『迭相進退, 左旋右抽, 各臻其妙。』
"Then (they) arrayed in intervals (and) advanced and retreated by turn, spun left and drawn right, each had its own ingeniousness."
From Korean description, it is evident that Imjin War-era Zhejiang troops still practiced some forms of 2022-05-25 08:12:06 +0000 UTC View Post
And now for something completely different.
Continue reading at my Great Ming Military blog.
2022-05-14 03:34:50 +0000 UTC View Post
Siege of Ulsan
I finally completed all the maps for my Siege of Ulsan article, then I realised I might have to redo them all over again because OCD is serious business. For the time being though, the article is as complete as it could ever be, and I am quite proud of it. It is the most detailed and accurate reconstruction of the event available in E...
2022-04-23 05:00:00 +0000 UTC View Post
I suppose it is the reverse Turtle Ship.
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2022-03-19 02:55:38 +0000 UTC View Post
While Siege of Ulsan already ended, hostilities between both sides did not simply stop. As a prelude to the coming Siege of Sacheon, a series of skirmishes was fought between Ming and Joseon army and Japanese troops under Shimazu Yoshihiro (島津義弘). While these skirmishes had little to...
2022-02-25 04:00:00 +0000 UTC View Post
Not as cool as Kingsmen umbralla, but it's the closest thing you can get IRL.
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2022-02-09 07:57:57 +0000 UTC View Post
Who would've thought that steering wheel was invented in the 1600s (not really).
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2022-01-05 02:30:39 +0000 UTC View Post
Finally a new blog post! This article is about a rarely heard Ming auxiliary troops that, surprise surprise, fought barefooted.
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2021-10-20 04:42:19 +0000 UTC View Post
Justin Ma and Blake Cole from The Way of Archery are back again! This time, they are revisiting the same lamellar armour tested in Episode 1, but with updated and more historically accurate arrowheads!
Go watch it here, and don't forget to subscribe to The W...
2021-10-04 03:14:29 +0000 UTC View Post
At long last, the Grand Cathay faction has finally been unveiled! Which means it's time for an impression post!
The developers at Games Workshop and Creative Assembly present us Grand Cathay, the "fantasy China" in the world of Warhammer Fantasy. The empire is ruled by older-than-Old-Ones Dragon Emperor and Moon Goddess, is said to be one of the most populous nations of the Old World, and comes with massive armies, elite cross...
2021-09-18 14:44:07 +0000 UTC View Post
Justin Ma and Blake Cole from The Way of Archery once again delivered their top-notch research and experimental archaeology! This new episode is a massive step-up from the first episode, as both of them not only improved their already meticulous and analytical methods , with historically accurate arrowheads and authentically reproduced ...
2021-06-29 13:20:02 +0000 UTC View Post
Well, this is actually old news (Chinese is one of the earliest revealed civilizations), but since E3 2021 just concluded and a new trailer dropped, I figure this will be a good time to have a look at Age of Empires IV's take on the Chinese.
As before, this article will mostly comment on the visuals and designs of the civilization, and will be light on gameplay and/or game balance.
Ten months in the making and more than 10,000 words long, the blog post about Siege of Ulsan is finally complete! Read it here!
Well...only sort of. I am still not satisfied with how the maps turn out, and there are much more to write about this battle including analysis, strategic implications, references and so on, as well as Patron-only contents.
Regardless, I'v...
2021-04-21 13:15:41 +0000 UTC View Post
Happy Chinese new year!
As it turns out, Grand Cathay has been confirmed as one of the starting factions of the upcoming Total War: Warhammer III! Much joy to be had.
With that being said, while I am very stoked by the news and have high hopes for Creative Assembly, I also understand that it is very difficult to make a Chinese-themed fantasy army "feels" right. So I put together a list of opinions/suggestions/references (or wishlist?) as a rough guideline. It should be noted that ...
2021-02-13 14:43:42 +0000 UTC View Post
I came across this information by chance. Although not directly related to Chinese military history, I thought this is interesting enough to share. A stern word of caution though: these were the names of petty criminals, not some kind of mysterious forerunner of ninja practising a hitherto unknown Chinese Art of Stealth. Chinese "ninja", or forerunner of ninja, never existed.
