#??. THREE KINGS An Au Ra (Shuten Douji) with fiery red hair defiantly holds a greatclub, flanked on one side by a giant a horned man (Ōtakemaru) with massive sword on his shoulders, and a woman (Tamamo Gozen) with fox ears, behind her a large monstrous fox.

#??
In days of eld, three mononoke walked as the most powerful in all of Othard—the San-Dai-Oh, or Three Great Kings. The kijin Ōtakemaru, the oni Shuten Douji, and the kitsune Tamamo Gozen.

Regarded with terror, just how villainous they truly were has since been questioned...
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#31. HYAKKI YAGYO A Namazu-driven mikoshi moves through a city street, accompanied by a variety of various ghosts, monsters and spoken. Hinako rides the mikoshi while Sumi walks along her. Nurarihyon watches, satisfied, next to a woman named Shiina.

#31
It means the Night Parade of One-Hundred Demons.
On unassuming nights every moon, the mononoke will come out of hiding and flood the streets of the mortal realm in a great matsuri.

It is not for the weak-willed—so much as glimpsing the spectacle risks one's safety, or life.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#30. NUE A red-faced beast with a snake tail is stanced, while a number of lightning bolts strike behind it.

#30
One of the oldest mononoke documented, the chimeric Nue is said to appear like a different beast depending on where you view it. The dutiful auspices at Reisen Temple would prove to be exceptions.
With dominion over lightning and wind, Nue have long been tied with calamity.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#29. YAMABIKO In misty hills by a stream, Hinako looks toward a trio of wind sprites and a creature on an arched limb, opposite the stream.

#29
Sometimes, echoes come back wrong—be they take longer to return, or they may sound different. In the mountains, this is attributed to yamabiko.
The name is applied to wind spirits, although some folklore describes a clever creature using them as shikigami to manipulate sound.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#28. KIRIN On a cliff before Yanxian peaks rising above the mist underneath a rosy sky, a Kirin with golden glow and sparkle floats before a certain tiny tapir.

#28
There is a number of auspicious beasts that can be considered holy. By any measure, the Kirin reigns supreme.
A mononoke of great power, it is also so gentle─it is said─as to not crush even a single blade of grass as it walks. It only appears before the truly benevolent.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#27. UMIBOZU Hinako looks out at the Ruby Sea, where the silhouette of a giant can be seen from its shoulders up - its head appearing to be turned. A gentle rain falls.

#27
From among the sea spirits or ayakashi, the massive umibozu looms as the most enigmatic. The extent of its shadowed form defies comprehension.
It has been credited for disaster at sea, bringing a turn of the weather as it rises—threatening to crash hull of ships against it.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#26. TENGU In front of a waterfall, Hinako stands front and center, concentrating with a mudra and her shakujo. She is flanked by two kotengu, posed ready to strike at something unseen, while a daitengu rises from behind her.

#26
A secretive winged race that prefers to sequester deep in nature, the tengu are popular in local legend. The kotengu, blades without peer. The daitengu, prolific mages and central to the arts of geomancy and shugendo.
With no social consensus, they can be friend and foe both.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#25. KOSAMEBO An elderly man wearing a kasa and holding a shakujo walks under dreary skies along a pass overlooking a faint mountain landscape. A couple of water sprites float nearby.

#25
On rainy eves along some mountain trails, wayfarers have been met by a dubious monk soliciting for some food or coin. While not known as hostile, some see it as good luck to oblige.
As rain sprites never seem far behind, the monk is believed to be a glamour of their making.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#24. HIHI A white monkey(opo-opo)-like creature with a red mask-like face stands over a fallen boar in a bamboo forest, holding a blood-splattered club.

#24
Monks and travelers in the mountains are well-acquainted with the reclusive baboon-like auspices─named for their laugh─that lurk throughout.
Known to have attacked people on occasion, Hihi tend to be rather opportunistic, as implied by their appearance in the Rokkon incident.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#23. HITODAMA Kikyo, a Miqo'te in the garb of a shrine priestess, stands extending one hand, look up at one of a number of blue flames floating around her. Nearby is an Eastern-style building and bridge and trees with autumnal leaves. (don't @ me about using the onibi, i wish i had more space to give them a mention in this post)

#23
A simple yet elegant sort of mononoke, fireballs are common and varied in nature. Hitodama are likely the most emblematic.
They are manifestations of the soul, often appearing in the wake of the recently deceased. They mean no harm, but the same can't be said about all fires.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#22. HATAMOTO An undead samurai general in full rusted armor points his blade forward in signal, as he is flanked by his equally undead subordinates, many of which riddled with arrows.

