Overview
Night of Knights (ナイト・オブ・ナイツ) is a landmark Touhou Project arrangement by beatMARIO of the doujin music circle COOL&CREATE. The track weaves together two of Sakuya Izayoi's character themes, 月時計 ~ ルナ・ダイアル (Luna Dial) from 東方紅魔郷 ~ the Embodiment of Scarlet Devil and フラワリングナイト (Flowering Night) from 東方花映塚 ~ Phantasmagoria of Flower View, into a single, propulsive 180 BPM remix. It originally appeared on COOL&CREATE's 2007 album 花詠束 -hanataba- before becoming one of the most widely disseminated Touhou arrangements across the Japanese rhythm game scene.
The title itself is a deliberate homophone play: the Japanese word ナイト can mean both "night" and "knight." beatMARIO has stated that all four combinations, Night of Knights, Night of Nights, Knight of Nights, and Knight of Knights, are equally valid, a bit of wordplay that has fueled discussion among fans for years. Asian English releases of maimai display the title as "Night of Knights / Knight of Nights."
In maimai, Night of Knights debuted with the launch of GreeN on July 11, 2013, making it one of the earliest Touhou tracks in the series. Its Standard chart set saw numerous difficulty revisions over the following decade, adjusting to the rising ceiling of the game's hardest content. The Standard Re:Master chart, added during the PiNK version in May 2016 and designed by the pseudonymous 某S氏, stands as a level 14 boss chart with exactly 1,001 notes, a notable milestone count. DX-style charts arrived much later with the FESTiVAL PLUS update on June 8, 2023, unlockable through a stamp card. The song has also crossed over into CHUNITHM (since its first version) and オンゲキ, with unique chart variants exclusive to each game.
Videos
Charts
DX
BASIC
5(5)
174 notesDesigner: -|Tap 145Hold 9Slide 4Touch 6Break 10
ADVANCED
7+(7.6)
331 notesDesigner: -|Tap 276Hold 11Slide 8Touch 28Break 8
EXPERT
11+(11.6)
548 notesDesigner: 鳩ホルダー|Tap 393Hold 43Slide 18Touch 36Break 58
MASTER
13(13.5)
708 notesDesigner: はっぴー|Tap 487Hold 28Slide 137Touch 27Break 29
STD
BASIC
4(4)
135 notesDesigner: -|Tap 120Hold 9Slide 4Break 2
ADVANCED
8(8)
324 notesDesigner: -|Tap 291Hold 11Slide 10Break 12
EXPERT
12(12)
563 notesDesigner: チャン@DP皆伝|Tap 488Hold 16Slide 14Break 45
MASTER
13(13.3)
675 notesDesigner: mai-Star|Tap 596Hold 13Slide 10Break 56
Re:MASTER
14(14.4)
1001 notesDesigner: 某S氏|Tap 893Hold 26Slide 44Break 38
Trivia
- The title ナイト・オブ・ナイツ is built on a Japanese homophone: ナイト can signify either "night" or "knight." beatMARIO has confirmed that all four readings, Night of Knights, Night of Nights, Knight of Nights, and Knight of Knights, are equally correct, with no single interpretation intended as canonical.
- The track is a medley fusing two themes from the Touhou Project: 月時計 ~ ルナ・ダイアル (the Stage 5 boss theme of Sakuya Izayoi from 東方紅魔郷) and フラワリングナイト (Sakuya's theme from 東方花映塚).
- ZUN (Team Shanghai Alice) composed both original melodies; beatMARIO arranged them for COOL&CREATE's 2007 circle album 花詠束 -hanataba-.
- Night of Knights was available in maimai from the very first day of GreeN's service, July 11, 2013, making it one of the oldest Touhou songs in the game's catalog.
- The Standard Re:Master chart was added during maimai PiNK on May 26, 2016, nearly three years after the song's initial debut, and contains exactly 1,001 notes.
- The Standard Re:Master chart is credited to 某S氏 ("A certain Mr. S"), a pseudonymous notes designer whose identity has been a topic of community curiosity.
- DX charts for Night of Knights were introduced in maimai でらっくす FESTiVAL PLUS on June 8, 2023. In Japanese arcades, they were unlocked via a stamp card; Asian and Chinese versions received the charts later in 2023 and 2024 respectively.
