Shadowfist
Shadowfist Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
- 1.0 Requirements
- 2.0 Setup
- 3.0 Play
- 4.0 Winning
- 5.0 Elimination
- 6.0 Golden Rule
- 7.0 Card Types
- 8.0 Card Anatomy
- 9.0 The Table
- Major Topics
- 10.0 Abilities
- 11.0 Body
- 12.0 Burning
- 13.0 Changing Location
- 14.0 Designators
- 15.0 Fighting
- 16.0 Healing
- 17.0 Power
- 18.0 Resources
- 19.0 Seizing
- 20.0 Smoking
- 21.0 Turning
- Playing
- 22.0 The Turn
- 23.0 The Scene
- 24.0 Effects
- 25.0 Playing Cards
- 26.0 Triggered Effects and Responses
- 27.0 Declaration
- 28.0 Attacks
- 28.1 Step 1: Declaring an Attack
- 28.2 Attack Scenes
- 28.3 Attacker’s Location
- 28.4 Step 2: Joining the Attack
- 28.5 Premature End-of-Attack
- 28.6 Step 3: Interception
- 28.7 Step 4: Combat with the Target
- 28.8 Step 5: Return Home
- 28.9 Step 6: End-of-Attack Scene
- 28.10 Step: BFP Ends Turn
- 28.11 Successful Attack
- 28.12 Failed Attack
- 29.0 Damage
- 30.0 Combat
- More Topics
- 31.0 Auctions
- 32.0 Blanking
- 33.0 Canceling
- 34.0 Card Memory
- 35.0 Control
- 36.0 Copying
- 37.0 Cost Reduction
- 38.0 Damage Redirection
- 39.0 Discarding
- 40.0 Immunity
- 41.0 Faceoffs
- 42.0 References
- 43.0 Reload
- 44.0 Return to Play, Play from Smoked Pile, Place
- 45.0 Sacrifice
- 46.0 Toasting
- 47.0 Tokens
- 48.0 Value of X
- 49.0 Restrictions
- 50.0 Bold-Faced Abilities
- Appendix 1: Turn Flowchart
- Appendix 2: Attack Flowchart
- Glossary
1.0 Requirements
1.1 Players
Shadowfist plays best with 3 or 4 players. Playing with more than 4 players will increase game times. Shadowfist can also be played with 2 players as a duel.
1.2 Deck
Each player needs a deck of Shadowfist cards.
Tip: Constructed Shadowfist decks tend to follow the “Rule of Five”, which is just a guideline that a deck contain ⅕ Feng Shui Sites, ⅕ Foundation cards, ⅕ Hitter characters, ⅕ utility cards and ⅕ zero cost cards.
1.2.1 Card Multiples
The deck may not contain more than five copies of any card with the same title (8.1).
1.2.2 Deck Size
There is no minimum or maximum deck size.
Tip: Constructed Shadowfist decks contain 50 cards, which is a good size for most average game durations.
1.3 Counters
Shadowfist uses counters to track a variety of things, including Power (17.0) and damage (29.0). Counters generated of one type are never interchangeable with another type. (See 10.5.2 Non-Counter Counting.)
1.3.1 Counter Reservoir
Each player needs approximately 10-15 counters to act as a bank of available counters. There is no limit to the number of counters you may need during the game. If you run out, get more.
1.3.2 Counter Material
Counters can be plastic, wood, nuts, bullet shells, broken teeth or anything.
Tip: A few different counter colors or types should be used so Power counters can be distinguished from damage counters or others.
1.4 Play Surface
Finally, you will need a table or other flat playing surface. This rulebook refers to this surface as “the table” (see 9.0 The Table).
2.0 Setup
2.1 Play Order
Randomly and fairly determine the seating order and which player goes first. Seat all players around the table so they face each other.
2.2 Shared Counters
If sharing, place the reservoir of counters in the center of the table, within easy reach of all players.
2.3 Shuffling
Each player shuffles their deck thoroughly and offers it to the player on their right for cutting.
2.4 Starting Power
Each player starts the game with one Power counter from the counter reservoir.
2.5 First Hand
Each player draws six cards from the top of his or her deck (see 9.2.2.1 Default Hand Size).
Tip: If you don’t have a Feng Shui Site (see 25.7.3) and a Foundation (18.4) card (or two) in your first hand, you can discard aggressively in your Establishing Shot (22.2) phase because you are not generating Power this turn. Discard anything you don’t think you’ll be able to play in the first two turns and draw (22.2.5) back up to six. This is effectively a “mulligan” on your first draw.
3.0 Play
Starting with the first player (see 2.1 Play Order) and proceeding in clockwise order, each player takes a turn (22.0) until one player wins (see 4.0 Winning).
4.0 Winning
4.1 Victory Conditions
You win the game by reaching a goal number between the Feng Shui Sites that you have in play and the number of cards in your burned-for-victory pile (9.2.5).
4.1.1 Multiplayer Goal
The multiplayer goal is a total of five Feng Shui Sites in play and/or cards in your burned-for-victory pile.
4.1.2 Dueling Goal
The dueling goal is a total of six Feng Shui Sites in play and/or cards in your burned-for-victory pile.
4.2 Final Site
To win you must take either seize (30.3.3.2) or “burn for victory” (30.3.3.3) a Feng Shui Site from an opponent. Even if some other effect allows you to play another Feng Shui Site, place a card into your burned-for-victory pile, take control of an opponent's Feng Shui Site, or otherwise reduce the number (see 4.1) of Feng Shui Sites you need to win, you still can only win by taking a final Site from an opponent.
Note: Taking a final Site represents the end of the action movie where the heroes confront the villains and there is one last final brawl.
4.3 No Sites Exception
The only exception to the Final Site (4.2) rule occurs when none of your opponents have Feng Shui Sites in-play on your turn. In this case, you may play the final Feng Shui Site you need to win.
4.4 Checking Victory
Victory conditions are checked only at the end of the scene (23.0) (and its clean-up scenes) in which a player attained them.
4.4.1 Post-Attack Check
If the player seized or burned his last Site during an attack, victory conditions are checked at the end of the closed scene following the attack (see 28.8).
4.4.2 Played Site Check
If the last Site was played from hand, then victory conditions are checked at the end of the scene, or any following clean-up scenes, in which the Site was played.
Note: It is possible for you to attain victory conditions but not to win if one of your Feng Shui Sites is removed from play or stops counting towards victory before victory conditions are checked at the end of the scene.
4.5 Game End
The game ends immediately when one player wins.
4.6 Default Win
You win the game if all of your opponents have been eliminated from the game (see 5.0 Elimination).
5.0 Elimination
Elimination via decking is the only way to “lose” at Shadowfist when someone hasn’t already won.
5.1 Decking
You are eliminated from the game at the end of any turn in which you have no cards remaining in your deck (1.2).
5.2 Last Chance Win
You may still win the game on the turn your deck is empty if you achieve victory conditions before the turn ends.
5.3 Elimination Cleanup
If you are eliminated, then you must remove your cards from the game depending on the card’s current controller. Removing the card is not considered toasting (46.0) or smoking (19.0) for purposes of other card effects.
5.3.1 Controlled Card Cleanup
All cards you control are removed from the game and placed in their owner’s toasted pile (9.3.1).
5.3.2 Non-Controlled Card Cleanup
Any card you own but do not control remains in play and under the control of its current controller. If that card ever leaves play, it is instead removed from the game per 5.3 Elimination Cleanup.
5.3.3 Opponent’s BFV Cleanup
Cards that you own that are in an opponent's burned-for-victory pile can be replaced with proxy cards or returned to you after the game.
6.0 Golden Rule
The most important rule in this book is: “A card does what it says.” The rules text on a card takes precedence over the rules in this book.
Note: Shadowfist, like most card games, has to operate with an important golden rule. Basically, every rule in this book can be appended with “…unless a card says otherwise.”
6.1 Limitation of the Golden Rule
Cards only break as many rules as they need in order to function as written.
Example: You Xia, the Avenger’s rules text States: “Once per turn, you play a Vehicle, Weapon, or State at -1 cost on a Character that is not already the subject of a State.” This card allows playing States on another player’s turn (see Playing States 25.5) in order to make “per turn” have meaning. However, You Xia will not allow you to place States on non-legal subjects (such as Characters that Continued> … that have text like “Not a legal subject for States.”) because it does not need to break the Valid Subject rule (25.5.1) to function as written.
6.2 Contradicting Cards
If two cards contradict one another, the card judged further from the rules wins. If neither card can be judged further, then the card that resolved more recently takes precedence.
Example: Brass Monkey, "Monkey" Chang, and Solar Farm have abilities that prevent Characters from intercepting, thus overriding this book’s rules about interception. However, Loyal Defender’s rules text is “Cannot be prevented from intercepting.” His ability is judged as “further from the rules” and trumps the other three cards because it negates those abilities that themselves negate this book’s rules about interception.
Note: The word “cannot” in the text of a card can be a useful indicator of being “further from the rules” than a contradicting card; but, as seen in the example above where multiple cards have the word “cannot,” its presence alone is not the only indicator.
7.0 Card Types
Cards can be one of the types listed in this section.
7.1.1 Changing Card Type
If an effect (24.0) causes a card to change type, it loses other types, unless the effect uses wording like “is also a
7.2 Characters
Characters are the cards used to attack your opponents’ Sites (see 28.0 Attacks), defend your Sites (see 28.6 Interception), attack other Characters, provide abilities (see 10.3 Character Abilities, 10.0 Abilities) and generally inflict combat damage (29.0) based upon their Fighting (15.0). Character images have a large square border. See also 25.4 Playing Characters.
7.3 Sites
Sites provide abilities (10.0), generate Power (see 22.2.2 Power Generation) and can be attacked by Characters. See also 9.1.2 Location and 25.7 Playing Sites.
7.3.1 Feng Shui Sites
Feng Shui Sites have “Feng Shui” in their subtitle (8.2) and count toward winning the game (4.0). Feng Shui Site images have an arched border with square bottom corners.
7.3.2 Non-Feng Shui Sites
Non-Feng Shui Sites do not have “Feng Shui” in their subtitle (8.2), are not Feng Shui Sites, and do not count toward winning the game (4.0). Non-Feng Shui Site images have an arched border with angled bottom corners.
