STRATEGIC L5R

Strategic L5R is set up to allow players to simulate a war size conflict between the clans of Rokugan. This game is still in its infancy, so there will inevitable be situations that the Referees will be forced to make a decision - that's what the referees are there for.

Strategic L5R is designed to be played with teams of five players for each clan. (the map we've used has 8 clans - the 7 great clans, plus Junzo, but fewer clans could be used if there are fewer players available). Each team consists of a Daimyo, a Karo (runner), and three Warlords. The Daimyo stays next to the war map watching the movement of the armies, discussing treaties with the other Daimyos, and giving orders for the movements of his Warlords. The Karo is the only person allowed to be in the war room with the map as well as in the battle room to see the battles in progress. The Karo will inform the Daimyo of the progress of the battles as well as informing the warlords of whom to fight and who is the ally of the clan. Warlords are in charge of one of the clan's armies and stay in the battle room with their decks. Each Warlord must have a prepared deck of the clan they represent for use in the battles to come.

A variation on the map of Rokugan from the L5R RPG is used to make the war map. The borders of the map are the edge of the known world and the coast. The clans are positioned in the lands they own broken into provinces [the lesser clans (Fox, Wasp, Dragonfly...ect) are considered owned by the greater clans near them]. Each clan has four provinces (except Crane who begins with five that are spread out along the coast). The spine of the world cuts the Empire in half and is not passable except through Beiden Pass which connects the Lion and the Scorpion lands, and up in Unicorn lands by the Chrysanthemum Petal Lake. The Hidden Forest between Crab and Scorpion also blocks movement except around its edges (by Crane and by Unicorn) and through its thinnest part near the Temple of Osano-Wo. The mountains around the Dragon Clan are impassable except for the two mountain passes - one connecting to the Phoenix and the other connecting to the Unicorn. Yogo Junzo is in the corner with the Crab clan between him and the rest of the Empire. One of each clan's Provinces is considered the clan's Capital, and should be clearly marked. This description of the map that was used is the best we can do with text - hopefully you get the idea...

Daimyos: At the beginning of the game, each Daimyo chooses where his three armies will begin - they must begin at different provinces within the clan's lands. All of these positions are submitted secretly and revealed simultaneously - each army should be noted on the map with a clear marker of some sort (token, miniature, or whatever will clearlyi identify the clan and # of the army). Also, the Daimyo must identify which warlord is leading each army so that the referee running the War Room can accurately pair off the warlords based on movements on the Map in the future. Finally, each Daimyo is given three "Resource" cards (basic holdings of that clan) to distribute in any way between the clan's Warlords. These holdings start the game in play and do not have to be paid for, but if the army is destroyed, then the victorious army takes the resource for themselves. Resources can be sent back to the Daimyo for redistribution if the Warlord is not engaged in a combat. Once the starting positions are determined, the game begins.

Similarly to the game Diplomay (from Avalon Hill), the Daimyos have 15 minutes each turn to discuss politics, prepare alliances, and plan treachery before they must submit their "moves" for the turn. Any command that the referee cannot interpret from what is written is considered "too confusing for the Warlord" - that army automatically stands still this turn. The Daimyo cannot explain what "he meant to say", so they should make very clear instructions.

Each army can move one space each turn. The only reason an army is unable to move is if the warlord is currently in a fight in the War Room. Otherwise, an army can move into any adjacent province each 15-minute 'turn'. The possible commands for an army are: 1. "Move" - to move from one province to an adjacent province 2. "Stand" - don't move 3. "Capture" - seize control of the current province. 4. "Return" - return an army to play in it's Capital Province.

The Capture command can be canceled by any Daimyo with an army in that province before moves are carried out. If there are no other armies in that Province before movement (or if they do not contest the control of the province), then that Daimyo marks the Province as under his clan's control. The Capture command can be followed up by a "move" command, but not the other way around - an army can seize a Province it is leaving, but not a Province it is entering.

If two armies both move such that they would switch provinces, one of the armies (determined randomly by the referee) moves first and prevents the other army from moving. Otherwise, all moves occur as listed in the commands (including if an army is moving into the province an army is leaving).

When a Warlord is defeated in battle, that information should be rushed to the Map Room where that army's marker is removed from the Map. It can return to play after two turns, but can only return to play at the clan's Capital. Any Daimyo with a unit in the Capital, or with control of the capital may cancel the 'Return' command (simply by saying "no") and prevent the unit from returning to play that turn.

Warlords There should be a copy of the map in the War Room for the Warlords' reference, but the armys' current locations and province control is NOT marked on this map - it is solely for the Warlords to use as a reference. The Referee for the War Room should be present between turns in the Map Room when the armies are moved to see if two or more armies end up in the same province.

If two or more armies end up in the same province, then those Warlords must face off at a table. If all WarLords in the province agree to a truce, then no game is played and those armies may move out of the province on future turns. If even a single Warlords wants to fight, they play a (nearly) normal game of L5R, until the only remaining armies in that province agree to a truce. If there is a truce, neither player should even begin playing. Typically, the Warlords will declare a truce or battle based on their instructions received from their Daimyo via their Karo.

If a Warlord is eliminated from the game, the Warlord that eliminated him takes control of any Resources that he had. Those Resources are in play, but start bowed. If a player wins the game, the Warlord decides which of his current opponents are allies (and therefore spared) and which are enemies (and therefore eliminated). Eliminated Warlords have their armies removed from the main map for two turns (see above) and must give their Resources to the victor. The allied armies stay in the Province.

Many games will continue longer than 15 minutes, so it is possible to have armies move into a province where there is already a fight in progress. If that happens, the current player finishes his turn before they are added. Then, the entering Warlords are arranged randomly behind the current player. Each of the entering Warlords gets two "production turns" (in order to catch up a bit) - during those turns they can ONLY bring cards into play. All Events are discarded without effect, and any actions that do anything other than produce gold are likewise discarded. After the production is done (which ought to be done simultaneously for all entering armies to save time), the game continues normally with the first entering Warlord taking a normal turn.

The Referee for the War Room should be aware of two possible abuses of the rules: 1. Stalling for time in the hopes of getting reinforcements 2. Allied Warlords building forces to have unstoppable armies in case another army moves into the province.

Karos: This can be the most interesting of the roles within the clan team. The Karo doesn't get to make any official decisions, but is the only person in the clan that has complete knowledge of what is happening on both sides of the wall. An intelligent Karo that can clearly and quickly describe the scene in the other room is always the difference between the successful clan and the clan that is destroyed.