Last summer, I completed a Bandit Buntai for Ronin to face off against James’ Sohei. Though my Bandits weren’t very successful, the game Ronin itself is a lot of fun, and after those games I knew I’d want to expand my collection. Seven months later or so, I finally got around to painting that next buntai, The Koryu.

I believe Koryu translates as “old school” and is used as a Japanese term for traditional arts. In Ronin, the buntai selects a weapon type and all members are students of that same weapon. Using the official Northstar models, this school clearly are students of the katana.

There is a nodachi in the group (far left), but I can just run them all with katanas. The sensei’s white hair reveals his years of experience. His flowers reflect his calm mindfulness, while the eye patch… a history of violence. The female student on the right joins the collection by way of Bad Squiddo Games.

I don’t have the talent for ornate robes, so opted to go with a school all in the same or similar colors. Kinda like the students of the martial arts school in Five Elements Ninja being all in white. Not wanting to paint all white, I opted to use muted browns, greys, and blues like the group from 13 Assassins (above).

I understand this buntai is a mid to lower tier buntai due to their lack of range and armour, but they’re my favorite models in the Northstar line alongside the Bandits, so am looking forward to running them on the table. They’ll also serve as a good “tweener” side that can cross blades with both the Bandits and the Sohei.