L5R: Announces Dynasty Cycle, Expansion Pack – Tears of Amaterasu
Following the release of the hotly-anticipated L5R, FFG Announces the Imperial Cycle, and its first expansion pack: the Tears of Amaterasu.
Legend of the Five Rings is finally out officially. It made a big splash at Gen Con 50, which featured not only the launch of the game, but also the series’ first tournament. The tournament not only gathered together a bunch of players and pit them against each other, it also helped determine the future of the storyline in the game. Players who were victorious at the tournament became hatamoto who helped advise the emperor about a particular decision in the game. You can read more about that in the short story A Most Suitable Teacher.
And L5R continues their momentum with the announcement of their next story cycle: The Imperial Cycle, which will launch with the Tears of Amaterasu, the game’s first Dynasty Pack. Here’s a brief overview of that–Tears of Amaterasu will feature twenty new cards, with three copies of each in the pack. There will be new cards to take advantage of the Keeper and Seeker roles, and the storyline will advance.
via FFG
Wanting to explore “the Imperial Side of Rokugan,” the next cycle brings players an expanded look at the Imperial Favor mechanic, as well as introducing new Imperial Magistrates that will be roaming the empire getting up to all manner of hijinks.
The pack details what each of the clans have been up to. The Scorpion have been growing their influence over the Emperor, serving as trusted advisors, while using their network of shinobi to direct events of the Empire in the direction they wish without ever having such manipulations traced back to them. With cards like Smoke and Mirrors letting you draw out your opponents defenders.
The Crab on the other hand, are continuing their beleaguered defense of the Kaiu wall, holding the Oni at bay, but only barely. New to them is the Karada District, which has the Imperial keyword, which lets you take control of attachments and assign them where you wish–so you can use your opponents’ favored weapons against them.
The Dragon Clan, enjoying their recent favor and victory in the Empire, have a powerful new character who is a brilliant artist and is immune to poison. Joining the ranks of unique characters on the Phoenix side is Isawa Kaede, who was at the center of the recent tournament events–her vision of the Unicorn’s magic threatening the empire have led to the emperor deciding to mandate that the Unicorn’s magic be taught to his agents as well.
You can really get a sense of the narrative from these two characters. That’s something that the LCGs have always been strong at–and the L5R setting is rich with narrative possibilities, so I’m eager to see what the rest of this pack looks like. As mentioned, there are a couple of cards that play with the Seeker and Keeper roles in this pack as well, let me leave you with one last look at a couple of them.
Tears of Amaterasu – $14.95
Expand your Legend of the Five Rings: The Card Game collection with Tears of Amaterasu, the first Dynasty Pack of the Imperial Cycle! As the first Dynasty Pack in Legend of the Five Rings: The Card Game, Tears of Amaterasu features three copies of twenty new cards and expands on the theme found in the Core Set of the game. Offering new tools for all seven clans as well as new neutral cards to supplement any deck, Tears of Amaterasu is the perfect next step for Legend of the Five Rings: The Card Game.
Remember, in Rokugan, Honor is stronger than Steel.
