Line #6 YMMV/TotalWarShogun2


1	* AntiClimaxBoss: Because of The Black Ship's poor maneuverability and blind spots in the front and back, it's actually not that tough to sneak up on it. Something as simple as a single Firebomb Kobaya ship can constantly stay on the back end of The Black Ship and throw bombs until it sinks from a too intense fire. Capturing remains trickier, but simple destruction can be simple with the right tactics.
2	** The various ironclads of ''Fall of the Samurai'' have the potential to be quickly defeated if a torpedo or armor-piercing round strikes at just the right point. They're typically more sturdy, but a lucky shot can doom them.
3	* SugarWiki/AwesomeArt: While [[BrokenBase like all of the games]], there are always varying opinions on ''Shogun 2'', but the quality of its polish and art direction is rarely debated. The multitude of Japanese woodblock-style artwork used inside the game were all created entirely by the art team, and [[ShownTheirWork their fidelity]] caused some people to wonder in error where these authentic Japanese pieces used inside the game came from.
4	* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic: Needless to say, the soundtrack of ''Shogun II'' is one of the best in the series but a few musical compositions stand out from the rest:
5	** "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YooCDXpM9qE Ebb and Flow]]", the music you hear in the faction selection screen for the ''Fall of the Samurai'' campaign. It really captures the atmosphere of the era that [[EndOfAnAge the samurai reign is indeed over]], as the notes of modern drums invade the notes of the Japanese flute, the two instruments mingling and building up to a rousing climax.
6	** "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3h0heT3sVas Ona Hei]]". It's got the most views on Website/YouTube for a reason.
7	** "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7M4V9O3MiFo Yoisa]]", with its' use of taiko drums.
8	** The credit song ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bs8ncO_eXQ Bird of Time]]'', it's a {{Tearjerker}} example of this.
9	** "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZESc67oxoAg Duty Calls]]", the pre-battle theme music for ''Fall of the Samurai'', blends a creative usage of the flute with brass, strings and drums, to create a tune that perfectly captures an epic prelude to a battle.
10	** "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxFx7PS6GnE Good Death]]". Holy hell, Good Death. This is a song that often plays when the first drops of blood are spilled in battle. With its pulse-pounding drums, whistling instruments, epic bassy backdrop, and occasional war cries, it turns any battle into what feels like a fight to the death, and can make even the most bitter defeat feel like an incredible last stand.
11	* ComplacentGamingSyndrome: Getting the Warhorses resource is probably going to be the top priority for any factions near to them (which is around half of them), as it is oddly highly-valued to the AI factions and will cause them to be willing to pay you thousands of koku for trade agreements if they lack the resource.
12	** Regardless of the clan you picked, [[BoringButPractical Yari Ashigaru and Bow Ashigaru]] will be the mainstay of your armies right up until the end-game. [[WeHaveReserves Samurai lives are expensive, peasant lives are cheap]]. Oda specialise in this too.
13	* EvenBetterSequel: The game is considered by some fans to be one of the (if not ''the'') best historical ''Total War'' entry yet, building on what worked in the previous games while both introducing new gameplay elements and doing justice to the original ''Shogun.''
14	** The smaller scale was widely well-received in particular; after the nearly-global scale of ''Empire'' and ''Napoleon'', having a more manageable and comprehensible map was a welcome change.
15	* SugarWiki/FunnyMoments:
16	** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMlu7ZleclI The Ninja Fail scenes.]]
17	** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzfr6Z-XMoQ The Geisha Fail scenes.]] One particularly noteworthy scene is when the Geisha attempts to seduce a Christian missionary, who crosses himself and begins to panic. His panicking catches the attention of a passing guard, who intervenes and kills the Geisha. Relieved, the missionary praises God. A Catholic or a non-Catholic Christian player would see this as both a SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome and SugarWiki/{{Heartwarming\|Moments}}: God does protect the faithful indeed.
18	** The LargeHam aide-de-camp's voice lines especially the (in)famous "Shameful display!".
19	* GeniusBonus:
20	** A nice little reference is hidden in the flavor text of the Gambling Hall building: "An eight. A nine. And...a three!" That's the worst possible hand in the blackjack-like game of Oicho-Kabu...a combination called "[[Main/{{Yakuza}} ya-ku-za"]].
