Luoyang

Luoyang (洛陽の戦い, rōmaji: Rakuyō no Tatakai) was the capital of China during the rise and fall of the Han Dynasty. When Dong Zhuo came into power, he razed the city in an effort to escape from the coalition and moved the Emperor to Chang'an. Although Luoyang was left in a destitute state after the tyrant's retreat, it rose to prominence once more when Cao Pi of Wei made it his capital.

Much later in Wei's history, the then-emperor, Cao Mao, launched a coup against the Sima family in the hopes of reclaiming the lost imperial power. Cao Mao, however, was killed in the coup, and the Simas solidified their grasp over Wei.

Dynasty Warriors
In Dynasty Warriors 4, Luo Yang becomes the setting of Sun Jian's attempt in finding the Imperial Seal. Players are up against Dong Zhuo's army as they attempt to locate the seal hidden in one of the many ceramic jars placed around the vicinity. Lu Bu, Zhang Liao, and Diao Chan may potentially prove to be a hindrance if left unattended. The battle ends in victory for the player's side if they manage to discover the seal first.

Luo Yang returns in Dynasty Warriors 5: Xtreme Legends as a Legend Mode stage for Dong Zhuo and Yuan Shao. The main objective of this battle is to defeat the Ten Eunuchs while protecting the Emperor's carriage. A band of rogues as well as Liu Bei, Cao Cao, and Sun Jian will also arrive to complicate matters. Depending on which character players use, He Jin's death may or may not be averted.

The seventh title features the capital as one of the earlier stages of Wei's Story Mode. Players take control of Cao Cao who must escape the area alone with Chen Gong's assistance. Lu Bu and the other enemy officers will arrive to block the escape route. Aside from opening the palace doors, other actions may also be taken to help secure victory. Releasing Dong Zhuo's pet tigers will confuse the enemy troops whereas freeing the captured handmaidens will cause them to reward players with a variety of helpful items.

For Jin's story mode, it's also where Sima Yi begins his coup d'état to overthrow Cao Shuang and Cao Mao's attempts to kill Sima Zhao later on. In both battles, the player starts at the southwestern corner and has to fight their way into the castle.

As the first chapter of Wei's story in Dynasty Warriors 8, Cao Cao and his companions must escape the castle together. Defeating Lu Bu before escaping may be hard but will affect the future. In Shu's hypothetical route Jiang Wei spearheads an attack on Luoyang and must outwit Sima Yi and Jia Xu.

The Coup d'etat takes place here with Sima Yi leading. If during the fighting the player can slay Cao Xun, Cao Xi, and He Yan while saving Cao Shuang for last, they can go and chase down Xiahou Ba. The area reappears in Jin's hypothetical route, where Zhong Hui has abducted Cao Mao, forcing Sima Yi to come out of retirement to save the emperor. In Zhong Hui's side of the battle, the rebellion starts right in front of the palace, and Zhong Hui must prove his superiority by defeating Cao Mao. When the emperor is defeated, Sima Yi and Zhang Chunhua appear, and must be defeated to attain victory.

In Shu's hypothetical route, Jiang Wei leads an assault on the city, but the Shu forces are lured into the central square, where the main gates are shut; dividing the troops. Soon after, Sima Yi and Cao Pi appear, and attack the division that didn't enter the city. Meanwhile, inside the city, Guan Xing ops to act separately from the rest, taking the armory to help assist both his and the others' escape. As Guan Xing moves to Luoyang's rear gate, the main unit led by Jiang Wei defeats Jia Xu to stop the rest of the Wei traps. As soon as the troops exit, Liu Bei appears with his sworn brothers, and together with Shu's younger generation, defeat Cao Pi. Depending on choices made in previous battles, Meng Huo and Zhurong may also appear with the Shu reinforcements. For Wei's side of the battle, Cao Pi has already separated the Shu forces, and moves to engage the ones outside the castle. When they are defeated, he begins chasing down the ones within the castle, and is slightly blunted when the siege weapons are used against him. Soon enough, Liu Bei and the Nanman forces arrive, and defeating Liu Bei will end the stage in a Wei victory.

In Wu's story, Wu forces led by Sun Quan enter the area in an attempt to finally release Sun Ce from Gan Ji's grasp. Upon reaching central square, Zhou Yu decides to split up the forces, with himself and Taishi Ci taking the western path while Sun Quan and Daqiao take the eastern path. Both forces will run into the ghosts of those who they slew in the past such as the warlords of Wujun, and face the ghosts of their fallen comrades. When the soldiers are defeated, Gan Ji resorts to using ghosts of late Wu officers such as Sun Jian, and an illusion of Xiaoqiao. If Gan Ji's urns are not destroyed, Sun Ce will still not appear in succeeding battles even after his survival.

