FAQ/Strategy Guide - Guide for Romance of the Three Kingdoms VII
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Romance of the Three Kingdoms VII FAQ/Strategy Guide (PS2) Version 1.1 August 8, 2002 By Brian Nii ([email protected]) Table of Contents I. Introduction II. Version History III. Officer Information IV. Officer Skills V. City Information VI. Character Types VII. Life as a Ronin VIII. Life as an Officer IX. Life as a Prefect X. Life as a Warlord XI. Life as a Liege XII. Military Strategy XIII. The Art of War XIV. Items XV. Sites XVI. Poetry of the Three Kingdoms XVII. Tournaments XVIII. Scenarios: Observations of a Ronin XIV. Endings XX. Secret Characters XXI. Dynasty Warriors XXII. Frequently Asked Questions XXIII. Strangeness in the Three Kingdoms XXIV. Special Events XXV. Acknowledgements --------------- I. Introduction --------------- "Domains under heaven, after a long period of division, tends to unite; after a long period of union, tends to divide." Having played ROTTK7 for the Playstation, I can say that this version is leaps and bounds above its predecessor. The game is much more pleasing to the eyes and ears, and features many improvements and new features overall. However, like all ROTTK games from Koei, this game is still quite complex and can overwhelm most people with the plethora of options available to you. Unfortunately, the instruction manual is just that. It tells you about the commands you can use in the game, but is rather incomplete in how to actually play the game. On the other hand, due to the open nature of the game it can be said that there isn't really any particular way to play the game. You can choose to just stand to the side and watch history pass you by. Or you can take matters into your own hand and personally conquer China yourself. It's all up to you. This FAQ will hopefully shed some light on some aspects of the game that aren't covered in the manual, or vaguely touched on by the in game help files. ------------------- II. Version History ------------------- "And he bade them make a note on the overlap of their robes so that they should remember." Version 1.1 (8/8/02) - Added information on Titles and Rank in the Officer Information section. Added more tips to the "Life as a Liege" section. Added ratings for the Tactics and Ploys. Added more tips and corrections to various sections. Version 1.0 (8/6/02) - First completed version of this FAQ. Finished all ten scenarios. Added a whole lot of information in the City Information section. Redid the Endings section. Adjusted Dynasty Warriors section to take into consideration Item adjustments to abilities. Version 0.9 (8/5/02) - Finished 9 out of the 10 scenarios. Major update to Officer Skills and Character Types sections. Updated Poetry, Scenario, FAQ, and Special Events sections. Minor updates and corrections to various sections. Reformatted some sections. Version 0.8 (7/26/02) - Added a new officer (George_ Patton) to the secret characters section. Added Strangeness in the Three Kingdoms and Special Events section. Updated and reformatted all sections. Version 0.7 (7/19/02) - Completed Items and Sites section. Updated Poetry section. Fixed some information in the Dynasty Warriors section. Revising Scenarios section. Version 0.6 (7/18/02) - Updated Items, Sites, Poetry, and Tournament sections. Added revisions and corrections to all other sections. Restarting the Scenarios section. Version 0.5 (7/13/02) - Added "Life as a Liege". Revised the Military Strategy and The Art of War sections. Updated Sites, Scenario, and Endings sections. Version 0.4 (7/12/02) - Added "Life as a Prefect", "Life as a Warlord", and Dynasty Warriors section. Updated "Life as a Ronin", Items, Sites, Poetry, and Scenario sections. Added quotes from the novel to each section. =) Corrected information in some sections. Version 0.3 (7/10/02) - Added "Life as an Officer". Created a FAQ section. =) Updated Officer Information, Military Strategy, The Art of War, Items, Sites, Poetry, and Endings Sections. Revisions of everything else. Version 0.2 (7/8/02) - Added "Life as a Ronin", Military Strategy, and The Art of War. Started on the scenario section. Updated items, sites, poetry, and various sections. Version 0.1 (7/5/02) - First version of this FAQ. ------------------------ III. Officer Information ------------------------ "In peace you are an able subject; in chaos you are a crafty hero!" - Xu Shao to Cao Cao Status: Indicates the current status of the character. They are Ronin, Common (Officer), Prefect, and Liege. This also determines the commands available to that character as well as the amount of AP they receive each turn. LOY: Indicates the current loyalty of the officer to his or her Liege. Ronin and Lieges do not have this. Officers with low loyalty may choose to defect to other Lieges or participate in revolutions or coup attempts. Ranges from 0 (no loyalty) to 100 (absolute loyalty). This value is not shown in expert diffculty. Wage: The amount of money the Officer receives. Officers are paid this amount every January, April, July, and October. If a Liege cannot pay his officers their loyalty will decrease. Wages are increased when Class is increased, from winning poetry contests or tournaments, or as a reward from a Liege. The maximum Wage for an Officer is 250. Deeds: The measure of an officer's service with their Liege. High amount of Deeds leads to an increase of Class with that Liege. Deeds only apply to the current Liege the Officer is serving. Fame: The measure of the officer's fame throughout the land. A high level of Fame increases the chance of Lieges hiring you. It also determines the Rank assigned to an Officer by his Liege. Title: Indicates the current Title of the Liege. A Liege can gain higher Titles by increasing his Imperial Favor via audiences with the Emperor. The Liege's Title determines the ranks that Liege can bestow upon his Officers. Title Imperial Favor ----- -------------- Emperor 250 Minimum King 230 Minimum Archduke 200 Minimum Prime Minister 220 Lord Grand Marshal 210 Grand Commander 200 Minister of Interior 190 Minister of Exterior 180 Palace Minister 160 Capitol Minster 150 Defense Minister 140 Marquis 140 Earl of the Left 130 Earl of the Right 120 Earl of the South 110 Earl of the North 100 Tiger Escort Captain 90 Royal Guard Captain 80 Governor 70 Lieutenant Governor 50 Class: Indicates an officer's status within society. A higher Class allows for an increase in the maximum number of Troops and minimum Wage for the Officer. Officers increase in Class by accumulating Deeds. - 1st Class: 20,000 Troops Wage 150 - 2nd Class: 17,000 Troops Wage 100 - 3rd Class: 15,000 Troops Wage 60 - 4th Class: 12,000 Troops Wage 30 - 5th Class: 10,000 Troops Wage 10 Rank: Indicates an officer's position within the country. Higher Rank increases effectiveness in battle by increasing Tactic Points. Ranks apply only to the current Liege the Officer is serving. Officers with high WAR and INT are most likely to increase in Rank quickly. Rank TP Bonus Rank TP Bonus Rank TP Bonus ---- -------- ---- -------- ---- -------- ? +100 Conquest +40 Horse +10 ? +100 Pacifier +40 Foot +10 ? +100 Border +40 ? +100 Relief +40 Dragon +90 3rd East +35 Tiger +90 3rd South +35 Peacock +90 3rd West +35 Tortoise +90 3rd North +35 Fire +80 4th East +30 Water +80 4th South +30 Wind +80 4th West +30 Earth +80 4th North +30 1st East +70 Vanguard +25 1st South +70 Warrior +25 1st West +70 Scribe +25 1st North +70 Campaign +25 2nd East +60 Kingdom +20 2nd South +60 River +20 2nd West +60 Defense +20 2nd North +60 Tactical +20 Left +50 Catapult +15 Right +50 Tower +15 Front +50 Armor +15 Rear +50 Crossbow +15 Bond: Indicates the level of trust and friendship between this officer and yourself. Ranges from 0 (officer doesn't know you) to 100 (officer trusts you completely). WAR: War ability. Determines effectiveness in combat. Officers with high WAR deal and receive less damage in battle both on the field and in duels. They are also skilled in fortifying city defenses. INT: Intelligence. Determines effectiveness in using Ploys. Officers with high INT can use Ploys and Tactics more effectively, and have a higher resistance to enemy Ploys and Tactics used against them. They are also skilled in increasing the technology level of cities. POL: Politics. Determines effectiveness in domestics. Officers with high POL are very effective in increasing a city's Safety, Commerce, and Land levels. CHAR: Charisma. Determines effectiveness in dealing with others. Officers with high CHA can conscript a high number of Troops and are good at diplomatic functions. IP: Influence points. Required by a Warlord in order to influence others. Warlords use IP whenever they request any Personnel, Military, Domestic, or Plot command. IP is also used to influence decisions made by their Liege. IP is regained by accumulating more Deeds. Age: Current age of the officer. When an Officer reaches a certain age there is a chance that they will die. Officers near death can be revealed by visiting an Officer with the Oracle skill. Players that die of old age can continue playing with an Officer that has a high Bond with them under their Liege. Health: Current health of the character. Injured characters have penalties to abilities until healed. Health ranges from Good, Fair, and Poor. Officers are injured as the result of the Assassin Ploy, a pursuit after a battle, or a plague. Health can be returned to Good in a single month if the Officer has the Doctor skill or visits someone that has it. Otherwise, the Officer will recover slowly over time. Years: Current number of years serving current Liege. Rewards are given to Officers from the Liege for every 5 years of service for loyalty. Unit: Type of military unit assigned to the officer. Types are Foot, Crossbow, Teng Jia, Catapult, Horse, Calvary, Tower, and Elephant. Each unit has different levels of effectiveness against each other, as well as varying movement ranges depending on the terrain. Troops: Number of troops in the officer's unit. As Troops are lost in battle the amount of damage the unit can deal will decrease. Drill: Measure of the unit's training and effectiveness in battle. Ranges from 50 (untrained) to 100 (elite). Drill level reduces when troops are conscripted to the unit. Drill determines the amount of damage the unit deals and receives, as well as how far the unit can move in battle. Injured: The number of injured soldiers in the Officer's unit. Indicates the maximum number of Troops that can be revived using the Heal Tactic. Glory: Measure of deeds performed when winning a battle. The top three Officers with the most Glory on the victorious side in battle gain a portion of Deeds based on the Glory won. Glory is gained primarily by defeating enemy soldiers. ------------------ IV. Officer Skills ------------------ "I have no great talent but I have had to do with humans of no ordinary gifts from whom I have received certain magical books called 'Concealing Method'. I can call the winds and summon the rains." - Zhuge Liang to Zhou Yu * - Not very useful. A situational skill. ** - Somewhat useful. A nice skill to have. *** - Useful. A helpful skill if you can get it. **** - Very useful. Get this skill if at all possible. ***** - Extremely useful. A must have skill. Spy (**) --- Increases the effectiveness of the Spy command. Information on cities near the target city can sometimes be obtained. Comments: As Sun Tzu said, know the enemy and know yourself and you can win any battle. This will at least help with the former. The information on additional cities is an added bonus. This is a good skill to have if you want to expand your Officer contacts in other cities. Invent (****) ------ Allows the officer to create advanced weapons when using the Forge command. This skill is required to create the Arbalest, Fireball, Tower, Catapult, and Wood Ox Arms. The city must have the required Tech level and access to the materials needed in order to invent new Arms. Comments: In the later battles of the game, the enemy will have Arbalests available to them, along with Officers with the Missile and Volley skills. This means that a unit with an Arbalest can use an arrow attack up to ten times in a single turn with a lucky shot (I've done it myself once or twice). The best way to counter that is to have Arbalests of your own (and the Counter skill, he he he). If you have this skill, you are going to be very popular with your Prefect when Arbalests, Towers, and Catapults become available. Tame (**) ---- Allows the creation of Elephant units (Only available in Yong Chang). Comments: While Elephant units are indeed powerful, the fact that you can only obtain them in one city somewhat limits the usefulness of this skill. Trade (***) ----- Gives discounts when buying items or food from the merchant. Comments: Items can be incredibly helpful when you're starting out, and are essential in the later stages of the game. Depending on the scenario you can obtain +10 Items fairly early in the game from the merchants. Having this skill makes your shopping sprees a bit easier on your funds. Counter (***) ------- Enables an Officer to counterattack against certain attacks that normally cannot be countered such as Arrow, Missile, and Volley. Officer must have a missile weapon to counter attack. Comments: The value of this skill depends on how frequently you are assigned a Crossbow unit (or Foot with Bow) and how frequently the enemy uses archers in battle. Late in the game most countries produce Crossbow units en masse. This skill makes you a formidable opponent against enemy archers on the field of battle, especially if you have an Arbalest. Reversal (****) -------- Enables an Officer to redirect certain ploys used against his or her unit in battle such as Fire, Confusion, Stop, and Taunt back to the enemy Officer. Comments: This skill doesn't work all the time, but when it does it can be a real lifesaver. It seems to work well against fire attacks. Aid (***) --- Allows the Officer to use the Aid Tactic in battle. Aid removes status effects from units that have been affected by ploys such as Confuse, Taunt, and Stop. Comments: Many of your fellow Officers in battle will have high WAR but low INT. As a result, they are easy targets for Tactics such as Confuse and Taunt. If you're not in a position to attack the enemy, you might as well help out where you can. Aid is invaluable in such situations. Remember that you can use this Tactic on yourself as well. Aid is great for recovering from the Chain Ploy. Scout (***) ----- Officers with this skill have a field on view in battle unaffected by weather. During Probe movement traps are discovered 100% of the time. Comments: Running into the enemy due to bad weather not only ends your movement for the turn, but gives them a free attack as well. Having an increased sight radius is very helpful in poor field conditions. Automatically discovering traps during Probe movement is an added bonus. Valor (*****) ----- Officers with this skill do not take additional damage from being surrounded by enemy units in battle. Comments: One of the best skills in the game. Enemy units love to surround you in battle often. If you don't have this skill you can be cut to pieces in one or two turns, especially if you're facing strong opponents. Enemy units with this skill are true nightmares, usually tying up your advance single handedly while you try to whittle their Troops down with repeated attacks. Charge (****) ------ Allows Officer to make a charge attack against an enemy in battle. Charge attacks may hit an enemy multiple times, and may push the target unit back one square as well. Comments: This is a great skill to have, especially when you have an enemy surrounded, or if you want to knock a unit out of their outpost. Just remember that sometimes it is better to use a direct attack rather than a charge. Otherwise you may end up knocking an enemy away from being surrounded, or allow a unit to slip past through to your outpost. Note that Officers that are using Horse, Calvary, or Elephant units can use charge attacks even without this skill. Duel (* or *****) ---- Allows Officer to challenge opposing officers to a duel in battle. Officers without this ability are at a serious disadvantage in a duel. Comments: The value of this skill depends on the combat abilities of your Officer. If your Officer doesn't go hunting often or is never invited to tournaments, this skill is only average in value since most Officers will refuse to duel with you, and if you're not the fighting type you won't be dueling Officers anyway. If you're an Officer with high WAR, odds are you will encounter many tigers during your hunting trips, and will often be invited to tournaments. If this is the case, then this skill is invaluable. If you don't have this skill you are going to be beaten fairly badly even if your WAR is fairly high. Dash (****) ---- Allows an Officer to use the Dash ability in battle. Dash movement allows for a much longer range of movement for the turn, but reduces the Officer's Troop level. Comments: This skill can be incredibly helpful in many situations. Just don't abuse it or you will face the consequences. The movement advantage gained in a single turn can mean the difference between victory and defeat. Remember that when you dash you cannot probe for traps. Repair (*) ------ Allows an Officer to repair the city wall during a siege battle. Comments: You're usually better off attacking the enemy at your gates rather than trying to repair the walls. Could be useful if you just need to buy just a little more time. Navy (***) ---- Officers with this skill are at an advantage when fighting on water. Comments: Warriors should learn this skill if they can, as it gives them an advantage in naval conflicts. Note that this skill helps when fighting on rivers and lakes as well. This does not affect movement rates on water however. Missile (***) ------- Allows an Officer to make a fire arrow attack. Fire arrow attacks are stronger than regular arrow attacks, and may set a fire in the target square. This attack cannot be used during Rain, Storm, or Snow weather. Comments: This skill is great if you are assigned archery units regularly. If you have an Arbalest it gets even better. Volley (***) ------ Allows an officer to make a volley attack in battle hitting multiple targets at long range. All squares adjacent to the target square are hit. Friendly units within range are hit as well. The firing Officer's unit will not be hit if it is within range. Comments: Once again the value of this skill is dependent on how often you are assigned archery units. Just remember that if one of your own units is in the line of fire, be sure to weigh the advantages of making a volley attack. It goes without saying that you should try to hit as many of the enemy as possible without hitting your own units. Riot (*) ---- Allows the officer to use the Riot Ploy. Comments: Riot isn't a very effective Ploy, so you can pass on this one. Wile (*) ---- Allows the officer to use the Chain, Discord, and Lure Ploys. Comments: Chain is very useful in battles where there are large bodies of water. Other than that the rest of the Ploys are only marginally useful. Rumor (****) ----- Allows the officer to use the Rumor and Falsify Ploys. Comments: While Rumor is very powerful, there are some things you should remember. Officers that leave the field are still available to defend the city during a siege battle. And Rumor can drive off an Officer with 1,000 Foot that was about to be defeated anyway, instead of driving off an Officer with 20,000 Calvary. But even despite of this, Rumor is an excellent Ploy to even out the battlefield. Chart (*) ----- Allows the officer to use the Wind, Weather, and Lightning Ploys. Comments: None of these Ploys are very effective so you can pass on this one. Flood (*) ----- Allows the officer to use the Flood Ploy. Comments: Good for siege battles and not much else. Rally (**) ----- Allows the officer to use the Rally Ploy. Comments: Remember that Rally not only increases your Morale, but also removes all status effects from your units. If you are losing badly though this won't help very much. Jeer (**) ---- Allows the officer to use the Jeer Ploy. Comments: Jeer isn't too effective unless the enemy Morale was low to begin with. It can be useful in some close battles though. Sap (*) --- Allows the officer to use the Sap Ploy. Comments: Good for siege battles and not much else. Mystic (***) ------ Allows the officer to use the Haste, Lightning, Revive, Illusion, Lure, and Falsify Ploys. This skill cannot be learned. Comments: This is a very useful skill to have for the Haste and Revive Ploys. If you're not a Tactician this skill can be useful when patrolling and the peasants want you to pray for rain. If you have this skill you will be successful 100% of the time. Bless (***) ----- Allows the use of Creatures in battle. The Officer must have the Creature Item in order to use this. This skill is only given to those chosen by the Southern and Northern Mystics. The Officer must be in the top ten of the Heroes Ranking and have at least four units available. Comments: This skill is more for show than anything else. While having the ability to use Creatures can definitely turn the tide of battle, you do have to hunt for them again each time you use them. Zeal (*****) ---- Increases the amount of AP recovered each month. Comments: This one is a no-brainer. Get this skill as soon as humanly possible. Study (*****) ----- Increases the effectiveness of the Train and Tutor commands. Comments: This one is also a no-brainer. Get this skill as soon as humanly possible. Doctor (***) ------ Officers with this skill fully recover health when injured in the next month. They can also heal injured visiting Officers and use the Revive Ploy. This skill cannot be learned. Comments: This is a useful skill to have when the plague runs rampant. The ability to use the Revive Ploy is also invaluable. Oracle (*) ------ This skill has random effects when invoked on the battlefield. Officers with this skill can also foresee other Officers who are nearing the end of their lifespan. This skill cannot be learned. Comments: It's fun to visit Officers with this skill, but other than that this skill is definitely more for amusement than anything else. Critic (*) ------ Officers with this skill will occasionally evaluate visitors, sometimes increasing their Fame. This skill cannot be learned. Comments: This skill does nothing for you personally, but it's fun to visit other Officers with this skill. Wealth (***) ------ Increases the amount an officer receives for his wages each month. This officer will also give money to visitors occasionally. This skill cannot be learned. Comments: More money is always good. If you have this and the Trade skill you can rack up an impressive Item collection in record time. ------------------- V. City Information ------------------- "Zhuge Liang is always most careful and runs no risks. Those open gates undoubtedly mean an ambush. If our force enters the city, they will fall victims to his guile. How can you know? No, our course is to retire." - Sima Yi to Sima Zhao Type: There are five types of cities: Academy, City, Metropolis, Port, and Ranch. Determines availability of skills learnable in the city. Land: Measure of food production in the city. Determines how much food is harvested in July. Comm: Measure of commerce in the city. Determines how much money is collected for the city in January, April, July, and October. High commerce also increases the chances of having a merchant visit the city. Sfty: Measure of city safety. Cities with high safety increase population at a higher rate. Also attracts merchants to the city. Low safety increases the success rate of Plots against the city. Tech: Measure of technical achievement in the city. Determines if certain Arms can be forged. Defense: Measure of the city's defensive wall strength. If the Defense of the city wall is reduced to 0 in a siege, the attackers win the battle. Merchant: Determines if a merchant is available to purchase food and items in the city. Otherwise, the Buy command is not available. Some cities always have a merchant available. You can see merchant activity on the map screen. Gold: Amount of gold available to the city. Increases every January, April, July, and October based on the city's Commerce level. Food: Amount of food available to the city. Increases every July based on the city's Land level. Troops in the city are also compensated with Food in July. Pop: The population of the city. Increases based on the city's Safety level. Troops: The number of troops stationed in the city. Reserve: The number of conscripts available to draft into units. Trust: The city's level of trust in the officer. A high Trust makes Domestic commands more effective. A low trust increases the chances of riot or revolt in the city. Product: Each city usually has a product available to manufacture Arms. Products available are Lumber, Rattan, Leather, Ore, Horse, Sulfur, and Nitrate. You can check the products of each city on the map screen using the square button and selecting the Product option. --------- City List --------- City Type Product Merchant Land Max Comm Max ---- ---- ------- -------- -------- -------- 1. An Ding City Horse x 600 500 2. Bei Hai Academy Nitrate x 600 800 3. Bei Ping Ranch Horse x 700 500 4. Chai Sang Port x x 600 600 5. Chang An Metropolis Ore Always 900 900 6. Chang Sha City x x 700 500 7. Chen Liu City Leather x 800 600 8. Cheng Du Metropolis Nitrate Always 900 800 9. Cheng Yang City Ore x 600 700 10. Gui Yang City Ore x 600 300 11. Han Zhong City Lumber x 600 500 12. He Nei City Lumber x 700 600 13. Hong Nong City Lumber x 400 600 14. Hui Ji Port x x 800 500 15. Ji Academy Horse x 700 700 16. Jian An City Lumber x 500 400 17. Jian Ning City Ore x 600 400 18. Jian Ye Port Ore Always 1000 800 19. Jiang Ling Port Lumber x 800 600 20. Jiang Xia City Ore x 600 600 21. Jiang Zhou City x x 700 500 22. Jiao Zhi City Lumber Always 600 300 23. Jin Yang City Horse x 400 600 24. Ling Ling City Sulfur x 600 300 25. Lu Jiang Port Ore x 600 600 26. Luo Yang Metropolis x Always 800 1000 27. Nan Hai Port Ore x 600 400 28. Nan Pi City Ore Always 700 800 29. Ping Yuan City Leather x 600 500 30. Pu Yang City Lumber x 800 600 31. Qiao Academy Leather x 600 700 32. Ru Nan City Leather x 700 700 33. Shang Dang Ranch Nitrate x 500 600 34. Shang Yong City x x 400 400 35. Shou Chun City x x 800 800 36. Tian Shui Ranch Horse x 500 500 37. Wan City Ore x 700 800 38. Wu Port x x 700 500 39. Wu Du City Ore x 500 500 40. Wu Ling City Lumber x 600 300 41. Wu Wei Ranch Horse x 500 500 42. Xi Ping City Leather x 500 500 43. Xia Pi City Ore Always 900 700 44. Xiang Ping Ranch Ore x 600 800 45. Xiang Yang Academy Leather Always 800 800 46. Xiao Pei City x x 800 600 47. Xin Ye City x x 400 500 48. Xu Chang Metropolis Ore Always 1000 800 49. Ye Metropolis Lumber x 900 800 50. Yong An City Lumber x 500 500 51. Yong Chang City Sulfur x 500 400 52. Yue Ling City Lumber x 500 400 53. Yun Nan City Rattan x 500 400 54. Zi Tong Academy Leather x 600 500 ---------- City Types ---------- The following is a list of the types of cities in the game as well as the skills available to learn in each. Special thanks to gr1mm for posting this information on the GameFAQs ROTTK7 message board. The following skills can be learned at any city regardless of type: WAR - Volley INT - Rally, Jeer, Sap POL - Zeal, Study CHA - Study Training at cities is more effective if your level of Trust is high. Type: Academy Cities: Bei Hai, Ji, Qiao, Xiang Yang, Zi Tong Exclusive skills: Repair, Rumor, Chart, Invent Skills available: WAR - Repair, Volley INT - Repair, Rumor, Chart, Rally, Jeer, Sap POL - Invent, Repair, Zeal, Study CHA - Chart, Study Type: City Cities: An Ding, Chang Sha, Chen Liu, Cheng Yang, Gui Yang, Han Zhong, He Nei, Hong Nong, Jian An, Jian Ning, Jiang Xia, Jiang Zhou, Jiao Zhi, Jin Yang, Ling Ling Nan Pi, Ping Yuan, Pu Yang, Ru Nan, Shang Yong, Shou Chun, Wan, Wu Du, Wu Ling, Xi Ping, Xia Pi, Xiao Pei, Xin Ye, Yong An, Yong Chang, Yue Ling, Yun Nan Exclusive skills: None Skills available: WAR - Volley INT - Rally, Jeer, Sap POL - Zeal, Study CHA - Study Type: Metropolis Cities: Chang An, Cheng Du, Luo Yang, Xu Chang, Ye Exclusive skills: Counter, Reversal, Aid, Scout, Valor, Riot, Wile, Spy Skills available: WAR - Counter, Reversal, Aid, Scout, Valor, Volley INT - Aid, Riot, Wile, Rally, Jeer, Sap POL - Spy, Aid, Scout, Zeal, Study CHA - Study Type: Port Cities: Chai Sang, Hui Ji, Jian Ye, Jiang Ling, Lu Jiang, Nan Hai, Wu Exclusive skills: Navy, Missile, Flood Skills available: WAR - Navy, Missile, Volley INT - Flood, Rally, Jeer, Sap POL - Zeal, Study CHA - Study Type: Ranch Cities: Bei Ping, Shang Dang, Tian Shui, Wu Wei, Xiang Ping Exclusive skills: Charge, Duel, Dash Skills available: WAR - Charge, Duel, Dash, Volley INT - Rally, Jeer, Sap POL - Zeal, Study CHA - Study -------- Products -------- Horse ----- A large hoofed mammal having a shorthaired coat, a long mane, and a long tail, domesticated since ancient times and used for riding and for carrying loads. Horses are required to forge the Arm Horse, and are necessary to form the Horse and Calvary units. Available at: An Ding, Bei Ping, Ji, Jin Yang, Tian Shui, Wu Wei Leather ------- The dressed or tanned hide of an animal, usually with the hair removed. Leather is required for to forge the Arms Armor, Catapult, and Tower. Available at: Chen Liu, Ping Yuan, Qiao, Ru Nan, Xi Ping, Xiang Yang, Zi Tong Lumber ------ Timber sawed into boards, planks, or other structural members of standard or specified length. Lumber is required to forge the Arms Arbalest, Bow, Catapult, Crossbow, Tower, and Wood Ox. Available at: Han Zhong, He Nei, Hong Nong, Jian An, Jiang Ling, Jiao Zhi, Pu Yang, Wu Ling, Ye, Yong An, Yue Ling Nitrate ------- Fertilizer consisting of sodium nitrate or potassium nitrate. Nitrate is required to forge the Arms Fireball and Wood Ox. Available at: Bei Hai, Cheng Du, Shang Dang Ore --- A mineral or an aggregate of minerals from which a valuable constituent, especially a metal, can be profitably mined or extracted. Ore is required to forge the Arms Armor, Elephant, Harness and Wood Ox. Available at: Chang An, Cheng Yang, Gui Yang, Jian Ning, Jian Ye, Jiang Xia, Lu Jiang, Nan Hai, Nan Pi, Wan, Wu