texts: How does the "Special Orders" special event card work?

texts:
The "Special Orders" card states:

  During this turn, the current player may move one other player's pawn (with permission) as if it were his own.

I have read this and the rule book (which gives further clarifications), but I am still unclear on the interaction of this card and the abilities of the different roles.

I am looking for a concise description of how the card works, which covers cases such as the following:

Generalist moving the medic through a cured disease,
Medic moving the generalist through a cured disease,
Troubleshooter moving operations expert by direct flight,
Someone moving the dispatcher, attempting to move a third player using their power,
...

For bonus points I would be interested in any interactions with other special events that are relevant (i.e. confusion that I haven't had yet!)


texts: Board game fun for 3 year old AND parent

texts: I like playing board game with my 3 year old son. But it can be boring sometimes for me. Is there a game that is designed to be playable by a 3 year old, but also interesting for the adults playing it? Maybe different rules for the players?


texts: If Emrakul, the Aeons Torn somehow loses all abilities, and then dies, does it shuffle back into the deck?

texts:
This is a follow-up question to Will a God Eternal enchanted with Deep Freeze shuffle back into the deck if it dies?

Emrakul, the Aeons Torn has this line of text:

  When Emrakul, the Aeons Torn is put into a graveyard from anywhere, its owner shuffles their graveyard into their library.

If Emrakul loses its abilities somehow (e.g., because of Humility, or if it were somehow enchanted by Deep Freeze), and then dies, does this effect still trigger to shuffle it back?

I'm guessing yes in the case of Deep Freeze since presumably when it "enters the graveyard" it has regained all its abilities. This is in contrast to God-Eternal Oketra, whose ability triggers when it dies (not when it enters the graveyard). In the case of Humility, I'm guessing no, since Humility's text doesn't say it only affects creatures on the battlefield, and so presumably also affects creatures in the graveyard.


texts: How many tokens do the survivors require in The Séance in Betrayal at House on the Hill?

texts:
We have been confused by some phrasing in the "How to Summon the Ghost" section in the Secrets of Survival booklet for haunt 2, "The Scéance", in Betrayal at House on the Hill (2e). Emphasized below:

  Each hero can attempt a Knowledge roll or Sanity
  roll of 5+ to conduct a séance. An explorer can
  attempt either one of these rolls during his or her
  turn, but only while that character is in the Pentagram
  Chamber.

  Each time one of these rolls succeeds, put a
  Knowledge Roll or Sanity Roll token (as appropriate)
  in the room where the haunt was revealed. When the
  heroes have a number of those tokens equal to half
  the number of players (round down), they've
  completed the séance.

My first inclination is to interpret this as

  When the players have a number of tokens (each of which may be Knowledge or Sanity) equal to half the number of players (round down), they've completed the séance.".

but it seems like it could also mean this:

  When the players have a number of Knowledge tokens and a number of Sanity tokens both equal to half the number of players (round down), they've completed the séance.".

This is further confused by the "Right Now" section of the rules, which instruct us to:

  Set aside a number of Knowledge Roll tokens  (triangular) equal to the number of players. Set aside  an equal
  number of Sanity Roll tokens (triangular)

How could we ever need a number of either token equal to the number of players? Shouldn't it ask us for the a number of tokens "equal to half the number of players (round down)"? The location of tokens doesn't matter, so as soon as players have aquired the required number there's no reason they'd collect any more.

After the game we checked the Traitor's Tome, but it didn't help:

   We thought there might be some way for the traitor to remove or manipulate tokens so that the extras were neccessary but it didn't mention the tokens at all.

How many of which tokens do the survivors require to summon the ghost?


texts: Is there ANY way to activate a planeswalker ability at instant speed?

texts:
With the vast richness of magic rules on all the cards and the comp rules, is there any way at all to activate a planeswalker ability at instant speed?

Typically, per the rules, you can only activate them once per turn as a sorcery, but are there any ways around this? Since the "golden rule" of magic is that when a card and the comp rules conflict, the card text wind, I figured there might, possibly, be a way around the restriction.

Relevant rule we are trying to dodge:

  606.3. A player may activate a loyalty ability of a permanent he or she controls any time he or she has priority and the stack is empty during a main phase of his or her turn, but only if no player has previously activated a loyalty ability of that permanent that turn.


texts: Can I use simulation to show that one bidding point count is more accurate than another?

texts:
I've created a new bridge point count system with aces worth 4.5 points, kings worth 3.0 points, queens worth 1.5 points, jacks worth 0.75 points, and tens worth 0.25. There are still 40 points in the deck, in line with the Work 4-3-2-1 system.

Apparently, a compilation of hands played in tournaments was run, and the following tables were created decades ago for the Work point count. Assuming "double dummy play, they showed, among other things, that a partnership with 25 hcps and a reasonably balanced hand was a (slight) favorite to make 3NT.

Supposed I had the computer recalculate points under the new system and sort the percentages of successful and failed contracts at each point level under double dummy play. Such an exercise might show higher ratios of success for 3NT and higher contracts for 25+ points than the original simulation, and higher rates of failure for 24- point contracts.*

Is this an appropriate test? Would the results described above demonstrate the advantages of the new point count system?

*The simulation could, of course, show the reverse, which I would take to mean that the new system was inferior.


texts:
What does this wealth card mean? My guess is: I get 10 corn, one less worker and... Maybe get 1 less corn per turn... The rules book doesn't say anything about it.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1mkG201ZcEndGdKQy1hQTZZNFk/view?usp=docslist_api.


texts:
I have a creature with the regenerate ability. If I activate this ability I generate some sort of a regenerate shield according to the following rule:

  701.12a: The next time [permanent] would be destroyed this turn, instead remove all damage marked on it and tap it. If it’s an attacking or blocking creature, remove it from combat.

Now, do I have to tap the create after I activated the ability? Or is the creature tapped after the creature would be destroyed and the regenerate shield "wears off"?

How does regeneration work in Magic the Gathering? according to this, I guess the creature get tapped when regenerate shield "wears off". (I'm sorry, I don't know a better word for the shield to take effect...)


texts: Help identifying this snake maze board game

texts:
Here is a short video showcasing a two-player table-top game produced by the Mexican toy company Lily-Ledy (most of its games were licensed from worldwide toy vendors, re-branded and manufactured in Mexico). The play mechanics are a bit similar to the old Aardvark computer game.

Can anyone identify if this game exists under a different toy brand?

Here are some pictures of the game, (sorry for the grainy quality)

Game description:

The objective of the game is to efficiently maneuver a snake around a
labyrinth, while trying to grab more pellets than your opponent.
Each opponent controls a protruding snake with two knobs.
One knob controls how much the serpent protrudes or retracts, while the other knob changes the snake's direction.
The tip of the snake is magnetic
so it will attract the pellets.


texts: Ticket to Ride United Kingdom Map Collection competing technology cards clarification

texts:
There are two technology cards in this set which either scores you points or lose:
Risky Contracts for the most completed Tickets
and
Equalising Beam for the longest Route.

The rules are very short for each:

"At the end of the game, score 20 if you have the most completed Tickets. If not, lose 20 points."

"At the end of the game, score 15 points if you have the longest Route. If not lose 15 points."

What happens if multiple players have the most or longest? What is the rule for a draw?


texts:
Is there any good deck which uses Lich?

Sure, there is some very corner-case where having it in the battlefield will help you, such as if you have fewer life than permanents, and you are about to kill your opponent, but even in that case, you'd rather have a card which actually kills him, rather than this…

So: is it just a terrible card, or is or has there been any actual use?

The question is if there is a deck where it would make sense to put this card and not another one, NOT if there is a strange corner case where if you magically happened to have this card in your hand, it would make sense to play it.


texts: When you use Chancellor to discard your deck, do you gain a gold for each Tunnel discarded?

texts:
When you play Chancellor and choose to move your discard pile into your deck, do you gain a Gold for each Tunnel moved into your discard pile?

From the wording of Chancellor, I would assume no because it doesn't mention that you're discarding those cards, but I don't have access to the rules at the moment to see if either base or Hinterlands rules cover this.


texts: Who has the winning hand in Texas-holdem (different full house hands)

texts:
The table cards were Q,Q,9,9,4

All four suits were on the board.

Player one had Q,3.

Player two had 9,8.

Which player wins?


texts: If your discard is the only card in the discard pile, can the next player pick up the one club assuming they have 2 in their hand.


texts: 7 Wonders Duel: Age cards before or after Wonder selection?

texts:
I have a question about the initial setup of a 7 Wonders Duel game. In the basic game, the rule book describes the initial setup of the board, then the wonder selection phase, then how to set up the cards for each Age. It's not explicit, but it seems implied that wonders are selected before the Age I cards are dealt out.

With the Pantheon expansion, however, the rules are a bit more explicit. It states:

  Prepare the basic game and the Age I structure. Place 5
  randomly-selected Mythology tokens face-down on the indicated spaces
  of the structure, then reveal these tokens. Return the remaining
  tokens to the box. Perform the Wonders selection phase

Here, it's clear that the Age I cards are dealt before the wonder selection phase. Is the order really different between the base game and the expansion, or are the Age cards always dealt before wonder selection? It won't make a big difference most of the time, but knowing I'll have first dibs on a choice resource among the Age cards could make wonders requiring that resource more attractive.


texts: Does the extra effect in Scavenging lead to 2 discards?

texts:
The Scavenging Crossfire card says

  At the start of each turn, the current runner randomly discards 1
  card. Then for each of their roles, that runner can return a card from
  their discard to their hand that has a color that matches that role
  color.

Then, the additional effect for crossfire discard piles of 3 or more says

  Instead, that runner randomly discards 1 card after returning cards

This wording confuses me.  Do I randomly discard, then return cards for each role, then discard again?  The "Instead" in the wording implies that the second discard is in place of doing something after the card returning, but the original text doesn't do anything after the card returning.


texts: (spoilers) Help! My group was playing risk legacy and the contents of the two pockets were swapped at the factory, help please!

texts:
Alright, basically, what happened is that on the second game we were able to open the pocket which says "open when a player is about to place 30+ troops on the board while they have a missle in their hand" (spoilers incoming). When we opened it, we were very confused. None of it made any sense really as the first thing we saw was the mutant faction. We got all the event cards for the mutants and bringer of nuclear fire, all the troops and everything and we were weirded out as none of it made any sense at all. We played the game normally and Sahara won.

