Bug? Strategic termination of Kensai.....

[BSM_Skkzarg]

Was playing SP earlier today, built my first Kensai of the evening and almost fell out of my chair when he was killed by an enemy ninja - NOT during a battle! Seems that if your Kensai is designated as a General - he is vulnerable to assassination on the strategic map.

What I am not real clear on is the manner of the assasination. A SwordSaint who is also a General has 2 seperate honor ratings. Its not uncommon for a Kensai to have a unit honor of 5 or more - yet the General rating may be as low as 0 or 1. The game uses Ninja honor vs General honor to get the odds and roll the dice. In this case - I really think the UNIT honor should be used since we are talking about a single being who is - on a 1v1 level - unbeatable.

First off - is this a bug? And which do you all think should be used to decide the honor rating of a SwordSaint vs a Ninja?

Skkzarg

[Warmaker]

Unit honor IMO since the "unit" is a single death dealing man...

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There's no such thing as overkill, just ensured victory!

[Algesan]

Nahhhh, general honor since when he is not in battle, he is practicing his weapon skills too hard. http://www.totalwar.org/ubb/biggrin.gif

Besides, you ever see ninjas fight a kensai? If the kensai is lucky, he takes one with him.

[Anssi Hakkinen]

This is very understandable - if you make the Kensai your general, he can of course be assassinated, just like any other general. All normal rules are in effect, including the rank vs. ninja honor check. And since the unit commander is killed if the assassination succeeds, and the Kensai is the unit commander as well as the only man in the unit, of course the Kensai unit is "wiped out". So it's not a bug.

Admittedly, it may be a bit silly that this "undefeatable" behemoth of the battlefield gets iced by some blowpipe or stabbed in the back. But then again, it can happen to the best "normal" generals too - even those WM ones who always delve right into the thick of battle with their subordinates. If we're going to change the rank vs. ninja honor roll to a general honor vs. ninja honor roll, it would be logical to do so for all units, not just the Kensai. Which (first of all) would seriously upset the strategic balance, as a rank 8 SA general would be tremendously easy to assassinate despite his immense value. In addition, the general's personal honor cannot be viewed anywhere, which would be confusing. So overall, it's just one of these things: making the change would be too much of an effort considering the relatively small benefit in "realism" it brings.

If you want an "in-game" solution, accept that while the Kensai is deadly in single combat, as a low-ranking general he simply isn't as savvy in "politics" (assassination evasion) than high-ranking nobles. Furthermore, if you do make him a taishô, he will be pampered with a personal guard, which will encourage him to give up his readiness in non-combat situations.

And besides, I think the failure animations, where the ninja buys it through a curtain or wall, are very appropriate for a Kensai general. http://www.totalwar.org/ubb/biggrin.gif

Aside - is it possible to make your heir a Kensai? That would be a sight, and hard to assassinate too. http://www.totalwar.org/ubb/smile.gif

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"It is my sole wish to serve the Emperor as His shield. I will not spare my life or honor."
- Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, composed on December 6, 1941

[monkeydan]

Tough call about what honour level to use - it does seem strange that a "sword saint" could be so easily dispatched. However, I guess that the Kensai's abilities are focussed on honourable combat in the field, not on detecting a dishonourable sneak attack. Even sword saints are vulnerable to the ol' knife in the back! http://www.totalwar.org/ubb/smile.gif