Du, Xia Pi, Xiang Ping, Xu Chang Rattan ------ Any of various climbing palms of the genera Calamus, Daemonorops, or Plectomia of tropical Asia, having long, tough, slender stems. Rattan is required to forge the Arms Elephant and Teng Jia. Available at: Yun Nan Sulfur ------ A pale yellow nonmetallic element occurring widely in nature in several free and combined allotropic forms. It is used in black gunpowder. Sulfur is required to form the Arms Fireball and Wood Ox. Available at: Ling Ling, Yong Chang --------- Disasters --------- Occasionally one of several disasters can occur during the year to any number of cities. Some of these disasters occur only once while others such as Locusts and Plague can spread to other cities as time progresses. It's always amusing when this happens to your enemies, but it's less amusing when it happens only to your country. Blizzard - Usually occurs in northern provinces in October. Reduces Commerce and Land in affected cities. Roads are blocked for a period of time. Bounty - Not really a disaster. Greatly increases Food harvest in affected cities. Flood - Usually occurs in April or after a typhoon. Reduces Commerce, Land, and Defense in affected cities. Roads are flooded and become unusable for a period of time. Locusts - Reduces Land in affected cities. Can spread to other cities over time. Plague - Reduces Population in affected cities. All Officers in the city are reduced in Health. Can spread to other cities over time. Riot - Usually occurs in cities with low Safety. Reduces Safety in affected cities. Typhoon - Usually occurs in April. Reduces Commerce and Land in affected cities. ------------------- VI. Character Types ------------------- "In these days of disorder a good soldier can make a name for himself." - Guan Yu to Guo Chang ----- Ronin ----- Technically speaking Ronin are wandering samurai, but in the context of the game they are wandering officers that are not serving any Liege. Ronins have the least amount of options available to them of any class, and have very little power as a result. On the other hand they are usually unaffected by events around them and don't have to worry about administrative duties. Unfortunately, this also limits their opportunities to obtain Fame as well. Eventually you may decide to join a Liege, establish your own country, or remain a wanderer for the rest of your life. Strengths: Flexibility. Weaknesses: Limited power. Little opportunities to increase Fame. --------------------------- Tips for the aspiring Ronin --------------------------- - Use letters and visits frequently to increase your Bond with powerful Officers. Not only will this allow you to get tutorage from them, but you will also become acquainted with a wide variety of other Officers in the process. - Learn the Study and Zeal skills as soon as possible. - Remember that while being tutored increases your abilities faster, you will rarely, if ever, learn new skills. - Skills learned while training depends on the type of city you are in. Training is also more effective if your Trust in that city is high. - If some of your abilities are low, you may want to consider remaining a Ronin until you can train those abilities to acceptable levels. Ronin don't have to worry about being captured or executed like Officers do, nor do they have to carry out tasks dictated by the Prefect each month. Unfortunately, they also have the fewest Action Points available so they improve abilities relatively slowly compared to Officers. - WAR and INT are important if you enlist in a city near a heavily contested border. If these abilities aren't very high, consider enlisting in a city relatively far away from most of the action. - While POL is important for Officers, Ronin don't have access to Domestic commands and therefore don't really need it. - Don't bother training CHA. Your CHA experience increases every time you send a letter or visit someone. And because Ronin don't recruit or conscript, there's really no point in having a high CHA. At least for now. - If you don't have the Duel skill, don't bother fighting tigers you encounter during hunts, even if you have high WAR. Even the weak tigers will tear you to shreds. This goes for Officers as well. For more details on being a Ronin please refer to the "Life as a Ronin" section. ------- Officer ------- Officers are the foundation of the game, and are therefore the most common character type. They are usually assigned domestic tasks by the Prefect in times of peace, and are frequently sent to the front lines in times of war. Depending on their abilities they can advance in Class and Rank rather quickly. They may even be promoted to Prefect, Warlord, or as a successor to a Liege himself if they are skilled enough. Some Officers change allegiances on a whim. Others are faithful unto death. While an officer's life may be a hard one, it can most certainly be rewarding in many ways. Strengths: Great opportunities to advance in Class, Rank, and Fame. Weaknesses: May be overruled by the Prefect during certain commands. ----------------------------- Tips for the aspiring Officer ----------------------------- - Get your Bond with your Liege to 100 as soon as possible. - Get your Bond with your Prefect to 100 as soon as possible. - Get your Trust with your base city up to 100 as soon as possible. - Always follow the suggestions made by your Prefect, Warlord, or Liege, unless doing so will be absolutely detrimental to the well being of the city. Your superiors will usually know what the best course of action for the city is for the current situation. Even if their suggestion is a bit silly (searching a city for talent that has already been searched, or trying to recruit an Officer that has repeatedly refused), agree to do it anyway. It's best to stay on their good side whenever possible. - Keep making acquaintances with other Officers, even enemy Officers. - Always try to suggest a task to your Prefect if you haven't been assigned one for the month. Not only will this increase your experience, but your Deeds and Fame as well. - Try to train rather than tutor as much as possible, unless a particular ability is dismally low. As an Officer you'll need skills now more than ever before. Study and Zeal are a must have. If you're in a heavily contested region, it would be a good idea to get combat skills such as Valor, Charge, and Dash. - Try to increase your abilities evenly if possible. Remember that the higher your abilities, the less amount of experience you gain from training. If you concentrate on WAR, you will be formidable in combat, but will be very susceptible to Plots and Tactics. If you concentrate on INT, the opposite will be true. - If you have high WAR, you will usually be mobilized in the event of an invasion (of your city or another one) or as reinforcements. You will also usually be invited to annual tournaments your Liege holds in July. Officers with high WAR are excellent at fortifying city defenses. - If you have high INT, you will be often assigned as a Tactician in the event of an invasion (of your city or another one). You will also usually be invited to annual poetry contests your Liege holds in July. Officers with high INT are excellent at increasing a city's technology level. If your INT is high enough, you may even be appointed as Warlord. - If you have high POL, your Prefect will often assign you duties every month. Officers with high POL are excellent at increasing Safety, Commerce and Land levels in a city. If your POL is high enough, you may be appointed as a Prefect when the opportunity presents itself. - If you have high CHA, you will most likely be asked to gather conscripts or serve as an envoy to another Liege. Officers with high CHA are excellent at conscripting and diplomatic functions. For more details on being an Officer please refer to the "Life as an Officer" section. ------- Prefect ------- Prefects are assigned by the Liege to run a certain province in the country. They are made up of the cream of the crop from the Officers under the Liege, and are frequently assigned the position when new cities are claimed during invasions. A Prefect has complete control of the city and the officers in it, but must follow the city's policy set by the Liege. If the policy is set to Auto, then the Prefect is allowed to pretty much do as he or she sees fit. The Prefect is often asked by the Liege to do certain tasks for the month. If the city policy is not being followed, the Liege will demote the Prefect to an Officer, no matter how well they were running the city. Strengths: Same as Officer, only greater. Weaknesses: Must follow policy set by the Liege. ----------------------------- Tips for the aspiring Prefect ----------------------------- - Get your Bond with your Liege to 100 if it isn't there already. - Get your Trust with your city to 100 as soon as possible. - Follow your city's Policy as much as possible if it isn't Auto. Remember that increasing Safety can always be done regardless of Policy. - Your Liege and Warlord may request that you perform tasks for them during the month. While this may seem inconvenient while you are managing your city, you should accept when requested to do so. - Keep your city's Safety as high as possible. - Check the budget of your city in the information screen when you become Prefect. If Gold or Food income is shown as a negative value, work to correct the problem as soon as possible. If you are on good relations with your Liege, he may decide to help you out by sending shipments of Gold or Food. - Use all your Officers for tasks each month. You can check the relevant ability used by your Officers for the task in the command menu. It goes without saying that the Officers with the highest abilities should be used for those tasks. Even if an Officer doesn't contribute much to the task he should be assigned anyway. Every little bit helps when it comes to developing your city. If you don't have enough Gold to maximize Officer use each month, increase your city's Commerce levels until you do. - If you are seriously low on Officers for your city, try to recruit Ronin. Ronin who have not previously served any Liege and have high POL are worth their weight in gold when it comes to developing a city. Be sure to have a Bond of 100 before trying to recruit them. Officers serving other Lieges are not likely to be persuaded to join your city unless their LOY is dismally low (70 or less). - If your Policy is Auto, assign tasks that match the situation. If your city is bordering an aggressive country, and you are just starting out, conscript until your Officers have their maximum number of Troops, and Drill them constantly. If you have strong Officers (WAR 80+) you might want to Forge a Crossbow or Horse Arms for them if possible. If your city is remote from any conflict, work on maximizing Commerce and Land values. Such cities are perfect for supplying your Liege with Gold and Food for his campaigns. - If your Policy is Offense, Conscript and Drill your Officers to maximum levels. Give Crossbows and Horses to all your Officers if they don't already. For your strong Officers you may want to consider giving them advanced arms such as Armor and Harness for Calvary units, or even an Arbalest, Catapult, or Tower if possible. This Policy is common in border cities. - If your Policy is Defense, do the same tasks as you would if your Policy was Offense. Don't bother fortifying your city until your Officers Troops and Drill are all at maximum, and you've forged them the best weapons available. - If your Policy is Tech, concentrate solely on increasing your Tech levels. Increasing Tech doesn't drop Safety so you don't have to worry as you would when conscripting Troops or working on domestics. Eventually your Liege will change your city's policy once the city reaches a certain technology level. This is a fairly rare Policy. - If your Policy is Domestic, concentrate on increasing Commerce and Land. If your city is experiencing a shortfall, work on correcting the problem area first. Don't forget to increase Safety occasionally. This Policy is common in cities deep within the Liege's territory. For more details on being a Prefect please refer to the "Life as a Prefect" section. ------- Warlord ------- Warlords are the personal advisors to the Liege himself, and as such they have incredible powers of influence. By using this influence they can pretty much do as they please, but constant use of their powers will reduce their ability to influence others. A Warlord position is assigned only to the greatest Officer or Prefect in the Liege's domain. Intelligence is a key factor, but others are important as well. Because of their wisdom Warlords are often asked for advice from their Liege as well as other Prefects. Giving wise answers will increase a Warlord's influence, while giving bad advice will reduce it. Strengths: Ability to do as they please as long as they have Influence. Weaknesses: Little power if their Influence runs out. ----------------------------- Tips for the Aspiring Warlord ----------------------------- - Don't request Personnel, Military, Domestic, or Plot commands unless you really have to. Wait for your Liege or the Prefect to request them for you so you don't have to use any IP. - Always have IP available. - Whenever your Liege receives a visit from an Imperial envoy, always agree to their request no matter how outlandish it may be. In the long run having a Liege with a high Title more than makes up for any inconveniences made by the demands of the Emperor. - Always support your Liege when the Officers request that he takes the title of Archduke/King/Emperor. - Agree to alliances with other countries often, particularly if the country is a buffer between you and another large country, or if many aggressive countries surround you. One allied country is one less country to worry about for the time being. - Remember that even if you send/receive Gold as a gift to/from another Liege, that doesn't mean they will remain friendly. On the contrary, it seems Lieges enjoy attacking the Liege that sent them the gift on the turn they received it! For more details on being a Warlord please refer to the "Life as a Warlord" section. ----- Liege ----- Lieges control an entire an entire kingdom, whether made up of one province or ten. Depending on their leadership they can be just and righteous rulers, or bloodthirsty tyrants. Lieges have absolute control over every aspect of their kingdom, but usually assign Prefects to manage the various provinces. The life of a Liege is certainly the most rewarding, but also the most challenging. Not only must you deal with challenges from outside of the kingdom, but internal conflicts as well. The road to the unification of China is not an easy one. Strengths: Complete control of a kingdom. Weaknesses: None For more details on being a Liege please refer to the "Life as a Liege" section. -------------------- VII. Life as a Ronin -------------------- "I shall pack up my few garments and my alms bowl and take to the road, vague in my wanderings as the clouds in the sky." - Transverse Peace to Guan Yu Once you've decided your base of operations, one of the first steps you should do is introduce yourself to the people around you. Chances are you've started in a city with a Prefect or a Liege. If not, well, I guess you're really not the social type and should skip to the part on improving yourself. Send letters of introduction to the Prefect or Liege. --------------- Social Commands --------------- Social-Letter (10 AP) ------------- Who can use: All This social command sends a letter to another officer. If their Bond is 0, it serves as an introduction between the two of you. If their Bond is 1 or greater, it will increase their Bond. This command also increases the Officer's CHA experience. If their bond is high enough, they may occasionally send a reply back. Their Bond can only be increased to a maximum of 50 using letters. The better the response the higher the Bond increase. Some possible outcomes are as follows: - Introduction: Officer learns about you for the first time. - Interest 1: Officer shows some interest in you. - Interest 2: Officer wants to share information if you come and visit. - Remark: Officer remarks on your thinking. - Reply 1: Officer writes a reply back thanking you. - Reply 2: Officer writes a reply back saying he wants you to visit him. Keep sending letters until they say something along the lines that it may be worthwhile to meet with you. Then you should use the Social-Visit command. If you are an Officer and want to visit an enemy Officer, you should wait until they actually mention that they would like to meet you (Interest 2 or Reply 2). Social-Visit (40 AP) ------------ Who can use: All This social command lets you visit a person for a social call. This increases their Bond more so than a letter. It also increases an Officer's CHA experience. Occasionally they will introduce other Officers in their city to you when you visit, increasing their Bond with you as well. If they have expressed interest in you an event may occur among the following: - Strategy: Officer shares a strategy for domestic affairs. - Reconnaissance: Officer shares information on a city as if you had used the Spy command on it. - Hidden talent: Officer tells of a city that has hidden talent available. - Officer information: Officer shares information on a certain officer. - Hunting expedition: Officer offers to go hunting with you. Tiger encounter may occur. Bond increases greatly after hunt. - Visit site: Officer takes you to visit an exotic site. This is saved in the Sites visited in the start menu. The city the Officer is in must have an exotic site present. - Healing: Officer heals you back to full health. Visited Officer must have the Doctor skill. - Critique: Officer critiques you, which raises your Fame. Visited Officer must have the Critic skill. - Donation: Officer gives you a gift of money. Visited Officer must have the Wealth skill. Funds must be low - Recruitment: Officer asks you to join his or her Liege. - New skill: Officer teaches you a new skill. - Tutoring: Officer tutors you as if you had requested them to. - Life extension: Officer offers to extend your lifespan for gold. Visited officer must have the Oracle skill. - Party (non Ronin): Officer gets drunk. Occurs during January. - Assassination (non Ronin): Officer lets his guard down, giving you a chance to assassinate him. Note: This option occurs when your Bond with the Officer is exactly at 42. This doesn't happen all the time, but it usually occurs. Thanks to Ahjenta on the GameFAQs ROTTK7 message board for sharing that information with us. If your Bond is low you may be refused to visit the Officer. Also if an Officer attempts to recruit you and you refuse, you will not be able to visit the Officer again for a while. Note that Officers can visit other Officers under their Liege anytime they wish, but it's a good idea to write a letter to them first to introduce yourself, otherwise you will get a message saying they are too busy to see you. The main reason you want to increase your Bonds right now is to make as many contacts as possible. If your abilities are high enough you may even be able to join a Liege in the process. But most important is that the higher Bond you have with an Officer, the more likely they will be willing to Tutor you. If you want to get information about more people you can always try to find them yourself. ----------------- Personal Commands ----------------- Personal-Spy (20 AP) ------------ Who can use: Ronin, Officer This personal command allows you to obtain information about a city and its current officers. The higher the character's INT the greater chance of success. Characters with the Spy skill can learn about adjoining cities as well. For countries not under your Liege, the information obtained on them lasts for a period of months equal to the Spy Limit on that country. Now that you've made some acquaintances, it's time to get to the business of improving yourself. The higher your abilities, the more likely you are of getting recruited by a Liege. Improving yourself can be done in many ways, but as a Ronin your choices are limited. Using Social commands can raise your CHA over time, but you're probably going to want to improve some other areas as well. Personal-Train (30 AP) -------------- Who can use: All This allows you to gain some experience in improving your abilities. When experience reaches 100 in that ability, it is increased by 1. Having the Study skill increases the effectiveness of this command. Occasionally you can learn new skills using this command depending on the location of the city you are at and which ability is being trained. The higher the ability value, the lower the amount of experience gained using this command. Training by yourself is good because it allows you to develop skills you would normally not obtain from a tutor. However, there is the tradeoff that raising abilities in this fashion is a rather lengthy process. A faster way is to get tutoring from another Officer. Personal-Tutor (30 AP) -------------- Who can use: All This allows you to gain experience in improving your abilities by studying under an Officer. If the Officer's Bond is low you may be refused training. The Officer must have a higher level of ability than you in the ability you are training. Having the Study skill increases the effectiveness of this command. The amount of experience gained is depended on the Officer's ability level in the ability being trained. The down side to tutoring is that you won't be able to learn new skills. But at this point in your career improving your abilities should be the focus of your attention. When you've trained hard enough you can try to join a Liege. Personal-Enlist (20 AP) --------------- Who can use: Ronin This allows you to request to a Liege to join their service. The chance of acceptance is dependent on the Liege's Bond level. If you're successful, congratulations! You can move on to the "Life as an Officer" section. If not, well, try to increase the Bond with that Liege. If that still doesn't work then start building up your abilities. If for some reason joining a Liege isn't in your foreseeable future, then you might as well make yourself useful and patrol your city. The Patrol command is hands down the most important command for the full time Ronin. Its benefits are important for all characters, but since Ronin have very few commands it's their bread and butter of their existence. Personal-Patrol (30 AP) --------------- Who can use: All This allows you to patrol the city and talk to the people. During a patrol several events can happen. Depending on your responses several things may occur: - People tell you of a rumor. Trust increases. - People tell you information about another city. Trust increases. - People request to be taught characters. If taught Trust increases. - People request aid from bandits. If helped Trust and Fame increases. WAR experience increases. - People tell of a corrupt government official. If investigated Trust and Fame increases. - Peasant asks for money for food/medicine. If given Trust increases. - People ask for your attendance at a festival. If attended Trust increases. - People give you money as a reward. If accepted Money increases. If declined Trust increases. - People ask you for help from expensive shrine offerings. If shrines are destroyed Trust increases. - People ask you to pray for rain. If successful Trust increases as does Fame. If failed Trust decreases. With Mystic skill is always successful. - People present you with an item. - People ask you to aid the sick. If successful, Trust increases. - People ask to join your army (non Ronin). If accepted troops are added to your unit. Trust increases. Obviously the best outcomes for Ronin are getting money or items. Chances of this occurring are highest when Trust is being increased. Trust in a city has a maximum of 100, so when things are good in the city it's time to move on. Wander-Move (50 AP) ----------- Who can use: Ronin This moves the Ronin to another city. If you're really crazy you can try to take over the city you're currently in. Personal-Coup (40 AP) ------------- Who can use: Ronin, Officer, Warlord This allows you to attempt a coup in the city you are in. If successful, you become Liege of that city. If the city is where the Liege resides, you take over his entire country. Officers with low loyalty and high Bond are likely to join you. Officers not affected will attempt to suppress you. If Trust is high and Safety is low, the people may support you. If you are unsuccessful and are caught you will be executed. If you manage to flee, you become a Ronin. This is usually a bad idea unless the city itself is on the verge of collapse. Even then it can be quite risky. A safer way to become a Liege outright is to try to claim a free city. Personal-Claim (40 AP) -------------- Who can use: Ronin This allows you to claim a free city and become its Liege. You can attempt to enlist the Ronin of the city to become your officers. The success of enlistment is based on the Liege's CHA ability and the Ronin's Bond level. If the city's trust is high, the people may donate Food and Gold to you. This is a much safer way to become a Liege. Unfortunately, your neighbors may object to your presence and decide to make your rule woefully short. If this is the case you had better start diplomatic relations with your nearest neighbors as soon as possible. If you've taken a city away from a Liege, you can expect some bad feelings from him and an army shortly thereafter (unless you took over the Liege's own city). In either case, congratulations! You can move on to the "Life as a Liege" section. Good luck! ------------------------ VIII. Life as an Officer ------------------------ "To serve one's chief with unswerving fidelity is a proof of the highest principle of all." - Cao Cao, on Guan Yu The duty of an Officer is to serve the Prefect assigned to their city by their Liege. Each month the Prefect (or Warlord/Liege were applicable) will assign you a task based on the policy of the city. Accepting a request from a Prefect will increase your Bond with him. While you can refuse to do a task, doing so will decrease your Bond with the Prefect. If the Prefect does not assign a task, you can suggest that you do one for him. If the task goes with the policy of the city the Prefect will usually agree to it. If it does not, or if your Bond with the Prefect is low, you will be refused. If this is the case the Prefect will refuse all such requests of that type for the rest of the month. An Officer can only perform one Military or Domestic command per month. The primary reason to perform tasks each month is not only to follow your Prefect's orders to improve the city, but to also increase your abilities, Fame, and Deeds as well. One of the first things an Officer should do in their city is use the Personal-Patrol command to build up their Trust to 100. If the city has a high level of Trust for the Officer, the more effective Domestic commands carried out by the officer will be. If an Officer requests that a command be done, it will use up more AP than if they were requested to do that action. The cost of requesting that action increases by 10 AP for each Officer requested to participate in that action. Officers can only be assigned to a request if they had not been previously assigned a task for that turn, up to a maximum of ten Officers. Officers assigned to the task will receive the benefits of the task as if they had followed a request from the Prefect, and their Bond will increase. The cost for a domestic task (except safety) is 10 Gold per Officer assigned to the action. If you are assigned a task with an Officer who has a high Bond, the effectiveness of the command is increased. Completing a task that you requested increases your Fame and Deeds, as will completing one that was requested of you. You do not receive Fame or Deeds if you request other Officers to complete a task. The requests that can be made by an Officer are as follows: -------------------------- Military/Domestic Commands -------------------------- Military-Drill (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) -------------- Who can use: Officer, Prefect, Warlord, Liege Note: Officers can only do this for their own Troops. This raises the Drill level of the Officer's units. Units with high Drill do more damage and move farther in battle. The higher the Officer's WAR and the fewer Troops the unit has, the more effective this command will be. The acting Officer's WAR experience will also increase. Note: You can see your Troops training in the northwest corner of the city. Domestic-Fortify (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) ---------------- Who can use: Officer, Prefect, Warlord, Liege Note: Officers can only do this by themselves. This raises the Defense of the city, increasing the strength of the city wall during a siege. The higher the Officer's WAR and Trust, the more effective this command will be. The acting Officer's WAR experience will also increase. Note: You can see the workers fortifying the walls near the city gate. Also as the Defense of the city increases, the walls will become larger. Domestic-Tech (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) ------------- Who can use: Officer, Prefect, Warlord, Liege This raises the Tech level of the city, allowing Officers to forge more types of Arms. The higher the Officer's INT and Trust, the more effective this command will be. The acting Officer's INT experience will also increase. Domestic-Forge (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) -------------- Who can use: Officer, Prefect, Warlord, Liege This allows you to forge a new Arm for an Officer, increasing the types of units they can use in battle or increasing their effectiveness. The acting Officer's INT experience will also increase. Domestic-Safety (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) --------------- Who can use: Officer, Prefect, Warlord, Liege This raises the Safety level of the city, which increases the city's population each month, attracts merchants, and makes the city more resistant to Plots such as Rumor or Destroy. The acting Officer's POL experience will also increase. Note: You can see the guards patrolling near the gate of the city. Domestic-Commerce (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) ----------------- Who can use: Officer, Prefect, Warlord, Liege Note: Officers can only do this by themselves. This raises the Commerce level of a city, increasing the amount of Gold collected in January, April, July, and October, and increasing the chances of merchants visiting the city. The city's Safety drops. The higher the Officer's POL and Trust, the more effective this command will be. The acting Officer's POL experience will also increase. Note: You can see merchants at work west of the city. Domestic-Cultivate (50 AP is commanding, 10 AP if acting) ------------------ Who can use: Officer, Prefect, Warlord, Liege Note: Officers can only do this by themselves. This raises the Land level of a city, increasing the amount of Food harvested in July. The city's Safety drops. The higher the Officer's POL and Trust, the more effective this command will be. The acting Officer's POL experience will also increase. Note: You can see the farmers at work in the fields to the northwest of the city. After you have finished your task for the month, you can use your remaining AP for Social or Personal commands. If you have established high Bonds with other Officers, you may receive visits from them from time to time. In July you may also be asked to participate in a poetry contest or martial arts tournament, depending on your character's type. Your Prefect/Warlord/Liege may also begin a march against a neighboring city, or your own city may be invaded. For more details on these events see the "Military Strategy" and "Art of War" sections below. As an Officer you will have little say in such military matters, but you may be assigned to a Tactician position if you have the highest INT of the Officers in the city. There are some other commands an Officer can use during their turn. ----------------------------------- Personnel/Finance/Personal Commands ----------------------------------- Personnel-Move (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) -------------- Who can use: Officer, Prefect, Warlord, Liege Note: Officers can only move themselves. If a Prefect moves to another city, they become an Officer. This moves Officers to another city of your own country that is linked by roads. Gold, Food, and Reserves can also be moved. Personnel-Transport (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) ------------------- Who can use: Officer, Prefect, Warlord, Liege This moves Gold, Food, and Reserves to another city of your own country that is linked by roads. Occasionally goods will be stolen. The higher the acting Officer's INT the less chance of goods being stolen. The higher the acting Officer's WAR the smaller number of goods are stolen. Plot-Defection Plot-Rumor Plot-Mole Plot-Destroy See "Military Strategy" for details on these war oriented activities. Finance-Buy (20 AP) ----------- Who can use: All If a merchant is present in the city, you can buy Items from them. If the Officer has the Trade skill, you receive discounts on Items. Finance-Sell (20 AP) ------------ Who can use: All If a merchant is present in the city, you can sell Items to them for money. Finance-Donate (10 AP) -------------- Who can use: Officer, Prefect, Warlord, Liege This donates money from your funds to the city. Your Fame and Deeds will increase based on the amount of money donated (except for Lieges). If you are a Warlord your IP will increase. Personal-Explore (40 AP) ---------------- Who can use: Ronin, Officer, Prefect, Warlord This explores a city to search for undiscovered talent. The higher the acting Officer's CHA, the more likely they are to find someone. Discovered Officers are available to recruit using the Personal-Recruit command. Personal-Recruit (40 AP) ---------------- Who can use: Officer, Prefect, Warlord This suggests to your Liege that a Ronin or Officer of another country should be hired. You can only recruit Officers you have a Bond of 1 or greater. The lower the target's LOY, and the higher the acting Officer's CHA and Bond, the greater chance of success. Of these commands, your Prefect may ask you to transport goods, explore cites for talent, or attempt to hire someone. As you increase in Deeds, your Liege may decide to reward you by increasing your Rank, Class, or Wages, or give you one of his personal Items. If you do poorly or fail to follow your Prefect's orders you may be reduced in Rank or even released from service. If your Class and Rank are high enough, you may be promoted to a Prefect when a city is captured or an opening becomes available. If that is the case, congratulations! You can now move to the "Life as a Prefect" section. If you train hard enough and raise your INT to high levels, you may even be promoted to Warlord if your ability exceeds that of the current one. If that is the case, congratulations! You can now move on to the "Life as a Warlord" section. If by any chance you are dissatisfied with your Prefect/Warlord/Liege and believe you can do better, but don't want to kowtow to your superiors and get a position the old fashioned way, you can always try to pull off a coup as described in the "Life as a Ronin" section. This will usually end up failing unless your Liege owns only one or two countries in the first place, and his domain is in total disarray to begin with. In which case you should seriously question yourself for serving that Liege in the first place (unless you were planning to take over all along, you sneaky devil you). If you're successful, congratulations! You can move on to the "Life as a Liege" section. Otherwise you can simply wait for your country to be overrun and join another Liege, or just back your bags and get out while the going is good. Personal-Resign (10 AP) --------------- Who can use: Officer, Prefect, Warlord, Liege This command allows you to leave your Liege's service and become a Ronin. You will be stripped of your Class and Rank, and your Troops will enter the city's reserves. If a Liege resigns, a successor will be chosen from the remaining Officers. For Prefects and Lieges, the city's Trust drops. Leaving a Liege before he is overrun has one major advantage: You keep possession of all your Items. When the enemy captures you all of your Items will be given to the enemy's Liege. If you have quite a bit of Items in your possession and are in imminent danger of being captured when the enemy comes a knocking on the capitol walls, it might be a good idea to skip town before that happens. That might seem to be the dishonorable thing to do, especially if all said Items were given to you by your Liege in the first place, but all's fair in Items and war. If you are captured as the result of a coup, well, sucks to be you. You can expect to have your head removed from your neck shortly. If you are captured as a result of battle or invasion, you will be most likely given an opportunity to join the enemy Liege or die. If you accept, you will become an Officer of that Liege at the lowest Class. If you refuse, you will either be released or executed. If your Fame is low, the chances of being executed increases. If your Fame is high the chances of release increases greatly. If your Bond is high with that Liege, you will almost certainly be let go. Note that the odds of an Officer joining a Liege when captured depends on their Bond with that Liege and their LOY to their former Liege. If released, a captured Officer becomes a Ronin and can attempt to reenlist with their former Liege. A captured Liege with low Fame is most likely to be executed, so keep that in mind if you try and take over a city. --------------------- IX. Life as a Prefect --------------------- "A very tiger of a leader! I must get him alive." - Cao Cao, on Zhao Yun Prefects are assigned to city by their Liege, and are responsible for managing it and carrying out the city's policy. They have total command over the Officers in the city, but are still under the direct command of the Warlord and Liege. The Warlord/Liege can ask that a Prefect perform a task for the month, but the Prefect can refuse the request if they choose to, decreasing their Bond as a result. Prefects cannot refuse an order from the Warlord/Liege to march on an enemy city, or to send reinforcements. A Prefect can be relieved of duty and be demoted back to an Officer if they do not follow the city policy. Other than that, Prefects are pretty much given freedom to do as they see fit, as long as they do not go against their Liege. The following are some policies that can be set by the Liege to a city. ------------- City Policies ------------- - Offense: The Prefect should prepare to march on another city. Troops should be conscripted and units drilled. Arms should be forged for the Officers. If necessary, technology should be researched. - Defense: The Prefect should prepare for invasions from bordering cities. Troops should be conscripted and units drilled. Arms should be forged for the Officers. The walls should be fortified against attack. If necessary, technology should be researched. - Domestic: The Prefect should concentrate on domestic affairs in the city. Commerce should be encouraged, as should cultivation of the land. Safety should also be increased. - Tech: Technology should be researched in the city. If possible, new Arms should be forged for the Officers. - Auto: The Prefect can act as they see fit. Each month the Prefect must decide which Officers should do what duties as dictated by the city's policy. Unlike Officer commands, Prefects can assign as many Officers to a task as they want. An Officer can only perform one task per month, and will be unavailable for other tasks until the next month. When you first start out in your city, check the budget of the city in the city menu. If either the Gold or Food output shows a negative value, start working on Commerce or Cultivation as soon as possible to correct the problem. Also just because a policy is set to Auto doesn't mean you should do exactly what you feel like doing. If the city is in rather poor condition, it would be a wise idea to concentrate on building up Commerce or Cultivation. If you are bordering an enemy city, and that city's Liege is very aggressive, you may want to Conscript and Drill a few times to discourage invasion. Becoming a Prefect allows you to issue Diplomacy commands from the following: ------------------ Diplomacy Commands ------------------ Diplomacy-Envoy (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) --------------- Who can use: Prefect, Warlord, Liege This allows you to send an envoy to another Liege to increase their Relation with your country by giving them a gift of Gold. A higher level of Relation makes it difficult for other countries to attack you. It also increases the chances of them accepting proposals for alliance and joint attacks. Over 1000 gold is required. The higher the envoy's POL and the greater the amount of Gold given, the higher the increase in Relation. Diplomacy-Treaty (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) ---------------- Who can use: Prefect, Warlord, Liege This allows you to join in alliance with another country. Allied countries cannot attack you, nor can you attack them. Over 1000 gold is required. If an alliance is already in place, this will extend the period of the alliance. The higher the envoy's POL, the Relation between the two countries, the Bond between the Lieges, and the amount of Gold given, the greater chance of success. Diplomacy-Joint --------------- See Military Strategy for details. Diplomacy-Annex (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) --------------- Who can use: Prefect, Warlord, Liege This allows you to suggest to another country to surrender to you, adding their cities and Officers to your own country. The higher the envoy's POL and the Bond with the target country's Liege, and the greater the number of cities, Officers, and Troops in your country, the higher the chance of success. Countries with low Relations will refuse to be annexed. Diplomacy-Annul (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) --------------- Who can use: Prefect, Warlord, Liege This allows you to annul a treaty with another country. Relations between the two countries drop. The LOY of your Officers may drop as well. Diplomacy-Audience (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) ------------------ Who can use: Prefect, Warlord, Liege This allows you to donate Gold to the Imperial Court and raise your favor with the Emperor. The higher the Liege's Imperial Favor, the more likely the Emperor will raise the title of that Liege. Requires at least 1000 Gold. The higher the envoy's POL and the more Gold donated, the higher the Favor increases. This command has a greater effect if the Han Emperor is within your territory. Prefects also have access to new Military commands such as the following: --------------------------------------- Prefect/Warlord/Liege Military Commands --------------------------------------- Military-March (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) -------------- Who can use: Prefect, Warlord, Liege This allows you to attack another country's city or a free city. If the Prefect or Liege goes on the march, they become the Commanding Officer. If at least two Officers are in the army, a Tactician can be selected. Unit types can be selected only from the Officer's available Arms. Food is taken from the city for the army. If a country has a city connecting to the target city you may ask for reinforcements. If the city does not have Prefect, they can only send reinforcements if their city is connected to the city of their Liege. A Liege or a Prefect cannot join reinforcements. Military-Conscript (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) ------------------ Who can use: Prefect, Warlord, Liege This allows you to conscript soldiers from the population and distribute them to units in the city. You can also organize Troop distribution without conscripting as well. Each 10 men you draft costs 1 Gold and 1 Food. You can only draft once a month. The city's Population is reduced by the amount of Troops conscripted. Safety also drops. The higher the acting Officer's CHA and Trust, the more conscripts can be drafted. The Officer's Class determines the number of maximum Troop size for a unit. Any excess Troops drafted are added to the city's Reserves. The acting Officer's CHA experience will also increase. Military-Buy (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) ------------ Who can use: Prefect, Warlord, Liege This allows you to purchase Food from a merchant if one is available. If you have the Trade skill, you get a discount. The acting Officer's CHA experience will also increase. Military-Sell (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) ------------- Who can use: Prefect, Warlord, Liege This allows you to sell Food to a merchant if one is available. The acting Officer's CHA experience will also increase. Some exclusive Personal commands are available for Prefects, both of a dishonorable nature: ------------------------- Prefect Personal Commands ------------------------- Personal-Revolt (40 AP) --------------- Who can use: Prefect This allows you to raise a rebellion in your city and form your own country. You can invite Ronin to join you that have a Bond of 1 or higher. The higher the Officer's CHA and Bond the greater the chances of Ronin joining you. Officers with low LOY may also join you. The higher the acting Officer's CHA and Bond with the Officer, the more likely they are to join you. Officers who do not join you will move to another city in that country. Personal-Betray (30 AP) --------------- Who can use: Prefect This allows you to betray your Liege and offer your city to another Liege. If the Liege is allied with the Officer's Liege and their Relation is high, the Liege may refuse. Other Officers may join the betraying Officer if their LOY is low and the Officer's CHA and Bond is high. Officers that do not join you will move to another city in that country. If you mange to stage a revolt successfully, congratulations! You can move on to the "Life as a Liege" section. If during your tenure as Prefect you manage to train your INT to a level greater than the current Warlord's INT, you may be asked by your Liege to take over his position. If so, congratulations! You can now move on to the "Life as a Warlord" section. -------------------- X. Life as a Warlord -------------------- "Do you think Ma Su is clever?" "He is one of the ablest people in the empire." "I do not think so. I think his words exceed his deeds." - Liu Bei to Zhuge Liang --------------------- Influence Points (IP) --------------------- The Warlord is the right hand man (or woman) of a Liege. They are selected from only the most intelligent of the country's Officers and Prefects. Second only to the Liege in power, the Warlord can issue orders to all of the Officers and Prefects in the country and cannot be disobeyed. The Warlord can even influence the Liege himself into taking certain courses of action. While this gives the Warlord a great deal of power, it can over time lessen his influence over a period of time. A clever Warlord must ensure that he has enough influence so he can advise the Liege to the proper course of action at all times. The amount of influence a Warlord has is indicated by his Influence Points (IP), which is used in addition to AP whenever requests are made to other Officers. Whenever a Warlord makes a request, whether it is Personnel, Diplomatic, Military, or Commerce in nature, IP is used. If a Warlord runs out of IP they can no longer issue orders until they regain more IP. IP can also be used to influence the Liege when making decisions such as whether to accept enlistment from a Ronin, or accepting requests from envoys. IP is essential to a Warlord's powers, and they should have adequate IP available to ensure that their Liege makes the correct decisions in any situation. A Warlord without IP is truly a viper without venom. IP is regained primarily whenever the Warlord increases his Deeds. Warlords gain Deeds by performing commands given to him by the Liege/Prefect, by attaining large amounts of Glory in battle, or by winning contests. Donating personal funds to the city also increases Deeds. ----------------------- Advice On Giving Advice ----------------------- The best way to gain IP is to give correct advice to the Prefect or Liege. Occasionally the Prefect/Liege will ask a question of the Warlord pertaining to the disposition of certain characters, or who is better suited for a task. Answering the question to their satisfaction will gain you a large amount of IP. If they disagree, you gain no IP. Your ability to answer these questions depends on how well you know the Officers in your Liege's country. If there is an Officer famous for a certain trait, the question certainly becomes easier. If you have no idea about the personalities the Officers listed, then it becomes a bit of a crapshoot. If you get an answer incorrect, try to remember the Officer's name in case they ask the same question again a later time. Some advice on giving advice follows: - Officers who are loyal, brave, and reliable are usually the most famous generals such as Guan Yu, Zhao Yun, Xiahou Dun, and the like. These Officers are prime candidates for Prefect positions as well. - Officers who should perform recruitment, conscripting, or diplomacy should be wise and charismatic such as Zhuge Liang or Sima Yi. Note that characters that are related to each other or have high Bonds should be used for recruitment, such as Ma Dai for recruiting Ma Chao. - Officers who are temperamental and easily riled by the enemy have famous tempers such as Zhang Fei and Xu Zhu. - Officers who are unreliable, greedy, or self-serving have low LOY or CHA. Lu Bu comes to mind. - Officers who should fortify should have high WAR. - Officers who should improve technology should have high INT. Because a Warlord's Turn precedes that of the Prefect, the Prefect cannot request tasks for the Warlord unless the Warlord is available and has enough AP available to do the task after his turn. A Warlord can request tasks for himself during his turn, but the IP used to request the action will negate the Deeds earned for the action. If a Warlord performs a task requested of him by the Prefect/Liege, he will gain Deeds without having to expend IP points for the action. If you are low on IP it may be wise to end your turn without having made any requests and have some AP remaining, so that you can be available if the Prefect/Liege needs your skills. New Personnel commands are available to the Warlord. Note that a Warlord cannot perform Personnel or Diplomacy commands if his city is cut off from his Liege's city. -------------------------------- Warlord/Liege Personnel Commands -------------------------------- Personnel-Hire (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) -------------- Who can use: Warlord, Liege This allows you to invite a Ronin or an Officer of another country to serve you. You can hire Ronin in your base city, Officers in other cities you have information on, or any Officer you have a Bond greater than 1 other than a Liege. The higher the acting Officer's CHA and Bond, and the lower the target Officer's LOY, the greater chance of them joining you. Personnel-Search (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) ---------------- Who can use: Warlord, Liege This allows you to search for hidden Ronin in your base city. If any are found a hire attempt will be made. The higher the acting Officer's CHA the higher the chance of them joining you. Personnel-Summon (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) ---------------- Who can use: Warlord, Liege This allows you to summon Officers from cities of your own country that are linked. You can move Gold, Food, Reserves as well. Summoning a Prefect to a city with a Liege or Prefect will change that Prefect's status to Officer. ------------- Giving Advice ------------- From time to time you will be asked for advice on certain matters, either by the Prefect or the Liege himself. Some examples follow: Opinion on Officers: The Prefect/Liege will ask about the disposition of certain Officers. Opinion on Tasks: The Prefect/Liege will ask who is best suited for a particular task. Opinion on Policy: The Liege will ask you what the policy of a certain city should be. Offense is usually the correct answer. Opinion of Prefect Candidates: The Liege will ask you which Officer is most suited for a Prefect position. Opinion on Attack: The Prefect/Liege will ask which city to attack next. Evaluation of Enlisting Ronin: All Ronin who attempt to enlist with a Liege are evaluated by the Warlord first. You can either accept or refuse a Ronin (both costs 100 IP) or let the Liege decide personally. If a Ronin has great abilities in one area (or many), or is well known (you know that person well from the novel, or he is listed in the Dynasty Warriors section), it is a good idea to accept. If the Ronin has dismal abilities (and I mean dismal) it is a good idea to refuse. If the Ronin has average abilities and you can't make up your mind, you should let the Liege decide. Unfortunately, some rejected Ronins refuse to get the message and will pester you continuously to accept them. If refusing them constantly is draining your IP it may be a good idea to the Liege decide instead. --------------- Attending Court --------------- When attending the Liege's court you may be called upon for advice in special situations. Some examples include the following: Meeting Envoys: Whenever another country sends an envoy, you must attend your Liege's court. The envoy will give a gift of Gold to your Liege, and the Relation between your two countries will increase. Ad infinitum. This happens quite frequently in the game, especially if your Liege controls a rather large country. And no, you can't refuse to attend court. One of the few annoying perks of being a Warlord. Diplomatic Advice: If an envoy from another country requests an alliance with your Liege, or joint attack on another country, you will be asked your opinion on the matter. If you wish you can either accept or refuse the proposal (both costs 100 IP). You should always refuse a joint attack against an allied country. Imperial Envoys: If your Liege's Imperial Relation is high enough, the Emperor will send an envoy to your Liege, usually with a request in mind. Such requests include donating Gold, Food, or Items to the Imperial treasury, making alliances with another country, raising an Officer's wages, giving up a Title, finding a shrubbery, constructing a Death Star, or whatever inane fancy strikes the Emperor at the current moment. You can, of course, influence your Liege to accept or decline (both costs 100 IP). Refusal gets you nothing except the satisfaction of putting the Emperor in his place. Accepting gets your Liege a higher Title from the Emperor himself. The higher the Title of your Liege, the higher Ranks he can assign to your Officers (including yourself). So no matter how outrageous the Emperor's requests, it is in your best interest to accept, unless doing so will seriously put your country in jeopardy. ---------------- Obtaining Titles ---------------- One of the most important tasks of the Warlord is to increase their Liege's Title. If your Liege's Title is high enough (i.e. Prime Minister), and his Fame great enough, the Officers under your Liege may request that he accept an even higher Title such as Archduke, King, or even Emperor. Of course, you can also influence his decision (costs 100 IP either way). As to why you wouldn't support your Liege in this manner is beyond me, but if you do your Liege will accept the new Title and become Archduke/King/Emperor of his country. Having your Liege accept the Title of King/Emperor usually sets off a wave of copycats from the other countries, and before you know it there are Kings/Emperors everywhere. Note that if your Liege controls the Han Emperor within his territory when he declares himself Emperor, the old Emperor will abdicate his position. No more Imperial visits. Woo hoo! Note that there is a glitch in the game here when you make your decision. The current amount of IP listed for you is around over 6 million! Either that's a bug or you must have the influence of the entire country behind you. It is possible to obtain Titles up to Prime Minster simply by increasing your Imperial Favor to certain levels. However, the Titles of Archduke and above can only be obtained in certain situations. Here's a listing of the requirements for obtaining the highest Titles. Note that if Emperor Xian abdicates, control of the Emperor is no longer necessary for the Titles that require it. A Liege must have a minimum of five Officers to obtain these Titles. Title: Archduke Fame Required: 16,000 Title Required: Prime Minister Control Emperor: Yes Imp Favor Required: 200 Title: King (bestowed by Emperor Xian) Fame Required: 18,000 Title Required: Archduke Control Emperor: Yes Imp Favor Required: 230 Title: King (self declared) Fame Required: 18,000 Title Required: Prime Minister or lower Control Emperor: Yes Imp Favor Required: None Note: Requires that another Liege is already a King or Emperor. Title: Emperor (via abdication of Emperor Xian) Fame Required: 20,000 Title Required: King Control Emperor: Yes Imp Favor Required: 250 Note: Obviously Emperor Xian cannot have previously abdicated for this to occur. Title: Emperor (self declared) Fame Required: 20,000 Title Required: King Control Emperor: No Imp Favor Required: None Note: Emperor Xian must have abdicated. Title: Emperor (non Kings) Fame Required: 20,000 Title Required: Archduke or lower Control Emperor: No Imp Favor Required: None Note: Requires control of 35 cities (30 with the Imperial Seal). Emperor Xian must have less than ten Lieges with Imperial Titles. ----------------------- Determining a Successor ----------------------- The other important task of the Warlord is to determine the successor of a Liege when they die. Five of the greatest Officers under the former Liege (including yourself) will cast one vote on who should be the next Liege. If a relative of the former Liege is still alive, chances are good that they will be nominated unanimously. If there are no relatives left, a capable successor is selected from the ranks of the Officers available. This includes you. If you receive at least two votes, you can automatically become the successor if you place a vote for yourself. If this is the case, congratulations! Your hard work has paid off and you are now the new Liege of the kingdom. You can now move on to the "Life as a Liege" section. ------------------- XI. Life as a Liege ------------------- "The Hans are sinking: Designing ministers steal away their authority. I am weak, yet I desire to restore the state to its right mind. But my ignorance is too vast, my means are too slender, and I know not where to turn." - Liu Bei to Zhuge Liang Lieges are the rulers of a country, and as such have complete power over their subjects. A Liege must have a wise Warlord to advice him, talented Prefects to manage his cities, and loyal Officers to defend his kingdom. The life of a Liege can be most difficult, but also the most rewarding. A Liege can come to power violently either as a Ronin claiming a free city, an Officer or Warlord staging a coup, or as a Prefect leading a revolt. Or they can become one via natural means by being named successor to a previous one. In either case, total control of the country lies in the hands of the Liege. Being a Liege is similar to being a Prefect or Warlord, except that you can issue orders to everyone and expect them to be followed to the letter. The Warlord can refuse an order, but this rarely happens. A Liege has access to several exclusive ruler commands. Using them effectively is the key to being a successful Liege. First off you need to decide on your Warlord and Prefects. A Warlord should have the highest INT out of all your subjects, but other abilities are important as well. Prefects should be assigned based on overall abilities, with POL being the most important. Remember that coups are not unheard of so LOY is also an important factor. -------------- Ruler Commands -------------- Ruler-Warlord (10 AP) ------------- Who can use: Liege This appoints an Officer to the position of Warlord. Warlords