On the 19th of March, Creative Assembly will be launching A World Betrayed, the next Chapter Pack DLC for Total War: Three Kingdoms. Of course, as per usual, the studio will also be launching a free-LC alongside the Pack. In this case, that Free-LC will be White Tiger Yan; a character pack which adds the charismatic bandit warlord Yan Baihu as a playable faction leader.
Total War: Three Kingdoms Free-LC: Yan Baihu
Yan Baihu, the bandit leader known as ‘White Tiger Yan,’ was a fierce warlord who was active in the Jiangdong region during the Three Kingdoms period. His charisma and strength earned him enormous authority among both the local Shanyue tribes and corrupt Han officials. During the Three Kingdoms period, he was bribed to support Liu Yao in his war against Yuan Shu; a war which drew the bandit into conflict with Sun Ce. After Liu Yao’s defeat, Yan raised a massive private army and formed a coalition with other local warlords and bandits, in order to oppose Sun Ce. Ultimately, he was defeated nevertheless, though he escaped to continue causing trouble for Sun Ce throughout Jiangdong.
Yan Baihu will be a new playable warlord in both the core 190 campaign and the new 194 campaign added in A World Betrayed. He is only the third bandit character to feature in the game, alongside Zhang Yan and Zheng Jiang. Unlike the others, he will start the game in southeast China. As such, he will be well placed to oppose Sun Ce and Yuan Shu, with potential allies among his neighbours. He himself is a Sentinel character with the Stalk ability who grants +5% replenishment to all armies in his faction. His unique building, the Shanyue Encampment, provides food, research speed, and access to special Yue tribal units.
Yan Baihu’s unique faction resource is White Tiger Confederation. This resource provides his faction with benefits if he is a member of a coalition or alliance. The larger the coalition, the more benefits he gets. It’s worth noting too that A World Betrayed and White Tiger Yan will be launching alongside a major game update for Total War: Three Kingdoms; an update which includes a huge rework for bandit factions. All bandit warlords will have access to new campaign mechanics, an all-new tech tree, and more. As such, they will become far more distinct than they currently are.