Wraith Bian Shi 妖卞氏 (yāo biàn shì)

Translated description: "Queen of the Yellow Turban Rebels 黄巾女将 (huáng jīn nǚ jiàng)" Who is she: The above question is one I wish I had the answer to! This character has been abuzz in many SGS threads in China: Who the hell is Bian Shi?! And why is she Queen of the Yellow Turbans?! Let me tell you what i do know. There IS a Bian Shi in ROTK. In fact she is a true historical figure. Bian Shi was one of the wives of Cao Cao 曹操, and none other than...

White Buffalo 碧眼白水牛 (bì yǎn bái shǔi níu)

Description: Yes, yes, yes. It is a buffalo! How could an animal that moves as quickly as a shopping cart be given a "-2" distance rating?? Well... this is no ordinary buffalo. This is the king of all buffalo! The literal translation for its Chinese name is "Jade-eyed Three-horned White Buffalo 碧眼三角白水牛". Unfortunately, that does not help in visualizing how speedy this beast can be... if it is even speedy at all. Historical basis: This White Buffalo...

Spiked Mace 铁蒺藜骨朵 (tiě jí lí gǔ duǒ)

Description: Pain on a stick. It's a simple weapon: spikes on ball on rod, bash with enthusiasm. The only difficult thing about this weapon is pronouncing its proper Chinese name. I must admit, before I did any research on this weapon, I only recognized two of characters in its traditional form (铁 which means metal, 骨 which means bone). The Spiked Mace is a weapon that actually belonged to a character in the ROTK story. Can you make a guess which...

Wanted: SGS Meet-up Task Force

Dear Readers, Let's meet up and play SanGuoSha! It's about time the readers of this blog come together for a game. For the meet-up to work well, Task Forces need to be set up in the respective regions that you are at. Are you the sort that loves to organise gatherings?  Well volunteer yourself! I can't do this on my own! Interested to just help out? Leave a comment below! Here's what we probably need for each region: 1. An overall Person-in-charge 2, A venue to play for at least 3 hours. Cheap. 3. Transport recommendations and "How to go there"...

Atlas of Shu 蜀道图 (shǔ dào tú)

Description: Imagine this scenario. A scholarly male with an ugly not-so-pleasant-looking face approaches you, walking with a limp. He claims he can show you the way into a bank vault that is wide open, literally inviting you to plunder it to your heart's content. And he isn't kidding. You know there is some truth to his claim. Would you take up his offer? Cao Cao 曹操 did not. He was not interested in talking with the fuglies and showed this scholar...

Stratagem 6: Ruckus Decoy 声东击西 (shēng dōng jī xī)

Literal Translation: Create noise in the east, but strike from the west. Tactical Classification: Distraction + Deception Historical Basis (Wikipedia): Various. Again, there is no direct elaboration on Wikipedia. One of the instances where this Stratagem was used in ROTK was at the beginning of the Three Kingdoms era. Zhang Jiao 张角's yellow turban rebellion was at its height and Zhu Jun 朱隽 (loyal to the dynasty) used this Stratagem against...

Part 6: The Saboteur Mod

A simple modification. Tremendous difference. The Saboteur card game that inspired this mod. This modification will change the way you enjoy SanGuoSha. It increases the uncertainty of victory. It turns the guessing of roles into a nightmare. If you love the mind games aspect of SGS, you are going to thoroughly enjoy this mod. And the best part about this mod is you do not need any additional purchases or any expansion packs! Everything you need...

Plastic Protection

I've been getting queries lately about bringing in laminated SGS cards. Due to the cost of manpower, it only makes sense to have it laminated in China before bringing it over in shipments. I can't help but ask myself this question: "What if I bring it in but nobody wants to buy?" So i'm doing the next best thing... asking you for your opinion. I have also listed down some of the common objections to laminated cards. Please have some fun in giving me your comments. I love to hear from you. <p>Loading...</p&...

