I'd be surprised if Kamoko was a 5 cost card, especially at this point in the storyline. Part of her appeal back in the day was that she was low-cost (for a Unicorn, anyway). You could bring her out first turn and then use her to take an undefended province on turn 2. I'd expect her to be a 3 fate or so when she first shows up.

I'm thinking 5s are mostly going to be clan champions, daimyos, elemental masters, and others of that "tier."

1 hour ago, L5RBr said:

Someone discover if this is true please!

We want it, we need it..

So the Unicorn will be:

F 5 M 2 P 2 G 3

Action: Give your opponent 5 Fate - move this character into battle.

Action: Give your opponent 5 Honor - move this character home, bowed and dishonored.

Seems to be in tha same power curve than the Lion guy.

1 minute ago, Ryric said:

I'd be surprised if Kamoko was a 5 cost card, especially at this point in the storyline. Part of her appeal back in the day was that she was low-cost (for a Unicorn, anyway). You could bring her out first turn and then use her to take an undefended province on turn 2.

Back when non uniques were named, though.

1 minute ago, Wintersong said:

Back when non uniques were named, though.

Good point. I find I actually like it more that they are not all named. Makes the difference between the grunts and the heroes.

6 hours ago, kpsmith said:

I hope not since he hasn't received any story time yet. I also think we have someone else stirring the pot between the Crane and Lion.

I'm pretty sure that he's in the rulebook fiction, and was the one who got the letter about Kuwanan's capture.

2 hours ago, Nitenman said:

Good point. I find I actually like it more that they are not all named. Makes the difference between the grunts and the heroes.

Yeah but I hope a lot of them will be 2 to 3 cost. If nearly every daimyo and major character is a 4 to 5 cost how many will we have on the field at the same time.

34 minutes ago, Tonbo Karasu said:

I'm pretty sure that he's in the rulebook fiction, and was the one who got the letter about Kuwanan's capture.

That was Eiji. I don't think Ujiaki has been mentioned before in this timeline.

18 minutes ago, KerenRhys said:

That was Eiji. I don't think Ujiaki has been mentioned before in this timeline.

Tonbo Karasu, the guy who manages the Imperial Census thread above, has Ujiaki listed. That means he must have either appeared or been mentioned in at least one story fiction.

Was he mentioned in the Unicorn fiction?

I think I might need to revisit the census at some point to say which stories people are in...

I still don't put it past Ujiaki, daimyo of the Lion sneaky family, to be behind it though.

Thinking about it a little more about it, I think he was mentioned in the post-GenCon story, the one with Tadaji and Ishikawa.

Anakazu is the Ikoma daimyo though, not Ujiaki.

8 hours ago, Tonbo Karasu said:

I think I might need to revisit the census at some point to say which stories people are in...

I still don't put it past Ujiaki, daimyo of the Lion sneaky family, to be behind it though.

The fiction library thread has already characters listed by story.

Ujiaki appeared by reference in A Most Suitable Teacher, the story decision fiction after Kiku Matsuri.

On ‎10‎/‎27‎/‎2017 at 2:10 PM, kpsmith said:

I think the 5-cost characters help define a deck's theme. With Isawa Kaede, she supports the shugenja theme for the Phoenix. With Kakita Yoshi, he supports the courtier theme for the Crane. Its quite clear that Tsukune and Kaede fill different roles, as does Hotaru and Yoshi. Alternatively, the new 5-cost characters could support the conflict type the clan otherwise is not focused on but that's doubtful and may be used in a future cycle. So, looking forward, here are some of my ideas for the remaining clans:

Crab: Yasuki Taka

Crab could benefit from something that steers away from their sacrifice theme. I would suggest Taka, who would fill a courtier roll and possibly push a dishonor theme.

Dragon: Mirumoto Masashige

Ideally, Masashige would strengthen the attachment theme for the Dragon which Yokuni does not interact with.

Lion: Matsu Tsuko

While Toturi helps you win MORE in military, I think Tsuko could serve to help you win your military conflicts period.

Scorpion: Bayushi Kachiko

I think the popular vote would be for Bayushi Kachiko. Already, Bayushi Shoju is one of the deadliest characters in the Scorpion's portfolio. What could she do? I'm thinking she could have the Imperial keyword similar to Yoshi and use the Imperial Favor in a new way.

Unicorn: Ide Tadaji

I'm not experienced enough with Unicorn, but I hear they are good politically. Tadaji would serve well to support the political conflict.

My Lion assessment was off, but my Scorpion assessment was on. So far, 3/4 correct. I wonder who the 5-cost Dragon will be?

46 minutes ago, kpsmith said:

My Lion assessment was off, but my Scorpion assessment was on. So far, 3/4 correct. I wonder who the 5-cost Dragon will be?

Leaks say Agasha Sumiko, the Ruby Champion. Reliability is up in the air.

