texts: Online Scrabble-like game with play-ahead feature?

texts:
I just played my turn in Words with Friends, and notice I can make a
killer word on my next turn, unless my opponent plays too close to
that area and blocks my making that word.

Are there any online Scrabble-like games that let you say: "on my next
turn, play this word, unless, of course, my opponent makes it
impossible to do so".

I realize there's the possibility that my opponent's play will give me
an even better word, but I'm OK with sacrificing that chance in return
for a faster and more unique mode of play.

EDIT (to answer comment): my opponent and I are on different
schedules, so the push notifications would come in the middle of my or
his night.

Several hours may pass between turns, and a play-ahead option could
speed up the game by a factor of 2 or more. The speedup would come
because of the time that passes between turns, not because it takes so
long to play a word.

Also, when I play a word, Words with Friends already gives me my next
set of tiles (it refills my tile tray to have 7 tiles), so that's not
an issue.


texts: Fury of Dracula 3rd ed. - Fangs point scoring

texts: In Fury of Dracula 3rd edition, does Dracula score 1 point whenever 'Fangs' combat card is resolved, or only if it was resolved with night & mesmerized conditions met? I know the rules just say "when 'Fangs' is resolved", but the reason I'm asking is because of the way the text on the card is printed out, with no empty line above "Then, advance the influence track by 1":


texts: In Midway, would it make sense for the U.S. player to save his "punch" for the arrival of the Atago on Day 2?

texts:
In the Avalon Hill board game, the cruiser Atago is the flagship of a fleet of eight transports carrying 5,000 soldiers for the occupation of Midway. As such, it "represents" the transports and sinking the Atago is tantamount sinking the transports.

This move is worth some 20 points, four for the Atago itself, and 16 for each turn (on days 3 and 4) that the Americans hold Midway. Moreover, it deprives Japan of the chance to earn 15 points for capturing Midway, for a total swing of 35 points. For comparison, sinking a large carrier such as Japan's Kaga or America's Yorktown is worth 10 points.

Japan cannot defend the Atago against an all out attack. The only way to (indirectly) defend it is to (greatly) weaken the American airforce on the first day. As a practical matter, if the Americans lose their carriers but preserve 30 squadrons on Midway, it can sink the Atago.

As discussed in a previous question, the Americans maintain their advantage only by staying within range of Midway-based planes. If they go outside this range, they will be at a disadvantage. Might it therefore make sense for the Americans to wait for the Japanese to "come and get them" with the Atago? (This was NOT the strategy used in real life, where the Americans aggressively, and successfully went after the Japanese carriers early on the second day.


texts: Status of non-top mutated creature cards

texts:
Ikoria's new Mutate ability allows two or more creature cards to be fused into a single creature, with the creature on top gaining the abilities of the creature cards below it.

From a rules perspective, what exactly are the non-top cards? While they wouldn't be considered creatures in their own right, are they still considered permanents? Are they still targetable? Do they count as being on the battlefield?

I'm primarily curious about two specific edge cases:

Is it valid to play a "Destroy target nonland permanent" targeting a non-top mutate creature card? If so, would the entire mutated creature be destroyed or would the targeted creature card be effectively removed from the mutation?
If a Legendary creature card is a non-top card in a mutation, is a Legendary with that name still considered to be on the battlefield for the purposes of casting a second Legendary with the same name? If it still counts as being on the battlefield, what happens when the second Legendary is played and you choose to get rid of the first one? (I suppose that partially boils down to the above question as well.)

As the official rules haven't yet been released (to my knowledge), I'm aware that some of these questions may be difficult to answer. However, there may already exist related or similar rules/mechanics (that I'm not aware of) that already provide a clear answer to such situations. Any relevant quotes from Wizards employees may also shed some light on the subject.


texts: Was the blind chess match between Sherlock Holmes and James Moriarty in the movie Game of Shadows real/plausible?

texts:
I saw the movie and was wowed by two things: the blind chess match in which Holmes wins with the move Bishop-Bishop 8, discovered check; and the mental fist fight they have in their minds. It's such a creative way for two geniuses (genii?) to do battle.

My question is, was the match that they had real/plausible? Was it based on a real, historical chess match? And was it even played as chess masters would play?

My first instinct was that they took a historical and famous chess match, and my gut feeling is strong. But I could be wrong. And anyway, which chess match is this? I figured, if it's a historical chess match, many users here will have studied it before.

I tried to get a screenshot of the last configuration of the board, but they never actually show it.

Instead, I know that Moriarty plays White. His opening move is c4.
When Holmes moves again, he is shown to play d5, some turn after he has played e5 (but we're not sure how many turns after). On the bright side, I have a this screenshot when he plays d5:

Finally, I have the list of moves they made during the end game, when their blind match started. I'll list their alternating moves according to how they said it, as I don't know how to write in notation.

Holmes: Bishop takes Knight, check
Moriarty: King to Rook 2
Rook to King's Rook 3
Bishop to Rook 3
Bishop takes Bishop
Rook to Bishop 4
Rook takes Rook
Pawn takes Rook
Bishop to Bishop 7
Queen takes Knight Pawn
Bishop to Bishop 8, discovered check, mate


texts: Is there a Warhammer 40K codex/proxy for the Interex?

texts:
The Interex appear in the first Horus Heresy book, Horus Rising as a branch of humanity heavily influenced by eldar.

I was forever saddened to hear they never made it.

Do any rules official and/or unofficial rules exist for playing as these? Also do any models/model making guides address making an army of Interex?

I would think either rules similar to the Eldar or Tau would fit, but I have no idea if that would work.


texts: Rune of spellbreaking on multiple runelords

texts: If I have rune of spellbreaking on multiple rune smiths can I use it once on each of them? It says one use only, does that mean one use only on that character or for the entire army?


texts: Is it still advantageous to go second in post-beta Gwent?

texts:
I haven't played Gwent for a long time. Last time I did was during the beta, when it was strongly advantageous to go second. There're a lot of reasons why, but the ultimately, it was just better on a fundamental level: the best the player going first can hope for is to win round 1 down a card, while the player going second can hope to win round 1 on even. Winning round 1 on even was so powerful it effectively won the match, while the worst possible result for the second player (losing round 1 up a card) still left the rest of the match very contested.
I know Gwent's developers were aware of this problem and took steps to mitigate it (I remember a patch which made the coin flip no longer RNG in friendly matches, such that tournament play could ensure both players went first an equal number of times). Post-beta Gwent did other things as well, such as adding the card "Tactical advantage" for the player going first, and capping hand size at 10.
How effective have these measures been at equalizing the game? Based on my experience during beta these things must affect the advantage of going second, but I don't know how large the impact is. If anyone knows where to find it, statistics for win rates when going first & going second would be best.


texts: Bridge auction and play with a 5521 hand opposite 1255

texts:
Playing at a matchpoint Swiss pairs event yesterday, I played this hand as north.

Our auction went 1♤-2♢-2♡-3NT-4♡. I had difficulty choosing what to bid over 3NT. South could have bid the fourth suit to look for a major fit so I knew I would likely be playing in a seven card fit. What action would you take and why?

I also found the play interesting. East lead ♡10, Q - K - A. I then made a plan for the play: ♤ AK, ♤ ruff, ♧AK, ♧ruff high, ◇A,◇ruff low and then get a trick from ♡8x (since the lead makes it look like the Jack is onside). Roughly I need 4-3 spades, 4-2 diamonds, 4-3 or 2=5 clubs. Is there a better line of play?


texts: Does anyone know the letters used in Swedish Boggle?

texts:
Similar to this question, but specifically for the Swedish version
Boggle: What is the dice configuration for Boggle in various languages?
(https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgameversion/228158/parker-swedish-finnish-edition-1994)
I would like to know which letters each of the 16 dice have. Also any extra information on how the game works with the Swedish vowels å, ä, ö. I know with the German version you use extra letters to make up for the missing umlauts e.g. ä --> ae, is it similar to this?


texts: What's the current state of Magic: The Gathering online play?

texts:
I'd like to get back into this game, but the real appeal for me is the collecting aspect, especially trading cards and not knowing what to expect from a foil pack. It seems there are a lot of different options for online play, but what is the best way to replicate the experience of real-world collecting, deck building and playing online?

If you could perhaps detail some of the most popular methods of play and the kind of features they have, it would be appreciated. I don't imagine there's a client that supports all the cards yet? It would appear the only way to build a collection like in real life would be to play the official Magic: Online game. But it would be ultra swell if there were some free way of collecting cards.


texts: Can I use "Divinity of Pride" in my mono black commander deck? If not, then what card is/similar to Divinity of Pride but is a mono black?

texts:
Can I use the MTG card Divinity of Pride in my mono black commander deck?
It's a multi-colored card - black/white - but it pays for either four swamps (black mana) or four plains (white mana). I know of the rule in commander indicating that "All cards must be in the color identity of the commander." But since this is a black/white and can pay for either four black or four white, I just want to clarify.
So, my question is Can I use Divinity of Pride in a mono black commander deck?
If not, then what card is/similar to Divinity of Pride but is a mono black?


texts: In Robinson Crusoe, Can I do single-pawn actions multiple times on the same card?

texts: For example, can every character use one of their pawns to do 3 'gathering' actions in a round? All three actions would require dice rolls.


texts:
Normally, whenever I take an action that involves paying for an effect that is any more complicated than tapping lands, I declare that I'm floating mana. For instance:

When I tap Priest of Titania with 3 other elves on the battlefield (for a total mana cost of 4), than I will typically say "I float 4 mana" before I make any plays and use this mana.
Even if I'm using Llanowar Elves to pay for a 1-drop, I declare how I'm floating mana.

One time, I was accused of cheating because of this habit. I tapped my Llanowar Elves  and said "I float 1 to play Quirion Ranger", and I was accused of cheating, because I "didn't have 1 floating after that play".

It would seem that the person I was playing against had taken "floating mana" to refer exclusively to mana that was left over after paying a mana cost.

Have I been doing it wrong all along? Has my talk about "floating mana" before I pay costs been a miscommunication all this time?

