Warhammer Army Project/Nippon

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Nippon: Warhammer Army Project, 9th Edition Tactica

Created by Mathias Eliasson, this project was a homebrew attempt at giving many of the units, nations, and factions that never got Armybooks of their own (and those left behind and never got one in 8th Edition) such a thing.

It should also be noted that Eliasson is constantly updating his work, so don't expect this page to stay current forever. If anyone wishes to actually update this page and the items that need it, later on, go ahead.

Why Play WAP Nippon

Like a Britionia from the east, Your important troops are unlikely to run from battle. The army consists of peasants or determined line holders, plus damage dealers that are quick on thier feet. Their main damage dealers are very mobile, with a focus on skirmisher damage dealer, from the heavily armored Calvary, Longbow, and interesting flying monstrous cavalry (for now, at least). This makes Nippon good at getting into flanks, able to outmaneuver slower armies. Mobility is also paired with an average-to-good punch. The army is overall able to deliver some surgical doses of accurate S5 attacks where needed

Pros

• You can finally play as the Weeaboo faction you always wanted to play as
• Assassins with instakill poison.
• So many Samurai variants. If you need a Samurai to do a particular job there are several choices to fulfill that.
• This is peak Human without performance-enhancing drugs like Grail Water and Chaos.
• Your a fan of Legend of the Five Rings and want to bring that to your wargame of choice.
• Despite being here, your favorite Total War game was actually Shogun 2 and you want to be able to bring that to your wargaming. Seriously, the quotes for the Clan Mons in the actual pdf are straight from the various clan intros for Shogun 2.
• Is one of the only other Factions besides Britonia and non-Dark Elves that uses Longbows as their primary ranged weapon of choice, able to outrange most other archers during turn 1.
• so much stubbornness plus Death before Dishonour and Way of the Warrior across so many units, that likely that they are willing to die to the man than suffer the humiliation of running away from getting flanked on all sides or a bad roll from a stray arrow.
  • may not have the stats or gear for a human to earn a good combat score without flanking bonus but a combination of stubborn/unbreakable, rerollable Ld8, and the optional cold-blooded or die on break test will keep your Samuria holding to the bitter end.

Cons

• No one in this army knows what shields are. Your gunline has immobile walls, but for other books in 9th, shields grant them better and cost-effective defense against both sword and gunplay.
• Like any elite army, don't invest too much in one unit or else they will get focused down.
• You're playing as the Weeaboo faction and everyone will judge you for it.
• So many Samurai variants. Most of the damage-dealing units have the same elite human stats of M4", WS4, BS4 S3, T3, W1, I4, A1, Ld8 but different rules applied to them. Not a clear con but it requires a lot less clear cut which unit is better for each scenario.
• The overall human S, T, poor armor, and no lances make the army a lackluster glass-cannon

Special rules

• Way of the Warrior: Must accept all challenges, but can re-roll failed Psychology tests and treats not-samurai as Expendable.

• Death Before Dishonor: When taking a Break test, you can risk it and roll 3d6 discard the Highest, but the whole unit will die on the spot if you fail. The chance to lose an entire unit on the spot is always risky, but sometimes you need to hold. The act of sudden disembowelment does give the enemy pause, denying them a pursue or Overrun move which may be worth sending a worn-out samurai squad on a kamikaze run to deny them ground.

Clan Mon

An upgrade that you can give to your units. They affect specific units or weapons. An army can't have more than one kind of clan mon unless you take ... the SHOGUN OF NIPPON.

• Chotosa Clan:(Characters: 5pt, Unit: 1pt per model) The longbow faction. Models reroll 1's to hit with longbows. Superb for longbow build especially if many of them are on horses. (the Chosokabe in Total War Shogun 2)

• Dawate clan:(Characters: 15pt, Unit: 1pt per model) The big Cleaver faction, so tangentially fans of sumo warriors. Models don't suffer Initiative penalties from Great weapons, making them better polearms with no downsides. For Superheavy samurai and sumo builds. (The Date Clan in Total War Shogun 2)

• Hattiga Clan:(Characters: 20pt, Unit: 1pt per model) The Ninja faction. Each Shinobi hero gives you a +1 on rolls to decide table sides and who deploys Scouts first. Ninjas, Kabuki Dolls, and Shinobi gain +1 attack on the first round of combat. (The Hattori Clan in Total War Shogun 2)

