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Yuan Shu
Dynasty Warriors 9 artwork
Character Information
Force(s): Han
Yuan Shu's Forces
Height:
170 cm (5'7")
Weapon Type: Rapier
Significant Battle(s):
Playable Debut: Dynasty Warriors 9
Historical Information
Real name:
Yuán Shù
Chinese name:
袁術 - 袁术
Style name:
Gōnglù
Chinese name:
公路
Born:
155
Died:
199

Yuan Shu (onyomi: En Jutsu) was the younger half-brother of Yuan Shao and a powerful warlord, known for his rather condescending personality. After Dong Zhuo's demise, he declared himself emperor due to bargaining with Sun Ce for the imperial seal that his late father Sun Jian had found, and attempted to create the short-lived Zhong Dynasty. In doing so however, he was subsequently branded as a traitor to the Han, and eventually was brought down by misfortune after misfortune, which lead to his eventual death.

Before his playable debut, he has been a generic officer since the second title. He placed ninth with fans in Gamecity's Shin Sangoku Musou Blast first card promotion poll.

Role in Games[]

"What? Yuan Shu, you're running away? Just what did you come for in the first place?"
Lu Bu; Dynasty Warriors 6

Dynasty Warriors[]

In all of his portrayals, Yuan Shu is depicted as a deceitful, close-minded, foolish man. Like his brother, Yuan Shao, Yuan Shu is infamous for his family name but is overconfident because of it. Keeping true to the events in Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Yuan Shu is assigned to reinforce Sun Jian at the Battle of Sishui Gate. Unfortunately for Sun Jian, he does not always give him back-up out of jealousy, forcing the general to retreat.

In Dynasty Warriors 4, he plays a small role, but has a unique character model. He supports Sun Jian and refuses to give him the supply convoy at Sishui Gate. He also appears in Jiang Dong, where he holds off Sun Ce's army. In Lu Bu's story, he assists in Xia Pi's defense and campaign against Cao Cao.

After Sun Ce gives Yuan Shu the Imperial Seal in exchange for troops, Yuan Shu declares himself Emperor. In Dynasty Warriors 6, Yuan Shu appears with his army at the Battle of Xia Pi, the Conquest of Wu and its clone stage, "Campaign Against Yuan Shu", claiming that the land of Wu is his own land. With the combined forces of Sun Ce and Liu Bei, Yuan Shu is defeated. In the former, he appears as reinforcements for Liu Yong, Wang Lang, and Yan Baihu's armies, in the latter, he is the enemy commander and his officers come as reinforcements to defend "the Emperor".

In Dynasty Warriors 7, Yuan Shu is in charge of the supply depot at Hulao Gate. Sun Jian's men complain about not receiving supplies, implying that Yuan Shu might be neglecting his duty. Shortly after this, the player gets noted that Yuan Shu is attacked by Dong Zhuo's men and has to rescue him. Once the player enters the supply depot, Yuan Shu comments about his allies thinking that he would not do his job right. When the base is cleared, Yuan Shu will resume the sending of supplies and the morale of Sun Jian's troops increases greatly. He later appears in Wu's story at Shouchun. Sun Ce unites with Cao Cao and Liu Bei in order to defeat Yuan Shu after he declared himself Emperor. After Shouchun's gates are breached, Yuan Shu seemingly disappears from the city, only to reappear outside of it and trying to escape the battlefield. Halfway through his escape, however, his generals Chen Lan and Lei Bo rebel against their master and block his path, buying the coalition enough time to intercept and kill Yuan Shu.

Yuan Shu makes his first appearance during the second chapter of Dynasty Warriors Next. While not specifically mentioned, his returning jealousy is implied to be the reason why Sun Jian is forced to take the enemy's own provisions at Sishui Gate. He serves as the final antagonist of the third chapter, using the seal given to him by Sun Ce to declare himself emperor much to the other warlords' disgust. His entire army clashes against them at Hefei, resulting in his death at their hands.

During the eighth installment, he reprises his role from the previous titles as well as helping Lu Bu at Xiapi, though his battles against Liu Bei and Sun Ce are no longer included in the story.

