Earthen Guardians

Legend of the Five Rings card from The Truest Test, Samurai Edition Banzai

Card Type

Spell

Gold Cost

2

Keywords

Earth

Card Text

Battle: Even if this Shugenja is not at the current battlefield, bow him: Create a Nonhuman • Earth Personality in your current army with 3F/1C, or 5F/1C if your Shugenja is Earth, and the trait, "May not be destroyed to pay costs." After this turn ends, remove the Personality from the game.

Focus Value

3

Legality

Age of Enlightenment (Lotus), Race for the Throne (Samurai)

Deck

Fate

Printings

Rulings

• "... remove this Personality from the game" refers to the created Personality, not the Shugenja the spell is attached to. [CLARIFICATION, 2 March 2008] Comprehensive Rules, Samurai Edition, with specific card rulings, final version, May 2009, p. 134

Rules Q&A

• Q: Can one use Earthen Guardians to create a personality at a battlefield when you have no units present? I found this ruling on the forums:
  viewtopic.php?f=59&t=59063&p=760435&hilit=earthen+guardians#p760435
  However, p. 43 of the rulebook glossary was pointed out to me, which states under under the definition of army:
  "One or more units on one side at a battlefield. However, when a side has no units, the term "army" does not restrict actions that move units there, create units there, or count the number of units there. See "Attack Phase" p 33."
  How does this interact, if at all, with the rule of presence?
  A: An action that moves a unit into an empty army implicitly breaks the Rule of Presence, because of the exception. However, an action that creates a unit in an empty army must explicitly break the Rule of Presence, using text similar to "Even if you have no units at the current battlefield, ...". Alex Jones, "Earthen Guardians, created personalities & rule of presence", 1 May 2008
• Q: In samurai edition rules page35:
  RULE OF PRESENCE
  To legally take any Battle action, you must control a unit at the current battlefield.
  RULE OF LOCATION
  Cards in units must be at the current battlefield to be legally targeted by a Battle Action; likewise, to legally take a Battle action from a card in a unit, the unit must be at the current battlefield.
  Exception: Actions that say they can move a unit to the current battlefield are legal if Presence and Location will be satisfied with the unit there. In this case, choices about movement effects must then be made to satisfy both Presence and Location, if possible.
  With earthen Guardians' ability:
  Earth Battle: Bow this Shugenja, even if he is not at the current battlefield: Create a Nonhuman Earth Personality in your current army with 3F/1C, or 5F/1C if your Shugenja has the Earth keyword,and the trait, "Can not be destroyed to pay costs." After this turn ends, remove this Personality from the game.
  Does this also satisfy the exception for rule of presence?
  A: No. Creating a personality is not moving.
  Yes, this was changed on purpose. Chris Fuchs, "Earthen Guardians", 9 Jul 2007
• Q: Earthen Guardians: If I am the attacker at a province, and both armies are empty, does this satisfy the rule of presence, because I am creating a unit at the current battlefield?
  A: Lotus rules, pg. 51: "Rule of Presence... is satisfied if... The Battle or Open action he wants to use will result in him controlling a unit there, unconditionally."
  Rules Archive, Battle: "An empty army can be 'joined.'"
  Yes. Zen Faulkes, "Earthen Guardians Please", 27 May 2007