Council of Aki, 1558, Day 2

The Commissioner of Warfare presented the military report.

Regular army

Our regular standing army consists of the following units:

2 Light cavalry   200
1 Yari cavalry    180
1 Bow cavalry    180
3 Nagingata        420
3 Yari                 420
2 Bows              280
1 Katana             135
1 Ashi Aquebus   90
1 Ashi Bombers   135

15 units in all, costing 2040. This will be maintained. In time of war the regular army will be supplemented by ashigaru levies.

Navy

The Navy consists of

2 Wako Bunes                   200
3 Mori Medium Bunes       210
1 Sengoku Bune                71
5 Bow Kobayas                250
2 Bomb Kobayas              100

Total cost of 831

It is recommended that the inferior and costly Wako Bunes be scrapped and replaced with superior MMBs and SBs.

The primary mission of navy is to protect the transport route between our Honshu provinces and our Kyushu provinces especially in time of war. Its secondary mission is to guard the trading nodes. The navy will also provide support for sea invasions.

For this purpose it is proposed that the navy be organised into two fleets:

Main fleet: 3 MMBs, 1 SB, 3 BKs, 1 Bmb Ks

Reserve fleet: 2 MMBs, 2 BKs, 1 Bmb K

Non-allied neighbours

The Yamana are a major clan with which we have very friendly relations. We also have a lucrative trade agreement with them. It appears the former Daimyo showed foresight in neutralizing the Yamana through trade, rather than challenging them.

The Yamana are, however, at war with several other powerful clans and are not expected to survive in the long run. It is extremely unlikely that the Yamana will take hostile action against us.

The Chokosabe are indifferent towards us even though we have had trade relations for many seasons. They are at war with the Miyoshi for dominance in Shikkoku.

The Miyoshi are a small clan in Shikkoku at war on two fronts with Chokosabe and Hatakeyama (with whom we have friendly relations). They are not expected to survive long.

Threats

As you can see most clans are generally well disposed towards us. In the near term we do not expect to be attacked.

In the medium term, the Chokosabe are our greatest threat. There is a possibility that, after they have vanquished the Miyoshi and dominate Shikkoku, they will begin to turn avaricious eyes towards our provinces. From Shikkoku they can strike anywhere, at our Honshu provinces or our Kyushu provinces.

If an attack were to come from one of the Honshu clans, it is likely that that attack will fall upon Aki, Iwami or Izumi. Aki and Iwami are our two richest provinces.

Therefore, it is proposed that we station the regular army permanently in Aki or Iwami.

Espionage

We know next to nothing about the Shikkoku clans, it is proposed that we invest our limited spying resources in Shikkoku.

We ought also to develop ninja capabilities where possible.