The fourth
iteration of the base set of the
Legend of the Five Rings CCG.
Jade Edition was set to be the starting point of the
Hidden Emperor story arc, and incorporated a number of changes of the character set- mostly invoked in the previous expansions
Time of the Void,
Crimson and Jade, and
Scorpion Clan Coup. With Jade Edition came the creation of the
Jade Bug and the concept of
Strict Jade play: much like the
Type II tournaments of
Magic: the Gathering, players could now be restricted by tournament decree to use only cards with the Jade Bug printed on them.
Jade Edition begins two years after the events chronicled in the Time of the Void set.
Fu Leng is dead.
Toturi has ascended to the Jade Throne, and has ruled a peaceful Rokugan for two years: but everything changes abruptly and suddenly when the Emperor is suddenly found missing. Almost instantly, the
Scorpion Clan is blamed for the deed; despite their protests of innocence, they are sentenced to exile from Rokugan for their heinous crime by the
Emerald Champion- and, interestingly enough, the Scorpion comply just long enough to install their
agents into the Empire.
The Phoenix Clan is still rebuilding from the catastrophe of losing the entirety of the
Council of Five Masters, and is being lead by
Shiba Tsukune in the interim.
The Lion Clan and
the Crab Clan are still rebuilding from their losses against the
Shadowlands Horde, and the
Shadowlands Horde is milling about, merely eating at itself while powerful
oni overlords battle for the right to lead. Only the
Unicorn and the
Crane are in any position to lead, but they are full of their own concerns...
Game-wise, the story concerns mean that some Clans were severely limited for their performance in the previous
tournament scene. The Scorpion and Phoenix played mostly
control decks, and the
Personality Base for both clans was gutted: either Clan only had a few Personalities. Similarly, the Lion, famed for
speed military, were hamstrung. The
Dragon Clan,
Toturi's Army, the
Brotherhood of Shinsei, the
Shadowlands Horde, and
Yoritomo's Alliance were never big players, and the cut-back just put another damper on their power. The end result? Crane and Unicorn clans took an early lead in the tournament scene, making the first few story tournaments their own.
Jade Edition came packed with all twelve factions available at the time, packed in randomized decks of sixty cards plus a Stronghold and twenty glass beads colorized per the Clan.
Booster packs came fifteen cards apiece.