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The Pure Land: Ōnin War in Muromachi Japan, 1465-1477

Volume XIV of the COIN Series originally designed by Volko Ruhnke. It depicts a devastating civil war in 15th century Japan that reduced Kyoto to a smoldering ruin and precipitated the century-long warring states period—the Sengoku Jidai.
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Description

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The Pure Land: Ōnin War in Muromachi Japan, 1465-1477 is Volume XIV of the COIN Series originally designed by Volko Ruhnke. It depicts a devastating civil war in 15th century Japan that reduced Kyoto to a smoldering ruin and precipitated the century-long warring states period—the Sengoku Jidai. Against the backdrop of this civil war between coalitions led by the Hosokawa and Yamana clan, the game also features peasant revolts led by the Jizamurai and religious unrest involving the Ikkō-ikki, the militant wing of the emerging Jōdo Shinshū (or True Pure Land) Buddhist sect.

 

Highlights:

  • An innovative clan loyalty system that creates a dynamic political geography. The Hosokawa and Yamana factions form alliances with other clans, which can then be disrupted by political intercessions, peasant revolts, and assassinations.
  • A tight peasant-based economy that forces all factions to compete over limited resources. Peasants generate resources for the Jizamurai, which are then taxed, tithed, or confiscated away by the other factions.
  • A new approach to religious insurgency and peasant revolts using the COIN system. The Ikkō-ikki faction slowly spread their religious beliefs and are hard to eliminate, while both the Ikkō-ikki and the Jizamurai can trigger peasant revolts to further their own goals.
  • Two competing ‘government’ factions that must nonetheless cooperate to ensure the survival of the Ashikaga Shogunate. Support for the Ashikaga dynasty is a shared goal for both the Yamana and the Hosokawa, but only one faction can control the Shogunate and claim victory!

 

Faction descriptions:

  • The Hosokawa Clan represent the political establishment and must encourage support for the Ashikaga Shogunate while also maintaining the loyalty of the other major clans.
  • The Yamana Clan also want to encourage support for the Ashikaga Shogunate but at the same time must gain control of enough population to establish themselves as the dominant military power.
  • The Jizamurai, minor nobles and merchants, can encourage peasant revolts to build regional autonomy, while also trading to increase their own independent wealth.
  • The Ikkō-ikki can preach to reduce support for the shogunate and to spread their religious beliefs, while also radicalising the population to eventually overthrow the established order.

 

There are four scenarios available to play in The Pure Land:

 

1. The main scenario, The Ōnin-Bunmei War, is five campaigns long and covers the full course of the war, from the outbreak of violence in Kyoto in 1467 to the exhausted Hosokawa-Yamana stalemate a decade later in 1477.

2. Foxes and Wolves is a shorter, three campaign scenario covering only the first six years of the war, until the deaths of Yamana Sōzen and Hosokawa Katsumoto in 1473.

3. An Empty Moor covers the final four years of the war in two campaigns, from 1473 to 1477, with an alternative setup depicting the historical situation in 1473.

4. Finally, The Flowery Capital is an extended six campaign scenario beginning at the birth of Ashikaga Yoshihisa in 1465, with the country still at peace, the Jodo Shinshu Hongan-ji temple still standing in Kyoto, and the urbanisation in Settsu province yet to begin.

 

The game takes approximately one hour per campaign to play, so the scenarios range from a single evening to a full day experience. For beginner players the Foxes and Wolves scenario is recommended, as it covers the full narrative arc of the game in a manageable amount of time.

 

Components:

  • A 3" box
  • A 22" x 34" mounted game board
  • A deck of event cards
  • Card-based Solitaire system components
  • 186 wooden forces pieces
  • 10 white and 4 purple pawns
  • 1 marker sheet
  • 2 sequence of play aids
  • 4 faction player-aid foldouts
  • 4 faction introduction/clan guide sheets
  • One non-player aid foldout and one non-player aid sheet
  • One six-sided die
  • A background playbook
  • A rulebook

 

Players: 1-4 (full solitaire system)

Timescale: Approximately two months per turn and two years per campaign

 

 

Game Designer: Joe Dewhurst

Game Developers: Fred Serval and Stephen Rangazas

Series Designer: Volko Ruhnke

Series Developer: Jason Carr