Three Kingdoms Historical Information & Discussion

**zoner16** · June 17, 2018, 08:34 PM

I wanted to provide a place for sharing historical information about the time period, asking/answering any questions people might have, and generally discussing and debating anything to do with the historical setting of the game. If anyone has anything to share or ask, please feel free to so we can collect as much information as we can get. I'd prefer it if gameplay discussions stayed in the other threads, so we can keep this one largely focused and useful as a reference later on.

Since this is a character focused game, I figured I might as well start with some brief summaries of the people we've seen in the game or trailers so far, either as a focal point or in passing. I'll try to keep this organized by (likely) starting faction, since a lot of people change around. I'll also include their style name (which they are sometimes referred to by) and the highest position and peerage they achieved, to provide some context.

The Cao Clan of Qiao

Cao Cao [Mengde] (Chancellor of State, King of Wei, Emperor Wu of Wei (posthumously))

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Hailing from a family of good prestige and minor peerage from Pei state in Yu province, Cao Cao was originally a middling official in the imperial capitol before he was able to achieve a notable reputation as a commander and administrator during the Yellow Turban rebellion and the failed Coalition against Dong Zhuo (where he was one of the only people who actually fought). Despite having lost much of his army during the campaign, Cao Cao was able to put down several major bandit armies, including a Yellow Turban resurgence in Yan province, a feat that, along with the favor of his former schoolmate Yuan Shao, gained him Yan province as his own.

He attempted to conquer Xu province, only to be forced back to Yan to drive off an invasion by Lu Bu. Then, an opportunity arose and Cao Cao managed to take Emperor Xian under his protection from the former forces of Dong Zhuo, becoming Minister of Works. Using this new authority, he put his claim on most of the Henan region, launched a punitive expedition against Yuan Shu to the south (who had declared himself emperor), invaded Xu again (now under Lu Bu) and took it, struck south into Jing province against Zhang Xiu and Liu Biao, and then launched his brilliant campaign against the huge power of Yuan Shao to the north. He emerged victorious from the closely fought Guandu campaign, breaking the back of Yuan power, and then conquering the four northern provinces from Yuan Shao's sons and their Wuhuan and Xiongnu allies, unifying the empire north of the Yangtze.

Despite being defeated at the Battle of Chibi by the Sun-Liu alliance, halting his southward advance, he was able to conquer the northwestern province of Liang and solidify control over an area that comprised around 75% of the empire's population. He rebuilt the imperial administration mostly from scratch, using the people who joined him along the way. Many of the best minds in the empire came to work for him, and he even succeeded in making the rebellion sundered northern regions prosperous again, reintroducing the military-agricultural colonies. Xianbei activity declined as their leaders either sent tribute to Cao Cao or pledged loyalty to him, including the powerful Kebineng. Arts and scholarship flourished once again as he patronized both and funded educational endeavors throughout the north.

He was eventually made Imperial Chancellor, unifying the positions of the Three Excellencies, and enoffed as first Duke, then King of Wei, becoming the first non-imperial clan King since the days of Former Han. He died in 220AD, following the victory at Fancheng, leaving behind one of the strongest and most well run states in the world at the time, succeeded by his son Cao Pi. He was posthumously named Emperor Wu of Wei.

Xiahou Dun [Yuanrang] (General in Chief, Marquis of Gao'an)

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Xiahou Yuan [Miaocai] (General Who Conquers the West, Marquis of Bochang)

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Along with his cousin Xiahou Dun, Xiahou Yuan was one of the original members of Cao Cao's army during the days of the coalition. He was also Cao Cao's brother in law. He held administrative posts in Yan province along with his cousin until the Guandu campaign, whereupon he joined Cao Cao as a logistics officer and performed admirably. From that point on, he was dispatched to trouble spots throughout Cao Cao's territory to put down rebellions with incredible speed. After Cao Cao secured his southern border following the disaster at Chibi, Xiahou Yuan was sent to pacify the northwest of the empire along with Zhong Yao. This caused the warlords of Liang and Yong province to unite against them under Ma Chao and Han Sui. Cao Cao arrived personally to direct them, and the rebels were defeated and scattered in the Battle of Huayin.

Cao Cao then left Xiahou Yuan in charge of dealing with the survivors, which he did with a passion, chasing incredibly mobile enemies through harsh terrain on the frontier. He first marched on Ma Chao, who had besieged the Inspector of Liang at Jicheng, but the inspector surrendered before he got there, he was ambushed while force marching across the countryside, and a rebellion forced him to retreat. He returned later when the people of Jicheng and Lucheng rose in revolt against Ma Chao and helped drive him into Hanzhong. Ma Chao did return, but Xiahou Yuan and Zhang He drove him off again. He then went after Han Sui, chasing him to Lueyang, where he then attacked the nearby Qiang people, who recalled their warriors from Han Sui's army to resist him. Han Sui was defeated soon after, his allies among the Di people were subjugated as well, followed by the Xiongnu. Xiahou Yuan was ultimately so successful against them that most of the rest of the northwestern empire surrendered to him after he was victorious.

Following this victory, Xiahou Yuan was made General Who Conquers the West, with many famous officers under his command, such as Zhang He, Xu Huang, and Guo Huai. He participated in the first Hanzhong campaign against Zhang Lu, where his reputation among the local Di and Qiang tribes caused them to surrender or defect the moment he arrived, resulting in Zhang Lu's defeat almost immediately. However, Liu Bei then invaded Hanzhong. Xiahou Yuan's subordinates defeated the first invasion under Ma Chao and Zhang Fei without any issue. However, during the second, Fa Zheng and Huang Zhong ambushed him in a gorge, killing him in 219AD. Rather than rout however, his well disciplined army fell back to a better position under his subordinates, who kept Liu Bei from advancing further until Cao Cao arrived.

Despite his untimely death, the region he left behind was so secure that despite repeated attempts by Shu to invade it over the coming years, it never fell into enemy hands. His subordinates kept the region safe and the good relations he fostered among the people, both Chinese and non-Chinese, kept the region from returning to the chaos it had been in prior.

Yue Jin [Wenqian] (General of the Right, Marquis of Guangchang)

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One of the Five Elite Generals of Wei, Yue Jin was also one of those who joined Cao Cao near the beginning, either when he was first raising troops for the campaign against Dong Zhuo, or right after, when Cao Cao came to Dong Commandery. Bringing over a thousand men from his home county of Yangping, he was given his own command during the battles for Yan and Xu provinces. During the campaign against Lu Bu, he gained a reputation for bravery bordering on recklessness, often personally leading the vanguard into the thick of the enemy army. Later, during the campaign against Zhang Xiu, when Cao Cao was forced to flee after the ambush at Wan Castle, Yue Jin was one of those who fought the rearguard action that allowed Cao Cao to escape. Over the next few years, Yue Jin was repeatedly awarded distinction as the vanguard of Cao Cao's army in further battles against Lu Bu, Liu Bei, and bandit groups throughout the central plains.

His most famous exploits were yet to come however. During the opening stages of the Guandu campaign, he and Yu Jin made a massive raid with a few thousand troops against overextended parts of Yuan Shao's army, the damage from which set Yuan Shao back months. Then, at the climax of the campaign, he personally led the charge over the walls at Wuchao and killed the commanding general, sealing the victory over Yuan Shao. He would go on to again command the vanguard against Yuan Shao's sons, and during the siege of Nanpi, was once again one of the first over the walls.

After the disaster at Chibi, Yue Jin was given command of Xiangyang, one of the last strongholds that Cao Cao held in Jing and the absolute south of his defensive line. Guan Yu attempted to take this city several times, but Yue Jin defeated him at every point. After that front stabilized, he was moved east, to Hefei, where he held the castle against Sun Quan's massive army (over ten times Yue Jin's garrison) for weeks until attrition forced Sun Quan to withdraw, at which point Zhang Liao ambushed and nearly killed him in the ford. Yue Jin would go on to participate in the first two battles of Ruxu, but even his bravery could not overcome Lu Meng's brilliance. He died in 218AD of natural causes.

Guo Jia [Fengxiao] (Libationer to the Minister of Works, Marquis of Weiyang)

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Probably the most famous of Cao Cao's advisors, Guo Jia was one of many refugees from Yingchuan Commandery in Yu who went to take refuge with Yuan Shao when Dong Zhuo started his rise to power. He was also one of the several who eventually found Yuan Shao not to their liking and went south to join Cao Cao instead (Xun Yu and Xun You were among these). He and Cao Cao became good friends rather quickly, and despite his personal quirks, he quickly became very trusted among Cao Cao's staff. He had an incredible understanding of people, often able to predict their actions almost perfectly based on their temperament and history.

With this, he was able to leave his mark on almost every single campaign from the moment Cao Cao took him in. He and Xun Yu created the overarching strategy to defeat Yuan Shao and unite the central plains, including their order of opponents and who to send to each front. He then took part in the final campaign against Lu Bu, where he and Xun You devised the flood attack that won the siege of Xiapi, and then followed it up by making sure that Liu Bei was crushed and unable to betray them later. He then took part in the Guandu campaign and following Yuan Shao's death, convinced Cao Cao of the necessity of ensuring that the Yuan family was utterly destroyed along with their Wuhuan allies.

