Legend of the Five Rings Review: Dragon

Welcome back! Our reviewers now set their sights on Dragon clan - as always, provinces will come later and stronghold ratings are for the stronghold card and not the clan as a whole. Let's get to it!

Our review panel:

I Fight Dragons: I am an avid card game player who has played Magic, Netrunner, and Conquest competitively and L5R casually in the past. For the L5R LCG, I went 5-0 in the 704 person Kiku Matsuri and became one of the first Phoenix Hatamoto, then placed in the top 8 for the following 256 person inaugural tournament at Gencon 2017. I host a podcast focused on competitive play and being a better player called The Winter Court Podcast.

Kingsley: Kingsley once played Conquest and Netrunner competitively and is excited for a new and intriguing LCG.

Grendel: I have around twenty years of card game experience. At one time I was the worst rated player on DCI in the state of Tennessee. I have played several games to varying degrees of competitive success locally. For FFG’s LCG line I have only played Conquest competitively in which I have achieved second place in a 50+ OCTGN league, second and fifth place in two regional events, second in a store championship, and took home several game night kits. Beyond just playing a game. I enjoy discussing theory, strategy, and tactics for said game.

benjoewoo: Old5r player, coming back and excited to see this game revive.

nyxnyxnyx: nyxnyxnyx is a competitive player from Singapore who has played Netrunner, Conquest, and AGOT 2.0.


Mountain’s Anvil Castle (average score: 4.6)


I Fight Dragons – 4/5
This is probably the strongest of the core set Strongholds. The attachment requirement is very easy for Dragon to fulfill so this Stronghold essentially gives you the ability to throw out a sizeable amount of stats in just about any conflict you want, military or political, attack or defense. Very versatile and potent.

Kingsley – 5/5
Mountain's Anvil Castle is a serious contender for the best stronghold in the core set – similar to the Crane, Lion, or Crab strongholds, this will often be a buff of +2 strength, but unlike those strongholds it can be used on attack or defense and in both military and political conflicts.

Grendel – 5/5
Can provide a +2/+2 stat bonus at the cost of 2 cards (that you were going to play anyways), works offense or defense. Just don’t set yourself up to being blown out by assassination or I can swim.

Benjoewoo – 4/5
You play this if you want to play dragon, so auto-include for now. Compared to other strongholds, this makes for interesting math tricks because normally really painful attachments, e.g. Cloud the Mind, are +1/+1 for purposes of the SH assuming you have 1-2 attachments. The fact it can be used on attack or defense in either conflict makes it very flexible, and a fairly strong contender for any attachment favoring dragon deck.

nyxnyxnyx - 5/5
11 honor, +2 province strength, good. Ability works on both attack and defence, mil and pol, though it might be tricky to get it to the +2 stage. Conveniently works with opponent’s attachments as well, so go nuts with those Cloud the Minds.


Doomed Shugenja (consensus score: 5)


I Fight Dragons – 5/5
The easiest card to impulse buy. Paying 1 for 3 in each stat and a Shugenja trait to boot is fantastic. Not being able to put fate on it isn’t a big deal because of the immediate power it puts on the board and the limited keyword doesn’t do much of anything unless you flip multiple at once because it’s currently the only limited card out there.

Kingsley – 5/5
Doomed Shugenja is incredibly strong, similar to the powerful Warlock Destructor from Conquest. In a bold design decision, they made this card Limited (I think Warlock and Snakebite Thug should have been Limited in Conquest, so that was a great move), but the absence of other Limited cards at present means this downside is broadly mitigated. This could get weaker if we see strong Limited cards in the future, but right now it's a 3x autoinclude.

Grendel – 5/5
Limited isn’t a draw back at the moment. And not being able to place fate on the character isn’t a big enough draw back to ignore the value and flexibility.

Benjoewoo – 5/5
1 fate for a 3/3 shugenja is good. Not as good as 1 fate for a 3/3 bushi courtier shugenja, but you can’t have it all. One of the, if not the most, efficient characters in the game at the moment. Only drawback is she’s limited and can’t have fate placed on her normally, but the latter is rarely a drawback considering her 1 cost and the former is only relevant if you flip more than 1 and don’t have/play charge.

nyxnyxnyx - 5/5
Currently the only Limited card in the game, so that downside is mostly irrelevant, though you can expect more Limited cards down the line that are pretty pushed power-level wise. 1 for 3/3 is nuts, and only losing the option to put fate on it as the downside is almost negligible. Also a Shungenja for your Shungenjaing needs.


Togashi Initiate (average score: 3.6)


I Fight Dragons – 3/5
Solid 1 drop due to the self honoring and because of that, is also one of those low cost characters that scales well with extra fate. The putting fate on rings mechanic is really cool and thematic for Dragon and can open up interesting choices in the game. That said, this guy can only self honor on attack, so that hinders him a bit, but if you are second player and attack with him last, then next turn you can get the fate you spent to the ring back as your first conflict.

Kingsley – 4/5
Like Doomed Shugenja, this can be a 3/3 for one fate, but it requires a bit of manipulation to get there (you have to put the fate on a ring that you'll be claiming). That makes this a bit worse, though still a solid card in a lot of circumstances and one that might get better with more Monk synergy in the future. Note that this is often a very useful ability for Yokuni to copy.