#22
Hatamoto refers to one rank bestowed upon the bannermen of samurai militias, those in direct service to their lord—the best of the best.
Many died for the cause in wartime, to where the name was in time attached to restless spirits of such armored warriors seeking lost glory.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#21. DAIDARABOTCHI A shadowy giant rises above a treeline, ones of its hands resting upon a mountain.

#21
You walk in the shadow of the colossus.
Of all mononoke, the legendary Daidarabotchi (+ its variants, such is its prevalence in lore) is perhaps the most immense, able to shape the very star. They are said to have created many sacred lakes and mountains, including Daitenzan.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#20. NOPPERABO A man takes a dramatic pose (of the unbound) before a very obvious Au Ra with an unreadable expression, one hand outstretched before her and the other in front of his face. His features have half-vanished to a blank head and face. Yes the repeating character drifting behind them both is ゴゴゴゴ

#20
Ware those you meet alone at night.
A nopperabo seems like a mundane person until you come face to face with them... and they have no face, or they wave away their features before your eyes.
This frightful illusion is a trick well enjoyed by auspices like kitsune or tanuki.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#19. CHOCHIN OBAKE Hinako, back turned to the camera, gestures toward three large bakechochin - paper lanterns with long, lulling tongues and single eyes each. They look back at her attentively. A smaller okuri chochin flanks Hinako.

#19
A tsukumogami is when an object matures as to obtain a soul, and thus life. Its disposition tends to hinge on its condition, who owned it, and how it was treated.
Bakechochin─changed lanterns─are a more common type; usually they just catch people unawares with a fright...
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#18. ONRYO Hinako and Kasha face down an onryo. The ghost of a woman is seen having a breakdown, surrounded with a sinister aura, while a large tentacled entity with a gaping glowing maw looms over her. Talismans flutter in the air.

#18
A grudge is a horrible thing to hold, and even worse to die with.
Yurei exist because some tether ties them to this world. Onryo exist because that tether is burning hatred–they didn't die in peace and can't pass on.
They are among the most formidable mononoke you can meet.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#17. IKIRYO Hinako faces the screen, head lowered, eyes closed in reflection. Beside her is a glowing ghostly copy of herself, in armor, looking at viewer.

#17
Not all ghosts are those of the dead.
Some of them–ikiryo–manifest from the very much alive, and the reason can vary per case about as much as other yurei or shiryo. Perhaps an extreme emotion, a near-death experience, or even a curse.
What would you do if you faced yourself?
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#16. TESSO In the corner of a dark room, a large rat-like creature looms, largely cloaked in shadow save for its silhouette and beady eye. Dozens of other normal rats can be seen running along the floor in the general direction of the viewer.

#16
Monks are long regarded as standards of virtue and wisdom. They are, however, by and large as much people as anyone. Prone to temptation, to wrath or greed.
Given their spiritual aptitude, if they fall, they fall harder than most.
Gorai was not the first to feel this fate.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#15. KITSUNE A group of characters, including Natsumi in the front and right, followed with Kudagitsune, Kinko, Ginko, and Mikuzume in the back, with a spectral image of her Tamamo Gozen form looming beside her.

#15
Auspicious foxes have a vaunted place in Far Eastern mythos. They are potent shapeshifters and mages, with many a 'tail' and even a hierarchy.
The wild ones have a mean streak, while others ward off evil and act as divine emissaries–the best of them akin to kami themselves.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#14. KODAMA Hinako is seen at the base of an ancient tree surrounded by a massive rope, with a number of green lights scattered about before it - including one brighter than the others in the center.

#14
Listen to the forest. Often it shall know things none other can be privy to.
Kodama are souls of trees made manifest. One, if not many, will reside in the oldest and greatest of trunks. They are true guardians of the wood, key to its vitality, and should be respected in kind.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#13. NURIKABE In an alleyway, Hinako is faced with crossed arms toward an invisible wall monster that is transparent for convenience of visiblity.

