Cherry Blossoms in the Wind: An Isshiki AAR

Kyushu is one of the two great strongholds of the Yamana, and must be marginalized in order for an Isshiki victory to become a reality. Attempts have been made to connect our fortress island of Shikoku to our Ouchi vassals, only to be rebuffed by surges of Yamana levies, prolonging their hope for stalemate. Our 10000 man army will soon be bolstered by new Ouchi levies, allowing us to attack the Yamana armies with overwhelming force coming from two sides. Once the land link between our main holdings and the Ouchi clan has been established the war is all but won. This is why it is essential for us to execute this plan and cut off Kyushu from the rest of Japan.
With the war comes spoils, the greatest of which is land. Immense amounts of taxes from our vassals (new and old) flow into our treasury, funding the war effort. The Civil War is a Zero Sum Game, where each step forward by one clan is a step back for another, or every other. The Isshiki have almost run a marathon by this analogy, rising from a backwater in Southern Honshu to the Greatest clan in Japan in less than 70 years. Needless to say, fate smiled upon us the day the Yamana showed their hubris and assailed the Uesugi.

This is one of their last offensives, and it is already being pushed back west by our huge levies, one of at least 8 that are already in the field, and up to 22 more are in reserve, eager to be set loose. Although the clan is losing money, they are only losing it at a rate of 30 gold bars/month, an easily sustainable figure considering we have over 2000 gold bars in our treasury, and the financial strain only lessens with new lands and less troops to pay (casualties can be a blessing in a victorious war).


The Island of Shikou is a very important crossroads and an effective route of maneuver to get anywhere in Western Japan. It provides for easy access to Kyushu from Kyoto if one does not want to travel over the lands of the Western Daimyo or vice versa, while it allows for the bypassing of any eastern defensive line those same Daimyo may have erected. On the flip side, they in turn can access one's inner lands and perhaps their demesne by traveling east onto the small island and then further north into Kyoto. Both strategies are dangerous to their enemies, which is why Shikoku is the prize of the West, just as the Canto is the jewel in the East. The fact that Yamana armies are on Shikoku is very poor news indeed. Already 20,000 men from the eastern and the reserves have been sent to deal with this new threat, while a further 15,000 from the attack on Western Honshu have been diverted to seal the crossings and bolster the attackers from the East. Should the Yamana succeed in seizing and defending Shikoku, Isshiki will have to commit itself to the meat grinder that is an amphibious invasion of the island. A smooth mop up of the enemy is in jeopardy, so overwhelming force is being committed to the theatre.

The Yamana have clearly been defeated through superior force of arms. Buddhist monks rise in the west, threatening to spread their revolt to the rest of the Yamana clan, as much as it is anyhow. The shadow of oblivion looms over their lands, 50,000 Isshiki men represent just the vanguard of a much stronger force that will over them if they are called, and even those 50,000 are capable of destroying their pathetic clan. The final Yamana push forward in Shikoku was brutally crushed, not one soldier made it back across to Honshu after their defeat. Our 10,000 man armies are slowly grinding resistance into the dirt, while our vassal's retinues continue to strike opportunistically, they are not allowed the same freedom as with the Toki clan, where they easily took 75% of enemy lands, here they are hovering at 30%. That is not to say that Fusazane will not divvy up the new kori to his vassals, he is merely choosing which ones are to receive the titles; ensuring a divided nobility that lacks a strong opposer to the throne.


Another Fusazane has been born, and this one will likely become clan leader of Isshiki once his father has passed away. With the strong history of hereditary succession and a very loyal samurai class, the Isshiki family will likely continue to follow their tradition of primogeniture for clan leadership. Author: The naming algorythms should probably be checked out in the next patch, because the only two sons of my second ruler (1 year apart) were both Fusazane and now the current one's grandson is Fusazane. Weird


The Yamana troops have been following the doctrine of elusiveness, seeking to preserve their strength for a final clash in favourable terrain on the defensive. The Kyushu troops have been increasing in strength, their levies have partially replenished and have been recalled to active duty, causing their surge in troops despite losing many to battle with our armies. Needless to say, they are on their last legs, and are soon to be defeated.
Clan Isshiki started the campaign with over 200,000 troops and countless vassal retinues were thrown into the fray. The retinues are reinforced, while the massive levies cannot enjoy the same luxury. This puts total losses at 110,000 men for the levies, while retinue losses are probably close to 50,000. However, with a starting maximum capacity of 220,000 men, the Isshiki can now raise 350,000 men, a huge increase of men. These men did not come from expanding the training facilities of our original lands, they came through the conquest of the Yamana, causing them unimaginable hardships at our hands by taking so much land.
After so many years at war and many more of plotting and scheming, Isshiki Fusazane has managed to reach critical mass, over 50% of Japan is under his control. He has not even finished with the Yamana, which would make it foolish to claim the title now and very well be defeated by a coalition from the East. So Fusazane has resolved to destroy the Yamana and then begin fortifying his eastern borders and placating any unruly or powerful vassals. It is almost certain that the Uesugi will assemble a powerful force from their section of Japan to challenge the Isshiki hegemony.