• Shisuma Clan:(Characters: 15pt, Unit: 1pt per model) The Katanas faction. Infantry using only Katanas can re-roll 1's to Hit. (The Shimazu Clan in Total War Shogun 2)

• Odari Clan:(Units: 1pt per model) The Bretonnian faction. Ashigaru Becoming more like well-drilled Bretonnian men-at-arms, they gain +1 LD and receive Command Presence from any Samurai Character within 6". (The Oda Clan in Total War Shogun 2)

• Hojizu Clan:(War Machines: 15pt) The big guns faction. War machines may reroll an Artillery Dice once per battle. (The Otomo Clan in Total War Shogun 2)

• Takai Clan:(Characters: 10pt, Unit: 1pt per model) The Calvary faction. may re-roll a single charge distance dice and re-roll 1's to wound on charge for cavalry. (The Takeda Clan in Total War Shogun 2)

• Uesigo Clan:(Character: 20pt, Unit: 1pt per model) The Religious faction. Warrior Monks become Stubborn or unbreakable if they are already and Shugenja and Yamabushi add +1 to their casting rolls. (The Uesugi/ Ikko Ikki Clan in Total War Shogun 2)

Equipment

• Katana: These are the main weapon of samurai and they count as Hand weapons. Suppose to make up for the lack of shields. If on foot, a model can two-hand them and gain a 6++ Parry and will counter-attack on a Ward roll of 6. Ok but will replace it with a proper weapon when available or when used as an enchanted hand weapon.

• Horo Cloaks: Lesser Sea Dragon Cloak, grants 6+ armor against shooting attacks for Samurai Cavalry. Gives a 4+ save against shooting without sacrificing their Fast Cavalry.

• Mantlets:

Ninjutsu

Equipment for the Ninja unit and character

• Caltrops: Make a charger take a Dangerous Terrain test then they get within 4" of Ninjas as their Stand and Shoot reaction.

• Grappling Hooks: Lets you ignore penalties to climb (Not Swim) across impassable terrain. Become sudo Tengu but Ninjas excel more at shooting than melee.

• Smoke bombs: Ninjas can disengage without being followed on a 4+ and auto Rally. Gets them out of fights they don't stay in (Even the ones they purposefully start).

Poisons

Only equipable by the shinobi hero, act like other poison upgrades you would find on other factions Assassin

• Fauntei Shi: (30 pts) if wounded, they must pass a Toughness test or Die. Most melee characters will have high toughness, but there is always a chance to instant kill on a bad roll...

• Spider Venom: (20 pts) Every enemy player turn, the wounded character must make a Toughness test or loss one wound. Cheaper and more likely to happen than Fauntei Shi. Could End a hero on their last legs.

• Snake Venom: (20 pts) If wounded, the enemy attacks gains ASL for the rest of the game.

• Night Milk: (10 pts) poison attacks Auto wound on 6+ to hit. The old Poison rule increases the chances to maim by bypassing rolling to wound altogether.

Vessels of the Kami

• Dragon Claw Katana; 75pts. When in Challenges, gains KB and re-roll all rolls to failed Hit and Wounds. On top of all this, the wielder gains extra attacks

• Heavenly Naginata: 40pts. A fire Halberd with +1 to hit and Hit rolls of 6 explode into d3 hits.

• Armour of Imperial Rule: 40pts. Heavy armour that re-rolls enemy wounds of 6 and deals S4 hit to enemies that fail to wound.

• Mempo of Honour: 25pts. A helm with 6+ armour that forces enemies to re-roll to hit the wearer. However, the moment that wearer ever flees, he dies immediately.

• Bronze Token: 35pts. 4++ ward save against magic and allows a re-roll of one failed armour save each turn.

• Candle of the Void: 20pts. Place a token within 12" of a Shugenja at the start of the game. Your shugenja can now cast from that point, which goes a good way in compensating for their pitiful mobility and affecting units on the other side of the board.

• Fan of Command: 35pts. A special fan that gives a free reform once per game and instantly passes reform, march, pursuit, and redirects tests.

• Dragon Pearl: 25pts. when base to base at the start of CC phase with an enemy character and while in contact the User gains a Copy of one Magic item they have. Wanna deck Karl Franz with Ghal Maraz? Wanna laugh as you kill Archaon with his own Slayer of Kings? Well howdy.

• Imperial Standard: 65pts. Price makes this BSB exclusive. All units within 18" can re-roll break tests, which is vital for keeping Samurai innards inside. The bearer's unit also adds +d3 to combat resolution.