#13
You're walking in town late one night, only to meet with an unexpected–quite invisible–wall. There's no getting around it, but you can get through by realizing its weak points.
As this mononoke seems to live to obstruct, it is an oft-favored familiar for mischievous auspices.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#12. WANYUDO A pair of wheels with demonic mask-like faces, blue and red, glow menacingly beside one another along a rural path.

#12
A damned soul may be made to repent, bound to the spokes of a wheel and tasked with dragging the wicked to hell. Often any mortal in the cross-fire suffices.
The Wanyudo and Katasharin are icons of fear for the smallfolk. Even a lingering gaze upon one can invite disaster.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#11. NEKOMATA Before a row of sacred statues, Kanako Daigo concentrates, fist-in-palm. Behind her is a large, blue spectral feline with two flaming tails.

#11
When a cat becomes an auspice, sometimes it is as a Bakeneko–where its tail grows as to shift its balance, allowing it to stand on its hind legs.
When that tail forks into two, it obtains a whole new level of power. Often these are characterized by their contempt for mankind.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#10. YAMAWARO Along a rocky mountain forest path, with a pagoda in the background, Hinako watches a cluster of oblong creatures float by.

#10
Mountain spirits are often called Yamawaro, and incidents in such regions during autumn-winter may be credited to them. They are mischief makers, but can be bartered into lending aid.
Some see them as Kappa that migrate seasonally, though it is bad luck to watch them do so.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#9. ENENRA A horned lanky monster with a cowl stabs a giant kiseru into the ground, emitting an explosive blast of smoke and embers.

#9
This powerful tsukumogami, born of a great kiseru, was a far cry from certain whimsical tales of Enenra. Of wispy spectres assuming familiar form for only the pure of heart.
Could one consider this mononoke's appearance, that which threatened Mount Rokkon, a test of virtue?
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#8. GASHADOKURO A giant skeleton with glowing eyes looms before Hinako amid flaming wreckage, as one of its massive bony hands slams the ground near the priest.

#8
As victims of mass death─as in war or famine─may be left without proper burials, their remains and collective resentment can coalesce into the skeletal giant Gashadokuro, or be invoked as one by an opportunistic mage.
A mononoke of its nature is one you never hope to face.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

Misuzu Kurenai (he/they/she), facing the left and glancing toward the camera, sporting horns and an oni halfmask. Flanking him is a massive oni's arm coming from the side of the screen behind him. Part of a screen wall depicting an oni or hannya's face and be seen in the background.

#7
The diverse and elusive race known as Oni are said to have been born out of mankind itself─those changed by extreme conditions. Perhaps that is ironic for a name that was once the umbrella word "mononoke" is now.
It follows that they are also the go-to villains in folk tales.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

[cw arachnophobia] #6. JOROGUMO In a darkened wood, a woman with bare legs and shoulders sits haughtily atop the body of a giant spider -- or perhaps the giant spider's body is a part of her. She is surrounded by smaller spiders scurrying out of the woods, including some on the rocks in the back.

#6
Long-lived spiders seldom care for the company of their fellow auspices, let alone for the affairs of man. Unless it serves their interests.
Jorogumo in particular tend to favor an attractive spoken form and may live among smallfolk, deferring to charm to get what they want.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#5. MIFUNE A ghostly horse and its armored rider - both ridden with arrows - passes by Hinako on a treaded path at night.

#5
If you're walking alone on a moonlit path and you hear the sounds of approaching hooves with no horse, it may perhaps be best to simply step aside and wait until they pass.
Mifune─a name coined by a tale of a doomed warrior─might have unfinished business to attend to.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose

#4. NURARIHYON At a table with food sits Hinako and Nurarihyon, a wizened old man with an elongated skull holding a kiseru. Hinako smiles to Hurarihyon who looks to her a wry, bemused smile in return. A person stands in attendance in the back.

#4
A peculiar old man with refined tastes slips into an establishment and acts like he runs the place─and no one's the wiser, even the owners. It amuses him, really, when someone isn't swayed by his influence.
One may not guess that he is an auspice, and a very powerful mononoke.
#hyakkiyagyo #gpose