Zhāng Liáo 张辽

What's with the cartoon?

Unfortunately, this is just a cuter version of the original SanGuoSha portait. There does not seem to be any hidden meaning.

Who is he:

Supposedly one of the top 5 generals of the Kingdom of Cao Wei 曹魏, Zhang Liao did not initially intend to follow under Cao Cao 曹操. In fact, Zhang Liao offered his neck for Cao Cao for beheading rather than choose to surrender. While Zhang Liao was serving Lu Bu 吕布, word had already went around of Zhang Liao's combat ability and his righteous character. Guan Yu 关羽 once asked him why he was serving for a man such as Lu Bu and Zhang Liao could only look down in shame. The two later became fast friends, though circumstances dictate they had to be enemies. Zhang Liao achieved renown under Cao Cao as a steadfast and competent general. His title of "General of the Front" was given to him by Cao Pi 曹丕 after Cao Pi succeeded Cao Cao.

Character ability: "Sudden Strike 突击 (tū jī)"

In the drawing phase, Zhang Liao can choose to forgo drawing cards from the deck and, instead, draw 1 on-hand card from other players. Maximum 2 players (2 cards nett intake), minimum 1 player (1 card nett intake).

Note that Zhang Liao cannot mix "Sudden Raid" with drawing from the deck (ie: he cannot draw one card from the deck and one card from a player). 

Ability's relation to story:

This part of the story occurs in the battle of He Fei 合肥之战 where Sun Quan 孙权, ruler of Sun Wu 孙吴, led a massive army to attack He Fei. Zhang Liao was one of 3 Cao Wei generals guarding He Fei, but they only had a combined army of 7000 men, many times less than the enemy. Leading the troops out, Zhang Liao bravely charged into the enemy and his combat prowess scared the balls off his enemy. Sun Quan's troops started deserting, not really knowing how large Zhang Liao's army was. Sun Quan climbed up a hill and saw that Zhang Liao was vastly outnumbered. He ordered his troops to encircle Zhang Liao. Unexpectedly, Zhang Liao suddenly charged out of the encirclement (thus the name "Sudden Strike") with a handful of troops and made straight for Sun Quan. The rest of Zhang Liao's troops cried out to him, "General! Have you abandoned us?!" Hearing this, Zhang Liao turned back and rescued his troops from certain death. Both parties grew weary and tired, thus they broke battle and headed back to camp.

Additional info based on story:

1. Most famous achievement - His cursing and swearing at Cao Cao and his refusal to surrender. This occurred early on in the story where Zhang Liao's leader Lu Bu had been executed by Cao Cao. In contrast to Lu Bu, who pleaded for mercy, Zhang Liao cussed Cao Cao endlessly and refused to surrender. Cao Cao was pissed off enough to bring a sword and wanted to decapitate him personally. Zhang Liao responded by sticking his neck out and welcoming death. Liu Bei 刘备 and Guan Yu 关羽 intervened and pleaded for Zhang Liao to be spared. Impressed by Zhang Liao's righteousness and courage, Cao Cao then put down his sword and personally unbound Zhang Liao. It was thus that Zhang Liao came to respect Cao Cao the same and, thence, began a great leader-servant relationship.

2. Cause of death - Zhang Liao suffered an arrow wound after rescuing Cao Pi from Wu forces. Though they were all eventually rescued by Xu Huang 徐晃, Zhang Liao succumbed to his wound and died soon after.

Xǔ Chǔ 许褚

What's with the cartoon?

Xu Chu's ability is taken to the extreme in this adorable cartoon. Instead of being "Bare-chested", they drew him practically "butt-naked"! This is also because the words 裸衣 for his ability can be taken to mean "stripped of clothing"... and no, they did not mention to what extent he has to strip. 

Who is he:

Long-serving bodyguard of Cao Cao 曹操, Xu Chu was said to be a huge person. His height was about 2 meters and his waist 52 inches. Probably one of the 20 most famous characters in Romance of Three Kingdoms, he has significant air-time in the story for the many instances that stood forth to protect Cao Cao. His combat ability was reputed to be on par with Zhang Fei 张飞, Guan Yu 关羽 and company. His moment of glory came in the fictional account of him stripping off all his armour for his fight with Ma Chao 马超. This bravado mixed with insanity helped him secure a place in history.

Character ability: "Bare-Chested 裸衣 (luǒ yī)"

Xu Chu can choose to draw 1 card less in his drawing phase. If he chooses to do so, any ATTACK 杀 and DUEL 决斗 that he uses in the action phase results in 1 additional unit of damage to his opponent. Note that if Xu Chu loses the DUEL, he only needs lose 1 unit. But if he wins, the victim loses 2 units.

