There's an old tale about this village: a Samurai came to deliver justice. But darkness clouded her mind. She slaughtered every living soul... and became the spirits of death!
Years later, we hunted the Samurai in the village. We didn't believe the old tale. Not until a horror came!
Spirits hungered for our souls!
Be wary, Sakura is the spirit of death. And she's brought a curse that will doom us all.
One single event... one single tale tells of how Sakura, the famed Hitokiri, had cursed a single village for an eternity. During the second season of the year of the Harbinger, join the mid-season event that let's you be the reaper that decimated the village of Kaidan, haunted by the Hitokiri, in the grey mist lingering with the souls of the dead. See that you collect as many souls to send into the afterlife.
Be reminded that the hunt in the canopies is not eternal, and the trail of souls will flicker out into the night on June 27th, 2019.
Overview[]
Unlike previous events where the theme is based on some fictional events, events during the Year of the Harbinger are player-inspired, basing themselves in the Faction War that has been going on for past few years. A show that the actions of the player truly shape the world of For Honor...
As recorded in the Journals of Heathmoor, Shadows of the Hitokiri is about the events of Season 9, Campaign 1, where the Samurai overturned the Vikings from battle 4 up to 15. At the start of this Campaign, the Vikings had dominated the Myre as they always had. Suddenly though, once the Vikings had set foot in Dead Shades, the Samurai began to push back, reconquering their own land without giving space for the Vikings to take them back. This comeback had overturned the Vikings into their own lands of Valkenheim, with the Samurai advance ending as far as Chiffer in battle 15. It can be said that this comeback also led the Samurai to ending the Viking's winning streak when it came to season victories.
What mysterious force was at Dead Shades to cause such a sweep of reconquering for the Samurai? Answers lie in the past, as the village of Kaidan in Dead Shades is haunted by the massacre of one Hitokiri from years ago. This is the story of how one Shugoki attained new strength to push back the Vikings, while fright had struck the heart of a single Warlord...
Haunting of Kaidan[]
...Then came a lone and tall Hitokiri. Carrying a massive Masakari. She had journeyed to sentence Ryoshi, an evil heart shrouded with secrecy.
Yet the dead rose, Ryoshi burst into laughter. A flower fell, and his smile began to wither.
Excerpt from a Samurai poem.
No one dared to set foot in the dark village of Kaidan, in fear of the curse laid upon its land by Sakura's Carnage. Not until the clash between Vikings and Samurai after the siege of Goat Forest.
The Samurai retreated to Kaidan, and the Vikings quickly followed. Just as a battle had begun in this empty village, ghastly mist started to stir. Dark silhouettes flew in from nowhere. Ominous curses could be heard from the trees. It was then that both the Samurai and Vikings had entered a trance. And out of nowhere, Ryoshi, former leader of Kaidan and the first victim of Sakura's slaughter years before, appeared. The warrior approached the leader of the Samurai force, Okuma the Shugoki, and whispered softly into his ear. With this, both the Shugoki and the rest of his men attained inhuman strength and vitality, slaughtering the Viking invaders.
The only one who survived this attack on the Viking side was Berimund, the Warlord who led his men of Clan Himnar. Yet, after having seen carmine flowers turn into blood in their trance, the Vikings could do nothing against the Samurai. These Samurai had whitened skin and blackened veins, mouths distorted as they howled. Even when Berimund sent Okuma to the ground and jabbed his sword into the Shugoki's chest, the Shugoki rose as if the Warlord's efforts were nothing. And as the Shugoki held Berimund by his neck, he whispered...
"...Ryoshi..."
Even though those such as Berimund survived the battle, none who had witnessed the battle at Kaidan lived without being eternally scarred...
Soul Rush[]
"Kill Soldiers to collect their Souls. Secure your Souls in the Soul Zones to gain them permanently for your team. Reach 1000 Souls to break the enemy team, then kill them all to win!"
The Soul Rush game mode pits two teams of "reapers" against one another to collect souls. Souls are primarily collected by killing the neutral Soldiers who spawn on the field.
