On behalf of the Legacy Council, I would like to welcome all players of Legend of the Five Rings to our noble effort to create a playable, enjoyable Open format. Our project here is open to everyone, and we invite you to offer comments and criticism so that we can create the best possible environment for all interested parties.

The Legacy Format project began in November 2006 as a response to an ongoing discussion about a viable Open format for the Legend of the Five Rings CCG. Our discussion was initiated on the Alderac forums, and found its way over here after a generous donation of forum space by the honorable Jade Hand. If you are interested in our original discussion, it is available here.

What came of these discussions was an agreement by many players that the Open format was problematic. While a blast to play due to the sheer volume of cards and the awesome history of our game, certain cards and decks had begun to have a deforming effect on the environment, which made it less enjoyable to play, and harder to lure players to. So while many players clamored for an Open-style format that would let them use their old favorites and classic decks, many were unwilling to hazard an attempt to play with the certain decks and cards around.

Our discussion concluded that to make the format viable, steps would have to be taken. Old rules would need to be updated, clarifications made, and most importantly, some cards would just have to be banned. Ideally, these steps coupled with playtesting would reveal to us the best way for the environment to operate.

However, this lacked centralization, and no one could be expected to act alone on behalf of all people. So we created the Legacy Council. This collection of players would act as a voting and regulating body for the format, which we call the Legacy Format. The many diverse viewpoints and experiences of the members would allow the council to cover all of our bases and discuss all issues. It also offered a set, specified group of people to be responsible for the format, and would allow for conclusive voting and action on behalf of players everywhere.

After much discussion and debate, we found a way to settle many issues and render a consensus on many topics. As it stands, we have taken the following actions:

*Made rules for our council
*Updated old rules to current wordings as was necessary
*Banned the most problematic cards
*Created a watch list to observe other suspects
*Chose a council
*Made a number of other decisions

Now, we are acting on these decisions. We are playtesting and compiling Oracle documents to make the format as easy to access as possible, and as clear and understandable as possible. We hope to present the most coherent format rules we can to players as soon as possible.

So, now you must be asking: so what? Where do we go from here? What can I do?

For one, we have some events being scheduled for the format. We want this to be an environment people will enjoy playing, and that will facilitate the L5R community's desire to play with their old cards in a fun and rewarding environment. If you want to play in a tournament using Legacy rules, you can go to Origins, go to a number of other events during Kotei season that will feature a tournament, or you can run events yourself. All of the rules are here, and available for public consumption.

What can you do? You can help. All of our discussion is here, and open to the public. No one has a monopoly on good ideas, and we invite and welcome everyone to participate in this project. We need you to read our discussions, and our considerations, and make your voice heard. The Council exists only to act on your behalf, so we require your input. This is a project that belongs to the whole community, and that community is integral to the format's existence. Please feel free to comment and offer advice as you wish. We want as much input as we can get. We want this format to be played and enjoyed.

We hope you join us. With your assistance and enthusiasm, we can have a vibrant, wonderful format that can enable all of us to enjoy our cards, our game, and the heroes of its past.

BANZAI!

You mean CCG here.

Hello,

I just wanted to add one thing to what Shingen said.

If you want to help a simple thing you can do is build decks and play games under the format. We're actively trying to playtest but we're all busy people with busy lives and playtesting this huge environment is a formidable task so your help in this regard will be greatly appreciated. We just ask that you send in your playtest results including deck lists and results to Hikaru on this forum.

I hope you will enjoy Legacy.

A simple addendum re: playtest reports.

I would like to see the following information:

Decklists

W/L records

Notes on game-swinging cards/combos

Any word on how exactly the CE starting holdings can be used in Legacy?

Yup.

Border Keep and Bamboo Harvesters are now the standard rule, hence they're used.

The Legacy trait on Holdings does nothing.

A Favor Returned is banned.

Gifts and Favours functions as per normal.

Hello there! I'm not exactly new to the open format, I've been playing since emerald ed. I do have a question regarding the OPT rules for play. Due to this new CE 15 set that came out is Bayushi Aramoro only 1/turn as opposed to repeatedly with unbow effects? Or does it not count as a reprint as its just a promo/updated picture?

Check Oracle of the Void. (oracleofthevoid.com) It's amazing for Legacy. All the old cards have been updated with Emperor wording.

Yeah, we should update some of these stickies here.

Even more work?



I'll see what I can do when I'm actually awake.