The expansion has the Ten Eunuchs' rebellion as the first stage of Lu Bu's story.

Additionally, Jin has a new scenario in which Cao Shuang attempts to seize power from the Sima Clan while Sima Yi is busy fighting Gongsun Yuan. Breaking through the encirclement, Zhang Chunhua, Sima Shi and Sima Zhao begin coordinating their counterattack. Zhang Chunhua first decides to call on reinforcements, while her sons plan on having a nearby Xiahou Ba side with the Simas. Foreseeing the Simas' attempt, Cao Shuang attempts to send messengers to convince the young general to side with the Caos. Soon after gaining the advantage, the Sima family begins their charge at the throne room, forcing Cao Shuang to flee. As he is fleeing, Jia Chong arrives in response to Zhang Chunhua's call, and stalls Cao Shuang long enough for the other forces to catch up. The battle is won when Cao Shuang is defeated.

In Cao Shuang's version, regardless of whether the player fighting for him has the advantage, Xiahou Ba will never side with Cao Shuang.

Warriors Orochi
In Warriors Orochi 3, Luoyang serves as one of the few stages in which players must face the Hydra. The vanguard of the Demon army outside the palace must be eliminated before the Yashio'ori is ready. Keiji and Masamune will also appear to reinforce the opposing side. After destroying one of the Hydra's heads, players must then confront Orochi and defeat him to seize victory.

During Chapter 4, a side battle in Luoyang becomes available right after initiating a conversation between Deng Ai, Mitsuhide, and Nagamasa. This time, the stage takes place within the palace halls where Deng Ai, Ryu, and Nene must open the doors from the inside. Defeating Wang Jing enables the team to use the opposing army's ballistas against them. After opening the remaining doors by convincing Hu Lie to join them, the coalition finally faces Zhong Hui.

Historical Information
During 189, the Ten Eunuchs (otherwise known as the Ten Attendants) held unprecedented political influence. When Emperor Ling died, the eunuchs were forced to rely on Empress Dowager He for military power. He Jin, who knew of his sister's relationship with the attendants, immediately called for her to execute them in spite of Dou Wu being assassinated after requesting the same order. Zhang Rang's servants overheard the conversation, and he and the other eunuchs began planning to kill He Jin.

Meanwhile, He Jin, with help from Yuan Shu and Yuan Shao, decided to call Dong Zhuo for help in the battle. On the ninth lunar month, He Jin attempted to apprehend the eunuchs, but he was surrounded by them, and killed. The effect was contrary to the eunuch's expectations, and the Yuans immediately mobilized their troops upon He Jin's death. The chaos was so bad that many innocent attendants were killed, and many men had to reveal their genitals in order to keep themselves from getting killed by the soldiers.

Using the chaos to his advantage, Zhang Rang was able to escape with a few followers after kidnapping Emperor Shao, and the future Emperor Xian, but the eunuch was quickly surrounded by the rest of the imperial troops, and he finally opted to commit suicide. After the death of the eunuchs, Emperor Shao returned to the palace, but Dong Zhuo quickly took control of the emperor, and abused his power. The resulting chain of events would pave the way for the formation of the Three Kingdoms.

In 258, Cao Mao was pressured by Sima Zhao into giving him the "nine bestowments", an honor typically given to extraordinary officials, but also the sign of an usurpation. Cao Mao believed that Sima Zhao would eventually turn on the emperor, and destroy Wei.

By 260, the 19 year old Cao Mao gathered his three followers, Wang Jing, Wang Ye and Wang Shen, and 300 loyal followers for his coup, declaring that "Every person in the street knows what is in Sima Zhao's mind".

Against Wang Jing's counsel, Cao Mao left temporarily to inform the Empress Dowager of what was about to happen. While he was doing so, Wang Ye and Wang Shen defected to the Sima side, and informed Sima Zhao of the emperor's plans. Initially, Cao Mao's rebellion was met with success, and he defeated Sima Zhou, Sima Zhao's younger brother, without much of a fight.

Soon after, Jia Chong arrived, and stopped the emperor. At first, no one dared to attack the emperor, but Jia Chong told his subordinate, Cheng Ji, that the Sima clan should be saved at all costs, and the subordinate rushed forth and killed Cao Mao.

After Cao Mao's death, Sima Zhao forced Empress Dowager Guo to posthumously demote Cao Mao to a commoner, but he would still be buried as a prince. Cheng Ji and Wang Jing, along with their clans, were all executed. Despite the public still calling for Jia Chong's death, Sima Zhao did not make the order.

Power would now be held in absolute control of the Sima family during Cao Huan's rule, and after only 5 years of being emperor Cao Huan abdicated the throne to Sima Yan.