I have to make this clear to prevent information from this article (or from my Patreon/
It''s been...four months, I guess? I've been sidetracked way too many times over these few months, digging into topics that have nothing to do with siege defence, but finally I manage to get my sh*t together to finish this bloated mess of an article.
You can read it here.
2020-12-11 14:58:40 +0000 UTC View Post
Updated the blog post on Huo Dan (火彈) and added in an improved, rapid firing roman candle variant of the weapon.
I've also detected that Mao Yuan Yi's description of Fei Kong Sha Tong (飛空砂筒...
Same tactic, but medieval.
Continue reading at my Great Ming Military blog.
2020-10-28 04:46:08 +0000 UTC View Post
I especially LOVE that the game atmosphere has a strong Seikro: Shadow Die Twice vibe to it, in the sense that it's a darker and edgier, but still highly faithful reimagining of myths and legends.
The game title ("Black Myth" seems to be a spin of "Black History", a phrase originated from Turn A Gundam, which refers to an uncomfortable truth that was sealed away) heavily hints that this is a dark/alternate retelling of a post-Journey to the West world. The player character is eith...
2020-08-22 17:26:19 +0000 UTC View Post
Originally I planned to complete my previous blog post before I begin this one, but nah, Siege of Ulsan is too interesting so I start early. As of now, it is still WIP.
Continue reading at my Great Ming Military blog.
2020-07-19 10:25:23 +0000 UTC View Post
I used to sincerely believe that whirlwind trebuchet is a unique weapon that utilises some kind of centrifugal force to hurl its projectile, like a lethal version of carnival swing ride. I feel so silly now.
Continue reading at my Great Ming Military blog.
2020-06-06 18:51:46 +0000 UTC View Post
Chinese warriors had their own version of surcoat/tabard/jupon/jinbaori.
Continue reading at my Great Ming Military blog.
Continue reading at my Great Ming Military blog.
(To be honest, I am somewhat surprised that I have so little good things to say about the most powerful military unit of the Ming Dynasty.)
2020-04-01 15:40:38 +0000 UTC View Post
『順治十五年,有族兄旅寓鎮江，適海寇(明鄭)入犯鎮江，城中官軍悉出城拒賊。族兄與居民並派出登城守埤，因得縱觀戰事云。官軍出城，陣于江口，江中海寇巨艦抵岸，遙聞掌號聲。寇蟻附而上，集於沙洲， 約數千人，通為一圓陣。四面籐牌皆外向，若聚數千牌為一牌，兵隱不見。官軍馳馬往衝，將近百步，鞚馬引弓射之，矢不能入，寇屹然不動。官軍鳴金徐退。復鼓而...
2020-03-05 07:00:02 +0000 UTC View PostIn addition to the large groups of Chinese polearms detailed in my blog post, there exists a special sub-group of Chinese pole weapons that was very common during Ming and Qing period, but somehow remains in obscurity.
Extra 1) “Armour-piercing awl”
Po Jia Zhui (破甲錐, lit. 'Armour-brea...
2020-01-17 06:40:30 +0000 UTC View Post
Pictured above is the Chinese anti-ninja device (joke).
This is a blog post to supplement my Chinese fortification series. It is still a work in progress, so please bear with me. I will try to complete it as soon...
2019-12-10 08:39:29 +0000 UTC View Post
*Images in this article are screenshots taken from videos of Fireflyworlds YouTube channel.
Recently (recently as in four months ago during E3 2019. I know, I am late to the party), Firefly Studios revealed their next installment in the Stronghold series: Warlords. Unlike previous Stronghold titles, Stronghold Warlords is set to play in the Far East, which na...
2019-10-25 08:40:36 +0000 UTC View Post
It's a Totally Accurate™ weapon!
Continue reading at my Great Ming Military blog.
Part 1.5 of my book critique translation that primarily deals with the negotiations that happened between the first and second invasion.
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TRIVIA:
If we go by literal translation, Hideyoshi actually demanded the marriage of a "beautiful young maiden of Grea...
2019-09-26 09:26:43 +0000 UTC View Post
My mental images when I was writing this article.
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