Well we just finished game 3 and didn't open any packets or pockets that game. Afterwards, I looked for a complete list of spoilers and when I found it I saw what the 30+ troops pocket was supposed to be: Aliens. Now I checked, and we didn't break any rules. We opened the right pocket on game two, it just had the wrong stuff on it. "Open when using three missles in one combat roll" was still closed. Me and my brother decided to open it to see whether we got two mutant factions or swapped mutants and aliens. Either would've been a problem and I don't have a solution for either. What we have now is two swapped pockets. On game 2 we should have got aliens, but we have mutants, and we also already placed 3 missle powers on Die Mechaniker, Imperial Balkania and the Saharan republic. So far, the solution me and my brother have come up with is to place mutants and all their respective event cards (including the two remaining missle powers) back in the pocket they're supposed to be in, and re-open it when we actually meet it's requirements, until then we will ignore all missle powers already placed on factions.

Die mechaniker was supposed to be the alien collaborator and place his 30 troops on the alien island, but we never got around to that for the obvious reason that the contents of both pockets were swapped and we didn't catch it until after game 3. So far we haven't used any of the missle powers, but we still have the problem that one of the players in our group is hoping to gain "the bringer of nuclear fire" token next game and place the fallout territory. One of the ideas I had was to have the player who completed the objective game 2 to place the alien island at the start of game 4 and place 30 alien troops on that island with their HQ with the stipulation that nobody could play as the aliens in the fourth game. My brother disagreed. There is also the idea to just help him "re-open" the 30+ troops packet (even though the thing is already torn off) and just have it play normally, but I still don't know what to do to fix this.


texts: How do I bid using "weak Stayman" (or garbage stayman)

texts:
People like Marty Bergen have written things like, "almost anytime you're responding to your partner's 1NT and you have few clubs, you should respond 2 clubs," Stayman (this is a paraphrase, not an exact quote).

The point I think he was trying to make was that you should aim for a two-level suit contract, even with something like (s) xxxx (h) xxx (d) xxxxx (c) x.

Here, you're bidding Stayman while, weak, not aiming for a game contract.

If partner responds 2 diamonds (no four card major), should you just pass and be glad he bid your "suit," even though he might have a 3-3-2-5 distribution? If he bids 2 hearts, should you accept what may be "Moysian" (4-3) fit and pass?

In general, should you pass whatever your partner bids, after bidding a weak Stayman? Are there exceptions to the rule? Or would you recommend against bidding this way with the hand listed above?


texts: How important is base size in Warhammer 40K?

texts: I have a Tau sniper I want to put on a rocky out-cliff, that would require using a non-standard base (a larger one). Is that allowed in the rules? Would it fly in a casual game?


texts: Does transforming a card trigger an enters the battlefield effect?

texts:
When a card transforms to its back face, does it trigger an enter the battlefield ability?

In most cases (maybe all), when a card is flipped, it's exiled and returned to the battlefield so it triggers. But what would be triggered if card is just flipped?

For example, when Chandra, Fire of Kaladesh is flipped to Chandra, Roaring Flame, does it trigger Oath of Chandra second ability?


texts: If I cast Path to Exile on Leonin Arbiter, can the owner search without paying {2}?

texts:
Leonin Arbiter says:

Players can't search libraries. Any player may pay {2} for that player to ignore this effect until end of turn.

If I cast Path to Exile on the Arbiter, its controller would usually be able to search for a basic land. Arbiter makes it so that they can't search the library unless they pay {2}, but the Path also removes Arbiter, and once it's no longer on the battlefield presumably its effect doesn't apply anymore. Can the Arbiter's controller search for a basic land or not?


texts: What does it mean for a game to be 'Caylus-like'?

texts:
Forgive me if this is a dumb question, but while browsing board-game related forums I've often heard the term 'Caylus-like' used to describe a game (One usage I remember is that the family version of Agricola was called 'Caylus-like' when compared to the full version). Never having played Caylus, I have no idea what it means, and haven't been able to figure out a good definition from the context. If I had to guess, I'd say it meant that the game had a lot of strategy with very little luck, but I still think I'm missing something.

What exactly does 'Caylus-like' mean? What are people saying about a game when they describe it in this way?


texts:
Is it possible for a human to play Connect 4 perfectly? Have there been such players?

I am actually a Connect 4 enthusiast, but find it increasingly hard to memorize so many initial positions. Is it possible for a human to memorize some basic rules and tricks, as well as starting positions, and win atleast 80% of the games (starting 1st) against a perfect player?

Are there any simple rules that I've happened to miss, or any shortcut to memorizing the starting moves?


texts: How are power plant discards handled in Power Grid?

texts: When a player purchases a power plant above the maximum limit, and must discard one, does the discard go under the stack of power plants, into a separate pile, or is it removed from the game?


texts: Can Taigam grant rebound to spells I already cast before his attack?

texts: So, for example, if I cast Shock, and then during my combat step attack with Taigam, Ojutai Master, then after he attacks, cast another spell like Opt, would both Shock and Opt gain rebound as they were cast on a turn that the creature attacked? Or only Opt as it was cast after he attacked?


texts: What is the origin of the term 'Mana Dork'?

texts:
'Mana Dork', as a slang term, refers to a creature that taps to produce mana, such as a Llanowar Elves.

What is the origin of this name? If someone simply started saying it, do we know who first popularized it?


texts: If the Warlord destroys a player's eighth district, does the game still end?

texts:
In Citadels, if the Warlord destroys a player's eighth district, assuming no other players have eight districts, does the game still end at the end of the round?

If so, does that player still get the "first to build eight districts" bonus points?

What if on the last round, Alfred finishes eight districts, Betty finishes eight districts, and Charlie Warlords one of Alfred's districts.  Who gets what bonus points here?  Alfred was the first to build eight districts, but does not have eight districts at the end.


texts:
Okay so when I was looking up the answer to a different question I had I found this

  You assign 2 damage on the first target, but he's not dead yet until you assign all 5 damage that you have. So all the remaining creature are still 2/2 so you are forces to a assign at least 2 damages on each so assign 2 damage on the second in the row, and 1 damage to the 3rd creature for a grand total of 5 damages. The forth creature receive no damage.

So if this is correct, this is something I didn't know about blocking multiple creatures (I'm fairly new to the game and have never actually had it happen, only been reading about the fact that you can double block)

So if I attack with 6/6, and am blocked with 4/4 and 2/3

This is how I thought it worked

I choose order of 4/4 then 2/3
So 4/4 dies because I did 6 damage, 6/6 took 4
2/3 dies because I did 6 damage, 6/6 took 2
My 6/6 died because it took a total of 6 damage

So is that correct? Or is it like this

Attack with 6/6
Blocked by 4/4 and 2/3
Order of 4/4 then 2/3, 4 damage and 2 damage (Total of 6, my creatures attack number)
4/4 dies because it took 4 damage, 6/6 takes 4 damage
2/3 lives because it took 2 damage, 6/6 take 2 damage
My 6/6 dies because it took a total of 6 damage

Source


texts: What is the deck and name of this card that gives extra food?

texts:
I remember seeing a card once, but I cannot remember which deck it belongs to, or whether it was a minor improvement or occupation. I am also having trouble finding it on google. The text was similar to:

"When you use a minor or major improvement to convert building resources into food, you receive two extra food"

Thoughts?


texts: Can I use both abilities of Tainted Field? What's the difference?

texts: When using Tainted Field, can I use both abilities if I have a Swamp? I was told I can only use one ability or the other but not both, but I do not understand the benefit of using one over the other. They both basically seem the same to me.


texts: Eye of the Storm - can I still counter spells?

texts:
Eye of the Storm exiles an instant or sorcery card 'when played', and adds it to its effect. When is it considered 'played', when the costs are paid, or when it resolves?

More specifically, if my opponent plays Shock, and it moves to the  stack, can I still gett a Counterspell in to remove it from the stack and keep it from triggering Eye?


texts: In Settlers of Catan, are all actions on the same turn simultaneous?

texts: In Settlers of Catan, multiple action can be taken per turn, so you may want to go back and undo an action after you think about it more. I am wondering whether actions can be undone after proceeding on to something else. Such  as building a road, building a settlement then, after realizing the road shouldn't be built, removing it. So, my question is, can action be undone after moving on?


texts: Is Parcheesi simply an alternate name for Pachisi? Or are they significantly different games?

texts:
There are a few board games that are the exactly the same as each other, but have different names. For instance, Reversi and Othello are exactly the same game, but the latter is a trademarked name. Similarly, Star Halma and Chinese Checkers are exactly the same game.

As a result of a recent meta discussion on tag synonyms, I'm wondering: is Parcheesi simply an alternate name for Pachisi? Or are they significantly different games?

My initial searches were inconclusive. According to Board Game Geek, they are the same game. However, there are separate Wikipedia articles for Parcheesi and Pachisi.


texts: Would a turn order opposite the disprove order affect the strategy or gameplay in Clue?

texts:
The official Clue rules call for a clockwise turn order, and a clockwise order of disproving suggestions. Would changing the order of the turn, or the order of disproving a suggestion so one is the opposite/reverse of the other have any meaning effect on strategy or gameplay?

  Miss Scarlet— the player with the red token— always plays first. Play then proceeds, in
  turn, to the first player’s left.

  Proving a Suggestion True or False - As soon as you make a Suggestion, your opponents, in turn, try to prove it false. The first to try is the player to your immediate left. This player looks at his or her cards to see if one of the three cards you just named is there. If the player does have one of the cards named, he or she must show it to you and no one else. If the player has more than one of the cards named, he or she selects just one to show you.

  If that opponent has none of the cards that you named, then the chance to prove your
  Suggestion false passes, in turn, to the next player on the left.


texts:
We've got the 2013 edition of Pandemic, and the four of us are struggling! For instance, it says to prepare the Player Deck by using 4, 5, or 6 Epidemic cards for an Introductory, Standard, or Heroic game. We keep losing on 4.

