The Battle of Xin Castle (新城の戦い; rōmaji: Shinjō no Tatakai), literally the "Battle of New Castle", or alternatively known as the Xin Castle Rebellion/Riot (新城の乱; Shinjō no Ran; lit. "New Castle Riot"), was a conflict between Meng Da, who had recently defected back to Shu, and Sima Yi of Wei. The rebellion was named after the main commandery that Meng Da was given control over at the time post-Fan Castle after having joined with Wei.
Meng Da through a series of events was pressured into rebelling (with his best friends Cao Pi, Huan Jie and Xiahou Shang having already died). Adding to this was his already-friendly relations with some of East Wu, his current advantageous position at Xin Castle Commandery, his rivalry with Shen Yi + his unease with being left on the front lines for a long time.
Zhuge Liang attempted to collaborate with Meng Da into making joint attacks to Wei's western provinces, but Sima Yi defeated Meng Da before he could join up with Shu through catching him unawares, routing his units and depriving him of his men's loyalties. Meng Da was then captured and executed.
In the novel, Xu Huang is also killed in this conflict. Meng Da was historically actually stationed and executed within Shangyong County at Jing Province's Shangyong Commandery, though the games make the conflict take place within Xin Castle Commandery itself.
Role in Games
Dynasty Warriors
The stage appears in Dynasty Warriors 5: Xtreme Legends as the Legend mode stage for Sima Yi, Cao Pi, and Xu Huang. As soon as the stage starts, Sima Yi will order the defeat of the enemy generals to convince Meng Da's soldiers to defect. While the Wei forces are attacking Meng Da's generals, reports of Zhuge Liang sending reinforcements will be revealed. Once all four of Meng Da's generals are defeated, Xin Castle's gatekeepers will open the castle, allowing the player to defeat their target. If the Wei forces take too long, Shu reinforcements will begin appearing, and they will delay the defection of the enemy gatekeepers. Should the Shu troops arrive, Sima Yi will order that the access points be taken to keep any more reinforcements from arriving. The victory objective will change to defeating both Zhuge Liang and Meng Da after the former arrives on the battlefield.
A similar version of Meng Da's rebellion occurs during Cao Pi's personal DLC scenario in Dynasty Warriors 9, where the new emperor outlives his historical death and plans a campaign against Shu. Before he can do so, a report comes in that Sima Yi has suspiciously withdrawn his troops; this is followed with another report of Meng Da and Xu Shu's rebellion in the Central Plains. Thanks to Sima Yi pulling his troops back, Cao Pi's forces are able to swiftly deal with the rebellion before moving on to their western frontier.
Warriors Orochi
In Warriors Orochi 2, the stage appears as the dream mode stage for Dian Wei, Zhou Tai, and Ranmaru Mori as the three move to rescue their respective lords against Liu Bei and his Five Tiger Generals.
The player must first protect Cao Cao and Xin Castle by defeating the enemy officers around them, including Huang Zhong, Ma Chao, and Guan Yu. In the meantime, the player can have an option to defeat Pang De to open up a path for allied reinforcements. If successful, Masamune Date and his generals will arrive and protect Cao Cao. After doing so, the player will need to rescue Sun Quan and Nobunaga Oda by defeating the enemy officers near them, including Zhao Yun and Zhang Fei. Next, the player must escort them back to Xin Castle. On the way back, Yuan Shao will appear and pursue Nobunaga, while Yoshihiro Shimazu will appear and stop Sun Quan. The player will need to defeat both of them to ensure Sun Quan and Nobunaga's safety. After both lords have arrived, Liu Bei's main force will appear and charge towards Xin Castle. The player and Masamune's party (If successfully called for reinforcement) will then charge as well. Defeating Liu Bei will complete the stage, while any of Cao Cao, Sun Quan, and Nobunaga's defeat will count as a loss.
Historical Information
Romance of the Three Kingdoms
Trivia
- Despite Cao Pi not being alive during the time this rebellion takes place as well as Meng Da being close to him (Cao Pi's death being one of the reasons Meng Da took action), the debut of this stage in Dynasty Warriors 5: Xtreme Legends features Cao Pi himself going against Meng Da in response to his revolt.