Soh's Spirit Stone. 2.0

I grabbed high quality screenshots from the opening video of the PC version of Kunitsu-Gami. 

Some details that couldn't be seen before...

Soh's Spirit Stone has no face. (Or wasn't rendered one?)

There's a spike protruding from the facial area. We don't know what parts of her turned first but it must have been terrifying for her if it began in her face first.

That gaping crevice on her left arm is unsettling.

She's crystallized in a strange position. Why that pose? It gives the impression of one awaiting something. Sitting, or slightly crouching, on one leg. This post would look very odd in the mikoshi.
It would also look odd if she were watching her Messenger defeat Nanamagari.

Yoshiro's pose is understandable. Sitting on her side.

I wish we could have seen another cycle.

Could we, one day, maybe get a DLC of a previous cycle with a different Maiden?

Because of my previous posts on faces, I wonder if this is really 'Soh's Spirit Stone', or if a Maiden's Spirit Stone is just a way to pray to the Goddess.

Then again, if Maidens merge, then Soh is a previous Maiden having merged and so she is the Goddess now. (And she is, judging by artwork, lore and interviews)

Maiden detail.

In the ending, the Maiden is already wearing red eyeshadow.

Is this Yoshiro's model?

Silhouette: Cursed Soh's Message.

Looking at this animation again, I realized that Cursed Soh doesn't take on a silhouette of Yoshiro. 

The two silhouettes are actually on top of each other to the point of becoming one, signifying a merging during a prayer.

Cursed Soh tells us that through prayer, Yoshiro and Soh merged. 

But that Yoshiro held more defilement in her, resulting in Cursed Soh? Or is it just because its's happened so many times and the ultimate result is the defiled Goddess?

More importantly, she specifically antagonizes Yoshiro. So, she blames the Maiden?

Kunitsu-Gami is definitely using the 'Maidens fusing with the Mountain God through worship' belief.

Faces of the Maiden.

 

+

= 

The bottom face is 'Yoshiro' and this is when the Maiden becomes the abode for the Goddess.

Is it safe to say that the Maiden's face changes due to their intertwining/merging?

It's made visually clear that her face changed to resemble Soh once she became Yoshiro.

This face from the art is seen in the trailer:

Original face

Originally, Yoshiro's face was closer to Soh's face. It might've been changed to avoid confusing them to be the same person. But this change in her face absolutely should have been shown somehow in-game. 

It makes it very clear when that the Maiden becomes 'Yoshiro', she is merging with the Goddess.

And that this merge actually physically changes her.

In the final game, Yoshiro keeps her Maiden face:

Versus her first face, which is true to the art:

Here's Soh's:

Her 3D face seems prettier and less harsh.

A missed opportunity to show what 'Yoshiro' actually is and what's happening to the Maiden when she undertakes this duty.

I once said this face resembles Soh's:

Here she is becoming a vessel for the Goddess. It would explain her face resembling Soh's.

In the scrolls, I just noticed the 'Birth of the Goddess', this Goddess has her eyes closed:

I always thought she was looking down...but it appears not? Her eyes are closed.
The black in the middle is her make-up.

Looking at the scrolls again, are the Maiden's eyes meant to represent something?

Faces are definitely important in Kunitsu-Gami. Everyone is masked. Yoshiro wears a veil until her  petrification begins.

Only Soh gets to see her without her veil, in the tent. Oh, and the villagers who come to leave offerings for her.
(and Soh as they are seen as one in the same. It's why we receive the offerings.)

Maiden in white.

More questions than answers.

The Kunitsu-Gami Collector's Edition.

I received my collector's edition.

It's as small as advertised.

Better official images here. 

The biggest issue is that the artbook is incomplete. It's missing Seethe artwork and certain artwork present in the mini-artbook, and artwork shown in the 'Behind the Scene's videos.

Everything is tiny but it's A5 and I bought it knowing that. But I expected it to actually contain all artwork.

It's been a huge disappointment and feels like false advertising. :(

For example, in the mini-artbook, you can see more of Yoshiro and the back of Soh's armor. These images don't exist in the artbook.

Most Seethe images aren't drawn art. They're 3D art.

I can barely even see Cursed Soh's art. It's just a small little piece in the corner. 

Since she's such an important boss with heavy lore implications, you'd figure she'd get a few pages. (or at least 2)

On a brighter note, look at how pretty the Maiden is!

As pretty as a flower!

We have Soh's face, too! Fashionable earrings... But they were shown in the image of her back!

Building on the Eyes on Yoshiro post, here's her face in the artbook:

In the mini-artbook, we saw her frontal with her crown on.

this isn't in the artbook!

And they had Puppet Yoshiro! Her outfit was altered for the play.

There's more but I'll make a post since it's about the spirit stone.

And a new rendition of that special image...

Overall, it was so very expensive for me due to importing and customs and I'm disappointed. The artbook was what I was looking forward to the most and it's not even complete.

Map of all pots in Kiritake Village by Satoko_Kuke.

#くにつがみ #KunitsuGami
予言通り、腹の立つミッションが多いですが、ほぼ初見か2回目で全条件クリアできています。

皆が無駄なストレスを溜めないように、
使い終わった自作のマップを共有しておきます。
（IGNでもまだでした）

　霧竹村 Kiritake Village
　全ての壺の位置 all pots pic.twitter.com/iXRNrgFDJ1

— くけさとこ (@satoko_kuke) July 21, 2024

 

Location of all pots in Kiritake Village by Satoko_Kuke on Twitter.