First and Final Strike

Legend of the Five Rings card from Samurai Edition, Lotus Edition, Training Grounds 2, Drums of War, Glory of the Empire, Promotional–Samurai

Card Type

Strategy

Gold Cost

0

Card Text

Battle: Your target performing unbowed Personality challenges a target enemy Personality. Destroy the loser. The winner gains 3 Honor if the winner had less Chi than the loser before the first opportunity to focus or strike.

Focus Value

3

Legality

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

Deck

Fate

Printings

Rulings

• Erratum: Reads, "First and Final Strike 0G 3FV Battle: Target one of your unbowed Personalities: He challenges a target Personality opposing him. Destroy the loser. The winner’s controller gains 3 Honor if the winner had less Chi than the loser before the first opportunity to focus or strike." [MRP, Samurai Edition, 25 July 2007] Comprehensive Rules, Samurai Edition, with specific card rulings, final version, May 2009, p. 136

Rules Q&A

• Q: Hi !
  My opponent plays Determination and First and Final Strike to duel a Unicorn Clan personnality. During the duel, I focus a Crosswind's Cut Style.
  What happens ?
  I mean, does Determination negates the negating from Crosswind's Cut Style ? The real question would be, does Determination also negates what happens during the duel and/or focus effects ?
  Thank you for your time.
  A: Determination will prevent the "Destroy the loser" effect from being negated by Crosswinds Cut Style. Chris Fuchs, "Crosswind's Cut Style and Determination", 26 Oct 2007
• Q: (H)er destruction in duel that occurs during Battle (like Warrior Challenge or First and Final Strike) COULD trigger her Reaction?
  A: Correct. Zen Faulkes, "Bayushi Hisako and "Opposed"", 28 Aug 2007
• Q: Greetings,
  I'd like to get a little more explanations about how effects apply (or don't apply) to cards that are destroyed and later come back into play.
  Let's imagine a battle where a Personality is affected by Triumph of Courage : he gets +1F after each time a Battle action resolves this turn, including this one ; at this time he gets +1F for Triumph of Courage. Then this courageous Personality is destroyed by a Battle action (let's say First and Final Strike). Triumph of Courage would give him +2F but he is no longer in play so the effects from Triumph of Courage no longer apply to him. The third Battle action is Let Them Fight Their Deads, targeting this dead Personality who now enters play at this battlefield.
  Are the effects from Triumph of Courage still waiting for his return, therefore giving him a Force bonus, or have they ended when this Personality was destroyed ? If they give him a Force bonus, is it +3F (resolution of Triumph of Courage, First and Final Strike and Let Them Fight Their Deads) or only +2F because the Personality was not in play when First and Final Strike ended so it doesn't count towards the effects from Triumph of Courage ?
  Thanks for reading.
  A: The effect of Triumph of Courage lasts the whole turn. Each time a Battle Action resolves it'll try to create a new +1F bonus to give to the Personality you targeted with it. If the Personality can't legally be effected, the +1F bonus effect fails. If the Personality can be effected, he / she / it gains a +1F bonus that lasts until the end of the turn.
  So in your example, let's say we target Matsu Takeko the following plays out.
  Triumph of Courage is played on Matsu Takeko. Triumph of Courage finishes resolving. Takeko gains +1 Force.
  First and Final Strike is played on Takeko. Takeko is killed. First and Final Strike finishes resolving. Takeko fails to gain +1 Force because she is not in play to be effected.
  Let Them Fight Their Dead is played on Takeko. Somebody loses 5 Honor. Takeko enters play. Let Them Fight Their Dead finishes resolving its immediate effects. Takeko gains +1 Force.
  Total Actions resolved: 3 Total Force gained by Takeko: 2
  Basically, Triumph of Courage "waits around" to see if any new triggers come up from Battle Actions this turn (that's what its card text says, after all), but its individual attempts to give out +1F do not "wait around" to see if their subject reenters play. They just succeed or fail to resolve - once and only once.
  Also, remember that Takeko still has the original +1F while in the Discard Pile until the end of the turn since on-going effects do not end early just because the card their effected leaves play. They only go away if the card becomes mixed up with other cards face-down - typically by being put back into a Deck or Hand. Martin Lund, "Triumph of Courage in Death after Life", 20 Jul 2007
• Q: Right now that I have found the actual names of the cards-
  First and Final Strike
  The peoples champion
  These cards make no mention of what happens to the loser of a duel. I find it hard to believe they would not be destroyed as it otherwise makes first and final strike near on pointless.
  Could you clear this up for me as some people that I play with truly believe that there are no ill effects of losing a duel.
  Further, am I to expect that if a challenge card does not specify what happens to the loser he is just destroyed?
  Thankyou
  A: See the sticky, please. The card was not first printed in The Truest Test. Zen Faulkes, "Duels", 15 Jun 2007