Dynasty Warriors 3 Remastered: How to Unlock Ma Chao

To unlock Ma Chao in Dynasty Warriors 3 Remastered, clear Musou Mode once with any Shu officer. Zhao Yun, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei are all available from the start, any difficulty counts, and Ma Chao appears on the officer select screen as soon as that story’s final stage is won. There is no battlefield event to trigger and no stage to farm.

That is the same rule the 2001 original used. Below is the fastest way to do it, the officers that unlock at the same time, and how to get Ma Chao’s fourth weapon once he is on your roster. Every other guide for DYNASTY WARRIORS 3: Complete Edition Remastered is on our Dynasty Warriors hub.

The Unlock Condition

• What to do: Finish one full Musou Mode story with a Shu officer.
• Which officer: Any Shu officer. A new save gives you Zhao Yun, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei.
• Difficulty: Any. Easy is the quickest.
• Mode: Musou Mode only. Free Mode battles do not count toward story clears.

Ma Chao sits with Shu on Koei Tecmo’s official character list, so he plays the Shu story himself once unlocked.

Step-by-Step: The Fastest Way to Unlock Ma Chao

1. Set the difficulty to Easy in System from the main menu. Our difficulty guide shows where the setting is and confirms unlocks do not care about it.
2. Choose a starting Shu officer. Our pick is Guan Yu, for his reach and crowd-clearing Musou attack. Each officer has their own story with its own stage order: in the original, Zhao Yun’s opens at the Battle of Changban, a tougher first stage than the Yellow Turban Rebellion.
3. Play through every stage of the story. Win each battle; the game autosaves at each results screen, so you can stop between stages.
4. Power up if a stage stalls. Officers drop Attack and Defense boosts, and set pots on every stage hold permanent Life and Musou boosts. A few Free Mode runs make a stubborn stage much easier, and growth items you collect there carry over, per Koei Tecmo.
5. Win the final stage. Ma Chao unlocks after the ending, along with the other officers listed below.

What Else Unlocks With Ma Chao

One Shu clear opens more than Ma Chao. These conditions are based on the original game’s unlock list, plus Ziluan, who is new to the remaster:

So a first clear with Zhao Yun or Guan Yu can add four officers at once, including the Dynasty Warriors: Origins guest covered in our Ziluan guide; in the original, a Zhang Fei clear did not count toward Zhuge Liang. A second Shu clear with a different officer brings in Liu Bei and Huang Zhong. Our character unlock guide covers the event-based unlocks such as Pang Tong.

Ma Chao’s Fourth Weapon: Steel Dragon

Ma Chao’s fourth weapon in the original is Steel Dragon, and it comes from his signature battle:

• Stage: Battle at Tong Gate, Allied Forces side (Ma Chao’s army).
• Difficulty: Hard or higher, and you have to play as Ma Chao. Fourth weapons needed Hard in the original too, and the remaster keeps that rule.

The steps, from the original:

1. Charge Cao Cao as soon as you can. Getting near him triggers a cutscene, after which Cao Cao heads west across the top of the map toward the bridge above Ma Chao’s camp.
2. Stay with Han Sui. Ma Chao sends Han Sui and other officers north across the bridge to face Cao Cao. Fight beside Han Sui and keep him alive.
3. Let Cao Cao meet Han Sui. When Cao Cao gets close, Han Sui’s morale drops. Keep fighting until the message that the allied forces are reeling from reports of Han Sui’s betrayal appears.
4. Watch for the supply team. Shortly after Han Sui defects, a supply team arrives just south of the northernmost bridge. Defeat its captain to get Steel Dragon.
5. Finish the battle by defeating Cao Cao, Han Sui and the remaining officers.

Koei Tecmo has not published fourth weapon conditions, so this is the original’s method, which carries over to the remaster. In the original, Steel Dragon carries the Fire element; our elements guide covers moving elements between weapons with Weapon Fusion.

Tips Most Players Miss

• His fifth weapon’s element is on a different attack. In Xtreme Legends, Ma Chao’s fifth weapon put its Lightning element on his fourth charge attack (three normal attacks, then a charge attack), a short, powerful thrust, while the fourth weapon’s Fire element sat on the last charge attack of a full combo. If the Lightning never shows at the end of a combo, use the thrust.
• Tong Gate holds a red item too. The Gold Harness comes from the Wei side of the same stage; our item guide has the steps.
• He counts toward the Shu achievements. “Shu Story Conquered” on Steam asks for a Musou Mode clear with every Shu officer, so plan a Ma Chao run once he is unlocked.
• Clear with a starting officer first. That clear can open Ziluan along with Ma Chao, so one story gets you both.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you unlock Ma Chao in Dynasty Warriors 3 Remastered? Clear Musou Mode once with any Shu officer, such as Zhao Yun, Guan Yu or Zhang Fei.

Does difficulty matter for unlocking Ma Chao? No. Any difficulty counts, so Easy is the fastest route.

Can you unlock Ma Chao in Free Mode? No. He needs a full Musou Mode story clear, and Free Mode battles do not count as one.

Who else unlocks when you get Ma Chao? Wei Yan unlocks from the same clear, and Zhuge Liang and Ziluan can unlock from it too, depending on the officer you used.

Where is Ma Chao’s fourth weapon? At the Battle at Tong Gate on the Allied Forces side, on Hard or higher, playing as Ma Chao. Protect Han Sui until he defects, then defeat the supply team that appears south of the northernmost bridge.

Is Ma Chao’s fifth weapon bugged? Most likely not. In Xtreme Legends, its Lightning element triggered on a mid-combo charge attack (three normal attacks, then a charge attack) rather than at the end of a combo, so try that attack first.