Black Scrolls

Please note: This article is about the Black Scroll A Terrible Oath. For other uses of the term, please see Oath (disambiguation).
The Black Scrolls were used to seal away power taken from external sources. The power they contained usually transfer the taint to the scrolls, awakening new effects that would be unleashed after they were opened and read.
== Before the Day of Thunder ==
The Tribe of Isawa used scrolls to purify the bodies and souls of the dead and then bind them to the walls of Gisei Toshi, so that they might defend the city forever. These soul were connected to a realm beyond Ningen-do, and so it would allow a skilled shugenja some ability to manipulate these soul's place in the mortal realm. Upon hearing of this Otaku asked Isawa if they could not similarly bind Fu Leng's soul. Since Fu Leng was not of this realm, but was instead from Tengoku and linked with Jigoku, Isawa agreed it might just be possible. The Ninth Kami would be bound, but still alive. However, if the scrolls were ever opened then Fu Leng would awaken once more. Day of Thunder, by Rich Wulf
== Original Twelve Scrolls ==
The first twelve scrolls were created by Isawa in 42 with pure blood magic to bind and therefore defeat Fu Leng on the first Day of Thunder. The idea for the creation of the Scrolls was conceived by the Unicorn Clan Thunder, Otaku. For more than one thousand years, the Black Scrolls held Fu Leng's spirit bound, until 1123 when the first Scroll was unsealed by Yogo Junzo. The First Scroll is Opened (Honor Bound Foil Chase Cards flavor)
=== Shosuro and the Scrolls ===
After Fu Leng was sealed inside the twelve scrolls, Hida Atarasi faced the First Oni. Shosuro was the only one who knew a way to leave Fu Leng's Keep. Hida's son sacrificed himself to give Shosuro time to take Shinsei and the scrolls out of the Shadowlands  back to Otosan Uchi. The First Oni chased them across the Shadowlands, and Shinsei charged Shosuro with delivering them to the Kami. Shiba appeared to confront the oni and again buy Shosuro time to escape. She complied her mission and died in Bayushi's arms upon finally reaching the palace. Moved by her death, Bayushi demanded the right to guard the Twelve Scrolls, and was granted it by Hantei. Way of the Scorpion, pp. 24-25
=== Yogo and the Scrolls ===
After claiming the right to protect the Black Scrolls, Bayushi entrusted them to Yogo. Since that day, the Yogo family has had the duty of guarding the scrolls. Only the Scorpion Clan Champion knew the location of all twelve scrolls. Each of them was hidden in different locations known only by the guardian of each respective scroll. Way of the Scorpion, p. 26
=== Three Scrolls sold to the Phoenix ===
In 445 Bayushi Tesaguri, guardian of the third, fifth, and sixth Black Scrolls sold them to the Phoenix Clan, betraying his oath. For this crime he was the first person to be placed in the Traitor's Grove. Way of the Scorpion, p. 55
=== The Scrolls before the Scorpion Coup ===
In 1122 the Scorpion had only seven of the scrolls; the Phoenix, three and the other two had been lost. Winter Court: Kyuden Seppun, p. 86
=== The First Scroll is Opened ===
Following the failed Scorpion Coup in 1123, the dis-illusioned Yogo Junzo began opening the Black Scrolls. Legend of the Five Rings; Third Edition, pp. 18-19
=== The Masters and the Scrolls ===
In 1127, the Council of Five decided to open the three Black Scrolls in their possession Shiba Shingo (Honor Bound Foil Chase Cards flavor) to better understand the threat posed by the Shadowlands. The Master of Earth, Isawa Tadaka, had just returned from his excursion into the Shadowlands with the fourth scroll. Of the five Masters, only the Master of Void, Isawa Kaede, refused to participate, certain it would only result in disaster. The four scrolls were opened and much wisdom was gained, but corruption ran rampant through the Council, infecting the four Masters with the Taint of the Shadowlands. Legend of the Five Rings; Third Edition, p. 19
== New Scrolls ==
In the year 1168 a new black scroll appeared which seemed to be of gaijin origin and was not related to maho. The Essence of Loyalty, by Shawn Carman and Nancy Sauer In 1170 a Rokugani shugenja crafted another black scroll. Death at Koten, pp. 132-136
== Return of the Original Scrolls ==
In the year 1200 the power of Jigoku in the Mortal Realms grew rampant. The Black Scrolls which had been destroyed began to return, reforming from the essence of the Realm of Evil as it invaded Ningen-do. They no longer contained the fragmented soul of a dark god, yet they were still powerful and deadly. Gen Con 2015: The Black Scrolls (Storyline Tournament)
== The Black Scrolls ==
=== The Wasting Disease ===
The Wasting Disease was the first Black Scroll.
