Towers of the Asako

Legend of the Five Rings card from Gold Edition, The War of Spirits

Card Type

Stronghold

Province Strength

5

Gold Production

3

Starting Family Honor

6

Clan

Phoenix

Card Text

Repeatable Reaction, w: After an action targets one of your Shugenja Personalities, negate the action's effects.
Repeatable Reaction: After an action targets one of your Samurai, bow your target performing Shugenja Personality to negate the action's effects.

Legality

Four Winds (Gold), Hidden Emperor (Jade)

Deck

Pre-Game

Printings

Rulings

• Q: If I'm playing the Towers of the Asako, and it's bowed, can I still bow my shugenja to cancel actions targeting my samurai? A: No. As with cards, actions on bowed Strongholds cannot be used, even when they don't require bowing the Stronghold as a cost. The Towers of the Asako is worded in such a way that both its Reactions are abilities of the Stronghold itself, not of your Personalities. When it's bowed, you can't use either one. Legend of the Five Rings FAQ, May 21, 2003, p. 7

Rules Q&A

• Q: If I'm playing an Asako Towers deck and I blow up one of your personalities and you then try to blow up one of my Samurai or Shugenjs, I can cancel the action and it now never happened - but costs are not refunded (there are no costs here) and effects that have taken place are not undone (your personality is still dead)
  Asako Towers: Reaction: When an action targets one of your Shugenja personalities, bow the Towers of the Asako to cancel it. Reaction: When an action targets one of your Samurai, bow one of your Shugenja Personalities to cancel it.
  A: <SNIP> Martin Lund, "Rules for 29 June 2004", 2 Jul 2004
• Q: if I play Kolat Master on a Towers of the Asako Samurai, and the action is canceled, the pay of 10 gold is no necessary? and if I play To do what we must, my personality survives?
  A: No. See Rules Archive, General Rule, Canceling and Negation (http://l5r.alderac.com/rulings/#Cancel). Zen Faulkes, "Rules for 17 October 2003", 17 Oct 2003
• Q: And if instead Towers of the Asako, the other player uses Hamanari?
  A: Same answer. Zen Faulkes, "Rules for 17 October 2003", 17 Oct 2003
• Q: Does entrapping terrain target for purposes of canceling, from cards like The Towers of the Asako?
  A: No. Entrapping Terrain is an untargeted effect. Vaughn Derderian, "Rules for July 22nd, 2003", 22 Jul 2003
• Q: B) Is it considered a targeted effect? I.E. If I have one unit at the battle and my opponent overwhelms, can I use Flee or "Towers of the Asako" to cancel it?
  A: The targets for the second half of its effects -- the kill-one-or-return-two -- are chosen by the lead opposing player. The MRP of Flee and Towers can cancel it. Cards that only cancel actions when ANOTHER player targets your cards cannot. Jeff Alexander, "post for 2 June 2003", 3 Jun 2003
• Q: Kakita technique don't target. (by target rule #3) Towers of the Asako don't target.
  By Steel Redeemed targets.
  Why? What's the difference?
  A: By Steel Redeemed does something to the Personality involved. Jeff Alexander, "post for 14 May 2003", 15 May 2003
• Q: -Can the second part of the action on Isawa's Last Wish be prevented by Towers of the Asako without it affecting the first part?
  A: Not "prevented." "Canceled." But, yes. This ruling is already in the archive, because the rulebook says when an action is canceled part-way through, anything it might have already done is not undone. Jeff Alexander, "post for 29 January 2003", 30 Jan 2003
• Q: Hound Of The Lost So you cannot cancel it with Towers of the Asako?
  A: Correct. You cannot. Jeff Alexander, "post for 21 August 2002", 22 Aug 2002
• Q: Hound Of The Lost So you cannot cancel it with Towers of the Asako?
  A: Correct. You cannot. Jeff Alexander, "post for 14 August 2002", 15 Aug 2002
• Q: Can the 'Towers of the Asako' be used to cancel the fear effect?
  A: Yes. Zen Faulkes, "Rules for 12 July 2002", 13 Jul 2002
• Q: If someone uses Cascading Fire for its multiple attacks ability, and someone uses a canceling action (Towers of the Asako, Flee the Darkness, etc.), is the entire action canceled, and no further ranged attacks may be made, or is just the one ranged attack canceled?
  A: You cannot "cancel" just one effect of an action. The word for that is "negate". Any relatively recent card that uses the word "cancel" will stop Cascading Fire entirely. Jeff Alexander, "post for 12 June 2002", 13 Jun 2002
• Q: #1 Phoenix (Eric Swanson)
  Given the speed of Towers of the Asako Military, not to mention Corrupt Scorpion Military, I have to wonder why AEG staff commented after the -sole- Lion Kotei victory that LSD was back.
