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OnēChanbara Z: Kagura (お姉チャンバラZ~カグラ~ OnēChanbara Z ~Kagura~) is a Japan-exclusive Xbox 360 title, and the first OneeChanbara game to not feature Aya as a protagonist. Instead, the protagonist of this game is Kagura, along with her little sister Saaya.

An expanded version of this game, called OnēChanbara Z: Kagura With NoNoNo! (お姉チャンバラZ~カグラ~ With NoNoNo!), was later released exclusively in Japan in 2013 for the PlayStation 3. It mainly features the Dream Club series' NoNoNo as a new playable character.


Characters[]

Main Characters[]

Kagura
A half-breed dual katana-wielding swordswoman born of a male Baneful and a female Vampiric[note 1]. Her name was given to her by her Japanese mother. She is an elite warrior of the Vampiric Clan who lives for the thrill of the fight and peppers her taunts with broken English. She specifically wears a bikini and a cowboy hat to mock Aya.
Saaya
Another half-breed warrior of the Vampiric Clan. She is Kagura's younger sister, but she was born to a different mother. Her name is also Japanese in origin. She wields a chainsaw called Jayson in addition to being a fist fighter. Whereas Kagura is brash and foolhardy, Saaya is calmer and more levelheaded of the two.
Carmilla
The Queen of the Vampiric Clan and adoptive mother to Kagura and Saaya. She executed their father for consorting with Banefuls but saw potential in the sisters as warriors, so she took them in. This action may have also been motivated by a sense of guilt.
She sends Kagura and Saaya on a mission to eliminate Aya and Saki.
Bullard
The head of the mysterious Bullard Foundation and closest ally to Carmilla. His organization aids the Vampiric Clan with arms and shelter.
Aya
A beautiful Baneful assassin. Although she was the main protagonist of all Onechanbara titles to date, this time around she serves a supporting role.
Saki
Another Baneful assassin and younger half-sister of Aya. She was the mastermind behind the first zombie incident.


Gameplay[]

See Onechanbara (franchise) / Gameplay.

OnēChanbara Z: Kagura puts players in control of the Vampiric half-sisters Kagura and Saaya. Unlike previous entries, the game plays akin to a modern hack and slash game, featuring a freely controllable camera, dash controls, and separate jump and dodge buttons. The combat system has been expanded upon from previous games to make possible freely chain-able combos and air juggling, allowing for stylish combo action that is similar to (but still simpler than) the combo systems of Devil May Cry and Bayonetta.

The game's story mode is divided into chapters, each serving as a short stage. Player progress will be halted at certain points in the chapter by blocked off pathways, indicating to players that they must clear the area of enemies before proceeding. After each of these segments, the player will be graded based on combat performance, with the highest rank being a V rank. At the end of each chapter, the player's overall chapter performance will be determined by the ranks they received from the earlier combat segments, similarly to Bayonetta. Platinum is the highest grade the player can receive, and the higher the chapter grade the player receives, the more Yellow Orbs that are earned. Yellows Orbs in this entry do not serve as experience points, but as currency towards the in-game shop, where players are able to purchase consumables as well as new weapons and moves.

At the end of the story mode, players gain access to missions that have specific objectives to be completed. Players can earn ranks and therefore more Yellow Orbs from missions.

Mechanics[]

