texts: Can you build the same building more than once in Puerto Rico?

texts: Is one player allowed to build the same building more than once in Puerto Rico? If so, do the bonuses stack, so that a player building both Large Markets would get +4 for trading? I wasn't able to find anything in the rulebook that specified this either way. My play group ruled that you can't build the same building multiple times, on the grounds that some of the bonuses seem overpowered if you can double up on them (e.g. Harbor), and other bonuses make no sense if applied more than once (e.g. Construction Hut). Is there any official rule on this?


texts: Has online play testing been an important part of any boardgame designs?

texts: I am wondering if any game designers have used an online implementation of a game to balance and tweak it before commercial release.


texts: Is there something like Gatherer but with inventory management?

texts: Gatherer is great (sort of) for building decks, but I'd like the additional filter of specifying the search specifically to the cards I own.  Is this a feature I'm just not seeing or is there an app of some sort that does this?  I'd also like if it were always as up to date as Gatherer is.


texts: If somebody plays a wild card (without +4), is the next person's turn skipped?

texts: 3 of us were playing Uno, and somebody layed down a regular wild card. I tried to play the next card because it was my turn, but everybody said that it skipped my turn. I don't believe it did. Please answer soon!


texts: Play all but one rule is into play. What if play one extra card rule is also in play?

texts:
In our last game, the "play all but one" rule was into play .
But also a rule (dutch fluxx) that said the one with the most keepers can play one more card.

Does this mean he can play all his cards, or should he still keep one left in his hands? (Translated into English the dutch card reads: Save one card in your hand and play all the rest.)


texts: Reaction cards in response to reaction cards

texts:
Consider this complicated scenario: I'm about to gain a card (Current event reacting to: "would gain a card"), so I reveal Trader.  I gain a silver instead.  Then, I reveal Watchtower (Current event reacting to: "gain a card") and trash the Silver.  Now, I reveal and discard Market Square (Current event reacting to: "one of your cards is trashed") and gain a Gold.  I could even reveal Watchtower again and put the Gold on top.

My question is: how do nested events work?  Does the new event "override" the old one?  For example, when I use Market Square off of Watchtower's trashing, am I no longer "gaining a card?"  Or do triggers happen in layers, so once I'm done using Market Square, and resolving any other "On trash" triggers, I can go back to "gaining a card?"  If so, will I still be able to resolve other effects that trigger off of "gaining a card?"  (For example, I gain Ill-Gotten Gains, Watchtower it to the Trash, use Market Square to gain a Gold, Watchtower that to the top of my deck, then after those resolve, it goes back two layers to "gaining Ill-Gotten Gains," and give everyone else a curse?)

I hope that made sense, I'm just trying to understand how the game handles multiple layers of things reacting and triggering.


texts: In spades, is a deuce of clubs considered a spade?

texts: In Spades, is a deuce of clubs/hearts considered a spade?  I played with some people that argued they consider their suit to be spade.


texts:
The following tiles are on the table (these were the initial meld from another player):
10 BLUE, 11 BLUE, 12 BLUE
And I, having not yet made an initial meld, have the following tiles on my board:
7 BLUE, 8 BLUE, 9 BLUE, JOKER, 13 BLUE
I use the first four tiles to make my initial meld.
Questions:

Am I allowed to play other tiles in the same round that I played my initial meld?
Am I allowed to add my 13 BLUE to the other player's run, take the 10 BLUE to replace the JOKER in my initial meld, and re-use that JOKER, all in the same round?


texts: Can I kill and revive the same creature with Betrayal of Flesh entwined?

texts:
Betrayal of Flesh reads

  Choose one — Destroy target creature; or return target creature card from your graveyard to the battlefield.

  Entwine—Sacrifice three lands. (Choose both if you pay the entwine cost.)

If I cast it with entwine, can I target the same creature with the first half (while it is on the battlefield) and the second half (when it is in the graveyard)? Or do I pick the target for the second half before the first half resolves?


texts: Is it legal to use poetry elements/sound devices as hints like "alliteration 3", "assonance 3", and "rhyme 3" in Codenames?

texts:
Poetry elements/sound devices include alliteration, assonance, consonance, and rhyme. An example of a clue would be "assonance 3" for "code", "control", and "candy". I checked the rules, and I'm unsure. This is the most relevant rule:

Your clue must be about the meaning of the
words. You can't use your clue to talk about
the letters in a word or its position on the table.
Gland is not a valid clue for ENGLAND. You
can't tie BUG, BED, and BOW together with
a clue like b: 3 nor with a clue like three: 3.

Unlike "b", "alliteration" actually lives up to its meaning as a hint that it's similar consonants at the beginning of words. However, the words "code", "control", and "candy" don't have anything to do with alliteration itself in the meaning. I suppose the line "You can't use your clue to talk about the letters in the word" makes it illegal, but it's fuzzy.


texts: What happens with palace guard and other blockers?

texts:
Suppose my opponent attacks with 2 grizzly bears and I control 2 palace guard. I am on 1 life and must block both creatures to survive. I elect to block both creatures with both my palace guard.

In this situation, my assumption is that both the attacker and blockers must assign a damage order for their creatures, however this is confusing as each player can potentially choose a different order. I am at a loss as to what happens in that situation.

How are combatants ordered in this situation, and do player decisions have any significant impact on the outcome?


texts: Can I stack Miracle and other "at the beginning of of your draw step" triggers however I want?

texts: I control Howling Mine. At the beginning of my draw step, I draw Temporal Mastery. Can I stack the Miracle trigger and then the Howling Mine trigger, such that I draw my second card before the Miracle trigger resolves?


texts: What are "Centipede" and "Greedy Roach"?

texts:
Just played Mice and Mystics for the first time and we had a few issues with spawning monsters with encounters. Specifically, we had two monsters spawned my encounters that we were not 100% sure what they were.

"Centipede" had no initiative card, so we assumed that the "Cave Centipede" initiative card was correct (and we couldn't find any references to Cave Centipedes anywhere after a quick search)
"Greedy Roach" had no initiative card, so we assumed that the "Roach" initiative card was correct (but "Roach" is also referenced on encounter cards)

Are these substitutions correct, or are we missing initiative cards?


texts: Arkham Horror: dominant personality issue?

texts:
I recently experienced the problem mentioned here, with myself being one of the enthusiasts pushing other party members around. It wasn't intentional, it's just that the structure of the game lends itself to giving each other lots of advice.

I'm interested in Arkham Horror, but want to know whether people have experienced the same problem with it. If you have experienced the problem, how? If not, and you think it's related to game mechanics, how so?


texts: Can I discard a ticket if it can't be completed?

texts: In Ticket To Ride, what happens if I have a ticket that can’t be completed because other players have already used that route?  Is there a way to trade it in or drop it? Or am I just stuck with it?


texts: What impact will Kickstarter have on how Designer Board Games are released?

texts:
There have been some notable releases through Kickstarter.

Eminent Domain - one of the earlier big successes.
Eaten By Zombies
D-Day Dice - most successful board game kickstarter to date.

How do you expect Kickstarter to effect the Designer Board Game ecosystem? Will Kickstarter flood the market with too many bad games from people trying to get rich. Will it kill the industry like Napster did to the music industry? Will it be more like Youtube, lowering the entry field for exciting new designers, like Youtube brought us many new entertainers.


texts: Neighing the active effect of Special Delivery in unstable unicorns

texts: So the neigh card states you can only neigh a card that is played, so the debate is does the active effect of "You may bring a baby unicorn card from the nursery into your stable" count as playing a card?


texts: Do most good pre-empters do so within "tight" point ranges?

texts:
I'll use "weak two" bids as a frame of reference.

My understanding of a "weak two" bid is that it is usually made with six cards of a suit, and at least five high card points (hcps). If that's all, they will be in the suit, that is KQxxxx or AJxxxx, and this would be done mainly at favorable vulnerability (not vulnerable vs. vulnerable). At equal vulnerability, you need either another honor in-suit (e.g. KQJxxx) or a side suit honor. At unfavorable vulnerability (vulnerable vs. not), you need both, for a maximum of about 10 hcps.

A "strong "pre-empt" at the three level would have the values for a "weak two" bid with a seventh card.  The theory is that the extra "trump" would compensate (on offense) for the higher level, so you would go down as much as for a "weak two" bid.

A weak "pre-empt" would have the seventh card, but be about a queen lighter (and less likely to have the side value) than a weak two bid. It might range in strength from QTxxxxx to AQJxxxx with little or nothing outside. The theory is that the extra suit card compensates for a king "lighter," and your weaker defense (by one trick) means that you can "afford" to go down an additional trick on offense.

Are most expert pre-empters at least consistent within these two philosophies (or any other)? That is, do they pre-empt "narrowly" either with something like 5-10 hcps if using strong pre-empts, or 3-7 if "weak?" Or are there systems or experts that will run the whole gamut of say, 3-11 high card points for pre-empts?


texts: Electrostatic Pummeler with Animation Module

texts: If you use Electrostatic Pummeler's ability to turn him into a 2/2 and then you use Animation Module to add an additional +1/+1 counter. Would both of those +1/+1 counters be removed at the end of turn or only one?


texts: Can't cast an instant after my opponent declares attackers in Arena

texts: If I have an instant that gives a creature +1/+7 (Aegis of the Heavens) until end of turn, I should be able to cast this after my opponent declares their attackers, right? Because the game hasn't been giving me the opportunity.


texts: How to use 'Nisei MK II' free 'End the run'?

texts:
From the 'Nisei MK II' card:

Place 1 agenda counter on Nisei MK II when you score it.
Hosted agenda counter: End the run.

Does this really means that you get a free 'End the run' that the corporation can use a any time?


texts:
There's a card called Emeria Shepherd that reads (among others, emphasis mine)

  Landfall - Whenever a land enters the battlefield under your control, return target nonland permanent card from your graveyard to your hand. If that card is a Plains, you may return that nonland permanent card to the battlefield instead.

Is there a nonland permanent card that is a plains?


texts: How to approach a game of Othello / Reversi?

texts:
I have played the game Othello (Reversi) numerous times but I never approach it with a specific logic or algorithm to apply on each move in my mind. I won many times and lost as much.
How would one approach this game? How would one work in his mind to prune the possible moves and choose the "right" one in each step?
I see that most Othello CPUs more or less "think" the same at each move, how should I think on each move?


texts:
We played with Agricola: The Goodies for the first time last night, and while it was very silly, it didn't have the negative impact on gameplay that I'd feared.  However, the Occupation cards from the L-deck created all sorts of rules questions for us that we weren't quite equipped to answer.  But that's where this site comes in!

