Huang Zu

Huang Zu (onyomi: Kō So) was a high-ranked naval officer and prefect of Jiangxia under the governor of Jingzhou, Liu Biao. He was ultimately the man responsible for the death of Sun Jian.

Role in Games
In Dynasty Warriors 4, Huang Zu is at first a member of Liu Biao's army working to lure Sun Jian into an ambush. During Wu's story, he arrives in Jiang Dong to avenge his master's death. At Xia Kou, he starts a boat attack on Sun Jian's camp while Gan Ning and Su Fei buy time to stall the enemy and kill Ling Cao. When Gan Ning defects, Huang Zu curses his former shipmate. Dynasty Warriors 5 has Huang Zu trying to lead Sun Jian into the ambush. If that happens, Sun Jian will be wounded and Sun Ce assumes command the troops. He will even attempt to fight off the wrath of Sun Quan at Xia Kou.

In Dynasty Warriors 8, Huang Zu serves as the commander of Liu Biao's forces against the Sun family during the Battle of Jing Province. Although Huang Zu is ultimately struck down by the Suns, one of his generals, Lu Gong, avenges him by ambushing the Wu forces with a contingent of archers, resulting in the death of Sun Jian. However, in Wu's hypothetical route, Sun Jian survives the battle due to Lu Gong being killed before he can prepare the ambush.

In Dynasty Warriors 9, he reappears with Lu Gong but neither of them are directly responsible for Sun Jian's death, instead it's the plots of Cai Mao which leads to arrows and boulders killing the Wu patriarch off. Nevertheless, Sun Quan still pins the death of his father on Liu Biao's army, so attacks Huang Zu at Xiakou. He sends Gan Ning off on preemptive raids but Gan Ning loses the will to fight, and later defects. Strangely, his lord acts as a subordinate to him during this battle but neither of the two are seen again after Sun Quan captures the castle. He resurfaces in Xu Shu's hypothetical story, which sees the Shu army reinforce him during Xiakou, defeating Sun Quan in the hopes of forming an alliance with them to fight Cao Cao. Though at first they refuse, an agreement is soon reached. After the chaos in Jing Province as a result of Cai Mao's actions, Huang Zu serves Liu Bei as a minor officer in Shu colours amongst the frontlines of subsequent battles.

Voice Actors

 * Kōsuke Takaguchi - Sangokushi Legion

Quotes

 * "Sun Jian, what business do you have bringing your family here? You should go back to hunting along the Jiang Dong!"
 * "Silence! I will not listen to Liu Biao's lapdog! I claim this land of Jing in the name of the Sun Family!"
 * Huang Zu and Sun Jian; Dynasty Warriors 5

Historical Information
Originally from Jiangxia Commandery, Huang Zu ruled over the local area with autonomy due to his family's allegiance to Liu Biao. He was tasked with defending Jingzhou from Sun Jian only to be easily defeated. Realizing that a direct retaliation was bound to fail, he withdrew to Xiangyang and allowed the enemy forces to lower their guard. At night, he launched a sneak attack that resulted in Sun Jian being killed by a stray arrow.

Huang Zu and Liu Biao soon turned their attentions to Sun Ce who had been making a name for himself after conquering Jiangdong. Fearful of the warlord's growing power, they attempted to attack him at Shaxian during his campaign against Liu Xun. However, the ensuing clash brought Huang Zu's navy to its knees, forcing him to retreat while thousands of troops including his family members were beheaded.

Around this time, the reputable scholar Mi Heng had been sent to Liu Biao when Cao Cao found him too critical and overbearing. Likewise, Liu Biao was annoyed by his poor behavior and shoved him off to Huang Zu. At first, the general welcomed Mi Heng's presence out of sheer respect for his intellect, but when the scholar insulted him at a banquet, he angrily had him executed.

In the year 203, Sun Quan launched an assault on Xiakou in order to avenge his father's death. Before Huang Zu could respond with a proper defense, his army was greatly disoriented by the advances of Ling Cao's smaller unit. Though the general was able to escape safely thanks to Gan Ning, he censured the former pirate to save face and refused to reward him. As a result, Gan Ning defected to Sun Quan and later convinced his new lord to attack again in 208.

This time, Huang Zu refrained from joining the front lines in favor of commanding his troops within the fortified walls of Jiangxia. His naval forces initially had the upper hand due to their usage of large warships and artillery support. But eventually, Ling Tong and Dong Xi overcame these obstacles and gave their army enough morale to breach the city gates. Huang Zu tried to flee once more only to be killed by elite cavalrymen.

Romance of the Three Kingdoms
The novel downplays his role in the demise of Sun Jian and has him be captured by Sun Ce. Against Kuai Liang's wishes, he is later freed by Liu Biao in exchange for Sun Jian's body.