In Japanese myth, yokai are supernatural beings of dubious nature that could be variously called demons, monsters, or spirits, and in Age of Mythology: Retold – Heavenly Spear, we sought to bring that world to life.
Part I of the previous installment explored myth units of the Archaic and Classical Ages, as well as the water myth units. Next up are the units of later Ages: a winged sword master, a respawning being of pure death, and even a bird who drops wretches into battle!
Pre-Order Now!
Pre-order Heavenly Spear on Steam, Microsoft Store, and Xbox for a 15% discount!
Heavenly Spear will be available on PlayStation 5 on release day, September 30th.
Remember, if you purchased Age of Mythology: Retold Premium Edition, you’ll have access to Heavenly Spear on launch!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2991180/Age_of_Mythology_Retold__Heavenly_Spear/
Tengu
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Tengu is available in the Heroic Age to followers of Hachiman.
Mythical creatures are often the result of attempts to explain the unexpected or the peculiar. In Japan, if rocks fall unexpectedly on a mountain trail or you hear mysterious laughter in the distance, you may have encountered a Tengu.
These creatures are large birds of prey that resemble humans with wings, red faces, and long noses. In some myths, they are mischievous or even demonic, while others present them as noble ascetics and guardians of the mountains. In the latter depictions, Tengu wear the distinctive garb of Japanese mountain hermits. They are also associated with war and swordsmanship, with many stories telling of legendary figures having been taught by Tengu. The Tengu are led by their king Sōjōbō who appears in Japanese art, festivals, and popular culture to this day.
In Heavenly Spear, Tengu are skilled swordsmen who use their wings to leap into battle, jumping over any units or obstacles in their way. Upon landing, they gain increased attack and armor for a few moments, enabling them to quickly dispatch their foes. Tengu are great for softening up an enemy formation and for quick raids.
Hachiman’s Ascetic Practices technology increases the distance of Tengu’s Martial Strike ability and the attack and armor bonuses.
Raiju
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Raiju is available in the Heroic Age to followers of Raijin (that’s easy to remember!).
In Japanese, Raiju translates to ‘thunder beast’—and yes, that’s the name of my future metal album! These creatures are the embodiment of lightning in animal form. Usually depicted as white-blue wolves, they are companions of Raijin, the Shinto god of lightning. They are said to ride lightning bolts and cause destruction wherever they land. You heard that right: lighting wolves riding lighting bolts—that’s my album cover right there.
One of the more unusual stories is that Raiju like to curl up in human navels, which leads to superstitious people covering up their belly buttons during storms. Okay, not everything about Raiju is thrillingly thunderous!
In Heavenly Spear, Raiju are wolves who emanate lighting. They are melee fighters with a Storm Roar ability. When cast, the Raiju roars and unleashes a field of lightning in every direction, damaging and stunning nearby enemies. This makes the Raiju a great area of effect option.
Raijin’s Thunderous Presence technology increases the movement speed and attack of Raiju.
Oni
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Oni is available in the Heroic Age to followers of Fujin.
In Japanese mythology, a particularly wicked human may become an Oni when they die. Oni are large and scary ogres who dwell in caves and are known for their extreme strength and taste for humans. They wear loincloths of tiger pelts and wield giant, iron clubs. Although Oni appear in many diverse stories, they are always presented as villains. Interestingly, Oni can be different colors with each color having their own unique traits.
The Oni is one of the larger myth units in Age of Mythology: Retold, and yet, the Oni’s club is somehow even taller than they are! With high hit points and attack, the Oni is a melee fighter you want to avoid, and is even stronger against buildings! But if some club-wielding giants smashing through your base is a bit too Norse Mountain Giant-y for you, the Oni has a distinctive special ability. Rampage causes the Oni to enter a blind rage, increasing attack and attack speed at the cost of reduced armor. Prudent use of the Rampage ability can mean the difference between victory and defeat.
Fujin’s Deadly Rage technology improves Oni attack and armor.
Shinigami
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Shinigami is available in the Mythic Age to followers of Watatsumi.
Some of us have strong personal interests: cooking, sports, embroidery. Sometimes, these interests consume us even to our own detriment (just ask our poor callused fingers!). Likewise, the Shinigami has its own strong interest. Death. It likes death.
In Japanese mythology, Shinigami are spirits of the dead who lurk near the recently deceased and haunt anyone who comes near. Menacingly, they invite and lure humans to their deaths. Legends of Shinigami were said to explain the propensity for violence to invite more violence and for death to be followed by more death.
In Heavenly Spear, the Shinigami is a ranged unit who floats eerily just above the ground and can unleash a Terrifying Shout, causing nearby enemy units to flee in panic.
