Nopperabo or Mujina

[Jay_NOLA]

I got asked about the following question about the nopperabo recently by player and this is the answer I gave. I'm not sure if I ought to add this to the FAQ/Errata thread.

Q: Is the nopperabo the correct name for this creature? I thought it was called a mujina.

A: The name nopperabo is correct. It is not called a mujina. The mujina is another yokai that is a shapes shifting animal. Lafcado Hearn in his book Kwaidan incorrectly call the noperrabo a mujina for some reason which is why this confusion exists and the yokai shows up today with the incorrect name in many books & games.

[Corone]

Given the amount of difference spirits in Japanese lore,
I suspect such a thread would be almost infinite!
However, I would like to do more on the various Yokai some day so we may put this sort of detail in such a book.

[Jay_NOLA]

Would love to see a yokai source book at some point.

The Nopperabo question came up because my player was an avid player of the old FGU RPG Bushido and it is called a Mujina in it and in some older RPGs.

A few others that you'll see in older RPGs have the worn names because of errors in the source material that was used. Back in the 80s & 90s you didn't have large amount of books about them you could easily get access to.

[Ancient Otter]

Would love to see a yokai source book at some point.

There was a series of pocket books out the last few years covering different parts of Japanese esoterica: Yurei Attack!, Ninja Attack! and Yokai Attack!

They are published by a Japanese publisher so hopefully they have a bit more information you are looking for, but I warn you they are kind of orientated for young adult readers. Here is a link to the publishers page about it: Link.

[Jay_NOLA]

I'm familiar with them. The authors didn't impress me at all. The descriptions are more Nippon anime & video game based ones instead of how they are portrayed in actual classical sources.

Mizuki Shigeru yokai guides are very good and are one of the best sources for information but those haven't been released in English. They have been translated into French though, so French Kuro players an access them.

One English yokai book I like and highly recomend is Richard Freeman's one that the CFZ released.

You can get more info on the CFZ and find info on the book at:

http://www.cfz.org.uk/

The CFZ has other books, etc. that will be of interest for other RPGs.

Freeman's is good but I often end up a lot of time looking in peer reviewed folklore journals for info.

The book is also available in the U.S. too.

The French Kuro fans did make a yokai supplement. I mentioned it in the FAQ/Errata thread. That only gives Kuro stats for about 15%-20%of the yokai it covers in it.

Also the Japanese government helps maintain a yokai database that is searchable full of stories and info. It is in Japanese but useful if your going nuts trying to figure out info about a particular yokai and not finding any info in English sources.

Would love to see a yokai source book at some point.

There was a series of pocket books out the last few years covering different parts of Japanese esoterica: Yurei Attack!, Ninja Attack! and Yokai Attack!

They are published by a Japanese publisher so hopefully they have a bit more information you are looking for, but I warn you they are kind of orientated for young adult readers. Here is a link to the publishers page about it: Link.