Probably do what i did in AGoT 2nd. One main faction/clan/house that always has a deck built then rotate around the others for the second deck.

46 minutes ago, Jedi samurai said:

probably pretty close, if not right on. L5R even has the perfect system to deliver neutral characters - Ronin.

Not sure if you'll be forced to have a province for each ring though.

I'd agree that you might not be forced to have a province for each ring though. It seems reasonable both to make deck-building easy for "casuals" and for assuring game balance but having provinces centered around one or two rings might be an advantage or strategy. One Clan will want a particular ring and other clans will want to split it up adding to flavoring the clans and even from keeping all the decks in a clan from being the same.

The LCG model makes it economical to play any clan you'd like whenever you'd care to throw that deck together compared to boxes of blind boosters and artificial scarcity designed to make you buy more packs.

13 minutes ago, Frimmel said:

I'd agree that you might not be forced to have a province for each ring though. It seems reasonable both to make deck-building easy for "casuals" and for assuring game balance but having provinces centered around one or two rings might be an advantage or strategy. One Clan will want a particular ring and other clans will want to split it up adding to flavoring the clans and even from keeping all the decks in a clan from being the same.

The LCG model makes it economical to play any clan you'd like whenever you'd care to throw that deck together compared to boxes of blind boosters and artificial scarcity designed to make you buy more packs.

I'm wondering if next week's article might mention something about the Rings on the provinces, as I suspect they may figure into conflicts. Something like, once one of your provinces breaks, you can no longer gain the benefits of that Ring (though you could still declare conflicts of the Ring's type)? Or maybe a Ring's benefits are enhanced if you break a province of the same type as the Ring?

This is pure speculation, of course, but given how prominent the Rings are in the LCG, it doesn't seem too much of a stretch to expect the province Rings to affect them somehow. Maybe we'll find out next week when they talk about conflicts!

Maybe, but in the AMA they said that the purpose of the rings on the bottom of provinces would "come up in the deck building article", which is why I think it will be 1 of each. Otherwise, why would it wait for the deck building article, and the only sensible deckbuilding thing to me is 1 of each ring.

That said, the person responding in the AMA could have been wrong, or I could be misremembering their answer (more likely the latter).

Edit: That would also mean we probably have 40 provinces in this set, 5 per clan and 5 neutral.

If the province rings had relevance during gameplay I would expect the actual icons to be much bigger, its not like they're lacking in space. As they are right now I imagine it would be pretty hard to figure out which ring each province of your opponent's is tied to at a glance.

9 minutes ago, profparm said:

Edit: That would also mean we probably have 40 provinces in this set, 5 per clan and 5 neutral.

Currently, the hints we have point to 17 provinces in the core set, 1 per clan and 10 neutral with 2 neutral per element.

8 minutes ago, GoblinGuide said:

If the province rings had relevance during gameplay I would expect the actual icons to be much bigger, its not like they're lacking in space. As they are right now I imagine it would be pretty hard to figure out which ring each province of your opponent's is tied to at a glance.

And it would probably near the top, where it would not be hidden by the Dynasty cards in the province.

1 hour ago, Frimmel said:

I'd agree that you might not be forced to have a province for each ring though. It seems reasonable both to make deck-building easy for "casuals" and for assuring game balance but having provinces centered around one or two rings might be an advantage or strategy. One Clan will want a particular ring and other clans will want to split it up adding to flavoring the clans and even from keeping all the decks in a clan from being the same.

The LCG model makes it economical to play any clan you'd like whenever you'd care to throw that deck together compared to boxes of blind boosters and artificial scarcity designed to make you buy more packs.

I would think it would be easier for new players to just pick the best provinces and not worry about having 1 of each.

58 minutes ago, profparm said:

Maybe, but in the AMA they said that the purpose of the rings on the bottom of provinces would "come up in the deck building article", which is why I think it will be 1 of each. Otherwise, why would it wait for the deck building article, and the only sensible deckbuilding thing to me is 1 of each ring.

