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 Dewa ProvinceLocated in the north of Honshu, the province of Dewa has been controlled by the Otomo clan for over one hundred years. It’s largest city, Akita, where our story begins was founded in the year 733, seventy-five years after Abe no Hinafu conquered the region, pushing the native Ezo people north into the Aomori area. Though the region has changed hands many times since those days, Otomo Tadeeki claims Abe no Hinafu a great ancestor of his clan. Akita is small in comparison to the cities of the south, but still a major fishing port. The fertile land surrounding the capital is known for it’s dense forests and rolling foothills that climb into the Ou Mountains to the east, which form the long border with Iwate. Much of this region is wild, though towns and villages dot the landscape, many known for the sake that comes from Dewa.  AkitaThe center of trade and population in Dewa, Akita sits on the Nippon Sea, south of the Oga peninsula. In the center of the city, Akita Castle towers above the rest of the sprawl, sitting on top of a natural rock formation. Akita is home to much trade, fishing and brewing and is the home of Daimyo Tadeeki Otomo, though he is often known to favor his country manor located north of the city proper just south of Hachirogata lake.  OdateLocated in the growing foothills north east of Akita on the far side of Hachirogata lake, Odate is a small village that roads meeting from the north and east intersect. Surrounded by dense forests and the towering Ou Mountains, Odate has been the source of many odd tales in the recent months, the villagers spreading the word through travelers of the odd things they have seen in the mountains and mori. |