#17: Ujigami

[RPGnet Columns]

http://www.rpg.net/columns/wushuskidoo/wushuskidoo17.phtml

Summary:

You're dead. Now, you serve the living.

Go to the column (http://www.rpg.net/columns/wushuskidoo/wushuskidoo17.phtml) for more information.

[slashnull]

Playing the stable versions of the dead sounds like a great idea. I like the idea of dealing with these incredibly spooky ghosts and getting them off the backs of the living.

Also like the well meaning but destructive missionaries as the big bad!

[celebrityomnipath]

What's on TV? (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8oU0GpxFZY)

[indra]

That is the single most terrifying thing I have ever seen ;)

Seriously, that moment in the movie did serious damage to my limbic system. I'm not ashamed to admit it. Disturbed my sleep for days.

--Dan

[ozbot]

Another great Wushu idea. In fact, I don't think I've seen the Traits/Weaknesses so closely attuned to the setting. It's brilliant!

To round out the "wide variety of supernatural creatures," look specifically at the manga/anime Ge Ge Ge no Kitaro for some more ideas. It's probably a lilttle less pure horror and more on the quirky side, but it plays with the Japanese kami/spirits like no other. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ge_Ge_Ge_no_Kitaro and from there http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yōkai
It's actually hard to find in the US I think, but there are quite a few with dubs of the 80s version on YouTube, like this one (http://jp.youtube.com/watch?v=XLka3hLJNZY) (It's been published since the 60s, I think.)

For another tried-and-true plot hook, perhaps the modern world is encroaching on the shrine-- like it's going to be developed or is the site of illegal dumping/pollution. The ujigami can't use their powers directly against the threat (their weakness, remember) so they have to get creative to stop the threat. This is very Pom Poko (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pom_Poko)