Little bit of Romance of the Three Kingdoms history: -Xiahou Dun and Xiahou Yuan are Cao Cao's cousins. -Dun lost his eye from an arrow in a battle against Lu Bu's forces, and attempted to inspire his troops by taking it out and eating it. -Yuan was a brilliant archer, one of the greatest in the land.

Cao Cao is also a general who cares a lot about loyalty and honor. Even though he is crafty and devious, he is resourceful and will gladly offer mercy to those he's captured. In history Cao Cao has had Zhang Liao (from Lü Bu's faction), Guan Yu, and numerous other generals from the various factions he's conquered serve in his armies, and also spares those he will try to win over to his side.

For your RP approach, I would like to share with you some tips to portray Cao Cao. As a long time Three Kingdom Enthusiast. -Cao Cao has a charismatic personality and is actually also known for his literary and artistic talents. -Cao Cao values capable generals and strategists, basically anyone with exceptional talents. Therefore, you should try your best to collect through capture enemy generals that you like. GO catch them all! -Cao Cao shares brotherhood with generals he values, therefore he is unlikely to abandon his friends like XIA HOU DUN/ YUAN. - Historically his retinue of generals are these (luckily most of these are also legendary Character in this game!) XIA HOU DUN/ XIA HOU YUAN, ZHANG LIAO, XU CHU, DIAN WEI, YUE JIN. If you can get these to join your army, go ahead and you will make the experience MUCH MORE immersive and historical. Love the content, keep it coming!

Cao Cao loves talented general, especially the generals under Liu Bei faction (Cao Cao envy Liu Bei's ability to attract talent and don't feel that Liu Bei is a person that should lead the general under Liu Bei). Cao Cao let Guan Yu leave despite slaying some of his own general, same thing apply to Zhao Yu (Zhao ZhiLong) escaping with Liu Bei's son. While he were surrounded by Cao Cao's army. He don't trust people easily, kept thinking they are plotting against him. That show how much he treasure talents.

Heir, while trading anything, you can often get more money total is you have the AI pay per turn. So somebody that would give you, say, 1000 gold as a lump sum will happily pay you 150 for 10 turns.

10/10 video. You speak calmly and not when scenes running etc. Perfect style of streaming.

this was great man, i learned alot from this. i just started this game a couple days ago being brand new to total war and im loving it so far but im very unfamiliar with key binds and stuff like that so this was great, looking foward to watching part 2

Thanks for the content, Heir! Appreciate the gameplay and UI tips too!

Oh Heir you crack me up every time man!! the wooden fish joke :-D Keep up the good work and Thank you!

Awesome first episode. Really enjoed this and looking forward to the series.

I appreciate you discussing your battle tactics, and overall strategy, aloud for the viewers! Also, good end point.

I found out that Right Clicking on characters brings up their details page. It was a lifesaver! Awesome video Heir! Thanks!

24:00 Cao Cao was actually the Cavalry commander for Dong Zhou before he moved against him and fled east to start his rebellion efforts.

When Heir puts his mouse 0.3 pixels away from the flashing Assignments while looking for Assignments.

When role-playing CAO CAO just remember his famous quote "I'd rather betray the world than have the world betray me."

Cao Song: *Cao Cao's father* *dies* Cao Cao: What a pity! They were talented and strong. I lost a valuable pawn. Cao Cao: *calls his own father a valuable pawn* Wut

As a three kingdoms enthusiast who traveled to China 8 years ago to study Chinese (and still lives here)... how am I just finding out about this game haha! Looks awesome

Also 26:50 Cao Cao actually was on the edge of uniting the China in the period precefing the forming of the actual 3 kingdoms. All was lost in battle of The Red Clifs. And more: china was united by the kingdom that was the successor of kingdom founded by Cao Cao's son! P.S. I just hope I have not mess with the history and the grammar)

This is the first series I watched on your channel and I’m completely hooked. I don’t even own a computer, but I still get immense amount of joy watching these. Keep up the great work man and one day I’ll have the dough to get a computer and finally play this hah. Side note I also watched the entire warhammer 2, Karl Franz series. Freaking awesome man lol

My Korean dad has been talking about these characters ever since I was in elementary school. In my imagination they were not so epic looking.

I bet I will be re watching this when I can buy the game someday. Entertaining, thank you.

Crazy Ivan! Yes, I caught that reference!

LOL, how do you miss the flashing assignment button?(assignment button is above the tax except toggle) Anyway make sure you look at diplomacy it plays a way bigger role.

I love your content but I do have some gripes: please sometimes just read what the tooltips are saying. You gave the ancillary that gives minus corruption only on your leader/heir/prime minister to a charcter that won't utilise it. Also that charcter doesn't need authority (where it's Cao Cao's main skill). Also don't bother with satisfaction on charcters unique for the faction. From my time spend with the game I've found it being impossible to have it low enough to actually bother (unless you are actively trying to lower it). Also the button for automatic decline to duels is on the left from the abilities button on a charcter. Also duels are great way of assasinating enemy leaders which will greatly lower enemy morale. Use them! Especially when you have charcters like xiahou dun which can push any generals crap in apart from other melee monsters like guan yu or lu bu. And when you select any city in a province in a down left corner theres this button that says :ASSIGNMENTS" :) Otherwise I love your content and thumbs up for more :)

This is the best one out there so far 😀

Recruit a strategist type general in Cao Cao's army to access artillery and crossbows. And also to assign a character in a commandry click the assignment button on the top of tax exemption option.

