The Stairs Leading Up to the Shogun

Issued by
 Outcome
 Dead

**The Stairs Leading Up to the Shogun** (将(しょう)軍(ぐん)に至(いた)るまでの階段(かいだん), **Shōgun ni Itaru made no Kaidan**?) is the eighth and final stage of *Chuhou Joutai: The Middle State of War*. It is part of the recruit's mission to find and destroy the SPASDOT base in Kozankyo.

## Stage context

The stage begins continuing from Crimsonite Weapon Factory ~ Mysterious Pagoda. Even after being defeated, Hearthcliffe stops the player for one more duel, in hopes of them wasting at least one bomb. However, Hearthcliffe is defeated and Fred Fawkes, having already been overwhelmed by Hearthcliffe's defeat, becomes confronted by the duo who had just bashed the door down to the main room of the stronghold, after he refused to unlock the door. Kagami then explains they're "here to kick his butt and chew bubble gum." However, Driller tells Fawkes he was just kidding and they don't have any. He then questions Fawkes why he wants to overthrow the Monarchy of Kozan, but he replies that his new military government has "no need for an autistic programmer and a cute pop idol."

Fawkes later reveals he is the true "Scarlet Devil," taking on the form of a Shinto priest before a fierce 2-vs.-1 battle ensues. However, Fawkes is toppled by the duo. It is later revealed that Ryuta Shigematsu and Kumiko Uchida were in the stronghold at the same time, planting amulet bombs all over the stronghold. Kumiko attaches the final one and rigs them all to detonate within five minutes. To ensure Driller and Kagami do not get engulfed in the explosion, Ryuta and Kumiko escort Driller and Kagami to safety, where they then watch the base blow up from the distance in the sunset. The ending is determined by which character they used and what shot type they picked. If the game is being played in two-player mode, only Driller's ending will be shown.

## Background

Like the previous stage, the stage again takes place in the SPASDOT stronghold.

## Forces encountered

### Recurring enemies

Nearly all enemies from previous stages appear in this stage. These include:

* Pacoonba
* Catamine
* Boss Crimsonite Grunt
* Remikaze
* Ember
* Crimsonite Grunt

### Opponents

* Jack Fawkes (midboss)
* Frederic Sam Fawkes (boss)

## Deaths

* **Impostor of Fred Fawkes** - Killed by Kumiko Uchida by placing an undetachable bomb in the form of an ofuda on him which Uchida subsequently detonates.

## Aftermath

### LifeConnect posts

* **KRDF** - *"Another job well done, Susumu Takajima and Kagami Ochiai. Our goal? Destroy every stronghold owned by SPASDOT."*
* **Fred Fawkes** - *"I've had it with the KRDF. Had I took my mid-life crisis out of the gym, I would've slept in that stronghold if I were the impostor."*

## Strategy

* The portion before the midboss is quite challenging, especially on the higher difficulty levels, so make sure you have plenty of ingots if in case you get KO'd during this segment.

## Behind the Scenes

* In the dialogue before Hearthcliffe stop the duo before the mid-boss fight is a reference to the line spoken by Sakuya Izayoi before the mid-boss fight in *Touhou 6: The Embodiment of Scarlet Devil*. However, his dialogue is altered to reflect his slightly broken English and "ruru" laugh in Japanese.
* The cutscene before and after the fight with Fred Fawkes caters in a few references as well:
	+ The line spoken by Kagami after encountering Fawkes for the first time that has her saying "We're here to kick your butt and chew bubble gum" is a reference to the line spoken by John Nada in the 1988 film *They Live*, which was also famously used by Duke Nukem in the 1996 game *Duke Nukem 3D*.
	+ Fawkes' proclamation in where he has "nothing to lose but my chains" is a reference to a line found in *The Communist Manifesto* by Karl Marx.
	+ The line spoken by Driller after the defeat of Fawkes where he declares "you can't stop us now" and "we're the champions" is a reference to the songs *Don't Stop Me Now* and *We Are the Champions* by Queen.
	+ The line spoken by Fawkes after Driller and Kagami leave the stronghold where he suggests they "wait until *Chuhou Joutai 2*" is a reference to the ending in Banjo-Tooie. Prior to *Chuhou Joutai 2: Paraided!*'s development, it was uncertain if *Chuhou Joutai* would be followed up with a sequel, which eventually happened.

## See also

* The Stairs Leading Up to the Shogun/Script

## References

1. ↑ https://drillimation.com/2021/02/19/aftermath-of-chuhou-joutai-1s-events-in-local-kozankyo-news/ Aftermath of Chuhou Joutai 1's events in local Kozankyo news