| Battle of Beiden Pass | |
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| Location: Beiden Pass | |
| Date: 1127 | |
| Major Forces: Crab Clan, Shadowlands, Ronin, Dragon Clan, Unicorn Clan, Naga | |
| Generals: Hida Sukune, Hida Yakamo, Toturi, Mirumoto Hitomi, Shinjo Yasamura | |
| Battles of Rokugan | |
The Battle of Beiden Pass was widely regarded as the beginning of the Clan War.
Preambles[]
In 1126 a Crab force led by Hida Sukune had attempted to cross the Beiden Pass, but they found the Toturi's Army and its cunning leader Toturi holding the pass. The Crab were forced to retreat. [1]
The Crab Move[]
Inthe Month of the Ox of 1126 the enormous combined Crab-Shadowlands army moved north from the Kaiu Kabe [2] and sacked several Crane and Scorpion Clan cities. The army then moved straight for Beiden Pass, crippling Rokugan's primary trade route. The Crab discovered a massive army already waiting for them at the northern end of the pass in 1127. [3] Yakamo pressured Hida Sukune to rush into battle, without the support of Yakamo's army. Kuni Yori was secretly preparing a tainted ritual that Yakamo did not want his brother to witness. [4] The huge army Crab was split in two.
Lion Ambition[]
Around the same time a Lion army had arrived at the Crane-Lion border, following rumours that Toturi was leading the Dragon army. They did not wish to miss the opportunity of killing the fallen Champion to gain favour in the Emperor's eyes. [5] Shiba Tsukune took a small army into the southlands to discover what was going on, and came across the Lion army and defeated it. [6]
Toturi's Army[]
The massive army led by the ronin Toturi, nicknamed "Toturi the Black", was compromised of a collaboration of ronin, Dragon and Unicorn troops. The army quickly became known as Toturi's Army. [3] In the Month of the Serpent of 1127, the forces clashed to control the pass, beginning weeks of bloody fighting. Mirumoto Daini arrived with the Naga, who joined Toturi's side. [7]
After forcing the Crab army out of Crane territory, the ronin Toturi led his army against the retreating Hida Sukune to Beiden Pass where Sukune made his stand. [8]
Sukune's Stand[]
With Toturi at his heels, Sukune's only option was to hold the pass long enough for his brother, Yakamo, to join with him to provide the strength he needed to destroy the ragtag ronin army. [9] Toturi's army was puny compared to the might of the Crab force waiting for him. [10]
The Brutal Battle[]
The battle in the pass lasted for weeks. Eventually, Toturi's superior tactics defeated the machinations of Hida Sukune. [11] [12] [13] The Crab were driven south, [14] and the pass was left in the control of the Unicorn Clan as Toturi moved his army north. [15]
Hitomi and Yakamo[]
The well-known animosity between Mirumoto Hitomi and Hida Yakamo reached its peak when Hitomi charged at Yakamo's position during the battle. Having taken Yakamo's hand in a duel not long before, Hitomi was planning on finishing the blood feud between the two. Unfortunately for her, when she reached Yakamo, he revealed a monstrous claw attached to his arm, replacing his missing hand. Yakamo quickly disposed of Hitomi by crushing her hand and the Ancestral Sword of the Dragon Clan. Yakamo then left Hitomi for dead. [16]
Price of Failure[]
For failing his father, Sukune was killed by Kuni Yori, who then sacrificed him upon the Terrible Standard of Fu Leng. [17]
Aftermath[]
The Crab army was defeated, but Toturi faced a new problem when he came back to the pass. When Toturi left Shinjo Yasamura to guard Beiden Pass, he didn't count on having to fight his way through the Unicorn's army in order to make his way to the Crane lands. The battle was brief, for Toturi saw no gain in fighting former allies [18]
References
- ↑ Imperial Histories, p. 154
- ↑ Time of the Void, pp. 8-9
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Legend of the Five Rings; Third Edition, p. 19
- ↑ The Cold Dark Dawn, by John Wick
- ↑ The Battle of Beiden Pass, Imperial Herald #2
- ↑ The Gaijin's Guide to Rokugan - Part 4: Distant Thunder
- ↑ Time of the Void, p. 11
- ↑ Light Infantry (The Battle at Beiden Pass flavor)
- ↑ Medium Infantry (The Battle at Beiden Pass flavor)
- ↑ Heavy Infantry (The Battle at Beiden Pass flavor)
- ↑ Heavy Infantry (Emerald flavor)
- ↑ Medium Cavalry (The Battle at Beiden Pass flavor)
- ↑ Archers (The Battle at Beiden Pass flavor)
- ↑ Light Cavalry (Emerald flavor)
- ↑ Light Infantry (Obsidian flavor)
- ↑ Time of the Void, p. 33
- ↑ Kotei 2003: Hida Kisada: The Great Bear
- ↑ Light Cavalry (Obsidian flavor)
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