  A: Perhaps it was a jest? The Lion Kotei victory I witnessed happened quickly, but that was due to combos like Counterattacking after a failed Ambush, not off-the-box 3F Lion Clan people and handsfull of Charges. The Lion player was even using Doomsayers for their focus value. 4g for 2F isn't speed in my book, especially in a 3g Stronghold deck. Jeff Alexander, "post for 29 May 2002", 30 May 2002
• Q: Imperial Edicts states Political Reaction: When a card casts a Kiho or Spell or uses an innate ability, discard the Imperial Favor to cancel that action.
  As is says "when a card casts a kiho or spell...." (the shugenja is the one casting the spell or kiho) is it targeting the shugenja, and as such can the towers cancel it.
  A: It is not targeting the shugenja. It only targets the action. Jeff Alexander, "post for 23 May 2002", 24 May 2002
• Q: Question. I'm playing Phoenix with Towers of the Asako. Can I use [Isawa's Last Wish] to destroy one of their cards and then use my SHs ability to cancel the destruction of one of my Samurais or Shugenjas.
  A: Yes, because they don't target one of your cards until after their card is destroyed. Jeff Alexander, "post for 23 April 2002", 24 Apr 2002
• Q: Phoenix Shugenja w/loads of chi challenges my lowly (non-Moto) 3 chi personality w/an I.Duel during battle.
  As my first focus I play, Moto Technique (Reaction: Play this card face up as a Focus card in a duel. Bow both Personalities in the duel. If your Personality is Moto and has higher Force than the other Personality, you Persoality straightens.)
  What happens if the Phoenix player bows the Towers of Asako:
  a) The Phoenix player can't bow the towers, because Moto Technique does not target.
  b) The Towers cancels Moto Technique. Neither personality bows and the focus is discarded.
  c) The Towers cancels Moto Technique. Neither personality bows but the focus remains.
  d) The Towers cancels Moto Technique. The Phoenix personality does not bow, but my personality does. The focus remains.
  e) Insert something funny here (ala Leon).
  A: b). It becomes the Phoenix player's turn to focus or strike. Jeff Alexander, "post for 19-22 April 2002", 23 Apr 2002
• Q: Question:
  Now, obviously, in order to cancel an action targetting my shugenja I must have the Towers unbowed. However, when it also says:
  Reaction: When an action targets one of your Samurai, bow one of your Shugenja Personalities to cancel it.
  So, let's assume I'm being attacked by some guys on the opponents turn. And I have Shiba Aikune and Isawa Taeruko guarding, the towers are bowed. If one of the bad guys throws refugees on Aikune, can I bow Taeruko to cancel it? or does my stronghold need to be unbowed in order to use that ability as well?
  A: The Towers of the Asako must be unbowed to use either of its Reactions. Jeff Alexander, "post for 15 January 2002", 16 Jan 2002
• Q: Along the same lines what happens with I cancel a reaction from a card in play? Would my opponent be able to react again with the same reaction or does the rule of only being able to react with a printed action once per trigger stop them from doing this? An example would be my opponent uses the Towers of the Asako to cancel my sending his Samurai home and I cancel it with Fall to Your Knees. Can he just react to my Send home action again even though he's already used the printed reaction once already for the trigger?
  A: If it's canceled it doesn't count against the once-per-printing limit. He can bow another shugenja to cancel your original action because he has not yet used his Stronghold ability. Jeff Alexander, "post for 4 December 2001", 5 Dec 2001
• Q: And although I have asked this already, with no answer forthcoming I'll ask again: Battle of Quiet Winds plus Towers of the Asako: Does Towers of the Asako completely cancel this terrain, or only part of it (i.e. you can use Towers of the Asako to just cancel the part that prevents your unit from going home? Relevant card text: BoQW: Battle Terrain: The Attacker and the Defender may each send an opposing unit home bowed.
  A: You use the Towers as soon as your opponent targets one of your Personalities. The action is then canceled, including all yet-to-be-resolved effects. You cannot choose to selectively allow some of them to still happen.
  For Battle of Quiet Winds, the active player gets to decide who chooses a target first in cases where it matters (like this one). Jeff Alexander, "replies to 7 September", 11 Sep 2001