fafnir300
2008-01-14, 04:12 PM
I've decided to make a seperate post, although this is still in my collection thread. Here i'll be statting out some oni in my campaign, but for now i'll leave you guys with the background of my oni. Comments and ideas are always welcome.
Here is how the Oni came to be.
Oni
In ancient times long since past, the Shinto deities created a powerful race of creatures to watch over and protect humans from evil. These creatures were fearsome in appearance yet just as beautiful. They dressed in elaborate armor and wielded beautifully crafted weapons. Evil didn’t stand much of a chance against the wrath of the Oni. However, this all took place when the multiverse was still in its early stage; thus, evil hadn’t really developed yet. Over many years, evil continued to grow to numbers, which far exceeded the Oni. The task of slaying evil still remained fairly easy for the Oni until they realized that the creatures they were sent to protect were the cause of the growing evil. The humans were easily seduced by evil, which came in the forms of demons, devils, and yugoloths. They were more prone to commit evil and foul acts, than to perform good deeds. Thus, as they died, their tainted souls would find their way to the Lower Planes, which in turn would strengthen evil.
The Oni had a dilemma; they were created to destroy evil, but to protect humans. Soon the some Oni decided it was right to destroy the evil humans, while others sought to reform them and save their souls. All in all, as a whole, the Oni eventually decided to rid the Mortal Coil of evil, whether it be humans or fiends. Oni, across the multiverse began slaying all evil humans and those they considered to be tainted by evil (though some were not). This action angered the Shinto Gods, however, they did not punish the Oni because that’s what they were created to do, slay evil. Instead, the Shinto deities decide to separate the Oni from the humans and place them on the outskirts of the Mortal Coil to prevent evil from crossing over. Many years passed as the Oni defended the Mortal Coil, before they realized the humans began worshipping fiends, such as Asmodeus, Orcus, Demogorgon, and many more. The humans even began summoning these foul creatures to the Mortal Coil. So against their creators’ orders, the Oni rushed back to the Mortal Coil and began brutally slaughtering these evil humans, as well as destroying altars and temples belonging to the evil entities. Though they were slaying evil, the chaos they brought with them, destroyed millions of innocent humans as well.
The Shinto deities intervened and banished the Oni to the Outer Planes, where they would roam forever. They saw the Oni as failed creations and forsook them. The Oni were still persistent in destroying evil, and continued to do so in the Lower Planes. However, the Lower Planes were home to the terrible fiends and the Oni were uninvited guests. In the Outer Planes, the Oni were hunted down by fiends and slain. Most Oni, fearing extinction, sided with the fiends and betrayed their Oni brethren. As the few remaining good Oni numbers dwindled, they retreated into unknown parts of the multiverse. The Oni, which sided with evil, sought to lash out at the gods who had banished them, but could not do so directly or they’d surely meet their ends. Eventually, the Oni worked with the fiends, corrupting or utterly destroying human souls all over the Mortal Coil. As a result, they lost their mystic beauty and became nothing more than fiends themselves. Their forms were now corrupted and ugly from the years they spent in the Lower Realms. Soon, the Oni took note of the fiends and began gaining worshippers, although not nearly as much as the demon lords and arch devils. And that’s when the first ruler of evil Oni kind came into existence. He became known as Keonerru, The Dark One. Keonerru was the first of the Oni to ascend into godhood. He gained immense divine powers, as well as enhanced Oni powers. He used his divine status to gain followers, like the fiendish entities, which ruled the Lower Planes. Keonerru eventually decided now was as good of a time as any to invade the Mortal Coil. Not even the resident demon lords of the Abyss thought it was smart to invade the Mortal Coil, because they knew the celestials will no doubt get involved. However, they bolstered Keonerru’s army with demons nevertheless.
The Oni Lord led his Oni and gangs of demons into the Mortal Coil, where he sought to slay countless of humans, which he blamed for the banishment of his race. The Shinto deities were no doubt gearing up to intervene against the foul Oni, but had a sigh of relief as the once hidden Oni revealed themselves. The good Oni, clashed against Keonerru’s forces on a Prime World long forgotten. However, these Oni were different from what they used to be. They were separated into four distinct groups, each having the power over a certain element; Air, Earth, Fire, and Water. Not only did they have control over their respective elements, these Oni were far more disciplined than before and looked as though they have been training for just this day.