7.4 States
States are played onto other cards; a card which has had a State placed on it is referred to as its subject. States represent some alteration of the subject's abilities. States cannot exist without their subject card (25.5.4). State images are square with angled corners. See also 25.5 Playing States.
7.5 Edges
Edges represent lasting changes in the conditions of the game. Edges provide abilities and are in play (9.1) but are not in your Site structure (9.1.1). Edge images have circular borders. See also 25.6 Playing Edges.
7.6 Events
Events are sudden shifts during battle or flashes of action in a scene that affect the game in some brief way. Events are the only card type that are never put into play and can be played during any turn. Event images have square borders. See also 25.3 Playing Events.
8.0 Card Anatomy
Refer to the cards in Figure 1 and Figure 2.
8.1 Title (a)
All cards have a title (a). The title is the card’s name or identifier (see 14.0 Designators, 1.2.1 Card Multiples, 31.1 Uniqueness Auctions).
8.2 Subtitle (b)
All cards have a subtitle (b). The subtitle provides flavorful designators (14.0) for Characters. Non-Character subtitles have the card’s type (7.0) and may contain designators.
Example: Designators are derived from the card’s title and subtitle. Ming I has the designators Ming, I, Lady, Coming and Darkness. Endless Corridor has the designators Endless, Corridor and Netherworld. Feng, Shui, and Site are not designators in this case because they are the card’s type. See 14.0 Designators.
8.3 Rules Text (c)
Most cards have rules text (c), which contains restrictions (49.0) and bold-faced abilities (50.0), and describes the game abilities that the card provides. (See 10.0 Abilities.)
8.3.1 Errata
Some cards have received errata to clarify how they work, fix printing errors, or fix templating irregularities in the rules text. A document containing all official errata can be found in the Downloads section at the Shadowfist website, www.shadowfist.com. (See also Most Recent Printing 8.11.)
8.3.1.1 Playing With Out-Dated Cards
If you wish to play with a copy of a card that has been updated with errata, you must play as if the copy has the new wording from the errata document.
8.4 Resource Requirements (d)
Most cards have resource requirements (d). If present, this is the number of resources of a given type that you must have in your resource pool (18.1) to be able to play the card.
8.5 Cost (e)
All cards, apart from most Feng Shui Sites, have a cost (e) printed on the card. This is the amount of Power (17.0) you must spend to put the card into play. Feng Shui Sites without a printed cost have a variable cost (see 25.7.1 Playing Feng Shui Sites). If the cost is an “X”, see Value of X (48.0). Rules text that refers to a card’s “cost” refers to this number.
8.6 Resource Provisions (f)
Many cards have resource provisions (f). This is the number of faction and talent resources that that card provides you (see 18.1 Resource Pool, 18.4 Foundation Card).
8.7 Fighting Score (g)
Characters have a Fighting score (g). The Fighting score is the amount of damage (29.0) the Character inflicts during combat (30.0) and how much damage it can take before it is smoked (20.0). Abilities that refer to a Character’s “printed Fighting” refer to this value.
8.8 Power Score (h)
Sites have a Power score (h). This is how much Power the Site generates during your Establishing Shot (see 22.2.2 Step 2: Power Generation).
8.8.1 Power-generating Sites
Only sites that have Power scores greater than zero are considered “Power-generating sites” for the purposes of effects or abilites.
8.9 Body Score (i)
Sites have a Body (10.0) score (i). The Body is the amount of damage (29.0) a Site can take. Abilities that refer to a Site’s “printed Body” refer to this value.
8.10 Set Symbol (j)
The symbol (j) in the upper right corner of the card indicates the set, like Combat in Kowloon or Reloaded, in which the card was printed. It has no effect on game play.
8.11 Most Recent Printing (k)
A few cards have a small number (k) inside a circle printed just to the right of its text box. This indicates that the card has changed from its original printing (see 8.3.1 Errata). If this symbol does not exist on a reprinted card with the same title, then the card does not replace older versions, it is “Play as Printed” (8.11.1).
8.11.1 Play as Printed (PaP)
Newer cards with the same title as previous cards that do not have a reprint number (k) are not considered replacements or errata (8.3.1) for the older card. Both cards in this case should be played as they are printed. However, they still follow the Card Multiples rule (1.2.1).
Note: “Shot” and “Scene”, see pages 17-18, are action movie metaphors brought into Shadowfist due to its movie heritage. Think of each of your games being filmed as movies, broken up into shots and scenes, and building up to that big final battle to win the game!
9.0 The Table
Figure 3 below shows a sample layout of a single player’s cards. There are three regions of the table for each player: in play, out of play, and out of the game.
9.1 In Play
Sites (a), Characters (b), States (c), and Edges (d) are all played into the in-play area. Sites and Characters are placed at locations (see 9.1.2). Edges are placed outside of your Site structure (see 9.1.1).
9.1.1 Site Structure
Your Site structure is the array of columns that contains your Sites. The Site structure expands to the right as you play Sites into new locations and collapses to the left when columns are removed from the structure. There is no limit to the number of columns allowed in your Site structure.
9.1.2 Location
A location is a single column in your Site structure. It can contain at most two Sites: one in the front row and one in the back row.
9.1.2.1 Location Residents
A location can contain any number of Characters and States.
9.1.2.2 Unspecified Location
If you have no Sites in play, all Characters and States you control are at a single location. This is considered an unspecified location.
9.1.2.3 No Location
If you have no Sites or Characters in play, you do not control a location.
9.1.3 Adding a Site
When adding a Site to your Site structure, you are either Adding the First Site or Adding a Subsequent Site to your Site structure.
9.1.3.1 Adding the First Site
The first Site that you add to your Site structure goes into location 1 (see Figure 3). Any cards previously at an unspecified location (see 9.1.2.2) are now at this location. This is not considered changing location for the purposes of triggering effects. (See also 25.7.3 Playing First FSS.)
9.1.3.2 Adding a Subsequent Site
When adding Sites after your first, you may play it in an empty back row of an existing location or you may play it in the front row of a new location to the immediate right of your rightmost column.
9.1.4 Removing a Site
If a front row Site is removed from a two Site column, the back row Site must be moved to the front row. Removing a back row Site has no effect on the front row Site. If the last Site is removed from a location, see 9.1.4.1.
9.1.4.1 Collapsing Site Structure
When the last Site is removed from a location, that location immediately ceases to exist. Adjust the structure as follows: each Character at the location may be moved to either adjacent location. Characters moved during this process do not count as having changed location for the purpose of triggering effects. Then, all locations to the right move one column left to fill the hole in the structure. Any location now in the area on the table where the old location was is not considered the same as the previous location. If your last Site leaves play, all cards at that location are now considered to be at an unspecified location (9.1.2.2).
9.2 Out of Play
Cards that are out of play are not currently in play, but have the potential to become involved in the game. The out-of-play area consists of your deck (e) (see 1.2), your face-up smoked pile (f) (see 9.2.1), the cards in your hand (g) (see 9.2.2), your burned-for-victory pile (h) (see 9.2.5), and a pile of counters representing your accumulated Power (i) (see 9.2.6).
9.2.1 Smoked Pile
The smoked pile contains cards that have left play but may be brought back into play or somehow affect the game later. The smoked pile is kept face up. (See 18.1 Resource Pool, 19.0 Smoking.)
9.2.1.1 Inspecting Smoked Pile
Any player may look through your smoked pile at any time.
9.2.2 Hand
The hand is the face-down cards you hold in your hand and are allowed to look at any time. Opponents cannot look at your hand.
9.2.2.1 Default Hand Size
The default hand size is six cards.
9.2.2.2 Hand Size
Your hand size is the default hand size plus or minus any abilities (10.0) that modify your “hand size”. There is no limit to your hand size or to the number of cards allowed in your hand.
9.2.3 Inactive Out of Play
Cards that are not in play are inactive. Their rules text and abilities do not interact with the game unless their rules text specifically says that they have some effect while in a particular out-of-play area, or if their effects require active rules text to work properly.
Example: A card that says “if in your smoked pile” or “play from your hand” is active while in your smoked pile or hand, respectively.
Example: The text “Return this card to play when a Site you own is seized” needs be active even while in the smoked pile, otherwise the effect could not be used at all.
9.2.4 Subject Leaving Play
When a subject card leaves play, any States on that card are smoked (19.0).
9.2.5 Burned-for-Victory Pile
The burned-for-victory pile contains cards that count toward victory for you (see 4.1 Victory Conditions). Mostly, these will be Sites that you have removed from play by burning for victory (30.3.3.3).
9.2.5.1 BFV Non-Site Cards
Cards other than Feng Shui Sites may be placed into the burned-for-victory pile by game effects. These cards in your BFV pile will also count toward your victory (4.1) but may not trigger a win (see 4.2 Final Site).
9.2.5.2 BFV Proxies
Players may place proxy cards in his or her burned-for-victory pile instead of the Site that was burned. This avoids confusion over who owns what Site card when returning cards at the end of the game. When substituting a burned Site with a proxy, place the actual burned Site card into its owner's toasted pile. This is not considered Toasting (46.0).
If using BFV proxies, players may mark the proxy to indicate which player's Site was burned, because some game effects count cards owned by a player in an opponent’s BFV pile.
9.2.6 Power Pool
The Power pool (i) is where the Power (17.0) you have gained from Sites (see 22.2.2 Power Generation) and card effects (24.0) is kept. The Power in the pool is not lost between turns.
9.3 Out of the Game
Cards that are out of the game cannot affect the game any further. These cards have been removed entirely from the game and cannot be brought back. The only things in the out-of-game area are your toasted pile (j) and the counter reservoir (not pictured in Figure 3) (see 1.3.1 Counter Reservoir).
9.3.1 Toasted Pile
All cards in the toasted pile are kept face down in the out-of-play area. (See 46.0 Toasting.)
9.3.1.1 Inspecting Toasted Pile
Any player may look through your toasted pile at any time.
Major Topics
Secret Wisdom of the Ancients
10.0 Abilities
Abilities are what a card allows a player to do as described by its rules text (8.3), including the most common abilities printed in bold-faced text (see 50.0). There are two types of abilities: abilities that are continuous and abilities that generate effects. Effect-generating abilities are discussed in 24.0 Effects. Additionally, Characters have abilities that are not printed on the card (see 10.3 Character Abilities).
10.1 Continuous Abilities
Many cards have abilities that provide them with some continuous benefit or drawback. These abilities are active as soon as the card’s rules text is active (see 24.5.1). These abilities do not generate or resolve, nor can they be responded to, and they stay in effect until the card leaves play.
