Pokemon Scarlet & Violet: The Teal Mask - Ogerpon And The Loyal Three, Explained (2024)

Pokemon has always loved portraying aspects of the culture each region is built around, from the society of the region itself to the Pokemon found within it. The first four generations were based around Japan, taking various elements from the area, most prominently in Legends: Arceus.

Though takes place in the obviously Spanish-inspired region of Paldea, the Teal Mask DLC takes place in Kitakami, a smaller region deeply tied to Japan. Ogerpon and the Loyal Three are further emblematic of this, pulling heavily from national folklore.

Updated January 20, 2024 by Hilton Webster: The tale of Ogerpon and the Loyal Three always felt like there were some missing pieces. Who was the boy who led the Loyal Three, and what is the unusual peach-shaped toy by the local store of Kitakami? With the Epilogue, many of these questions have been answered, and we've compiled them below, inspirations and all.

The Tale Passed Down In Kitakami

When you step off the plane and onto the land of Kitakami, you are immediately hit with the visually distinct design compared to Paldea. The area is flatter, made more of hills than mountains, with the exception of the central Oni Mountain.

Pushing harder into the cultural aspect of the region, your first formal task in Kitakami is to investigate the local history and folklore by means of finding tourism placards that detail the history of the area.

The biggest part of this history is the tale of Ogerpon, and how she was driven back into her secluded cave by the brave acts of a young boy and his three animal companions, a dog, monkey, and a pheasant.

Each placard tells you more of the tale — how Ogerpon came down from the mountains to harass and steal from the people of Kitakami, how a young boy and three loyal animals battled them away and stole her powerful masks, and how this trio came to be protectors of the village. It's an enticing tale and one that very conveniently brings in a lot of tourism to Kitakami.

During the DLC, you are paired with Kieran, a student from Blueberry Academy and a native of Kitakami, who has an obsession with Ogerpon.

He is convinced Ogerpon is innocent and shown to be much more cruelly treated than she deserved to be and questions why this is.

Inspiration Behind Ogerpon And The Loyal Three

To better understand Ogerpon, the Loyal Three, the illusive Pecharunt, and their history in the land of Kitakami, it is equally important to know about Momotaro, the Peach Boy, an important folk tale in Japanese history.

There are plenty of variations to the story of Momotaro, just like any old tale, but the core premise always remains the same. In it, a young boy is born to an already elderly couple, and grows up to be inhumanely strong for his age.

After maturing somewhat, he leaves on a journey to slay the Oni that has been harassing his home, and encounters three animals along the way — a dog, monkey, and pheasant.

Already, the parallels to Ogerpon and the Loyal Three of Okidogi, Munkidori, and Fezandipiti are obvious.

Of particular note is that, in most renditions of Momotaro, the animals must be convinced to join Momotaro by offering them his own food in exchange for their help. There is very rarely an altruistic giving of their support.

Like how the Loyal Three became a revered symbol for Kitakami, the same can be said of Momotaro for Japan. In real-life terms though, Momotaro has a darker history, one that may have been an inspiration for the treatment of Ogerpon, and the general twisting of actual history.

Though Momotaro is an older story, it became an important tool to teach morals during the Meiji period of Japan, a point when Japan had engaged in many imperial pursuits throughout Asia.

It became common at this point to portray Momotaro as a nationalist soldier, and for the Oni to become a metaphor for any enemy of Japan. In time, any specific acts of the Oni were forgotten, with them simply becoming whatever evil was most beneficial to portray at the time.

This is an extreme use of the story, but one that was government-sponsored. Within The Teal Mask, the tale of Ogerpon undergoes a similar revision, with Ogerpon simply having always been evil, and the Loyal Three randomly appearing to take her down without any real reason.

But it served to Kitakami's benefit, with a massive amount of tourism and festivals generated by the tale.

The Misportrayal Of Ogerpon And The Revival Of The Loyal Three

The meta-historical use of Momotaro is just as integral to understanding Ogerpon and the Loyal Three as the text of the tale itself.

Much of Carmine's character in the Teal Mask takes from this more xenophobic use of Momotaro, with her unconsciously following the tale passed down in Kitakami, and calling anyone who steps foot in her home an outsider, regardless of intentions.

On the flip side of this, Kieran is radicalised by the tale, lashing out and turning away from anyone who could help him because of the mountain of lies built around him his whole life.

As we see as the story progresses, Ogerpon herself wanted to live peacefully in Kitamaki, having travelled from far away with an unidentified friend of hers.

