3:00am

I should be asleep. Why am I still awake? It isn’t that I’m not tired. Quite the contrary. I’m exhausted. I have a full day tomorrow. Tomorrow? Today. I have a full day today. Why am I still up? Browser open. Looking at the Oracle. The Oracle. Wonderfully named. Makes me think of the Matrix. First movie still holds up. Loved Cloud Atlas too. Wonder if Jupiter Ascending is going to be a train wreck.

Stop myself. Losing the thread. Need to refocus on what is important.

3:17am

Important. First and last time someone is going to refer to Seppun Tasuke as important. How did I get here? Memories of the past come unbidden. Room shared with a brother. Dormitory in college. House rented with friends. First apartment. The safehouse. Second apartment, wrong to call it mine, girlfriend’s. Property in Florida (I miss you Dad). My house. How did I get here? I’ve always been here. I’ve never left. The scenery has changed. The feeling remains. I know this place. Familiar yet unknown. Haunting and overwhelming, yet delightful. It’s happened again.

The rabbit hole.

3:42am

It started out so innocently. Soft promotion for the site. A thread on the Spider clan forums. A request. “Build a non-sucky Seppun Taskue deck. Seriously!” asks Kakita Shiro. His typo, not mine. I smiled when I read that. My first request was easy! He didn’t specify arc of strict, nice and open ended.

The path was clear. Golden Plains of the Unicorn so the -1 gold production wasn’t a hindrance. Corrupt gold. Jade Pearl Inn into Lane of Immorality. House of Disgrace. Run 3 of the Crab and the Lion love letter personality. Maybe the Monk. Fill the deck out with B’rnn/Myuken/Keppo Experienced. A Family Dojo build with New Cavalry Tactics and some spicy honor loss fate cards.

Deck wouldn’t be an unstoppable monstrosity, but a low to the ground swarm military deck with above average gold production seasoned with powerful and efficient fate cards certainly qualifies as “non-sucky”. Can then pivot focus of the post. Write article about examining and exploiting the totality of a card. Sometimes the best part isn’t the obvious part. Thanks for the assist Kakita Shiro, that was an easy lay-up.

Except he isn’t pleased. That isn’t what he wanted. He was looking for a “real” love letter deck. At least, that is what the Kakita Shiro in my head is saying. Ungrateful douchebag. Guilt settles in. Not guilt. Something worse. Guilt doesn’t bother me. Never been a motivator of my actions or inactions. This is a more powerful feeling. An urge. Curiosity.

4:17am

This is insane. Could just finish it and sleep already. Instead I’ve circled back, completed the corrupt Tasuke decklist. It is a solid deck. Should put it together on paper. Play it at weekly card night. Could go more corrupt. Add an oni or fallen guy. Lane of Immorality off of JPI is something a lot of decks should be looking to leverage. How common is Nexus of Lies? Need to do some recon. Losing the thread. Focus. Why am I still tweaking the corrupt military shell? Close browser. Get soda.

4:25am

Ok. Let’s do this. Start at the beginning. Gold production reduction still suggests Unicorn. The double cycle has great value too. Need to see and purchase multiple personalities. Other options, Spider for the flip, Mantis for the 1st turn gold boost. Dragon for the ring? No, not relevant. This is a defensive deck.

Is it? Why defensive? I was just looking at how effective some of the love letter personalities are  in a military shell. Should I move on to strict? Honor is easier there. Can overwhelm on send home with just a splash of attrition. It doesn’t matter, both formats are lame ducks. Just finish.

Finish? Ha! I’ve barely begun. Need to finish? Whatever. Sleep is for the weak. This deck is going to be awesome. I’m going to have the best (only?) love letter deck in the format. Maybe I shouldn’t post it? Why share my masterpiece. Save it. Hoard it. My precious.

5:15am

I am going to hunt down Kakita Shiro and break all his smug little fingers. Lets see how well he can troll me from the internet then. Non-sucky Seppun Tasuke deck. No such thing exists. I have to jam a bunch of mediocre military personalities into a deck with a bunch of mediocre honor personalities, buy them all in unison, and then get my opponent to discard cards? While guessing the right number? I’m a terrible guesser. Will need to research deck lists and get a general vibe on the average focus values of various decks. Could be a whole article. Companion piece. No environment to analyze though. I seek answers from the abyss. I desire to search the nothingness.