21	** Shinto-Buddhism is the main religion for almost all of the clans in the game (aside from the Christian Otomo and the radical Ikko-Ikki). Historically, Japan practiced a syncretic religion known as [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shinbutsu-shūgō Shinbutsu-shūgō]] (meaning "syncretism of kami and buddhas" in Japanese) which combined elements of Shinto and Zen Buddhism. Many Japanese Buddhist temples were also attached to Shinto shrines to form a place of worship known as [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jingū-ji Jingū-ji]].
22	* GoddamnBats: The most persistent annoyance that you'll be subjected to is sea trade route raids and port blockades by hostile fleets. It can get bad at the start when you have no money to spare on ship construction and fleet upkeep and will get even worse when realm divide/final stand begins.
23	* GoodBadBugs: Fire arrows are supposed to be unavailable in rain battles. However, while the developers correctly disabled the ability to deploy them manually with left-click, they forgot that you can also order your troops do so automatically by right-clicking the button. While not particularly game-breaking in the campaign due to the latter being on for the AI by default, it can be easily exploited in multiplayer against an opponent who doesn't know about the oversight.
24	* LowTierLetdown:
25	** Pretty much every siege unit outside of Fire Rockets are considered to be basically useless -- they require significant buildings to produce them (likely also requiring a significant investment in requisite arts), slow down armies on the campaign map for having them, and will take a large amount of luck to actually hit any of the enemy. Fire Projecting Mangonels were initially infamous for being a GameBreaker in multiplayer that could easily kill off a player's general while they affected by Inspire, but the Inspire ability's power was reduced and siege units' accuracy was nerfed for this and put siege units into their detested state.
26	** Wooden Cannons in Fall of the Samurai are the first artillery you can make in the campaign, but they are leagues behind literally any other artillery piece, and might even be worse than Fire Projecting Mangonels. Unlike the other artillery, Wooden Cannon shells do not explore on impact, so in the unlikely case the inaccurate cannons actually hit a unit, they might not even kill a single person. The only redeeming quality in single player is that they can force an AI who would normally be defending in a battle to attack, which can be accomplished with any other artillery piece. They have no redeeming qualities in multiplayer.
27	** While Yari Ashigaru in Yari Wall are the mainstays of armies for much of the game, Yari Samurai are derided in single-player campaigns for costing three times as much as Yari Ashigaru and lacking the Yari Wall ability that makes Yari Ashigaru such a reliable frontline unit. Infact, a Yari Ashigaru in Yari wall will beat a Yari Samurai in a head to head fight. That being said, them and their Rapid Advance ability are considered much more useful in multiplayer given human players are far better at avoiding/shooting up Yari Ashigaru in Yari Wall and won't let you just kill their generals/calvary with slow-moving spearmen as easily.
28	** Yari Samurai are left without much of a role to play, with almost no need to produce them instead of other units. On the surface, Yari units are meant for fighting cavalry, and they are essentially a superior version of Yari Ashigaru with higher stats across the board. However, their inability to form a Yari Wall means that Yari Ashigaru are actually ''better'' anti-cavalry units on top of being much cheaper with less build requirements. Thus, their primary purpose is better achieved by another unit. Even worse, Yari Wall is also effective against infantry as well, meaning that Yari Samurai get crushed by Yari Ashigaru, while Yari Ashigaru can put up a reasonable fight (but still lose) against the anti-infantry Katana Samurai. About the only thing that saves them from complete uselessness is their special ability to temporarily run faster. Since most factions begin a campaign with a unit of Yari Samurai, they can be an early-game cavalry surrogate for flanking maneuvers and chasing down routing enemies. Still, even the weakest cavalry unit is still much faster without the need for a special ability to be activated.
29	** No-Dachi Samurai trade [[GlassCannon nearly all of the Katana Samurai's defensive abilities]] for higher attack and morale and a much higher charge Bonus, allowing them to potentially [[AlphaStrike quickly overpower and rout enemy formations]] before they suffer from their lack of defense in a prolonged battle. This doesn't work very well in practice, because they're still normal foot soldiers. Cavalry (that move much faster) and Kisho Ninja (who can sneak behind enemy lines) are much better for the flanking maneuvers that GlassCannon units need to perform to fight to their full potential, and their lack of speed in particular means they can often pull off no more than a single shock attack per battle, because they can't engage in hit-and-run tactics. Despite often not performing objectively better in a straight fight than normal Katana Samurai, they also have a higher technology and cost requirement, which means they can't be obtained until at least the mid-game. The only faction that can make somewhat good use of them is the Date clan, whose No-Dachi units are much better (but still not necessarily objectively good).\
30	In Multiplayer, No-Dachi's Banzai ability can be extremely useful, as it ensures they keep fighting even when they are about to rout. In traditional versus modern multiplayer battles, No-Dachi are invaluable. Fall of the Samurai gun units effectively ignore armor anyway, so the No-Dachi's lack of armor doesn't matter. The No-Dachi's sky high attack and Banzi ability means they will cut through any gun units they get in melee with like butter, and they can keep fighting even when their moral would otherwise be shot.