advise the Liege concerning his commands. The selected Officer's LOY increases. If an Officer is relieved of the Warlord position, his LOY decreases. Warlords are usually selected for their INT and LOY values. Ruler-Prefect (10 AP) ------------- Who can use: Liege This appoints an Officer to the position of Prefect. Prefects govern a city on behalf of their Liege. Only one Prefect can be assigned to a city. Prefects can only be selected from Officers that are able to move to the city. If the Prefect moves to another city, or if his Liege moves to his city, he becomes an Officer. If the Prefect is relieved of his position his LOY drops. An Officer's LOY will not decrease if he loses this position as the result of movement. Prefects are usually selected for their POL and LOY values. After assigning your Warlord and Prefects, you should assign policies to the various cities under your control. Ruler-Council (10 AP) ------------- Who can use: Liege This calls a council to determine the policy of each city. For all policies except Idle, the Prefect will govern the city on behalf of the Liege. If the city of the Prefect is linked to the city of the Liege, the Liege can still issue orders directly to the city even if a policy has been assigned. The type of policy to assign to a city should be based on the current conditions. If you are unsure of which policy to set, use the Auto policy. If you want your Prefects to aggressively attack neighboring cities, use the Offense policy. If you want to secure a border with another city, use the Defense policy. If you want to increase the productivity of a city, use the domestic policy. You can assign policies to individual cities, to all border cities, or to all cities with your border. To ensure high LOY among his Officers, a Liege should use the following ruler commands to reward exceptional service: Ruler-Wages (10 AP) ----------- Who can use: Liege This allows you to raise the Wages of your Officers. This will also increase their LOY. If a city does not have enough Gold to pay their Wages, the Officer's LOY will decrease. Ruler-Rank (10 AP) ---------- Who can use: Liege This allows you to appoint an Officer to a Rank. Only a Liege with a Title can appoint Ranks. The Ranks available to appoint depend on the Title of the Liege. Officers who are appointed to a Rank or promoted have their LOY increased, as well as additional TP to use in battle. Officers who are stripped of Rank or demoted lose LOY and have less TP to use in battle. Be sure to update the Ranks of your Officers when you obtain a new Title. Most Lieges will want to give their Warlord the highest Rank available, and assign the remaining Ranks on the basic of WAR and INT ability. Ruler-Reward (10 AP) ------------ Who can use: Liege This allows you to give one of your personal Items to an Officer as a reward. The Officer's LOY increases, and they gain all benefits of the Item. For those Officers whose words exceed their deeds, the following commands can be used: Ruler-Seize (10 AP) ----------- Who can use: Liege This allows you to take an Item away from an Officer. The Officer's LOY decreases, and they lose all benefits of that Item. Ruler-Release (10 AP) ------------- Who can use: Liege This allows you to release an Officer from service. The Officer becomes a Ronin, and his Troops join the city's Reserves. As a general rule of thumb, you should reward Officers that perform well greater Rank and higher Wages. For those who perform exceptionally well you may want to give them an Item. When a new city becomes available, assign a new Prefect as soon as possible from your most capable Officers. Do not give Officers high positions if their LOY are low, as they are most likely to betray you and join your enemies. ------------ Liege Advice ------------ The following are additional advice for aspiring rulers: - Unlike computer controlled Lieges, you can ignore advice that your Warlord gives you during diplomatic meetings. You can also refuse any requests made by the Warlord. If your Warlord gives advice you deem is bad, do not hesitate to ignore him. - Don't be a Yuan Shao. Listen to your Warlord and Prefects. Unless doing so would seriously jeopardize your country, approve the requests of your Warlord and Prefects when they ask to do certain tasks. The Prefects serve as your eyes and ears and usually know what's going on in their cities better than you do. - Hire Ronin as much as possible. - Hire Officers as much as possible. - If you want to gain higher Titles, be sure to use the Diplomacy-Audience command frequently and increase your Imperial Favor. Make sure the Officer doing so has a high POL or your Imperial Favor will barely increase. The maximum favor you can obtain from one visit (with POL 110 and a donation of 10,000 Gold) is 22. - If a city is low on Gold or Food, be sure to use the Personnel-Transport command to send goods there from more prosperous cities. Be sure the acting Officer has high INT or you may lose quite a bit of goods. Most Prefects will ask to transport goods for you. - Cities on the borders of other countries should have their policies set depending on how strong and aggressive they are. If the country is weak but aggressive, Offense is a good choice to quell their attacks. If the country is very strong and aggressive, Defense may be a better choice. If the country is passive or allied, Auto is the best choice. - Cities safely within your country should always be set to Domestic policy. These cities will be the primary supply lines for your war effort. - When planning to invade other cities, be sure to have a have an Officer ready to appoint as Prefect when you take over. Also be sure to have strong Officers available to station there in case the enemy decides to try to take back the city in the following months. Do not rely on Officers that have surrendered, as they will most likely defect shortly after your occupation. - When facing a country with superior forces, make use of the Diplomacy-Envoy with the other countries nearby. The last thing you need is to be fighting each other while the mega kingdom crushes each of you one at a time. If possible try to arrange a joint attack with another country. If you're going up against impossible odds, you need all the help you can get. - Keep an adequate garrison force in border cities when you invade an enemy city. If you use too much Officers from your base city in the attack, you are almost guaranteed a counter attack against that city when your forces are away. - Lieges get all the Items from Officers that are captured in battle. Don't be a treasure hoarder and keep all of them to yourself. Give excess Items to your Prefects or Officers that have considerable skill. Doing so increases not only their abilities, but also their loyalty. - Unless an Officer's LOY is 90+, there is always a chance that they will defect to another Liege. If you want to ensure that Officers are loyal, make sure their Bond with you is at 100 before you try to recruit them. Ronins are much easier to recruit than Officers so start bonding with them early when you find one with great talent. - Remember that Lieges can no longer use the Explore command to search for hidden Ronin. - Lieges can only move Officers to other cities if they are present in their current city. Use the Summon command to move an Officer to your city, and then use the Move command on the next turn. - Executing problematic enemy Officers may save you a lot of grief down the road, but it will definitely affect your ending in a negative way if you are constantly executing people. - Hold Poetry contests or Tournaments whenever possible. ---------------------- XII. Military Strategy ---------------------- "This Guan Yu lacks neither cunning nor valor. You are to be most cautious in engaging him. If you can conquer, then conquer; but if there be any doubt, remain on the defensive." - Cao Cao to Pang De ----------------- Offensive Battles ----------------- A Prefect, Warlord, or Liege can give an order to march on a nearby city to attempt to occupy it in an offensive attack. An attack force is made up of three parts: Commanding Officer, Tactician, and Officers. Commanding Officer (CO) This is the Officer who has ordered the march. The CO is responsible for assigning the type of arms to be used by each unit in the attack. If the CO is the Liege himself and is defeated or retreats, the battle immediately ends. The CO should have high WAR and INT values, as they will be leading the offensive and therefore be taking the brunt of the enemy's attacks. If you are the CO, you will control all the units in the battle yourself unless you use the Auto command, in which you can choose to have units controlled automatically. I would highly recommend manually controlling your units if the battle is an important one. The CO is the one who approves the Strategy of the Tactician and his selection of Ploys. If the CO disagrees with the Tactician he can make changes to them. If the Tactician is not available certain Ploys cannot be used during sieges. Tactician (TA) The TA is responsible for determining the strategy to be used in the battle. There are four types of strategy: Penetrate, Flank Left, Flank Right, and Surround. The effectiveness of each strategy is dependent on the number of troops in the battle and the geography of the battlefield. - Penetrate: Attempt to occupy all enemy outposts en route towards the enemy HQ. Morale effect: +/- 40 - Flank Left: Attempt to occupy all enemy outposts to the left en route to the enemy HQ. Morale effect: +/- 60 - Flank Right: Attempt to occupy all enemy outposts to the right en route to the enemy HQ. Morale effect: +/- 60 - Surround: Attempt to occupy all enemy outposts surrounding the enemy HQ. Morale effect: +/- 80 For each strategy (other than surround) occupying the enemy HQ after completing the other objectives will result in an increase of your army's morale and a decrease in the enemy's morale. The exact gain/loss depends on the Strategy completed. If the strategy is not completed in a certain amount of days (indicated by Strategy on screen), the effects are reduced. If you're having trouble remember which outposts you're supposed to occupy, they are indicated with a gold mark on the flags. Note that you can complete a strategy other than the one planned if you occupy the relevant outposts during the battle. The TA is also responsible for the use of Ploys during the battle. The TA before the battle selects the Ploys that he will use. The TA will brief the army on the reconnaissance gathered on the enemy. If the TA has a high enough INT, the enemy army's CO and TA will be revealed, as will any possible reinforcements they may have. The number of traps on the field may also be revealed. If the TA is really good, the Strategy of the enemy army may be revealed. The TA should have a high INT value, as this will increase the amount of information gathered on the enemy as well as increasing the effectiveness of Ploys. If you are the TA, you will be responsible for determining the strategy for the battle, as well as the selection of Ploys to be used. My personal recommendations for the TA are as follows: - If you have only a few units and no reinforcements, Penetrate is usually the best option. Trying to maneuver around or surround the enemy will only thin your forces out making them easy targets for attacks. - If you have a large number of units and no reinforcements, Surround can be more effective since you can hit the enemy from all sides. If the enemy is large and/or expecting reinforcements, Penetrate may be a better option. - If the enemy is defending a central area with limited approaches (such as a mountain pass), a Flank strategy may be in order, as sending all your troops through the center will only end up stalling your advance. - If you have a large number of units and a large number of reinforcements, and the reinforcements are arriving to the side of the enemy HQ, try to Flank in their direction so you can meet up with them in a coordinated attack against the enemy. - If you are expecting reinforcements, always choose at least one Rush Ploy, and use it as soon as the battle begins. Having your backup arrive one turn sooner can make or break an attack. If your reinforcements are 4 or more days away, or if you really need those reinforcements, having 2 or more Rush Ploys is a good idea in case the first one fails. The only exception to this rule is if the reinforcements are pitifully small, in which case having them come on the first turn isn't going to do much except buy you some time. If the reinforcements are large and coming from behind the enemy, you might want to wait for them to arrive so that you can trap the enemy in a pincer movement. - The most powerful Ploy in the game is Rumor. If your TA has an INT of 100 or higher, you can sometimes win battles without even fighting by making the Commanding Officer retreat (Sun Tzu would be proud!). Sometimes you can end the battle in the first round! If your TA has high INT I would wholeheartedly recommend choosing one Rush (if you have reinforcements coming) and spending all your remaining SP on Rumor. Rumor doesn't work all the time, but when it does it can certainly make your life easier, if not turn the entire tide of battle around. Even if a unit resists Rumor the first time, they may be affected on another try. Most of the strongest Officers in the game (WAR 90+) have low INT scores, making them very vulnerable to this Ploy. Just remember that the enemy TA can use this Ploy as well. You will cackle with glee when you send your enemies scurrying away, but will curse their name when they do the same to you. Be aware though that units driven away by rumor can still defend the city during a siege. Then again it may be much easier to destroy the city's walls than to destroy each enemy unit one at a time. Officers The Officers compose the main offensive force. Their duty is to carry out the strategy assigned by the TA. The Officers should have high WAR values, but high INT values will prove just as valuable as this will increase their resistance to enemy Ploys and Tactics. The most valuable skills for Officers in battle are Charge, Valor, and Reversal. If you are an Officer, your main duty is to carry out the strategy assigned by the TA, and backup your fellow Officers by joining your attacks or supporting them with Tactics. Up to ten Officers can be assigned to an attack force. -------------------- Preparing for Attack -------------------- It may be a good idea to use the Spy command on the target city in advance to see how many officers are present, the arms used by their units, the number of troops stationed there, and the strength of their defensive wall. If you're outnumbered 2 to 1 you may want to increase the number of officers in the attack. If they have heavy units such as Horses and Calvary and you have Foot, it would be wise to forge better arms if at all possible. If their Defense is high, you might consider trying to use the Destroy Plot a few times. Planting a Mole in their army or attempting to get an Officer to defect in battle are also some possible options. ------------- Plot Commands ------------- Plot-Spy (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) -------- Who can use: Prefect, Warlord, Liege Like the Personal-Spy command, this allows you to obtain information on a city and the Officers stationed there. Effectiveness is based on the acting Officer's INT and Trust. If the Officer has the Spy skill, information on adjacent cities may be obtained. Plot-Defection (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) -------------- Who can use: Officer, Prefect, Warlord, Liege Note: Officers can only do this by themselves. This allows you to convince an enemy Officer to defect to your side. If successful, the Officer will defect to your side during a battle if you attack their city within 6 months. Otherwise this effect is cancelled. The chance of success increases if the acting Officer's INT is high, and the target Officer's LOY is low and Bond is high. The Tactics-Defect command must be used on the target Officer in battle. Plot-Rumor (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) ---------- Who can use: Officer, Prefect, Warlord, Liege Note: Officers can only do this by themselves. This allows you to spread a rumor in the target city, reducing its Safety level. The LOY of the officers in the city may drop as well. The chance of success increases if the acting Officer's INT and Trust of the target city are high, and the Safety of the target city is low. Enemy Officers are effected depending on their INT. Plot-Mole (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) --------- Who can use: Officer, Prefect, Warlord, Liege Note: Officers can only do this by themselves. This allows you to send a mole to infiltrate an enemy Officer's unit. If successful, the Officer's unit can be confused during battle. The battle must occur within 6 months or the mole will return. The chance of success increases if the acting Officer's INT is high and the target Officer's INT is low. The Tactics-Mole command must be used on the target Officer in battle. Plot-Destroy (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) ------------ Who can use: Officer, Prefect, Warlord, Liege Note: Officers can only do this by themselves. This allows you to destroy the wall of an enemy city reducing its Defense. The chance of success increases if the acting Officer's INT and Trust of the target city is high, and the city's Safety is low. If the enemy is really strong, you may want to request a joint attack with a neighboring country. Diplomacy-Joint (50 AP if commanding, 10 AP if acting) --------------- Who can use: Prefect, Warlord, Liege This allows you to propose a joint attack on a city with a nearby allied country. If successful, the allied country will send reinforcements when you attack that city. 1000+ Gold is required as a gift. The chance of success increases if the envoy's POL is high, the relations between the two countries are high, the Bond between the Liege and envoy are high, and the more Gold offered. If the target country is allied to the allied country, they will refuse the proposal. Before you attack make sure your unit's troop numbers are at maximum, their Drill levels are at maximum, and you have the best arms available. If another one of your cities is adjacent to the target city, you may request that reinforcements be sent from there. Cities with offensive policies make the best staging grounds for offensive attacks so keep that in mind. When deciding on a Tactician to bring along, make sure they have the highest INT available. You can march on a city without a Tactician, but you won't be able to use strategies or Ploys in the battle without one. Also the route taken to the target city will affect your initial army morale, so be sure to take that into consideration. Marching long distances over rough terrain will have an adverse effect on your army. ----------------- Defensive Battles ----------------- When your city is attacked, you will automatically begin a defensive battle. Defensive battles are similar to offensive battles. Before the battle begins the Tactician will determine the strategy to be used for the battle. The possible strategies are Field, Ambush, and Siege. - Field: The defensive army will meet the attacking army on the field in battle. - Ambush: The defensive army will attempt to set up an ambush for the attacking army. This strategy has a very low chance of success. If successful, the attacking army will become surrounded by your units and confused. If unsuccessful, the opposite will occur. Regardless of success, this will cancel the attacking army's strategy. Ambush has a higher chance of succeeding if the weather conditions are bad. - Siege: The defensive army will stay in the city and prepare a defense against a siege. Field is usually the best option in most cases. Deploying units automatically is usually the best choice as you will want your Troops close together where they can support each other, as opposed to being spread out all over the map and getting picked off one by one. If you're short on units and troops, Siege is usually better option than Ambush. Ambushes are wonderful if you can get them to work, but you are usually guaranteed to lose if they don't, unless you have a large and powerful army in which case you should have chosen Field instead. I've only attempted Ambush twice and failed both times, which was more than enough to convince me never to use them again. If your Tactician should by any chance recommend Ambush, slap him on the head and choose either Field or Siege instead. It's wonderful when the enemy tries to do it, since it usually fails and you can attack them from all sides. If the enemy tries an ambush, it cancels your own strategy, so forget about occupying outposts and go for the enemy instead. Ambushes have a higher chance of succeeding if the weather is bad (i.e. Rain, Storm, or Snow conditions), but the chances of success are still dismally low. If you select Siege you choose to wait for the enemy in your castle. This is good if your city's Defense is high, but if they have a large army it may only delay the inevitable. ----- Traps ----- The Tactician is once again responsible for choosing Ploys, but also has the option of setting Traps on the battlefield as well. You can set as many Traps on the field as you have Strategy Points (SP), but remember that the more Traps you set, the less Ploys you can use in the battle. Enemy units can only trigger traps. - Fire Trap (15 SP): When stepped on this trap ignites fire in the target square and all adjacent squares, dealing damage to the enemy. If fire touches another fire trap it will ignite causing a chain reaction. Can only be set on plain, forest, mountain, and bridge terrain. - Water Trap (20 SP): When sailed on this trap causes a whirlpool to appear, damaging enemy units in that square. Can only be set on water terrain. - Rockslide Trap (20 SP): When stepped on this trap causes a rockslide to fall, damaging enemy units in the target square. Can only be used on mountain terrain. - Pit Trap (15 SP): When stepped on this trap opens up a pit, damaging enemy units in the target square and all adjacent squares. Can only be used on plain, flat, or road terrain. - Poison Trap (15 SP): When stepped on this trap releases poison, damaging enemy units in the target square and all adjacent squares. Can only be used in marsh and bank terrain. If the poison trap hits another poison trap it will go off causing a chain reaction. Traps can be detected if the enemy uses the Probe Tactic while moving, but there is still a chance a trap will go off unless they also have the Scout skill. Using traps can be fun, but I personally would prefer to spend my SP on Ploys. As for Ploy selection, once again I recommend at least one Rush (if reinforcements are coming) and as much Rumors as you can afford. Rumor is as effective in defensive battles as it is in offensive ones, even more so since you don't have to go through a siege after the field battle once you win. -------------------- XIII. The Art of War -------------------- "I have written a book in twenty-four chapters, 104,112 words, treating the Eight Needfuls, the Seven Cautions, the Six Fears, and the Five Dreads of war." - Zhuge Liang to Jiang Wei At the start of field battles each force will be positioned according to the Tactician's strategy. The attacking army's units are colored red, while the defending army's units are colored blue. The order in which units act each turn is dependent on the type of unit and their leading Officer's INT. Each unit has a Drill value, Movement Points (MP), Tactic Points (TP), and Troops. MP is determined by the unit's Drill and type. TP is determined by the Officer's Rank. The attacking force's initial morale depends on the type of route that was taken to the target city. The default is usually 80, but rough terrain can drop morale to as low as 50. The defending force's initial morale is always 100. The time allotted for a battle (both field and siege) is 30 days. If time runs out for the attacking side, the defenders automatically win. ---------------- Wind and Weather ---------------- In the upper right hand corner of the screen is an indicator of the current weather conditions and wind direction. The weather affects which Tactics or Ploys can be used, as well as the sight range of units on the field. The wind direction determines in which direction fire attacks can be used and the direction fire will spread. The following are the types of weather in the field. The weather can be changed using the Weather Ploy. Note that the ambush strategy has a better chance of succeeding in Rain, Storm or Snow conditions. Clear - All units have their normal sight range. Cloudy - Visibility is reduced. Rainy - Fire attacks cannot be used. Poor visibility. Storm - Fire attacks cannot be used. Very poor visibility. Snow - Fire attacks cannot be used. Almost no visibility. Movement reduced. ------- Terrain ------- There are nine possible terrain types on the battlefield. Each terrain determines the movement rate of units passing through it as well as the possible types of traps that can be used. Bridge/Flat/Road - Easy terrain to move in. Fire Traps are possible. Pit traps are possible only on flat terrain. Grassland - Easy terrain to move in. Fire and Pit Traps are possible. Forest - Somewhat difficult terrain to move in. Ambush Tactic is possible. Fire Trap is possible. Lake/River - Difficult terrain to move in unless Officer has Ship. Water traps are possible. Units attacked take heavy damage unless Officer has Navy skill. Mountains - Difficult terrain to move in. Ambush Tactic is possible. Fire and Rockslide traps are possible. Horse and Calvary units have low maneuverability. Ocean - Difficult terrain to move in unless Officer has Barge. Units attacked take heavy damage unless Officer has Navy skill. Plains - Easy terrain to move in. Pit Traps are possible. Shallow - Difficult terrain to move in unless Officer has Ship. Units attacked take heavy damage unless Officer has Navy skill. Swamp - Difficult terrain to move in. Poison Traps are possible. --------------------- Conditions of Victory --------------------- The attacking army wins if they destroy all of the defender's non- reinforcement units, reduces their morale to 0, or captures the enemy's Liege. If there are any other defenders left for the city, the battle will proceed to a siege battle. Note that if the enemy Liege is captured the city is automatically captured as well. The defending army wins if they destroy all of the attacker's non-reinforcement units, reduces their morale to 0, if the time allotted for the battle expires, or if they capture or cause the enemy Liege to retreat. ------------- Move Commands ------------- The following movement commands are available during a unit's turn. Move-Normal: Moves the unit to another position. Movement range depends on unit type and Movement Points (MP). Move-Probe (10 TP): Same as normal movement, but if a Trap is discovered it will be disarmed instead of going off. The chances of this happening is dependent on the Officer's INT. If the Officer has the Scout skill traps are disarmed 100% of the time using this. If this is used no other Tactics can be used for the remainder of the turn. Move-Dash (10 TP): Requires Dash skill. Increases the unit's MP allowing for extended movement for that turn. Reduces unit's Troop level. If this is used no other Tactics can be used for the remainder of the turn. Wait: The unit ends its turn. If no other command was given to the unit this turn, MP increases by 1. Maximum MP is 15. For most cases normal movement will suffice, as traps don't do too much serious damage, and the odds are low that you will run into one on the field. Traps will, however, end your unit's entire movement. Also if you run into an enemy unit outside your field of view while moving, your movement will end and the enemy unit can make a free attack without retaliation. Dash is a wonderful skill to have, as it increases your movement range tremendously. It can allow you to occupy an enemy structure or attack an enemy unit several turns before you could normally do so. It is also very useful if one of your allies is surrounded and needs your help immediately. The loss of troops is usually minor at best, but you don't want to abuse Dash or you will find your unit's strength seriously diminished by the time you encounter the enemy. Learn to use Dash effectively for the situation and you will be rewarded handsomely for your efforts. --------------- Attack Commands --------------- After movement or at the start of your turn you can attack an enemy unit within range. Attack-Direct: Attacks an enemy adjacent to you. Damage is dependent on the attacker's unit type, Drill of the attacker, number of Troops in the attacking unit, and the type of the target unit. If a non-confused unit is adjacent to the target, the attack becomes stronger for each unit surrounding the target. If the target has the Valor skill the attack strength will be normal. The target gets a retaliatory attack. Attack-Arrow: Requires Bow or Crossbow. Attacks an enemy with an arrow attack. Range is dependent on the arms. Bows can attack adjacent squares. Crossbows can attack two squares in a cardinal direction, or a diagonal square. Arrow attacks cannot be retaliated against unless an Officer has a Bow or Crossbow and the Counter skill. Surround cannot be used with an arrow attack. Attack-Missile: Requires Missile skill. Attacks the enemy with a fire arrow. Fire arrows are stronger than regular arrow attacks, and may set fire to the target square. Missile can only be used on clear or cloudy days. Missile attacks can only be retaliated against if the target has the Counter skill. Surround cannot be use with a missile attack. Range is same as arrow. Attack-Volley: Requires the Volley skill. Attacks the enemy and all units adjacent to them will an arrow attack. Friendly units in range will be hit with the attack. Friendly units will not retaliate. If the attacking unit is in range it will not be hit. Volley attacks can only be retaliated against if the target has the Counter skill. Surround cannot be used with a volley attack. Range is same as arrow. If a unit is not in your field of view it will