Mystic Cipher 遁甲天书 (dùn jiǎ tiān shū)

Description: Read this cipher, and you can begin to control the weather. "Storm" from X-men would be proud. The Mystic Cipher is a mysterious text that is only mentioned in reference in the ROTK story. The actual cipher was never described. Still, This makes wonderful fodder for all kinds of mystical and magical stories, linked to that era. Yet due to its "magical" powers, any mention of the Mystic Cipher is peppered with animated impossibilities....

Green Salve Anthology 青囊书 (qīng náng shū)

Description: A collection of books, works, medicinal recipes and techniques written by the great physician of that era, Hua Tuo 华佗. This set of works is so legendary that it borders on the mythical. Though Chinese literature mentions the Green Salve Anthology, nobody has seen these works in the flesh for over 1700 years. Why is this so? Read on to find out...

The Bronze Phoenix Quatrain 铜雀赋 (tóng què fù)

Description: The Bronze Phoenix Quatrain is a poem. Yes, you read correctly. It is a poem. Better yet, this poem his nothing to do with war! It is a poem written by Cao Zhi 曹植, Cao Cao 曹操's third son, celebrating the construction of the Bronze Phoenix tower. Though this is no sword or shield, a rare treasure it is! Cao Zhi was known as an incredibly talented poet, whose works have survived up till today, nearly 2000 years since they were...

Berserker Mail 连环铠 (lián huán kǎi)

Description: Unlike what I would usually write to describe equipment, this armor is NOT anything magical. Yes, it does appear in the story, and yes, it's owner is very conspicuous. But no, this armor did not save its owner. In fact it did not do anything except look good. Which of the characters in the ROTK story is the ill-fated owner of this Berserker Mail? The answer is revealed in the "Historical Basis" section below...

Unofficial Cards Hamper: Re-stocked with added items!

This insane collection is back... with a new tag-along. The new Art-of-War Expansion (unofficial, of course) As promised, the SGS Unofficial Hamper has been re-stocked! This time it comes with 2 new items included in the hamper...

First SGS Singapore Meet-Up: Opinions needed

Any Singaporean's out there keen to meet up to play SGS? Come on, tell me what you think by filling out the form below. If response is good, I'll get this going within February! <p>Loading...</p&...

Latest addition to the SGS FAQ team

Dear readers, A big thank you to our latest FAQ arbitrator nick "Princemousey"! If you would like to join us as part of our expert FAQ panel, please email me at sg.rockstar@gmail.com Hope to hear from you! Ri...

First Look: The SGS English Guide Booklet

My jaw hit the floor when I saw what my graphic designer did. An ancient secret manual? Artistic talents are rare. In this aspect, my graphic designer is a true genius. I assure you the graphic work for the contents of this booklet is incredibly impressive. Of course, his services don't come cheap, but i'm willing to even make a loss for the creation of this booklet. Does not make sense to you? Let me explain...

FAQ Arbitrator needed

Know the game rules well? Take it to a new level. It began about 2 weeks ago. In the 5 months leading up till then, I only received a question here and there about once a day. These questions primarily centered around character ability ambiguities and game rules. Suddenly, the floodgates opened about 2 weeks ago and i've been swamped with questions since. Just yesterday alone i received close to 20 questions! I'm left wondering... what happened?  The Singaporean InfluxAccording to my blog statistics, the number of readers has been increasing...

War Elephant 南蛮象 (nán mán xiàng)

Description: Elephants are seldom part of Chinese history. Flip through 3000 years of wars and you will see countless mention of horses, but few about elephants. This is similarly reflected in Romance of the Three Kingdoms, where only 1 chapter out of 120 mention this beast. In chapter 90, the King of the Southern Barbarians, Meng Huo 孟获, has been repeatedly humiliated by Zhu Ge Liang 诸葛亮 in battle. In his desperation to revenge, Meng Huo receives...