This is not a doom & gloom topic. I'm just trying to get a sense of what sense (if any) folks can make out of where FFG is headed with L5R:LCG at this point.
The "Scrying the Future" article ( https://www.fantasyflightgames.com/en/news/2019/9/6/scry-the-future/ ) really left me with a lot of doubts about competitive LCGs and how FFG intends to respond.
It sounds like, they're working through a few main questions:
- Do we want to continue the format for competitive LCGs or is it primarily well suited for episodic cooperative games?
- How do we address the barriers to entry cost and retail stock sufficiency?
- Related to the last question, in what ways can we address set rotation as a part of competitive LCGs?
Elsewhere on these boards it was mentioned that the FFG Live seemed to indicate that a revised core for L5R might be the plans. The system is, by competitive LCG standards, pretty early in its cycle run so it makes great sense to take a break once the current cycle is done and refit the game at a natural break with a splashy relaunch of such a revised core set alongside new OP rules/prize support/stories.
As it stands, FFG has the following products on their publicly accessible websites:
- Justice for Satsume (just released)
- Children of Heaven (on the boat)
- Emperor's Legion (on the boat)
- Defenders of Rokugon (in development)
- Shoju's Duty (in development)
- A Champion's Foresight (in development)
That would close out the Inheritance Cycle (3rd cycle) and leave only Dragon clan without a clan pack.
There's some sense to starting a new "era" of L5R following these releases and the introduction of a new revised core.
The rotation structure could be:
- Revised Core
- 3 Cycles
- 1 Deluxe
- 7 Clan
Release the cycles every 6 months so it's an 18 month steady-stream rotation of content with clan packs dropping prior to official story moments for the clan pack that's about to drop. The mid-cycle big release maybe after clan pack 3 drops is the deluxe that contains cards that have been errata'd and that need introduction to balance the game (if any) in addition to fresh content for each clan prior to qualifiers with enough time to norm new decks. Revised cores could be the GenCon release and they might mark "Seasons in the Game" so that they're NOT required on an annual basis but only when changes to the meta require such an evolution.
You could then support two separate formats for the game as well. The current "season" and a legacy mode so that players who have been with the game, or enjoy all the crazy old card combos, can still take advantage of a significantly deep pool of cards.
What are your thoughts on how Navaro's challenges outlined in the last AMA article, the FFG Live content, and the production schedule might be spun in such a way that L5R gets the love it deserves in a more sustainable way for fans, stores, and FFG?