Mahō

[Vutall]

Mahō
Anyone can perform blood-fueled incantations to the corrupt kami known as kansen. Frustrated samurai might use mahō to gain power the kami deny them, and downtrodden peasants might use it right wrongs when pleas to Fortunes go unanswered. The cost of such power is the mind, life, even soul of the practitioner, but the desperate or ignorant overlook this cost. Some believe they can tap into the power of mahō without becoming corrupted, using it for good. Even if this were possible, mahō is considered the worst kind of blasphemy

Kansen are evil spirits, twisted kami that spill forth from Jigoku or were once kami dwelling within Rokugan before becoming corrupted. While kami can be mercurial and dangerous to mortals, especially if provoked, they are fundamentally creative forces within the world. When they bring destruction, it is often a prelude to greater creation, much as a wildfire rejuvenates a forest. Kansen, by contrast, bloom in the wake of devastation, choking out all life or twisting it with their touch. They are drawn to despair, terror, and most of all, fresh blood. Where they take root, nothing else grows.

Those mortals who dare to wield the evil sorcery called mahō are known as mahō-tsukai. Reviled by society and hunted by several sworn orders within the bounds of the Emerald Empire, mahō-tsukai often act subtly, disguising their corruption beneath a pleasant façade and stirring words

The abundance of kansen in the Shadowlands means mahō is both easier and more dangerous there than elsewhere. It is easy to attract swarms of kansen or summon the wrong demon, and the Taint is inescapable. Those who use mahō there gain an advantage but also succumb to the Taint at an advanced rate.

Unlike the invocations of shugenja, which are frequently direct in their application, mahō techniques are often slower. The mahō-tsukai first invokes a subtle curse upon their target, drawing kansen to that ill-fated individual. Once the curse takes hold, the mahō-tsukai calls the kansen to act upon the target in a variety of unpleasant ways, from engaging in mental and social manipulation to inflicting agony, illness, and death. This can take months, or even years, and if the mahō-tsukai is subtle enough, none ever realize that their target was afflicted with a curse.

The Blood Price
Kansen require a sacrifice of fresh blood. Depending on the ritual, this may mean a mere drop, or enough to drain a body dry. Most kansen crave human blood, and mahō-tsukai who substitute animal blood usually regret it. This may be why there are no known nezumi practitioners. The practitioner’s own blood signifies a personal sacrifice, and mahō-tsukai quickly learn where to make cuts that bleed freely without causing permanent damage. Those studying under the watchful eye of a more experienced practitioner learn basic anatomy. Only an untutored mahō-tsukai would risk the use of their hand by cutting their palm or leave scars on their wrist where a Witch Hunter might see them

Some kansen prefer the blood of high-born samurai, powerful shugenja, or enlightened monks, or that from a specific family or clan. The right sacrifice attracts more powerful spirits and renders invocations more potent. Scouts found alone in the Shadowlands, lost travelers, and overly trusting samurai are all potential sacrifices. To arrange a sacrifice for a demanding kansen, a mahō-tsukai may perform many smaller sacrifices and rituals that help them set up the final victim and remove any yōjimbō or other obstacles. By the time the objective is achieved, the mahō-tsukai will have entreated many kansen, spilled much blood, and become heavily Tainted

The Ultimate Sacrifice
Any samurai knows that neither blood nor life is the ultimate sacrifice. A mahō-tsukai forfeits honor and soul for their foul craft. However, especially for samurai fighting in the Shadowlands, there might be times when forsaking personal honor could win a victory for the family or fulfill a duty for the clan. A shugenja defending the Wall may feel justified using mahō to drive back a demonic assault if it saves the Empire

Even if their first use of mahō is minor and does not result in the Taint, a user tastes a power that tempts them until they succumb again. Most samurai only resort to mahō in the direst of circumstances, if at all, knowing there is no going back. Afterward, they watch themselves for signs evil is taking hold and fall upon their own swords rather than become servants of Jigoku. However, there are also users deluded enough to believe they are bending evil forces to their bidding, while in reality, they are slipping under Fu Leng’s contro

Demonic Summonings
Attracting the attention of an oni is a simple process, especially within the Shadowlands, where it can hap-pen by accident. Controlling the oni is the difficulty. The summoner can strike a bargain to inflict the oni upon a victim, but oni want more than blood, and specific requirements vary between oni of different levels and types.

An accomplished mahō-tsukai learns the desires of the oni first and has something ready to bargain with, but they also ensure that the demon’s needs are aligned with their own. A practitioner who wants revenge on an old rival who joined a monastery might summon an oni that delights corrupting monks, for instance. If acquiring political power is the goal, they might summon one that specializes in manipulating minds and overthrowing authority.

All unnamed oni desire a name, since this allows them to take form in Ningen-dō. A mahō-tsukai who grants their own name to an oni is tied to it forever, an exchange that both enslaves and empowers the practitioner. The two essentially become one, in a near-unbreakable pact. A named oni is more powerful than an unnamed one, and it is far more dangerous, as it can roam the Empire at will.