To get some help, I watched the Youtube video from Tabletop Episode 14 for  Pandemic - which uses the older version - and they seemed to suggest starting with just 2 Epidemic cards. I know I'm an adult, so I can do what I want really - but is the 4 Epidemic cards in 2013 too hard for newbies?


texts: Does a non-creature God entering the battlefield trigger Pelt Collector?

texts:
Let's say I have a 1/1 Pelt Collector on the battlefield, then cast Nylea, Keen-Eyed. I don't have enough devotion to turn Nylea into a creature. Does Pelt Collector, which triggers when a creature with more power enters the battlefield, trigger?

I'm guessing no because Nylea isn't a creature, but I'm not sure. After all, it's also a creature spell when it's being cast. If it enters the battlefield as a creature before becoming an enchantment, presumably Pelt Collector will trigger.


texts: What is a good resource to discover new games?

texts:
On this site recomendation questions are banned.  You are not allowed to ask:

  I often play risk and Axis & Allies.  I don't like Settlers of Catan because bla bla bla ... What other games would I like?

See meta pages:

Game Recommendation questions are banned
Should we ban game recommendation questions? - Done

I was just wondering where/how members of this community discover new games.  I have played a number of games including:

Chess
Monopoly
Multiple Risk type games
Ticket to Ride
Axis and Allies
Settlers of Catan

Suppose I want to find more games like this.  Where/how should I look?  What is a good way to discover new games?


texts: Milling cards with discard an draw abilities

texts:
I have a Blue Black Mill deck with Sphinx's Tutelage and Day's Undoing (Whispering Madness works in the same way). If I had all four Tutelages on the field, and cast Days Undoing / Whispering Madness, how would the card draws work afterwards?

I am under the impression that either way this would give me the game, but would the opponent draw first, then me so that I could start milling them or do I draw first, start milling them, then they draw seven?


texts: What does Counterbalance counter, when revealing a split card?

texts:
Split cards have 2 Converted Mana Costs everywhere except the stack. I saw a similar question relating to Dark Confidant explaining that you lose life for each converted mana cost, however the way it was explained (you get 2 answers) made me unsure if you can counter a spell with either converted mana cost, or the sum of the converted mana costs.

If you reveal (for example) Life // Death with Counterbalance, what CMC spells can you counter?


texts: How often can I trigger private security force

texts: So let's say I've scored private security force and the runner is tagged. On my next turn can I use all 3 clicks to do 3 damage? I'm a bit unclear at what points I can perform these kind of actions.


texts:
While playing through Saloon Tycoon for the first time, we weren't able to figure out whether the roof counts as a floor or not. There are two possibilities:

1. The Roof is a Floor
In which case the tallest section would be:

Floor 3: Roof
Floor 2: Another room
Floor 1: Saloon

This is how we played it, since the roof is a tile just like any other it seemed like it should follow the same rules. This led to problems with the Luxury Suite, which is required to be on the third floor.

2. The Roof is not a Floor
In which case the tallest section could be:

Floor 4. Roof
Floor 3. Another room
Floor 2. Another room
Floor 1. Saloon

This helps the Luxury Suite make sense, but it causes a conflict because the roof is now different than other tiles. It essentially becomes a fourth "floor".


texts: How does combat damage work when one creature blocks multiple attackers?

texts: If I have Brave the Sands, am I allowed to block both a 6/6 flying and a 5/4 with my 1/2 Gurmag Swiftwing, and take 0 damage?


texts:
We are playing phase 10, and our rules say “To use, simply discard the skip card on your turn by placing it in front of the player you’ve chosen to skip instead of placing it on the discard pile.”
So what happens when player 1 lays a skip card in front of player 3, but player 2 goes out before player 3 can place that skip card on the discard pile for their turn? Do you count those points or has it already technically been played?


texts:
I was watching this video of some old school magic: https://youtu.be/cEUBkHc36hE?t=911

During player A's untap phase, Player B used an Icy Manipulator to tap Player A's Jayemdae Tome.

I don't understand why this is effective. Why can't Player A use the Jayemdae Tome in response?


texts: Multiplayer card game based on Rock Paper Scissors- what is it called?

texts:
A few years ago I played a fun multiplayer card game unashamedly based on Rock Paper Scissors.  The players each had a hand of cards that were "Rock", "Paper", or "Scissors", but there was text on the the cards that added extra powers and an added element of strategy.  Can't remember what it was called though.

I already searched Boardgamegeek for "Rock Paper Scissors" and googled it, but haven't been able to find anything that matches what I vaguely remember.

I know it's not much to go on, but anyone have a guess what game I played?


texts: Dictate of Erebos and Undercity Informer stack question

texts:
Situation: My opponent has Dictate of Erebos out ("Whenever a creature you control dies, each opponent sacrifices a creature.").  He then attacks me with one of his creatures; I defend, killing his creature, but then I have to sacrifice a creature in response due to the enchantment.  I name Undercity Informer as the creature I will sacrifice.  In response to having to sacrifice him, I use his ability, pay 1, and sacrifice target creature (I chose Undercity Informer), and target opponent reveals cards from his/her library till they reveal a land and put all cards revealed into the graveyard.

Does this then mean I have escaped the cost of Dictate of Erebos as when the stack now unfolds Undercity Informer is sacrificed and his ability works and the creature to be sacrificed has already been sacrificed, so therefore cannot be sacrificed?

Or do I then pick a new creature to sacrifice?


texts: May opponent play fatal leaky pipe on my pipeline?

texts:
In the Parker Brothers card game Waterworks, may an opponent play a leaky pipe that makes it impossible for me to win?  I don't just mean a play that stops me from winning this turn; I mean one that stops me from ever winning.

Typically this would be done by playing a leaky elbow pipe that directs my pipeline into an area already enclosed by earlier sections of my own pipeline, with some open space but not enough to construct a pipeline of sufficient length to win.

Is this allowed?  Or is it my own fault for building my pipeline in such a way?


texts: How many cards do I need to make a collected set "draftable?"

texts:
I have very fond memories of (Triple) Innistrad, which is an absolutely amazing draft format, probably without equal.

I'd like to be able to have a playset that I can pull out, years from now, and draft amongst my friends.

I want a complete set that also serves as a rough facsimile of drafting from packs, i.e. with a card distribution roughly similar to actual Limited rather than Cube — including both the rarity distribution and the chance to see multiples of various cards, which is vital to actually being able to play the set in Limited as intended. I don't mind taking some time to set up "packs" before drafting or sort cards afterward.

How many copies of each card would I need, by rarity, to supply one draft pod (of 6-8 players), with a card distribution roughly similar to a real draft?


texts:
Home Builders is a cooperative game, published by Family Pastimes and Zonnespel/Sunny Games.

My youngest son likes it, mainly because of the theme. My eldest thinks it's boring, and I have to agree with him.

Its rules are pretty simple.

First off, while it's a cooperative game, there's actually very little cooperation needed or even possible. Most of it is pure luck.

But the main objection I have is that at a certain point, which can be quite early in the game, depending on what you draw, you already know if you're going to win or lose, even though you still have to finish the game.

Ideally, I'd like to delay the moment when you know you've won, or you've lost.
There are four disasters, two repair options and two disaster prevention options. If you have at least as much prevention cards left as there are disasters left, you know you're going to win. If there are more parts of buildings destroyed than there are repair cards left, you know you can't win anymore. As I said, this can occur early in the game, depending on the luck of the draw.

How can we change this?


texts: Can anyone identify this variant of Yukon solitaire?

texts:
I learned this game from my grandfather, and I want wondering if anyone else has seen it before or knows the name of it.
It uses one deck with no jokers. To set up the starting stacks, moving left to right deal one card face up and 6 face down to form 7 rows. Then, on top of those cards from left to right deal 2 face up and 5 face down. Then from left to right deal 3 face up and 4 face down, so on and so forth until there is a face up card dealt on the rightmost stack. You will end up with 7 stacks all with the same number of cards. You will be left with 3 leftover cards that can be played at any time.

From this point on it is played in the same way as standard Yukon, where stacks of cards can be moved around as long as the destination card is opposite suit and one number larger, while trying to build 4 stacks above starting with aces and up to kings. This is what leads me to think it is a Yukon variant.

Any wisdom on this would be much appreciated, thanks!


texts: Axis and Allies 2nd Edition: to Pearl Harbor or not to Pearl Harbor

texts:
When playing as Japan in Axis and Allies, 2nd edition, should Japan attack Pearl Harbor on its first turn?

If so, why and what force structure do you use? Do your actions depend on what Russia and the UK have done on their first turn (e.g. heavily fortified Eastern Russia or build an Indian factory)? Do you press on with the attack no matter what or is there a point at which you'd cut your losses and retreat? If you win, do you take your fleet back to home waters on turn two, or do you continue South or East?

If you don't attack, what's your rationale and what do you do with the units that might have participated?


texts: Can I enter a non-target foreign home in Chinese Checkers?

texts:
Given a game of Chinese Checkers
And that I have a marble next to a foreign home which is not the taget opposite

Can I place my marble in that foreign home?

Can I jump in and out of that foreign home if it takes me back outside?


texts: Can two investigators trade the same spells?

texts: If two investigators each have the same spell (but with different flip side consequences), can they trade these spells during the trade action?


texts: Cards that restrict untapping of creatures

texts:
I have been looking for two cards that I played with the other day and I cannot find.
They are both artifacts.

Creatures with power 4 or more don't untap.
Creatures with power 2 or more don't untap.

That may be a simplified version of the text, but that's what the abilities do.


texts: What is the box size of this very valuable 1957 French Monopoly set?

texts:
The cover of a French 1957 Monopoly set (see picture) appears in two web sites.
It was evaluated at $2,456 on one website,
workandmoney.com and estimated for auction at £2,000 on another website dailymail.co.uk.

There are two types of Monopoly white box sets, a long one, and a smaller, square one, more in use in Europe, in which the board is folded in four squares; the long one was sometimes also used in France.

Is there a means of determing which of the box sizes is that of this very valuable 1957 French Monopoly set?


texts:
I have a couple of questions on Goblin Razerunners's  counter and end step abilities:

If I pay the mana cost ({1}{R}) and then sacrifice a land, which are all needed to put a +1/+1 counter on Goblin Razerunners (making it a 4/5), does the counter expire at the end of my turn, thus, returning Goblin Razerunners to a 3/4?
Assuming the answer my question above is, "No", during my subsequent turns can I pay the costs to increase my Goblin Razerunners' power and toughness again by +1/+1 again, which would make it a 5/6?