Yet this simple act of her being foreign to the people of Kitakami led to her and her friend being ostracised and forced to live outside the town. The masks she wears were created by a friendly villager, not tools of evil, so she and her friend could walk among them peacefully.

In a distinct twist from the story recorded in Kitakami, Okidogi, Munkidori, and Fezandipiti were simply passing animals who took an interest in the masks of Ogerpon and her friend.

Yet even this is an alteration, as Pecharunt was the one to command the Loyal Three to retrieve these masks in the first place. In many ways, the Loyal Three were Pecharunt's own scapegoats. Pecharunt's caretakers wished for shiny masks, and those of Ogerpon and her human companion matched perfectly.

Ogerpon's friend resisted this and is implied to have been killed by the trio just so they could steal the masks for Pecharunt, and satiate their own greed.

Ogerpon went into a fury because of this, attacking the Loyal Three and Pecharunt to try to retrieve the masks that were stolen from her. The villagers witnessing this saw it as Ogerpon trying to wreak havoc and steal from innocent animals, and so they hunted her from the village.

No matter what was said by the friendly villager who made these masks in the first place, he was not believed. And so their own hatred of outsiders became willing ignorance because it served them better than to change their minds.

It is not until the acts of the DLC, with the revival of the Loyal Three and Ogerpon's reclamation of her masks and Kieran's willingness to share the truth that the opinions of the townsfolk, and even Carmine herself, came to change.

However, reality is hard to accept in practical terms, and in the post-game story of the DLC, the statue of the Loyal Three may be rebuilt to preserve Kitakami's tourism industry. An act seen by the Caretaker as much more important than justice for Ogerpon.

The Ringleader Of The True Tale - Pecharunt

Scant mementoes exist of Pecharunt in the original journey through Kitakami. They exist as an oddity, fun toys and merchandise to boost the tourist industry of Kitakami, but no other significance. The small shop by the community center even has a Pecharunt-shaped plush named 'Peachy'.

The full history of Pecharunt is shared in a video on the Official Pokemon YouTube Channel, filling in the gaps of the tale of Ogerpon and the Loyal Three.

Pulling once again from the tale of Momotaro, Pecharunt very clearly takes the place of the young boy. An elderly couple had no children of their own and cared for Pecharunt in place of that. They loved Pecharunt like their own, and Pecharunt returned that love, though to an unfortunately extreme degree.

As we see in the Mochi Mayhem epilogue story, Pecharunt has the ability to create what is known as Binding Mochi, allowing them to control those who eat it. They did this too for the elderly couple caring for them. Why, you ask? The reasoning is tragically cruel - Pecharunt simply wanted more love.

Yet this Binding Mochi exerts more than Pecharunt's control over those who eat it. It also brings out the greediest aspects of their personality. The couple, though infatuated with Pecharunt, began to make requests. Pecharunt, greedy for even more of their love, was happy to comply.

One day, the events that would change Kitakami forever were set in motion. The elderly couple decided they would love Pecharunt all the more if they could bring them a set of glorious masks. Though by all means a peculiar request, Pecharunt could not deny their desire for more affection, and so they set off.

Along the way, they encountered Okidogi, Munkidori, and Fezandipiti. Each had the power of raw strength, foresight, and mesmerisation respectively. Pecharunt saw them as vital to their journey and used their Binding Mochi to put them under their spell.

Eventually, they happened upon Kitakami, and spotted Ogerpon and their human companion amongst the revelry, donning their masks. Their beautiful, lustrous masks. Exactly what the elderly couple had requested of Pecharunt.

The group of thieving Pokemon tracked the duo home, with Pecharunt staying behind to issue orders. Though they succeeded in stealing the masks, they failed to do so undetected. Ogerpon's closest friend fought back, but they were no match for the soon-to-be revered Loyal Three. Their spoils in tow, they left Oni Mountain.

However, they were halted along the way by Ogerpon. Enraged, she flew into a fury, beating down the Loyal Three with ease. Even their greedy, illusive ringleader Pecharunt did not escape her rage, and was sent flying into the forest with a mighty strike. Yet justice is rarely served to minorities - the villages witnessing this hunted Ogerpon away and hailed the Loyal Three as saviours.

Yet Pecharunt remained in the forest, abandoned and alone. It had made unwitting heroes of its servants, yet beneath their greed lay only ambition, and not an ounce of loyalty. They did not spare a thought for their forlorn leader. Pecharunt's greed had been their undoing, and so they fell asleep upon the forest floor, having lost the life they so greedily craved.