It’s not simply a race to kill the most soldiers. Each Hero has their own stock of souls, which count toward their team’s total. Stocks are temporal, and a Hero loses them if they are killed. If killed by a Hero, half of the slain Hero's stock will be transferred to the killer. The other half of the stock will remain on the corpse, which can either be saved if the slain Hero is revived or be lost if the Hero chooses to respawn instead.
When a Hero's stock reaches 50, they receive a 10x multiplier to their soul collecting, allowing kills on Soldiers to award them 50 Souls instead of only 5. On the other hand though, the Hero will be visible to all Heroes, including enemy Heroes, with a silhouette. This bonus multiplier is lost when the Hero's stock drops below 50.
Souls can be permanently retained by the team by depositing your stock to one of two "Soul Wells," one located at the Prayer Tree, the other located at the Eastern Shrine. Souls cannot be deposited unless the Well has been captured by the team, with it being possible to contest for the Well if Heroes of both sides are on point. Capturing a Well takes ten seconds, and once complete, any allied Hero can step on point to deposit their stock of souls, granting permanent points to the team. The Hero who deposited the souls will be healed and receive Revenge (note: capturing the Well does not heal or grant Revenge, as you need to submit souls).
Also, unlike other gamemodes, your feats are based on your stock, not your total renown gained in the match. As a result, submitting your stock of souls to the Well will remove all feats that you can perform until you collect more souls. In trade, the bar for Feats is lower than usual, with the first Feat coming at 5, the second at 15, the third at 50 and the fourth at 300.
The first team to 1,000 points will push the opposing team into breaking.
Other Changes[]
Bloody Blossom Aesthetic[]
As part of the new aesthetic of the main menu and lobby during the event, dark fog is cast on a painted tree-scape. Cherry blossoms with blood red flowers linger on the side of the screen. Painted streaks line the horizon in haunting fashion.
The Canopy map for the Soul Rush game mode has also been redesigned a bit to give into the eerie atmosphere of the Hitokiri. The fog is thick in the village, with ghosts visibly lingering about the trees. Whispers can be heard as you approach these ghosts, disappearing if you get too close. Spirits can be seen swimming below the map, along with flying around the Bell Tower. Mysterious black ashen float into the sky, delivering an even more ominous atmosphere.
Soldiers[]
Soldiers (along with Pikemen this time) have once again been changed to look like "darker" variants of their respective faction:
- Knights look similar to how they usually look, except their sleeve have been stripped of armor, exposing more of the chainmail and their bare arms. They are also missing their helmet and face mask, revealing the mail coif they don and their shaven face.
- Samurai soldiers will be half naked, only wearing hakama pants and sandals. Around their neck, they wear a religious cloth that covers their shoulder blades and mouth. And aside from a single rope headband, the Samurai soldiers are fully shaved bald.
- Viking soldiers, like the Samurai, will be half naked, only wearing wool girdles, pants and boots. Their beards are short with a braided goatee, while their head has been shaved to have a short mohawk.
The soldiers will also be lightly covered in mud, featuring black veins coursing through their exposed skin, as if possessed by some evil force.
Event Rewards[]
Outside the Event Order, players who participate in the event can loot exclusive in-game rewards, including new Hitokiri themed weapons, outfits, ornaments, effects and emotes. While the weapons looted are limited to the Hero played during the match or who they are salvaged from, all other items are not hero specific (ie. you can attain a Raider's ornament even when playing as the Warden).
Players can also opt to purchase the special items that are exclusive to the event, collectively known as the Shadows of the Hitokiri bundle. In this bundle, there is an Illustrious set with Effects featuring a looming skeletal ghost depending on the faction: a hooded reaper for the Knights, a horned revenant for the Vikings, a freakish specter for the Samurai, and an underworld king for the Wu Lin. There is also a special emote that lets the Hero be possesed by the spirits, lifting off the ground. This bundle will continue to be available for purchase after the event, until July 1st. After that, only the Illustrious Outfits will remain available for purchasing.
Possible drops include:
- Battle Outfit: Secret of Kaidan
- Ornament: Survivor of Kaidan
- Idle Effect: Spirit of Kaidan
- Emote Effect: Spirit of Kaidan
- Execution Effect: Spirit of Kaidan
Arcade[]
Furthermore, players can participate in weekly quests via the Arcade mode. Ryoshi – town leader of Kaidan – was sentenced to death for murdering his family, and his demise brings a strange curse upon the village. Later on, you are haunted by a dream as you face a Valkyrie and a Shugoki who have gone mad under a veil of dark powers...