Now, concerning the end step:

Can I activate the end step ability during each one of my end steps, or only when I pay and sacrifice the lands necessary to increase the counters?

Thanks.


texts:
I have a 1/1 Kitesail Scout and use a +1/+1 pump spell to make it a 2/2. My opponent casts a Fiery Temper to deal 3 damage to it. I respond with Blossoming Defense for +2/+2 and Hexproof, he responds with Murder.

Does the Kitesail Scout die?

I know the last in first out stack rule, but didn't my Kitesail have Hexproof, so therefore his Murder could not be cast as the Kitesail was no longer a legal target?


texts: What to do with "Antarctic Guide" and "Dog Sled" while playing against an Ancient One from the base game?

texts: The unique asset deck in Mountains of Madness expansion features two cards which only have an effect if you are on the Antarctica Side Board. What if I am playing against an Ancient One from the base game? Should these components be returned to the box in that case?


texts: If I fail a spell check to gain a combat check bonus, am I unable to equip another item?

texts: When I use my hand slot to attempt to cast a spell, and it fails, am I unable to equip a different item or spell in that hand?


texts: We had an issue come up tonight playing TtR.  Nearing the end of the game one player claimed a route, including placing the trains and turning in the train cards, leaving that player with only 5 trains left.  That player still needed to claim a 6 train route.  Realizing the mistake, the player immediately called for a change in which route he was claiming.  This happened BEFORE the next player did anything with their turn.  Player in question feels the next player did not start their turn, so it was still his turn and could change his mind.  Two other players in the game felt the player's turn ended when he placed his trains and turned in the cards.  The player in question lost.  There is nothing in the rules.  In Monopoly, it is still your turn until the next player rolls the dice.  Since there is no clear movement like this, when does a player's turn end in Ticket to Ride?


texts: What game? Matching dice with two each of d4, d6, d8, and d10

texts:
I bought this game at gen con in 2015. It is not dissimilar to Yahtzee or Farkle. I'd given it to my grandmother as a gift, but she has misplaced it.

You have two four-sided dice, two six-sided dice, two eight-sided dice, and two ten-sided dice.

During your turn, you get 3 rolls. You can set aside dice to match or (re)roll them, with your goal being to get matching pairs or better.

For example, I think that two 8s would be eight points, but three 8s would be sixteen points.

I can't remember the name or the other rules.


texts: How can I determine whether two decks are equally strong?

texts: I am making a homemade TCG using cartoon network card wars as a backbone. How can I determine whether the deck of any two specific characters are equally strong, including the floops and not battling between the decks?


texts: If I claim a monster token from the cup, do I pick at random?

texts:
One of the Other World encounters says

  Pass a Luck (-1) check to claim a monster trophy from the cup (even if it is Endless)....

Does this mean I pick randomly?


texts:
Should Seer take part in the Sheriff contest and indicate his identity at the beginning?

When I watched a so-called top werewolf boardgame live, this Seer publishes his identity at beginning, he argues with the werewolf who act as Seer with the aim of misleading the villagers to vote someone his claimed as "werewolf". I though this Seer will soon die, but werewolves do not dare to kill him at first two round. Interesting. Killing hims means accepting the fact that he is real Seer.

I though Seer should keep secret and survive as long as he can, so that to investigate more players. This is a way to keep him safe and time to get more information.

Is it a good strategy for the Seer to reveal his identity at the beginning?


texts: What happens to a creature enchanted with totem armor if both are destroyed at the same time?

texts:
If a player controls a Boon Satyr enchanted with Hyena Umbra providing totem armor, and an opponent plays  Fracturing Gust to destroy all artifacts and more importantly enchantments. What happens?

An aura with Totem armor replaces destruction of the enchanted creature with destruction of the aura itself. Boon satyr is an enchantment creature.

This question may become more important due to the printing of  End Hostilities.


texts: In Alien Frontiers, how does Raider's Outpost work after a ship has been teleported to another Orbital Facility?

texts:
Scenario setup:

A player uses the Raider's Outpost by docking a 3-4-5 set of ships.
Same player uses an Orbital Teleporter to move the 5 ship to another Orbital Facility.

Do the 3 and 4 ships remain in the same position after the 5 is moved, or do they shift? What if the 3 or 4 were moved instead?

A higher value set of ships is required to use the Raider's Outpost when it is occupied. If the 5 ship had not been teleported, a 4-5-6 set would be required. However since the 5 ship has been moved, it's not clear what is now required to use the Raider's Outpost. Since it only has the 3-4 ships remaining, is a 3-4-5 set sufficient? Or is it played as if the 5 ship were still there, meaning a 4-5-6 set is required?


texts: What sorts of containers have been found to be appropriate for storing large amounts of small cards?  For example, in Descent: Second Edition, There are 155 cards which must be stored, and which measure 41mm by 63mm.  Once they are sleeved (in these), they no longer fit in their little baggie;  is there some company that makes/sells boxes that fit these small cards?  Are there any commonly available containers that work well to fit these card sizes?


texts: Which computer board game designer works best for card games?

texts:
I've heard of a few computer board game designers, such as Vassal, Cyberboard, and Zun Tzu. Which would work best for building a custom card game? Note, I am willing to use one I haven't heard of, so long as it meets my needs. Things of note include:

I need 2 decks of cards
Each player has their own private hand, but will have some cards in play in front of them that can be seen by all users.
Each card will have several characteristics, basically several integers tied to the value of the card.
I want this to work with Windows 7 and XP.
It would be nice to play over a LAN or the internet, but this is not required.
I would prefer to not have to have any graphics at this time, I want to just have some text labels on each card for the time being.

A few other things about me.

I'm am intermediate Java programmer, with some knowledge of C and C++ as well. I know scripting languages like Python at an intermediate level as well.
I would prefer to have something relatively easy, but this is not required.


texts:
I have created a very simple card game but I am worried some of the mechanics may be shared with others.
Is there anywhere I can check this, and what would be the outcome if other games did share the mechanic?


texts:
Let's say my opponent has a Crackleburr, two red and blue useless tokens, and an infinite amount of red and blue mana. Crackleburr's card text is this:

  {U/R}{U/R}{T}, Tap two untapped red creatures you control: Crackleburr deals >3 damage to target creature or player.

  {U/R}{U/R}{Q}, Untap two tapped blue creatures you control: Return target creature to its owner's hand.

Now let's say that my opponent, on his turn, activates Crackleburr's first ability to kill a creature of mine. I respond with Path to Exile on Crackleburr. Can Crackleburr respond to that Path to Exile by activating his second ability? Then, assuming it can, can Crackleburr respond to his second activation by activating his first ability again? So, with infinite mana, can Crackleburr continually respond to itself?


texts: When does a token have the same name as another token?

texts:
I'm playing a Selesnya tokens deck, and my opponent casts Detention Sphere, which exiles all creatures with the "same name", on one of my tokens. Does he get to exile

All of my tokens?
All of the tokens of the same creature type/power/toughness? (E.g. all 1/1 Birds.)
Just that one token?


texts:
What versions of poker allow Jokers to be included in the deck?
Are they treated as wildcards / how are they scored?

To date I've only played with a 52 card deck (i.e. where jokers would only be used to replace a specific lost card to make up an incomplete deck).


texts: If a player rolls 3 consecutive 6s and on second six landed on another player’s token can they take a turn?

texts:
After landing on another player’s token on second 6 when dice rolled third time (because previous turn was 6)

If a player rolls a 6 on third roll it cannot move further because of rolling three sixes. However, as they landed on another player's token on second six they gained an extra turn.

Does a player get another turn after third six?


texts: How do character upgrades interact with Dispatcher's special ability?

texts:
(This should be spoiler free, all of this info is available at the start of the season.)

In our game we upgraded the dispatcher with the Pilot upgrade to Direct Flight without discarding the card. Pilot seems especially powerful since the dispatcher can then move anyone to himself and then trade them that cities card.

Last night the question arose about could he Direct Flight another player's pawn without discarding the city card and without moving himself to that city, for example, moving the medic to a city with a cured disease to instantly treat it?

My instinct says that this is a legal use, as the Dispatcher ability says "Move another player's pawn as if it is your own" and his pawn has the ability to Direct Flight without discarding.


texts: In bridge, if a 1 NT bidder is doubled, is it right to "redouble for rescue?"

texts:
Suppose South opens with 1 NT (15-17). After two passes, East doubles, showing possession of most of the remaining 23-25 high card points not held by South.

  1NT P P Dbl

South has a flat 4-3-3-3 distribution, with no real suit preference (incidentally, I wouldn't open 1NT with a bare 15, preferring a short minor, with a flat distribution). Can he "redouble" for rescue"?

A NT bid severely limits the bidder's strength and shape. In this case, South is asking North to bid his longest (hopefully 5-card) suit as a form of "damage control." If North has a Yarborough (no high card points) will s/he likely interpret South's redouble as such?

Or is there too much of a danger (between reasonably good players) that North will pass out South?

Put another way, does a "redouble" in this context work like a takeout double, where partner has to answer unless he plans to play to punish the opponents) with a strong hand?


texts: Would Cabal Stronghold count Snow-Covered Swamps?

texts:
Would Cabal Stronghold count Snow-Covered Swamp for making mana?

I would assume so, as Cabal Stronghold counts basic swamp cards, and Snow-Covered Swamps have both basic and swamp on the card type.


texts: In Keyforge, does *Bingle Bangbang* deal the 5 damage when it attacks as well as when it's being attacked?

texts:
The card text of Bingle Bangbang says:

  Before Fight: Deal 5D to each neighbor of the creature Bingle Bangbang fights.

Because a "fight" happens when Bingle Bangbang attacks as well as when it is being attacked, this would mean it deals the 5 damage to the neighbors in both cases. However this appears to me to be a too strong ability, and therefore I wonder whether this is really the case?


texts:
Is there a reasonable way to play Texas holdem in such a way that the game has a time limit? A way you can say "the game ends at 10pm" and then determine the winner/distribute the winnings in a fair way?

