Mantis

Legend of the Five Rings deck by Kempy Nezumi - L5RRules archive, 86 cards, legal in Twenty Festivals.

Mantis Clan Strategy Article for Thunderous Acclaim By Chris Braun | May 26, 2015 Ahoy, Samurai of the Mantis Clan! It’s not a stretch to say that it’s been a great Kotei season for the Mantis so far. The clear front-runner through Ivory Strict events and into the 20 Festivals environment, Mantis have been the clan to beat thus far. While Mantis Scout decks running Shika Sensei have generally been the dominant deck type, other Mantis decks not running Shika Sensei are also performing well. This has led to the L5R Brand Team keeping a close eye on how Mantis are doing and looking to see if the environment could adapt to deal with the clan's decks. Over the last couple of weeks (at the time of writing this) it appears it has; still, the Mantis are still a dangerous clan to play against! What we haven't seen really making waves from Mantis in the early 20 Festivals environment are builds for two themes, Thunder Shugenja and Kensai. Both of these themes get some attention in Thunderous Acclaim, with two new Personalities and Fate deck support. Thunder Shugenja only gets one true Moshi for their military builds, but the Kitsune Prophetess, Kitsune Narako, will likely find a spot. This deck also gets the previously previewed Spell On Storm-Borne Wings. Mantis Kensai are unique in that they are not afraid to use Peasant Weapons. Most Rokugani Samurai can't see past their traditional mindset at the advantages of such unorthodox weaponry. This theme gets fleshed out in Thunderous Acclaim with new Peasant Weapons to add to the arsenal and new Personalities that give you benefits for using them. Kensai also get several new Strategies with the previously previewed The Dark Sword's Lunacy, as well as Swifter than Sight. Accordingly, since you can find a plethora of Mantis decks using Shika Sensei on the AEG 2015 Kotei Winning Decklist Forum, I'm going to focus on my personally-favorite Mantis theme for a decklist, the Kensai. Mantis Kensai have multiple directions they can go. M

Dynasty (46)

• 3× Coastal Lane
• 1× Counting House
• 3× Developed Quarry
• 2× Forgotten Legacy
• 3× Kobune Port
• 3× Nexus of Lies
• 3× Temple of Destiny
• 1× The New Order
• 2× Vengeful Populace
• 1× Weapon Artist
• 3× Yoritomo Dairu
• 3× Yoritomo Juriken
• 2× Yoritomo Kyunan
• 1× Yoritomo Matsuo
• 3× Yoritomo Matsuo
• 3× Yoritomo Minoko
• 3× Yoritomo Nintai
• 3× Yoritomo Raiden
• 3× Yoritomo Yusuke

Fate (40)

• 2× Accessible Terrain
• 2× Aranai's Armor
• 3× Ensorcelled Longsword
• 3× Farmer's Kama
• 2× In Stillness, Forge the Soul
• 3× Overwhelming Offense
• 3× Return to Your Feet
• 3× Rewards of Experience
• 1× Ring of Air
• 1× Ring of Earth
• 1× Ring of the Void
• 3× Standing Fast
• 2× Swifter than Sight
• 4× Swordcatcher
• 2× The Dark Sword's Lunacy
• 1× Wedge
• 2× Wooden Nunchaku
• 2× Your True Nature