replies to 1-2 July
A rules digest from the L5R CCG rules team, copied from the mailing list archive for Oracle of the Void. The askers' names are left out. Rulings are as they stood on this date; later rulings, the rulebooks and the Rules Archive may differ.
rulebook change...Rules question.Cultist
Has the text on Cultists been changed at all? If they can't cast kihos then their trait is meaningless, and I don't see why the text would have been left on.
It's been left on because we don't have a way to magically erase it from all the copies people already own. It hasn't been reprinted.
Akodo Stronghold
Quick question....the ability on the new Lion Stronghold that allows your Lion Shugenja to attatch other Factions's ancestors. Factions such as the Brotherhood, Yoritomo's Alliance, Toturi's Army, Yogo Junzo's Army*shudder*? Not Clans. Or is there not a distinction in this?
"Faction" means the *exact* same thing that "Clan" used to. A different word was chosen to eliminate the confusion implicit in explaining "Crane Clan is a Clan, and Lion Clan is a Clan, and Monk is a Clan, but Wasp Clan isn't a Clan".
Gold Starter Boxes
Does the Shadowlands Gold Edition starter deck come with the 4 Winds?
Yes.
I cannot see how they would be of any use to that faction.
They can't for gameplay, but it could easily be factored into the storyline. And before anyone jumps to conclusions, NO, that doesn't mean Shadowlands players will automatically get to taint one of the Winds. It could be something else, like putting a Wind into power whose decisions will most weaken the empire's defenses against the Shadowlands.
Gold MRP questions...
So I was looking at the Gold MRPs on Zen's page (thanks Zen!) and came up with the following questions:
1) When Darkness Draws Near Reads, "When Darkness Draws Near 0G 3Fo Battle: Send an allying unit home from this battle, bowed. If the units controller no longer has any units in any battle and has had no units in armies during any Resolution Segment this turn, he or she loses 2 Honor." [MRP, Gold Edition, 1 July 2001]
So I send units to ally the attacker at provinces A, B, and C. At province A, the defender plays WDDN. According to the text on the card I lose 2 honor, eventhough we haven't resolved the other battles. True?
False. You still have units in other battles.
2) Soshi's Curse Reads, "Soshi's Curse 2G 2Fo Battle: Bow this Shugenja and destroy this Spell to "freeze" an opposing unit. The unit's controller cannot target cards in the unit with actions, and those cards cannot use abilities, until your next turn. Any player with only frozen units in his or her army is considered to have no units in the battle." [MRP, Gold Edition, 1 July 2001
I'm attacking province A. The defender defends with one unit and one ally. I Soshi's Curse the ally. Does that mean the defender can now play Come One at a Time and get the benefits of it...AND still get the force of the defending ally?
No. There are still two units there. It's just that the ally no longer satisfies the Rule of Relevance.
3) Bushi Dojo Reads, "Bushi Dojo 3G Bow the Bushi Dojo to produce 6 Gold when paying for a Follower or an action that creates a Follower token." [MRP, Gold Edition, 1 July 2001]
Bushi Dojo now aids Out of the Shadows and Peasant Levies. True?
True.
Can I use Bushi Dojo to pay the 1 gold for a Refugees token?
No, as you are not paying for an action.
rulebook change...Rules question.Cultist
No, it is incorrect. Cultists and other followers are no longer able to cast kiho. Yes, this makes cultists rather pointless, but it was necessary in the design team's opinion.
Why? It seems to neutralize all shugenja and monk followers for no real reason (that I can see). Was the practice of followers casting kihos so bad that it needed this rule to stop abuse?
Yes. The easy, free or nearly-free addition of kiho to any deck was deemed to be undesirable.
Rules Questions - Lions and Suicide
_1_ Does Strength of Purity give Matsu Domotai its full Force and Chi bonus? If so, why? "Domotais force cannot exceed his chi." If the bonuses are both instantaneous, the result is slightly ambiguous.
As per the Gold rulebook, minimums and maximums are applied after all other adjustments. It's no longer ambiguous.
Judgement of Toshiken MRP
"Judgement of Toshiken 0G 2Fo
Reaction: Play this card after players reveal Focus cards in a duel. Resolve the duel only by the Chi (or other stat noted on the card creating the duel) of the dueling Personalities before the challenge, plus the Focus cards' printed Focus values. The Double Chi trait works as usual. If either Personality has not focused, each can focus an extra time, starting with the challenged Personality."
[MRP, Gold Edition, 1 July 2001]
I have a few questions about this card:
First, can it be played after your opponent plays Poisoned Weapon?
Yes.
Second, can Poisoned Weapon still be played after Judgement of Toshiken has been played?
Yes.
Thirdly, if the answer to either of the above is yes, am I correct in thinking that the Poisoned Weapon will have no effect during the duel, but can kill people afterwards?
Correct. You don't take the 3C penalty into account when resolving the duel, as it's neither Chi-before-challenge nor printed focus value, but sufficient Poisoned Weapons can still kill someone in the middle of a duel because you still use real total Chi to determine Chi-death.
Fourthly, am I correct in thinking that Toshimoko Sensei no longer benefits a duellist when JoT is played?
You are correct.
Fifthly, am I correct in thinking that the "before the challenge" clause negates any Chi bonusses or penalties inherent in the challenge, such as those created by Asahina's Breath and the Dragon's Heart? If so, is the Double Chi trait still lost for a challenge using the Dragon's Heart?
Yes and yes.
Gold edition Imperial Favor
Yes, I'm afraid that those cards have been rendered largely useless in order to streamline the favor.
Dave, couldn't Jade Throne still be workable?
Nope, since it doesn't give you a bonus until the lobbying is underway but you're no longer allowed to lobby unless your Personal Honor is already the single highest at the table.
And while it could be MRPed so that it did work, it will likely not be for storyline reasons.
Gold Edition Kolat Master Question (Jeff)
Zen's oh-so unofficial Gold MRP list has a Kolat Master that does NOT give the victim the Kolat trait. I don't have a Gold ed. Kolat Master to check (I'll never pull one of the damn things), so I wanted to know:
-- from anyone: is this MRP correct or was there a mistake on Zen's page.
The MRP is correct.
-- from Jeff Alexander: given the MRP is correct, why didn't you allow the card to give the trait?
A strong de-emphasis on Kolats, Ninjas, and other super duper secret clandestine evil organizations that everyone knows everything about for the time being.