Some friends and I like to have a fortnightly poker game. Mainly as an excuse to get us all together as we are busy and don't get as much chance to catch up these days. Sometimes just getting us together is hard enough and because we play on a weeknight, some people become reluctant to commit setting aside a night to play because the games can drag on for hours.

You could stop the game at a certain time and say whoever has the most chips at 10pm gets all the money (we play with 4-6 people with a token $5-$10 buy in just for fun).

Another thing we have tried is when it's down to 2 people, the person with the most wins everything minus the "second place" holders buy-in which they get back.

It always seems murky and potentially unfair whatever we do though because tables can turn quickly and the guy with the most chips at can be broke after just one more hand for example.

Is a time limited game a thing? I have searched and there are all kinds of "limits" but none which seem to limit overall game time.


texts:
The Blinding Mage has an ability to tap a target creature. Furyblade Vampire has the ability to discard a card at the beginning of combat for +3/+0. I don't see who has to act first? Furyblade doesn't want to discard a card if it cannot attack, but the Blinding Mage might not want to spend the resources to tap if Furyblade isn't buffed? Who has the last say?

player1: discard card to buff Furyblade

(does player2 get the option to use abilities?)

player2: use Blinding Mage's ability to tap Furyblade


texts: Haunt requires adding a room, but it will seal off a floor. What do I do?

texts:
In Betrayal at House on the Hill, there is a rule saying that you can't add a tile if it would close off the floor:

Can I Seal Off a Floor by Placing a Tile?
You can’t place a tile in such a way that it seals off a floor (that is, leaves no way to connect other rooms to that floor). If the only possible placement of a tile would seal off a floor, discard that tile and draw new ones until you draw one that leaves a free doorway. If all the remaining tiles for a floor would seal off the floor, then the person whose turn it is rearranges the floor until there are more free doorways.

However, some haunts require that a certain room be added, if it doesn't exist already. For instance, Haunt #46 (The Feast) says the following

If the Attic isn't in the house, search the room stack for it and put it on the upper floor. Then shuffle that stack.

It says a similar thing for the Dining Room as well.
What happens if adding one of these tiles would seal off a floor? The room needs to be there for the Haunt, so not adding it isn't an option. What happens?


texts: I'm trying to get my fiancée interested in playing Warhammer games. She's interested in fantasy and I'm interested in the sci-fi 40k branch of the game, plus I've already got an army in the making. If we got a fantasy army, is there any adapter between the two rulesets?


texts: If my walker is in base with a vehicle can it shoot AND attack?

texts:
My opponent rams my walker with his tank. No significant damage is incurred on either side, but my walker is immobilized and my walker fails to scratch the tank. What are my options on my turn:

Can't shoot since technically I'm in combat, but can attack during my combat phase.
Can shoot at the tank, and can attack in my combat phase.
Can shoot at anything (in LOS) and can attack the tank in my combat phase.
Can shoot at anything, but if I don't shoot the tank, I can't attack it in my combat phase.
Something else?

If my walker isn't immobilized, what changes?


texts: Can I begin a turn when there is only 1 card remaining in the player deck?

texts:
If my role (let's say the Scientist) has 4 cards of the same color but was not able to get to a research station.  And, let's say a different player (the Operations guy) lands on the same city as the Scientist and in his last action he builds a research facility in that city. The Scientist is now in the city with the research facility, but just as it is now the Scientist's turn, there is only 1 card remaining in the player deck.

Did the team run out of time?

Technically, as the player's turn begins with actions, the Scientist can cure the last disease before having to draw the 2 cards which would result in the game ending--except that the cure had been placed on the board ending the game in a win.

So, can a turn begin when there is only 1 card in the player deck, or must there be 2?


texts: What's better for Ork Nob in Warbiker Mob: Big Choppa or Klaw?

texts:
I've been assembling a warbiker mob recently and I've wanted to make one unit a Nob. According to the Ork Codex I can then give him either a Big Choppa (+10 points) or a Klaw (+25 points). I know the Klaw is more powerful but it also carries the disadvantage to Initiative.

Is the Klaw really worthy the extra points or is it better to stick with the Big Choppa (which also looks much better on a model)?

Big Choppa - gives +2 Strength

Klaw - energy weapon (ignores armor) and doubles the Strength


texts: Android netrunner data and destiny deck lists

texts: As the data and destiny expansion did not come with any deck lists I was wondering if anyone had tips for how to construct decks for these new runners Apex, Adam and Sunny Lebeau


texts: Completing the third mystery during the same round as Doom track reaches 0

texts: If I finish my third mystery during an encounter phase, but then Doom track reaches 0 during the related mythos phase, do I win the game? Or does the Ancient One awaken and I need to solve the final mystery?


texts: Can someone explain me why was this a split pot? texas hold'em

texts: I would want to ask you why was this a split pot.


texts: What is the name of this game with dice and tiles?

texts:
The person offering it calls it "Bamboo Game".
There are no rules supplied with it.


texts: I don't know of a scenario that is an example: if either number can be played but not both, the player must play the larger one. Can someone please explain when this rule should be used.


texts: Is a fifth card in a suit often a decisive factor in three no trump contracts?

texts:
I've seen a number of successful 3 NT contracts made with 23-24 HCPs (not 26). In most of these cases, the declarer's side had a solid five card suit that provided a large number of tricks. On the other hand, I've seen 3NT contracts fail with a combined 27-28 HCP points. Usually, this was because of "flat" distribution in declarer's and dummy's hands, (4-3-3-3, or 4-4-3-2), especially if they "mirror."

Conversely, it seems that the the defense has a very good chance to prevail against a 26 HCP 3NT if they have a reasonably solid eight card suit, say, QJTxxxxx or better divided 5-3, but not if they are divided 4-4. (With 6-2, it depends if the hand with 6 has enough entries to cash them.)

Is a good five card suit often a decisive factor in making or breaking a 3NT contract? It seems to me like that fifth card in a suit may be worth about 3 points, so 24+"3" will probably make, and 27-"3" will often fail.


texts: Monarchs Stormforth vs Number 59: Crooked Cook

texts:
The Monarchs Stormforth:

  Once during this turn, if you would Tribute a monster for a Tribute
  Summon, you can Tribute 1 monster your opponent controls even though
  you do not control it. You can only activate 1 "The Monarchs
  Stormforth" per turn. During the turn you activate this card, you
  cannot Special Summon monsters from the Extra Deck.

Number 59: Crooked Cook:

  2 Level 4 monsters While you control no other cards on the field, this
  card is unaffected by other cards' effects. Once per turn, during
  either player's turn: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card;
  destroy as many other cards you control as possible, then this card
  gains 300 ATK until the end of this turn for each monster destroyed by
  this effect and sent to the Graveyard.

If player A has Number 59: Crooked Cook on field and being unaffected by other card effected, can player B tribute it for tribute summon if used Monarchs Stormforth?


texts: Can I play a Sorcery or Instant without paying its mana cost, in any way?

texts:
In Magic, there are creature cards with huge mana costs (like 15 for Emrakul, the Aeons Torn), that can hardly ever be paid in a normal game of Magic. Luckily, there are many ways to "cheat" creatures into play. There also cards that can put lands, enchantments or artifacts from the hand onto the battlefield.

Sorceries are also sometimes extremely expensive. Is there any card in Magic that allows one to play a Sorcery or Instant without paying its mana cost?


texts: Does a player always has to have uncompleted destination tickets on-hand?

texts: When you finish your routes, do you have to draw new ones?


texts: When a pokemon card says 20x the number of energy do you do 20 damage if there is no energy on a pokemon or would it be zero? Mewtwo for example, is it 20 plus the number of energies?


texts: Does an activated ability that creates a permanent get affected by Damping Engine?

texts: Damping Engine is in play. If a person has more permanents in play than the player with the lowest amount, but does not have the most permanents themselves, pays to activate an ability which creates a creature token, would this be prevented by the effect of Damping Engine?


texts: How does my life total work out with Angel's Grace and Ad Nauseum?

texts: If I have a positive life total and cast Angel's Grace then Ad Nauseam and draw my whole deck I know I can't lose the game, but is my life total one or negative a bunch?


texts:
Many simple games, such as Nim or Connect 4 are solved meaning that there is an unbeatable strategy for the person who either starts, or plays second.

Despite knowing this - People still play these games, why?


texts: Do all Reaction cards completely block all Attack cards?

texts:
I'm about to start a Dominion-day and need a question answered.

Do ALL reaction cards completely block all attack cards? i.e. does Tunnel block Witch?


texts: Is the only time a monster encounter occurs during the movement phase or when 'a monster appears'?

texts: Do monster encounters only occur during the movement phase when leaving a space with a monster or ending at one, and also when cards say a monster appears? Flying monsters moving to your space don't induce an encounter right?


texts: Various questions about Karametra's Favor

texts:
If you tap Karametra's Favor, does that mana gotten from this card disappear on your next turn, or does it work in the same way than a normal Basic Land card?
If you attack or block with a creature, which has the Karametra's Favor, can you use it's ability at the same time when attacking or blocking with the Creature?
Can you decide not to gain more mana with Karametra's Favor, when you choose to attack or block with a creature it's attached to (do you need to tap the ability, since the card is attached to a Creature you tap by wishing to attack or block with)?


texts: In Settlers of Catan, if you have unrevealed victory point cards that would make you win, are you forced to declare victory?

texts:
If you have enough points to win on your turn, but only by including your unrevealed VP development cards, are you forced to win?

E.g. I have three cities (6 VP), three settlements (3 VP), and I buy a development card, which ends up being a victory point card. Can I wait until my next turn where I believe I'll have a chance to steal longest road, and end the game on 12 VP, or do I need to declare victory now?

The reason why I ask is that we keep a running total of stats from the games we've played over the years, and finishing on a higher total would bring up my average VP per game score.


texts: Online Resources for Go Tutorials on specific topics

texts:
It is well-known that learning about Go is a never-ending process. This question is on resources that I believe to be useful in a certain stage of this learning process.

In the very beginning, there are a lot of fundamentals to be grasped (and really understanding them fully takes way longer of course) and this question addressed resources that may be helpful for beginners.