The Bean Farmer occupation reads:

  Once you have player the Bean Farmer,
  no opponent can change the order of
  the cards in their hand; they may only
  play the card that is at the front.
  (If the first card is an Occupation, for example, they cannot play a Minor
  Improvement.)

My question is, is there a canonical interpretation of the "front" of your hand?  If you are holding your cards in a fan, where the rightmost card is the only one with its full face showing, is that the front?

Obviously the intent of this card is to force the opponents to play Bohnanza-style, but this just adds complexity to the issue: when I play Bohnanza, I consider my "first bean" to be the card at the far left of my fan!

In the event we ruled that each player could decide what constituted the "front" of their hand, but this may be open to abuse.  Is there a definitive "front" and "back" of your hand in Agricola?  And incidentally, have I been playing Bohnanza wrong all these years?


texts:
We are about to start the first season.
If we lose a character, at the start of the next game, do we choose another character?
If we are 4 people to play and is is possible to lose 2 characters, do someone plays only as a civilian?


texts:
I control Pyromancer Ascension that has enough quest counters on it:

  Whenever you cast an instant or sorcery spell (...), you may copy that spell. You may choose new targets for the copy.

I play Grapeshot. Suppose I've cast 3 spells this turn, so I will Storm 3 times if Grapeshot resolves normally. Pyromancer Ascension is going to copy it. Now what happens?

Grapeshot goes on the stack Stormed thrice, then the copy goes on the stack Stormed 4 times.
Both Grapeshot and the copy goes on the stack Stormed thrice.

I'm not very familiar with the Storm mechanic or the copy mechanic. Please correct me if I'm totally wrong.


texts: Can Sundial of the Infinite interrupt multiple-card draws while drawing?

texts:
I'm not quite sure about the interaction between the stack and multiple-card draws.

  120.2. Cards may only be drawn one at a time. If a player is instructed to draw multiple cards, that player performs that many individual card draws.

According to Is drawing multiple cards an atomic action?, this means that:

  "draw 2 cards" really means "draw a card, then draw a card". - diego

Now, my question is: Does that mean that a player, affected by a multiple-card draw (Divination for example), can draw one card and avoid drawing any more by activating Sundial of the Infinite inbetween individual draws?


texts: Klondike Solitaire - what to do if 1 or 2 cards are left in the stock?

texts: As far as I understand it, in standard Klondike solitaire, you deal 3 cards at a time from the stock to the waste.  What if only 1 or 2 cards are left in the stock?


texts: The Master combinations in Dr Who the Card Game

texts:
When attacking with The Master it says that it can be combined with any enemy card.

So when I place The Master first: does it mean I can add any enemy?

If so, then when I attack with a certain enemy and place The Master with it in succeeding turns, can I still add another card to combine with The Master?


texts: My wife and I are playing it first game of Hive, and we're a little confused on how to win.  We're playing without the mosquitoes and ladybugs as the directions suggested. Given the game below, couldn't white's grasshoppers just surround the queen bee indefinitely? What would force them to move?


texts: From a design point of view, I cannot figure out why Cascade should specifically exile the cards involved, then return them to the bottom of the deck instead of revealing them (like Spellshift or Reweave do)? Is there some sort of interaction I didn't notice?


texts: Can you transmute before taking energy tokens?

texts:
Let's say I have 7 energy tokens, and choose a die face that includes both transmutation and energy tokens.  If I tried to take energy tokens, I would lose any extra energy, because I can't hold more than 7 at once.

Can I transmute energy that is currently in my reserve, before taking the new tokens into my energy reserve?


texts: Could I use the ability of this weapon multiple times to consume different infusions on the same attack?


texts: Do you need a solo player variant to make a Print&Play game successful?

texts:
A friend of mine is creating a multiplayer dice game. The game rules are currently designed for 3-5 players, and don't require much of an investment for the PnP to create the necessary components. Only a 30 card deck needs to be printed, a lot of dice, and a pen and paper to keep track of score.

He has been struggling to come up with a solo variant, because he believes that a large majority of the PnP community either plays PnP games solo, or most PnPers like to try out the game by themselves before bringing it to their group.

This got me to wondering,

If you don't have a solo player variant, is your PnP likely to get played?

Do you also need 2, 3, 4, ..., player variants?

What is the optimal number of players for a game? Is the number of players that will play a PnP designed for 1 player the greatest, and as the number of players increases, the likelihood to find people willing to PnP decrease linerally (exponentially, or does the graph look like a bell curve?)


texts: Can piercing damage be inflicted on a monster that is unaffected by monster effects?

texts: There are in the current game plenty of monsters that are unaffected by opponents' monsters' effects. Can piercing damage (which is a monster effect) still be inflicted if they are the target of the attack?


texts: How to deal with a player who showed his hands to influence the robber?

texts:
As per the Catan FAQ:

  Resource Cards - Do I always have to keep my Resource Cards face down?

  Yes.

With this in mind, consider this scenario that I've encountered occasionally when playing Catan with my friends:

  Adam has just rolled a 7 and has placed the robber on a hex occupied
  by both Brad and Charlie.  Adam has been receiving plentiful sheep
  throughout the game and would prefer to gain a different resource.
  Brad also has been receiving plentiful sheep, and currently has only
  sheep cards in his hand.  Charlie has more diverse resources.

  While Adam is deliberating about who to steal from, the clever Brad
  proudly reveals his entire hand to the group, showing that if he is
  robbed Adam will certainly gain a sheep.  Adam, not wanting to gain a sheep from
  the robber, elects to rob Charlie, who is now infuriated at Brad for
  breaking the rules to sway Adam's decision and avoid getting robbed.

I believe it would be legal to say "I have only sheep", and allow that to influence the robber's choice, but revealing cards in this way is clearly a violation of the rules for personal advantage.  My question is what can/should be done in the event a player breaks the rules in this way. I feel some sort of penalty is due, but what?  It seems unfair to allow such play to influence the robber's choice, but it also seems unfair to force the robber to choose from the player with the more undesirable resource (this could be used strategically).  So how, then, should I handle this (other than choosing players with more integrity)?

Note: This question is different from
Can I show my resource cards to other players in Settlers of Catan?

My main focus is on what penalty (if any) can/should be given for this violation. Or, what incentive can be given to prevent it.


texts: Do I need to reveal card added with the Archived Memories?

texts: I've got no face-down cards in the archives. I play Archived Memories. Do I need to show card I add to the HQ with it? Or the only thing runner can do is to watch the archives after this and figure out the missing card?


texts: Will an ability on the stack resolve if its source is removed?

texts:
Player A casts and resolves Nekrataal. Nekrataal's enters-the-battlefield ability triggers and A and targets Player B's Suntail Hawk.

In response, Player B casts Swords to Plowshares, targeting Nekrataal.

The stack looks like this (top first):

Swords to Plowshares, targeting Nekrataal.
Nekrataal's triggered ability, targeting Suntail Hawk.

Does the Suntail Hawk die?

My thinking is mixed. If I remove the source of the triggered ability, what happens?

The ability doesn't happen. Either the ability is removed from the stack when its source is removed, or the ability is removed when it tries to resolve and sees that the source isn't there.
The triggered ability is simply an object on the stack, and it doesn't matter what happens to the Nekrataal that created it.

Any help would be appreciated.


texts:
A while ago a friend of mine pulled an interesting card in a pack of Urza's Legacy. The back was normal, but the front was solid black with a white M on it. I can't find the card right now, but I made an image of roughly what it looked like.

I think at the time I was told it was a placeholder for when there was extra room on the cutting sheet, and was accidentally included in the pack. I cannot remember which rarity slot it occupied.

I am trying to find out how much it is worth, or if there is any information about it online? Googling "magic m placeholder" and variants of that are not turning up anything useful.


texts: Can you announce that you are a character not in play in Mascarade

texts: As per the title - can you announce that you are a character that is not in play currently in Bruno Faidutti's Mascarade ?


texts: Can You Play Two Search Cards at Once in Competitive Play

texts: Say I have two Profrssor’s Letters which allow me to search for two basic energy cards then shuffle my deck afterwards. In competitive play, are you able to play two of those cards or similar cards at once to look for four basic energy at once.


texts: Corner enclosure after playing star point

texts:
As fas as I know the corner is fully closed after adding two more stones to 4-4

But what will happen if I simply play 3-3?

Can I consider my corner closed or not?


texts: Does Wrath of God really destroy creatures with shroud?

texts:
I heard - (from an official MtG judge) - that Wrath of God ("Destroy all creatures") destroys creatures with the Shroud ability, because it doesn't target a single creature, it targets all creatures.

Is this really true? In my opinion it is very illogical.


texts: In The Captain Is Dead Episode 2: Adrift, do all systems with any damage gain damage no matter where hostile aliens are?

texts:
The instuctions here say

  At the start of any turn in which a hostile alien is present, add a damage token to any system that already has a damage token.

Does this mean if an alien is anywhere in the ship, that all systems with damage accrue damage, or only damaged systems in the same room that has an alien?


texts: In a game that just involves Unstable cards, does it ever actually matter that Just Desserts deals π damage instead of 3?

texts:
The Unstable card Just Desserts says

  Just Desserts deals π damage to target creature. (π is the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter. (It’s a smidgen more than 3.))

And the Unstable FAQ further elaborates that

  If you ever have to calculate Just Desserts, you have my permission to use 3.14.

In most situations, this has the same outcome as if it just dealt exactly 3 damage: a creature with 3 toughness will die if hit by Just Desserts or by a Lightning Bolt. A creature with 4 toughness will not die from either. So, in a game with just Unstable cards, such as Unstable limited, does it ever really make a difference that Just Desserts deals π damage instead of 3?

I think it would be best to ignore cards that can be brought into the game by Spike, Tournament Grinder and Summon the Pack because they expand the card pool well beyond Unstable.


texts: What is the exact size of all the Warhammer 40k bases?

texts:
I'm looking for a list of the dimensions of all the bases in Warhammer 40k.

I know there is a 60mm base, for large models, and there is one that is 120mm x 55mm for really large models.