Grendel – 4/5
Throwing a fate on a situationally bad ring is pretty nifty for the buff.

Benjoewoo – 4/5
1 for a 1/1/2 with an ability that potentially gives your opponent fate and only works on attack isn’t normally amazing. However, this guy, at least currently, really shores up the dishonor/scorpion match up because he can honor himself to mitigate honor losses and dishonor tricks. Turns himself into a 3/3 as well, so while not as efficient as doomed Shugenja, he isn’t inefficient necessarily and will be useful for time to come.

nyxnyxnyx - 3/5
1 Fate for the ability is pretty costly, though there are some ways to mitigate the downside such as using it on the 4th conflict in the turn as the second player, then going first to claim the ring+fate as first player first conflict on the next turn. Also has some applications with Mantra of Fire / Keeper of Whatever, letting you ‘bait’ the conflict element you want. #dragonkeeperoffire anyone? Is a Tattooed Monk, though that’s barely relevant right now. Still will see play as it’s a 1-cost with potential upside.


Agasha Swordsmith (consensus score: 5)


I Fight Dragons – 5/5
Repeatable tutor-draw for a card type that your deck already wants lots of? Yes please. Good stats to boot? Yes please. This card is crazy good for its cost and if it weren’t for cards like Assassination, would probably carry a Dragon deck to ludicrous levels with lots of fate.

Kingsley – 5/5
Conquest players may remember the extremely powerful Earth Caste Technician – well, Agasha Swordsmith is basically ECT except you can repeat its effect! If not for Assassinate, piling two or even more fate onto this guy might often be overwhelming, and even as it stands this is an excellent card. Players (like me) who are unfamiliar with the L5R lore may be surprised to note that this also benefits from the Shugenja trait!

Grendel – 5/5
For Real? For Real Real? This is a real card? This is a real card!

Benjoewoo – 5/5
Unless cards come out that make Fine Katana and Ornate Fan unplayable, you play this regardless of whether you’re an attachment heavy deck, because it tutors top 5 for an attachment. If naked Dragon decks become a major thing, this card loses value, but that seems unlikely any time soon.

nyxnyxnyx - 5/5
Nuts card, so let’s see some math. Without trying too hard, it’s probably reasonable to expect at least 10 attachments in a Dragon conflict deck, so that’s the number I’ll work with. For those of you who’re interested, you calculate hypergeometric probability using this site. Population size = 40 (Conflict deck size), Number of successes = 10 (the number of attachments), Sample size = 5 (number of cards Agasha sees), Successes in sample = 1. We’re interested in the cumulative probability of P(X>1), which is 0.7834, or ~78%. This means 78% of the time we will see at least one attachment when we activate Agasha (not a whiff), which is pretty okay. Each ‘successful’ use reduces your successes in sample and population size by 1 (because of the shuffle), which gradually increases your chances to whiff. Contrast this to Earth Caste Technician from Conquest (which was busted).
Unlike Shrewd Yasuki, Agasha Swordsmith’s ability can be used outside of a conflict, which means it conveniently sidesteps Assassination, guaranteeing at least one activation even if your opponent is eagerly caressing his copy of Assassination. Would recommend using the action during the first action window of the conflict phase and not your dynasty phase, unless you have 0 chance of passing first that turn anyway.


Mirumoto Prodigy (average score: 2.8)


I Fight Dragons – 3/5
Solid stats and a somewhat impactful effect. It’s easy to think that you want to load her up with attachments and force people to fight you one-on-one but Assassination is looking to be big out of the core set environment so you are better off not risking it and loading up a less vulnerable character. Still, she’s by no means bad.

Kingsley – 2/5
I don't like paying two cost for 2/2s – I'd usually rather pay one fate for a 2/0 or 2/- – and this one comes with an ability that looks strong at first but will often be a trap that overextends you into an Assassinate. Not a strong card IMO.

Grendel – 3/5
Pretty cool ability, not worth layering up to be blown out by assassination.

Benjoewoo – 3/5
Out of core only, this card isn’t so good on its own because assassinate is a meta defining card. In combination with other cards, this lady can be bonkers good if low cost character destruction falls out of fashion.

nyxnyxnyx - 3/5
Pretty decent solo attacker, though not quite on the level of Brash Samurai. Pairs extremely well with additional conflict characters (and is also ‘countered’ by conflict characters’). Is a Bushi and also a Duelist, if that ever matters down the line.


Niten Adept (average score 4.6)


I Fight Dragons – 4/5
Jeez do I hate playing against this card. For basically nothing (bowing an attachment doesn’t really matter unless it’s Jade Tetsubo or Daimyo’s Favor) this guy just bows anyone if they don’t also have an attachment. If you end up with a hand that lacks attachments, this guy will absolutely run train on the board state and be a huge problem for you to deal with, all for 2 cost. If I haven’t broken the record yet, you should probably just assassinate this guy.

