Tenka Fubu : Nobunaga's Ambition 14 Oda Clan's AAR

[Drakken]

October 1554 - September 1555 - Loved and Were Loved and Now They Lie in Okehazama Fields, Part I

In the fall of 1554, I decide to prepare my move to counter Imagawa Yoshimoto's pretentions that he can just walk over us to reach Kyoto, which I suspect is a mere excuse to take the rest of Owari for himself.

But first, we need that extra sanctification from the Imperial Court. We humbly petition the court for Oda Nobunaga to receive the title of 'Kazusa no suke', or Assistant governor of the province of Kazusa. It's a title of Senior Upper Sixth Rank, which is rather low on the Imperial totem pole... but at least now we are part of the Imperial court system, and thus it gives us a veneer of legitimacy.



We could also, theorically, request to bestow a rank on another daimyo, improving his attitude towards us, and even request the Emperor to secure a truce between two warring clans (or ourselves and another power). However, in this pressing moment I need something to ever improve my diplomatic clout: Court titles bestoyed on a daimyo slightly increases Trust monthly with all daimyos within our diplomatic range. It also improves loyalty when given by the daimyo to one of his retainer, if the former gets a higher title.



I quickly receive word that the Emperor will gladly grant my request... if a modest contribution of 3,000 gold was made to help rebuild the Imperial kettle warehouse. We oblige, of course, for the good of His Imperial Majesty's kettles. And thus, Oda Nobunaga is now officially known throughout the Imperial court as Oda Kazusanosuke, holding the 'important' position of Assistant governor of the province of Kasuza.

Of course, I have never even set foot in the province of Kazusa, not that it matters....



Kuwayama Shigeharu is sent to Hida to establish relations with the Anegakoji clan, and in Wakasa with the Wakasa-Takeda clan, further expending the network to reap the benefit of my Post Riders. More money, the better. Hachisuka Koroku is sent back to Kyoto as the clan's representative at the Court to keep our relations and good will. We never know when it could be useful.

The rest of the year is a recruitment campaign to muster as many soldiers as possible for the incoming campaign. I build a Shrine and a Hachiman Shrine in Suemori, since Shibata Katsuie is stationed there and he is one good, tough general and it's always better giving him as many soldiers as possible; and a Training Ground in Inuyama to improve it later to a Swordsmith, a 2nd tier improvement made available by the presence of Iron in Inuyama. I also improve the castle keeps in Kiyosu with a 3-stage inner keep and stone walls, and a 2-stage in the Nagoya and Suemori. Keeps give a slight boost to the Draft rating as well, directly influencing the amount of available soldiers. By the next fall we have successfully recruited 3000 more soldiers, for a total army of over 14,000 men.

By Spring 1555, Hideyoshi's talented little brother Hidenaga and Koide Hidemasa, a promising young retainer, have joined us. Hidenaga is quickly send to Suemori to help Lady Kichô as Administrator of the castle. These recruits compensate for the loss of yet another defector to the Kitabatake clan... this time Yanada Masatsuna. Good riddance. 

In June, Jesuits and Nanban merchants were reported visiting severals provinces in Central Japan to present their odd faith, most notably our neighbors the Nagano and the Kitabatake Clan.



It means that, in time, I will receive visits from foreign merchants and be able to build Churches and Cathedrals in my castle towns, which significantly boost both Economy ratings and Creativity. I will be VERY welcoming of these newly-arrived barbarians... and their 'foreign customs'.

Things are moving very swiftly throughout the Realm, however...

In the East the Hôjô clan, freed on their western and northern borders by their marriage alliance with the Imagawa and the Takeda, have swiped over Awa, Sagami, Musashi, Kazusa (), and Shimotsuke quickly reaching a point that they clash with the expanding Date clan on their border in that latter province.



North, the Nagao clan have swallowed up the province of Noto and united Etchu by pushing the Honganji off their eastern bridgehead in that province.



Now is the time to act... So we move against Marune castle!



The battle of Okehazama has begun.

To be continued...

[jimmy olsen]

Nice, can't wait to see how this turns out.

[The Brain]

Ew, Catholics. You should wait for Richard Chamberlain.

[celedhring]

Great AAR, makes me wish I understood Japanese to play the game myself. Looks great.

[Grey Fox]

The art style of this game is weird.

[garbon]

The art style of this game is weird.

You can just say it out. It is pretty ugly and discordant.

[Drakken]

September - November 1555 - Loved and Were Loved and Now They Lie in Okehazama Fields, Part II

Besieging Marune Castle triggers the Battle of Okehazama event, which is part of the historical set for the Oda clan. The real date of the battle is June 12th, 1560, but in the game the date is irrelevant as long as it is triggered before a set date (here April 1563).

In the original version, the event triggered an automatic Oda victory, Imagawa Yoshimoto simply cut down in a descriptive narrative. The PUK changed all that; now it triggers a field battle with scripted objectives. While this particular battle is easy, there's at least a theoretical chance I might lose, especially if I give myself all sorts of handicaps in favour of the AI. This will also serve as an introduction to the field battles after the PUK, in which we can move and maneuver our units on the battlefield and, perhaps, turn a disfavourable situation to our advantage.