• Mirumoto's Battle Standard: 50pts. Gives +1 to hit and wound during the first round of combat.

The Lore of Kami

Attribute: Invocation of the Kami: Make a Leadership test at the start of a magic phase. On a pass, the Kami gives +1 to casting on double rolls, fail and the Kami decks your caster in the face.

• (Signature) Light of the Sun Goddess: (CV 8/10+) Standard fare magic missile that has the added benefit of putting -1 on the target's WS/BS.

1. Be The Mountain: (CV 7/10+) A rare instance of an augment adding more than just extra inches or hits. While the basic spell gives a unit stubborn, the augment adds a 5+ natural armour save on for a minor bump in casting value.
2. Strike of the Flowing Waters:(CV 9/16+) Grants a unit ASF and forces any enemy they hit to re-roll 6s on saves. While not much against elves, this will put you well beyond most other armies.
3. Fiery Wrath: (CV 9/15+) Burns d3 enemies within 12" of the caster. Honestly, you've got better than some random-ass spell that might hit more than one unit.
4. Borne on the Wind: (CV 10/13+) Gives a fly move that can't be used on a charge or while engaged in combat. Most this can do is make an ideal reposition for ninjas or ensure that the Onna-Bushi are in the way of a charging unit.
5. Void of Emptiness: (CV 11/14+) Robs the enemy of movement, but grants Immunity (Psychology). The only use this has is in cutting off a charge.
6. Call of the War God: (CV 15/21+) All samurai within 12" gain Devastating Charge and re-roll to wound.

Army Units

Lords & Heros

Named Characters

• Yoritomo Ieyasu: 270/288/300pts. Shogun of Nippon, strong combatant with an auto-wounding sword and ward saves (3++ vs mundane, 5++ against magic). His main appeal is he can allow for you to have an army of mixed mons. All this elite specialization will cost you a lot of points on top of the 350 needed to field him, so you'd best save for grand armies.

• Empress Himiko: 370pts. Former Empress of Nippon, master Shugenja, and the closest thing Nippon gets to a Sigmar. As a high caster, she gets to channel die on a roll of 3+ and can re-roll one die during each magic phase. She renders any unit she's with unbreakable and can benefit from Look Out Sir on a 3+. However, she has the caster's lack of armor with only a talisman that grants magic resistance 2 and a -1 to hit her in b2b.

• Odari Nobuhide: 205/223pts.

• Takai Katsuyori: 225/243pts.

• Dawate Tadamune: 175/193pts.

• Uesigo Norimasa: 200/218pts.

• Hitormi Gozen: 90/102pts. First of the Onna Bushi and thus makes Onna Bushi core if she is your general. Her Halberd has Piercing 1 and counts as S6 on a hit roll of 6. Good in Smaller games, or want to fill the front line with Onna Bushi to counter lance chivalry and ogre armies.

• Akashi Sho: 205pts.

• Minamoto Kenshin: 210pts.

• Sarutori Hanzo: 200pts. Hattori Hanzo? Naaaahhhh. Alongside being a ninja, he's also got Mon of the Shinzei, can cast Steed of Shadows on himself and carries Fauntei Shi and Night Milk. On top of his basic attacks, he also deals an instant S4 hit to anyone in b2b and robs anyone he wounds of their attacks, which can cripple a challenge. His mask makes him even more dangerous with Fear and the ability to PASS ANY CHARACTERISTIC CHECK. Vortex? Fuck that. Resolute? FUCK THAT. His price is contentious though, as he's a hero priced at well over a Lord's price.

• O-Sayumi: 140pts. A master courtesan and poisoner. Any unit she joins can re-roll Leadership checks triggered by characters (ie stuff like Fear) as well as a single-use dosage of Unbreakable. She has a pseudo-spell that gives one unit within 12" a +1 to hit for the turn. Against characters, she's scary with re-rolls to hit and wound on top of her poisoned attacks and KB.

Generic Characters

• Daimyo: 95pts. Your basic Human lord, competent with weapons and able to take heavy armour.
  • Daimyo with Bronze token + silvered steel + Heavenly naginata is a decent well-rounded setting

• High Shugenja/Shugenja: Your wizards. Can take Lore of Fire, Heavens, Life, Shadows, and Kami. Can't take a mount.

