Hipster Clan?

[Featherbrew 4]

While I know selecting a clan involves a host of decisions (lore, play style, aesthetics, etc), I was wondering if you guys had an inclination which clans are/will be most played and which will be less popular, and why? 

[shosuko 2,174]

I think Unicorn will be 100% hipster clan.  Play them now before 2nd box set when they're op!  Lion are #2 hipster, they have the beard but no hair bun.

[Joe From Cincinnati 769]

Unicorn will be the ultimate hipster clan.

 

Once they get a few more cards that tie their theme together there will be hundreds of players saying "I played Unicorn before it was popular."

 

It happened with Thrones and Night's Watch, it'll happen with L5R and Unicorn :P.

Edited October 2, 2017 by Joe From Cincinnati

[Featherbrew 4]

I already bought my Unicorn sleeves...so this makes me very happy. 

[RandomJC 1,542]

These are not un-truths.

[TheItsyBitsySpider 710]

In the old game it was Hipster to play Phoenix and Lion.

In this game, since "Hipster" usually is a nice way of saying "is bad so people don't play it" it will be Unicorn or playing Phoenix.

Unicorn has a reputation of being the only real poor performing clan due to their need of more inherent synergy. Phoenix, while it is very strong, has a steep learning curve which makes them a more nuanced clan.

But if you want to be a REAL hipster player, then it doesn't matter what clan you play, you go for being a hardline Honor or dishonor player. If the goal is to stand out as unique, winning through Honor intentionally is pretty high up there.

[qwertyuiop 591]

27 minutes ago, Joe From Cincinnati said:

Unicorn will be the ultimate hipster clan.

 

Once they get a few more cards that tie their theme together there will be hundreds of players saying "I played Unicorn before it was popular."

 

It happened with Thrones and Night's Watch, it'll happen with L5R and Unicorn :P.

Fortunately for NW popular doesn't necessarily require being cool. #Rose #Sun

[Mirith 1,304]

Crab Clan, both beard and Man bun:

 

[Ishi Tonu 2,855]

Scorpion are likely going to be the most popular. They had the highest numbers of players at the gen con events.  The old school Scorpion players have been waiting 20 years to play Shoju. They are one of the few clans that have a good chance of winning by multiple paths.

Crane and Dragon should be pretty popular.  Both are strong with dueling and that has some appeal to the old school community.  Both clans seem to be somewhat of the in house favs at FFG.  Not that it means anything in terms of what cards we'll see, but, people seem to gravitate to what clans get the most exposure.

Crab should pull in a decent crowd with their fiercely loyal old school players and draw in anyone from GoT that likes the Nights Watch.

Lion and Phoenix had fairly low numbers at gen con and I'd expect this to do continue, especially if Scorpion numbers are high.  Those clans really need to remain honored to be at their best and unlike the Crane they don't have great in clan options to do this.  They are tricky to play correctly and could turn a few people off when they can't figure them out right away.  Phoenix would likely be a little more popular since their ring mastery will be the closest thing to "enlightenment" for the old school players.

The least popular is Unicorn, by far. They are the worst in single core and are very "boom or bust" in constructed play.  They have one of the highest ceilings in terms of potential, but also the lowest floor.  Consistency is what wins in competitive play and players will not flock to the unicorn since they don't have it yet.

Edited October 3, 2017 by Ishi Tonu

[Tokhuah 126]

You need to look at behavior patterns to sort out the real hipsters:

The Crab use tetsubo because the samurai sword is too mainstream
The Crane only wear kimonos from organic silk worms that produce 30 yards per year and are paid fair trade wages.
Dragon rock figurative tattoos with ironic allusions to abilities they impart.
Lions brag about their ancestors deeds as restorative justice and complain about what everyone else's ancestors did as microagressions.
Phoenix believe black scrolls are cool but do not wear black because that is too obvious.
Masks are so out of style at court but Scorpions think the way they wear masks makes them retro-awesome again.
Unicorns as Barbarians is so paradoxical sounding that it is destined to be a thing depicted on a sweater with a hoodie.

Your answer: All the above

[selderane 148]

4 hours ago, Featherbrew said:

I already bought my Unicorn sleeves...so this makes me very happy. 

Where did you snag those? 

I still have my old Unicorn deck backers. 

[Joe From Cincinnati 769]

4 hours ago, Ishi Tonu said:

Crab should pull in a decent crowd with their fiercely loyal old school players and draw in anyone from GoT that likes the Nights Watch.

Oh, are there similarities between Crab and the Night's Watch?

[Talandar 61]

2 minutes ago, Joe From Cincinnati said:

Oh, are there similarities between Crab and the Night's Watch?

I don't see it. One is a group of knights defending an ice wall from the forces of evil while getting no respect from the more civilized southerners, while the other is a group of samurai defending a stone wall from the forces of evil while getting no respect from the more civilized northerners. Totally different.

[Tokhuah 126]

I was thinking Crab is more like the grim-dark Space Marines from 40K.  At least x3 Core will not seem expensive to Games Workshop customers.

[Featherbrew 4]

1 hour ago, selderane said:

Where did you snag those? 

I still have my old Unicorn deck backers. 

Amazon. Went for a Bloodlust Lisa Frank scheme. 

[selderane 148]

11 hours ago, Featherbrew said:

Amazon. Went for a Bloodlust Lisa Frank scheme. 

Ah, I see.  I misunderstood.  I thought FFG released L5R sleeves somewhere, like they have for their other LCGs.

[phillos 1,523]

I'm sure sleeves are coming. 

To the OP right now Unicorn is definitely the most hipster.  Scorpion seems to be the most popular.  Of course Crab are the best.  So you should play Crab.

Edited October 4, 2017 by phillos

[Mirith 1,304]

12 hours ago, Talandar said:

I don't see it. One is a group of knights defending an ice wall from the forces of evil while getting no respect from the more civilized southerners, while the other is a group of samurai defending a stone wall from the forces of evil while getting no respect from the more civilized northerners. Totally different.

But the Crab Wall is defended by women as well as men.  Clearly completely different.

[Zetsubou 257]

I am one hundred percent prepared to be a member of the "I played Unicorn at release" elite

[Featherbrew 4]

2 hours ago, Zetsubou said:

I am one hundred percent prepared to be a member of the "I played Unicorn at release" elite

As a new L5R player, and member of the "I played Unicorn at release" club, are there any mottos or sayings I should know about? Is pony power a thing, or largely frowned upon?

[player2636234 163]

You could say "Once the Moto kill all the Shinjo and take over the clan again, we'll have a win rate above 20%"

[RandomJC 1,542]

1 hour ago, Featherbrew said:

As a new L5R player, and member of the "I played Unicorn at release" club, are there any mottos or sayings I should know about? Is pony power a thing, or largely frowned upon?

I'm all for Pony Power. Pony's are awesome.

Pony/ponies as a nickname for the Unicorn has been a thing for a long time.

[Toxium 54]

First killer Unicorn deck is called "My Little Pwny" Calling it now.

[JJ48 7,103]

Hipster Clan?  Really?

Can't we just stick to the seven main clans:  Crab, Phoenix, Dragon, Scorpion, Unicorn, Fox, Wasp?

[FunTimeTeddy 111]

I think it's a total crapshoot until we start to see competitive 3x Core tournament results. Then there'll be some serious bandwagoning (which will birth anarchists and opportunists). We're actually in an environmental sweet spot - no precedent. Enjoy it while it lasts!