I'm asking this now because I recently came across this passage whilst reading the comp rules:

  106.4a If a player passes priority (see rule 116) while there is mana in his or her mana pool, that player announces what mana is there. If
  any mana remains in a player’s mana pool after he or she spends mana
  to pay a cost, that player announces what mana is still there.

Does that mean that talking about my "floating mana" communicates that I'm passing priority?


texts: Is there a program/game i can build a deck and play against AI's without a net connection?

texts:
When i build my deck i like to try and test it out to see what flaws could be exploited and cards used to exploit those flaws while also seeing how difficult it is to implement my strategies while also learning of new cards i may want to get in order to strength my deck.

problem is that the i can't test it out how i want to, i'm not privilege enough to have many players (if at all) to help test my deck in my area and if i go into the city players tend to reserve their opinion, assuming that it's because they don't want me patching up my deck to potentially defeat them in a rematch.

I use a program called YVD (Yu-Gi-Oh Virtual Desktop) which is normally up to date with every card currently released and allows me to duel players however random duels with human players tend to be nonconstructive as when i loose my opponent doesn't stick around for me to learn where i went wrong and while i could rig a couple of machines to connect locally and duel an identical deck this fails in me learning of new cards or strategies which could be used against me.

Now i am looking for a program/game similar to YVD however has a single player aspect for dueling AI players, while pale in comparison to human players who can come up with strategies and see and exploit flaws in my deck, an AI can help me prepare a better deck.

the things YVD has which i also want

Complete database of cards (or can be updated)
Allowing both tournament and non-tournament decks (my non-tournament tend to have tournament banned cards like Change of Heart and tends to get close to 100 cards)
Preferable free to download but i am willing to pay for it however to get cards that has to be free, i dont want to be spending money getting digital versions of my cards just as a test before i go off to buy them physically
Has AI Players or a single AI Player which is assigned decks meaning i can recreate decks posted on forums/wikis and duel against them as a test
Can be played Offline without ever needing to connect to the internet (not even for installing), this is because my main computer doesn't connect to the net and my laptop which does is getting on in the years and tends to burn up during summer

Platform must either be Windows, iOS or Android, while i can accept consoles most console Yu-Gi-Oh games on consoles start you off with a starter deck and it takes forever for you to get all the cards needed to mimic a deck you have created in real life


texts: Can I attack both the player and a planeswalker the same turn?

texts: Can I have some creatures attack the planeswalker and other creatures attack the player?


texts: Chandra exiles a card, I play it, it gets exiled again

texts: I exiled a creature card with Chandra, Fire Artisan. I then played it, and it got countered by a card that put it back into exile. Can I play it again?


texts: Does Giant Killer get destroyed with Warstorm Surge? or is it able to destroy my creature with it's instant ability?

texts: My friend has Giant Killer out on his battlefield. I have Warstorm Surge and I bring out Gisela, Blade of Goldnight. Does Giant Killer get destroyed first as a creature before my friend can cast it's instant adventure? Or is he able to cast its ability to destroy Gisela and exile itself before being destroyed?


texts: Can you use custom made cosmetics on 40K figures?

texts:
In tournaments are you allowed to custom cosmetics like custom Space Marine shoulder Pads and heads, as long as the rest of the figure, weapons and wargear are all official. I found a website that makes custom parts I wish to use with my Marines but I wasn't sure if they were legal in tournaments
Stuff like this,
this,
this,
and this


texts: If I summon a world breaker can I exile a card my opponent owns?

texts:
I summon World Breaker and want to destroy my opponent's land.

But my opponent thinks I should exile one of my own lands, as cost to summon a World Breaker.

Whose lands am I allowed or required to exile in this case?


texts: What is the Trans America Express card for?

texts: I just got the USA 1910 expansion for the US version of Ticket To Ride.  It comes with a few new cards including "Trans America Express".  What is the Trans America Express card for, and how does one earn it?  (The route on the picture looks really hard!)


texts:
How does this card work?
How do you effectively play this card?
What happens when it gets killed as a creature?
What makes this card so expensive?

http://gatherer.wizards.com/pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=152724


texts: Bridge: Is it a rule that you must announce the meaning of partners opening bid

texts: Bridge Playing SAYC Is it a rule for partner to announce to the defenders what an opening bid (eg '1C minimum 3') means


texts: Does the use of Sunforger's unattach ability negate the ability of Void Winnower and let me use spells with an even converted mana cost?


texts: Can "loss of life" abilities be triggered by combat and/or direct damage?

texts: When taking combat or direct damage, this is not the same as loss of life, right? Yes, your life total goes down. But some cards have activated abilities when "loss of life" happens. For example, if I get dealt combat damage, this would not trigger a "loss of life" ability, correct?


texts: What boardgame comes closest to the computer game Frozen Synapse?

texts:
According to what I've read about Gunslinger it looks like both share similar game mechanics, but not having played this 1982 game I'm not sure. Does it come close to Frozen Synapse ? Or is there another game that is even closer?
Update to be more specific:
First, Frozen Synapse is my favorite PC game. So I like all of the elements of this game that I try to describe in the following, and I am looking for a boardgame that has as many of those elements as possible.
In Frozen Synapse I plan the movement of my guys for the next 5 seconds. On the 2-dimensional map I can program them to turn or move or hold still. They each have an individual view of sight. When they see an enemy they first aim then shoot. The time it takes for them to aim then shoot and the chances to hit depends upon:

their weapon, shotgun being faster than machine gun being faster than sniper rifle, while Sniper rifle has higher chances to hit than machine gun, and shotgun has the shortest range.
wheather they are moving or holding still
whether they are behind covering objects

If two enemy guys happen to see each other at the exact same time, the guy not moving with the faster gun is the killer (no hitpoints - one successful hit means a kill). So there is no luck involved but the winner of a fight is clearly defined taking into account the above factors. Each player plans the actions of their guys simultaniously not knowing what the opponent player might do. The players may test-execute their planned actions. They may even test-plan and test-execute the actions of their opponent to see what would be the outcome altogether. After the players have finished their planning phase their "programs" are executed simultaneously: the guys do their planned movement and fire fights are resolved.
I'm looking for a game that:

offers similar tactics, like which guy with what gun goes where, who covers whom, when to move which guy and when to let them hold still
no luck involvement but a clearly defined action and event resolution like in 1., 2., 3. above
has "fog of war" and individual character sight
has secret planning and then simultaneous execution

Gunslinger seems to be about planning the actions of a cowboy during a shooting in a saloon. It's key to be fast. The players plan the actions in a "split second".


texts: How many Corridor Monitors can I make with Blade Of Selves and Strionic Resonator?

texts:
I have Corridor Monitor attached with Blade of Selves. As well as this I have Strionic Resonator, and a load of spare mana. I have a way to give my creatures exalted (Sublime Archangel) or at least trigger Exalted, for later on.
When I attack with Corridor Monitor, and copy it with Blade Of Selves it creates two new copies of Corridor Monitor. I'm confident I can order the triggers on the stack so I can use the Strionic Resonator to copy the exalted trigger for each new Corridor Monitor (exalted trigger goes on first, then the Blade of Selves, as the top of the stack resolves more exalted triggered abilities get added by copying them). As they enter the battlefield each Corridor Monitor can untap the Strionic Resonator.
However, instead can I use Strionic Resonator to copy the Blade of Selves trigger and make more Corridor Monitors (copying the Blade of Selves triggered ability), to then repeat the effect of creating token versions of Corridor Monitor over and over. One I have enough finally using the last generation of Corridor Monitor copies to untap Strionic Resonator each one then copying the exalted trigger ? Or do I not end up with enough copies of the Corridor Monitor to then retap Strionic Resonator?
Otherwise is there some tweak to make this possible without changing the main game pieces?


texts: Are chain reaction outbreaks considered part of the original outbreak, in regards to "Containment Failure"

texts: The Containment Failure emergency event says to place 2 cubes in each connected city when doing the next outbreak. If one of those connected cities already has 2 or 3 cubes, this triggers a chain reaction outbreak, add usual, but is this considered a separate outbreak? That is, should I place 1 or 2 cubes on each of those connected cities?


texts: Is there any way my opponent can prevent me from winning in this situation?

texts:
I have Judith, the Scourge Diva and Footlight Fiend in play, and have 1 life; my opponent has Dreadhorde Butcher and 2 life. They swing with the Butcher, I block with the Fiend, and they both die.

At this point, my opponent's trigger goes on the stack first (since they're the active player), then mine (non-active player). My two triggers do two damage to my opponent, killing them before their own trigger can resolve and kill me.

But now we're wondering—is there anything that could have made me not win in this situation? For example, could I have activated an ability or played an instant, changing who was the active player at the crucial moment? Or was their fate sealed as soon as I blocked?


texts: Is it possible in UNO to run out of cards to draw?

texts:
The question Uno discard and draw pile empty? deals with what would happen according to the rules if a player has to draw one or more cards but is unable to do so because both the draw pile and the discard pile are empty. The author of the question assumed "I'm guessing this is impossible mathematically or they were missing cards".

But is it actually mathematically impossible for that to happen?

Assuming that:

You are playing with a complete 108 card uno deck.
You have between 2 and 10 players, as the rules say the game was designed for. Whatever number works best for achieving this game state.
Players are playing according to the official rules and refrain from self-destructive behavior (like drawing cards even though they don't have to), but otherwise follow a strategy which provokes this situation.
The cards happen to get shuffled in the ideal order necessary for this to happen.


texts: How do I determine my monster's hit points?

texts:
I'm the traitor and I'm in control of a monster. The guide says this monster has a Speed, Might, and Sanity values of 3 each. How do I determine the monster's hit points, I.E. how much damage it can take until it's "defeated"? (This monster has a special property where it can be "defeated" instead of just getting stunned - see spoiler text.)

   This is scenario 48, Stacked Like Cordwood. Actually, the monster comes back stronger if "killed".


texts: Does reach apply to Way of the Sarlacc's adjacent figures?

texts:
The Way of the Sarlacc 4 XP Skill of Diala Passil states:

  For each hostile figure adjacent to you, perform 1 attack with a melee weapon targeting that figure

Does a weapon with reach allow her to attack all figures within 2 squares ? (as for a normal attack)


texts: what happens to an injured pokemon shuffled back into the deck

texts:
Heracross can perform an attack which forces the opponent to »shuffle his active pokemon back into his deck«.

