Bushido: Der Weg des Kriegers

About this board game

Bushido: Der Weg des Kriegers is a strategic board game for 3–5 players, with games lasting about 90 minutes. Players become Daimyo, feudal lords in medieval Japan, competing to earn enough honor to be appointed the empire’s next shogun by the emperor.

Resource management and conflict are central, but conquering the most provinces does not automatically bring victory. Daimyo-Honor is the game’s victory condition: it can be gained by holding provinces or by converting Samurai-Honor during a tea ceremony.

Samurai-Honor is earned by winning offensive or defensive battles. The first Daimyo to reach 50 honor wins; if no one achieves that within 12 turns, the Daimyo with the most honor at the end of the game is victorious.

A distinctive office system shapes every turn. Depending on the player count, different offices are assigned, and in a four-player game these include the active Daimyo, the Samurai general, the defending Bushi, and the advising Sensei.

• Daimyo: Restocks resources, attacks a province, plays special tiles, and assigns the other offices.
• Samurai: Leads the attack and may gain Samurai-Honor from a successful offensive battle.
• Bushi: Defends against the attack and may gain Samurai-Honor through a successful defense.
• Sensei: Advises the Daimyo, with options such as canceling an attack, spying, using Ronin to destabilize a province, or influencing punishment after a defeat.

Battles combine troop numbers with a rock-paper-scissors system, while players can invest resources to improve their odds. In Bushido: Der Weg des Kriegers, success also depends on negotiation and goodwill, making discussion, persuasion, and haggling vital parts of the struggle for honor.