Alt-Onin Session #6 and 7 - The Battle of Kamigoryo Shrine

 

"On January 18, 1467, during the Muromachi Period, the struggle between deposed Kanrei (Shogun's Deputy) Masanaga HATAKEYAMA and Yoshinari HATAKEYAMA took place in the forest within this shrine. The Goryo skirmish led to the outbreak of the Onin War in the following year and this is considered the site where the Onin War began."

-Japanese Wiki Corpus

This marks the first incident of fighting within the city proper. The Shogunate doesn’t really take a side in this fight, though they do support Hatakeyama Yoshinari in principle. When word arrived that Yamana troops are assisting Yoshinari, Hosokawa Katsumoto sent Goto’s troops (without Shogunal permission) to assist Masanaga in the fight. The PC’s mustered, armed up without their Goto tabards, and marched north to the Kamigoryo Shrine precinct, with the intention of finding Masanaga’s forces.

Goto’s Company was assigned to defend a specific pathway through the southern woods of the precinct near the moat of Shokoku-Ji. The pathway proceeds up a slight angle through dense woods, with a large boulder at the top where the PC’s can defend from. The PC’s arrived on the scene only a few minutes before the Asakura attempted to find a weak point. Attackers have to move along the edge of the moat to make progress through the thick woods, and thus have to come that way if they want to come from the south. The PC's did not have to wait long before the Asakura, allies of Lord Yoshinari's faction, arrived with the intent to drive Goto's Company out of the woods and force their way up from the south. 

While Goto’s company overall made a good showing, they were badly outnumbered. After a while, Asakura troops on both sides of the woods made an accidentally-coordinated push, and the fighting moved to close quarters. Goto’s company was pushed back to the Big Rock and forced to make a run for the central complex after a short fight, after which the Asakura pulled back and harassed Goto's company with archery from a safe distance. Only about half of Goto’s Company actually made it to the inner compound, as most were cut down by archers or scattered. They joined Lord Masanaga and his troops there, caught in an Alamo situation while the fighting paused till dawn.  

• Tatsuzo and Kazu made a fighting retreat from the "Big Rock" to the central shrine complex, joining the few survivors of Goto's Company along with all of Lord Masanaga's men. 

• Kingoro suffered several episodes or fits, first going berserk with rage, and then later fleeing in terror. He was pursued by his friend Santo no Kai, who recognized his ailment as supernatural, probably some sort of spirit possession. Both witnessed the apparition of Emperor Sudo (d. 785 AD), who was angered by all the blood and nonsense, and cursed at Kingoro and Santo no Kai. At the end of the session, the two are hiding in a minor shrine outside the walls of the central complex, not far from the enemy's encampment. 

• Unlucky Ko was separated from the group early in the fight, apparently swept up in the final Asakura push, and possibly trapped in the accidental forest fire to the south. He has not been seen since, and knowing his constant ill fortune, probably died a horrible-yet-embarrassing death. 

Exhausted, bloodied, and questioning the point of the fight, most of Goto's company agrees with the captain. They will attempt a breakout to avoid dying along with all of the defenders. Most of the troops here on both sides are vassals of one of the Hatakeyama lords. The PC's, on the other hand, are here as a favor by someone else to someone else. They have no personal stake in the outcome and have already cemented their reputations as badasses.