When fighting to unite China, a good leader must know how to recruit the best units for the task at hand. This blog aims to help you understand the conditions for unlocking units in Total War: THREE KINGDOMS.

Retinues

Total War: THREE KINGDOMS departs from the traditional methods of recruiting found in older titles such as ROME and WARHAMMER. Units are recruited into retinues of up to 6 units that follow their warlord both on the campaign map and in battle.

These units are recruited instantly at low health, requiring several turns to muster to full strength (much like units in THRONES OF BRITANNIA). In addition, units are never truly wiped out, instead requiring a number of turns to return to the retinue at low health and time to muster again. If the warlord dies, you can choose to disband their entire retinue or pick a new general to take ownership of the troops. However, remember that the new general’s traits and skills may change the way the retinue plays.

These retinues will follow their warlord wherever they go, even across factions, adding extra value to the talented individuals wandering China seeking a new master. But how do they recruit these units to their retinue?

Universal Units

Firstly, every member of the Han court has access to the basic militia units, regardless of class and level. These are the bread and butter of your forces at the start of a campaign, and are still valuable in a pinch later on.

Class-Specific Units

These characters can also recruit more competent troops depending on their class and rank. For example, a Vanguard can recruit all the previously available militia as well as the Raider Cavalry unit.

Some classes have access to additional units as they rank up. For example, when a Champion hits rank 6, they can recruit both the Spear Guard and Heavy Spear Guard.