19 minutes ago, Saibot said:

Leaks say Agasha Sumiko, the Ruby Champion. Reliability is up in the air.

I really, *really* hope this one is false, but I have a feeling it's true.

Supposedly, Sumiko is a 5 cost 4/4/1 Bushi (wtf?!) that does not bow during conflict resolution when it's attacking if you control the favor.

That could be a good card in a vacuum, especially with some other cards that keep it from bowing as a defender / unbow it.

However: This is absolutely not what Dragon needs. We need a 3+ cost Monk that has good stats and / or a genuinely useful ability that doesn't require a lot of setup to be worth using.

Sumiko would be a lot better as a Shugenja, at least, since I feel we'll have to run 3x Cloud the Mind with all of the crazy-powerful character abilities in Crane, Lion, Phoenix and Scorpion. Making her a Bushi...ugh. Also, flavor-wise, it's aggravating that many clans are getting some of their iconic characters (Kachiko, Kaede, Taka, Ujiaki), Tadaji - though I'm sure most Unicorn players would rather that sub-pat card wasn't Tadaji), and Dragon doesn't.

I want to see Hitomi, but she's not really important enough at this point in the story to warrant a card...?

Don't forget it's only a matter of time until the deluxe boxes start dropping. I'm sure we'll see alot of the big names in there. I'm actually surprised (pleasantly) that Kachiko is in the dynasty packs. Perhaps this means that a dynasty version of her will be in a deluxe. Yakamo, Toshimoko, Hitomi, Tsuko, Tadaka, Aramoro, & Kamoko are huge names in the old days that if we don't see in the first run of dynasty packs I'd be surprised to not see them in the first deluxe. Maybe it will be called "Test of the Emerald Champion" or something like that and drop all the participants from the great clans? Granted it'll be unlikely that Tadaka would be chosen as a contender for Emerald Champion if that'd be the case.

I'm still thinking the first deluxe will be about the Coup.

1 hour ago, Ser Nakata said:

I'm still thinking the first deluxe will be about the Coup.

Black Scrolls.

I've heard that the deluxe sets will simply be pure single-can based, starting with Phoenix.

I hope not, as I feel that's an absolutely terrible way to go.

3 hours ago, Togashi Gao Shan said:

I've heard that the deluxe sets will simply be pure single-can based, starting with Phoenix.

I hope not, as I feel that's an absolutely terrible way to go.

In AGoT, the deluxes are Faction-based. But each Deluxe also has cards from each other faction. For example, Wolves of the North, thee Stark deluxe box, had 24 Stark cards, 2 cards from each other faction, and the rest were Neutrals.

I guess they could follow that model. Doesn't mean the first isn't about the Scorpion Clan Coup. We could get a lot of Scorpions and a few cards from other clans, as each Clan has its part to play in the Coup.

It could also be about the Day of Thunder, but I think that one will be further down the line.

Did everyone see Kachiko?

4 hours ago, Togashi Gao Shan said:

I've heard that the deluxe sets will simply be pure single-can based, starting with Phoenix.

I hope not, as I feel that's an absolutely terrible way to go.

I'd prefer i if they went the Netrunner route; have two Clans with some thematic conflict tying them together.

A Lion/Crane Deluxe box themed around Toshi Ranbo, for instance. Include some splash cards from the other Clans if needed.

4 hours ago, Togashi Gao Shan said:

I've heard that the deluxe sets will simply be pure single-can based, starting with Phoenix.

I hope not, as I feel that's an absolutely terrible way to go.

If they're anything like Thrones (which they probably will be) the expansion will be 52 cards (times 3) with about half the cards going toward the featured clan, 2 each going to the other clans, and the rest neutrals/provinces. L5R currently has fewer factions than Thrones, so there may be a 3rd card for each of the factions... or if neutral non-clans like naga or shadowlands are a thing, the first set could lean its neutrals in those directions.

Single faction focus for deluxe boxes is a great way to go for the model and is good for new players who don't want to do the 3x core immediately. It also doesn't shift the competitive meta all that much. Phoenix will have more options, but you won't see them dominating the tournament scene unless the hard core faction loyal players all play the new cards and forget about other, stronger builds. The downside is if your preferred clan is at the back of the release schedule, you may be waiting a couple of years for your box.

1 hour ago, Mangod said:

I'd prefer i if they went the Netrunner route; have two Clans with some thematic conflict tying them together.

A Lion/Crane Deluxe box themed around Toshi Ranbo, for instance. Include some splash cards from the other Clans if needed.

Ugh, no thank you. While I appreciate the flavor and thematic aspects of this idea, I absolutely despise the affects on gameplay, meta (gods I hate that word), and overall good will this would have. There's already so much division and derision about how certain clans are performing better than others. Sure, it'll make two clans better, but I think it would make everything else worse.