The Face of Fear

Legend of the Five Rings card from Diamond Edition, Anvil of Despair, Gold Edition, Promotional–CWF, Training Grounds

Card Type

Strategy

Gold Cost

0

Card Text

Reaction: After you announce a Fear action from one of your cards: The effects of the action affect Personalities in the same way as they affect Followers.

Focus Value

3

Legality

Clan Wars (Imperial), Four Winds (Gold), Hidden Emperor (Jade), Rain of Blood (Diamond)

Deck

Fate

Printings

Rulings

• Because it causes a Personality to be affected by Fear "as if he were a Follower," it will have no effect on a Personality belonging to a unit or Clan whose Followers are immune to Fear. Rules Archive, August 18, 2007, p. 15
• Does not target the card causing the Fear effect. [JA, 9 January 2003] Rules Archive, August 18, 2007, p. 16
• Is played when the Fear effects is created, and cannot be canceled by Reactions to targeting or the beginning of the action's resolution. [JA, 8 December 2003] Rules Archive, August 18, 2007, p. 16
• Since it causes a Personality to be affected by Fear "as if he or she were a Follower" [card text], it will have no effect on a Personality belonging to a unit or Clan whose Followers are immune to Fear. Will modify all Fear effects when played on something that generates more than one simultaneously, such as Strength of the Dark one. [5/11/99] Accumulated Rulings, February 8, 2000, p. 25

Rules Q&A

• Q: Hi,
  The combo of Hound of the Lost + The Face of Fear + Okura is Released is causing some arguments at my Saturday night game. Please clarify the following for me.
  A: Why am I so forsaken? I - TRY - to be a good person. I paid my taxes on time. I'm not even running Corrupt. What could I possibly have done to deserve this? Martin Lund, "Rules for 14 April 2004", 15 Apr 2004
• Q: Do 'The Face of Fear' and 'Okura is Released' allow a personality with huge force to be targeted and destroyed by a smaller fear effect due to the effect from 'Hound of the Lost'?
  A: Hound of the Lost says, "Reaction: Bow Hound of the Lost before another card in this army produces Fear targeting exactly one unit. The Fear targets and bows a single Follower of your choice in that unit, regardless of Force, instead of producing its normal effect."
  Okura is Released says, "Reaction: Play this card when a fear effect is created. All cards bowing due to the fear effect are destroyed."
  Face of Fear says, "Reaction: Play when one of your cards creates Fear. The Fear affects Personalities as if they were Followers."
  Short answer is, "No."
  The long answer is as follows:
  They all respond to a card creating / producing a Fear Effect, but Hound of the Lost says "before" while the other two say, "when." Hound of the Lost gets played first and resolves first.
  Now you've got to pick a target for your Fear effect. The only legal targets as per Hound of the Lost at this stage are Followers. You target a Follower with your special Fear.
  Now you can play Okura is Released or Face of Fear.
  Okura is Released will cause the Fear Effect to cause destruction.
  Face of Fear will let your fear affect Personalities as if they were followers, but since it is only targeting a Follower, Face of Fear is pretty pointless. Martin Lund, "Rules for 14 April 2004", 15 Apr 2004
• Q: rule question
  Kitsune Gohei Battle: Bow to destroy all Followers in one opposing unit. This is a Fear effect.
  Used with
  The Face of Fear Action: Play this card when one of your cards creates Fear. The Fear affects Personalities as if they were Followers.
  I think this kills the personality and all. Just blow up the the Unit!!!!!
  A: You are correct! Jeff Alexander, "post for 10 January 2002", 11 Jan 2002
• Q: Mirumoto Hitomi has the trait "Followers in this unit are immune to Fear," so that The Face of Fear, which affects the Personality as if s/he were a follower, has no effect on her. Mirumoto Temoru says "Temoru's followers are immune to Fear." Does this mean that he is not immune, as he is not his own follower?
  Face of Fear says to treat the Personality "as if he were a Follower." What's implied is, "as if he were a Follower *in this unit*." So for purposes of Face of Fear, yes, treat Temoru as if he were leading himself. Or following himself. There's great yin/yang symbolism in this ruling. ;)
  A: I'm going to overrule you, Zen. I think it's ambiguous: "Temoru's Followers" could be interpreted as either "Followers in Temoru's unit" or "Followers attached to Temoru". I believe the latter reading is more natural, which means he, himself, would not count.
  This is a REVERSAL. Jeff Alexander, "replies to 9 June (and one from 8)", 13 Jun 2001