General Susumu

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General Susumu
Religious symbol of General Susumu.
(Deity)

Titles
The Black Daimyo
Adjective
Susuman
Realm
Alignment
Areas of Concern
DEG: Archery, Horses, Personal glory, War
TXWG: Fear
Glory
Warfare
Death
Edicts
Seek glory in battle, loudly proclaim your victories, protect your possessions and strongholds
Anathema
Cower from fights, refuse a challenge from an equal, mistreat your weapons, abuse your mount
Follower Alignments (1E)
Domains (1E)
Evil, Glory, Law, Nobility, War
Subdomains (1E)
Blood, Devil, Heroism, Honor, Leadership, Tactics
Follower Alignments (2E)
Domains (2E)
Confidence, destruction, might, zeal
Favored Weapon
Symbol
Black winged horse
Sacred Animal
Source: Dragon Empires Gazetteer, pg(s). 59f. (1E)
Tian Xia World Guide, pg(s). 27 (2E)

General Susumu (pronounced soo-soo-moo),1 also known as the Black Daimyo, is the Tian Xia patron deity of fallen samurai who are interested more in glory and battle than honor and heroism.23

Appearance

In his human form, General Susumu is depicted as a towering Tian-Min man with red skin and bristling eyebrows; he wears an ornate set of black o-yoroi armour. He rides a black winged horse, and in battle he wields an iron longbow that shoots arrows of pure fire. When his anger is truly roused General Susumu abandons his human form to become an enormous crimson dragon with obsidian tusks.2

Religious symbol

General Susumu's religious symbol is a black winged horse.23

Relationships

General Susumu is the half-brother of Shizuru, the so-called Empress of Heaven and goddess of the sun, honour, and virtuous samurai. General Susumu, with his affinity for darkness and ambitious pride, and his sister seldom see eye to eye.2

Church of General Susumu

General Susumu is worshipped primarily in the monstrous realm of Chu Ye; Honga, the lands of the Horse Lords; the hobgoblin kingdom of Kaoling; the samurai kingdoms of Minkai and Songbai; and Xa Hoi. General Susumu appears at the site of great conflicts, sometimes to merely watch but at other times leading a great army of deceased samurai into combat for the sheer thrill of fighting.2 Dhucharg, the capital city of Kaoling, boasts a particularly large temple dedicated to General Susumu called the Palace of the Black Daimyo.4

Followers of the Black Daimyo recruit warriors from the followers of Shizuru who chafe under her codes of conduct and lure them down a path of achieving glory in battle at any cost.3 They take meticulous care of their implements of war, including their mounts, and are stalwart defenders (though motivated not by duty but by a fear of damaging their reputation through failure). The deaths of innocents in pursuit of victory are of no concern, and their reputation for relentless brutality often causes foes to flee merely on the sight of General Susumu's religious symbol in battle.3

References

For additional as-yet unincorporated sources about this subject, see the Meta page.

  1. Eren Ahn, et al. “Religion” in Tian Xia World Guide, 21. Paizo Inc., 2024
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 James Jacobs, et al. “Life in the Dragon Empires” in Dragon Empires Gazetteer, 59–60. Paizo Inc., 2011
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Eren Ahn, et al. “Religion” in Tian Xia World Guide, 27. Paizo Inc., 2024
  4. John Compton, et al. Dhucharg” in Distant Shores, 31. Paizo Inc., 2015