10.2 Conditional Abilities
Some abilities, whether continuous or effect-generating, are only active while certain conditions are fulfilled, e.g. “While you are furthest from victory…” A continuous ability is active when its conditions are met and inactive when conditions are not met. Some conditional abilities have limited uses, which are often voluntarily activated (e.g., "once per turn you may..."). These types of conditional abilities are always active until they are used, at which point they become inactive until the start of the next turn. This switching between active and inactive does not generate effects and cannot be responded to. For abilities that generate effects based on conditions (see Triggered Effects 26.0).
10.3 Character Abilities
In addition to any abilities granted by a Character’s rules text (8.3), all Characters have the following two innate effect-generating abilities:
10.3.1 Turn to Change Location
All Characters may use this innate ability to change location by turning: "Turn and choose another location :: Change to that location." See 13.1 Legal Destinations for rules when choosing a destination location. (See 21.0 Turning, 28.6 Intercepting.)
10.3.2 Turn to Heal
All Characters may use this innate ability to heal all damage by turning: "Turn during your Main Shot :: Heal this card." (See 21.0 Turning, 16.0 Healing.)
10.4 Turn and Maintain Abilities
Turn and maintain abilities generate effects that create a conditional ability once they resolve. The ability stays in effect (i.e. maintained) as long as the card remains in play and is turned. As soon as the generating card is unturned, canceled (33.0) or blanked (32.0), or leaves play even momentarily, the ability ends immediately. Once generated, a turn-and-maintain ability stays in effect even if it would no longer be legal to generate the effect.
10.5 Counter Abilities
Some abilities generate counters (1.3) to be placed on cards. Only cards that use the word “counter” generate counters for the purposes of effects or abilities that count or affect counters.
10.5.1 Losing Counter Ability
If a card loses an ability that has generated counters, the counters produced by that ability remain and affect the ability normally if the card gains the ability again.
10.5.2 Non-Counter Recording
Some effects make modifications to scores, such as Fighting (15.0), Damage (29.0) or Body (10.0). These modifications may be tracked with counters, however these counters do not have significance for the purposes of effects or abilities that look for or affect counters. Numerical cards (like poker cards) or dice may be used for denoting these modifications instead.
Example: If you use counters to record the Fighting bonus gained by Soul Reaver, these counters don’t count as counters and aren’t affected by abilities, like Return to Center, that look for counters on cards.
11.0 Body
Sites have a Body score that is the amount of damage (29.0) the Site can withstand before being smoked (30.3.3.1), seized (30.3.3.2), or burned (30.3.3.3) (if a Feng Shui Site).
11.1 Current Body
A Site’s Body is reduced by the number of damage counters on it.
12.0 Burning
Any Feng Shui Site that has had its Body (10.0) reduced to zero via combat damage (29.1) can be “burned” in order to remove it from play and provide the burning player with some benefit. There are two options when burning:
12.1.1 Burn for Victory
If a Feng Shui Site is burned for victory, it gets placed into the burning player's burned-for-victory pile (4.1). The player losing the Site adjusts his Site structure, as described in 9.1.4 Removing a Site.
12.1.2 Burn for Power
If a Feng Shui Site is burned for Power, it is placed into the smoked pile (9.2.1) of its owner. The player losing the Site adjusts his Site structure, as described in 9.1.4 Removing a Site. The attacker gains an amount of Power from the counter reservoir (1.3.1) equal to the number players plus one, up to a maximum of five. If the active player burns for Power, his or her turn is over and the end-of-turn scene (see 22.3.3) is immediately processed after the end-of-attack scene (28.9).
13.0 Changing Location
Certain effects or abilities, such as the turn to change location ability (10.3.1) and Mobility (50.11), let a Character change location. This is always an effect (24.0). You generate the effect by paying any cost and determining the location where the Character moves. When it resolves (24.8), the Character moves to that location.
13.1 Legal Destinations
Your Characters may change location to any adjacent location within your Site structure (9.1.1). Also, if it is your turn to declare interception (28.6.1), your Characters may change location to any opponent's location that contains the target of an attack and an attacker controlled by an opponent.
14.0 Designators
Designators determine how cards are related to each other for purposes of other card effects. A designator is any word that appears in the title (8.1) or subtitle (8.2) of a card (with some exclusions, see 14.3). Designators match if they are the same word.
Example: The X matches in Mr. X and X-Ray Specs. 1,000 matches in 1,000 Corpses and Thing with 1000 Tongues. "Monkey" Chang matches the Monkey in Ba-BOOM!’s subtitle. However, the Feng in Feng Kan does not match the Feng in any Feng Shui Site subtitle.
14.1 Comprising Words
A designator word is any contiguous string of letters, numerals, and symbols. They are separated from other words by a space, ignoring leading and trailing punctuation marks and number formatting symbols (except the decimal mark).
14.2 Other Form Matches
There are two special cases where other forms of a word are considered to be the same designator:
- The plural form of a word matches its singular form (e.g. Gun matches Guns, Man matches Men), including plurals of proper names (e.g. Lui Loyi matches Luis Camacho). However, singular and plural forms of personal pronouns do not match (I/we, me/us, he/she/it/they, him/her/it/them).
- The possessive form of a word formed with “‘s” matches the normal form (e.g. Hermit’s matches Hermit).
Note: Gender and Adjective forms of a word do not match, e.g. Priest and Priestess or King and Queen do not match. Hero and Heroic or Avenger and Avenging do not match.
14.3 Not Designators
The following is a list of words and symbols that are not designators:
- Words in a subtitle (8.2) that identify a card’s type (7.0); specifically: Edge, Event, State, Site, Feng and Shui.
- Conjunctions, articles and prepositions (a, an, the, and, or, but, nor, at, for, in, into, of, on, to, with, within, without).
- Multiple occurrences on a card of the same word count as only one occurrence of that designator.
Note: Feng and State are designators if found in a card’s title, but do not match the same word in another card’s subtitle.
14.4 Splitting Designators
The following are considered to be multiple individual designators:
- Words containing punctuation marks from this sequence, “-/:;()”, are split at the punctuation mark into individual designators (e.g. Gun-Toting is two designators, Gun and Toting)
- Words that are camel case are split into individual designators, each beginning with one of the capital letters (e.g. MegaTank is two designators, Mega and Tank).
- Words that contain Arcano, Gun, Sword, or
Super and can be split into multiple whole words are always split into separate designators.
Example: Swordsman is two designators, Swords and Man; Arcanotower is two designators, Arcano and Tower; Shotgun is two designators, Shot and Gun. However, Superior does not split and does not match Super.
14.5 Additional Word Restrictions
The following must be considered as one word and may not be split, modified, or otherwise misused to achieve a match:
- Words containing an apostrophe “‘” other than possessives, such as contractions, personal names, etc. (e.g. O’Rangotang).
- Words that have been abbreviated, either by truncation (e.g. Slo Mo does not match Slow or Motion) or with a period (e.g. Dr. does not match Doctor).
- Acronyms (e.g. SWAT does not match
Special, Weapons, or Tactics).
- Words with a mix of letters and numbers.
- Numbers not written out (e.g. 1,000 does not match Thousand).
14.6 Designators in Rules Text
Designators that appear in a card’s rules text (8.3) appear bold-faced and italicized. However, some early Classic Shadowfist cards did not follow this template.
15.0 Fighting
Characters have a Fighting score (8.7) that tells you how much damage (29.0) a Character inflicts when he enters combat and how much damage the Character can take before he is smoked (20.0).
15.1 Current Fighting
A Character's Fighting is reduced by the number of damage counters on it. Abilities that refer to a Character’s “Fighting” refer to this value.
16.0 Healing
Any effect that removes damage is considered healing. If an effect simply "heals" a card, it removes all damage on that card. (See 10.3.2 Turn to Heal.)
16.1 Heal only Damaged Cards
You cannot heal (i.e. generate a healing effect for) a card unless it is already damaged and is not smoked (20.0). You can, however, use a healing effect on a card that has less damage than the effect would heal.
Note: A smoked card cannot be healed because smoking a card due to damage happens before response effects can be generated.
16.2 “Cannot be Healed”
Cards that “cannot be healed” may not have damage removed from them by any means except by leaving play or by first blanking (32.0) or canceling (33.0) the ability.
16.3 “Cannot be Removed”
Cards that inflict damage that “cannot be removed” (such as Fingertip Razors) should be considered to inflict Corrupted damage. See 50.3 Corrupted.
16.4 “Cannot Turn to Heal”
If a Character “cannot turn to heal”, it may not use its innate healing ability (see 10.3.2), but can be healed by other effects.
17.0 Power
Power is the main currency in Shadowfist. During the game, the amount of Power you have in your Power pool (9.2.6) will increase and decrease as you obtain and spend Power.
17.1 Stockpiling Power
Power you have available carries over from turn to turn if it is not spent. There is no limit to how much you can accumulate.
17.2 Obtaining and Using Power
Shadowfist uses keywords to describe how the Power you take from the counter reservoir (1.3.1) is produced or the Power you put back is lost. These keywords are not interchangeable for the purpose of triggering effects.
17.2.1 Generate Power
Sites generate Power for you during your Establishing Shot (22.2). Other cards that use the word “generate” only generate during Step 2: Power Generation (22.2.2) phase of the Establishing Shot. Generated Power comes from the counter reservoir (1.3.1).
17.2.2 Gain Power
Effects that have you take Power from the counter reservoir during the generation or resolution of the effect use the word “gain.” See also 25.7.3 Playing First FSS and 30.3.3.4 Burn for Power.
Note: Giving, stealing, or losing Power can happen either on generation or resolution; the exact timing is specified by the effect.
17.2.3 Steal Power
Effects that take Power from another player’s pool and put it into your pool are considered to steal Power. (See also 17.2.4 Give Power.)
17.2.4 Give Power
When an effect results in (or is generated by) you giving Power, you voluntarily put Power from your pool into another player’s pool. If it is involuntary or uses the word “steal”, see 17.2.3 Steal Power instead.
17.2.5 Pay or Spend Power
Voluntarily paying (or spending) Power for effects is the most common way to deplete your Power pool. To pay for an effect, place Power counters from your Power pool into the counter reservoir. (See also 17.2.6 Lose Power.)