Thus began the great northern campaign, which ended with Cao Cao crushing the Wuhuan, receiving the tacit surrender of the Liaodong region (who sent him the heads of Yuan Shao's sons), and making such an impression upon the local Xianbei tribes that many flocked to join him, making his already formidable cavalry even more so. Guo Jia's advice was seen at the climax of this, where he counselled that the best way to achieve victory would be to leave the baggage behind and take the swiftest troops on a surprise attack through the passes, a strategy that was wildly successful. However, Guo Jia fell ill after the victory and died on the way back from the front in 207AD. Cao Cao would famously quote after the disaster at Chibi that if Guo Jia had been with him, he would not have suffered such a defeat.

Dian Wei (Colonel)

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Originally a strongman for hire from Chenliu Commandery in Yan, Dian Wei joined the coalition against Dong Zhuo as a regular footsoldier under Zhang Miao. He quickly gained a reputation for both bravery and incredible strength on the frontlines, including performing well during the defeat at Xingyang. This got him noticed by Xiahou Dun, who got him transferred under his command and made a major. He then went on to serve during the many battles for Yan province, earning notoriety on all sides as a terrifying warrior.

Eventually, Cao Cao went to war with Lu Bu and fighting erupted in Yan once again. During a night attack on a camp near Lu Bu's base at Puyang, Cao Cao's forces were caught by Lu Bu's main army and attacked from three sides. Dian Wei led a select group of soldiers equipped in the heaviest armor they could find into the enemy formation to open a hole for the rest of the army to exploit. He let the enemy get as close as he could before he and his men charged them and broke the line, allowing Cao Cao's army to retreat. For this act, he was made the commander of Cao Cao's bodyguards with the rank of chief commandant.

His last and most famous act was during the ambush at Wan castle in 197AD. Cao Cao had obtained the surrender of the nearby warlord Zhang Xiu, but had then offended Zhang Xiu by taking his aunt as a concubine and attempting to buy off one of his best warriors. Zhang Xiu and his strategist Jia Xiu then launched a brilliant night raid on Cao Cao's camp, destroying the army he brought with him and killing Cao Cao's son and heir, Cao Ang. As soon as Cao Cao made it out of the gates of the camp on horseback, Dian Wei and a few of his best men took up a defensive position in the gates, fighting until everyone but Dian Wei was dead and he had received so many injuries that he was likely alive on adrenaline alone. Zhang Xiu's men were so terrified of him that they refused to go forward until he finally succumbed to his injuries, by which point Cao Cao was long gone. They even refused to remove the head from his body, as would normally be the case when one killed a famous enemy. Cao Cao would eventually reclaim his body and give him a proper funeral, and every time he passed Dian Wei's grave, he would stop and mourn.

Xu Chu [Zhongkang] (General of Martial Commandant and Marshal of the Center, Marquis of Mou)

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Chen Gong [Gongtai] (Unrecorded)

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The Liu Clan of Zhuo

Liu Bei [Xuande] (General of the Left, Emperor Zhaolie of Han)

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An incredibly distant descendant of the imperial Liu clan, Liu Bei grew up in poverty in Zhuo County, Zhuo Commandery, You Province following the death of his father at a young age. He had the good fortune to go to school with a certain Gongsun Zan, who would enjoy a more successful early life and bring Liu Bei under his wing to help deal with the multiple rebellions in the north (including the yellow turbans). During these rebellions, he made several friends who would follow him for the rest of his life and be instrumental in his campaigns, such as Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Jian Yong. He would serve under Gongsun Zan for several years until the collapse of the coalition, whereupon, he would join Tao Qian who was attempting to prevent Cao Cao from taking over Xu Province. Though Liu Bei was no match for him, Cao Cao was forced to call off the campaign to deal with Lu Bu, and Liu Bei was made Tao Qian's successor by popular demand.

Liu Bei spent the next several years being betrayed and betraying, usually to his ultimate detriment. He was defeated by pretty much every other warlord in the area, occasionally allying with one before either they were destroyed or he left them. Eventually, he was kicked out of the north entirely after his last master, Yuan Shao, was defeated at Guandu. Despite this, he never lost his core group of followers and retainers, and took them south to join Liu Biao, whereupon he was stationed in northern Jing province, as a defense against Cao Cao. He took on more followers here, including Zhuge Liang, and even managed to defeat Xiahou Dun at the Battle of Bowang before Liu Biao's death and succession by his younger son Liu Cong caused most of Jing province to capitulate to Cao Cao. Liu Bei's army barely escaped annihilation at the Battle of Changban and they managed to hook up with Liu Biao's elder son Liu Qi in Xiakou, which was still loyal to him.

In Xiakou, Liu Bei met the Sun family emissary Lu Su, who, along with Zhuge Liang, managed to cement an alliance between the two clans to oppose Cao Cao. What followed was the climactic battle at Chibi, where the much smaller army of Zhou Yu and Liu Bei managed to destroy the Cao navy thanks to Zhou Yu's brilliance, better naval experience, and good old home team advantage in terrain and disease resistance. Liu Bei immediately capitalized on this by occupying most of southern Jing while his Sun allies were busy fighting Cao Cao's much stronger army in the north. He even convinced Sun Quan to give up half the territory he had conquered in the north, though the details of this arrangement would have dire consequences.

At this point, Liu Bei finally got some military strategists that were worth something in Pang Tong and Fa Zheng, who gave him a plan that would let him conquer Yi province from his relative Liu Zhang in a single decisive campaign. He followed their advice and despite the unfortunate death of Pang Tong, managed to take Yi province, putting him on semi equal footing with Sun Quan in terms of land and people. He then proceeded to conquer the southern part of Liang province, Hanzhong, killing Xiahou Yuan in the process. However, Fa Zheng died soon after. Liu Bei proclaimed himself King of Hanzhong, the title the founder of the Han Dynasty Liu Bang had once held. However, while he was away, the Jing province situation boiled over. Several diplomatic incidents had turned Sun Quan against him, and Guan Yu's bold attack on Fancheng in northern Jing had left him vulnerable. Sun Quan's best general Lu Meng proceeded to brilliantly conquer almost all of Jing province and kill Guan Yu with almost no casualties.

At this point, Cao Cao died and was succeeded by his son Cao Pi, who forced Emperor Xian to abdicate to him, formally establishing the Wei dynasty. In response, Liu Bei claimed to be the legitimate successor to Han and took the title of Emperor as well. He then went on a punitive expedition against Wu, where, bereft of his best strategists, he was decisively crushed by a fire attack at the battle of Xiaoting by Lu Xun. He died the next year, 223AD, of natural causes. Despite being neither a military or administrative genius, his exceptional charisma and ability to foster personal loyalty despite dire circumstances allowed him to survive countless events that would have destroyed most warlords and eventually established one of the Three Kingdoms.

Guan Yu [Yunchang] (General of the Front, Marquis of Hanshou)

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Originally from Hedong Commandery in the capitol province of Sili, Guan Yu started his career during the Yellow Turban rebellion, where he joined a volunteer army under Liu Bei along with Zhang Fei. The three of them were incredibly close and were said to be as brothers, though the oath part is mostly a Romance invention. He followed Liu Bei throughout all of his early career, though not doing anything of particular note until he was captured by Cao Cao's army after Liu Bei betrayed Cao Cao not long after the defeat of Lu Bu and chose to serve Cao Cao. Cao Cao evidently liked Guan Yu a lot, as he had him made a lieutenant-general almost immediately.

During the Guandu campaign, at the Battle of Boma, he and Zhang Liao were sent to fight the army of Yuan Shao's general Yan Liang and relieve the garrison at Boma. During the chaotic battle, Guan Yu saw Yan Liang's personal standard among the enemy army, then proceeded to ride through the Yuan ranks, unable to be stopped until he reached Yan Liang and decapitated him, causing a mass rout of the enemy army. Cao Cao obviously wanted to keep him after this, but Guan Yu insisted that he had paid his debt and wished to return to Liu Bei. Cao Cao allowed him to. This series of events made his skill as a warrior and personal loyalty very well known, though his reputation quickly got out of hand.

After returning to Liu Bei, they went south, into Jing province. Guan Yu would help with the evacuation of the remains of the Liu army after the Battle of Changban, and would also participate in the Battle of Chibi, though without any notable achievements. Guan Yu was then given his own army for the Jing province campaign, and what began was a long series of defeats at the hands of basically every other notable commander he fought. Yue Jin thrashed him repeatedly, Wen Ping joined in at least once, Lu Meng took half of Jing from him, and Gan Ning pinned his entire army with a thousand men. Despite this, Guan Yu was kept in charge of Jing and managed to build up a formidable army in what was left of his territory.

