Xún Yù 荀彧

Translated description:

"Advisor of Kings 王佐之才 (wáng zuǒ zhī cái)"

Wikipedia link: Xun Yu Wiki

Who is he:

Together with Guo Jia 郭嘉, Xun Yu was one of Cao Cao 曹操's most trusted advisors. In fact it was Xun Yu who introduced Guo Jia into Cao Cao's service, together with a host of other high-calibre individuals such as Xun You 荀攸 and Si Ma Yi 司马懿. In one of the most controversial moves of the era, Cao Cao's escortation of the emperor, resulting in Cao Cao wielding immense political power, was suggested by Xun Yu. However Xun Yu's heart was always for the protection of the Han Dynasty 汉朝. When Cao Cao ultimately intended to abolish the Han Dynasty and establish the kingdom of Cao Wei 曹魏, Xun Yu opposed through oblique statements. This did not sit well with Cao Cao, and thus Xun Yu fell out of favour. He died soon after.

Character ability 1: "Rouse the Tiger 驱虎 (qū hǔ)"

In your action phase, you can choose to "Points Duel" with another character with more health than you. If your score is higher, that player will cause 1 unit to damage to another player within his/her attacking range of your choice. If your score is lower, that player will cause 1 unit of damage to you.

(Note that the ultimate victim who suffers the damage cannot use DODGE 闪. It is immediate damage, not an ATTACK 杀. Usage is limited to once per turn.)

Character ability 2: "Eternal Loyalty 节命 (jié mìng)"

Every 1 unit of damage that you suffer, you can allow any player of your choice (including yourself) to replenish that player's on-hand cards to the maximum health level.

(Which means if Liu Bei 刘备 only has 1 card and 2 units of life left but his maximum health is 4 units, Liu Bei can draw 3 cards if Xun Yu uses "Eternal Loyalty" on him. Liu Bei's current health level is of no significance.)

Ability's relation to story:

驱虎 is the shortened form of a longer phrase 驱虎吞狼. The literal translation is "rouse the tiger to eat the wolf". It is referring to Xun Yu's amazing strategy where he proposed to Cao Cao to have Liu Bei rewarded to the post of magistrate. Then Cao Cao can command Liu Bei to attack Yuan Shu 袁术. The sinister strings behind it all is Xun Yu knows the rule-abiding Liu Bei will listen to any order given by a superior, which is Cao Cao at that time. Xun Yu also knows that Yuan Shu is an egomaniac and secretly tells him that Liu Bei is coming to attack him. This way, both of Cao Cao's enemies are put at loggerheads and he benefits regardless of outcome. "Eternally Loyal" refers to Xun Yu's undying loyalty to the Han Dynasty, though its relation to the mechanics of the ability is weak.

Additional info from the story:

1. Most famous achievement - His "rouse the tiger to eat the wolf" strategy. To keep the write up compact, I left out one other party other than Liu Bei and Yuan Shu, and that is Lu Bu 吕布. In summary, Xun Yu grasped the personality of all 3 of Cao Cao's enemies and pit them against each other.

2. Cause of death - Uncertain!! Though Xun Yu is reported to have died of illness, his death followed soon after his distaste for Cao Cao abolishing the Han Dynasty. It is thus rumoured that Cao Cao had Xun Yu murdered so as not to let this talent cause him problems in future.

FAQ & Diambiguation

1. If Xun Yu asks Liu Bei to draw card using his 2nd ability , does this means Liu Bei can draw 4 cards because his maximum health is 4 units?

Ans: No,not draw 4 cards but he can tip-up his number of on-hand cards to 4 . If Liu Bei currently only has 1 card on hand , this ability can let him draw 3.