Xu Shu

Loyal Paladin 忠孝的侠士

**Speechless** 无言
When other characters use non-delay tools, they have no effect on Xu Shu. When Xu Shu plays non-delay tools, they have no effect on other characters.

**Recommendation** 举荐
During his turn, Xu Shu can discard up to three cards and choose another character. This character then draws the same number of cards that Xu Shu discarded. If Xu Shu discards three cards of the same type, he recovers one unit of health.

**Clarification:**

* Xu Shu is a member of the Shu kingdom, not the Wei kingdom. Note that the allegiance of a particular character is determined by the symbol in the upper left-hand corner of the card and the color of the health units.
* Speechless does not prevent other characters from targeting Xu Shu with tool cards (and vice-versa). It simply renders these tool cards useless.
* "Speechless" renders Diao Chan's "Seed of Animosity" useless if she chooses to include Xu Shu in a *Duel* with another man.
* *Negate* is not covered in the effects of "Speechless." Xu Shu can use *Negate* on other character's tool cards and other characters can use *Negate* on Xu Shu's tool cards.
* "Speechless" prevents Xu Shu from taking a card when another character uses *Harvest*. X cards are flipped over (X being the number of characters in play) Xu Shu is 'skipped' when the cards are passed around the table, so there will be an extra card at the end that will be simply placed in the discard pile. When Xu Shu plays *Harvest*, X cards are flipped over, but Xu Shu takes one card and the rest are discarded. The same logic is applied for the use of *Peach Garden*. If another character plays the card, Xu Shu is not healed. If Xu Shu plays the card, he is the only character that has the opportunity to be healed.
* "Speechless" does not extend to time-delay tool cards. Xu Shu can target other characters and other characters can target Xu Shu with *Capture* and *Starvation.* Also, *Lightning* targets Xu Shu in the same way that it targets other characters.
* Xu Shu can discard hand or equipped cards for "Recommendation."
* Xu Shu cannot choose himself to draw cards when he uses "Recommendation."

* Xu Shu's equipment is very difficult to remove because "Speechless" renders *Break* and *Steal* useless against Xu Shu.
* "Recommendation" allows Xu Shu to discard tool cards that he cannot use to allow a teammate to draw extra cards.
* Xu Shu is terrible in one-on-one situations. Since neither character can use non time-delay tool cards on each other, Xu Shu enjoys no benefit. If the other character has more health or has a power that does not involve non time-delay tool cards, Xu Shu will be at a huge disadvantage.
* When Xu Shu uses "Recommendation," there is no way he can guarantee that the cards that his teammate will draw will be usefull.
* Unlike Liu Bei, Xu Shu can only recover health by discarding three cards of the same type. This is a big disadvantage because Xu Shu has less health than Liu Bei, but it is possible to argue that Xu Shu is not vulnerable to damaging tool cards, so he might not lose health as quickly as Liu Bei.

**Notable Combinations:**

* Liu Bei - Xu Shu and Liu Bei can pass each other their unnecessary cards at the end of their turns. This prevents the duo from losing cards between the two of them.

* Yuan Shao - Yuan Shao cannot hurt Xu Shu with "Random Strike." This is useful if one is the king and the other is the loyalist. Also, Xu Shu can supply Yuan Shao with cards for his power.

* Lu Meng - Xu Shu can help Lu Meng 'grow' more quickly by using "Recommendation."

 Loyalist
 Rebel
 Spy

**Final Remarks:**

Xu Shu is one of the most extreme characters in the game of San Guo Sha. When we first saw Xu Shu in action, we felt that he was one of the worst characters in the game. After closer consideration, it becomes apparent that there are some situations that Xu Shu can handle very well. For example, he does not have to worry about *Barbarian* traps involving Cao Cao and Xiao Qiao or Zhu Rong. He also excels in games in which Yuan Shao is prevalent. Outside of these situations, Xu Shu is erratic. Depending on his luck, he can either be competent or incredibly vulnerable. It is difficult to determine who well Xu Shu will fair in any particular game that does not involve the previously mentioned situations.