In Dynasty Warriors 8: Xtreme Legends, however, he plays a much larger role. During Lu Bu's story, his role varies depending upon whether the player takes the hypothetical path or not; in the historical path, Lu Bu assists Liu Bei in fighting Yuan Shu at Shouchun, then negotiates a truce between Liu and Yuan by shooting the tip of his halberd. During the battle, Zhang Fei, who is disobeying orders, finds and begins destroying Yuan Shu's treasures. If Zhang Fei's stopped at Shouchun, Yuan Shu will assist Lu Bu at Xiapi. In the hypothetical path, however, a dominant Lu Bu marches south, and Yuan Shu is forced to seek refuge with Sun Ce. After Lu Bu invades Wu, Yuan Shu is killed in battle, and what's left of his forces join with Sun Ce and the other allied warlords at Chang'an. Yuan Shu also features prominently in two new hypothetical battles, in Wu and Shu's storylines respectively. In Wu's, Sun Ce must protect Yuan Shu from an overwhelming attack by Cao Cao's forces, while in Shu's, he reinforces Lu Bu against the allied forces of Liu Bei and Sun Ce.

As a unique NPC in Dynasty Warriors 9, he first appears in the story as part of the coalition against Dong Zhuo and is responsible for sending supplies Sun Jian, who is currently holed up in Yangren Castle by Hu Zhen. In the allied scenario, he is actively avoiding combat and asks the player to rescue his men, while Dong Zhuo's scenario has him personally lead the supply troops. After Dong Zhuo's defeat, he opposes Yuan Shao. Coveting the Imperial Seal, he conspires against Sun Jian by sending bandits to attack him and kidnapping Sun Jian's wife. When he is cornered, he cowers before Sun Jian before finally coming to terms with him and bargaining for the Imperial Seal, which leads to Sun Jian's death later when he goes after Liu Biao. He later declares himself the Emperor in a desperate bid to regain support in his war against Yuan Shao, and as a result, is brought down by the forces of Sun Ce, Cao Cao, Liu Bei, and his own relative under orders from Emperor Xian for committing high treason against the Han with his declaration of being Emperor.

His own personal tale starts with the Ten Eunuchs rebellion near Luoyang where he and his half-brother Shao, are joined by what they perceive to be as the lowly Cao Cao and Yuan Shu decides to help subjugate the ringleader Zhang Rang. Along the way, he helps the peasants out for information on the eunuchs and is marred by Yuan Shao's frontal assault with his ignorance on flanking and surrounding the eunuchs, something to which Yuan Shu is successfully able to do. After the battle, Dong Zhuo rises to power and a coalition is elected. Despite Yuan Shu's plotting, he is soon informed by Ji Ling that Yuan Shao is nominated as the leader of the coalition instead, leaving him very irate.

During the campaign at Hulao Gate, Yuan Shu's forces are isolated in the south, aiming to claim glory without the coalition hindering their progress. He refuses to provide supplies to Sun Jian and the rest of the Coalition's forces, leading to Dong Zhuo's death. After Sun Jian's death, Sun Ce takes charge of his father's forces.

Tao Qian and Gongsun Zan are defeated by Cao Cao and Yuan Shao, forcing Yuan Shu to retreat at Kuangting. He throws a banquet for his officials, and a man's child is praised for his filial piety.

With the loss of Tao Qian and Gongsun Zan, Yuan Shu's forces are strained of allies and territory. Sun Ce and Zhou Yu advise Yuan Shu to attack Xu Province, which was recently taken over by Liu Bei. As a barter for troops, Yuan Shu takes the Imperial Seal and leaves to fight Liu Bei.

Lu Bu's forces take advantage of the fighting, and Yuan Shu begrudgingly withdraws. When he returns to Shouchun, Zhou Yu and Sun Ce report a successful campaign at the lands of Wu. Yuan Shu becomes filled with envy as Sun Ce has larger territory than him. Despite warnings, he declares himself emperor using the Imperial Seal.

In response, a large coalition led by Yuan Shao, Sun Ce, and Cao Cao come for his head at Shouchun. Ji Ling and many other loyal officers die helping their lord escape the wrath of his enemies, and a fatigued Yuan Shu desperately heads to Xiapi for shelter. Chen Gong questions why should they give the country's most hated person refuge, to which Yuan Shu responds that they owe him for his previous actions. Eventually a one-night deal is agreed with Yuan Shu remaining a broken man. By his ending, he is deathly ill and is unable to get honey water for himself, with Sun Ce paying him a more friendly and final visit, handing him an orange from the father at Kuangting. Tearfully eating the orange, Yuan Shu admits that the fruit tastes better than honey water.

