Zhang Liao

Zhang Liao is a character introduced in the second Dynasty Warriors game. He first served as a high-ranking commander under Lu Bu until he was captured by Cao Cao. Showing courage at his execution, he was spared and soon became the leader of the Five Generals of Wei. In the Dynasty Warriors series, he is 27 years old.

Dynasty Warriors
Zhang Liao is known as a hardened verteran of war within the series, and is feared by many officers in the various games.

First serving Dong Zhuo, Zhang Liao appears at Hu Lao Gate to oppose the Allied Forces. In Dynasty Warriors 5, he guards the alternative passage used by those who try to avoid Lu Bu. If playing as Dong Zhuo, Liao remains with in your ranks until you conquer the land.

He later goes on to help Lu Bu and Diao Chan in the assasination of Dong Zhuo, which they succeed in. Liao continues to fight with Bu until the very end at Xia Pi where Cao Cao's Wei attacks Lu Bu. Like Zhuo, if playing as Lu Bu or Diao Chan, Liao will remain with your army until you have control of the land. However, if playing as Liao you will abandon the ranks of Lu Bu and join the forces of Wei. In Dynasty Warriors 5, playing as a character that opposes Lu Bu at Xia Pi will cause a cutscene to appear, in which Bu rants on until Liao tells him to accept defeat, and remain honarable. After his speech, Cao Cao will accept Liao into the ranks of Wei.

After joining Cao Cao, Liao goes on to serve his lord at the Battle of Guan Du, where he fights alongside Guan Yu. Liao and Yu along with the rest of the Wei army prove successful at Guan Du, afterwhich Guan Yu decides to abondon the ranks of Wei. Yu tries to escape in Guan Yu's Escape, and Liao is one of the officers that attempts to oppose him. In Dynasty Warriors 5, Liao retreats for the sake of the friendship they created.

Liao continued to serve Cao Cao, opposing the forces of Wu at He Fei. Zhang Liao serves as a prime general for the Wei forces, often returning again and again after being defeated. In Dynasty Warriors 5, he leads an ambush attack on the enemy camp, causing the Wu forces to pull back.

Warriors Orochi
During Orochi's story mode in Warriors Orochi 2, he was sent by his lord to reinforce Wu's resistance against the serpent king's army. He and Gan Ning hold the center of the field and charge for the enemy's main camp. When their plan is foiled, he is defeated and he retreats to report Orochi's prowess to Cao Cao. When his kingdom falls to Orochi, he acts as one of Orochi's instigators in Warriors Orochi. He stars in two gaiden stages for Wei. One pairs him with Mitsunari Ishida to rescue Diao Chan and the other has him and other Wei vassals taking on the Takeda-Uesugi alliance.

In Warriors Orochi 2, Zhang Liao is not seen until the Battle of Jia Meng Gate, where he appears by orders of Cao Cao to assist Guan Yu in defeating Kiyomori. In this battle, he reveals to Guan Yu that the defeat of the phantom soldiers is done by killing the sorcerers who control them. The two warriors accomplish that task and move on to defeating the Sun Wukong doubles only to find more sorcery at the gates. Eventually the two overcome the poison gas and defeat Kiyomori together. Zhang Liao is also present at Koshi Castle where he takes a northern path to take out the northwestern garrison to stop the cannon fire.

In his dream stage, he teams up with Gan Ning and Kotarō Fūma to carry out a sneak attack on Meng Huo's base, Ueda Castle. While the warriors penetrate the castle's rear defenses, they encounter Ranmaru, Kunoichi, and Zhuge Liang intruding their path.

Kessen
Zhang Liao is a general for Cao Cao in Kessen II. He often leads one of the physically strongest armies for Wei with a mixed footman and cavalry unit. He's an old friend of Guan Yu and, when their countries were allies, they dine together during Wei and Shu's victory banquet. In the past, they once fought a decade ago over a woman. However, Guan Yu let him win their battle and allowed Zhang Liao to marry her.

In the beginning of Wei's story, they will have a friendly bout in battle. He asks his friend if he has a lady and promises them a safe escape. Guan Yu refuses, stating that a man fights for the ones close to them. In response, Zhang Liao wins their scuffle and earnestly tells him to not disappoint his woman.

Personality
Zhang Liao is a man of honor and will stay true to the very end, no matter what obstacles come his way. He even stays with Lu Bu because he sensed that Lu Bu still has a hint of honor, never to let his loyalty waver so long as honor lingers in Lu Bu. Zhang Liao befriends Guan Yu during his service for Wei; And when he attacks Cao Cao, Zhang Liao persuades Guan Yu to not do so, stating that the Red Hare may turn him into the demon Lu Bu was once. Guan Yu thanks Zhang Liao for helping him decide what to do and retreats.

Voice Actors

 * Michael McConnohie - Dynasty Warriors 4~5, Warriors Orochi series (English)
 * Travis Willingham - Dynasty Warriors 6 (English)
 * Paul St. Peter - Kessen II (English)
 * Naoki Kinoshita - Dynasty Warriors 2 (Japanese)
 * Hironobu Tanaka - Dynasty Warriors 3~6 and Warriors Orochi series (Japanese)
 * Ryōtarō Okiayu - Dynasty Tactics series (Japanese)
 * Hideyuki Tanaka - Kessen II (Japanese)

Ground Moveset

 * undefined: Rushes forward spinning his blade in front of him then does a horizontal slash.
 * , undefined: Knocks opponent airborne with an upward diagonal swing.
 * ,, undefined (undefined, undefined, undefined): Swings his blade diagonally in front of him multiple times, in the opposite direction each time then finishes with a broad swing.
 * ,, , undefined: Spins around and pivots on one foot with his spear held in front of him.
 * ,, , , undefined: An upward swing that releases a small white tornado in front of Zhang Liao.
 * ,, , , , undefined: A large gust of wind and energy.
 * A series of downward diagonal slashes then a horizontal slash repelling opponents.
 * , : Jump, then swipe with halberd.
 * , undefined: Releases a disc flying down from his weapon.