That said, the person responding in the AMA could have been wrong, or I could be misremembering their answer (more likely the latter).

Edit: That would also mean we probably have 40 provinces in this set, 5 per clan and 5 neutral.

Its a reasonable assumption (about the provinces) or maybe you can't have 3 or more provinces with the same ring.

Picking the best is harder than picking one each, though. Because first you'd need to define best.

8 minutes ago, Jedi samurai said:

I would think it would be easier for new players to just pick the best provinces and not worry about having 1 of each.

I think the issue becomes how a new player knows which province is best. With a limitation of having to represent each ring then they don't have to pick the best five from twenty or whatever (don't know the distrubution of provinces and ring symbols) but the "best" of three earth provinces. Much easier that way since in games like this "best" is often very much a "what are you trying to do?"

3 minutes ago, Myrion said:

Picking the best is harder than picking one each, though. Because first you'd need to define best.

My point exactly!

2 hours ago, Jedi samurai said:

what was it about Mantis that attracted you?

That's such a hard question. It took me a while of playing the RPG and the CCG to actually pick a faction at all. But at some point during the Emperor Edition, my favourite decks ended up being a Kitsune honour and a Moshi shugenja deck, and when I ended up playing a Yoritomo Courtier in Winter Court IV and spend some time to really absorb all the fluff and get into the Yoritomo family mentality, it just sort of clicked.

There's a pleasant sort of anarchy they have going for them as a family. And at least in theory the Mantis were in a kind of an underdog position amongst the Great Clans, which made me want to root for them. In practice, the story kind of heavily favoured them regardless, but eh. I liked the concept of a family of drunken brawlers and mercenaries forcing itself to adapt to their new status as a leading Great Clan family while still mostly keeping their roots. I like their aesthetics, and c'mon, there's something romantic about sailors.

So at first I was just attracted to how they played in the ccg, and then I slowly started drifting towards liking the Yoritomo family itself. I don't think there's any single factor that made me identify as a Mantis, though.

5 hours ago, Wintersong said:

Going by bloodlines:

Fox -- Unicorn

As a Kitsune/Mantis Player, I take issue with this.

While I find the Unicorn community more tolerant and agreeable* than some of the other Clans, the playstyles do not mesh at all. We have normally been a very defense oriented Minor Clan/Family**, that does better messing with your movement than doing our own movement tricks.

Water based Military vs Earth defensive Honor.

Now many of us have played other Mantis Military decks in addition to playing our beloved Kitsune, but Naval and countless Ranged attacks are still a far cry from going unopposed on a horsie.

Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against the Unicorn. But as a Kitsune player, I find that I have no interest in running that deck yet.

*Notable exception when I have put Clan armor on a poo-flinging monkey.

**Pay no attention to my Elephant Cavalry about to take your province.

I believe Wintersong was jokingly referring to the actual bloodlines of the clans. As in, "You should play Unicorn because Fox are of the Unicorn bloodline".

39 minutes ago, Smobey said:

I believe Wintersong was jokingly referring to the actual bloodlines of the clans. As in, "You should play Unicorn because Fox are of the Unicorn bloodline".

Yep.

I don't believe the LCG model will impact clan loyalty per se, but it will certainly reveal whose commitment during the CCG era was one of circumstance rather than true conviction. It speaks more to one's devotion if he or she should remain steadfast despite the opportunity to break fealty.

1 hour ago, Myrion said:

Picking the best is harder than picking one each, though. Because first you'd need to define best.

No - picking the best might 4 fire provinces.

50 minutes ago, Jedi samurai said:

No - picking the best might 4 fire provinces.

Well you're agreeing with him. You have to define what is "best."

Going by some of the things MtG designer Roeswater talks about a new player looking at cards for the first time doesn't necessarily know which cards are "The Best" or how those "best" go or don't go with other cards they want to play. By making the player bring one of each ring the designers help them with the understanding and learning and decisions.

This is entirely aside from the helping keep the game balanced considerations.

