Musashi Miyamoto

Musashi Miyamoto is widely considered to be one of Japan's greatest swordsmen. He is famous for his duels and for authoring The Book of Five Rings, in which he details the principles and practices for his self-taught dual sword wielding style. After his death, many conflicting accounts of his life were made and romanticized into modern fiction.

Before his playable Samurai Warriors appearance, his name is one of the default names for bodyguards. Scrolls named after the principles mentioned in his book also appear in the series's first game. His character's height for the franchise is 175 cm (5'9").

Role in Games
"Those swords - they're all just a blur to me!"
 * ―Zhang Fei; Warriors Orochi

Samurai Warriors
Musashi is a man of common origin. After he defeated a man who declared himself as the strongest swordsmaster in the land, Musashi decided to hone his swords skills by traveling. Wanting to better improve himself, he joined the Western army at Sekigahara. However, he learns he joined a losing cause and cuts an escape route for himself after Mitsunari's retreat. As he fights through the bloodshed, he begins to wonder what it is that he's truly fighting for. After he rescues a village from bandits, Musashi wonders if there is pacifistic solution for his new life with the sword. While at Kyoto, Hideyori and Kiyomasa ask for his aid to save them from Ieyasu's army. Yukimura, a general who he met at Kyoto, later requests his aid at Osaka Castle.

During the battle, Musashi sees that Yukimura is saddened by the fact that the latter's former friend Kanetsugu is on the Tokugawa side. Convincing Yukimura to fight Kanetsugu, Musashi helps reclaim the Sanada Ward from Kanetsugu and slays Ieyasu, gaining a reputation as a famed killer. Wanting to protect his comrades with this sword, he assists the final siege against Hidetada at Edo Castle. They find that the castle is defended by Kagekatsu's army, a despondent Kanetsugu -who is intent on dying together with Yukimura- and Masamune's forces. Musashi and Yukimura defeat Kanetsugu, with the latter apologizing to Yukimura in his dying breath. Hidetada dies during the conflict, signaling a presumable new time of peace under Hideyori. When Kotarō tries to disrupt Hideyori's plans to escape, Musashi duels him. In his ending, Kotarō questions what the swordsman plans to do with his murderous craft during peace. Musashi answers that his swords will someday find a way to protect people.

His swordsmanship at Sekigahara also impresses Kojirō, who is more than willing to challenge someone with skill. Kojirō continues to seemingly stalk Musashi's travels as both swordsmen are hired by generals on opposing sides. Since he is angered by Kojirō's insistence to kill him, they face one another in a private duel. Musashi is the final victor and Kojirō is slain before the Osaka Campaign.

In his dream stage, he wants to prove himself as the strongest warrior of the age. While Tadakatsu and Sakon are in the midst of a mock battle, Musashi barges in to show off his skills. Nene appears as the self-proclaimed strongest woman in the land. If Musashi does well during the battle, Kojiro will be obliged to duel him.

Warriors Orochi
He appears in one of Shu's Gaiden stages in Warriors Orochi and leads a group of swordsmen to overthrow Mitsunari. If the player helps Musashi successfully release the floodgates with his forces intact to reach Mitsunari, he will agree to join the resistance. In another gaiden stage, he will be recruited by Goemon to halt the player's pursuit of the thief.

In the sequel, he trains with Xu Huang to hone their respective arts. Ambushed by Orochi's troops, they agree to work together to capture the fleeing Da Ji and Himiko. During their chase, Musashi is also reacquainted with Kojiro. The two warriors report their findings to Sakon. In his dream stage, he teams up with Tadakatsu and Zhang Fei to rescue Ieyasu. Musashi personally decides to keep every enemy officer away from the ally main camp.

Musashi left on a journey to improve his swordsmanship in Warriors Orochi 3. In the original timeline, he tested his mettle during the failed defense at Odawara Castle. As he attacked Da Ji's troops to the north, Musashi was killed by an endless swarm of serpent army reinforcements. The swordsman continues to perish as the coalition return to the past to save Kai and company.

To prevent his death, Kai and her party travel back in time to cut off the reinforcements responsible for his original demise at Dongkou and bring the reinforcements that didn't make it in time, Munenori Yagyu and Shigekata Togo. They then return to the changed future to save Musashi at Odawara Castle. Thankful for the aid, he offers his sword to the coalition thereafter.

Musashi stars in one of the downloadable scenarios, "Duelling Heroes", where he and Nemea clear out the enemies at Nanzhong so they can have their own duel.

Kessen
Musashi can be recruited for Nobunaga's army in Kessen III. He will join Nobunaga after he is beaten in a Rampage at Kizugawaguchi. He has a strong sword proficiency and leads one of the strongest sword units in the game. If he fights against Muneyoshi Yagyu, he will share a special quote with him as rivals. He will not have a good relationship with Muneyoshi if they are put in the same unit, lowering their attack.