17.2.6 Lose Power
Power is lost when an effect forces you to remove Power from your pool and put it into the reservoir. This is not the same as paying Power (17.2.5).
Tip: If the resolution of your effect will cause Power to be stolen or lost, your opponent has the opportunity to spend Power in response before the effect resolves, leaving less Power stolen or lost from when the effect was generated.
18.0 Resources
You need to play cards that provide resources (typically with Foundation cards [18.4]) to be able to play more powerful cards. Playing cards that provide resources increases your resource pool (18.1). Resources in your pool are not consumed (i.e. spent) as new cards are played.
18.1 Resource Pool
Your resource pool is comprised of all the resources provided (see 8.6 Resource Provisions) by your cards in-play and the cards in your smoked pile (9.2.1). Cards that are in your hand, your burned-for-victory pile (9.2.5) or out of the game (9.3) do not provide resources.
Example: Once you have an Ascended resource in your resource pool, you may play as many cards that require Ascended as you like. However, until you play another card that has Ascended in its resource provisions, you may not play a card that requires Ascended Ascended.
18.2 Card Resource Type
A card that has a specific resource either in its requirements (8.4) or provisions (8.6) is considered a card of that type. This applies to faction and talent.
Example: A Magic card has a symbol in its resource requirements, provisions, or both. Ming I in Figure 1 is a Magic card.
18.3 Resource Control
While an opponent has control (see 35.3) of a card that you played, that card doesn’t provide resources for your resource pool; instead, it provides resources for the opponent's pool.
18.4 Foundation Card
A Foundation card is a card that requires no resources (8.4) but provides at least one resource (8.6).
19.0 Seizing
When an attacker reduces a Site’s Body to zero via combat damage (29.1), that Site may be seized by the player who declared the attack. Seizing transfers control (35.0) of the Site (see 30.3.3.2). All damage is removed from the Site (see 16.0 Healing) and the seizing player places the Site unturned and face-up into his or her Site structure (9.1.3). The player losing the Site adjusts his or her Site structure per 9.1.4 Removing a Site.
20.0 Smoking
Smoking is the term for when a card leaves the in play area (9.1) and is placed into its owner’s smoked pile (9.2.1). When a card is smoked, place it face-up in the smoked pile. A card can be smoked directly by a card effect (such as Spirit Wrack) or by taking damage equal to its Fighting (15.0) or Body (10.0). A State is smoked when its subject leave play (25.5.4) or becomes an illegal subject for States (25.5.3).
Note: When a Character or Site is smoked, it is defeated and probably killed or destroyed, but just like in the movies it’s not out of the game and it might be back in the third act!
20.1 Smoking via Damage
A Site that has its Body reduced to zero by non-combat damage (29.2) is smoked. A Site that has its body reduced to zero via combat damage is smoked if the attacking player chooses not to seize (19.0) or burn it (12.0). Characters that have their Fighting reduced to zero are always smoked, regardless of damage type.
20.2 Smoking Due to Fighting or Body Changes
Damage on a card is not influenced by changes to its Fighting or Body. If a Character has a bonus to its Fighting score (8.7) from another source and loses that bonus, the number of damage counters on that Character remains unchanged. Thus, it is possible for a Character to be smoked when a Fighting bonus on him expires. The same holds true for Sites and Body. See also 24.5.5 Recalculation.
20.3 Smoked Directly vs. Damage
Effects that smoke cards directly do not damage them. Conversely, a card that says "cannot be smoked by Events" may still be damaged by Events, and damage inflicted in this manner may still smoke the card.
21.0 Turning
Some effects require a card to turn. Turn a card by rotating it 90° to a horizontal position. Once turned, a card cannot be turned again until it is first unturned (see 22.2 Establishing Shot).
21.1 Unturning
To unturn a card, rotate it 90° to a vertical position. See also 22.2.3 Step: Unturn.
Playing
“Time to Kick Ass!”
22.0 The Turn
Each player’s turn consists of two parts: the Establishing Shot and the Main Shot. (See Appendix 1 for a simplified flow chart.)
22.1 Player Priority
The active player is the player whose turn it is. This player has priority for generating effects (24.0) and starting scenes (23.0). If the active player declines to start a scene (i.e. passes) then that option is passed to the player to his or her left and continues clockwise around the table. See also 23.3 Scene Priority.
Tip: Generally, the active player only passes priority during attack scenes (28.2) and declaring end of turn (22.3.2.3).
22.2 Establishing Shot
The Establishing Shot marks the beginning of your turn. Here, you regroup your faction(s) to be ready for another turn of mayhem. The entire Establishing Shot is closed (23.2); no effects may be played unless they specifically say they can be played during the Establishing Shot, are triggered by any game actions in the following steps (like unturning a Character), or are triggered by effects that have been played in the Establishing Shot.
22.2.1 Step 1: Start of Turn
Generate and resolve all effects that are triggered by or can be played during the start of your turn. Cards with such abilities will say “...at the start your turn…” or similar. This is a closed scene (23.2).
22.2.2 Step 2: Power Generation
Generate Power based upon your cards in play. The amount of Power generated by each face-up Site is indicated by its Power score (0). Each face-down Feng Shui Site generates one Power. Other cards may generate Power via their abilities in this phase. Take the calculated amount of Power from the counter reservoir and add it to your Power pool (9.2.6).
22.2.2.1 Skipping Power Generation
You may forego the Power generation step in order to discard more than one card during the discard step (22.2.4). If you choose to forego, you may not generate Power from any card or effect in the Establishing Shot this turn.
22.2.3 Step 3: Unturn
Unturn (21.1) all your turned cards. You may choose to keep any card turned to continue using a turn-and-maintain effect (see 10.4).
22.2.4 Step 4: Discard
You may discard (39.0) one card from your hand into your toasted pile (9.3.1). If you did not generate any Power this turn, you may discard as many cards as you like. You are not required to discard during this phase even if you are over your current hand size (9.2.2.2).
22.2.5 Step 5: Draw
Draw cards from the top of your deck (1.2) until the number of cards in your hand is equal to your calculated hand size (9.2.2.2). If you already have cards in your hand equal to or greater than your hand size, you do not draw cards.
22.3 Main Shot
The Main Shot is the part of your turn where you play most of your cards.
22.3.1 Main Shot Beginning Scene
If any effects are triggered (26.0) by the beginning of your Main Shot, then your Main Shot begins with an open scene (23.1) into which all triggered effects are added. You have priority to play the first effect (see 23.3).
22.3.2 Main Shot Options
During your Main Shot, you can do any of the following three options in any order:
22.3.2.1 Option 1: Start a Scene
You may start a new scene by playing a card from your hand or using an ability (usually on a card you control) to generate an effect (24.0). This is an open scene (23.1), during which you may play Characters, States, Edges, and Sites. When you start a new scene in this way, you have scene priority (23.3).
22.3.2.2 Option 2: Declare an Attack
You may declare an attack on any legal target; provided you have one or more Characters that may legally attack (see 28.1 Declaring an Attack, 28.1.1 Eligible Attackers).
22.3.2.3 Option 3: Declare End-of-Turn
Any time when there is not an attack or scene being resolved, you may declare the end of your turn. Each of your opponents can respond by starting a scene. After all responses have resolved, you may again choose any Main Shot option (22.3.2). If there were no end-of-turn responses or all responses have resolved and all players have declined to add new responses, your turn ends. (See also 28.1.2 Declaring an Out-of-Turn Attack.)
22.3.3 End-of-Turn Scene
Once all players are done starting scenes and declaring attacks after the end of the turn declaration (see 22.3.2.3), there is a final closed scene (23.2) into which all effects that are triggered by the end of the turn are generated. This scene can also be started by the active player burning for Power (30.3.3.4).
23.0 The Scene
A scene is a stack of effects (24.0). Scenes can be either closed or open. After any effect is added to or removed from the stack, another effect may be added. If all players pass adding more effects, the last effect added is resolved and removed. This is repeated, maintaining LIFO order, until the scene is resolved.
23.1 Open Scenes
In open scenes, players may generate any kind of effect, such as voluntary or triggered effects.
23.2 Closed Scenes
In closed scenes, effects cannot be played normally. Only triggered effects (26.1), effects that are explicitly legal during that closed scene, or effects that can either explicitly respond to (26.2) or cancel (33.0) an effect already in the scene can be generated.
Note: A general statement of time, such as “Play during an opponent's attack”, can’t break into a closed scene -- but effects with play requirements that only last for a single scene, such as “Play when a Character is smoked”, will.
23.3 Scene Priority
Players may respond (24.5.6) to an effect, starting to the left of the player that generated it, in clockwise order. After each player has responded or passed, the active player has priority to add another effect to the scene. Triggered effects (26.1.5) take precedence over responses and are played when they are triggered. Players who control multiple triggered effects play them into the scene in the order of their choice.
23.4 Response Scene
Only the first scene that follows a declaration (27.0) is considered the response scene. Any subsequent scenes, like when resolving an attack (28.0), are not considered response scenes to the declaration. Effects that are triggered in response to declarations can only be generated in a response scene. The response scene is an open scene (23.1).
23.5 Resolved Scene
A scene is considered to have fully resolved when the stack is empty and all players have passed adding more effects.
24.0 Effects
Effects occur when playing a card (25.0) and sometimes when using an ability (10.0) printed on a card. Effects can be triggered (26.0) by certain conditions or played at certain times. They can be voluntary to play or mandatory (26.1.1) to play when triggered. All effects generate and then later resolve. An effect is generated by meeting its requirements, including: observing timing restrictions (24.1.2), making all choices (24.1.2), and paying all costs (24.1.4). The effect is applied when it resolves.
Note: Declarations (27.0) are not effects. Not all abilities on cards generate effects (see 10.0 Continuous Abilities).
24.1 Effect Requirements
An effect’s requirements are the part of rules text (8.3) that stipulates the conditions that must be met to generate the effect. Typically, this is the first half of the text before the double colon (see 24.1.1). Some cards may not be printed with a double colon. Some cards may not have an effect requirement other than just playing the card.
24.1.1 Effect Template
The common template for an effect is "Do X :: Do Y.", where X is the effect requirements and Y is the effect that occurs upon resolution (24.8).
24.1.2 Effect Timing Restrictions
When playing a card as an effect, you must obey play timing restrictions (25.1.1). Other effects may only be triggered at certain times (see 26.0 Triggered Effects) or may simply be generated during any open scene (23.1).