not be hit. Attack-Charge: Requires the Charge skill. Attacks the enemy with a charge attack. The charge attack may hit multiple times. The target is allowed a retaliatory attack after each hit. Sometimes the target will be driven back one square and the attacker will occupy the target's original position. If the target is destroyed, the attacker will occupy the target's original position. Surround can be used. Attack-Duel: Challenges a unit's officer to a duel. The winner of the duel captures the other officer and their unit is scattered. Note that if an Officer is defeated by a Direct or Charge attack, and does not have a Steed, he will be captured as a prisoner of war. If an Arrow, Missile, or Volley attack defeats an Officer, they will retreat instead. ------------- Attack Advice ------------- When attacking the enemy try using the following guidelines: - Remember that moving adjacent to an enemy unit instantly ends your movement for that turn. This may block your approach to certain enemies on the field. The exception to this is if the enemy unit is confused, in which case you can sneak on by. - Always attempt to surround the enemy if possible. Even if the enemy Officer has the Valor skill, it is best to try and eliminate them as soon as possible. Attack units that have the most units surrounding them. If an Officer with a high Bond participates in a surround attack, the attack will be more effective. Note that if an Officer with the Valor skill is confused, a surround attack can be used against him. - Attack units that have the least amount of troops before teaming up against the larger units. Even small units can contribute to surround attacks. Not to mention they can still use Tactics. Eliminating weak units also reduces enemy morale faster. - If you can use arrow attacks do so. Missile attacks are even better. Volley attacks are the best, but try not to hit your allies with them unless the trade off is well worth it. Some Officers are notorious for hitting their own allies with Volley attacks (Huang Zhong *cough*). The only situations in which hitting your own Officers is permissible is if you can hit many more enemy units in return, or if you desperately need to hit a unit that is out of your normal range (using your own unit to extend the range). - Try not to block off your allies and leave as much room around the enemy so that they can be surrounded. This goes doubly if you're a Crossbow unit. - Use Charge attacks as much as possible, but be aware that doing so may push the enemy away from being surrounded. Sometimes using a normal attack is a better option. If the target has another unit behind it then it will stay in place. Charge can also knock units out of outposts. - Although Charge attacks are useful, keep in mind that the enemy can counter attack after each charge. If you're doing a miniscule amount of damage to the enemy, and the enemy is doing severe damage to you, it may be a good idea not to use Charge attacks. - Challenging an Officer to a duel has a very low chance of success. Units that are confused or have low INT are more susceptible. - Eliminating the defending Liege ends a field battle for the attacking army, so if you are losing the battle try to use all your efforts to taking him out. While eliminating a Liege will also end the battle for the defending side. - Each enemy unit you eliminate reduces the morale of the enemy army by 3%. Eliminating the enemy Tactician reduces enemy morale by 10%, while eliminating the enemy Commanding Officer reduces enemy morale by 15%. The same effects apply to your own army so be careful. - The Commanding Officer is always located at the outpost furthest and directly opposite your starting position. The Tactician is usually, but not always, in front of the Commanding Officer. Eliminating the Tactician prevents the enemy from using Tactics for the remainder of the battle, including sieges. - Officers that do not have the Navy skill are vulnerable to attacks while on water. - The amount of damage a unit does decreases as their Troop level decreases. Even a powerful Officer will not do much damage when his unit is down to a thousand soldiers. The same thing applies to your forces as well so be careful. -------- Outposts -------- Outposts provide a field of view for the defending army. If a unit on the attacking army occupies an outpost you will lose this field of view. If you start your turn or end your move on an enemy outpost and are on the offensive side, you can choose to occupy it. You cannot occupy and attack in the same turn. Occupy: This weakens the defense of an enemy outpost. If the outpost's defense is reduced 0 the enemy's morale is decreased. If all the outposts in the Tactician's strategy are occupied, the morale of the defensive army will drop drastically, while the morale of the attacking army will increase. Occupying outposts that are not in the strategy plan has no effect. If a unit ends their turn on an outpost that they control, their Troop number will increase by 500 at the start of the next turn if their Troop level is at less than maximum strength. This is helpful when you need to defend an outpost and are surrounded on all sides, or if your unit is seriously depleted after a battle and you need some serious reinforcements. If you are on the defending army and end your turn on an outpost taken over by the enemy, you will cut off their supply line and at the start of the next turn the attacking army's morale will drop by 5. This effect is cumulative for multiple outposts. If you are on the offensive it is in your best interest to occupy all the outposts in your strategy. If you are on the defensive, cutting off supply lines won't make much of a difference unless the battle is dragging on and/or the morale of the enemy is low to begin with. Note that the enemy will often send one unit alone to occupy your initial starting base while you are busy attacking theirs. It won't make much of a difference if you're already winning by a landslide, but in close battles it can often be your downfall more often than not. It can be even worse if the unit is part of the enemy's main force as you will have to backtrack all the way back to the starting point in order to eliminate it, losing precious time and morale while doing so. ------- Tactics ------- "If he ran away at a yell of mine, think you he will dare return?" - Zhang Fei to Liu Bei Instead of an attack during his turn, an Officer may use a Tactic instead. Officers can only use Tactics as long as they have TP available and the unit is in their range. The success of Tactics increases if the Officer's INT is high and the target Officer's INT is low. Here are the Tactics available and my personal observations of them. * - Useless Tactic. Not even enough to boil a pot of water. ** - Situational Tactic. Now we have to wait for the fire to spread. *** - Useful Tactic. This is how you set a fire. **** - Great Tactic. Burn! Burn! ***** - Excellent Tactic. Learn from the master. Tactics-Fire (10 AP) (**) ------------ If successful, this starts a fire in the target square. Units on fire lose troops and sometimes Officers and injured. Fires cannot be used in storm weather. If the wind is blowing fires can only be started in that direction. Fire will spread in the direction of the wind. Fires cannot be started on water but naval units can be burned. This Tactic can be turned back on the unit with the Reversal skill. Comments: Burn Chi Bi! Burn! Oops. Wrong game. It's quite amusing how so many Officers in the game are pyromaniacs. Some of their responses are quite humorous as well. As for myself, trying to set someone on fire is nowhere near as useful as a normal attack. The one exception is when you're fighting Teng Jia units. Teng Jia units are very susceptible to fire. Tactics-Confuse (10 AP) (***) --------------- If successful, this confuses the target unit, making them unable to act for the turn. Sometimes units will be come confused when surrounded or receiving heavy damage. This Tactic can be turned back on the unit with the Reversal skill. Comments: This can be a great Tactic if it works. If you're within Tactic range and can't attack the enemy directly, using this may be well worth it, especially on the larger units. Just be careful that the Officer doesn't have Reversal or you'll be the one with egg on your face. Officers frequently use this Tactic. Tactics-Mislead (20 AP) (**) --------------- If successful, the target unit will attack one of their own units adjacent to it. Both units must be in your field of view. Comments: This is funny if it works, but you're better off using a normal attack. If they're out of attack range but in Tactic range, go ahead and knock yourself out (or knock themselves out). Works great if one unit is much stronger than the other. Tactics-Stop (10 AP) (**) ------------ If successful, the target unit loses all MP and becomes unable to move. This Tactic can be turned back on the unit with the Reversal skill. Comments: This is only useful if the enemy is running away from the battle and you're feeling bloodthirsty. Otherwise Confuse is a better option. Tactics-Taunt (10 AP) (**) ------------- If successful, the target unit will become enraged and will chase after and attack the unit. This Tactic can be turned back on the unit with the Reversal skill. Comments: Officers love to use this one a lot. The best uses are for getting an Officer to leave an outpost or getting enemy units away from surrounded officers. Sometimes Officers simply use this to talk smack to other enemy Officers. =) If you're really clever you can use it to draw units into traps or even ambushes. Personally I don't use this one, but I'm sure you can find some good uses for it. Tactics-Douse (5 AP) (**) ------------- If successful, this puts out fires in the target square and the adjacent squares. Comments: When your Officers are on fire, that doesn't mean it's in a good way. It's good to use if you're not in a position to attack and want to help out your allies. I personally enjoy watching them burn. >=) Tactics-Hide (20 AP) (**) ------------ If successful, this hides the unit from view. This can only be done in forest or mountain terrain. If the enemy is nearby this will fail. If an enemy encounters the hidden unit while moving, the hidden unit will spring an ambush on them. Comments: Some Officers use this, and then go and running head first into the enemy. =( I don't use this myself, but if you're going to use this make sure you don't move into areas that are out of your view. Otherwise if you run into the enemy the effect will be wasted. Tactics-Defect (0 AP) (***) -------------- Requires Plot-Defection for the target enemy Officer. If the unit has agreed to defect previously, it will defect to your side in battle when this Tactic is used on them. Comments: I haven't used this one, but if you're planning to take over a heavily guarded city this could be very useful. Tactics-Mole (0 AP) (**) ------------ Requires Plot-Mole for the target enemy Officer. If the mole is still in place, the Officer will become confused when this Tactic is used on them. Comments: I haven't used this one either, but it certainly sounds fun. =) Tactics-Aid (10 AP) (****) ----------- Requires Aid skill. If successful, removes the Confuse, Stop, and Taunt conditions from the target unit. Comments: This is great to use if one of your Officers is seriously confused. I've seen some units confused for several turns in a row, so this Tactic can be a real lifesaver. Note that you can use this Tactic on yourself, making it very handy indeed. Tactics-Repair (20 AP) (**) -------------- Requires Repair skill. This increases the city's Defense during a siege. Defense cannot be increased above the city's maximum defense. Comments: I've never used this one. Either the city's Defense is high enough to withstand the siege, or it's low enough that having this skill won't make much of a difference. I suppose that if you had just a few days remaining and had to hold out just a little longer this could be useful. Tactics-Heal (30 AP) (*****) ------------ Requires Doctor skill. Restores injured troops in the target unit to full health. Sometimes the Officer is restored to full health as well. Comments: Officers with this skill are invaluable in battle. The number of injured in the Officer's status screen is the number of Troops you can restore to the target unit. Note that you can use this on your own unit as well. Think of it as a "heal" spell (or "cure" if you're a Final Fantasy fan). Tactics-Oracle (20 AP) (*) -------------- Requires Oracle skill. Has random effects in battle. Effects include increasing/decreasing lifespan or healing Officers. Comments: I've never used this. Mostly because I'm scared to try. =) Tactics-Creature (100 AP) (*****) ---------------- Requires Creature item. Summons a creature to use their ability in battle for you. Using this destroys the creature item. Comments: Creatures can often turn the tide of battle and should be saved for situations that you must absolutely win. ----- Ploys ----- "Do not try to run away, O rebel! You have fallen into one of the Prime Minister's traps and had better stay!" - Jiang Wei to Sima Yi At the start of every turn, the Tactician can choose to use one Ploy from the Ploys that he has selected at the start of the battle. Using Ploys does not require an additional cost, but the Ploys list cannot be changed when the battle has started. * - Useless Ploy. A waste of SP. ** - Situational Ploy. Useful only in certain situations. *** - Helpful Ploy. Useful in most battles. **** - Great Ploy. Useful in any situation. ***** - Excellent Ploy. Sun Tzu would be proud of you. Ploys-Chain (20 SP) (**) ----------- Requires Wile skill. If successful, this chains the enemy's ship together, reducing the MP of all enemy units on water to 0. The chance of success is lessened if the target has the Navy skill. Comments: Pretty worthless unless you know that you're going to be fighting mostly on water, and even then there are better options. It is pretty funny to watch though. It has a great chance of success if your enemies don't have the Naval skill. On a side note, sometimes Tacticians choose this Plot even if there's no water on the battlefield. =( Ploys-Haste (30 SP) (****) ----------- Requires Mystic skill. If successful, raises the MP of the Officer's entire army for one turn. Comments: Useless if you're planning a defensive war, but godly if you're on the attack. This basically gives all of your units the Dash skill for a single turn without having to lose troops. If you want to jump-start your offensive this Ploy will do the trick. Ploys-Rumor (30 SP) (*****) ----------- Requires Rumor skill. If successful, causes one enemy unit to retreat from the battlefield. If unsuccessful, decreases the Troops of an enemy unit slightly. This Ploy cannot be used without a Tactician. Comments: One of the most useful Ploys in the game. If your Tactician has 100+ INT you can sometimes win battles in the first turn by scaring off the enemy Commanding Officer. I've driven off entire armies without fighting simply using this Ploy over and over. Use it. Abuse it. Love it. Unfortunately, the enemy can use this Ploy on your own forces, which will give you a taste of just how powerful this Ploy really is. After learning about the power of Rumor, I don't even bother setting up Traps on the field anymore. If you have a choice between setting Traps and Rumor, get Rumor. This Ploy doesn't work all the time, but when it does it makes a close battle better, and a great battle lopsided. Ploys-Jeer (50 SP) (**) ---------- If successful, lowers the morale of the enemy army. Has a lesser effect if unsuccessful. This ploy cannot be used without a Tactician. Comments: It's too expensive for its effect and pretty worthless unless the enemy's morale was low to begin with. But for some reason other Tacticians love using this one. It is amusing to watch though. Ploys-Rally (30 SP) (**) ----------- If successful, increases the moral of the Officer's army. It also removes all status effects from friendly Officers. Has a lesser effect if unsuccessful. This Ploy cannot be used without a Tactician. Comments: It would be good if your army's morale was dangerously low and you were in a race to see whose morale would drop to 0 first. Otherwise I'd rather decrease my enemy's morale by occupying outposts and destroying units rather than increasing my own. Ploys-Revive (40 SP) (*****) ------------ Requires Mystic or Doctor skill. This heals the injured troops of all friendly units. Wounded Officers may be restored back to full health. This Ploy cannot be used without a Tactician. Comments: This is basically a Heal Tactic that affects your entire army. Can be useful in some grueling battles where casualties are heavy. If you have access to this Ploy, by all means take one or two for the added protection. Ploys-Weather (20 SP) (*) ------------- Requires Chart skill. Changes the weather of the battlefield. This Ploy cannot be used without a Tactician. Comments: I guess if you really needed a certain weather condition to use a Ploy this would be helpful. I think there's better ways to spend your SP. Note that units have a much greater sight range on clear days. Ploys-Wind (20 SP) (*) ---------- Requires Chart skill. If successful, the direction of the wind can be changed. This Ploy cannot be used without a Tactician. Comments: Unless you're playing as Zhuge Liang at Chi Bi and want some nostalgia, skip this one. Ploys-Lightning (50 SP) (*) --------------- Requires Chart or Mystic skill. If successful, lightning randomly hits a unit on the battlefield, reducing it to 1/10 of its size. Officer hit will also lose Health. This can only be done in storm weather. This Ploy cannot be used without a Tactician. Comments: This might have been useful if it did more damage and didn't randomly hit targets. I'll pass on this one. Ploys-Illusion (50 SP) (**) -------------- Requires Oracle skill. If successful, creates an illusion that confuses several enemy units and reduces their numbers. Can only be done in cloudy weather. This Ploy cannot be used without a Tactician. Comments: More useful than lightning. I haven't used this one though. Ploys-Discord (30 SP) (**) ------------- Requires Wile skill. If an enemy allied country sends reinforcements and this is successful, the reinforcements all withdraw from battle. The chance of success increases if Relations between the two countries are low. This Ploy cannot be used without a Tactician. Comments: This is a super version of Rumor, but only works under very particular conditions. As a result I haven't used this one at all. Ploys-Rush (30 SP) (*****) ---------- If successful, the Officer's reinforcements will arrive on the next turn. The chance of success increases if the time to arrival is short. This Ploy cannot be used without a Tactician. Comments: If you're expecting reinforcements, you need at least one Rush. If reinforcements are very far away and you really need them, get two or more. Having reinforcements now rather than several turns later can mean all the difference in the world. Enemy Tacticians almost always use this Ploy at the beginning of the turn, and you should too. Ploys-Assassin (30 SP) (*) -------------- If successful, an assassin will severely injure a random enemy Officer, causing their Health and WAR to drop. The lower the target Officer's WAR and INT, the greater chance of success. This Ploy cannot be used without a Tactician. Comments: Enemy Tacticians often use this Ploy, but to no real effect. While this is amusing to watch, there are many better Ploys available. This Tactic rarely works unless the target is extremely weak, in which case sending an assassin after them is a bit counterproductive. Ploys-Inspire (50 SP) (**) ------------- Raises the TP of all friendly units. This Ploy cannot be used without a Tactician. Comments: I guess during a drawn out battle this could be useful. Enemy Tacticians love to use this when you lay siege to their cities. Ploys-Edict (200 SP) (**) ----------- This obtains a Cease Hostilities Edict from the Emperor, forcing all attacking forces to withdraw from battle. This Ploy cannot be used without a Tactician. The higher the Liege's Imperial Bond, the higher chance of success. Cannot be used if the Emperor has abdicated, or if the enemy Liege is an Emperor. Comments: Great if you can pull if off. Cao Cao once tried to use this on me. Too bad I didn't believe it was real. Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! ------------- Ploys (siege) ------------- "Our enemies have camped in difficult ground instead of the open country and are crowded in the dangerous valley there. After some days of this rain, River Xiang will swell, and I shall send people to dam up all the outlets and so let the water rise very high. When at its highest, I shall open the dams and let the water out over Fancheng. That valley will be flooded too, and all the soldiers will become aquatic animals." - Guan Yu to Guan Ping The following are siege specific Ploys that the Commanding Officer can have his Tactician use during a city siege. If the Tactician is not available then Ploys cannot be used during a siege. The higher the Officer's INT, the greater chance of success. Note that Ploys from the field battle carry over to the siege battle. * - Useless Ploy. A waste of SP. ** - Marginal Ploy. Every little bit helps in a siege. *** - Helpful Ploy. Useful in most sieges. **** - Great Ploy. Useful in any siege. ***** - Excellent Ploy. Wall? What wall? Ploys-Sap (20 SP) (Offense) (**) --------- If successful, digs tunnels underneath the city's wall, reducing its Defense. Comments: Every little bit helps in a siege. Cute animation. Ploys-Flood (50 SP) (Offense) (**) ----------- If successful, floods the city lowering its Defense as well as the enemy army's morale. Comments: I haven't used this one yet. Ploys-Riot (30 SP) (Offense) (**) ---------- If successful, causes the people in the city to riot, reducing the defending troops and lowering morale. Comments: I've seen an Officer try this before but it didn't work. Too bad though. It would have been funny to watch. Ploys-Loot (20 SP) (Offense) (*) ---------- Loots the vicinity of the city, lowering the city's Commerce, Land, and Safety. The higher the Officer's INT and number of troops in the offensive army, the more effective the looting is. Comments: This one's great fun to use, but pointless. Amusing to watch. The enemy CO will think poorly of you if you use this. =) Ploys-Tunnel (10 SP) (Offense) (**) ------------ If successful, digs tunnels under the city wall for a surprise attack. Comments: It's pretty funny watching all those soldiers scurrying underneath the wall. =) Cute but not very effective. Ploys-Feint (20 SP) (Offense) (**) ----------- If successful, draws off the enemy with a feint leaving the wall open to attack, reducing the city's Defense. The more turns remaining in the siege the higher chance of success. Comments: Not too bad if you can pull it off. Ploys-Lure (100 SP) (Defense) (**) ---------- Requires Wile skill. If successful, lures the enemy into the city, lowering enemy morale and troop numbers. If unsuccessful, the Officer's army loses morale and troops. Comments: Somewhat useful if you can pull it off. Ploys-Falsify (200 SP) (Defense) (**) ------------- Requires Mystic skill. Causes the entire attacking army to withdraw. Comments: Great if you can pull it off. I haven't used this one yet. Ploys-Raze (10 SP) (Defense) (**) ---------- If successful, burns the enemy's food supply, reducing their Food and morale. Cannot be done under storm conditions. Chances for success increases under clear or cloudy conditions, decreases under rain or snow conditions. Comments: Fun but not very effective. This one rarely works against a smart Commanding Officer. Ploys-Sally (10 SP) (Defense) (**) ----------- If successful, performs an attack against the attacking forces without retaliation. Comments: Cheap but not very effective. Ploys-Conscript (50 SP) (Defense) (**) --------------- Increases defending troop numbers through emergency conscripting. Conscripting is handled automatically. Cost is 3 Food per Troop and city Safety drops by 5. Comments: Good if you need to hold out just a little while longer. Otherwise it's not going to make much of a difference. Ploys-Raid (50 SP) (Defense) (**) ---------- If successful, confuses the enemy, making them fight one another. Comments: Funny, but not very effective. ---------- Retreating ---------- If the battle is not going well in your favor, you can choose to retreat from battle. In a field battle you can only retreat if you are in your own staging area (indicated by the orange squares where you started). If a Prefect retreats to a city not his own, he becomes an Officer. If a Liege retreats to a city with a Prefect, the Prefect becomes an Officer. If you retreat in a battle, there is a chance you will be captured if the enemy pursues. The higher the Officer's WAR and INT, the less chance he has of being captured. Officers with Steeds always retreat safely. The winners of a field battle have the option of pursuing the retreating forces to attempt to capture Officers. If an Officer in the pursuit forces has high WAR he will occasionally injure an enemy Officer. Sometimes the retreating forces will counter attack, dealing damage to a pursuing Officer's unit. ------ Seiges ------ When an attacking army defeats a defending army, and the defending forces still have Officers available in the city, the battle moves to a siege. Note that the attacking army can choose to withdraw from the field after the battle rather than proceed to a siege. The defending army can also choose to withdraw from the city rather than prepare for a siege. If both sides are still willing to fight, the battle proceeds to a city siege. ------------ Siege Attack ------------ The attacking force wins a siege when all of the defending units are defeated or have retreated, the Defense of the city is reduced to 0, or the enemy's morale is reduced to 0. The attackers must win the siege before the number of turns reaches 0 or they will be forced to withdraw. If the attackers run out of food their morale will decrease each turn. Before each turn, if the Commanding Officer and Tactician are present, they can use a Ploy on the city (if you have Ploys remaining). The Commanding Officer can then order a Full Attack, Full Ram, or direct each unit to act individually. - Full Attack: Only available if the Commanding Officer is present. All of the attacking units attack the enemy together, reducing the enemy's Troops. There are five types attacks available: Arrow, Catapult, Fireball, Missiles, and Direct. Horse, Calvary, and Elephants cannot attack units on top of the walls, so they will attack the gates instead. Towers are especially effective for attacking units on the walls. Each unit will take damage from counter attack unless it is a Catapult or Tower. - Full Ram: Only available if the Commanding Officer is present. All of the attacking units attack the wall together, reducing the city's Defense. There are three types of attacks available: Fireball, Catapults, and Direct. Each unit will attack with the most effective attack type available. Catapults are especially effective for attacking the city gate. - Full Retreat: The entire attacking army withdraws from battle to the city they started from. Effects are the same as retreating from a field battle. Unless they city has very little Troops protecting it, the best way to win a siege is to destroy the city wall. The best way to do that is with a Full Ram attack. If the Commanding Officer is not present, your units will act individually. If the rate of damage to the wall each turn is too low, you should consider withdrawing from the siege and coming back with stronger forces. It is possible to remove the entire city's defending units using the Rumor Ploy repeatedly. ------------ City Defense ------------ The defending force wins a siege when all of the attacking units are defeated or have retreated, the enemy's morale is reduced to 0, or the time allotted to the siege has run out. If the defenders run out of food their morale will decrease each turn. Before each turn, if the Commanding Officer and Tactician are present, they can use a Ploy on the city (if you have Ploys remaining). The Commanding Officer can then order a Full Attack, Full Wait, or direct each unit to act individually. - Full Attack: Only available if the Commanding Officer is present. All of the attacking units attack the enemy together, reducing the enemy's Troops. Enemy units that have a missile attack (Bow, Crossbow, Arbalest, Catapult, and Tower) can counter attack. - Full Wait: All the troops end their turn without acting. - Full Retreat: The entire defending army withdraws from battle. The retreating army must choose which city they wish to retreat to. Effects are the same as retreating from a field battle. A rear guard can be appointed to delay the enemy. Resisting a siege depends on the number of troops in the city along with the city's Defense. If the city's Defense is low and the number of attackers is high, it is only a matter of time before they break through the walls, and you should consider a tactical retreat. If the city's Defense is high and the number of attackers is low, most of the time you can usually outlast the siege by waiting for time to expire. You can also make the attacking army withdraw using the Rumor Ploy. ---------- Unit Types ---------- "Then Cao Cao's troops watched for Yuan Shao's archers to ascend the towers. As soon as the archers began to shoot, all the catapults began to heave stone balls into the skies and they wrought great havoc. There was no shelter from the falling stones, and enormous numbers of the archers were killed." The Commanding Officer decides before each battle which unit types each Officer will command. The types available to each Officer depends on the number of Arms they possess. Foot: Each Officer begins with this unit type. Foot units are average in attack and defense, but can still be effective with high Drill levels and in large numbers. The have good mobility in rough terrain. Teng Jia: Requires Teng Jia. Teng Jia units are equipped with special rattan armor that greatly increases their defense. Because Teng Jia armor is oil based it is highly flammable and vulnerable