The Sanctum and the Sword
If you possess the ambition to unify a fractured realm, the time has come to march your armies where ordinary mortals—fear to tread: it is time to lay siege to the temples.
In the turbulent world of the Sengoku Jidai, a temple was never merely a place of quiet contemplation. These sprawling monastic complexes were formidable institutions that wielded staggering influence across medieval Japan:
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Fortified Military Powers: Operating as semi-independent states, powerful sects maintained their own private armies of warrior-monks (sohei), bristling with naginata and matchlocks, openly rejecting the authority of regional daimyo and posing a direct threat to any unifier.
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Economic Hubs & Tax Havens: Accumulating vast wealth through trade, donations, and fertile lands, they functioned as major financial powerhouses independent of feudal control.
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Centres of Diplomacy & Intelligence: Behind sacred gates, alliances were forged, plots were hatched, and spies found sanctuary beyond the reach of local lords.
Because these institutions grew so politically and militarily disruptive, unifiers like the ruthless Oda Nobunaga made it a core strategy to crush them—most famously culminating in the brutal burning of Enryaku-ji on Mount Hiei and the destruction of fortified temple strongholds to break their stranglehold on the nation.
Now, you can bring this rich, dramatic layer of history to your tabletop. Whether used as a fortified stronghold for a desperate last stand, an economic objective to capture, or the target of a ruthless scorched-earth campaign, the Temple Bundle is the ultimate centrepiece for your Sengoku Jidai battlefield.
Notes
The bundle is made of 18 sheets. 3 sheets of How to, 1 sheet of base paper (rocky sand) and 14 sheets for the Temple Bundle.
Once downloaded, the sheets can be printed as often as you like, which means you can build up any number of Temples very cheaply.
You will need scissors, a craft knife, glue, appropriate paper and some stiffer card for bases, all of which are described in the how-to section.
The figures are laid out in A4 format, which will print onto US legal sized paper, or will fit US letter size printed at 93%.
You can, of course, print the Bridge in any scale you choose, making them uniquely flexible in this respect.
Our Motto is Paper Armies, Proper Armies!
Enjoy