Warriors Orochi[]

Yuan Shu appears as one of the vanguard leaders serving Orochi at the Battle of Jie Ting in the first game. In the sequel, he yet again serves on the front lines, but this time for Yuan Shao at the Battle of Shizugatake.

Romance of the Three Kingdoms[]

Within the Romance of the Three Kingdoms series, Yuan Shu is depicted in a fairly poor light with none of his stats reaching the 70's mark while his Politics stat ranks among the worst in the series being in the middling 10's. Early scenarios will see him as an officer of He Jin before forming his own faction at Wan during the Anti-Dong Zhuo Coalition before moving to Shouchun after his defeat at Kuangting by Cao Cao's forces. In later scenarios, due to his possession of the Imperial Seal and ascension to the position of Emperor of his own dynasty, Yuan Shu's Charisma stat is inflated to the maximum value.

Character Information[]

Development[]

Suzuki stated that Yuan Shu's playable Dynasty Warriors design was modeled after his stint to being emperor. His overall design is meant to look like someone who is trying too hard to appear spectacular. His platform shoes is meant to highlight his tendency to look down on others.

Personality[]

His playable Dynasty Warriors persona is a lover of extravagance who is obsessed with his wealth and power. He governs poorly and has lost the heart of the people. He is a firm believer in his noble pedigree, even more so than Yuan Shao, and is often at odds with his relative, believing himself to be the superior man between them. His arrogance, however, is more inflated than Yuan Shao's, seeing almost everyone else to be inferior men based on their lesser births, lower rank or lack of talent in his eyes. He does not think too highly of Sun Ce, while seeing the youth as a somewhat useful vassal, but mostly as a vassal that should remain subservient to him.

Character Symbolism[]

Via one cutscene in the ninth installment as well as in general for his Warriors character, Yuan Shu's favorite food happens to be mandarin oranges. This was based on a historical account via the 13th entry of The Twenty-Four Filial Exemplars, where Yuan Shu gave oranges to the son of one of his officers. While the boy did not eat them and instead gave them to his mother, Yuan Shu did not punish him due to being amazed at such an example of filial piety. The said boy happened to also be Lu Ji, who was Lu Xun's second cousin once removed which has loose ties to Wu's history as a result.

Voice Actors[]

  • Tsuyoshi Takishita - Dynasty Warriors 3~8 (Japanese)
  • Skip Stellrecht - Dynasty Warriors 4 (English-uncredited)
  • Eddie Frierson - Dynasty Warriors 5 (English-uncredited)
  • Alan Shearman - Dynasty Warriors 6 (English-uncredited)
  • Michael Lindsay - Dynasty Warriors 7 (English-uncredited)
  • Spike Spencer - Dynasty Warriors 8 (English-uncredited)
  • Paul Harted - Dynasty Warriors 9 (English)
  • Yu Wang - Dynasty Warriors 9 (Chinese)
  • Keiji Hirai - Dynasty Warriors 9 (Japanese)
  • Cho Nagyun - Romance of the Three Kingdoms: The Legend of Cao Cao (Korean)
  • Takashi Ōhara - Sangokushi Legion
  • Miho Hino - Youkai Sangokushi (Japanese)
  • Shinpachi Tsuji - Sangokushi Three Kingdoms TV series
  • Kentaro Ito - Juuzaengi ~Engetsu Sangokuden~

Live-Action Performers[]

Quotes[]

