Shinuyama: in the shadows, on the battlefield, under the waves

[ano]

Also, the bandits are really not so bad as you describe as they have decent morale (10 compared to 8 of Bakemono-sho) and armor which other stealthy Shinuyama units don't get.
If you have resources, Bandit archer is a very good troop choice because he not only gets a bow but also a good melee weapon (Wakidzashi) and so you may use them in different ways in different fights. Also, bandits make definitely better raiders than Bakemono-sho because their morale is higher (very important for raids), their armor and weapons are better and the lack of mountain/forest walking is not important while moving at the enemy territory because you move 1 province/turn anyway.

Bandit commander is really a useless leader though, because Bakeomono scout is better in each and every aspect. Probably, Bandit leader was not so bad when Shinuyama did not get a scout with 40 leadership for 25 gold. A perfect scout, btw! This scout makes Bakemono Shaman almost useless while earlier (until 3.15 patch when Bakemono Scout appeared) he was primarily used for leading stealthy squads.
Also, it's worth mentioning that Shinuyama is one of the few nations that doesn't suffer from the lack of commanders early on. Both their starting commanders have good leadership (80 and 40). This is really important for start.

[chrispedersen]

Hmm.

I don't know if this was mentioned much OW: fairly viable is to go resource -3 and use a lot of kappas. Kitsunes with relief?

[Omnirizon]

Originally Posted by chrispedersen

Hmm.

I don't know if this was mentioned much OW: fairly viable is to go resource -3 and use a lot of kappas. Kitsunes with relief?

sounds like trying to start an underpowered car out in 4th gear.

That's a creative idea, but it won't perform as a strategy backbone: it takes too long to get Relief, takes too long to get Kitsunes, and Shinuyama has no native N income.

[chrispedersen]

Kappas make an effective starting expansion force,
you don't need relief until they are massed.
And the 120 design points are useful.