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Yuyuko Saigyouji
(♫) Yuyuko Saigyouji Yuyuko Saigyouzi More Alternative Spellings | |
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Yuyuko Saigyouji in Ten Desires Dreaming GhostMore Character Titles | |
Species |
Ghost (Bourei) |
Abilities |
Manipulation of death, Manipulation of departed souls |
Age |
Dead/Immortal (Existed for at least 1000 years) |
Occupation |
Departed spirit princess |
Location | |
Music Themes | |
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Appearances | |
Official Games | |
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Print Works | |
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Miscellaneous Works | |
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Other | |
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Yuyuko Saigyouji (西行寺 幽々子 Saigyouji Yuyuko) is the ghost 'princess' head of Hakugyokurou in the Netherworld. She first appeared as the stage 6 boss in Perfect Cherry Blossom and appeared in several subsequent works as well.
General Information
Unlike many departed spirits, she resembles a living human. She is very cheerful and friendly: Her playful, good-humored personality, otherworldly beauty, and courtesan charm can have a disarming effect. She often makes bizarre and apparently nonsensical remarks and sometimes seems to overlook the obvious, leading to her characterization as an airhead or a ditz. As an instance, in Bougetsushou, she toyed with Youmu as a daily occurrence even with Ran Yakumo present.
However, at other times she will reveal an extremely cunning and perceptive side and will also sometimes display an extraordinary level of knowledge. For instance, in Scarlet Weather Rhapsody, she was the quickest one to identify the culprit as Tenshi Hinanawi when the incident was in the omen stage (Yukari Yakumo spoke of the dwindling of phantoms as Komachi Onozuka's negligence, but Yuyuko guessed correctly). Additionally, in Ten Desires, she obliquely informed the playable character about the location of the incident regarding the divine spirits. She is also known for her incredible appetite and seems to have a food-related metaphor for any situation: Yuyuko is truly "dead and loving it".
Character Basis
Name
Her surname Saigyouji (西行寺, lit. ""West journey temple"") obviously comes from her motif as a daughter of the famous Japanese poet Saigyō Hōshi (西行 法師) but adding an extra kanji ji (寺) at the end. Her first name Yuyuko (幽々子) actually doesn't have much meaning but can be literally translated to "ghostly child" or "ghost ghost child". The -ko is a common suffix in Japanese that is used in female names which literally means "child". The symbol 々 is used in the Japanese main title of Perfect Cherry Blossom (東方妖々夢). "々" is often confused as being a kanji, but it's actually a punctuation mark that indicates to repeat the previous letter, thus her name is equivalent to "幽幽子".
Design
Attention: This section is a stub and it needs expanding with more information related to the section's topic. If you can add to it in any way, please do so.
You may improve one (or more) of the following points:
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- Maroon eyes, short wavy pink hair, normally surrounded by several small formless phantoms. Wears a light blue and white kimono with dark blue trim and white designs, and a blue mob cap on the front of which is a hitaikakushi with a red ghost insignia.
- (Touhou 7) Same as above, except hat has a light blue veil on the back, the designs on her kimono are of flowers, and one of the phantoms around her carries a cherry blossom twig. Generally, this palette is lighter than the rest.
- (Touhou 8) Same as above, except the floral designs on her dress have been replaced with clouds and moon designs. One of the phantoms now carries a small blue lantern.
- (Touhou 7.5) Same as above, except designs on kimono are of butterflies and flowers, and the phantoms no longer carry anything. Has a light blue veil on the back of her mob cap.
- (Touhou 7.5, alternate outfit) Kimono is dark blue with white trim instead of light blue with pink trim. Her hair is brown instead of pink. The ghost insignia on her hat is blue instead of red.
- (Touhou 10.5) Same as 7.5, except her hair is slightly longer and her veil is more white than blue.
- (Touhou 10.5, alternate outfit) Same as above, except her kimono is white with blue trim instead of light blue with light pink trim. Her hitaikakushi is blue with a yellow ghost insignia instead of white and red. Her eyes are now golden and her hair is blonde.