I am now advancing into the SDK stage and find that these resources are not helping so much anymore. On the other hand, I also have trouble profiting from the analysis of pro games, because I still have a lot to learn about the reasoning behind moves.

What I found to be most effective for me at this stage, are resources like these youtube videos or these articles on opening patterns.

Is there a place, where learning resources are available that are similar to the above?
To make this question a bit more concrete and answerable, I am looking for material that fits the following criteria:

suitable for SDKs
not a simple listing of fuseki/joseki/whatever
not life&death problems
focuses on the reasoning behind moves
suitable for broadening one's knowledge (i.e. do not cover one topic in immense depth, but concentrate on the underlying principles)
bonus points, if grouped by topic (so you can f.ex. quickly get material related to micro-chinese, or leaning plays, or large knight jumps, or counting, ...)

In terms of textual resources (though I'm open for videos/podcasts/sgfs/...), I am looking for roughly something along the line of one-two pages per discussed topic.

A few resources that I know about, but do not fit these criteria:

sensei: Way too deep coverage of topics. I believe it is an awesome reference for dans and higher SDKs, but I mostly found it more confusing than helpful. Not to mention, that every second word links to more information.. there is the point of TMI.
eidogo: Great for looking up names of josekis.. which I would then like to read up upon in the resources I am looking for in order to understand the underlying principles.
various pages of L&D problems: while interesting and certainly helpful to learn, they do not help much in terms of opening and mid-game strategies.
various books (at least those I have) : they either are for beginners, or they cover a topic very well, but in frustrating depth (meaning you'd have to invest into an extra library room if you want to get a broader picture).


texts:
What (if anything) is Gaea in the MTG universe?

I can piece together that she is mainly on Dominaria. Clearly named after the real-life mythical Greek figure. But is she a powerful mage? A planewalkers? A world-soul? a God? Some sort of Queen like figure?

Just basically what is she?


texts: In magic the gathering can I tap a creature at the attacking/blocking phase?

texts:
I was looking at this link
and was kind of confused. In Magic, when can I tap my opponent's creatures to prevent them from attacking?
So if a instant says tap target creature and they attack I have basically have to either do 2 things. Asks if they are on combat phase or if they rush to attacking phase say something like before you attack.
I was wondering because if you wait for them to declare attackers then you tap target creature they have to reconsider if they want to attack.

On another note there is a card that taps target attacking or blocking creature if I'm correct (might be exile) if so what are the rules on that?


texts: Mizzix of the Izmagnus has an ability that gives you an experience counter as long as you cast an instant or sorcery that is of a higher cost. If I have 5 copies of him and 4 experience counters, and I play an instant that has a converted mana cost of 5, will I get 5 experience counters as they all trigger at the same time?


texts: How does Arcbond interact with Saving Grace?

texts:
This is a damage-dealing and timing-related question about casting Saving Grace (SG) and Arcbond  on a creature, and I or a creature I control being then dealt damage.

Arcbond:

  Choose target creature. Whenever that creature is dealt damage this turn, it deals that much damage to each other creature and each player.

Saving Grace:

  Flash

  Enchant creature you control

  When Saving Grace enters the battlefield, all damage that would be dealt this turn to you and permanents you control is dealt to enchanted creature instead.

  Enchanted creature gets +0/+3.

Say I have a 3/3 and four 2/2 and an opponent casts shock (2 damage) on one of my 2/2's. As a response, I cast Saving Grace (with flash) and Arcbond on my 3/3.
The damage is redirected to my 3/3 by SG, and my 3/3 takes 2 damage.

This triggers Arcbond's effect, and all my 2/2s and myself are dealt 2 damage.
Which triggers SG, and all this damage (2*5=10 damage total) is redirected to my 3/3 (3/6 because of Saving grace, but this is irrelevant), my 3/3 has taken damage, so Arcbond triggers, and so on...

Here are the questions:

Do both trigger separately for redirected damage from each of my 2/2 and myself, thus dealing a total of 3*2=6 damage to everyone else (the toughness of my 3/3+0/3 being consumed), or do they "group" all the damage and deal 12 damage to everyone else (2 for the first redirected shock damage, and 10 for the total Arcbond redirected damage)
Is the damage from Arcbond dealt to everyone before, or after the "damage counters" are put on my 3/3, meaning will this combo stop when lethal damage has been redirected to my 3/3, or will it accumulate to infinity, never letting the damage event occur because it constantly reacts to the damage being "called"? (thus technically ending the game on a draw)

Or does something completely different happen?
I have gone to the comprehensive rules, but it's still not clear to me...


texts: How does Hypnotic Specter work in Two-Headed Giant?

texts: If I attack with Hypnotic Specter and the defending team does not declare a blocker, should I "target" who is going to discard a card randomly? Or do they decide?


texts: Dictionary for Scrabble that doesn't contain ridiculous words

texts:
In playing Scrabble with friends, where can I find a dictionary that doesn't contain the ridiculous two-letter words that turn the game into a contest to see who has spent the most time reading the official Scrabble dictionary?

I'd want present-day words, but don't want words like:

  ee: The sound made to say the letter 'E'

It seems that even online resources have been pandering to the hardcore Scrabble crowd.


texts:
I'm attacking with a creature that has vigilance. After I declare him attacking, may I activate his ability before blockers are declared? His ability is pay 1 white and tap to tap Target creature. My creature had already been declared attacker and has vigilance per an enchantment.

In addition, can spells be cast before blockers are declared?


texts: What is the "pause" rule for dummy play in tournament bridge?

texts:
My understanding is that in a bridge tournament, that the declarer must pause for some time (X seconds) after the dummy goes down, in order to study it, before playing to the first trick.

What is that time interval (i.e. what is X in terms of seconds)? Does this apply if dummy has a "forced" play such as a singleton in the led suit?

My further understanding is that East is allowed to take this pause (for X seconds) if, for some reason, declarer doesn't. Is this the case? And is East allowed to take an additional X seconds (or more) if declarer takes X seconds for study?


texts:
I'm new to Canasta, so I've been reading a lot of rules on the internet and found out that there are many variations. Luckily, the rules to Classic Canasta seem to be pretty consistent from site to site, but I still have this question about "Going out concealed"...
Let's say that my partner has already gotten a Canasta. I haven't laid down a single card yet, and then (by some miracle), I'm able to meld everything in my hand all at once and go out, but I don't have a Canasta.
All the rules that I've read say that I have to have a Canasta, but since you only have to have one Canasta per team, and my partner already has one, I don't see why I shouldn't be able to do it without one and get the extra 100-point bonus for "Going out concealed".
Also, is it true that I can't play on my partner's pile at all in order to "go out concealed"? If we're playing together, our pile is one and the same, so I don't see why I couldn't do that either.


texts:
The following card is banned in current tournament formats:

  Equipped creature gets +1/-1.  When equipped creature is put into a graveyard, draw two cards.  Cast 1, equip 1 (artifact).

http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Skullclamp

Usually when a card is banned, I can figure out what the reason is, but for the life of me I can't figure out why this card is so dangerous. Its ability is good but not game-breaking, and I can't think of anything that it would pair with to become game-breaking.


texts: If I own both Utilities but mortgage one, do I get 10x or 4x the die roll in rent from the unmortgaged one?

texts:
In the last game of Monopoly that I played, I bought both the Utilities and I mortgaged The Electric Company.

If an opponent lands on The Water Works, how much rent would be due? Would I get 10x the dice roll for owning both Utilities, or does having one mortgaged mean that I would only get 4x the dice roll?


texts: Does the leader get to look at the Plot cards before distribution?

texts: When playing The Resistance with the Plot Thickens expansion, the leader gets to distribute the Plot cards to other players of her choosing.  Is this a blind draw, or does the leader get to look at the cards before giving them to other players?


texts: Does General Onimaru's Clockwork Soldier prevent retreats?

texts: General Onimaru's Clockwork Soldier ability prevents players from moving backwards.  Does it also prevent retreating from a dashing strike?  If a player is forced to retreat past the Clockwork Soldier, does the Clockwork Soldier keep advancing and if so, is the player now prevented from moving past it in the opposite direction?


texts: What is the definitive source of rulings for the Pokemon TCG?

texts:
I'm looking for what the definitive site for searching rulings for Pokémon TCG cards is, similar to MTG's Gatherer.  Searching for specific cards comes up with various different answers, but most are reddit threads or Pokébeach threads.

As an example, I was looking for Decidueye-GX's ability Feather Arrow, to find out whether it was allowed to be used on the first turn or not.  I found out it was, but not from anything looking official - just various discussions of the standard Decidueye-GX decks.

I'd like to be confident that my practice games are consistent with what a judge will rule in a tournament.


texts: Are a group of abilities added to the stack all on the stack, or each resolves before the next one goes on the stack?

texts:
MTR 4.2 states:

  Whenever a player adds an object to the stack, he or she is assumed to be passing priority unless he or she explicitly announces that he or she intends to retain it. If he or she adds a group of objects to the stack without explicitly retaining priority and a player wishes to take an action at a point in the middle, the actions should be reversed up to that point.

So, for a more recent example, if a player has Electrostatic Pummeler and 15 energy, and the opponent has Grasp of Darkness, can the opponent let the 5 activations of Pummeler go on the stack, then kill the Pummeler under it? Or do the activations trigger and resolve independently and the opponent has to say "wait, only 2 activations have succeeded, one's on the stack and I want to play Grasp"?


texts: Can I use Lucky Cigarette Case to avoid activating Dark Pact?

texts:
Can I use Lucky Cigarette Case to increase a fail roll 1 on 2 and thus avoid activating dark pact condition?

(2) Lucky Cigarette Case
Trinket
Once per round, you may add 1 to the result of 1 die when resolving a test.


texts: What paper pauper cards on not legal in MTGO

texts:
I am trying to collect most cards relevant to pauper. Because MTGO pauper is more popular than paper pauper, and because it is so easily available electronically, it is easy to find data and analysis on the most frequently used cards in pauper. I did this.

The problem is that there are some cards (most notably Hymn to Tourach and High Tide) not available on MTGO but are essential paper pauper commons. Other popular pauper cards include Goblin Grenade, Desert, Pyrotechnics, and Sinkhole. So they are easy to miss when starting a paper pauper collection, though I suppose you'd eventually come across them in pauper tournaments.