24.1.3 Identification of Affected Cards
You must be able to make all choices required by the effect, including identifying affected cards. Some effects require you to “target” or “choose” when identifying which cards will be affected. These are keywords for the purposes of other effects and abilities that are looking for these keywords. These two words are not synonymous with each other. If an effect’s text requires you to “target” or “choose” as part of its requirements then there must be legal targets or choices available when playing the effect. See also 26.6.4 Modifying the Target.
Example: If you play Golden Comeback, you must have a Character in your Smoked Pile to choose. If you play Spirit Wrack, there must be a non-Magic (see 18.2) Character in play to target.
Example: Mark of Fire requires that you target (i.e. make choices of) four Characters and/or Sites, thus there must be at least four such cards in play for it to be played.
Note: A target for an effect should not be confused with the target of an attack (see 28.1.3).
24.1.3.1 “Not a Legal Target”
Cards that are "not a legal target" for certain effects may not be targeted by those effects, but they may still be chosen by effects that don't use the keyword "target,” and they may also be affected by blanket effects, effects that affect all cards in play or at a certain location.
24.1.3.2 Legal Choices for Affected Cards
Only cards in play or cards that have effects still on the stack are legal choices for your effect unless the effect says otherwise (see 6.0). Additionally, you can only choose effects that have been added to the current scene for the purposes of playing effects that affect other effects.
24.1.3.3 Affected Card Changes Area
If a card leaves play, your smoked pile, or your hand, then effects (including delayed effects [26.4]) directed at the card do not affect that card anymore even if the card returns to that play area. However, effects directed at effects that were generated from such a card still do affect that effect.
Example: If you play Eater of Fortune to smoke an opponent’s Edge and he or she responds with Difficulty at the Beginning to cancel and toast the Eater, you can still sacrifice the Eater to your damaged Ming I and the Eater will not be toasted, but the Edge-smoking effect will still be canceled by the Difficulty (unless you pay the 1 Power).
24.1.4 Effect Cost
The requirements of an effect may include additional costs such as turning a card, sacrificing (45.0) a card, or paying Power.
Example: Turning Chinese Doctor is the cost to generate a healing effect from its ability. Targeting a damaged Character (see 16.1) is part of that effect’s requirement (see ) The play cost of the Chinese Doctor card is not part of the effect cost in this case.
24.2 Game State Determination
All variables, including “X” (48.0), and affected cards are determined when an effect is generated. That determination cannot be changed even if the basis for the determination changes later in the scene (23.0). However, affected cards chosen as the “target” of the effect can be changed by other effects (see 26.6.4). Some effects will determine additional game state after the effect has been triggered. (See also 24.7 Becoming Illegal after Generation.)
Example: Wedding Gifts counts all unturned Characters when the effect is generated. Turning Characters later in the same scene will not reduce the amount of power gained.
Example: “When an opponent reduces Nine Dragon Temple's Body to 0, gain 3 Power if that opponent is now closer to victory than you.” In this ability, the effect generates “when” something happens but checks its “if” condition during resolution.
24.2.1 Choice Timing
All choices are made on effect generation unless the effect explicitly calls for the choice to be made during resolution or when the choice is based on something that happens during resolution, such as choosing a revealed card.
Example: Dirty Tricks requires a targeting choice on generation but also another choice on resolution.
Example: Even though Chinese Connection only mentions a target in the resolution part of its text, the targeting choice is made on effect generation.
24.3 Multiple Separate Effects
Multiple separate effects (whether on the same card or different cards) with the same cost (24.1.4), such as sacrificing or turning a Character, must be identified and paid for separately one at a time.
24.4 Voluntarily Revealing FSS
You may reveal your Feng Shui Site to play an effect from it whenever you can play an open effect (see 23.1). If the Feng Shui Site has a triggered effect or a response, it may also be revealed whenever the effect can be used. Revealing the Site without playing an effect from it is itself an effect that can be responded to. Revealing the Site triggers “when this Site is revealed” effects and activates continuous abilities (10.1). Some sites have effects (triggered or otherwise) that can only be used once the Site is revealed (including "when this Site is revealed", as well as Sites that require a decision to be made before their trigger can be generated [like Disco or Phlogiston Mine]); these Sites can only be voluntarily revealed during open scenes rather than as part of generating their effect. (See also 30.3.2 Reveal Damaged FSS, 26.1.2 Voluntary Triggers.)
24.5 Order of Generation
Once all requirements are fulfilled, costs are paid, affected cards are chosen, and variables are set, the effect is generated and will resolve in the appropriate order once the scene (23.0) starts resolving. Follow these steps to complete generation:
24.5.1 Step 1: Placement and Activation
Events are played into the smoked pile (9.2.1). Character, Site, State and Edge cards are placed onto the table in this step. If a Character or Site was played as an effect, its rules text becomes active upon generation. If a State or Edge was played, only its restrictions (49.0) are active; its remaining rules text is not active until the effect has resolved.
24.5.2 Step 2: Generate and Trigger
Any effect on the Character, Site, or State that triggers off of entering play is generated now. If you played an Event or used an effect on a card in play, its effect is generated now. If the effect does something “immediately” upon generation, then apply that portion of the effect now.
Note: The card being played has already entered play, so it can’t trigger itself if it has an ability that triggers on cards like it entering play, such as Software Pirate.
24.5.3 Step 3: Generation Damage
If a Character or Site is damaged during generation and that damage is enough to smoke (19.0) it, then smoke it now.
24.5.4 Step 4: Generation Auction(s)
After the effect has been generated and any damage has been dealt, check if there are now two Unique cards with the same title in play. Handle any Uniqueness auctions (31.1) that the generation has caused.
24.5.5 Step 5: Recalculation
Recalculate all continuous abilities (10.1). If the Fighting (15.0) of a Character or the Body (10.0) of a Site is reduced to zero at this point, those cards are smoked (19.0). All cards that are smoked during recalculation are smoked simultaneously and the cards are considered to have been smoked by the ability that was recalculated. Repeat this step until no more cards are smoked.
24.5.6 Step 6: Generation Response
Per scene priority (23.3), players may generate an effect in response or pass.
24.6 Multiple Combined Effects
If an effect has multiple parts, like Solar Flare, then each part must be completed fully before the next part is applied, and the parts are applied in the order listed on the card.
24.7 Becoming Illegal after Generation
An effect will still resolve even if it is no longer legal to generate the effect by the time it resolves, such as its target leaving play.
Note: It is legal to play effects that don’t change the game state. You can play Back for Seconds on a Character that is already unturned. You can play Tortured Memories on a Character you already control. However, there will be no unturning or change-of-control trigger fired when these effects resolve. Exceptions to this are that you can’t heal undamaged cards (see 16.1) and you can’t choose cards for an effect that are immune (40.0) to the effect being played.
24.8 Resolving
When an effect resolves, make all the changes to the table that result from the effect. If an effect cannot be fully applied (say, because some of its targets have been removed from play by other effects, or if some targets have become immune to the effect [see 40.0 Immunity]), apply as many parts of the effect that still can be applied. Thus, an effect may resolve but not actually make any changes to the table.
Note: The only way to stop an effect from resolving is to cancel it (see 33.0). Smoking (19.0) the card that generated the effect will not stop the effect from resolving.
24.8.1 Order of Resolution
When an effect resolves, the table update follows these steps:
24.8.1.1 Step 1: Resolution Damage
When the effect is applied, Characters and Sites are smoked as soon as their Fighting or Body is reduced to zero (either by damage or other effects). This will usually happen at the end of the effect resolution, but can happen intermittently if the effect has several parts.
24.8.1.2 Step 2: Resolution Auction(s)
After damage has been dealt, check if there are now two or more Unique cards with the same title in play and handle any number Uniqueness auctions (31.1) that have been caused.
24.8.1.3 Step 3: Recalculation
Recalculate all continuous abilities (10.1). If the Character’s Fighting or Site’s Body is reduced to zero at this point, those cards are smoked (19.0). All cards that are smoked during recalculation are smoked simultaneously, and the cards are considered to have been smoked by the ability that was recalculated. Repeat this step until no more cards are smoked.
Example: Multiple attacking Wolf Clan Hunters with various amounts of damage that are then hit by a Final Brawl may take a couple rounds of recalculation to determine which have survived after damage has been applied.
24.8.1.4 Step 4: Resolution Triggers
Any effect that was triggered (26.0) by the resolution of the recalculation is generated. These effects are placed onto the scene now.
24.8.1.5 Step 5: Resolution Response
After the effect has resolved, players may generate an effect in response per scene priority (23.3), or pass.
24.8.2 Resolve Next Effect
If no new effects were generated in steps 24.8.1.4 or 24.8.1.5, then the next effect on the scene resolves. If new effects were added to the scene, resolution begins with the last effect that was placed onto the scene (LIFO).
25.0 Playing Cards
Playing cards is a common way to generate an effect (24.0). Resources (18.0) usually are required to play cards. Typically the card comes from your hand (9.2.2) but can also come from your smoked pile (see Play From Smoked Pile 44.0).
25.1 Play Requirements
Before you can play a card, you must have the required resources in your pool (18.1), have sufficient Power to meet the card’s cost (8.5), and meet card type play timing restrictions (25.1.1).
25.1.1 Play Timing Restrictions
The timing restriction for playing a card is determined by its card type or given in the requirements of the effect. Timing restrictions for card types must be observed even when a card is played using a card-playing ability, unless timing or type restrictions are waived by that ability (e.g. “Play a card regardless of type…”), or the ability generates an effect that is triggered (26.0) at a specific time (e.g. “When an opponent declares an attack, play a Character…”)
Example: When using Proving Ground to play a Character, you must still observe timing restrictions (that is, play during your Main Shot). Out of the Barrel is an example of an Event that allows you to play a Character on an opponent’s turn. (Note that it cannot be combined with Proving Ground because both cards “play” the Character during resolution and only one effect can do so.) Chi Detachment is an example of a State with rules text that breaks its timing restrictions.
25.2 Turning While Entering Play
A card entering play, whether played from hand or by some other effect, may not generate effects that require turning it as a cost (24.1) until it resolves in the scene in which it enters play (see 24.5.2 Step: Entering Play).
25.3 Playing Events
Events may be played in any open scene, regardless of whose turn it is. Events are played just like playing any other effect (24.0). When you play an Event, place the card in the smoked pile during generation. This does not count as smoking a card for the purpose of triggering effects.
