These are the creatures that are going to kill your Black Tokyo PCs... and probably do worse things, too.

Here's the simplest possible preview of what I'm currently working on, a summary chart listing all the monsters that will be gracing an upcoming bestiary for Black Tokyo. This book is going to be modeled on Closed: Monsters of the Army of God, in that it consolidates all the existing monsters from various BTU sourcebooks, updates them fully to Pathfinder, and introduces dozens upon dozens of new threats.

This is NOT a complete list. I'm still working on the monsters. Current plans are to finally stat out the Ubume Empress, who I've mentioned as a major player in several Black Tokyo sourcebooks, as well as include more Eyrines Sisterhood NPCs, a monk or two of the Moonlit Monestary, and other factions. I also want to include at least one NPC of every BTU player race, even the ones I've not done Expanded Race sorucebooks on, like the Tanuki and Doujinishi, among others. I might not get to every race, as I already have plans in mind for BTU Bestiary II next year, but I want to include at least a few options for everybody.

I also noticed that most of the threats are either low/mid level or epic level. There's only one or two critters for CRs 10-20 at each challenge rating and I want to firm up the mid/high level threat roster.

Enough preamble. Take a look at the critters!
Expect some art previews in the next day or two.
CHRIS

Monster	Challenge Rating	Size, Type and Subtypes	Core Concept
Aketeko	CR 5	Large CE Plant	Bloodthirsty plant demon
Amakaze	CR 10	Medium LE Undead (evil, law)	Greed driven undead billionaire
Amikiri	CR 2	Small N Magical Beast	Clever sharp-clawed scavenger
Animated Object: Gyno-Bed	CR 4	Medium N Construct	Rapacious, animated examination bed
Animated Object: Love Pillow	CR 2	Small N Construct	Animated body pillow that preys on the otaku community
Animated Object: Purikura Booth	CR 5	Large N Construct	Animated photo booth with an electrical punch
Aosaginohi	CR 2	Tiny NE Magical Beast	Ghost bird that foretells death
Asami Kumo	CR 17	Medium NE Monstrous Humanoid (Dark POETICA) Rogue 12/ Assassin 4	Sadistic head of security for the New Day Girl Factory
Aswang	CR 6	Medium CE Undead	Birdlike devourer of fetuses
Awabi	CR ½	Small CE Monstrous Humanoid (aquatic)	Pathetic, beach dwelling minor oni
Baby Sister Ryoko	CR 7	Small LN Fey (Nikusi) Rogue 8	Immortal, shotgun wielding little girl who murders pedophiles
Bake-Kujira	CR 18	Gargantuan CE Undead (water)	Burning ghost whale
Binbogami	CR 2	Medium LN Undead	Relentless zombies
Bio-Machine Ooze	CR 11	Huge CN Ooze	Machine devouring industrial accident
Black Car	CR 6	Large CE Construct	A demonic automobile
Black Teacher	CR 9	Medium LE Outsider (devil, evil, extraplanar)	Demonic tormentor and child rapist that hides among unsuspecting students
Blue Collar Kami	CR 2	Medium LN freeter Outsider (Kami, native, law) Expert 4	Working class minor diety
Breath of the Onsen	CR 4	Huge N Ooze (air, fire, incorporeal)	Scalding ghost-fog that stalks hot spring resorts
Bunraku-66 POETICA	CR 10	Medium LN Monstrous Humanoid (POETICA) Fighter 11	Military grade POETICA
Catgirl Sorceress	CR 5	Medium NG Humanoid (Nekomusume) Sorceress 6	Beautiful, arcane protector of catgirls
Combined Fleet Gunner	CR 7	Medium LN or LG Combined Fleet Monstrous Humanoid (POETICA) Ranger 5/ Assault Witch 3	Devil hunting airplane-girl
Connoisseur of Woman Flesh	CR 12	Medium LE Outsider (devil, evil, extraplanar)	Pre-teen devil with a gleeful hunger for the cooked flesh of human women
Corpse Gallows	CR 14	Huge NE Undead	Animate gallows that prowls Aokigahara Forest
Corrupted Marine	CR 3	Medium CE Monstrous Humanoid	A US Marine possessed by the Revered Shogun and made a horror
Daibutsu Guardian	CR 14	Gargantuan LG Construct	Gigantic Buddha statue that animates to protect the faithful
