Shattered Focus

Legend of the Five Rings card from Web of Lies, Promotional–Diamond

Card Type

Event

Keywords

Unique

Card Text

After you reveal cards in your Provinces at the start of your turn, if this Event is face-up in one of them, it enters play in your home.
All players must focus at least once during a duel involving one of their Personalities, if able.
Reaction: After focus cards are revealed in a duel, discard this Event from play to discard one of each player's focused cards.

Legality

Age of Enlightenment (Lotus), Rain of Blood (Diamond)

Deck

Dynasty

Printings

Rulings

• May be used if there is only one card focused by one player. Rules Archive, August 18, 2007, p. 76

Rules Q&A

• Q: I hav Shattered Focus in Play, and no card in my hand. My opponent focuses and I strike.
  Can I use Shattered Focus 's reaction to discard his focus card ? (or is the effect negated since there isn't A focused card to discard for each opponent)
  A: Shattered Focus is printed after Dawn of the Empire, and does not explicitly state that it targets the discarded cards. That means you do not have to have a focus card for each personality in the duel. It will resolve and discard the one card that is card discard, and its attempt to discard a card which is not there is simple Negated. Martin Lund, "Rules for 23 January 2005", 25 Jan 2005
• Q: If Shattered Focus is in play can I use a reaction instead of focusing ie. Smoke and Mirrors or Shadow's Claw?
  A: Going back to Jeff's ruling on Mirumoto, treat "must focus" effects like his and Shattered Focus's as if they said, "may not strike." So, with Shattered Focus in effect, you can not choose to strike unless you have focused at least once or can not focus. It will not prevent you from playing Reactions instead of focusing. Martin Lund, "Rules for 22 January 2005", 25 Jan 2005
• Q: Follow-up, therefore, can Shrine of the Sun be used to discard such an offending event such as Shattered Focus or Commanding Favor?
  A: I don't see the Relevance of the first to the second part.
  Shrine of the Sun says, "Bow and destroy Shrine of the Sun to target an Event card in play or in any discard pile. End all ongoing effects of that card. Shuffle the Event into its owner's deck."
  Any way you slice it, the Event goes back into owner's deck. It works on the Event weather it is in play, out of play, has ongoing effects, or have no effects at all. Martin Lund, "Rules for 17 January 2005", 21 Jan 2005
• Q: Does Shattered Focus target the focus cards it discards? By the new templating rules it doesn't target but since you have to choose the focus cards to discard it seems like it must target those cards. In particular if a situation arises where one player has no focus card at the end of the duel can Shatter Focus's reaction be used?
  A: I believe that for cards released with Dawn of the Empire or later sets have the new rule applied to them - that they only target Explicitly. The implicit targeting rules from the Diamond Edition Rulebook do not apply to them. That should be on the Web of Lies Rules Sheet, IIRC. Martin Lund, "Rules for 27 and 28 December", 4 Jan 2005
• Q: Shattered Focus has resolved and is in play,forcing all players involved in a duel to focus at least once.
  One player has no cards in his hand,but has in play(and controls)a Tsuma dojo.
  One of that player's personalities is challenged to an unrefuseable duel.
  Can the aforementioned player choose NOT to use Tsuma dojo's reaction and call strike?
  A: You can't be forced to play an Action on one of your cards unless an effect specifically forces you to use an available or specific Action. Forcing you to do something like pay gold or focus will not force you to use an Action (Limited, Open, Battle, Reaction) on a card that enables you to do so. Martin Lund, "Rules for 21 December 2004", 27 Dec 2004
• Q: Let's say I have Shattered Focus at home when a strike is called. Kharmic Strike is revealed after being focused against my duelist. If I use Shattered Focus to discard Kharmic Strike, would it:
  A. Do nothing. Kharmic Strike has been revealed and the duel will unerringly end in a tie. B. The duel resolves normally as Kharmic Strike is now in the discard pile; its trait no longer has an effect on the duel's outcome.
  A: A. By card text, Kharmic Strike triggers as soon as it is revealed. Discarding it after it is revealed won't change anything that has already triggered. Martin Lund, "Rules for 13 December 2004", 15 Dec 2004
• Q: Well... Let me remember. During a duel, when focusing during a duel, I give a stat bonus to my personnality at the time I focus.
  For example : Duel of Personal Honor : with a 3ph peep : Focus 1 : Let your Spirit Guide You => +6ph Focus 2 : Let your Spirit Guide You (again) => +9ph
  Right ?
  Ok, then, I'm browsing the wrath previews (I'm thinking of my futur decks, yes sir, I do !) and I find this one card :
  Shattered Focus This card remains in play in your home. While this card is in play, Personalities must focus at least once per duel if able. Reaction: After focus cards are revealed in a duel, discard this card: Discard one card focused by each Personality in the duel.
  Ok, ok... so after focused are revealed, I can discard card that were focused during the duel (I focus on the second ability, the first one is cool ^_^). Ok, then, what is it expect to do ? It does nothing from how I read it. Am I wrong ?
  A: You are wrong. It ends the bonus that card provided. Martin Lund, "Rules for 23 November 2004", 26 Nov 2004
• Q: My opponent plays The Bear Returns. If I use Shattered Focus to discard it, do the effects of it still apply?
  A: You can't use Shattered Focus, because The Bear Returns resolves immediately. Zen Faulkes, "Questions about Keen Eye", 3 Apr 2005
• Q: If the event has both (an) ongoing effect and an effect that is not considered an ongoing effect (for example, Shattered Focus), does Unexpected Strike just end the ongoing effect, and leave the rest of the event in play?
  A: Yes. Zen Faulkes, "Unexpected Strike", 7 Mar 2005
• Q: Ok, the setup is as following
  Wrath of the Emporer and Shattered Focus are in Play
  I play Steel on Steel in battle. I have no cards in hand.
  The question is:
  Do I have the ability to strike or do I have to play wrath?
  I did search for the answer before looking, if it was there, I missed it.
  Thanks in advance
  A: You may strike. You are never obliged to play a Reaction. Zen Faulkes, "Shattered Focus and Wrath of the Emporer", 7 Mar 2005
• Q: the first card focused by any player counts for BOTH (Shattered Focus) and Kakita.
  A: Correct. Zen Faulkes, "Re: kakita, focusing", 5 Mar 2005
• Q: If the event has both (an) ongoing effect and an effect that is not considered an ongoing effect (for example, Shattered Focus), does Unexpected Strike just end the ongoing effect, and leave the rest of the event in play?
  A: Yes. Zen Faulkes, "Unexpected Strike", 4 Mar 2005
• Q: the first card focused by any player counts for BOTH (Shattered Focus) and Kakita.
  A: Correct. Zen Faulkes, "kakita, focusing", 3 Mar 2005
• Q: Some Events (Shattered Focus, Death of Ryoshun) explicitly enter play as part of their resolution. My understanding is that Matsoru will not prevent such Events from "trying" to resolve, but the entering play will be negated - thus the net effect is typically that the Event resolves without effect, but still counts as having resolved (and stays in the Province).
  A: Correct. Zen Faulkes, "Yoritomo Matsoru's lock", 20 Feb 2005