EE Battles
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Battles
Battles are L5R’s way to represent military conflict. They usually happen in an attack (see Attack Phase) but sometimes happen as separate card effects.
A battle created by a card effect that does not create an Attack Phase is treated as a normal battle, except:
- Such battles are delayed effects that begin once the action or trait that created them has resolved and ended, and the opportunity to play Reactions to the end of the action or trait has passed, in a manner similar to additional phases and actions.
- Such battles have no Declaration or Maneuvers segments. Assignment and battlefield creation prior to such battles happen through card effects. There is no opportunity to invite allies.
- The rules prohibiting uninvited third-party players from moving into or creating units at battlefields also apply during battles not created by an attack.
- The effect creating the battle will specify who is the Attacker and Defender, either directly or indirectly (such as by specifying attacking and defending units.)
When a battle is created in a phase other than the Attack Phase, rules for taking actions during Combat Segments override rules for taking actions in that phase, but it is still that phase (see Additional phase or segment).
Example: During a battle created by a card effect during the Action Phase, you may not take Limited actions, because they may not be played during the Combat Segment. You may, however, take Reactions during this battle that look for triggers “during the Action Phase.”
An effect that creates an extra battlefield does not immediately create a battle; the battle at the new battlefield will happen following the normal rules on choosing battlefields.
For each separate battle, steps A through D from "Choose Battlefield" through "Final Steps" happen in sequence. The condition “during (a) battle” includes both the Combat and Resolution Segments, as well as the Final Steps before the battle ends, but not step A (Choose Battlefield).
A. Choose Battlefield
The Attacker chooses a battlefield whose battle has not yet ended, and the next battle will be fought there.
B. Combat Segment
Engaging is the time point at which the battle, and the Combat Segment, both begin. Specifically, things that are triggered “before engaging” do not occur in or during the battle, and things that are triggered “after engaging” do occur in and during the battle.
The Combat Segment is an action round. The Defender gets the first opportunity either to take a Battle action or pass. That opportunity then goes to the player to his left, and follows the sequence of play leftwards after that. After all players pass in sequence, the Combat Segment ends and the battle proceeds to the Resolution Segment.
After an effect changes which player gets the first opportunity to act in an action round, play after that opportunity then proceeds starting with the player who would normally have had the first opportunity to act.
Multiple effects that change who has the first opportunity to act are not cumulative. If the Attacker gets the first opportunity to act from two separate effects, he or she may not take two Battle actions before the Defender.
During the Combat Segment, the only action types that can be taken are Battle actions and Reactions. Battle actions must follow the additional rules of Presence and Location. Reactions are not subject to rules of Presence and Location.
Rule of Presence
The Rule of Presence: Battle actions can only be taken by a player who controls a unit at the current battlefield.
EXCEPTION: A player who controls no units at the current battlefield may take a Battle Action whose costs or effects say they are able to move, create, or bring into play one or more of his units there. This includes effects that depend on a random effect such as a card draw. The player must then make choices within the action, if possible, such that it does put one or more of his units there, fulfilling Presence.
In this Exception, even if the movement is known beforehand to fail, the action can still be taken, because of the Blind cards rule.
Example: A current effect says that “actions will not move units to or from battlefields". It is legal to take the action “Battle: Move your target Personality to the current battlefield. Gain 1 Honor,” if you control no units at the current battlefield, because the action only has to say that it moves the Personality there. Your Personality would not actually move, but you would gain Honor from the action.
The phrase “Even if you control no units at the current battlefield” is intended to ignore the rule of Presence, but not necessarily Location.
Rule of Location
The Rule of Location: This rule has two parts:
- A card in a unit must be at the current battlefield to be targeted by, or explicitly perform, a Battle action.
- If a Battle action is on a card in a unit (a Personality or attachment in play), the unit must be at the current battlefield in order to take that action.
EXCEPTION: As with the Rule of Presence, a Battle action can target, be performed by, or be taken by a card in a unit at another location if its costs or effects say they are able to move, or otherwise relocate, that unit to the current battlefield. The player who is taking the action must take choices within the action, if possible, such that they do move that unit there.
Other players than the player of the action are not forced to make such choices, although if another player has the option to move the unit to the current battlefield, the action is legal to play.
When found on a card in a unit, phrases such as “Even if [ the card itself ] is not at the current battlefield” or "Even if [ the card itself ] is home" ignore only the second part of the Rule of Location. They do not necessarily ignore the Rule of Presence or the first part of the Rule of Location.
