Night Medallion

Legend of the Five Rings card from Pearl Edition, Imperial Edition, Emerald Edition, Obsidian Edition, Jade Edition, Celestial Edition 15th Anniversary

Card Type

Item

Force

+0

Chi

+0

Gold Cost

6

Keywords

Unique

Card Text

Will only attach to a Ninja or Kolat.
All stats and strengths on this Personality have +2, and all references to stats, strengths, Gold production, and Honor on him are increased numerically by 2 (i.e. an ability that creates -1F tokens would create +1F tokens).

Focus Value

3

Legality

Clan Wars (Imperial), Hidden Emperor (Jade)

Deck

Fate

Printings

Rulings

• Erratum: Reads, "Night Medallion 0F/0C 6G 3FV Unique. The Night Medallion can only be attached to a Kolat or a ninja. The Night Medallion adds +2 to every numeral printed on this Personality's card. This bonus does not apply to copied abilities." [MRP, Pearl Edition] Rules Archive, August 18, 2007, p. 53
• Losses are not automatically negative numbers: a number is only negative if there's an actual "-" sign on the card. [FAQ 3.4, 4 April 1997] Rules Archive, August 18, 2007, p. 53
• Will raise the base strength of ranged attacks that cannot be increased. [DW, 26 November 1996] Rules Archive, August 18, 2007, p. 53
• Does not affect Roman numerals. [VRD, 27 November 2000] Rules Archive, August 18, 2007, p. 53
• Adds to abilities on both cards when placed on an overlayed Experienced Personality. [DW, l5rinfo, 12/11/96] Accumulated Rulings, February 8, 2000, p. 43
• Clarified: +2 only applies to numerals. Text Change & Errata List, February 15, 2000, p. 7
• Erratum: Added/Errata: does not apply to copied abilities. Text Change & Errata List, February 15, 2000, p. 7
• Erratum: adds to the actual value. "-2" would become "0", not "-4". Text Change & Errata List, February 15, 2000, p. 7
• Erratum: Clarified: +2 only applies to numerals. Added: does not apply to copied abilities. Errata: adds to the actual value. "-2" would become "0", not "-4". Legend of the Five Rings FAQ, Version 3.4 & errata, June 1997, p. 23
• Q: Speaking of Kolats, can I put the Night Medallion on the Experienced Lion Sensei? What happens if I do? A: The Experienced Sensei has the Kolat trait, so he can wear the Medallion. If you've played him over an original Sensei, the Medallion modifies all his abilities and lets him place +3/+3 sensei tokens, up to 4 on each Personality. Existing sensei tokens don't change to +3/+3, though, and any normal Sensei still produce +1/+1 tokens and can only place a first or second token on a card. Legend of the Five Rings FAQ, Version 3.6.2, May 1998, p. 20
• Q: Since the Medallion adds +2 to the real mathematical value of numbers, if I put it on a card whose ability makes me "lose 1 honor", would I actually start gaining 1 honor? After all, "lose 1 honor" means I adjust my honor by -1, and -1 + 2 = +1. A: You're reading too much into that ruling. The number printed on the card is "1", and 1 + 2 = 3. You would "lose 3 honor". The Imperial Herald, Vol. 2, No. 1 (Issue 5), p. 15
• Night Medallion: The Night Medallion only adds +2 to numbers expressed using digits, not to numeric words. It also adds to the actual value, not to the magnitude: "-2" would become "0", for example, not "-4". Finally, it will not change the text of abilities copied from other cards (this overrides the rule on p. 28 under "Copying Abilities"). The Imperial Herald, Vol. 1, Issue 3, p. 7

Rules Q&A

• Q: The second restriction on Night Medallion applies only to abilities copied by its wearer or does it affect abilities copied from its wearer as well?
  A: Wearer only ("this Personality"). Zen Faulkes, "Rules for 16 December 2003, Part 3", 17 Dec 2003
• Q: Can Night Medallion change a negative numeral to a positive one?
  A: Yes. Zen Faulkes, "Rules for 16 December 2003, Part 3", 17 Dec 2003
• Q: What happens if I play 2x Political Entanglements on a Ratling Conjuror? My understanding, based on the rulings on the Night Medallion is that it becomes: Ratling Conjuror 0F (actually -1F), 0chi, 2g, 0PH (actually -2PH). Cannot attach spells with a gold cost above 1. Open: Bow Ratling Conjuror and discard a card from your hand to give all Ratling Cards -1F.
  A: Political Entanglements and the Night Medallion are worded slightly differently. The former reduces a numeral by 1, the other adds +2. For Political Entanglements to exactly parallel Night Medallion, it would have to "add -1" or something.
  I'm going to chicken out and leave this one for Jeff. Zen Faulkes, "Rules for 20 August 2003", 20 Aug 2003
• Q: if something reduces a number, it's a penalty, if something increases a numer, it's a bonus. Right?
  Then, under Shadow Beast:
  * If given a Night Medallion, its text will change to "each other Shadowlands Personality has +1C, to a minimum of 3." This will raise 1C Shadowlands Personalities to 3C, not 2C. [Netnews, JA, November 1999]
  So this is a reversal right?
  A: No, this is not a reversal. The Night Medallion does not increase or reduce bonuses or penalties. The Night Medallion changes numerals on a card directly, and it's very literal.
  Consider two cards, where one card says, "gain -1F," and the other says, "lose 1F." Those two are functionally the same, right? Not for the Night Medallion. The Night Medallion would make the first say, "gain +1F", and the other says, "lose 3F." Zen Faulkes, "Rules for 19 August 2003, Part 2", 20 Aug 2003
• Q: Second question, and a bit (lot?) sillier... If I make the Hantei the 39th a ninja (via Ronin Dojo or whatever) and then attach a Night Medallion to him, does it now require that the 14th black scroll be destroyed for him to die, making him unkillable (without killing the Night Medallion)?
  A: Yes. Strange but true. Jeff Alexander, "post for 27 November 2002", 28 Nov 2002
• Q: Also, just for clarification, if a Ninja player is using Kage Sensei then the kolat personalities have the Ninja trait correct? Thereby being able to use the Night Medallion?
  A: Yes, they gain the "Ninja" trait because that's his Clan alignment trait, and yes -- especially since the Night Medallion can go on a Ninja or Kolat to begin with. Jeff Alexander, "Rulings for 15-16 February 2001", 19 Feb 2001
• Q: 1. Shinsei's Riddle & Blessings of Isawa & Night Medallion
  If Shinsei's Riddle is to become attached to a personality by the Blessings (my fav event ;), how does the 'discard this card' clause interact with this attachment? If the attachment is legal, again how is the 'discard this card' clause handled when using the ability - ie: is the attached Kiho card then discarded?
  A: No, the personality is. Once the Kiho becomes an ability of the personality, the 'this card' part of it becomes self-referential, hitting the personality instead of the kiho. So, upon the next use of Shinsei's Riddle, the caster goes off to look for the solution. Vaughn Derderian, "Rules for", 12 Jan 2001
• Q: Does Alchemy Lab increase a spell's focus value? For kicks, does it also increase the printed year on the card a la Night Medallion?
  A: It may, if those are what you choose to increase. Jon Palmer, "Alchemy Lab + Focus Values", 24 Sep 2014