Chosokabe guides, hints and tips

[Jacobin]

I've tried several strategies with Chokosabe at legendary difficulty.

You can either start off by conquering the whole of Shikoku or you can ally with the Myoshi in the East who seem to be pretty reliable allies if you let them take Sanuki.

The latter lets you immediately start expanding west -my favourite strategy is to land in Hizen in the far NW as that and the neighbouring province (which should be called Chikuzen but is spelt weirdly for some reason on the campaign map) are easily the two richest provinces on the western half of the map.

Having taken these you can then mop up the rest of Kyushu - and only then should you start on the many small poor provinces on the western end of the big island - taking Nagato first as it is the richest and then Suo and Aki as they are good for recruiting cavalry and warrior monks.

One problem with leaving the advance west too late is that the Ouchi, Otomo and Ito seem preprogrammed to go Christian quite early - so the later you leave it the more likely that the western provinces will be 100% Christian and thus harder to hold down.

(of course if you go Christian yourself that's a feature and not a bug - but personally I find warrior monks and the monk agent far more useful than matchlocks and missionaries).

You also need to focus heavily on trade as very few western provinces have fertile soil - and there are a lot of small poor provinces to garrison once you started rolling east down the big island - this is another good reason to take Hizen early as this is a lot better placed than Tosa or Iyo to spam trade ships to fill up the western nodes.

It is also important to establish trade links asap with the Hojo or whoever holds the richest eastern provinces - these should stay at peace with you a lot longer than the western and central clans.

[Madae]

I second the expansion into Kyushu after Shikoku, though I would think that would be common knowledge. Kyushu is the money-making capitol of Japan in Shogun 2. I would even go as far as to say that any clan you play in the game should make an attempt for Kyushu - even the Date who are the furthest away from it. The possibilities of cash flow that come from it (being primarly coastal cities with ports) and the, rather unbalanced, collection of trade resource nodes nearby should make it a prime target for any clan. I will always try and make it a priority in my games, and if I don't, I regret that I didn't later in the game.

Aside from being a cash cow, it's an extremely defensible position once the whole of it has been taken, what with only one land route in the north east... though the AI is definitely more prone to water invasions in this game than previous titles. Still, the money you make from it is more than enough to pay for the fleets required to defend it and then some.

[Jungle Rhino]

Heading East and taking Kii is not a bad idea as that and the province just north with Philisophical Tradition can be big time cash cows IF you can hold on to them ;) Good ninja's out the gate are a big plus also. Really depends if you can form some solid alliances in that region of the map and if you want to become involved in the Kyoto furball early or not.

[Maltz]

Just started my first Legendary attempt on Chosokabe. Man, it is not easy.

I have a slightly alternative approcah to boot the campaign for Legendary, where diplomacy (avoiding being hated by multiple clans) becomes important. I think it is better to stay in good terms with the other two clans on Shigoku (our strating four-nation island), Sogo and Miyoshi. The reason is that you can profit MORE at least at the early stages:

(1) As ATM: Legendary AI is RICH. Both love to buy your military access. This gives you about 8000 koku just in the first several turns (sell 5 turns, then next turn sell 10 turns, then next turn sell 20 turns, then every few turns sell 20 turns again). You can easily afford Trading Ports in both provinces and upgrade some if not all economic infrastructures.

(2) As trading partners. Once you start occupying the trading nodes, trading with these two clans will become even more profitable than occupying them and collect taxes yourself. Sogo and Miyoshi's provinces have NO port, so taking their provinces actually makes you LOSE two trading incomes and a dip in diplomatic favors to their allies.

By staying friendly with them and sell our year passes, the initial investment all goes to infrastructure and trading fleet. When the two trading ports are completed, you can then seek out two sea trading partners.

Note: This method might backfire if Sogo and Miyoshi refuses to fight each other or declare war on you. Then you are stuck with two provinces, although being very wealthy.

[Jungle Rhino]

I went a completely different path Maltz. I conquered the entirity of Shikoku very quickly, then switched to Christianity. Trying to control the seas on Legendary with conventional navies is just painful, so European ships are a must have IMO.

Making use of the Chosokabe farm bonus and town wealth/research boost from Christian buildings I kept my economy afloat that way rather than worrying about having active trade routes. You can still get a decent amount of tarrif income regardless, and post RD when money is tight you won't hav many trade partners left anyhow.

My toughest time actually came when I invaded the mainland and lost 3 stacks (plus generals) due to my ineptness at commanding large amounts of bow on Legendary. I adapted my tactics and eventually arrived at a successful technique but boy it was a bit grim for a while :) Still was one of my most enjoyable campaigns as a result.

I will be interested if your peaceful approach works out for you!