Another reason it might be having to have one of each is the whole game being named Legend of the Five Rings. When looked at like that I'm pretty sure you're going to need one province of each.

1 hour ago, Frimmel said:

Well you're agreeing with him. You have to define what is "best."

Going by some of the things MtG designer Roeswater talks about a new player looking at cards for the first time doesn't necessarily know which cards are "The Best" or how those "best" go or don't go with other cards they want to play. By making the player bring one of each ring the designers help them with the understanding and learning and decisions.

This is entirely aside from the helping keep the game balanced considerations.

Another reason it might be having to have one of each is the whole game being named Legend of the Five Rings. When looked at like that I'm pretty sure you're going to need one province of each.

it is very possible and not a bad assumption.

However, historically, each clan has been linked to 1 Ring/Element (Crab - Earth, Crane - Air, Lion - Water, Scorpion - Air, Unicorn - Water. Dragon could be Earth and/or Fire, Phoenix...if you want make them special, Void). Maybe each Clan has to pick provinces that match their clans Ring/Element affinity.

11 minutes ago, Jedi samurai said:

it is very possible and not a bad assumption.

However, historically, each clan has been linked to 1 Ring/Element (Crab - Earth, Crane - Air, Lion - Water, Scorpion - Air, Unicorn - Water. Dragon could be Earth and/or Fire, Phoenix...if you want make them special, Void). Maybe each Clan has to pick provinces that match their clans Ring/Element affinity.

In that case, perhaps (pure speculation alert!) each Clan will only have Clan-specific provinces with those rings? And they'd have to use neutral Provinces for the other rings?

13 minutes ago, Jedi samurai said:

it is very possible and not a bad assumption.

However, historically, each clan has been linked to 1 Ring/Element (Crab - Earth, Crane - Air, Lion - Water, Scorpion - Air, Unicorn - Water. Dragon could be Earth and/or Fire, Phoenix...if you want make them special, Void). Maybe each Clan has to pick provinces that match their clans Ring/Element affinity.

Dragon could also be Void.

25 minutes ago, Kakita Shiro said:

Dragon could also be Void.

Historically, Dragon Shugenja and Monks are mostly (not exclusive - and more diversity with the monks) Earth and Fire.

I think keeping void unique to Phoenix, to show their superior mastery, would make sense. If Void is unique, or maybe the neutral element, Phoenix would be fire.

Quote

"It is said that if you know your enemies and know yourself, you will not be imperiled in a hundred battles; if you do not know your enemies but do know yourself, you will win one and lose one; if you do not know your enemies nor yourself, you will be imperiled in every single battle."

Sun Tzu says to play all the clans... for research purposes...

It's sound advice, if you are the competitive sort...

2 minutes ago, slowreflex said:

Sun Tzu says to play all the clans... for research purposes...

It's sound advice, if you are the competitive sort...

Yes, but who wants to play Lion? They are a silly clan.

19 minutes ago, slowreflex said:

Sun Tzu says to play all the clans... for research purposes...

It's sound advice, if you are the competitive sort...

It is good advice for anyone that has the proper card pool. I suggest it to anyone interested in the game.

1 hour ago, Wintersong said:

It is good advice for anyone that has the proper card pool. I suggest it to anyone interested in the game.

Sun Tzu was the figure whose advice first led me to the Unicorn upon learning the game. Of course, that was back when the Unicorn could literally take the path of least resistance every time; now, not so much, and the game is all the better for it. ?

3 hours ago, Jedi samurai said:

it is very possible and not a bad assumption.

However, historically, each clan has been linked to 1 Ring/Element (Crab - Earth, Crane - Air, Lion - Water, Scorpion - Air, Unicorn - Water. Dragon could be Earth and/or Fire, Phoenix...if you want make them special, Void). Maybe each Clan has to pick provinces that match their clans Ring/Element affinity.

The fact that it seems very likely that there are only 17 Provinces in the core set makes this theory unlikely.

Edit: Or it would just mean that we would have to take multiples of the same provinces. It seems a bit weird to me but still possible I guess.