Using their newfound powers, the good Oni obliterated almost all of Keonerru’s forces with little casualties. Yet they were still greatly outnumbered as Keonerru unleashed a second wave of fiends upon them. Just then, warriors from across the Mortal Coil gathered here to help the good Oni. They too, unfortunately, found themselves outnumbered. Finally, the skies opened up, and thousands of celestials poured forth from the Realms Above. Although celestials and Oni have had few encounters with each other over the past eons, the celestials were certainly not going to stand back and watch as evil ravaged the Mortal Coil. Thus, they joined forces with the Oni and fought against Keonerru and his forces. Eventually, their numbers dwindled and the celestials retreated at the command of high ranking celestials. Once again, the Oni were left alone to fend for themselves. At this point, Keonerru personally got involved to ensure his “foolish” brethren were taken care of, before setting his sites on the humans again. The Dark One, used his deific powers to turn the tide of the battle. He slaughtered the good Oni left and right. But, the strange thing was as soon as he killed them, their souls mysteriously waded in the air, as trying to fight on. Then suddenly, the souls began gathering in one area, into one particular Oni, by the name of Hi-no-Kami. He had begun sucking the souls into a large gem in his chest. This resulted in him gaining immense strength from his fallen brethren. The few remaining good Oni who witnessed this stepped aside as Hi-no-Kami approached Keonerru. As he stepped closer he grew in size to match the Dark One’s massive size.
The two did battle, alone. All the fiends and Oni stopped to watch this awesome battle. Hi-no-Kami eventually killed Keonerru in less than an hour. But, something happened that no one expected. Instead of vanishing from existence, Keonerru’s essence soared back into the Abyss. That’s when, Hi-no-Kami realized that Keonerru was a god, and gods always return to their divine realms upon death. Hi-no-Kami was enraged that he could let him get away, and took out his fury on the fiends who were foolish enough to still be around. The battle was over, and the good Oni had won for now.
Hi-no-Kami set out to strengthen his dying race. He created a demiplane, now known as Onigushima, which would be placed in the Realms Above, where the Oni would know peace in the protection of the neighboring planes. Over the years, Hi-no-Kami eventually ascended into godhood as well as few other good Oni, who were strong enough to claim the title of Oni Lord. Unfortunately, the foul Oni of the Abyss had produced just as powerful Oni Lords of darkness and destruction. Hi-no-Kami knows its just a matter of time before Keonerru would recover and lead his forces back into the Mortal Coil once again, which Hi-no-Kami is undoubtedly prepared for.
Here is how the Oni came to be.
Oni
In ancient times long since past, the Shinto deities created a powerful race of creatures to watch over and protect humans from evil. These creatures were fearsome in appearance yet just as beautiful. They dressed in elaborate armor and wielded beautifully crafted weapons. Evil didn’t stand much of a chance against the wrath of the Oni. However, this all took place when the multiverse was still in its early stage; thus, evil hadn’t really developed yet. Over many years, evil continued to grow to numbers, which far exceeded the Oni. The task of slaying evil still remained fairly easy for the Oni until they realized that the creatures they were sent to protect were the cause of the growing evil. The humans were easily seduced by evil, which came in the forms of demons, devils, and yugoloths. They were more prone to commit evil and foul acts, than to perform good deeds. Thus, as they died, their tainted souls would find their way to the Lower Planes, which in turn would strengthen evil.
The Oni had a dilemma; they were created to destroy evil, but to protect humans. Soon the some Oni decided it was right to destroy the evil humans, while others sought to reform them and save their souls. All in all, as a whole, the Oni eventually decided to rid the Mortal Coil of evil, whether it be humans or fiends. Oni, across the multiverse began slaying all evil humans and those they considered to be tainted by evil (though some were not). This action angered the Shinto Gods, however, they did not punish the Oni because that’s what they were created to do, slay evil. Instead, the Shinto deities decide to separate the Oni from the humans and place them on the outskirts of the Mortal Coil to prevent evil from crossing over. Many years passed as the Oni defended the Mortal Coil, before they realized the humans began worshipping fiends, such as Asmodeus, Orcus, Demogorgon, and many more. The humans even began summoning these foul creatures to the Mortal Coil. So against their creators’ orders, the Oni rushed back to the Mortal Coil and began brutally slaughtering these evil humans, as well as destroying altars and temples belonging to the evil entities. Though they were slaying evil, the chaos they brought with them, destroyed millions of innocent humans as well.