- (Touhou 13) Hair is a paler shade of pink. Her kimono is still a light, pale blue, but the designs on her kimono are of ghosts. The ribbon around her waist, the one going down her kimono, and the bands and lacing on her arms and collar are black instead of white and blue. Wearing a transparent layer underneath. Her mob cap lacks the veil it had in 7, 7.5, and 10.5. Her hitaikakushi's insignia has changed shape. She is wearing black shoes and folded socks, unlike her previous frilly socks.
Story
- Perfect Cherry Blossom
During the events of Perfect Cherry Blossom, she made Youmu Konpaku find a way to make the Saigyou Ayakashi bloom to resurrect the corpse buried beneath it, apparently unaware that it was her own body. Forced to abandon her plan due to obstruction by Reimu and the gang, she resigned herself to continuing her existence as a ghost.
- Main article: Reimu Arc
<Insert Summary>
- Main article: Marisa Arc
<Insert Summary>
- Main article: Sakuya Arc
<Insert Summary>
- Immaterial and Missing Power
- Main article: Immaterial and Missing Power Story
- Imperishable Night
- Main article: Imperishable Night Story
- Scarlet Weather Rhapsody
- Main article: Scarlet Weather Rhapsody Story
- Touhou Hisoutensoku
- Main article: Touhou Hisoutensoku Story
- Ten Desires
<Insert Main Summary>
- Main article: Reimu Arc
<Insert Summary>
- Main article: Marisa Arc
<Insert Summary>
- Main article: Sanae Arc
<Insert Summary>
- Main article: Youmu Arc
<Insert Summary>
Relationships
Youmu is Yuyuko's gardener, bodyguard and fencing instructor. Youmu is unquestioningly loyal to her master, though she has a hard time understanding Yuyuko's riddles.
Youki is Youmu's predecessor, who taught Youmu all that she knows. He also knew the full story of Yuyuko's connection to the Saigyou Ayakashi even after Yuyuko herself had forgotten. Yuyuko found him harder to rely on than Youmu.
Yuyuko has been friends with Yukari since before her death, and is one of the few people who can see through her plans.
Minor Relationships
- Saigyou Ayakashi (Youkai Tree in her Garden)
Refer to the Saigyou Ayakashi section
- Lunasa, Lyrica, and Merlin Prismriver (Regular performers)
Spell Cards
Name | Translated | Comments | Games | Stage | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Total: 57 | ||||||
亡郷「亡我郷 -さまよえる魂-」 | Dead Village "Death of One's Home -Wandering Soul-" | PCB GoM |
St. 6: E — | |||
亡郷「亡我郷 -宿罪-」 | Dead Village "Death of One's Home -Past Sin-" | PCB | St. 6: N | |||
亡郷「亡我郷 -道無き道-」 | Dead Village "Death of One's Home -Trackless Path-" | PCB | St. 6: H | |||
亡郷「亡我郷 -自尽-」 | Dead Village "Death of One's Home -Suicide-" | PCB | St. 6: L | |||
亡舞「生者必滅の理 -眩惑-」 | Deadly Dance "Law of Mortality -Bewilderment-" | PCB GoM |
St. 6: E — | |||
亡舞「生者必滅の理 -死蝶-」 | Deadly Dance "Law of Mortality -Dead Butterfly-" | PCB | St. 6: N | |||
亡舞「生者必滅の理 -毒蛾-」 | Deadly Dance "Law of Mortality -Poisonous Moth-" | PCB | St. 6: H | |||
亡舞「生者必滅の理 -魔境-」 | Deadly Dance "Law of Mortality -Demon World-" | PCB | St. 6: L | |||