to fire. Strong against Foot and Crossbow units, weak against others, especially siege units (Tower and Catapult). Horse: Requires Horse. Horse units have a greater movement range on flat terrain than Foot units and a higher attack and defense. Horse units can use the Charge attack whether the Officer has the skill or not. Tower: Requires Tower. Tower units are able to perform Missile attacks while attacking cities, which cannot be retaliated against. This can only be performed on clear or cloudy days. In field battles, Tower units are the same as Foot units. Crossbow: Requires Crossbow. Crossbow units are able to use arrow attacks at a much greater distance than Foot units with Bows. Crossbow units have low attack and defense. Arrow attacks deal more damage to Horse and Calvary. Catapult: Requires Catapult. Catapult units are able to perform Catapult attacks while attacking cities, which cannot be retaliated against. In field battles, Catapult units are the same as Foot units. Calvary: Requires Horse, Armor, and Harness. Calvary units have the highest land movement on flat terrain of any unit, and have high attack and defense. Like Horse units, Calvary units can use the Charge attack whether the Officer has the skill or not. Elephant: Requires Elephant. Elephant units are slow in rough terrain and water, but have the highest attack and defense of any unit. Elephant units can use the Charge skill whether the Officer has the skill or not. ---- Arms ---- "I have also a plan for a multiple crossbow, which I have been unable to execute. The weapon shoots ten bolts of eight inches length at every discharge. The sketches are quite ready, and the weapons can be made according to them." - Zhuge Liang to Jiang Wei Arms allow an officer to form new units in battle, or increase their unit's effectiveness. The type of Arms available in cities depends on the type of cities under their Liege's control as well as the available resources. City resources include lumber, rattan, horses, ore, leather, sulfur, and nitrate. Forging certain Arms requires that the Tech level of the city be a certain level, and the forging Officer has the Invent skill. Teng Jia (1000 Gold, 200 Tech): Allows the creation of Teng Jia units. Requires rattan. Horse (500 Gold): Allows the creation of Horse units. With Armor and Harness, allows the creation of Calvary units. Requires horse. Harness (1000 Gold, 200 Tech): With Horse and Armor, allows the creation of Calvary units. Requires horse and ore. Armor (800 Gold, 100 Tech): With Horse and Harness, allows the creation of Calvary units. Requires ore and leather. Bow (300 Gold, 100 Tech): Allows Foot units to make an arrow attack. Requires lumber. Arbalest (1200 Gold, 400 Tech): Allows Crossbow units to make two shots per attack. Requires Invent skill to forge. Requires lumber. Fireball (3000 Gold, 900 Tech): Allows Catapult units to make Fireball attacks during a siege. Requires Invent skill to forge. Requires sulfur and nitrate. Crossbow (500 Gold, 300 Tech): Allows the creation of Crossbow units. Requires lumber. Tower (1500 Gold, 600 Tech): Allows the creation of Tower units. Requires Invent skill to forge. Requires leather and lumber. Catapult (2000 Gold, 700 Tech): Allows the creation of Catapult units. Requires Invent skill to forge. Requires leather and lumber. Elephant (10000 Gold): Allows the creation of Elephant units. Only available at Yong Chang. Requires the Tame skill. Requires ore and rattan. Wood Ox (4000 Gold, 1000 Tech): Increases the effectiveness of Foot units against Elephants. Requires Invent skill to forge. Requires lumber, ore, sulfur, and nitrate. Ship (1000 Gold): Increases Officer's movement in river terrain. Only available at port cities. If an army is attacking a city via a river route, the initial morale is decreased by 5% for each unit without a Ship. Barge (2500 Gold, 500 Tech): Increases Officer's movement in ocean terrain. Only available at port cities. If an army is attacking a city via an ocean route, the initial morale is decreased by 5% for each unit without a Barge. ---------------------- Miscellaneous Strategy ---------------------- - If you need to heal yourself and don't have the Heal Tactic, find a nearby outpost that belongs to you. Each turn you spend on the outpost adds 500 Troops to your unit. Enemy units that have been seriously damage tend to do this as well. - Try to keep track of where the enemy is at all times. If there are 10 enemy units, and you can only see 5, you can rest assure that they're moving around somewhere, most likely attempting to surround your forces or capture one of your outposts. If you hear the enemy's footsteps and don't see any of their units for a while, you know that the enemy is up to no good. - Although this one is pretty obvious, try to lay Traps in areas the enemy is most likely to use. Note that for both you and the computer using the Move command will automatically choose the shortest (most easiest) terrain to move in. This makes terrain such as Bridges and Roads ideal for Traps. - If your unit is relatively weak (i.e. low WAR) and isn't very effective using direct attacks against the enemy, use arrow attacks or Tactics such as Fire instead. Every little bit helps. - Taunt has a much higher chance of success than Confuse. - Use the Rush Ploy if you're expecting reinforcements. Depending on the size and position of the reinforcements, it may be better sometimes to wait for them to arrive normally in order to catch the enemy in a pincer movement. - If you're expecting a naval battle or terrain with a lot of water, equip your Officers with Ships and or Barges. This makes a huge difference in the movement rates of units in the water. Some Officers will barely move a square each turn. - If you're the Commanding Officer ALWAYS check the Ploys selected by your Tactician. Tacticians with low INT tend to choose Ploys that are rather ineffective or useless for the situation (such as Chain when there is no water on the map, or not selecting Rush when you have reinforcements coming). - Unless you are hopelessly outnumbered and have nowhere else to retreat to, NEVER let your Tactician select Ambush as a strategy. The odds of it working to your advantage are very low, even if the Commanding Officer and Tactician have god like WAR and INT abilities and the weather conditions are optimal (i.e. bad weather). - Horse, Calvary, and Elephant units are incredibly slow in rough terrain and water. If you want to defend an area and mobility isn't a concern, these units are the best for the job however. - Unless an Officer has the Navy skill, the Chain Ploy will always work if a unit is in water. - Using Probe does not guarantee you will find a Trap unless the Officer has the Scout skill. Use your intelligent Officers to Probe ahead and clear a path for your less intelligent ones. - If things look hopeless for a defending army, try to cut off as many supply posts as you can and hold out for as long as possible. Even if you fail to reduce the enemy's morale to 0, you will waste precious time for the attacking army as they try to root you out. - Rumor can work wonders on the battlefield if you're on the attack, but be warned that Officers that retreat are available to defend the city during a siege battle. Driving off an attacking force using Rumor can work well in the short run, but since you're not depleting their Troop levels it is only a matter of time before they try to attack your city again. - If possible bring Catapult and Tower units instead of Foot. They come in very handy during siege battles, especially if you are attacking units on the walls. Catapult units are great siege defense units as well. - During a siege it is best to follow the Commanding Officer's advice unless you are absolutely certain that defeat in imminent unless another action is taken (such as Repair). The Commanding Officer will usually order a full ram (offense) or full attack (defense). - Horse, Calvary, and Elephants cannot participate in a full attack (offense). They will attack the gate instead. Note that these units cannot counter attack if the defending forces attack them. - Unless the defending units are few in number and have very little Troops left, you are better off attacking the gate during a siege than the enemy themselves. - Be aware that units with missile attacks can counter attack you if you attempt to attack them from the walls. Units such as Catapults and Towers can inflict serious damage so be careful. ---------- XIV. Items ---------- "This book is the Essential Arts of Peace. With the aid of these volumes, you can convert the world and rescue humankind. But you must be single-minded, or, rest assured, you will greatly suffer." - Saint Hermit of the Southern Land to Zhang Jiao Throughout the game you will have the opportunity to obtain items either by purchasing them from a merchant, receiving them from a Liege, or plundering it from another Officer. Items you personally receive or obtain are added to your item collection and can be viewed via the option on the title screen. Some items give bonuses to your attributes. Others grant additional skills. The best items give both. But regardless of which items you want to get there are a few things you should know about them beforehand. - Items that increase abilities are not cumulative with one another. If you have two items that have INT +5 you will not get a +10 bonus. If you have two items that raise an attribute to different levels, say two weapons with WAR +7 and WAR +10, you will get the bonus of the higher of the two. You can only receive a maximum of +10 to any ability, which is noted in the parentheses to the right of your attributes in your officer's information screen. - If another Liege's army captures you, that Liege gets all of your items. This can lead to some rather scary item collections in some scenarios. - The easiest way to obtain items is from the merchants that visit your city. Item selection changes from month to month so check back regularly if they don't have anything you like. Some characters automatically begin the campaign with certain items. Also some items are only available during certain scenarios. If you have the Trade skill you get a discount price on items. - If you really want to fill out your item collection there's a little trick you can use. Whenever you obtain an item it gets added to your item collection. The trick is that it doesn't have to stay in your possession. Simply buy items when the opportunity presents itself then sell them back. You've added an item to your collection at only a fraction of the cost. This trick works well if you have the Trade and/or Wealth skills. Special thanks to kongming.net for the Item ordering. Steeds - All Steeds allow their owner to always retreat safely and gives them the Dash skill. 1. Red Hare: Can always retreat safely. Skill: Dash 2. Hex Mark: Can always retreat safely. Skill: Dash 3. Grey Lightning: Can always retreat safely. Skill: Dash 4. Shadow Runner: Can always retreat safely. Skill: Dash 5. Firestar: Can always retreat safely. Skill: Dash Weapons - All Weapons increase WAR ability. 6. Seven Star Sword: WAR +3 7. Sword of Heaven: WAR +10 8. Sword of Light: WAR +10 9. Crescent Halberd: WAR +8 10. Black Dragon: WAR +5 11. Viper Blade: WAR +5 12. Serpent Spear: WAR +2 13. Swords of Fate: WAR +7 14. Ancestral Sword: WAR +2 15. War Trident: WAR +2 16. Twin Crescent: WAR +2 17. Great Axe: WAR +2 18. Steel Flail: WAR +2 19. Thorned Mace: WAR +2 20. Shooting Star: WAR +2 21. Throwing Blade: WAR +1 22. Flying Swords: WAR +1 23. Hand Spear: WAR +1 24. Sleeve Darts: WAR +1 Maps - All Maps give the Scout skill. 25. Map of Western Shu: Skill: Scout 26. Map of Nanman: Skill: Scout Medical Books - All Medical books give the Doctor skill. 27. Books of Healing: Skill: Doctor 28. Hua Tuo's Journal: Skill: Doctor Mystic Scrolls - All Mystic Scrolls increase INT ability by 10 and gives the Mystic skill. 29. Book of Illusions: INT +10 Skill: Mystic 30. Way of Peace: INT + 10 Skill: Mystic War Manuals - All War Manuals increase INT ability and gives a skill. 31. Art of War: INT +8 Skill: Flood 32. The 24 War Manuals: INT +8 Skill: Invent 33. Scroll of Taigong: INT +8 Skill: Wile 34. Meng De's War Manual: INT +3 Skill: Reversal Scriptures - All Scriptures increase INT ability by 5. 35. Confucius: INT +5 36. Lao Tzu: INT + 5 37. Zhuang Zi: INT +5 38. Books of Poetry: INT +5 39. Book of History: INT +5 40. Book of Rites: INT +5 41. Book of Changes: INT +5 History Books - All History Books increase POL ability. 42. Chun Qiu Annals: POL +10 43. The Grand Histories: POL +10 44. History of the Han: POL +7 45. Warring States: POL +7 Treatises - All Treatises increase POL ability by 5. 46. The Commentaries: POL +5 47. Treatise on Society: POL +5 48. Treatise on Chance: POL +5 49. Treatise on Times: POL +5 50. Treatise on Policy: POL +5 51. Treatise on Magic: POL +5 52. Treatise on Seasons: POL +5 53. Classic of Filial Piety: POL +5 54. Treatise on War: POL +5 Seal - Raises its owner's CHA to 100. 55. Imperial Seal: CHA +100 Treasures - Treasures increase an officer's Loyalty. 56. Awards of Valor 57. Bronze Pheasant 58. Feather Fan 59. Kneeling Lady 60. Boshan Censer 61. Dragon Vase 62. Lacquered Kettle 63. Gold Vase 64. He's Jade 65. Bull Lantern 66. Faerie Stone 67. Dragon Ring 68. Lu's Mirror Creatures - Creatures are a one-time use item that can be used in battle to attack the enemy. 69. Dragon 70. Kirin 71. Phoenix 72. Roc --------- XV. Sites --------- "The mountains were picturesque rather than grand, the water clear rather than profound, the plain was level rather than extensive, the woods luxuriant rather than thick. Gibbons ranged through the trees, and cranes waded in the shallow water. The pines and the bamboos vied with each other in verdure. It was a scene to linger upon." If your Bond with another character is high enough, when you visit them occasionally they will ask if you would join them in a visit to an exotic site. The city where the Officer lives must have an exotic site present. When you do so a site is added to your sites list, which can be accessed via the option in the title screen. Here's a list of the sites I've been to so far. Site City 1. Great Wall of China Bei Ping 2. Peach Garden Ji 3. Mount Taishan Bei Hai 4. Confucian Garden Xiao Pei 5. Temple of the White Horse Luo Yang 6. Shi Huangshi Mausoleum Chang An 7. Jian Ge Zi Tong 8. Dong Ting Lake Chang Sha 9. Han Dan Long Tai Ye 10. Yang Ye Tai Cheng Yang 11. Xi Ma Tai Xia Pi 12. Mount Huang Jian Ye 13. San Men Gorge Hong Nong 14. Shu's Plankway Wu Du 15. Mount Zhong Nan Han Zhong 16. Du Jiang Embankment Cheng Du 17. The Three Gorges Jiang Zhou 18. Bai Di Castle Yong An 19. Shi Lin Yun Nan 20. Mount Song Wan 21. Long Zhong Xiang Yang 22. Tan Rapids Xin Ye 23. Chi Bi Jian Xia 24. Yu Quan Temple Jiang Ling 25. Gui Lin Ling Ling 26. Mount Lu Lu Jiang 27. Gan Lu Temple Wu 28. Jie Ting An Ding 29. Qian Tang Hui Ji 30. Huang He Tower Chai Chang Special thanks to Ahjenta from the GameFAQs ROTTK7 message board for the locations of Sites 7 & 9. --------------------------------- XVI. Poetry of the Three Kingdoms --------------------------------- "His words were those of a deep thinker." - Liu Bei, on Cui Zhouping If your Officer is of the non-War type and has a high Bond with his or her Liege, you may be invited to participate in a poetry contest in July. You should take every opportunity to do so, even if you feel you don't have a good chance of winning. Each participant reads his or her poem and is judged by three court officials. The higher your INT, POL, and CHA abilities, the more likely you are to impress the judges. It is unlikely that you will win the first time, but keep trying and you will eventually win if your abilities are high enough. If you lose you still gain a small amount of Fame and Deeds just for participating, so there's nothing to lose. Participating in a poetry contest increases your INT experience as well. If you actually win you get a reward from your Liege ranging from an increase in wages to an item. You also gain 500 Fame and Deeds as well. Some the judge's scoring remarks are as follows: Excellent --------- This...! So moving! A picture painted in words! Ah...Wonderful! What a beautiful poem! Wonderful! You have gained my respect! An excellent poem! Good ---- A wonderful poem. It has penetrated my heart. A beautiful use of meter. Good, in its own way. Hmm, pretty good. In a high standard, for sure. Fair ---- Hmm...Quite good, but it feels as if something is missing... If the meter were a little better, it would be great. More than I expected from ______. Poor ---- I am not quite satisfied by this. It sounds like something I heard before... You should start studying from the basics again! ----------------- Exceptional Poets ----------------- Note that some Officers historically have exceptional skill in Poetry and are at a distinct advantage when competing. They will often win no matter how high your abilities are so don't feel too badly about losing to them. Cao Zhi (The Saint of Poetry) Chen Lin (Seven Poets of Jian An) Kong Rong Wang Can (Seven Poets of Jian An) ----- Poems ----- The king stands in the heavens Ushering new life into the kingdom Praying it will save many others Blue waves peak and break The pure clean water Washes my feet Like the wolf, like the tiger Prowling in the wilderness Men know no rest in war A hundred years of life Can bring a thousand years of sorrow The day suffers through night All day, all night The face shows no change Yet the spirit is in turmoil Dreams are waves upon the sea Children play on their shores Oblivious to fate Set free upon the winding field The rain water plays with the river Passing the border of the swamp Clouds float by in the vast sky My wishes go unfulfilled For they wander not near Drink not from a stolen spring Seek not shade from an evil tree An evil tree has no branches Fresh grass near the banks A willow tree in the garden A somber mistress in the tower Heros soar in the sky Their wings beating over the land Where shall their nest be? At twilight, I lay awake As I rise, I play a song Drowning the silence of the night An aging mother nears death Debts to her unpaid, yet A richer woman there was not Thunder in winter, rumbles aloud Snow in summer, blazing cold Chaos envelops the master Moon, what is they life? The reflection of my valor Great deeds that you reward The world has become dull Wherewith has it become muddied That a wave must rise against it? The tides of light and dark, The years drying like morning dew Renewal is at hand The southern mountains bellow The people flee, aimless Only I shall remain The beating of the drum Songs of joy and sorrow A brief reprieve from old age Who can possess the earth? It gives life and deals death Can any own the master? If today, we should be amused What time is there for which to wait For this day is in our grasp The mighty pine grows tall and straight Watching the wind blow through the valley The wind blows forcefully I know the wind through the dead leaves I know the coolness of the ocean All are joyous when the gates are opened Foot soldiers lead wars Slowly fighting onward Giving no command Battles to the south, death to the north The dead are only greeted By the pecking of crows Greed engulfs all With a plague of worldly goods Cured only in death The world is dull I wake up alone Drunk in public Goings upon goings Sadness follows you Through the endless road ahead Swimming a river of tears Crossing an ocean of regret Still no rest to be found The melodies of a faded song With every sip of sweet wine Lifting me up to a place of heights The last day of the storm The crowing of the cock Men celebrating without joy A song of tragedy for a tear A distant view for a memory A thought of home for solace The fires of rebellion rage Burning all in its path Scorching the earth King, if here you wage your war I will lend you my pike That by blood we may ally The aroma of food in the distance Turn one's thoughts to home Reaching out, to feel the warmth Great words cannot herald loyalty Show the flower of your seed Pick the fruits of your labor Thrown upon the tips of blades Life is better left on the breast Reaching ever homeward The sword and the bow Cowardice and might Simply two means to a common end Clouds in the northwest Like a palanquin of the gods Vacant in this time of despair The sun knows not they who leave And welcomes they who come To leave the gate, is to face reality My thoughts dwell in the great mountains Where coming and going is scarce And where the foundation is solid Full moon shines on the tower Flowing light shines about Reflecting off the ornaments above Western capital, fallen into disorder The Great Tiger has released its plague Leaving it for ruin Sit up, guest Take your fill! The barrel of wine is not yet empty A single step forward Exerting courage daily Great journeys lie ahead There is none who know not hardship As grass in the forest we desire growth But in autumn burns the prairie fire Spread cheer in the morning For when night comes It does not return Abundance of words are beaten by deeds But they are leaky containers Anthills drowned by the river Tie up your hair and endure Satisfy your heart Your pain lies in a remote place Lead a horse to the Great Wall The water is cold there Now he can be rode into battle No one works alone in politics Each voice must harmonize Else it rattles with death Life is a hazard The waking world a trap Sleep cures all Spring brings growth unfettered Grass, trees, and the like Follow the path to eternity Autumn winds dance in the sky The leaves fall frosted with dew The swallows return south To rear a boy And to raise him to manhood Is to shackle a woman A child's youthful vigor The calmness within my heart The past and present serve as one Tales of distant places Leave the language of now behind And become one with the land I hold a bean I could make paper, or sap I crush it in my pot Great Wall, in your majesty Do you weep for your children dying Far, far away? Furious winds blow through the heights Morning lights the northern groves The long river flows into the deep Water flows from the river mouth As the windows of heaven Nursing the thirsty world My eyes lead me forward Vision and foresight compel me Can you pluck the flower, you cannot see White horse, fashioned in gold Laden with Northwestern forsythia Who will claim this child? ----------------- XVII. Tournaments ----------------- "Xu Zhu rode forth whirling his sword and the duel began. They fought over a hundred bouts, and neither had the advantage. But then, their steeds being spent with galloping to and fro, each retired within his own lines and obtained a fresh mount. The contest was renewed, and a hundred more encounters took place, still without victory to either." Like poetry contests, your Liege may decide to invite you to a combat tournament in July. Most of the time you're invited to watch, but if your Officer is of the War type you may actually be asked to participate. The winner of the tournament gets 500 Fame and Deeds, along with anything else the sponsoring Liege wants to award (most likely a Weapon). A prize also goes to second place. Chances are unless you have a WAR of 100 (or higher!) it is unlikely you will make it to the finals of the tournament, especially when said tournament involves people like Guan Yu and Lu Bu. Participating in a tournament increases your WAR experience. Some tips on tournaments (and duels in general) follow: - Get your WAR ability to 100 as soon as possible. Enough said. - Having the Duel skill gives you an advantage against those without it. Actually that's a lie. Having the duel skill gives a tremendous advantage over someone that doesn't. Most warriors in the tournament have this skill. If you don't have this skill, and someone does, 99 times out of 100 you will lose, and lose badly. Some tigers (the feline type, not Liu Bei's generals) also have this skill. - Get a Weapon as soon as possible. Most warriors in the early tournaments don't usually have one, which gives you an advantage. If possible get a WAR +10 Weapon (Sword of Heaven/Light). It also seems that warriors with Weapons don't become as fatigued during combat (fatigued warriors have reduced WAR). In the later tournaments having a Weapon is a necessity. - Don't bother with using anything less than Offensive for most fights. Most of your opponents will be using either Offensive or Aggressive against you. Adopting a defensive stance will reduce the damage you incur, but you won't be doing much damage either. - Aggressive is somewhat of a gamble. If it fails you will be very vulnerable to attack and do little damage. If it succeeds, your attack will do more than 50% damage to your opponent. The higher your WAR skill the higher the chances of special attacks succeeding. But even with a WAR of 110 it fails more often than not. Note that even special moves are ineffective if your WAR ability has been reduced to low levels. - Duels last for only five rounds. If a duel goes longer than that, it is declared a draw and is started over again. If an opponent has an insurmountable advantage (especially after a special attack), you should switch to Protective and hope for the best. If your opponent is superior to you, you're only delaying the inevitable and may as well go Offensive. ------------ Duel Attacks ------------ Here are the types of attacks possible in a duel. Aggressive attempts to use a special attack. Offensive attempts to use mostly offensive attacks. Normal uses a mix of offensive and defensive attacks. Defensive uses mostly parry attacks. Protective uses parry attacks. Focus - Focuses mental energy, indicated by a blue glint. Allows for combination attacks. Charge Up - Focuses physical energy, indicated by a flaming aura. Increases attack damage. Shout - A shout at the enemy. Usually the result of a failed special attack. Vertical - A vertical slashing attack. Horizontal - A horizontal slashing attack. Does more damage than the vertical attack. Horizontal (Power) - A powerful horizontal slashing attack marked by a yellow aura. Does serious damage. Thrust - A thrust attack. Thrust (Power) - A powerful thrust attack marked by a gust of wind. Does serious damage. Special Attack - A powerful special attack indicated by a red swirling aura. Does extreme damage. Parry - Parries the incoming attack. Sometimes launches a counter attack. ----------------------------------------- XVIII. Scenarios: Observations of a Ronin ----------------------------------------- "A simple denizen of the mountain wilds is unfitted to discuss the affairs of empire. But you bade me speak and I have spoken---perhaps somewhat madly." - Cui Zhouping to Liu Bei Here are some observations of a wandering Ronin from the various eras of the Three Kingdoms. Your mileage may vary. This section is under heavy construction. -> = Indicates successor --------------------------------------- 1. 184 Mar. The Yellow Turban Rebellion --------------------------------------- Ding Yuan (Blue Green) -> Wang Kuang Dong Zhou (Grey) -> Niu Fu Gongsun Zan (Orange) -> Gongsun Fan -> Gongsun Yue -> Gongsun Xu Han Sui (Dark Red) He Jin (Aqua) -> Lu Zhi Qiu Liju (White) Shi Xie (Mint Green) Sun Jian (Red) Zhang Jiao (Yellow) -> Zhang Bao -> Zhang Liang The Yellow Turban Rebellion starts off with most of the countries in the north, with a large expanse of free cities to the south. Shi Xie is the only Liege to the south and will tend to sit there for most of the scenario all by his lonesome. Meanwhile up in the north, Zhang Jiao will begin his campaign in earnest, attacking anyone within arms reach. Gongsun Zan will most likely squash Qiu Liju early on, and will expand quickly in his position in the northeast. Han Sui will tangle with Dong Zhou in the west, while He Jin will have his hands full dealing with Zhang Jiao, Ding Yuan, and Sun Jian. Zhang Jiao will die early on, leaving the rebellion in the hands of his brother Zhang Bao. Eventually either He Jin or Gongsun Zan will demolish Ding Yuan. Zhang Bao and his brother Zhang Liang will be suppressed shortly after, thus ending the Yellow Turban Rebellion. Qiu Liju will likely capitulate when a powerful country comes into contact with him, most likely Sun Jian. This leaves five remaining countries vying for control. Han Sui will put up a strong defense in his northwest corner, while Dong Zhou will continue to spread across the southwest of China. He Jin and Gongsun Zan will be fighting each other to the north, occasionally battling with Sun Jian who by this time probably has most of southern China under his control. With a massive advantage in resources and Officers, it is only a matter of time before Sun Jian defeats the remaining Lieges one by one. Top Lieges ---------- Dong Zhou He Jin Sun Jian <- Winner Zhang Jiao ------------------------------- 2. 189 Dec. Dong Zhou's Tyranny ------------------------------- Bao Xin (Medium Blue) -> Zheng Xuan Cao Cao (Blue) Dong Zhou (Grey) -> Niu Fu Gongsun Du (Dull Orange) Gongsun Zan (Orange) Han Fu (Bright Red) Han Sui (Dark Red) Kong Rong (Light Grey) -> Yuan Yi Kong Zhou (Peach) Liu Bei (Green) Liu Biao (Light Blue) Liu Dai (Mustard Yellow) Liu Yan (Purple) -> Liu Zhang Liu Yu (Light Violet) Ma Teng (Tan) Shi Xie (Mint Green) Sun Jian (Red) Tao Qian (Light Green) -> Chen Gui Wang Kuang (Blue Green) Yuan Shao (Yellow) Yuan Shu (Pink) Zhang Yan (Bright Mustard Yellow) Zhang Yang (Violet) The fall of the Han Empire truly divides the land. The beginning of this scenario starts out with the land divided into no less than 23 countries. Most of them will be crushed early on or capitulate to their larger neighbors. Dong Zhou will start his campaign early, taking out most of his competition around him. Liu Yan will quickly expand to the southwest, while Tao Qian will expand unopposed to the southeast. Liu Bei will fall fairly early in the scenario, most likely to Yuan Shao. Yuan Shao and Cao Cao will engage each other with occasional skirmishes, a sign of things yet to come. Sun Jian will expand greatly to the south, but is opposed by the approach of Liu Biao from the north. Eventually the minor countries will be eliminated, leaving only Cao Cao, Dong Zhou, Sun Jian, and Yuan Shao as the major powers. Sun Jian will gain control over southern China sooner or later, and from there it is only a matter of time before he takes out the three northern countries one by one. Top Lieges ---------- Cao Cao Dong Zhou Sun Jian <- Winner Yuan Shao --------------------------- 3. 