When Liu Bei launched his Hanzhong campaign, Guan Yu joined in by attacking the Wei strongholds in northern Jing from the river. He achieved one of his only battlefield victories in this campaign when a flood destroyed Yu Jin's army that was sent to fight him and Guan Yu picked off the survivors. Then, he proceeded to make several major mistakes and was defeated by a small reserve army under Xu Huang that hadn't even finished training yet and forced to retreat south. He could have survived this, but Lu Meng chose that moment to finish him off, blitzing through Jing from the east, before surrounding, capturing, and executing Guan Yu at Maicheng in 220AD.

Zhang Fei [Yide] (General of Chariots and Cavalry and Colonel-Director of Retainers, Marquis of Xi)

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From Zhuo Commandery in You like Liu Bei, Zhang Fei joined Liu Bei during the Yellow Turban Rebellion along with Guan Yu. The three of them were inseparable, said to be like brothers, and he and Guan Yu followed Liu Bei through all the northern rebellions and the coalition against Dong Zhuo. After Liu Bei succeeded Tao Qian as Governor of Xu province, Lu Bu came to take refuge with them and a war with Yuan Shu started not long after. While Liu Bei and Guan Yu were on the frontlines to the south, Zhang Fei was left in charge of Xiapi, whereupon his famous temper caused him to mistreat his men, who turned on him and turned Xiapi over to Lu Bu. It was the first of many incidents where he would be undone by his anger.

Zhang Fei rejoined Liu Bei, and eventually they retook Xiapi, but lost it to Cao Cao when they attempted to turn on him. He followed Liu Bei for several years after that, eventually ending up in Xinye in Jing province, serving under Liu Biao. When Liu Biao died and his son Liu Cong surrendered to Cao Cao, Liu Bei and his men were forced to flee south while being pursued by Cao Cao, leading to the Battle of Changban. During this battle, Zhang Fei made his famous stand, where he destroyed the bridges across the Han river and with twenty horsemen challenged all of Cao Cao's cavalry to face him. None did, either of fear of him or fear of an ambush, and the delaying action allowed Liu Bei to get away. He went on to fight in the Battle of Chibi and the initial reconquest of Jing province.

During the conquest of Yi province, Zhang Fei led a army to break Liu Zhang's defensive lines to the south, conquering all the way up to the provincial capitol of Chengdu. He was made Administrator of Ba Commandery and then took part in the Hanzhong campaign. During this campaign, he divided and destroyed an army invading Ba under Zhang He, but when on the offensive the next year, his attempt to misdirect Cao Hong and Cao Xiu was seen through and his army was expelled from Hanzhong until Liu Bei arrived with reinforcements the following year. Right after this ended, Guan Yu was killed by Wu and Jing province taken. Before he could join the punitive expedition against Sun Quan, Zhang Fei's subordinates assassinated him (probably due to his mistreatment of them) and defected to Sun Quan, bringing his head with them in 221AD.

Zhuge Liang [Kongming] (Chancellor of State and Governor of Yi Province, Marquis of Wuxiang)

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Originally from Langye Commandery in Xu Province, the Zhuge Clan was scattered by the chaos engulfing the the Han dynasty, and much of it ended up in Jing Province, under the protection of Liu Biao. Zhuge Liang made friends with the various scholars and hermits around the province. Eventually, Liu Bei was given command of Xinye, in Nanyang Commandery, and met Xu Shu, a friend of Zhuge Liang's. Xu Shu recommended him to Liu Bei, and Zhuge Liang presented him with what is now known as the Longzhong plan, which he said would allow Liu Bei to overcome Cao Cao. Liu Bei greatly favored him for this. Zhuge Liang also famously advised Liu Biao's eldest son Liu Qi to avoid the intrigues of court at Xiangyang and instead seek to replace Huang Zu at Jiangxia, to keep himself safe.

After Liu Biao died and Liu Cong surrendered to Cao Cao, Zhuge Liang was tasked with forming an alliance between Liu Bei and Sun Quan. He very nearly botched this, overemphasizing Liu Bei's virtues and offending Sun Quan, but ultimately managed to salvage the situation and form the alliance, which defeated Cao Cao at Chibi. As Cao Cao was driven from the south, Liu Bei conquered the four commanderies of southern Jing Province and placed Zhuge Liang in charge of three of them (Changsha, Lingling, and Guiyang) to oversee logistics and collect taxes to keep his army in the field. After Liu Bei turned on Liu Zhang, Zhuge Liang led relief forces to help with the conquest of Yi Province and was made Army Advisor General, in charge of the affairs of Liu Bei's office and staff. He oversaw the operations of their new capitol of Chengdu, and by extension, most of the land of the state of Shu Han. He kept supplies and men flowing to the various campaigns in progress at the time, and eventually helped persuade Liu Bei to name himself emperor, with himself being named Chancellor of State in return.

Shortly before Liu Bei died in 223AD, he issued an edict that his son and successor Liu Shan regard Zhuge Liang as a father and administer the state jointly with him. Zhuge Liang immediately negotiated peace with Sun Quan (whom Shu had been at war with) and set about forming a government. After the state had settled into a very efficient and effective administration, he led a military campaign south into Nanzhong, which had fully risen into open rebellion upon Liu Bei's death (a smaller rebellion had been ongoing since 214AD). Along with Shu's southern generals, he defeated many of the rebel leaders and made the native Nanman king Meng Huo submit to him. With Yi province settled, he issued a memorandum to Liu Shan outlining his plans for government of the state and a military expedition into the central plains to defeat Cao Wei and reclaim Luoyang.

Thus began the Northern Expeditions. After a brief attempt to open a path by getting Meng Da, a former Shu officer, to defect back was foiled by Wei general Sima Yi inferring the plan, defeating the relief forces from Shu and Wu, and killing Meng Da, Zhuge Liang led forces into the Wei River valley personally to break through to Chang'an and Luoyang beyond it. The first expedition was defeated handily by Cao Zhen and Zhang He, and the second stalled out attempting and failing to siege out Hao Zhao in Chencang. The third expedition ended in something of a success, with the capture of Wudu and Yinping Commanderies, but the Wei forces hadn't even fought due to Wudu and Yinping being virtually worthless, and Zhuge Liang was forced to withdraw from them soon after due to their indefensibility. The fourth expedition also ended in failure despite a promising start, and when the fifth expedition became stalemated along the course of the Wei River, Zhuge Liang died of what was likely a stress induced illness in 234AD.

The Dong Clan of Liang

Dong Zhuo [Zhongying] (Grand Master, Marquis of Mei)

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Probably the face of everything that had gone wrong with the Han dynasty in its twilight years, Dong Zhuo started his life rather innocuously, even valiantly, in Longxi Commandery in Liang Province, on the border of the empire. He was said to be chivalrous as a young man and made friends with the local Qiang people through his generosity and respect for them. Upon entering government service, he was repeatedly dispatched to deal with local tribes and bandits, earning a reputation for military ability and decisiveness. He went on to serve against the Xiongnu in Bing province, earning several promotions as well as an appointment as one of the imperial bodyguards (though he was not required to be in Luoyang). He suffered some defeats during the Yellow Turban rebellion and was demoted, but this was only a minor setback.

His true rise came during the Liang rebellion. Local officials agitated the Hu and Qiang and staged a revolt against the Han. Imperial forces under Zhang Wen sent to put down the rebellion were almost entirely crushed, except for Dong Zhuo, who had foreseen the dire situation and managed to save his army with some clever strategy, but he was forced to retreat out of Liang. Forces under another general, Huangfu Song, arrived later to help clean up the mess, but by this point it seems that Dong Zhuo had realized that serving the dying empire was not going to get him anywhere and began building a personal army from his base in Liang. When Emperor Ling died, the imperial capitol was thrown into chaos, and Dong Zhuo was one of those summoned back to the capitol by General-in-Chief He Jin to help restore order. However, He Jin was assassinated, the Yuan brothers massacred the eunuchs responsible, and in the chaos, Dong Zhuo used his army to seize the capitol and the emperor, putting him in charge of the empire.

Thus began his reign of terror and decadence where, among other things, he had entire clans slaughtered on a whim (even the children, despite the taboo), stole any personal property of the citizens (killing them if they objected), allowed the mass rape of the women of Luoyang by his army, plundered the imperial tombs, poisoned Dowager He, deposed and poisoned Emperor Shao, and desecrated the body of He Jin's half-brother He Miao before killing his elderly mother just to spite him. The rest of the land erupted in rebellion against him, but this coalition was made up of men who hadn't fought a real battle in their lives, while Dong Zhuo had a battle tested and disciplined army he had been building for decades. His general Xu Rong saw off most of the coalition, including Cao Cao. He then started his most infamous atrocity. He forced the entire civilian population of Luoyang to evacuate to the western capital of Chang'an. Anyone who refused was killed. Tens of thousands died of exposure on the ensuing death march, and Dong Zhuo razed the imperial capitol on his way out.