Development
When developers were planning to add the strongest sword wielding character, Musashi became the obvious choice for the position. The designer wanted his design to scream Musashi and made a wild image to reflect known historical accounts of his appearance. They wanted to show his confidence by writing "The Land's Greatest" (天下無双, Tenka Musou) on the back of his coat. The director adds that Musashi was also one of the most requested characters for the first game, but he guesses that this was mainly due to the popularity of the taiga drama (titled Musashi) that showed the year before. Even though he is basically a bonus character for fans, he also wants players to max him out and use him to truly experience Chaos difficulty.

Personality
Musashi is an idealistic and rambunctious youth. He believes his swords can save and protect people, striving to prove his worth as the land's greatest swordsman. While he is confident in his blade, he is inexperienced with society and initially acts callous towards others. He doubts himself when he first sees the world but becomes more proud of his skills as time passes. He eventually believes in friendship during his time with the Toyotomi.

He doesn't think very highly of Kojirō's ruthlessness and despises his rival's persistence. In the Warriors Orochi series, he offers special praise to Xu Huang, Xu Zhu, Zhang Jiao, and Zhou Tai.

Character Symbolism
For his Samurai Warriors counterpart, he is symbolized by the characters for "cut" (斬) and "ultimate" (極).

Musashi's titles in Samurai Warriors 2 are "Untamed Frenzy", "Dual Swordsman", "Deadly Artist", "Great Teacher", "Unrivaled Master", "Living Legend", and "Hero of History" (in the Xtreme Legends expansion).

His second set of swords are named after the four character idiom, Munen Musou (無念無想). It has one of two meanings, one of which is tied to a Buddhist concept. The phrase describes a departure from one's desires and self to enter a state of nothingness. A modern interpretation means to be free from all thoughts and to not think. Within kōbuto -teachings and philosophies for various martial arts- "mu" or "void" is a desirable state of mind for practitioners that takes years for even masters to perfect. A kendō idiom compares the state of nothingness to the reflection of a moon in Hirosawa Pond. Just as how the moon and unmoving water are perfectly synchronized to reflect one another, a disciple is encouraged to envision their thoughts to be like a clear mirror or still water. Doing so will allow them to perfectly see their opponent's openings and allow them to act naturally.

Musashi's third set of swords are named after the heaven and earth. They are joined by one of Musashi's taught sword-styles, Musashi Enmei-ryu. According to legend, he taught this particular art within the Tottori Domain. Enmei-ryu was known as a dual sword wielding practice supposedly taught since the Heian Period; Yoshitsune has been fabled to have been taught this particular style of swordplay. Musashi supposedly improved the archaic teachings to create a unique style, which could also be effectively used by short swords. His style is considered unique and different than Enmei-ryuu or his famed philosophies for Niten Ichi described in Book of Five Rings.

Each of his swords for his fourth set are named after an individual deity in Japanese mythology. One is named after Iwasaku, one of the deities born from Kagutsuchi's death. He was born when Kagustuchi's blood dripped down from Izanagi's blade onto stone. His name means to embody a sword that has the power to rip out the very roots of the earth. Born right after Iwasaku was Iwatsutsunoo, who forms the namesake for the other sword. Iwatsutsunoo's name has been broken down to mean "stone hammer" and has thought to be a hammer that forges swords to match Iwasaku's name. The deities are considered sword gods affiliated with an earth element. The longer sword of the pair also resembles an Eku (a weapon that resembles a wooden oar) or a wooden paddle of some sort, which is a possible nod to his fight with Kojirou using only a pair of bokken.

Like his fourth, Musashi's fifth set of swords are named after two sword gods, Mikahahiya and Hinohayahi. They share the same origins as Iwasaku and Iwatsutsunoo, but they instead represent destructive flames. Mikahahiya and Hinohayahi are also said to be gods who ensure the quality and strengths of finished swords.

