Faction: The Japanese

[Riamesesa]

Sure, I'll do my best

Ok, I saw that the timeframe of Millenium A.D. is from 476 A.D. till 968 A.D.

So it means that it comprises 4 periods of Japanese history:

古墳時代 : Kofun-jidai (approx. 300 -552) [A.D.] (maybe too early?)

飛鳥時代 : Asuka-jidai (552-710)

Note: Instead of Asuka and Kofun, you can simply say 大和時代 Yamato-jidai (250-710)

奈良時代 : Nara-jidai (710-794)

平安時代 : Heian-jidai (794-1192)

note: jidai, basically means era or period in japanese

Not sure If he can count as a hero, but the first person that pops into my mind from the Asuka-Period would be "Shōtoku Taishi"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_Sh%C5%8Dtoku

[Riamesesa]

As for the Japanese wonder, I would suggest the "Tōdaiji"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T%C5%8Ddai-ji

http://web-japan.org/atlas/historical/his13.html

I know that Age of Empires 2 too, used this as Wonder but you simply can't deny it's magnificence.

Actually, this building (Daibutsuden) is from 1709.

The original one was about 30% wider.

Model and reconstruction of the original temple

Edited May 27, 2014 by Riamesesa

[niektb]

This topic is about the earlier japanese than the ones described in the other topic:

An appropriate timespan would be from the Asuka Period till the Heian Period. (From 538 A.D. till 1185 A.D.) but the focus should be on the Heian Period since that was the longest lasting and the most important.

Useful links for this topic:

Art Wishlist: http://www.wildfiregames.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=18688

Brief Japanese history on the Heian Period: http://www.jref.com/japan/history/heian_period.shtml

Late Japanese topic: http://www.wildfiregames.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=18648&page=2

[Riamesesa]

My Hero proposal

Minamoto no Yoritomo: The first Shogun of Japan and Founder of the Kamakura Shogunate

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minamoto_no_Yoritomo

http://www.ninpo.org/picturearchive/historicalportraits/minamotoyoritomo.html

https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Minamoto_no_Yoritomo

Edited May 27, 2014 by Riamesesa

[Riamesesa]

I did some research (by looking at my old notes and searching through the web) and made this brief historical overview

A brief overview of the History of Japan: From Asuka to Heian

Asuka-Period (552A.D. – 710 A.D.) / Nara-Period (710A.D. – 794 A.D.)

-Buddhism became a state religion in Japan

-Adoption of Chinese characters, in Japan known as Kanji

-Chinese (Sui and T’ang Dynasty) pattern of centralized government through various reforms, codes etc. (e.g.Taika Reform, Taihō Code and Ritsuryō system)

-Establishment of the first Japanese capital: Heijō-kyō (today known as Nara)

[Capital was modelled after the Chinese capital Chang-An]

-Tōdaiji was built

Heian-Period (794A.D. – 1192.A.D.)

-Capital moved from Nara to Heian-kyō (known as Kyōto today)

-Court dominated by the Fujiwara-Clan (mostly through marriage)

-Gradual decline of Chinese influence

-Considered to be the Golden Age of Japanese art, especially for its poetry and literature

-Invention of Kana, syllabic Japanese writing system (Hiragana and Katakana)

-New Buddhist sects were imported (e.g. Tendai and Shingon Buddhism, esoteric sects)

Later Heian-period (around 1068 A.D.)

-Go-Sanjō Tennō assumed the throne (determined to rule the country by himself)

-Decline of the Fujiwara-Clan’s power (They failed to control the new Tennō, because his mother was not a Fujiwara)

-Two clans, Minamoto (Genji) and Taira (Heike), gained power

-Rise of the Samurai class

-Genpei-War (Conflict between Taira and Genji, which resulted in the fall of the Taira)

-Establishment of the Kamakura Shogunate and thus ending the Heian-Period

Edited June 5, 2014 by Riamesesa

[N4164]

Has any progress been made on this particular faction? I would be very interested in a Japanese faction in 0 A.D.

[Stan`]

For mnow I haven't started working on them. Also keep in mind this is a mod and will never be part of the game because of the timeframe

[N4164]

Ah, yep. I should've been more clear there. But I meant I'd like to see the civ introduced to the mod

[Lion.Kanzen]

[Ultimate Aurelian]

https://gunbai-militaryhistory.blogspot.com/2019/01/dokyu-japanese-crossbow.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ōyumi

Early Japanese siege weapon (bolt thrower and stone thrower versions.)

Quote

This artillery weapon was brought to Japan by Koreans in 618 and the Japanese started to deploying it regularly by the 670s against the Emishi.

A chronicle entry from 835 notes the existence of a “new ōyumi” (shindo), invented by

Shimagi Fubito Makoto, that was supposed to have been able to rotate freely, shoot in all directions, and be easier to discharge than the existing design. The text remarks that, when the weapon was demonstrated, the assembled courtiers could “hear the sound of it being set off, but could not see even the shadows of the arrows as they passed."
Siege crossbows were placed on several key locations on the Sea of Japan to prevent a Silla pirates raids during the 9th century.

One critical limit of this weapon was the skill required to use it. Several sources underlined how hard it was to operate it and that troops needed to be trained to use it.

Between 814 and 901, the court received requests for ōyumi instructors from no fewer than seventeen provinces. All had the same complaint: regrettably, the weapons in their armories were going to waste because no one knew how to use them.

Despite this limit and the slow decline, siege crossbows were still used up until the late 12th century.
In the Mutsu Waki, describing the war of the 1053 to the 1062, the use of both arrows and stones is recorded.
The usage of the ōyumi is also recorded in the Gosannen Kassen Ekotoba dealing with the war of the late 11th century and the last recorded use is dated to the 12th century, during the Gempei war.
The skill required to use and make such weapon declined through the ages, so it is not a surprise to see this weapon disappearing completely after the 12th century, when a long period of peace was established and the knowledge behind the ōyumi was lost forever.