Birushana: Rising Flower of Genpei tracks the decisions players make with the sort of flowchart one would expect to find in many other visual novels. The flowchart doesn't reveal its hand, informing you of how every choice affected the outcome of your file, until after you have completed a given route at least once. Fair enough.
On the other hand, Birushana touts several visible bars that will rise (terrible pun unintended) based on those very same responses. Think of it as getting a little "RPG DNA" in your visual novel. There's an Affection Meter designed to reflect on how well you're doing with your chosen partner, but we'll be covering the other three topics: Strength, Knowledge, and Kindness.
What Are Strength, Knowledge, and Kindness in Birushana?
First, the easy answer: strength, knowledge, and kindness are expressions of Shanao's personality, words that summarize the degree of courage, curiosity, and compassion she possesses.
Of course, that's all rather obvious. Better to discuss what these parameters actually do within the context of Birushana: Rising Flower of Genpei. For that answer, one need only consider the ultimate goal of the game. As with most otome, there are two: fulfill the heroine's ambitions whilst successfully courting a happily-ever-after with one of several eligible bachelors.
And those bachelors will each have unique personalities, right? It wouldn't be a very good love story if they were all more or less the same person. In Birushana, there are five romance interests: Yoritomo, Shungen, Benkei, Noritsune, and Tomomori. It's safe to say these are five wildly different gentlemen. (In fact, "gentleman" suits two of them at best.)
Gaining stats influences how each of these characters interpret Shanao as a woman, both early on and especially once you have locked in a route. Different suitors prioritize unique combinations of the three parameters. If you don't fulfill the minimum total for those combinations by the end of the game, you may not be rewarded with the happy ending.
How to Raise the Right Stats for Each Route
Choosing dialogue during interactive conversations is the one and only way to enhance Shanao's stats. There are a fixed number of these instances per route, and while they might seem on the slim side relative to many other otome visual novels, know that each of them proves pivotal to the ending you will receive.
Perhaps the best way to inform you of how to increase your Strength, Knowledge, and Kindness is to ask you a question: who do you intend for Shanao to pursue as a romance partner? Depending on your pick, simply think through every dialogue choice, contemplating which answers will reflect one stat the most. Sometimes, there are no gains; more often than not, however, there are multiple potential choices for stat elevation.
- Noritsune Taira tends to value Strength above all else. As a warrior through and through, one whose entire goal for the early part of the story is simply to duel Shanao, you want to emphasize bold decisions and fierce conviction. If your choices don't appear to reflect that at all, spring for demonstrating Shanao's intelligence or curiosity with Knowledge.
- Shungen values Knowledge and Kindness in roughly equal measure. He is a gentle-minded soul, brimming with questions about the world around him but ultimately in love with Shanao not for her bravery but her heart. If someone is hurting, be kind. If Shanao must admit to some hidden secret, demonstrate her tender side. If lore is tossed your way, own it.
- Benkei Musashibo is all about Kindness. For all his broad and towering stature, the man is something of a rising flower, himself. He has a sweet side that will utterly eclipse the somewhat scary demeanor he first presents in Chapter Two. The best way to court Benkei is to consistently express concern for his wellbeing, which will, in turn, boost Kindness to where it needs to be.
- Yoritomo is a man whose every act is calculated to portray brutal worthiness. Strength and Knowledge are his desires, because strength and knowledge are precisely what he needs in order to accomplish his goal. And let's just say Yoritomo's goal is the only one that rivals even Shanao's in depth. Don't back down from the man's larger-than-life antics and express a need to fully understand every gambit he makes.
- Tomomori is... wicked. But Knowledge will make him weak-kneed. Here is a man who, frankly, we wouldn't advise every player pursue romantically. Many of his earlier actions are... problematic, we'll say. But if you want the full story in Birushana, or the "bad boy" archetype is just totally your thing, consistently demonstrate Shanao's smarts. Slowly but surely, he will realize the reason for his obsession is not Shanao's beauty, but her brain.