Chiroi

Chiroi was a farming community and one of the many isolated villages of the Fochu Peninsula in Wa.

Description
The people of Chiroi were much more welcoming of strangers than other settlements of the peninsula —assuming that those strangers had a strong faith in the Path of Enlightenment!

Most of the structures within the village were simple peasant shacks known as minka, built from wood with latticed walls and straw-thatched roofs. Apart from these poor residences were small barns, warehouses, and shops.

The hamlet had a population of about 110 individuals after.

Geography
Chiroi was located near the coast of the Sea of Patience, where the Fochu Peninsula joined the mainland of Tsukishima. It sat alongside a spur of one of the tributaries to the Nanaichi River. A trail led from the village north to Ikizawa, and another ran east along the coast to Kawasa.

Government
Villages in Wa were run by an administrator known as a shoya's, typically a minor samurai, and Chiroi was no different in this respect. The shoya could call upon a local militia if needed. The shoya of Chiroi after Wa Year 1770 (1352 DR) was Mie Jijiyuri.

Trade
Like the other tiny settlements of the region, Chiroi had little contact with the other villages, much less with the rest of Kara-Tur or regions beyond.

It was free to spend the night in one of the small minkas of the village if one was dedicated to the Path. The village did not produce anything more expensive than 1 yuan to sell.

Defenses
About 11 citizens of Chiroi served in its militia. These persons were only armed with simple clubs or spears.

Religion
Like most of the villages of the Peninsula, the people of Chiroi were strict followers of the Path of Enlightenment. They were usually strongly opposed to anyone visiting their village who would not demonstrate devotion to the Path by making a donation to a shrine, reciting a prayer, or spitting on the symbol of Chauntea, who was considered a heretical faith. After the raids of the yellow-robed attackers sent by Za-Jikku, the shoya began demanding two such tests of faith.

The bulk of the citizens spent the majority of their time praying to the Celestial Bureaucracy for protection from the raids and repenting of their sins, which they suspected were the cause of their calamity. Those villagers not devoted to prayer took care of raising the children and producing and preparing the villages food.

History
Sometime after Wa Year 1770 (1352 DR), deposed coiled dragon Za-Jikku began murdering citizens of the many villages of the Fochu Peninsula, transforming them into magical butterflies, the breath of which would create yun ch'i, the vapor of death, which he would use to live forever. The village of Chiroi suffered especially severely from Za-Jikku's raids.

Appearances

 * Test of the Samurai