The abilities of oni are vast, destructive, and difficult to control. Many practitioners who attempt to control an oni are tricked, forced to give up their name, or simply destroyed. Since most practitioners are already deeply steeped in corruption, they act heedless of the dangers. Some, believing themselves strong enough to bend the demon to their will, even summon a powerful oni who already possess name and form

To Call Demons From Jigoku
The nameless oni who enter Ningen-dō through the Festering Pit cannot remain in the Mortal Realm for long. Summoning is required to make use of an oni anywhere else in the Shadowlands or beyond. This is achieved through an incantation accompanied by blood sacrifice to incite a kansen to drag the oni from Jigoku. This allows even a nameless oni to stay in Ningen-dō long enough for it to perform an action for the summoner. If it escapes the summoner’s control, it wreaks as much havoc as it can before it is drawn back into Jigoku. If a named oni escapes, it rampages unchecked through Ningen-dō until defeated. This is rare, but even a single such oni causes unimaginable chaos

Example Demons
The variety of oni in the Shadowlands is immense and inexhaustible as each is a unique creature. Following are a few that a mahō-tsukai may summon and set to some malevolent task:

The Shadow Oni is a demon that hides in shadows and reflections, revealing the dark side of anyone it encounters and gradually turning them into their worst selves. It wants name and form, and a skilled mahō-tsukai might promise such gifts but find a way to withhold them indefinitely. Given form, it becomes a shadowlike warrior that no barrier can keep out, insubstantial until it grasps a victim’s own weapon and strikes

The Oni of Desire renders a victim’s repressed desires and ambitions so powerful that no ascetic monk could control them. It affects each victim differently, feeding on their longing for what they desire the most. It will gladly serve a mahō-tsukai targeting monks or highborn samurai, enjoying their frustration and inevitable weakness. Given form, it appears as a geisha, befriending victims and persuading them they deserve all they desire, then reveling in their downfall

The Parasitic Oni announces its presence by buzzing like a locust in the practitioner’s mind. It infects anyone the mahō-tsukai wishes, entering through the victim’s ear and slowly consuming them from the inside out, driving them beyond the edge before eventually killing them. It wants name and form. Given form, it appears as a swarm of locusts, which could infect a whole castle or town. It is extremely difficult to contain and control.

Renjiro no Oni stole the name of a shugenja who came to the Shadowlands to conduct experiments. Renjiro believed that through a combination of ritual and surgery, he could cure the Taint. His vain efforts resulted in his own affliction and possession by an oni attracted to his invasive methods. Now, Renjiro no Oni is a robed monstrosity of muscle and grey matter seeking Tainted subjects. Its human face offers redemption, but then it turns its head and reveals its demonic visage, which extends a drill-like tongue to suck the brains from its victims.

Forbidden Texts
To prevent the use of mahō within the Empire, the Isawa destroy any suspect book or scroll. This makes finding forbidden texts difficult. There are other ways of learning mahō incantations, however. Mahō-tsukai sometimes take on apprentices, for instance, who both serve the mahō-tsukai and learn from them

Anyone who hears the whispers of kansen can learn incantations from these vile spirits, who lure people into service with promises of great power. Trained shugenja may resist, but the untrained are more susceptible and should avoid venturing into the Shadowlands without a more knowledgeable guide

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Cultists
In a land as steeped in mysticism and the otherworldly as the Emerald Empire, it should come as no surprise that a wide range of spiritual beliefs have developed among the people. For the vast majority, spirituality revolves around the teachings of Shinsei, reverence for their honored ancestors, and the worship of the Fortunes and the Kami. There are, however, groups in Rokugan that adhere to other beliefs. Labeled “cults,” these are generally considered at best to be fringe elements, and at worst blasphemies deserving of eradication

Bloodspeakers
While blood magic has been used by the servants of Fu Leng for centuries, it gained particular notoriety with the rise of the powerful and dangerous sorcerer Iuchiban. Even after his defeat, his students preserved his teachings, collecting themselves into a group known as the "Bloodspeakers." A rare few learned to preserve their lives by placing their hearts in boxes, making them effectively immortal. After hundreds of years of study, their mastery of mahō is second to none.

Mahō-tsukai
With the whispered teachings of the kansen, mortals may learn to call upon the spirits of Jigoku with offerings of blood and death. Once they have learned how to work these evil magics, mahō-tsukai use their talents in their own selfish service, or in the name of Fu Leng's even-tual return. No few shugenja who have believed they would merely study mahō to better counter its effects end up becoming corrupted by what they have learned and slowly turn toward evil ends without even realizing.

Moon Cultists
Onnotangu, or Lord Moon, figures prominently in the prehistory of Rokugan. Because of his wrath, fear, and jealousy, the Kami were cast out of Heaven and fell into Ningen-dō at the dawn of the Empire. Twelve centuries later, there are still those in the Empire who consider Lord Moon to be the preeminent divine figure, devoting themselves to him in clandestine ceremonies