The Battle of Sekigahara, or the Battle for the Sundered Realm in Japan, is a historical battle in Total War: Shogun 2.
Encyclopedia Description[]
Before his death, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, unifier of Japan, established the Council of Five Elders to rule as regents until his heir Hideyori, came of age. However, one of the elders, Tokugawa Ieyasu, was unable to accept Toyotomi Hideyori as shogun, as the Toyotomi were originally of peasant stock. Wanting power for himself, Tokugawa pitted himself against the loyalist council members, including Ishida Mitsunari. Soon there were two camps; Ieyasu’s eastern side and Mitsunari’s western side. Both sides tried to enlist the aid of Kobayakawa Hideaki and other more moderate daimyos. At the Battle of Sekigahara, Ieyasu and Mitsunari’s armies clashed, each awaiting Hideaki to join their side in the battle. As his position overlooked them, Hideaki could either surround Ieyasu or bolster his army. Realising that his involvement was crucial to the outcome, Hideaki ignored Ishida Mistunari‘s signal to join him, but did not rush to help the Tokugawa either. To coax him into action, Tokugawa Ieyasu ordered his troops to fire upon Hideaki’s, a gamble which paid off when he promptly chose to join Ieyasu! The subsequent assault on western positions caused four generals to immediately switch sides, severely weakening the western forces, which soon fell apart. In the aftermath of the battle several western generals committed suicide, their leader Ishida Mitsunari was executed and many others lost control of their fiefdoms in favour of those who supported the Tokugawa. Ieyasu himself went on to become Shogun, bringing the Sengoku Jidai to a close. The Tokugawa clan ruled Japan until the Meiji Restoration in 1867.
General Information[]
This battle puts the player in control of the Toyotomi clan led by Ishida Mitsunari. However, Mitsunari's supposed allies are unreliable. Due to the continuous past disrespect by Ishida, the Shimazu forces led by Toyohisa do not commit to the battle unless provoked by the enemy. The Kobayakawa clan, led by Hideaki, starts passive initially but after some time, they turn on Mitsunari and attack. The key to winning this battle is to form Mitsunari's troops together in a particular defensible area, close to the Shimazu and away from Hideaki. The Shimazu force consists entirely of cavalry, and defend themselves if they are attacked. The Tokugawa forces helpfully oblige, but unfortunately with mainly yari-armed forces, and usually make quick work of the Shimazu army. The Shimazu aren't completely useless, as they usually buy enough time for the player's forces to destroy a good chunk of the Tokugawa army and reposition in anticipation of the Kobayakawa army.
The Ishida army consists of a strong mix of melee infantry, with a healthy amount of yari ashigaru and katana samurai, as well as a very large cavalry contingent consisting entirely of katana cavalry. The Ishida also possess numerous archers, though their damage potential is unfortunately rather low as they are all bow ashigaru. The yari ashigaru is useful for fending off the initial cavalry attacks with minimal casualties and then forming yari walls to tie down the enemy infantry, while the katana samurai and cavalry are best used on infantry while charging from the flanks or rear.
Tokugawa Ieyasu's army consists of a mix of yari cavalry, matchlock samurai, katana samurai, bow ashigaru and yari ashigaru. Tokugawa and Kobayakwa forces outnumber the Ishida and Satsuma army, but Tokugawa attacks in an uncoordinated way, throwing his cavalry in unsupported early, followed by his matchlock samurai. It is possible to bait the cavalry into a yari wall set up by some yari ashigaru, and then charge the matchlock samurai with the katana cavalry before they have a chance to set up and fire.
The initial matchlock and cavalry thrust is followed by the rest of the Tokugawa army, minus Tokugawa Ieyasu's bodyguard, in two columns: one towards the Shimazu and one towards the Toyotomi forces. Ieyasu's forces advance in clumps, allowing themselves to be easily surrounded and destroyed. Sending a couple of cavalry regiments to attack the unsupported general can also damage Tokugawa morale. The Kobayakawa army, consisting almost entirely of melee infantry, eventually arrive, and can be destroyed easily if the player has only sustained moderate casualties up to this point. As the Kobayakawa army has poor mobility and no ranged options, it is possible to bait their army by running around them with cavalry to tire them out, and to take potshots at them with any bow ashigaru remaining.
Tokugawa Ieyasu (Tokugawa Clan and Allies)[]
Tokugawa army:
- Tokugawa Ieyasu and his bodyguard (4 experience)
- 2x Yari Cavalry (2 experience)
- 7x Katana Samurai (2 experience)
- 4x Yari Ashigaru (2 experience)
- 4x Matchlock Samurai (2 experience)
- 2x Bow Ashigaru (2 experience)
Kobayakawa army:
- Kobayakawa Hideaki and his bodyguard (2 experience)
- 3x Naginata Samurai (2 experience)
- 1 Yari Ashigaru (2 experience)
- 2x Katana Samurai (2 experience)
Ishida Mitsunari (Western Coalition)[]
Ishida army (player controlled):
- Ishida Mitsunari and his bodyguard (3 experience)
- 5x Bow Ashigaru (0 experience)
- 5x Yari Ashigaru (0 experience)
- 4x Katana Samurai (0 experience)
- 5x Katana Cavalry (4 with 0 experience, 1 with 2 experience)
Shimazu army:
- Shimazu Yoshihiro and his bodyguard (3 experience)
- 2x Katana Cavalry (1 with 0 experience, 1 with 2 experience)