Xú Huǎng 徐晃

Translated description:
"Reminiscence of Zhou Ya Fu 周亚夫之风 (zhōu yǎ fū zhī fēng)"

(Zhou Ya Fu was a general during the Han Dynasty that died about 60 years before the start of the Three Kingdoms era. He is regarded as the epitome of military discipline and integrity.)

Wikipedia link: Xu Huang Wiki

Who is he:
One of the 5 most important generals to Cao Cao 曹操, Xu Huang is a man of righteousness. He first came to Cao Cao's attention as a general of Yang Feng 杨奉, an enemy leader that Cao Cao intends to vanquish. Seeing Xu Huang's strong combat ability, he convinces Xu Huang to join him. Xu Huang agrees to defect, but refused the request to murder Yang Feng, exclaiming that he would not do such a dishonorable deed. Xu Huang then became fast friends with Guan Yu 关羽 in the short period that Guan Yu was with Cao Cao, but when they eventually stood on opposite sides of the battle field, Xu Huang made clear to Guan Yu that his duty was kill him and cannot let personal ties get in the way. Such integrity and responsibility was highly appreciated by Cao Cao, who likened him to Zhou Ya Fu.

Character ability: "Blockade 断粮 (duàn liáng)"
During the action phase, you can choose to use any of your Basic Cards or Equipment Cards with the suit of "clubs" or "spades" as RATIONS DEPLETED 兵粮寸断. Your range for RATIONS DEPLETED is extended to physical distance of 2.

Note that the ability does not include Tool Cards, therefore black-suited Tool Cards cannot be used as RATIONS DEPLETED (unless it is the tool card itself is RATIONS DEPLETED).

Ability's relation to the story:
In the story, Xu Huan carried out raids to sever enemy supplies a number of times. The most notable was his raid on Yuan Shao 袁绍's supplies during the battle at Guan Du 官渡之战, which sealed Yuan Shao's defeat. Years later, Xu Huang effectively carried out a blockade during his battle at Fan Cheng 樊城之战 against Guan Yu. He instructed his troops to surround the nearby city of Yan Cheng 偃城 with trenches. The enemy troops at Yan Cheng, thinking that their supplies have been cut off, abandoned their position and gave Xu Huang a strong foothold from which to attack Guan Yu. What the troops of Yan Cheng did not know was that the blockade was a fake, as Xu Huang's troops were too green for outright battle at that point.

Additional info from the story:
1. Most famous achievement - Defeating Guan Yu at Fan Cheng. Xu Huang furst used military tactics to cover the weakness of his army (inexperienced and awaiting reinforcement), then rode on its strengths when reinforcement came. By using diversionary tactics, Xu Huang routed Guan Yu and attacked from an unexpected direction, causing confusion within Guan Yu's camp. Amidst the confusion, a major strike was coordinated that crushed Guan Yu's main force. A broken Guan Yu then retreated to Mai Cheng 麦城 where he met his end.

2. Cause of death - Xu Huang was shot in the head by an arrow fired by Meng Da 孟达 during a battle at Xin Cheng 新城. Xu Huang did not die immediately but physicians could not save him. He died later that night at age 59.

FAQ and Disambiguation

1. Apart from the weapons and armour , does equipped cards also include horses? Can horses be used for his abilty?

Ans: Yes, horses are considered equippement and can be used for his ability.


2. Must all the cards to be used for the ability be black suited? Even the basic cards?

Ans: Yes. Even the basic cards must be black suited.