It was opened by Yogo Junzo in 1123 following the failure of the Scorpion Coup. It released a deadly plague that spread across Rokugan, bringing misery and death to all who contracted it. After Yogo Junzo's death on the Second Day of Thunder, the scroll passed into the hands of Iuchi Karasu. Karasu then passed it on to his wife, Iuchi Hiruko shortly before Karasu's imprisonment with Kuni Yori inside a Naga Pearl. Hiruko gave it to her daughter, Iuchi Yue on the day of her gempukku. Secrets of the Unicorn, p. 43 It was kept in Shiro Iuchi until the scroll was stolen in 1160 by Shiba Michirou, a servant of Asako Kinuye, Visions of the Future, Part II, by Shawn Carman and used in 1166, in the month of the Rooster, by a Phoenix independent bloodspeaker, Asako Kinuye, to wipe out a Phoenix village. The shugenja then passed it to Asako Hirotsugu who planted it on a captured Mantis vessel, which led to the beginning of the War of Fire and Thunder. The Gift, by Rich Wulf This was an effort to weaken the new Gozoku that was growing in the Mantis and Phoenix Clan, and it could eventually had led in major coopoeration between both clans, what Kinuye considered not desireable. Four Winds, p. 119 The Council of Five delivered the scroll to the Emperor Toturi III. The following Scroll's whereabouts were not precisely known, but it was assumed to be in possession of the Hidden Guard. 
==== See Also ====
* Wasting Disease (plague)
* Wasting Disease/card
* Wasting Disease Exp/card, only Spanish print
=== The Iron Citadel ===
The Iron Citadel was the second Black Scroll. It was opened by Yogo Junzo shortly after the first in 1123, creating Junzo's base of operations deep in the heart of the Shadowlands. The scroll was one of the black scrolls stolen by Isawa Tadaka in 1126. It was used in 1165 by the bloodspeaker Iuchiban to enact a terrible ritual that covered the Empire in a Rain of Blood. Sacrifice, by Rich Wulf In 1166 the Heartless used it again to make a new base of operations in the ruins of the Imperial Palace at Otosan Uchi. Rulebook Story (Web of Lies), by Rich Wulf Four Winds, p. 114 Its whereabouts since then were unknown. 
==== See Also ====
* Iron Citadel of Fu Leng
* Iron Citadel/card
=== Black Wind From the Soul ===
The Black Wind From the Soul was the third Black Scroll. It unleashed a vast wave of Tainted black fire that roared out and destroyed everything around it, including the casters. It was originally guarded by the Scorpion Clan, but sold to the Phoenix Clan by Bayushi Tesaguri in the sixth century. Imperial Histories, p. 173 In 1127 Time of the Void, p. 12 it was opened by Isawa Tadaka, using its powers to torture Tadaka no Oni. Black Wind From the Soul (Siege: Clan War flavor) Its whereabouts since then were unknown.
==== See Also ====
* Black Wind From the Soul/card
=== Walking Horror of Fu Leng ===
The Walking Horror of Fu Leng was the fourth Black Scroll. It was hidden away in the ancestral katana of the Fox Clan for nine hundred years, having been secretly placed there by the Scorpion Clan. The katana was found by Kitsune Ryosei in 1124 who returned it to the Fox Clan Champion, her father Kitsune Gohei. Gohei opened the scroll in a bid for immortality. Way of the Minor Clans, pp. 4-7 Nightmares, by Ree Soesbee The scroll granted the caster a twisted form of immortality, turning him into a grotesque undead monster. It was kept in the Temple of Bishamon at Gisei Toshi. Secrets of the Phoenix, p. 86  Its whereabouts since then were unknown.