I watched the 3 kingdoms TV series, the old one made in 1994. My dad watched it, and I watched it after him. The history is fascinating and the characters are numerous.

I'm very new to this Total War and have no clue. Thanks for showing me the first good steps.

Great content. Gonna spend the night bingeing the other parts

Hello Heir. Keep doing great work. P.S. I like Cao Cao voise acting!

A lot of fun so far, thanks Heir.

Just started watching. BINGE!!

Cao Cao used his father's death as an excuse to take Xu province. Hence an opportunity, wrong move here.

Learning a lot, thanks!

Lol, Cow Cow cracked me up 9:45

On my first Cao Cao campaign I had the same reasoning to choose not to go to war after his father gets killed. Now I have read some of the book and been watching the tv show and it turns out we misjudge the man. Cao Cao is a mastermind ofcourse and he will use his brain to gain the upperhand. Cao Cao is also a man of action though, he almost died trying chasing after Dong Zhou when the other coalition members had no will to fight. A more cynical person could say that his father dieing was a perfect excuse for him to extend his power. As I see it he rode to war because he is not a snake like the yuan brothers who are always scheming but a pragmatic man of action. Funny thing that you happend to comment on his quote "I would rather betray the world then have the world betray me" this is probably his most (in)famous quote said after he has committed a truly horrific act.

Danm man your good at this game, I have 16 hrs only lol I gotta play more to learn.. your videos are great for learning, thanks for that

I got a Total War: Threee Kingdoms 2 ad when I watched this video

You're pointers about selecting troops blew my mind.

I just like the way you play this game. It is more enjoyable to watch you play.

Looking Good! Coming in late to comment on it so let's see what next episodes hold.

I like your RP approach Heir!

O yeah Heir is here baby!!

One more thing: commander colour means that he can recruit higher level units of the same colour, depending on that character level. You still can hire different high level units of other colours, but you need proper reforms. And unique units does not fill that restriction either.

Kudos on the tips bud

Havent seen an HoC vid in ages!

The reason for the color matching is because the skill trees only buff units of the appropriate color (Cao Cao gives no buffs to shock cav, but melee cav get block chance and probably other stuff I can’t remember) and recruitment options will be limited for out-of-color units (you’re usually stuck with militia or unique units)

The units in TK are so so so much more livelier and they seem way smarter than any previous Total War game I have ever played!! 😁

this is my first watching you and I loved your video

hey heir I would love to see cinematic battles like in your Warhammer videos! Much love

Wake me up when my best bois, the shu bros are being played by heir

remember to sometimes march instead of running on battle map to maintain vigour

I suggest that you pair Commanders, Champions, and Strategist, and Vanguards, Sentinels, and Strategist together. I think you should also have characters in a army that like each other. They get bonuses for friendly characters around (in the same army) and debuffs from rivals (in the same army).

HEIR OF CARTHAGE I MISSED YOU MAN!

Go for it Cow Cow!

"For I would rather feed the world than have the world feed me [due to rice shortage]"

legendary! go Heir

nice choices i liked it

After spending a lot of time on the Paradox side, I'm slowly drifting back to CA strategy games lol. This campaign looks like it'll be a good deal of fun, I like the minor role play aspect you've added. It'll definitely make the campaign more interesting! Now excuse me, I need to go read the entire Wikipedia entry on the Three Kingdoms so I know what the hell is going on here haha

Didnt declare war on Tao Qian because "not sure if thats CaoCao" when the other option was literally what he actually did lmao "follow the story" XD

Cao Cao is High Elves with cavalry supremacy lol

Great video, just one quick thing Xiahou Dun - "Sha-ho Do-in" Cao Cao - Tsow Tsow"

Cao Cao was a legend battle of Guandu proved that he is awesome with Cavalry.

Very nice :D

amzing

It was jokes that you were looking for assignments and it was flashing in your screen and you were so close to it and still didn't even notice.

this game is doppeeeee!

Just what the doctor ordered

Jesus I can’t do have this slo motion with pause enabled, wish I was good at this damn game lol

The assignment is above the city name.

You are the best i always wath your videos

Be careful upgrading your main settlement right away as it needs no reforms to do it, but the bigger cities need mid to late reforms to support it. I learnt this the hard way in the middle of a big war with Liu Bei and his many vassals I got hit with population, food and public order issues... I had to peace out with heavily favourable terms for Liu Bei.