Dakiniten Intern	CR ½	Medium CG noble Outsider (native, good, kitsune) Dedicated 1	Skillful fox attorney working for Saga Prefecture’s free legal aid clinic
Devil Vigilante	CR 13	Medium CN Humanoid (Half Orc) Barbarian 1, Rogue 1 Hentai Hero 12	Winged hunter of demons and the undead
The Dofuku (Sada Abe)	CR 15	Medium LE Undead (Goryohime)	Lost geisha who now creates and manipulates Goryohime for her own enigmatic purposes
Doll Maker Ooze	CR 13	Huge N Ooze	Golden ooze that digests a corpse and leaves behind a sex doll
Enigma Clan Fox	CR 4	N Medium ninja Fey (Kitsune, shapechanger) Rogue (occult thief) 5	Modern Kitsune ninja, expert in occult espionage
Eto, the Ironpot Oni	CR 6	Large CE Outsider (Ironclub Oni, Native) Barbarian 6/Summoner 1	Hulking oni who will buy inconvenient corpses for sale as cut-rate meat
Eyrines Sister	CR 5	Medium LG or LN Human Monk 6	Feminist monk sworn to protect all women
Familiar, Child	CR ½	Small N* Human	A magically adept child serving as a familiar
Familiar, Heart Plush	CR 1/3	Small N Construct	Stuffed familiar
Familiar, Hitotsume-Kozo	CR 1/3	Small NG Fey	Clever one eyed fey spirit
Familiar, Kamaitachi	CR ½	Tiny CN Magical Beast	Fast and nasty tiny predator
Familiar, Panty Fairy	CR 1/3	Tiny N Fey	Sarcastic little fairy familiar
Familiar, Penguin	CR 1/4	Small N Animal	A smarter bird than you’d expect
Familiar, Pooplet	CR 1/3	Tiny N Ooze	Friendly shit ooze
Familiar, Sankai	CR 1/3	Tiny NE Undead	Miscarried ghost familiar
Familiar, Spark Fox	CR 1/2	Tiny N Magical Beast (electricity)	Clever, electrically charged vulpine
Familiar, Teru Teru Bozo	CR 1/4	Tiny NG Undead (air, water)	Benevolent ghostly rain spirit
Familiar, Zashiki-Warashi	CR 1/2	Small NG Fey (earth)	Childlike house kami
Feral Nekomusume	CR ½	Medium CN Humanoid (Nekomusume) Warrior 2	Street-living catfolk
Feral POETICA	CR 3	Medium CN Monstrous Humanoid (Dark POETICA) Barbarian 4	Machine slave gone rouge, powered by machine absorbing regenerative capabilities
Genbu (creature skin)	CR 29	Colossal NE Magical Beast	The Black Tortoise of the North
Goro Akabeko	CR 8	Large LE Monstrous Humanoid	Minotaur-like founder of the Twelve Golden Amakaze faction
Goryohime Summoner	CR 2	NG Medium Gyaru Undead (Goryohime) Summoner 3	Young Goryohime adventurer accompanied by a living mannequin
H Child	CR 8	Small NE Fey	False child that seduces mortal children into victimization by pedophiles
Harionago	CR 8	Medium CE Undead	Undead murderess with prehensile hair
Hibagon Oni	CR 3	Large CE Monstrous Humanoid	Rapacious giant
Hidari Body	CR 1	Small NE Construct	Living latex torso sex-doll
Ho-Masubi	CR 11	Large CE Undead (fire)	Heartless pyrokinetic giant
Hyakki Yokai Bargirl	CR 2	Medium CN Monstrous Humanoid (Hyakki Yokai, chaotic) Bard 3	Hundreds of tiny yokai wearing a woman suit and scamming drunks in disreputable bars
Inari-Kiiroi	CR 18	Medium CE Outsider (chaotic, earth, Kitsune)	The darkest part of the Kitsune Goddess Inari’s soul has taken on a life of his own
Ittan	CR 1	Small CE Undead	The undead clothes of a murder victim
Izanami	CR 30	Medium NE Undead (evil, fire)	The first undead; queen of Hell
Jinzu	CR 7	Large CN Undead	Jellyfish like ghost  of an aborted fetus
Jurogumo ( creature skin)	CR 9	Medium CE Outsider (chaotic, demon, evil, extraplanar)	Venomous spider whore
Kaiju, The Biwa Centipede	CR 23	Colossal CE Vermin (Kaiju)	Impossibly long centipede slumbering in an ancient lake
Kaiju, Vitruvian Walker	CR 28	Colossal CE Monstrous Humanoid (Kaiju)	Flayed giant who gives birth to Tottori Horrors and spreads disease and madness
Kanedama	CR 5	LE Medium Monstrous Humanoid	Blind gunslinger servants of the Amakaze
Kitsune-Kiiroi Rapist	CR 5	CE Medium burakumin Fey (Kitsune, shapechanger) Combatant 6	Pack-hunting sex criminals
Koma-Inu	CR 8	Large N Construct	Stone lion guardian
