Shosuro Toson

Shosuro Toson, like Aramoro, is 2F and 3C, with a -HR and 8 gold cost. Both have 1 personal honour and the ninja trait, as well as being a Samurai. Both can bow to discard a card from any province in play.

However, the basic Aramoro had the ability to bow to replace Kachiko in a duel, which Toson does not. Story-wise this makes sense, but it partially removes some of the power of the card. Another factor to take into acount is that the environment has changed radically since then. In the original environment, if one Aramoro came out, you could also have Ninja Shapeshifters out to copy his ability and make it more useful. This is not the case for Toson. Also, when Aramoro came out, there was a lot of Free Gold available, with corrupt holdings, Small Farms, and Merchant Caravans. This is also no longer the case.

While this change may seem minor, it indicates we are paying premium price for only part of the ability. We are still paying 8 gold, but have a slower gold structure and the holdings often produce less gold overall. Granted, Toson is still a Samurai, so you can bow the Hiruma Dojo for him, but that is the only quick fix. Also, I will grant that with only 1 personal honour it is much more likely you are paying cheap for him, but you are still likely either bowing your stronghold or a Hiruma Dojo and another holding, or 3 holdings that produce 2 for him. You might get lucky and bow 2 holdings that produce 3, but those are much rarer and farther between than they used to be.

His ability is interesting, but is somewhat slow, and takes up one of your personalities that could be available for defense and attack. He is an interesting card, but too slow for most serious decks. However, in fun decks, go wild with him, as he presents all sorts of fun and good times, messing up opponents in good Scorpion fashion.

Shosuro Toson Experienced is 3F and 4C, with a Gold cost of 9. He still has -HR and 1 personal honour, and the Ninja trait, just like the original. Also like the original, he cannot be targeted by other players unless he is in an army.

Toson's Experienced version does have a change from the experienced Aramoro. Aramoro was a samurai to his dying day, while Toson has decided to become a Courtier [Yes, AEG said this was on purpose, not a typo]. What does this mean? One bad point is that Hiruma Dojo's will only produce 3 gold to pay for him, not 4. Other than that, however, it may be good for him to be a courtier.

He can still commit Seppukku if needed. He can now use Rhetoric to move honour gains around. He will always be available to be a courtier if you need one. And he cannot be PKilled by other players. This means you will, so long as you do not send him into battle, have an unkillable card. A Caveat is, however, that events will still get him, as only actions cannot target him. Also, the Experienced Ruby of Iuchiban targets, but it is not, as far as I can tell, an action. He cannot even be Ambushed, as they must target him to do that.

Thus, despite his high gold cost, I believe the experienced Toson to be worth throwing into most Scorpion decks, while the basic is overcosted and under-powered, despite its apparently strong power. Toson Expereinced may not have that obviously great of a power, or that flashy of one, but his trait is one of the best in the game, possibly the equal of the experienced Naka Kuro in my opinion. There are very few cards with such a subtle, but powerful, ability as this, and he has decent stats and price for this.

Hope this helps you. Whether a new player, or one who has been with the game a bit longer, try Toson out, and see what you think.