From the 5/23 reddit AMA

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dunram

Mantis Clan

In the imperial cycle we got a taste for the Imperial families and now in the Elemental cycle we are getting our first taste of the minor clans in the Mantis. What are some design hurdles for designing for these non great clans. Also when are we going to get a dog character? ?

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fantasyflightgames

Official Account

T: Making them feel distinct, and encouraging players to use them with other members of the same minor clan.

B: In the Elemental Cycle, when I started tackling design for the Mantis cards, a strategy that I took was trying to find design space between the other clans, carving out a niche of their own. I wanted them to have a distinct feel to reflect their unique place in Rokugani society. The place I eventually landed on was trying to translate their propensity for trade into mechanical effects, which mainly focus on exchanging one type of in-game resource for another.

I'm just hoping that we see them in a usable state from the gate. I shudder to think if we get the original Alliance stronghold which was an interesting design space but left Mantis with so few consistent ways to generate additional honor that the impact it gave ended up being fairly minimal.

As long as they don't have Naval and a bunch of characters with printed kill actions I think we'll be alright.........

And for Fu Leng's sake, no Raid battles

3 hours ago, Schmoozies said:

I'm just hoping that we see them in a usable state from the gate. I shudder to think if we get the original Alliance stronghold which was an interesting design space but left Mantis with so few consistent ways to generate additional honor that the impact it gave ended up being fairly minimal.

I think this problem is mostly solved by honor gains/loses being largely tied to honor bidding and Air/Fire ring control, instead of having to buy characters with high personal honor, which Mantis lacked in the old game, when they were first formed.

My guess is that Mantis will have some sort of way to trade honor for fate to somewhat represent their wealth which has been acquired by what some would call dishonorable means.

Maybe Mantis will have a dishonor theme that lets them barter extra fate to steal honor from their opponent?

The design space he's described for them certainly leaves it open for a variety of effects within the "trade resource x for resource y" or "pay resource x for economy in resource y". And of course I'm sure they'll have some general abilities that fall outside the "Mantis flavor" as well, though maybe that'll be down the road rather than the handful that show up this cycle.

I hope I can trade those silly provinces for something. Like fate or some nice scones.

18 hours ago, P'an Ku said:

I hope I can trade those silly provinces for something. Like fate or some nice scones.

Heh heh

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The Way of Trade

When this Province breaks, remove up to 3 total Fate from your opponent's Fate pool and/or one of their Characters - add 3 Fate to your Fate pool.

1 hour ago, Coyote Walks said:

The Way of Trade

When this Province breaks, remove up to 3 total Fate from your opponent's Fate pool and/or one of their Characters - add 3 Fate to your Fate pool.

Is this a card coming out?

Also was thinking more like this.

Yoritomo's Reply

Event 1 cost

Break one of your unbroken face up provinces - Ready each character you control. Put one fate on up to two characters you control.

1 hour ago, P'an Ku said:

Is this a card coming out?

I wish.

1 hour ago, P'an Ku said:

Also was thinking more like this.

I like it! But it needs more scones....

I think it'd be cool of Mantis get a clan province that's actually one of their boats.

3 minutes ago, Kaito Kikaze said:

I think it'd be cool of Mantis get a clan province that's actually one of their boats.

Or the ability to have multiple Water provinces innate (cause you know them water provinces are broken)

7 hours ago, Schmoozies said:

Or the ability to have multiple Water provinces innate (cause you know them water provinces are broken)

It'd be pretty good if they ever got an official Seeker of Water role

But if they remain a minor clan and never have their own official role, it'd be really neat. Along the River of Gold would become pretty powerful!