Cool Combination
See Onechanbara (franchise) / Gameplay / Mechanics.
Cool Combo success is represented by a blue light being emitted from the player character's weapon.
Splatter Gauge and Reload
See Onechanbara (franchise) / Gameplay / Mechanics.
Both Kagura and Saaya's two weapons have their own dedicated Splatter Gauges on the screen, represented by bars surrounding an image of each weapon.
Stain Gauge and Berserk Form
See Onechanbara (franchise) / Gameplay / Mechanics.
The Stain Gauge is represented by a grey overlay surrounding each character's health bar at the top-right of the screen. The gauge will fill with red color from left to right the more the player gathers bloodstains on the player character's body.
Character Switch
See Onechanbara (franchise) / Gameplay / Mechanics.
Upon switching characters, the swapped-in character's weapon will briefly emit blue light, allowing Cool Combos to begin immediately after being swapped in.
Weapon Switch
See Onechanbara (franchise) / Gameplay / Mechanics.
Kagura can switch between dual swords and dual daggers while Saaya can switch between chainsaw and knuckles.
Sub-weapon
Kagura and Saaya each wield a third weapon in addition to their two switchable weapons. Kagura has access to a boomerang that is useful for dealing multiple hits on an enemy while stun-locking them. It can be charged to stay in the air longer. Saaya wields a flail that she can swing around for crowd control. These sub-weapons do not have a dedicated Splatter Gauge, indicating that attack animations will not slow down from constant use.
Blood Recovery
A new mechanic characteristic of Vampirics. Instead of swapping out the current character to regain the grey portion of her health bar, the player can press and hold the normal attack button and jump button simultaneously to gradually regain health while walking around slowly. However, getting attacked by an enemy while using Blood Recovery will end Blood Recovery and cause the grey bar to disappear.
Quick Time Kill
At specific points of certain bosses' health bars, the player can press the normal attack button and jump button together when prompted to enter a special cutscene where they will have to press buttons at the right moments to sever a limb off a boss. This greatly changes the boss's attack patterns and lowers its options considerably.
Heroic Drain
A finishing move specific to certain boss characters. Kagura or Saaya will finish off a boss by mounting them and draining them of their blood. This will not only kill the boss but also refill the current player character's health bar.
Vamp Skills
Main article: Vamp Skills
Replacing the Ecstasy Gauge and Ecstasy Combination mechanics from previous entries, Vamp Skills are special moves that drain a small portion of health upon use. Thankfully, the drained health becomes a grey bar, indicating that it can be regained by either swapping out the character or using Blood Recovery. The majority of Vamp Skills deal quick burst damage while one skill, Aegis Barrier, nullifies a set amount of enemy damage before disappearing. Kagura and Saaya share from a single pool of Vamp Skills and each are able to equip three at a time. A Vamp Skill cannot be equipped on both Kagura and Saaya. Vamp Skills are earned after certain boss fights in the story mode as well as purchasable from the in-game shop. The effectiveness of a Vamp Skill (which is tied to a level) can be increased through frequent use.


Plot[]

Backstory[]

The Baneful Bloodline and the Vampiric Clan are two rival clans, each boasting formidable powers and abilities, that have battled each other for absolute supremacy for centuries. Today, the numbers of each clan have drastically dwindled, perhaps signaling the end of the centuries-long blood feud. Suddenly, word comes out that a new zombie menace plagues the world, and that the ones who have caused it are none other than the Baneful sisters Aya and Saki. Enter Kagura and Saaya, two sisters and elite warriors of the Vampiric Clan, tasked with the elimination of Aya and Saki. Perhaps these Vampiric sisters will finally end the battle between Banefuls and Vampirics...


Story[]

Spoiler warning!
This article contains plot details about an upcoming episode.

Onboard a cargo plane from Romania to Japan, Kagura and Saaya prepare for their landing near Babel Tokyo Tower. They are on a mission to eliminate Aya and Saki, the instigators of the current worldwide zombie outbreak. Kagura is the first to jump off the plane, and due to a botched parachute landing, she crash lands onto a ship in a Japanese harbor, well away from her intended destination. Fortunately, Kagura uses Blood Recovery, one of the many abilities of Vampirics, to reinvigorate herself, and so she prepares to do battle with the zombies wandering around on the main deck of the ship.

After Kagura defeats the gigantic composite zombie monster Hecatoncheir, Saaya finally meets up with Kagura to inform her about a water taxi she noticed from her parachute landing. Kagura realizes they can hitch a ride on the water taxi to reach Babel Tokyo and heads off, and Saaya follows suit.