What happens if this pokemon is already injured? I did not find the rules adequate about this—does the injury vanish or does the pokemon keep its received damage?


texts: Helm of the Host on Rakdos the Showstoper

texts: I'm wondering if you put Helm of the Host on Rakdos, the Showstopper would his coin flip trigger when the copy enters the battlefield?


texts: Is it allowed for the next player to take the next tile while the current player hasn't finished his move yet?

texts:
A Korean-Japanese player I occasionally play Mahjong with insists that it's okay for the next player to take a tile from the wall and contemplate it while the previous player hasn't yet discarded. She keeps pushing players to do so to move the game along speedily. That obviously clashes with chī and pong calls sometimes, at which point she simply "rolls back time" to accommodate that.

Is this practice actually officially allowed or encouraged, in any of the Mahjong cultures?


texts: In what order should I present the basics of Magic?

texts:
I am working on a multimedia presentation (a series of images with an audio of explanation; video can be used too but should be less than the images) about Magic The Gathering. The scope is to explain to an audience of new players, who don't know anything about the game, the basis about how to play a game; it should be a replacement for the MtG Basic Rulebook that shops giveaway during the Magic Celebration event.

I found that the Rulebook is structured in a way some concepts have to be explained more than once and in different parts of it (e.g. the stack is introduced under the "sorcery" section, partially explained under "the stack" section and further information can be found under "casting a spell"). I would love to be more clear and consistent in my work.

This is the structure I'm thinking about:

1.  The basics
    a.  What is MtG
    b.  Parts of a card
    c.  Tapping
    d.  Making mana
2.  Card types
    a.  Land
    b.  Creature
    c.  Sorcery
    d.  Instant
    e.  Enchantment
        i.  Aura
    f.  Artifact
        i.  Equipment
    g.  Planeswalker
3.  Game zones
    a.  Library
    b.  Hand
    c.  Battlefield
    d.  Graveyard
    e.  Exile
4.  Basic playing
    a.  The stack
    b.  How to cast a spell
    c.  Attacking and blocking

But I'm still not convinced: the stack is one of the most important concepts of the game, yet one of the most difficult to understand. It's required to understand how cards interact, thus it should be explained before the card types, but if done this way people learn about the stack without knowing what a card is. The same problem happens with the concept of tapping, which requires knowing what a card is but is one of the first things to say when taking about the mana, lands and attacking.

Is this a reasonable order, or is there possibly a better structure for the presentation? When should I present tapping, and the stack? And why? Please remember that the audience has never heard of MtG and thus knows nothing about it.


texts: Scrabble computer version that uses the new dictionary? (OSPD4/OTCWL2)

texts: Is there a version of the computer Scrabble game that uses the new dictionary (not really new anymore, came out in 2006)?  I know about ISC, but we're looking for something that my technophobic mother-in-law can use to play against her computer.  Any suggestions?


texts:
From the rules:

  during phase 1 of his turn, he may choose to draw the first card from
  the top of the discard pile or from the deck.

Are the cards in the discard pile visible?

Doesn't this incentivize the previous player to put the worst one on top when throwing many cards in the discrad pile?


texts: Is Basalt Monolith a 1-card infinite combo with no payoff?

texts: Can't Basalt Monolith go infinite with itself? No payoff or practical use, but it's a one card infinite?


texts: Can We Play Pathfinder Society Adventure Card Guild Seasons With Normal Characters?

texts:
Suppose that I have a box of Pathfinder Adventure Card Game: Mummy's Mask with adventure packs 1-6.  I've already played through Mummy's Mask but I'd like to play more Pathfinder Adventure Card Game.

I've noticed that "Pathfinder Society Adventure Card Guild" has what looks like an alternate adventure path, Season of Factions' Favor.  There seems to be a lot of alternate rules around this -- everyone has to buy a class deck and get upgrades from their class deck instead of the box.  I don't need these rules, because I just want to play the game with my friends, and I'm happy to get upgrades directly from the box.  (Also, I'd rather avoid spending $80 on class decks if that's not necessary.)

If I play through Season of Factions' Favor using standard Mummy's Mask characters (not Class Decks), will everything work properly?  Will it be easier or harder than using Class Decks?  Is there anything I should watch out for?


texts: Is there a Diplomacy variant that does not contain stalemate lines?

texts:
The standard Diplomacy game can often end up locked in a stalemate, with one player pushing for 18 territories, and two or more defenders trying to stop them.  There are already many articles about this, including a useful visual index to stalemate positions.  However, I have so far failed to find a Diplomacy map that was designed to prevent stalemates.

Firstly is it even possible to have such a map using the standard rules?  Maybe there is logical reasoning that proves that a stalemateless board does not exist?

If it is possible, has it already been done?  Does the lack of stalemate lines make the game more dynamic, or does it mean players have to be more edgy about attacking?

If it is not possible to create such a map, is there a variant that avoids stalemates with some other change to the rules?  In one of the articles I saw it mentioned that "it is difficult to see" how certain variants could allow stalemates, but have any variants been designed with this goal in mind?


texts: Are the cards in Zendikar vs Eldrazi standard yet, before Battle for Zendikar comes out?

texts: Is the new duel deck Zendikar vs Eldrazi considered standard before the Battle for Zendikar comes out? I have been playing it for a few days and I don't want to waste money buy more of those cards if I cannot play them in standard.


texts: When is my last opportunity to turn a manifested Kytheon face up and still cause his trigger?

texts: I have 3 creatures that have attacked, one of which is a manifested Kytheon, Hero of Akros. Assuming he will survive combat, when is my last opportunity to "un-manifest" him from a 2/2 and still receive his planeswalker flip trigger? Can I do it after damage, or do I have to do it after blocks, or even as far back as before I declare attackers?


texts: What, generally, happens to card prices when a new set is released?

texts:
Journey to Nyx is about to come out an I noticed many of the websites have already priced the cards. I'm wondering if anyone has any advise on when the optimal time to pick up new cards is? I realize that these pre-release prices are somewhat arbitrary and will change. I expect many of the cards to jump in price as soon as they are released as everyone is scrambling to get them then I expect things will die down a little until the pros start making their decks at which point the cards that appear most regularly will sky-rocket. I am assuming that the best point is the trough in the middle. Is this a correct assumption and if so, when will this trough begin? I also guess that the risk here is that many cards that people think will be valuable might end up being duds and conversely, I may end up over-looking sleeper cards that no one guessed would be great cards. Am I going about this the right way or is there a better way? I would greatly appreciate any input.

**EDIT: This question has received several mixed votes on the basis that the answer is speculative. I want to make it understood that I am not asking for a specific or unanswerable question. An analogous hypothetical example to my question would be something in the vein of: When is the best time to buy electronics?

Answer: Prices generally spike right before Christmas and generally are discounted after the Holiday season and before the new models come out.

As it is not written in stone, my hypothetical question is, technically, speculative but given the fact that it happens every year I don't feel that it is an unreasonable question or unanswerable.

**I am not asking if there is a way to tell which cards will fluctuate or what price the will reach/fall to. I'm simply asking if there is, traditionally, a good time to buy new cards from a new set.


texts: Does equipping an equipment go on the stack?

texts:
Say we're in a game of MTG Commander/EDH. I already have Lightning Greaves on the battefield from the previous turn.

I begin my main phase and I play my commander (Let's say it has no abilities or ETB effects for simplicity).
No one responds.
I then activate lightning greaves to equip it to my Commander creature. Can someone play a destroy spell like Murder in response?

So does that mean Murder is on top of the stack, and my equip is at the bottom? No other responses from other players. The stack then tries to resolve. My creature is destroyed and my artifact effect cannot resolve. Thus my commander did not get Shroud.

Is this correct?


texts: All cards run out and all cards in play, still has card draws

texts:
Mostly making sure we played this right but I ran into an odd situation recently. My wife had been forced to KO a lot of cards from her deck, while piling up lots of card draw power. She run into a situation where she was playing out her entire deck and still had extra card draws. Usually 3-7 extra draws. We decided that since you just shuffle your discard pile and no card in play enters the discard pile until the turn is over, then she loses those extra draws.

Did we play that right? I looked over the rules but I know I could have easily missed something.


texts: 'Free City' with Babylon (B): How to play the special ability (2nd stage)?

texts:
You can use the special ability of Babylon (side B, 2nd stage) to get a 7th turn (EDIT: well, apparently not) where you are allowed to play your last (7th) card (which would otherwise be discarded). You can use this ability in each age (if the 2nd step is built).

How does this work in a 2-player game where the 'Free City' (NPC) uses Babylon?

Let's say the 2nd wonder stage is already built. It's the 6th turn. Player Bob manages the 'Free City'. After playing his and the NPC's card, he has left 1 card on his hand. The 'Free City' pile has 1 hidden card left. Player Alice has also 1 card left on her hand. Now the NPC gets a 7th turn.

Bob plays his last card?
Bob draws the last pile card and chooses which of his two cards to play?
Bob discards his card, draws the last pile card and plays it?
Bob transfers his card to Alice, and Alice …

discards her card and plays the one handed over by Bob?
discards her card, draws the last pile card and chooses which of her two cards to play?

Alice plays her last card?
Alice draws the last pile card and chooses which of her two cards to play?
Alice discards her card, draws the last pile card and plays it?

(did I miss a possibility?)

Note that even if there would be no choice which card to play, it's still important which player has to play it for the 'Free City' (because this player has to decide whether to build the card or the 3rd wonder stage).

Also, if the last card of one of the players has to be played, it's important which player's hand is used, because one of the players might have the wonder Halicarnassus (which allows to build discarded cards).


texts: When are you allowed to play monster boosters in Munchkin Quest?

texts:
Several cards beef up monsters (such as "...with Eyes In the Back of Its Head").  These cards do not say "Play at any time" on them, so according to my reading of the rules they should only be playable during your own turn, but people I've played with claim you can play them when a opponent is facing a monster.

What's correct?


texts: How are excavation permits handled if the turn you dig in straddles a year-end?

texts:
In Thebes, you're an archaeologist digging up ancient ruins around the turn of the 20th century. When you show up at a dig site, and dig for some variable amount of time, you expend your excavation permit for that site. There are five sites to dig at, and your excavation permits are restored when you complete a game year.