華霊「ゴーストバタフライ」 | Flowery Soul "Ghost Butterfly" | PCB | St. 6: E | |||
華霊「スワローテイルバタフライ」 | Flowery Soul "Swallowtail Butterfly" | PCB | St. 6: N | |||
華霊「ディープルーティドバタフライ」 | Flowery Soul "Deep-Rooted Butterfly" | PCB | St. 6: H | |||
華霊「バタフライディルージョン」 | Flowery Soul "Butterfly Delusion" | PCB | St. 6: L | |||
幽曲「リポジトリ・オブ・ヒロカワ -偽霊-」 | Subtle Melody "Repository of Hirokawa -False Soul-" | PCB GoM |
St. 6: E — | |||
幽曲「リポジトリ・オブ・ヒロカワ -亡霊-」 | Subtle Melody "Repository of Hirokawa -Deceased Spirit-" | PCB | St. 6: N | |||
幽曲「リポジトリ・オブ・ヒロカワ -幻霊-」 | Subtle Melody "Repository of Hirokawa -Phantom Spirit-" | PCB | St. 6: H | |||
幽曲「リポジトリ・オブ・ヒロカワ -神霊-」 | Subtle Melody "Repository of Hirokawa -Divine Spirit-" | PCB | St. 6: L | |||
桜符「完全なる墨染の桜 -封印-」 | Cherry Blossom Sign "Perfect Ink-Black Cherry Blossom -Seal-" | 墨染の桜: a cherry blossom of the legends of Saigyou Houshi. | PCB | St. 6: E | ||
桜符「完全なる墨染の桜 -亡我-」 | Cherry Blossom Sign "Perfect Ink-Black Cherry Blossom -Self-Loss-" | PCB | St. 6: N | |||
桜符「完全なる墨染の桜 -春眠-」 | Cherry Blossom Sign "Perfect Ink-Black Cherry Blossom -Spring Sleep-" | PCB | St. 6: H | |||
桜符「完全なる墨染の桜 -開花-」 | Cherry Blossom Sign "Perfect Ink-Black Cherry Blossom -Bloom-" | PCB | St. 6: L | |||
「反魂蝶 -一分咲-」 | "Resurrection Butterfly -10% Reflowering-" | Related: "Resurrection Butterfly" | PCB GoM |
St. 6: E — | ||
「反魂蝶 -参分咲-」 | "Resurrection Butterfly -30% Reflowering-" | PCB | St. 6: N | |||
「反魂蝶 -伍分咲-」 | "Resurrection Butterfly -50% Reflowering-" | PCB | St. 6: H | |||
「反魂蝶 -八分咲-」 | "Resurrection Butterfly -80% Reflowering-" | PCB | St. 6: L | |||
死符「ギャストリドリーム」 | Death Sign "Ghastly Dream" | IaMP IN SWR |
Use Use Use | |||
死蝶「華胥の永眠」 | Deadly Butterfly "Eternal Sleep in Dreamland" | IaMP IN SWR GoM |
Use Use Use — | |||
冥符「黄泉平坂行路」 | Nether Sign "Path to Yomotsu-Hirasaka" | IaMP SWR |
Use Use | |||
再迷「幻想郷の黄泉還り」 | Lost Again "Gensokyo's Rise from Yomi" | IaMP SWR |
Use Use | |||
霊符「无寿の夢」 | Spirit Sign "Ageless Dream" | IaMP SWR |
Use Use | |||
寿命「无寿国への約束手形」 | Lifespan "Ticket to the Ageless Land" | IaMP SWR |
Use Use | |||
符の壱「幽夢の胡蝶」 | Sign I "Butterfly from a Ghostly Dream" | IaMP | Story | |||
符の弐「白玉楼の垂れ彼岸」 | Sign II "Weeping Higan Cherry of Hakugyokurou" | IaMP | Story | |||
符の参「果てしなく昔の死地」 | Sign III "Distantly Ancient Place of Death" | IaMP | Story | |||
桜花「未練未酌宴」 | Cherry Blossom "Feast of Lingering Regrets" | IaMP | Story | |||
「紫(むらさき)の彼岸は遅れて輝く」 | "The Purple Higan Shines Late" | IaMP | Story | |||
「西行寺無余涅槃」 | "Saigyouji Parinirvana" | IN | LW | |||
幽雅「死出の誘蛾灯」 | Ghostly Elegance "Light Trap of Passing Away" | StB SWR GoM |
St. 8 Use — | |||
蝶符「鳳蝶紋の死槍」 | Butterfly Sign "Deadly Lance of the Swallowtail Butterfly Crest" | StB SWR |
St. 8 Use | |||
死符「酔人の生、死の夢幻」 | Death Sign "Life of Drunk, Dream of Death" | StB | St. 8 | |||
「死蝶浮月」 | "Death Butterfly, Floating Moon" | StB | St. 8 | |||
霊蝶「蝶の羽風生に暫く」 | Spirit Butterfly "A Butterfly's Wingbeats, Brief in Life" | SWR SWR |
Use Story | |||
幽符「冥界ミステリースポット」 | Ghostly Sign "Netherworld Mystery Spot" | SWR | Story | |||
