21 replies to this topic

[Jaroth Corbett]

Clan: Shimazu
Campaign: Domination
Difficulty: Hard

Quote

The Shimazu are a proud clan, with a long history worthy of their pride. To the Shimazu, loyalty is everything, and their generals are less likely to develop ambitions of their own. Shimazu katana samurai are cheaper to recruit and maintain in the field than those of other clans; they can also recruit superior katana-armed samurai. The clan can trace its ancestry back to Minamoto Yoritomo, the founder and first shogun of the Kamakura shogunate. In 1187, Yoritomo appointed his son, Tadahisa, as military governor of southern Kyushu. The young man took the name of Shimazu in Hyuga province, his seat of government, as his own. Thanks to a well-organised army and administration, abundant local resources, and a certain distance between Kyushu and the Kamakura court, the Shimazu clan became rich and powerful. They did not, however, become hidebound: when their vassals in Tanegashima met a strange, shipwrecked people from the other side of the world, the Shimazu were quick to see that trade with these "nanban" Europeans might be worthwhile. Now, under the daimyo Shimazu Takahisa, the clan has a chance for true greatness. Their home province of Satsuma is secure, and they are at peace with the Sagara of Higo province to the north. Higo, however, is a tempting target for expansion because of the warhorses to be found there. There is the small matter of a war with the Ito clan in the provinces of Osumi and Hyuga, but once these local difficulties are resolved the distance from Kyushu to the shogun’s palace is not so great after all...

Quote

Clan Traits

*Increased loyalty for all generals
*Reduced recruitment costs and upkeep for all samurai
*Can recruit superior katana heroes
*Can recruit superior katana samurai

Edited by Jaroth Winson, 12 February 2012 - 08:21 AM.

[Jaroth Corbett]

removed since the campaign is starting over

Edited by Jaroth Winson, 12 February 2012 - 11:21 AM.

[Ghost]

Screenshots, man! Screenshots!

[Jaroth Corbett]

Arrrgggghhhh! I will start over then. You can view my past campaigns here:

www.photobucket.com/tws2

How about you choose the clan I will use? I will give you four options:

Shimazu, Chosokabe, Oda & Hattori.

Edited by Jaroth Winson, 10 February 2012 - 09:16 AM.

[Ghost]

The next shogun will be a Shimazu!

[Jaroth Corbett]

Shimazu it is!

[Jaroth Corbett]

So starting over. Ghost requested Shimazu:




As before, this will be a domination campaign on hard difficulty.

As the campaign begins, we are issued a mission:



I capture Osumi province from the Ito clan, accomplishing the mission. I recruit 1 Yari Ashigaru unit + 1 Bow Ashigaru unit.





I also upgrade my Coastal Village to a Harbor & begin researching the Way of Chi tree:



We are issued with another mission:



Pressing on.

Edited by Jaroth Winson, 10 February 2012 - 10:09 AM.

[Jaroth Corbett]

We were issued another mission:



I began researcing Chi - Todofuken.



Recruited some more troops including a unit of Katana Samurai.



After capturing Osumi province, the Ito were none too pleased & attacked.



Which led me to:



As you can see, they got slaughtered.



I leveled up my daiymo to Level 2 & had to choose between two options to be the first of three retainers:



OR



I chose the Biwa Player.

Anyway at the end of 1546, I have some trade ships on the Indonesian Sultanates Trade Route for incense & I am preparing to attack the Sagara Clan (who very weirdly for the first time ever have attack the Shoni, leaving their home province of Higo unguarded. It must be you Ghost)

Oh & I am now researching Bushido.

[Jaroth Corbett]

At the end of 1547 things are getting interesting.

I am now studying Strategy of Defence on the Bushido tree.



Apparently the Takeda & Uesugi clans had a falling out,



& our ninja got issued a mission:

Edited by Jaroth Winson, 10 February 2012 - 12:46 PM.

[Jaroth Corbett]

Shimazu shinobi pwns the Sagara army!



