A topic from AEG's L5R CCG Rules forum, copied for Oracle of the Void from a copy of the forum saved in October 2015, so pages it didn't save are missing. Players' names are left out; the rules officials are named. Rulings are as they stood on these dates; later rulings, the rulebooks and the Rules Archive may differ.
A player, 28 January 2014
Just for Clarification, does the ruling linked below apply only to blanket effects like Higher Ground, or also to effects on individuals like Bayushi Meiko? I ask because the Combining text in the Advanced Rulebook says, "...instead of creating a separate attack effect, each of those actions' relevant attack effects adds its own strength (with any modifications in effect) to the strength of the original attack effect." Since there's not a separate attack effect created for each combined attack beyond the first, does only the initial attack actually target the Personality?
viewtopic.php?f=59&t=106458
Ben Higgins (rules official), 28 January 2014
Just for Clarification, does the ruling linked below apply only to blanket effects like Higher Ground, or also to effects on individuals like Bayushi Meiko? I ask because the Combining text in the Advanced Rulebook says, "...instead of creating a separate attack effect, each of those actions' relevant attack effects adds its own strength (with any modifications in effect) to the strength of the original attack effect." Since there's not a separate attack effect created for each combined attack beyond the first, does only the initial attack actually target the Personality?
viewtopic.php?f=59&t=106458
Correct; only the initial Attack effect targets.
The taking of Interrupts happens before effects resolve, which is where targeting happens.
As you referenced from the Advanced Rulebook on Combining, the Attack effects boost the announced ability's Attack effect rather than create an Attack effect of their own. It is because of this distinction that the Attack effects used to boost the initial action to not themselves target.