The trouble is that the duration of a turn is variable in Thebes; you spend one week for every space you move, and up to 12 weeks digging. It's quite possible for one of your digs to straddle a year-end: you start before the year ends, and finish sometime in the new year.

Can you dig at a site if you have no permission, using the "refreshed" permit to dig? (And thus starting the year with a used permit for that site.)

If you have a permit before you dig, do you spend it before you dig and then have it again after you're done digging?

Finally, consider this odd case: you're in week 51. You spend three weeks moving to Mesopotamia (arriving in week 2 of the new year), and then start digging as part of the same move. Is this legal if you have no permit? (In theory, it would refresh in week 1, but the game doesn't break down your turn into components; it's "all one move.") If you had a permit, would you have a permit again once you were done digging?


texts: How many of a legendary card should I be including in my deck?

texts:
So, I am making a Magic: The Gathering cat deck for my younger sister, and I am running in to a wall with trying to narrow my 63 card deck into a 60 card deck. My biggest problem is that I have 6 really awesome planeswalkers to choose from. They are pairs of three different types of planeswalkers.
6 planeswalkers is quite a lot for a deck. 4 seems decent.

There are two options I have: Get rid of one pair, (as well as another card,) or have each type of planeswalkers, but only one of them.
BUT, you can only have one legendary card of the exact same name on the field at the same time.

So, my big question: For legendary cards that you can only have one of on the field at a time, is it usually better to have two types of the same card, and increase your probability of picking it up, but at the risk it taking up space in your hand, and being unable to play it because it's already on the field,

OR

Have different types of legendary cards, meaning you could have both on the field at the same time, but it decreases your chance of picking up either one of the card, making it more unpredictable?

Note: I do not expect people to help me pick cards to put into her deck. That’s not what I want the focus of this question to be about. But I would still gladly listen to any card suggestions. ^^

I will provide card context into the comments below for anyone who desires to help me on my quest to make an awesome cat deck for my sister.

I'm not 100% sure this question is suitable for this site, so just tell me if you feel otherwise.

My deck list is:

Lands: 21x Plains, 6x Forest
Enchantment: 4x Compulsory Rest, 4x Anointed procession
Creature: 4x Sacred cat, 4x Adorned pouncer, 4x Regal caracal, 4x Pride sovereign, 4x Leonin warleader, 2x Brimaz, king of oreskos,
Planeswalkers: 2 each of Gideon, Martial Paragon (to help pride sovereign make cats), Huatli, Radiant Champion (to draw cards quicker), Ajani, adversary of tyrants (to make even more cats)


texts: Can a Zooloretto Enclosure Score Money if Filled Via Enclosure w/ Breeding?

texts:
In the rules for Zooloretto it states that you won't collect money for filling an enclosure through the "exchange" action. It also states that animals of opposite sex will not breed in the barn. If you exchange one type of animal enclosure with another type of animal from the barn (which happens to include the breeding-ready couple), would you receive the coin bonus? My interpretation is that the breeding happens after the exchange, so you would get the bonus, but this is not spelled out in the actual rules. Does anyone have a definite answer on how this situation is scored?

As a side-note, the iOS version of this game would be no help in seeing how the computer scores the situation, as it incorrectly does not let you exchange animals out of the barn (the rules clearly state that you can).


texts: Are there any known "available for purchase" life spans for expansions for Android Netrunner?

texts: As far as I know, a lot of cards (in TCG world) are stopped being produced (and available in stores) at some point. Is there a known life span for Android Netrunner expansions? For example is there a known life span such as 2 years at which the "Genesis" six-pack will no longer be produced and available in stores so if you don't get it until then you'll have to get it second-hand from somewhere?


texts: Can you use the train stations from the European edition with any other editions?.  Like with London or Pennsylvania.


texts:
I've played TCGs before, most notably Yu-Gi-Oh and Hearthstone (aka Magic Lite), and now I'm looking to get into MTG with a few friends that already started.

In the past I've always preferred something like the Shaman from Hearthstone, or spellcasters in Yu-Gi-Oh. Styles of either aggressive-tempo or control (as far as I understand them). However I typically dislike things like zoo or extreme stall (read: Hearthstone Priest).

Looking around and doing a bit of research I'm primarily interested in either a red/blue counter burn, red/blue tempo aggro, or black decks in general (roughly in that order).

My question is, given that background, where should I begin and is there a particular way I should try to buy cards? Buying singles is the most cost-effective way to make a specific deck but I'm not that focused yet -- so should I buy a fat pack? Booster box? Etc etc.

Thank you in advance for any suggestions and input!


texts: Sell and Buy houses from bank in the same round?

texts:
Can I sell a house from a property that I own and buy it in the same round from the bank again ?

This question is an edge case of What happens when you need to tear-down a hotel but no houses are in the bank in Monopoly?


texts: Can I use Bind Monster in addition to the combat check?

texts:
The spell says:

  Cast and Discard this spell to pass one Combat check. You must roll successes equal to the monster's toughness to cast this spell. This spell doesn't work on Ancient Ones.

If I fail to cast this spell, do I still get to make the normal combat check with my fight skill level as a second attempt to pass the combat check, or is this done in place of the fight skill level check?


texts:
So as all of you know, Cows and Bulls is a pen and paper adaptation of the popular board game Mastermind. I would like to design a game that would allow duplicate numbers for the code and assign perhaps a third variable called "milk" to ascertain the number of repetitions in the code.

We will be playing with five digits instead of four, so what exactly would be the guidelines we would have to follow in order to accommodate "milk" as an additional parameter? Please explain with examples as well.


texts: How do you pronounce "Hacan" in Twilight Imperium?

texts:
One of the iconic races in Twilight Imperium are The Emirates of Hacan.  However, there is no pronunciation guide.

I can think of many ways it could be pronounced:

HA-KAN /hɑkɑn/, rhymes with "spa don"
HA-ken /'hɑkən/, rhymes with "glocken"
huh-KAN /hə'kɑn/, rhymes with "pecan" (for some people)
HAY-ken /'hejkən/, rhymes with "shaken"
HACK-ken /'hækən/, rhymes with "slacken"

and so on...

Official sources are appreciated.


texts: How exactly do cures affect future infection in Pandemic?

texts:
How does finding a cure affect future infections in Pandemic?

Scenario 1) Cure IS found, disease cubes for that same color DO exist on the board, and player draws an infection card matching that color.

Scenario 2) Cure IS found, disease cubes for that same color do NOT exist on the board, and player draws an infection card matching that color.

My current understanding is that scenario 2 would be the only time that the disease cubes would not be added to the location (excluding special player roles like quarantine specialist and event cards).

Is this correct?


texts: Is it legitimate/ethical to treat the same bid from different people in different ways?

texts:
I play in a bridge "round robin" using Chicago scoring, with three other people. Call them, A, B, and C, with three different styles.
A will open, say one spade with as few as ten high card points (HCP) and a 6-4 or 5-5 distribution, or 11 hcp and a 5-4 distribution using the "rule of 20." (The sum of hcp and length in the top two suits needs ot equal 20.)

B bids "Standard American."

C will never open with less than 13 hcp, sometimes passing with them, and needing 14.

Suppose I have 6 points as a responder. I will sometimes pass with A, unless I have something extra, like a fourth trump or a good sequence (KQ, or QJT), but bid with B. With C, I may shade my points down to 5 with "something extra."

In a tournament, when paired with A or C, I should disclose our unusual bidding practices, right?

But suppose I do this in a round robin when I will be partnered with A for four hands, B for four hands, and C for four hands, etc. Is this objectionable?


texts: Do cards acquired with The Amazing Spider-Man count as extra draws?

texts:
The card The Amazing Spider-Man includes the following effect:

  Reveal the top three cards of your deck. Put any that cost 2 or less into your hand. Put the rest back in any order.

Meanwhile, the card Berserker Rage (for Wolverine) includes this effect:

  You get +1 attack for each extra card you've drawn this turn.

Does putting a card in your hand with The Amazing Spider-Man count as drawing an extra card for the purposes of Berserker Rage and similar effects?


texts:
We ran into this crazy situation tonight in a game of cosmic encounter. (shocking...)

The parasite had the chance to force an alliance with an attacking player and then win, but he had no extra ships. All of his home and foreign colonies had only one ship. He had three home colonies, so if he were to send any of his home ships to ally he would immediately lose his power.

Is the parasite able to form the alliance first, then send ships against the will of the attacker, even if he loses his power immediately when he sends his ship? Or is it impossible for the alliance to happen because he loses his power as he's sending ships?

No idea of this can even be definitively answered...


texts:
In the rules of Canasta, it says that if the up-card at the beginning of a round is a Red 3, then the discard pile is frozen.
But doesn't that go without saying? The discard pile is always frozen to everybody at the start of a round until someone goes down with the initial meld requirement.
What am I missing here?


texts: How do I search for cards without a casting cost (excluding {0})?

texts:
Ancestral Vision is an example of a card with a total absence of any casting cost: you can't cast it the ordinary way. In this case, you have to cast it using its Suspend ability.

I've just found that I have no idea how to search for these cards in Gatherer or in MagicCards.info. I can search for cards with a mana cost or converted mana cost of 0, but that also gets me cards like Accorder's Shield.

How can I search up cards with no mana cost in either Gatherer or MagicCards.info?

Lands are also in this category — it's fine if this search turns lands up as well; I can exclude those by their type easily enough.


texts: Betrayal at house on the hill #43 the star-sickness

texts:
When you die as an explorer but are also a traitor, and are transitioning into an alien, do you still trade monster tokens to spread the trader infection?   The trader died from the person who initiated the haunt during their additional roll that damages everyone if the can't defend the attacks.

The rules do not specifically say but we have argued that the traitor explorer has the alien virus already so isn't really alive to begin with, and you don't drop your items until the next turn after they miss their turn (from dying and going into transition). So it could go either way that you can trade monster tokens or not.


texts: How can I improve a Zombie deck to work faster?

texts:
I created a deck with the new expansion (Dark Ascension) using the cards I got from a couple of boosters last week.