I don't know the sizes for the smaller models, or for the flying models.

I feel like a list of all the sizes would be very handy, but I can't find all of them in one place.  A list of all the square bases from Warhammer Fantasy would be useful too.  I don't own many of those models, so I have nothing to measure.


texts:
I bought some "yunzi" stones that came in straw bowls, but they aren't translucent at all. They are fully opaque.

Considering the price paid (around 35 dollars, I bought it in Brazil), I think that they weren't the real deal, but they look nice anyway.

Now, should/can I oil them? What are they made off?


texts: Can we extend the game by playing Multiple Boards At Once?

texts:
I play Ticket To Ride with my gf and friends and we love it! So much so that we always reach the end thinking, 'this went too quickly!'. We've toyed with playing two maps simultaneously, has anyone else tried this? If so, what was the experience like? Is this a viable way to get a longer version of Ticket to Ride? Would we need to modify other things to make it work? Is there a better way to achieve this?

I'm expecting that playing two at once can be even more infuriating and head-hurting than just one! Trying to complete different tickets on different maps, trying to keep up with what I need on this map while you're doing something on the other one! I have the Europe and Asia versions.


texts: How many points are awarded for all four safeties played by the same team or player in Mille Bornes - 300 or 700?


texts: What are the rules for playing with this unusual Mancala board?

texts:
I recently received a Mancala set hand-made from Africa.  It has an unusual set up, and I was hoping someone knew the rules for playing on this set up.

The board is an arrangement of circle and square pits in a board.  There are 4 rows and 8 columns arranged as follows (o = circle pit, x = square pit)

oooooooo
oooxoooo
ooooxooo
oooooooo

Has anyone seen a board like this before?  Does anyone know if there are rules for playing on a board like this?


texts: My son got a bunch of Pokemon cards.  One set he bought used was the Call of Legends expansion.  The instructions say that there are two preset decks that you can use to start with to understand the game.  But all the cards are mixed together since its used.  Is there a specific icon on the card, to identify the starter decks of cards?  Or, is there any other designation?


texts: Know any games designed for old game systems like Orion or Sly

texts:
A Game System is a set of components and/or rules that are intended to be used to create games.  That is, one set of components that allows to play several diffrent games.

Recent game systems like piecepack, Decktet, or Stonehenge have tons of games to try, but older game systems like Sly and Orion only seem to have the official rules (PDF) that came with them.

Somehow Icehouse managed to survive from the 1980's until the web could attract a community for it, does anybody know of any additional rule sets written for other game systems published before 1995?


texts: Will multiple Exquisite Archangels give me many extra chances, or just one?

texts:
Let's say I've somehow managed to get two or more Exquisite Archangels out onto the battlefield:

(Possibly more. I apologise for making you see this.)

Something causes me to lose. Let's say it's just regular creature damage, and my life will reset just fine with no shenanigans.

What happens? Do all Archangels get exiled at once, or do I exile just one and have one more chance left for each extra Archangel beyond that one?


texts:
This goes for many games where players take turns to draw cards, but I specifically wondered about Carcassonne:
Do you allow players to pre-draw tiles and look at those tiles before it's their turn? So they don't have to wait until it's their turn, but somewhere between their last turn and their new turn, they can draw?
I myself don't like this tactic too much, as the players now possess information which the game rules did not intend them to possess yet. Especially if you allow "discussion" or "persuasion" (no, lay your road there and take it - aha, now I got the perfect hole for my cloister!).
Pro's

Players can think ahead
Game advances faster

Con's

Unintended possession of early information
(only if the original order of drawing is broken:) less drawing choice for other players


texts:
In Settlers of Catan can you conduct multiple transactions on your turn?

You roll, collect your resource cards, and then:

Can you build a road and a settlement?
Can you build a road and do a trade with another opponent?
Can you do a trade and buy a resource card?

We have been playing one transaction per turn but not sure what the rules are pertaining to this.


texts:
I was wondering what happens to the cards once they are revealed using the Splice Onto Arcane ability?

Do they go to the graveyard once spliced?

Or do they stay in your hand?

With this said and considering the spells are all cast at instant speed, if they stay in your hand, what mechanic stops them from being spliced yet again onto another spell? or is this just a ruling so that people can't place infinite copies of the spells effects onto the initial spell (say with an infinite manna combo)?

  You reveal all cards you intend to splice at the same time. Each individual card can be spliced only once onto any one spell.

The above ruling does not give me much context... is this during any one turn?
If so does this mean I can reveal it next turn and splice again?


texts: Identifying an old flash game - 6x6 board, stacking tiles, possibly called "automatons"

texts:
I am trying to find a two-player tile placement strategy board game that I played 15–20 years ago on a now-defunct Flash game aggregator website. I believe the name of the page was "Automatons", but I have had no luck finding any record of this game's existence outside of my memory. I would love to find this game again, either digitally or in a hard copy (if one ever existed).
The board
The board was a 6x6 grid, if I recall correctly, with a 3D profile as indicated by the image below. The 16 center tiles were at "ground level", the edges were elevated by one step, and the corners by two steps.
The rules
Two opposing players, Black and White, take turn placing tiles on the board. The tiles are square, slightly smaller in length and width than the board squares, and of thickness equal to the step height of the board; they are colored either Black or White but have no other marking features. Tiles can be placed on empty squares or stacked on top of other tiles of the same color.
When a stack reaches the height of four tiles (including the board steps—so three tiles on the edges or two tiles at the corners), it "pops", and the tiles in the stack are placed on the surrounding board squares. Popped tiles are placed on top of any stacks that may already be there. If Player A's popped tiles are placed on one of Player B's stacks, Player A captures the stack and replaces the tiles with ones of the appropriate color. In addition, pops can trigger further pops, cascading across the board.
If I remember correctly, a player wins when the other player has no tiles left on the board.
Does anyone else remember this game? Was it ever published physically? Any insight would be greatly appreciated.


texts: Can effects (like Majesty's Fiend) prevent Exodia from winning?

texts:
Majesty's Fiend is on the field.  It says

  Cannot be Special Summoned. Monster effects cannot be activated.

If all Exodia cards are collected, does Exodia's player win even though Majesty's Fiend prevents Monster effects from happening?


texts: What happens when creature has two mutually exclusive restrictions on what can block them?

texts:
What happens if I equip my Juggernaut

  Juggernaut can't be blocked by Walls.

with a Prowler's Helm

  Equipped creature can't be blocked except by Walls.

or if I enchant my Charging Rhino

  Charging Rhino can't be blocked by more than one creature.

with a Purphoros's Emissary?

  Enchanted creature gets +3/+3 and has menace.

From this very detailed answer, I'd say they're both unblockable, but I'm wondering if the word "except" allows the blocker to block if he or she satisfies the "except" condition.


texts: Some of the characters' special abilities allow them to have an additional card, such as a spell card, at the beginning of their setup. What does this mean?


texts: What kind of mechanics can make MTG fun for my opponents?

texts: I'm looking for a way to build an EDH deck that makes sure my opponents have fun while playing against me. In other words I'm less concerned with winning than with doing fun/creative/interesting things with my deck. I want the group to say "Wow, that's cool". I've never tried to build a non-competitive deck that focuses on something other than winning. So what are some mechanics that would be considered fun by the opponents?


texts:
Eldritch Horror has a plethora of expansions all with their own symbols at the bottom of the cards separated into many decks. It seems unfeasible to go through each deck and remove all the expansions except the one you're playing with. So my question is: which expansion cards are fine to mix into their respective decks and which do I absolutely need to remove?

For example: The Mountains of Madness expansion introduces a Hypothermia condition which doesn't really make sense for the main board. The same could be said for the  Sled Dog asset. Do I need to remove these?


texts: What happens when Merfolk Trickster's ability targets Tempest Djinn

texts: Is the text on Tempest Djinn: "Tempest Djinn gets +1/+0 for each basic Island you control." considered an "ability"? Does that mean if Merfolk Trickster's triggered ability targets Tempest Djinn it becomes a 0/4 vanilla creature?


texts: Can you chose fewer targets than a spell permits?

texts: Say I have a spell like Victimize that says, among other things "choose two target creature cards in your graveyard"...  what if I only have one creature card in my graveyard? Can I still cast the spell? Do I need to have two valid legal targets to actually cast the spell?


texts: Do you score for all smaller words within the long one in the same move in scrabble?

texts: If the word you play in scrabble contains several smaller words, do you score all of them, or just the longest? E.g. TRAIN as TRAIN+RAIN+IN, or just TRAIN? Cannot find it clarified in any rules...


texts: What happens if a creature is returned to owner's hand after blocking or being targetted?

texts:
What will happen to a creature if it's been killed either after being targetted by spells or by blocking?

example 1:
Player A casts Chandra's Outrage targeting Angelic Wall; Player B uses Crystal Shard's ability (return target creature to its owner's hand) to return Angelic Wall to his hand.  Does Player A's spell still resolve and find new targets?  And if Player B has no other creatures and Player A has the only creatures in play, would it target one of Player A's creatures?

Also, if Player B waited for Chandra's Outrage to resolve and the Angelic Wall dies, when Player B uses the Crystal Shard ability on Angelic Wall before it goes into graveyard will it take effect?  Will Angelic Wall be returned to Player B's hand rather than going to the graveyard?

example 2:
Player A attacks with a 3/3 creature and Player B blocks with a creature that's only a 2/2 and then lets damage resolve.  When Player B uses Crystal Shard's ability, will his 2/2 creature be returned to his hand instead of going to his graveyard?  And if Player B declared that his 2/2 will block Player A's creature, then used the Crystal Shard ability before damage resolves, does Player B's creature still block Player A's creature, or would Player A's creature get through because damage hasn't resolved yet?


texts: Activation of character's effects (RE: DBG)

texts: If you have enough decorations to activate lvl 1 and lvl 2 character's effects, can you activate BOTH effects or you must choose ONLY ONE of them?


texts: What happens if I kill a creature enchanted with Murder Investigation by casting Flowstone Slide

texts:
Murder Investigation reads:

  When enchanted creature dies, put X 1/1 white Soldier creature tokens onto the battlefield, where X is its power.

Flowstone Slide reads:

  All creatures get +X/-X until end of turn.

