Hi all. The title is the main thrust of my question but I'll add in a bit more detail. Two friends and myself have each purchased a core set and will get at least one set of the expansions. One is going with Dragon/unicorn and the other is likely going Phoenix with undecided splash.

For myself I like Crab, but what would be the best splash of Crane, Lion, or Scorpion? For a further question which of those three would folks suggest that crab get splashed into? ( for maximum flexibility as a new player) Thanks in advance.

I've really enjoyed Crane splash for Crab, mainly for Political Rival. He really reinforces the theme of Strong on Defense, and covers Crab's political weakness well. He attacks pretty good, too, with covert. You can really catch people off guard if they aren't paying attention. Admit Defeat's also great for counterattacks, especially with access to covert.

Best splashes for Crab so far, IMHO:

• Unicorn for Captive Audience (shores up your Political weakness), Iuchi Wayfinder (find a safe province to poke for rings), and Spyglass (card draw is always good, and can be triggered multiple times per round with other Crab tricks)
• Crane for Political Rival (defensive, shores up political, and Covert is awesome) and maybe Admit Defeat (fun synergy with Covert effects) and/or dueling cards
• Dragon for Let Go (counters nasty attachments for cheap), Mirumoto's Fury (amazing defensive card), and Tattooed Wanderer (I just love Covert).

Crab splashes nicely into any clan that wants to dishonor their opponents, such as Scorpion or Phoenix (Watch Commander is the main card for this) or any clan that really wants to keep their big characters on the board longer and get multiple uses out of them, such as Dragon (Reprieve and Mountain Does Not Fall are the main cards here). You can also do some tricky things with Holdings and Rebuild in the right deck.

If you're just doing the core set only, then I think Unicorn is the front runner for best splash, but, any of the previous suggestions are fine.

If you're bringing in dynasty packs, then I think Scorpion (for Backhanded Compliment) might be the best all around splash for Crab, as this allows you to attack your opponent's honor as well as their provinces.

Firstly, I'd encourage your friend to not go Dragon/Unicorn (not really best option for dragon) and go Unicorn.

If you can't go Unicorn...Crane is pretty good for all the reasons above...I like the Duel cards for hand mill and bow tech, especially in less than 3 core.

Get yourself a copy of KIRADA DISTRICT and go beat the pants off of your friend, take all the Dragon attachments.

Dishonor is just not as consistent as I'd like in less than 3 core, so Scorpion and BACKHANDED COMPLIMENT is good but not as good as it would be when coupled with 3x WATCH COMMANDER and maybe 3x LEVY.

Unicorn is actually a pretty decent splash for Dragon. Spyglass, Wayfinder, Favored Mount, Gaijin Customs helps make sure their super units can scout provinces, get into as many conflicts as possible, and keep those units unbowed.

It's not the most interesting build but it can get pretty frustrating for your opponent to see the same guy in 4 battles and not be able to do anything against him.

@kraken78 Wait what? Unicorn is top splash for Dragon xd

Spyglass is one of the best non neutral attachments in the game if not the best so it easily finds home in attachment clan especially considering the fact that they can trigger it multiple times on their own with unbow tech and niten master.

Favored mount is very good too.

15 hours ago, kraken78 said:

Firstly, I'd encourage your friend to not go Dragon/Unicorn (not really best option for dragon) and go Unicorn.

Friends don't let friends play Unicorn.

9 hours ago, twinstarbmc said:

Friends don't let friends play Unicorn.

Not as the primary faction. They're great to influence in - almost all of Unicorn's good cards are in the Conflict Deck.