My initial deck form is [Zombies Nightmare] (created by me) but I feel like it needs to be improved, to increase the probability of being able to play something on the first 2 turns.
I am very inexperienced (I only started a month ago) so any tips on how to make this deck more functional would be very appreciated.


texts: Replenishing the deck after both draw and discard piles have been exhausted

texts:
The Ticket to Ride rules include this process:

When the deck is exhausted, the discards are reshuffled into a new draw pile deck.

The phrase "when the deck is exhausted" could be interpreted several ways:

"at the time the deck is made empty"
"at the time the deck cannot satisfy a player's draw"
"at the time the deck is made empty or cannot satisfy a player's draw"
"any time the deck is empty"

Option 4 seems the most reasonable. With this interpretation, assuming the deck is empty and there are no discards, when a player claims a route, their discarded cards would be immediately reshuffled into a draw pile deck.
Is this the intended interpretation? If not, when should the draw pile deck be replenished after it and the discard pile have both been exhausted?


texts: Clarifying combat damage to player with abilities like Bloodthirst and Cipher

texts:
For cards like Vampire Outcasts or Shadow Slice, does Bloodthirst/Cipher only activate when combat damage is dealt directly to a player? For example, if an opponent blocks my attacking creature then the combat damage is dealt to the creature and not the "player", correct?

Should I be thinking in terms of since the player and the creature are separate then any combat damage dealt to a creature is not the same as a combat damage dealt to the player?


texts: Does successfully opening the vault end your movement due to drawing the item cards?

texts:
The inside of the vault has icons that draw cards, so once you've cracked it does your movement stop? (Obviously it has already stopped if you only just discovered the vault and drew an event card, so I'm referring to when it isn't newly discovered.)

I know movement is stopped when drawing a card from discovering a new room with a card symbol. The rules and the errata/FAQ mention stopping movement "upon drawing a card" (usually from room discovery) so I've been interpreting it to apply in this case as well on the merit that it's "drawing a card", and from a room icon no less.


texts: Whats a good way to handle multiple players bidding when playing by email?

texts:
I have recently moved away from most of my gaming friends and taken to playing by email.  We have played a few rounds of Age of Steam but the bidding at the start of each turn takes many emails just to get through.  With a time zone difference it can mean a week to do one round of bidding.

Does anyone know a similar mechanic that can work like bidding?  Or a way to do bidding through email that would be faster than each player saying their bid one at a time?


texts:
Does Kragma Warcaller stack with the +2/+0.
Lets say if i have a 2/3 Minotaur and I play 2 Kragma Warcallers- does that 2/3 Minotaur become a 6/3?


texts: Model Decks for Game of Thrones The Card Game?

texts:
I've recently bought the game of thrones card game, and a group of friends and I enjoyed playing the core game so much we've bought all the basic house expansions.

I don't think any of our players are going to be that much into deck building, but I'd like to  make it so that we have a set of decks (Maybe two for each house) that can provide variety while being balanced.

We didn't mind playing with the decks that came with the game out of the box, but that doesn't incorporate houses Greyjoy or Martell, and when I was playing Martell last night I noticed that quite a few of the cards in the deck that comes out of the box weren't house Martell at all so I would have had to pay extra to play them. (I just unwrapped one of the 3 sets in the expansion because we wanted to get started ASAP.)

Are there any lists of Model decks for each house using the core cards and the cards in the house expansions?


texts: How does Phyrexian Dreadnought and Volrath's Shapeshifter interact?

texts:
If I have a Phyrexian Dreadnought on top of my graveyard, and I put a Volrath Shapeshifter onto the battlefield, will I have to sacrifice other creatures with the total power of 12 or not?

The same question goes for using the shapeshifters activated ability to discard a Phyrexian dreadnaught from my hand.


texts: Can I tap a land creature for mana *and* attack with it?

texts: If my friend has a land-creature and he tapped it for mana, can he attack with that land-creature after?


texts: I've played Power Grid once so far. What is a good beginner's strategy in the initial accumulation of power plants?


texts: Diplomacy: No units but 1 Non-Home Supply Center

texts:
Hello Diplomacy enthusiasts.

I was recently playing an online game of Diplomacy with my friends and unfortunately drew Italy. All was going well until I was overrun by Turkey who made quick work out of Austria (and eventually went on to solo) and he agreed to let me survive in Tunis with an army so long I fight France and let him take my lands, as you do.

Anyways, in Spring 1911, he supported his fleet into my poor, 1 SC nation and I disbanded my unit. After a bit of negotiating, he vacated Tunis in the fall and I had 1 Supply Center that I couldn't build in, and 0 troops. When the game ended.

My question is whether I would have gained a share of the pot if I tied with the others.

Also, does it count as surviving?


texts: Does the Thief card work for a dwarf with broken equipment in Saboteur 2?

texts: The rules for Saboteur 2 specifically state that the Theft card does not work for a dwarf who is Trapped!. Does the Theft card work for a dwarf who is not Trapped! but who does have broken equipment?


texts: Can you crew a Vehicle that is already a creature?

texts:
Let's pretend I control a Mobile Garrison and a Veteran Motorist.

I crew the Garrison with my Motorists (sweet +1/+1 bonus).

I attack with the Garrison, and I untap the Motorists with the triggered ability.

At this point, can I tap the Motorists to crew the Garrison again and get another +1/+1?


texts: Is there a mechanism to bring Mordheim characters into Fantasy?

texts:
I've got a Mordheim warband and I've love to take some of the heroes into battle in a Warhammer Fantasy game. Is this possible?

Many of the characteristics are similar but is there a mechanism to create a points value and translate his skills?


texts: Can you use a clue that contains a word on the board within it in an unrelated way in Codenames?

texts:
In Codenames, can you give a clue when the series of letters of one of the tiles on the table is contained within it?

For example, can you give the clue "barrier" when "bar" is on the table? Or "bandolier" and "band"?

To be clear, I'm not asking about cases where the words are clearly etymologically linked. Like "fire" and "firefighter" or "link" and "linkage". The confusion arises in cases where the words aren't clearly related, but one still entirely contains the other in an unrelated way.


texts: Can Wishing Ring be applied on side-effects?

texts:
Yesterday I was playing Munchkin (the fantasy version) with some friends, and I ended up having my sex changed (I could use some female-only stuff, thou, but that's another story).

Back in topic, when I get sex-changed, I suffer a -5 penality to my next fight, which I assume lasts until I kill a monster or I suffer his Bad Stuff; either way, I have to actually fight him, not just encounter him and run away.

Assuming my interpretation is correct, it might be the case where all my buddies try to keep my penality standing as long as possible, by removing monsters in some way (with potions or charming spells), thus preventing me from an actual fight.

My question then is: can I use Wishing Ring (which I have obtained after being cursed) to remove the -5 penality? Because I don't think I can remove the whole Change Sex curse after I suffered it in the first place...


texts: Flexibility in Opening two in third seat with 8 points and seven card suit?

texts:
Is it against the rules to use your judgement as to whether to open two or three with a seven card suit?  Instance was third seat opening with a seven card suit, two of the top five, and 8 points with distribution - not vulnerable.  Playing with players that are very conservative in their bidding so opponents could easily had each held twelve points giving my partner a possible ten points if forth seat didn’t bid after my pre-empt.
Help - Opponants said I was going against the rules and had to open three with a seven card suit.  I can’t find any answer for this situation - unless it is obvious and you can never open two with a seven card suit.


texts: In Canasta, may I discard a card of a rank I have melded?

texts: If you are playing Canasta with two players, and you have 9's down in your meld, can you discard another 9 from your hand?


texts: What does "played from your hand" actually mean?

texts:
With the Myojin cycle of cards, each of them will enter with a divinity counter if they are played from the hand. Does this mean they will enter the battlefield with a counter if they went from the hand to the battlefield, regardless of how? Or is this an old wording that in more modern days would be to cast.

Myojin of Cleansing Fire


texts: How much collaboration is reasonable for a Two-Headed-Giant draft?

texts:
My friends and I have a regular MTG-drafting group. It's pretty informal, and after we draft sometimes a group of 4 people will play Two-Headed-Giant just for fun since it's not really a tournament and more just a way to get together and play. However, several of them want to play the entire 'tournament' as all THG matches the next time we play. I have no problem with this at all and understand how THG works, but I'm curious as to the best way to do this in a draft.

Assuming we pick teams before the drafting, do we allow players to collaborate in choosing their cards? It seems like this would take way too long and require far too much effort to make the decks work well together. Granted, the effort would make for better decks for each team, but I don't think the extra time is worth it. I suggested that we not allow anyone to help their partner make decisions during the draft so they are still building a deck that can stand on its own, and not having one player run 23 counterspells and removals while the other runs 23 creatures. However, my friends say this could easily result in decks that do not play well together at all.

After we've picked the cards I figure everyone would be allowed to collaborate with their teammate to build their decks, but doing so during the draft just seems like too much. Currently I think players should not be allowed to give the cards they picked to their partner for their deck.

What limits should we impose on collaboration during the draft to allow the teams to build decks that synergize well, without drastically increasing the time requirement of the draft? Perhaps a 3-minute interval between each booster? How can we find a good balance of collaboration and increased time requirements?


texts: If I have 10 gems, can I still reserve a card?

texts: In the game 'Splendor', if I have 10 gems at the beginning of my turn, can I still reserve a card and get a yellow gem (and discard another to respect the 10 gems limitation) ? Or it's not possible ?


texts: Can I create a colour scheme for a custom chapter and the apply it to other chapters?

texts: So what I mean is, could I make a colour scheme for my Space Marines and then use that same colour scheme for Grey Knights or Adeptus Mechanicus or Astra Militarum?


texts: Would Pillar of Flames get rid of a Blightsteel Colossus?

texts:
Blightsteel Colossus is indestructible. The rules for indestructable says:

  700.4. If a permanent is indestructible, rules and effects can’t destroy it. (See rule 701.6, “Destroy.”) Such permanents are not
  destroyed by lethal damage, and they ignore the lethal-damage
  state-based action (see rule 704.5g). Rules or effects may cause an
  indestructible permanent to be sacrificed, put into a graveyard, or
  exiled."