• Hatamoto: 65 pts. Your Cheap hero, Battle standard bearer, and also bodyguard similar to the Tomb Heralds, down to the ability to be BSB. The issue is that the Hatamoto's charge has to survive in order to get some extra VP or else they'll commit sudoku for failing their master. Unlike the heralds, though, you can buy multiple and then have one replace the other upon death. use them to protect your wizards.

• Kensai: 120pts. A samurai duelist hero with 7 WS/I and killing blow, putting them a peg above most equivalent heroes ad a price only barely above a Daimyo. During combats, he may choose a style to gain a special perk each turn so long as it's non-consecutive (+1 to hit and wound, ASF, or d3 more attacks). They can’t take armor so putting on Ward Saves and magic weapons to add longevity to your investment.

• Yamabushi: 60 pts. A warrior priest based on Warrior Monks, but all his Prayers target allied characters. Has Magic Resistance(2) so his presence also keeps the bad spells away. Keep him close to your HeroHammer to empower them. The Kensai will be your favorite customer.
  • Invigoration: Heal all wounds lost?!! HELLO PERPETUAL DUEL!
  • Protection: 4++ Ward save, your means of compensating for the lack of overall protection for your men.
  • Potency: Re-roll failed hit and wound combat attacks. Unlike the other spells, this one lasts until you say so, so this is perfect when you have multiple characters to tend to.

• Shinobi: 95pts. The dishonorable Assassin of the Common Man to your Honorable Kensai of noble Samurai. Though they can never join any samurai, they can hide in practically any other unit and grab some poisons to cripple enemy characters.

Mounts

• Warhorse: The gold standard of mounts everywhere.
• Kirin: Kirins are a step up, with magical attacks, movement 9" and fly(9), impale attack, making it comparable to Pegasi crossed with Unicorns.

Core Units

• Samurai Warriors: A core elite unit and the selling point of this faction, having 4 in WS and initiative to beat out other humans. It has been recommended to never place all your Samurai in one basket, so taking them in MSUs is advised. They start with a Katana for parrying. you would rather grab Halberds for free makes them a useful anti-armor unit in a pinch with paying for Great Weapons for more heft, while spears can be left to the Ashigaru for cheaper. Long Bows when you want to get some shooting done before going into melee or want archer with more amour and better aim.

• Samurai Cavalry: Samurai Warriors on Fast Cavalry horses for almost double the price. Their options are almost identical, but they lack great weapons. Do Fast Calvalry things like Vangaurding, peppers enemies, and changing their squishy flanks.

• Ashigaru:MEN-AT-ARMS, humans with 6 Leadership and them running away is not a problem for Samurai as they are considered expendable. All units have light armor but no Shields.
  • Ashigaru Spearman: Bretonnia Men-At-Arms spearmen with an option for Pikes or Polearms is 2 point. Take about 50 of them to tarpit problematic enemy linemen.
  • Ashigaru Bowmen: Human longbowmen with light armour. To shoot over troops and amass arrow fire, with 30" also out-ranging most other armies.
  • Matchlock Ashigaru: Human handgunners with light armour. Your ranged Armour punching option.

• Peasant Levy: Peasant mobs.

Special Units

• Warrior Monks: Samurai-likes who re-roll 1s to hit and wound in close combat with Immunity (Psychology) & magic resistance 1. They can take longbows or handguns instead of polearms but the lack of armor compared to Samurai for the same price makes it questionable and the Ashigaru are far cheaper. They should be mixed with lines to provide more of a front line punch.

• Sumo Warriors: Samurai doing their best Ogre impression. They have Great weapons in addition to the +1 S/T over the basic Samurai, but lack katanas and -1I. This will mow through standard linemen they bumrush.

• Onna Bushi: Female samurai with their feminine determination makes them apt to never willingly give up a wall or inch of dirt with their lives. They are more determined than their heavier armored counterparts, Having Stubborn, and reroll break tests when garrisoning or fighting behind walls. If Hitomi Gozen is leading the army they also make for cheaper Samurai Warriors if you don't mind the lack of armor, especially in the longbow department.

• Ronin: Dishonored ex-samurai with Stubborn and Skirmisher, but lack all the armor of basic samurai. They compete with Onna Bushi as foot samurai in the special slot, with Bushi being better at static blocks, while Ronins are your cheaper Skirmisher unit to maneuver around to get flank charges and potshot when Fast Calvery ninjas are deemed too expensive for the job. They are your cheapest skirmishers to use as body blocks, They're essentially samurai you can throw dual wielding on and then see how long it takes before they die for their redemption.