Our objective here is simple, rush Imagawa Yoshimoto resting in the field of Okehazama, charge through the rain, and utterly destroy it before reinforcements arrive and catch up. The battleplan involves Mori Yoshinari and Sassa Narimasa on my flanks bypassing the enemy and swerving to close in his rears.




We see Imagawa Yoshimoto, and we charge : FORWARD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!




Yoshimoto has turned and moved sideways inside the fog of war, both to avoid our charge and to face the numerically-inferior right flank under Narimasa. He turns to face us in a forlorn hope last stand, exposing his own flank to Narimasa's assaut. His troops are pinned and thrown into utter panic.






Imagawa reinforcements arrive at the edge of the battlefield, including Mikawa troops from a young samurai named Matsudaira Motoyasu, but too far away to be of any use. The result is clear-cut: Yoshimoto is crushed and his formation annihilated. Soon Yoshimoto himself decapitated, and his bloodied head presented to Nobunaga with full honours. 




The Imagawa army is leaving the battlefield in a rout, and the Imagawa clan is in disarray. Matsudaira Motoyasu, a former child hostage turned forced retainer of the Imagawa, decides to seize the moment to turn away from the Imagawa clan. He seizes his ancestral castle at Okazaki and takes over most of the province of Mikawa as his own, declaring the independence of the Matsudaira clan. He quickly sends us an offer of alliance lasting 60 months. To secure my lines while I take Marune and Kutsukake, I quickly accept. However, I feel this young kid might be very, very dangerous in time... 




Dramatic news arrive that prove the wisdom of accepting this offer.

In Mino the bad blood between my father-in-law Saito Dosan and his adopted son Saito Yoshitatsu has boiled into a civil war. Afraid to be disowned, Yoshitatsu brought much of the clan against the Dosan who, caught outnumbered and utterly defeated at the battle of Nagaragawa, committed suicide inside a nearby temple.




We thus have a new enemy on our northern borders. As the son-in-law of the late Dosan, Nobunaga consider himself the rightful heir to the province of Mino, made clear in his 'last will and testament' which he magically produces from his kimono sleeve. We shall show the Realm how we avenge the memory of the Pit Viper of Mino... but right now, we have to clean the remnants of the Imagawa clan in Owari.

Okabe Motonobu departs from Kutsukake with 2200 men in an attempt to relieve the siege at Marune. We call Maeda Toshiie in reinforcement from Nagoya, with 2200 men of his own. The two face up at the battle of Marune, fortunately soon enough to block Motonobu from interrupting the siege. Despite heavy losses on both side, we sucessfully push back Motonobu's relief force, who retreats back to Kutsukake. We call back Toshiie to support the siege...




... only to learn from our uncle Nobumitsu that the Saito had launch his army of 12,000 men on Inuyama to invade while we are busy! 




I decide to finish the siege of Marune castle. By the 15th of September it falls, and the two Imagawa retainers captured inside refuse any possibility to switch sides. They are quickly put to death, their names to be forgotten.

I rush back to Kiyosu to muster the rest of my army, 9000 strong. Around 2000 troops are left in Marune without retainers there, and 2600 men are caught inside the siege of Inuyama, ready to sally forward if needed.




I call on the Anegakoji from Hida province to help, asking them to launch an attack of their own on nearby Gujô-Hachiman overlooking the pass from Mino to Hida in a desperate attempt to divert part of the Saito troops northward. They accept, but we don't know if and when they will launch their own attack.

The Battle of Inuyama-jô is to begin. This one is NOT scripted, however.

To be continued...

[Drakken]

Ew, Catholics. You should wait for Richard Chamberlain.

I'll have to check, but I think the real Anjin-san is an officer in the game. 

[Drakken]

November 1555 - March 1556 - Climbing Dog Mountain and Owari Liberated

While assembling my troops to relief the siege Sakuma Nobumori, his son Morishige, and Kawajiri Hidetaka are ordered to report to the newly-liberated Marune Castle. They will serve as a reserve force if needed.

Meanwhile, the Saito start assaulting the castle walls, damaging its endurance but taking casualties. The Saito force is composed of Saito Yoshitatsu himself, with troops each under the command of Inaba Ittetsu and Saito Toshimitsu. Behind them lay Tôyama Kagetô and Fuwa Mitsuharu, with 3,500 in reserve. Reports are incomplete, we estimate that they have around 12,000 men (maybe less, as unless the castles weere reconnoitred first we only receive incorrect information on troops both outside and inside the castles).

I formulate my plan: Oda Nobunaga, with Yasuke and Tokichiro Hideyoshi, will be the force first to enter in contact with the Saito siege army, followed by Maeda Toshiie, Oda Nobuhiro, and Hachiya Yoritaka in support from the rear. Shibata Katsuie, supported by Lady Kichô and Tokichiro Hidenaga, will take another route to attack from their left flank.



