Akatsuki-shu
Lightly armoured anti-infantry shock troops · T3 · quick in, hard-hitting, not built to hold a line
Akatsuki-shu (Katana)
晓行众（太刀）
Setting old hatreds aside, mortal swordsmen and hanyo stand as one, their katana tearing into enemy lines like a gale.
Background
The yokai of Nippon were born of its mountains and waters, and once lived in seclusion in the depths of the islands. To mortal eyes, however, their horns and scales made them little different from the Daemons of Chaos and the Beastmen. Centuries of fear and prejudice hardened into blood-feuds handed down from one generation to the next. When civil war engulfed the land and longships came ashore, men and yokai alike were caught in the blaze. Still they slew one another in the long night of hatred.
Ibuki, the Hanyo Wanderer, never drew his blade to answer insults or arrows loosed against him. Time and again he simply took his stand before the helpless, stubbornly setting his odachi between them and danger. Mortal ronin and hunters of the wilds, together with hanyo wanderers bearing the blood of another kind, came willingly to his side, won over by his deeds and his beliefs. These followers became known as the Akatsuki-shu (The Dawnbreakers).
Unit type
- Class
- Infantry · melee
- Equipment
- Katana, held two-handed (mostly armour-piercing, with a bonus vs infantry)
- Armour and shield
- Light armour 40 (a wanderer's cloth garb with gauntlets and tassets); no shield
- Training
- Trained
Recruitment
- Recruited from
- ① The Dawnbreakers' Haven landmark at the Sacred Tree, from its tier 2 building (Hall of the Dawnbreakers) up; ② the Dawnbreakers' Quarters aboard the flagship (row III, available once Ibuki has joined); ③ bought with Renown through Ibuki on the Expedition Companions panel
- Unlocked by
- ① The Sacred Tree at settlement level 2, with the Hall of the Dawnbreakers built; ② once Ibuki has joined, upgrade the flagship's Admiral's Residence to open row III and build the Dawnbreakers' Quarters (3 population surplus to open the chain); ③ the first tier of your Bond with Ibuki, Bound
- Recruitment time
- 1 turn
- Unit cap
- None from buildings; through the companion panel each unit costs 2 Renown, and capacity grows with Bond tier to 8 in all (the second tier, Trusted, also grants one unit outright)
Stats
- Melee attack
- 42
- 47 with Will of the Dawnbreakers active
- Melee defence
- 36
- Weapon strength (base / AP)
- 16／30
- 46 in total, mostly armour-piercing; ×1.05 with Will of the Dawnbreakers active
- Bonus vs Infantry
- 16
- Melee attack interval
- 4.0 seconds
- Charge bonus
- 32
- ×1.15 during Kirikomi, and doubled again when charging the flank or rear
- Armour
- 40
- Light armour
- Leadership
- 78
- Immune to psychology
- Speed
- 40
- 44 with Will of the Dawnbreakers active, about 51 during Kirikomi
- Health per model
- 105
- 8400 across 80 men
- Unit size
- 80
- 60 at Large unit size
Unit traits
Anti-Infantry
The katana has a bonus vs infantry of 16
Armour-Piercing
The katana deals mostly armour-piercing damage (30)
Vanguard Deployment
Can deploy outside the deployment zone
Abilities
KirikomiThis mod
With blades drawn, they rush a weakness in the enemy line, tearing into flank and rear with merciless strokes.
Triggers automatically when the unit charges, for 20 seconds: charge speed +25%, speed +15%, charge bonus +15% and Devastating Flanker (charge bonus doubled against the flank or rear); 90-second cooldown
Will of the DawnbreakersThis mod
So long as their faith in the dawn endures, neither their stride nor their blades shall falter.
While leadership is above Wavering: melee attack +5, weapon strength +5% and speed +10%; lost once the unit drops to Wavering
Unit attributes
Vanguard DeploymentVanilla
This unit can deploy outside the deployment zone.
Hide (forest)Vanilla
This unit can hide in forests until enemy units get too close.
Immune to PsychologyVanilla
The unit is immune to psychological attacks (Fear & Terror).
StriderVanilla
Speed and combat penalties caused by terrain are ignored by this unit.