Ten Things I Think I Think #2

About Emperor Edition Starter Decks

I hadn’t planned on doing another one of these right away, but then I sat down and read all of the starter deck fictions. Nine fictions + one random thought I had while trying to put the deck boxes away = another silly column!

1)      Yoritomo Hiromi is definitely #1 in the attitude problem category.  The Mantis apparently now make it three Clans where the expected heir gave up a claim on the Clan Championship (along with Lion and Unicorn), and Hiromi seems to have something of a complex about his older sibling hanging around.  Ironically, Hiromi’s tyrannical insecurity issues (when combined with a belligerence to other Clans) seem like the like the sort of thing that could cause the very split loyalty issues that he wants to avoid.

2)      Speaking of issues – check out the Napoleon complex on the Little Bear.  Additionally, I’m still not clear on why exactly the Crab are best buddies with the Scorpion.  I get why the Scorpion like the Crab – they desperately needed the Crab’s help, and the Crab gave it.  But why do the Crab now so staunchly favor the Scorpion who murdered the Crab Clan Champion’s namesake and who now depend so heavily on the Crab for support?

3)      The Scorpion fiction reinforces the flavor on the Scorpion deck box – they’re just doing all those bad things to help the Empire.   They swear.

4)      Kanpeki, surprisingly, does not come across as the worst-sounding champ of the lot (although one presumes that may change).  He has a chip on his shoulder, but it may be a reasonable one.

5)      Tsukimi has her senses honed to a razor’s edge, but doesn’t feel cold.  Isn’t that some sort of contradiction?

6)      Doji Makoto is capable of besting a minor Unicorn courtier in both politics and swordplay.  Big ups?

7)      Dragon Clan Champions – doing things their own way since Year Zero.

8 )     The Unicorn story mentions Naleesh’s siblings stepping aside so that she can be Clan Champion.  But her siblings weren’t going to be Clan Champions anyway, right?  Or does she just view Chagatai’s kids as her siblings?

9)      Dairuko is still all pensive, and is a teacher rather than a general.  She doesn’t seem the usual excessively aggressive Lion stereotype, so I wonder if hardline factions in the Clan are going to force her into more direct confrontation with the Unicorn than seems her style.

10)   The starter deck boxes (and the overall starter deck box) aren’t quite square.  This means that you have to put the deck boxes back in the box with a particular orientation.  I cannot for the life of me manage to get it right on the first try, and it is driving me crazy.

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