Masayuki Sanada

Masayuki Sanada is the fourth head of the Sanada clan and is the father of Yukimura, Nobuyuki, and Muramatsu. He is a shrewd yet masterful strategist who is famous for stopping Hidetada Tokugawa's 38,000 men army with a mere number of 2,000 at Ueda Castle.

Before his playable appearance in Samurai Warriors, Masayuki has been a generic NPC since its starting entry.

His Nobunaga's Ambition counterpart is fifth place in Gamecity's character popularity ranking for 2015.

Samurai Warriors
The series initially presents him as an elderly or middle aged general who serves the Takeda. In most titles in the series, he orders Yukimura to assist him in halting the Tokugawa forces at Ueda. Samurai Warriors has him trap Ieyasu and his men by luring them downstream from the castle and breaking the floodgate to the river. If the attack succeeds, Ieyasu will lose many of his men and a great deal of morale.

Samurai Warriors 2 has him prevent Hidetada from reaching Sekigahara by stalling the Tokugawa army at Ueda Castle. He is a commander during the Fall of the Takeda who remains hidden in the main keep until the end of the battle. Masayuki assists the fictional Edo Castle in Kanetsugu's and Keiji's story mode. Nagamasa's dream stage has him appear with the Takeda to defeat Nobunaga. In Ina's dream stage, he is a crocked grandfather who is driven back by his daughter-in-law.

The fourth title dedicates a cutscene of Masayuki congratulating his sons for their efforts at Kanagawa, which paved the path for Sanada independence. He assigns his sons their respective paths for their family before choosing to settle their family at Ueda Castle.

In Sanadamaru, Masayuki will take over the roles of Yukimura and Nobuyuki during their time with the Takeda, as they are still infants or children at this point in time. Witnessing Shingen's conviction to protect his clan, and Katsuyori's despair over the clan's destruction, Masayuki takes these lessons to heart when attempting to set up his own clan. Initially using the Hojo to further himself, only to betray them to receive the Tokugawa's aid, Masayuki builds up his reputation as a shrewd politician and an amazing field general, which eventually catches the attention of Hideyoshi Toyotomi, the most dominant daimyo of the period. Aligning himself with the Toyotomi and against the Tokugawa, his clan's territory is threatened, but he succeeds in thwarting the siege of Ueda Castle.

The land's unification comes to a close when the Hojo are finally defeated at Odawara, but Hideyoshi perishes shortly afterwards, and Masayuki's sons become conflicted on their beliefs. While Yukimura believes that siding with Mitsunari's faction is the right thing to do, Nobuyuki believes that the clan's survival hinges on its friendship with Ieyasu. Deciding to join the Western army, Masayuki nonetheless allows Nobuyuki to join the Eastern army in the case that things do not go as planned. Masayuki's suspicions and concerns ring true after they defeat Hidetada when Sasuke Sarutobi and Kunoichi report the fall of the Western Army at Sekigahara. Although Masayuki and Yukimura are sentenced to death, Nobuyuki's plea bargain works out, and the two are sent to exile, while Nobuyuki is given control over the clan. Confident that both sons would ensure the Sanada's survival with their own methods, Masayuki passes away to natural causes at Yukimura's side during their exile.

Warriors Orochi
In Warriors Orochi 3, if Yukimura is selected as one of the playable characters, Masayuki will be seen leading the Allied Forces against Kiyomori at Anegawa instead of Yukimura. He appearance is really different from his default outfit in Samurai Warriors 3, He was younger than his default appearance.

Kessen
Although it isn't seen, Masayuki (called "Sanada" or "Masa Sanada" in the English version) easily stalls Hidetada's men during Sekigahara in Kessen. He leads a small yet sturdy cavalry unit and relies on high morale and low fatigue to win his battles. If Mitsunari wins Sekigahara, the Sanada forces will join his pursuit to capture Ieyasu's head. Otherwise, the player will see him on the Toyotomi side at Harima. Though he's proud of his son's prowess, Masayuki doesn't completely accept all of Yukimura's methods, such as depending on kunoichi and shooting rifles from horseback. He inevitably dies in the later stages of the game, either in battle or due to an assassination ordered by Hidetada.