• Yabusame: Mounted archers that can move and shoot and have armour piercing 1 on their longbows. Have the same role as any Fast cavalry archers, except being able to shoot up to 30" and AP on a Longbow can make a difference as Wood elfs can potest. Get Danger Close.

• Komainu Riders:

• Wako Pirates: Ambush Ashigaru with katanas and can take bows. Samurai consider them Desperate Allies, Making them essential Expendables that can be hit by friendly fire. like many cheap Ambushers, use to put a distraction in the opponent's backfield.

• Kabuki Dolls: Similar to Wood Elf dancers with poisoned attacks and can either get ASF with AHW or have a Shield while forcing enemies to re-roll hit rolls against them.

• Ninja: Wouldn't be a Japanese army without a few of these. They're barely armored, but they are skirmishing scouts and can throw their shurikens when charging or fleeing.

• Fire Rocketeers:

• Ozutsu Ashigaru: Ashigaru gunners with bad-er guns. These guns are of shorter range, but they're S5, letting them punch through a good deal more armour.

• Oni: Hulking Unbreakable Daemon Trolls with the grace of elves, but they are expensive and fragile. You can grab great weapons to capitalize on their strength and make them splat anything like mini-ogres-Bruiser. They can hit many things hard but are easily tarpited.

• Tengu: Bird Warriors. They and the rest of the army will ignore each other when breaking. Send the armorless birdboys over the lines to attack the backlines.

• Red Devils: These berserker samurai are your equivalent to the elite frenzy Knights of other armies. With Fear on the charge and Frenzy, they can make a very big dent on whatever they hit with number of attacks.

Rare Units

• Great Guard: Heavy Samurai Cavalry on top of Kirins. They're almost equivalent to Demigryph knights in stats with less armour but they can Fly and are Stubborn. More Excellent then Demigryphs at the devastating flank because of their mobility from Fly and skirmishers.

• Mikoshi Shrine: 120pts. A Mystic Shrine that grants different blessings to units. However, if the blessed unit flees for any reason, they get shot in the back with d6 S4 hits.
  • Strength: re-roll to-wound rolls in cc.
  • Persistence: attackers suffer -1 to wound.
  • Swiftness: re-roll the distance when charging and pursuing.

• Kitsune: 80 pts. A magical trickster fox that learned from the Lore of Shadow. Why not buy another Shugenja for cheaper? One is it's superfast, moving as if a Wood Elf Steed on top of that extra fly(10) every time Smoke and Mirrors goes off. Having Scout allows the Kitsune to deploy within spell casting range on the first turn; if you seize the initiative, Mystifying Miasma and The Withering is not a great start for those targeted units. Remember Kitsune may be stated like a human hero with a ward save but will still die when an entire unit attacks it. Like any successful trickster Always keep the opponent's line of sight and all available cover in mind, using the move phase to dart out and your lore attribute to fly back behind it. If you see an unfortunately positioned human wizard by their lonesome, the Kitsune can pounce on them but it's not a good guarantee its teeth and claws will put it down in one turn.

• Mizuchi: 300pts. A Wingless but still levitating Moon Dragon. Is Aquatic so is not affected by landing in rivers and lakes while getting cover from being submerged. Has a S3 Poison Breath attack being better suited at killing low armor, high toughness chaff and monsters (except if they are Animated constructs or Daemons) than the normal dragon fire.

• Taiko Drum: 50 pts.

• Mangonel: 90pts. a Fire Stone Thrower.

• Cannon: 85pts.

• Flaming Arrow: 50pts. A scary as hell fire-cannon that fires d3 S7 wounds that punch through ranks like a bolt thrower rather than bounce along the floor.

Building Your Army

Magic

• Fire:
• Heavens:
• Life:
• Shadows:
• Kami:

External Links

The Project's website

Warhammer Army Project Tactics Articles
General Tactics	About 9th edition Magic Items Magic Tips Regiments of Renown
Forces of Order	Albion Amazons Bretonnia Cathay Cult of Ulric Dwarf Empire Estalia Halflings High Elves Kingdoms of Ind Kislev Lizardmen Nippon Wood Elves
Forces of Destruction	Beastmen Chaos Dwarfs Daemons of Chaos Dark Elves Orcs & Goblins Skaven Vampire Counts Warriors of Chaos Zombie Pirates of the Vampire Coast
Unaligned	Araby Dogs Of War Hobgoblins Norse Ogre Kingdoms Pirates of Sartosa Tomb Kings