Suppose I enchant my 1/1 white Soldier creature token with Murder Investigation and then cast Flowstone Slide with X = 3.  The poor token dies for sure, but would I get 4 white Soldier creature tokens because he was a 4/-2 at the time he was destroyed, or would I get 1 white Soldier creature token because that is the power of the enchanted creature as it last existed on the battlefield?


texts: International Checkers - winning strategy for 3 [4] kings vs 1 king

texts:
Is there any winning strategy in International Checkers for 3 or more kings vs 1 king?

I've reached a draw because the opponent was moving his single king on the diagonal from one end to another, and I could find no way to stop him doing so and made a trap for the king.


texts: Copying Etrata, the Silencer, but not its name

texts: If I copy Etrata, the Silencer, but not its name as in the case of Lazav, the Multifarious; will its copied abilities work since Etrata's ability states "When Etrata deals damage" and Lazav doesn't copy Etrata's name? Or would it require the card to possess both the ability and name?


texts: What is the best way to play with someone in another location?

texts: I'd like to play board games with friends who live in other states.  I thought I could use Skype to communicate and a webcam to send out a picture of the board.  Does anyone have suggestions on how to handle cards that are dealt to different players?  For example, if I were playing Risk, how could a player be dealt a Risk card without someone else knowing what card was dealt?


texts: Kasmina's Transmutation vs. Gideon Blackblade

texts:
If I were to attach Kasmina's Transmutation to an opponent's Gideon Blackblade (using Teferi's Time Twist to have it ETB on their turn, for example), what would happen?
Kasmina's Transmutation:

Enchant creature
Enchanted creature loses all abilities and has base power and toughness 1/1.

Relevant bit of Gideon's text:

As long as it's your turn, Gideon Blackblade is a 4/4 Human Soldier creature with indestructible that's still a planeswalker.

What happens?

Gideon stays a vanilla 1/1 creature since he was a creature at the time

Gideon loses the ability that makes him a creature, immediately stops being a creature and drops the aura

Gideon stays a 1/1 until opponent's turn ends, then stops being a creature and drops the aura


texts:
I fail to find more recent than 2005 MTG Lexicon pages in the Archives

Those are the ones I already have:

https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/feature/lexicon-archive-2002-01-15
https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/lexicon-2003-09-04
https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/arcana/lexicon-throwback-edition-2004-11-30
https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/arcana/lexicon-ravnica-edition-2005-10-05

Are there more recent pages published?


texts: What is the timing of "you may pay" abilities?

texts:
With abilities that allow a player to pay for optional effects, is that payment made as the ability resolves or as it goes onto the stack?

If it's made as it resolves, do you have the opportunity to use mana abilities at that time to pay for it, or do you need to fill up your mana pool prior to the ability resolving?

A good example of a card that does this is Dromar, the Banisher. This has a triggered ability with the option to pay. How about with static abilities that give the opportunity to pay, such as Archangel of Tithes? When exactly do you have the opportunity to pay that?


texts: What happens when I cast a spell incorrectly?

texts: If I cast a spell which then turns out to be un-playable, what happens to my spell? E.G.:  Casting a spell on something that has Hexproof and can't be targeted in the first place. Do I simply place my spell back in my hand? Do I untap the lands used to pay for that spell?


texts: Can I use the Shining Trapezohedron against Epic Monsters to attempt to move them?

texts: The trapezohedron allows the investigator to discard the chosen monster on a roll of 5 or 6. Since discarding Epic Monsters is disallowed, would a 5 or 6 result in no action while a roll of 1-4 result in moving the monster to me?


texts: Does preventing damage prevent things like land destruction?

texts: For example, if a player plays Personal Sanctuary then plays Armageddon does the damage prevention mean they don't lose lands?


texts: What is the difference between thickness and heavy stones?

texts: Thickness in Go describes a strong formation of stones.  A heavy group is one that's over-concentrated.  How do I know when my stones are thick, without going too far and becoming heavy?  It seems like this can happen in just a very few moves.  Are there any good tutorials that illustrate positions where a player turns a thick group into a heavy one?


texts: Do undying creatures get counters if I sacrifice them with Plaguemaw Beast?

texts:
I'm building a deck with undying creatures.

Suppose I have a card named Plaguemaw Beast, which has the ability

  {T}, Sacrifice a creature: Proliferate.

What happens If I sacrifice a creature with undying?

A. The creature returns and gets the 2 counters because of proliferate or

B. The creature returns but with only 1 counter.


texts: A&A surprise strike on loaded aircraft carrier

texts:
In Axis and Allies 1941, submarines can make a surprise attack

  surprise strike: Each attacking submarine conducting a surprise strike rolls one die, scoring a hit on s roll of 2 or less. After an attacker has rolled for all attacking submarines, the defender chooses one sea unit for each hit and moves it behind the casualty strip (submarines cannot hit air units). The each defending submarine conducts surprise strike rolls, scoring a hit on a roll of 1. After the defender has rolled for all defending submarines, the attacker chooses one sea unit for each hit scored and removes it from play.

That seems straightforward enough, but what if it's the first round of combat and a loaded aircraft carrier is taken out (let's say one sub vs one carrier with one fighter on it)?

There appear to be no rules to the contrary, so it would seem that the fighter remains in play, assuming it was launched - especially as the carrier is placed on the casualty strip, not removed.

However, it makes me wonder if the fighter had time to launch. After all, this was a surprise strike, so the fighter shouldn't have taken off at least on the first round.  Should it be on the casualty strip with the carrier?


texts: Are Awoken lands actually instantly-dead 0/0's?

texts: I have some friends that play mtg, and one had an extremely good awaken/landfall deck. Then his dreams of succeeding with that deck were destroyed when a friend stated that technically, it's a 0/0 AFTER the +1/+1 counters are applied, rendering the deck useless. That deck was a fun challenge, and it hurts to have that deck taken apart after that comment. I would like to know whether or not awoken lands are a 0/0 after the +1/+1 counters.


texts: What advantage do I get from attaching something to my house card?

texts: In Game of Thrones The Card Game, some cards say that they can be played as an attachment to the house card instead of being played as a location. What are the advantages to this?


texts: When you use Cloudshift on Zada Hedron Grinder, do the creatures return simultaneously?

texts:
When you use Cloudshift on Zada, Hedron Grinder does it resolve like Ghostway (simultaneously) or does each creature blink in order that the copy targeted them? I ask because if it resolves like Ghostway that's better in my opinion since allies entering simultaneously versus one at a time will trigger to a greater effect.

Add-on: I am actually assuming each happens individually and so want more of a confirmation, but this actually raised another question about Otherworldly Journey and its interaction with Zada. Since Otherworldly Journey returns the creatures at the end step they would indeed return and trigger simultaneously correct?


texts:
There are a lot of web sites that give you cribbage rules. There are small variations here and there and even the "official" source reads ambiguously to me.

To narrow my question, let's talk about scoring rules after "the play / pegging", when the dealer and the pone score their respective hands and the crib.

Is there are precise summary of the scoring rules, that I can use as a reference? I would prefer the actual rules wording to examples. Examples are very useful for illustrating a rule, but they are not as good for defining rules.

Now, to the source of my confusion. In one source I read this:

  Counting the Hands. When play ends, the three hands are counted <...> The basic scoring formations are as follows:

  Combination Counts

  Fifteen. Each combination of cards that totals 15 2

  Pair. Each pair of cards of the same rank 2

  Run. Each combination of three or more 1cards in sequence (for each card in the sequence)

  Flush. Four cards of the same suit in hand 4
  (excluding the crib, and the starter)

  Four cards in hand or crib of the same 5 suit as the starter
  (There is no count for four-flush in the crib that isnot of same suit as the starter)

  His Nobs. Jack of the same suit as starter in hand or crib 1

  Combinations. In the above table, the word combination is used in the strict technical sense. Each and every combination of two cards that make a pair, of two or more cards that make 15, or of three or more cards that make a run, count separately.

The emphasis in the last paragraph is mine.

The source goes ahead and gives the following example:

  Example: A hand (including the starter) comprised of 8, 7, 7, 6, 2 scores 8 points for four combinations that total 15: the 8 with one 7, and the 8 with the other 7; the 6, 2 with each of the two 7s. The same hand also scores 2 for a pair, and 6 for two runs of three (8, 7, 6 using each of the two 7s). The total score is 16. An experienced player computes the hand thus: "Fifteen 2, fifteen 4, fifteen 6, fifteen 8, and 8 for double run is 16."

This example makes perfect sense to me. Now following the same logic, let's assume we have 2, 2, 3, 4, 5. According to the "strict technical sense", I can see the following scoring combinations:

2, 3, 4 x2
2, 3, 4, 5 x2
3, 4, 5
2, 2

Which gives us 6 + 8 + 3 + 2 = 19

But everyone knows that 19 is impossible, and in the same source a little bit further we read:

  D. A run of four, with one card duplicated, counts 10.

Now, I understand why. That's because only the longest 4 cards sequence counts. The two 3 card sequences it contains do not. So it's just 8 + 2. 6 and 3 do not count.

What I cannot find is an authoritative source that properly words this rule. Because as per rules as written in the source, my calculation would be correct. The American Cribbage Congress rules do not address this ambiguity at all, it looks like they are assuming, that everyone knows this anyway.

So can some one either sum up the actual hand scoring  rules for me, or point me anywhere, where it's already done - clearly and unambiguously?


texts: How can I make Dominion play better with 5+ players?

texts: I just got Intrigue, and it seems cool that it opens up the game to 5 or 6 players. However, the common consensus seems to be that its possible, but not recommended. Is there anything I can do to make Dominion play better with 5 or 6 people?


texts: In Bridge, what is the punishment for misclaiming tricks?

texts:
Down to the last two rounds in rubber bridge.  Declarer claims remaining tricks only to discover that he has miscounted.  He claims the two tricks with Q-10; however, opponent holds the J and depending on how he plays the cards could lose one trick.  How is this handled?  Is scoring affected?

Consider the same scenario only opponent holds the Q.  Do opponents just get the one trick and game is scored as usual?


texts: Monopoly Deal - Rent beyond a complete set

texts:
In monopoly deal it is possible, due to wild cards, to have more than a complete property set for a single color.

Given that fact, and the text of a rent card:

  Choose one of these colors. All players pay you rent for all Properties you own in that color.

