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, 30 April 2014
Regarding point 1 of this reply interrupts which have an 'if' condition cannot be taken if the condition is not met.
Secluded Outpost has the interrupt: "Tireless Interrupt, : If this Holding bowed to produce Gold to Recruit a Personality, Equip an attachment to him from your hand for 4 less Gold after he enters play."
The order for taking the recruit action (as I understand it) is: 1. Announce the recruit action 2. Pay costs (add gold to the pool) 3. Announce any interrupts 4. Resolve effects (as per the rule book)
At step 3, when you would look to use the interrupt the game does not know if you are recruiting a personality (that is determined in step 4).
1. Is the interrupt legal to announce? If it is please can you explain why. 2. If this is covered by the good faith rule please can you explain what the future change in the game state is that allows the rule to apply? 3. Is the declaration to recruit a specific card considered a change in the game state? 4. If the good faith rule does allow the interrupt to be announced my assumption is that the player is then compelled to choose to recruit a personality with that action. Is this correct?
This is related to the text on cards such as Deep Harbour (when do you bow it to reduce the cost of a holding during the recruit action?) and Vast Paddy Fields, as well as this question.
I suppose that I'm essentially asking how the recruit action functions alongside cards with a clear design intent to modify the recruit action.
A player, 30 April 2014
Even though at the very time you're playing the Interrupt it is not yet known whether you're Recruiting a Holding or a Personality, Good Faith Rule takes into account your choices, even those that have not yet been made. GFR is considering here the whole game state, including the choices at hand.
If you use the Interrupt on Secluded Outpost when Recruiting, you're fulfilling the restriction if a) there's a Personality available as legal choice for the Recruit set of effects and b) you will, when the procedure allows you, make the choice of Recruiting a Personality.
Note that the GFR doesn't check whether you're meeting the condition *now* but rather if you "are able to meet the conditions". As long as the future choices are able to meet the condition, and you actually make them, it is kosher.
A player, 1 May 2014
From this thread:
"Good Faith Rule takes into account your choices, even those that have not yet been made. GFR is considering here the whole game state, including the choices at hand."
The good faith rule:
"The Good Faith rule takes into account future changes in the game state that are known to the player; for example, if Bob plans to play an Interrupt that gives the action a target it wouldn’t have when he announced it, this allows him to play the action, but also requires him to play that Interrupt having announced it."
(Emphasis mine)
Please can you clarify what the game state change is that allows the good faith rule to make the interrupt legal. Is the player deciding to recruit a personality or bringing into play a face-up personality?
I'm trying to get a more thorough idea of what is, and is not, considered a change in game state. I can't seem to find a list of common examples in the comprehensive rules, or something that could be used to determine what shouldn't be considered a change in game state.
A player, 1 May 2014
What makes the Interrupt legal, is that it is possible for you to fulfill the condition. That is not a game state change, that is a fact that is known at the point of announcing Interrupts. Therefore you are bound to make the choices that keep the action legal.
Remember that the spirit of Good Faith Rule is not restricting legal plays, Good Faith Rule has to be interpreted always in the least restrictive posible way. Since it is yet possible for the player to fulfill the condition, to the best of his knowledge, he is allowed to take the action.