31	* MemeticMutation: "Our men are running from the battlefield. [[http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/shamefur-dispray Shameful display]]!" The quote comes from the [[LargeHam rather hammy]] and thickly-accented battlefield advisor, who bellows the statement every time a unit is routed (a not uncommon occurrence, especially with ashigaru units which may rout if the enemy so much as sneezes in their direction). The overly-dramatic delivery courtesy of Dai Tabuchi is widely considered humorous. [[AscendedMeme As time has worn on]], "shameful display" has practically become a CatchPhrase for the Total War series, being deliberately used in every following entry, though not necessarily in the same context.
32	* SugarWiki/MostWonderfulSound:
33	** There's nothing quite like the advisor saying "My Lord! A glorious victory will soon be yours!" because it usually means the enemy is on its last legs.
34	** The battle horn of an enemy unit routing from the battlefield.
35	** The loud, resounding "Hai!" you'll get in reply to giving an order to a large control group will really make you feel like you're a daimyo.
36	* NightmareFuel: [[https://youtu.be/K7TCFkdFr6g The Fall of the Samurai trailer]]: it starts off with a Samurai Master talking about the codes and honor of their culture, how the blade is an extension of their soul, and the painstaking care put into making each blade...before the narration slams to a halt and shows where the DLC gets its name, [[ForegoneConclusion as countless Samurai are scythed down by Gatling Guns]] to [[DissonantSerenity the cheery narration of the salesman.]] It's not conventional horror, but it's still chilling nonetheless.
37	* SignatureLine: Say it with us, "Our men are running from the battlefield. Shameful display!".
38	* ScrappyMechanic:
39	** "Realm Divide" tends to be one of the most criticized aspects of the game which is otherwise highly rated as one of the best in the series. Careful diplomacy can seem pointless when suddenly every otherwise non-hostile clan declares war on you on the same turn because of it.
40	** The ''Fall of the Samurai'' expansion softens Realm Divide, perhaps in response to complaints about it in the base game. In that DLC you have the option to fight in the name of either the Emperor or the Shogun, and sticking to your allegiance allows you to only have to suffer the Realm Divide diplomatic penalty with the opposite allegiance. Of course, you could always opt [[TakeAThirdOption to attempt to form a Republic]] if you really want the original (or perhaps even harsher) Realm Divide DifficultySpike, but at least you have the option of potentially maintaining military alliances or lesser non-hostility until the end of the game by sticking to an allegiance. Clans under the same allegiance might still betray you, but it's no longer a guarantee at least.
41	** In ''Fall of the Samurai'', the auto-resolve massively overvalues firearm units compared to kachi. In a manual battle, equal numbers of kachi versus line infantry will result in the infantry shooting one volley, then being utterly outclassed in melee. Auto-resolve will almost certainly have the line infantry winning. If you're fielding a mostly-traditional army, this means more time spent manually fighting battles lopsided in your favor. It also explains why you'll only rarely see all-traditional AI survive to the late game, even though a horde of shogitai are both terrifying and unstoppable.
42	* SpiritualLicensee: The ''Fall of the Samurai'' DLC may as well be a prequel to ''Film/TheLastSamurai''. One reviewer even called it "the Creator/TomCruise DLC."
43	* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter / TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The original ''Shogun'' featured the ''Mongol Invasion'' expansion where you could defend Japan by repelling the Mongols or change history by conquering Japan as the Mongols. Fans who were expecting an official expansion for ''Shogun II'' that featured the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mongol_invasions_of_Japan Mongol Invasions of Japan]] were disappointed when the idea never came through.
44	** Similarly, many fans are disappointed that the Japanese invasions of Korea were never featured as well. The sheer awesomeness of China and Korea fighting Japan is another idea that never came to be.

Context YMMV / TotalWarShogun2