Are other players required to pay you for the sum total of all property sets of that color, or simply the rent from only your largest property set of that color?


texts: Say I have Quagmire Druid as my only Creature. My opponent has Curse of the Bloody Tome. Can I use Quagmire Druid to destroy Curse of the Bloody Tome, sacrificing itself?


texts: Good opening questions for Adventurers in Are You the Traitor?

texts:
Many people complain, when they first try Are You the Traitor?, that they don't know where to start; a lot of people will just sit there and think about it, without saying anything, or will accidentally reveal their role quickly by the questions they ask or fail to ask.

What are some good opening questions or strategies for getting the ball rolling, if you're a guard, traitor, or keyholder? While you have different goals in all of those cases, you're trying not to reveal that, so your opening questions or discussion should probably be the same regardless of which role you take. The same question could be asked for the wizards, but for the purpose of this question, lets restrict it to the Adventurers.

If you're an Adventurer, what are good ways to start the game and get the ball rolling?


texts: Discard Ongoing Card for effect (Mad Mod)

texts:
I'm playing the Teen Titan's version of the DC building game which focus heavily on "Ongoing" effect cards. Now we came across an scenario that we are not too sure on.

Now he plays the "Mad Mod" card, (for those of you who are not familiar this is what the card reads)

  +2 Power, You may discard an ONGOING card you control. If you do,choose a foe and ATTACK: That foe gaines a WEAKNESS

Lets say he has 4 ONGOING cards, which leads him to say that he discards all four and i get 4 weakness card. I was under the impression that you could only discard one, but he insist that since it doesn't say "Once Per turn" that he can discard multiple ones and keep activating the "attack" part. I have looked every where online but I have not found an answer to this. There are also other cards that read the same way that you may discard an "Ongoing" card and it does an effect.
Can these be activated multiple times? or just once?


texts: If you cast a Mirror March and have five enchantments on the battlefield, including a Starfield of Nyx and another Mirror March, does the preexisting Mirror March copy the Mirror March that you just cast?


texts:
After looking at a number of EDH deck lists I have seen two distinct types of mana bases used by various decks.

Some decks use a large number of basic lands, dual lands and utility lands.

Other decks use a minimum number of basics, dual lands including the Alpha, Beta, Unlimited, Revised duals plus Shock lands, a range of fetch lands and the relevant utility lands.

The cost is a obvious factor for choosing the first type of mana base but for what other reasons would you choose one type over the other?


texts: Can I bring a visual flow chart for complex magic cards to events?

texts: I was reading the card Chains of Mephistopheles and I found these great flow charts for how it's replacement effect works. Would I be allowed to bring a simple flow chart like that to a sanctioned event? Would this change if the event was Competitive or Professional REL?


texts: Is there a situation or way that a sabotage run is a good idea in TI:3?

texts:
I have often considered using the optional rule of a sabotage run on a War Sun, but have always decided it would be a waste of fighters. I was wondering if there exists a situation when you might want to do a sabotage run?

Quoted from the rule book:

  Game option: Sabotage Runs

  Although the mighty War Sun unit is the undisputed king of space, history has shown that such hubris of creation often hides a fatal flaw that can be exploited by the smallest of spacecraft.

  When using this game option, Fighter units have adesperate chance of a pre-Space Battle strike at an enemy War Sun in the contested system. This desperate attack is called the “sabotage run.”

  Announce the Run
  A sabotage run takes place before an actual Space Battle begins, immediately after any Destroyer Anti-Fighter Barrage.

  Both players (attacker first) may announce that they are making a Sabotage run against an enemy War Sun in the battle (if no War Sun is present among the enemy units, a player cannot undertake a sabotage run).

  If both players have War Suns, the attacker should resolve his sabotage run first, followed by the defender.

  After announcing a sabotage run, a player must commit a number of Fighter units to the dangerous task. After a number of Fighters have been committed, the sabotage run is executed over two rounds of die rolls.

  1) The Outer Defenses
  Roll a die for every Fighter committed to the sabotage run. On an unmodified result of 9 or 10, the Fighter makes it through the outer defenses of the War Sun. All other results destroy the Fighter unit, which receives no return fire.

  2) The Inner Defenses
  For every Fighter unit that made it past the outer defenses of the War Sun, roll another die (one at a time). If the fighter rolls an unmodified result of 10, the sabotage run is successful and the War Sun is immediately destroyed. Such a destroyed War Sun receives no return fire. All other die results instantly destroy the Fighter unit, which receives no return fire.

  Surviving Fighter units are able to participate in the subsequent Space Battle. An unharmed War Sun is able to participate in the Space Battle with no ill effects.

  Should an opponent have two War Sun units, a player is allowed to make a sabotage run against both units by dividing his committed Fighters into two separate pools. With each of these pools attacking one specific War Sun, simply resolve each separate sabotage run, one at a time


texts: Can you play 'After You' when Callous Guards is in play?

texts:
The "Callous Guards" card states:

  Put this card in front of you.  Action cards that alter the line may not be played.  (This includes adding or discarding nobles.)  You may discard this card at any time.

If a player has the "Callous Guards" card in front of him/her, can another player play the "After You..." card which states:

  Put the noble at the front of the line into another player's score pile.

A couple of us could not agree whether the play was allowed or not.  I'm on the "it's legal" side because putting the noble at the front of the line into another player's score pile is not "discarding" the noble.  I understand "discarding" as removing the noble into the discard pile (i.e. no one gets points for a "discarded" noble).

Others argued that putting the noble into another player's score pile was "altering" the line.

Thoughts?


texts:
I got in a heated argument over the following case, in which I created a scenario below to have clarifications on the Look Out Sir rule.

Let's say you've got a squad made up of:

1 Space Marine (Unit Type: Infantry)
1 Space Marine Sergeant (Unit Type: Infantry + Character)
1 Company Master (Unit Type: Infantry + Independent Character)
1 Librarian (Unit Type: Infantry + Independent Character)

On page 39 of the rulebook it says "Independent Characters pass look Out, Sir rolls on a 2+ (see page l6)."

My understanding of the rules, page 16 & 39, is that the 2+ roll is allowed only when an independent character is the one trying to save any other type character:

The SM takes the hit, no LOS save possible. (This is pretty clear in the rules, just stating the case in order to state all possibilities)

The Sergeant takes the hit, the SM can try to save him on 4+.
The Sergeant takes the hit, the Company Master can try to save him on 2+.
The Sergeant takes the hit, the Librarian can try to save him on 2+.
The Company Master takes the hit, the SM can try to save him on 4+.
The Company Master takes the hit, the Sergeant can try to save him on 4+.
The Company Master takes the hit, the Librarian can try to save him on 2+.

Am I right in all the cases above?

My friend states that the 2+ roll is made when any model tries to save the independent character, which would make his understanding of the rules as such:

The SM takes the hit, no LOS save possible. (no change)
The Sergeant takes the hit, anyone can try to save him on 4+.
The Company Master takes the hit, anyone can try to save him on 2+.

Who's right, who's wrong, are we both wrong somewhere?


texts: What rules were used wrong in Tabletop's episode for "Fortune and Glory"?

texts: In the opening of the Tabletop episode for Fortune and Glory, a tabletop gaming series with Will Wheaton, there is a disclaimer in the opening saying that many rules were used wrongly. I liked the game, but I'm wondering: what was done wrong?


texts: In MTG what happens to equipment after playing "Temporary Insanity"

texts:
A friend of mine and I were playing the Knights vs Dragons duel deck.  He had a Kinsbaile Cavalier
 upon which he equipped the Loxodon Warhammer.  On my next turn, I proceeded to play Temporary Insanity to attack him with his knight.  I then followed that up by summoning a Voracious Dragon and using its ability to devour the Kinsbaile Cavalier.

I was hoping for a couple of rule clarifications, to ensure that the sequence we did was valid.

By playing "Temporary Insanity", I gain control of his creature and any equipment or creature enchantments applied to it.
If my friend wanted, he could pay the 3 colorless equipment cost, to equip the hammer on another one of his creatures (even before the creature returned to his side of the field.)
Since the knight is on my side of the field (if only for a turn), I am able to devour it.
After devouring the knight, the Warhammer returns to my friend's side of the field.


texts: Teferi's Time Twist and Gideon's Sacrifice

texts:
I recently had a match with a friend. This was the situation: On my board, I had a 4/4 Zombie token produced with Amass and a Vampire Opportunist. My opponent had Neheb, Dreadhorde Champion on the board.

In this situation I was unsure, if I could do this. I would attack my opponent with my 4/4 Zombie token. In the case he would block with his Neheb, Dreadhorde Champion I would cast Gideon's Sacrifice and redirect all damage to my Vampire Opportunist. In response of casting Gideon's Sacrifice I would cast Teferi's Time Twist and target my Vampire Opportunist.

After resolving Teferi's Time Twist, my Vampire Opportunist isn't on the board anymore, so the damage dealt to my Zombie token is redirecting to nowhere, so my Zombie token would survive and his Neheb, Dreadhorde Champion would die. In my end step then, Vampire Opportunist would return with an additional +1/+1 counter.

Are my thoughts right? Or do I miss something here?


texts: If I have a creature with 4/4 double strike, does it kill each blocking creature with toughness 4 or less due to first strike?


texts: Using Event Cards to Move off Vine Walls

texts:
When playing with a faction such as the Swamp Orcs who have vine walls, the rules state that units roll before moving off of vine walls to see if they take damage.

But do units still have to roll for damage when they are moved with an event card which says you can pick up a unit and "place" it elswhere? In other words, would an event that lets you pick up a unit and place it elsewhere on the board require a roll for damage when the unit is taken from a vine wall?


texts:
Reading the rules for mummies:

Mummies
Mummies are everywhere but they tend to trip over themselves, what with all those bandages! All your conquests require 1
more Mummy token than usual

I know you get 10 to start with, but is there a good side?  Or is the idea to wait until it has a rather large pile of coins?
How are you supposed to play mummies to maximum effect?


texts: Play card before previous player has finished its turn

texts:
Is it a legal play when:

player 1 , plays a green draw 2 card
player 3, plays a green 4 card before player 2 can play their yellow draw 2 card


texts: When you use "just say no" to a "rent" do others player still need to pay?

texts:
When player A uses two colored rent. And player B uses "just say no".

Does player C still needs to pay to player A?


texts: Escape From Colditz (2 player): How do you deal with all your POWs being in Solitary?

texts:
In the game Escape from Colditz, once a POW player has acquired an item, it seems like the guards can pretty much round all of that player's team up from the inner courtyard and dump them in Solitary.

