Wutugu

Wutugu is a fictional character in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He was the king of the Wuge (烏戈) kingdom in the southern part of Shu Han, and an ally of the Nanman chieftain Meng Huo.

Wutugu was depicted as an extremely large man, "a giant of 12 spans". It was said that he did not eat grain, preferring to dine on venomous serpents. He wore scale armour described as impenetrable to blades and arrows, and rode on an elephant in battle. Wutugu commanded the elite spear troops of the Rattan Army (藤甲兵). This army wore armor made of dried and oiled rattan, which was light enough to allow them to float across water, yet hard enough that no blades could penetrate it.

After Meng Huo had been defeated and released six times by Zhuge Liang during the Southern Campaign, he turned to Wutugu for aid. Wutugu mustered his forces and marched against the Shu Han troops, winning an initial victory due to his army's impenetrable armor. He and his forces then pursued Wei Yan, forcing the Shu Han forces to abandon 15 separate camps.

Wei Yan's retreat, however, had been part of Zhuge Liang's plan. He led Wutugu into Coiled Serpent Valley, where the Shu Han forces had planted gunpowder bombs beneath the ground. When the bombs were ignited, the valley became an inferno. The flammable rattan armour caught fire and Wutugu perished in the flames along with his army.

Other articles related to "wutugu":

Cheng Kuang - In Romance of The Three Kingdoms - Chapter 90
... to Meng Huo to enlist the help of King Mulu and Wutugu to deal with the Shu invaders led by Zhuge Liang ... Wutugu (兀突骨), the king of Wuge (烏戈) and an ally of Meng Huo ... the armour was flammable, so he ordered his men to lure Wutugu and his soldiers into a trap ...
Zhuge Liang's Southern Campaign - In Fiction
... Finally, Meng Huo enlisted the aid of Wutugu, whose troops wore armor made of rattan that was said to deflect swords and arrows alike ... Zhuge Liang conjured a trap in which Wei Yan lured Wutugu into a valley with mines set beneath the ground ... Wutugu's troops took the bait and chased Wei Yan into the valley ...