That was when Sun Jian arrived. One of the only remaining imperial veterans of the Liang revolt not under Dong Zhuo, Sun Jian was the one commander among the coalition that Dong Zhuo was said to fear, since he knew the man's capabilities. This turned out to be completely right, as Sun Jian devastated his army in several decisive engagements until he reached the mountain passes that marked the extent of the central plains. Dong Zhuo had long since fortified these areas and the other members of the coalition wouldn't help, so Sun Jian could go no further and was forced to return home. Safe behind the mountains in Chang'an, Dong Zhuo indulged himself once more, even taking upon the ancient title of Grand Master (a position above the rest of the government), until a plot hatched by Wang Yun and several others coerced his adoptive son Lu Bu to assassinate him in 192AD.

Lu Bu [Fengxian] (General of the Left, Marquis of Wen)

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The other poster child for the Three Kingdoms era, Lu Bu hailed from Jiuyang in Bing province, the northern frontier of the empire. Due to the chaotic nature of the region, he quickly gained a reputation for being a great warrior, fantastic archer, and expert rider. Ding Yuan, Inspector of Bing Province, heard about him and made him one of his staff. When the chaos around Emperor Ling's death erupted in Luoyang, Ding Yuan was one of those recalled to the capitol by He Jin to help fix the situation. Following He Jin's assassination, Dong Zhuo took over and managed to persuade or bribe Lu Bu into killing Ding Yuan, who would have been a rival for power over the capitol. Upon doing this, Dong Zhuo adopted Lu Bu as his son and made him his bodyguard.

During the days of the coalition, Lu Bu spent most of his time guarding Dong Zhuo until it was time to burn Luoyang, at which point he was put in charge of robbing everything that was not nailed down from the imperial tombs. When Sun Jian came, Lu Bu was one of those who was sent out to fight him and suffered the same fate as everyone else, crushing defeat. He returned to Chang'an, but his relationship with his foster father soured and he was once again persuaded to turn on his patron, this time by the imperial ministers led by Wang Yun. He killed Dong Zhuo, but Wang Yun refused to grant amnesty to Dong Zhuo's other generals, who proceeded to kill Wang Yun and drive Lu Bu out of Chang'an.

Lu Bu spent the next couple of years bouncing between different warlords, most of whom didn't trust him as far as they could throw him (Yuan Shu outright refused to have him, Yuan Shao tried to kill him), until he was invited by Chen Gong and Zhang Miao to replace Cao Cao as Inspector of Yan Province while Cao Cao was away fighting Tao Qian. Lu Bu and Cao Cao then warred over Yan for some time, but Cao Cao ultimately won and Lu Bu was forced to seek refuge with Liu Bei in Xu. Liu Bei went off to go fight Yuan Shu, and while he was away, Zhang Fei was left in charge of Xu. Zhang Fei mistreated his soldiers, who turned to Lu Bu for help, whereupon he threw Zhang Fei out of Xiapi, claiming Xu for his own.

At this point, Lu Bu had a strong army, a decent strategist in Chen Gong, and some of the best generals of the era under his command, such as Zhang Liao, Gao Shun, and Zang Ba. However, he was not able to lead a state, and both diplomacy and administration went poorly for him. He wavered between fighting Yuan Shu and allying with him and didn't build up his strength during peacetime. This allowed Cao Cao to isolate him and launch the Xiapi campaign. Lu Bu refused to listen to Chen Gong's strategies and began behaving very erratically, so his less loyal subordinates began turning on him. Once Cao Cao flooded Xiapi, they kidnapped Chen Gong and Gao Shun, and Lu Bu was forced to surrender to Cao Cao. He was executed, along with Gao Shun and Chen Gong in 199AD.

Zhang Liao [Wenyuan] (General of the Front, Marquis of Jinyang)

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From Bing province like Lu Bu, Zhang Liao was one of the officers whom Ding Yuan brought with him to the capitol right before Lu Bu killed him, making Lu Bu his new boss. He fought in most of Lu Bu's battles throughout the days of the coalition then into the chaotic wandering period before Lu Bu settled in Xu province. Lu Bu held him in very high regard and essentially made him his frontline general, putting him in charge of Lu Bu's border with Cao Cao and Liu Bei. He performed well here, defeating Liu Bei and Xiahou Dun, but eventually Cao Cao himself came, bulldozed Lu Bu's defenses all the way to Xiapi, and then took the city. Lu Bu and a couple of his diehard supporters were executed, but Zhang Liao and most of the rest of Lu Bu's army were given the opportunity to serve Cao Cao instead, which most did. Given Zhang Liao's reputation, Cao Cao immediately made him a General and Marquis.

Zhang Liao's rise to rank among the Five Elite Generals of Wei began then. He was on the frontlines of the Guandu campaign, leading the battle at Boma which killed Yan Liang (though Guan Yu actually swung the blade), and was one of those who held the line at Guandu while Cao Cao took the main army to burn Wuchao. After a brief diversion to put down a rebellion, he joined the northern campaign against Yuan Shao's sons and the Wuhuan. He won an absolute multitude of victories during this campaign at incredible speed. Every time the main army got bogged down with a siege, he would take his own contingent to mop up any resistance among the surrounding countryside before rejoining the army for the main assault. He even diverted his army from that front entirely during a lull in the campaign to attack Liu Biao to the south and take Jiangxia commandery before coming back north to take part in the attack against the Wuhuan. This time he led the vanguard at Mount Bailang and when Cao Cao noticed a weakness in the enemy formation, he sent Zhang Liao to exploit it with a small number of elite horsemen, which they did, destroying the entire Wuhuan army.

After helping put down some rebellions in the south, Zhang Liao was reassigned to Hefei, along with Yue Jin and Li Dian, with a total garrison of 7000 men. Hefei was a very strong position but it was also a long way from the nearest Wei army, so while Cao Cao was off in Hanzhong on the opposite side of the empire, Sun Quan launched a full invasion with 100,000 men. Needing to buy time for reinforcements to arrive, Zhang Liao gathered 800 volunteers for what he stated would be a suicide mission and led a charge into Sun Quan's army while they were still setting up camp. A huge amount of Sun Quan's army fell into chaos and several of his commanders (including the commander of his bodyguards) were killed, wounded, or fled before Pan Zhang and Ling Tong managed to form something of a defensive line and encircled Zhang Liao's small force. Zhang Liao proceeded to break out with some of his men, but upon realizing he had left many behind, broke back in, extracted them too and returned to Hefei. Sun Quan's army had suffered such a demoralization that he decided to retreat ten days later (after a plague broke out as well). Sensing an opportunity, Zhang Liao once again attacked when Sun Quan least expected it and nearly captured Sun Quan at Xiaoyao crossing, stopped only by a ferocious rearguard by some of Sun Quan's best officers.

Zhang Liao remained on the Wu front for many more years, fighting in the ill-fated Ruxu campaign, where Sun Quan would get his revenge for Hefei, and would succeed Xiahou Dun as General of the Front following the latter's promotion to General-in-Chief. His final action was at the Battle of Dongkou, which he fought while ill, where he and Zang Ba defeated Lu Fan's fleet before a second fleet under He Qi forced a tactical draw and a breakout of plague forced a strategic defeat. Zhang Liao died on the way back of his illness in 222AD.

Xu Huang [Gongming] (General of the Right, Marquis of Yangping)

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From Yang County, Hedong Commandery near the imperial capitol, Xu Huang was originally a civil servant in his local government, but somehow ended up falling in with the White Wave Bandits under Yang Feng. Yang Feng and his band were invited to join the imperial army under Dong Zhuo as a legitimate force, and played a part in the war with the Coalition. However, after Dong Zhuo's death, the White Wave bandits became subordinates of Li Jue and ended up embroiled in the conflict between Li Jue and Dong Zhuo's other colonels. Xu Huang convince Yang Feng to abandon the colonels and sneak the emperor back to the imperial capitol. They did so successfully, but fighting soon broke out between the imperial officials that had come with then, and Xu Huang advised Yang Feng to invite Cao Cao to take control of the situation. Cao Cao did, and Xu Huang became one of his subordinates, while Yang Feng left to join Yuan Shu.

Xu Huang became very active in Cao Cao's army, achieving some fame against rebels in Yan Province and then again against Lu Bu's subordinates in the conquest of Xu Province. He participated in the Guandu campaign against Yuan Shao, being one of those who fought against Yan Liang at Boma, against Wen Chou at Yanjin, and finally in the raid against Yuan Shao's supply caravans at Gushi. Following Yuan Shao's death, he was one of those that helped subjugate the former territories of the Yuan, and participated in their final destruction at Mount Bailang.

He was in Jing Province after the defeat at Chibi, and fought in the Jiangling campaign, defeating Guan Yu at Hanjin but ultimately losing to Zhou Yu at the siege of Jiangling itself. He then joined the western expedition into Yong and Liang provinces, being the vanguard that established the beachhead and held the beachhead across the Huang River despite heavy resistance. Following that victory, he was placed under Xiahou Yuan and sent to pacify the Qiang and Di peoples of Liang, which they did with great speed and effectiveness. They then took Hanzhong Commandery, but came under attack from Liu Bei. Xu Huang defeated on of the prongs of the first invasion, but during the second, Xiahou Yuan was killed at Mount Dingjun, and Cao Cao ordered a withdrawal from Hanzhong.

