Wen Yang

Wen Yang (onyomi: Bun Ō) is Wen Qin's second son. After his father's failed revolt and subsequent death, he joined Jin. During the Western Jin Dynasty, Wen Yang was famed for his success against the Xianbei tribes. Romance of the Three Kingdoms makes him an expert bian gan user and compares his skills to Zhao Yun.

Prior to his playable Dynasty Warriors appearance, he was a Jin NPC since the series's seventh title. In Famitsu's character survey, he is ninth place in the boyfriend category. He ranked sixteenth place in Gamecity's Dynasty Warriors 8: Xtreme Legends popularity poll. The latest poll for the eighth installment puts him in thirty-seventh. The character poll for overseas fans puts him in fourth place for the Jin division. This counterpart has two character image songs, Trust Myself and Fighting Spirit.

Dynasty Warriors
During the rebellion of Wen Qin and Guanqiu Jian in Jin's story, he is the one who fires the arrow that kills Sima Shi. He eventually defects to Jin and is accepted into their ranks when Zhuge Dan murders his father.

His playable appearance in the eighth installment has him appear as one of the early supporters of the Sima Faction, most notably during Gongsun Yuan's rebellion. Like his father, he rebels against the Sima family after they gain considerable amount of power. Despite their initial defeat, he joins his father once again and stalls Sima Zhao and his subordinates long enough for his father to fatally wound Sima Shi. He is not killed after his defeat here, and with his family, flees to Wu. He is then seen siding with Zhuge Dan during his rebellion, however he defects upon the execution of his father and continues to serve the Sima Family from that point on.

In the alternate path, he may not actually choose to side with his father and brother in their second rebellion, and chooses to stay and serve the Sima Family at Sima Zhao's encouragement. After defeating his brother numerous times, Wen Yang successfully convinces his brother to side with the Sima Family, and his brother soon reveals the location of Sima Shi, allowing Wei forces to reach him before Wen Qin can arrive to attack the isolated commander. Though the rebellion is crushed, Wen Yang is unable to convince his father to surrender. Shortly after, he joins the defense of Chengdu alongside Sima Shi and Xiahou Ba against Shu and Nanman forces. He later participates in many of the later campaigns including the final battle at Chibi.

In Jin's expanded storyline, Wen Yang appears first among the defenders of Shangyong, struggling against Zhao Yun at the western gate. Later, he appears at Shouchun, where he scouts the Wei forces aiming for the rear castle gate. After Shu's fall, Wen Yang attempts to warn Deng Ai of Zhong Hui's false charges, and rebellion. Together, they escape Chengdu to inform Sima Zhao. Participating in Zhong Hui's final defeat, he sees the defeated general off before his punishment is meted out.

Shin Sangoku Musou Blast includes a special episode featuring him. Having always wanted to cross weapons with Zhao Yun, Gan Ji grants Wen Yang's wish by having him relive his idol's past battles within a phantom world. Each battle has him challenge Zhao Yun in his prime, causing initial confusion for the latter. He is able to earn the older general's admiration by winning the duel.

Wen Yang's bond story in Dynasty Warriors: Unleashed starts off with him helping his father rebel against Wei. Aware of Sima Shi's eye injury, he manages to aggravate it greatly by banging drums near his camp all day while awaiting reinforcements. However, he and his brother Wen Hu switch sides when Zhuge Dan kills their father. Their defection is used by Sima Zhao to convince the other rebels into surrendering.

Now employed by the Sima clan, Wen Yang rises through the ranks of the court, even gaining prestige for subjugating the Hu tribesmen. However, his growing popularity threatened Sima Yan who stripped him of his rank. He and his family were later executed by Jia Nanfeng who believed the accusations of a Sima clan member related to Zhuge Dan.

During Dynasty Warriors 9, Wen Yang's Story Mode only begins after he rejoins Wei after the final rebellion at Shouchun by Zhuge Dan, where he participates in the final battles against Shu at Taoyang and Chengdu. Remaining aligned with the Sima family after Wei is replaced with Jin, he is last seen bravely leading a charge against an enemy garrison, hoping to overcome the numerical odds like the heroes of the past once did.

