Gates of Tengoku Previews: Prizes Old...

The primary goal of Gates of Tengoku was to resolve as many minor storyline prizes, card namings, character selections, etc. as existed in AEG's tournament prize files as we possibly could. We allowed for some cards to be rerouted to other expansions (including Chaos Reigns, Part II and Part III, which will round out the Shattered Empire cycle). We tracked down roughly 20 winners from the Fall 2015 Kotei season, including several events which were still run after AEG had announced the shuttering of the game. We asked questions online, did deep-dives into the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine, and pieced together information wherever we could. We even revisited some items which had received their "story time" prize to give them card form. We used a few creative interpretations where things didn't quite work right, or where we had incomplete data. Then we decided to try and make something sensical out of this very large pile of information.

The result is a fan-driven set which does not quite fit narratively together, but tells multiple smaller stories. Things like the Tanuki Clan were born of these choices, along with some creative syncretion. And just when we thought we were finished, we unearthed a whole trove of information on Gen Con 2015...

Today is a bit lower-stakes, as we approach the tail end of the previews and the formal release of the full set to the public.

Not all of these are part of a larger narrative, though you may recognize some things we've already referenced, such as Matsu Chizuki's alliance with Kaname to survive and escape the Shadowlands, or the former Master Coin having disappeared. In some cases, we honored the spirit of picks which were not, precisely speaking, valid ones within the framework of their time.

Some of these are setting hooks which have yet to reach their full narrative potential. Here, you will find representations of characters or locations who were saved or corrupted, place names referenced obliquely, artifacts chosen to be salvaged into a ravaged Empire, even a local playgroup's in-joke.

Please continue to join us for the final stretch of previews, and (we hope) the full release of the set this coming Monday, September 30.