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, 6 June 2012
I just wanted to clarify on the Ranged Attack portion of Power of Strength and if it goes through followers.
Power of Strength Battle: Choose your performing unbowed Personality with 7 or higher base Force and target two enemy Personalities, each with unit Gold Cost lower than your performer's Gold Cost: Bow one of them. Ranged Attack with strength equal to the first target's Force, which may only target the other Personality (if legal).
I have a player who argues that Ranged attacks may only target Followers or personalities with no attached followers. I argue that designer intent that since the card targets only personalities (not personalities without attached followers) that as long as I meet the original targeting requirements that I bow one personality and ranged attack the other one, regardless of followers since that is exactly what the card tells me to do.
Example: Opponent attacks with Hiruma Nitani and Toritaka Chokichi, attaching followers with Kyuden Hida XP reaction. I defend with Daigotsu Hotako. My first action is to use Power of Strength to bow Nitani and do a ranged 4 attack to Chokichi.
Is Chokichi a "legal target" for the Ranged attack even though he has an attached follower? I say yes since it says that the second personality may only be the target of the ranged attack.
Is the only current personality that may not be "ranged attacked" by Power of Strength Matsu Yuuto (soul of Agitoki)?
Jon Palmer (rules official), 6 June 2012
I just wanted to clarify on the Ranged Attack portion of Power of Strength and if it goes through followers.
I have a player who argues that Ranged attacks may only target Followers or personalities with no attached followers. I argue that designer intent that since the card targets only personalities (not personalities without attached followers) that as long as I meet the original targeting requirements that I bow one personality and ranged attack the other one, regardless of followers since that is exactly what the card tells me to do.
Example: Opponent attacks with Hiruma Nitani and Toritaka Chokichi, attaching followers with Kyuden Hida XP reaction. I defend with Daigotsu Hotako. My first action is to use Power of Strength to bow Nitani and do a ranged 4 attack to Chokichi.
Is Chokichi a "legal target" for the Ranged attack even though he has an attached follower? I say yes since it says that the second personality may only be the target of the ranged attack.
Is the only current personality that may not be "ranged attacked" by Power of Strength Matsu Yuuto (soul of Agitoki)?
Power of Strength does not explicitly overrule the targeting restrictions on Ranged Attacks; specifically, that the Personality must not have attached followers. Therefore in the situation described there is no legal target for the Ranged Attack from Power of Strength.