This is going to be the first of a few unboxings of some of my favorite minis from Gencon. I’m starting off with the Blood Brothers, a brand new set of Ronin from Bushido.
These are part of a dual release with the Sworn Sisters. Both sets of minis comprise what could almost be described as mini-factions unto themselves. The Blood Brothers work best when fielded with each other and with their faithful retainer Baichi. Since they’re Ronin, you’ll still need to start with a faction that can hire them. That means you can add them to an existing army – assuming you play Cult of Yurei, Silvermoon Syndicate, Savage Wave, Jung Pirates, or Ito Clan.
More on fielding them later. For now let’s look at minis.
The Blood Brothers are purchased separately, unlike faction starters. First up we have Shenzhiqi. If you’re wonder why his name sounds more Chinese than Japanese (I mean these are Ronin right?) there is a reason.
The brothers are from outside the normal geographical confines of the Bushido setting. The Japan-inspired mythical Jwar Isles are where all your games take place, but these guys have ventured there from the larger world outside. Because they are masterless warriors, the proper Jwar word for them is Ronin.
Here’s another angle.
And now a look at the face.
I even went ahead and assembled him so you could see how he looked all primed up.
Here’s a slightly different angle.
Ying-Jian is next.
Now an assembled shot.
And the reverse, since I forgot to get a shot of it before I primed.
I saved Shuohuang, my favorite of the Blood Brothers, for last. This guy really reminds me of a character out of a Kurosawa movie, which I’m sure is 100% the point. I took a lot of pictures of him so brace yourselves for multiple angles.
And… assembled.
From the other side.
Last up is Baichi. In a way I almost like him the most out of the bunch. His over loaded backpack is covered in details.
The reverse.
Speaking of cool details, Baichi is even carrying around a Yurei mask. The Blood Brothers clearly get around a lot and have the souvenirs to prove it. I guess Baichi puts this on when he needs to use the Conspiracy of the Cult ability.
I only partially assembled Baichi. I wanted to be able to paint his backpack separately.
With the backpack primed you can see even more of the detail.
That mask…
With all those pictures out of the way, let’s talk about how these guys play. The more of them there are the better they’ll fight and the more they’ll cost. If you have all three they’ll run you 8 points each, which makes them among them the most inexpensive Melee skill 4 fighters in the game. The (huge) downside is that they can never be rested – in other words they will always be either tired or Fatigued. This is a narrative rule that represents their exhaustion from constant harassment by the Sworn Sisters who have pursued them to Jwar Isles for some horrible crime. They also start with a Death Sentence Counter, which you’ll really want to remove early with 3 Ki.
The Brothers have a couple of tricks to help a bit including great stats (provided they’re all alive) the tireless ability, and a Ki Feat that let’s all three of them take a walk action together. Additionally Baichi has “Order 3: Blood Brother,” which will allow them to come back from Exhausted. Essentially, with enough finesse, you can get a lot more out of the Blood Brothers than their points cost would suggest. If you don’t play them just right however, you’ll quickly be out-activated and overwhelmed.
You can look for more help for the brothers in whichever faction you choose to play them with. They all have something to offer. Savage Wave can bring enough bodies to keep you at par in the activation game. The Bakemono Ki Feat “Darkness” can also help prevent the loss of a brother from early shooting. Yurei can offer similar aid, as well as a vast array of debuffs. Ito have some good options for Channel as well as the ever annoying Shimogama Vipers to help the brothers engage the enemies on their terms. I’m still trying to figure out the best way to use them with the Jung Pirates. Right now Yori sticks out as having some potential to drag enemies toward the brothers. Also Yuji using Inspiration on them could be interesting, if perhaps a little excessive.
Personally I see a lot of fun to be had with Silvermoon. They have a couple of good choices for Lure, which can bring your enemies closer: right where you want them. The Event “Drunk on Sake” also seems like a great way to even the stakes for a round. If you need bodies, Silvermoon have cheap Pit Dogs. My preference though are the slightly more expensive Kyoaku Han, simply because they can take care of Objectives and fight well. This interest however is based solely on my own playstyle which I freely admit isn’t always focused on winning.
Each faction could easily get its own full write-up on how best to incorporate these Ronin. Whichever you choose, getting the hang of these guys will probably be tricky at first. I think once you get the hang of them they’ll be a strong and interesting force.
~ Hope you enjoyed the article! How would you field the Blood Brothers?
Too Mini 
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