Shen Changfeng · Nippon Expedition

Identity

Rank: Legendary Lord
Role: Wizard, with a warrior's skill in melee
Recruited from: Starts the campaign as faction leader
Limit: Unique

Background

Shen Changfeng is the most renowned admiral of the Eastern Provinces. When Nipponese pirates renewed their raids on Cathay after Yin-Yin's disappearance, she led her fleet in pursuit across the border and deep into Nippon's waters. Her victory was total, yet in the course of it she also sank several of Nippon's official warships. News of her triumph reached the Celestial Court on the same day as Nippon's protest. With Yin-Yin gone, her opponents at court seized their opportunity: war pressed hard upon the Great Bastion in the north, they argued, and this was no time to provoke Nippon. A writ of censure followed, demanding that she surrender her command and return to the capital. Shen did not obey. Taking every warrior willing to follow her, she put to sea and set a course straight for Nippon.

Stats

	On foot	On Jade Longma	On Tidestrider
Armour	90	90	120
Melee attack	65	65	65
Melee defence	45	45	45
Weapon strength (base / AP)	150／300	150／300	150／300
Charge bonus	40	70	85
Health	5064	6064	6664
Leadership	85	85	85
Speed	38	82 (run) / 105 (fly)	125 (run) / 143 (fly)

Each form stands alone: equipping a mount switches her whole profile, and the numbers do not stack. Magical attacks; casts from the Lore of Yang. Can hide in forests on foot; flies and causes fear in both mounted forms.

Weapons

Wave-Queller spear and Sakashio blade · 150 / 300 · magical
Magical cutting blows with +20 weapon strength against large targets, the same pair in all three forms. Both are her signature items: Wave-Queller arrives at rank 7, Sakashio at rank 12

Mounts

Jade Longma
A flying mount: charge bonus +30 and health +1000. She flies and causes fear, but can no longer hide in forests
Tidestrider
Her ultimate flying mount: armour rises to 120, charge bonus to 85, health by a further +600 and speed to 125 (run) / 143 (fly). Otherwise as the Jade Longma, plus the Tide Follows the Blade passive while she rides it

Unit traits

Harmony Amplifier: +50%
All forms
Spellcaster
All forms
Melee Expert
All forms
Armoured
All forms
Flying
Both mounted forms only

Abilities

Will of the DragonsPassive
Leadership +4 for allies within the aura (the standard vanilla Cathay lord passive)
Arcane ConduitPassive
Faster recovery of the Winds of Magic reserve (the standard wizard passive)
Tide Follows the BladePassive · Tidestrider only
Charges while she is in melee: after about 10 seconds, then every 15, a wave surges out in front of her for 33 damage (11 armour-piercing). It harms only enemies, and stops charging once she leaves melee
TidecallSpell
A Lore of the Deep spell she can cast from the start. The first node of her magic line upgrades it: cooldown −30% and overcasting, then at full rank cooldown −50%, miscast chance −15% and Winds of Magic cost −1 / −2
BroadsideActive
Known from the start. Target a patch of ground: 2 seconds later a salvo of 18 shots falls within a radius of 12 over 3 seconds, each dealing 50 damage (30 armour-piercing). 3 uses per battle, 120-second cooldown. The same ability as the Fleet Admiral's
Jade Blade DanceActive
Unlocked by the Jade Sea Swordmaster skill (rank 11): weapon damage ×1.25, melee attack +10, melee defence +10 and missile block chance +25% for 25 seconds. 90-second cooldown, self only, unlimited uses

Unit attributes

Encourage
Raises the leadership of nearby allies
Mastery of Elemental Winds
When several units in the army share it, their spells grow stronger

Traits

Comes with the character from the start, under Traits on the character panel; it costs no skill points.

Sea-Quelling Admiral
- Campaign movement range: +10% whilst at sea
- Upkeep: -15% for fleet units (Lord's army)
- Weapon strength: +10% for Tide Guard and Empyrean Guard (Lord's army)
- Missile strength: +10% for Tide Guard (Lord's army)
- Immune to High Seas, Reef and Storm attrition (Lord's army)
The commander of the Jade Sea Fleet is protected by the seas of the Far East.