This is what is left for the Uesugi to conspire with. They must act soon, or hold their silence forever. For once Yamana is defeated there will be no chance to defeat the Isshiki juggernaut in the west, even if the east is unified (39% vs 61%). In these dying days of the civil war, the eastern clans must make a decision: Snatch victory from the jaws of subjugation or roll over and accept the new order...

Blxz said:

I've been away form the AAR forums for a bit and wow, you have done an entire game here almost. Looking forward to how this wraps up. I like the move towards a more gameplay style format that you have done in the later posts. Definately more my type of AAR.

Best of luck, not that you really need it any more.

Click to expand...

Thanks! Yeah, I did decide to move from narrative to gameplay pretty quickly, but I've settled down on this format. Also, you may be in for some surprises regarding how the game wraps up...

The Yamana will soon be no more. Their foolish pretensions brought them into this war and their vanity has lost it for them. No more will the mighty Isshiki clan have to fear a threat from the West. No more will the Isshiki quiver in fear of their two larger adversaries. No more will Isshiki be trampled upon by the mighty! Our enemies now watch us closely and tremble at our every footstep. Never has Japan seen so mighty a clan, united under one man, Isshiki Fusazane. However, all is not well in the clan, to be discussed in detail later.


Isshiki Fusazane began his life under the wise guidance of a now anonymous courtier (some think he was of divine blood) during the last stages of the Onin War. Now, 48 years later, he leads the foremost clan in Japan and his poised to claim for himself the title of Shogun. The Shogunate is not awarded lightly, and he will have to prove himself against all adversaries, including his own vassals and the dangerous Eastern Clans. After many years of bloodshed, and the fall of their armies on Kyushu, the Yamana have finally seen the light:

With Yamana troops now standing down, the clan can enter into a period of peace. It is Fusazane's intention to solidify his domestic position through the construction of many public and very military works. Each of his five kori are to contain the influence of 4 guilds: with at least two of these to be of the military caliber, perhaps even three. Theaters have not been established in every kori as was advised by the courtiers of Fusazane. It is their belief that Fusazane could hold a personal demesne of 6 kori, rather than the more practical 5, if the populations were awed by theatrics. Fusazane retorted that this would cost him the capacity for 5 guilds, to be remedied only by an increased capacity of 3. Fusazane forbade te subject from entering his ears again.

Clan Isshiki dominates Western Japan; stretching from Kyushu in west, through Kyoto and reaching the peaks of the Shinano Mountains in the east. Across Isshiki Fusazane's lands prosperity emanates from the bustling towns and cities while a long period of good harvests ensure that everyone is well fed. However, the recently vanquished Ouchi and Yamana clans have something to say about this new order and those who would lead it after Fusazane's death.


With 63% of Japan under his control or direct supervision, Isshiki Fusazane is a content man. 400,000 soldiers call him 'commander' while countless millions recognize him as their leader. The time was right for him to make his move. At the head of 100,000 men Fusazane rode to his fortress at Kyoto, where he petitioned the Emperor of Japan, the Son of Heaven for the right to be Shogun in his name. The Emperor response shocked all those present. For he simply uttered the word "No" and sat silently. The seconds before he elaborated would have seemed like hours to Fusazane, who was clearly dumbstruck by the answer. The Emperor added that before he would grant Fusazane the title of Shogun, Fusazane would have to hold his positions, ensure prosperity in his realm and the assent of his subjects, especially his many Kokujin and daimyo vassals.

Isshiki Fusazane nearly killed himself with the stress of meeting the criteria for Shogun. Before even the first year was out he had lost 2 inches of hairline, as well as most of the colour in his hair. To add insult to injury, two of his three sons were murdered by the infamous and dreaded ninja, while it was uncertain if he would be a victim of the same fight. Fusazane was not paranoid but after two of his sons were murdered at the hands of ninja every available precaution was taken to ensure the safety of family and court alike. The measures were largely successful, no ninja were able to penetrate the immense fortifications at Asaka, his capital and seat of power on the southern coast of Honshu. Finally three years had passed, and the Shogun-to-be began his trek from Asaka to Kyoto. This time he did not presume to take 100,000 men and risk being seen as forcing his ascension to power, he only took his 4,000 man personal retinue. At the small town of Sagara, only 20 ri (20 miles/35km) from Kyoto, he and his cohorts stopped for the night. Outside of the small inn, the ninja decided to use this as their time to strike.

The leader of the First assault team beckoned for his black-clad brethren to assemble upon the roof of the inn and the surrounding houses, while he signaled for the second group to begin their time move through the gardens. With 4,000 guards, this mission would not be an easy one. 20 ninja progressed through the bushes, where they emerged at the foot of a ten-foot wall, surrounding the personal quarters of Fusazane himself. Unwilling to progress without reinforcements, they took assessments of the strength of the guards around the sleeping chambers. Their consensus was that there were 50 or so posted near the door, while a further 100 patrolled the small garden and the wall in groups of 10. One such group was just passing now, their torches lit, and the ninja had to decide what to do. They could meld into the shadows and hope they were not noticed, or make a mad lunge for Fusazane against the direct orders of their leaders. They chose to fade away. Elsewhere, the first teams had secured control of the roof, while one man silently crept through the window of Fusazane's chamber...