In Zhong Hui's personal DLC scenario, he and his father join Zhong Hui's faction after his discussions to eventually rise against Sima Zhao. Like his father, he is among the few retainers that remain loyal when Zhong Hui forces Cao Fang to abdicate, and help him eliminate the remaining loyalists of Shu, Wei and Wu.

Warriors Orochi
Wen Yang appears among the brainwashed Wei officers of Kiyomori and will often resist the coalition alongside the possessed officers at Nagashino. He is freed from his mind control some time later and helps the coalition when they travel back to the past.

In Ultimate, he is among Guo Huai's group of survivors and has joined up with the Toyotomi army at Mikatagahara. When Kiyomori's forces break through Ranmaru's ambush, Wang Yi and Wen Yang will guard the central garrison in order to buy more time for Hideyoshi to escape

Wen Yang was one of the lost soldiers found by the Oda during Warriors Orochi 4. When Nobunaga is attacked by Liu Bei's rebel army, and Nuwa arrives to reveal his true intentions, Wen Yang and the other members of the Oda merge with the rebel army to form the Coalition.

As part of the Coalition, Wen Yang and Guo Huai help clear Kawanakajima of the Olympian troops as well as to have the remaining Wei forces of Pang De and Wang Yi join them.

Romance of the Three Kingdoms
Within the Romance of the Three Kingdoms series, Wen Yang is characterised by his high War stat which lands in the 90's alongside above-average stats in Leadership, Intelligence and Charisma. An officer who appears in later scenarios of the period generally affiliated to Wei, Wen Yang will often possess the highest base War stat among officers by that point, eclipsing both Jiang Wei and Deng Ai. In reference to comparisons made between himself and Zhao Yun, Wen Yang's performance in battle will increase when deployed alongside Zhao Yun.

Development
Wen Yang's Dynasty Warriors counterpart was heavily designed to follow his description in Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Although he was made to look like Zhao Yun, creators also strove to present him as the "heroic figure" for Jin. Atsushi Miyauchi, the game's director, thinks fans will enjoy seeing him choose his allegiance in Story Mode. He believes their interpretation of Wen Yang is a "tall, stylish, and cool" contrast to Xiahou Ba.

Personality
Calm and brave in the face of battle, Wen Yang has a one-track mind which prevents him from being distracted when charging head on. However, this also makes him somewhat unaware of his own surroundings. Because of the circumstances of his surrender and self-shame, he often distances himself from his fellow comrades.

Throughout Jin's story, Wen Yang is conflicted on the beliefs of both his father and his own. Believing in righteousness over personal gain, Wen Yang cannot condone needless fighting, and often fights to make a quick victory.

In Warriors Orochi, Wen Yang absolutely relishes his time with his idol, even asking Zhao Yun to shout "Sally forth!", the localized version of the general's iconic "Chō Shiryū iza mairu" (趙子龍いざ参る, "Zhao Zilong now comes forth"), while in camp. Wen Yang also has a high amount of respect for Yukimura, likening the warrior to his idol.

Voice Actors

 * Robert McCollum - Dynasty Warriors 8 (English)
 * David Jonas - Dynasty Warriors 9 (English)
 * Patrick Seitz - Romance of the Three Kingdoms: The Legend of Cao Cao (English-uncredited)
 * Jin Li - Dynasty Warriors 9 (Chinese)
 * Jeong Seonghun - Romance of the Three Kingdoms: The Legend of Cao Cao (Korean)
 * Yūki Ono - Dynasty Warriors 8~9, Warriors Orochi 4 (Japanese)
 * Kensuke Satō - Youkai Sangokushi (Japanese)
 * Kazuma Horie - Sangokushi Hadou (Japanese)

Quotes

 * See also: Wen Yang/Quotes


 * "Hey, I was nearby, so I thought I'd pay you a visit. How's it going?"
 * "Thank you for the other day. I owe you a great debt, Master Sima Zhao."
 * "Yes, it is good to keep moving straight forward. You also need to take it easy sometimes too though."
 * "Like you, Master Sima Zhao? Hmm... I don't know if I could slack off that much..."
 * "Yes. You certainly are straightforward."
 * Sima Zhao and Wen Yang; Dynasty Warriors 8

Gameplay

 * See also: Wen Yang/Movesets

Weapons

 * See also: Wen Yang/Weapons

Dynasty Warriors 8
Wen Yang uses the javelin as his default weapon in this title.