See also: Yuan Shu/Quotes
  • "I am the Emperor! I am the land itself! You dare threaten me, you landless peasant?"
  • "I will not forsake my friend, Liu Xun! Yuan Shu does not bow to threats! We will guard Liu Xun's rear flank, follow me!"
  • "What is going on here? Why are you fighting over my land? I hold the Imperial Seal, which makes me as good as the Emperor. We will punish all who bring war and chaos to our land."
  • "You there, woman! Is the Emperor really here? Lie to me and I will show you no mercy."
"I sense that you people only mean to cause harm to him... I'm afraid I am going to have to stop you."
~~Yuan Shu and Cai Wenji; Dynasty Warriors 7: Xtreme Legends
  • "First Cao Cao and now Sun Ce... Do you imbeciles not realize that I am the Emperor?"
"One as weak as yourself has no right to rule. You are blocking my path to conquest and therefore must be slain!"
~~Yuan Shu and Cao Cao; Dynasty Warriors Next
  • "If I had the Imperial Seal, the realm would be forced to do as I say. I must get my hands on it."
"That is the Emperor's seal. If someone unworthy were to use it, it would be the end of them."
"Hahahaha! You've got no guts! If you find it, bring it to me. I will take charge of it."
"Hmm... This is the one man I will definitely not give it to."
~~Yuan Shu and Sun Jian; Dynasty Warriors 8

Gameplay[]

See also: Yuan Shu/Movesets

Dynasty Warriors 9[]

『真・三國無双8』DLC第3弾「袁術」アクション動画

『真・三國無双8』DLC第3弾「袁術」アクション動画

Keys: Square Flow Attack • Triangle Reactive Attack • Circle Musou X Jump/Mount

Yuan Shu is affiliated with the rapier in this title. When equipped with it, Yuan Shu can perform the following unique attacks listed below.

Unique Attacks
Unique Flow Attack Finisher: Enemy Airborne + Square Square Square Square: Yuan Shu finishes his aerial flow attack by stepping on air twice before stomping the earth to produce a radial shockwave while holding his arms outward.
Unique Trigger Attack: R1 + Square: Performs a rushing thrust attack followed by a lower stab that dizzies foes momentarily. When fully charged, the move is given additional range.
Special Technique: R1 + Circle: Attracts lightning by raising sword up, then launches a beam of electricity traveling forward at a great distance.
Musou Attack: Circle: Jabs forward at the enemy repeatedly while walking towards them in a slow pace. Yuan Shu charges his sword with electricity and plants it on the ground before leaping up high. He then lands on it with one foot, causing the charged weapon to flood the area with radiating streams of lightning. Bears a resemblance to Yuan Shao's Musou finisher from Dynasty Warriors 5.
Aerial Musou Attack: X Circle: Conjures intense rays of light to shine outward while holding up sword in mid-air. Inflicts fire damage on enemies and causes them to collapse on the ground.
Horse Maneuvers
Summon Horse: L2: Summon horse to the battlefield. Holding L2 as the horse approaches will allow the character to automatically mount them.
Auto-Run: Riding Mode + L2: Automatically runs towards a specified destination. If a destination has not been set, the horse will instead run towards the location of the player's currently selected mission.
Sprint: Riding Mode + Direction + R1: Causes horse to run at a faster pace. Doing so depletes their stamina each time.
Jump: Riding Mode + Direction + R2: Causes horse to jump high while running.
Horse Fast Attack: Riding Mode + Square: Performs a fast and seamless attack while mounted. The attack itself varies depending on what type of weapon is equipped and whether the enemy is grounded or airborne.
Horse Trigger Attack: Riding Mode + Triangle: Performs an attack that sends enemies flying into the air. May vary depending on what type of weapon is equipped.
Horse Musou Attack: Riding Mode + Circle: Causes horse to sprint by consuming Musou instead of stamina.
Dismount Horse: Riding Mode + X: Dismounts from horse and resumes default fighting stance.
Bow Maneuvers
Shooting Mode: 🡻: Pulls out bow and assumes archery stance. Can be cancelled by tapping 🡻 again.
Switch Arrows: 🡸 or 🡺: Switches between different types of arrows.
Bow Attack: Shooting Mode + Square: Fires current arrow at a target. Can lock on targets by tapping R3.
Lower Bow: Shooting Mode + X: Lowers bow while squatting down.


Historical Information[]

Yuan Shu, a young man from Runan, Yu Province, was known for his gallantry and hunting skills. He was nominated for Filial and Incorrupt and later promoted to General. In 189, Yuan Shu and Yuan Shao urged He Jin to destroy the powerful eunuch faction in the court, leading to chaos and He Jin's death. Dong Zhuo seized control and appointed Yuan Shu as General of the Rear. In 190, Yuan Shu joined the coalition against Dong Zhuo, leading to the deaths of many family members. Sun Jian defeated Dong Zhuo's forces at Yangren, and Yuan Shu stopped sending supplies to Sun Jian. Dong Zhuo eventually fled and moved the capital to Chang'an, disbanding the coalition.

