Emperor Edition Sealed Deck Preview

Emperor Edition Sealed Deck pre-release events are this weekend (February 17-19), so you might be wondering what sort of goodies your clan got (or didn’t get) in their Starter Deck.

The full rules for Emperor Edition sealed deck are available here. Deck construction rules (40/40, Unique, Loyal, 3-of, and so forth) are in full effect. You can swap cards out from the preconstructed deck for the random rares you get, anything from those three booster packs and, potentially significantly, any of the four Strongholds.

Note that, for “key cards,” I’m excluding the fixed, starter-deck only cards that most of you already know about – Clan Champ, Clan virtue, Clan Celestial, House Guard, etc.

Crab
Win Condition: Military
Themes Represented: Bersekers, Kaiu
“Default” Stronghold: Halls of the Forgotten (Bersekers)
Stronghold You Should Be Playing: Halls of the Forgotten (your opponent will have few battle actions to deal with your Berserkers to begin with) or Carpenter Castle (you have 7 Siege Personalities and 3 Siege Followers)
Attachments: Followers + Spiked Tetsubo
Key Cards: Kaiu Esumi, Hida Yamadara, Genji’s Students
Strengths: Everyone has blank Personalities. Your blank Personalities are huge.
Weaknesses: You will cry a little at the Kaiu Nakano being include in a deck that’s mostly Berserkers.

Crane
Win Condition: Honor
Themes Represented: Courtiers, Scouts, Shugenja
“Default” Stronghold: Kyuden Otomo XP
Stronghold You Should Be Playing: Kyuden Otomo XP
Attachments: Spells and Followers/Items that gain honor
Key Cards: Daidoji Eibzo, The Shadow Court, Encircled Terrain, Cleansing the Path, Rocky Terrain, Doji Dainogon
Strengths: You get to be the only honor deck; opponents are confused.
Weaknesses: You’re trying to support three themes. Good luck with that.

Dragon
Win Condition: Military
Themes Represented: Monks, Tamori
“Default” Stronghold: Pillars of Virtue
Stronghold You Should Be Playing: Dragon’s Breath Castle (not all that many actions to chain together anyway) or Pillars of Virtue (Falling Leaf Strike + anything is still handy)
Attachments: Followers + Spells
Key Cards: Volcano Tattoo, Breath of the Heavens, Engulfing Flames, Tamori Muzu
Strengths: If you get your Fire monks together with the good Fire-themed Kiho, you can actually kill some stuff.
Weaknesses: Your secondary theme is an honor theme, but your deck is military.

Lion
Win Condition: Military
Themes Represented: Scouts, Paragons
“Default” Stronghold: The Golden Plains
Stronghold You Should Be Playing: Golden Plains (so you can use Shinju and Well Prepared) or Shamate Keep (reusable actions are money, even if you’ve only got a limited number of 4PH guys)
Attachments: things that cost 2 Gold
Key Cards: Matsu Arata, Ikoma Shinju, Guiden By Honor, Satoshi’s Dual Warfans, Brothers in Battle, Well Prepared
Strengths: Aggressive weenies instead of just lame weenies.
Weaknesses: Not as many kill actions as Mantis, Scorpion, and Unicorn.

Mantis
Win Condition: Military
Themes Represented: Scouts
“Default” Stronghold: Koshin Keep
Stronghold You Should Be Playing: Koshin Keep
Key Cards: Tsuruchi Tomaru, Tsuruchi Kosoko, Tsuruchi Yashiro,
Attachments: Followers + Flesh Cutter Arrows.
Strengths: You only have one theme! You have tons of battle actions, including several guys with kill actions! You have a smidge of Naval.
Weaknesses: None.

Phoenix
Win Condition: Military
Themes Represented: Elemental Destruction, Order of Chikai
“Default” Stronghold: Library of Rebirth
Stronghold You Should Be Playing: Library of Rebirth (only 7 Samurai for Shiro Shiba)
Attachments: Spells
Key Cards: Shiba Sansesuke, Shiba Kataken, Isawa Tamaki, Cleansing the Path, A Dragon’s Favor,
Strengths: There’s enough Cavalry Shugenja to sometimes sleaze provinces.
Weaknesses: Only one guy with a real Battle action. No Force.

Scorpion
Win Condition: Military
Themes Represented: Ninja, Paragons of Loyalty
“Default” Stronghold: The Otoro Estates
Stronghold You Should Be Playing: The Otoro Estates or Shiro Chugo (both are Ranged 4 Attacks, but Shiro Chugo works with your Paragons too).
Attachments: things that say “Ninja”
Key Cards: Shosuro Konishi, Shosuro Tsuji, Never Safe, Bayushi Waru (5 Courtiers in the deck),
Strengths: Your Stronghold has a kill action and another ability. You have two different 5F guys with a good printed Battle action.
Weaknesses: Other players will dislike you for being a Scorpion.

Spider
Win Condition: Military
Themes Represented: Dark Paragons, Commanders
“Default” Stronghold: Steel Soul Dojo
Stronghold You Should Be Playing: none (only six Dark Virtues, only 7 Commanders – maybe you roll the dice with Goju box?)
Attachments: Followers + Maga-yari
Key Cards: Strength in Terror, Vigilant Eyes, Revenge
Strengths: Lots of solid bow Strategies.
Weaknesses: Little support for any box. Lack of impressive battle actions on Personalities.

Unicorn
Win Condition: Military
Themes Represented: Commanders, Tacticians
“Default” Stronghold: Journey’s End Keep
Stronghold You Should Be Playing: Journey’s End Keep
Attachments: Followers
Key Cards: Shinjo Horibe, Moto Tetsuo, Shinjo Eun-Sahng, Silk Works, Khol Regulars,
Strengths: CAVALRY. The default box doesn’t care about whether you have applicable keyword or attachment. Decent array of Battle actions. Cavalry.
Weaknesses: Have to pay 10G for 5F Guy with Ranged Attack, instead of 8 like Scorpion. You are jealous of gold cost. They are jealous of Cavalry. Bitter rivalry ensues. Mantis kill you both and steal your stuff.

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