For the Ikko! A Shogun 2 AAR
A new AAR has been posted and will be updated regularly in the TreasAARy. The first post has been recreated here, for your viewing pleasure. Further updates will be found at the thread made in the treasAARy, which is here: https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showt...A-Shogun-2-AAR
This will be a story driven AAR that hopes to blend the gameplay of Shogun 2 with a rather basic narrative. I'll be playing as the Ikko-Ikki from the new Ikko-Ikki Clan Pack released by CA, which I highly recommend to campaign enthusiasts. Unlike my last AAR, i have played from the start with the intention to record the events transpiring, therefore, i have maps from all eras that i wish to write about. No more sloppy edits this time!
With that said, please allow me to present:
For The Ikko!
A Shogun 2 AAR.
I. Birth of a Republic
There is little doubt that the Sengoku Period was never about the common man, nor his plight. There may have been many honorable samurai who felt for them, or those who are believed to have ruled their lands wisely, the Lord who could claim to speak (and act) in the name of his people was rare. As battles waged across the isles and blood fueds spiraled into full scale wars between the clans, there was no doubt what the main motivator for many men was: Power. The Ashikaga Shogunate could not hope to contain the boiling cauldron that was the Japanese political system. Many powerful Daimyo believed it was time for a new Shogun, one who could control the clans. Still others believed their opportunities lied elsewhere. Why march upon Kyoto when you can carve out a sizable fiefdom, far from the eyes of the imperial court?
Yet it was not in these far flung provinces or unheard of provinces that the biggest threat to the power of the Shogun, and the very authority of the clans, would rise. Believe it or not it was in the very backyard of the capital, in a manner of speaking.
Japan, lands of the Ikko and their surrounding provinces highlighted
1545
The Ikko-Ikki had begun as an uprising of peasants, buddhist monks, shinto priests and lesser nobles. Men and women, people of all walks of life who found themselves united behind a single purpose and belief: disdain for the terrible violence that now gripped the sundered nation, but more than that, the teachings of Ikko appealed greatly to the downtrodden and the common man. Being told that all are equal in a land hopelessly divided by class and birth is a very powerful message. Having been driven from Omi province nearly seventy years prior to the start of this chronicle, they were for decades largely disorganized and interested in very little except self-sustainment. The teachings of the Ikko were primarily that of non-violence. Even after the violent uprisings in Kaga and Echizen province that expelled the samurai masters of those provinces. Perhaps they saw it a means to an end: Non-aggression without being defenseless. The victory was quite the ecomplishment, for the pair of provinces were effectively ruled by peasants. A first for Japanese history! But there was little indication that the Ikko wished anything but to remain neutral in the conflicts that were raging outside their borders, that is, until 1546
For it was during that time when a new power had risen in central Japan. The Hatano and Takaoka, two minor clans residing to the north west of Kyoto, signed a military alliance with one another. On their own they were of little concern to anyone, but together their alliance was a true force to be reckoned with - having clashed briefly with the powerful Yamana, and even stealing away territory from that famed clan. Led by the Daimyo of the Takaoka clan, Takoaka Yoriyasu, they had set their sights upon the lands of the Ikko-Ikki. Though not a true threat in the normal sense of the word, the Ikko resided upon some of the easiest traversed and extensive trade routes in the north. It was said that Ikko traders had contacts with nearly every major clan of Eastern Honshu, ensuring the collective enjoyed comfortable, if not immense, wealth. It would be the new Alliance's greatest triumph, to conquer the famed Ikko-Ikki...
To say that their first foray into Echizen was a disaster would be overstating it. In fact, not a single bow was notched until the following year simply because there was no fighting! Hatani Hidemichi marched into Echizen with the purpose of claiming the land for the alliance. But the march from Tango castle was long, having to pass through Wakasa on the way. By the time he reached the borders of the ikko lands, word had already reached his foes. Before him lay a host that could easily outnumber his own - the Ikko armed forces were little more than trained peasants, but one look at them as they stood proud on the field, banners caught high on the winds, and you knew they were ready for battle. Letters from the march make Hidemichi's opinion clear on that fact alone.
With not enough supplies to continue on and capture the province, as well as facing a numerically superior force.. and looking at an early chill of autumn nipping at his heals, Hidemichi retired from the field and marched back to Tango castle to gather the rest of the Alliance. It would take much more than the Hatano clan to overcome this obstacle. Unfortunately for him, Suzuki Sadayu, commander of the Ikko-Ikki force sent to halt Hidemichi's advance, was not so easily deterred. Sadayu launched a quick strike into Wakasa province, even as the alliance forces were in general retreat. The speed of the Ikko advance caught the defenders off guard, and Sadayu was able to bypass nearly all opposition and secured the provincial capital. Hidemichi, having been completely outflanked on his march, found Wakasa castle in the hands of the Ikko upon his arrival - embarrased, the Hatano general continued his retreat to Tango.