Kingsley – 5/5
Some of you may have noticed that I've now rated five Dragon cards 5/5 and the review isn't even that deep yet. Well, that's the way it is – Niten Adept is one of the best cards out there and the only thing keeping him even kind of in check is that he's also maybe the best Assassination target in the game right now. If this guy has an attachment he can defeat even the strongest characters without attachments, something which basically no other two fate character I can think of permits

Grendel – 5/5
Assassination doesn’t make this guy worse. Pay the 3 honor with pride because if your opponent isn’t packing it they are probably packing up their cards in short order.

Benjoewoo – 4/5
Better than prodigy in core, but could easily downgrade if everyone starts running attachment heavy decks. Then again, it’s unlikely he’ll simply never have a target, and bowing reprieve to his ability means you’ll likely get it off even against assassinate and bowed attachments still work.

nyxnyxnyx - 5/5
Craaaaazy ability. Note that it works on both attack and defence, so it’s a good reason to pre-attach something on him to let you abuse the defender-first-action during a conflict to immediately bow out someone big without any risk of Assassination. Plays extremely well with Calling in Favors and Let Go.


Seeker of Enlightenment (average score: 2.6)


I Fight Dragons – 3/5
I feel that right now, the Seeker of Enlightenment is a little random in terms of its value; either it’s an insane stats for cost coming in right after a low ring claim turn, or it’s a 2/2 or 3/3 after a more standard turn which is just okay. In the future, when more “monks that put fate on rings to do stuff” cards are available, she’ll have a nice home in that deck as a powerhouse 2 coster.

Kingsley – 2/5
Seeker of Enlightenment is a strong effect under the right circumstances, but those circumstances will not always arise. Further, her stats get lower as rings with fate on them get claimed, which isn't great. Yes, it's great value in those low-conflict games with 4+ fate on rings, but I don't think that reliably happens enough in order to power her up, nor are there enough cards that spend fate to rings right now to allow her to be strong in high-conflict games. This might be too low a rating, as I do think she might get better in the future with more Monk synergy, but at least for now I'm unimpressed. (Also, that's a really modern-looking haircut she's got there...)

Grendel – 3/5
Can get way bigger than 2 cost character should, has some in synergy with various monk effects but on the play it’s pretty bad and how quick it’s value can change leaves something to be desired in the long the run.

Benjoewoo – 3/5
Not necessarily a bad card, but overshadowed by the fact there are only 3 cards that currently spend fate to rings, one of which is not useful in core only. If Dragon continue to get ring fate manipulation tech, this card can be good. As it is now, she’s often a 2/2 or 3/3, and so not particularly efficient.

nyxnyxnyx - 2/5
Pretty terrible. On average I guess you can expect between 1-2 fate on unclaimed rings at the end of turn 1, and likely 0-1 by the time the second conflict rolls around. With the other effects that put fate on unclaimed rings you get some bonus ‘synergy’ but it’s pretty forced and costly since to make use of her extra skill you would need to forgo the additional fate on those rings by contesting another ring instead.


Enlightened Warrior (average score: 2.8)


I Fight Dragons – 3/5
Enlightened Warrior is just okay, you take the tempo hit now by paying 3 for a 2/2 in order to theoretically have that 2/2 in play for the rest of the game. That is a potentially very powerful effect, but do to their balanced and very high stats Dragon games tend to not go very long and therefore this guy doesn’t typically see much value right now.

Kingsley – 3/5
Enlightened Warrior can stick around forever under the right circumstances, but has very bad stats for his price. However, given Dragon's attachment focus this can become a strong and permanent body if managed well, making him more playable than he might appear at first glance.

Grendel – 3/5
Not really my jam, but his synergy with dragon cards shouldn’t be glossed over. Which for now means he isn’t bad filler if you want filler.

Benjoewoo – 3/5
You probably play him over Seeker of Enlightenment/Ascetic Visionary because his ability is more often relevant, but that doesn’t make him particularly good. Not being subject to Assassinate is nice, but 3 fate for a 2/2/1 isn’t great. Not a favored pick, but not inconsiderable considering he can potentially live forever.

nyxnyxnyx - 2/5
3 for 2/2 is pretty terrible, stats-wise. Ability is pretty meh most of the time. It’s somewhat of an opponent-controlled effect that is not entirely terrible to play around, so it’s usually going to trigger somewhere between 0 to 1 time(s). Has some synergy with dudes that put fate on unclaimed rings again, but still not a very exciting character, mostly due to not being 3 for 3/3.


Kitsuki Investigator (average score: 4.2)


I Fight Dragons – 4/5
The ability on this card is crazy good and the only thing of its kind in the game at the moment. Being able to snipe your opponent’s best card first action while on defense or after they only get 1 action on attack is huge, as you’ll very often completely ruin their plans for the turn. This is also the only card that pays fate to rings as a cost that can be used on defense, so you can then attack right back and get the fate you spent back.

Kingsley – 4/5
Kitsuki Investigator doesn't have very good stats for his price, but makes up for it with an amazing ability. Keep in mind, though, that this is a max one per conflict ability, not a limit one per conflict ability – you can't activate it twice with two different Investigators in the same conflict and one Investigator can't use it twice in a turn without Way of the Dragon (and even if he has it he has to be in two different conflicts).