We also wanted to make the Shinigami unique and reflect the rich mythos of this unusual being. Based on the idea of Shinigami reflecting the observation that death is often followed by more death, this myth unit doesn’t exactly die like other units do. Its first form is corporeal but when defeated, it respawns at the Temple in a shadowy Revenant form that’s even stronger. With Watatsumi’s Eternal Haunting technology researched, it will spawn a third time: its most powerful Vengeful form.
Not even death can keep this personification of death away from… death. We’ll stick with embroidery as our passion—callused fingers and all.
Onmoraki
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Onmoraki is available in the Mythic Age to followers of Okuninushi.
Imagine you are a priest. You aren’t particularly pious in your duties and you cut corners. One night, while you sleep, you hear your own voice scolding you. You awake and in the shadows you see a black-feathered bird with a ghastly human face. You run away in fear and the bird vanishes.
Many of the Japanese yokai serve a purpose: they punish humans for wickedness or impiety. The Onmoraki teaches a lesson to impious priests, in particular. This bird appears at temples and is said to be the result of improperly buried corpses. It has a high, shrill cry and can imitate the voice of its victim. A creepy nightmare bird that nags you with your own voice—I think I’ll be pious now!
In Heavenly Spear, the Onmoraki is a flying unit with a disturbing special ability. It summons an army of Wretches, reanimated corpses who claw at enemies, but have a finite lifespan. The Onmoraki is great for flying to the edge of a base and unleashing Wretches into your enemy’s economy.
Okuninushi’s Restless Army technology improves the movement speed of both Onmoraki and their Wretches, and causes the Onmoraki ability to spawn more Wretches.
Asura
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Asura is available in the Mythic Age to followers of Takemikazuchi.
The religious history of Japan is complex with Shintoism and Buddhism influencing each other on the islands. The Asura originates from Hinduism and Buddhism, but has its own unique features in Japanese culture. In Japan, the Asura is a fearsome demon god with three faces and six arms, each carrying a separate weapon. The being is the personification of war and is ruled by the most intense passions: wrath, violence, jealousy, and greed.
In Heavenly Spear, the Asura is what you would expect from a late game powerhouse that represents the embodiment of war. It towers over most units while holding weapons and fire balls in its arms. When it attacks, it swings its arms against the ground, cracking the earth and unleashing a wave of fire. The Asura has a secondary passive attack called Blazing Jealousy: it unleashes fire balls that fly toward enemy units around the Asura. If there’s any weakness at all to this war-like demi-god, it is its slow movement speed.
Takemikazuchi’s Burning Malevolence technology causes Asura to attack faster and activate their passive ability more frequently.
Yamata no Orochi
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The myth units are really cool, you say, but that’s not why I’m here: I want to hear about the Titan! To that, we say: great! The Japanese Titan is our most unique Titan yet!
In Japanese mythology, the Yamata no Orochi is an eight-headed giant serpent who was defeated by the god Susanoo through clever use of eight tubs of the Japanese drink sake. After slaying the beast, Susanoo discovered a sword in its tail. This “Grass-cutting Sword” remains one of the three Imperial Regalia of Japan seen only by the Emperor and certain Shinto priests. I’ll say that again: an eight-headed giant serpent was defeated by a god through imbibing sake and in its tail was a sword that is still used for imperial coronations to this day. Isn’t Japanese mythology wonderful?
So where does that leave the Yamata no Orochi in Heavenly Spear? Our previous Titans in Age of Mythology: Retold were humanoid: they all had two legs, two arms, and a head—sometimes in the places you would expect. To reflect the clearly very different body composition of this Japanese mythical serpent, we had to deviate from that tradition. Instead, the Japanese Titan has a serpent’s form. It slithers into battle and then lunges with all eight of its heads. When idle, these heads even interact with each other. After all, they each have a mind of their own and the two in the front don’t exactly like each other (check out the idle animations to see what we mean!).
There are many more myth units introduced in Heavenly Spear inspired by Japanese mythology. Check out our previous installment on the myth units of the Archaic and Classical Ages HERE. You can try out the Tengu, Shinigami, Yamata no Orochi, and more in Age of Mythology Retold – Heavenly Spear, available September 30th!
Pre-Order Now!
Pre-order Heavenly Spear on Steam, Microsoft Store, and Xbox for a 15% discount!
Heavenly Spear will be available on PlayStation 5 on release day, September 30th.
Remember, if you purchased Age of Mythology: Retold Premium Edition, you’ll have access to Heavenly Spear on launch!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2991180/Age_of_Mythology_Retold__Heavenly_Spear/