My eldest boy turned 14 & is now a man. Sons who come of age automatically become generals. *wipes tears from eyes* Oh they grow up so fast.

Of course now that he is a man, retainers hoping to get in on Shimazu glory want their daughters wedded to my sons.



Unfortunately that ^%#** could cause serious problems later on & because I do not want to have to order my own flesh & blood to commit seppuku, I think we will avoid that time bomb.

The Shoni have captured Hyuga & wiped out the Ito. Fortunately they took a good beating & hopefully will take a few turns to recupertate before marching on Osumi. My son is in Satsuma & I am trying to recruit as many warriors as I can, as fast as I can in prapration for the Shoni march.

In the mean time I am sending my daiymo army to Hizen to grab it before the Shoni reinforce it or Sagara snatches it. It is prime real estate with an upgraded trading port.

Edited by Jaroth Winson, 10 February 2012 - 01:07 PM.

[Jaroth Corbett]

Well sorry for the delay. Much has been happening.

I began researching Strategy of Attack on the Bushido tree.



& the Way of the Sea:



My second son accepted a proposal from a retainer who was offering his daughter:



I recaptured Hyuaga from the Shoni & restored the Ito to power as my vassal:



Researched Way of the Bow:



Completed Way of the Sea:

http://i894.photobuc...est/28_wots.png

& the Way of the Spear:

http://i894.photobuc...st/29_wotsp.png

Even though I had no quarrel with the Sagara, the fact that they (for this first time EVER since I began playing this game) turned on the Shoni, they left their home province of Higo barely guarded. Since Higo is one of the main provinces we have to capture, that looked like the best time to get it. Seeing the army approaching, they decided to leave the city & engage my army in the open. They fought hard & it was a difficult victory, but a victory nonetheless:





I decided to create a team of heavy hitters, so I recruited some naginata & bow samurai:





I managed to put together what I call my "dream team":



Samurai units are a LOT more expensive to recruit & maintain but they are a LOT better than the common ashigaru.

Edited by Jaroth Winson, 27 March 2012 - 05:09 AM.

[Jaroth Corbett]

Here is where things got really interesting. The game delivers missions & dilemnas but some missions are actually dilemnas. For example in this mission issued to us:



The Shogun sees the Mori as a threat, having captured so many provinces & claiming so much territory. Now If I choose to accept, as stated there, my diplomacy gets a huge bonus of +50 points. If I refuse, nothing may happen OR I may get penalized later on. Now everyone has a different approach to the game & my strategy is one of defence. I have learned from experience when you are the aggressor, there is a higher chance the other clans will frown upon you & if the clan or clans have allies there is a much higher chance they will jump in to assiste their friends. It is also never smart to go up against a huge clan early on. Looking at the Mori:



they are clearly huge, holding 17 provinces. This is bad for me because the Shimazu starts from the left, so when I finally decide to march on Kyoto I will have to plough through all these provinces to get there. However I did note two things:

1. This is not just me attacking the Mori, this is a request from the Shogun himself. If I do this, not only do I get the diplomatic boost, I keep the Shogun thinking I am in support of him.

2. The Mori have no allies at all, so attacking them will not incur the wrath of another clan.

I decided to accept the mission from the Shogun & began to cut a swath through Mori territories. This was bitter/sweet in that on the land the Mori are a bunch of pansies. I quickly captured seven of their provinces, doubling my number in the process & dealing them a serious blow.




Unfortunately what the Mori lack on land, they more than make up for on the sea as that is their speciality. They managed to sink a LOT of my ships including the ones I used for trade which, severely affected my economy. In Shogun 2, there are six naval trade routes. At the start of the campaign I secured three. The Mori managed to seize one & are still sinking my ships when the unexpected happened:



They begged for peace. Looking at their situation they had only one trade partner & ally, four enemies & control of only one naval trade route. They would have no idea I was at my breaking point myself & since they were the ones who came begging, I offered my counter-proposal:



which they had no choice but to accept.

