To the South of Rokugan, the land boils over with darkness. The trees are warped, the sky is forever clouded, and the land reshapes itself into forms blasphemous to mortal eyes.
These are the Shadowlands, the place where the dark power of Fu Leng has creeped out of Jingoku and into the lands of Rokugan. Despite the best efforts of The Crab Clan to keep them out of the Empire, the inhabitants of the Shadowlands- bakemono, ogres, dark spirits known as oni, and the corrupted soldiers called akutenshi- sometimes make it beyond the Kaiu Wall, and spread their master's taint into the places where one would least expect it.
Some might dismiss the Shadowlands Horde as an idle threat, but anyone who has seen a the horde march have known that they are the most dangerous opponents one could ever know.
In the Legend of the Five Rings CCG, the Shadowlands Horde is the basic stronghold provided by the Anvil of Despair expansion, first known as Yogo Junzo's Army. While not being able to use a traditional gold structure as most of the other Clans do, they are able to make full use of free, inexpensive gold, as well as recruit the foul denizens of the Shadowlands without fear of losing honor- when your master is an unholy being, who gives a flying eta about if your soldiers are missing their skin or if you point gibbering green creatures at your opponents? However, they are hampered greatly by a number of Event cards that outright destroy anything with the Shadowlands trait, and the inability to obtain the Imperial Favor is a liability. Granted, there are cards that can negate those above, but they are not completely reliable.
Even with all the cards that can seriously do damage to a Shadowlands player, though, pound for pound the Shadowlands Horde remains one of the most effective ways of destroying all that oppose you by simply running over your foes with military force. |