Grendel – 4/5
Not quite Agasha Swordsmith as it’s hard to develop a true fate advantage on an opponent, but it’s key to remember you are not trading a fate for a card. You are trading a fate for THE card.

Benjoewoo – 4/5
Out of core only, he doesn’t do as much because of his ability’s restrictions and his lopsided stats. However, his ability is bonkers good because you effectively get to play the rest of the conflict for your opponent when you use it. A 2 glory stat can be painful, but that’s why you run court games and the like.

nyxnyxnyx - 5/5
3 for 1/3 is alright, not great. Courtier trait is extremely relevant for Dragon, considering their lack of Courtiers and the abundance of good effects that require Courtier. Ability is fine, trading 1 fate for information + a card (targetted discard). The first copy of this guy that you see will be amazing, assuming you run the Courtier synergy cards. The first activation of his ability is also pretty good, letting you plan out your subsequent conflicts/turns better. I don’t like that you have to ‘spend’ fate, but I guess he’s still a 5/5.


Mirumoto Raitsugu (average score 4.8)


I Fight Dragons – 5/5
If Kitsuki Investigator is a surgical knife, removing your opponent’s key pieces with precision and timing, Raitsugu is a chain gun. He’s loud, he’s powerful, and he mows down just about anyone in his way. Dueling is very powerful with all the attachments Dragon has boosting stats up high and the Stronghold also gives a sizeable stat bonus. With these effects, Raitsugu easily reaches 7-9 military and that’s just terrifying with an effect that either removes opposition or is a void ring. You can do this in political conflicts too and no one will question why you are murdering people in court at all!

Kingsley – 5/5
Raitsugu's duel is one of few removal effects in the game and can be combined with attachments to create very favorable situations. Sending Raitsugu into political conflicts to duel their strongest political characters (many of which will be very weak on military) is often a powerful strategy, and your stats aren't even all that bad given the strength of this effect! Amazing card.

Grendel – 5/5
He is an absolute all-star. Beastmode. Straight savage. If you get ahead with him on the board what does an opponent even do.

Benjoewoo – 5/5
He is dragon’s only “kill” action. Arguably, Secluded Temple counts, but it can be avoided, whereas this guy will often duel your opponent and you both pretend to think about bidding before each bidding 1 in an auto-win for Raitsugu. Even if dueling doesn’t get incredibly good for Dragon, his duel and the dueling mechanic don’t really care.

nyxnyxnyx - 4/5
Symmetrical duel effect, though you get to choose the target to grind a little advantage (equal to the differential in MIL skill). Kakita Kaezin is usually better, but in Dragon you have a lot more sources of +MIL, such as the stronghold or attachments. You can also target a big guy with no fate while having at least 1 fate on Raitsugu, to make the duel effect a little more tilted in your favor.


Ascetic Visionary (average score: 2.8)


I Fight Dragons – 2/5
This card suffers from a lack of real windows to make use of its ability, alongside being a 4 cost character which is expensive and needs to really impact the board consistently to be worth the cost. Since he only works while attacking, you need to either be bowed while attacking, or already of attacked or defended with a monk to make good use of his ability. What puts the nail in the coffin for this card is that he also can’t use any attachments that aren’t monks or tattoos.

Kingsley – 2/5
Ascetic Visionary has a really cool ability, but since it requires you pay a fate to an unclaimed ring it may not always be playable on the turn you buy an expensive four cost character. Further, the monk deck isn't there yet, and this guy can't even take most of your attachments! One to watch for the future but not to play until later IMO – while the stats are strong and the ability is interesting, there's too much antisynergy here.

Grendel – 3/5
I see where this character is going and I like it. Unfortunately, after Togashi Initiate and Kitsuki Investigator how much fate can you keep throwing away? As those traits become printed on potentially more powerful cards, he can change in value.

Benjoewoo – 4/5
This guy is bad in a core only environment, probably a 2 or 3 out of 5. But, of all the things to get support in the future, monks will be one of them, and this guy will get significantly better as better monks come out. He’s a large pile of stats for 4 and isn’t a slouch of an ability—it’s just not very useful now because most of the ideal targets are not monks.

nyxnyxnyx - 3/5
4 for 3/4 is pretty good, stats-wise. Tattooed Monk, okay. No attachments except Tattoos and Monks is pretty likely to be more harm than help right now, considering Cloud the Mind isn’t in every deck but Fans and Katanas are. Ready effects are great but this guy’s is a little funky, having to target a Monk or a character with a Monk, and the nature of conflicts in the LCG meaning he won’t be able to ready himself. Plus you have to ‘spend’ fate. Clunky.


Niten Master (average score: 4.4)


I Fight Dragons – 4/5
This guy’s stats seem mediocre for the cost, but then you play with him and with just a single weapon he can be in two conflicts and with two weapons he’s in basically every conflict that round and has super high military to boot. Niten Master is just crazy good when you have the weapons to back him up and for that turn he will win you multiple conflicts on his own.

Kingsley – 5/5
Ludicrous. This guy can win rounds singlehandedly as your only character on the board, often being able to fight in two, three, or even more conflicts in one round. Further, Niten Master synergizes with the strategy you already want to be using (attachments) and while his stats aren't great to begin with they will be once you equip him up! Note that for maximum efficiency you will often want to start him with a political conflict, since you don't want to waste any weapon equips and they'll bolster him for military later.