Xu Huang's most notable feat was during the Fancheng campaign. Guan Yu had besieged Cao Ren and the army under Yu Jin that was sent to relieve the siege had been destroyed in an autumn flood. The fall of Fancheng would leave nothing between Guan Yu's army and the capitol at Xu City, so Xu Huang was sent with a small army that had not yet finished training to try and do whatever he could about the situation. Xu Huang initially avoided battle to not give away the greenness of his troops and made a feint that got Guan Yu to shift out of position, allow Xu Huang's army access to better ground. He then bluffed again, making preparations to attack Guan Yu's main camp before suddenly switching targets to the four auxiliary camps and overrunning them, isolating Guan Yu's army in the main camp. He then engaged Guan Yu in his fortified camp directly, and despite the heavy defenses, his numerical disadvantage, and the inexperience of his men, he emerged victorious, lifting the siege of Fancheng. His victory is what got Cao Cao to proclaim him an equal to Sun Tzu (whose works Cao Cao was an avid student of).

Xu Huang continued his service to the Cao family following Cao Cao's death. He was part of the efforts to further secure Jing Province under Cao Pi, and then defended Xiangyang against Zhuge Jin of Wu during the reign of Cao Rui. He died not long after in 227AD, his last wish being for a simple burial without ceremony. Chen Shou would go on to name him one of the Five Elite Generals of Wei, of which he and Zhang Liao were said to be the greatest.

Jia Xu [Wenhe] (Grand Commandant, Marquis of Weishou)

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From Wuwei County in Liang Province, Jia Xu was hailed as a brilliant mind by a civil servant and given a recommendation to imperial service. He was serving in the capitol when Dong Zhuo took control of the government and was put under the command of Niu Fu, Dong Zhuo's son in law. After Dong Zhuo and Niu Fu were assassinated, Jia Xu found himself in the company of the other colonels who had been driven out of Chang'an. He advised them to stick together and helped them in driving out Lu Bu and killing Wang Yun, which got them control of Chang'an and Emperor Xian. However, the colonels began fighting among themselves. Jia Xu played mediator between them, while attempting to keep Chang'an and what was left of the government mostly functional. He kept Li Jue from inviting thousands of Qiang mercenaries into the capitol and prevented the execution of several imperial officials until the emperor was able to escape under the protection of Yang Feng. Jia Xu left soon after.

He initially joined the warlord Duan Wei, but soon met Zhang Xiu, whose uncle Zhang Ji was one of the colonels he had served with, and joined him in Nanyang Commandery. On Jia Xu's advice, Zhang Xiu allied himself with Liu Biao, but Cao Cao invaded Nanyang soon after. Zhang Xiu initially surrendered without a fight, but after Cao Cao attempted to buy off one of his best soldiers and took his aunt (Zhang Ji's widow) as a concubine, Zhang Xiu asked Jia Xu's advice for turning on Cao Cao. Jia Xu concocted a plan to ambush Cao Cao in his own camp, first disguising their movements as a change of camps, then telling Cao Cao that their men were carrying their weapons and armor during the move because their army could not afford enough carts. The plan was wildly successful, and the resulting Battle of Wancheng became one of Cao Cao's only defeats in the field and the closest he ever came to death, saved only by the sacrifice of his eldest son Cao Ang and his bodyguard Dian Wei.

Cao Cao returned with a vengeance, but the campaign was indecisive due to Zhang Xiu's stubbornness and Jia Xu's brilliance, and he was forced to call off the invasion to deal with Yuan Shao to the north. It was at this time that Yuan Shao reached out to Zhang Xiu to ask him for an alliance, but Jia Xu turned him down, telling Zhang Xiu to join Cao Cao instead, since Cao Cao was at such a disadvantage against Yuan Shao that he couldn't turn away a great general with a trained and experienced army, no matter what they had done to him in the past. Jia Xu was right, and Cao Cao welcomed them with open arms. Jia Xu and Zhang Xiu participated in the Guandu campaign and the subsequent campaign to subjugate Yuan Shao's sons, with both distinguishing themselves as a brilliant strategist and commander respectively. However, Zhang Xiu died of illness during the march to Mount Bailang.

Jia Xu went on to be one of Cao Cao's most important strategic advisers. He instructed Cao Cao not to attack Sun Quan after the annexation of Jing Province, but Cao Cao started his southern campaign anyways and ended up defeated at Chibi. He then advised Cao Cao to make peace with Ma Chao and Han Sui, ceding them Liang Province and giving them imperial titles but waiting for them to turn on each other. Sure enough, they did, and the resulting campaign resulted in the successful conquest of Liang. When the issue of succession became disputed, he reminded Cao Cao of his rivals Yuan Shao and Liu Biao, who had both chosen their popular but inexperienced younger sons as crown prince over their more experienced older sons which had spelled ruin for both their houses. Cao Cao reportedly laughed and followed his advice, appointing the older Cao Pi as crown prince.

Cao Pi appointed Jia Xu as Grand Commandant, the civil official in charge of all military affairs, likely in gratitude for helping with the succession. When he asked for Jia Xu's advice in dealing with the rival states of Wu and Shu, Jia Xu gave him the same advise he gave Cao Cao, to build up his strength and secure his territory instead. Cao Pi didn't listen, and like his father's, his campaign against Wu ended in failure. Jia Xu died not long after, in 223AD.

The Yuan Clan of Ye

Yuan Shao [Benchu] (General-in-Chief, Marquis of Ye)

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Hailing from the incredibly prestigious Yuan family of Runan, Yuan Shao had fame and power from the moment he inherited his family's estate. Initially known for his seriousness and humility, he was popular with pretty much everyone around him and made many friends, including Cao Cao. When the General-in-Chief, He Jin, took him onto his staff during the Yellow Turban Rebellion, Yuan Shao became deeply involved in court politics. Following the end of the rebellion, he and his half-brother Yuan Shu urged He Jin to destroy the eunuchs who held sway over the imperial court, and when He Jin was assassinated, they took matters into their own hands, slaughtering two thousand eunuchs in the capital. However, this chaos allowed Dong Zhuo to take over, and Yuan Shao left the capitol to raise an army to contest him. Others began doing the same, and soon enough, the Coalition against Dong Zhuo was formed with Yuan Shao elected leader.

The Coalition went poorly. After losing a couple battles (Sun Jian notwithstanding), Yuan Shao and the other warlords began fighting amongst themselves. However, Yuan Shao did well for himself here, immediately taking control of Ji province, and then following up by having his son Yuan Tan secure Qing. After fighting against the Heishan Bandits for a long time, he was able to exert nominal control over Bing province as well. His longest lasting campaign was a long struggle with Gongsun Zan over control of You province, but Gongsun Zan's arbitrary brutality and Yuan Shao's magnanimity eventually decided things. Gongsun Zan was isolated in Yi and Yuan Shao forged a strong alliance with the Wuhuan people to the north. Gongsun Zan would eventually commit suicide.

To the south however, things got complicated. Yuan Shao was at odds with his half brother Yuan Shu, who had initially formed the other major power among the warlords, and Yuan Shao had placed Cao Cao, who was technically his subordinate, as the Inspector of Yan Province to provide a buffer between him and Yuan Shu. However, this all changed when Cao Cao took the emperor under his protection. It was during this incident that Yuan Shao demonstrated his willingness to listen to all the wrong advice, as he had a chance to take the emperor instead, but was convinced by some of his counselors that doing so would make him an imperial puppet. Instead, Cao Cao ended up as the imperial puppeteer and within a few years, Yuan Shu was destroyed and Cao Cao held enough territory to make a bid for hegemony over the incredibly rich central plains of the empire.

And so the Guandu campaign began. Yuan Shao had the advantage in numbers and resources, but Cao Cao was decisive, listened to the right advisers, and was willing to take risks. Yuan Shao continually vacillated on important decisions, trying to force a single decisive battle which Cao Cao was content to avoid, harassing Yuan Shao's army and supply lines instead. Every attempt Yuan Shao made to cross the Yellow River was met with setbacks and defeats, often due to his refusal to listen to his competent advisers. He eventually was able to besiege Guandu itself, but Cao Cao held firm, and eventually Yuan Shao's army began to fray from within. One of his advisers, Xu You, betrayed him over a dispute with another official and told Cao Cao of Yuan Shao's supply depot at Wuchao. Cao Cao immediately set out to burn it to the ground, and instead of defending it, Yuan Shao tried to take Guandu while he was away. Wuchao fell, Guandu did not, and many of Yuan Shao's best men, including Zhang He, surrendered to Cao Cao.

His army, now demoralized and out of supplies, routed. While he put it back together not long after and still had most of his territory, he soon fell ill, probably from the stress. He died in 202AD, and his failure to clarify a successor kicked off a succession crisis that doomed his clan and allowed Cao Cao to assume hegemony over the all important Central Plains. Despite their enmity, Cao Cao mourned the loss of his childhood friend and cared for the remains of his family.