Within the ship's hull, the Vampiric sisters encounter Saki and do battle with her. After the battle, Saki, believing that she has gauged the sisters' fighting abilities, declares that they are now her and Aya's enemies and escapes. Having lost Saki, Kagura and Saaya head for the water taxi.

During the water taxi's course to Babel Tokyo, the sisters encounter and defeat Gigas. All the while, Kagura and Saaya's progress is tracked by Carmilla, the Queen of the Vampiric Clan and their adoptive mother, and Bullard, the founder of the Bullard Foundation and Carmilla's closest assistant. Before Bullard is able to suggest that the sisters may be a match for Carmilla, she promptly shuts him down and threatens to dispose of him as she did their parents.

Once on solid ground and right before reaching Babel Tokyo Tower's vicinity, Kagura and Saaya catch notice of zombie corpses with peculiar slash wounds. Kagura surmises that the wounds were likely caused by Saki's sword. However, this contradicts their prior assumption that Aya and Saki were the cause of the current zombie outbreak. Unsure of the truth, Kagura and Saaya head into the building, but not before dealing with two Z.P.F. issued tanks.

Well into the building, the sisters encounter another Gigas. This time Kagura takes a break, letting Saaya take on the Gigas herself. Afterwards, Kagura and Saaya once again encounter Saki and do battle with her a second time. Again, Saki escapes, and the sisters give chase.

In the next room, Kagura and Saaya encounter both Aya and Saki. Before the two pairs of sisters do battle, Saaya first asks Saki why she attacked the zombies they encountered earlier. Saki responds with the moral reasoning that zombies eat people. However, Kagura is still of the belief that her Baneful Blood is the cause of the zombies, to which Aya reveals to the Vampiric sisters that Carmilla has been deceiving them all this time. Although Saaya is the quicker of the two to connect the dots, Kagura still maintains that the Baneful sisters are the enemy, and so battle between the pairs of sisters ensues. Afterwards, their battle is interrupted by Bullard, who stands atop a fighter jet and fires missiles at the girls, intending to kill all of four of them in one fell swoop. Unfortunately, the girls are unable to escape in time and are caught under rubble, believed to have been killed by the missile attack.

When Z.P.F. arrives at the aftermath of the attack, they only manage to find Kagura and Saaya, who in fact survived. Aya and Saki are nowhere to be found and are presumed dead. For six months, Kagura and Saaya operate as new Z.P.F. soldiers, having realized Carmilla's deception and working to combat the ongoing zombie threat. Finally, they enter the final phase of the anti-zombie operation: infiltrating Vlan Castle and eliminating the source of the zombies.

The sisters hitch a ride atop an aircraft and are attacked by Strigoi, along with their leader, the Quetzalcoatl. After defeating the Quetzalcoatl, they successfully land in a Romanian town. They are contacted by Anna and are instructed to enter a nearby church, which she attempts to tell them contains the entrance to Vlan Castle before Kagura's radio is cut off. Instead of waiting, the girls decide to head on and eventually reach the church, which is guarded by a Hellhound. After defeating the Hellhound and entering the church, Anna informs them of a control device that they must find and destroy to be able to enter Vlan Castle.

As they head deeper into the church, Kagura and Saaya first encounter and do battle with the snake-like Jararaca, and afterwards they do battle with the Ogre Twins, who turn out to be the control devices they're looking for. After defeating the Ogre Twins, Kagura and Saaya finally enter the castle. Meanwhile in Carmilla's throne room, Bullard frantically panics from the thought that Z.P.F. could apprehend them at any moment whilst lamenting his status as a simple human, but Carmilla remains unfazed. In fact, she relishes in the thought of her adopted daughters coming to her, certain that she can send them to the afterlife like their parents.

