Map for a Potential Chinese Sidequel

Introduction: This is for a future sidequel that takes place in the 300s of the same world as Hoplon. It will largely be self-contained to China and the surrounding areas, save for bits about the Gokturks which will play into the Direct Sequel to Hoplon.

The premise is that several SI's were inserted into the Three Kingdoms Period of China and made it so that the fragmentation continued for several decades more. Now an SI is being tasked to clean up the mess and unify China by the ASBs.

The key for this map is as follow:

Yan Empire: White is the Yan Empire, with its capital in Jicheng. The Yan Empire started as an alliance between Gongsun Du, an SI, and Gongsun Zan to seize territory in Northern China. When Gongsun Zan fell to Cao Cao, Gongsun Du was quick to claim his territory and moved to invade Yechang to steal a march on Cao Cao in seizing control of modern-day Hebei from Yuan Shao, then successfully outmaneuvered Cao Cao and crushed him at the battle of Baotou using cavalry and a midnight march to position his forces properly. From there, Gungsun Du claimed control of much of Northern and Central China, from the border with the Xianbei to the Yangtze River and from the Jade Gates to the Sea. On Gongsun Du's death, his son, Gongsun Kang came to power and mounted an invasion that seized control of the Korean Peninsula rather than assault southward and potentially be defeated by Wu and Shu Han in a battle. Gongsun Kang's son, Gongsun Yuan defeated Liu Shan of Shu Han at the Battle of Chengdu, seizing much of Sichuan from Shu Han and paving the way for the dissolution of Shu Han at the Hands of the Yunnanese Empire. Most recently, however, Gongsun Chen lost Jeju Island to Yamatai-Shu in a Naval Assault.

Notably, their Emperors have married into the Xianbei, which has allowed the Xianbei not only to defeat the rising threat of the Rouran but also to push a bunch of other Eastern Steppe Tribes west, including the ancestors of the Gokturks, who as you'll see, play a large role in parts of the direct sequel to Hoplon as the major Central Asian Power, which has its origins in the Xianbei pushing their ancestors westward. As can probably be guessed from such a marriage as the Gongsun and Xianbei, the Yan Empire specializes in cavalry warfare. Not only in the usual way, with heavy lancers and mounted archers, but also through the use of wooden war wagons pioneered by Gongsun Du, which provide mobile fortifications for the infantry to fight from behind.

The Current Ruler is Gongsun Chen, who is a son of Gongsun Yuan and thus a great-grandson of Gongsun Du. Gonsun Chen's son, Gonsun Shun, the Prince of Liaoning, is who the main character of the story will be inserted into.

Yamatai-Shu: Gold is Yamatai-Shu with its capital in far away Yamatai-koku. It is the only contender that can trace its descent back to the Han Empire, through Liu Bei of Shu Han, though it also lays claim to the various Kingdoms of Wa, which you would know as modern-day Japan, via the claim of Queen Himiko of Yamatai.

Yamatai-Shu was set up by Liu Xuan, SI, the Grandson of Liu Bei of Romance of the Three Kingdoms Fame, whose father, Liu Shan, was ousted from mainland China by the Yunanese Empire under Cuan Xi. Liu Xuan was an SI and understood this was inevitable, and so made his own preparations. When the time came, he gathered what was left of his father's men, the Court, and his own supporters and retreated to Yizhou, which is modern-day Taiwan, with the help of the Sun Clan of Wu, where he set up Shu-Han in exile. He was unmarried and took Queen Toyo of Yamatai-Koku, who ruled large chunks of Kyushu as well as the Ryukyus as his bride, forming the Empire of Yamatai-Shu. While Yamatai-Shu would love to retake large sections of Mainland China, the fact that they are consistently drawn into conflict with the Yamato Kingdom of Honshu means they can only ever make small attacks on coastal or island territories, such as their recent assault on Jeju Island which saw the defeat of the Yan Fleet under Gongsun Chen and the capture of Jeju Island.

They specialize in Naval Warfare, as you'd think they would given where they're located. Liu Xuan invented a type of ship with Iron Plates covering it he called a Turtle Ship, which is slow and unwieldy but hard to destroy, and which also utilizes a sort of spigot that fires a mixture of sulfur and saltpeter in a toxic cloud which can choke and burn the crews of enemy ships. The current navy retains the capability to build those ships.

