Show of Strength

Legend of the Five Rings card from A Perfect Cut

Card Type

Strategy

Gold Cost

0

Keywords

Political

Card Text

Battle: If you have not passed or taken a Battle action yet this battle: If you destroy this battlefield's province during resolution, take the Imperial Favor and until your next turn begins, the Defender may not Lobby and he and all his cards and effects are ignored while other players are lobbying.

Focus Value

3

Legality

Four Winds (Gold)

Deck

Fate

Printings

Rules Q&A

• Q: Aha! Now this, you can't do. You *can* play a Sneak Attack, and then you can use the Scout's trait to play a terrain, but you *cannot* squeeze a Show of Strength in between those two.
  Ah Vaughn Jeff has already contradicted this.
  Jeff has ruled - Sneak "Insert Action" Scout "Insert Terrain" is a legal play order. And the reverse order is likewise legal.
  A: I agree. It's perfectly legal to combine Sneak Attack and Scout in any order. Public service announcement in 3...2...1...
  Kids, always be sure to check the most recent wordings of cards when you're trying to figure out how they work. I know that there are a lot of you out there with older cards, and they've all got such spiffy art. It's hard not to want to play with them. But sometimes, you just need to make sure that the words on the card are up to date.
  This is why, for those of you playing out there, you should always try to make sure that you have an accurately worded version of a card on hand (if one is available). For those of you thinking about answering rules questions, you should check the wording of cards you're answering questions about. Even ones that you're sure you know how they work. Like Sneak Attack. Vaughn Derderian, "Post for June 16, 2003", 16 Jun 2003
• Q: Sneak/Mushin/Show of Strength/Deadly Ground. Now that's power.
  Umm..hey Vaughn...Mushin is a Battle action. So, Sneak/Mushin/Show of Strength/Deadly Ground can't be done, since Show must be the first battle action and all. Just thought I would point that out. :)
  A: Curses! Now I have to disassemble that deck...
  No, you're exactly right. I was just caught up in the excitement of discovering a new, super secret power combo. I guess I'll just keep playing with the old Secrets/Shame power combo... Vaughn Derderian, "Rules for June 12th", 12 Jun 2003
• Q: I should be able to play Sneak Attack because Sneak Attack reads "Reaction: Play this card when the Battle Action Segment begins. The Attacker may take an Open or Battle action before the Defender's first action in this battle." and Show of Strength reads "Political Battle: This action may not be played if you have passed or taken an Open or Battle action this battle.". So Sneak Attack is neither an Open nor a Battle action just like Kyuden Ikoma only cancels actions that have Battle on them, then play Show of Strength as my first action.
  A: Sure, you can do that. It's kinda a waste of a Sneak Attack, though. Vaughn Derderian, "Rules for June 11th - Part One!", 11 Jun 2003
• Q: What's the definition of the word "other" on [Show of Strength]?
  A: The defender is ignored during lobby attempts by any player in the game besides him or herself. Zen Faulkes, "Rules for 11 July 2002", 12 Jul 2002
• Q: And, also, I cannot move Sunetra into an empty Province and play [Show of Strength] at the battle, since moving her in would count as my first Battle action, correct? So I would have to resolve the battle she is at first, and then move her over, so she is present for the start of the battle.... eww.
  A: Correct. Jeff Alexander, "replies to 11 September", 12 Sep 2001
• Q: Show of Strength states that you may not play it if you have already played a battle or open action this phse. Just to double check, this would mean that you can NOT use a Superior Strategist to go fish for it, correct?
  A: Correct. Jeff Alexander, "replies to 6 September", 11 Sep 2001
• Q: Here is a crosspost of a question from a friend of mine, followed with a few of my own....
  **************************************** Show of Strength Political Battle: This action may not be played if you have passed or taken a battle or open action this battle. If you destroy this province during resolution, you gain the imperial favor and, until the beginning of your next turn, the defender may not lobby and is ignored during otherplayer's lobby attempts
  1) If you play this card successfully, on your next turn can you lobby for the favor if you are at a lower honor than your opponent?
  A: If it's a 2-player game, yes (and quite possibly if there are more as well). You ignore your opponent, which guarantees that you've got the highest Family Honor. Jeff Alexander, "replies to 8 September", 11 Sep 2001