From there, they only get released one at a time, and they still have the items, so relatively few guards can repeatedly keep them locked down.

I can see how you might manage this in a multiplayer game, with one player holding the items, and the others getting them back when they escape. But in a 2 player game, it just seems like you can keep restraining the POWs forever.

Do people have a house rule to cope with this? Or am I misreading the rules?


texts:
During Phase 3 when playing trait cards, the rules state a player may discard one or more trait cards.  Can a player just remove traits or must he replace traits?  Example: Player one has three trait cards on one species, one of them being 'carnivore'. Can that player choose to discard the carnivore card and become a vegetarian? Or must he replace carnivore with another trait?  Or can you even replace or remove the carnivore trait?
Can you have a long neck carnivore? Or does carnivore negate the long neck?
When changing a trait card, must you reveal what card you will be replacing immediately or do you reveal your traits and then determine what you will be replacing?


texts: Do I have to pay the Equip cost each turn to equip a creature with an Artifact Equipment?

texts:
In Magic: The Gathering, once I have cast an Artifact - Equipment and then paid the Equip cost to place it on a creature, does it come off the creature at the end of my turn?

Must I pay the Equip cost each turn to attach it to the same creature?


texts: Do [spoilers] leave a corpse when they die?

texts:
Since the quetion is about a mechanic revealed in Chapter 3, I'll leave most of it in the spoilers.

   We recently added Inhabitants to our game. The rules say that when they die, we "turn over the token representing them." Does this turned over token count as a corpse for items that would care about corpses?


texts: How do I take advantage of the Japanese Anti-American offense?

texts:
I tried the shuck-shuck approach while playing US and moved my Pacific fleet to the Atlantic (Japan didn't attack Pearl Harbor). However, Japan then used its entire fleet to invade Western United States. I quickly fell (due to a blunder), which decided the game.

How could the Allies have maximized on Japan's abandonment of the mainland? The UK lost its Indian Ocean fleet and didn't have resources to build a new one. Mainland Asia eventually came under British control, but there wasn't a chance to take Japan itself.

Some other information about the board state:

Germany destroyed the UK fleet on its first turn, then immediately followed the Japanese invasion of the US by destroying the entire American navy. Japan's navy sailed through the Panama Canal and captured London. Russia was still barely holding off Germany.


texts: Can you only buy one extra die with the The Calm Before The Storm destiny square?

texts: On the Board of Destiny for the Demon player, there is a destiny square that allows you to use any die to buy an extra die next turn. Can you only buy only one extra die with this ability, or can you use multiple dice to buy more than a single die?


texts: I open 1D with a balanced hand of 19HCP.  Partner bids 1NT. No interference from oponents. How do I show my strength in NT in rebid? Should I bid 2NT or 3 NT?


texts: Trading item cards to another player that already has 5

texts: On a player's turn can they give an item card to another player that already has 5 cards? Would that player just have to discard a card or is it not allowed?


texts: Can Angel's Grace set your life total to 1 when you have Negative Life?

texts:
An opponent plays a storm combo, ending in Tendrils of Agony. In response I play Angel's Grace. After the storm of Tendrils finishes resolving, I am at -10 life, but I have not lost the game because of the Angel's Grace effect. If I take one point of damage (from something like City of Brass).

What will my resultant life total be?


texts:
Several board games, particularly those made for young children, use a spinner instead of a die to control movement. A spinner is harder to lose, less likely to choke a younger sibling, and easier to manufacture with odd probabilities.

There are tricks to manipulate the probability of outcomes on dice without resorting to loaded dice. For example, "Tricks to Rolling Dice" by Jessica Fletcher mentions a "bowling" trick in which the player avoids two numbers on opposite sides of a fair d6, such as 1 and 6, by carefully rolling the die down the equator to pass over only the other four numbers. Are there analogous tricks to manipulating a spinner?

Part of the motivation is a comment by PotatoEngineer to an answer by Task to "Is Fluxx a game of skill or luck?". It states that while luck dominates each individual hand of poker, iterated poker depends far more on skill, calling out Hasbro's Hi Ho Cherry-O as "the sole exception" that remains purely luck. HHCO is a put-and-take game analogous to teetotum or dreidel. Yet like HHCO, Hasbro's Chutes and Ladders and Care Bears: Warm Feelings use a spinner, and neither game offers any player agency other than through the spinner. Another part is finding a way to keep C&L interesting as children grow into appreciating agency, though that might be a question by itself.


texts: Could Armed/Dangerous target an opponent's creature, to force a block with all creatures in play?

texts: Could I target an opponent's creature, then use all creatures from both sides to block that creature, so that Bam! I get rid of something nasty? I think this because the wording on Dangerous says "ALL creatures..."


texts: How can we adjust starting conditions in Twilight Struggle to favour the USSR?

texts:
My girlfriend and I play Twilight Struggle. She likes playing as USSR. I'm a bit better at the game, which leads to a frustrating situation where I win most of the games.

Are there any generally accepted thoughts on altering the starting conditions to better favour the USSR player, balancing our relative skill levels?


texts: Storage Wars: MtG Black Lotus, others, actual worth?

texts:
Storage Wars had an episode in 2012 where Daryl Sheets finds a bunch of MtG cards, some loose, some bindered. They sell the entire lot at Frank and Sons Collectible Show for $700, basically the price of the three cards below. (If you read online, you can find that all the other cards were commons/uncommons )

Question: What are these cards really worth in their present condition? (And did Daryl Sheets get ripped off? )

Google search link for this episode


texts: How do Possession and Throne Room interact?

texts:
Does Throne Room cause a Possession card to give you control over two extra turns? I can see it argued both ways convincingly, so I'm looking for an authoritative answer. Google has thus far failed to get me one.

I expect this to be the same as playing the possession card twice on your turn, and related to King's Court.


texts: Identify this card game, where you have to beat previous cards put on the table

texts:
I remember playing this card game using a regular card deck but I don't remember the exact rules and also don't know what it's called. If it helps, I live in the Netherlands so it might not be known anywhere else. If the Dutch name of the game is known that would also be great.

This is what I remember.

I think it must be played with at least 3 people, but the more the better I think.
Everyone is dealt an amount of cards. (I don't remember what amount)
The player whose turn it is lays down a card. Or multiple cards with the same rank.
The next player should then put a higher card on the table and when there are multiple cards he should put the same number of cards that are all of the same rank and of course higher.
At any time before the next player responds to some cards any other player may throw in a card of the same rank to make it harder for the player to beat it.
I can't remember what exactly happens if you can't beat it. But I believe that it just meant that the player that won is able to lay down the next card(s) on the table to start a new chain.
I also don't remember what the exact goal of the game was and when (if even) a player could draw new cards.
I also believe the terms "attack" were used but I'm not 100% sure

Example with 4 players (as I remember it):

player one lays down a 7.
player two lays down a 8.
before player three responds player one throws in another 8
player three lays down two 10s. (to be able to beat two 8s)
and so on

I can also imagine this is a game that has multiple rules variations. If anyone knows what this game is called and what the exact rules are , that would be great.


texts: What should you do when someone mistakenly builds the same building twice?

texts:
You're not allowed to build the same building more than once. I noticed that this rule is easily overlooked, especially in 7-player games and when the table is not that big (and so the cards need to be partly stacked).

If a player has built a building twice, but it is only spotted in the following round(s), what can you do?

Discard the card
Discard the card and give the builder 3 gold
Let the builder choose: discard card for 3 gold OR use the card to build the wonder
Keep the building
… something else?

Of course there might be other side effects, as when the builder (or neighbours) already made use of the illegal building. It could be very hard to retrace everything, so I guess it'd be best not to try to undo any side effects.


texts: What does 'play' mean in the context of Courser of Kruphix?

texts: Definition of 'play' in mtg for spells indicates it is synonym of cast. On the other hand on Courser of Kruphix it seems to be constant ability. What does 'play' mean in Magic?


texts: Do Evolutions combine, for example Breath of Doom, Mecha Blast, and Claws of Steel?

texts:
Breath of Doom is a Permanent Evolution that says:

  If you attack Tokyo, deal 1 damage to all other Monsters not in Tokyo.

Mecha Blast is a Temporary Evolution that says:

  Discard this Evolution to deal 2 extra damage.

Claws of Steel is a Permanent Evolution that says:

  Deal one extra damage on a turn in which you dealt 3 or more damage.

Starting with some poorly worded terms, Damage means: Lose [Heart]. It is unclear if Claws of Steel could be used in a 4 player game when Meka Dragon is in Tokyo and rolls a single [Claw] (since you are dealing 1 damage to 3 Monsters), or if it requires dealing 3 damage to a single source. I believe the correct answer is the latter.

Can you reveal all three of these Evolutions during a turn where you attack Tokyo with a single [Claw], and if you do, what is the result?

(Example: Do you deal 1 damage to Tokyo and with Breath of Doom 1 damage to all other Monsters, discard Mecha Blast to deal 2 more damage to Tokyo and all other Monsters, and Claws of Steel makes all Monsters take an additional 1 damage. Final Result: 4 damage to all other Monsters, or does the additional 2 damage from Mecha Blast not hit the Monsters outside of Tokyo?)


texts: What caused "Liliana of the Veil" to double its price during a single week?

texts:
When Innistrad came out in the beginning of September 2011, the most expensive card was "Liliana of the Veil", selling for a little over $25.

This card kept this price for almost a month. On September 30th the price suddenly increased - a week later the price has already doubled. This graph shows the development.

What caused this sudden increase? Has someone discovered a combo that is really strong or is there a specific deck that runs well and requires Liliana? I am asking because I was lucky and got 2 of them from boosters and I wonder how I could put them to good use. I also want to use this example to learn about price development in trading card games as well.

Important Edit: Sorry guys, I am pretty stupid... Innistrad came out on September 30th, not in the beginning... Mixed that up somehow. The increase started the day Innistrad was released. Thanks to Ian for pointing that out.


texts: Does Stony Silence stop me from tapping artifacts for Improvise?

texts: Does the card stony silence stop me from tapping artifacts to help pay for the improvise costs of spells?


texts:
I have this peg board game called Bamboozle.  There is a deck of cards from zero to 99 to match the holes in the board.  The object of the game was to get five in a row, and when you held a card in your hand you were only allowed to play it and place your peg equal to or higher than the card played.

