Main Cast Encyclopedia
Zhou Yu (Gongjin):
Leadership (LDR): 99
Intelligence (INT): 98
WAR: 74
Politics (POL): 90
Charisma (CHA): 98
Analysis:
Zhou Yu is not the smartest man in China. He was, however, capable of predicting many events accurately, something that was quite difficult in an era without clear means of communication. What set Zhou Yu apart from the other great strategists in China, including Sima Yi, was that Gongjin was both a beloved military leader AND personally admired by many who knew him. He was even praised among his foes: in the Song Dynasty he was seen as one of China's best generals during that period.
I hesitate to grant Zhou Yu the coveted 99 or 100 INT because in certain battles (Jiangling, Jiangxia) Zhou Yu failed to overcome his opponents as efficiently as, say, Han's first strategist Zhang Liang. In The Tiger and the Crane there should be several moments where Zhou Yu's analysis is, while not wrong, perhaps somewhat 'incomplete' or 'skimming the surface.' However he is the sort of man who will frequently have a plan, and more than likely it's a good one.
Now Gongjin stands out in Leadership because he was the sort of leader who would respect ALL of his subordinates and knew how to assign people. People tend to say that Zhou Yu was incompetent because he did not come up with every plan himself (they attribute the fire strategy to Huang Gai) and allowed others to fulfill certain roles. But if you consider how a business is run, how an organization functions you'd realize that every person in the organization has to function effectively. They have their tasks, they have their objectives, and they must fulfill them. Zhou Yu knew where to place every last one of his subordinates in roles that would maximize their effectiveness and ensure that all objectives would be completed efficiently. That is the mark of a good leader.
If one fails to delegate, one cannot be considered a leader. It is slander to suggest that Zhou Gongjin is defective in any way when he delegates tasks to his subordinates!
Of course, one of the few people to exceed Zhou Yu in leadership capability is Cao Cao himself. I'd argue that Mengde was even better, albeit by a thin margin, at delegation and assigning roles. Now one can say that Zhou Yu made few mistakes in delegation whereas Cao Cao made several, but to be fair Gongjin didn't have that much of a chance to make big mistakes unlike Cao Cao. Zhou Yu died too soon.
Zhou Yu has such a high Politics rating because he was capable at civil affairs but most importantly he had a good sense of political strategy. He predicted the mess of Liu Zhang's court even though he lived many miles away. He saw through the facade various leaders (Ma Teng, Cao Cao) were going through even if others would think that they were politically stable or 'just fine.' He also predicted that Liu Bei would not remain a subordinate or even an arguably trustworthy ally for long. While Zhou Yu was perhaps not the most adept diplomat or politician in Wu, he was certainly a top tier political analyst, and that translates to a strong political score!
In terms of Charisma Zhou Yu was pretty much loved by everyone in Wu. Sun Ce's mother claimed that he was her son. I'd say that Sun Ce was somewhat more charismatic but he was also reckless. Gongjin was both beloved and wise. The same cannot be said for Sun Ce in general, although of course Bofu had his own insightful moments.
Now the only person who does get 100 Charisma in the Three Kingdoms era from me is Liu Bei, and that's mostly because a man who could fail so frequently before he became King of Hanzhong has got to have some perk to get those band of brothers to remain so loyal! :P
Zhuge Liang (Kongming):
LDR: 91
INT: 95
WAR: 35
POL: 100
CHA: 96
Analysis: Zhuge Liang was the reason that Shu existed. As a statesman, politician, and administrator he is peerless. While he has his failings as a military strategist, his sense of logistics is superb and thus I am hesitant to take away his low 90s Leadership. However Zhuge Liang did not demonstrate 100 INT in terms of accurately determining Shu's capabilities, Wei's vulnerabilities, the state of Kongming's subordinates, or even the viability of the Longzhong plan after resources have been spent. He made so many mistakes that the idea of him being the smartest man in China is laughable. No, Zhuge Liang does not compare to Zhang Liang, or even to Yue Yi.
The perception of Kongming's charisma could probably be seen from space. Zhuge Liang's actual charisma, however, is top notch. But for a time he was obscure and overshadowed by others.
Jia Xu (Wenhe):
LDR: 76
INT: 99
WAR: 55
POL: 97
CHA: 67
Analysis: Jia Xu is almost never wrong. His only true mistake was losing to Zhou Yu at Chi Bi. But it can be argued that he wasn't even Chief Strategist during that campaign: Cao Cao has that honor.
Wenhe does not seem to possess the talent for leadership that Zhou Yu or Zhuge Liang had, however he did seem competent enough to rally the soldiers of Wancheng to victory after victory. Even if he was defending a well-fortified position, it is not an easy task to achieve victory when your numbers are so few.
