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Gan Ning is a Chinese name; the family name is Gan.


Gan Ning is a uniqe legendary Vanguard hero in Total War: Three Kingdoms. He is a member of Liu Biao in 194 and 200.


Description[]

Historically, Gan Ning was a military officer loyal to the Kingdom of Wu, fighting in numerous battles for the Sun family. He’s wild, impatient, and fearless. During his youth, he led a pirate group that infamously wore bells to "warn" their enemies of their impending doom.[1]


General Information[]

Attributes[]

Main Article: Attributes (Total War: Three Kingdoms)

TW3K ICO expertise
Expertise
TW3K ICO resolve
Resolve
TW3K ICO cunning
Cunning
TW3K ICO instinct
Instinct
TW3K ICO authority
Authority
70 51 42 115 55
-11% construction cost (administered commandery)
+19 melee evasion
+12% general's health
+2k population growth (administered commandery)
+8% ammunition (own retinue)
+2 military supplies (own army)
+25% melee damage
-7% recruitment cost (this army)
+2 satisfaction (faction-wide, if leader, heir or prime minister)
+2 unit morale (own retinue)


Background[]

Main Article: Background (Total War: Three Kingdoms)

Pirate of the Bells


Traits[]

Main Article: Traits (Total War: Three Kingdoms)

  • Competitive
    • +6 instinct
    • +2 authority
    • +10 charge bonus
    • Increases ambition to gain independence as administrator
    • Accepts Competitiveness, Admires Ambition
  • Fiery
    • +2 resolve
    • +6 instinct
    • +10 charge speed
    • Admires Zeal, Supports War, Disregards Diplomacy
  • Energetic


Skills[]

Main Article: Skill (Total War: Three Kingdoms)


Abilities[]

Main Article: Ability (Total War: Three Kingdoms)

  • Charge Reflection
    • Reflects the charge damage of any attacker back onto them when braced,
  • Mighty Knockback
    • Causes extra damage when knocking back enemies.
  • Hail of Arrows (Missile Attack (4))
    • Can use if:
      • Not engaged in a pending or active duel
      • Not on Elephant
    • Base Ranged Damage: 1.5k (x10)
    • -25% Charge Speed
    • -33% Ranged Attack Rate
    • -33% Melee Attack Rate
    • -500 Melee Charge Bonus
    • Requires enemy target
    • Cooldown: 60s


Ancillaries[]

Main Article: Ancillary (Total War: Three Kingdoms)

  • Twin Martial Ji
  • Gan Ning's Armour
  • Red Horse
  • Composite Bow
    • Ranged Attack Rate: 15
    • Base Ranged Damage: 562
    • Armour-Piercing Melee Damage: 300
    • Range: 200
    • +6 cunning
    • Enables: Mounted Fire while Moving
    • Enables: Fire Backwards


Guanxi[]

Main Article: Guanxi


Biography[]

Born in Nanyang commandery, Gan Ning was like the second-century Chinese Robin Hood during his younger years. Together with a group of bandits, primarily archers, decorated with skulls and bells around their necks, they would roam around from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. Those officials that welcomed them were treated well and rewarded, whereas the greedy ones or those that turned them away with scorn were usually subjected to raids. It's unclear what compelled Gan Ning to stop doing this, but, one way or another, he ended up delving into the world of philosophy and chose to serve under Liu Yan, governor of Yi Province, in 194 AD. After Yan's death in the same year, Gan Ning rebelled against his pacifist son, Liu Zhang, in favour of Hu Mao, the government-appointed inspector to replace Liu Yan. Liu Zhang ultimately won this struggle and Gan Ning fled from Yi soon after. He and his forces made their way to the territory of Governor Liu Biao, who happily took them in.

Gan Ning found the elderly Liu Biao too idle for his tastes, so he instead chose to serve under one of his more warlike subordinates, Huang Zu. While he could attain more glory here serving in battle against the forces of Sun Quan, Gan Ning was filled with resentment when Huang Zu neither recognised nor rewarded any of his victories. With the aid of another of Huang Zu's officers, Su Fei, Gan Ning defected to join Sun Quan in 207 AD. He then pointed out as many weaknesses and flaws as he could in both the character and military of Liu Biao and Huang Zu and served in the offensive that saw Huang Zu swept aside. He also served in the legendary Battle of Red Cliffs, facing Cao Ren's forces outnumbered some five to one, and still holding out long enough to claim victory.

Gan Ning's services were much better rewarded under Sun Quan than they were under Huang Zu, reaching its height when Gan Ning was appointed as administrator. He repaid this appreciation with his absolute loyalty and extreme bravery on the battlefield that often bordered on suicidal behaviour. Old tricks from his days of banditry served Gan Ning well in the wars against Cao Cao and Liu Bei's forces, as he was known to frequently raid behind enemy lines. He died sometime around the year 220, though his exact cause of death is unclear. In Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Gan Ning died at the Battle of Xiatong when he is shot through the head with an arrow across the battlefield by the Nanman king Shamoke, then in service of Liu Bei.


References[]


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