25.4 Playing Characters
Characters may only be played during your Main Shot (22.3) outside of an attack. The Character is placed above the front row of any one of your locations (9.1.2) or at an unspecified location (9.1.2.2) if no location exists. The rules text is immediately active (24.5.1). If the Character has an ability that triggers upon entering play, refer to 24.5.2 Step 2: Entering Play.
25.5 Playing States
States may be played in any open scene during your Main Shot, including during an attack. Place the State partially underneath the chosen subject card during the generation step (see 24.5.1) so it can still be seen. The rules text of a State is not active until the State resolves, unless it contains an effect that triggers when the State is played (see 24.5.2 Step 2: Entering Play).
Tip: States can generally be played on both your and your opponents’ cards unless its rules text restricts this.
25.5.1 Valid Subject
Valid subject cards are listed in the State's rules text, e.g. "Play on a
Note: Some States place additional constraints on the card type for it to be subject, such as "Play on a Fire Character." or "Play on a Site controlled by an opponent."
25.5.2 Subject Loses Requirements
A State’s subject may no longer meet the State’s requirements after the State has generated. The State remains in place even when the requirement is no longer met.
25.5.3 Subject Gains “Not Legal For States”
If the State’s subject gains the ability “not a legal subject for States” or gains immunity to States (see 40.1), the State is smoked immediately.
25.5.4 Subject Leaves Play
If the State’s subject card is removed from play, then the State is smoked (19.0) immediately.
25.5.5 State Lifetime
The State stays attached to its subject until another effect removes it or moves it (44.3).
25.5.6 State Location
States are always considered to be at the same location as their subject.
25.5.7 Smoked Before Resolving
If a State gets smoked before it resolves, it is considered canceled (33.0).
25.6 Playing Edges
Edges may only be played during your Main Shot outside of an attack. Edges are placed in the in-play area outside of your Site structure. The rules text of an Edge is not active until the Edge resolves, unless it contains an effect that triggers when the Edge is played (see 24.5.2 Step 2: Entering Play).
25.6.1 Smoked Before Resolving
If an Edge gets smoked before it resolves, it is considered canceled (33.0).
25.7 Playing Sites
Sites may only be played during your Main Shot outside of an attack. You may only play one Site during your turn. Sites are placed into your Site structure (see 9.1.3) during the generation step (24.5.1). The Site’s rules text becomes active immediately (24.5.1).
25.7.1 Playing Feng Shui Sites
Feng Shui Sites that have neither a printed cost (8.5) nor a resource requirement (8.4) must be played face-down; Feng Shui Sites with a printed cost or resource requirement are played face-up.
25.7.2 Feng Shui Site Cost
For Feng Shui Sites with no printed cost, the cost to play it is equal to the number of Feng Shui Sites you currently have in play. If you have no FSS in play, playing a FSS costs zero Power (and generates you a Power [25.7.3]). If you have one FSS in play, playing a second costs 1 Power. Having two FSS costs you 2 Power to play your third, and so on.
25.7.3 Playing First FSS
At any point in the game, if you have no Feng Shui Sites in play and you play a Feng Shui Site, you gain one Power during the effect generation step (see 24.5.2). This Power gain is considered to be caused by the Feng Shui Site.
25.7.4 Feng Shui Site Play Limit
If you are one Feng Shui Site away from victory (see 4.1), or somehow have exceeded the number of burned or controlled Feng Shui Sites required for victory (see 4.2), you may not play a Feng Shui Site, unless your opponents control no Feng Shui Sites (see 4.3).
26.0 Triggered Effects and Responses
Triggered effects and Responses are both types of effects that have explicit requirements (24.1) to be met before they can be played.
26.1 Triggered Effects
Triggered effects generate when there are changes in the game state, like, cards getting healed, smoked, damaged, burned, seized, and so forth. They use words like “when” or “at the end of” to describe their timing.
26.1.1 Mandatory Triggers
Triggered effects that have no play cost (24.1.4) and are not phrased such that the player “may” perform the action are called mandatory triggered effects and must be generated when their trigger conditions are met.
Tip: It is a house rule as to whether to allow forgotten mandatory effects, such as forgetting to gain a Power when a Möbius Garden was triggered.
26.1.2 Voluntary Triggers
Triggered effects that have an additional cost to generate (including playing a card), are on face-down Feng Shui Sites, or are explicitly voluntary (such as, containing the text "may"), are called voluntary triggered effects. You do not have to generate them when their conditions are met.
Example: Desolate Ridge has an additional cost of turning the Site so it is voluntary to use when it is triggered.
26.1.3 Triggers Must be Active
You may only trigger effects on cards whose rules text is active (9.2.3) at the time the trigger occurs.
26.1.4 Trigger in Current Scene
All mandatory triggered effects and played voluntary triggered effects are generated when their trigger occurs. If the trigger occurs during a scene, the effect is added to the scene. If another effect in the scene is generating or resolving, the triggered effect is added after that generation or resolution. If there is no current scene and a scene can be started, an open scene is started. If a scene cannot be started, the effect generates and will play into the next scene, such as the response scene after a declaration (see 27.3) or the Combat Cleanup scene after inflicting combat damage (see 30.4).
26.1.5 Multiple Triggered Effects
Multiple triggered effects can be generated simultaneously. Scene priority (23.3) determines the order they are added to the stack.
26.2 Responses
Responses, formally, are (usually voluntary) effects that explicitly respond to some other game action as per their effect requirements (24.1), such as declarations of attacks, joining attacks, interception, or effects played into a scene (including turning for an effect). They use words like “Play in response to”. Any number of responses can be made to any single game action.
26.2.1 Response to Card Types
Cards with “Play in response to
26.2.2 Response Timing Restriction
Responses may be generated at any time in the scene after the effect they respond to has been generated or resolved. If the response is to a declaration, it may be played at any time during the response scene (23.4).
Example: You can play Confucian Stability in response to Bite of the Jellyfish (with Power gained from a burn for Power). Even though Bite is played into a closed scene, Confucian plays “in response to an Event”. Continued> … You can’t reveal a Dockyard in response to Bite of the Jellyfish because Dockyard has no explicit requirement being met to make it legal for the closed scene.
26.3 Indefinite Triggers
Some effects trigger off of indefinite effects that do something or would do something. Any card that has the potential to do something is treated as if it will do that something, regardless of whether choice, chance, or even the target card’s abilities would prevent that something from actually occurring. However, such an effect would not trigger if that something did not identify which cards are going to be affected upon generation.
Example: The controller of a Big Bruiser (with Toughness:
- can respond with Who’s the Monkey Now? to any of the following effects: Reprogramming (even though the controller could choose blanking instead of damage).
Final Brawl (even though the Tough-ness would prevent the damage).
Safety Third (even though the coin toss could come up tails and the Big Bruiser wouldn’t be smoked).
However, Who’s the Monkey Now? cannot be used in response to effects that select targets on resolution, such as Throwdown in Chinatown.
26.4 Delayed Triggers
Some effects set up delayed effects as they resolve. The delayed effect is commonly triggered by the end of the turn or the end of an attack. The delayed effect will generate when its conditions are met and is resolved normally. The delayed effect is part of its parent effect: if the parent effect is canceled (33.0), then so is the delayed effect, and if the parent effect resolves, the delayed effect cannot be canceled by any means.
Example: Wing of the Crane says "Smoke target Character. Return it to play under its owner’s control at the end of the next player’s turn if it is still in the smoked pile." The delayed effect is to return a Character to play and it triggers at the end of the next player’s turn. Valley of Ashes can cancel Wing of the Crane in response to generating the smoking effect, but it can’t be used in response to the delayed return-to-play effect.
26.5 Expiration Effects with a Duration
Some effects have a finite duration instead of only momentarily affect the game. In this case, treat the duration as a delayed effect that says: "At the end of the duration, end this effect" (see 26.4 Delayed Triggers).
Example: Stunt Driving: "Target a Character :: Target gains Guts and +2 Fighting until the end of the turn." This card has a duration that lasts until the end of the turn.
26.6 Modifying Other Cards
While all numbers and choices of an effect are made upon the effect’s generation (see 24.1.4 Game State Determination), some effects and abilities have the capability to change those numbers and choices:
26.6.1 Modifying Explicitly
Effects that make explicit modifications to other effects, such as retargeting (26.6.4) or canceling (33.0), must be played in response to the effect’s generation so as to make the change when the modifying effect resolves.
26.6.2 Modifying Generally
Effects or abilities that modify what a card does generally are active as soon as they resolve and make their modification when the modified effect resolves. These types of effects can affect an effect even when they resolve between generation and resolution of the modified effect.
Example: When Arcanogardener enters play, it may inflict one point of damage on up to four Sites. If, in response to the Arcanogardener entering play, a We Need Bigger Guns is played onto it, then two points of damage are inflicted on each Site when the Arcanogardener’s effect resolves.
26.6.3 Modifying Numbers & Designators
Effects or abilities that change a card by changing numbers (like Mutator) or adding or removing designators (like Identity Chop Shop) only affect an effect before it is generated. The modifying effect or ability has to be resolved or in play by the time the modified effect is generated. When a Character gains a designator, it gains it until it leaves play.
Example: Mutator cannot change how much Power an opponent pays you to cancel The Gray after the opponent has already generated the effect. You have to choose to use Mutator to change The Gray beforehand.
26.6.4 Modifying the Target
Effects that change the target (24.1.2) of another effect can do so after the targeting effect has been generated. Changing the target does not affect any other part of the effect; all numbers set on generation remain the same.
Example: Brain Fire may retarget which card receives damage from Earth, Wind and Fire, but it can’t change the value of X or which cards are healed.
Example: Violet Meditation, Pocket Demon, and Scrounging calculate the amount of Power upon generation. Even if the target of these cards is changed with Brain Fire, it will not change the calculated amount.
26.6.5 Ceasing to Modify
A continuous ability that ceases to affect the card generating the modified effect before it resolves (including States on the card or turn-and-maintain effects, which are canceled by leaving play or no longer being on the subject) will no longer have an effect on the modified effect.
Example: If a Napalm Belcher with a We Need Bigger Guns on it is turned to inflict two points of damage at each card at a specific location, and the We Need Bigger Guns is smoked in response, only two points of damage are inflicted on each card instead of three.
