Rise of the Shogun Previews: Scorpion
By Mark Jelfo
August 4, 2006
After my somewhat scathing personal opinion of the new Mantis Clan Stronghold, Broken Wave City, some of you may be wondering what's in store for Scorpion. I am pleased to report that Scorpion's new stronghold, The City of Lies, and selection of Personality cards, is far and away better. COL proves that a Stronghold can be simple in concept, simple in execution, can stay true to a clan's primary theme, and still be very effective and offer players something new. So what does The City of Lies do? For starters, it makes all your Samurai personalities Courtiers as well. This is a huge boon for any deck that wants to play Political Actions and not be pigeon-holed with Shugenja for support (or serve as the primary Personality base). With all your Scorpion Samurai gone Political, the clan finally receives a Military decktype that doesn't rely on Ninja. This opens things up considerably for Scorpion players.
But the ability is the highlight of the card: you can target one of your Courtiers (or Samurai with the added Courtier trait) to Dishonor and move home an opposing Personality in battle.
Now, speaking purely in Design terms, the Dishonoring action here isn't following the initial vision of what the L5R Team set out to do with Dishonor since the onset of Diamond. Dishonor was supposed to be force an opposing player to make a conscious choice: one that is either an Honorable decision (although at the cost of suffering a consequence), or a Dishonorable decision, and subsequently opening up oneself to serious reprisals. This directive was a reaction to auto-Dishonor cards such as Secrets on the Wind, which allowed a clan like Scorpion to wreak havoc on an environment.
With The City of Lies, the directive has taken a backseat somewhat (although some would argue that the opponent has a choice whether to face the Scorpion player in battle or not), but it works. Matter of fact, the concept behind this ability has come up before during development of earlier sets, but the environment was never right for it, and the designers wanted to adhere very strictly to their new tenet at the time. But environments change, and the "Dishonor and move home" clause is somewhat more forgiving.
But still effective.
So this stronghold reintroduces both Political Actions and Dishonor themes instead in favor of purely Ninja, but still presents a flexible design that both military and Dishonor decks can use. Comparing it again to BWC, this stronghold bestows an ability to your Personality base that is interactive with the opponent, and forces you to develop a strategy other than "attach things quickly and blitz". BWC, like some strongholds such as Ancestral Home of the Lion, The Esteemed House of the Crane, or The War Fortress of the Crab are very one-dimensional. They do one thing, and often have little to do with what the opponent is doing. The City of Lies, however, not only asks Scorpion players to carefully select their Personality base, but also asks them to put together a Fate deck that will interact with their opponents cards once Dishonored or sent home. Like the new Phoenix Stronghold design, it provides a mountain of versatility, whose effectiveness is only limited by a player's imagination.
The Personality cards couldn't have been better as well. They are classic. Many here are core concepts, but they work hand-in-hand with fellow Scorpion cards in this set. Bayushi Shaiga is my personal favorite, as he has only traits and stats for 3G, but his economy and speed more than make up for the vanilla flavor. The fact that I can have a defender with COL during the very early game - brought out by Supply Smugglers if need be - and use the stronghold to Dishonor someone brash enough to attack reminds me of super-fly cheap Bayushi Tangen. With this set, we see core concepts at work with brevity and conciseness of card text. This moves away from the "If this then that" cardtype that lent itself to lengthy text, innumerable ruling questions, and little flavor text. I am a big fan of this new direction.
Cards don't need to be lengthy to be either effective or interesting.
While the material here may not be enough to crank out a Tier 1 deck (although, maybe there *is* and I just don't know it), there is certainly a LOT of room with which to grow. Future additions will build upon a solid foundation. This selection also works with Scorpion's existing arsenal (Bayushi Iyona), making these cards relevant for both the present and the future. As a player, I couldn't be more impressed with Design's achievements here. Well done.
The City of Lies
7PS, 4G, 2FH
Scorpion Clan Samurai you own have the Courtier trait.
Battle: Even if this Stronghold is bowed, target a Courtier you control: Dishonor and move home a target Personality opposing him.
Bayushi Iyona
3F/3C
- HR, 7G, 1PH
Scorpion Clan Samurai
Iyona has +1F for each other Samurai or Ninja in her army.
Battle: Target an opposing card without attached cards, or an opposing Dishonored card. Bow the target.
The Bayushi possess the perfect blend of force and stealth. None can oppose them.
Bayushi Shaiga
2F/2C
- HR, 3G, 1PH
Scorpion Clan Samurai ¥ Ninja ¥ Scout ¥ Student of Bitter Lies ¥ Hero
A peasant uprising larger than any in history wracked the City of Lies. Only the students at the Dojo of Bitter Lies saved the city from destruction.
Bayushi Takaharu
3F/4C
-HR, 7G, 1PH
Scorpion Clan Samurai ¥ Assassin
Open: Target a Personality. Permanently reduce the Force, Chi, and Personal Honor of Takaharu and the target by one.
"Kisada has thwarted our attempts, my lord," he said. "We must draw him out by striking at those he loves."
Shosuro Atesharu
2F/4C
-HR, 6G, 2PH
Scorpion Clan Kabuki Actor ¥ Air Shugenja ¥ Duelist
Open: Target a Dishonored Personality another player controls. Either copy the target's Force to Atesharu then reduce the target's Force to 0, or copy one of the target's abilities to Atesharu then remove that ability from the target.
"Life is a play, and I shall be the villain."
Soshi Tabito XP
2F/4C
-HR, 7G, 3PH
Scorpion Clan Courtier ¥ Hero ¥ Experienced ¥ Unique
Political Open: Target an unbowed Personality. His controller chooses to bow the Personality and gain 2 Honor, or Dishonor the Personality and lose 2 Honor.
"The Chancellor's agents are everywhere."
Holding:
Kuroiban Compound
3G
Ninja
Bow this card: Produce 2 Gold, or 4 Gold if paying for a Ninja card.
Open: Turn this card face down: Until it leaves play or is turned face up, this card is a Ninja Personality with 2F, 3C, an Honor Requirement of "-", Gold cost of 4, and Personal Honor of 0. If turned face up, it returns to your home bowed as a Holding.
Follower:
Scorpion Detachment
0HR, 3G, - PH
Once per turn, after this Follower is destroyed, you may attach it without cost to any other Personality you control.
Battle: Target an opposing Dishonored Personality. Give him -3F/-3C.
"They've left themselves open! The fools!"
3FV
Spells:
A Dragon's Caress
4G
Void Open: Bow this spell: Target up to 3 face up Personalities you control. Turn each target face down as a Ninja Personality with 2F, 3C, an Honor Requirement of "-", Gold cost of 4, and Personal Honor of 0. Any targets who do not already have the Ninjutsu trait gain Ninjutsu 2 while face down.
"Do not speak to me of Lady Moon!" it hissed.
4FV
) surtout que dernièrement l'AP a atteint un bon niveau et que le CotW a bien remonté depuis ToE...
) le reste est classique je dirai...
) il fera le bonheur du phénix également