But for the life of me, I can't remember how many cards you played with and what the rules were.  Can anybody help?


texts: Can a creature with hexproof be targeted by spells that target all creatures?

texts:
examples:
Blazing Volley,
Fumigate,
Last One Standing.


texts: What are the effects of "Taint" tokens in Defenders of the Realm?

texts: In Defenders of the Realm, do taint tokens have any effect beyond ending the game if you get too many?


texts:
How does invocation of nehek affect swarms?

For example the bat swarm.

If I cast nehek on a bat swarm that has 4 bases/models with full wounds and nehek replenishes 3 wounds, what happens? Does it create a new base/model with 3 wounds?

If the unit was not a swarm but had multiple wounds for each base, how would that work?


texts: How does Starfield of Nyx interact with the Theros Gods?

texts:
Starfield of Nyx has the ability

  As long as you control five or more enchantments, each other non-Aura enchantment you control is a creature in addition to its other types and has base power and base toughness equal to its converted mana cost.

Heliod, God of the Sun, for example, says

  As long as your devotion to white is less than five, Heliod isn't a creature.

What are Heliod's characteristics in the following situations:

My devotion to white is less than 5 and I control fewer than 5 enchantments.
My devotion to white is less than 5 and I control at least 5 enchantments.
My devotion to white is at least 5 and I control fewer than 5 enchantments.
My devotion to white is at least 5 and I control at least 5 enchantments.

Does this change depending on the order in which Starfield of Nyx and Heliod enter the battlefield, or any other ordering?


texts: What should I prepare for a Star Wars X-Wing tournament?

texts:
Next week I am participating in my first Star Wars X-Wing tournament. The tournament will be from 10am with up to 16 participants and three to four games. I have played Star Wars X-Wing with a friend for a couple of weeks now and collected a considerable amount of Empire ships. I have planned to bring the following things:

Ships plus cards required for my build plus tokens
Five printed copies of my build
Bottled water and snacks
Good mood

Additionally, I want to prepare the following things until the day of the tournament:

Fly my build a few more times
Read the FFG rules used at the tournament

Do you have any additional tips or did I forget anything?


texts: I was looking my self didn't see it but I could have missed the Summoner Monk.


texts: Should you reveal who was a spy and who wasn't at the end of a game?

texts:
I guess this is possibly up to house rules/who is playing.

On one hand, revealing who were the spies also reveals people's play styles, which might make it a bit less fun for future games. It would something akin to revealing one's hole cards after a successful bluff in poker.

On the other hand, it can be quite an intense game, so it's nice to 'clear the air', and not have lingering doubts (especially if someone who wasn't a spy had been accused of being one).


texts: How do dash costs work with commander tax?

texts:
If I have the card Zurgo Bellstriker as my commander, and I cast it for its Dash cost, do I have to add commander tax to it? Or does the Dash cost override it?

My gut tells me I would still have to pay commander tax, but I am checking regardless.


texts: Trying to figure out what game is circled in the bottom of this image. Would appreciate any help.


texts: Can one creature block multiple attacks?

texts:
I'm not much of a Magic player myself, although I do know a bit about the game. Recently, I got into an argument about whether one creature can block multiple creatures' attacks.

It looks like rule 509.1a specifies that each blocking creature blocks one attacking creature:

  509.1a The defending player chooses which creatures that he or she controls, if any, will block. The chosen creatures must be untapped.
  For each of the chosen creatures, the defending player chooses one
  creature for it to block that's attacking him, her, or a planeswalker
  he or she controls.

But the point of the argument was, can "one" creature be chosen multiple times? Because it seemed like multiple blocking creatures could block one attack, but not the other way around.


texts:
So I have taken over all of Australia and I get 2 extra troops.

My friend then attacks Indonesia from Southeast Asia. When it's my turn I retake control of Indonesia.  Now, do I get 2 more bonus troops since I retook control over the continent?


texts: In Canasta, if the discard pile has already been frozen with a wild card, is a subsequent discard allowed to be another wild card?

texts:
I think my title contains the complete question, but I'll try to rephrase it here.  When playing Canasta, if the discard pile has already been frozen with a sideways facing wild card, can an additional wild card ever be placed as the current discard?
I don't believe that is allowed, but if I am wrong and you are allowed to discard a second wild card, can the pile then be picked up by the next player displaying two wildcards for a meld?


texts: Overcall of 3S over 1C opening, what does it show? (assuming bidding system SAYC)

texts: I assumed it was 10+pts, and 7 Spade suit -- am I correct?


texts: The Winged Dragon of Ra's ATK & DEF increase

texts: My friend keeps telling me that he is increasing his Ra's ATK & DEF points by using Ra's "Pay 1000 LP, destroy 1 monster on the field" effect. I'm wondering if that is the case or if Ra can only increase ATK & DEF points when he's summoned.


texts:
In the paper [1], the authors write

  "... the problem is equivalent to a card game played in Las Vegas:
   The cards of a shuffled deck are dealt one at a time and face up.
  At the same time the player calls the denominations in the order
  ace, two, three,..., queen, king; ace, two,...
  A match occurs when the player calls the same denomination as the
  card dealt; the suits need not match. The player wins if no match occurs."

Is this game actually played in Las Vegas casinos, and if so, what is it called?

[1] F. F. Knudsen and I. Skau,
On the Asymptotic Solution of a Card-Matching Problem,
 Mathematics Magazine 69 (1996), 190-197.


texts: Can you purchase a hotel when you have 4 houses on a colour set?

texts: Do you need 4 houses on a colour set or 4 houses on a property to buy a hotel?


texts: Machi Koro Millionaire's Row Moving Company and renovation questions

texts:
I have two rule clarifications that we've run into that we haven't been able to find an answer to while playing the Millionaire's Row expansion of Machi Koro:

Can you use a Moving Company to move itself?
Is a renovation token removed from cards when the number is rolled but they don't do anything. For instance, a Corn Field activates on 3-4, but only if you have less than 2 monuments. Would a renovation token be removed from a Corn Field if 4 was rolled but the player had 2 or more monuments?


texts: Can I set up a chain reaction by placing gas markers on adjacent squares?

texts:
If gas markers have been placed on adjacent squares, what happens when one of the gas markers is ignited (e.g. by shooting it)?

Background:

We were playing Defend The Manor House, I had placed one gas marker inside the Manor House and another one outside on an adjacent square. I wanted to ignite the gas marker that was outside and have it trigger the one inside too (I couldn't trigger the one inside the house directly because walls block ranged weapons).

We looked in the rules but couldn't find anything related to multiple gas markers. In the end I missed when I threw the lighter at the first gas marker so we didn't have to resolve this. The heroes lost on the next turn when the 9th zombie entered the Manor House.


texts: Good ways to speed up a game of Ticket to Ride

texts:
I just played my first game of Ticket to Ride and we loved it. Our only issue was making it a little faster. We had some small obvious ideas that wouldn't affect the gameplay much, like keep score on paper, play the game when each player has 4 less trains, start the game with 7 cards, and get a free route at the beginning. However I'm still curious about some more drastic boosts.

Here were a few other ideas that actually affect the game:

You draw 3 cards if you choose to draw train cards. Locomotives still cost 2 normal draws.
For each turn you draw 2 cards AND get the opportunity to claim a route.
You can substitute 3 cards of any one color for a locomotive when building. (stolen from the ferries in the other versions)
7 cards stay face up instead of 5

What other affects will each of these have on the game? Are there any other good ways to speed things up? How can I decrease the time required to play while keeping as much of the original feel of the game as possible.


texts: Help me identify a game with a large orange hooter/squeaker in the middle

texts:
About 20 years ago I had a fun/silly board game that I would love to find again.

It was a turn-based game where each player had a set of red chips, and players moved around the board by rolling a die or two.

The game centered around a set of "Do" and "Don't" cards which you would collect as you went around the board. Before each players' turn they would have to do the actions on their "Do" cards, and make sure they didn't do anything on their "Don't" cards the whole time. If they failed to do either, another player could slam a big orange hooter/squeaker, in the middle of the board, and punish them by giving the offending player two of their chips.

Each player could have at most 5 cards, so if they gained a 6th, they could put one of their old cards back - usually with some relief!

The goal was to get rid of all of your chips.

Some of the "Do" and "Don't" rules that I can remember were: "Do balance a die on your nose for 5 seconds", "Do point at the player to your right", "Don't say a player's first name".

This is my terrible "artists" impression of what the game looked like:

There was a single, large molded piece of plastic in the middle of the board. It had two bowls on either end which contained all of the chips that weren't yet assigned to players.
The big orange squeaker was that circle in the middle. And there were 10 places to put two players' "Do" and "Don't" cards (the 10 numbered slots) - although more than 2 players can play the game.


texts: If creatures enter the battlefield attacking, do they have to attack Gideon Jura?

texts: If my opponent activates Gideon Jura's first ability targeting me, and I attack with a Kessig Cagebreakers, do the tokens have to attack Gideon?


texts: How to deal with B/G/W Abzan Warriors with many +1/+1 Counters?

texts: My dad has a B/W/G Abzan Warrior deck that build counters like crazy.  He has Ajani Pridemate and this card called Retribution of the Ancients. I play B/W life gain Vampires, and lost because of it.  Is there a way I could stop him from building counters, or using Retribution of the Ancients?


texts: Would this hypothetical rule change ever matter?

texts:
One of Magic the Gathering's rules is

  104.3f If a player would both win and lose the game simultaneously, he or she loses the game.

.
However, it seems to me like it "ought to be" the case that if there are only 2 players and

[A loses]  [B loses]  [B wins]

would occur simultaneously, then B should win, since

win-and-lose-simultaneously should be better than just-lose.

For that reason, it seems like the

  Proposed Alternative :    If, simultaneously, all players would lose the game and

  some players would win the game, then the players who would not win the game

  lose the game, and the game is a draw between the remaining players.  Otherwise,

  if a player would both win and lose the game simultaneously, he or she loses the game.

would make more sense.  However, I can't think of any situations in which that would matter.

Are there any possible situations in which my proposed alternative

would yield a different result from the actual rule?


texts: How many creatures should be in a draft deck?

texts:
How many creatures should the average, typical draft deck contain?

