Gāo Shùn 高顺

Translated Description:
No Siege is Unsuccessful 攻无不克 (gōng wú bù kè)

Who is he:
His illustration looks scary enough. Is he some kind of ancient Chinese Ghost-rider on a horse? Maybe Vin Diesel behind a Slipknot mask, carrying a butcher knife as wide as a cow? What we know about Gao Shun is that he is a serious man of few words and strict discipline. Here is a military general in ancient China that abstains from alcohol, unheard of! He was one of the most respected generals serving under Lu Bu 吕布 and a man of integrity he was. Gao Shun took no bribes and put on no airs, but he had a fearsome presence that commanded immediate respect. The only thing he did less than talk (which he rarely did) was to drink wine. Gao Shun is also known to rebuke Lu Bu straight in the face when Lu Bu makes stupid decisions, but yet Lu Bu would not follow Gao Shun's advice.

Gao Shun has very little air time in the story, and most records of him are historical. Yet for what little air-time he was given in the story, Gao Shun was made partially responsible for one very prominent Wei general losing his eyeball. Can you guess which general?


Character ability 1: Ambush 陷阵 (xiàn zhèn)
During your action phase, you can Points Duel with another player.

If you win, you possess the following abilities till your turn ends.
- Disregard any distance between you and that player
- Disregard any equipped armor of that player.
- You can use as many ATTACK 杀 cards as you wish on that player.

If you lose, you cannot use any ATTACK cards for the remainder of this turn.

Limited to one use per turn.

Character ability 2: Abnegation 禁酒 (jìn jiǔ) [Enfored ability]
All your WINE 酒 cards must be regarded as ATTACK cards.

Ability's relation to the story:
"Ambush" does not seem to relate to any one particular incident in the story. The ability does seem to point towards Gao Shun's famed attacking ability. My personal feel about this ability is that it is extremely offensive and a choice of the Rebels 反贼! Particularly those who are at a distance too far away to strike the Ruler 主公. So if you are the Ruler, beware any player who chooses this character. Keep him bound and toothless for as long as you can!

"Abnegation" is a spin on Gao Shun's refusal to drink alcohol. The ability creator had a lot of different cards to replace WINE, but the choice to use ATTACK as a replacement was probably to further increase his offensive ability. Thankfully, the balance is he is unable to use WINE + ATTACK anymore, Phew!

Additional info from the story:
1. Most famous achievement - In Lu Bu's heyday, Gao Shun was sent to bout with Xia Hou Dun 夏侯惇 when the latter was sent by Cao Cao曹操 as reinforcement to rescue Liu Bei 刘备. Both the able generals went equally matched for "half a hundred bouts" before Gao Shun appeared to weaken. Gao Shun turned away from the duel and retreated, but the blood-thirsty Xia Hou Dun gave chase. Unbeknownst to Xia Hou Dun, Gao Shun's compatriot Cao Xing 曹性 lay in ambush and shot an arrow that pierced Xia Hou Dun's eye.

As was already known, Xia Hou Dun yanked out the arrow with his eyeball still on it, promptly swallowed his own eyeball, then skewered Cao Xing's face with his spear. Gao Shun gave chase on a wounded Xia Hou Dun, and eventually succeeded in chasing off the Wei forces.

2. Cause of death - As Lu Bu come under siege from Cao Cao, Lu Bu refused to take the advice of his advisor Chen Gong 陈宫. The indecision and poor choices of Lu Bu led to his downfall. Gao Shun, along with Chen Gong and Lu Bu were all captured and brought before Cao Cao. Gao Shun kept mum and never spoke a word, much less plead for mercy. Cao Cao then promptly executed him.

Wiki Link:
Gao Shun Wiki