To be honest, I was not all too interested in L5R until the announcement article came up. But, when it did I was greatly impressed with almost every aspect of the game. I was not really around for the previous L5R, but the continuing story appealed to me. I tried Destiny, but the ccg model was not something that was for me (can’t spend a lot of money hoping to get something). Since L5R is a lcg, I feel that I will take a far better liking to it. Also, I like that each clan has a distinctive playstyle and since it is a lcg, I can try out a variety of clans. I understand that with the ccg you had to focus on mainly one clan, but approaching this without having the L5R background I can say that I am looking forward to utilizing the lcg model to the fullest. What do you other first time L5R people think? Would have rather had it still be a ccg, or do you think the lcg is a better idea? Also, what clans are you looking forward to trying? I gotta say Crab has grabbed my attention the most with Lion and Dragon close behind.

I strongly prefer the LCG model, having done the CCG model with MTG for years and then Netrunner in the past year. For those that like the rarity aspect of a CCG, there will still be alternative art promo cards to get a hold of and gloat over.

As for clans, I'm looking forward to trying all of them, as I'm a bit torn right now. I love the sound of Phoenix, but it's one of my least favorite art styles. I like the art style of Crane, Crab, and Unicorn, but the gameplay doesn't sound as "me" as Phoenix does. As for Dragon, Scorpion, and Lion, I'm not keen on the art style or the gameplay description... However, I will still test them out and reserve the right to change my mind.

LCG over CCG any day of the week. No worries about finding the cards you need. It easy to be able to play different decks/clans for the fun of it or to teach the game. The only uphill is the whole core set for completionists but in the end is minor stuff compared to usual CCG PITAs.

LCG will impact in Clan Loyalty for many newcomers. But for me, Clan Loyalty goes beyond game mechanics. If FFG were to screw the Unicorn, or Utaku, lore with someting I could find anatema (and I can be quite open minded), I would go Lion instead. The Lion is also a military clan but I could care less about their lore, which would prevent future lore anatemas.

I will play everything at least once as I did in the CCG. For fun and as a learning experience. But unless FFG prevents it form happening, I will be mostly doing "sightseeing" with my honorable horses in other clans' provinces.

3 minutes ago, Wintersong said:

LCG will impact in Clan Loyalty for many newcomers. But for me, Clan Loyalty goes beyond game mechanics. If FFG were to screw the Unicorn, or Utaku, lore with someting I could find anatema (and I can be quite open minded), I would go Lion instead. The Lion is also a military clan but I could care less about their lore, which would prevent future lore anatemas.

Wasn't a lot of the AEG lore anathema to the basic tenets of L5R? (not that I mind, because diffrences create conflict, suspence)

Scorpion betray the Emperor while their one redeeming quality is loyalty. Crab ally with the Shadowlands against the Empire while they swore to defend it. Crane always provide brides to the Emperor. Didn't marry a single Emperor during the storyline. Etc.

I undestand your point though, Utaku wielding double crossbows or Asahina with muskets would also rattle my feathers.

12 minutes ago, Mig el Pig said:

Scorpion betray the Emperor while their one redeeming quality is loyalty. Crab ally with the Shadowlands against the Empire while they swore to defend it. Crane always provide brides to the Emperor. Didn't marry a single Emperor during the storyline. Etc.

As long as that kind of stuff is a point, sometimes quite big, in the story and not a straight line but overwrites everything else, I would not mind them that much. Not that stuff like Crab trying to use the Shadowlands made much sense to us but for Kisada seemed a lesser evil at the time and it did not become the norm for the Crab.

I have more of an issue with anachronism (since we are using the big words). i.e King Arthur wearing sunglasses and talking on an iPhone.

16 minutes ago, Mig el Pig said:

Scorpion betray the Emperor while their one redeeming quality is loyalty. Crab ally with the Shadowlands against the Empire while they swore to defend it.

Both were written as them doing what they thought was their duty to the Empire, justified that they by acting this way was better for the Empire instead of the status quo. That being said, there were external influences trying to achieve these goals. Shoju was being affected by the bloodsword Ambition, and Kisada was convinced by Kuni Yori (A corrupted villain), to go down the routes they did.

I'm coming back after over a decade's hiatus because of the LCG format.

I'm also a prospective L5R LCG player and I am *extremely* excited.

Being crazy for all things samurai, I desperately wanted to like the CCG, but found it really, really lacking on multiple fronts.

I bought a couple of starter decks at the end of Celestial Edition to give the game a whirl. It's a funny thing, when I was making this purchase, the owner of the hobby store mentioned he *use* to be a huge L5R fan. He then proceeded to go on a 30 minute tirade about what a terrible company AEG was to work with. (Which was funny to listen to.) He also mentioned it was really hard for him to get new customers for L5R because the game had nine+ factions that didn't interact (so the probability of pulling usable cards from packs was low) and, also, the cards didn't hold their value well at all.

I eventually convinced a friend to play with me, and we found it was a very weak game from a mechanics standpoint. There were all sorts of clunky mechanics (honor requirements, focus values, etc.) and it just felt 'dated' (especially the resource system). In general, I found the game to be more complicated than it needed to be (loads of useless keywords, strange technical wordings for abilities, etc). I continued collecting the cards for a time, but never played again.