Horse Moveset

 * undefined: Zhang Liao leans to each side, and spins his weapon.
 * ,, , , , : Three attacks to the right side, three to the left.
 * Repeating slashes to all sides until the Musou gauge empties.

Dynasty Warriors
His weapon, Blue Wyvern, is extremely similar to Guan Yu's weapon, Blue Dragon. In the destiny mode for Dynasty Warriors 5: Xtreme Legends, Zhang Liao states that this is out of respect for Guan Yu, as the two had become close in their time serving Wei.

In Dynasty Warriors 6, Zhang Liao retains a pair of axes, which differ in length, appearance, and usage from Pang De's dual halberds. Zhang Liao's primary strong attacks are viewed as extremely strong for Renbu Gauge level one. His grapple attacks are slow compared to a group of select characters, though they are very powerful. Zhang Liao's range factor might be one to consider as his weakness, so it is recommended that players use a standard-type weapon. Zhang Liao's Tome Attack is True Speed. Despite it's two consecutive hits per multiple steps, the bonuses Rush and Power Rush increase damage to enemies during the attack, and Stamina increases the duration of the Special Attack.

Quotes

 * "They used to talk about us, you know."
 * "They'd say, 'Wei has Zhang Liao but Wu has Gan Ning!'"
 * "The bad news for you lot is..."
 * "You had the luck to run into us!"
 * Zhang Liao and Gan Ning; Warriors Orochi 2

Dynasty Warriors 4

 * Level 10 Weapon: Gold Wyvern
 * Base Attack: 48
 * Stage: Battle of Si Shui Gate; Battle of Hu Lao Gate
 * Requirements: In Musou mode, at the battle of Si Shui Gate of Lu Bu's forces, defeat Liu Bei, Cao Cao, and Sun Jian. Then, at the battle of Hu Lao Gate, do not kill any generals till after the fire attack on the city. Once that occurs, eliminate Liu Bei, Cao Cao, and Sun Jian.

Dynasty Warriors 4: Xtreme Legends

 * Level 11 Weapon: Celestial Wyvern
 * Base Attack: 60
 * Attributes: Level 17 Dragon Amulet, Level 11 Huang's Bow, Level 18 Horned Helm, Level 20 Elixir
 * Stage: Ambush at He Fei
 * Requirements: Keep all four top castle ally Guard Troop Captains alive until Zhou Tai appears. Achieve 300 K.O. count.
 * Strategy: Yue Jin's morale drops VERY fast. Also, the Wu troops' morale will raise each time Sun Quan orders an attack. The only way to prevent Yue Jin's seemingly imminent defeat is for you to kill enemy peons quickly. Whenever you reach multiples of 50s in KOs, your morale will raise for sure. So, whenever Yue Jin is in trouble, drop whatever you're doing and help him until he tells you to go back to defend the castle. It is important to find the balance between killing peons and chasing officers, because you need to kill the officers to pass the stage within 15 minutes.


 * 1) Bottom left (reach 100 KOs and kill Ling Tong).
 * 2) He Fei castle front (reach 150 KOs).
 * 3) Top right and bottom right gates (reach 250 KOs and kill Gan Ning and Xu Sheng).
 * 4) He Fei castle front (reach 300 KOs and kill Lu Meng).
 * 5) Level 11 message.
 * 6) reach 350 KOs.
 * 7) Go to bottom of the map and kill Zhou Tai to end the stage.

Warnerbubba wrote in with the following method:


 * 1) equip peacock urn, turtoise amulet, herbal remedy, secret of the orbs, meat bun sack, war drum, vorpal/fire(recommended)/ice orb, and shadow sattle
 * 2) Kill Ling Tong and 100 of his men
 * 3) go to Xu Sheng and kill 50 of his men
 * 4) by this time Gan Ning should be there, go kill him and 50 of his men.
 * 5) Go to the castle front and defend it, kill Lu meng, and there are more than 100 men there....
 * 6) if you get it, save and quit, then set it to begginer (dont wanna risk it) and kill Zhou Tai

Dynasty Warriors 5

 * 4th Weapon: Gold Wyvern
 * Base Attack: 36; Weight: Medium
 * Attributes: Life +17, Attack +17, Fill +15, Horse +18, Luck +15
 * Stage: Battle of He Fei (Wei)
 * Location: One of the islands in the southeast.
 * Requirements: Defeat nine Generals/Sub-Generals or defeat 700 people, every few enemies the enemy soldiers will comment, you get the valuable item report when Sun Quan comments that "One man struck fear in my entire army by himself!", requirements must be done before Cao Ren arrives.

Trivia

 * Zhang Liao's irrational yet fun nickname with Japanese fans is "Yamada~!" (山田ああ!), which is a pun of one his battle cries during his True Musou, "Out of my way!" (邪魔だ!, Jyamada!). The name's popularity grew in more recent installments due to the voice actor's harsh delivery of the line.