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Onnotangu (TCG) 
Onnotangu (TCG) 
Born: Unknown 
Died:
Parents: Three Nameless Gods 
Spouse: Amaterasu 
Children: Hantei
Akodo
Bayushi
Doji
Hida
Shiba
Shinjo
Togashi
Fu Leng
Ryoshun 
Titles: Lord Moon
People

Onnotangu, Lord Moon, was a God of the Rokugani pantheon. [1] While the Moon represented the Chaos, his counterpart the Sun represented the Order. [2] Lord Moon was distant, cold, powerful, jealous, and easily angered. His domain was the night, the dark ocean depths, and things unseen until they were named. [3] Most Rokugani saw Onnotangu as a perilous figure: not actually evil, but evocative of sin and disorder, and dangerously volatile. [4]

Creation[]

Onnotangu existed after the Nothing, who through fear, desire, and regret, was fragmented into ten thousand shards of reality, which coalesced into the jealous gods and the warring elements. [5] In the beginning the world was formless and fluid. Eventually, the lighter parts separated out and became the Heavens, and the heavier parts sank down and became the earth. Then the Three Nameless Gods appeared, and they saw that while Heaven and earth had been formed, everything within them was still wild and unshaped. They created two gods, and sent them out to give shape to the world. [6]

Moon and Sun[]

The two gods kissed the earth, and named it. Now that it was named, the earth was filled with life, and new gods and beasts appeared. The two gods also gained names: the man became Onnotangu, the Moon, and the woman became Amaterasu, the Sun. Attending them in the Heavens was the shinzoku, or tribe of the gods, while the mazoku demons of the underworld toiled beneath the earth to oversee the souls of the dead. The earth was populated at that time by the Five Ancient Races. [6]

Family[]

Since the beginning of time, Lord Moon chased Lady Sun about the world. One day, he caught her, and as her light faded, the curtain fell on the age of the ancient races. Over the course of countless seasons, Lady Sun gave birth [7] to ten children: Hida, Doji, Togashi, Akodo, Shiba, Bayushi, Shinjo, Fu Leng, Hantei, and Ryoshun, the Kami. [8]

Eating his Children[]

Onnotangu and Amaterasu (TCG)

Onnotangu and Amaterasu

Ancient lore claims Onnotangu was once far more benevolent. It wasn't until the birth of the Kami that Lord Moon grew cold and cruel. Some texts suggested he regrets his role in the creation of Ningen-dō, and that he secretly wished that creation would be unmade. [9] Legends said that Onnotangu noticed how strong and talented her children grew, and he began to fear that one of them would usurp his power. [6] Others told that the Moon, jealous over Lady Sun's love for their children, swallowed their Kami children. This day was the night with no light, when Amaterasu wept for her children, [5] her tears falling to the earth below and forming large pools. Being unwilling to tear apart the heavens by warring with her husband directly, she offered him a cup of sake with a single drop of poison in it, each time Onnotangu swallowed one of the children. By the time he came to the youngest child, Hantei, Amaterasu was able to swap a stone wrapped in Hantei's clothing for the real child and her husband swallowed it instead. Then he fell asleep. [6]

Fighting Hantei[]

Lady Sun trained Hantei in the martial arts so that one day, he could confront his jealous father. When Hantei and Lord Moon finally did battle, he sliced open his father's belly, and the rest of his siblings tumbled out. [7]

Fall of the Kami[]

They fell from the sky to Seppun Hill, save for one. Lord Moon reached out at the last moment and grasped Fu Leng. Hantei swung his sword one last time and severed his father's very arm. Fu Leng tried to grab ahold of Hantei, and they both fell. Fu Leng plunged through the earth to Jigoku itself, where he was lost. The blood from Lord Moon¡s wound fell to the ground, where it solidified into obsidian. [7]

The Creation of Mankind[]

As Onnotangu's blood fell from Heaven, it landed in the pools of Amaterasu's tears. From each pool, two humans stood up, for humanity was made from the tears of Lady Sun and the blood of Lord Moon. [6]

Rokugan[]

No longer immortal, the Kami shared the mortal realm with human beings. They resolved to teach and guide these humans, and they held a great tournament to see who would lead those who lived in this land they dubbed Rokugan. Hantei was the victor, and after his coronation as Emperor, he charged each of his siblings with a different task. [7]

Moon Cultists[]

In the 12th century there were still those in the Empire who considered Lord Moon to be the preeminent divine figure, devoting themselves to him in clandestine ceremonies. [10] Cults to Lord Moon, who hated all mortals, sought to empower him and hastened his judgment upon his children. [11]

External Links[]

References

  1. Legend of the Five Rings: Roleplaying Game (Beta), p. 5
  2. Legend of the Five Rings - Roleplaying, p. 7
  3. Celestial Realms, pp. 17-18
  4. Celestial Realms, p. 44
  5. 5.0 5.1 Whispers of Shadow and Steel, by Mari Murdock
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 Emerald Empire: The Essential Guide to Rokugan, p. 8
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Legend of the Five Rings - Roleplaying, p. 4
  8. Legend of the Five Rings - Roleplaying, p. 9
  9. Collapse, by Robert Denton III
  10. Legend of the Five Rings - Roleplaying, p. 318
  11. Emerald Empire: The Essential Guide to Rokugan, p. 162


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