Deep into the castle, Kagura and Saaya come across Carmilla's most powerful minion, the Jabberwock. Aware that they cannot defeat it at their current state, the sisters take advantage of its lack of eyesight to maneuver around it and head deeper into the castle. After traversing through rooms filled with traps, the sisters arrive at the torture room to encounter Bullard, who has been given Vampiric powers as a result of being turned by Carmilla. Believing himself to now be more powerful than the half-breeds, Bullard battles Kagura and Saaya. Unfortunately for him, the sisters fatally wound him upon his defeat. Despite initially believing that he could never lose with Carmilla's power, he soon realizes the reason behind Carmilla's attempts to kill off both the Baneful sisters and the Vampiric sisters. Before he can explain to the girls his realization, he collapses to the floor. While Kagura expresses dissatisfaction, Saaya ponders his words.

Now equipped with Carmilla's power that they received from draining Bullard, Kagura and Saaya return to the room with the Jabberwock and defeat it. After re-fighting Carmilla's most powerful monsters, the girls finally reach her throne room. In an attempt to avert a battle with their adoptive mother, Saaya makes the hopeful suggestion that the creation of zombies was simply Bullard's doing and that it had nothing to do with the Vampiric Clan. However, Carmilla haughtily laughs at Kagura and Saaya's ignorance. She explains that all her actions, including her deception and betrayal of the sisters, were for the future of the Vampiric Clan. Fed up with the ongoing charade, Kagura and Saaya ready themselves to do battle with Carmilla.

Despite being a pureblooded Vampiric, Carmilla has difficulty fighting the half-breed sisters and recognizes the Baneful half of their blood to be the culprit. Saaya catches on to her words and relays them to Kagura, who also recalls Bullard mentioning something similar. Saaya then hypothesizes that Carmilla sent the sisters to eliminate Aya and Saki in her stead because Carmilla feared the Baneful Bloodline for a certain reason. Carmilla vehemently denies this, and to prove it, she transforms into her true form: a grotesquely horrifying monster of formidable size that she reveals to be the result of hundreds of years of consuming blood. Although initially frightened, Kagura and Saaya steel their resolve for the final battle. Although Carmilla has various Vampiric abilities at her disposal, the sisters cut her down to size and drain her of her blood, killing the Queen of the Vampiric Clan once and for all.

Afterwards, Kagura asks Aya and Saki to come out into the open, fully aware that they've been watching the battle the whole time. Although Kagura expresses dissatisfaction at their lack of help, Aya tells the sisters that this was a battle only they could win. Saki then tells the sisters to not report their presence to Z.P.F. since Aya and Saki wish to retire from such work. However, Kagura, all the more eager to continue the brawl that was interrupted at Babel Tokyo, challenges the Baneful sisters to another fight. Although Saaya is against the proposal, claiming that she's still tired from the recent battle, Saki tells her that she can just use Blood Recovery to patch herself back up. Saaya expresses dissatisfaction at their continued rivalry.


Trivia[]

  • In the beginning of Chapter 9, Anna confirms Kagura and Saaya's arrival in a Romanian town, using the code name "Bat Girls" (バットガールズ batto gāruzu) to refer to the sisters while using for herself the code name "NIKUSTAP-AMARUG." "Bat Girls" refers to the fact that Kagura and Saaya are essentially vampires. "NIKUSTAP-AMARUG" is an inverted spelling of patsukin guramā, which is a romanization of パツキングラマー, which in itself roughly translates to "blonde, buxom woman," likely referring to the fact that Anna has blonde hair and has the largest known bust size out of the main characters in the series.
    • In Aya and Saki's version of the same scene (only viewable by purchasing the playable Aya and Saki DLC), Aya refers to herself with the code name "Chanbara Beauty" (チャンバラビューティ chanbara byūti), a reference to the title of the English version of the official OneeChanbara movies.
  • At the end of Aya and Saki's version of the plot (only viewable via DLC), Robo-Saki breaks the fourth wall by declaring that Robo-Aya and Robo-Saki will continue the OneeChanbara (お姉チャンバラ) brand in Aya and Saki's stead, to which the Baneful sisters vehemently refuse.


