Togashi Mitsu was the character that drew me in from the start and will always be my favorite. Dairya and Togashi Yokuni are right up there though.
All Aboard the Nostalgia Train - Who's Your Guy?
Hida Sozen
Hida Benjiro
Hida Kisada II
One and only Chief of Chiefs.
I started with Toturi's Army.
In Samurai I kicked around with Mantis and Dragon:
Then Celestial was Previewed and I saw this art:
After this, it was Crane all the way!
Isawa Hochiu / Shiba Aikune.
As a die-hard Mantis, it is easy to say Yoritomo, and his back story was certainly what got me playing Mantis in the first place. But the true answer is Yoritomo Aramasu. Worked hard to have him in every deck I ran over the years, and he formed the basis of my 'Faith in My Clan' deck that is in the Encyclopedia. I recall reading the story-backed stronghold where he accompanies Yoritomo to fight the Shadow with the line 'and I am twenty-one' on the bus home and letting out a silent roar of approval on my bus home.
For me it was Hida Kuon, from the time I started playing till it ended I was a crab guy. Loved them all. Builders deck. Scout deck. Berserker decks. Especially them. But Hida Kuon. And then maybe when Kisada came back for a bit was a good time. But for me a soft spot has to go to crab head himself, Hida Daizu, the crab who would not die. Lol loved his story and his look. He appitimised the crab for me.
On 2/13/2017 at 0:45 PM, kempy said:
One and only Chief of Chiefs.
At some point I am going to find out if O'conner still has this original
The guy who won L5R!!!
Big D himself! 
On the one hand, eff him, on the other... he kinda did, didn't he? ^^
Yoritomo Singh
I was brand new to the game, and learning about how the story part of it worked. I loved this very out of place character that obviously was not of Rokugan, what was hist story? He was the first L5R card I did some research on, I wanted to know who he was. No other card game has ever made me feel that way about the characters it portrays.
Doji Reju Exp 3 was my favorite. His card art, story, and ability were all fantastic. Him with a blade of penance was sheer dueling insanity during that arc.
Matsu Gohei and Hida Yakamo (oni). These guys were butchers. To me they epitomize lion and crab.
Edited by ZhishenPretty much any Togashi or and Bayushi.
I loved Dragon and Scorpion back in the day.
Still do.
Edited by jordanscottfat fingers
Tsuruchi and Mukami were the guys who got me really playing Yoritomo's Alliance back in the day. Loved ranged attacks ever since.
Wasp Clan for life.
Hida Kaiji was my guy. He was so impractical to use, but I loved his story and would bring him out whenever I could. It helped that at the time my playgroup had a lot Unicorn/Movement shenanigans and he could cancel those out.
4 hours ago, YasukiKaito said:Hida Kaiji was my guy. He was so impractical to use, but I loved his story and would bring him out whenever I could. It helped that at the time my playgroup had a lot Unicorn/Movement shenanigans and he could cancel those out.
What makes him impractical? I always thought of him as one of the cornerstones of a berserker deck.
Yeah... Kaiji was in no way impractical if your deck was about smashing people's provinces.
7 minutes ago, Shiba Gunichi said:Yeah... Kaiji was in no way impractical if your deck was about smashing people's provinces.
Berserkers that took Worlds in Barcelona back in 2012 were built about SH+BK+One Koku gold range (yeah, that was nasty blitz) and such guys like Kaiji were just too costy. Maybe in midgame deck...
My recollection of playing with him was that, like Kempy said, he was a bit too expensive. Once he hit the field - great! But I just found he wasn't always the most efficient. I always included him, it just seemed like he rarely saw meaningful play. Then again my recollection of this era was pretty blitzy too.
Akodo Ginawa. He and Toturi-sama had my sword from the moment I opened my Imperial Edition Lion Starter. From Lion to Toturi's Army and the Wolf Legion.
Ah, I never ran One Koku and the only times I blitzed were when I lucked into a turn one Bakari+Incense Mill.
3 hours ago, shineyorkboy said:Ah, I never ran One Koku.
Maybe because it was banned later in the same Arc. 
One Koku had been around since Crimson and Jade. It helped smooth out my gold production for Toturi's Army during the Clan War arc.
I have a few picks from different points in the chronology:
Yoritomo, for having the brass balls to challenge the great clans to either accept him as their equal or fight him.
Yasuki Hachi, for having a bunch of awesome stories. His showdown with Kaneka in particular is one of my favorites.
Daigotsu, for being an awesome villain with faith to rival that of any hero.
Michio, for the same reason.
Kakita Hideshi, for being the subject of one of my favorite tragedies. "Failure" in particular is such a great cheaper.