With war on the tip of everyone’s tongue, the Great Clans of Rokugan will have to take stock of their resources. It’s time to raise armies, take to the court, and fight for your land. The Emerald Empire is at war, and nothing will ever be the same.

Rokugan at War features 60-new cards (3 copies each of 18 different cards and 1 copy each of 6 different cards) to augment your favorite decks and introduces new mechanics that place an emphasis on a player’s provinces, whether this means starting the game with a province faceup with the new Eminent keyword or overfilling a province with the powerful new Rally ability!

Radiating Power

Traditionally, provinces in Legend of the Five Rings: The Card Game remain unrevealed until your opponent chooses to attack them, hiding in the darkness and providing some kind of benefit when a conflict erupts. That all changes in the Dominion cycle with the introduction of the Eminent keyword. Appearing exclusively on provinces, the Eminent keyword means these provinces always begin the game faceup, and have effects that can impact areas of the game beyond conflicts. You may also notice every Eminent province has two elements. During deckbuilding, a player may include an Eminent province in their selection of provinces, fulfilling the province slot of one of those two elements. During gameplay, a province with multiple elements counts as each of its elements.

Ninkatoshi’s (Rokugan at War, 4) presence effects the entire board whether it's strengthening your own forces or weakening an opponent. Of course, this effect can be turned off by attacking Ninkatoshi directly, breaking it and ensuring the Lion can’t take advantage of its radiant effect.

The Dominion cycle also introduces ways to put multiple cards into a province. Any card on a province can be played as normal and a province does not get refilled until it is completely empty.

The Dominion cycle introduces ways to put multiple cards on a province. Any card on a province can be played as normal and a province does not get refilled until it is completely empty.

The easiest way to accomplish this feat is by using City of the Rich Frog (Rokugan at War, 6), a province that vastly increases your options during the dynasty phase. Though with only 3 strength and the Eminent keyword, the City of the Rich Frog is a prime target for your enemies, and will have to be well defended if you hope to take advantage of it throughout a game.  

Cards can also be added to provinces via the new rally keyword, often found on brand-new dynasty events. These events represent actions that occur within their domain, and will appear in a player’s provinces just like a character or a holding. When taking actions during the dynasty phase, a player may choose to play an event from their provinces when they could play a character or take an action. Importantly, events in a player’s provinces cannot be played outside the dynasty phase. These events add a new layer to the dynasty phase, affecting the decisions you make as you manipulate the board like never before.

One of the most intriguing new events found in the Dominion cycle is A Season of War (Rokugan at War, 14). This card sits in wait at one of your dynasties, and when the time is right you can play it, triggering a new dynasty phase with a fresh set of cards for both you and your enemies while also giving you the opportunity to recruit reinforcements at just the right time. And with the rally keyword, this card will never be a wasted spot in your dynasty deck.

Of course, you don’t want too many cards in your provinces, in case a less savory clan decides to take advantage of those resources. Paralyzing Delicacy (Rokugan at War, 21) can weaken even the most heartened samurai. The more facedown cards someone has in their provinces, the worse the paralyzing delicacy affects their samurai’s military skill.

Instead maybe the goal is to fill a province with exactly what you need, something the Educated Heimin (Rokugan at War, 17) can do with ease,

giving you options on what to fill your provinces with and ensuring the Dragon will always have the tools they need to succeed.

With his clan falling apart and Bayushi Shoju seizing power in the capitol, the hope of the Crane lies in Kakita Yoshi (Rokugan at War, 8). Though he cannot wield steel, his words cut as sharp as a blade. The more faceup provinces you control, the more dishonor Kakita Yoshi can deliver to enemy samurai. Stacking your province row with Eminent provinces allows Kakita Yoshi to immediately impact the game and bring his clan back to the glory they deserve.

Claim Dominion

As Rokugan breaks out into all-out war, the clans will have to defend their lands from all threats. Your clan’s land, resources, and samurai will be vital to your victory. Will you defend your provinces and claim dominion in the Emerald Empire?