Grendel – 5/5
He can break equal boards. He can rescue you from the clutches of defeat, and he can crush your opponent under a flurry of blows. Best 4 drop in the game.

Benjoewoo – 5/5
You play this guy because he is your ideal voltron target—can’t be assassinated, has 3 in each stat, and can potentially just be a 5/5 while honored, while a 1/1 while dishonored—these are all good things because it means he will often always be relevant to a conflict. Even outside of voltron decks, if you run any weapons, this guy is a consideration because participating in 3 conflicts a turn with just his ability is pretty good.

nyxnyxnyx - 3/5
4 for 3/3 is unexciting. 2 Glory in a faction with few honoring effects means it hurts more than it helps (I only mentioned Glory here because this is a character you want to stick around for multiple turns and contribute stats for multiple conflicts). There aren’t quite enough Weapons to make his effect really consistent (Ancestral Daisho, Fine Katana, maaaaybe Honored Blade), so he suffers for that. Keep an eye out for him in the future though, ready effects are incredibly good and he can do it twice per turn.


Togashi Yokuni (average score: 4.6)


I Fight Dragons – 5/5
Yokuni boasts amazing stats, especially when honored, and a ton of flexibility to take the best triggered ability on the board, essentially turning him into a 5/5 copy of whatever the best character on the board happens to be that turn. The flexibility for him to have very nice balanced stats and also take whatever ability is most useful makes him always a threat to consider while on the board and one of the best Clan Champions out of the core set.

Kingsley – 5/5
Among the best Champions in the core set, Yokuni has higher base stats than most, the flexibility to threaten both military or political breaks on his own, and a versatile and powerful ability which synergizes well with many of Dragon's best cards – not to mention potential craziness from copying an opponent's abilities! Excellent card.

Grendel – 5/5
I thought he was middle of the pack when I first started playing. I think he has proven himself time and time again in being the best champ and 5 cost character. Just extremely reliable.

Benjoewoo – 4/5
Right now, his ability isn’t always relevant because people are optimizing from relatively inconsistent pools. As more cards come out and decks become optimized with preferred cards instead of “what’s best of what’s left,” this guy could easily become one of the more powerful champions. Also court games turns this guy into an 8/8 with the best ability on the board, which trumps Tsukune’s 8/8 ability after conflict phase ends.

nyxnyxnyx - 4/5
5 for 5/5 is pretty good, though in general lopsided stats like Bayushi Shoju’s are preferable. Once again, high glory (3) hurts for Dragon. There are some good targets within Dragon to copy, and then there’s insane stuff from your opponent if they let you. I don’t think he does any one thing amazingly well, but I like that he’s so flexible. Also the only Bushi+Shugenja so far.


Secluded Temple (average score: 3.4)


I Fight Dragons – 3/5
This is a very strong holding for keeping boards small, which Dragon loves due to their voltron playstyle and ability to steamroll small conflicts with one super powerful character. That said, this holding loses basically all value if Dragon have a keeper role (which as of writing, they do) because of the extra bodies that come along in the form of Keeper Initiates. I don’t expect many decks to be running this card until after worlds if Dragon ends up switching to a Seeker.

Kingsley – 4/5
Secluded Temple is a card that helps you when you're behind and doesn't do much when you're ahead. However, it synergizes very well with Dragon's game plan of having a smaller but more powerful board, making it valid even in more “even” states – just know that sometimes you'll want to discard it and that's okay.

Grendel – 4/5
Doesn’t do anything when you are super far ahead as Dragon unless you are wiling to throttle yourself, but when you're equal it can really ruin your opponent’s day. No it doesn’t need to proc to be effective. By forcing your opponent to throttle themselves you are gaining advantage as your characters are bigger. Changes in value a bit if we start seeing good max conflict character decks, however, if the faction that can run max conflict characters is Dragon, it becomes silly.

Benjoewoo – 4/5
If fate manipulation goes beyond just rings in Dragon, and really means fate manipulation everywhere, this card is the seed of that and can get better. If you have a way to explode your board width when this flips, it’s even better because they lose resources to it and you likely gain board advantage. If small board states are the norm, this card will likely go lower than 4/5, but I don’t see that being true for all clans as the game develops.

nyxnyxnyx - 2/5
Quite a lot of hoops to jump through for what at most amounts to removing 1 fate on 1 character.


Tattooed Wanderer (consensus score: 5)


I Fight Dragons – 5/5
Tattooed Wanderer is an insane conflict character for 1. Covert is probably the most powerful keyword in the game, and paying 1 to remove your opponent’s biggest threat from an important conflict is well worth the cost to enter. On top of just being a very good attachment, this card doubles as a great body to drop as a conflict character, with stats that we usually see on 2 cost characters. This is hands down the best conflict character in the core set.

Kingsley – 5/5
Completely ridiculous. These stats for this price would be strong on a dynasty character, so on a conflict character they are absolutely crazy. The fact that this has a potential upside as a Covert attachment is just icing on the cake. If this guy were 1/0 I would still play him; if this guy cost two fate I would still play him; at one fate for a 2/1 he's an autoinclude in Dragon and IMO one of the premier splash cards in the game.

