Yari Kachi

Boshin_Traditional_MP_Inf_Yari_Kachi Image

Basic Unit Statistics (can be modified by difficulty level, arts, skills, traits and retainers)

Recruitment Cost 800
Upkeep Cost 110
Melee Attack 10 28%
Charge Bonus 10 20%
Bonus vs Cavalry 15 50%
Melee Defence 10 28%
Armour 4 26%
Morale 8 16%

Strengths & Weaknesses

  • Average in melee.
  • Very good against cavalry.
  • Good melee defence.
  • Weak against missile attacks and sword-armed units.
  • Good morale.

Description

These spear-armed warriors are incredibly effective against enemy cavalry.

Yari kachi are extremely adaptable troops in battle. Spears can be used at the charge and while in defence. The length of spears makes them especially effective against mounted troops, forming an almost impenetrable wall that can pierce the breasts of horses or skewer riders. In melee their defence can hold for some time, although they are vulnerable to attack from katana units. However, they have no defence against missile attacks, lacking the mobility to move quickly out of range. Although the sword is the weapon most often associated with the samurai in popular imagination, the spear was just as integral to the samurai way. Three weapons, forged by the greatest blacksmiths in Japanese history, passed into legend and became known as the Three Great Spears of Japan. The first was Otegine; the second, Nihongo, passed through the hands of several famous warriors; the third, Tonbogiri, is perhaps the best known. Owned by the warrior Honda Tadakatsu, Tonbogiri was known as the "dragonfly cutting spear". Legend has it that the spear was so sharp a dragonfly that landed upon its blade was instantly sliced in two.