The Great Lord Ichimonji Hidetori has conquered his province through a lifetime of ruthlessness, treachery, and cunning. Now in his later years he has divided the Ichimonji Clan among his three sons—Taro, Jiro, and Saburo—to ensure his legacy. He has assigned his great general, Kurenage, to be Taro’s vassal. Immediately there is conflict for supremacy among the three sons. The oldest, Taro, is assassinated (by whom is unknown) and his widow, Lady Kaede, now rules in First Castle. General Kurenage’s pledge was to Taro. He refuses to serve under Lady Kaede. He gathers his own forces from the disaffected Ichimonji daimyo. Jiro and Saburo each has his own army. These four forces vie for control of the field: Lady Kaede, General Kurenage, Jiro (the second son), and Saburo (the third son). The antagonists have learned that Lady Kaeda has been the instigator of the family’s strife, manipulating them all into an orgy of self-destruction in revenge for the Ichimonji Clan’s destruction of her own clan years before. Kurenage, Jiro, and Saburo vow to destroy her as the first step to restoring peace or deciding the succession. Our scenario is based on the plot of the movie Ran. The game was fought by the Gourmet Wargaming Club with 25mm figures, using our Samurai Furi ruleset (based on Fire and Fury and Age of Eagles) in the Santa Rosa Prefecture. Click here to download a PDF containing the order of battle.

The battlefield . First Castle dominates the center of the board; it is here that Lady Kaede commands Taro's forces in defense. Three forces opposing her occupy the far corners of the table.	General Kurenage's army.	The force commanded by Jiro, the second son.	And the army of Saburo, the third son.	General Kurenage marches resolutely towards First Castle.
Jiro's troops fan out and prepare to discover Lady Kaede's hidden forces in patches of woods.	Saburo's cavalry and infantry making good speed towards the castle.	Saburo's infantry prepare to fight the defenders outside the castle.	A quick look at the players...	...and a second look.
Jiro's lead units (left) run into Lady Kaede's forward defenders. This would be the start of a hard fight for Jiro.	Jiro's cavalry face a small number of enemy cavalry across the river.	General Kurenage's army floods across the river, but meets a delaying force on its left flank.	A close-up of Lady Kaede's delaying force in the woods. Arquebus shots pepper the air.	Lady Kaede's cavalry charge across the river into Jiro's right flank.
Warrior monks defend the approaches to First Castle.	Saburo marches ever closer to First Castle.	Heavy fighting over the river. Jiro's troops have not yet forced a crossing.	General Kurenage pushes up to the base of the hill where Lady Kaede hold out.	Jiro pushes harder and harder on his left, and crosses the river unhindered in his center.
One of the Lady's cavalry units (center) has broken through Jiro's line, but he moves infantry to head them off.	Saburo's forces move past token resistance to make contact with the walls of First Castle. Why are the Lady's troops unwilling to put up a full fight in this sector?	A unit of Saburo's cavalry moves to cover the rear of one of Jiro's pike units. Or is that a potentially offensive move?	A quick break for a delicious lunch!	Jiro's left flank crosses the river at last!
But WHAT IS THIS?! Saburo, younger brother of Jiro, has sent his cavalry into the pikemen. This is TREACHERY!	NO!!! Saburo's cavalry slam into the flank of Jiro's troops. Saburo has made a deal with Lady Kaede. TRAITOR!	General Kurenage pushes very close to First Castle.	Now a state of open war exists between the two brothers. Saburo, what have you done?!	Saburo's advance units scale the walls of First Castle as the Lady's infantry just look on.
The Lady's forces (left) in front of First Castle rush to stem General Kurenage's advance.	A forest of banners! All three factions--green, yellow, and white--can be seen clearly.	Now that a couple of Saburo's units have entered the castle, the rest of the force turns to the right to take on brother Jiro's army. Saburo has just enough presence of mind to execute Lady Kaede upon entering First Castle. Long live commander Saburo!	Disciples of death! Leaders with laser pointers! Dreamers throwing dice! Sippers of sake! We tower over the little men, and we have many names. (Some barely repeatable.)