Yoshitsugu Otani

Yoshitsugu Otani 1st appeared in Kessen.

Samurai Warriors
Yoshitsugu appears as a generic general during some of the Toyotomi battles and at Sekigahara. During Kojiro's version of Osaka Castle, Yoshitsugu's son Yoshikatsu vows to avenge his father, but is killed by Kojiro.

Kessen
In the 1st Kessen, Yoshitsugu is a low-key man who appears for the Western Army. He is dressed in white attire and has a mask to cover the lower part of his face. He calmly asks his comrades to understand his friend's brash nature. In battle, Yoshitsugu leads an archery or firearms unit with a small battalion of footmen to protect his men. He is one of the better support units at Sekigahara. If the Toyotomi army consecutively wins their battles, Yoshitsugu lives to see Ieyasu's end. Losing at any other part in the game will usually result in his death. He appears as an optional unit for Nobunaga's army in Kessen 3. He can join if the Oda army talks to the villagers and avoids killing innocents in their showdown with the Asakura. He is a ronin who has a good rifle proficiency. He has good relations with Sakon Shima and the two will perform better if they form a unit together.

Devil Kings
Yoshitsugu appears as a friend and ally to Mitsunari. Due to Mitsunari sometimes being blinded by his hatred towards Ieyasu, Yoshitsugu often takes control over the Western Army for him. Appearance wise, Yoshitsugu is completely wrapped in bandages to portray a trait in which he is historically famous for, his leprosy. His design also reflects his dark personality, wanting the world to share the same pain he has suffered. His helmet also sports design elements of the Ōtani crest, with butterfly-esque traits and his armor has a skeletal appearance to it, giving him a even more sinister appeal. He also rides a floating palanquin, again, to covey across his illness and his historical counter part. His palanquin isn't the only thing that mysteriously floats, as he uses several magical orbs to attack his foes. The orbs can grow in size and have a wide attack radius. Yoshitsugu is depicted as one of the more tragic characters of the series, and his misguided ambitions come across as "evil". Because of his disease, he was constantly ridiculed and shunned. Seeing the great battle of Sekigahara as a way to take his revenge and share his misfortune with the world, he takes up his weapon and joins up with Mitsunari, leader of the Western army, for the approaching campaigns for the land.

Vioce Actors

 * Fumihiko Tachiki - Devil Kings 3 (Japanese)
 * Brooke Burgess - Kessen (English)
 * Kaneto Shiozawa - Kessen (Japanese)
 * Hisao Egawa - Samurai Warriors 2 (Japanese)

Devil Kings

 * "Death's destination is spreadinf, thriving... how auspicious"

History
Ōtani Yoshitsugu was also known by his court title, Gyōbu-shōyū. He was born to a father who was said to be a retainer of either Otomo Sorin or of Toyotomi Hideyoshi's followers. He participated in the Kyushu campaign, and was sent to Korea as one of the Three Bureaucrats with Mashita Nagamori and Ishida Mitsunari.

Ōtani Yoshitsugu is well known in Japan for two main aspects: his leprosy, and his friendship. Supposedly he was one who put friendship before anything (although obviously such a subjective matter is hard to determine), and it may have been in Korea that Ishida and Ōtani, working together, formed their legendary friendship. There is even an anecdote concerning this friendship, which goes something like this: A secret tea party was being held, and all those invited were passing around a cup of tea. As Ōtani Yoshitsugu took a sip, some pus from his face dropped into the cup. Yoshitsugu discovered this, but too late: the cup was already being passed around. The people who took sips after this all had horrified expressions on their faces, but when it came to Mitsunari's turn, he calmly drank all the remaining tea, pus and all. Yoshitsugu was amazed: "This Mitsunari is an extraordinary man!"

Before the Battle of Sekigahara, Yoshitsugu was said to have repeatedly tried to persuade Mitsunari of the futility of his actions. However, at seeing the staunchness of his friend's convictions, Yoshitsugu joined his cause after mulling it over for several days. At the time, Yoshitsugu's health was deteriorating, making him nearly blind. He could not stand up, let alone fight. He was led to the battleground in a palanquin.

Yoshitsugu was at the head of about 600 men, with another 4000 or so under Toda Shigemasa, Hiratsuka Tamehiro, Ōtani Yoshikatsu (his son), and Kinoshita Yoritsugu. As the battle raged on, Kobayakawa Hideaki, who was situated above Yoshitsugu on Mount Matsuo, didn't move, despite repeated calls from Ishida Mitsunari. Yoshitsugu suspected something, and thus called for his troops to position themselves so as to prepare for a possible attack from their flanks. His hunch was right, as following a stimulatory gun volley from Ieyasu's position, Kobayakawa Hideaki and his troops rushed down the mountain towards Yoshitsugu's position. This movement was immediately followed by Akaza Naoyasu, Ogawa Suketada, Kutsuki Mototsuna, and Wakizaka Yasuharu, a total of over 20,000 troops.

Yoshitsugu's troops fought back, at one point even driving back Kobayakawa's troops partway up the mountain, but in the end, sheer numbers took their toll. While this was happening, Yoshitsugu, unable to see, repeatedly asked one of his retainers, Yuasa Gosuke, "Is it lost?" When the latter finally answered in the affirmative, Yoshitsugu asked him to cut his head off. He was then beheaded by his retainer, who also committed suicide.