The rules for destroy says:

  701.6. Destroy
  701.6a To destroy a permanent, move it from the battlefield to its owner’s graveyard.
  701.6b The only ways a permanent can be destroyed are as a result of an effect that uses the word “destroy” or as a result of the
  state-based actions that check for lethal damage (see rule 704.5g) or
  damage from a source with deathtouch (see rule 704.5h). If a permanent
  is put into its owner’s graveyard for any other reason, it hasn’t been
  “destroyed.”

Now, the crux of the matter. Pillar of Flame reads:

  If a creature dealt damage this way would die this turn, exile it
  instead

Now, from my understanding of these rules, since the Colossus wouldn't die since it's indestructable, if they got enough lethal damage on it with Pillar of Flames being used on it, the colossus wouldn't be exiled since it would not die.  Is my understanding correct?


texts: Do I have to move all units in the area I have attacked?

texts: In game of thrones, if I attacked the opponent with army of several units, and I used all of them to make sure to win. Should I also move all the units to the conquered territory in case of victory or I can choose to leave some units in their position?


texts:
I had a dream where my wife taught me a game she called Serendipity. I woke up and quickly programmed it. I don't believe that anything is invented in dreams, so I'm now searching for the real game that slipped into my dream. I want to know what the proper rules are. I'm tagging this as checkers for now because it is very much like checkers, but a completely different game.

If you want to simply see the game, it is at: http://shaunwagner.com/serendipity
Note: I wrote this very quickly this morning, so expect plenty of bugs.

The game is like checkers. All the chips are the same color (I call them stones to make it obvious this isn't checkers). The board is set up like checkers, but all the stones on both sides are the same color. The goal is to capture 13 stones.

Each turn has 3 steps: (1) Pick a stone and move it diagonally. It can be any stone on the board that can move. It can move in any direction. This is like a "kinged" chip in checkers. (2) Repeat step one, moving another stone. It has to be a different stone. (3) Pick any stone not used in steps 1 and 2 and jump with it. It jumps like a "kinged" chip in checkers. You can multi-jump or chain your jumps. You capture each stone you jump.

If, for any reason, you don't want to or cannot complete a step of your move, you pass to the other player. If both players pass, the game is a draw.


texts: How does the Sorcerer flare card work with non-viable races in Cosmic Encounter?

texts:
This issue came up in a game of Cosmic Encounter tonight and we were unsure how to resolve it.  The wild effect on the Sorcerer flare card allows the player to force the two main players (offense and defense) to swap powers. It then says this swap continues after the encounter is over.  We took this to mean that the swap is permanent, which is pretty freaking powerful!

However, adding to the confusion was that the defending player only had two of his home planets colonized at the time, meaning that his power was removed at that time because his race was "non-viable."  The attacker had three of his home planets, so his power was active.  We could not agree on whether this meant the defending player would get to use the offensive player's power, while the offensive player would have no power (because the defending player "traded" his non-power), or whether the powers would swap but then the defending player would lose it immediately because they still only had two home planets colonized.

In addition, is the trade really permanent?  That seems like a very powerful ability to be Wild, especially when the Super ability for the Sorcerer on the same card is relatively weak (allows them to use their ability to swap Encounter cards even as an ally)


texts: When a permanent has a "When a creature dies" ability, and gets destroyed at the same time as creatures, does that ability trigger?

texts:
Say I control Fecundity, which states:

  Whenever a creature dies, that creature's controller may draw a card.

If I control 2 creatures and my opponent controls one creature, and I cast Planar Cleansing to wipe the board (including Fecundity), what happens?  Do I get to draw 2 cards?  Does my opponent get to draw 1 card?  Or do neither of us get to draw any?


texts: What is the penalty for lying about a face-down card?

texts: Let's say someone deliberately casts a sorcery card as a face-down morph creature hoping to win the game with it (not knowing that at some point in time it will always be revealed). What is the penalty for it at the different Rules Enforcement Levels (REL)?


texts: Can you use the row the card is in as a clue?

texts: If you are the spymaster, can you use the row as a clue?  For example, can I say "Top 3" for the field operator to guess the top row?


texts: When rolling Mr Monopoly do I move to Auction to a property

texts: If I roll Mr. Monopoly on the speed die, and all the properties have been bought, according to the rules I have to move to the next place that I have to pay rent. I am not clear what is the rule if the next place is the Auction which according to the rules makes me move to the place with the highest rent. Do I have to move to Auction or do I move to the next property which has cheaper rent.


texts: Clue - getting suggestion right early on, what happens?

texts:
My family and I were playing a "Nightmare Before Christmas" version of clue tonight. The rules were very similar to the original clue but seems to leave some parts pretty ambiguous.

We were about 3 rounds through and I had gotten into a room I wanted to make a suggestion on. I named a person and item and no one had any of the cards in their hands.

The rules said that you had to get to the center to make an accusation. However, since I happened to guess right (no one could prove me false) I wasn't sure what to do.

The players all knew that no one else had the cards so it became a race to the center to make the official accusation.

Anyone remember how the original clue works? Can you make a suggestion from any room, and if so and no one can prove you false, what happens?

Rule from the Game:

Starting a Rumor helps you try to determine which three cards are in the envelope. After moving into a Location, except the Fountain, you may Start a Rumor: name a Suspect; an Item; and the Location you are in. Move the suspect’s Suspect Mover and Item into the Location with you (if they are not already there)

PROVING A RUMOR TRUE OR FALSE

As soon as you’ve started a Rumor, the other players try to prove it false. The first to try is the player to your immediate left. If that player has one of the named Rumor cards in their hand, they show it to you and only you. If the player has more than one of the cards named, they select one (just one) to show you.

WHAT IF A PLAYER CAN’T SHOW ME A CARD?
If the player to your left has none of the named Rumor cards, then the next player to the left tries to prove your Rumor false. And so on until you have been shown one card.

If no one can prove your Rumor false, your turn is over. Leave the Suspect Mover and Item token you moved where they are.

Making an Accusation:

When you think you’ve figured out which three cards are in the envelope, go to the center location of the game board to Make An Accusation. Say your accusation out loud: “I accuse Sally with the Bear Trap in Oogie’s Lair.” Then, secretly look at the cards in the envelope.

WERE YOU RIGHT?
You win! Congratulations, you solved the mystery! Reveal the cards in the Mystery Envelope to everyone.

WERE YOU WRONG?
Oops! You’ve made a mistake and are out of the game. Secretly return the cards to the Mystery Envelope — don’t tell the other players which one you got wrong. Keep your cards hidden and keep answering other players’ questions. Do not ask further questions or make any further accusations.


texts: Why does Renegade Freighter not just have trample?

texts:
The artifact vehicle Renegade Freighter has the ability

Whenever Renegade Freighter attacks, it gets +1/+1 and gains trample until end of turn.

Given that trample is only generally relevant when attacking, this should behave basically identically to:

Trample
Whenever Renegade Freighter attacks, it gets +1/+1 until end of turn.

At first, I thought that maybe this was because it would be strange to have a non-creature have trample, so it only gets trample at a time that it is a creature. But then I saw Fleetwheel Cruiser, which is another vehicle that does always have trample. In fact, Untethered Express is even more similar, in that it does have a when-attack ability, yet it also just always has Trample.
Renegade Freighter could be seen as slightly weaker as worded, because something like Stifle could prevent it from getting Trample. However, that seems like a small enough thing that it wouldn't be specifically designed around.
Is it known why this card only gets trample when it attacks? A good answer could either point to any statements about it from the development team, or to information about general templating choices where this is a consistent design choice. Or finally, perhaps there is an important difference between always having trample vs only having trample when attacking that I am missing.


texts: If I buy more than one property when playing monopoly must my cards be where all players must see them?

texts: Must all property cards be where any player can see which one's I have?


texts:
Recently I was playing ninja-mages deck. After I gained 14 points my deck run out of cards.
What should I do when I can't draw cards anymore? (because my deck is empty)


texts: Is Lookout usually a good pick with a Big Money strategy?

texts:
According to the Dominion Strategy wiki, Lookout doesn't go well with a Big Money strategy. Do you agree?

To clarify: I mean Big Money in a broad sense. So picking up at most a couple of cards, then focusing on money.


texts: In the Sanctuary expansion, why, only in a 2-player game, does the Hunted begin with a face-down survivor?

texts: I'm guessing it's a balancing mechanic? Maybe it's hard to fortify using cards when it's only the one of you, so you get an extra shot at it from the beginning?


texts: Is there an official Catan FAQ that is a supplement to the included rules book?

texts: I was wondering if Mayfair Games or Klus himself created an official FAQ for the base (or all versions) of the Settlers of Catan.


texts: Can a berserk unit advance in Advanced Squad Leader?

texts: In ASL, may a berserk unit advance in the APh? It seems logical that it can't, but I cannot find the rule.


texts: How can I arrange a Christmas gift exchange for board game geeks?

texts:
My circle of board game geeks usually celebrate Christmas by a simple gift exchange game where we take turns rolling dice to accumulate gifts, and have 2/6 chance to get a new gift but 1/6 to lose one.

However, I feel like we're playing the rock-paper-scissors or Monopoly of gift exchanges. How can we spice this up a bit to make it more worthy of board game geeks? Just playing games and giving the winner a gift doesn't cut it, because we want it to be fair.


texts: How would it change the game play style if players can see each other's racks in Scrabble?

texts:
I've always been curious, and wanting to try this with a friend, but I don't know any real life friends that would play me. Also no apps that I know support it afaik, and you'd have to manually tell the person your rack each turn, which I doubt anyone is willing to try with me. I think it would make it more strategic although a prolonged game.
I was thinking a few things would change:

Each turn would take longer because each player is trying to counter the other one's moves.
In a game of 2 players, trying to block scoring opportunities for your opponent will have about as much weight as scoring high or rack management.
In a game of 3+ players, it won't have much of an effect until the endgame, because it takes a long enough time to figure out the best scoring or highest value play (a play that leaves with good tiles for next turn).
"Fishing" for letters may become a thing. If you notice all your opponent's racks contain no o's, the board contains few o's, but you need an o to make a bingo, you can probably assume there's a high chance of drawing an "o", so you use up only 1 tile or you exchange a tile when making a move now but score low points on the next turn would be less than exchanging tiles and scoring big next turn.


texts: Is Okk able to attack with a 1/1 goblin and a Goblin Piledriver in the first attack phase?

texts:
Okk is a beefy goblin that can't attack if it's the biggest creature attacking.