Obviously this depends on a multitude of factors, including the kinds of creatures in your deck, the kinds of non-creatures you have available, and the overall composition of the block you're drafting. Nonetheless, what's a good baseline for the number of creatures in a draft deck? And how should I decide if I need to run more or fewer creatures than the baseline?


texts: Is there an easy way I can tell if a MTG card is "rare" just by looking at it?

texts: I don't always have an internet connection to research the rarity of a MTG card.  Is there an obvious indication of rarity on MTG cards themselves (other than foil)?  Some sort of insignia? Or a class of creatures that is almost always rare?


texts: Monopoly Deal - Can you switch your cards after charging rent on them?

texts: If you have one property and another wild card, can you put them together as a set and charge rent on them, and then place the wild card separately, all on your turn? (to save your set from a deal breaker card)


texts:
Say I have a Shapesharer copy an opponents Verdant Force. The Verdant Force puts a 1/1 green Saproling creature token onto the battlefield at the beginning of each upkeep. The Shapesharer becomes a copy of target creature until your next turn.

So if I copy my opponents Verdant Force on my turn I'm going to assume that I only get one saproling token and not two? ie. I'd get one for his upkeep but not for mine?


texts: Can you use the Abort Switch option after seeing the other players' cards for that register?

texts:
Do I need to declare I am using the abort switch card before we flip for the current register, or can I call to use it after seeing everyone's cards for that register? The description implies the latter.

  Once each turn, you may replace one of the Program cards you reveal with the top card from the deck. If you do, you must replace the Program cards for all your remaining registers the same way that turn.


texts: Can my opponent respond to an "enters the battlefield" ability?

texts:
I played Shadowborn demon. It has the ability

  When Shadowborn Demon enters the battlefield, destroy target non-Demon creature.

Can my friend play Fall of the Hammer on the target creature that would be destroyed to have it deal damage to my Shadowborn Demon, or would his creature be destroyed because of the ability?


texts:
H░░█░
░░█░M

Is the Monster (M) a valid target for a ranged Hero (H) attack through the Obstacles (█)?


texts: When a city outbreaks when using the Malaria Historical Disease, does it create one or two outbreak cubes?

texts:
In Pandemic Iberia, the rules for the Malaria historical disease state:

  When infecting with black, whenever you would put 1 black cube into a city that has no black cubes in it, add 2 black cubes instead.

Does an outbreak create one black cube in the adjacent cities or two?

Case for not applying to outbreaks: There is an Infect step, and the rules for outbreaks are not described in that section, they are in the next section. Furthermore the rules for outbreaks use the word place, not the word infect:

  Then, place 1 cube of the disease color on every city connected to the city

Case for applying to outbreaks: The rules use the word whenever, which implies more than one situation. Additionally, the word infect is not capitalized. Finally, the flavor text on the card says

  NEW INFECTIONS ARE MORE SEVERE

We are not sure. How does it work?

One final thought: not applying to outbreaks makes Malaria sort of toothless and not altogether much more difficult than a basic disease, because in Iberia you can often get away with not cleaning. But this argument is more about balance and less about the text of the rules (perhaps a house rule might be in order?)


texts: Will a spell like Fiery Cannonade kill Wayfaring Temple if Temple had more toughness than the damage before casting?

texts:
Wayfaring Temple says:

Wayfaring Temple’s power and toughness are each equal to the number of creatures you control.
Whenever Wayfaring Temple deals combat damage to a player, populate. (Create a token that’s a copy of a creature token you control.)

My opponent had Wayfaring Temple out and it was a 4/4. I played Fiery Cannonade which deals 2 damage to each non-pirate creature, and it killed off 2 of the creatures making Wayfaring Temple lose two power and toughness making it back to a 2/2. Would Wayfaring Temple die from the two damage is was already dealt or does it revert back to a 2/2?  Help please.


texts: Will destroying an enchantment attached to a permanent also destroy that permanent?

texts:
I play Awaken the Ancient and enchant my mountain. My opponent plays Priest of Iroas and then activates its ability to destroy target enchantment and targets my Awaken the Ancient. Now I know that the enchantment will be destroyed, but does this destroy the mountain as my friend argues?

I was assuming not as it is only destroying an enchantment, and that when my mountain is enchanted with the card it only targets the enchantment not the card it is attached to, like if I had another card say, Truefire Paladin attached with Shiv's Embrace and he used it do destroy the enchantment Shiv it will not destroy Truefire just Shiv's.


texts: When do you have to decide whether or not to use a "May" effect?

texts:
I am thinking of building a discard deck and was looking for some clarification on a interaction that might pop up with "may" effects. I would like to know exactly when I need to decided whether or not a "may" effect is going to happen. An example for when this would make a difference...

On my side of the board I have:

Waste Not
Geth's Grimoire

In my hand I have:

Duress

And on top of my library is (but I don't know that yet):

Dark Deal

My opponent has nothing on the board, and several cards in his hand including the Sorcery Lava Axe.

My plan is to cast Duress on my opponent and have him discard Lava Axe. It is my understanding that both the Waste Not and Geth's Grimoire triggers would go on the stack simultaneously, allowing me to choose which one resolves first.

Is it possible to resolve Waste Not first, draw a card, see Dark Deal and then decide not to draw a card off Geth's Grimoire's trigger? Or do I need to choose whether or not to draw a card for Grimoire before I see the result of the Waste Not draw?

This would be advantageous to me since I could then cast Dark Deal without having to discard the card I drew off of Geth's Grimoire, and reap whatever benefits from Waste Not and Geth's Grimoire from my opponent's discarded hand.


texts:
Something I wondered about Killian, Ink Duelist was how this card's cost-reduction ability interacted with spells that interact with creature cards or spells and not creature permanents.
Spells like Empyrial Armor and Crib Swap can both target a creature permanent on the battlefield which allows these spells to cost less to cast if Killian is on the battlefield under your control while casting and targeting a creature with those spells.
However, something like Animate Dead targets a "creature card in a graveyard," so is it implied that with Killian on the battlefield under your control, Animate Dead costs less to cast because it targets a "creature" anyway?
How would Killian interact with Venser, Shaper Savant regarding  returning a target spell to its owner's hand if the spell targeted is a creature spell?
Does a spell targeting a creature not have to be a permanent on the battlefield for the spell to cost less with Killian out?


texts:
Question regarding pushing other robots. Say we have the following scenario:

Robot A and B are facing each other.
A plays "Move 3" with priority 800
B plays "move 2" wity priority 700

Where do the robots end up?

We have played the situation as A wins over B, and B's movement is cancelled out. It seemed to make the most sense. But further reading of the rules says that priority only determines the order moves are carried out.

So which is correct:

A pushes B three squares
A pushes B three squares and then B pushes A two squares.


texts: What is Majestic Myriarch's power and toughness if I "eternalize" it with God-Pharaoh's Gift?

texts:
I have a God-Pharaoh's Gift in play and a Majestic Myriarch in my graveyard with no other creatures on the battlefield. At the start of my combat, I use the ability of God-Pharaoh's gift to "eternalize" the Myriarch. When it enters the battlefield, what is its power and toughness?
Based on the rulings for eternalize, I assume the Myriarch will be a 4/4 with no additional power and toughness (from gatherer, emphasis mine):

The token copies exactly what was printed on the original card and nothing else, except the characteristics it specifically modifies. It doesn’t copy any information about the object the card was before it was put into your graveyard.
The token is a Zombie instead of its other types (unlike Zombies created by an eternalize ability) and is black instead of its other colors. Its power and toughness are 4/4. These are copiable values of the token that other effects may copy.

Is this correct? Does eternalize override the variable power and toughness ability of Myriarch?


texts:
I have yet another timing question:

Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite enters the battlefield under my opponent's control. I have Teysa, Orzhov Scion on the field with three other white 1/1 creatures.

Normally, the three white ones would die due to Elesh Norn's ability (-2/-2).

BUT can I first sacrifice them with Teysa's first ability in order to remove Elesh Norn from the game?

I am not sure about the timing. Elesh enters the battlefield and his ability resolves. Can I react to that with creatures that would be affected by this ability (-2/-2)?


texts: Are spells mostly a dubious strategy in Quarriors?

texts: Granted we only have the basic set, it seems every time we play the games don't last long enough for spells to be useful. I can see how it would be a good idea to ramp resources, provide yourself with some threat removal and similar pursuits in games that are slower paced. Quarriors so far doesn't seem like the kind of game where you can don the Control player or the Midrange player hats. Especially in games with 3 or 4 people, the amount of glory required to win is so low, just a few creatures who score will win pretty fast. Is there a way I can come out of nowhere with these spells? I don't see it.


texts: Archetypes in triple Avacyn Restored draft

texts:
What good archetypes have you found in triple Avacyn Restored draft? I'm looking for strategies, color combinations and core cards for each deck type.
Maybe you found something that was surprisingly good or bad?


texts: Computer Scrabble UI & communication protocol?

texts:
I've recently gotten into playing Scrabble and I was wondering, what's the deal with Scrabble programs? I come from the world of computer chess where chess engines are distributed independently from the user interface (UI). The engines communicate with the UI with one of two standards: the Chess Engine Communication Protocol, aka. the XBoard protocol, or the Universal Chess Interface, UCI. Now I'm wondering if Scrabble has anything like that?

Programming a simple Scrabble bot would seem like a funny exercise, but I'd rather not delve into the boring UI creation. So are there any free programs that would just display a game of Scrabble but would accept the commands from and relay them to an external program? The program should also enable the user to play against an engine. Maybe I'm using the wrong keywords or something, but Google doesn't seem to give me anything relevant.


texts:
I've run into what I believe might be an edge case for the rules of the Traders and Barbarians expansion to The Settlers of Catan. I'm hoping someone might be able to clarify (preferably with reference to rules I might have missed), or at least give me some solid opinions!

Let's say we have two players, and player 1 has 15 gold while player 2 has 14 gold. So, at the start of this scenario, player 1 has the 'richest settler' card. Let's also assume that both players are one victory point from winning.

At the end of his turn, player 1 needs to move his caravan in such a way that he will traverse player 2's roads and thereby give player 2 some gold. This means that player 2 will - temporarily - become the richest settler. At the end of the turn, though, player 1 will collect 5 gold from delivering goods, which would give him back the richest settler card. He will also get a victory point for delivering goods.

My question is - at what point is the richest settler evaluated?