Bushido 101 - Tengu and the Power of Virtue


This is the second of my articles looking over the hidden strengths of the often underrated Tengu faction. In this post, I thought it would be valuable to simplify an aspect to Tengu that is a bit "Can't see the wood for the trees".

Virtue (to put it politely) is a little complicated to understand, not least because the means of gaining access to Virtue as well as its benefits are spread across various cards. Therefore, we're going to put all this information in one place, so that the true power of Virtue for Tengu is clearer to see.

What is Virtue and how does it work?

This crops up on the Facebook group A LOT, so to begin with, let's start with the wording of the trait;

Virtue (X")
  • Once per turn, during this model's activation, it may give a target friendly faction, non-soulless, non-insignificant model within X" a Virtue Token.
  • A model can only have one Virtue Token at any time
  • A model may spend a Virtue Token at any time it could use an Instant Ki Feat (i.e. you can use Virtue Tokens in the same timing steps as Instant Ki Feats, you don't have to be actually using an Instant Ki Feat!)
  • The benefits of spending the Virtue Token depends on the model in play.
  •  model may benefit from only one Virtue bonus per token unless otherwise stated.
To use a simple Tengu example, Hokibo gives Tarabo a Virtue Token during his activation. When Tarabo spends this Virtue Token, he can choose a Virtue bonus listed on any card in the warband. Tarabo then receives the benefit of that Virtue bonus.

Therefore in order to benefit from Virtue, you need both a source of Virtue Tokens and a source of Virtue Benefits. This is where people's eyes may begin to glaze over, as you will need to scour your cards for this information. However, for all you lucky Tengu players, I'm going to give you everything in one place.

Where can Tengu get Virtue tokens? 

As matters currently stand, Tengu have 4 sources of Virtue tokens, as shown below;
  • Hokibo - via the Virtue trait
  • Naigubu - via the Virtue trait
  • Wisdom of the Mountains - a Tengu Event card that enables you to distribute 2 Virtue tokens to Friendly models. You will need a Koroko model (i.e. one of the Owls - Naigubu, Narahobo or Ryuhobo) in your warband for this card
  • Paragon - a Ronin Enhancement card that grants the bearer 1 Virtue token in the starting phase of the first turn


I would note that if you're intending to play Themes, then Wisdom of the Mountains will stop you from using Wind Watchers and Blue Gale Scouting Party (as Koroko can't be taken in these themes) and you will be very limited in the Virtue Benefits if you use Shepherds of the White Mesa (as many of the characters with Virtue benefits can't taken in this theme). In all honestly, to gain the full benefits from Virtue, it's probably best to avoid the Tengu Themes altogether.

Which Tengu characters bring Virtue Benefits and what are they?

The reason that Virtue is a boon for Tengu (albeit, not an obvious one) is that they have a huge range of potential Virtue benefits hiding amongst their character cards. To keep things (relatively) simple, you will find the Virtue benefits on the Kurama (Buzenbo or Hokibo) and the Koroko (Naigubu, Narahobo and Ryhobo), but because I'm kind, I have listed them below for you. Remember - The Virtue benefit is applied to the model spending the Virtue Token

Important - Buzenbo's and Hokibo's Virtue benefits can only be used by Bushi. These are Blue Gale Scout, Buzenbo, Haiatake Guard, Hokibo, Jirobo, Kotenbo, Tarobo, Zenkibo & Zephyr Guard

Buzenbo (Bushi only) 
  • This model gains Prowess [Defence] (1) until the end of the current melee exchange
Hokibo (Bushi only)
  • Reduce the cost of this model's Special Attacks / Defences by (1) until the end of the current melee exchange
  • This model gains Prowess [Attack] (1) until the end of the current melee exchange
  • This model gains Jump Up until the end of the current activation
  • This model gains Sidestep Defence (0) until the end of the current activation
Naigubu
  • This model gains Armour (2) until the current action is resolved
  • This model gains Move +1 and Light Footed until the current action is resolved
  • This model gains Parry (1) until the current action is resolved
  • This model gains Ranged Defence (+1) until the current action is resolved
Narahobo
  • This model may not be targeted by 'Call Lightning' Ranged Attacks or the 'Raijin's Rage' Ki Feat
Ryuhobo
  • This model gains Sixth Sense until the End Phase
Why is this good?

Put simply, Tengu have one of the largest pool of potential Virtue benefits in the game. This gives great flexibility, enabling you to gift your models with just the right ability for the right moment. Utilising the Tengu's extensive Virtue capabilities is not essential but doing so can turn your warband into a veritable Swiss Army Knife.

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