Skill tree

Only this mod's own nodes are listed. The vanilla magic line (mostly Lore of Yang, with two Lore of the Deep spells), army line and campaign line are left out; on the combat row and the top row only her own nodes are shown.

Personal Line

Jade Sea Swordmaster opens at rank 11 and brings the Jade Blade Dance ability. The five after it boost the fleet's core troops, its missile troops, Nipponese samurai, seafaring and battle deployment, in any order; any three open The Uncrowned Host. Wavebreaker into The Long Wind is a separate branch from rank 15 that needs nothing before it.

Jade Sea Swordmaster
Unlocks at rank 11
- Melee attack: +8
- Melee defence: +6
- Unlocks the battlefield ability "Jade Blade Dance"
A true swordmaster is often skilled in several different weapons, such as swords and spears.
Jade Sea Veterans
Requires Jade Sea Swordmaster
- Melee attack: +4 for fleet units (Lord's army)
- Melee defence: +4 for fleet units (Lord's army)
- Leadership: +5 for fleet units (Lord's army)
The veterans who have campaigned alongside the admiral are battle-hardened.
Powder and Sorcery
Requires Jade Sea Swordmaster
- Spell intensity: +10%
- Ammunition: +20% for fleet missile units (Lord's army)
- Missile strength: +5% for fleet missile units (Lord's army)
"Powder or sorcery?" – "Why not both?"
Flow State
Requires Jade Sea Swordmaster
- Armour-piercing weapon damage: +15%
- Cooldown: -20% to "Jade Blade Dance" and "Broadside"
When the blade becomes second nature, mind and edge move as one. Increases his own armour-piercing weapon damage and shortens the cooldowns of Jade Blade Dance and Broadside.
Cathayan Seamanship
Requires Jade Sea Swordmaster
- Campaign movement range: +10% whilst at sea
- Replenishes 10% campaign movement range after winning a battle
- Tradable resources produced: +20% (factionwide)
- Income from Ports: +10% (factionwide)
Cathayan seamanship boasts a long history and a far-reaching reputation.
Master Strategist
Requires Jade Sea Swordmaster
- Attribute: Vanguard Deployment for all units (Lord's army)
- Ambush success chance: +20% (Lord's army)
Strike first, and catch the enemy unprepared.
The Uncrowned Host3 of 5
Requires Jade Sea Veterans, Flow State, Cathayan Seamanship, Master Strategist, Powder and Sorcery
- Replenishes 20% campaign movement range after winning a battle
- Weapon strength: +10% (Lord's army)
- Missile strength: +10% (Lord's army)
No longer recognised by the court, it remains the mightiest fleet in the far eastern seas.
Wavebreaker
Unlocks at rank 15
- Upkeep: -10% (Lord's army)
- Casualty replenishment rate: +5% (Lord's army)
A commander seasoned by wind and wave knows best how to keep supplies flowing and morale high on a long expedition.
The Long Wind
Requires Wavebreaker
- Campaign movement range: +15%
- Attribute: Unbreakable
- Leadership: +8 (Lord's army)
She crests the clouds and cleaves the surge, borne on a wind that carries across ten thousand leagues.

Combat

The standard vanilla self-improvement line. Only Wave-Queller is hers, granted automatically at rank 7 without spending a point.

Wave-Queller
Unlocks at rank 7
The Wei-Dong Fleet's standard-issue spear, Wave-Queller, is back in her hand – the court could reclaim her command, but never this spear.

Mounts and General

Both mounts arrive on their own: the Jade Longma at rank 7, the Tidestrider at rank 16. Beyond the Summit opens at rank 36 and has 100 levels of +1% health each, a place for surplus skill points.

Jade Longma
Unlocks at rank 7
Only a commander worth following can master this Jade Longma.
Tidestrider
Unlocks at rank 16
- Unlocks the battlefield passive "Tide Follows the Blade"
A Jade Longma that has absorbed a Sea Elemental, regarded by the navy as an auspicious mount capable of soaring past the clouds and cutting through the waves.
Beyond the Summit
Unlocks at rank 36
Level 1
- Hit points: +1%
… level 100
- Hit points: +100%
Their art has reached its peak; any further training can only harden the body. A sink for surplus skill points.

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