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PROVINCES
Kiku Matsuri
Overall Rating – 1.8/5
Joe (From Cincinnati) Habes
While some may mistake this card for “Shameful Display lite” there’s one problem with the targeting restriction rules that make this province operate differently from Shameful Display. Since you cannot target a character if it could not be affected by the action, this card can only target characters that are able to be honored. So if your opponent attacks this province with only an honored character, or you defend with only an honored character (maybe that’s the only defender you have for whatever reason) you cannot trigger this action at all! This may be worthwhile in an honor rush or otherwise high glory deck, but it won’t be all that universal.
Rating: 2/5
Travis (Fights Dragons) McDaniel
On the surface, most people can immediately say that this province is a worse Shameful Display – which it is. Most provinces are worse than Shameful Display, however, so how bad is Kiku Matsuri compared to other options in its slot? It’s decent on the flip, especially if your opponent was poking with a less important character so you can honor your guy with little downside; but it’s beyond farmable after that. Please honor my character loaded with fate.
Rating: 2/5
(Handsome) Dan Mui
This province could have been better. Because of its wording and symmetrical effect, there are going to be too many times where it can’t be used. It may see some niche play in some honor decks or Phoenix IMS decks, but overall it’s just too awkward to run consistently.
Rating: 2/5
Aneil (Mind’s Desire) Seetharam
Shameful Display is the card that you tell this card not to be worried about. The wording really hampers this card, not allowing you to use it if either character you want to target is honored. This card might see fringe play in some honor decks or Isawa Mori Seido Phoenix.
Rating: 1/5
Nicolas (Chuterêve) Simonpietri
I can see only Crane and Phoenix running Isawa Mori Seido being potentially interested by the symmetry of the honor effect and even then, i think it might fall short because it’s hard to abuse a such straightforward symmetry effect. Still, an interesting province to experiment with.
Rating: 2/5
Illustrious Forge
Overall Rating – 2.8/5
Joe (From Cincinnati) Habes
I’m rating this card a 3, but it could be potentially be a 4 for some clans and a 1 or 2 for others. Basically, its effectiveness is completely dependent on how many “must remove” attachments your deck runs. Crab splash Unicorn, for example, can have as many as 11 or 12 powerful attachments that you’d love to find with this province effect. Because of the timing of this effect (reaction to reveal), this allows you to attach a spyglass to a character before assigning, which allows you to immediately draw the card before your opponent has an action window to Let it Go. Same with Talisman of the Sun or any attachment with an action that could be really impactful when no time is given to remove it. This also makes more expensive attachments a little bit more viable, as it can be played immediately for no cost. Its #1 competitor in most decks, Meditations on the Tao, is often farmable with no fate characters once it’s revealed or found anyway, so this card’s one time effect isn’t as big of a weakness as it may appear at first (in theory, anyway). Testing may reveal otherwise but, until then, I remain optimistic.
Rating: 3/5
Travis (Fights Dragons) McDaniel
This effect is remarkable and very strong, but firing once holds it back from being the obvious choice for most decks to just being an alternative to Meditations on the Tao, maybe. I think you really want a deck that’s heavy in 1 or more cost attachments to consider this a great option, and even then it’s a close call.
Rating: 3/5
(Handsome) Dan Mui
The fact that this province only triggers on reveal puts a pretty heavy limiter on its strength. The attachment you get from it is free, which is a boon for decks that run expensive attachments. Unfortunately, the province also requires you to attach the card you choose to your own character immediately, which can create some awkward situations for timing and also prevents you from using it to search for attachments like Cloud the Mind. I think this will see some play in attachment-heavy decks just because Fire provinces are pretty lacking, but Illustrious Forge is probably not much of an improvement.
Rating: 3/5
Aneil (Mind’s Desire) Seetharam
I dislike one use provinces a lot, their effect has to be really insane for me to consider them IE: Restoration of Balance. If there ever becomes a deck that runs a ton of high costed attachments then this might see play, but other than that it’s pretty bad.
Rating: 2/5
Nicolas (Chuterêve) Simonpietri
While the effect being only on reaction can make it sometimes a bit awkward, it’s still a very strong one shot effect in attachment heavy deck. There are not many interesting Fire provinces out there and the generic neutral one, Meditations on the Tao is often considered not that exciting.
You absolutely do not want to miss your Illustrious Forge trigger effect by not finding any really useful attachments, so you need a LOT of worthy attachment in your deck; more than the usual Dragon decks are running. Right now, only Crab seems to do the trick.
Rating: 3/5
Midnight Revels
Overall Rating – 4/5
Joe (From Cincinnati) Habes
This card’s biggest strength is that it’s a Water province that may actually do something of value past the first time it is attacked. That is not very common and boosts this card to playability right off the bat. That said, it’s still very limited because if you happen to own a 5 cost character and the highest cost character your opponent owns is a 4 coster, then this is just another blank water province for that round. Not that that is unusual at all…If it were any other element, it’d probably be a 3 or even a 2, but as a water province, it’s worth a 4.
Rating: 4/5
Travis (Fights Dragons) McDaniel
A strong water province? Nani? Doesn’t go in all decks, but the effect isn’t forced and unless you run a million high cost characters like Dragon and Phoenix do, I think this is a very viable choice in most decks for the water slot.
