Startling Attack
Legend of the Five Rings card from Empire at War
Open in Oracle of the Void
- Card Type
- Strategy
- Gold Cost
- 0
- Keywords
- Iaijutsu
- Card Text
- Reaction: After another player's Personality enters play, if it is not the Dynasty Phase, choose your performing unbowed Duelist or Samurai: He duels the Personality. Destroy the duel's loser.
- Focus Value
- 4
- Legality
- Destroyer War (Celestial)
- Deck
- Fate
Printings
Empire at War
- Rarity
- Rare
- Flavor Text
- "I have no idea how you got here, gaijin demon, but I know how you will leave!"
- Artist
- Ted Pendergraft (miscredited to Stephanie Pui-Mun Law)
- Card Number
- 147
- Publisher
- Alderac Entertainment Group
Rules Q&A
- Q: I have two personalities at the battlefield who has 3 force and is a Duelist. My opponent brings Gosho into play.
Can I Startling Attack before the Ranged 3 happens?
A: Yes, Reacting with Startling Attack occurs immediately after Gosho enters play, before the effect of the Ranged Attack occurs. Brook Cunningham, "Tsuruchi Gosho + Startling Attack", 1 Aug 2011 - Q: If so, does the R3 still happen after the duel is concluded, even if Gosho dies?
A: Yes. Removing the source of the effect does not cause it to fail or be negated. The action was taken and began resolving; its effects will continue to do so. Brook Cunningham, "Tsuruchi Gosho + Startling Attack", 1 Aug 2011 - Q: What if my own personality dies? Does the action fail? Does just the R3 fail? Does he get to re-target the R3 if the personality he had targeted was the personality to issue the challenge, but is now dead due to losing Startling Attack? Basically the question is, "what happens if a mandatory target disappears mid-action".
A: The targeting of the Ranged Attack is NOT mandatory/required, because whether the effect happens or not is conditional upon Gosho entering play. The targeting does not even happen in this case until after the Ranged Attack effect checks to see whether he entered play to see if it occurs or fails. At that time, it is targeted, and may hit either of your two Personalities, or just the one remaining. If they're both gone for some reason, there's nothing to target, and it just fails to occur. Brook Cunningham, "Tsuruchi Gosho + Startling Attack", 1 Aug 2011 - Q: Thank you, and my apologies for the barrage of questions; one question seemed to turn into many more.
A: No problem. Brook Cunningham, "Tsuruchi Gosho + Startling Attack", 1 Aug 2011