Voice Actors

 * Arron Wood - Samurai Warriors 2 (English)
 * Sam Riegel - Warriors Orochi series (English)
 * Hidehiko Kaneko - Samurai Warriors and Warriors Orochi series (Japanese)

Quotes

 * "The way of the sword, I will perfect it!"
 * "A new age is coming. For Japan, and me."
 * "If all you can do with them is hurt others, you don't deserve your swords."
 * "The sword is not a tool of death! You hear me?!"
 * "Hey, I'm pretty good with this acting stuff. Maybe I should meet up with that Okuni girl."
 * "No matter how strong your sword, you cannot split a shadow."
 * "Yeah? Well I don't see any shadows here. Just a skinny little man in a silly outfit."
 * Hanzo and Musashi; Samurai Warriors 2


 * "Tadakatsu Honda... They say you're the best man 'round these parts. But I like a challenge! Here goes!"
 * "Very good. Come and fight me! Your youthful energy against my refined skill. And may the best man win."
 * Musashi and Tadakatsu; Samurai Warriors 2: Empires


 * "Rough around the edges yet, but there's no mistaking the talent you have."
 * "Wow, old man. Are you really praising me?"
 * "But I still sense doubt in your strikes."
 * "No, no way! I'm the best in the world!"
 * "Ah, so much strength but so little focus this boy. You've got a lot to learn. What do you want beyond obtaining power?"
 * Nobutsuna Kamiizumi and Musashi; Hyakumon-nin no Sengoku Musou


 * "You're not bad with those swords, I must say."
 * "Not bad?! I'm the best, man!"
 * Zhao Yun and Musashi; Warriors Orochi


 * "If you've come to start something with Wu, then I'll be the one to start with!"
 * "Hey, I'm no street scrapper. I'm a martial artist."
 * Gan Ning and Musashi; Warriors Orochi 2


 * "About that wager we had, it is time I concede defeat."
 * "I have no need for your charity! I will grasp this secret completely so you can understand!"
 * "Then I will look forward to it, so do not disappoint me, boy..."
 * Achilles and Musashi; Warriors Orochi 3

Ground Moveset

 * undefined, (undefined), (undefined): Takes a leap and does a dual inward chopping slash, then followed by a high upward punting kick, then turning (to the right) roundhouse downward slashes.
 * , undefined, (undefined), (undefined): Slashes his foe up, then jumps up to them. From there, he rapidly stabs his foe with both swords shooting out small darts, then grabs the foe by stabbing in both swords and kicks them away to the ground.
 * ,, undefined, (undefined), (undefined): Stab, rushing sideways slash, inward dual slash, followed by an outward dual slash that creates small ripples around Musashi.
 * ,, , undefined, (undefined), (undefined): Rapid advancing inward slashes, followed by an outward dual slash.
 * ,, , , undefined, (undefined): (Xtreme Legends only) Powerful turning cut to the left with both blades. Knocks back foes who are hit.
 * Repeatedly slashes inwards from a stationary position, then back poses with his blades. In his level 3 version, ripples will spin rapidly around him.


 * , : Dual outward slash aimed downward.
 * , undefined: Plants both swords on the ground.
 * Dashing : Rapidly slashes inward while running, then finishes with a turning slash.


 * R1 + : Temporarily takes a special stance for a counter attack, if timed right where he motions his swords in an outward draw, Musashi then rushes through his target(s) in a triangular formation.
 * R1 + undefined: Takes a pose, musou gauge fills partially. Also breaks guards.
 * Personal Skill : (Reversal) Counter enemy attacks with the charge button. Performs the ending for his C4 to slash away opponents.

Horse Moveset

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Same attacks excluding his C5 and Level 3 Musou. He gains new R1 abilities:
 * Warriors Orochi
 * R1: Blurts out "Who's the best?" and engulfs himself in an aura that powers himself and his teammates up with a buff for a short time.
 * R1 (counter): A quick outwards dual slash that knocks back enemies. In Warriors Orochi 2, the animation is slightly altered.


 * Warriors Orochi 2
 * Triple Attack 1: Swings both weapons to unleash a wide gust of wind.
 * Triple Attack 2: Creates a tremor by striking weapon while stomping with his left foot to the earth.
 * Triple Attack 3: Generates a strong air gust via slashing motion.


 * Warriors Orochi 3
 * R1: Brings up wakizashi and blasts self upward with a quake. Once in mid-air, the user fires down a powerful wave to the ground.

Fighting Style
Musashi's fighting style in the game is a slightly more theatrical version of the Hyōhō Niten Ichi-Ryū (Tactical Two Heavens as One-Style) twin-sword style he invented. Although it has a more limited range than spear weapons and no projectiles for long range use, his twin swords are excellent for both one-on-one duels and for keeping back large crowds. His Musou attack has him stand in place and essentially turns him into a living food processor, shredding apart anyone too slow to get out of the way. His moveset is generally regarded one of the best in the game. However, one weakness from his initial usage is his lack of range, so foes such as archers can be a problem at times for Musashi. His musou is also lacking in range as well, so range powerups are needed when Musashi is raising stats, especially in Warriors Orochi.

Big Star Weapons
Musashi uses the following big star weapons in the game.
 * Wisdom and Power
 * Jade Warbler
 * Flags (DLC)

Gallery
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