"Let them fear the law and be better for it,"

–Cunning Magistrate

It takes a certain political skill to navigate the webs of Otosan Uchi. Every clan has needs, and finding the means to meet those needs is a valuable skill that can take a lifetime to master. But everything has a price, and all that is hidden will eventually be revealed in the Forbidden City.

The Wily Trader

Yasuki family daimyō Yasuki Taka (Fate Has No Secrets, 83) came to the Forbidden City in search of assistance at the Kaiu Wall from the Crane Clan's Kakita Yoshi. Though Kakita Yoshi did not deliver the help the Crab Clan was looking for, off the shores of the Emerald Empire, Taka has found a new ally…

Yasuki Taka enters Legend of the Five Rings: The Card Game as a wily trader, able to procure resources from the Crab to use in their eternal fight against the Shadowlands. In fact, Yasuki Taka allows you to gain one fate whenever a Crab character leaves play. When Crab characters are used to fuel Funeral Pyre (Core Set, 39), you will receive a fate and a card if Yasuki Taka is on the field. If that character happens to be a Kaiu Envoy (Core Set, 27), then you will receive two cards and two fate, a massive boost. At three military and four political skill, Taka can impact both military and political conflicts, even as he earns the Crab additional fate.

Of course, the Crab need other ways of maintaining their economy throughout the game. Fair Accord (Fate Has No Secrets, 91) lets you discard the Imperial Favor to gain two fate. Like the Crab themselves, Fair Accord is not flashy, but it's incredibly efficient, giving the Crab the vital fate to play their more expensive characters like Yasuki Taka himself.

An Imperial Duty

The Imperial Cycle has introduced a variety of Imperial cards for every clan, in the form of Magistrates and clan-specific districts. Fate Has No Secrets introduces an Imperial card that benefits from all of these cards in the form ofSeppun Ishikawa (Fate Has No Secrets, 90). For each other Imperial card you control, Seppun Ishikawa gets plus one military and political skill. At three cost and two glory, it simply takes one or two other Imperial cards to make Seppun Ishikawa a force to be reckoned with in any kind of conflict. Since every clan has access to various Imperial cards, Seppun Ishikawa can fit well into any deck looking to take advantage of the new cards found throughout the Imperial Cycle. Teaming up with the various Magistrates released in this cycle can be a powerful strategy for Seppun Ishikawa.

Another one of these Magistrates can be found in Fate Has No Secrets. The Cunning Magistrate (Fate Has No Secrets, 97) ensures the Scorpion Clan’s dishonor tactics become even more effective, as any character who has lost their honor does not count their skill in a conflict where the Cunning Magistrate is participating. This means a Way of the Scorpion (Core Set, 185) won't only lower a character’s skill, but completely eliminate them from participating in conflicts. While dishonoring Hida Kisada (Core Set, 37) normally has minimal effect, the Cunning Magistrate makes him far less fearsome in the eyes of the Scorpion. As a conflict character, the Cunning Magistrate can also enter play in the middle of conflicts, negating characters who are already dishonored as well as adding political or military skill to your side. Unlike the Magistrates based in other clans, the Cunning Magistrate can take your opponents by surprise and force them to adjust their plans on the fly.

Fate Has No Secrets

All is revealed in Otosan Uchi, and whatever a Clan’s motivation may be, the answer can be found in the Imperial City. Still, whether the clans get what they want is a matter of diplomacy. Do you have what it takes to navigate the political web of the Otosan Uchi?