Little Witch	CR ½	Medium NG Human Adept 2	Pre-teen spellcaster in training
Mie/Mau	CR 2	Medium LG or LN Humanoid (Nekomusume) Rogue 3	Irritating twin catgirl assassins
Miidera	CR 12	CE Medium Undead (Goryohime)	Inhumanly beautiful and cold model returned from the dead to feed upon Goryohime
Dr. Jiro Momonjii (False Form)	CR 10	Medium LE Human Expert 12	Dispassionate father of the POETICA species
Momonjii (True Form)	CR 22	Huge LE Outsider (evil, extraplanar, lawful)	Dark, misogynic demon-god
Momotaro	CR 20	Large LE Monstrous Humanoid	Corrupted warrior who controls animals
Nure-Onna	CR 6	Medium CN Outsider (fire, water)	Woman made of boiling salt water
Occult Delinquent	CR 1	Medium NE Monstrous Humanoid (Yurei) Warrior 3	Brutal supernatural street kid
Oni-Marrow Elite	CR 7	Medium LE or LN Human Fighter 4/ Hentai Hero 4	Cruel, elite soldiers of the Amakaze, armed with cutting edge gear and the will to use it
Personified Gun	CR 1/2	Medium LN Human Fighter 1	First level human fighter created by the Personify Gun spell
POETICA Hacktivist	CR 3	Small NG POETICA Smart Hero 3/Techie 1	Elite android computer hacker who could pass for 8 years old
Ramat Sect Warrior-Girl	CR 5	LG Medium Goryohime Hentai Hero 6	Seriously hardcore undead demon hunter
Rape Pure Fighter	CR 8	Medium LE Humanoid	Brawler in a sexual blood sport
Rape Pure Vermillion Futanari	CR 10	Large CE Monstrous Humanoid	Half female oni brawler who revels in sexual violence against women
Ren Waita, Akaname Modern Spellcaster	CR 6	Medium LN Undead (Akaname) Modern Spellcaster 7	Conservative and self interested Akaname mage and potion brewer
Reos, Neko Barbarian	CR 10	Medium CN Nekomusume Barbarian 11	Dimwitted, violent alpha male Neko of the Nekoshima colony
Rokurokubi	CR 8	Medium NE Undead	Long necked undead that tempts victims to suicide by hanging
Sakura, Kitsune Sorceress	CR 8	CE Medium ninja Fey (kitsune, shapechanger) Sorcerer 9	Rapacious trickster/cultist of Inari-Kiiroi
Sazae-Oni	CR 6	Large CE Outsider (evil)	Seductive snail woman
Shingami	CR 25	Colossal CE Monstrous Humanoid (giant, fire)	Kaiju-sized embodiment of anti-Japanese bigotry
Shiro-Bozu	CR 4	Medium N Ooze	Ooze made out of acidic cum
Shoryohime	CR 3	Medium CE Undead	Failed Goryohime returned to life as a monster
Skinless Yakuza	CR 5	Medium LE Undead	Skinflaying undead swordsman
Slave Holder Mansion	CR 20	Colossal NE Construct	An intelligent mansion that uses illusions and cruel tortures to corrupt its inhabitants
Stalking Washlet	CR 4	Medium CN Construct (water, Pleasure)	Animated toilet that uses lethal and pleasurable water jets on victims
Dr. Sukakagi	CR 12	Medium CE Human Modern Spellcaster 13	Nutjob mad scientist who bred the first catgirls
Surakami	CR 1	Small LE Outsider	Monkey-like protectors of travelers
Taru Tsuyoi	CR 14	Medium CE Humanoid (human)	Billionaire hiding a savage nature
TBMS Catcher	CR 3	Medium LE Human	Professional killer of cat-girls
TBMS Gasser	CR 6	Medium LE Monstrous Humanoid	Walking gas chamber
Teke Teke	CR 5	Small LE Undead	Shredded corpse of a teenage girl with a deadly scythe for an arm
Tottori Horror	CR 15	Colossal CE Aberration	Gigantic, highly violent enigma
Ubume Empress	CR
Ukemochi Cattle Girl	CR 1/3	Medium N Monstrous Humanoid (anthro: taurus) Expert 1	She’ll be slaughtered soon, and is looking forward to the day…
Urban Akaname	CR 1	Medium CN Undead (Akaname) burakumin Rogue 2	Highly skilled shit-fetishist and cat burglar
Ushi-Oni	CR 7	Medium LE Outsider (devil, evil, law)	Hellish soldiers
Valentina A	CR 16	Medium CE Monstrous Huanoid (Scratch Built POETICA) Summoner 14	Techno-necromancer and her Eidolon lover, who will destroy the Factory or die in the attempt
Wet Hell Taxi	CR 8	Huge NE Aberration	Monster disguised as a taxi cab that feeds on the shit (and souls) of pretty commuters

