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, 20 December 2008
Question was posed during play today: If I play determination and then kill a personality in battle, can my opponent respond with Kakita Noriko? We've been playing "yes," but someone pointed out that the Determination "remove from the game" happens before Noriko (since it is a continuous effect rather than a reaction) and by the time Noriko would be activated the relevant personality will already be outside of the game, and therefore (maybe) doesn't have a personal honor to gain.
It is this last piece that is the crux of the matter. Does a personality outside of the game have stats like personal honor that can be referenced? We are divided on this point, and haven't been able to find anything about this. The rulebook entry on "remove from the game" is not informative in this respect.
Zen Faulkes (rules official), 20 December 2008
If I play Determination and then kill a personality in battle, can my opponent respond with Kakita Noriko?
Yes. The destruction actually occurs, and is then followed by Determination's removal effect, so there's a legal trigger for Kakita Noriko's ability.
Does a personality outside of the game have stats like personal honor that can be referenced?
http://rules.l5r.com/Physically_marked_ ... ut_of_play: "Cards that are not in play or in a resolution, entering-play or focusing area have the following limitations:
"They cannot be targeted. "Their continuous traits do not produce effects. "They are not affected by effects. "Abilities on them cannot be used, and triggered traits on them are not triggered."
Nothing about stats there, so they are treated as normal.
(Fixed.)