Yuan Tan [Xiansi] (General of the Chariots and Cavalry and Inspector of Qing)

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The eldest son of Yuan Shao, Yuan Tan first appears in history when he came of age in 191, at which point his father gave him the task of subjugating Qing Province. This was by no means an easy task, as there were several other competing interests in Qing, including the forces of Kong Rong (supported by Tao Qian and later Liu Bei), Gongsun Zan, Gongsun Du, and a whole host of rebels and bandits, some of whom were Yellow Turban adherents. The fighting lasted several years, but eventually, he managed to drive out the forces loyal to the other warlords and secured Qing province for the Yuan family. During this, he was made Inspector of Qing by his father. However, while he was a good general and an upstanding man, he turned out to be a poor administrator, and the province languished.

He accompanied his father on the Guandu campaign, but Yuan Shao never designated him his heir. Yuan Shao had always favored his youngest son, Yuan Shang, and instead made Yuan Tan the heir to his late, childless older brother, thus legally making Yuan Tan his nephew. When Yuan Shao died in 202AD without clarifying the succession, enemies of Yuan Tan within Yuan Shao's court, namely Shen Pei and Pang Ji, made Yuan Shang the new head of the Yuan clan by forging Yuan Shao's will. Thought understandably angry, Yuan Tan served his brother loyally against Cao Cao's attempts to capitalize on their father's death. Despite Yuan Tan killing Pang Ji in a separate incident a while later, the brothers fought side by side in the siege of Liyang but were ultimately overcome and forced to retreat to Ye. Cao Cao was advised to leave them alone for a while by Guo Jia, so he then returned south.

Yuan Tan and Yuan Shang both blamed each other for the loss of Liyang, and revelations about their father's forged will caused Yuan Tan to attack his brother at Nanpi. He was defeated and sent an envoy to Cao Cao in desperation. They agreed to an alliance, one to be solidified by a marriage between their children, but both had eyes on betraying each other. Cao Cao eventually overcame Ye, forcing Yuan Shang to flee and killing Shen Pei. Yuan Tan used this opportunity to attack Yuan Shang's remaining holdings and defeat his brother personally. However, Cao Cao claimed the seizure of territory was a betrayal of their alliance and attacked Yuan Tan outside of Nanpi. Yuan Tan did a good job at matching Cao Cao in the field, but Cao Chun, the commander of the famous Tiger and Leopard Cavalry, led a charge into Yuan Tan's lines, breaking them and sending his entire army running. Yuan Tan was knocked off his horse and beheaded at some point during the rout in 205AD.

Ju Shou (General Who Displays Might and Supervising Protector of the Army)

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Originally from Guanping County, Julu Commandery, Ji Province, Ju Shou was an officer under Han Fu, the Governor of Ji Province. Han Fu recommended Ju Shou to the imperial civil service as an Abundant Talent, a high honor that could only be given to one man per province per year. Han Fu was part of the coalition against Dong Zhuo, and Ju Shou may have taken part in the campaign under him. However, after the breakup of the coalition, Han Fu was ousted as Governor of Ji by Yuan Shao. Ju Shou presented Yuan Shao with a plan to seize control of the northern plains before driving into central China to retake the capitol and reestablish the court. Yuan Shao was so pleased that he appointed Ju Shou as a general and as Protector of the Army, with supervisory and disciplinary powers over all other officers.

However, Ju Shou's advice began being drowned out by other voices at Yuan Shao's court, notably Guo Tu and Chunyu Qiong. The first and probably most damaging incident was where those two convinced Yuan Shao to not secure the emperor follow the emperor's escape from Dong Zhuo over Ju Shou's protests that protecting the emperor would give them imperial authority and legitimacy. The others had argued that the emperor would burden them by forcing them to submit to his orders, which Yuan Shao found convincing. This resulted in Cao Cao securing the emperor instead and using his authority against Yuan Shao. Later, Ju Shou opposed the division of Yuan Shao's peripheral territory between his sons, as that would cause them to resent each other and jockey for position while also allowing them to build up independent power bases.

When Yuan Shao turned south to face Cao Cao, Ju Shou favored a gradual approach that leveraged Yuan Shao's larger territory and population to slowly wear down Cao Cao, but Yuan Shao instead launched a full invasion in what would become known as the Guandu campaign. During the campaign, Ju Shou and another advisory (Tian Feng) again advised prudence and a methodical approach to wear Cao Cao down through attrition. Yuan Shao instead went with Guo Tu and Chunyu Qiong's strategy of decisive action. Tian Feng protested and was arrested, while Ju Shou lost his overall command of the army and was instead forced to split it with Guo Tu and Chunyu Qiong. Later, he opposed Yuan Shao's decision to appoint Yan Liang for the Boma mission and his desire to cross the Huang River personally to force the Guandu front. This resulted in him being forced to give his remaining command to Guo Tu. He gave a few more pieces of advice during the campaign, but all were recorded as denied.

When the Guandu campaign reached it's climax and Wuchao was burned, Ju Shou was caught by Cao Cao's men before he could cross the Huang River. Cao Cao respected him greatly and tried to get him to join him, but Ju Shou instead asked to be executed, since his family was still in Yuan Shao's hands. Cao Cao instead treated him well in hopes that he would come around, but Ju Shou attempted to escape back to Yuan Shao, was caught, and Cao Cao was forced to execute him in 200AD.

For more information, see Roarer's post below.

Yan Liang (Unrecorded)

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Wen Chou (Unrecorded)

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Xu You [Ziyuan] (Unrecorded)

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The Sun Clan of Wu

Sun Jian [Wentai] (Inspector of Yu Province, General Who Routs the Caitiffs, Marquis of Wucheng, Emperor Wulie of Wu (posthumously))

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Born in 155AD to a family without prestige or position in Wu Commandery, Yang Province, south of the Yangtze, Sun Jian was the definition of a self made man in Later Han. He started out as a county government worker, but made his name when he defeated a band of pirates by himself while on a trip, then took part in the suppression of a local revolt, charmed a young woman from a much better family into marrying him, and got recommended to the Imperial civil service.

He spent much of his mid-career as an administrator to a few counties around the empire until the Yellow Turban Rebellion. Known as a brave man from the south, he was singled out by Zhu Jun, an imperial general also from Wu Commandery, to recruit volunteers and assist him in putting down the revolt. He did so and was commended for bravery to the Imperial court. He then accompanied Zhu Jun to Liang Province to put down a revolt among non-Chinese auxiliaries and local Chinese officials. The expedition ended in disaster when the commanding generals disregarded the advice of him and another provincial upstart named Dong Zhuo, which got the army divided and scattered. Reinforcements from the capitol finally put down the rebellion, but the damage was done and Sun Jian went home to become prefect of Changsha.

After Dong Zhuo seized control of Luoyang, Sun Jian traveled north to join the coalition. He gathered a large force of family friends and spirited adventurers and put down Dong loyalists and troublemakers along the way. Yuan Shu took a liking to him and sponsored him as the Inspector of Yu Province and an imperial general. Meeting Dong Zhuo’s army under Xu Rong at Yingcheng, Sun Jian lost the first battle, but quickly turned the tables, defeating Lu Bu and Hua Xiong (who was killed) at Yangren then defeating Dong Zhuo himself at Dagu, taking the remains of the imperial capitol where he reportedly found the imperial seal, which he then gave to Yuan Shu.

The Coalition splintered after it became clear that chasing Dong Zhuo to Chang’an through the fortified mountain passes wasn’t an option. Still Yuan Shu’s client, Sun Jian became embroiled in the conflict between him and Yuan Shao, and was sent to attack Yuan Shao’s ally, Liu Biao, in Jing Province. Despite being initially victorious, Sun Jian was ambushed and killed during the pursuit of Liu Biao’s general Huang Zu in 191AD. When Sun Quan established the Wu dynasty, Sun Jian was posthumously named the first emperor.

Sun Ce [Bofu] (General who Exterminates Rebels, Marquis of Wu, Prince Huan of Changsha (posthumously))

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Sun Quan [Zhongmou] (General who Exterminates Caitiffs, Emperor Da of Wu)

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The second son of Sun Jian and Lady Wu, Sun Quan was born in 182AD, right before the start of the Yellow Turban Rebellion. Bookish and reserved compared to his combative and headstrong brother, Sun Quan had little fame outside of scholarship until his brother was assassinated in 200AD. Due to Sun Ce’s children being too young, leadership of his fledgling state was given to Sun Quan. While neither an administrative genius nor a good general, Sun Quan was known as a leader with a keen eye for talent and was excellent at gaining the loyalty and mediating between his subordinates.

He carefully built upon his brother’s conquests, gaining new subjects and further securing his hold on Jiangdong until Cao Cao began his southern advance in 208AD. Despite the huge power gap, Sun Quan refused Cao Cao’s demand to surrender, negotiated an alliance with Liu Bei and Liu Qi, and sent Zhou Yu and Cheng Pu to stop Cao Cao at Chibi. In the famous upset, Zhou Yu destroyed Cao Cao’s fleet and ended any chance of Wei crossing the Yangtze into Jiangdong.

