Daigotsu

Daigotsu was the second son of Hantei XXXVIII, by Hantei Hochiahime, and half brother of Hantei XXXIX. He was the Dark Lord of the Shadowlands and founder of the Spider Clan.

Appearence
The Dark Lord was a tall man with long white hair, braided exquisitely into a complex topknot. He wore a kimono of black and silver, padded here and there with the light battle armor of a shugenja. His handsome young face was tinged eternally with amusement.

Bloodspeaker Cultists
In 1111 a cell of Bloodspeakers living near Otosan Uchi discovered the ancient prophecy hidden by the Scorpion Clan, stated that Fu Leng would arise when the Hantei was the last of his line in the Empire. The Bloodspeakers sought to quicken this apocalypse by kidnapping the Emperor's wife and children.

Hostages
While pregnant for the second time, Empress Hochiahime's caravan was attacked by the cultist, who took her hostage. They chose to slaughter the family ritually. While they prepared the ritual, A ronin named Yotsu snuck into their camp and exchanged his young son with Hantei Sotorii, in order to save the heir. When the Bloodspeakers prepared to sacrifice the boy, he spat in their faces and laughed. He told the cultist their plan had been ruined, so the Bloodspeakers saw no purpose in slaughtering their prisoners. They saw their worth as hostages as they fled for Unicorn lands. The idea of raising an Imperial heir to be a Bloodspeaker was quite appealing. The resulting child was Daigotsu.

Binding Ritual
During Daigotsu's birth, the Bloodspeakers performed an experimental ritual, used only two times before, that would bind his body and soul to an unnamed oni, combining the strongest qualities of both demon and man. It made Daigotsu's maho so potent, and it would allow to possess other bodies.

Omoni
The first subject who undergoed this ritual was a child named Omoni, and it was markedly less successful. The summoning failed and instead of an oni Omoni was bound to the unquiet spirit of a bakemono.

Goju Kyoden
The second attempt was performed upon the child of Yotsu, who eventually grew to become Goju Kyoden, the future yojimbo of Daigotsu.

Exiled in Jigoku
The cultists could not hide a child of Hantei for long. They performed another ritual and Omoni, Kyoden, and Daigotsu were all physically exiled into Jigoku. It let the last Hantei to Sotorii, and the prophecy was fulfilled in the Second Day of the Thunder in 1128.

Returned to Ninggn-do
Nearly two decades later the same cult of Bloodspeakers, now led by Iuchi Shahai, summoned them to Rokugan again.

Engineering the Return of Fu Leng
In 1150 Daigotsu came to Volturnum, together with Omoni, Kokujin and his bodyguard Kyoden. They travelled to the Oblivion's Gate in the hope to find how to travel between Realms. Daigotsu wanted the return of Fu Leng to the mortal realm, Ningen-do, but the gate was completely out of magic for this purpouse.

They met the Oracle of Thunder, known as Tonbo Toryu when mortal, who was guarding the Gate. Daigotsu took advantage on the obligation of the Oracles to answer one question to any mortal who requested it. Toryu told Kyoden that the Tsuno mastered the travels between Realms.

City of the Lost
Daigotsu oversaw the start of construction of the City of the Lost in 1150. He and Kokujin mused upon their future plans, and Daigotsu even offered the mad ise zumi a place in his city. Kokujin refused however, claiming he had more pressing matters to attend to back in Rokugan.

""I have studied the Tsuno magic. All the Spirit Realms are one. All I need do is find the proper passages and Fu Leng will be restored to his proper place at the heart of Jigoku. We could even send him into the Celestial Heavens if we wished.""

- Daigotsu

Alliance with the Tsuno
In 1157 Daigotsu summoned Tsuno Nintai to his presence in the Temple of the Ninth Kami. Nintai explained that travel between Realms was easy, but safe travel was not. Links between Ningen-do, the Mortal Realm, and Tengoku, the Celestial Heavens, were in every place where the Oracles of Light worked their magic, as the Steel Throne. To link with Jigoku any tainted place was enough. To travel to Meido, the Realm of Waiting, from any place where anybody died.

Creating the Onisu
Daigotsu found Shokansuru, and with Tsuno Nintai and Omoni the Onisu were created from the raw stuff of Yume-do, the Realm of Dreams.

