Unblessed Ashigaru
Raiko gets his generic brethren. Perfect list filler at 8 rice, Minimoto can start to build a sheer numbers list. Bringing the cheapest ashigaru and blacksmiths available, you can hit 9 models and still have room for special cards. Witness Me! becomes an even better deal as now for 1 rice you have 3 potential targets.
Dropping down a melee dice from Raiko, the Unblessed will really want to be defensive blockers until they get the ki to gain Coordinated Attack. Luckily, they trade Sweep Attack(1) for Push Attack (0), giving them options for Disengaging, zone control, and objective tampering.
Not a lot of flash, but that’s never been the unblessed’s style. Cheap, consistent front line fighters.
Minimoto Kajiya
The flavor is strong with this guy. Blacksmith statline, but with a 2/8 Ki statistic Minimoto will always welcome, and the added benefit of Spirit(1) makes Kajiya one of the most resilient in Ki tests, which will come in handy for his Ki feats.
+1 in melee puts him above Hauru and Nuan in combat for damage output, but with only 2 dice, that’s not his focus. No armor, no tough, he wants a lot of defense dice most of the time.
Blade Dedication is why you spend 9 rice on this guy. An opposed Ki test, so his Spirit is essential here, he can reliably hit and deliver his Duel Token on most high priority targets. Any of the Minimoto Samurai, but particularly Yuji and Niko, will carve out any opponent with Unblockable (2). With all the melee buffs Minimoto has at its fingertips, even Kimiko becomes a combat threat.
As tempting as it will be to pop this feat early, I think its going to shine late game. Your opponent has less time to position his targeted model away from your bladed samurai, and you’ll have a better idea of which enemy model you just need gone. You just have to keep Kajiya alive and free from engagement.
Hadori’s Finish is going to be a blessing against Ryu and fellow Minimoto. With the access to Pierce already available, an additional +1 means you’ll carve through Armor (3) like butter. Nothing makes Minimoto’s Armor (4) infuriating like ignoring your opponent’s armor too.
When I first saw Inspiration on his card I thought it was going to be a neat buff for the Unblessed. A good way to get them up to 3 melee dice. Then I saw the stipulation on the back of the card and loved Inspiration more. Fire Kami and Metal Kami getting the boost is incredible. 3 dice ranged or melee Fire Kami becomes a fountain of pain. 2 Ki for a “free” Combo Attack on the Fire Kami is Ki well spent.
Hoshi Rinko
3 Ki in Minimoto! We have a full fledged spellcaster (Sorry Kimiko…)! Rinko has so many powerful options at her disposal, you will constantly find her lacking in activations and the Ki to do everything you want.
2 dice in melee, but boostable, so she can disengage more regularly than Kimiko and with Prowess she can come back from a bad roll. Ranged 3 makes her ice magic hit when you need it and makes you wish Kimiko could fling her ice magic a little further too. Additional bonus of her Ice Magic causing Slow and your opponent will be thinking twice about attacking you first.
The ki feat we knew was coming thanks to the cycle deck, Blizzard is fantastic early game. Turn one get the event, and drop the Ki feat on turn 2, now your opponent is only now hitting objectives and you’ve gots Kimiko, Rinko and Tetsu running them down (Aka Tetsu running them down, and Kimiko and Rinko threatening from a safe distance).
Icy Veins is great for your units, but on Rinko you’re not going to target opponents very often, as her Ice Magic can cause Slow instead, without an opposed roll. But if you’re just out of range, Icy Veins gets a little extra distance. Add in A Kami of Reflection and you have lots of options
Cold Shatter might be my new favorite ki feat. With Minimoto able to hit 3-4 damage a hit consistently, Cold Shatter makes Minimoto a 1 hit faction. There are so many combat options for Minimoto this is a ki feat that will often fall into overkill territory, so knowing when to use this conservatively is going to be the challenge.
Enban’nage Ashigaru + Akemi
These guys are fun and add a whole new level of play to Minimoto. Ranged game, even at 4/5/6, drastically changes how your opponent views your threat. With the extra perks the Enban’nage have, its a whole new world for Minimoto.
2 in melee, or 3 for Akemi, they’ll want to stay disengaged whenever possible. 3 dice at ranged and lightweight makes them hard hitters, especially in short range or against prone models. Sharp(1) helps Minimoto get through tough, which has stalled their damage output till now. Their ranged stat is boostable, but with 1 ki per turn they have other things they want to spend their precious ki on.
Like Inertia! After hitting a model with their ranged attack, for 1 ki they can push that model 1”. Zone control, keeping models off objectives, out of combat, there are very few times Minimoto won’t take advantage of the board manipulation.
Akemi also has the Ki feat Spin, giving him longer range bands and Strong. For 3 ki, this is a great turn 5-6 hail mary when you need that enemy model dead/off of an objective. It’s not a ki feat you’re going to aim to use with its high cost, but when you need it, it can turn the match in your favor.
For his 2 higher rice, Akemi also gets Immune [Prone] and Push Attack(0) in melee. He is worth every point extra and is worth dropping a few special cards to get Akemi over a generic. But if you bring all 3…expect some fun shenanigans.
A line of three Unblessed contesting objectives or holding the front line, while a back end of Enban’nage ping the enemy with ranged attacks and bounce them out of contest is enough to give your opponent a challenge, and still leaves you with 33 points to fill out your list. These guys break the “monotony” of Minimoto and I am excited for the options they bring.
If you’ve read my other Minimoto profiles, you’ll know I play them very defensively, and taking the big swings only when it’s safe. These new models shift that safe range, and now there are greater rewards for those big risks. Roll all attack when you’ve got Unblockable (2). Trust your Armor (4) to keep you alive when your opponent is Slow and Cold Shattered. This release drop takes Minimoto from the new kids on the block with a lot of potential, to a full fledged faction with depth to list building. I’m excited to see all the combinations the community comes up with!
The 9 Worlds Gaming 