==== See Also ====
* Kitsune Gohei
* Walking Horror of Fu Leng/card
=== Dark Divination ===
Please note: This article is about the black scroll. For other uses of the term, please see Dark Divination (disambiguation).
Dark Divination was the fifth Black Scroll. If the caster was tainted, it showed his enemies' plans, otherwise it showed visions of doom and despair. It was originally guarded by the Scorpion Clan, but sold to the Phoenix Clan by Bayushi Tesaguri in the sixth century. Imperial Histories, p. 173 In 1127 it was opened by the Master of Air Isawa Uona. Time of the Void, p. 34 Its whereabouts since then were unknown. 
==== See Also ====
* Dark Divination/card
* Dark Divination Exp/card
=== Shapeshifting ===
Shapeshifting was the sixth Black Scroll. It transformed the target into one of the creatures of the Shadowlands. It was originally guarded by the Scorpion Clan, but sold to the Phoenix Clan by Bayushi Tesaguri in the sixth century. In 1127 it was opened by the Master of Water Isawa Tomo. Shapeshifting (Siege: Clan War flavor) Its whereabouts since then were unknown. 
==== See Also ====
* Shapeshifting/card
=== Touch of Despair ===
Touch of Despair was the seventh Black Scroll. Once a simple and powerful spell Touch of Purity was created by Isawa to combat the corrupting influence of the Taint in others. In fact, it was believed that Touch of Purity might have been the only true cure for the Taint that Rokugan had ever known. Sadly, like all the scrolls sacrificed by Isawa to seal the soul of Fu Leng in its Tomb, Touch of Purity became perverted by the raw power of Jigoku. Where it once cured the Taint, it now bestowed it on a large area. Time of the Void, p. 125 This Scroll was opened by the Master of Fire Isawa Tsuke, who was consumed by the scroll's madness. Touch of Despair (Siege: Clan War flavor) Its whereabouts since then were unknown. 
==== See Also ====
* Touch of Despair/card
=== Touch of Fu Leng ===
Touch of Fu Leng, was the eighth Black Scroll. It granted the victim extra limbs, appendages, and supernatural abilities along with a great deal of Taint. In return, the target submitted to the will of the caster. In 1127 it was opened by Kuni Yori, who raised an army of undead and put them under the command of Hida Amoro. Touch of Fu Leng (Siege: Clan War flavor) Its whereabouts since then were unknown.
==== See Also ====
* Touch of Fu Leng/card
=== Return of the Fallen Lord ===
Return of the Fallen Lord was the ninth Black Scroll. It brought a soul back from the dead to inhabit its body, turning the person into an extremely powerful Tainted undead revenant with twisted, hateful knowledge of its past life. Somehow Return of the Fallen Lord (Storyline Result)] it was in hands of a young Kitsu Shugenja who passed it as a gift inside a box to the Empress Bayushi Kachiko in 1127. She left the box in Soshi Bantaro's care, though forbade him from using it. Time of the Void, p. 33 Bantaro used it this year bringing deceased Bayushi Shoju back to life. Time of the Void, p. 35 Bayushi Shoju (Forbidden Knowledge) Its whereabouts since then were unknown. 
