7 minutes ago, Taki said:

I still think it should be the Dragon who get the naga, as it was mirumoto daini who brought them back

Sure...in the old lore. Don't see any Mirumoto working with the naga in the new lore.

10 minutes ago, Taki said:

I still think it should be the Dragon who get the naga, as it was mirumoto daini who brought them back

Technically, we do not know if Mirumoto Daini exists yet, nor the Mara. But even if they both do, they would not have met for another 3 years, as it was Toturi who sent Daini to the Naga to make contact with them, after the formation of Toturi's Army (which was payrolled and backed by the Dragon Clan in the lead up to the Battle at Beiden Pass).

Furthermore, we are going to see Naga mostly as Neutral or Unicorn due to the daughter of the Akasha in the Old Lore being the Unicorn Clan Champion at the end of the AEG story. The Naga were going to come back as a full faction, Stronghold and all, in Onyx Edition, which means that FFG bought a TON of art assets with the purchase of the game which can be used for Naga.

Honestly, I would not be surprised if we saw a Naga Stronghold before we saw a Shadowlands Horde Stronghold (but I would be more surprised if a Support of the Shadowlands Role did not come out before either).

Just now, Kaito Kikaze said:

Sure...in the old lore. Don't see any Mirumoto working with the naga in the new lore.

I'm not saying that it's not canon now, I'm arguing that it should be because of that original history

Either way though, I'll be playing naga come what may

4 minutes ago, sndwurks said:

Honestly, I would not be surprised if we saw a Naga Stronghold before we saw a Shadowlands Horde Stronghold (but I would be more surprised if a Support of the Shadowlands Role did not come out before either).

Oooooooooooooo.... Naga...... ?

Rokugan is becoming more interesting by the day....

So, the Game Trade article gave enough interesting hints and things to at least start info on about a dozen cards. However, there were assumptions:

• The way they talk about the Mantis has convinced me that there will be one in every pack, fixed to the element role, with Yoritomo in the 6th.
• The Master Alchemist could be the Dragon's Fire Shugenja... or maybe not. I may have one too many.
• The Shugenja mentioned in the Water and Void packs are too vague to be worth identifying.

I'm currently going to say that the Unicorn spell is an Attachment to either a Province or your Stronghold.

There was a rumored fire spell attachment for Unicorn which allowed you to lose one honor and move to another character, and then the character it moved to lost 1 fate. If the rumor is true, that would fit the vague description in the article.

22 minutes ago, Kaito Kikaze said:

There was a rumored fire spell attachment for Unicorn which allowed you to lose one honor and move to another character, and then the character it moved to lost 1 fate. If the rumor is true, that would fit the vague description in the article.

It had better be a good Attachment if it costs you both an honor AND a Fate on a Character. That already puts it as worse than Shinjo Saddle for prohibitive cost.

1 hour ago, Tonbo Karasu said:

• The Master Alchemist could be the Dragon's Fire Shugenja... or maybe not. I may have one too many.

That is my guess also. I believe he/she is from the Agasha family, like the Agasha Swordsmith. From the new RPG Beta:

Quote

The Agasha Family

Ring Increase: +1 Fire

Skill Increases: +1 Medicine, +1 Smithing

The Agasha are ever evolving: Founded by a pacifist, they have become militant. Once devoted to mysticism, they now combine it with the practical arts. Yet, perhaps change is only to be expected among the families of the Dragon. The Agasha have delved deeply into alchemy, metallurgy, and medicine. They blend the practical effects of chemistry and construction with the mystical effects of calling the spirits. It is a unique approach, and one that leads to the occasional spectacular disaster. However, they are rarely disheartened, as they often learn more from failure than they do from success.

1 hour ago, sndwurks said:

It had better be a good Attachment if it costs you both an honor AND a Fate on a Character. That already puts it as worse than Shinjo Saddle for prohibitive cost.

Unless you move it onto an opposing character.

4 minutes ago, Schmoozies said:

Unless you move it onto an opposing character.