Ability's relation to the story:

In his duel with Ma Chao, the two generals were fairly matched for over a hundred rounds. Xu Chu then momentarily backs off, strips off all his armour, then goes back to continue the duel bare-chested! This act of madness is followed later by his discarding his sword and grabbing Ma Chao's spear under his armpit. The ensuing struggle snaps the spear in two. The two then hack at each other with their halves of the broken spear. No wonder that Ma Chao later describes Xu Chu as a tiger gone insane.

Additional info based on story:

1. Most famous achievement - His strip-tease episode as mentioned above.

2. Cause of death - Xu Chu probably died of old-age. He served 3 generations of Cao Cao's family: under Cao Cao, followed by Cao Pi 曹丕 after Cao Cao's death, followed by Cao Rui 曹睿 after Cao Pi's death. His loyalty to the Cao family was unquestioned. He was then posthumously titled Zhuang Hou 壮侯 (Marquis of Strength).

Xià Hóu Dūn 夏侯惇

What's with the cartoon?

Why he is peeling petals off a flower, I have no clue. Perhaps it has to do with him losing his eye?? Or is he longing for his fair-lady? There has never seem to be any mention of this though!

Who is he:

Best remembered for the scene where he lost his eye, Xia Hou Dun is a ferocious combat general with balls of steel and fiery determination. He is one of Cao Cao 曹操's most loyal generals and is supposedly a distant relative. The story goes that Xia Hou Dun was caught in an ambush and suffered an arrow to his eye. His troops were panic-stricken, thinking that their general had fallen. But then Xia Hou Dun grabbed the arrow and yanked it out of his head, pulling with it his eyeball skewered on the arrow shaft. With one gulp he swallows his own eyeball, then charges right back at the assailant. Needless to say, the assailant died a horrible death when Xia Hou Dun got to him. His act of swallowing his eye-ball rallied his troops' morale and scared the shit out of his enemies. Henceforth, the name of Xia Hou Dun has become synonymous with bravery and gung-ho.

Character ability: "An Eye for an Eye 刚烈 (gāng liè)"

Everytime Xia Hou Dun suffers damage (count by occurrence and not by units of damage), he can choose to flip a judgement card. If the judgement is not the suit of "hearts", the source player that caused the damage can choose 1 of 2 options.

Option 1: Lose 1 unit of health

Option 2: Discard any 2 on-hand cards (chosen by the source player, and not Xia Hou Dun)

Ability's relation to story:

I could not help but use a pun to translate 刚烈 as "an eye for an eye". The most straightforward link to the story is where Xia Hou Dun impales Cao Xing 曹性 for firing the arrow that wasted his eye. It is said that Xia Hou Dun impaled Cao Xing's face before trampling his body beneath his horse. In the cardgame, this ability is a very effective deterrent to opponents. A wonderful psychological link to the story in terms of the effect Xia Hou Dun has on his enemies.

Additional info based on story:

1. Most famous achievement - Losing his bloody eye!

2. Cause of death - In the historical account, Xia Hou Dun dies of an illness at an age of approximately 50 - 60 years old. But this defers from the Romance of Three Kingdoms story which dramatized his death as being caused by an encounter with Guan Yu 关羽's ghost. In the olden days, illnesses were very much attributed to supernatural reasons, thus it is not too far-fetched for readers to believe (especially in the 1300's when the story was written).

Sī Mǎ Yì 司马懿

What's with the cartoon?

The cartoon is a cute-version of the original portrait in SanGuoSha, where he is seen having the ability to conjure up blue flames... which is of course a complete understatement of his power.

Who is he:

The cunning. The scheming. The ultimate bad guy. He is the beginning of the end of the Three Kingdoms era. If you have never read Romance of Three Kingdoms, my apologies for the spoiler. We are talking about a man of ambition so great, it transcended two generations after his death before it was achieved. Portrayed as cunning and untrustworthy with promises, Si Ma Yi is practically demonized by the story. No doubt he was the most important military advisor the Kingdom of Cao Wei 曹魏 ever had, time would never dilute his usurper legacy that erased Cao Wei off the face of the planet. As tribute to this incredibly smart yet devious historical figure, the card game has aptly given Si Ma Yi abilities that make him a formidable opponent. Meet the most dangerous character in the entire San Guo Sha 三国杀 card game.

Character ability 1: "Retaliation 反馈 (fǎn kuì)"

When Si Ma Yi receives any damage, he can obtain 1 card (whether on-hand or equipped) from the player who is the source of the damage. In most cases, source of damage is the player who is currently in the action phase (that player's turn) that played an offensive move.

Character ability 2: "Demonic Talent 鬼才 (guǐ cái)"

After any judgement card has been flipped over, Si Ma Yi can immediately play one of his on-hand cards to "replace" the judgement card. Note that Si Ma Yi cannot take back the original judgement card. Net effect is Si Ma Yi loses one on-hand card to change the judgement card.

