Ikizawa

Ikizawa was one of the many isolated villages of the Fochu Peninsula in Wa. Its people were primarily weavers.

Description
Perhaps because they had suffered much in raids from yellow-robed attackers sent by Za-Jikku, the people of Sukyo were especially suspicious of strangers, fleeing in abject terror at the sight of visitors.

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 shoya's own minka was in ruins from the raids.

The hamlet had a population of about 175 individuals after.

Geography
Ikizawa was located in the foothills south of the Jufosu Range. A trail led north into the mountains, and another wended south to the village of Chiroi.

Government
Villages in Wa were run by an administrator known as a shoya, typically a minor samurai. Ikizawa's shoya after Wa Year 1770 (1352 DR), however, was a wu jen named Tamura Umakai.

Trade
Like the other tiny settlements of the region, Ikizawa had little contact with the other villages, much less with the rest of Kara-Tur or regions beyond. The people were weavers, but there is no evidence that they actively traded their goods with other settlements.

The cost to spend the night in one of the small minkas was 2 fen. The village did not produce anything more expensive than 1 yuan to sell.

Defenses
About 18 citizens of Ikizawa served in its militia. These persons were only armed with simple clubs or spears.

Religion
Unlike the other settlements in the region, the people of Ikizawa were not particularly religious.

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 Ikizawa suffered especially severely from Za-Jikku's raids, being attacked twice in a six month period. The attacks resulted in the deaths of dozens of villagers and sent the wu jen shoya Umakai into hiding.

Appearances

 * Test of the Samurai