- In GreeN, Night of Knights was originally categorized under VARIETY rather than 東方Project. The genre label was changed to 東方Project starting with GreeN PLUS and has remained there ever since.
- The song's difficulty levels have shifted across multiple maimai versions. The Standard Expert chart, for example, started at level 10 in GreeN and was gradually raised to level 12 by BUDDiES+. The Re:Master chart began at level 12 in PiNK and climbed to 14.
- Outside of maimai, Night of Knights also appears in CHUNITHM (with a WORLD'S END chart themed around Sakuya's time-stop ability, titled 時符「咲夜特製ストップウォッチ」) and オンゲキ (with a LUNATIC chart).
- In Asian English versions of maimai, the song title is localized as "Night of Knights/Knight of Nights" and the artist as "beatMARIO(COOL&CREATE)."
- The Standard Expert chart (level 12.0, designed by チャン@DP皆伝) is the oldest surviving chart for the song and has been rebalanced across at least six version changes.
- COOL&CREATE has released two full remix albums built around this track: オールナイト・オブ・ナイツ and オールナイト・オブ・ナイツ ルナティック, featuring arrangements by Cranky, xi, Camellia, and USAO, some of which later appeared in CHUNITHM and オンゲキ.
FAQ
- What does the title Night of Knights mean?
- The title is a Japanese homophone pun: ナイト (naito) can mean both "night" and "knight." beatMARIO has stated that all four combinations, Night of Knights, Night of Nights, Knight of Nights, and Knight of Knights, are equally correct, and the song's official localized title in Asian English maimai releases is "Night of Knights / Knight of Nights."
- What Touhou songs is Night of Knights based on?
- Night of Knights is a medley of two Sakuya Izayoi themes: 月時計 ~ ルナ・ダイアル (Luna Dial), the Stage 5 boss theme from 東方紅魔郷 ~ the Embodiment of Scarlet Devil, and フラワリングナイト (Flowering Night), Sakuya's theme from 東方花映塚 ~ Phantasmagoria of Flower View. Both were composed by ZUN and arranged into a single track by beatMARIO.
- Who composed and arranged Night of Knights?
- The original melodies were composed by ZUN (Team Shanghai Alice). The arrangement was created by beatMARIO of the doujin music circle COOL&CREATE, and originally released on their 2007 album 花詠束 -hanataba-.
- When was Night of Knights added to maimai?
- Night of Knights debuted in maimai on July 11, 2013, as part of the launch lineup for maimai GreeN. Standard charts were available from day one, while DX charts were added nearly a decade later on June 8, 2023, with the maimai でらっくす FESTiVAL PLUS update.
- How difficult is the Re:Master chart of Night of Knights in maimai?
- The Standard Re:Master chart is rated level 14 with a difficulty constant of 14.4. It contains exactly 1,001 notes and was designed by the pseudonymous charter 某S氏. Over the years, it has been revised from its original level 12 in PiNK to its current 14.
- Who designed the maimai charts for Night of Knights?
- Standard charts were designed by チャン@DP皆伝 (Expert), mai-Star (Master), and 某S氏 (Re:Master). DX charts were designed by 鳩ホルダー (Expert) and はっぴー (Master). Basic and Advanced charts do not have credited designers.
Related Songs
全人類ノ非想天則
SOUND HOLIC feat. 匠眞
47+10+13
GreeN (超)しゅわスパ大作戦☆
SOUND HOLIC feat. Nana Takahashi
579+12+
GreeN (超)魔理沙は大変なものを盗んでいきました
ARM+夕野ヨシミ(IOSYS)feat. 藤咲かりん
671013+
GreeN (超)Help me, ERINNNNNN!!(Band ver.)
ビートまりお(COOL&CREATE)
6711+12
GreeN (超)ウサテイ
あまね+ビートまりお(COOL&CREATE)
5710+14
GreeN (超)チルノのパーフェクトさんすう教室
ARM+夕野ヨシミ(IOSYS)feat. miko
371013
GreeN (超)Bad Apple!! feat.nomico
Masayoshi Minoshima
3610+1213
GreeN (超)Grip & Break down !!
SOUND HOLIC feat. Nana Takahashi
579+13
GreeN (超)