The CCG format is just terrible. I've read some tortured explanations on why CCG is preferable for some players, but for 99.9% of players, the LCG format is better. (Really, 100%, because the influx of additional players will improve the longevity and quality of the game for everyone). There are so many quality games out there these days, you can't expect customers to drop $1,000s on a single game.

After reading the L5R LCG articles, it looks like they have addressed all my concerns with the game (including some I haven't stated here) and I'm really hoping it is as fun to play as it looks!

I've been a pretty dedicated L5R fan for a while, and I think that the LCG switch is great! I was never able to sink a bunch of money going after those chase rares, and then coming up against someone in a Kotei with a $600 deck and getting stomped was incredibly frustrating. So I'm really excited for this format, it has made me really excited to play again. I think they've addressed some of the clunkier mechanics of Old5R while maintaining the deep tactical considerations of the game (from what we've seen so far). In the new model I think most people will still have their primary clan(s) and play around with others occasionally. I'll always play Crab 1st/Lion 2nd, and then fiddle with some of the others based on mechanics or characters that I like.

Also - go with the Crab! Clearly better than all those other wimpy clans...

9 minutes ago, YasukiKaito said:

in a Kotei with a $600 deck

???

1 minute ago, kempy said:

???

When you backed your decks with cash directly.

To be fair, most CCGs were far cheaper to be competitive in than Magic. There was almost no secondary market. At most, chase rares in L5R were $15-$20, and you could usually just borrow them from a friend for a Kotei. I suppose if you were running 3 copies of 10 different chase rares, that would get the price of your deck up that high.

That may have been a bit of an exaggeration, but I remember quite a few cards going for a pretty penny in Ivory (unsettling gathering in particular I seem to remember being really expensive):

https://imperialassembly.com/oracle/#cardid=10711,#hashid=f1992feb6d7149817688dfe0866800b1,#cardcount=1

https://imperialassembly.com/oracle/#cardid=10718,#hashid=66a099c9358a74a0c34fc76c142a0911,#cardcount=73

https://imperialassembly.com/oracle/#cardid=9933,#hashid=66a099c9358a74a0c34fc76c142a0911,#cardcount=72

Nothing compared to:

http://imperialassembly.com/oracle/#cardid=10607

http://imperialassembly.com/oracle/#cardid=10826

http://imperialassembly.com/oracle/#cardid=12078

True!!! Jade Pearl Inn in particular!

2 minutes ago, YasukiKaito said:

True!!! Jade Pearl Inn in particular!

Yeah, the run on Ivory Edition Mantis Starters was crazy.

Ok, maybe it's a matter of place/environment but i've never seen something that abstract as 600$ L5R deck in my life. A really chase rares here costed here maximum 18-20$ (like Doomed Intensions) and that even didn't matter, becasue at Koteis everyone played his dream deck because of community.

PS. I counted, and i even didn't spent half of this money during whole Ivory to build my Lion collection (i mean all cards required to build most competetive Lion decks for this time).

7 minutes ago, Kakita Shiro said:

Yeah, the run on Ivory Edition Mantis Starters was crazy.

JPI was also in Siege: HoD AFAIR.

5 minutes ago, kempy said:

JPI was also in Siege: HoD AFAIR.

I think so too, but by then the JPI Rush of 2014 was more or less over.

MTG will be the only CCG I ever play again. I have a huge collection, don't have to spend much anymore to play because I mostly play modern,legacy and EDH.

LCGs are more to my liking, I'm not looking to invest in cards. I just want a continuously changing card game that's fun to play , has a great storyline and looks good.

I can tell you right now that for the cost of one of my Modern MTG decks you can buy ever card in L5R for probably the next 5 years.

I would not be surprise if the LCG of L5R gets a surge of new players from the anime/manga fandom communities. esp those that are fans of samurai/wuxia and Asian culture. Anime Conventions might be FFG's friend.

I mean, that art and card presentation is outstanding IMO; its like my eyes are getting a visual massage just looking at it. lol

I'm really looking forward to the new game despite it being an LCG. Opening packs that you win at major tournaments was one of the best feelings! For me, L5R LCG will be way more expensive than L5R CCG ever was... But I've already said as much in multiple places so I won't go in to it again.

I'm excited to see how FFG is going to handle story prizes in the new game as well.

There's just so much to be excited for! haha

The ONLY issue I have with the LCG model is that, when I lose, I KNOW it's entirely my fault, either in the deck building or the playing, and NOT because I just don't have the chase rares to make the deck work.

26 minutes ago, twinstarbmc said:

The ONLY issue I have with the LCG model is that, when I lose, I KNOW it's entirely my fault, either in the deck building or the playing, and NOT because I just don't have the chase rares to make the deck work.

Cuz it's so hard to acquire cards. Whatever. Gd players can win without chase rares in their decks. Just sayin.

I was very skeptical of the idea of LCGs before trying one. Now that I have, I think it'll be a fine switch. To me, LCG meant a smaller, simpler game, with less frequent releases and fewer cards available. I don't know where I got that preconception, but that's what I honestly thought.

To be fair though, L5R was never that difficult to collect if you had a diverse playgroup. Everyone that I ever played with would swap clan rares freely back and forth. It wasn't until the arcs I wasn't really active for that basic holdings became chase rares.

I'm very excited with the previews we've seen so far, and I hope I can teach the game to a slew of new players. I think that there are enough little decision points to make the game deep enough for people like me who loved the depth of the old game, but without any one mistake feeling so punishing to new players that they can't get into it.