27.0 Declaration
Declarations are actions a player can perform that are not playing cards or generating effects (24.0). Attacking (see 28.1), joining attacks (see 28.4), intercepting (see 28.6.1), and the end of your turn (see 22.3.2.3) are all things that are declared.
27.1 Declaration Timing
Declarations cannot be made during a scene, and thus can never be made in response to other declarations or effects.
27.2 Declaration Indivisibility
Declarations cannot be interrupted by any effect. When a declaration is made, the declaring player completes all steps of the declaration before any effects may be played in response.
27.3 Declaration Responses
Effects that are triggered (26.0) by a declaration, like “When an attack is declared…”, must be used in the first scene after the declaration is made (see 23.4 Response Scene).
28.0 Attacks
Attacks consist of declarations, scenes, and combats as described by these steps.
- Declaring the attack.
- Joining the attack. a) Repeat step 2 for each opponent.
- Declaring interception. a) Resolving combat with interceptors b) Repeat step 3 for each player.
- Resolving combat with the target.
- End-of-Attack scene. (See Appendix 2 for a simplified flow chart.)
28.1 Step 1: Declaring an Attack
An attack can only be declared during your Main Shot (22.3). Declare an attack by turning one or more eligible Characters (28.1.1) you control and identify a legal target (see 28.1.3).
Tip: You don’t have to physically push your attacking cards to the attack target’s location when you declare the attack.
28.1.1 Eligible Attackers
Unturned and resolved Characters you control are eligible attackers. If you have failed an attack this Main Shot, then your Characters must also have Independent (50.6).
28.1.2 Declaring an Out-of-Turn Attack
Some abilities allow you to declare an attack during an opponent’s turn. You may declare an attack in response to an end-of-turn declaration (22.3.2.3). Optionally, during an open scene, declare priority for when the scene resolves in order to declare the attack. When the scene resolves and it is still your opponent’s turn, declare the attack per 28.1. The opponent’s turn does not end after your attack even if you burn a Feng Shui Site for Power (see 30.3.3.4).
28.1.2.1 Out-of-Turn Attack Eligibility
Unturned Characters with the ability to attack outside of your turn remain legal attackers even if you’ve failed an attack during that Main Shot, regardless of whether they have Independent.
28.1.3 Legal Attack Target
The target of the attack can be a single Site or Character controlled by an opponent. You can neither declare nor join attacks against cards you control (see 35.3.6).
28.1.3.1 Changing an Attacker’s Target
Certain effects can change an attacking Character’s target. If the new target is at a different location from the previous target, then the attacker’s location (28.3) changes to the new target’s location. Any other Characters also attacking continue to their original target. If the interception phase (see 28.6) of the attack is not completed, it completes normally. Players who have already declared interception or passed do not get to declare interception again. This type of effect should not be confused with damage redirection (38.0) or changing the target of an effect (see 26.6.4).
28.1.4 Declared Attackers
The declared attackers are considered to have “turned to attack” and have been “declared as an attacker” for the purposes of triggering and generating effects (see 28.2.1 Attack Response Scene).
28.2 Attack Scenes
All scenes during the attack are open scenes (23.1) except the Combat Cleanup (30.4) and the end-of-attack scene (28.8). Any time a scene can be started, any player may begin a scene by announcing that he wants to play an effect. New effects can be played until all players have played all effects they want to play in that step. See also 22.1 Player Priority and 28.9.1 Open End-of-Attack Scene.
28.2.1 Attack Response Scene
Following the declaration, all players may play effects that are triggered by the declaration of an attack into the response scene (23.4).
28.3 Attacker’s Location
During the declaration, declared attackers are immediately at the location (9.1.2) of the target of the attack. This is not considered “changing location” (12.0) for the purpose of triggering effects. If attacking a Character, the attackers will remain at the location of their target, even if the target changes location. If attacking a Site, attackers will remain at the original location of the target if the Site changes location. Attackers may not voluntarily change location.
Example: Endless Corridor can rearrange Sites and cause a new attack target since the attackers remain at the original attack location.
28.4 Step 2: Joining the Attack
All opponents, starting with the player left of the attacker and proceeding clockwise, may declare to join the attack. Each player only gets one chance to declare or decline joining. Players joining the attack may not assign attackers against cards they control. To join the attack, the joining player turns one or more Characters he or she controls. If an effect has split the attack into multiple targets, the joining player assigns his or her attackers (see 28.1.4) to targets as he or she sees fit. The joining player is not considered to have “declared an attack”. A response scene (23.4) follows for handling any effects triggered.
28.5 Premature End-of-Attack
If, at any point after all players have joined or passed in 28.4 Step 2: Joining the Attack, all attackers have ceased attacking (see 28.5.1), then the current scene's stack will finish resolving and the End-of-Attack Cleanup step (see 28.8) is processed (unless an effect was played that stops the attack from ending).
28.5.1 Ceasing to Attack
An attacker ceases attacking if it fails to overcome an interceptor (see 28.6.8), its target ever leaves play, or if the target of the attack is ever controlled by the attacker’s controller.
28.6 Step 3: Interception
Each player, starting with the player to the left of the controller of the original target (even if the target has changed) and proceeding clockwise, gets one chance to declare interception or pass. If declaring, the player moves Characters in an open scene, then declares interception (see 28.6.1), and finally resolves combat before the next player declares.
Tip: The player who declared the attack may declare his or her non-attacking Characters as interceptors against Characters that joined the attack.
28.6.1 Declaring Interception
Potential interceptors must already be at or have moved to (13.0) the location of the target of the attack in an open scene before declaring interception. Declare interception by assigning one or more Characters you control at the attack location to any one attacking Character that is controlled by an opponent and specify the order in which the interceptors will engage in combat with the attacker (see 28.6.4). Characters that you moved to the attack location during your interception phase must be declared as interceptors if possible.
28.6.2 Interceptor Eligibility
Only Characters that are at the location of the target of the attack are eligible to intercept. Attacking Characters may not be declared as interceptors.
28.6.3 Interception Response Scene
Any declaration of interception is followed by an open response scene (23.4) for resolving triggered effects. Characters are considered to be “about to enter combat” as soon as interceptors have been declared for the purposes of triggering effects.
28.6.4 Chain
Multiple interceptors may intercept one attacker, but do so one after the other. This is called a chain. A chain is ordered during the declaration of interception (28.6.1).
28.6.5 Interceptor’s Location
Once a Character has been declared as an interceptor, it cannot change location. If the target moves to another location or the interceptor is moved by an effect, it ceases intercepting when the effect that moved it resolves.
28.6.6 Ceasing Interception
If, after declaring interceptors, an attacker gains an ability (like Stealth, Superleap) that allows him to bypass his interceptor or the attacker is smoked outside of combat, then the interceptor ceases intercepting upon resolution of the effect that grants the bypassing ability or smokes the attacker.
28.6.6.1 Returning from Interception
A Character that moved during Step 3 (28.6) and could not be declared as an interceptor or has ceased interception will return immediately to the last location it was before moving to the attack location or will remain where it is if its current location is controlled by its controller.
28.6.7 Combat with Interceptor(s)
Attackers enter combat with their first interceptors simultaneously. See 30.0 Combat for resolving the combat. After combat with the first interceptor is complete, all attackers then enter combat with the second interceptors in their chains (28.6.4), and so on.
28.6.8 Failing to Overcome Interceptor
If, after combat, an interceptor is still in play, then the attacker has failed to overcome the interceptor. The attacker ceases attacking (see 28.5 Premature End-of-Attack).
Note: After resolving all combat with one player’s Characters the next player may declare interception (28.6.1) until all players have finished intercepting.
28.7 Step 4: Combat with the Target
Any remaining attackers still attacking after interception will enter combat with the target. See 30.0 Combat for resolving the combat.
28.8 Step 5: Return Home
If the Body of a Site was reduced to zero (see 30.3.3), then Site structures are collapsed (see 9.1.4) and, if the Site was seized, then structures are added to (see 9.1.3). All attackers return to where they were located when the attack was declared. If a Site was seized during the attack, the seizing player may place any attackers at the location of the seized Site rather than returning them to their original location. Responses triggered here are played into the end-of-attack scene (28.9). Abilities that are active “until the end of the attack” expire in this step.
28.9 Step 6: End-of-Attack Scene
After the attack is over there is a final closed scene in which all end-of-attack effects are generated. Once the end-of-attack scene begins, no effect may cause the attack to resume. Players can only play his or her end-of-attack effects into this scene, one at a time (see 23.3 Scene Priority). Check for victory conditions (see 4.1) and if conditions are met, the game ends.
28.9.1 Open End-of-Attack Scene
If the attack ended prematurely (see 28.5), then the end-of-attack scene is an open scene (23.1)
28.10 Step: BFP Ends Turn
If you choose “burn for Power” (30.3.3.4) as the result of combat, then immediately process the end-of-turn scene (22.3.3).
28.11 Successful Attack
If combat damage was inflicted on the target of the attack, the attack was a success (even if the attacker’s target was changed). See also 28.12 Failed Attack.
28.12 Failed Attack
If the target of the attack was not damaged by combat damage during the attack, the attack has failed and the attacking player may not declare further attacks this turn. (See 28.1.1 Eligible Attackers, 50.6 Independent)
Tip: It can sometimes be a good idea to cause an opponent’s attack to fail so they can’t declare more attacks.
29.0 Damage
Damage may be inflicted on Characters and Sites by combat (see 29.1) or effects (see 29.2). For each point of damage inflicted on a card, place a counter (1.3) on it. Damage reduces a Character’s Fighting (15.0) and reduces a Site’s Body (10.0); however, neither will reduce below zero. Extra damage inflicted does not spill over onto other cards.
29.1 Combat Damage
Combat damage is damage that is inflicted by a Character during combat at 30.3 Step 3: Inflicting Damage.
29.2 Non-Combat Damage
Damage that is not inflicted during 30.3 Step 3: Inflicting Damage is non-combat damage.
29.3 Damage Duration
Damage remains on a card until it is healed (16.0), leaves play (9.2), or is seized (30.3.3.2).
29.4 Source of Damage
Each card that inflicts damage is a separate source of damage.
29.4.1 Damage Bonuses
Cards that increase the damage that another card inflicts don't count as sources of damage themselves.