Kitsu Okura's Journals
Nintai claimed Daigotsu's aide to reach Kitsu Okura's journals. The tainted Lion Clan Champion had researched this kind of travel, and even he was able to plant the noble heart of a shiryo within an oni, and redeemed its dark spirit. Daigotsu agreed, but requested the attack of the Tsuno in their hated enemies, the Lion Clan, should wait until the rest of the dark forces were prepared to attack together.

Anchor between Realms
Nintai also told the obligation to have an anchor, an item which focused the energies on the Realm to be travelled, something that once belonged to the one Daigotsu sought. The Dark Lord intention was to find the Porcelain Mask of Fu Leng for this purpouse.

Return of Fu Leng: New Way
In the meeting Daigotsu realized the possibility to send Fu Leng to Tengoku, instead to posses again a human body, as a revival of the failed return of Fu Leng in 1128.

The Gaijin
Daigotsu recruited the undead gaijin captain Garen, releasing him and his vessel, the Revenant, from seven centuries of never-ending warfare on the Sea of Shadows. Garen gave to the Dark Lork the Porcelain Mask of Fu Leng, that was in a collapsed shrine, beneath a rice field in the Crane lands near a village that was stormed.

Achieving the Dark Oracle of Earth
Daigotsu wished to bind Yasuki Nokatsu to his service. Nokatsu was captured, imprisoned and tortured for nearly twenty years before he finally acquiesced in 1158, pledging his life and loyalty to Daigotsu, becoming the Dark Oracle of Earth.

Kyoso no Oni Banished
Kyoso no Oni treated Daigotsu as another outsider to its supremacy in the Shadowlands. The powers of Daigotsu were so great that Kyoso was banished to Jigoku, out of the mortal realm.

Lord of the Shadowlands


Daigotsu proclamed himself as the Lord of the Shadowlands, and backed up his claim with his achievements. In 1158 he began construction of the Wall of Bones with tainted Kaiu Engineers, and the Temple of the Ninth Kami was tended by dark monks gathered after Volturnum.

Death of Toturi I
Daigotsu sent the Onisu of Betrayal, Fushin, to kill Toturi I when he was travelling to Ryoko Owari.

Shahai and the Dark Daughter
Dark Daughter of Fu Leng served as Daigotsu's second. Shahai was a member of Daigotsu's former order, the Bloodspeakers, who arrived at the Temple of the Ninth Kami to join him. Daigotsu offered Shahai to be the third in rank, but Shahai would only accept being his equal. The Dark Daughter was killed by Shahai and she took the vacant position.

An Oni's Fury
Daigotsu sent the Onisu of Desire, Yokubo to kill the strongest of the Wind. He considered that Hantei Naseru's heart was filled with betrayal, Toturi Tsudao was filled with regret and fear and Akodo Kaneka's ambitions drove him to destroy wantonly. That left Toturi Sezaru, who was attacked but survived and fled.

Carpenter Wall Falls
Daigotsu ordered an attack on the Kaiu Wall from both sides, and used unknown magic to transport a portion of his forces beyond the wall. Hida Kuroda, the Crab Clan Champion, faced and was killed by Kyofu, the Onisu of Fear, below the Carpenter Wall. The Sixth towers was completely taken, and renamed the Tower of Fear.

Meeting with Kuon
Daigotsu offered a meeting to the next Crab Clan Champion, Hida Kuon, in the fallen tower of Kaiu Wall. The Dark Lord offered to return Hida Kuroda's corpse if the Crab surrendered the wall. Kuon raised his tetsubo against Daigotsu in answer, and Kuni Kiyoshi was forced to help Kuon to flee.

Fall of Otosan Uchi
To prove the power of the Shadowlands, Daigotsu engineered the Fall of Otosan Uchi, attacking the Imperial City from the sea. Knowing that the city would be impossible to hold, he sought only to leave it in ruins and watch the Great Clans blame one another for failing to defend it. Once the Forbidden City was under his control started a ritual with the Steel Throne and raised the wards that only allowed the Hantei family to enter it, Daigotsu traveled to Meido, where he used the Porcelain Mask of Fu Leng to force Emma-O to release Fu Leng's spirit. Fu Leng then began an Invasion of the Celestial Heavens, while Daigotsu returned to Rokugan so that he could protect Fu Leng's temple in the City of the Lost. Arriving back in Otosan Uchi, Daigotsu battled with Toturi Tsudao losing his right hand before taking a portal back to the Shadowlands.