Grendel – 5/5
So much value in such a tiny little package. Contributes way too much in too many ways for a 1 cost card.

Benjoewoo – 5/5
1 fate for a 2/1/0 character is already pretty decent—having that for a conflict character that gives covert as an attachment is even better. This and Let Go are why you splash Dragon.

nyxnyxnyx - 5/5
1 for 2/1 on a conflict character is pretty amazing. The option to make him a ‘Covert’ attachment is really good, especially for ‘attachments-matter’ Dragon. Note that the way Covert works on declaration means that you don’t really want to attach him mid-conflict.


Togashi Kazue (average score: 2.6)


I Fight Dragons – 3/5
Kazue is a very powerful and flexible card. Paying 3 for 3 in each stat as a conflict character is solidly okay, and extra copies of her can keep her around multiple turns because she is unique. As an attachment, Kazue is currently a very risky gambit to take do to a strong presence of both Calling in Favors and Let Go which can blow out the game if Kazue gets targeted immediately after entering play. I expect to see her more in the future, but for now you are probably best passing her up.

Kingsley – 2/5
While Kazue's ability is really powerful, her stats don't have the raw efficiency offered by Tattooed Wanderer, and playing an attachment that costs three fate is extremely risky in the present environment. I do think she has some potential merit, since three fate for a 3/3 conflict character isn't horrible (once you compare it to anyone other than Tattooed Wanderer or Political Rival) and the fate steal can be crushing on the right board, but right now there are just too many copies of Let Go and Calling In Favors out there.

Grendel – 3/5
The effect is actually worth the cost is why this card is a bit of a trap. The problem is with a 3 fate investment, you need to affect the game now.

Benjoewoo – 2/5
She’s way too expensive as a character, and as an attachment too vulnerable to the various attachment hate cards. Could get better if Dragon get ways to play conflict/attachment characters for cheaper or if fate manipulation means Dragon will always be rich fate wise.

nyxnyxnyx - 3/5
A very expensive way to ‘super-Void-ring’ someone. Would have been an amazing effect for 2 fate, but at 3 it’s exactly at the point when you wonder if you could have put that 3 fate towards something better, like a 3-cost character perhaps….The option to do either makes it better than if it was a straight-up attachment though, and I expect she’ll still see play. Very painful to have this be Let Go / Calling in Favors-ed.


Ancestral Daisho (average score: 3.6)


I Fight Dragons – 3/5
Ancestral Daisho is basically a copy of Fine Katana where you pay a fate to draw it back after the character leaves play. This ends up being a fairly nice effect as it allows you to drop attachments on characters with low fate and not worry about lost attachment value as much. On top of that, having a couple of these means you will almost always have attachments to turn on your effects that care about them like the Stronghold and Niten Master.

Kingsley – 3/5
This is exactly the same as Fine Katana but Ancestral and one fate instead of none. One fate for two stats is of course significantly weaker than zero fate for two stats, but it has good card advantage and synergizes well with Daimyo's Favor and Mountain's Anvil Castle. (Fun fact: Daisho refers not to a sword but to a set of two swords, one long and one short. This is in keeping with Dragon using the Niten style, but one wonders why a character can equip both a Daisho and a Katana, or funnier still two Daisho.)

Grendel – 4/5
Generically good attachment, I’d cut these before Tattooed Wanderer if I was looking to trim my +mil.

Benjoewoo – 4/5
For attachment dragon decks, 5/5. For everyone else, this is a strong contender just because it’s standard metrics with recursion, so unless more efficient attachments come out for 1 fate or less, this card is a strong consideration.

nyxnyxnyx - 4/5
Is this better than Fine Katana? Scientists are still unsure. This scientist, personally, believes the answer is ‘no’, but for attachment-matters Dragon the synergy makes it worth playing anyway. Is a Weapon, for Niten Master.


Daimyo’s Favor (average score: 4.2)


I Fight Dragons – 5/5
Daimyo’s Favor is a crazy card, essentially netting you a fate every turn it is in play for a whopping 0 fate investment on your part. It works extremely well with the Stronghold Dragon has as well, since it itself is an attachment and the attachment you play for 1 less will get you the two attachments you need to get that +2/+2 buff. Not much else to say, the card is straight value if you are running a lot of attachments and Dragon certainly does that.

Kingsley – 4/5
While a bit low impact for clans other than Dragon right now, Daimyo's Favor is a great way to discount attachments while also powering up your stronghold's ability. This also can generate significant fate if you get to keep it around for a bit.

Grendel – 4/5
Simple Fate Economy. Make sure you have enough valid targets.

Benjoewoo – 4/5
If you run a lot of attachments that cost 1 or more, you play this. Often reads +1/+1 with SH in core only. Will be even greater if dragon continue to favor attachment decks.

nyxnyxnyx - 4/5
Daimyo’s Favor is the glue that holds Ancestral Daishos and Kitsuki’s Methods together. (or is it the other way round? :thinking:) You play both together as ‘econ’ in Dragon, which is great. I would not recommend running too many of these out of core though, considering 6 of the attachments you run are 0-cost (Fans and Katanas). 2 seems about right.


