Plants evergreen. Rhizomes erect or ascending, apex densely clothed with blackish brown, linear-lanceolate, fibriform-tipped scales. Fronds caespitose; fertile fronds 42-62 cm; stipe blackish, upward purple, 22-30 cm, 1.5-2 mm in diam., base similarly densely scaly, upward glabrate; lamina 2-pinnate, narrowly triangular, 20-30 × 10-18 cm at base, base hardly narrowed, truncate, apex acuminate; pinnae up to 16 pairs, basal pinnae opposite or subopposite, upper pinnae alternate, lower pinnae spreading, upper pinnae ascending, with stalk (1.5-)2-3 mm, basal pinnae slightly shortened, 4.5-9.5 cm, base narrowed; basal 2-4 pairs of pinnae subequal in size, lanceolate, 4.5-11 × 2-3 cm at middle, base equilateral, subtruncate, broadened, pinnate (or pinnatipartite), apex caudate-acuminate; pinnules 8-12 pairs, basal pinnules subopposite, upper pinnules alternate, subspreading, sessile, catadromous, deltoid-lanceolate or oblong, 1-1.6 cm × 5-9 mm at base, base inequilateral, rounded-truncate, auriculate on acroscopic side, auricles oblong, subentire, cuneate on basiscopic side, shallowly lobed or repand, apex obtuse-rounded; fifth basal and upper pinnae gradually shortened; veins inconspicuous adaxially, visible abaxially, pinnate in pinnules, lateral veins 4-7 pairs, lower veins forked, upper veins simple, but pinnate in basal acroscopic segments. Lamina thickly papery when dried, blackish brown adaxially, brownish green abaxially, both surfaces glabrate; rachis and costae purplish, with short hairs abaxially, with subulate spines on adaxial side at base of costa or costule. Sori oblong, biseriate on both sides of costules on acroscopic veinlet, subcostular; indusia brown, oblong, rarely J-shaped, membranous, entire, persistent. Perispore surface without folds. 2n = 160.

Athyrium kenzo-satakei differs from related species in the lamina narrowly triangular; pinnae 12-16 pairs or 6 pairs under abruptly narrowed apex, up to 11 cm; pinnules deltoid-lanceolate or oblong except auriculate base, 1-1.5 × 5-9 mm (at base with acroscopic auriculate segments), usually less than 5 mm wide at middle, less than 3 × as long as wide at middle, subentire or minutely toothed; sori oblique to midrib; and indusia entire.

Forests, wet areas; 800-2100 m. Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Sichuan [Japan].