Artemis' Theme

Lately I've been doing a ton of work on the Black Tokyo Campaign Setting. This is mostly due to the fact that last year I planned on doing a huge Advanced Player's Guide-type expansion for the setting. Circumstances prevented me from comissioning all the art I would need for this huge book, at least not all at once, and rather than a single huge sourcebook, I've been piece-parting the content out into several smaller sourcebooks over the spring and summer.

I've let the Otherverse America setting lie fallow since the release of Closed early this spring and as I start wrapping up the last BTU releases of the summer, I feel the urge to jump back into Otherverse America.

I'm not sure what I want to do, but I definately want to return to the allegorical and feminist themes of the setting, as well as make it full Pathfinder compatible. I'm debating on fucking around with the time line and the history, maybe keeping the same roster of personalities and factional interaction, but moving things back to just before the Abortion War begins? Anyway, if you're a fan of the setting, leave me some comments on what you'd like to see.

One thing you might not know is the role music- particularly Courtney Love's music- played in shaping the Otherverse.  I've been listening to Hole for a long time now, and it's unofficially become the soundtrack of Otherverse Games- songs about feminism and violence and rage with this sense of speed and motion and energy to the instrumentals.

Anyway, the entire characterization of Artemis, this repentant, broken mad goddess, comes from the live rendition of Old Age Courtney did on MTV Unplugged, back when I was still in high school. I just took it as Artemis' theme.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-gMUfTlvQ4

Hopefully, this video will play. If not, there's a shorter version of Old Age, as the first movement and prologue of the song Credit in the Straight World (which is one of the best cyberpunk songs I've ever heard, BTW). That shorter version is pretty great, and Gutless (off the same album) is basically the Otherverse America 'war theme' but you owe it to yourself to listen to the MTV Unplugged version.

So let's list secret inspriations, shall we?

• The Lifers got their look from the G1 Insecticons (and from the tradition of Catholic priests wearing purple during Lent, but mostly from Bombshell, Kickback and Shrapnel). 
• Artemis was visually based on Galvatron, from the same source, with a touch of Lucy Lawless' Xena in terms of face and personality, and her story arc game almost wholly from Old Age.
• Iconic character Cassie Andra Feneris was named for the Fenris wolf (duh), inspired heavily by equal parts the Knight Sabers from Bubblegum Crisis, Capt Marvel (Monica Rambeau, the most badass of the name) and a woman I knew back in high school.

Badass Pagan Gods of Home and Medicine

I haven't mentioned this to very many people, but over the last month or so I've been going through a fairly nasty health scare with my mother.

Last month, actually on the SAME FUCKING DAY I lost my previous job I took my mother to get an MRI connected to some hearing loss. Since she's intensely claustrophobic, it was a bad day all around, to put it mildly. Anyway, it turns out the MRI didn't find any thing to worry about vis a vis her hearing loss, but guess what.... the general scan found a small tumor on her frontal lobe.

What?
Yeah, yeah. Brain tumor. Oh shit. Brain tumor.

So we've been waiting for her appointment with a neurologist in San Antonio. Today we made the trip up there (in a rather nice rent-a-car, since her rolling POS wouldn't make it up there and neither would mine). The actual consultation was only about 20 minutes, very matter of fact. The doctor seemed very cool, very competent, and his opinion was that the tumor was benign, and very commonly encountered in his line of work. After reviewing the MRI with us, he ran my mom through some simple tests- mobility and sensation- he touched her on various places on the face and body to make sure she had full sensation, and her pull against and push away with each extremity while he held the limb, stuff like that. In all cases, he was unconcerned, said she was in good health generally.

Basically, a year or so from now, he's going to have her take another MRI to see if the tumor is growing. If it is, or there are any worrying signs this time next year, he'll remove it then. Otherwise, I think he'll just continue to do a yearly MRI as a diagnostic measure.

Anyway, the pagan in me felt the need to offer some sacrifice to the gods of home and medicine who kept my mom alive for at least a little while longer. As I own no oxen to slaughter, and since Ebola is currently eating West Africa alive, I dropped some money on Doctors Without Borders. Anybody wants to do the same, I 'd appreciate it.

Anyway, more gaming news later.
CHRIS