5:37am

The idea of sleep now seems laughable. Why would I want to do anything other than what I am doing right now. Playing here. In my nice comfortable hole. Oblivious to the world. Time and space have no meaning here. I control all. I shall bend the card pool to my will.

6:01am

Alarm sounds. Intrudes on my solitude. Sports updates. Political updates. What the muggles call news. So banal. So boring. Don’t they know there is a new l5r set coming out in just a few days? Why concern yourself with national immigration policy now? Where was I? Right, the deck.

Above average chi on non military personalities. Explore a dueling build. Can construct a respectable defense. Find Inspired Leadership while scanning 4 focus cards. Copy action is great. Another use of Misato. Search Oracle for other copy effects. Disappointment. Search Oracle for other additional use effects. Got a hit. Not Yet Finished. Start to wonder if I actually need the love letter personalities for discard.

Eureka! moment. By rule, dynasty cards have a zero focus value. I’ve done it. Oh man, I’ve broken the sensei perfectly. Use Scorpion ninja, Shosuro Tagiso, multiple times in one battle to get affection tokens. then  I just  need buy some personalities. Works in strict too. Feel great. Accomplished. Proud.

6:35am

Check rules forum. Deflated. Cards do not interact how I want them to. No. They do not interact how they are suppose to. Errata by rules fiat. Rules team calls itself a junta. Appropriate. There are those fighting valiantly to get a reversal. Fighting the good fight to get cards to work completely opposite from how they are intended to function. Good luck comrades.

Where am I at now? Non dueling defensive deck that utilizes the military personalities to force multiple discards? That sentence alone sounds sucky. There are other discard options. Men of Cunning? No that won’t work, not random, and no good way to leverage the bow. Uncovering the Culprit? Don’t have any magistrate love letters. Could splash some in. No. Hard to find the space, and don’t want to ever get stuck having to prioritize a non love letter. Diplomacy Breaks Down, solid. Love the discipline. Non random discard.  Will never give me a token. Unwelcome Supervision. Simple. Straight forward. If played multiple times a turn could be potent. Sorrowful Prayer type build? Empty fate deck, play 3 shuffle in, draw 3 play 3. Repeat to empty opponent’s hand. Win? Slow, though faster than people think. How am I staying alive? What happens if my opponent empties his hand by his own volition? Corner case. Cannot worry about. Playing a love letter deck, only so many scenarios can be pondered.

6:55am

Control suite permutations are coming at me with lightening rapidity. Ambush with Misato and tripple Not Yet Finished. Touch of Death off 5chi Phoenix Shugenja. Contained at Court and Soul of Man to set them up.

7:10am

Crap. Lost track of time. Need to leave for work, going to be a little late. Close document. Lament that work isn’t done. Disregard lament. No big deal. I’ll finish it later. How long can it take?

L5R is a game about resources. Every top player can wax poetically about the importance of a sound holding structure, undercosted personalities, and maximizing the value of your fate hand. Important concepts all.

 

 

 

The single most important resource in l5r, however, has nothing to do with any of those. It has no connection with the fate deck, or the dynasty deck, or anything that starts in play.

The single greatest resource in l5r is people. It is you. It is me. It is the globetrotting grizzled veteran, the nostalgic prodigal, and the wide eyed neophyte. It is the Mr. Suitcase obsessive collector, and the zealously clan obsessed who never needs to buy more than a few packs because he is hustling down his trades.

Today we are going to be talking about this crucial resource and some basic steps to prevent it from drying up.

The Importance of the Opposition

Garfield minus Garfield reveals what l5r would be like if you never had anyone to play against. The excitement of a new set. The joy of a new deck, and then the disappointment when you realize you have no one to play with. Without opponents, you will never really know if your deck is awesome. Nor will you be able to practice the different game states that will present themselves in tournament play. You won’t be able to get the necessary repetitions with the deck, and you’ll never get that ephemeral feeling that is critical to navigating your way to kotei success.