As winter approached and still no major fighting had taken place, the Takaoka Alliance was looking weaker by the day. Though they'd won great fame in their battles against the Yamana, mere peasants had not only deterred an invasion of Echizen province, but also managed to mount an effective counter-attack. But the Takaoka were not so easily demoralized, and as the cold winter tightened its icy grip on the land, they used the opportunity to build their forces near Miyazu in Tango province. There they gathered all their power in one great army, ready to march. Takaoka Yorimasu devised a plot to force the Ikko from Wakasa, and use the coming winters as a shield. He'd set out in late August, just as Autumn was on the cusp of dawning, win a glorious victory over the Ikko and winter in peace while he brought up additional forces. It's quite a shame that he never got to insitute his plan, for in the following spring while Yorimasu was still busy gathering his army, Sadayu entered Tango province almost unchallenged and attacked the encampments at Miyazu.
Battle of Miyazu
April, 1547
Beligerents: Ikko-Ikki vs Hatano, Takaoka clans (Takaoka Alliance)
Commanders: Suzuki Sadayu | Takaoka Yorimasu, Hatano Hidemichi
The encampments at Miyazu were in the shadows of a great mountain range, the foothills of which the Ikko had used to their great advantage as they advanced through the province. Moving through the trees and using the hills to disguise movement, Sadayu had approached within a three miles of the camps before anyone had known otherwise. Yet another great embarrassment heaped upon the alliance by the humble commander of peasants. Alliance forces were scrambling to get organized when Sadayu's banners went up on a nearby hill-top, and their response was confused and lumbering. A terrible rainstorm had taken to the skies, making visibility and coordination near impossible. The result was the Hatano moving out while the Takaoka were still trying to gather up their forces.
The Ikko in contrast suffered none of the disunity or disorganization that their foes did. As the Hatano advanced upon the Ikko positions unsupported, they came under heavy, concentrated fire from concealed archers. The shooters? Samurai of all things, ronin sympathetic to the Ikko plight had answered the call of defense less than a year ago in Echizen. Hidemichi had suffered enough embarrassments from these "peasants." First the determent from Echizen, then being outflanked on the march to Wakasa.. and now, mere ronin were firing on his men? If he had kept his head, he would have seen the Ikko position was a powerful one and awaited his allies. But he didn't. Mind blotted with anger and rage, he threw his forces at the hill...
The banners held high against the thundering sky, armor soaked through with rain, and a heavy warcry on the wind the Ikko charged down to meet the Hatano. Though they were technically far outnumbered by their enemies, surviving reports that reference the Ikko are filled with exageration and myth. Some dare make the claim that they had archers climbing to the top of the trees to get shots over the huge host! In reality the Ikko had used a combination of stealth, trickery and guile to obtain a very favorable position on the battlefield...
And it became clear that as the lines collided, though these may be peasants, they fought far harder than anyone could ever expect. Outnumbered at least two to one, Ikko divisions repulsed every attempt made by first the Hatano, and later the Takoaka, to climb the hill. The Ikko won small victory after small victory in the foothills of Miyazu, and each won sent morale soaring. Finally, the Alliance's line shuddered and snapped in half as the Ikko managed a break through. In a panic Takao Yorimasu himself charged his bodyguards forward in an attempt to close the breach. He was dragged from his horse and disappeared amidst a sea of orange banners...
Opposition crumbled once the leader of the alliance was dead and a route ensued. Tango province fell the next day as the battle weary veterans of Miyazu marched into the provincial capital, but the victory only caused new problems to rise. With the Alliance shattered and their lands now under firm control of the Ikko, the weary commander began to realize an obvious truth.
The Ikko now directly controlled a number of provinces in north-central Japan, good farmland and even better trade routes. While Suzuki Sadayu had battled for his people's survival in the north, new powers were rising beyond the Ikko borders. The Hattori in the south, Uesugi in the East and Yamana in the west. None cared much for the Ikko beliefs and way of life, and all would have loved to have added their lands to their own growing list of conquest. When he returned to Echizen, Sadayu called together the two most powerful men who he knew he could trust. Shonyo, head Monk and leader of the Ikko religious sect and his top advisor, Shimozuma Jutsurai.
What was actually said within the meeting of those men is not known, but we do know the result. After weeks of continued meetings, they at last emerged and set about the institution of a new form of government. The three men used their combined military, economic, and spiritual influence within the lands of the Ikko to bring together all of the cities and towns beneath one central authority. The Ikko Republic, as it would later be known, was formed as a result of their efforts. The people of Echizen and Kaga provinces had largely been forced to govern themselves ever since declaring independance, but after the Ikko's sudden emergence from their citadels, training of the populace and organization of the counter attack against the Alliance - there was little in the way of resistance to their continued support. Partly due to just who was in charge of the new collective government: Shonyo, the same man who sheperded the populace's souls would now protect them from mortal enemies as well.
With the power of the clans growing, his and the rest of the new council's power would be put to the test...
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