Videos[]


Notes[]

  1. The terms Vampiric and Vampiric Clan are English localizations of 吸血族 (Kyuuketsuzoku "Bloodsucking Clan"), introduced in Onechanbara Z2: Chaos, the sequel to this entry. Onechanbara Z: Kagura is a Japan-exclusive title, so the English terms Vampiric and Vampiric Clan are used on this page for consistency's sake.


References[]

  1. Translated from 剣戟アクション from official site.


External Links[]


Navigation[]

Onechanbara Z: Kagura (With NoNoNo!)
Playable Characters Main

Kagura · Saaya

DLC

Aya · Saki

With NoNoNo!

NoNoNo

Bosses

Hecatoncheir · Gigas · Z.P.F. Tanks · Quetzalcoatl · Hellhound · Jararaca · Evil Twins · Jabberwock · Aya · Saki · Bullard · Carmilla · Master Carmilla

Gameplay Features

Vamp Skills

Other

Character Profiles


OneeChanbara universe
Characters
Protagonists Main series

Aya · Saki · Anna · Kagura · Saaya

Spin-off

Sayuri Akiha · Risa Kubota · Mayaya Himeji · Enami Kamijo · Rei Kanazaki

Antagonists Major

Eva · Reiko · Misery · Himiko · Carmilla · Evange · Ren

Minor

Anzu and Sayaka · Ying · Yang · Flagge · David · Bullard · Copy Zombies

Supporting

Oboro · Tsubaki

Guest Characters

Riho · Makoto · Kiku · Hana · NoNoNo

Enemies

Zombie · Nurse Zombie · Cop Zombie · Mudman · Beast Zombie · Gigant · Exorcist · Murder · Blood Mist Zombie · Dog Zombie · Blob · Returner · Penanggalan · Machine Soldier · Strigoi · Vampire · Werewolf · Living Statue · Giant Mole · Jiangshi · Living Statue (Main Body) · Ogre · Igor · Fatman

Bosses

Devda · Anzu · Sayaka · Oboro · Ubie · Saki · Reiko · Death Bear · Eva · Reiko (Rampage) · Legion · Ying · Misery · Yang · Flegge · David · Olga · Himiko (Old) · Himiko (Young) · Misery (Rampage) · Aya · Makaakutsu · Quetzalcoatl · Hellhound · Doppelganger · Ultimate Himiko · Hekatonkheir · Gigas · Tank · Jararaca · Evil Twins Ani · Evil Twins Otouto · Bullard · Jabberwock · Carmilla · Master Carmilla · Misha · Master Cho · Abdul · Basalmudora · Evange · Misha (Xtatic) · Evange (Xtatic) · Lei · Anzu (Berserk) · Oboro (Xtatic) · Lei (Berserk)

Organizations

Baneful Bloodline · Zombie Punitive Force · The Organization/Uroboros · Vampiric Clan · Kirisaku Academy

Other Important Terms

Undead · Baneful · Berserk Form · Vampiric · Xtasy and Dare Drive

Miscellaneous

Full series storyline


OneeChanbara games
Main Titles

Zombie Zone (Zombie Hunters) · THE OneeChanbara 2 (Zombie Hunters 2) · Onechanbara: Bikini Samurai Squad · Onechanbara: Bikini Zombie Slayers · OneeChanbara SPECIAL · OneeChanbara Z: Kagura (With NoNoNo!) · Onechanbara Z2: Chaos · OneeChanbara ORIGIN

Spin-off Titles

School Girl/Zombie Hunter

Mobile Titles

THE OnēChanbara Mobile · Z.P.F. Anna ~OnēChanbara Tokubetsu-hen~

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