You can goldfish. You can exhaustively theorycraft. You can rely on the kindness of strangers or the largesse of AEG to provide with a pedigreed option. None of these are a good substitute for playing a game of l5r. They are also less fun.

Acknowledge the Humanity, yes even with Scorpion Players

Opponents are people. In games, it can be easy to forget that. There is a joke I make at tournaments. A cliche I have gone to many times. Whenever, the tournament organizer does a song and dance about “Does everyone have an opponent”, I wait for the beat and say, “I have no opponent, only friends”.

It isn’t actually a joke. I love playing l5r, I want more people to play l5r, and if you play l5r, you are my friend. Maybe not my best friend. Maybe not the sort of friend who gets an invite to my birthday party, but on some level, you are my friend. Until you demonstrate that you aren’t worthy of my friendship, you shall have it. No reservations.

Now, I’m not a naive Pollyanna. L5r has had, and still has, some number of cheats, liars, assholes, and other unsavory sorts. Any subset of people is going to feature those. You don’t have to accommodate the truly terrible, but it is important to separate what matters from what doesn’t. Let the political affiliations go. Worry less that he is a fan of Joss Whedon. Focus instead on the one critical factor happening right then. You two gaming. Its not the easiest thing to do, but for the purpose of excelling at l5r, you need an opponent who is focused on the game, so that you can focus on the game, so that you can make the proper play, and collect the valuable data that a real live game offers.

Of course you can be friendly, of course you can chat about other stuff. L5r is no one’s top priority in life. I love visiting with my friends, but not during the game. During the game, I’m focused on the game. Do I still make jokes? Of course I do. Indeed, I make more than most, but the the humor is about and surrounding the game. I want the game experience itself to a be great. I want my opponent to enjoy himself, so that we can play another game. Humor goes a long way to improving it. It also makes me happy. I love an audience. Even if it is only a captive one because he is forced to sit there as my opponent. Sucker. Befriend your opponent, have those great getting to know your conversations. Appreciate them as a person, but remember, the game is the thing. Shakespeare said that. Honest.

Fun doesn’t have to be zero sum

Winning is more fun the losing, but someone’s got to lose. Hopefully, the game of l5r will be close enough, riveting enough, that both parties will resist the urge to put on their mopey pants. In reality though, lopsided victories happen. Bad draws from variance, poorly constructed decks, unfamiliarity with a new deck, factional strength and or player skill imbalances can lead to runaway game states. This a critical juncture for a player. If you are getting destroyed by your opponent, don’t get upset, if he is having fun, ride it out, let him enjoy himself, when it is over, great news! You get to play another game. Which you should. If you get crushed over and over and it is starting to affect your cool, action must be taken. You can switch decks, or ask your opponent too. Don’t be afraid, its ok. Taking your lumps is one of the best ways to learn.

Now in a tournament, there is no second game. You lose and you’re out, so every game is potentially your last. So what. Get over it. Only one person gets to win a tournament. Don’t be a prick; be gracious. Not because it is the right thing to do, but because you selfishly want there to be as many l5r players as there can possibly be.

 

I learned to play l5r from my older brother, Russell. He quit the game many years ago after losing in the top 4 to a player of note. A Dynasty team member. That grand player, who is a person I know to be a fine gentleman, was, on that day, a complete douchebag. That was literally the last time my big brother played any sort of collectible card game. It was over a decade ago, and it totally bums me out when I think of all the fun experiences we could have shared if a) my brother didn’t get so upset and was so damn stubborn and b) his opponent had shown some class.

One time. That can be all it takes for a person to switch from loving l5r to never participating with it again. So be mindful of your behavior. Make sure both you and your opponent are enjoying themselves. The game cannot survive without each you.

The New Order is here, and with new decks and strategies to explore. The joy of seeking out exploitable card interactions. The uncertain journey of a brand new deck types. The quite confidence of slipping a potent new piece of technology into a construction that just needed the missing piece.

I love a new set.

This article is about a few of the challenges and common mistakes that often trip up players when a new set comes along. Avoiding these mistakes will help you maximize your playtesting time. Remember, time is a resource. Every minute you spend in the rabbit hole is a detriment to mastering the horse you should be riding.