Yeah, it sounds like that could just be the point, you keep moving it to your opponent's characters with 2+ fate to drain their board state.

5 minutes ago, Schmoozies said:

Unless you move it onto an opposing character.

If it's a good Attachment, it's already doing that thanks to Calling in Favors or Karada District.

1 minute ago, sndwurks said:

If it's a good Attachment, it's already doing that thanks to Calling in Favors or Karada District.

I meant the intention being lose and honor, move the attachment to an opposing character and they lose the fate. But yes I can potentially see where it could be bandied around a lot like a dishonor hot potato.

4 hours ago, Mangod said:

What're the odds of the Lion getting an actual living Kitsu?

If the designers have their wits about them regarding the lore, 0%.

Just now, Schmoozies said:

I meant the intention being lose and honor, move the attachment to an opposing character and they lose the fate. But yes I can potentially see where it could be bandied around a lot like a dishonor hot potato.

I actually doubt that. Unicorn Clan presently have a Character (Giver of Gifts) and an Attachment (Shinjo Saddle) which pass around the Attachments in a positive way. They have little in the way of cross-board control, which is something that the Scorpion (Fiery Madness) and the Crab (Pit Trap) have shown, with the Phoenix showing some odd Attachment shenanigans. Having a debuffing Attachment that is passed around the opponent does not fit within the current model of the Unicorn, so I doubt it will be something like that.

I expect it to be something like Born in War, and to cost 2 Fate, get bigger with how many Conflicts are declared in a given Round, and probably eat a Fate or an Honor (or both) when you move it to another Unicorn.

3 minutes ago, sndwurks said:

I actually doubt that. Unicorn Clan presently have a Character (Giver of Gifts) and an Attachment (Shinjo Saddle) which pass around the Attachments in a positive way. They have little in the way of cross-board control, which is something that the Scorpion (Fiery Madness) and the Crab (Pit Trap) have shown, with the Phoenix showing some odd Attachment shenanigans. Having a debuffing Attachment that is passed around the opponent does not fit within the current model of the Unicorn, so I doubt it will be something like that.

I expect it to be something like Born in War, and to cost 2 Fate, get bigger with how many Conflicts are declared in a given Round, and probably eat a Fate or an Honor (or both) when you move it to another Unicorn.

Sure you call it Taboo Gift (all those leather saddles that the clans are using really shouldn't be Kosher after all).

6 minutes ago, Schmoozies said:

Sure you call it Taboo Gift (all those leather saddles that the clans are using really shouldn't be Kosher after all).

Haven't you heard?

Leather isn't Taboo anymore. The Hiruma wear leather armor.

4 minutes ago, sndwurks said:

Haven't you heard?

Leather isn't Taboo anymore. The Hiruma wear leather armor.

Crab are one of the exceptions as lets face it they don't care about the social norms (and will just ignore anyone who calls them on it).

41 minutes ago, Schmoozies said:

Crab are one of the exceptions as lets face it they don't care about the social norms (and will just ignore anyone who calls them on it).

Kaiu - "That oni was so tough we needed to shoot it in the eye with a ballista."

Hida- "... Do you think we could make some armour out of its shell?"

55 minutes ago, Schmoozies said:

Crab are one of the exceptions as lets face it they don't care about the social norms (and will just ignore anyone who calls them on it).

If by “ignore” you mean “smash their head with a tetsubo”, then yes.

5 minutes ago, Tabris2k said:

If by “ignore” you mean “smash their head with a tetsubo”, then yes.

Tetsubo, Sword, their face repeatedly into a wall, its all good.

So, the semi-spoiled cards seem to be:

(M)?irror's Gaze, a spell attachment. I'd say it's a Crane card. The second trait stars with an "A" and I'd bet that would be Air, placing it in the first pack, which is Air-centric. I'd say that make it card 12 or 13 in the set.

Shiksha Scout, seems the result to the two-parter story posted month ago, were an Unicorn patrol followed the trail to some creatures into the Shinomen Forest. No clue other than the name, but I'd say that it being a conflict personality is a strong possibility, given that both the Ningyo and the Nezumi are... it makes sense that a non-human resource would be in the "hidden" conflict deck rather than in the "open" dynasty deck.

