Kojin were weak in their old land, but when both found themselves stuck in Kosei, those tensions died. Mostly.
  
  Orcs don't number more than 5% of the population, but they're considered kinsmen by most.Orcs.
• Uncommon Ancestries: Dwarves are an exceedingly rare sight in Kosei, but hold great respect amongst their people.
  
  Most 'Kojin' dwarves have a withered view of clan tradition compared to most settings; which may be explained later.Dwarves, Kitsune are an anomalous people, similar to tieflings, but are instead seen as blessed by the spirits of nature.
  
  The fox is the most influential spirit in Kosei. Its blessing shows up from time to time, usually to parents who have pleased it in some way.Kitsune, Kobolds are not Kojin, but they appear often enough that the populous has begrudgingly accepted them.
  
  They are the only people that arrive in Kosei with frequency. However, none know why or how.
  
  (All Kobolds that come to Kosei suffer amnesia. It's universal, so they know something caused it, but they don't know what.) Kobolds, Kosei is a land of spirits. From their influence, Leshy appear from time to time. Most exist outside of civilized structures, but many druid enclaves make pacts and friendships with them.
  
  Druids do much good in the land. From this, Leshy have earned a similar reputation.Leshy, Humans who arrived in Kosei and know little of the land. The Kojin people have very distinct features, so any outsider can be spotted easily, and will have that held against them.
  
  Most human outsiders are either killed on sight, or enslaved. Non-Kojins are the most reviled people in Kosei, and must do much to earn the trust of its people.Non-Kojin Humans, and Vishkanya are the most secretive of Kosei's inhabitants. Many think they were there from the beginning, while others believe the Vishkanya are children of the reclusive snake spirit. It's only the hidden Vishkanya elders that know the truth.
  
  Vishkanya hold a nebulous place in society for this: not distrusted, but not revered like Kitsune.Vishkanya.

• Common Classes: Barbarian, Bard, Druid, Fighter, Monk, Ranger, Rogue
• Uncommon Classes: Champion, Cleric, Sorcerer, Witch, Wizard
• Outright don't work with the setting.Anathematic Classes: Gunslinger, Inventor

---

History

Hundreds of years ago, the people of Kosei once belonged to a great empire in a land called Kettai. In an event called the Great Betrayal, their empire was lost and the people of Kosei were thrust from their homeland. It is believed that their brothers betrayed them, siding with a human kingdom to the south and killing their imperial line. The people called Kojin today are those who fled east, finding a new homeland on an isolated peninsula beyond a great and terrible forest.

After learning of their new land, it didn't take long for the new people of Kosei to seek out a proper leader again. It was their way.

Their attempts were civil at first. The spread-out villages tried to choose a leader among the men that had taken control, sending messengers to their new capital in Unai. But, mistakes were made. Messengers said more than they should have, fights broke out over old-empire loyalties, and sworn enemies were made. In an attempt to stop the hostilities, the peninsula was divided into clear provinces with their own lords.

The peace did not last long. New, aspiring men have risen in the years since, waging wars with one another and staining the land red. The original provinces have warped, fallen, and been renamed countless times. Some have attempted to return and right the Great Betrayal, only to find the forest their ancestors had passed now impossible to manage. A curse rides its branches, its bed runs rife with evil spirits, and from the tree-line has come a beautiful and terrible flowerbed that threatens to overtake all of Kosei.

Tensions have risen to a great crescendo. Nearly every province stands in open war, fighting for honor and land as the threat of the flower wall looms closer and closer.

---

Basic Geography

The land of Kosei is a temperate region comprised of a lengthy peninsula that meets the land at its south-western edge, and a series of small islands to its north and east. Only twenty percent of the land in Kosei has been settled, with the dominant terrain outside these pockets being mountainous wilderness. Combined, the peninsula and islands of Kosei have a total landmass of around 90,000 square miles.

---

Provinces: Heiki

Heiki Province rests on the south eastern coast of Kosei and prides itself as the most populous province. Despite being a participant in nearly all wars that border it, and some to terrible conclusions, Heiki has always managed to keep its core city of Unai. Some lay this at the feet of the Hydra-like clan that leads Heiki. Others see it as the work of the warrior monks of A way of life based on maintaining one's inner strength and spiritual purity. Ore is a common spiritual practice in Kosei, but isn't tied to any specific god.Ore.

Heiki is currently at war with the province of Yono.

Points of Interest:

• The largest city in Kosei. Unai has been ruled by a powerful, many-headed clan for generations, making it as close to 'stable ground' as Kosei has.The City of Unai
• A coastal village once renowned for its relationship to Azari. For this, Kyo is seen as the ascendant lord's prize.Kyo, Port of Swords
• A sprawling den of ronin, thieves, and courtesans. Heihei is known for its entertainment districts and constant duels.Heihei, Town of Grudges
• The first temple of Ore. It surrounds the fabled stone of its namesake, where Idra's enlightenment was found.The Stone of Idra

Provinces: Jinra

Jinra Province encompasses a lengthy sliver along the south-western edge of Kosei, with a veritable sea of pale lotus running along its western border. The people of Kosei once held white lotus powder as a miracle drug, prized for its sedative effects. However, the pale strain that has come from Onimori has become a grave danger. It spreads like a weed, consuming the land, and its scent alone can induce sleep.

Without a mask or moon powder, attempting to pass through the flower wall is effectively suicide.

Due to this, Jinra is widely avoided; even by the province wars. The land has little worth taking and killing its people would only further the spread of pale lotus. Instead, the people of Jinra have been left alone, bolstered only by refugees and criminals, whose only respite is the ever-accepting hand of the pale province.

Points of Interest:

• The Villages of A village of scholars and scoundrels. Notable for its invention of moon powder.Zabu and The nearest village to Onimori. Manned only by the masked gardeners and their warden.Rikikke
• Beyond the flower wall lies Onimori; a forest rife with unknown spirits and demons.
  
  As if in concert with the pale lotus, the boughs of Onimori are plagued with a curse.The Accursed Forest of Onimori
• A meeting place for druids of the untamed order. Unless you know it's there, it isn't.Sugisarashi

Provinces: Yono

...

---

The Curse of Eternal Sleep

The Curse of Onimori is meant to limit adventures within the forest, similar to how old-school D&D relied on torches to investigate dungeons. Anything that causes a player to gain the Examples: pale lotus, being dropped to 0hp, sleep spells, ect.unconscious condition will invoke the curse's death-like state. There are only three ways to end the curse: using a dose of moon powder, casting certain restorations spells, or physically carrying the victim back to civilization.

As such, the entirety of Onimori should be treated as a dungeon.

---

Editor's Notes   August 14th Initial post. August 19th Altered History: great betrayal, advent of Onimori, basic rework. Changed Vishkanya and Leshy info. Explained the effects of white lotus. Added the towns of Kyo and Heihei. August 20th Removed blocky town summaries, added points of interest. Added Sugisarashi and the Stone of Idra. Edited the flavor of Unai to feel more safe. Removed all named NPCs. Not needed at this stage. Added an explanation of Onimori's Curse. Differentiated white and pale lotus. Too confusing.