  Okk can't attack unless a creature with greater power also attacks.

As the Active player, during the Declare attackers step (508.1), I choose to attack with Okk, a random 1/1 goblin, and Goblin Piledriver. I think that Goblin Piledriver provides me an out, because it is boosted for each other attacking goblin, in this case making it stronger than Okk.

  Whenever Goblin Piledriver attacks, it gets +2/+0 until end of turn for each other attacking Goblin.

If I declare Goblin Piledriver, Okk, and another Goblin attacking, does that satisfy the restriction portion of 508.1c?


texts: Is there a way to tell if a Cards Against Humanity card exists already?

texts:
I have Cards Against Humanity with all the expansion packs that come with blank cards. I have some ideas for cards but there are so many I couldn't possibly remember/know all the ones that already exist. Is there a way to search if a card exists without having to manually look through every single card?

I tried the PDF on the website but it does not seem to have the expansion packs and it is not searchable.


texts: How should one handle miscommunication being abused?

texts:
I was observing a game the other day and saw a miscommunication that resulted in a player essentially cheating. This was at an FNM.

Here is the scenario, Andrew has a 1/1 thopter token and and a Spireside Infiltrator, Nick has 2 tapped Ovalchase Daredevils.

Andrew confirms his move to attacks and declares thopter token and
Infiltrator as attackers. They resolve the Infiltrator's trigger
Nick says "before blockers, Subtle Strike" placing the card on the table near Andrew's thopter and
waiting for Andrew.
Andrew then says, "in response, cast Built to Smash" placing the card from his hand directly on the thopter.
Nick
then replies, "then I'll give your infiltrator -1/-1 and put a
counter on one of my Daredevils".

What ended up happening was Andrew just let this happen since he recognized that Nick had not finished casting the spell when he announced his Built to Smash. Technically speaking Andrew is the one who made an error in this manner, but it was clear to everyone watching that Nick intended to give the thopter -1/-1 and manipulated the communication to his benefit.

What should be done if behavior like this is observed? If the answer as a player is to report to a judge, then what would a judge's course of action be?


texts:
Scenario, at the start of my turn I roll the dice and land on “Go to jail”.

If I have a “get out of jail free” card, can I play that immediately so my piece does not move, or do I go to jail and must wait for the start of my next turn to play the card.


texts:
From the Pressman Rummikub rules:

"When a player retrieves a joker, the joker will once again have any value or color. However, a player who retrieves a joker must play the joker on his/her current turn to make a new set, and must also use at least one tile from his/her rack on that turn (just as on any other turn). A player cannot retrieve a joker before  s/he has played his/her initial meld."

My question: If a player uses a tile from his/her rack to retrieve a joker. Does that tile count as the "at least one tile..." or must the player use another (second) tile from his/her rack?


texts: Are Summoned Monsters shuffled with other monsters when "returned to the box"?

texts:
My friend just got his Pathfinder Adventure Card Game set and I watched him go through a solo game. One point that came up quite a few times was Summoned Monsters. When returning them to the box, my friend shuffled them into the monster deck every time.

I pondered this: is "returning to the box" the same as Banish? Banish does say "put it back into the box, shuffling it with the other cards of the same type".

As is, I find it somewhat strange because it can lead to what happened to us: getting 3 Specters in a row, which was a horrible thing for a character with no magic, in a situation where the summoned monster needs to be defeated to close the location (Brigandoom, Farmhouse).


texts:
The rules for Yata Garasu are as follows:

  Cannot be special summoned. This card returns to the owner's hand at the end of the turn in which it was normal or flip summoned. When this card does damage to your opponent's life points, they skip their next draw phase.

I would agree that Yata Garasu's ability to stop you from drawing is OP. But however there are a couple things that make me question it.
1. It cannot be special summoned.
2. It only has 200 ATK. It's so weak even a puny Kuriboh is strong enough to destroy it.

So with these being the case, what got this card banned?


texts:
Howling Mine

  At the beginning of each player's draw step, if Howling Mine is untapped, that player draws an additional card.

First, there is no bent arrow tap symbol, so how would it tap to begin with? The activated ability is dependent upon being untapped, so tapping it would just prevent activation?
Second, what one-drop could I use to make this work to untap for me, but tap to prevent everyone else from benefiting? If I had 4 cycles in play, that could mean 5 cards per turn?


texts: Is the quest leader required to be part of the team?

texts:
One of the players suggested that the team leader should be able to pick the team and not include himself in it, so we decided to try that for one game. We were playing with 10 people. As we tried this out, I got the role of Merlin and immediately knew who all (except mordred) the bad guys were. The first team that the team leader picked was all good people and we passed the first quest. The next quest leader was on his left, and he was in the first quest, so logically we told him to pick that same team and add one person. And after we added that person, he was also good and we passed the quest. However, now the next quest leader was a bad guy, but because we are allowed to pick the team without the leader in it, we basically forced the bad guy to choose the previously same successful team without the quest leader (who was bad), because after all, if the bad guy didn't, then obviously that guy is bad or else why would they not pick the team that had no troubles? This strategy ended up in a 3-0 match, and the assassin didn't guess me correctly. So the good guys won quickly and easily.

We all thought that this rule seemed kinda weird, so I wanted to ask you guys who played more than us to explain this to me. Should the quest leader have to include himself? because if not, than the game could happen like what happened before.


texts: If I have 8+ coins and no Gold, should I buy a Gold or a Province?

texts:
When playing Dominion, I have developed the habit of buying a Gold the first time I can afford one, even if I could afford a Province instead. Is this a good rule of thumb?

My reasoning is that if I manage to hit 8+ coins without a Gold in my deck, I have probably managed to hit a lucky hand. Having at least one Gold makes it much easier to hit 6+ or 8+ coins in the future, whereas having a Province sitting around just makes it harder to buy that first Gold.

If buying the Gold is indeed better most of the time, under what circumstances would it be worse?


texts: In Backgammon, why is the match length almost always odd? And why are 9-point matches twelve times less popular than 7-point matches?

texts:
I was wondering what was the ideal match length, and I came across those statistics:

  Matchlength : Total Matches
  1 : 350
  2 : 59
  3 : 634
  4 : 12
  5 : 1184
  6 : 1
  7 : 492
  8 : 1
  9 : 42
  11 : 31
  Total : 2806

The match length is almost always odd. Why is that? What's wrong with an even match length?

Also, 9-point matches are 12 times less popular than 7-point matches (a difference way too big to be explained by the fact that 9-point matches take slightly more time than 7-point matches). So why are 9-point matches relatively rare?


texts: I control an Illusory Gains. My opponent casts Torch Slinger. Does my opponent get to do his kicker and damage my creature, or do I gain control of the card prior to the kicker ability and I do the kicker, or is the kicker canceled out.


texts: Don't the Planeswalkers in Commander 2014 that say they can be your Commander contradict the fact the Commanders have to be legendary creatures?

texts: Ob Nixilis of the Black Oath and the other Commanders in Commander 2014 say they can be your Commander. Doesn't that contradict the rule that Commanders can only be Legendary Creatures?


texts: What happens if Genesis Wave puts Fists of Ironwood onto a battlefield with no creatures?

texts:
This question arose as a response to a recent question about putting Auras onto creatures with Shroud.

What happens if I cast Genesis Wave, let's say for 2, and reveal Fists of Ironwood on an otherwise creatureless battlefield.  Does Fists still come into play for a while without creatures to enchant, giving me two 1/1 Saprolings?  Or do I even get two 1/1 Saprolings one of which has an enchantment giving it Trample (lucky me)?

Bonus question: what happens if I Genesis Wave for 5 instead and reveal 3 instants, Fists of Ironwood and Bramble Elemental?

There's a possible clue in Bramble Elemental's Oracle text (I'll leave finding that as a treasure hunt for the reader) but it still leaves me unclear - when Genesis Wave does its work, does it Fists of Ironwood come into play already attached to the Elemental, or do they both come into play and then get attached by the player?


texts:
when I have "Mentor of the Meek" and the "Mutavault"-land on the battlefield, and when I make Mutavault into a 2/2 creature, can I draw a card when I pay the mana cost for a creature entering the battlefield under my control?

Same question applies to "Suture Priest". Can I gain life using Suture Priest's and Mutavault's abilities?

Thanks friends!


texts:
I manage a scrabble group online, the ELO is set by Mattel but that is not a handicap just a grading Mattel gives.

In my group we run a weekly League , Monthly Lottery type game (who you play is based on numbers drawn) Tournaments for three different sections of the group and numerous friendlies. The group is holding at 80 members with ELO from 950 up to 2200. To make it fair and so that the big ELO are not always smashing the little players I have tried to devise a handicap based on the ELO but its causing problems because the bigger end are now losing games because of the handicap but are still winning the Mattel game which is increasing the ELO further. I attach what I have tried to use but can anyone suggest a tweak of the upper levels that are fair to the player but still give the little man a chance to win?. Thank you


texts: Do you waste your attack if you try to attack a monster that can't be attacked?

texts:
In haunt 28, the Traitor's Tome says:

  The Revolver and other Speed attacks can't be used against the Demon Lord.

The Secrets of Survival book doesn't mention this. If a hero tries to make a speed attack against the Demon Lord, do they waste their attack, or do I have to tell them about this before they try?


texts: Can I build off a branch blocked by a troll?

texts:
Saboteur Duel adds Troll cards into the game where there is path, but one of the branches is blocked by a troll.

The rules state:

  The troll blocks the path behind it. If a player wants to pass a troll, he has to bribe it with 1 gold nugget.

My question is: can I build off the blocked branch?

As precedent for being able to build off a blocked branch I would point to the coloured door cards from Saboteur 2. Any player can build off of a path blocked by a coloured door, but if the gold is exposed through a path through a coloured door, only that team wins regardless of who plays the final card.

Would it be for paths blocked by trolls that I could build off the blocked path but not be able to collect any exposed gold until someone bribes the troll?

