Samurai Edition rules changes

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These are the big differences between the Samurai Edition comprehensive rules and the Lotus Edition rulebook.

1 Changes introduced in previous expansions
2 Subtractions
3 Changes and additions with major impact on play
4 Minor changes and additions

[edit] Changes introduced in previous expansions

The new term Focus Effect is used for cards that provide special effects during duels.
The Delayed/Immediate terrain distinction is gone; delayed effects are written as such on Terrains.
Duels are now unrefusable by default but have no default consequence of losing.
"Engage" refers to the point at time when a battle begins.
"Clan alignment" will replace "faction alignment."

[edit] Subtractions

The following have been removed from Samurai Edition rules:
- Wind cards.
- Sensei cards.
- The Ninjutsu keyword and associated rulebook abilities.
- The Yu keyword .
- The Formation keyword.
- The Soul of... keyword .
- The Fortification keyword.
- The Ritual keyword.
- The Enlightened keyword.
Titles no longer give a card a keyword.
Open actions are no longer playable during battle.
Fear is now an action keyword and has no default effect defined in the rules.
Kiho is now an action keyword and has no special rules, nor is it a card type any more.
Undead cards are no longer immune to Fear.
Ranged Attacks can no longer be combined.
Battle abilities on Regions are not restricted by what Province the Region is attached to.
Destroying overlaid cards does not gain Honor for each card.
Tokens are never considered cards.

[edit] Changes and additions with major impact on play

Shadowlands is no longer a Clan.
Added Spider Clan as a new Clan.
There are new default actions using the Imperial Favor.
Unbowed Followers on a bowed Personality now add to a Unit's Force total.
The Naval keyword works differently during battle.
The Rule of Location replaces the Rule of Relevance for battles.
Actions can have a dual type, such as "Battle/Open."
There are new rules for Holdings with the Legacy keyword, that replace the function of A Favor Returned, Gifts and Favors, and similar cards. See also Start of game, item C.
The player ability for transferring attachments in the Action Phase has its own descriptive term ("Share") and works differently.
Honor Requirements: If your Family Honor doesn’t meet your Clan-aligned Personality’s Honor Requirement during the Dynasty Phase, you may ignore the Honor Requirement and bring him into play paying 2 more Gold than normal. Combined with the other Dynasty Phase rules, if you take this option, you may pay his full Gold Cost and not gain any Honor, or pay 2 more than his full Gold Cost and gain Honor.
An Enlightenment Victory requires the rings to have been last put in play by their own text.

[edit] Minor changes and additions

Dishonor is now considered a separate victory condition.
No exceptions to the rule that bowed cards cannot use abilities.
Rule preventing bowed cards from issuing challenges removed.
The Duelist trait only works against a Personality without the trait.
In a duel, each player may simply focus once from hand instead of focus pool; the procedure for adding cards from hand is gone.
New Tracking Rule for out of play cards, similar to the "face down and out of play" card memory rule in Lotus.
Rules for determining what performs an action have been simplified.
The player ability for bringing attachments into play in the Action Phase has its own descriptive term ("Equip").
Cards always enter hands face-down.
Destruction from having zero Chi is now considered to come "from" the effect that last gave the Personality a Chi penalty (including effects that create tokens).
A new rule under "search" limits abuse of search effects if the search fails.
Keywords with more than one word are treated as a single keyword and don't respond to partial references; "Dragon Clan" is not referred to by "Dragon," for example.
"Unaligned" is now a rules term referring to a lack of Clan alignment, not a term explicitly printed on cards.
Only Personalities can overlay or be overlaid, though other card types can still be Experienced.
Events with a given title may resolve only once per game for each player.
The first opportunity to react to anything now belongs to the active player. This makes the timing rule consistent and easy to remember.
Strongholds are now considered cards, and produce card effects. No other card can target or affect your stronghold unless it specifically mentions the word “Stronghold.”
It is no longer legal to create a unit in a battlefield where you control no units.