Oda Horde

I have been playing the Shogun full campaign on Hard as Hojo and I have encountered the Oda horde three times straight. I find it very unpleasing and monotonous to have to fight against 6000 men armies every turn, and using the port trick to devastate his economy is the only way to counter the Horde. Is there some way where other clans may rise to power, such as Shimazu, Mori, or Takeda instead of always being Oda and then Imagawa dominating the western island? This monotony does injustice to the game and there should be more diversity in how each game ends in terms of dominating clans.

Use some port invasions early on to disrupt the balance of power in favor of whoever you want the final showdown to be against.

Funny you should mention that particular hoard, as I've been hammering away at Oda myself. I've been playing Takeda and met the hoard headed by old Nobunaga himself in(what's the emperor's province...Yamashiro?)and barely, I mean barely pulled a victory out of the deal (on the 2nd try). Even though I had Shingen and a pretty balanced army, let me tell you, hoards of Cavalry & No Dachi, all with Legendary weapons, morale and (thankfully not legendary armor)are no fun to deal with. I routed his first wave without too much trouble, but wave after wave of cavalry poured in at the charge and had my boys on the run before long. They did'nt pursue though and I was able to rally. But for my reinforcements (1HC, 3WM, 1YS) I would have retreated in shame. Instead, we killed Nobunaga & company and had some Sake and a great war story...those who survived that is...

Early on, I am trying to beat down Useugi and defend my borders against Takeda. When I finally pacify Useugi, which takes some five years or so, Oda has already carved out a vast empire. Even with three provinces producing units, it is difficult to combat that horde. It isn't as bad as the Hojo Horde, but it makes the game static and deprived of diversity and spontaneity.