The question:

Is there a list maintained of cards printed at common for paper, but not MTGO? If so, please provide link. If there is no such list but it turns out to be very few cards, then the answer should contain the list of cards.


texts: Combat damage assignment with multiple blockers

texts:
After reading the comprehensive rules, the answer to these questions seem clear, but I'm still having trouble reconciling them in my mind.

Here on some scenarios:
(1) My opponent attacks me with a 4/2 and I choose to block with a 1/5 and a 1/1. If he assigns damage to the 1/5 first, and then the 1/1, what happens? From my reading of the rules, no creatures would die because blockers only assign damage if all creatures "in front" of them are assigned lethal damage. Therefore the 1/1 does not assign damage.

(2) My opponent attacks with a 4/6, and I block with six 1/1s. What happens? My interpretation is that I would lose four 1/1s and the 4/6 would be assigned 5 damage. This implies that as long as an attacker has toughness at least 2 higher than its power, an army of 1/1s cannot kill it. Likewise an attacker with toughness three higher than its power cannot be killed by an army of 2/2s, etc.

(3) If the 1/1 in the first scenario had first strike, it would deal damage regardless of the blockers order. This would result in the 4/2 being assigned 2 damage.

Are all of these interpretations correct?


texts: Is there an efficient use for a surplus of Insects in Standard, Kaladesh to Ixalan?

texts:
Assuming the opponent has creatures in play, consider the following interaction:

Hour of Devastation + Soul-Scar Mage + Nest of Scarabs

This will generate 5 x (number of opponents creatures) insects.

Is there a card or set of cards that efficiently uses these insects to win the game? While it was previously directed to discard the damage done to your own creatures, an interaction that is reliant on a creature you control that would be killed by Hour of Devastation doesn't work; the creature is dead before the insects enter the battlefield.

Conditions and Limitations:
Standard Legal Cards, ranging from Kaladesh to Ixalan.
Supports a win either in the same turn or on the next one.
Understands that creatures in play will get 5 -1/-1 counters.


texts: Am I allowed to pass unequipped weapons (or items) to any survivor?

texts:
What is the rule regarding passing an unequipped weapon to a survivor that is not in your location?

For example, if I pickup a gun at the police station and want to pass it to another player that has a survivor at the grocery store.  Can I pass the player the card to equip to that survivor? Or would I have to move to that survivor's location?


texts:
I used to play this card game a lot but I haven't in many years and have forgotten nearly everything about the game. All I can remember is that it's a single player card game, you arrange the cards into a triangle with -I may be wrong about this part- the first layer of the triangle with cards face down and the other -or at least next layer- face up. Also, it was played with a standard 52 card deck i think.
      It may be a japanese game because I lived in japan for a large portion of my life and may have learned it there, and I don't remember where I leaned it.

If anyone has any ideas at to what the name of the game is, please tell me even if it's a guess. Thank you


texts: Which country spends the most on board & card games?

texts: I've been wondering which country spends the most money on board / card games? Are there any statistics available?


texts:
In one of the haunts (25/26?) the traitor has hidden several Voodoo dolls about the house. When we played I had the dog and found my fellow explorers doll. I tried to use the dog to move it (to take it to the other player) but we eventually reasoned that the rules don't say anything about moving the dolls (they aren't items that can be picked up, stolen etc), so even I couldn't have moved them.

Were we right, or could I have collected the dolls whilst the other explorer tied up the traitor?


texts:
Can a player join an active game after the pre-flop?
if so what would be the conditions? (for example if he sits between the smallBlind  and the bigBlind

Thanks!


texts: If I have a least one Paradox Haze on the battlefield, and during my upkeep tap the Strionic Resonator targeting Azor's Elocutors upkeep ability, would the ability copy twice or would I need a second Resonator?


texts: If James Baxter gives me a Creeper can I discard it

texts:
In Adventure Time Fluxx, the James Baxter action card has each player draw a card, and causes all Creepers in play to be discarded.

If my drawn card is a Creeper (which is immediately put on the table and replaced with another card), is it immediately discarded?


texts: In Axis and Allies, Should the U.S. Build a "Factory" in Brazil?

texts:
In Axis and Allies (original version), the basically maritime powers, the US and UK have a problem coming to grips with the land-based Axis. One solution is for them to buy industrial complexes in strategic locations to launch military units later in the game.

Typically, the UK might build a "factory" in India or South Africa, and the US in Sinkiang, west of China. The Sinkiang Factory has a few disadvantages.

It can launch only two units per turn.
It is directed against Japan (the lesser evil).
It can be captured, making it an Axis asset.
It's unrealistic, because Sinkiang is a landlocked territory that consists of Tibet and the Taklamakan desert, which is not exactly prime industrial property, even today. I'd solve this problem by allowing factory builds only in coastal areas (e.g. India, South Africa, Brazil).

An American factory in Brazil seems to have it all over Sinkiang.

It can produce three units per turn
It is directed against the Germans (in Africa)
It won't be captured unless the U.S. player is extremely careless, not merely "unlucky."
An American transport in African waters can go offshore Brazil, pick up two infantry, back to Africa and unload the infantry all in one turn. (It takes two turns for a round trip from Africa to the U.S.) That's an average savings of one infantry per turn, which will pay for a factory in five turns.

In real life, the U.S. built the beginnings of an industrial complex in Brazil, and failed to build one in interior China.

As a US player, do you build factories at all? And whether you answered yes or no, is Brazil a better bet than Sinkiang? Or am I missing something?


texts: Minds Aglow with X is 100 while Nekusar, the Mindrazer is on the field

texts:
An Opponent has Nekusar, the mindrazer out and then casts Minds Aglow (join forces, each player draws that many cards) and pays 100 mana into it.

He claims that the damage would be dealt before everyone decks out.

However, I think all the card draw is one effect and thus is done first, milling everyone simultaneously before the damage triggers go on the stack.

Obviously he could have just paid 40 mana (at risk of other players paying more into it).

Any confirmation that I am right?


texts: Is there a "Campaign Mode" set of rules available for Arkham Horror?

texts: Are there any rules (official or otherwise) that would govern trying to string together multiple games of Arkham Horror into some sort of a campaign structure?  The idea would be for the investigators to retain some of their capabilities from game to game, and the game itself would have to ramp up in difficulty in some manner to compensate.


texts: My partner and I had a canasta of 9s and I had a pickup which contained three 9s which I held in my hand to use as fairly safe discards because the pack was frozen.  I used one of them and then my opponent threw a 9.  Could I pick up the pile with the pair of 9s I had in my hand?


texts: Which expansion to get for BSG Board game?

texts:
I've got the Battlestar Galactica board game and I absolutely love it. I'm thinking of getting one of the expansions for it but I'm torn between the Exodus and Pegasus expansions.

How do these expansions change the game? and from people who have played both which do you think is a better expansion?

Note that since this question was written the Daybreak expansion has been added too.


texts: How do Companion cards from Ikoria work in Commander?

texts:
Today the Ikoria previews revealed a new mechanic: companion. From Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths Mechanics, you can choose up to one companion card in your sideboard (or in your collection outside the game) and reveal it before the game begins. For example Umori, the Collector says:

  Companion — Each nonland card in your starting deck shares a card type. (If this card is your chosen companion, you may cast it once from outside the game.)

How do these work in commander? (Do they work at all, given they are outside the game?)

Does my commander count as part of my starting deck for the purposes of the companion condition?
Are these part of my 100 cards?
Does their color identity matter?
Can I have one in my main deck as well as one outside the game?


texts: Suppose I have a Jace, Vryn's Prodigy with 3 cards in my graveyard. My opponent casts Lightning Bolt on Jace. Can I attempt to Path to Exile my Jace, and then in response to my own Path, use Jace's ability to loot so I have the 3 cards, Path and the newly discarded card in the graveyard, so that Jace flips, and Bolt and Path are both countered because they lost their target?


texts: Can two Creepers be attached to the same Keeper?

texts:
Some Creepers say they must be attached to a Keeper if you have a Keeper in play. If you end up with two such Creepers, and only one Keeper, can both Creepers be attached to the lone Keeper? Or is there a limit of one Creeper per Keeper?

I haven't found anything in the official Rules or FAQ, which came with the game, to address this scenario.


texts: Can I rebound a spell that exiles itself?

texts:
There's a handful of cards from the game which also exile themselves as they resolve. For a straightforward example there's Restock:

  Return two target cards from your graveyard to your hand. Exile Restock.

That's fine enough. But what if I have Cast Through Time on the battlefield to give it rebound?

  Instant and sorcery spells you control have rebound. (Exile the spell as it resolves if you cast it from your hand. At the beginning of your next upkeep, you may cast that card from exile without paying its mana cost.)

Will Restock rebound out of exile?

There doesn't seem to be a ruling about this on Cast Through Time. The one part I'm confident about is that if it does rebound, it won't rebound a second time -- it'll exile itself again and it won't have been cast from my hand that time.


texts: Would Steam/Age of Steam benefit from a non-constrained set of tiles

texts:
Steam and Age of Steam provide a finite set of tiles, and the rules explicitly mention that if a certain type of tile runs out then it is effectively unavailable anymore -- unless a tile comes back after being replaced by another one.

This rule seems quite artificial, as in real life there shouldn't be any problems creating any kind of track as the train line is being built. The original designer Martin Wallace himself wrote that this constraint was artificial and tried to create a "friendly" set of tiles.

I do agree that it is currently part of the game and I sometimes use it myself to get rid of some particular tiles so that my opponents may not use them.

Some expansion maps (e.g., Sun) were designed with the limited set of tracks in mind, as an important aspect of that map.

However for most maps I sometimes wonder if we could just forget this limitation, provided that there's a way to create missing tiles as needed.