Cao Cao is not at all a strategic mastermind. He employed many people who could be described as such, but Cao Cao is best known as a hero of the chaos. The game has the line able subject in peace and crafty hero in chaos, which comes from an appraisal of him before he started his career. It is not a complete picture of Cao Cao, but it is very accurate to his character and life events. The translation for crafty is wrong. The Wikipedia article translates it as unscrupulous, but no single word can explain its meaning. First of all, the word "hero" does not mean good or noble like the English hero, because there is another word in Chinese for noble hero, but the hero here is a person of power as in social position, might as in influence, and ability as in accomplishments. So a noble hero would be like the English "hero". The descriptor noble or unscrupulous is very specifically based on the concept of virtues for officials and bureaucrats, most importantly loyalty, honesty, and ability. In Chinese political philosophy, Cao Cao lacks honesty, which automatically makes him disloyal. But being a hero, it is implied he is able, and he was also appraised as able in peacetime. In his career, Cao Cao ever increasingly overstepped long entrench boundaries of power positions, eventually becoming the most powerful single person of his time. This is very much against the virtues of his time. If he wasn't the most power person, he would have been immediately ended for treason. Cao Cao was a great opportunist, but not a battlefield commander. He was great at finding and making full effect of talent, including many of his own blood, who were the only people he trusted with the command of his armies. But his reliance on blood relations made his most powerful generals into rival kingmakers and his Cao and Xiahou house collapsed like a house of cards after his death.

This could be a worthy successor to the WRE campaign and the Chaos campaign. I hope the community here rallies behind it in a similar way. I think Cao Cao is a good character fit for the way you tend to play. What I would like to see is a thinking man's game. Cao Cao building a dream team of the best (including other legendary characters where possible). You have expertise in warehousing and fast moving consumer goods logistics, so I would like to see you use supplies well (just as you tried to do in the DEI Carthage campaign). Go forth and bring peace to the Empire! Edit: All of the above I wrote before the first battle. Now, as I write at 30:46, a couple of points. I wrote my bachelor's thesis on the "Hunt for the Red October". It's one of the best films of its time. Also, I like what I am seeing. I want more! I haven't been this excited for a campaign in a while.

OHHH FINALLY I HAVE FOUND A WAY TO MAKE MY UNITS MMOVE IN A INCLINED LINE THANK YOU SHIFT THEN RIGHT CLICK

Cao Cao actually went on a murderous rampage when his family was assassinated.

You are the best!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

alll the dynasty warriors nerds are stoked ! I'm one of them !

It's dope that you're actually trying to pronounce the names and stuff right, keep it up man!

Cow Cow Cavalry army!

all i know of Cao Cao is if you want to roleplay as him you have to play the long game

Guo Jia appeared in your court just before the video ended. He's a great Strategist and was an advisor to Cap Cao in real life, aiding in his victories over Lu Bu and Yuan Shao. You should hire him before he runs away.

I'm recalling this from memory only so I may be wrong. Cao Cao was looking for an opportunity to invade Tao Qian's land but could not find a legitimate reason to do so. Tao Qian knew this and wanted to please Cao Cao and treat his family well. The yellow turban remnants Tao Qian subjugated were assigned to accommodating Cao Cao's family but they decided to kill and rob the family instead. While Cao Cao had some anguish in him, he also used this as an opportunity to claim legitimacy in his attack and blame Tao Qian even though he had info that it wasn't Tao Qian's intention.

52:00 you can't use the ability because of the enemy strategist's passive ability,"Whitewater",it makes it so that enemy generals can't use abilities in his presence.

39:00 i picked crush them because when i play this game, "i become cao cao for real".. How dare you kill my father

Hey heir, keep explaining what your using and why for that faction.

Liu Bei should be your next character

38: 37 Actually Cao Cao was enraged when he learned his father was killed by Tao Qian, both in the history and in the novel. Despite his advisors admonished him not to attack Tao Qian, he still went on and massacred many civilians in Tao Qian's territory. This, of course, gained him infamy and actually left Cao Cao's own territory unguarded. Later Lv Bu took this opportunity, backstabbing Cao Cao, and captured many of his territories.

For this game I sold my Mac and going to build a coustom pc

Can you try a defensive hold from time to time instead of attacking immediately ? ( need archers)

Can’t wait for Warhammer III 😀

Lord Cow Cow

Cao Cao by the way is traditionally seen as the evil bad guy. In Chinese there is the phrase "speak of Cao Cao, and here he appears", similar to "Speak of the Devil".

This is going to be legendary.

44:00 That's where the assignment is, left down corner

Hey, Heir. According to my Chinese students, Xiahou Dun is pronounced like "SHA-how DOO-en." Yeah, I've been mispronouncing it for years, too. Thanks, Dynasty Warriors localization...

Do to Cao Cao's starting location, he has a lot of food to his disposal. You can use this food to sell for money, I would suggest you use regular payments, as it give a you more cash per turn.

Lots of role play, make the campaign immersive. Like the Archaon campaign!

Noice

I've never played this game but it just realized even tho I've been playing ROTK Sim games for 20 years and I've taken over China dozens of times , I've never played as CAO CAO since he was almost always the strongest faction & I wanted a challenge. Maybe it's time to play as CAO CAO during the dong zhuo reign or prior to his war with yuan shao