In Kessen III, a somewhat younger Masayuki serves as an adviser and strategist for Katsuyori. He opposes Nobunaga by fleeing and luring his enemy into several ambushes. Once he's out of sight, he hides in waiting and blocks off the path to his lord. Word from the local townsfolk will reveal their locations and help win the battle.

Nobunaga's Ambition
Guruguru Dungeon Nobunyaga has Masayuki act as one of the key characters in the Sanyada Children's Day event. Masayuki personally ambushes Ieyasu and Nobunyaga during Nagashino. He perishes yet kills both of his foes. The protagonist's tea bowl resets time and eventually sends him/her to the Sanyada household prior to the battle. At his older brother's behest, Masayuki believes the stranger to be a traveling fortune teller and places his faith in his/her "divinations".

When he prepares to leave for the main lines of Nagashino, the protagonist stops him by imploring him to protect Katsuyori from enemy ambushes. Masayuki and Nobutsuna consider his/her words and switch places, resulting in his older brother's historical death. Masayuki is last seen preparing himself to lead his family. When the protagonist later learns he/she had been knocked out at the start of Nagashino by a Mikeda horseman, he/she wonders how much of his/her experiences with the Mikeda and Sanyada were real.

Development
For his playable appearance, Masayuki was given split-colored hair to indicate his two-faced nature and foreshadow the rift between his sons.

Personality
Masayuki is a crafty individual who has no qualms resorting to treacherous methods in order to ensure his clan's survival. This way of life is said to have a negative impact on the earnest Yukimura.

Voice Actors

 * Dan Woren - Samurai Warriors 3 (English)
 * Ron Halder - Kessen (English)
 * Munehiro Tokita - Samurai Warriors (Japanese)
 * Masaya Takatsuka - Samurai Warriors 2 (Japanese)
 * Takahiro Fujimoto - Samurai Warriors 3 (Japanese)
 * Kenta Miyake - Sengoku Musou ~Sanadamaru~ (Japanese)
 * Yūgo Takahashi - Kessen III (Japanese)

Live Action Performers

 * Isamu Ishizaka - Butai Nobunyaga no Yabou Yukimura to Gorin no Ken

Quotes

 * "Ha ha... Now I get to plot my revenge!"
 * "Amazing! I thought this castle was as good as mine!"
 * "I will crush this tiny castle!"
 * "The fool, he underestimate the strength of Ueda! Yukimura do just as we planned!"
 * Hidetada and Masayuki; Samurai Warriors 2


 * "We'll show the world how the Sanada fight... And send shockwaves through those lords who think the land is theirs. But you must watch me closely, Yukimura. Though you are already great, there are many things that even you can learn."
 * "Yes, Father. I am prepared to do just that."
 * Masayuki and Yukimura; Samurai Warriors 2: Empires


 * "Yuki! I'm giving command of our men to you. You will lead them into battle, Yukimura. Go and bloody Ieyasu's nose! And spread the glory of Sanada throughout the land!"
 * Speaking to Yukimura; Kessen

Ground Moveset

 * , undefined: Masayuki throws his axe up as it cuts enemies in midair, then he catches his axe and swings it right.
 * ,, undefined: Masayuki pierces his axe, sending a wave of energy forward.
 * ,, , undefined: Masayuki holds his axe then moves forward spinning it.
 * ,, , , undefined: Masayuki swings his left hand and ignites several explosions in front of him.
 * ,, , , , undefined: Masayuki spins his axe creating a tornado, then makes a plume of fire.
 * ,, , , , , undefined: Masayuki slams his axe into an enemy, then moves him/her around and throws him/her up.
 * ,, , , , , , undefined: Masayuki charges forward with his axe, then jumps and slams the ground, erupting lava.
 * ,, , , , , , , undefined: Masayuki spins his axe around himself, then catches it and thrusts it, bursting energy forward to blow back enemies.
 * Masayuki moves forward rapidly swinging his axe diagonally. He then finishes by spinning his axe above then catches his axe and does a powerful energetic slash.
 * (Ultimate/Kaiden): Masayuki cuts a large tornado around himself on the ground, then jumps and and slams the ground with his axe erupting a large rapid-hitting tornado.


 * Deadlock Attack & Mighty Strike: Slams his axe down on the enemy, knocks him/her into the air, then spins his axe, juggling the enemy, then slams his axe down.