Kitsuki’s Method (average score:3.8)


I Fight Dragons – 3/5
Echo what I said about Ancestral Daisho. Kitsuki’s Method is slightly different in that a political buff is generally more rare than a military one, but this attachment isn’t a weapon that can be used with Niten Master so it about evens out.

Kingsley – 4/5
Kitsuki's Method is a fair bit better than Ancestral Daisho because political strength boosts tend to be rarer than military ones, and especially makes more sense as a potential splash for other clans – that said, Dragon's other splash cards are so good that one might find it hard to swing the influence for this.

Grendel – 4/5
Generically good attachment.

Benjoewoo – 4/5
For attachment dragon decks, 5/5. For everyone else, this is a strong contender just because it’s standard metrics with recursion, so unless more efficient attachments come out for 1 fate or less, this card is a strong consideration.

nyxnyxnyx - 4/5
Is this better than Ornate Fan? Scientists are still unsure. This scientist, personally, believes the answer is ‘no’, but for attachment-matters Dragon the synergy makes it worth playing anyway. A little worse than Ancestral Daisho because it’s not a Weapon.


Way of the Dragon (average score: 2.8)


I Fight Dragons – 3/5
Way of the Dragon is a card to watch with every new expansion. Dragon already have some great characters for doubling up on their ability: Yokuni, Raitsugu, Niten Adept, and Agasha Swordsmith. So with time and more characters with great triggered abilities, this card becomes insane. Out of the core set, it’s still very impactful on the characters listed above but isn’t as good do to its cost and half of the “good” targets already having big bulls eyes for Assassination on their backs.

Kingsley – 2/5
Way of the Dragon is unfortunately the first Way Of card that I have to pan. While this can be really good on the right target, it's a two fate attachment with low stat bonuses that only works on specific characters. Yes, if you power up Raitsugu with this and other buffs he'll be a boss, but how often will you get to do that – and when you do, will this simply be discarded via Let Go or stolen with Calling in Favors? I play 0x copies of this, which is unfortunate for a card that should be faction-defining.

Grendel – 3/5
I expect to eventually be proven wrong with this card as we will eventually see some interaction that just pushes it to over the top.

Benjoewoo – 3/5
Because Let Go and Calling in Favors exist and are cheaper and nearly ubiquitous, this card is significantly weaker. Add to that Dragon don’t have a lot of people who can really capitalize on it and you have one of the weaker clan philosophy cards.

nyxnyxnyx - 3/5
The only Way that’s an attachment. 2 for 1/1 is terrible, ability doubles up on another ability, so its value greatly depends on what exactly you’re doubling. Out of Dragon, likely targets are Niten Adept, Togashi Yokuni, Agasha Swordsmith (gets worse with multiple triggers!) , and Mirumoto Raitsugu (high stakes if you attach this!), which is pretty alright I guess.


Let Go (consensus score: 5)


I Fight Dragons – 5/5
Anyone who’s talked with me about splashes knows how I feel about this card. Attachments are very good in this game for value, and every single deck has great attachments that you will probably want to remove. Thanks to a cost of 0, this card almost always goes even (dropping a Fine Katana, Fan, or other free attachment) where it’s merely fine, but once it starts trading for impactful 1 or 2 cost attachments, it starts getting into a real value territory. Do to this card being 0 and being easily splashed by just about anyone, I don’t expect many high cost attachments to be playable without a massive impact to counter-act the risk of hate cards like this. As such, this card is the very definition of a meta-defining card in my opinion.

Kingsley – 5/5
I think this card is where it needs to be power-wise – you can't really make it cost one or more because then you're down on net if you use it against various strong zero-cost attachments, most notably Fan/Katana – but I really wish it cost more influence to import, because this is going to be everywhere. If not for this and to a lesser extent Calling in Favors, I think the game would look substantially different.

Grendel – 5/5
Not sure if anyone ever told me in 2017 I’d be playing a card game where attachment hate was mainboard.

Benjoewoo -- 5/5
You play this because it's 1 of 2 attachment removals in core only, and will likely see continued play as a no cost event barring other attachment hate with greater utility at cost become popular. I don't see that trumping Let Go unless fate production numbers rise more than 1 point, and this card will see play for time to come. Also one of the primary reasons you splash Dragon
nyxnyxnyx - 5/5
Worst case, you trade exactly 1-for-1 with an Ornate Fan/Katana. Best case, you absolutely blow someone out because he played Togashi Kazue / Jade Tetsubo / Sashimono. Crazy good card in Core set meta, might change if there comes a day when no one runs attachments and there’s a risk it becomes a dead card in hand.


Mantra of Fire (average score: 3.4)


I Fight Dragons – 4/5
Let me start by saying that I don’t think Mantra of Fire is great in the core set environment due to a lack of really impactful monks and a few number of monk attachments for there to be great targets for it. That said, I’m rating this card purely on potential future play as we surely will get more monk cards for Dragon to play with and the fire ring will likely always be an impactful ring for opponent’s to pick. The value here is just sick with the right cards to support it.