I assume the answer is 'no', but the rules aren't explicit on this point and there is some debate in my group.


texts: What do shiny ovals mean on Magic the Gathering cards?

texts:
I have just bought a set of Oath of the Gatewatch cards, and a few of them have a small shiny oval on the bottom center, like Corrupted Crossroads.

What does this mean?


texts: Could Cemetery Puca copy a Primordial Hydra?

texts: If I kill my opponents 4/4 Primordial Hydra, will I be able to use my Cemetery Puca's activated ability on the Hydra, and have it become a 4/4 Primordial Hydra, or will my Puca die because the Hydra is considered a 0/0 creature when it is put into the graveyard, due to the X part of its mana cost?


texts: How do game designers come up with suggested (or minimum) age requirements for games?

texts:
Is there a standard formula or procedure for determining suggested (or minimum) age requirements for games? Or do a few game designers just sit around and discuss for a few minutes and then just come up with a best guess? What criteria are used, if any?

I ask because we (my Wife and I and son who just turned 7) can't make sense of the age recommendations for some games. The latest was Pandemic, which my son bought with his own money. Required age? 13+. Neither the rules nor the strategy are all that hard. I played a vastly more complicated game (both rules and strategy) as a teenager, Squad Leader, whose recommended age was about the same: 14+. Meanwhile, Rat-a-tat Cat has a suggested minimum age of 6+. Though the graphics of this last game are clearly aimed for kids, the strategy is sophisticated  (think of it as a starter game for poker) and the rules have enough nuance that we kept finding new ways we hadn't got the rules right until the 4th read (though perhaps this could be attributed to poorly written rules).

I would especially love to see answers from professional game designers or people who have discussed this issue with game designers but if none are available I'm happy to hear from game enthusiasts who have thought about this.


texts: When to make a small bet in two-player Haggis?

texts:
In the game of Haggis, you can make a big bet (30 points) or a small bet (15 points).

I've always wondered what the use is of making a 15 point bet instead of 30. If you're pretty sure that you're going to win, why not make it 30? If in doubt, then don't bet at all.

The only situation that makes some sense to me is this:

Let's say you're winning (e.g. you already have 200 points in a 250 point short game), and your opponent is a bit behind you (e.g. he has 180 points). Your opponent doesn't bet. You've got yourself a pretty good hand, and usually you would bet big with those cards, but in this case, you can win the game just as well with a small bet. Also, in case something goes wrong, you are giving your opponent only 15 points. There is a chance that this won't be enough for him to win, so you will have the opportunity to respond in the next round. If you'd bet 30, it probably would be enough for him to finish and win the game.

Are there any other situations when making the small bet is a good choice?

Edit: I should have pointed out that I'm asking this question about games of Haggis involving two players, but not three.


texts: When I gain a coin token through a gold mine on a mountain, through a famous person tile or through a "bank" tile, does that token remain on that square? If my opponent captures that square by beating me in a battle, do I lose the tokens I already gathered there?


texts: Does Breaker Bay Grid reduce the cost of ICE hosted on Awakening Center

texts:
I have Breaker Bay Grid in a server, along with Awakening Center hosting a Janus 1.0.

Does Janus 1.0 count as "in" the server for the purposes of Breaker Bay Grid's cost reduction?  Equivalently, does Janus cost 8 credits or just 3?

Breaker Bay Grid has the ability:

  The rez cost of cards in this server is lowered by 5.

Awakening Center has the abilities:

  Awakening Center can host bioroid ice (each piece is installed
  facedown, ignoring all install costs).

  Whenever the Runner passes all of the ice protecting this server, you
  may rez a piece of ice on Awakening Center, lowering the rez cost by
  7 [credits], to force the Runner to encounter it. Trash that ice after the
  run is completed.

Normally Breaker Bay doesn't work on ICE because ICE is protecting the server rather than "in" it.


texts: When should I send my current civilization into decline?

texts:
In Vinci, you play a civilization for some period of time and then declare it to be "in decline", meaning you sit out a turn and then start a new one.  If you go into decline too quickly you're signing up for unneeded churn, but if you wait too long your rate of gaining points drops and you fall behind.  What's a good strategy for deciding when to make this change?

Factors that seem to be relevant: the queue of upcoming civiliations (though there will be some turnover before your next turn), how "far along" the other civilizations are toward decline, score you're currently earning and its rate of change, board position (how hard will it be to enter the board with a new civilization), and...what else?  Which of those are the most important?


texts: Merchants and Marauders NPC Combat Decisions

texts:
I played my first game last night with my son and we had a blast even though we really didn't have a good understanding of the rules until we were almost finished.  I'm really looking forward to our next game.

In this game there are non-player captains (NPCs) that may engage in combat with player-controlled ships.  Combat decisions for the NPC are decided by the player(s) not engaged in that combat as described in the following rule.

  NPCs in combat are controlled by another player with an interest in
  doing his or her best to secure victory. If there are any issues over
  who gets to control an NPC, then the player to the left of the player
  fighting the NPC controls it.

In the first sentence, does secure victory refer to winning the game, sinking the player ship at all costs, fleeing a losing battle, or other?

For example, suppose player A is controlling an NPC in a battle vs. player B.  Player A might want to avoid sinking player B because player A wants to attack player B on their next turn to gain a glory (victory) point.  This seems like a gamey tactic that goes against the spirit of the rules.  What do you think?


texts: What happens to destroyed districts in Citadels?

texts: In Citadels when you destroy someone's district with the warlord it isn't clear what you do with the card. Does it return to the bottom of the district deck? This is the only other place district cards seem to go, other than player's hands and being in play.


texts: Are there specific deck combinations to avoid in Smash Up?

texts:
I just got the game, and haven't had a chance to play yet, but I did a quick run through on the decks (I got the basic version; no expansions yet), and it seemed like some of the combinations might be actively detrimental (e.g. some decks have Actions that target Minions with a power of 1, so pairing that deck with one of the decks with power 1 Minions might make those Actions less useful).

When picking the two decks to combine, which ones should I avoid pairing?  Why?


texts: How long does a creature returned by the Whip of Erebos remain on the battlefield?

texts:
Whip of Erebos says

  Return target creature card from your graveyard to the battlefield. It gains haste. Exile it at the beginning of the next end step. If it would leave the battlefield, exile it instead of putting it anywhere else. Activate this ability only any time you could cast a sorcery.

Does that mean that the creature will remain on the battlefield for the rest of the current turn and pretty much all of the next turn, too, save for the end of that turn? eg. could I attack with the resurrected creature twice?

And what happens if I bounce it back to my hand? I assume it doesn't go to the graveyard from my hand?


texts:
I think this freecell puzzle (739671 on Odesys) has no solution but not 100% sure.
Using this solver could not solve it. Is there a better solver, or does this really have no solution?

This is the starting layout:

8C JD TS 6S 9S 2C 7H
8H 4D TC 8D 9H AS JS
QC AH 9D 5S 5D 3D 2H
QS 8S 6H JH 3C AD KS
4C 6C 7S 6D KC JC
4H 4S 2S KD TD KH
TH 7C 3S 2D AC 7D
QD 3H QH 9C 5H 5C


texts: Why does negative life and Platinum Angel not cause a draw?

texts:
I was looking at the Transcendence, Platinum Angel interaction. As it is explained in a few places online

  Transcendence has what is called a 'State Trigger'. It triggers
  whenever the condition is met provided there isn't a copy of that
  trigger on the stack already.  What will happen is Transcendence will
  continue to trigger over and over again since you don't lose the game
  due to Platinum Angel. There is no way to stop this without a player
  doing something and that is not required so the game ends in a draw.

But why does this not happen if the player reaches negative life? I know from playing MTGO a player can continue playing the game with negative life if the Platinum Angel is in play.

  119.6. If a player has 0 or less life, that player loses the game as a state-based action. See rule 704.

What prevents the death trigger from firing over and over similar to Transcendence? When is loss checked if Platinum Angel leaves the field if it's not done continuously?


texts: Axis and Allies 1942 second edition and attacking subs

texts: When a Sub attacks a battleship in Axis and Allies 1942 second edition. Can the battleship defend itself against the attacking sub?


texts: Can you use a base's ability twice by returning it to your hand with Mega Mech?

texts:
I'm playing the card version (not online) of Star Realms. So here is how I believe you could play things out. Is this legal or not?

Play a base from your hand such as "Fighter Base"
Use the base ability and force an opponent to discard a card
Play "Mega Mech" from your hand
Use it's first ability and return "Fighter Base" to your own hand
Play "Fighter Base" again
Use "Fighter Base"'s first ability to force your opponent to discard another card.

Would this be ok? I can't seem to find a rule either allowing or denying this.

Edit: I forgot to mention that there would be another Star Empire base or ship in play so that you could activate the ability on "Fighter Base"


texts: Monopoly: Strategy in trading --how do I compute the expected value of a trade?

texts:
I love playing Monopoly with my friends and I'm known for giving extra money or trading a cheaper property with a more expensive one and even paying some amount on top of it.

Obvioulsy I love the smaller cards, as I can buy more houses in a short amount of time and earn more money in the long run. This strategy did work really well most of the time, but lately I'm paying too much for those properties.

I wonder if there is a quick method to figure out when a trade gives me positive expected value (+ev).


texts: What is the best current Magic the Gathering AI?

texts:
I am aware of MTG AIs in the following WOTC products and fan-made projects:

Forge
Duels of the Planeswalkers
MTG Arena (Sparky)
XMage
Magarena

I am interested in a quantitative comparison between these AI's and any others that I may have missed. The Magarena wiki provides a helpful list of Zermelo scores comparing the different AI's in Magarena, but there is no comparison to AI's outside of Magarena.
Are there any other MTG AI haven't I heard of? How do these AI's compare?


texts: Do you need spare actions available to play Throne Room?

texts:
The rule book explains Throne Room's effect as follows:

  You pick another Action card in your hand, play it, and play it again. The second use of the Action card doesn't use up any extra Actions you have.

My question is:

If I played Witch with Throne Room, according to the rules, the second use of Witch doesn't use up another action, doesn't that mean the first use of Witch cost an action?

So in essence, whenever you play Throne Room, wouldn't you need to first play cards that give you additional actions?