Jia Xu was also adept at playing politics, and succeeded in keeping both himself and many of those who relied on him (such as Zhang Xiu) alive.
Wenhe does fail at being charismatic, however, but not to the extent that he was hated or anything.
Sima Yi (Zhongda):
LDR: 96
INT: 98
WAR: 67
POL: 96
CHA: 70
Analysis: Sima Yi, however, can be wrong. In fact he has been wrong several times. However he has proven to be chillingly effective as both a general and a politician, something that can't exactly be said for Zhou Yu (who was more of a political analyst). As a commander Zhongda was brilliant, and his reputation as one of China's finest at the time was well deserved.
Still, there's a reason why Sima Yi should have a low (but not horrible) virtue rating compared to Zhou Yu or Zhuge Liang: Zhongda hated his duties and spoke of retirement too often AND frequently demonstrated insubordination. Even if people were in awe of him, they'd still speak ill of him behind his back. Compare this to his two other traditional rivals who took their duties and their loyalty much more seriously, and were well-respected because of that.
Fa Zheng (Xiaozhi):
LDR: 90
INT: 98
WAR: 64
POL: 70
CHA: 65
Analysis: Fa Zheng couldn't care less about politics, based on his attitude. Nor could he care about being liked. However he is extremely good at getting his troops to do what he wants, which pretty much defines the LDR stat, no? Although he died fairly early, one can argue that Guo Huai who was a great general in his own right also died sickly, and all that marching has got to do something for Fa Zheng's constitution. Kongming likes to sit in a carriage each time, but it seems that Fa Zheng does walk alongside the troops when he can help it.
Yang Xiu (Dezu):
LDR: 70
INT: 90
WAR: 40
POL: 90
CHA: 60
Analysis: Yang Dezu was quite brilliant in his own right. And I'd argue that he was very politically savvy. What got him killed was his people skills on a personal level (CHA), but in terms of warming up to Cao Zhi and establishing his own political base Yang Xiu had a good idea. While Yang Xiu wasn't exactly hated by most of his colleagues, he was hated by the one man he could not afford to antagonize: his lord. That's why I would also rate Tian Feng's CHA quite low as well.
Sun Shangxiang:
LDR: 84
INT: 77
WAR: 90
POL: 56
CHA: 92
Analysis: A lot of people seemed to really like Shangxiang, but at the same time her ability to hold her own at court was relatively pitiful even if it wasn't "terrible" at a personal level. She can say some witty things occasionally.
I regret not giving Shangxiang enough screen time in this fic. But I hope I wrapped everything up in the following epilogue. She doesn't get lolzy high LDR stats simply because she's relatively untested, but based on her maid's coordination she had potential.
Sun Quan
LDR: 88
INT: 87
WAR: 60
POL: 92
CHA: 81
Analysis: Sun Zhongmou was a badass of his time, and you're well aware of that. His main flaws were arrogance and overconfidence, and his military failings take a toll on his LDR rating. His is undoubtedly a top-notch politician, however, and I think that score reflects that.
Cao Pi
LDR: 70
INT: 86
WAR: 65
POL: 93
CHA: 80
Analysis: Cao Pi failed even harder than Sun Quan did at times. But there's no denying that he was extremely good at establishing political favor among various ministers and aristocrats. That's partly how he became Emperor so quickly. He can certainly play politics better than Sun Quan, but I can't help but suspect that behind his back there would be quite a few people who'd laugh at him.
Cao Zhi:
LDR: 60
INT: 88
WAR: 54
POL: 74
CHA: 84
Analysis: I believe that Cao Zhi was quite intelligent and fairly well-liked, but he wasn't much of a leader and certainly wasn't good at playing politics. Sure, after Yang Xiu and the Ding brohters were killed he managed to keep his head down and not draw more attention to himself, but Cao Rui was never willing to recruit his uncle and for good reason. Cao Zhi was a drunk, and alcohol does a number on your LDR, CHA, INT, and POL stats. :P
Lu Meng (Ziming)
LDR: 94
INT: 91
WAR: 92
POL: 54
CHA: 88
Analysis: This is the man who destroyed the Shu/Wu alliance, all for large, but effectively short-term, gains. Lu Meng is an excellent tactician but he utterly fails at political strategy and, as a consequence, would be terrible as a strategist because he ignores the big picture and consequences of his actions.
Oh, he sure can be witty at times, but wittiness does not translate to strong POL ability.
Now as a Leader he was great. He managed to keep his troops from looting and torturing the people, and he deserves his reputation as a hero just from that alone. I see him as a villain not because he was a bad person persay, but because he was blinded by his short-term goals. One who is short-sighted to a fault can be very dangerous, and I feel that defines people like Lu Meng and, you guessed it, Lu Bu.