Sun Quan then focused on going West, attacking Jing Province to claim its fertile land and extend his defenses. However, the rewards were paltry, and while his armies slowly pushed Cao Cao out of central Jing, Liu Bei co-opted the scattered powers of southern Jing without a fight. Liu Bei then threatened to turn on him if he invaded Yi Province further to the west on account of it being the domain of his relative, Liu Zhang, which soured their alliance. The alliance was further soured when Liu Bei invaded Yi himself.

Sun Quan maintained the alliance while continuing to strengthen his domain to resist invasions. Despite failing in his northern strike against Hefei, his subordinates pacified the mostly non-Chinese lands of Guangdong further to the south and forced Shi Xie of Jiao Province to accept his suzerainty. Then, his general Lu Meng pulled off two masterstrokes, first capturing half of Jing with barely any bloodshed in 215AD, then capturing the other half of Jing and executing Guan Yu in 219AD. Liu Bei attempted to retake the province, but was stopped at Xiaoting by Lu Xun in 222AD.

Sun Quan accepted the nominal suzeranity of Cao Cao for a few years, but formally quit the empire not long after Cao Cao’s death and succession by Cao Pi. He successfully defended his borders from Cao Pi during the Great River Campaign and continued his project to pacify the southern hinterlands, which included the destruction of the Shi family. He declared himself Emperor of Wu in 229AD, building up his capitol of Jianye, making the lands south of the Yangtze self-sustaining economically, and fortifying the length of the Yangtze against any northern invasions.

Near the end of his life, Sun Quan became erratic and increasingly controlled by his relatives, most notably his eldest daughter, Sun Luban, as his two eldest sons quarreled over succession. The chain of events after 245AD saw him disgrace his chancellor and advisor Lu Xun, depose and exile his eldest son Sun He as crown prince, force his second son Sun Ba to commit suicide, and nominate his youngest son Sun Liang (still a child) as crown prince instead. His son in law, Zhu Jun, objected to this and was forced to commit suicide as well. Right before his death, he attempted to recall Sun He to be crown prince again, but was stopped by Sun Luban. He died in 252AD, at the age of 70.

Sun Ren

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Gan Ning [Xingba] (General Who Breaks the Line, Administrator of Xiling Commandery)

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A man from Linjiang County, Ba Commandery in Yi Province, he was originally a gang leader in his home province, leading a group of young toughs dressed in flamboyant silks with feathers and bells. They would approach local families for hospitality, partying with the host if accommodated, but robbing or killing them if not. Eventually, he started a rebellion against the new Governor of Yi Province, Liu Zhang, but was driven out into Jing Province.

He evidently decided to educate himself around this time and read books from the 100 Schools of Thought, learning enough to stop robbing people and went from gangster to mercenary. He attempted to sell his services to the Governor of Jing, Liu Biao, but was never received and instead joined with Liu Biao's eastern commander Huang Zu. He served under Huang Zu against the army of Sun Quan in the fighting around Jiangxia Commandery, famously shooting and killing Ling Cao in the Battle of Xiakou, which saved Huang Zu's life. However, Huang Zu didn't reward him or treat him any better than a common soldier, so with the help of Su Fei (a friend in Huang Zu's staff) and recommendations from Zhou Yu and Lu Meng, he defected to Sun Quan, who received him well.

Gan Ning used his knowledge of Huang Zu's deteriorating army to convince Sun Quan of another campaign into Jiangxia. The result was a phenomenal success, and Gan Ning even managed to save Su Fei's life in the aftermath. He then went on to command the troops that crossed the river and took Yiling in the aftermath of the battle at Red Cliffs, and then held it against Cao Ren's attempts to dislodge him. During the first campaign against Guan Yu for Jing Province, he blocked Guan Yu and his army from crossing the shallows with only a thousand men. During the battle for Wan, he was first to scale the walls of the Wei fortress, and during the retreat from Hefei, was one of the officers who held back Zhang Liao while Sun Quan escaped. However, his most famous exploit was at the second battle of Ruxu, where he led a night raid with a hundred men into Cao Cao's camp, burning anything flammable and killing confused soldiers before escaping into the night. The loss of morale among Cao Cao's army was enough for him to call off the campaign.

The date and cause of his death is not recorded, but it was likely sometime around 220AD from illness.

Zhou Yu [Gongjin] (Lieutenant General, Administrator of Nan Commandery)

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Born in 175AD to a family of decent fame in Shu County, Lujiang Commandery, Yang Province, south of the Yangtze River, Zhou Yu befriended Sun Ce not long after Sun Jian left to join the war against Dong Zhou in 191. Following Sun Jian's death and Sun Ce commission to conquer the lands south of the Yangtze for Yuan Shu, Zhou Yu immediately went to go join his friend as soon as he crossed the river. He took part in Sun Ce's battles for the lands of Jiangdong, and while little is known of his independent movements, he was evidently highly skilled and trusted to the point where he was said to campaign with Sun Ce rather than under him. He was made Central Protector of the Army and was given a separate command and administrative authority of Jiangxia Commandery, where they were trying to conquer.

Sun Ce was ambushed and killed in 200AD, and Zhou Yu transferred his allegiance to his successor Sun Quan, for whom he became the primary military adviser. He first crushed and absorbed the independent communities of Ma and Bao and then finally defeated Huang Zu in Jiangxia. He advised Sun Quan not to send any hostages to Cao Cao, and then was instrumental in convincing him to ally with Liu Bei against him. He would go on to command the battle at Red Cliffs, defeating Cao Cao at the initial engagement at Wulin, coming up with and executing the fire attack which destroyed the Wei fleet, and then finally commanding the pursuit through Wulin and up the Huarong Road.

Following Cao Cao's defeat at Red Cliffs, Zhou Yu and Liu Bei pushed into Jing Province, but while Liu Bei had an easy time convincing the independent and isolated southern commanderies to surrender to him, Zhou Yu had to contend with Cao Ren, Yue Jin, and many more of Cao Cao's best men in the desperate struggle for northern Jing. Battling with the Wei forces throughout the winter of 208-209, Zhou Yu's armies managed to encircle and lay siege to the vital city of Jiangling. Despite their smaller numbers, Zhou Yu's officers proved to be a match for their Wei counterparts. However, Zhou Yu was hit by an arrow during one of the engagements and his health slowly deteriorated. Despite his condition, he continued to lead his men in the field, and, unable to supply the city, Cao Cao ordered an evacuation, conceding Nan commandery to Sun Quan.

He advised Sun Quan to quickly capture and isolate Liu Bei before he became too much of a problem and to make preparations to invade Yi province to the west, completing a southern defensive line against Cao Cao. However, before he could begin, he died of illness in 210AD, likely exacerbated by his wounds from Jiangling.

The Ma Clan of Liang

Ma Teng [Shoucheng] (Commandant of the Guards, Marquis of Huaili)

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From Fufeng Commandery in Liang Province, Ma Teng was the son of Ma Ping, a former minor official who was dismissed from his post and left to live with the Qiang people on the western frontier, one of whom he married. Ma Teng therefore grew up mostly destitute on the frontier with the Qiang. In 184AD a minor insurgency started by Qiang bands further along the frontier was joined by a large mutiny of the Qiang and Yuezhi soldiers in the Auxiliary of Loyal Barbarians from Huangzhong, the situation in Liang Province grew into open rebellion and the Han provincial government began putting together a defense force. Ma Teng volunteered for the army as a regular soldier, but quickly rose to the rank of Major. Court politics and military incompetence resulted in the defeat of the imperial armies, and after the death of the governor, Geng Bi, Ma Teng defected to the rebels along with his command.

Ma Teng quickly became a major rebel leader, joining such men as Han Sui, Song Jian, and overall commander Wei Guo. This shifted the rebellion from a non-Chinese to Chinese led affair which now controlled all of Liang province. The rebels laid siege to Chencang in 188AD, hoping to break through to the western imperial capitol of Chang'an. However, this time, an imperial army under Huangfu Song and Dong Zhuo, two of the best generals in the imperial army, defeated and scattered the rebels. Ma Teng and Han Sui sacked Wei Guo, and after his replacement died, Ma Teng and Han Sui were left on their own. However, the coups in Luoyang prevented any coordinated imperial attempt to retake Liang, and when Dong Zhuo came to power, he offered the rebels an olive branch and titles if they'd fight for him, which they accepted.

Dong Zhuo was eventually defeated and then assassinated by Lu Bu. The Liang warlords continued to support Dong Zhuo's successors, but all sides soon feel into conflict. Ma Teng and Han Sui allied with Liu Yan, governor of Yi Province, and attempted to take Chang'an from Li Jue, Guo Si, and Fan Chou. They were defeated and forced to return to Liang. Ma Teng and Han Sui soon had a falling out as well, and went to war with each other over Liang province. Eventually, Cao Cao, fresh off his victory at Guandu, brokered a peace between the two and had them support his troops in their pacification of the capitol region against the agents of the Yuan family. Following this, Ma Teng was summoned to Ye to be Commandant of the Guards, a prestigious court position that he reportedly asked for in order to get away Han Sui, effectively also becoming a hostage for his soldiers in Liang.

