Ero Sennin - The Perverted Hermit

The Encounter

Walking along peaceful forest road, you find bathhouse built near hot springs. An old man sits at wooden fence peeping through hole. "Disgusting" is your first thought. What do you do?

Options

1. Call To Order:

• Confront the old pervert
• He reveals himself as "Ero-Sennin" (Perverted Hermit)
• Claims to be "gathering data" for his novels
• There is no peaceful option here - calling him out summons a frog warrior (or, at high level, his mount-napping frog boss) and forces combat, no exceptions
• 10% XP loss/gain after fight (experienceloss setting) - and losing also empties your gold pouch completely

2. Peek Together:

• Ask if you can take a look too
• Old man reluctantly shares his peephole: "Shhh. get your own hole! I am gathering data right now!"
• DANGER for female players: If sex=female AND charm strictly greater than 30 (charme setting) - 31 or above, not exactly 30:
  • He takes a "very good look at you" and starts drooling
  • "Oh. what ripe fruits you have brought with you."
  • You run away but he chases you
  • Stalker Debuff: "Ero-Sennin" buff applied for 100 rounds (!)
  • -20% attack, -10% defense while stalked
  • Survives newday (survivenewday=1)
  • Round message: "Whooo, what a nice rear! Come back baby!"
  • Wearoff: "You seem to have lost him. Finally."
• If not triggered stalking: Find own peephole, random outcomes based on what you see (3 cases, buffs/nothing)

3. Walk Away:

• Ignore the pervert
• Nothing happens
• Safe but boring

Peek Outcomes (If Not Stalked)

Random roll 1-3 determines what you see:

Case 1: Feel strangely energized!

• Buff: "Ero-Sennin Peek"
• Duration: 30 rounds
• +20% attack modifier, +10% defense modifier
• Wearoff: "Your memory fades away."

Case 2: See something embarrassing

• No buff or debuff
• Just flavor text about awkwardness

Case 3: Get caught peeping!

• Bathhouse patrons notice you and beat you to a pulp
• The incident makes the news ("beaten to a bloody pulp for being a peeping Tom")
• Your current HP is slashed to a random value between 1 and half of what you had - this can cost up to half your current hitpoints, not a trivial ding

The Secret Technique Bonus

Peeking (Cases 1 and 2 only - not the "caught" outcome) carries a separate roughly 1-in-3 chance that the old man decides you're worthy of a lesson. He introduces himself under a fake name ("Gama-Sennin"), you call his bluff, and after an argument he teaches you a secret worth +2 attack, flagged in the game's own code as "temporary" but with no expiration mechanism to be found anywhere in the module. Treat it as free stat points until proven otherwise. This stacks independently of the Case 1/2/3 roll above - it's a bonus roll, not an alternative to it.

Naruto References

Ero-Sennin (Jiraiya):

• Character from Naruto anime/manga
• One of the Legendary Sannin (three legendary ninjas)
• Master spy and author of adult novels (Icha Icha series)
• Known for peeping on women's bathhouses "for research"
• "Ero-Sennin" translates to "Perverted Hermit" or "Pervy Sage"
• Mentored Naruto and other protagonists
• Despite being pervert, actually powerful and wise ninja

"Gathering Data" Excuse:

• Jiraiya's constant excuse for peeping
• Claims it's research for his romance novels
• Writes Make-Out Paradise series in Naruto canon
• Actually sells well—Kakashi is fan

The Stalker Debuff Danger

For Female Players Only:

• Charm requirement: strictly greater than 30 (configurable charme setting) - exactly 30 does not trigger it, you need 31+
• If you peek and meet requirement, Ero-Sennin becomes obsessed
• Debuff Duration: 100 rounds (!) = 50 forest fights minimum
• Stat Penalties: -20% attack (0.8 atkmod), -10% defense (0.9 defmod)
• Survives Newday: Doesn't expire at newday—persists until 100 rounds used
• Round Messages: Constant harassment commentary during fights
• Cannot Remove Early: Must wait out full duration

Why This Is Terrible:

• 100 rounds = many days of forest fights with reduced stats
• -20% attack significantly impacts kill speed and XP farming
• -10% defense increases damage taken, HP potion costs
• Harassment messages are annoying
• Can't dispel or remove buff early

Strategy: If you're female with high charm, DO NOT peek. Walk away or call to order instead.

Combat Route

If you Call to Order and fight ensues:

• Experience loss/gain: 10% of total XP (default experienceloss setting)
• If you win: gain 10% XP
• If you lose: lose 10% XP and every last coin of gold you're carrying - the game zeroes your gold outright, not a percentage. This is a much steeper penalty than the XP loss alone suggests.
• High risk/reward for XP farmers - don't fight this one with a full purse

Strategy

Male Players: Safe to peek. Random buff chance with no stalker risk.

Female Players (Charm 30 or below): Safe to peek. Same as male players.

Female Players (Charm 31+): DO NOT PEEK. 100-round stalker debuff is devastating. Choose Walk Away or Call to Order.

XP Farming: Call to Order if confident in combat. 10% XP gain is decent, but a loss costs 10% XP AND all your gold - don't pick this fight while flush.

Risk Averse: Walk Away. Encounter is pure comedy with small rewards—not worth risks.

Buff Seekers: Peeking (any gender, if not stalked) can land a 30-round +20% attack/+10% defense buff, plus an independent roughly 1-in-3 shot at a lasting +2 attack bonus.