The Shinto deities intervened and banished the Oni to the Outer Planes, where they would roam forever. They saw the Oni as failed creations and forsook them. The Oni were still persistent in destroying evil, and continued to do so in the Lower Planes. However, the Lower Planes were home to the terrible fiends and the Oni were uninvited guests. In the Outer Planes, the Oni were hunted down by fiends and slain. Most Oni, fearing extinction, sided with the fiends and betrayed their Oni brethren. As the few remaining good Oni numbers dwindled, they retreated into unknown parts of the multiverse. The Oni, which sided with evil, sought to lash out at the gods who had banished them, but could not do so directly or they’d surely meet their ends. Eventually, the Oni worked with the fiends, corrupting or utterly destroying human souls all over the Mortal Coil. As a result, they lost their mystic beauty and became nothing more than fiends themselves. Their forms were now corrupted and ugly from the years they spent in the Lower Realms. Soon, the Oni took note of the fiends and began gaining worshippers, although not nearly as much as the demon lords and arch devils. And that’s when the first ruler of evil Oni kind came into existence. He became known as Keonerru, The Dark One. Keonerru was the first of the Oni to ascend into godhood. He gained immense divine powers, as well as enhanced Oni powers. He used his divine status to gain followers, like the fiendish entities, which ruled the Lower Planes. Keonerru eventually decided now was as good of a time as any to invade the Mortal Coil. Not even the resident demon lords of the Abyss thought it was smart to invade the Mortal Coil, because they knew the celestials will no doubt get involved. However, they bolstered Keonerru’s army with demons nevertheless.
The Oni Lord led his Oni and gangs of demons into the Mortal Coil, where he sought to slay countless of humans, which he blamed for the banishment of his race. The Shinto deities were no doubt gearing up to intervene against the foul Oni, but had a sigh of relief as the once hidden Oni revealed themselves. The good Oni, clashed against Keonerru’s forces on a Prime World long forgotten. However, these Oni were different from what they used to be. They were separated into four distinct groups, each having the power over a certain element; Air, Earth, Fire, and Water. Not only did they have control over their respective elements, these Oni were far more disciplined than before and looked as though they have been training for just this day.
Using their newfound powers, the good Oni obliterated almost all of Keonerru’s forces with little casualties. Yet they were still greatly outnumbered as Keonerru unleashed a second wave of fiends upon them. Just then, warriors from across the Mortal Coil gathered here to help the good Oni. They too, unfortunately, found themselves outnumbered. Finally, the skies opened up, and thousands of celestials poured forth from the Realms Above. Although celestials and Oni have had few encounters with each other over the past eons, the celestials were certainly not going to stand back and watch as evil ravaged the Mortal Coil. Thus, they joined forces with the Oni and fought against Keonerru and his forces. Eventually, their numbers dwindled and the celestials retreated at the command of high ranking celestials. Once again, the Oni were left alone to fend for themselves. At this point, Keonerru personally got involved to ensure his “foolish” brethren were taken care of, before setting his sites on the humans again. The Dark One, used his deific powers to turn the tide of the battle. He slaughtered the good Oni left and right. But, the strange thing was as soon as he killed them, their souls mysteriously waded in the air, as trying to fight on. Then suddenly, the souls began gathering in one area, into one particular Oni, by the name of Hi-no-Kami. He had begun sucking the souls into a large gem in his chest. This resulted in him gaining immense strength from his fallen brethren. The few remaining good Oni who witnessed this stepped aside as Hi-no-Kami approached Keonerru. As he stepped closer he grew in size to match the Dark One’s massive size.
The two did battle, alone. All the fiends and Oni stopped to watch this awesome battle. Hi-no-Kami eventually killed Keonerru in less than an hour. But, something happened that no one expected. Instead of vanishing from existence, Keonerru’s essence soared back into the Abyss. That’s when, Hi-no-Kami realized that Keonerru was a god, and gods always return to their divine realms upon death. Hi-no-Kami was enraged that he could let him get away, and took out his fury on the fiends who were foolish enough to still be around. The battle was over, and the good Oni had won for now.
Hi-no-Kami set out to strengthen his dying race. He created a demiplane, now known as Onigushima, which would be placed in the Realms Above, where the Oni would know peace in the protection of the neighboring planes. Over the years, Hi-no-Kami eventually ascended into godhood as well as few other good Oni, who were strong enough to claim the title of Oni Lord. Unfortunately, the foul Oni of the Abyss had produced just as powerful Oni Lords of darkness and destruction. Hi-no-Kami knows its just a matter of time before Keonerru would recover and lead his forces back into the Mortal Coil once again, which Hi-no-Kami is undoubtedly prepared for.