==== See Also ====
* Bayushi Shoju
* Return of the Fallen Lord/card
=== A Terrible Oath ===
A Terrible Oath was the tenth scroll. It used the sacrifice of a single intelligent being to empower many others to perform an Oath, greatly increasing their physical power in return for the Taint. It was opened by Kuni Yori during the sacrifice of Hida Sukune. Yori opened it again in the Month of the Dragon of 1128 at Otosan Uchi, sacrificing those Crab who did not choose to follow the corrupted Emperor after Hantei XXXIX mortally wounded Hida Kisada. Time of the Void, p. 73 It was supposed that Scorpion Clan destroyed it after the Second Day of Thunder, but in 1159 it was revealed in the Temple of the Ninth Kami, in hands of the Walking Horror of Fu Leng. Omen stole the scroll and passed it to Kitsune Ryosei, Prelude to Darkness, Part One: The Fox, by Shawn Carman who gifted it to the scholar Isawa Maasaki in Gisei Toshi. Clan Letter to the Phoenix #20 (Imperial Herald v2 #5)
==== See Also ====
* A Terrible Oath/card
=== Doom of Fu Leng ===
Doom of Fu Leng was the eleventh Black Scroll. Those who were Tainted found much of their Taint stripped away from them, but those who were pure found themselves cut off from the Elements, unable to touch the Void. In 445 it was hid by Yogo Ichinore in a cave near Road's End Village, in Phoenix lands. Time of the Void, p. 120 In 1127 Yogo Junzo sent Uragirimono, who stole it. Time of the Void, p. 48 It was opened in the Month of the Ox of 1127, Time of the Void, p. 54 by Kuni Wazinu, who had been ordered by Kuni Yori to use it in his attempt to destroy the Chimes of Purity in the Four Temples at Kyuden Seppun. Time of the Void, p. 94 The scheme failed, and the scroll was cast into Jigoku. Doom of Fu Leng (Siege: Clan War flavor)
==== See Also ====
* Doom of Fu Leng/card
=== The Twelfth Scroll ===
The Twelfth Scroll was the twelfth Black Scroll. Bayushi Kuninoko secretely took it from the Yogo when she went to the Dragon lands to learn on their secrets. She passed to the Kami Togashi after they fell in love with each other, revealing their deepest secrets. Time of the Void, p. 126 It was hidden within the heart of Togashi until it was opened on the Second Day of Thunder in 1128 by Mirumoto Hitomi. Its magical effect had long been lost and in its place was merely a blank scroll, however, it served as the final seal on Fu Leng's spirit, and its opening rendered the Dark Kami fully mortal. Dragon Clan War Novel, pp. 1-7 Its whereabouts since then were unknown.
==== See Also ====
* The 12th Black Scroll/card
=== The Thirteenth Scroll ===
Apart from these twelve scrolls exists the Thirteenth Black Scroll called Essence of Jigoku which was one of the Artifacts of the Tomb of the Seven Thunders found during the Battle of the Tomb. It was retrieved by Shosuro Aroru and brought before Bayushi Paneki and Soshi Yukimi. Yukimi identified it as a black scroll, but not one of the twelve originally created by Isawa to bind Fu Leng. She also believed it might not have been created by Isawa at all. Paneki ordered it to be kept safe by the Kuroiban. Dark Knowledge, by Brian Yoon In 1169 the scroll was opened and read by Soshi Natsuo, who was driven completely insane and as a side effect the field became entirely devoid of life, becoming the Blasted Lands. Vacant Throne, p. 59
==== Research, Kali-Ma, and the Destroyer War ====
The Essence of Jigoku was created via elemental magic, and it contained, the essence of some vital portion of Kali-Ma's power, Vacant Throne, p. 122 stolen from it through magic the rokugani did not understand, but not through maho. The Black Scrolls were used to seal away power taken from external sources, and Natsuo's ravings seemed to indicate that whatever was affected by the power was in some remote corner of the world, far from Rokugan. This Black Scroll could free them of a god whose time in the Empire has passed. In 1169 Vacant Throne, p. 59 its opening released the spirit of Kali-Ma and started the Plague War, also known as the Destroyer War. Kali-Ma expelled Fu-Leng from Jigoku and sealed away in the scroll a portion of Fu Leng's divinity, making the former Champion of Jigoku mortal. Imperial Histories 2, pp. 248-249 In 1171 the Scorpion planted it in the place of the Essence of Destruction. Story Rulebook, (Path of the Destroyer) In 1172 Isawa Yutako discovered the deception. Searching, by Rusty Priske
==== Returned ====
In 1200 the spell returned again to Rokugan. The Essence of Destruction (Storyline Tournaments: European Championships 2015)
==== See Also ====
* Essence of Jigoku/card
=== Essence of Destruction ===
There was another "Black Scroll" known as the Essence of Destruction, which was used in 1170 by Asako Fosu and Isawa Mariko to bind the soul of the Oni Lord Kyoso no Oni. Death at Koten, pp. 132-136 In 1171 was secured by the Scorpion Clan, and the opened scroll Essence of Jigoku was planted in its place. 
