Total War: SHOGUN 2 1vs1: ODA Matchlock Ashigaru vs Matchlock Samurai

Total War: SHOGUN 2 1vs1: ODA Matchlock Ashigaru vs Matchlock Samurai
Clan: Oda vs Takeda
Battle Difficulty: normal
*Both units: Fire by Rank used.
*ODA Matchlock Ashigaru have +1 melee attack, +1 melee defense, +1 charge bonus, +5 reload skill, +5 accuracy, and are cheaper to train and maintain, at 250/75 instead of 300/100.

For most factions, Matchlock Samurai are the best, but most expensive, unlimited matchlock units available to most clans. Matchlock Samurai have inferior numbers compared to Matchlock Ashigaru, but have superior accuracy, reload skill, melee skill, defense skill, armor, charge bonus, and morale. They also possess the Rapid Volley ability, pushing their reload skill temporarily far beyond what matchlock ashigaru are capable of. Despite the buffs to melee statistics, Matchlock Samurai are still very weak in melee combat, and are no match for dedicated melee troops. Without DLC, Matchlock Samurai are the best matchlock units available. With DLC, however, they are outclassed by the likes of Portuguese Tercos and Shimazu Heavy Gunners. When trained by the Date Clan, Matchlock Samurai have +2 charge bonus. Hattori Matchlock Samurai have kisho training, allowing them to be placed anywhere on the battlefield except the opponent's deployment zone during the deployment phase of a battle. They can also hide in light scrub, as well as long grass. Otomo Matchlock Samurai are cheaper to recruit at 600 koku instead of 700, and have +5 reload skill and +5 accuracy. The Otomo clan has access to better matchlock units however, in the form of Portuguese Tercos. Portuguese Tercos are also available much earlier than Otomo Matchlock Samurai.

Matchlock Ashigaru are mid-late game infantry. Unlike bow units, matchlock units fire in a straight line, meaning that they have to take land inclines and friendly fire into account more carefully. While they have more men per regiment than Matchlock Samurai or Matchlock Warrior Monks, their poorer accuracy and reloading skills mean that they have a lower kill rate than their counterparts. Nevertheless, they can be useful for fighting armored units, as matchlocks ignore armor values. In addition, matchlock units inflict a heavy morale penalty on their targets. They are particularly useful when defending walls during sieges, as the poor accuracy is mitigated by the advantage of firing from a high elevation. As ashigaru units, they have a numerous number of men per regiment and are relatively cheap, but have poor stats. Unlike other ashigaru units, however, matchlock ashigaru are only available in the mid-late game, as they require a late game art, Gunpowder Mastery, to be researched. Regardless of which clan is played, matchlock ashigaru are quickly eclipsed by Matchlock Samurai (or Portuguese Tercos for the Otomo Clan), which have barely higher requirements for recruitment and have far better statistics. Another disadvantage matchlock ashigaru have is their lack of the Rapid Volley ability, relegating their reload speeds to very low rates.
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