Ma Teng's son Ma Chao formed an alliance with Han Sui in 211AD and started a rebellion against Cao Cao, going so far as to informally adopt Han Sui as his father, thereby disowning Ma Teng as such at the same time. Their rebel alliance was defeated decisively at The Battle of Huayin (aka Tong Pass) though they continued uncoordinated fighting for years. In response, Emperor Xian sentenced Ma Teng and his family to death, and he was executed in 212AD.

Ma Chao [Mengqi] (General of the Agile Cavalry and Governor of Liang, Marquis of Tai)

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Born in 176AD in Youfufeng Commandery in Sili province, Ma Chao was the eldest son of Ma Teng, at the time just another frontiersman near the western capitol, but eventually a warlord in the Liang rebellion. Ma Chao grew up during the turbulent chaos of the Liang rebellion and the fallout of the splintering of Dong Zhuo's army. His father and another warlord, Han Sui, went to war with each other over Liang, resulting in the death of Ma Chao's mother and some of his siblings. Peace was brokered between the two men by Cao Cao's agent Zhong Yao in 197AD, and they both acknowledged Cao Cao's suzerainty. Cao Cao reportedly asked for Ma Chao to come to the capitol to serve in the government, but Ma Chao refused. He did however, join an expedition in support of Zhong Yao's administration in the capitol region of Hedong in 202AD, driving away the Yuan forces with his subordinate, Pang De.

His father soon requested and was granted permission to take a post in the imperial court in Ye. Ma Chao was left in charge of his troops. However, when Cao Cao announced his intention to march against Zhang Lu of Hanzhong, Ma Chao grew suspicious that Cao Cao would use this as an excuse to take his autonomy away, and formed a rebel army along with Han Sui, effectively abandoning his father and family in Ye. They opposed Cao Cao at Tong Pass, the gateway to Chang'an. However, Cao Cao outmaneuvered them by crossing the bend of the Huang River twice at Dou and Puban, putting himself behind the pass. Ma Chao attempted to prevent him from crossing the Wei River, the final obstacle between him and the rear of Ma Chao's army, but Cao Cao defeated him in a night ambush. Negotiations followed, where Ma Chao and Han Sui attempted to buy peace with Cao Cao, but Cao Cao instead used the opportunity to begin turning the warlords against each other. Ma Chao then attempted to capture Cao Cao during a meeting, but was thwarted by Cao Cao's bodyguard Xu Chu and negotiations ended. With both sides now arrayed on even ground, Cao Cao pressed the attack and his vaunted Tiger and Leopard Cavalry broke the flanks of the Liang warlords, driving them from the region around Chang'an.

Ma Chao returned to Liang in defeat, but Cao Cao did not pursue him for long, and Ma Chao began forming a new army, this time comprised of many Qiang and Rong auxiliaries along with whatever disaffected Han Chinese he could find. With Cao Cao himself gone, Ma Chao received considerable reinforcements from Zhang Lu of Hanzhong and overran the Wei River valley, besieging and capturing Jicheng, the capitol of Hanyang Commandery. He killed the Inspector of Liang, Wei Kang, and the Administrator of Jicheng, despite the fact that they had surrendered to him, and proclaimed himself General Who Conquers the West and Governor of Bing Province. He also defeated the force under the command of Xiahou Yuan that had force marched across the frontier to relieve the siege but arrived too late. However, these arbitrary executions and Ma Chao himself angered both the leading men of Liang and (famously) their wives, who plotted against Ma Chao. Directed by Wei Kang's former deputy Yang Fu, some of them rebelled in Lucheng, and when Ma Chao went to go put them down, the rest rose up in Jicheng, killed Ma Chao's wife and children, and went to go join the rebels. Just then, Xiahou Yuan returned and the combined force surrounded and crushed Ma Chao at Lucheng. He attempted to return to Jicheng, only to find the gates locked and his wife's body thrown to him from the walls. Xiahou Yuan continued his pursuit and Ma Chao was forced to flee to join Zhang Lu for protection.

Ma Chao remained with Zhang Lu for a short time until he grew wary of Zhang Lu's officers' distrust of him and defected to join Liu Bei, who was in the process of taking Yi Province from Liu Zhang. Liu Bei welcomed him during the Siege of Chengdu, and Liu Zhang capitulated soon after. He and Zhang Fei soon embarked on the first attempt to conquer Hanzhong from Wei, but their flanking attempt was ambushed by Cao Hong and Cao Xiu and they were forced to retreat. Following Liu Bei's victory in at Mount Dingjun and his subsequent proclaiming himself King of Hanzhong in 219AD, he made Ma Chao General of the Agile Cavalry and Governor of Liang (despite the fact that they had no presence there), as well as enoffing him as Marquis. Ma Chao isn't mentioned as being present at any of the battles after the conquest of Hanzhong, and died in 222AD of unrecorded causes.

Han Sui [Wenyue] (General Who Conquers the West)

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From Jincheng Commandery in Liang, Han Sui was a clerk in the local commandery administration. His father was called to the capitol to serve his time as a cadet in the imperial civil service and Han Sui eventually went there himself as part of a routine report delegation, meeting another cadet named Cao Cao whom he became friends with. He briefly served in the Yellow Turban Rebellion as an adviser to General in Chief He Jin and used that opportunity to push He Jin to act against the eunuchs. He Jin did not, and Han Sui returned to Jincheng. In 184AD, groups of Qiang bandits joined with a larger mutiny of Qiang and Yuezhi soldiers of the Auxiliary of Loyal Barbarians from Huangzhong, starting the Liang Province Rebellion. Many Han officials were killed, but others joined the rebels, as did Han Sui, either out of fear or genuine disgust at the state of the empire.

The rebellion gained traction and eventually destroyed the armies sent to subdue them due to mismanagement and political interference from the eunuchs in Luoyang. Another Han officer named Ma Teng joined the rebellion as well and he and Han Sui eventually became major leaders. Eventually, the rebellion attempted to take Chencang and break through to the western capitol of Chang'an, but was finally defeated and scattered by Huangfu Song and Dong Zhuo. Han Sui survived this, helped Ma Teng depose the rebellion leadership, and set himself up as an independent warlord in Jincheng. The Han forces never pushed their success, since the political firestorm in Luoyang catapulted Dong Zhuo into power, and he eventually bribed Han Sui and Ma Teng with titles to fight for him. Both men fought against the coalition, but after Dong Zhuo's assassination and some sort of dispute with Li Jue a couple years later, they formed a new alliance with Liu Yan and attempted to take Chang'an from Dong Zhuo's colonels, only to be defeated by Li Jue, Guo Si, and Fan Chou. Han Sui convinced Fan Chou not to pursue them and he and Ma Teng retreated to Liang.

The colonels eventually splintered and dispersed, leaving Han Sui and Ma Teng as the strongest factions west of the passes. At a certain point, Cao Cao's officer Zhong Yao allied with them to secure the area around Luoyang from the agents of Yuan Shao, and for this, Han Sui's title of General Who Conquers the West was restored. Then, he and Ma Teng started fighting over Liang. Han Sui's officer Yan Xing nearly killed Ma Teng's eldest son Ma Chao, and at some point, Ma Teng's wife and several children were killed by Han Sui. The fighting was inconclusive however, and Cao Cao had Zhong Yao broker peace between them. Ma Teng requested and was allowed to serve in Ye to get away from Han Sui, leaving Ma Chao in charge of his army.

Cao Cao's proclamation of a campaign against Zhang Lu of Hanzhong worried Han Sui, since the route would take Cao Cao's army through his territory. Ma Chao convinced him to join him in resisting Cao Cao. In 211AD, they opposed Cao Cao at Tong Pass, but Cao Cao flanked their army by crossing the Yellow River twice and the Wei river once, all while under attack. The warlords attempted to leverage their strength through negotiations, but Cao Cao used his friendship with Han Sui to sow disunity, publicly chatting with him about old times and sending a visibly edited letter that was intercepted. The negotiations bought Cao Cao time to arrange his army and the Liang warlords were defeated at Huayin.

Han Sui fled west, but Cao Cao did not pursue him. He instead left Xiahou Yuan to deal with Liang province. Despite vigorous resistance, Xiahou Yuan began crushing the Liang warlords that survived Huayin. Han Sui eventually became one of the last independent powers in the northwest, holding on to some territory in Hanyang Commandery, where he built a force out of the Qiang and Di people to oppose Xiahou Yuan. However, Xiahou Yuan successfully drew him out and crushed him, forcing him to retreat all the way to his home of Jincheng with what he had left. At this point he had a falling out with Yan Xing, who defected to Cao Cao. Han Sui died soon after, in 215AD, at the age of 70. His remaining subordinates cut off his head and gave it to Cao Cao as a token of their surrender

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