Lets start there.

The Rabbit Hole.

Jesse has a predilection for killing all the things and winning 5 turns after his opponent has stopped caring about the game. Others want to be the one guy running enlightenment. Perhaps you just cannot get enough of Mantis shugenja that make spirit animals. Bias exists. Players play favorites. We explore strategies that are often objectively weaker because we want to “test it out” and “see how it goes”.

We’ve all done it. Tried to be a hero and make the seemingly impossible possible. It isn’t a bad instinct. Its fun to hide away in your own laboratory and burst forth into the world with a new and terrifying creation, but it’s the wrong place to start. The rabbit hole is a hole. You get stuck, tunnel vision sets in, end up getting more and more off track as the actual environment passes you by. Strolling down this lane is fun, but you need to be careful. Have patience. Delay the creation of the bizarre fun deck for a few weeks until after you have settled in with the new set.

How do I identify a rabbit hole? Its like pornography: I know it when I see it.

Anytime you find yourself thinking about 5 or 6 card combos. Any time you imagine a sequence that requires you to have a particular series of draws on turn 1, 2, 3, and 4. Any time you are playing a card solely because of its interaction with just one other card. Any time your deck is built around a unique. Any time your deck is built for a late game (turn 6 or later). You’re in the rabbit hole. Stop. Get out. There are other concepts and conceits to explore. Try for instance:

Build the best deck.

Don’t make up excuses not to. Just build the damn thing already.

Not the best deck for your clan. Not the best honor deck. Not the best military deck. Build the flat out best deck. What is it? I don’t I know! I’m asking you.

Every preview season the players of one faction look longingly at the toys of others while complaining about getting stuck with the earwax flavor Bertie Bott Bean. Instead of wishing you didn’t just love your faction oh so very much and could never dream of playing anything else, go and play something else. Its ok. No one will tell. Playtesting doesn’t matter for the Imperial Herald.

Environments are formed at the top. The best decks emerge (quick! Everyone watch what Kiyonaga is playing!) , then players react to beat them (or not, but that’s a different article). A new set means this process refreshes. The best decks may remain, but always there is some new deck that looks damn good. Build it. Fun fact: Jesse and I always start out a new set by building what we think the best deck is. Often, we come up with two different lists. He zeroed on Rae Sensei shenanigans straight away. I took a more conservative adjustment to Unicorn approach. Both decks good. His is better. The onus now falls to me to find a deck just as good or better then his.

There is no calcification when the previews are just starting, its all potential, unexamined. Take this time to uncover what is actually the best deck and then return to your desired clan and strategy with the knowledge that you now know what you need to try and beat. If it turns out you were wrong, the best deck is just sort of ok, that isn’t time wasted. If you thought it was the best deck, others will too, the key is to move on first and fastest to the actual winning strategy. The best deck is the one that wins an unfairly high number of its games, 80%+. The deck that feels unstoppable, like a monster. If your deck isn’t doing that, it isn’t the best deck. Keeping moving onto new things until you find it. If you go through the process a couple of times and cannot find it, then hooray! There isn’t one. Note: this is very rare.

Keep your friends involved, and coordinate.

No man wins alone. No one. The format is too large, you need the help of you playgroup, of online resources, your team, the forums, whatever. Divide and conquer is part of the process, it is the only way to digest the entirety of the set. Just watching Bob play a few games with his Scorpion Ninja deck isn’t going to produce helpful data. Get or give direction as needed. If it is suggested that you are missing something, check it out. If the local Spider has fallen into a rabbit hole (Susumu honor, still trying that!?), pull him out.

Patience isn’t actually all that much of a virtue.

The biggest mistake players make is waiting. Waiting for this site to give them ideas. Waiting for an event to supply them with a decklist. Waiting for the set to release widely. Waiting will kill you. Sets need to be caressed. They need to be combed over and then reexamined with fresh eyes. The excitement of the first reading, followed by the cold objective reality of the fifth. Environments evolve because the players understanding of the card pool evolves. Evolution takes time. Sitting on the sidelines isn’t a path to success. It isn’t a path anywhere. Its just sitting. It also isn’t much fun.