The Law's Strength

Legend of the Five Rings card from Emperor Edition, Empire at War

Card Type

Strategy

Gold Cost

0

Keywords

Political

Card Text

Battle: Choose your performing Courtier or Magistrate and target a Personality: Move him home. If this did not move him home, destroy him.

Focus Value

3

Legality

Age of Conquest (Emperor), Destroyer War (Celestial)

Deck

Fate

Printings

Rules Q&A

• Q: If I target a kensai with The Laws Strength, then react with Improper Papers at the correct time, is it already too late for the player to react with Hundred Fold Cut to negate the kensai's destruction?
  A: This is correct. Hundred-Fold Cut reacts after targeting; Improper Papers reacts before an action's resolution.
  In tournament play, you will need to give your opponent an explicit opportunity to play Hundred-Fold Cut. I've seen lots of players just throw down Law's Strength and Improper Papers together; your opponent must pass their opportunity to react to targeting before anyone gets the opportunity to react to movement. Jon Palmer, "The Laws Strength and Improper Papers vs Hundred Fold Cut", 15 Apr 2013
• Q: If you redirect The Law's Strength, would the original target still die from not going home or would the whole card effect target a new personality.
  Battle: Choose your performing Courtier or Magistrate and target a Personality: Move him home. If this did not move him home, destroy him.
  Thank you.
  A: The Law's Strength will not destroy the original intended target.
  Choosing a target happens just before the actual targeting, and thus a change of targeting by redirection never actually ends up targeting the original choice. Ben Higgins, "The Law's Strength + Redirect", 21 Mar 2013
• Q: Magistrate performs TLS on Monk. Monk reacts with ST.
  Would TLS destroy the Monk?
  +Would it make any difference if Doji Tatsuzo targeted the monk beforehand?
  Thanks
  A: Once Snake Tattoo has moved the Monk to the adjacent battlefield, he is no longer a legal target for The Law's Strength, so Snake Tattoo negates the effects of The Law's Strength. Both the movement and the (conditional) destruction from The Law's Strength are negated.
  Doji Tatsuzo's action allows you to ignore the Law of Presence, since it says, "even if you control no units [at the current battlefield]." It does not allow you to ignore the Law of Location. Alex Jones, "The Law's Strength vs Snake Tattoo", 4 Mar 2013
• Q: I just want to check I have this right.
  I am attacking and take the 1st action (either by the naval player ability or by sneak attack) and I announce The Law's Strength off my magistrate. (it doesn't have to be 'The Law's Strength' any action with a base destruction effect would suffice for my question) (for kicks lets say 'too close to home' is in effect so that the defender is under pressure to negate my attempts to move him home with that action specifically)
  My opponent's defenders includes a personality that has been hit by the topaz champion event (negating his first destruction) and a personality without any delayed effects ripe for the go away or be destroyed effect.
  My opponent reacts to my announcing 'The Law's Strength' to play 'no time for games' to negate any effects from my 'The Law's Strength' since it was taken before the defender's first chance to take a battle action.
  After his 'no time for games' resolves, I choose my legal performing magistrate, and target their person under the effects of topaz champion (rather than the more likely target of somebody that would have otherwise have died had my effects not already been negated), being forced to pay any costs as usual since costs were not interfered (if it had any like 'a stain cleansed' would have).
  Q: As I understand it... because 'no time for games' negates the movement, my action then tries to destroy the target. Then both the 'no time for games' AND 'topaz champion' will attempt to negate the destruction effect from my 'The Law's Strength' causing the Topaz Champion negate destruction effect to be used up. (because the topaz champion triggers BEFORE it destroys the personality, not taking into account that the destruction will be negated. I take it to be similar Kensho-In's ability which I understand stack negates which all fire at the same time when triggered to negate the same effect multiple times to mechanically only work once anyway. )
  Topaz champion
  No time for games
  A Law's Strength
  In theory I'd take this to also hit any negation of the first movement, bowing etc. Such as from the Shi-Tien Yen-Wang celestial. I'n in part checking to make sure the check-if-moved trigger to destroy is also not somehow negated (since to my understanding that's a modifier to the effect or a condition, not an effect as per definition of an effect)
  A: Firstly, note that the Timing Sequence rules were changed so that, eg Kakita Kensho-in works differently: The order of resolution means that triggered effects that come first, due to the above order, the order of Reactions, or the active player’s decision, can negate or otherwise make impossible triggered effects and Reactions that come later. When this happens, Reactions to the now nonexistent trigger may not be taken, and other effects are not triggered by it.
  This means that although both triggered trait granted by The Topaz Championship and No Time for Games' ongoing effect can negate the destruction of the Topaz Champion, only one of these will trigger. As the active player, *you* decide which do apply first. Thus, if you apply No Time for Games' ongoing effect first, the destruction is negated, and triggered trait from The Topaz Championship will not trigger in this instance, and is still available to be triggered later in the turn.
  On the other hand, if you apply the triggered trait from The Topaz Championship first, it is No Time for Games' ongoing effect which won't trigger. I would suggest this will be a better option for you. Alex Jones, "negate sneak + negate anything else", 2 May 2012
• Q: If a Personality who performed the Blessings' action is targetted by a card that has multiple effects (i.e. The Law's Strength) will the action negate the first effect (the movement) or all the card's effects (the destruction)?
  A: In this case it would only negate the movement, as the movement and destruction are separate effects. Jon Palmer, "Blessings of the Shi-Tien Yen-Wang and multiple effects", 17 Apr 2012
• Q: Re: viewtopic.php?f=59&t=95535
  At the end of the statement it is said that "the 'If this did not move him home' clause of The Law's Strength is not an effect, so it cannot be negated or delayed."
  But earlier it is said that the destruction from Law's Strength would be negated, which requires it to be an effect.
  Was there a mix-up here?
  Just looking for clarification. Thanks!
  A: Moving the Personality home is an effect.
  Destroying the Personality is an effect.
  Both of these can be delayed/negated.
  However, "if this did not destroy him" check is not an effect, and therefore is not delayed.
  When it comes to Wrathful Ancestor being delayed, first the send-home effect is delayed. At this point a non-effect check is performed to see if the Personality went home. When it finds he did not (due to the send-home effect being delayed), it triggers the destruction effect. The destruction effect is also delayed. Jon Palmer, "Law's Strength and "effects"", 13 Jan 2012
• Q: Player A with a Courtier or Magistrate target's an attacking Berserker controlled by Player B who uses the reaction on Halls of the Forgotten to delay the actions effects until the turn ends. Which of the following happens:
  A.) The movement is delayed. Since he did not move, the action attempt to destroy him, which is also delayed.
  B.) The entire action's effects are delayed to the end of the battle and (assuming the Berserker is still in play), The Law's Strength attempt to move the Berserker who is now at home, he does not move, and is now destroyed.
  C.) Some other card interaction keeps the Berserker alive.
  Would the interaction be different if the Berserker is defending (since defending units stay at the battle after it ends)?
  Relevant Text:
  Halls of the Forgotten: Reaction: After another player's Battle action targets your Berserker: Delay its effects on him until after this battle ends.
  The Law's Strength: Battle: Choose your performing Courtier or Magistrate and target a Personality: Move him home. If this did not move him home, destroy him.
  A: A. The movement is delayed. Since he did not move, the action attempts to destroy him, which is also delayed. After the battle ends, he moves home and is destroyed.
  Similarly to Wrathful Ancestor's anti-negation clause, the "If this did not move him home" clause of The Law's Strength is not an effect, so it cannot be negated or delayed. Alex Jones, "Halls of the Forgotten and the Law's Strength", 12 Jan 2012