Posted to rec.games.trading-cards.misc on 30 July 1998; obsolete web references are struck
In the fall of 1995 we introduced the world to the Emerald Empire of Rokugan, a land filled with honorable samurai, mysterious shugenja and a mad god bent on revenge. That land appears in the game titled Legend of the Five Rings. Over the past four years we've learned a thing or two about how to develop a trading card game. There are numerous things we wish we'd done differently or done better in our first go-round with the trading card game format. And we've got stories to tell that just aren't right for the Empire of Toturi and Fu Leng. We've also heard from a lot of people that they were sorry to have missed the early days of L5R and wish there was a way to recapture that excitement.
Well, memsahib, your wish is our command!
We take you now to a land far from the verdant hills of Rokugan, at a time not long after the Day of Thunder. Instead of a Mythic Japan, Legend of the Burning Sands will transport you to a Dark Arabia, the place where the dreams and nightmares of the Near East take a form and substance unlike any you have seen before. Spread the word - a new Legend is about to begin...
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Legend of the Burning Sands is a trading card game set in and around Medinat al-Salaam, the City of One Thousand Stories, the Jewel of the Desert. Players represent the factions that vie for control of the city, and the precious water that sustains life. A Hero can live for many years without honor, but can survive only three days without water. Water is life.
The City sits astride the only trade route between the Ivory Kingdoms to the west, and the Empire of the Senpet to the east. Through the city's canals flows the only open water for hundreds of miles. Through the city's markets pass every kind of merchandise conceivable. The city is ruled by the Sultan, and the Sultan's law is administered by the Caliph. The Caliph's minions are known as khadi, and whispers say they have no hearts and cannot die. Beyond the walls of the city lie the endless dunes of the desert, where the Moto horsemen ride like the wind raiding caravans and extracting tribute from all who would pass through their lands.
This land burns under the angry glare of Lady Sun. Long ago, the Lady grew angry and her fiery wrath broils the desert to the present day. Her companion, who could soothe her temper, Lord Moon, slumbers in the sky. Until he wakes, the desert will continue to burn, and the people will continue to beg for Lady Sun's mercy.
The libraries of the ancient scholars in the City have been emptied by order of the Sultan. Where once hundreds read and debated every topic under the gaze of Lady Sun, now, only a few piteous beggars walk the marble halls. Racks that once groaned under the weight of thousands of beautifully illuminated scrolls are now empty, and the only sound in the storage alcoves is the wind whistling through the sturdy wood scroll cases.
As our story begins, a large armed force from the mysterious south has entered the desert. Bearing strange weapons and carrying banners with the sign of Selquet the Scorpion Goddess, this force was decimated by legions of Senpet and the survivors enslaved. Though a few members of the strange new tribe escaped, most serve the Senpet deep in the copper mines. Rumors abound that the Senpet have taken hostage a beautiful female who is said to command strange powers. Only time will tell if there is more to this story...
There are three factions in the first Episode of Burning Sands: Shadow of the Tyrant.
THE SENPET: An ancient civilization similar to the ancient Egyptians. The Senpet crops have begun to fail as the desert wastes consume more and more of their lands. They have come in force to the city and seek to wrest control from the Sultan. Each day, more shops appear branded with the image of the Scarab. More legions of Senpet warriors walk the streets.
THE MOTO: A nomadic tribe of horsemen who haunt the wastes beyond the city. They survive by raiding caravans and extracting tribute from the Senpet and the Ivory Kingdoms. The Moto have legends of another people who joined them once, long ago, from a green land far to the south. Those others left centuries ago, and the Moto know them now only from the songs in the oral histories, and from the razor sharp steel swords they left behind.
THE ASSASSINS: The former lords of the City, dispossessed so long ago that none remember the time when they ruled. They have been cursed, and the curse affects every male member of their family. So the women have donned the black robes and taken up the ancient knives of vengeance, following the schemes of generations to return their tribe once more to their rightful place in the sun.
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The game was designed by Alderac Entertainment Group, using the guidance and support of the Emerald Empire design team. The Lead Designer is Raymond Lau, and the Art Director is KC Lancaster. Storyline development by John Wick and Ree Soesbee. The Brand Manager for Legend of the Burning Sands at FRPG is Luke Peterschmidt.
Legend of the Burning Sands goes on sale on Friday, July 31. The game will be appearing in displays of Stronghold Starter decks, and 11 card Caravan Pack boosters. Decks are SRP US$8.99, and boosters are SRP US$2.49. The Stronghold Starters include 60 cards, plus a rulebook. The boosters contain 11 cards, in three rarity levels. There is one factionalized card in each Stronghold available only in that factions' starter deck. Displays of decks will consist of 4 each of the three initial factions. There are 153 cards in the initial release of Burning Sands.
The next Episode of Burning Sands, titled "Secrets and Lies" will be on sale the week of October the 2nd. It will feature two new factions and 102 new cards.
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The game is substantially different from Legend of the Five Rings but it bears much in common with its predecessor. Burning Sands is "evolutionary, not revolutionary". The action system, the way Heroes attach Followers and Items to form Units, and the use of Holdings to produce "copper" (gold in L5R) are all very similar.
Burning Sands has a completely new mechanic for resolving duels, a very altered mechanic for resolving mass battles, and it utilizes a standard resource, the Water Token for much of its card costing. The game is played from a single deck. The turn sequence is unified, with each player taking one action at a time or passing. There is no direct analog for the Imperial Favor or for Family Honor.
Game Summary: Players begin the game with a certain number of City Section cards in play that are determined in part by the Stronghold the player elects to use in the game. City Sections begin with a fixed number of Water Tokens on them. During the game, Water is spent as a part of the costing matrix to bring new cards into play and to pay the action costs for certain effects. If a player ends a turn without any Water Tokens, that player loses. Water can be destroyed in combat, or it can be stolen by one player from another. Players can win the game outright by bringing "Story" cards into play, based on meeting certain specified conditions.
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Last minute info: There are a few minor problems with the Burning Sands rulebook that will be corrected in Episode 2. The most notable is the absence of instructions on how to bring Holdings into play. When a non-Fortification Holding card enters the game, it is brought into play bowed and it cannot be used to generate copper or other effects until it can be straightened (which will normally happen the turn after it enters the game).
The index is also incomplete. A revised index will be generated and posted to our web site (www.frpg.com) in the next few days.
Please note the errata already in the rulebook on Page 77. The Legend of the Burning Sands information list is up and running (and it has already processed more than 100 messages!) To subscribe, send a message to:
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As night finally comes to Medinat al-Salaam, the storytellers gather around cookfires throughout the city to spin their fantastic tales of powerful wizards, valiant heroes and strange lands where anything is possible. Five Rings Publishing Group is pleased to invite you to join us as the tales begin anew...
Your humble servant,
al-Ryan
Brand Manager, FRPG
Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
Ryan S. Dancey
Wizards of the Coast Brand Manager
Five Rings Publishing Group
Check out the Web Site: www.frpg.com