Currently, the Ruler is Liu Suishō, Emperor of Yamatai-Shu and son of Liu Xuan. There is a rumor that Liu Suishō plans to form an alliance with the Emishi of northern Honshu and Hokkaido in order to fully subdue the Yamato Kingdom, though such rumors are currently unconfirmed. If true, it would certainly give Yamatai-Shu the cavalry power it currently lacks with which to conquer Yamato and possibly reclaim territory in China too.

Yunnanese Empire: Red is the Yunanese Empire. The Cuanmen of Yunnan capitalized on the misfortune of Shu Han after the defeat of Liu Shan at the Battle of Chengdu which saw Shu Han lose large swathes of their territory to the Yan Empire. Under Cuan Xi, the Cuanmen invaded out of the mountains of Yunnan and seized control of the remaining territory of Shu Han, forcing Liu Shan's son, Liu Xuan to flee east into Wu with the remnants of his army, court, and supporters where they were ferried to Yizhou. Cuan Xi didn't stop to bask in his victory but instead moved east to seize control of several Tai Mueang Petty Kingdoms before assaulting Champa, which he took thanks to being an SI and also being able to exploit petty grievances between the Cham Cities to divide and conquer. Once that was done, he moved north, taking advantage of a Vietnamese revolt to invade the Kingdom of Wu and take large swathes of territory. Most recently, he conquered Hainan, a Small Kingdom that Wu had been forced to withdraw from due to a successful revolt by the Local Min-Speaking Peoples of Hainan.

Unfortunately for Yunnan, Cuan Xi is now in his eighties and doesn't have long to live. His son, Cuan Gu, isn't much younger, and Cuan Gu has spent much of his sixty-one years having children with various concubines and wives. It's likely that on Cuan Gu's death, the Empire will collapse into infighting. The Specialty of Yunnan is Infantry Warfare, with an emphasis on light infantry which can move quickly through rough terrain. Yunnanese Armies are often able to move swiftly enough to seize key positions on various battlefields from the outset, allowing battles to be fought from a position of strength.

Empire of Wu: Purple is the Empire of Wu, ruled by the Sun Clan. Established by Sun Jian, the history of Wu parallels its IOTL history fairly closely in numerous ways. Wu allied with Shu Han early on, though, by the time they did, Cao Cao was out of the picture, instead allying together against the Gongsun. Likewise, Sun Jian was slain after defeating Liu Biao, while pursuing his retreating forces into Xianshan. It is during the reign of Sun Quan, the SI of Wu that the major divergences happen. Firstly, the Alliance with Shu Han was never technically broken, as the Yan Empire still presented a major threat to both Shu Han and Wu, as Gongsun Kang refused to go south and be baited into a trap at Red Cliffs like Cao Cao had been in IRL History and instead chose to head east to conquer the Korean Peninsula. Second, Wu became the senior partner in the alliance fairly early on, as Liu Bei failed to conquer Yunnan thanks largely to the efforts of Cuan Xi, instead only capturing Sichuan, Guizhou, and several Qiang states to the northwest of Yunnan. This effectively made the Sun Clan the major power in Southern China until the dissolving of Shu Han and the conquest of large swathes of territory by Yunnan. In the two-thirties, Sun Quan conquered the Min-speaking peoples of Hainan and set up a foundation for his son, Sun Deng, to rule well on his death in Two-forty-five. Unfortunately, Sun Deng would wind up losing territory in the West and South to Yunnan after a series of military defeats by Cuan Xi and a successful Min Revolt on Hainan.

The specialty of Wu is their heavy infantry, which includes both crossbow infantry and pike infantry. Notably, Sun Quan invented a type of crossbow that has a steel prod and is cranked using a windlass. While this lowers the rate of fire significantly it increases range, accuracy, and power to such a degree that crossbows may be deployed offensively instead of defensively, as the Chu-Ko-Nu is. Furthermore, the pike formations of Wu utilize hollow square formations that are unlike those seen elsewhere in China, allowing crossbows to fire out from within the aegis of pike squares similar to European Pike and Shot formations of the sixteenth century.

The Current Ruler, Sun Xi, was not expected to become the Ruler. As a second son, he had been groomed for a life as an advisor to his elder brother, only for the Crown Prince, Sun Ying. Sun Ying, however, died unexpectedly of a sudden fever, allowing Sun Xi to come to the throne at the age of just sixteen years of age. While this is too old to have a regent, it also means Sun Xi is the least experienced candidate for the throne. Only time will tell if this inexperience will be terminal for Wu.