Two power blocks emerged in the Central Plains: Yuan Shao, supported by Liu Biao and Cao Cao, and Yuan Shu, allied with Gongsun Zan and Tao Qian. Yuan Shao appointed Zhou Yu as Inspector of Yu Province and defeated him at Yangcheng. Yuan Shu then moved to Chenliu Commandery, facing conflicts with Cao Cao. He was defeated at Kuangting, Fengqiu, and Xiangyi. Yuan Shu escaped to Jiujiang Commandery, where he defeated Chen Wen, Inspector of Yang Province, and became General of Left. He sent Sun Ben and Wu Jing to attack Liu Yao, but they failed. In 195, he turned his attention to Xu Province, where Xu fell to Lu Bu, and Yuan Shu withdrew his forces.

In 197, Yuan Shu besieged Lu Bu at Xiapi but withdrew due to internal betrayals. With the Imperial Seal, he declared himself emperor of the Zhong Dynasty. Yuan Shu claimed the throne due to his belief in the Han government and his status as the head of a famous family. However, his move was a political blunder, leading to his loss of territory and holdings north of the Huai river to Cao Cao. Yuan Shu gained Lu Bu's support through his son's marriage, but was defeated at Xiapi and Shouchun. He returned to Shouchun and died of illness in 199. His family was taken hostage by Liu Xun, but Sun Ce defeated Liu Xun and freed Yuan Shu's family.

Romance of the Three Kingdoms[]

Yuan Shu first appears in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms in chapter 5 as one of the leaders of the Anti-Dong Zhou Coalition. He was appointed by his older half-brother Yuan Shao as the commander over the grain supplies. In the same chapter, he followed the advice of an unnamed adviser and denied Sun Jian much needed supplies, leading to the latter's defeat. In chapter 6, Sun Jian threatened him for such an action and to appease his fellow warlord, Yuan Shu executed the adviser who suggested denying Sun Jian in the first place.

In chapter 7, after the Coalition fell apart, Yuan Shu sought both troops from Yuan Shao and supplies from Liu Biao, being denied on both accounts. Infuriated, Yuan Shu incited Sun Jian against Liu Biao for revenge.

Yuan Shu returned in chapter 14 as the scapegoat needed to draw Liu Bei out from Xuzhou so Cao Cao could break up Liu Bei and Lu Bu's alliance. Yuan Shu easily survived Liu Bei's attack, as Lu Bu claimed Xuzhou almost immediately after Liu Bei left it.

In Chapter 15, Yuan Shu had Sun Ce under his command. When Ce approached him about borrowing men, Yuan Shu accepted the deal only when Sun Ce yielded the Imperial Seal.

Chapter 16 has Yuan Shu seek revenge against Liu Bei for his earlier attack, causing him to seek help from Lu Bu. Yuan Shu sent Ji Ling as the leader of this army, which was sent home in disgrace without any major fighting. After this defeat, Yuan Shu tried to negotiate a truce through marriage of his son to Lu Bu's daughter. Although initially successful, Lu Bu ultimately took his daughter back before she reached Yuan Shu's lands.

Chapter 17 opens with Yuan Shu declaring himself emperor. He immediately set out for revenge against Lu Bu, but was repelled by him due to the treachery of Yang Feng and Han Xian and the timely assistance of Liu Bei. After this defeat, Yuan Shu found himself under assault by Cao Cao, Liu Bei, and Sun Ce all at once, causing him to flee his new capital, which was ransacked and destroyed after the month long siege.

Chapter 21 marks Yuan Shu's last appearance in Romance of the Three Kingdoms. In a desperate attempt to save himself, now down most of his officers and army, Yuan Shu promised his half-brother the imperial seal if he helped him. Not wanting such an alliance, Cao Cao assigned Liu Bei to guard the route between the two Yuans. When he tried to pass, Liu Bei drove him off, where he hid in shame, dying shortly after asking his cook for honeyed water, due to the remaining food in his camp being uneatable.

Gallery[]

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