194 Oct. A Land in Chaos --------------------------- Cao Cao (Blue) Gongsun Du (Dull Orange) Gongsun Zan (Orange) Kong Rong (Light Grey) Li Jue (Grey) -> Yang Biao -> Zhang Ji Liu Bei (Green) Liu Biao (Light Blue) Liu Yong (Mustard Yellow) Liu Zhang (Purple) -> Liu Xun -> Pang Yi Lu Bu (Brown) Ma Teng (Tan) -> Ma Chao -> Ma Xiu -> Ma Dai Shi Xie (Mint Green) Sun Ce (Red) Wang Lang (Light Green) Yan Baihu (Dull White) Yuan Shao (Yellow) -> Yuan Tan -> Yuan Xi Yuan Shu (Pink) Zhang Lu (Light Brown) Zhang Yan (Bright Mustard Yellow) Zhang Yang (Violet) This scenario is similar to the second one, except now there are only 20 countries instead of 23. Most of them will be eliminated early on. Liu Bei will survive and even prosper this time, thanks to the power of his mighty generals. Lu Bu will start out strong at first, but his lack of leadership skills will eventually be his downfall. Ma Teng will make a surprising push out from the northwest, but will be quickly fall and be replaced by Ma Chao. Cao Cao will contend with the growing forces of not only Yuan Shao, but of Liu Bei as well. Liu Zhang will expand unopposed to the southwest, while Liu Biao will expand in the center. Li Jue, the center of attention for this scenario, will expand aggressively with any and all neighboring states. Sun Ce still has a sizable amount of control over the south, but doesn't seem to have the aggressiveness of his father. He still is a formidable opponent however. After a decade or so, Cao Cao and Sun Ce both should have a large amount of territory, with Liu Bei and Yuan Shao fighting for second place. Li Jue should be barely getting by if he still exists at all. And Ma Chao is firmly entrenched in his northwest territory. Eventually Li Jue, Ma Chao, and Yuan Shao should fall, leaving Cao Cao, Liu Bei, and Sun Ce in a three way dance for control, a preview of the three kingdoms yet to come. Liu Bei will put up a valiant effort against Cao Cao, but Cao Cao's resource advantage will give him an edge over Liu Bei. Sun Ce will defend his territory fiercely, but Cao Cao will take each province one by one until he is the only one left standing. Top Lieges ---------- Cao Cao <- Winner Liu Bei Sun Ce Yuan Shao --------------------------- 4. 197 Jan. The Rise of Wei --------------------------- Cao Cao (Blue) Gongsun Du (Dull Orange) -> Gongsun Kang Gongsun Zan (Orange) -> Gongsun Xu Li Jue (Grey) Liu Bei (Green) Liu Biao (Light Blue) Liu Zhang (Purple) Lu Bu (Brown) -> Chen Gong -> Cao Xing Ma Teng (Tan) Shi Xie (Mint Green) Sun Ce (Red) Yuan Shao (Yellow) -> Yuan Tan Yuan Shu (Pink) -> Yuan Jin Zhang Lu (Light Brown) Zhang Yan (Bright Mustard Yellow) Zhang Yang (Violet) This scenario signifies the rise of the Wei Empire and thus Cao Cao has a considerable territory over his neighbors. Early on several skirmishes will break out between the various powers, resulting in some being eliminated. Even a major power or two could fall depending on their rate of expansion. Lu Bu will aggressively expand early on, as will Sun Ce to the south. Ma Teng will quickly push to the east with a rapid early offensive. Meanwhile Yuan Shao will confront the Gongsun clans to the north, while Cao Cao will be harassed on all sides by his nosy neighbors, most likely by Liu Bei. As the battles continue several forces should emerge dominantly on the map. Yuan Shao will have a hold over the north, Liu Zhang should be in control of the west, Cao Cao will have a grip in the east, and Sun Ce will have unequivocal power in the south. Eventually Cao Cao should vanquish Yuan Shao in the north, while Liu Zhang will be sandwiched between Cao Cao and Sun Ce. This leaves Cao Cao and Sun Ce as the two major powers in a winner take all battle for China. It will be a close battle all the way, but eventually Cao Cao will edge out Sun Ce and be victorious. Top Lieges ---------- Cao Cao <- Winner Sun Ce Yuan Shao ------------------------------- 5. 200 Mar. Showdown at Guan Du ------------------------------- Cao Cao (Blue) Gongsun Du (Dull Orange) -> Gongsun Kang Liu Bei (Green) Liu Biao (Light Blue) Liu Zhang (Purple) -> Liu Xun Ma Teng (Tan) Shi Xie (Mint Green) Sun Ce (Red) Yuan Shao (Yellow) -> Yuan Tan -> Yuan Xi Zhang Lu (Light Brown) -> Zhang Wei Zhang Yan (Bright Mustard Yellow) Cao Cao and Yuan Shao will be going at it for most of the scenario as the name suggests. The field is much less crowded that previous scenarios, but that doesn't mean there won't be a fair amount of fighting for territory. It may appear that Liu Bei is in a vulnerable position, but he will quickly gain ground thanks to the fact that he starts out with three of his five Tiger Generals. Liu Biao and Liu Zhang both start out with comfortably sized territories, but once again the true threat for the scenario is Sun Ce, who will automatically create a nearly impregnable foothold to the south. To make matters worse for Cao Cao, Sun Ce will make allies with several of the countries surrounding him, ensuring that Cao Cao will have his hands full dealing with threats from all sides. Cao Cao will have serious problems, as each country will splinter off into separate pockets of resistance, making establishing a solid foothold difficult. Meanwhile Sun Ce will keep using his allies to his advantage as long as it is profitable. But despite the initial setbacks, Cao Cao will eventually suppress the other countries long enough to begin a long and bloody campaign against Sun Ce. Once Sun Ce's power has been weakened it is only a matter of time before the remaining forces buckle under the power of Cao Cao's forces. Top Lieges ---------- Cao Cao <- Winner Liu Bei Ma Teng Sun Ce Yuan Shao ------------------------------- 6. 207 Oct. The Dragon's Ascent ------------------------------- Cao Cao (Blue) Gongsun Kang (Dull Orange) Liu Bei (Green) Liu Biao (Light Blue) Liu Zhang (Purple) Ma Teng (Tan) Shi Xie (Mint Green) Sun Quan (Red) Zhang Lu (Light Brown) This scenario marks a significant change in the balance of power. Cao Cao has uncontested power to the north after the defeat of Yuan Shao, while Sun Quan has now replaced his brother Sun Ce to the south. Cao Cao will concentrate on eliminating his closest neighbors, most likely Liu Biao and Ma Teng to the south and west respectively. Liu Bei is likely to remain entrenched in the middle of the map, while Sun Quan will hold his position to his traditional south position. Cao Cao will once again have his hands full dealing with the combined forces of Liu Zhang, Liu Biao, Liu Bei, and Sun Quan. Fortunately for Cao Cao, they will spend as much time fighting each other as they will with him. This gives Cao Cao the advantage and will enable him to conquer the southern kingdoms one by one. Top Lieges ---------- Cao Cao <- Winner Liu Bei Sun Quan --------------------------------------- 7. 209 Feb. The Battle of Jing Province --------------------------------------- Cao Cao (Blue) Gongsun Kang (Dull Orange) Han Xuan (Peach) Jin Xuan (Light Green) Liu Bei (Green) Liu Du (Bright Blue) Liu Zhang (Purple) Ma Teng (Tan) -> Ma Chao Shi Xie (Mint Green) -> Shi Di -> Shi Hui Sun Quan (Red) Zhang Lu (Light Brown) Zhao Fan (Red Brown) After Cao Cao's disastrous defeat at Chi Bi at the hands of Sun Quan and Liu Bei, Jing Province is up for grabs. This scenario is basically Cao Cao against the rest of the world. Liu Bei and Sun Quan will aggressively push their advantage against Cao Cao, resulting in a massive loss of territory for him. Not to be outdone, Ma Teng will swiftly strike from the west, followed shortly by Liu Zhang. Within a decade or so, Cao Cao's territory will be reduced to half its size, and unlike previous scenarios the other countries will prefer to fight him rather than amongst themselves for the most part. Cao Cao has a long battle ahead of him, but once he manages to regain his momentum it is only a matter of time before he takes out each country one by one. Top Lieges ---------- Cao Cao <- Winner Liu Bei Sun Quan ------------------------------------------ 8. 217 Feb. The Dawn of the Three Kingdoms ------------------------------------------ Cao Cao (Blue) -> Cao Pi Gongsun Gong (Dull Orange) Liu Bei (Green) Sun Quan (Red) Zhuge Liang's "heavenly triangle" has come to fruition and China is divided into the Three Kingdoms. Each of the three countries is relatively equal in size and power, with Cao Cao holding a slight advantage in sheer numbers. This is a three-way dance for the most part, with each country taking and losing territory almost every turn. Cao Cao will pass away early on, leaving his son Cao Pi in charge. It may seem like a major advantage for the other two Lieges, but Cao Pi still controls a formidable amount of Officers who will ensure that he remains a contender. It will be a bloody battle all the way, but once Cao Pi eliminates one Liege, it is only a matter of time before the other follows. Top Lieges ---------- Cao Cao/Cao Pi <- Winner Liu Bei Sun Quan ---------------------------------- 9. 225 Mar. Zhuge Liang's Campaign ---------------------------------- Cao Pi (Blue) -> Cao Rui Gongsun Gong (Dull Orange) Liu Chan (Green) -> Liu Li Meng Huo (Lime Green) Sun Quan (Red) This scenario marks the beginning of the end for Shu Han. Not only is Liu Bei gone, but also his successor Liu Chan is not exactly what you would call Liege material. Fortunately, he has the services of Zhuge Liang and a host of loyal and capable Officers. Unfortunately, he also happens to be surrounded by all sides by both Cao Pi and Sun Quan. While Zhuge Liang is off on his merry campaign against the Man tribe to the southwest, Cao Pi and Sun Quan will be busy attacking him (and each other). Meng Huo will barely put up lukewarm resistance, so he's not a threat to anyone. After Meng Hou is crushed, Liu Chan will concentrate his efforts against Cao Pi, with occasional forays into Wu territory. Cao Pi will definitely have his hands full driving off attacks from both Shu Han and Wu. Once he manages to eliminate one of the two, Cao Pi will have enough critical mass to take on the remaining Liege. Once that happens it is only a matter of time before he is victorious. Top Lieges ---------- Cao Pi <- Winner Liu Chan Sun Quan --------------------------------- 10. 257 Mar. Sima Shao's Ambition --------------------------------- Cao Mao (Blue) Liu Chan (Green) -> Liu Chen Sun Liang (Red) -> Sun Xiu -> Sun Yi -> Sun Chen Zhuge Dan (Bright Orange) The Three Kingdoms are slowly dying out. Many of the most famous Officers have already died, and those that are left are not long for this world. Shu Han, Wei, and Wu alike are all experiencing severe shortages in manpower. Without any Officers to lead their armies, no one Liege seems to be able to unite our divided country. We must find one who is willing and able to fight for the people and unite China once and for all. If no one is willing to do so, I guess I will have to take matters into my own hands myself... Top Lieges ---------- Cao Mao Liu Chan Sun Liang ------------ XIV. Endings ------------ "That is domains under heaven, after a long period of union, tends to divide; after a long period of division, tends to unite." The ending you receive depends on many factors in the game, including your position, Fame, Bonds, and the current state of the cities under your control. Each ending details what happens to the Liege, Warlord, and yourself after uniting China, as well as the aftermath of the new empire. Liege is an Emperor -> Establishes a new dynasty. Liege is a King -> Refuses to become Emperor. Liege's Title is lower that Prime Minister -> Liege becomes Prime Minister. Liege kills many Officers who refuse to join him -> Becomes a tyrant. Liege has aggressive expansion policy -> Chaos ensues after death. Liege kills many Officers and is not an Emperor -> Empire is overthrown. Warlord has high LOY, Bond, and Fame -> Warlord becomes Prime Minister. Warlord has high Fame and WAR -> Minister becomes Grand Marshal. Warlord has low Bond with Liege -> Warlord becomes Grand Tutor. Warlord (?) -> Warlord leaves Liege to go on journey of self-discovery. Prefect with high Fame -> Prefect becomes Minister of Interior. Prefect with high Fame and WAR -> Prefect becomes Grand Marshal. All cities have high Safety, Commerce, and Land levels -> 300 years of peace. Cities have low Safety, Commerce, and Land levels -> Xianbei invasion. --------------------- XX. Secret Characters --------------------- "Really the man has power over the heavens and authority over the earth. His methods are incalculable, beyond the ken of god or devil. He cannot be allowed to live to be a danger to our land of the south. We must slay him soon to fend off later evils." - Zhou Yu, on Zhuge Liang There are several secret characters available to play in the game. When creating a new officer simply enter the following names (first name in the last name box and vice versa) to unlock them. You will hear a tone if it worked correctly. Credit for these goes to Kayne0000's ROTTK7 Secret Character FAQ at gamefaqs.com and megamisama's posts from the ROTTK7 message boards. I've added bios for the characters since they don't seem to have any. =) Name: Abe Lincoln (Officer, Prefect, Warlord, Liege) Type: Balanced War: 79 Int: 82 Pol: 99 Cha: 95 Skills: Spy, Reversal, Aid, Scout, Charge, Dash, Repair, Missile, Riot, Wile, Rumor, Chart, Flood, Rally, Sap, Oracle Bio: The 16th President of the United States (1861-1865), who led the Union during the Civil War and emancipated slaves in the South (1863). He was assassinated shortly after the end of the war by John Wilkes Booth. Comments: A true politician, honest Abe will surely charm the masses with his high POL and CHA skills. His other abilities are quite good as well. Mr. Lincoln's skills make him prime Warlord material, but he excels at any position given to him. Name: Albert Einstein (Officer, Prefect, Warlord, Liege) Type: Warlord War: 78 Int: 98 Pol: 89 Cha: 81 Skills: Reversal, Aid, Scout, Dash, Repair, Missile, Riot, Wile, Rumor, Flood, Rally, Sap, Mystic, Critic, Wealth Bio: German-born American theoretical physicist whose special and general theories of relativity revolutionized modern thought on the nature of space and time and formed a theoretical base for the exploitation of atomic energy. He won a 1921 Nobel Prize for his explanation of the photoelectric effect. Comments: A Warlord in the truest sense, Einstein's INT is one of the best in the game. His skills complement him well, making him a formidable tactician. Name: Augustus Caesar (Officer, Prefect, Warlord, Liege) Type: Balanced War: 80 Int: 84 Pol: 91 Cha: 99 Skills: Spy, Reversal, Aid, Scout, Charge, Dash, Repair, Missile, Riot, Wile, Rumor, Flood, Rally, Jeer, Sap, Mystic, Critic Bio: Originally Octavian. First emperor of Rome (27 B.C.-A.D. 14) and grand- nephew of Julius Caesar. He defeated Mark Antony and Cleopatra in 31 and subsequently gained control over the empire. In 29 he was named emperor, and in 27 he was given the honorary title Augustus. Comments: Hail Caesar! While he's not as formidable in battle as Julius, he is much more balanced in abilities. Augustus will do well in just about any role he finds himself in. Name: Ben Franklin (Officer, Prefect, Warlord) Type: Warlord War: 30, Int: 86 Pol: 98 Cha: 77 Skills: Spy, Trade, Reversal, Aid, Scout, Dash, Missile, Riot, Wile, Rumor, Chart, Flood, Rally, Sap, Zeal, Critic Bio: American public official, writer, scientist, and printer. After the success of his Poor Richard's Almanac (1732-1757), he entered politics and played a major part in the American Revolution. Franklin negotiated French support for the colonists, signed the Treaty of Paris (1783), and helped draft the Constitution (1787-1789). His numerous scientific and practical innovations include the lightning rod, bifocal spectacles, and a stove. Comments: Ben makes a great Warlord with high INT and POL. But with a dismal WAR ability he should be kept far from the enemy lines. Name: Benedict Arnold (Officer) Type: War War: 98 Int: 11 Pol:12 Cha: 38 Skills: Valor, Charge, Duel, Dash, Rally, Jeer Bio: American Revolutionary general and traitor whose plan to surrender West Point to the British for 20,000 pounds was foiled when his accomplice John Andre was captured (1780). Arnold fled to New York and then to England (1781). Comments: Benedict is all about offense. He should be kept on the battle field where his skills can be put to good use. Name: Betsy Ross (Officer) Type: Cha War: 10 Int: 45 Pol:53 Cha: 92 Skills: Trade, Aid, Rally, Doctor, Oracle, Wealth Bio: American seamstress who, according to tradition, made the first American flag (June 1776) at the request of George Washington. Comments: Betsy is quite a charming individual. Unfortunately, high CHA is all she has going for her. In battle she can be quite useful with her Aid and Doctor skills, but with a dismally low WAR she won't be fighting much. Name: Charles Darwin (Officer) Type: Int War: 19 Int: 81 Pol: 52 Cha: 21 Skills: Spy, Mystic, Doctor Bio: British naturalist who revolutionized the study of biology with his theory of evolution based on natural selection. His most famous works include Origin of Species (1859) and The Descent of Man (1871). Comments: Darwin has high INT. That's about all he has going for him. Name: Crazy Horse (Officer, Prefect) Type: Rank War: 99 Int: 75 Pol: 68 Cha: 96 Skills: Aid, Scout, Valor, Charge, Duel, Dash, Navy, Rally Bio: Real name Tashunca-Uitco. Sioux leader who militarily resisted the encroachment of whites in the Black Hills and joined Sitting Bull in the defeat of Gen. George A. Custer at Little Bighorn (1876). Comments: Crazy Horse is crazy on the battlefield. He should be given a Horse or Calvary unit and get medieval on the enemy Officers. Name: Daniel Boone (Officer, Prefect) Type: War War: 97 Int: 70 Pol: 13 Cha: 77 Skills: Valor, Charge, Duel, Dash, Rally, Jeer Bio: American frontiersman, folk hero, and central figure in the settlement of Kentucky. Comments: Daniel Boone was a great man, and in battle he's even greater. He's got great WAR with the skills to match. Name: Dynasty Warrior (Officer) Type: War War: 94 Int: 35 Pol: 35 Cha: 94 Skills: Counter, Valor, Charge, Duel, Dash, Rally, Jeer Comments: Not really a character. This is more of a generic warrior type from Koei's Dynasty Warriors series. Great WAR and combat skills. Name: Genghis Khan (Officer, Prefect) Type: Rank War: 96 Int: 89 Pol: 51 Cha: 88 Skills: Spy, Tame, Counter, Aid, Scout, Valor, Charge, Dash, Missile, Volley, Rally, Jeer, Zeal Bio: Originally Temujin. Mongol conqueror that united the Mongol tribes and in 1206 took the name Genghis Khan ("supreme conqueror"). He annexed northern China, central Asia, Iran, and southern Russia. Comments: As you might expect, good old Temujin is quite the general. Great WAR and INT backed with solid skills. Name: George Patton (Note: Enter another space after George) (Officer, Prefect) (Special thanks to Kevin Wong for finding this one.) Type: Balanced War: 94 Int: 94 Pol: 69 Cha: 86 Skills: Spy, Reversal, Aid, Scout, Charge, Dash, Repair, Missile, Riot, Wile, Rumor, Flood, Rally, Sap, Mystic Bio: American general. In World War II he led the Third Army's sweep across France and into Germany (1944-1945). Comments: Another solid general with great WAR and INT. Make sure he learns Valor as soon as humanly possible. Name: Gitaroo Man (Officer, Prefect, Warlord, Liege) Type: Balanced War: 90 Int: 90 Pol: 90 Cha: 90 Skills: Spy, Invent, Trade, Dash, Zeal, Critic, Wealth Bio: A guitar-wielding hero of the Koei game of the same name. Note: He starts with Elephants. =) Comments: Gitaroo Man is pretty much on par with Cao Cao in terms of overall abilities. His skills are quite useful and he can be customized to fill just about any role depending on the skills he learns. Did I mention he starts with Elephants? Name: Harry Houdini (Officer) Type: Int War: 15 Int: 90 Pol: 15 Cha: 70 Skills: Spy, Chart, Mystic, Oracle Bio: American magician known for his escapes from chains, handcuffs, straitjackets, and padlocked containers. Comments: Houdini has high INT but that's about all he has going for him. With a low WAR he's going to have to pull off a serious disappearing act in battle if he wants to survive. Name: Jeanne Darc (Officer, Prefect, Warlord, Liege) Type: Balanced War: 85 Int: 85 Pol: 85 Cha: 85 Skills: Spy, Invent, Trade, Charge, Zeal, Critic, Wealth Bio: Saint. French name Jeanne d'Arc. Known as "the Maid of Orleans" and "La Pucelle." French military leader and heroine. Inspired and directed by religious visions, she organized the French resistance that forced the English to end their siege of Orleans (1429). The same year she led an army of 12,000 to Rheims and had the dauphin crowned Charles VII. Captured and sold to the English by the Burgundians (1430), she was later tried for heresy and sorcery and was burned at the stake in Rouen. She was canonized in 1920. Comments: Balanced is the word. Joan starts out with slightly less abilities that Gitaroo Man, but with pretty much the same skills. But I guess Jeanne Darc sounds a lot less silly that Gitaroo Man. Name: Julius Caesar (Officer, Prefect) Type: Rank War: 100 Int: 74 Pol: 50 Cha: 90 Skills: Aid, Scout, Valor, Charge, Duel, Dash, Rally, Jeer Bio: Roman general, statesman, and historian who invaded Britain (55), crushed the army of his political enemy Pompey (48), pursued other enemies to Egypt, where he installed Cleopatra as queen (47), returned to Rome, and was given a mandate by the people to rule as dictator for life (45). On March 15 of the following year he was murdered by a group of republicans led by Cassius and Brutus, who feared he intended to establish a monarchy ruled by himself. Comments: Julius is a war machine and should be kept busy attacking as much as possible. Great combat skills. Name: Lady Diana (Officer, Prefect) Type: Cha War: 8 Int: 72 Pol: 81 Cha: 97 Skills: Aid, Dash, Rally, Mystic, Zeal, Doctor, Oracle, Critic, Wealth Bio: Princess of Wales. Title of Lady Diana Frances Spencer. Born 1961. Consort of Charles, Prince of Wales, heir to the British throne. Comments: A great political figure. Just don't expect her to turn the enemy to mincemeat on the battlefield. Name: Mahatma Gandhi (Officer, Prefect) Type: Pol War: 20, Int: 83 Pol: 100 Cha: 94 Skills: Spy, Trade, Zeal, Critic, Wealth Bio: Indian nationalist and spiritual leader who developed the practice of nonviolent disobedience that forced Great Britain to grant independence to India (1947). He was assassinated by a Hindu fanatic. Comments: Gandhi has rock solid abilities in everything except WAR. Keep him working your cities and you will be pleased with the results. Name: Mark Antony (Officer, Prefect, Warlord) Type: Warlord War: 83 Int: 98 Pol: 79 Cha: 68 Skills: Reversal, Aid, Scout, Dash, Repair, Missile, Riot, Wile, Rumor, Chart Flood, Rally, Sap, Mystic, Critic Bio: Roman orator, politician, and soldier. His love affair with Cleopatra split the triumvirate he had formed with Octavian and Lepidus and led to war. In 31 B.C. the forces of Antony and Cleopatra were defeated by Octavian at Actium, and both subsequently committed suicide. Comments: Another solid Warlord. Great WAR and INT with the typical Warlord skills. Name: Mother Theresa (Note: Enter another space after Mother) (Officer) Type: Cha War: 5 Int: 77 Pol: 62 Cha: 99 Skills: Reversal, Aid, Wile, Rumor, Rally, Doctor, Oracle, Wealth Bio: Saint. Known as "Theresa of Avila." Spanish nun and mystical writer who founded the reformed order of Carmelites (1562). Her works include The Way of Perfection, published posthumously. Comments: Another charming character. She's primarily a support unit in battle. Don't expect her to win any fights. Name: Nikola Tesla (Officer, Prefect, Warlord) Type: Warlord War: 65 Int: 97 Pol: 81 Cha: 72 Skills: Spy, Trade, Reversal, Aid, Scout, Dash, Repair, Missile, Riot, Wile, Rumor, Flood, Rally, Sap, Zeal, Oracle Bio: Serbian-born American electrical engineer and physicist who discovered the principles of alternating current (1881) and invented numerous devices and procedures that was essential to the development of radio and the harnessing of electricity. Comments: He'd make a good Warlord, but his WAR ability needs work. Good INT and POL though. Name: Norma Jean (Officer) Type: Cha War: 3 Int: 33 Pol: 44 Cha: 100 Skills: Aid, Rally, Doctor, Oracle Bio: Also known as Marilyn Monroe. American actress noted for her great sex appeal. She appeared in several motion pictures, including Some Like It Hot (1959) and The Misfits (1961). Comments: I'm starting to see a pattern of women with high CHA and little else. Marilyn is yet another female Officer with Aid and Doctor and low WAR. Name: Robert Lee (Officer, Prefect) Type: Balanced War: 88 Int: 84 Pol: 67 Cha: 73 Skills: Counter, Aid, Scout, Charge, Dash, Repair, Missile, Volley, Riot, Rally, Jeer Bio: American Confederate general in the Civil War. He won victories at Bull Run (1862), Fredericksburg (1862), and Chancellorsville (1863) before surrendering to Gen. Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox (1865). Comments: As you might expect, Lee makes a great general for your armies. Make sure he learns Valor quickly. Name: Robin Hood (Officer, Prefect) Type: Rank War: 95 Int: 79 Pol: 66 Cha: 93 Skills: Counter, Aid, Scout, Valor, Charge, Dash, Volley, Missile, Rally Bio: A legendary English outlaw of the 12th century, famous for his courage, chivalry, and practice of robbing the rich to aid the poor. Comments: Like Huang Zhong, Robin Hood should be given an Arbalest and sent to wreak havoc on enemy formations. In close combat he can acquit himself quite well with his fighting skills. Name: Sitting Bull (Officer, Prefect, Warlord, Liege) Type: Balanced War: 82 Int: 99 Pol: 84 Cha: 79 Skills: Spy, Reversal, Aid, Scout, Charge, Dash, Repair, Riot, Wile, Rumor, Flood, Sap, Mystic, Oracle, Bio: Hunkpapa Sioux leader who guided his people to victory against Gen. George A. Custer's cavalry at the Battle of the Little Bighorn (1876). Comments: A well-balanced individual. Prime Warlord candidate. Name: Sun Tzu (Officer, Prefect, Warlord, Liege) Type: Balanced War: 90 Int: 100 Pol: 74 Cha: 82 Skills: Spy, Reversal, Aid, Scout, Charge, Dash, Repair, Navy, Riot, Wile, Flood, Rally, Sap, Rumor, Mystic, Oracle Bio: Legendary Chinese strategist famous for his treatise on philosophy, logistics, espionage, strategy, and tactics known as The Art of War. Best known for his saying that the best battle is the battle that is won without being fought. Comments: The penultimate Warlord, Sun Tzu is on par with the likes Zhuge Liang and Sima Yi. He's also the only secret character with a Chinese name so you don't have to feel quite as silly for using him. Name: Thomas Paine (Officer, Prefect) Type: Pol War: 21 Int: 64 Pol: 86 Cha: 66 Skills: Spy, Zeal, Critic Bio: British-born American writer and Revolutionary leader who wrote the pamphlet Common Sense (1776) arguing for American independence from Britain. In England he published The Rights of Man (1791-1792), a defense of the French Revolution. Comments: He's a politician. That's all you need to know about him. Name: U 1 (Officer) (Special thanks to Wage Slave for finding this one!) Type: Average War: 1 Int: 1 Pol: 1 Cha: 1 Skills: Zeal, Study Bio: Gitaroo Man's alter ego (see Gitaroo Man). Comments: U 1 is for die-hard ROTTK7 players only. If you want to use him, good luck! Even I won't touch this one. Name: Ulysses Grant (Officer) Type: War War: 91 Int: 51 Pol: 28 Cha: 62 Skills: Invent, Rally, Jeer Bio: The 18th President of the United States (1869-1877) and a Civil War general. After his victorious Vicksburg campaign (1862-1863), he was made commander in chief of the Union Army (1864) and accepted the surrender of Gen. Robert E. Lee at Appomattox (1865). Grant's two-term presidency was marred by widespread graft and corruption. Comments: As you might expect from reading the bio, Grant makes a great general but don't expect him to do much domestics wise. He needs to learn combat skills such as Valor, Charge, Duel, and Dash to realize his full potential. Name: Wyatt Earp (Officer, Prefect) Type: War War: 97 Int: 83 Pol: 57 Cha: 80 Skills: Valor, Charge, Duel, Dash, Navy, Rally, Jeer Bio: American frontier law officer involved in the famous gunfight at the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, Arizona (1881). Comments: Despite his gun fighting skills, Earp should be kept in close combat in battle. He makes a great Prefect. --------------------- XXI. Dynasty Warriors --------------------- "Really a god!" - Hu Ban, on Guan Yu Want to play as your favorite Dynasty Warrior? Here's how they appear in ROTTK7. ---------- Shu Forces ---------- Guan Yu (Officer, Prefect, Warlord) WAR: 95 INT: 81 POL: 72 CHA: 93 Skills: Trade, Aid, Scout, Valor, Duel, Dash, Navy, Missile, Flood, Rally Items: Black Dragon (WAR +5), Red Hare Comments: As you might expect, Guan Yu is a formidable force on the battlefield. His high WAR and INT make him an excellent choice to lead your armies to victory. He's not too bad in domestics either. Huang Zhong (Officer) WAR: 90 INT: 51 POL: 42 CHA: 64 Skills: Counter, Valor, Duel, Dash, Missile, Volley, Rally, Jeer Comments: Huang Zhong should be assigned as a crossbow unit as much as possible to take advantage of his excellent archery skills, even if he does hit you with his own volleys from time to time. Jiang Wei (Officer, Prefect, Warlord) WAR: 86 INT: 89 POL: 62 CHA: 80 Skills: Counter, Valor, Duel, Dash, Wile, Study Comments: As Zhuge Liang's successor, Jiang Wei does pretty well on the battlefield with his high WAR and INT. His Study skill allows him to develop even more. Liu Bei (Officer, Prefect, Liege) WAR: 82 INT: 80 POL: 76 CHA: 98 Skills: Aid, Scout, Dash, Missile, Rally Items: Swords of Fate (WAR +7), Hex Mark Comments: Liu Bei isn't too bad on the battlefield, but he excels at getting people to join him, as seen by his high CHA ability. Ma Chao (Officer) WAR: 91 INT: 48 POL: 33 CHA: 64 Skills: Counter, Valor, Charge, Duel, Missile, Jeer Comments: Cao Cao once commented that Ma Chao is no less bold than Lu Bu. With his high WAR and formidable combat skills, Ma Chao is truly a force to be reckoned with in battle. Pang Tong (Officer, Prefect, Warlord) WAR: 71 INT: 95 POL: 90 CHA: 73 Skills: Spy, Reversal, Aid, Riot, Wile, Rumor, Flood, Sap, Mystic Comments: Pang Tong has a high INT and makes an excellent Tactician for any battle. His Skills such as Aid and Rumor make him quite formidable in this respect. His high POL also gives him an advantage in domestic affairs as well. Wei Yan (Officer) WAR: 88 INT: 46 POL: 39 CHA: 36 Skills: Valor, Charge, Duel, Volley, Jeer Comments: With his WAR and combat skills, Wei Yan should be kept in the front lines in most battles where he can use his offensive abilities to the fullest. Zhang Fei (Officer) WAR: 96 INT: 31 POL: 26 CHA: 38 Skills: Valor, Charge, Duel, Dash, Jeer, Study Items: Viper Blade (WAR +5) Comments: Like his blood brother Guan Yu, Zhang Fei can single-handedly drive back a small army. With his combat skills he should be sent directly into the enemy ranks to throw their forces into disarray. His low INT sometimes gets the better of him, which makes him a prime target for Ploys. His domestic abilities are somewhat lacking, but the Study skill goes a long way to help that. Zhao Yun (Officer, Prefect) WAR: 91 INT: 78 POL: 62 CHA: 84 Skills: Aid, Scout, Valor, Charge, Duel, Dash, Rally Comments: Like his Tiger General brethren, Zhao Yun should be used as the primary attacker in any offensive battle. His skills complement this role well, and his high INT makes him less vulnerable to enemy Ploys. Zhuge Liang (Officer, Prefect, Warlord) WAR: 78 INT: 92 POL: 98 CHA: 85 Skills: Spy, Invent, Reversal, Aid, Scout, Dash, Repair, Missile, Riot, Wile, Rumor, Chart, Flood, Rally, Jeer, Sap, Mystic Items: Feather Fan, The 24 War Manuals (INT +8, Skill: Invent), Sleeve Darts (WAR +1) Comments: Zhuge Liang is hands down the best Warlord in the game. While his domestic abilities are excellent, he makes the ultimate Tactician in battle with his godlike INT and huge selection of Ploys. ---------- Wei Forces ---------- Cao Cao (Officer, Prefect, Warlord, Liege) WAR: 82 INT: 93 POL: 92 CHA: 97 Skills: Spy, Reversal, Aid, Scout, Dash, Repair, Riot, Rumor, Flood, Rally, Jeer, Sap, Zeal Items: Sword of Heaven (WAR +10), Sword of Light (WAR +10), Meng De's War Manual (INT +3, Skill: Reversal), Shadow Runner Comments: Statistically speaking, Cao Cao is the best character in the game. He starts with a treasury of Items that complement his already high abilities. Whether in domestics or combat, Cao Cao can handle the job in any situation. Dian Wei (Officer) WAR: 94 INT: 31 POL: 26 CHA: 45 Skills: Valor, Charge, Duel, Rally Items: Twin Crescent (WAR +2), Throwing Blade (WAR +1) Comments: Cao Cao's personal bodyguard Dian Wei has high WAR and excellent combat skills to match. His other skills are quite lacking, so he should be used as the offensive powerhouse that he is. Sima Yi (Officer, Prefect, Warlord) WAR: 86 INT: 91 POL: 90 CHA: 88 Skills: Spy, Reversal, Aid, Scout, Dash, Repair, Riot, Wile, Rumor, Flood Comments: With abilities on par with Zhuge Liang, Sima Yi makes an excellent Warlord and Tactician. While his Skills aren't as numerous as Zhuge Liang's, they complement him well in battle. Xiahou Dun (Officer, Prefect) WAR: 91 INT: 72 POL: 74 CHA: 83 Skills: Valor, Duel, Repair, Rally, Jeer, Study Comments: With higher abilities and better offensive skills, Dun is the better of the two Xiahous. Study allows him to become even better. Xiahou Yuan (Officer, Prefect) WAR: 88 INT: 53 POL: 49 CHA: 64 Skills: Counter, Charge, Duel, Dash, Missile, Volley Comments: While not as skillful as Dun, Xiahou Yuan is still an excellent Officer in battle. His domestic skills need a bit of improvement though. Xu Huang (Officer, Prefect) WAR: 91 INT: 74 POL: 53 CHA: 72 Skills: Spy, Aid, Scout, Valor, Duel, Dash, Rally Items: Great Axe (WAR +2) Comments: Xu Huang was instrumental in Cao Cao's early campaigns. With high WAR and great combat skills it's easy to see why. Xu Zhu (Officer) WAR: 94 INT: 26 POL: 23 CHA: 41 Skills: Valor, Duel Comments: There's not too much in the way for strategy with Xu Zhu. With only a high WAR and two combat skills going for him, Xu Zhu's only role is to destroy the enemy in combat. Zhang He (Officer, Prefect) WAR: 88 INT: 74 POL: 63 CHA: 75 Skills: Scout, Valor, Duel, Dash, Missile, Rally, Study Comments: With well rounded abilities, Zhang He does equally well at home on or the march. Study makes him even better. Zhang Liao (Officer, Prefect) WAR: 91 INT: 84 POL: 72 CHA: 85 Skills: Aid, Scout, Charge, Duel, Dash, Rally Comments: Zhang Liao is a very effective warrior on the battlefield with high WAR and INT. Try to learn Valor as soon as possible. --------- Wu Forces --------- Gan Ning (Officer) WAR: 92 INT: 68 POL: 54 CHA: 56 Skills: Valor, Duel, Dash, Navy, Volley, Rally Comments: Gan Ning should be used on the attack as much as possible. In naval battles he's nigh unstoppable. Huang Gai (Officer) WAR: 86 INT: 48 POL: 46 CHA: 80 Skills: Duel, Navy, Missile, Flood, Study Items: Steel Flail (WAR +2) Comments: Like Gan Ning, Huang Gai should be the backbone of any frontal assault. Study allows him to learn more combat skills faster. Lu Meng (Officer) WAR: 78 INT: 54 POL: 41 CHA: 79 Skills: Valor, Duel, Navy, Missile Comments: Another solid naval warrior from Wu. Lu Xun (Officer, Prefect, Warlord) WAR: 89 INT: 95 POL: 93 CHA: 91 Skills: Spy, Reversal, Aid, Scout, Navy, Missile, Flood, Mystic Comments: Lu Xun has the most well rounded abilities of the Wu Officers. This makes him prime material for a Warlord/Tactician position. His skills complement him well as a support unit in battle. Sun Ce (Officer, Prefect, Liege) WAR: 94 INT: 78 POL: 58 CHA: 90 Skills: Valor, Duel, Navy, Volley, Flood, Rally Comments: Ce is as formidable in battle as his father Jian. With his skills he should lead by example during the attack. Sun Jian (Officer, Prefect, Liege) WAR: 90 INT: 76 POL: 61 CHA: 92 Skills: Aid, Scout, Duel, Dash, Navy, Flood, Rally Items: Ancestral Sword (WAR +2), Art of War (INT +8 Skill: Flood) Comments: The best warrior of the Sun family, Sun Jian has high WAR and INT, making him the centerpiece of any assault. Sun Quan (Officer, Prefect, Liege) WAR: 74 INT: 81 POL: 83 CHA: 85 Skills: Aid, Scout, Navy, Missile, Rally, Zeal Comments: While not as combat oriented as his father and brother, Sun Quan nevertheless can handle himself in battle. One of the few characters to start with Zeal. Taishi Ci (Officer) WAR: 93 INT: 58 POL: 57 CHA: 67 Skills: Valor, Duel, Dash, Missile, Volley, Riot, Rally Items: Hand Spear (WAR +1) Comments: Perhaps one of the greatest of the Wu Officers in battle, Taishi Ci should wade into the ranks of the enemy and attack fearlessly. Zhou Yu (Officer, Prefect, Warlord) WAR: 89 INT: 97 POL: 78 CHA: 89 Skills: Reversal, Scout, Dash, Navy, Missile, Riot, Wile, Rumor, Flood, Rally, Jeer, Mystic Comments: With high WAR and INT, Zhou Yu is another fine Warlord/Tactician available to Wu. His skills complement his role as Tactician nicely. ------------ Other Forces ------------ Dong Zhou (Officer) WAR: 80 INT: 73 POL: 41 CHA: 53 Skills: Counter, Scout, Valor, Duel, Dash, Missile, Volley Items: Seven Star Sword (WAR +3) Comments: Dong Zhou is a fine example of ruthless aggression. Good WAR and INT backed with fine combat skills make him ideally suited for stomping on his neighbors. He doesn't care too much for domestics though. Lu Bu (Officer) WAR: 98 INT: 26 POL: 18 CHA: 32 Skills: Counter, Valor, Charge, Duel, Dash, Missile, Volley, Rally Items: Crescent Halberd (WAR +8), Red Hare Comments: The greatest warrior of his era, with the skills to match. Unfortunately for him, his other abilities are severely lacking. Meng Huo (Officer) WAR: 72 INT: 34 POL: 36 CHA: 68 Skills: Charge, Duel, Rally, Jeer Comments: He's pretty much average in most respects. Which makes me wonder how he became king of Nanman to begin with. Yuan Shao (Officer, Prefect, Liege) WAR: 80 INT: 76 POL: 72 CHA: 84 Skills: Riot, Rumor, Rally, Jeer Comments: Yuan Shao has great abilities, but few skills. His lack of development may be his downfall. Zhang Jiao (Officer, Prefect, Liege) WAR: 63 INT: 83 POL: 87 CHA: 86 Skills: Spy, Invent, Aid, Repair, Riot, Mystic, Doctor, Oracle Items: Way of Peace (INT +10, Skill: Mystic) Comments: Zhang Jiao makes a great support unit in battle thanks to his high INT, along with his Aid and Doctor skills. He makes a great ruler with his high POL and CHA abilities. But will he be able to last? Zhu Rong (Officer) WAR: 70 INT: 24 POL: 19 CHA: 58 Skills: Counter, Valor, Duel, Rally, Jeer Items: Flying Swords (WAR +1) Comments: Zhu Rong has better combat skills than her husband, but with her low INT she's bound to run into problems on the battlefield. ------------------------------- XXII. Frequently Asked Questions ------------------------------- "The Teacher Mencius said, 'To try to see the sage without going his way is like barring a door you wish to enter.'" - Liu Bei to Zhang Fei How do I get the Bless skill? ----------------------------- The Bless skill is given to Officers that appear in the top ten of the fame rankings during the annual meeting between the Southern Mystic of Life and the Northern Mystic of Death. You must also have at least four types of units for that Officer and know at least 10 skills. A new Officer that is of the CHA type will also have it occasionally. What does the Bless skill do? ----------------------------- When you are invited to a hunt, you may occasionally encounter tigers. Upon defeat some tigers will bestow a person with a legendary Creature item that they can use in combat. This is a one-use item with powerful effects. The four Creatures and their effects are as follows: - Dragon: Calls lightning to attack all enemies. - Kirin: Restores Troop levels to maximum for all friendly units. - Phoenix: Sets all enemies on fire and revives all friendly units. - Roc: Confuses all enemies. Note that once you use a Creature in battle, you will not be able to obtain it again via hunting unless you use the other Creatures in your possession. Michael Xiao writes in to mention that it is possible to purchase a Creature for 500 gold from an Officer with the Tame skill when you visit them and have the Bless skill, but I haven't seen this happen yet. Can anyone confirm this? How do I go hunting? -------------------- Your Officer needs to be of the WAR type or combat oriented. When an Officer who has high WAR visits or is visited you may be given the opportunity to go hunting. Hunting with another Officer increases their Bond by a large amount. Tigers may also be encountered in cities with low safety. I keep getting beaten in battle! -------------------------------- Try raising your WAR and INT. If you have a low INT you are going to be very vulnerable to the enemy's Tactics. Also be sure to raise your Drill to maximum and forge the best Arms available for your unit. Increasing your Class increases the maximum Troop size for your unit. Increasing your Rank increases your TP. I got demoted/reduced in Rank! ------------------------------ If you are a Prefect and refuse to follow the city policy set by the Liege, the Liege may decide to demote you back to an Officer. A Warlord is usually not demoted unless there is another Officer with a higher INT available. Getting back to Prefect will usually require increasing your POL ability. When a new city becomes available there is a good chance you will be appointed as Prefect to that city. Getting back a Warlord position usually requires that you increase your INT above that of the current Warlord. As for Rank, most Lieges will assign Rank to their Officers based on their WAR and INT ability. Sometimes they will reassign Rank when they gain a higher Title and have more Ranks available to them. In this case you may gain or lose a Rank due to this restructuring. The best way to ensure that you gain Rank steadily is to work on training your WAR and INT abilities. My Prefect/Warlord/Liege keeps giving me stupid orders! ------------------------------------------------------- Just like in real life, sometimes your superiors will give orders that are rather counterproductive. Your superior may ask you to look for new talent in a city that has repeatedly been searched, or ask you to lead a force to invade a city that has vastly superior units to yours. If such actions go against your better judgment, you can refuse, but your Bond with that Officer will decrease. In war situations, if you're an Officer you don't really have a choice if your Prefect goes to war. The same thing goes when a Prefect is asked by a Warlord to invade. A Warlord can always refuse an order, but again their Bond with that Officer will decrease. If things are becoming unacceptable, the final solution is to resign from your position and become a Ronin. How do I choose my unit type in battle? --------------------------------------- The type of unit you will be using for the battle is determined by the Commanding Officer based on the Arms you currently have and the battlefield conditions. If you are the Commanding Officer, you will personally decide the unit types of all the Officers for the battle. If someone else chooses you to be the Commanding Officer they will select the unit you will use for you. To ensure you have the best unit possible you should forge all the Arms available for your unit so that the Commanding Officer has a wide selection to choose from. My abilities went down! ----------------------- If your Officer receives damage as the result of a Tactic such as Fire, or a Ploy such as Assassin, their abilities will go down. Such penalties are temporary until the Officer's Health returns to normal. If an Officer has the Doctor skill their Health will return to normal the next month. Such characters can also heal Officers that come to visit them. If you are visited or visit an Officer with the Doctor skill they will also return you back to full health. Plague will reduce the Health of all Officers in the city. How do I get more money? ------------------------ The money an Officer receives is based on their Wages. Officers receive Gold equal to their wages every January, April, July, and October. Officers can also receive money for winning contests or tournaments, from donations received while patrolling, or as a reward for loyal service from the Liege. Wages can be increased by increasing an Officer's Class or as a reward from the Liege for increasing Deeds. I keep visiting people, but they never take me to visit sites! -------------------------------------------------------------- First of all, if an Officer's city does not have a site to visit, you won't be seeing any no matter how many times you visit. Second, your Bond with that Officer needs to be at a very high level. And last, if an Officer insists on doing other things every time you visit (say hunting), you may have to find another Officer to build relations with in order to visit a site. It may take quite some time to find someone to take you to visit a site, so don't get discouraged and keep trying. Do you get anything when you get 100% Items/Sites? -------------------------------------------------- Michael Xiao writes in to explain the benefits of getting 100% of the Items and Sites: "After you get all the items, all of your created officers get extra skills at creation. The WAR, INT, POL, CHA, BALANCED, GENERAL, and WARLORD types also can now get the ORACLE, DOCTOR, CRITIC, and WEALTH skills at creation (whereas only the AVERAGE type could before). After you get all the sites, the maximum ability levels are improved for each character type. For the WAR, INT, POL, and CHA types, the respective abilities are automatically maxed out at 100. The maximum for the other ability levels are also raised by 5-20 points depending on the character type (for example, for BALANCED, it's now 90/90/90/90 and for AVERAGE it's 80/80/80/80). The bonus points max is also raised to 100." How can I get Officers to join me? ---------------------------------- Ronin will often enlist under the Liege that they have the highest Bond with. Undiscovered Ronin will often enlist with Lieges whose Officers discover them. You can find the locations of hidden Ronin sometimes when you visit other people. Officers are more likely to join with another Liege if their LOY with their current Liege is low and their Bond is high with both the recruiting Officer and recruiting Liege. Officers captured by a Liege are more likely to join if they have previously served together. Prefects and Warlords will usually never join you when captured unless they have also previously served under that Liege. Note that some Officers will never serve under a certain Liege no matter what. This is especially true if they were historically enemies during the Romance saga. How do I become a Prefect? -------------------------- Usually new Prefects are selected when an old Prefect dies, a new city becomes available, or a current Prefect is mismanaging a city (which almost never happens to computer controlled Prefects). Lieges will select Officers with high POL values since they will be responsible for the management of the city. If POL values are similar between candidates, then LOY will be taken into consideration. How do I become a Warlord? -------------------------- Warlords are selected solely on the basis of INT ability. If an Officer has a higher INT than the current Warlord, the Liege is most likely to choose him as a replacement. If INT values are similar, then total Deeds will be taken into consideration. How do I succeed a Liege? ------------------------- If a Liege dies and there are no other relatives available as a successor, the Officer with the most Deeds is likely to be selected as a candidate. Note that the top four Officers under the Liege along with the Warlord determine the next successor for a Liege. If you are the Warlord and have at least two votes you can automatically name yourself successor. What is IP? ----------- IP stands for Influence Points and is a measure of the amount of influence that a Warlord has over his Liege and his Officers. Every time a Warlord performs a Personnel, Military, Domestic, or Plot command without being asked to do so by a Prefect or a Liege, he uses up IP. When the Warlord runs out of IP he is unable to do any of those commands (unless asked to) until he regains more IP. How do I get more IP? --------------------- A Warlord regains IP by obtaining Deeds. Deeds increase IP on a point-to- point basis. The easiest way to get more Deeds is to perform duties that are requested of you (you can request to do tasks, but this uses up most of the IP you would normally gain). The following is a list of ways for Warlords to regain IP from fastest to slowest: Donate money to the city (1 IP for every 10 Gold donated) Rank in the top three Officers after a battle (IP regained depends on Glory) Perform tasks (requested of you) Perform tasks (that you requested) Patrol city For some strange reason Deeds accumulated via poetry contests or tournaments don't seem to increase your IP. People are refusing to see me when I visit! ------------------------------------------- Raise your Bond with them via letters. A faster way to increase Bond is to use the Social-Gift command but it's usually not necessary in most cases. Keep sending letters until you get a favorable response (varies depending on your class). If you are still refused admission and your Bond is high, just wait for a few months and come back again. Ronin: Ronin have no problems visiting other Ronin, but usually have more difficulty visiting Officers unless their Bond is at least 20 or higher. Keep sending letters until the Officer says that they will share information if you visit or if they reply that they want to meet with you. Officers: Officers usually can visit fellow Officers under their Liege without any problems, but visiting Prefects may require a bit more bonding. Visiting enemy Officers requires a much higher Bond level than usual. Prefects: Prefects can easily visit Officers in their city and other Officers under their Liege. Visiting other Prefects may require some further bonding. As usual, visiting enemy Officers should wait until a favorable reply comes back. Warlord/Liege: Warlords can usually visit any Officer under their Liege, even if their Bond with that person is 0. Prefects may occasionally be busy, but it is a rare occurrence. The same applies to Lieges. Visiting enemy Officers is the same for Warlords and Lieges as it is for Officers and Prefects. Keep sending letters until you get a favorable reply. ---------------------------------------- XXIII. Strangeness in the Three Kingdoms ---------------------------------------- This section is for the bizarre occurrences I've found while journeying throughout the Three Kingdoms. What you say? During duels you'll notice some rather interesting remarks such as "Ha ha ha! I'll cut into pieces!" and "I will not take you lightly. Let us begi!" A whole lot of IP If you're a Warlord and are advising your Liege to accept a high rank (Archduke or higher), you will notice that your current IP is stated at over six million (6,264,240 to be exact). Let's be friends...Not! You will notice in the game that envoys will frequently visit your Liege bearing gifts of friendship, and then immediately launch an attack against you afterwards. Maybe they're trying to lull you into a false sense of security? In addition Lieges are notorious for attacking countries that have just offered gifts to them in the same turn. What are you aiming at? While computer controlled units love to frequently use surround tactics, the AI is a bit screwy when it comes to arrow attacks. The computer will often neglect to attack even when a target is in range (and without the Counter skill). The computer also tends to hit its allies (yourself included) with volley attacks that could have all hit the enemy instead if it had been aimed correctly. Sometimes the AI will even fire volleys at one target, hitting you in the process (big surprise). I'll make him an offer he can't refuse Whenever a Liege asks a Warlord for advice on whether or not to accept a joint attack proposal, the first two options are Accept Proposal and the third is No Advice. Selecting the second option does work the same as Refuse Proposal however. We're attacking where? When a Prefect gets ready for invading another city, they will mention that they are preparing a campaign against their own city. Where was it flying? When a flood occurs, you get the message that "The river has overflown!" It should be "The river has overflowed!" =) Where is everyone? In the last scenario, after a decade or so there will be a serious lack of Officers everywhere. Many cities will have only a Prefect guarding them. Some cities won't have any Officers at all. I'm not sure what is up with that, but I'm guessing that there was a serious lack of historical Officers to populate that scenario. In any case, eventually there will be so little Officers left that the game will end in a draw because no one will attack anyone anymore (the computer won't attack a city if it ends up leaving no Officers left in the base city). The fact that Officers will be dying of old age right and left will not help matters any. Very strange indeed. -------------------- XXIV. Special Events -------------------- As you might have noticed, there are many special events can occur in the game if certain requirements are met. Unfortunately, these requirements are very specific and usually involve having certain Officers in certain cities, and/or certain Lieges being allied with one another during a certain period of time. Not to mention that some events require that certain events have take place before that. While these events are interesting to watch, in the course of a regular game you're probably not going to meet the requirements normally unless you try very hard to do so. I've found some events that occur relatively easily with a minimum of fuss. Here are some of them. Bronze Pheasant Tower (Construction) Requirements: Discovery of the Bronze Pheasant event must have occurred. A Liege controls Ye and has Emperor Xian within his territory. The Liege and his Warlord are in the same city that has more than 50,000 Gold. Result: Construction for a tower for the Bronze Pheasant will begin. Bronze Pheasant Tower (Completion) Requirements: Bronze Pheasant Tower (Construction) event must have occurred. A Liege controls Ye and has Emperor Xian within his territory. Result: Ye's Commerce will increase. The Liege's Fame will increase. Chen Qun's Nine Class System Requirements: Chen Qun must serve a Liege that controls the Emperor and has at least 12 cities, one of which must be Ye. Result: Chen Qun outlines a Nine class system for that Liege. The safety of all the Liege's cities increases, as does the loyalty of all the Liege's Officers. Cheng Yu Recommends Guo Jia Requirements: Cheng Yu must serve a Liege. Guo Jia is not discovered yet. Result: Cheng Yu will recommend his Liege hire Guo Jia. Guo Jia will enlist with that Liege. Discovery of the Bronze Pheasant Requirements: A Liege controls Ye and has Emperor Xian within his territory. Result: The Liege will obtain the Bronze Pheasant Treasure. Envoy from Japan Requirements: A Liege controls at least 28 cities, two of which must be Luo Yang and Xiang Ping. The Liege and his Warlord must be in the same city. Result: An envoy from Japan arrives to pay tribute to the Liege. That Liege's Fame increases. Five Tiger Generals Requirements: Liu Bei is a Liege and holds the title of King. Guan Yu, Huang Zhong, Ma Chao, Zhang Fei, and Zhao Yun serve Liu Bei. Result: Liu Bei declares these five Officers his Tiger Generals. Guo Jia Recommends Liu Ye Requirements: Guo Jia must serve a Liege. Liu Ye is not discovered yet. Result: Guo Jia will recommend that his Liege hire Liu Ye. Liu Ye will enlist with that Liege. Han Hao's Commerce Plan Requirements: Han Hao must serve a Liege that controls Xu Chang. Result: Han Hao will suggest to your Liege that Troops be drafted to work the fields in order to increase commerce. As a result the population of Xu Chang will increase drastically. Hex Mark Requirements: Liu Bei is a Liege and owns Hex Mark. Result: Yi Ji will visit Liu Bei and tell him that Hex Mark is cursed. Liu Bei and Yi Ji's Bond increases. Liu Ye Recommends Lu Qian and Man Chong Requirements: Liu Ye must serve a Liege. Lu Qian and Man Chong are not discovered yet. Result: Liu Ye will recommend that his Liege hire Lu Qian and Man Chong. Lu Qian and Man Chong will enlist with that Liege. Lu Qian and Man Chong Recommends Mao Jie Requirements: Lu Qian and Man Chong must serve the same Liege. Mao Jie is not discovered yet. Result: Lu Qian and Man Chong will recommend that their Liege hire Mao Jie. Mao Jie will enlist with that Liege. Lu Su Recommends Zhuge Jin Requirements: Lu Su must serve a Liege. Zhuge Jin is not discovered yet. Result: Lu Su will recommend that his Liege hire Zhuge Jin. Zhuge Jin will enlist with that Liege. Xiahou Dun Recommends Dian Wei Requirements: Xiahou Dun must serve a Liege. Dian Wei is not discovered yet. Result: Xiahou will recommend that his Liege hire Dian Wei. Dian Wei will enlist with that Liege. Xun You and Xun Yu Recommends Cheng Yu Requirements: Xun You and Xun Yu serve the same Liege. Cheng Yu is not discovered yet. Result: The two Xuns will recommend that their Liege hire Cheng Yu. Cheng Yu will enlist with that Liege. Yi Ji Recommends the Ma Brothers Requirements: Yi Ji must serve a Liege. Ma Liang and Ma Su are not discovered yet. Result: Yi Ji will recommend that his Liege hire Ma Liang and Ma Su. Ma Liang and Ma Su will enlist with that Liege. Zhang Hong Recommends Gu Yong Requirements: Zhang Hong must serve a Liege. Gu Yong is not discovered yet. Result: Zhang Hong will recommend that his Liege hire Gu Yong. Gu Yong will enlist with that Liege. Zhou Yu Recommends Lu Su Requirements: Zhou Yu is a Warlord. Lu Su is not discovered yet. Result: Zhou Yu will recommend that his Liege hire Lu Su. Lu Su will enlist with that Liege. Zhuge Liang Becomes Liu Bei's Warlord Requirements: Liu Bei is a Liege and controls Xin Ye. Result: Zhuge Liang becomes Liu Bei's Warlord. -------------------------------------------- Meeting of the Southern and Northern Mystics -------------------------------------------- Every two years the Southern Mystic of Life and the Northern Mystic of Death will meet to discuss the most famous heroes in the land. The top ten Officers with the most Fame will be displayed, as will their previous ranking from before. If an Officer has at least four types of units and ten skills, the Mystics will give that Officer the Bless skill. If you place in the top ten, the Mystics will give you a gift of 3000 gold. If you increase your ranking in the top ten, the Mystics will give you 3000 gold every time you do so. --------------------- XXV. Acknowledgements --------------------- "Were I destroyed and ground into the earth, I should be unable to repay the kindness I have experienced." - Zhuge Liang to Liu Bei Special thanks to: Koei (www.koeigames.com) - The people that made such a great game and brought it over to the U.S. We're looking forward to Dynasty Tactics and Mystic Heroes. =) GameFAQs (www.gamefaqs.com) - The best site for all your game FAQ needs. Romance of the Three Kingdoms Online (www.threekingdoms.com) - This is online version of the novel on which this game is based on. Invaluable if you want to read the history behind the characters and events in the game. The quotes used in this FAQ were taken from the novel. Kayne0000, megamisama, Wage Slave - For posting all the hidden characters in the game at the GameFAQs ROTTK7 message boards. The American Heritage Dictionary - For information on historical characters. Quatoria - For informing me that Normal Jean is Marilyn Monroe's original name. Ahjenta - For information on assassination visitation as well as the site locations. gr1mm - For information on the various city types. Kevin Wong - For information on the George Patton secret character. Michael Xiao - For information on the effects of completing 100% of the Items/Sites. You can find this FAQ posted at the following places: GameFAQs (www.gamefaqs.com) - (most current version) Cheat Code Central (www.cheatcc.com) Kongming's Archives (kongming.net) This document is Copyright 2002 Brian Nii. Feel free to distribute or post as long as you don't change my name or try and make any money off of it, okay? Letting me know about it would be good too. =)