Dynasty Warriors 9
Wen Yang uses the great sickle as his favorite weapon and shares it with Sun Ce and Zhou Cang.

Historical Information
Wen Yang was the second son of the Governor of Yang Province, Wen Qin. It is said that his real name was Wen Shu, but changed to Yang from childhood up into adulthood. Along with his father and brothers, Wen Yang protected Yang Province against the Wu army.

Life in Wei
Being Cao Shuang's companion, Wen Qin abused his authority. When Sima Yi overthrown Cao Shuang in 249, Wen Qin, along with Guanqiu Jian and Xiahou Xuan, lost their closest ally; also since Wen Qin often lied about the ongoing war, his promotion was rejected by Sima Shi.

After Sima Shi deposed Cao Fang in 254, the following year, Wen Qin and Guanqiu Jian rebelled. Tasked to halt Deng Ai's unit, Wen Qin showed sign of fear at the size of the army. However, Wen Yang, who just reached eighteen, suggested his father to attack as the Wei army was still tired after arriving. The father-son duo then conducted a night raid.

Arriving at Wei's camp, Wen Yang caused a ruckus, calling out Sima Shi's name. The raid worsened the condition of Sima Shi, who just had an operation on his eye. During the battle, Wen Yang's unit charged into the enemy rank, killing numerous of solders. When the Wei reinforcement arrived, his unit was either eliminated or retreated. Finding himself alone on the battlefield, Wen Yang drove back the entire Wei army every time they pursued.

After the rebellion failed, Wen Yang along with his father surrendered and joined Wu. When Zhuge Dan rebelled, the Wen is ordered to assist the latter in Shouchun. However, the situation started to dye, Wen Qin eventually was suspected and killed by Zhuge Dan. Hearing news, Wen Yang tried to avenge his father, but was outnumbered, so he and his younger brother Wen Hu surrendered to Sima Zhao. Still remembering what happened to his brother, Sima Zhao attempted to execute both, but was told by Zhong Hui that Wen Yang's strength equaled thousand men and pardoned them both. Sima Zhao also promoted Wen Yang, ordering him to convince the people of Shouchun to surrender. Shortly after the rebellion, Sima Zhao allowed the Wen brothers to give Wen Qin a proper burial.

Life in Jin
Wen Yang would eventually rise to become one of Jin's greatest general. In 277, he was tasked to defeat the Xianbei tribe, recruiting twenty thousand Hu people as a result.

During his service in Jin, Sima Yan still held a grudge against Wen Yang because of the incident with Sima Shi, so he demoted Wen Yang. Once the War of the Eight Princes broke out, a grandson of Zhuge Dan (Sima Yao) accused Wen Yang of high treason. He and his family were executed to the third degree.

Romance of the Three Kingdoms
Wen Yang is described in the novel as a gifted martial artist whose height was eight feet tall. He and his father formed a joint alliance with Guanqiu Jian in an attempt to remove Sima Shi from power. While awaiting for reinforcements, he and Deng Ai fought for fifty bouts until the former was forced to flee while killing a number of enemy soldiers along the way. Sima Shi's eye was said to have burst out from its socket upon witnessing Wen Yang's brutality.

During his service to Wu, he participated in the defense of Shouchun and kept most of the Wei troops out. When Zhuge Dan accused Wen Qin of treason and had him executed, Wen Yang reacted violently and quickly surrendered to Sima Zhao who decided to make him an honorary officer. Most of his allies eventually followed suit upon hearing this, causing Zhuge Dan's rebellion to collapse from the lack of men.

Trivia

 * In Koei-Tecmo's Tokyo Game Show 2015 Cosplay Contest the cosplayer Itsuki Hiroshima cosplayed as a helmetless Dynasty Warriors 8 Wen Yang and tied the grand prize with the Arslan cosplayer.