Master Alchemist seems the "powerful Dragon Shugenja who can tame the very flame" in the GTM article, and would come in the third pack in the cycle. No reason for it not to be a Dynasty character, and thus the 45-ish card in the set.

Awakened Tsukumogami. I hope this is not the "deadly Oni from the Shadowlands" in the article; the stats are very low. Also, the "gami" part makes it seem more like a spirit. I really hope this reject from Yokai Patrol is not an Oni! Probably this is just a conflict character, in line with Guardian Kami and Kami Unleashed, posibly with an effect related to items.

Finally Matsu Mitsuko. Dynasty or Confict character? Probably to expensive a Lion for Conflict, so Dynasty would be my bet. Frankly, I'd have expected to see Agetoki first as a mounted Lion, as he was namechecked in the very second fiction.

21 minutes ago, Mon no Oni said:

Finally Matsu Mitsuko. Dynasty or Confict character? Probably to expensive a Lion for Conflict, so Dynasty would be my bet. Frankly, I'd have expected to see Agetoki first as a mounted Lion, as he was namechecked in the very second fiction.

But she is shaping up to be a key story personality having been Shinjo Shono's betrothed before the alliance fell apart so her inclusion also makes sense, and the cavalry from her association with the Unicorn also tracks.

54 minutes ago, Schmoozies said:

But she is shaping up to be a key story personality having been Shinjo Shono's betrothed before the alliance fell apart so her inclusion also makes sense, and the cavalry from her association with the Unicorn also tracks.

In fact, both her and Shono have exactly the same traits:

Bushi. Cavalry. Commander.

Just another small connection between both...

Just noticed that Mirror’s Gaze says “Attach to a Shugenja [...]” and then, under that, “the effect”

Dying to see what it does. Maybe canceling the effects of an ability targeting the shugenja? Will this be the card that make me change my splash to Crane?

5 hours ago, sndwurks said:

Technically, we do not know if Mirumoto Daini exists yet, nor the Mara. But even if they both do, they would not have met for another 3 years, as it was Toturi who sent Daini to the Naga to make contact with them, after the formation of Toturi's Army (which was payrolled and backed by the Dragon Clan in the lead up to the Battle at Beiden Pass).

Furthermore, we are going to see Naga mostly as Neutral or Unicorn due to the daughter of the Akasha in the Old Lore being the Unicorn Clan Champion at the end of the AEG story. The Naga were going to come back as a full faction, Stronghold and all, in Onyx Edition, which means that FFG bought a TON of art assets with the purchase of the game which can be used for Naga.

Honestly, I would not be surprised if we saw a Naga Stronghold before we saw a Shadowlands Horde Stronghold (but I would be more surprised if a Support of the Shadowlands Role did not come out before either).

For a guy who's name doesn't have anything to do with beer.................I'm liking where you're going with this.

I like the Unicorn getting the Naga. Daini always was a closet poni anyways with his (-) honor requirement and 5 gold cost in the old game. Really made those corrupted Unicorn and Unicorn 1 moving part deck s go in the early days of the CCG.

We know we are getting at least one stronghold in the elemental cycle. The top three factions to get a stronghold, IMO would be Mantis, Naga, or Shadowlands. My expectation is that FFG will release Naga and Shadowlands together in some sort of deluxe set at a later date. That would leave Mantis to get the stronghold to come out in the elemental cycle, but, I don't think that is enough to get them completely off the ground, so I presume they will get some sort of deluxe box of their own at a later date as well. This way FFG can make whatever stronghold they print somewhat stronger to try and carry the faction it represents since it can be subject to a rotation at a later date when the set rotates, and the real stronghold that gets evergreen printing will be more in line with the rest of the strongholds.

Or who knows..........maybe FFG throws us a giant curveball and makes some sort of imperial stronghold that starts the game with the favor and since they haven't been a part of worlds from last year, they can only used the "support off" roles in tournament play.