I forced them to break their alliance & stop trading with the Oda, give me indefinite military access to their territories while offering them no access to mine as well as begin trading with me.

This game advises you to make use of one of my favorite books (The Art of War) written by the greatest military mind in history (Sun Tzu) & he writes that "No nation has ever benefitted from a protracted war." Since both of us can see this, a peace was negotiated.





I am now recuperating & just ending turns to restore my economy to what it once was.

Updates will be forthcoming as things pick up.

Edited by Jaroth Winson, 12 February 2012 - 03:32 AM.

[Jaroth Corbett]

Here we go with another update.

So another son got married:



I got a couple of grandchildren:





The Emperor asked for tribute:



I paid because I know from past experience, that refusing to, comes back to bite you in the *** with peer contempt (essentially you lose standing with all the other clans.)

Now that I have complete control over Kyushu & a lot of provinces on Honshu, it is time to expand my empire by seizing Shikoku. This land mass is currently controlled by the Chosokabe.

Edited by Jaroth Winson, 12 February 2012 - 08:18 AM.

[Jaroth Corbett]

We are neither friends nor enemies & Shikoku is of vital strategical importance especially due its location in relation to Honshu. Apart from gaining four additional provinces on Shikoku itself, the island of Awaji just off the coast of Shikoku can be used as a direct line to Kyoto. Since there is a port there, troops can disembark close to Kyoto & be one or two turns away from evicting the Ashikaga Shogunate from the palace.

We saw a nine-tailed fox. (no Naruto jokes please )



& a three-legged crow (no GoT jokes either )



Well it is getting near to the Realm Divide, the Shogun is feeling the heat. We are becoming quite powerful & all of Japan realizes.



Another wedding takes place:



Since we use so many ashigaru, we got a reward:



As always will update you when something happens.

Edited by Jaroth Winson, 12 February 2012 - 08:51 AM.

[Ghost]

Hmm, might be able to diplomatize Mori into becoming vassals.

Quick question, but are the Ryukyu islands in-game? I don't see them on the minimap.

[Jaroth Corbett]

No they are not. Only Kyushu, Shikoku, and Honshu are shown. As far as the Mori go, they are still strong enough to become a vassal. Besides only stay loyal if you make them VERY early in the game (like the Ito) or after the Realm Divide. Anything in between & they turn on you very quickly in order to seek independence.

Edited by Jaroth Winson, 12 February 2012 - 01:56 PM.

[Jaroth Corbett]

OK so continuing, I fought the biggest upset battle EVER since I began playing. Fought the Ikko Ikki who had three generals while my unit had none & was comprised of mainly ashigaru.



I captured enough provinces for the Shogun to declare me an enemy of the State & the Realm Divide was triggered.





I captured Kyoto & must hold it for four seasons for the Emperor to name my daiymo as Shogun.

I forgot to take a picture at the time I did it, so I will use a pic from an old campaign just so that you can see what it looks like.



Again apologies for forgetting to take that particular screenshot.

Edited by Jaroth Winson, 14 February 2012 - 03:48 PM.

[Jaroth Corbett]

Well the Ikko Ikki came at me with 2 full stacks & 1/2 a stack. My dream team was on their own as my other army (to the left) was just out range to be used as an active force. The men ran themselves ragged but held out:



& at the end of the turn, I am pleased to announce the beginning of the reign of the Shimazu Shogunate!



Even though I made Shogun, the campaign is not over. As this is a Domination Campaign, I must conquer ALL of Japan. Will the Shimazu rule be long or short? Only time will tell.

Edited by Jaroth Winson, 15 February 2012 - 10:38 AM.

[Ghost]

Man you've been busy! The Shimazu ninja must have been working double shifts to make everything go smoothly.

[Jaroth Corbett]

Actually he hardly did anything as my economy was stretched so tightly I could not afford to pay him for important tasks. Almost everything has been done by my ground forces.

However, your request:

Ghost, on 10 February 2012 - 09:24 AM, said:

The next shogun will be a Shimazu!

has been granted.