by my reckoning, this is one of the hardest titles i've seen: a specific creature in an uninspiring spot, without the raw power of a proper name, and a culturally loaded term on top of that. i would've been sweating in my boots if i got this lmao. i'm impressed with what you were able to turn out here - it's moody, strange, but still cleanly written and playable. the keying is functional without skimping out on some striking imagery. i really like the color choices, especially the fleshy pale purple associated with the jikininki!
some minor thoughts:
- i like using the colored bottom margin for notes, but i'm not sure the encounters were the most effective choice. partly because it's skimpy, partly because the dungeon is written with enough tense buildup that i think it could work on its own without the pressure of encounters. not sure what i would put there instead, maybe the relic text.
- fezza's finger: i'm a fan, but i think you kneecapped it too much! unusable under daylight AND once per day is harsh. i think you could make it more usable while wringing more flavor out if you used cairn's charging format (limited uses with an evocative recharge method). on the other hand, the Breadblade is perfect, no notes.
- you really elevated this with bold, physical descriptions. the way you play the jikininki, the corpse worms with his face, the bizarre statue in the shrine - yuck (complimentary)! you're tight on space, but i would've liked to see plumcuff and bogglebeard get that same love
high: two of the keys are stellar. the jikininki's house made from bits of the village that fade in and out overnight is just... mwah. straight out of mushishi. but i think i like the hall of busts more: the way it's written feels like a jumpscare. i can picture the slow pan over the busts and creeping reveal of this gross old man crystal clear in my head.
low: i think you could reorganize the first page significantly to draw a lot more blood from this stone. the punchy village description followed by the punchier line of Agnes' chimney disappearing at night is great and full of intrigue - put that first! it grabbed me immediately. the rumors share informational overlap with the (more interesting, IMO) everybody/nobody knows list, i think you can merge them without much trouble. with a little extra space, you could have fleshed out the otherwise blurry Lord Filchskin (crazy name btw) and given this thing a hook that really shines!
in-between: i love the cover. so ominous! i appreciate that you gave it the proper number of teeth. i kind of wish you'd given it more. just one or two, for a little bit of uncanniness, as a treat.
overall: great work! and put more stuff on itch lol i can't believe this is your first release