宴会「死して全て大団円」 | Banquet "All Things Come Full Circle in Death" | SWR | Story | |||
「反魂蝶」 | "Resurrection Butterfly" | Soku | Use | |||
桜符「センスオブチェリーブロッサム」 | Cherry Blossom Sign "Sense of Cherry Blossom" | Soku | Use | |||
符牒「死蝶の舞」 | Symbol "Dance of the Dead Butterflies" | TD | St. 1: E/N | |||
符牒「死蝶の舞 - 桜花 -」 | Symbol "Dance of the Dead Butterflies -Cherry Blossoms-" | TD | St. 1: H/L | |||
幽蝶「ゴーストスポット」 | Ghostly Butterfly "Ghost Spot" | TD | St. 1: E/N | |||
幽蝶「ゴーストスポット - 桜花 -」 | Ghostly Butterfly "Ghost Spot -Cherry Blossoms-" | TD | St. 1: H/L | |||
冥符「常夜桜」 | Nether Sign "Endless Evening Cherry Blossoms" | TD | St. 1: E/N/H/L | |||
桜符「西行桜吹雪」 | Cherry Blossom Sign "Saigyou Cherry Blossom Blizzard" | TD | St. 1: H/L | |||
桜符「桜吹雪地獄」 | Cherry Blossom Sign "Cherry Blossom Blizzard Hell" | TD | OV | |||
蝶符「花蝶風月」 | Butterfly Sign "Flower, Butterfly, Wind and Moon" | ISC GoU |
St. 4 — | |||
桜花「桜吹雪花小町」 | Cherry Blossom "Lovely Cherry Blossom Blizzard" | ISC GoU |
St. 4 — | |||
妖花符「バタフライストーム閻魔笏」 | Ghostly Flower Sign "Butterfly Storm Yama Shaku" | Co-owner with Eiki | VD | Nightmare Monday - 1 | ||
風妖符「死蝶オンバシラ」 | Wind Ghostly Sign "Dead Butterfly Onbashira" | Co-owner with Kanako | VD | Nightmare Monday - 3 | ||
妖風符「土着蝶ストーム」 | Ghostly Wind Sign "Native Butterfly Storm" | Co-owner with Suwako | VD | Nightmare Monday - 5 |
Additional Information
- Excluding spin-off games, Yuyuko is the first and only character in the Touhou Project to first appear as the final boss, then later in another game as the first stage boss.
- She has the highest number of spell cards as a Stage 1 boss, even more than that of the Stage 2 and Stage 3 bosses in Ten Desires.
- The sixth palette from Touhou Hisoutensoku seems to resemble Hong Meiling.
- Assuming that Yuyuko is the daughter of Saigyō Hōshi then she and Fujiwara no Mokou are actually distant relatives, since Saigyō is a descendant of Mokou's supposed father Fujiwara no Fuhito.
Fandom
- Following Imperishable Night, Yuyuko became famous as a "hungry ghost" due to several "gluttonous" lines uttered during her scenario. She is often depicted in doujinshi as having an immense appetite and/or attempting to eat other characters, most notably Mystia and Youmu's ghost-half.
- The symbol on Yuyuko's hitaikakushi resembles the Sega Dreamcast logo. Many fanworks make fun of this.
- As of Ten Desires, it has changed however.
- She is sometimes depicted in fan-works as having had brown or black hair when she was alive. This is because her Perfect Memento in Strict Sense entry mentions that she is said to have lighter hair color and skin tone since her death.
- As soon as she appeared as a first boss, people started making comments that she has become 町人A (Chounin A) or "Merchant A," a typical designation in battles against small-fry enemies in RPG games, like "Merchant A," "Merchant B," etc.
- It is never stated exactly how she committed suicide but some fan works often show her committing suicide with a knife (this is shown in the flash video True Blossom).
