Intentional Cheating 3: What I Forgot to Mention

Card Sleeves and Deck Backers

As sad as it is to say, I completely forgot to mention some of the most commonly used accessories in L5R. It is important to note that when playing games of any CCG, not just L5R, you should have a knowledge of how a particular system rules on the issues of sleeves and deck backers. Some don't allow backers, some only allow certain types of sleeves, etc.

To begin, we should probably go back and look at the floor rules for sleeves and deck backers. Read all of those rules? What it boils down to is simply this: make sure each deck is sleeved in exactly the same manner with approved sleeves that will not confuse your opponent or potentially wear unevenly, and if you are asked to re-sleeve by a judge, you need to do it quickly.

Now, one may ask 'Why would they allow deck backing and putting cards in sleeves if they were just going to make you change them?' The simple answer is because AEG gives people the benefit of the doubt that they aren't cheating with sleeves and backers. If you want to use some manner of non-standard sleeve or you want to do a deck backing project, just understand the obstacles you could be facing. Just remember that you only get 5 minutes to re-sleeve, and that is not a lot of time, so you may want to practice.

Now, my opinion on deck backing and sleeving may not be a terribly popular one, because basically I don't recommend using anything outside of a standard opaque sleeve, and I certainly don't recommend deck backing. Why? Because the last thing I want to have to do when I sit at a table is have something that confuses my opponent and then have to worry about re-sleeving within a specific time frame or lose if the game goes to time. The only way to be absolutely certain that won't happen is to use new sleeves before each tournament. Since that is generally unrealistic, the next best step is to use sleeves that show little or no wear and that don't have any markings on them. Also make sure that they are plain and don't have any markings on them. Remember, while there is nothing against deck backing or using sleeves that have a design or are out of the ordinary, you are more likely to be asked to re-sleeve if someone calls you on it.

Now on to more important things; how do you protect yourself against sleeve and deck backing cheaters? First you have to know the rules and secondly you have to make sure you are looking at your opponent's sleeves prior to the start of the match.

Make sure your opponent isn't using current cards or cards that could possibly be confused for current cards. No one should have deck backers like that, but it is best to check out what your opponent is using. It might be possible to alter some terribly minor detail on certain backers just by marking out fingers on people, or tweaking some other minor detail that will escape notice, so make sure you check your opponent's backers before continuing on into the game (we will get to the how in a minute.)

Make sure that all of the sleeves are of the same color and texture. You may not think about it, but there are both smooth and textured sleeves, and even the textured sleeves come in different textures. We think about the color all of the time, that is the obvious one, but texture sometimes escapes notice, and we will get to how to check in a minute.

As for color, it is important to note that not even every pack of sleeves of the same color by the same manufacturer are the same color. Within the same pack of sleeves they will be the same, but across packs of sleeves, or over some period of time, that color may vary. I have purchased two packs of sleeves in the past on the same day from the same sleeve shipment from the same manufacturer that both had the same color listed, and the two different packs of sleeves actually had a subtle color difference that, while an opponent sitting across the table wouldn't have noticed, I certainly could tell. Putting key cards into these slightly off-color sleeves would allow an opponent to know where the cards they need are at all times.

We have covered what can be done to cheat with sleeves and backers, now we get to how to check your opponent's stuff to see if they have tried to cheat you. Shuffle your opponent's deck every match. Not in an obnoxious way, but just make sure you get a could good shuffles in to get a feel for whether any card is thicker, whether a sleeve bottom might be ripped, whether any sleeve is textured differently, and if you can spot any detail different on any deck backers or minor damage to sleeves that could be considered a mark. You may not even notice these things when shuffling, but you will have a much better chance than if you just cut their deck.

Remember, if you have any questions, please call a judge. They are the only ones who can determine if a re-sleeve is necessary, and whether they feel there was some sort of intent in the cheat and the offending player needs punished in some manner.