So what do you think? What would be the pros and cons of relaxing this rule. Also, how would you implement an "infinite" supply of tiles?


texts: Can you sell your properties for cheap to another player in Monopoly?

texts: Is it possible for example to sell a property you own to another player for 1$? I was playing with some friends and one of them had to pay me 1200$ and since he didnt have enough he sold all his houses reached 1200 gave me the money and then sold all his stuff for 1$ to another player.


texts: I've got a question regarding characteristics on the stack. I found the information that "each spell has all the characteristics associated with it". Does it mean that when card is on the stack as a spell, it has its  mana cost, name, abilities and so on? I know that for example static abilities don't work on the stack. If I get it right, cards have their abilities on the stack, but these abilities don't work. Or maybe that is wrong?


texts: "Well" building special function clarification

texts:
Well card text:

  During the producer phase, if the owner of a well produces at least 2
  goods, he draws an additional card from the card supply, adding it to
  his hand. It matters not whether he is the producer or not.

Let's say i have two production buildings.
The first is busy (one card face down on it), second one is empty.
Producer phase starts, i'm not the producer, so i produce an additional good on
my second building.

So I produced one good at this specific phase and I'm currently producing two goods in total as I have 2 busy production buildings at the end of the phase.

Question: should I draw an additonal card in this case?

Edit:

Another way to formulate the question would be:

Which one of this rewritten rule corresponds to the rule? :

During the producer phase, if the owner of a well produces at least 2 new goods, he draws an additional card from the card supply, adding it to his hand.
During the producer phase, if the total number of goods lying on production buildings is at least 2, he draws an additional card from the card supply, adding it to his hand.


texts:
Spoiler tags to prevent accidental disclosure.

   Can my Craighart move the fountain?

 It might make the scenario a bit easier to move the fountain closer to the ships, but unlike the 2 tile wall obstacles, it is not listed as special by the scenario rules.


texts: Can you play Summoner Wars with only the Second Summoner packs?

texts: If I want to play with the second summoner of a particular faction, do I have to use cards from both the original summoner pack and the second summoner pack, or can I use only the cards from the second summoner pack?


texts: Damage distribution while blocking many creatures at once

texts:
Related to: Blocking with First Strike + Deathtouch

It is said in the answers that the blocking player can choose how his Hundred Handed One deals damages to attacking creatures.

Example: Defending creature is a 6/8 with deathtouch, first strike who can block up to 100 creatures. Assume 10 3/3 creatures are attacking. To take advantage of first strike and deathtouch, he could deal one damage to 6 different attacking creatures, kill them, and only be dealt damage by the remaining 4 attacking ones.

Background:

To a question I asked on facebook to the official Magic page, I've had a specific answer which felt correct to me.

The question was: "If I have an attacking 9/9 creature with first strike who has to be blocked by every available creature and the defending player has ten 2/2 creatures to block, will the attacking creature deal 9 to each defensive creature, or 9 amongst the defensive creatures ? If so, who chooses how the damages are dealt ?"

The answer was : "Since attacking creature has first strike, attacking player chooses to which defensive creatures the 9 total damages are dealt, but has to deal enough damages to kill one creature before applying remaning damages to another one."

In the related answer, is it really correct that the defending creature can deal only 1 damage per attacking creature, using its deathtouch to kill them? And doing so, won't it take damage from every attacking creature since it doesn't kill them before they can attack, and not only the 4 last ones? (reminder: defending creature has first strike)


texts: When a player is killed in Bang! can they still talk?

texts: When a player is eliminated, can they still talk and discuss strategy on the table or do they have to stay silent?


texts: Should reckoning effects be executed as if done simultaneously?

texts:
Should reckoning effects on an investigator's conditions execute as if done simultaneously (starting with the lead investigator)?  Two situations come to mind here.

1) If a reckoning effect condition results in my investigator being blessed or cursed, should I wait until after resolving all other reckoning effects to put the new condition into play (i.e. not benefit from the blessed condition for the other reckoning effects)?  This would effectively be like executing the effects simultanously.

2) If a reckoning effect kills my investigator, should I resolve all other effects as well? The case I am thinking of is where the Dark Pact roll of 1 results in another investigator being devoured.  If my investigator dies from another effect, does he get to skip resolving this dark pact or should he have to resolve it as well, as if simultaneous?

Mostly, this question came to mind because of a recent answer on this question.


texts: When does a sacrifice on entering the battlefield happen?

texts:
My opponent plays Vexing Devil which states:

  When Vexing Devil enters the battlefield, any opponent may have it deal 4 damage to him or her. If a player does, sacrifice Vexing Devil.

When does this sacrifice happen? Is he able to play Collateral Damage on the Vexing Devil before the sacrifice resolves? My current interpretation is that the sacrifice resolves instantly on entering the battlefield so the creature is never there to use Collateral Damage on, but we wanted to verify that this was correct.


texts: If you steal a property and your opponent doesn't play their JSN card at that time, then you lay a matching property down to make a complete set, and then your third card is to charge rent - can your opponent then decide to use his JSN card to take his property card back, or is the JSN card only good to get out of paying the rent at this point?


texts:
A player in a competitive REL tournament pays 1 mana to activate Sensei's Divining Top's ability to look at the top 3 cards of his library, looks at the 3 cards, changes the order and put them back.

Without performing any further actions or saying/implying that the spell is resolved, can that player then return to look at those 3 cards again?


texts: What if a person throws a wrong suit in 29 card game? When does he open 2 black pips? Does it open after the stack is taken? Is the person allowed to change his card if the stack is not collected by the opposition?


texts: Reducing the Imperial strategy's power in Twilight Imperium

texts:
I've played Twilight Imperium (3rd edition) a couple times with friends now, and we keep noticing the same thing: no amount of fancy maneuvering, planet conquest, etc. gets people enough victory points to overcome the Imperial strategy card:

The 2 points from that card are massive, to the point where you can't afford to choose a different strategy card if that one is in the deck on your turn, or you almost certainly won't end up winning the game. Is there a way to deal with that? Are there any house rules that weaken it without messing up the game (e.g. only receiving 1 VP)? Or modifying some other part of the game such that the 2 VPs from Imperial aren't as game-deciding?


texts: If a player is forced to discard a card in which another card has a dependency, do they lose both cards?

texts: In Rivals of Catan a player can be forced to discard buildings.  If a player chooses an Abbey, do they also lose their University (which has a dependency on an Abbey), or do they just lose the Abbey?


texts: What constitutes a pair in the game "L'Auberge des Pirates"?

texts: In the game "L'Auberge des Pirates", holding a pair is considered dangerous for your survival during the game. It is not clear, however, what constitutes a pair: will one visible card + one card in hand be considered a pair, or will two cards in hand be a pair?


texts:
Can I throw out my discard, and then lay down my hand?
Or am I then supposed to wait until the next turn to lay it down?
If I do lay down after I discard is that cheating?
My Stepdad throwed his discard and then laid down his hand. He had a fit when I told him he couldn't do that since that it is cheating. Am I right?
I know that in any card game I played you must lay down your hand before discarding, but I can not find anything on this anywhere.


texts: Can you sacrifice a creature to pay the cost of its ability?

texts: Whisper, Blood Liturgist has the ability to sacrifice 2 creatures, and then return something from the graveyard. Since abilities stay on the stack even if the permanent is removed, can you sacrifice this card and another to activate the ability?


texts: What are the qualities of a successful beta testing session from the player's perspective?

texts:
I'm a board game designer with the luxury of a large public playing area filled with board game enthusiasts. I would like to beta test a new board game and was wondering what YOU, as the player, would consider a successful session.

I've already seen the posts on how to run a session from a technical, or designer's perspective (I have an idea for a card game. How can I best start testing it?). I would like to focus on what makes for a fun session for the player. For example, are you looking for polished, illustrated gaming pieces? Pizza and soda? Do you prefer the game guru (me) answer questions as you go or sit back and let you figure them out on your own? How long should a typical session last? What would you want in return?

When you answer, please mention if you've done beta playtesting before and what your experience has been. I would also love to know if you have experience running these kinds of sessions. Thank you!


texts: Stinkweed Imp + Rancor and a flying 3/3 blocker

texts: Does Stinkweed Imp with Rancor get the extra trample damage if a 3/3 flyer blocks? Is Stinkweed's text is the same as an actual deathtouch?


texts:
This question is not related to "Ticket to Ride", but while playing Ticket to Ride, the following happened:

There were 5 us around the table, and to make it easier to reach for all players, we split up the draw deck into 2 decks, one on each side of the table.

Is that okay? In theory, drawing a card from the deck is meant to be "random", so drawing from anywhere in the deck is still "random".

On the other hand, once the cards have been physically shuffled, they are what they are, then it becomes more of a "fate" in regards to drawing.

So I wanted to get a response from others: Is it okay to draw from the middle of the deck?


texts: How to make The Tower less of a pain in Carcassonne

texts:
I'm a big fan of Carcassonne and have a most of the expansions available in my language. One of the only expansions I don't play, at all, is The Tower. In my opinion, the ability to remove followers is too powerful and only incites retaliation. The cost of blocking this tower is too high, since you're losing one of your followers for the remainder of the game.

When I look at reviews on the game, most people feel the same. I'm wondering if there are ways to work around these restrictions. Right now I'm just using the tiles without using the tower pieces.

How does everyone deal with this? Is there a way to counterweight the towers' impact?


texts: How do I mitigate 'alpha playing' in Pandemic?

texts:
I don't quite like Pandemic for a simple reason.

Basically - because all players have the same knowledge, and same goal,  I don't see the need to have multiple players; one person (the alpha player) can just make all the decisions for everyone.

I think the rules say that you're not allowed to show your cards to each other, but you can just communicate this to each other anyway, and so because this rule is pretty much useless we just play that everybody's cards are visible.

So unlike a co-operative game like Hanabi, where you have assymetrical knowledge, and there are very specific rules about what you can tell your team mates, there's no reason why one person (me!) can't just make all the decisions in Pandemic.

Now of course you can argue that it's 'not in the spirit of the game' and appeal to some kind of social conventions to mitigate this, but this can be  more difficult in practise when you want to win.

Any fun suggestions for mitigating this issue?


texts:
In PathFinder: Rise of the Runelords, how many times can you explore a location? I can discard a BotG to explore:

Can I explore as many times as I want in my turn? Imagine I start with 3 BotG, a weapon and a Cure spell:

Can I explore, then discard a BotG and explore, then discard and explore, then discard and explore, THEN play the Cure, target myself, shuffle all the blessings into my deck, and end the turn by drawing all cards until I have 5 again?