Kingsley – 3/5
This is a weak and conditional card right now, but I gave it a 3/5 in light of its obvious strength later in the game (assuming Monks are expanded on as a theme). The Monks you want to play right now aren't really strong enough to justify this effect, and if this does become good it shouldn't be too hard for opponents to play around, somewhat limiting its potential impact – but under the right circumstances this is Good Omen on steroids.

Grendel – 3/5
I think this card is way better than it appears. It is just a theme that hasn’t been played out yet.

Benjoewoo – 4/5
If dragon get better monks (likely), and another clan picks Keeper of Fire, this gets a lot better. Putting a fate on your guy and drawing a card are both great. It’s just limited right now because Dragon doesn’t have a lot of monks that work well on defense right now.

nyxnyxnyx - 3/5
Text says declares, so this doesn’t work with any of the ring/element swap effects. Fire is a pretty good ring overall, and the presence of this card disincentivizes people from going for Fire, which indirectly protects your high Glory dudes. The kind of card I wish no one played but me, or everyone played but me (like Admit Defeat). Effect itself is pretty strong (nets 1 fate), though it’s not the easiest card to trigger and is easily sitting in hand for multiple turns. If you play the fate-donating effects, this gets slightly better. (or don’t run it anyway but pretend you do!)


Tranquility (average score: 1.4)


I Fight Dragons – 2/5
What? A bad Dragon card? Okay, maybe bad is a tad harsh; but as of right now, the value of an effect like this is extremely silver bullet against Shugenja and some Unicorn characters that can move in mid Conflict. There’s obviously other niche cases where the card is useful, and may even have value as a 1-of to catch people out, but right now this feels like a counter to a potential strategy that doesn’t really exist yet.

Kingsley – 1/5
If you really want this effect, play Cloud the Mind instead.

Grendel – 2/5
The effect isn’t bad but the environment isn’t there and hopefully the environment will never be there to make this card worthy.

Benjoewoo – 1/5
The card stops at least 1 character in every clan in core right now, so it’s unlikely to be guaranteed dead in any match up, but there are just better choices right now. Could get better, but such a passive control ability for ¼ conflicts is unlikely to get too much better unless a good “presence-less” deck comes out.

nyxnyxnyx - 1/5
So, so bad. 0-for-1 prohibition effect that doesn’t even turn off passives.


Indomitable Will (average score: 3.6)


I Fight Dragons – 4/5
Indomitable Will is a great card for those situations where you load up a guy with a bunch of attachments and make him huge. Fortunately for Dragon, that situation is literally every game and triggering Indomitable Will essentially doubles the value of those stats. The caveat of winning alone is fair, but not terribly restrictive.

Kingsley – 3/5
A somewhat worse Mountain Does Not Fall that can be used on offense, but only applies to one conflict rather than potentially two and requires your guy be fighting alone. This is still a solid choice for many decks, and has some nice synergy with cards like Spyglass, but isn't quite as outstanding.

Grendel – 5/5
Being able to participate in more challenges is super valuable. Just don’t force situations for this card to work otherwise you can get blown out.

Benjoewoo – 3/5
Right now this card is good because of the voltron strategy. Depending on whether that ends up being the only viable dragon strategy, this card’s value could go up or down. A large issue is you have to win with a single character, so if you only run this, it can be painful. In combination with other, similar options, e.g. sashimono, mountain does not fall, this card is more useful because you’ll have choices.

nyxnyxnyx - 3/5
One of the weakest in the ‘cycle’ of 1-cost events that ready/bow/don’t bow. Single participating character requirement is rather tough to fulfill, since you want it to be a single strong character (to reuse) which plays right into opposing shenanigans like For Shame!.


Mirumoto’s Fury (consensus score: 5)


I Fight Dragons – 5/5
Bow effects are good. Cheap bow effects are even better. Cheap bow effects that can hit just about any character for the first few turns are amazing. It is correct to say that this card is obviously less good once you only have 1-2 unrevealed provinces left, but that won’t happen until turn 2-4 anyways and even then this card still has value. In the early game, this card can get you really ahead as you can pay 1 to bow what is likely just a lone attacker and fizzle the entire conflict from your opponent. Thank goodness this card can only be used while defending.

Kingsley – 5/5
Another amazing card for many decks. Early in the game this will hit almost any character out there, and late in the game it will still hit a lot of the roster, especially against low-Glory clans such as Crab or Scorpion.

Grendel – 5/5
Kind of outshone by TW and Let Go, but it is a really strong effect and shouldn’t ever be forgotten when constructing your 40.

Benjoewoo – 5/5
This always bows 0 glory people, and will often always bow 1 glory people. Early game you can bow 4 glory, and often you’ll meet the requirements to bow 2-3 glory people, who are currently relatively rare. Could get worse if clans regularly start playing higher glory stat characters, but that seems unlikely given how much of a drawback that is when dishonored.

nyxnyxnyx - 5/5
Reaaaally good, considering you start with 5 unrevealed provinces and the highest Glory value so far is 4. Very easy to find a high-value target with this, especially since the Hotaru/Toturi ruling makes them go on attack more often.