post for 30 October 2001

Aramasu & Kitao Q

Kitao Exp kills all copies of Baysuhi Aramasu in play, and won't allow you to play them anymore...

Is Yoritomo Aramasu (Exp3) still legal? Or is he considered Bayushi Aramasu all the same, albeit with another name?

The way Kitao is worded, any Personality who's name isn't "Bayushi Aramasu" is safe.

post for 29 October 2001

I would, however, like to point out that nothing happens during battle resolution which is a valid trigger for seppuku's "reaction".

By the way that you are saying that Ambush allows you to commit seppuku once it is known that an honor loss will occur, once it hits battle resolution and the honor loss is known, doesn't that constitute the same trigger?

Seppuki's trigger is performing an action, being targeted by an action, or making a decision, that causes an honor loss. Dying doesn't fit any of those. Nor does simply being in a losing army.

Rules Question

Can a shugenja entering a duel target itself with the kiho Double-chi?

Yes.

Voting WAS: [L5RINFO] post for 29 October 2001

More so than wins? If so why not vote on everything?

Because we are not going to focus on the one single "best" way to allow players to influence the storyline and throw all the others by the wayside. Every method has its drawbacks.

Which is a fine answer but it begs the question, how do you approach those drawbacks?

But that's just it! Varying the methods used minimizes the cumulative impact of each particular method's drawbacks.

In wins the design team is actively employed in balancing each clan, the same can not be said for the votes.

In wins, the design team is actively employed in UNbalancing each clan unless booby-trap prizes are awarded (which players dislike) or the results only affect story, not cards (which means the design team isn't involved, just brand management and the story team).

A simple suggestion was made by another poster that I repeated that boils down to, "no vote should be allowed that can be constructed as Clan X loses Y".

I personally happen to think there's a lot of merit to that point.

Question Regarding Forgotten Tomb

I am playing Spawning Ground, and have a Forgotten Tomb in play. If I play a Goblin Wizard under the Forgotten Tomb, does it get to come right out, or does it wait until next turn? Reason I ask is that while it is under the Tomb, it is not technically in play, in my hand, or in any deck.

By MRP, the Spawning Ground affects all cards you own. You own that Goblin Wizard no matter where it is. It gets the bonus and comes out a turn later than normal.

Questions with no particular focus

1.) A lot of cards have recently been drastically errata-ed: not simply basic ruling changes, but the cards themselves have been rewritten (The Emperor's Under-Hand, Snow Crane Tattoo, Imperial Funeral (again), and Nagimaki, among others). Will AEG be following the 7th Sea model for these cards and placing errata-text versions of them in future starters?

Where feasible. I don't have plans to do it across the board.

2.) This question is because there has been growing disenchantment among Mantis players of late and because it's worth addressing: at this point in time, are there *concrete* plans for a Gold-legal Mantis stronghold?

That is an internal decision.

3.) What does the design team currently feel to be the most pressing issues for gameplay balance / imbalance in Gold?

The biggest one is the current standing of Dragon and Unicorn, which the next expansion is already planned to address.

4.) What is the design and storyline team's feelings WRT greater involvement with gaijin cultures like the Ivory Kingdoms, the Burning Sands, and wherever Alhundro Cornejo came from? Would you prefer to see Rokugan remain isolationist, or are the Yodotai planning to invade next week?

I can't speak for the whole team, but personally, too many outsiders could easily dilute the samurai epic feel of the game.

L5R: Voting and other things (Clan Hosing)

Let's see... Shadowlands a potent faction today... An Oni's Fury... sounds like Shadowlands become the top slice of bread. Am I off base here?

Way. It's just a title. (A word-for-word identical title to a card that HURT Shadowlands, at that.)

post for 29 October 2001

Yes, but reattaching Followers is one of the stated effects of Street to Street, which makes it the target of an action, which means a Personality with the Journal cannot reattach any Followers. Nor can bowed Personalities *controlled by the person who played Street to Street*. Under Gold Edition rules, players *may* attach Followers to their own bowed Personalities due to another player's Street to Street.

I'm missing something here. Reattaching followers is one of the stated effects of StS. So a Personality with the Journal can't attach followers, because he/she can't be targeted with actions, except those that target Ninja. Okay. Now, bowed personalities controlled by the player who played StS can't attach followers either. Fine...so far so good. But players *can* attach followers to their own bowed personalities, when the attachment results from another players StS. Huh? Why?

"You cannot target your own bowed Personalities with your actions." [Perfect Cut rulebook, p. 46.]

"...with YOUR actions." If it's someone else's StS, it's not your action. The prohibition doesn't apply. Q.E.D.

The Journal prohibits targeting, period. That's why it works differently.