==== Kyoso and Kali-Ma ====
Kyoso no Oni was not a truly Oni Lord. She was instead a Progeny of the Destroyer, Kali-Ma. Part of the power of the Destroyer had been in Kyoso's soul when she was created, so this power was contained now in the Essence of Destruction scroll. Yogo Kazunori discovered that this gaijin entity would regain full power and Rokugan could be destroyed by her if she would seize this fragment of power. Vacant Throne, p. 123 Although the group who created the scroll did not realize it, they had performed a vital service to the Empire. This scroll prevented Kali-Ma from exerting her full divine power, and would become the focus of ongoing quests by both her followers and Fu Leng. Imperial Histories 2, p. 249
==== Quest for the Scroll ====
In 1172 Fu Leng, currently a mortal man after he had been severed from Jigoku and replaced by Kali-Ma as Champion of Jigoku, disguised as Furumaro manipulated a Rokugani group to seize the scroll. The Next Step, by Nancy Sauer The group found it between the remnants of Scorpion ambushed by Destroyers. Destiny Has No Secrets, by Lucas Twyman In the month of the Serpent of 1173 the group presented it to Empress Iweko I. Imperial Histories 2, p. 253 Later this year Yoritomo Saburo opened it Goddesses, Part 2, by Shawn Carman and Fu Leng recovered his divinity. Who created the scroll was a soul of incredible purity, and Fu Leng was not able to open it himself. He fouled Saburo, a soul of honor, to open it. Goddesses, Part 3, by Shawn Carman
Kali-Ma had stolen Fu Leng's divinity, and this divinity had been taken by a pure soul and bound within the scroll. When the Black Scroll was opened, this divinity returned to his original master, the Ninth Kami, restoring him to his full power once more. 
==== See Also ====
* Essence of Destruction/card
== External Links ==
* The Wasting Disease (Forbidden Knowledge)
* The Wasting Disease (Siege: Clan War)
* The Wasting Disease Exp (Spanish Promotional)
* Iron Citadel (Forbidden Knowledge)
* Iron Citadel (Siege: Clan War)
* Iron Citadel Exp (Wrath of the Emperor)
* Black Wind From The Soul (Forbidden Knowledge)
* Black Wind From The Soul (Siege: Clan War)
* The Walking Horror of Fu Leng (Forbidden Knowledge)
* The Walking Horror of Fu Leng (Siege: Clan War)
* Dark Divination (Shadowlands)
* Dark Divination (Siege: Clan War)
* Dark Divination Exp (Khan's Defiance)
* Shapeshifting (Shadowlands)
* Shapeshifting (Siege: Clan War)
* Touch of Despair (Shadowlands)
* Touch of Despair (Siege: Clan War)
* Touch of Fu Leng (Shadowlands)
* Touch of Fu Leng (Siege: Clan War)
* Return of the Fallen Lord (Forbidden Knowledge)
* Return of the Fallen Lord (Siege: Clan War)
* A Terrible Oath (Forbidden Knowledge)
* A Terrible Oath (Siege: Clan War)
* Doom of Fu Leng (Anvil of Despair)
* Doom of Fu Leng (Siege: Clan War)
* The 12th Black Scroll (Time of teh Void)
* The 12th Black Scroll (Siege: Clan War)
* Essence of Jigoku (Tomorrow)
* Essence of Destruction (Death at Koten)
Category:Shadowlands Nemuranai