First Chapter - Ryoshi's Awakening[]
Ryoshi, town leader of Kaidan, was sentenced to death for murdering his family.
As his demise has brought a strange curse upon this village, you are sent to root out the evil there.
Second Chapter - Sakura's Repentance[]
That dream still haunts me.
A Valkyrie and a Shugoki shrouded with a dark aura...
With Sakura the Hitokiri, whispering about a strange curse consuming the two leaders...
Unique Orders[]
During the Shadows of the Hitokiri event, the daily orders and the Event Order will be tailored with unique names that references the spooky events of Kaidan.
Daily Orders[]
- Warrior: Villagers of Kaidan (Daily Guaranteed Order)
- "Ryoshi lured us into it... we should have never listened to him..."
- "The Himnar Clan did not stand a chance against us..."
- "So much blood was spilled... all the flowers turned rEd for a brief moment..."
- "The Hitokiri and the fisherman... two sides of the same coin..."
- "The cAnopy is our home... The flowers bloom and fall as we weep."
- "Ryoshi told us he could cure the world from all evil... Sakura has become his voice..."
- "We hoped the Hitokiri could save uS... Her act trapped us in eternal torment..."
- "The town leader told us could keep us safe if we remained silent..."
- "We are all spirits... we are melted into air, into thin air..."
- "She unleashed her Masakari on all of us..."
- "The Hitokiri bound us to him for eternity..."
- "Ryoshi lured us into it... We should have never listened to him..."
- "We were all afraid of Ryoshi... We thought she could stop him..."
- "When we found Ryoshi's first victim, we knew we were in danger..."
- "We are bound under Ryoshi's yoke because of her..."
- "We are condemned to forever haunt Kaidan..."
- "We were already dead when she arrived..."
- "We hoped the Hitokiri could save us... Her act trapped us in eternal torment..."
- Complete 2 matches of any game mode.
- Executioner: Tales of the Hitokiri
- "In a blink of the eye, all the trees gifted me with the flowers of death."
- "The warriors of Kaidan deserved punishment for protecting such evil."
- "The flowers of death are now spreading across all Heathmoor."
- Execute 3 Heroes in any game mode.
- Event Warrior
- Dark Powers: "We acquired a new strength. We must use it carefully."
- From a Parent: "I wish Ami had never joined Okuma's ranks."
- Having Doubts: "Young soldiers tend to be too imaginative..."
- Strange Visions: "I think I saw the ghost of Ami the other night..."
- Complete 2 matches of Soul Rush.
- Storied
- Rokujo: "Wielding her mother's blade, the Orochi craved for vengeance."
- Shinju: "It was made after two warriors who had made a sinister pact."
- Reach a Renown Score of 250 or more by the end of a match.
- Adaptable Warrior: Words of Advice
- "A Wu Lin once said: Wait at leisure while the enemy labors."
- "A Wu Lin once said: Make noise in the east while striking in the west."
- "A Wu Lin once said: Be mysterious to the point of being unpredictable."
- Complete 2 Matches with 2 different Heroes.
- Slayer: The Harbinger
- ”What’s past is prologue.”
- "The Earth is rising up and announcing Her displeasure."
- "The end is only a beginning."
- Perform 10 Takedowns in any game mode.
Event Orders[]
- Shadows of the Hitokiri's Order - June 10 - 27
"We all live a nightmare we never wake up from."
As a Community, execute 8000000 Heroes in any game mode.
Trivia[]
- Although "Okuma" is the name of the Shugoki who fought in the battle of Kaidan, it is unknown if it is the same Okuma from the Story Campaign. The Shugoki in this story is mentioned as being a part of the "Minamoto clan" while the campaign Okuma is of Ayu's House. It is unknown if these two are the same.
- Shadows of the Hitokiri's Okuma appears in the Event Quest "Sakura's Repentance." Although wearing the same helmet family as the story campaign's Okuma (Okuda), his chest and arm armor are different.
Gallery[]