As predicted Nobunaga and Katsuie both make contact, the Saito taking heavy casualties under simutaneous assaults. Battered, Inaba Ittetsu is the first to retreat, followed by Saito Toshimitsu. It looks like the reports of a 12,000 strong army by the Saito Clan had been rather... exagerated.



Now is the time to strike! Takigawa Kazumasu sorties from Inuyama. Yoshitatsu's troops find themselves attacked on three fronts!



Yoshitatsu quickly retreats, in good order. Tôyama Kagetô stays behind, having the unenvious task of bringing the rear to defend the retreat at the peril of his own life. However, it also slowly retreats, keeping our army in check. We decide that the battle is won, our force being insufficient to continue all the way to Inabayama Castle, and we decide to return home. The siege of Inuyama is over!



It is then that the Anegakoji make their move, sending a pitiful thousand troops to lay the siege in front of Goto-Hachiman castle. Far from enough to effectively besiege its fortifications, and it is rapidly pushed away by a token force.



Immediately, I start improving the defences in and around Inuyama, as it is clear this is the main objective of any Saito expansion in Owari. I order Sassa Narimasa to repair the damages on the walls, and Kazumasu to replace its wooden gates by Iron Gates so to add 3000 more Endurance to the castle (now at 7000). I also order Hideyoshi to build defensive prepararations in the node north of the castle, so that if the Saito attempts another invasion I will be able to deploy troops there on more favourable grounds, both slowing them down and inflicting increased casualties. We will thus be ready, athough with the Saito damaged we can now focus on a plan to take Mino province.

However, Mino is a huge piece to swallow. Their armies, even after this defeat, will recover soon enough. Plus it is around the same size as ours. They have relatively good officers and Inabayama Castle itself has 11,500 Endurance! It's one big-ass castle, it'll take my whole army just to be able to lay siege to it, and the Saito can always bring in allies to disrupt the siege. Thus I will need to muster even more troops.

It is then, that Hideyoshi and Koroku discuss a strategy, around a cup of sake and some dancing girls. When a piece of meat is too big to swallow without choking, it is logic to cut it into smaller bites to swallow them one by one! If Mino could be worked the same, to be seperated in several parts by quickly building a castle inside the Mino border, then their Lord could take over Mino, piece by piece, to finally concentrate on Inabayama castle.



And it just so happens that Hideyoshi has the right spot for that : Sunomata! Right by Inabayama, cleaving Western Mino from the rest of the province. He can even bolster he can build it in three days!



However, building a castle there will cost us 8,000 gold pieces!  We can't afford this, at least just yet.

So, as soon as all our armies are back into their respective castles I commission Sakuma Nobumori to attack and seize Kutsukake Castle and complete the expelling of the last Imagawa remnants in Owari, with troops under Maeda Toshiie and Shibata Katsuie, 5,500 men in total.



The Imagawa Lord of Kutsukake Castle, Asahina Nobuoki, decides to make a stand in front of the castle with his 2,200 soldiers. However, the Imagawa troops are quickly overwhelmed by the Oda force and Asahina Nobuoki himself dies in the battle, slayed by Katsuie's soldiers.



Nobumori quickly establishes the siege, which lasts only a month. By the end of February 1556 Kutsukake falls, and the presence of the Imagawa clan on Owari's soil is at an end. We've be able to only capture Udono Nagamochi in the aftermath of the siege. While willing to switch to the Oda he is one below-average and useless officer, so I decide to mercifully let him go. Why kill poor officers, when they can 'serve' the enemy?



I order Ikeda Tsuneoki to leave Kiyosu to take command as Lord of Kutsukake, with Koide Hidemasa and Mori Shinsuke as his retainers.

In celebration of Nobunaga becoming the master of the whole of Owari, I commission Maeda Toshihisa to build a grand 4-stage stone keep at Kiyosu Castle.

News from Mino quickly arrive : the reign of Saito Yoshitatsu is already over.  A known sufferer of leprosy, he died within a few months of his usurpation and parricide. Karma's a bitch, isn't it.

He was replaced by his no-good son Saito Tatsuoki, a known drunkard, womanizer, and a seemingly inept administrator. However, he is assisted by the formidable strategisy Takenaka Shigeharu (usually known as Takenaka Hanbei), who on the day of Tatsuoki's accession bursted into his room to shake him up and entreat him to clean his ways, stop drinking like a fool, and be a man and the ruler of Mino!

That man might be of great use... if he could be convinced to join us.

[jimmy olsen]

The campaign continues.

I think the game looks nice in a styalized way.

[The Brain]

Haters gonna hate.

[Drakken]

I sincerely apologize for the very long delay. I've found a new job working in financial group services (the hell with plumbing), plus with working on the present federal campaign and handling miss Drakken I haven't had much time these last two months. Plus, miss Drakken's mother has recently passed away, so I give her all the support that she needs.

Don't worry, I will continue this AAR even though the translated version comes out next week.

[The Brain]

I shall fondle the translated version.

[The Brain]

I bought the game. Haven't tried it yet.

[The Brain]

Omg they use Western style name order. Annoying. Is there a mod that fixes this?