Second-Battle Rule
Before a unit that was in an attacking army at any point during a battle’s resolution moves or assigns to a battlefield during the same Attack Phase, the unit’s movement or assignment does not happen.
Unlike the Rules of Presence and Location, the Second-Battle Rule does not restrict the taking of actions, but prevents movement and assignment as a cost or effect under certain conditions.
Special Abilities Available to Players
During the Combat Segment, all players have two abilities relevant to the Combat Segment: a Tactical Battle ability performed by Tactician Personalities, and a Reaction ability performed by Naval Personalities. See Player abilities.
C. Resolution Segment
Steps 1 through 3 happen in sequence as part of the Resolution Segment. A battle’s “resolution” refers to this Segment. None of these steps happen if the battle has no resolution.
1. Determine Outcome: Total the Force of each army (see Total Force). Whichever army has the highest total Force wins.
A side with no units has zero Force for purposes of this comparison, and is not affected by things that directly alter the Force of an “army”.
The calculation and comparison of army force is made only once. Any changes to army total Force after this point (e.g., units on the winning side being destroyed due to Reactions) do not alter the outcome.
The winning army’s leader (the Attacker or Defender) is the winner of the battle.
If there is a winner, the other army's leader is the loser, and loses the battle.
If both armies have the same total Force and both armies contain one or more units, the battle is a tie, with no winner or loser.
Any other result (such as an army with total Force of zero versus a side with no units) has no defined outcome, in which case, nothing happens in step 2.
2. Effects of Resolution: Follow one of the procedures under this heading, in order, depending on the battle’s outcome.
If the Attacker wins:
i. The Attacker simultaneously destroys all cards in the defending army.
ii. If the attacking army's total Force when the outcome was determined was greater than the defending army’s total Force plus the Province Strength of the current battlefield’s province, the Attacker destroys the province.
iii. The Attacker gains Honor from resolution equal to twice the number of cards in the defending army that were destroyed by the effects of resolution.
EXCEPTION: If any dishonorable Personalities are in the winning army, see Honorable and dishonorable.
If the Defender wins:
i. The Defender simultaneously destroys all cards in the attacking army.
ii. The Defender gains Honor from resolution equal to twice the number of cards in the attacking army that were destroyed by the effects of resolution, subject to the above Exception about dishonorable Personalities.
If the armies tie:
i. The Attacker and Defender simultaneously rehonor any dishonorable personalities in their own army.
ii. The Attacker and Defender simultaneously destroy all cards in their respective enemy leader's army.
iii. If no personalities in the Attacker’s army were dishonorable before taking step i above, the Attacker gains Honor equal to the number of cards he or she destroyed this way.
iv. If no personalities in the Defender’s army were dishonorable before taking step i above, the Defender gains Honor equal to the number of cards he or she destroyed this way.
Sources of effects
Destruction of Provinces and cards, Honor gains, and rehonoring, as results of the above procedures, are all effects of battle resolution. Such effects come "from" battle resolution and, if the player causing the effect was on the winning side, "by winning" the battle.
Card effects that may be applied "in" or "during" battle resolution are not effects of, and do not come "from," resolution or "by winning" the battle.
3. Resolution ends. After this point, all players have relevant a Reaction ability, Conquest, performed by Conqueror Personalities. See Player abilities.
D. Final Steps
Once a battle’s Resolution Segment ends, or once the Combat Segment has ended if something makes battle resolution not happen, follow steps 1 through 3 below in order.
1. Return home: Regardless of who wins, loses, or ties in the battle, all attacking and allied units at its battlefield bow simultaneously, then return home simultaneously.
Surviving defending units remain at the battlefield, unless the province was destroyed, in which case they return home simultaneously with any attacking units.
Both the bowing and change in location are effects of the battle and the battle's resolution, even though they happen after resolution. Returning home in this manner is not movement.
2. Discard Terrains: Discard all Strategy cards in play at the battlefield that just resolved. Effects will not negate this.
3. The battle ends. This happens even if there was no resolution to the battle. At this time, if any provinces were destroyed during the resolution, their battlefields cease to exist.
4. Last battle cleanup: If battles have ended at all existing battlefields except this one, all battlefields cease to exist.
Battlefields, general
When a battlefield ceases to exist, all units still there bow simultaneously if they were in an attacking army or if they were allied units, then return home simultaneously. Any Strategy in play there is discarded. These are not effects of resolution.
If a province is destroyed, for any reason, other than during battle resolution, its battlefield immediately ceases to exist.
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