Yakamo no Oni

Yakamo no Oni was the newest Oni Lord to find a name, and was often regarded as a threat by the others. It had existed with definition for a fraction of their lifetimes, yet it considered itself their equal. Yakamo shared a name with Lord Sun, the very symbol of the incorruptable spirit. Finally, in bizarre mockery of the Crab Thunder Hida Yakamo whose name it shared, Yakamo no Oni had refused to take part in the world of mortals and stood watch with its spawn at the gate of Jigoku.
Despite all of this, none of the other Oni Lords dared cross it. None of them know what it was truly capable of and it carried the name of a man who slew countless powerful denizens of the Shadowlands in his mortal life. Were the other Oni Lords capable of trusting one another, they would confront Yakamo, but they were not. Perhaps the First Oni could stand before Yakamo without reservation, but it was uncaring. Creatures of Rokugan, p. 56
== Appearance and Demeanor ==
Yakamo no Oni was a massively built dark blue skinned humanoid with blood-red eyes and a mane of Jet black hair. It wore extremely ornate black and white armor over and wielded a massive obsidian tetsubo. Creatures of Rokugan: Third Edition, p. 153 Despite its bestial appearance, it was cunning, patient and ruthless. The creature's only weakness was its utter hatred of Hida Yakamo. whose enduring nobility and strength infuriated the oni. Time of the Void, p. 65
== Named ==
Yakamo no Oni was named when Kuni Yori manipulated Hida Kisada into made a bargain with the Shadowlands. When Hida Yakamo lost his hand Yori promised a replacement if Yakamo gave his name to an Oni. Yakamo and the Oni were linked, and in return Yakamo was gifted with a tainted claw to replace his lost hand. The Cold Dark Dawn Firelight, by Rob Vaux
=== Pillaging Ryoko Owari ===
It was first seen in Rokugan at the side of Yakamo during the beginning of the Clan War, in the pillaging of Ryoko Owari Toshi Three Days, by Ree Soesbee by the Crab in 1127. Time of the Void, p. 11
=== Anvil of Despair ===
This year the Phoenix discovered the Anvil's location and sent a small army of Inquisitors on a mission to destroy it by casting it into a pit of fire at the heart of the Shadowlands, the Amaterasu's Furnace. Yakamo no Oni moved its forces to intercept them, and only the timely arrival of a Unicorn force of Battle Maiden and Moto Fanatics allowed the Phoenix to reach the target. Trials of Destiny, Part I, by Jim Pinto Hida Tampako and the undead Hida Amoro were his lieutenants in the fight. Blood and Thunder Following the battle, the Crab could not deny that the corrupted army contained Crab elements. They were labeled as rogue and the Crab clan promised to hunt them to their destruction. Clan War: Desperate Journey, p. 11
== Day of Thunder ==
Yakamo no Oni was banished from the mortal realm at the end of the Clan War, during the assault on Otosan Uchi by the combined Empire forces. Mounted Spearmen (Time of the Void flavor) Yakamo had made his way to face Oni no Yakamo, now a perfect duplicate of himself. Though the Jade Hand had severed the ties between Yakamo and the beast, the oni had still grown powerful from the Crab Lord's name. The true Yakamo failed before the inexhaustible oni, and as the oni prepared to deal the finishing blow, Mirumoto Hitomi, Yakamo's nemesis, killed the creature with the Obsidian Hand. Time of the Void, p. 103 The Two Deaths of Yakamo (Time of the Void story Cards)
== Banished ==
Only then, for some reason, did Jigoku see fit to make it an Oni Lord, to the confusion and disdain of the others. What Yakamo understood was that Jigoku wished to defend itself against the one thing that would dare attack the borders of hell - the Lying Darkness. When the War Against Shadow came, only Yakamo no Oni saw the Darkness's attempt to invade the realm of Jigoku, and Nothing was unprepared for the wrath of the Crab Oni and its spawn. The Legion of the Dead: Crab Clan Oni Near the end of that great war one lone spirit evaded Yakamo's massive tetsubo, and it was no spawn of the Lying Darkness. Oni no Okura stood at the gates of Jigoku and refused to enter. As Yakamo watched incredulously, Okura strode away slowly fading into the realm of Tengoku, guided by the Void Dragon. Creatures of Rokugan: Third Edition, p. 153 Each time Yakamo attempted to send its spawn into Tengoku and capture Okura, Lord Sun instantly destroyed them with his fire. Yakamo seems contained in Jigoku for now, much to the Oni Lord's fury. 
=== Okura's Soul ===
Yakamo kept the damned and tortured soul of Kitsu Okura chained to the gates as a reminder of his only failure, and swore to absolve himself of this shame. To this end Yakamo became the first Oni Lord to swear fealty to Daigotsu, offering Yakamo's Claw to the Lord of the Shadowlands as a symbol of its pact to aid its new ally in any way it could. Creatures of Rokugan, pp. 56-57
== Invasion of the Celestial Heavens ==
In 1159 Fu Leng brought Yakamo no Oni with him when he waged war on Tengoku with the Invasion of the Celestial Heavens. Prelude to Darkness, Part 6: The Dark Lord, by Rich Wulf He fought his nemesis, Yakamo. Fight For Tomorrow, Part I
== Legion of the Dead ==
In 1166 Yakamo no Oni joined the Legion of the Dead led by Matsu Goemon. Iuchiban sought to thwart Fu Leng's rule over the Realm of Evil, to draw upon its power without cost. He had gone too far, and Fu Leng sought to end the Legion of Blood's threat. The Guardian of Hell had stepped forward and offered his steel claws and obsidian tetsubo to the cause. The heroes might be unwilling to accept this monstrous beast's aid but they would have it nonetheless. As the two forces initially battled for control over the newly forming realm in 1166, Isawa Tsuke released a massive explosion intending to stop the First Oni, but it also disrupted the realm and knocked everyone in it into private memories of critical choices in their lives. The Realm of Thwarted Destiny was testing each of them, to see if they would embrace their destines or reject them. The realm could become a place where those who failed their destinies could repeat their failures for eternity or a place where those who failed could embrace their fates and find redemption. Legions, Part III, by Shawn Carman and Rich Wulf
=== Lost in the Mists of the new Realm ===
Yakamo no Oni sensed the Shadow Dragon in the mists of the new Realm and confronted him. The oni commanded the dragon to stop. Fu Leng demanded to give to the Shadow Dragon fair warning, one final chance to prove himself the ally the dragon claim to be, or be doomed. The Shadow Dragon refused and vanished into the mists. Legions, Part VI
=== Second confrontation with Yakamo ===
Yakamo saw his oni brother appearing from the mist. The oni told he had sent by Fu Leng to aid the Legion of the Dead, but Yakamo refused any Shadowlands aid and engaged in combat. Their power was so matched that none could win the fight and stopped. The oni left Yakamo warning him about the Shadow Dragon and his true goals. 
=== Facing the Shadow Dragon ===
While the Dragon was tempting Akuma no Oni, Yakamo no Oni reached them. Akuma also did not trust the Dragon, knowing he had betrayed Fu Leng. The Oni Lords faced the Dragon who fled. Legions, Part IX While the Legion of the Dead were occupying Volturnum the two Oni Lords fought the First Oni. Legions, Part XI
== See also ==
* Yakamo no Oni/Meta
* Oni no Yakamo/CW Meta
* Oni no Yakamo/Diskwars
== External Links ==
* Hida Yakamo Oni (Imperial)
* Hida Yakamo Oni Exp (Anvil of Despair)
Category:Oni
Category:Characters with Pictures