Artifacts: The Mon of the Ansasshia

The Mon of the Ansasshia

Background

     The Mon of the Ansasshia was created in Kaminoji, an island nation to the east of Chi'in. When Emperor Chi'in was threatening to take over the island nation, the five kings called upon a powerful wu jen known as
Hisui no Majo (翡翠の魔女). She gathered together the ninja clans of the five kings to take part in a special ritual. This ritual is what created the first akikage, which she bound into her personal mon. She gave the mon to the five kings, who used it to repel several invasions of warriors from Chi'in. It was the curse of the mon that destroyed four of the kings. The last king, Ugayafukiaezu, was ordained as emperor and his line has since been ruling Kaminoji.
     The Mon that Hisui no Majo created was set aside by Emperor Ugayafukiaezu and eventually forgotten. Centuries later, it showed up in the small southern village of Kuchinda. After the village was destroyed, the Mon of the Ansasshia was lost yet again.
     No one knows what became of Hisui no Majo. Of the many stories told of the evil witch, a common theme is that she steals children that dishonor or disobey their parents. She then ceremonially cooks their bodies in a magic plum sauce, whilst their heads watch. After she eats the body, the heads of these naughty children are bound in servitude to her and are sent out into the night to search for more insolent children to eat. The sight of a floating child's head is a common omen of great misfortune in Kaminoji.

Powers

     The Mon of the Ansasshia allows the possessor to summon 3d6 akikage to do their bidding. The mon can be used every round to summon even more akikage. The mon has its dangers though, for every akikage summoned by the mon the user loses 1 hit point. If reduced to 0 hit points, by the powers of the emblem, the user is slain and becomes an akikage enslaved to the mon. If the user of the mon is otherwise slain while any akikage are still active the same fate befalls them.
     The mon has other powers as well. While it is worn the user cannot be hit by weapons of less than +2 enchantment. The user can also passwall, as per the spell at 18th level, three times per day. They can also become invisible, as per the spell, twice daily.
     The mon is an evil artifact, though not sentient, and will alter the wearers alignment accordingly (to LE). Once the mon is first worn and used it cannot be removed by any means short of a limited or full wish.

Akikage Statistics

     Akikage: AC 1; MV 12; HD 6+3; hp 39 (average); #AT 4; Dmg 1d6 (x4); THAC0 13; SA Death blow; SD +2 weapon or better to hit, spell immunity; AL LE; XP 3,000.