- While generally not seen in fan works due to the difficulty of depicting it, another common fan theory is that Yuyuko used her ability to invoke death on herself.
- Going along with the above, sometimes the Saigyou Ayakashi's trunk is sometimes shown in the aftermath as being stained in the blood spatter of said suicide
- While generally not seen in fan works due to the difficulty of depicting it, another common fan theory is that Yuyuko used her ability to invoke death on herself.
- Some fanart depicts Yukari Yakumo as having been present when Yuyuko commited suicide, or right after she did. In some cases, Yukari is then shown grieving.
- Most derivative works do not depict the phantoms around her, probably because it is bothersome to depict. However, since they have always been depicted in print works such as Silent Sinner in Blue, they are probably 100% necessary.
- Some derivative works depict Yuyuko as having two "myons", presumably as being the phantoms, although there is a difference.
- Various fanworks have the giant fan seen in some of Yuyuko's PCB spell cards appear as a sign of her readying to maim someone, often someone who made her angry (not an easy feat given her easygoing personality). Sometimes this is parodied by having her require wires or frameworks to hold up the fan, which are prone to collapsing.
- Because the symbol 々 doesn't exist in the proper Chinese language, her name is usually written as 西行寺幽幽子 in the Chinese community.
Official Profiles
Yuyuko Saigyouji PCB | ○幽冥楼閣の亡霊少女 西行寺 幽々子(さいぎょうじ・ゆゆこ)
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Bourei girl in the Netherworld Tower Yuyuko Saigyouji Final boss, formerly the mistress of old Saigyouji clan, currently the bourei princess. Long ago, there was a divinely talented poet in Gensokyo. He loved nature and spent most of his time traveling. When he became aware that the hour of his death drew near, he chose to begin his eternal rest under the most beautiful cherry tree he could find.. That cherry tree has grown even more beautiful since then, charming many people into resting in peace beneath its blossoms. The tree with the mortuary charm developed the powers of a youkai after a while.
In the garden of the Saigyouji clan, there exists a youkai cherry blossom with a story behind it; it is called the Saigyou Ayakashi. For as long as Yuyuko had been there, this cherry tree has never bloomed, even in spring. One day, while browsing through the library as usual, Yuyuko found an old record. It looked so old that it was practically ageless; within it, the following was written...
Yuyuko had read that breaking the seal on the Saigyou Ayakashi, making it bloom fully, would cause a certain someone to be resurrected; she started gathering spring's essence out of curiosity. Basically, almost everything in the netherworld exists as spirit bodies. It is for that reason that she wondered about the corpse lying under the Saigyou Ayakashi with great interest, going as far as to consider breaking the seal. Her ability only enables her invite people to their death. Bringing life to something already dead would be a first.
No one would have imagined that a living human, bearing a tiny drop of spring, would visit. A battle for that last remaining bit of spring ensued...
In the beginning, Yuyuko only possessed the ability to manipulate departed souls. Unconsciously, that power grew stronger, that eventually she possessed the ability to invite others to death. Terrified by her own ability, she committed suicide. After becoming a bourei, she thoroughly forgot everything about the time she was alive, and started to enjoy being able to invoke death. The reason Yuyuko can neither reincarnate nor vanish is because of the seal on the Saigyou Ayakashi. Once the boundary is breached, the time that was frozen will continue to flow, resulting in her death again. Reviving the corpse will destroy Yuyuko's bourei, so it's no wonder that the near-success of the revival ended in inevitable failure. After all, Yuyuko is not able to manipulate anything but death. The only person who knew the whole story, Youki Konpaku, grew slowly older due to the nature of half-humans, and disappeared with the belief that Youmu could inherit the truth about Yuyuko. For all time, Yuyuko will remain as the princess of Netherworld and mistress of long-dead Saigyouji clan.
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○天衣無縫の亡霊 西行寺 幽々子(さいぎょうじゆゆこ) |
The Bourei of Flawless Immaculate Beauty |
○華胥の亡霊 西行寺 幽々子 冥界にすむ亡霊少女。 |
*Dreaming Bourei, Yuyuko Saigyouji She exists in the netherworld as a bourei maiden.