Ability's relation to story:

It is generally well-known that Si Ma Yi was a smart and shrewd strategist, but no, he was not smart enough to tinker with heaven's will. The abilities themselves do not reflect Si Ma Yi as well as how these abilities are used during game play. As a "Judgement Tinkerer", Si Ma Yi can just crouch inactively, waiting for judgement cards to appear before he rears his ugly head. This somewhat resembles the life mission of Si Ma Yi as he lay in wait for the right moment, then pouncing on opportunity to usurp an entire Cao Wei kingdom for his own.

Additional info based on story:

1. Most famous achievement - The man that started the end of the Three Kingdoms era. Si Ma Yi handed down power to his son and grandson, who ultimately concurred all of China to form the Jin Dynasty 晋朝 (AD 265 - 420).

2. Cause of death - Si Ma Yi died of old-age at 72. His son Si Ma Shi 司马师 took over the reigns and strengthened his family's control over Cao Wei, followed by his grandson Si Ma Zhao 司马昭 who united China.

Guō Jiā 郭嘉

What's with the cartoon?

Seems like he is conjuring magic of some sort with the Taoist symbols in his hand. Perhaps the image refers to his uncanny predictions??

Who is he:

It is said that Cao Cao 曹操 would have won the war if Guo Jia had lived longer. In the early days of Cao Cao's expeditions, there were usually more than one advisor by Cao Cao's side, but Guo Jia's analysis of situations and predictions always seemed to be correct. It is a pity that Guo Jia and Zhu Ge Liang 诸葛亮 belonged to two different chronological segments, and thus never had a chance to compete head-to-head. Despite knowing his days were numbered, Guo Jia could accurately predict how the near future would unravel. On realizing that Guo Jia was absolutely right about how things played out even weeks after his death, Cao Cao wept for the loss of this amazing talent. Like Dian Wei 典韦, Guo Jia died much too early and severely handicapped the potential of Cao Cao's army. The game makers of San Guo Sha 三国杀 paid adequate tribute to the brilliance of Guo Jia by making him one of the most powerful and most popular characters in the entire game. A search of player comments on forums turn up numerous praises for Guo Jia, with many declaring him their all-time favorite character to use.

Character ability 1: "Envy of Heaven 天妒 (tiān dù)"

Guo Jia can obtain any judgement card that he flips over. For example, every time he undergoes judgement for LIGHTNING 闪电 during his turn, he can keep the judgement card that he flipped over. However if he uses ATTACK 杀 on a player that equipped EIGHT TRIGRAMS 八卦阵, Guo Jia cannot keep the judgement card for judgement of EIGHT TRIGRAMS because that card would be flipped over by the target player and not himself.

Character ability 2: "Bequeathed Strategy 遗计 (yí jì)"

For every 1 unit of damage that Guo Jia receives, he can draw 2 cards from the deck. He can then choose to give away one, two, or none of these 2 cards to any player.

Ability's relation to story:

Brilliant!!! The chinese name for "Envy of Heaven" is called 天妒 and is short for a more common phrase called 天妒英才 (tiān dù yīng cíi). It translates as "heaven is jealous of a person with such immense intellect/skill/potential" and is morbidly used to describe rare talents who died young. Chinese like to think that heaven struck them down out of jealousy. Guo Jia's "Envy of Heaven" ability seems to mock the heavens as he can benefit from heaven's will (judgement cards). "Bequeathed Strategy" is equally apt as it almost re-enacts Guo Jia's contribution to Cao Cao after dying. Read more about the story behind "Bequeathed Strategy" below.

Additional info based on story:

1. Most famous achievement - Guo Jia's bequeathed strategy to Cao Cao. After Yuan Shao 袁绍 and his sons Yuan Shang 袁尚 and Yuan Xi 袁熙 were defeated by Cao Cao, Guo Jia died of illness. He left Cao Cao a secret strategy that said Yuan Shang and Yuan Xi would flee to join Gong Sun Kang 公孙康 and told Cao Cao not to pursue. Guo Jia predicted that Yuan Shang and Yuan Xi's heads would be sent by Gong Sun Kang as long as Cao Cao did not make any move against Gong Sun Kang. This went against the advice of many of Cao Cao's generals, who felt they should crush the brothers while they were weak. True enough, everything that Guo Jia predicted came true.

2. Cause of death - During the northern expedition to erradicate the Yuan brothers, Cao Cao's army travelled light for speed but was ill-prepared for the terrible weather. Guo Jia fell sick along the journey and was unable to join Cao Cao at the battles. By the time Cao Cao returned after the battle was won, Guo Jia had already succumbed to his illness. He was 37.