Rating: 4/5
(Handsome) Dan Mui
Midnight Revels benefits greatly from the lack of Water provinces, with only Rally to the Cause (and sometimes Art of War and Flooded Wastes) seeing play. Its effect can be strong and disruptive, being able to bow your opponent’s big towers regardless of them being in the conflict or at home. Even better is that the effect is a Reaction to being attacked rather than to being revealed, so you can save it for a second attack when it’s more impactful. Expect to start seeing this in play very soon.
Rating: 4/5
Aneil (Mind’s Desire) Seetharam
A new playable neutral water province, egad! Midnight revels is a nice repeatable action that can be used in your row or your stronghold. I expect this to be used on stronghold a lot more than in rows; however, the ability to choose not to trigger it is really important so it will never backfire. I expect this card to change a lot of attacks because of how warping it can be.
Rating: 4/5
Nicolas (Chuterêve) Simonpietri
This one is a big deal as the Water province was usually the weakest link in the province chain before. The reaction not being forced can help using the effect at your advantage by keeping it for the second attack of your opponent or just not firing it if it’s going to be detrimental. With the importance of big characters in the current meta, I have no doubt that Midnight Revels will make a strong impact and will end up being a very played around province.
Rating: 4/5
Temple of the Dragons
Overall Rating – 1.4/5
Joe (From Cincinnati) Habes
You get a ring effect that you didn’t choose (except in very specific circumstances, like with Tadakatsu) and it is a one time reveal effect. If that’s not bad enough, it’s a void province, meaning it’s competing with provinces like Shameful Display and Pilgrimage. This province won’t see play except in strange and/or poorly built decks
Rating: 1/5
Travis (Fights Dragons) McDaniel
This card is unplayably bad; it’s a 1 time trigger of a ring effect that ends up pushing for even if the attacker wins the conflict, at which point Pilgrimage is better since it’s always on and mostly has the same net effect. Then you compare this to Shameful Display which is repeatedly not one, but TWO fire rings and it’s not a close fight at all. If this triggered every time it could actually see play as a SH choice and maybe push Shameful out of decks and give SoV some interesting choices, but triggering once here just makes this laughable compared to the other void options.
Rating: 1/5
(Handsome) Dan Mui
Another province that suffers from only being usable on reveal. Ring effects are indeed powerful, but the bite can be lessened with a careful poke. Let’s not forget that this province has to compete with the likes of Shameful Display and Pilgrimage.
Rating: 2/5
Aneil (Mind’s Desire) Seetharam
Like Illustrious Forge this province can only be used once, however unlike forge this effect is not controllable enough or good enough to be worth a province slot. Let alone a void province slot.
Rating: 1/5
Nicolas (Chuterêve) Simonpietri
I do not expect this card to be a serious include in any province row, especially with the Void element because of how powerful Shameful Display and Pilgrimage are. The “on reveal” effect is just not strong enough.
That being said, it’s definitively that kind of province that can surprise your opponent and have a good unexpected impact because nobody else will play it. Still not worth sacrificing the Void slot tho.
Rating: 2/5
Vassal Fields
Overall Rating – 3.2/5
Joe (From Cincinnati) Habes
Your opponent unexpectedly losing 1 fate can really mess up a conflict. If you don’t believe me, just ask anyone who has played against a deck that runs Goblin Sneaks. In addition, similarly to Midnight Revels, this card is boosted in value in large part due to its relatively weak element. Of course, Earth also has Upholding Authority which will be hard for a lot of decks to remove, but in the case that you’re running an Earth Role, like Keeper of Earth, and Upholding Authority has 5 province strength (which makes it worse), this is a very welcome sight. I remember the horrors of having Keeper of Earth and no Earth provinces I actually wanted to run (don’t @ me about Defend the Wall). In either case, this card is worth playing, and it’s merely a matter of your role whether this is a choice between this card and Upholding Authority or if this is the clear winner.
Rating: 3/5
Travis (Fights Dragons) McDaniel
This is a solid Earth province. I don’t see it overtaking Upholding Authority at all, but if you have an Earth role where Upholding Authority is much worse, then this is a great option and better than any others at the moment.
Rating: 4/5
(Handsome) Dan Mui
This is a pretty reasonable province effect which lets you sap fate from your opponent’s fate pool, an effect currently only shared by Goblin Sneak and The Fires of Justice. It has the unfortunate problem of being much worse than Upholding Authority, but should Earth roles become more powerful, we could see an uptick in play for this province.
Rating: 3/5
Aneil (Mind’s Desire) Seetharam
I think people are sleeping on this card; it’s less swingy than upholding authority but it’s quite consistent. With the way the game has evolved fate gets brought into the conflict phase all the time. Even if they have none, you can usually nab a fate they took from a ring a la goblin sneak. I will certainly be trying this in Dragon at least, but I have the luxury of redundant discard effects in Restoration of Balance and Kitsuki Investigator.
Rating: 4/5
Nicolas (Chuterêve) Simonpietri
There is Vassal Fields and there is…Upholding Authority. The first one is just an annoying effect and the second one is often a game changing effect. It does not matter that Upholding is on break only when the difference of power level between both “on row” earth province is so big.
I can only see Vassal Fields being tried in some sort of Seeker/Keeper of Earth role and even then, I think I still prefer to run Upholding with 5 PS/Entrenched/Ancestral.
Rating: 2/5