Daitoshi

A large region in the east of Shibayama, **Daitoshi** is primarily known for the four nations of Hinokuni, Kazenokuni, Mizunokuni, and Tsuchinokuni. The four nations have a shared mythological origin and a long history of conflict which has defined the region since ancient times. Generally speaking it has been true that at any given moment at least two of the four nations are at war with one-another. These conflicts have flared up into even greater wars, three times now, that involved three, or all four, of the nations and saw widespread devastation across the entire region.

## History

According to legend, the four great nations of Daitoshi were all founded by the same person; a legendary figure known only as the Master of the Five Paths, a great and powerful priest of the Way who, it is said, had somehow gained mastery over all five of the elements. The Master of the Five Paths is said to have come to Daitoshi and once there to have negotiated pacts with the Kami; the pacts from which all Southern Wu-Jen gain their arcane power.

The four nations' capitals, it is said, were founded by his disciples, in the very places where he negotiated each of his pacts with the Kami. In the centuries since, these four settlements have grown into large cities and larger nations, expanding their control to the formerly independent towns and villages of the region.

## Geography

### **Hinokuni**

The nation of **Hinokuni** is, as its name suggests, devoted to the veneration of the Hikami. The nation's current daimyo is Isako Katsuo. Perhaps owing to the favor and influence of the Hikami, the nation's lands are known for their warm weather and bright, sunny, days.

### **Kazenokuni**

**Kazenokuni** is devoted to the Kazekami and their veneration. The nation is ruled by its daimyo, Akira Tezuka. Like much of Shibayama, the realm of Kazenokuni is highly mountainous and many of its peaks are home to monasteries of the Way, or are the domains of Oni and/or Tengu tribes.

### **Kirimachi**

The city-state of **Kirimachi** has, somewhat surprisingly, managed to remain independent and neutral throughout the war-torn history of the Daitoshi region. At the time of the Second Great War, Kirimachi was even considered a power roughly on par with the four nations of the region. The city was rather damaged, and its power greatly weakened at the end of that war, and the Third Great War only saw Kirimachi further sink into poverty and irrelevance. The war-ravaged city is, and has been since before the Second Great War, ruled by Ikuya Mikami.

### **Mizunokuni**

The nation of **Mizunokuni** has no holdings on the mainland of Asul proper, and is actually entirely based on an archipelago not far off the coast of Daitoshi. The climate of Mizunokuni varies somewhat from island to island, but as a general whole the country is tropical. Since the end of the revolution, the nation's daimyo has been Akemi Hakunetsu. Dragon veneration is more pronounced in Mizunokuni owing to the fact that the nation is effectively quite at the mercy of the Wang Lung which dwell in the ocean all around it.

### **Mt. Okami**

The snow-covered **Mt. Okami** is a large iron-rich, mountain that takes its name from the many wolves that make their homes upon it. The mountain is notable for being home to the shogunate of **Tetsutake**.

### **Tsuchinokuni**

**Tsuchinokuni**, is a large and mountainous nation devoted to the veneration of the Tsuchikami. The peaks of Tsuchinokuni are smaller in size but greater in number than those of Kazenokuni and the land is rocky and rugged.