Jiang Wei
LDR: 75
INT: You know it's hard to say. Sometimes he acts like it's at a solid 40. He averages 65, but when he's insightful it can seem like 90 which is why he threw Kongming off.
WAR: 90 (Very good fighter.)
POL: 57
CHA: 86
Analysis: Jiang Wei is a good platoon commander. He can lead a fairly small band of soldiers and make them do something useful. But anything above that ensures that he'll get everyone killed.
Jiang Wei is also a decent fighter, if his record at getting away and not getting killed after screwing up is anything to go by.
Jiang Wei... Sent Shu into War after War after War for pretty much no gain. Now, there are arguments that he had big shoes to fill, but Zhuge Liang gave his war manuals to Jiang Wan, not Jiang Wei, and seemed to expect Jiang Wan to play the long game. But Jiang Wei had to assume the highest military position and get lots of people in Shu killed. Excellent work, Jiang Wei! Bravo! You really ensured that the team would make Wei remember us!
If his record at politics is anything to go by, the only reason why he has a higher POL stat than Lu Meng is that he managed to govern territories decently, but never notably. And of course he couldn't play politics to save his life. And yet, on a personal level, it's baffling how people seem to really like him!
Any characters I missed will play more important roles in The Legend of Yuan Shao, or are otherwise overlooked somehow. If you have any further questions or insights about this, feel free to PM me.
History of the Chinese Federation:
The fall of Luoyang to Shu Han did not end the civil war outright. Upon learning of Yang Yi's death, Cao Zhang, on Wang Lang's advice, assumed the title of "Duke of Wei."
Cao Zhi, meanwhile, insisted on his title of Marquis of Chenliu. Sun Shangxiang affirmed the alliance between Cao Zhi and her own faction, and asserted her position as Marquis of Wu, Jing, and Yue Provinces.
Also, Lady Shangxiang revealed to the central government of Shu Han that she did indeed have three children, all by Grand Commander Zhou Yu. With two sons and a daughter, two were capable of being Zhou Yu's and the Sun family's heirs while the daughter could inherit her mother's title. Politically, Wu was a threat that Shu could not ignore.
Sun Deng accepted his aunt's place as Marquis, and formally requested to retain the title of Governor of Jian Ye and nothing else. Like Cao Zhi, he spoke openly of his unwillingness to enter the macro-political realm.
With Wei and Wu holding much of China at the time, and Shu's losses at the Chang'an massacre and the many battles it had undergone, Prime Minister Zhuge Liang of Shu and Minister of War Fa Zheng made a proposal:
Wei, Shu, and Wu would undergo an alliance for the sake of the people of China. The three factions would act as one faction in terms of dealing with external threats like the Xiongnu, the Mongols, the Qiang, and any other threats that would threaten China as a whole.
The descendants of Cao Zhang, Liu Feng, and Sun Shangxiang (Zhou Yu) would share power as part of a greater council, or "senate," along with the very influential Sun (as the Zhou family now held most of the power in Wu), Guan, Zhuge (including Zhuge Jin and Zhuge Dan's branches), Sima, Xiahou, Jia (Jia Xu and Jia Kui's lines), and Fa families. As many of these families held critical posts in at least one of the three great factions, they would all share voices in this new political system.
The Mandate of Heaven had left several factions in charge of parts of China. If China remained divided, Fa Zheng and Zhuge Liang argued, China would collapse. No one wanted China to collapse.
As head speaker of the Senate, Zhuge Liang proposed many reforms that led to increased trade negotiations along the Silk Road. Zhou Yu proposed improvements to China's navy, which mirrored that of Zheng He's efforts centuries later. With both naval and land trade routes, China's rise seemed inevitable.
Sima Yi, for his part, was inclined to lead military expeditions to drive the nomads and tribesmen away, ensuring that they would never threaten China again. Although he had great success against the Nanman King Meng Huo, his aide Deng Ai convinced him to use other means to pacify the Qiang and Shan Yue tribes, eventually incorporating many of their number into Han's armies. These skilled cavalrymen proved essential in defending the Silk Road from other threats, including the Persian and Roman civilizations.
For nearly three hundred years this system seemed to bring peace, prosperity, and happiness through out the realm. Heaven seemed content, and seemed to grant the system its mandate.
But in the midst of these celebrations, a specific senator managed to bribe many into following him. Like Wang Mang and Yang Yi before him, this senator began his own revolt that would tear the foundations of the rotting system apart. Corruption and nepotism plagued China as it did centuries before and centuries since.
But that tyrant's story is for another time...