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○華胥の亡霊 西行寺 幽々子(さいぎょうじ ゆゆこ) |
Dreaming Bourei Yuyuko Saigyouzi Species: Bourei Yuyuko is a bourei princess who lives in the Netherworld. Like typical bourei, she is quite the opposite of what humans call "down-to-earth", and her whims distract Youmu all the time. Unlike typical bourei, her form has legs and feet. She is a bourei—the form of humans after death. There is no doubt that Yuyuko "lives" a whimsical life, but she doesn't unleash her ability lightly, so neither humans nor youkai have a reason to attack her. Still, many beings across the land fear her within their hearts. |
○天衣無縫の亡霊 西行寺 幽々子(さいぎょうじ ゆゆこ)
職業:お嬢様 住家:あの世に存在する白玉楼 能力:死を操る程度の能力 性格:惚けているが、余裕のある落ち着いた物腰 |
The Bourei of Flawless Immaculate Beauty Yuyuko Saigyouji
Occupation: Lady Residence: Hakugyokurou, in the afterlife Ability: Manipulating death Personality: plays dumb, but has an incredibly calm demeanor. |
○1面ボス 戸惑わない亡霊 西行寺 幽々子(さいぎょうじ ゆゆこ) 種族:亡霊 冥界のお嬢様で妖夢のご主人様。 そう考えていた時だった。 人間が自分の元に神霊の調査に来たのだ。その人間を見て、自分が出るまでもないと安心して彼女は花見を続ける事にした。 |
1st stage boss - Bourei who is not swayed
Yuyuko is a bourei princess who lives in the Netherworld, and is Youmu's mistress. She doesn't have too much of an interest in divine spirits, but the direction in which the divine spirits are headed intrigued her a little. This direction was Myouren Temple, a temple that was just recently constructed. It was a place for those who want to meditate to suppress their inner desires, but for divine spirits, which are the essence of desires, to congregate there... It surely didn't seem like the conduct of a typical temple. And it happened when she was thinking about that. Some humans were intruding her properties to investigate about divine spirits. After seeing them, she was relaxed that there was no need for her to do anything, and decided to continue with her flower viewing. |
DATA
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Data
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Official Sources
- 2003/08/17 Perfect Cherry Blossom - Stage 6 dialogue; キャラ設定.txt (official profile)
- 2004/08/15 Imperishable Night Ghost Team Scenario; Ghost Team Extra Stage; キャラ設定.txt (official profile)
- 2004/12/30 Immaterial and Missing Power - 上海アリス通信.txt (official profile)
- 2005/08/11 Bohemian Archive in Japanese Red - Article and Interview: Yuyuko
- 2005/10/01 Seasonal Dream Vision/A Beautiful Flower Blooming Violet Every Sixty Years
- 2005/12/30 Shoot the Bullet - Stage 8 Spell Card comments
- 2006/12/27 Perfect Memento in Strict Sense - The Elegant Ghost: Yuyuko Saigyouji
- 2007/06/08 ~ 2009/04/09 Silent Sinner in Blue
- 2008/05/25 Scarlet Weather Rhapsody - chara.html (official profile)
- 2008/12/25 Cage in Lunatic Runagate - Chapter 7
- 2009/07/28 The Grimoire of Marisa - Yuyuko Saigyouji's Spell Cards
- 2009/08/26 Oriental Sacred Place - Chapter 4
- 2011/08/13 Ten Desires - Stage 1 dialogue; キャラ設定とエキストラストーリー.txt (official profile)
- 2011/11/25 Wild and Horned Hermit - Chapter 9 (cameo)
- 2012/04/27 Symposium of Post-mysticism - Part 2
This page is part of Project Characters, a Touhou Wiki project that aims to write proper descriptions for all official characters of Touhou Project. Please keep the character page guidelines in mind when contributing. |
- Articles with section stubs
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- Characters playable in Touhou
- Characters playable in a multiplayer Touhou
- Characters playable in a fighting game
- Characters in Perfect Cherry Blossom
- Characters in Immaterial and Missing Power
- Characters in Imperishable Night
- Characters in Scarlet Weather Rhapsody
- Characters in Ten Desires
- Returning 1st Windows Generation Characters