Once safely back in the City of the Lost, Omoni replaced the lost hand with one the Flesh Sculptor created. The loss of Goju Kyoden, who had been killed by Matsu Nimuro, enraged the Dark Lord and the Onisu were unleashed to search destruction in the homes of the Four Winds until the death. Daigotsu planned to visit the Shadow Dragon to recover Kyoden's soul so that it could be restored.

Kuroda and Kyofu
After the death of all of the Onisu in their vengenful raids, Daigotsu decided to not take them back because the ritual was long and extremely taxing, but he took another way with the empty shell of Kyofu. Daigotsu summoned the undead Hida Kuroda and put him on Omoni's hands even against the Crab's will. The half-goblin combined the undead with the Onisu in a single body, and Kyofu was again alive, but never the same as he was before.

Visions
Almost a year in advance of his death, Daigotsu had learned from the Dark Oracle of Void the circumstances of his death. Knowing the Lost would not stay united without him, Daigotsu gave a portion of his soul to the Shadow Dragon for safe keeping.

Death and Resurrection
In 1160 the Four Winds marched upon Daigotsu, and through the sacrifice of Toturi Tsudao he was killed. A year later, in 1161, his bodyguard, Goju Kyoden, committed seppuku to sacrifice his soul to the Shadow Dragon to resurrect Daigotsu. The vengeful Fortune of Death Emma-O retained part of Daigotsu's soul, which purified Daigotsu of his Taint and left him unable to call upon Fu Leng's blessing. Other men would have leapt at this chance to escape the Shadowlands, but Daigotsu's faith in Fu Leng was not diminished. Daigotsu chose instead to hide his "weakness" to all but his closest followers and resume the leadership of The Lost.

The Third Rise of Iuchiban
Seeking help in restoring her lover's powers, Shahai opened the Tomb of Iuchiban and released Iuchiban in the year 1165. Instead of assisting Shahai, he betrayed her and captured the City of the Lost, ousting Daigotsu after a ferocious battle. In one fell swoop, Iuchiban had gained control of Daigotsu's city, Daigotsu's armies of the Lost and even Daigotsu's sword, Akkuai-uo, which through a strange twist of fate gave Iuchiban control over Omoni and his goblins. The Goju stood back and decided not to interfere in the struggle, but the Chuda family immediately swore fealty to Iuchiban.

In order to defeat Iuchiban, Daigotsu traveled across the fringes of the Empire to the Burning Sands, where he entered an alliance with the Kolat. He also had one of his remaining loyal followers, Katsu, undergo the ritual that created Iuchiban and became a khadi. Daigotsu's soul was retrieved from Emma-O by a deception from Daigotsu Hoturi, giving Daigotsu his full power. Daigotsu then moved to retake the City of the Lost while Iuchiban was away, managing to regain control of much of his forces, his sword and his lover Shahai.

When Isawa Sezaru, Hida Kisada, Matsu Aoiko and the combined Crab and Lion forces besieged Iuchiban's citadel in Otosan Uchi, Daigotsu played an instrumental role in the Bloodspeaker's defeat by having Katsu sever Iuchiban's ties with his followers, giving Sezaru time to destroy the Hidden Heart of Iuchiban so the Bloodspeaker could be slain.

Post-Iuchiban Leadership
Daigotsu made many unusual moves in the time since Iuchiban's defeat, the most major and controversial of which was sending Daigotsu Soetsu to the court of Toturi III to petition for the right to become a Great Clan. The resulting political, philosophical, religious and moral issues involved with his petition caused a flurry of debate between the Clans and led Toturi III to travel the Empire in secret seeking enlightenment.

Daigotsu recently came into the possession of Rosoku's ashes, which Shadowlands agents stole during Rosoku's funeral.

Spider Clan
Sometime in 1168, Daigotsu and the Lost left the City of the Lost and infiltrated Rokugan. They named themselves the Spider Clan.

Mass Assassinations
In 1170, Daigotsu launched dozens of assassinations across the Empire. The assassinations caused the deaths of many important people including Moshi Amika, Tamori Shaitung, Ikoma Korin, Tamori Nakamuro and Kaiu Umasu.

Birth of the Heir
Recently his long time lover Shahai gave birth to Daigotsu's first child, a son, named Daigotsu Kanpeki.