29.5 Unspecified Damage Type
Cards that modify damage with a mathematical template, e.g. “Gain +2 Damage” or “Gain -1 Damage”, only modify combat damage (29.1). If an ability “increases damage” or “reduces damage,” then both combat damage and non-combat damage (29.2) is affected.
29.6 Damage Reduction Abilities
These abilities (like Toughness, see 50.18) reduce the damage inflicting from each source of damage (see 29.4). Whenever damage is to be placed on a card, subtract the amount of damage reduction and place the reduced number of counters on the card. Damage cannot be reduced to negative amounts.
29.6.1 Reduction versus Redirection
When damage is redirected (38.0) away from a card with damage reduction abilities (e.g. 50.18 Toughness), the damage is not reduced by the abilities on that card.
29.6.2 Reduction Timing
Damage can only be reduced as it is inflicted. Damage reduction acquired after the damage has been inflicted has no effect on the damage that was already inflicted.
29.6.3 Reduction Templates
Abilities that allow cards to "take no damage" from certain card types are considered to reduce all damage from those cards to zero. Cards that say “no more than” also count as reduction. However, most cards will say “reduce to” when reducing damage.
29.7 Damage Modification Order
If damage is modified by abilities, the modifications are performed in the following order:
- Start with the original damage.
- Add any bonuses (like Butterfly Swords) 3) Subtract any penalties (like Murder of Crows).
- Apply any multipliers (like Aztec Mummy). All multipliers are cumulative.
- Perform any divisions.
- Add any damage from the receiving side (like Ten Thousand Agonies).
- Perform any subtractions (like Toughness, Awesome Presence).
- Perform any “reduce to X” (like Puzzle Garden).
Example: A Site that is subject of two Ornamental Gardens will take quadruple damage
29.8 Variable Damage
Cards that provide variable damage bonuses, (like Hands Without Shadows), calculate the bonus taking all fixed bonuses and penalties into account, but do not account for variable bonuses or subtractions.
Example: If a Character with Hands Without Shadows inflicts combat damage on an undamaged Song, the Little Dragon riding a Battlematic, he will deal 6 damage. Song’s Fighting is 6, so the Hands calculate to 5 plus 1 extra damage to account for the Battlematic’s Toughness: 1. When inflicted, Song’s own ability will reduce the damage to 3, and the Battlematic’s Toughness will reduce it further to 2.
29.9 “Damage Cannot Be Reduced”
Cards that "cannot" have their damaged reduced (like Unstoppable, see 50.19) always inflict their normal damage against cards with damage reduction (like Toughness, see 50.18), even against cards that would otherwise "take no damage" (see 29.6.3).
30.0 Combat
Combat occurs during an attack or Faceoff (41.0) between two Characters or between a Character and a Site. Every combat has an open scene beforehand followed by a closed scene where damage is inflicted, effects are triggered, and cleanup occurs. (See the bottom half of Appendix 2 for a simplified flow chart.)
30.1 Step 1: Pre-Combat Scene
Before combat starts, any player may start an open scene (23.1). This pre-combat scene is the last instance in which effects on cards that are "about to enter combat" can be used. Upon resolution of this scene, combat begins and the following scene is closed (23.2).
30.2 Step 2: Trigger “Enter Combat” Effects
If there are any effects that occur upon entering combat (like "when this card enters combat"), generate and resolve them now in the closed combat scene. Effects that are generated by revealing a Site may be used in this scene.
30.3 Step 3: Inflicting Damage
After 30.2, damage assessment and infliction occurs. Damage inflicted at this point is called combat damage (29.1). Characters inflict damage equal to their current Fighting (15.1) on whatever they are in combat with. No effects may be resolved during this step; however, effects may be triggered during this step and generate as soon as they are triggered. All effects triggered in this step will be dealt with in Step 30.4 Combat Cleanup.
30.3.1 Multiple Opponents
If a Character is in combat with multiple cards, the controller may divide the damage his or her Character inflicts up among the cards as he or she sees fit. When multiple cards inflict damage on a single card, that damage is inflicted simultaneously.
30.3.2 Reveal Damaged Feng Shui Sites
Reveal (flip face-up) any Feng Shui Site that has one or more points of damage assigned to it. See also 30.3.4 Revealed Site Auction.
30.3.3 Reduced to Zero
Any Character whose Fighting is reduced to zero is smoked (30.3.3.1). Any Site whose Body is reduced to zero is smoked (30.3.3.1) or seized (30.3.3.2). Feng Shui Sites may alternately be burned (30.3.3.3, 30.3.3.4). The fate of the Site is chosen in this step (30.3) by the player who declared the attack.
30.3.3.1 Smoked
One result of combat is one or both participants (Character or Site) are smoked as enough damage is inflicted. See 20.0 Smoking.
30.3.3.2 Seized
If a Site, including a Feng Shui Site, is seized (19.0), the Site heals and changes control in this step (30.3) but does not move until the Return Home step (28.8).
30.3.3.3 Burned for Victory
If a Feng Shui Site is burned for victory (12.1.1), the Site is removed from play in the Return Home step (28.8).
30.3.3.4 Burned for Power
If a Feng Shui Site is burned for Power (12.1.2), the Site is removed from play in the Return Home step (28.8).
30.3.4 Revealed Site Auction
If a Site was revealed (30.3.2) due to combat damage, was not smoked or burned, and causes a Uniqueness auction (31.1), handle that auction now. If seized, the seizing player starts the auction. If the winner of the auction cancels the Site, any effects it generated are removed from Combat Cleanup. Sites that are smoked or burned do not cause auctions to occur.
30.4 Step 4: Combat Cleanup
All effects that were generated during damage infliction (see 30.3) or triggered by choices made (see 30.3.3) are played into the Combat Cleanup scene, one at a time, in clockwise order (see 23.3). When the scene is resolved, combat is over.
More Topics
Know Your Enemy
31.0 Auctions
An auction represents two or more opposing sides vying for the loyalty, services, or use of a particular card. An auction is neither an effect nor a declaration. In movie terms, think of an auction as a freeze-frame. The game suspends momentarily to see who wins the auction. Then the game resumes exactly where it left off.
31.1 Uniqueness Auctions
The most common type of auction is the uniqueness auction, which occurs whenever two or more Unique (49.9) cards with the same title (8.1) are in play at the same time. Unique Feng Shui Sites that are face-down do not cause auctions until they are revealed.
31.2 Auction Timing
An auction can occur during the generation of a scene (23.0), during the resolution of a scene, or even during the Establishing Shot (22.2). After any effect is generated or any effect is resolved, check for and complete auctions before generating any other effects (whether triggered, or voluntary effects). An auction might start after any effect is generated or after any effect is resolved, but it can’t start in the middle of the resolution of a multi-step effect.
Example: Killing Rain may reveal multiple hidden Feng Shui Sites. Wait until the effect has resolved (see 24.8.1.2) to start an auction if two Unique sites were revealed and neither was smoked by the Rain.
31.3 In-Auction Effects
No effects may be played during an auction, other than those which explicitly say so. If any of those effects are generated, they start a closed scene (23.2) and can be responded to as usual by triggered effects. If the auction interrupted a scene, players may not add any effects to that scene until the auction is over. Any effect that is legal during an auction may be generated after any bid or pass, including in response to the end of the bidding.
31.4 Auction Participants
In an auction, all players are allowed to bid Power.
31.5 Opening Bid
An opening bid of at least 1 Power (17.0) must be made by the player starting the auction (see 31.5.1). This bid is not optional. If that player has no Power, then the auction does not actually start, that player’s card is immediately canceled (33.0), placed in its owner’s toasted pile (9.3.1), and normal play resumes where it was suspended. Other players who might want to participate in the auction can’t make the opening bid if that player can’t.
31.5.1 Opening Uniqueness Auctions
The player who controls the newly-revealed copy or plays the second copy of the Unique card must make the opening bid. See 31.5.
Example: The controller of a Kowloon Gate is entering combat (see 30.1) with an unrevealed Kowloon Gate. The defending player has no Power and wants the attack to fail, so he reveals the second Gate, does not make an opening bid, and the second Gate it toasted.
Tip: There may be cases where an opponent is about to enter combat with your Unique site with enough damage to reduce its Body to zero but you don’t want to reveal it to cause an auction, like in order to play an Avenging Thunder on that player.
31.6 Bidding
After the opening bid (31.5), the option to bid passes clockwise from the opening bidder. Each player may either pass, or bid at least 1 more Power than the previous high bid. You may not bid more Power than you actually have. The option to bid continues around the table until all players have passed in succession, at which time the bidding ends.
31.7 Winning an Auction
After all bidders (31.6) have passed, the player with the highest bid wins the auction and must spend the amount of Power he or she bid. No other bidders spend any Power. The winner then receives the benefit or makes the choice required by this particular auction (see 31.7.1). The Power expenditure and the benefit or choice happens simultaneously. The auction now ends, and the turn resumes at the point it was suspended.
31.7.1 Winning Uniqueness Auctions
The winner of a uniqueness auction decides which of the two Unique cards stays in play. If the original card stays in play, the new card (or newly-revealed card) is canceled (33.0) and placed in its owner’s toasted pile (9.3.1). If the new card stays in play, the original card is canceled and is placed in its owner’s smoked pile (9.2.1). This is not considered an effect or declaration, nor is it considered to be done by any particular player or card, for purposes of other card effects.
Example: Player A attacking Player B’s Site for the win has a face-up LaGrange Four. Player C not involved in the attack waits until the very last scene when the attacker enters combat with the Site and voluntarily reveals (24.4) his own LaGrange Four, and bids 1 Power to start the auction. If Player C wins the auction, he can choose to smoke the attacker’s LaGrange Four. The attack will conclude and Player A may take the Site, but he’ll still only be at four Sites!
Note: If the target of an attack leaves play due to an auction, the other Unique card left over does not become the new target of the attack.
31.8 More than Two Uniques
If an effect causes more than two copies of a Unique card to be revealed or to enter play simultaneously (possible with Killing Rain or Positive Chi), then the auction start is a little different. See 24.5.4 or 24.8.1.2 for when to start the auction. The active player chooses the order of the auctions. The card’s controller has first option to make the opening bid. In this special case, the player may decline to start the auction (even if he or she has Power), in which case the option to start passes to the next player clockwise who controls a copy of the Unique card. If all such players decline to start the auction, all copies of the card are placed in their owners’ toasted piles (9.3.1). If any player starts the auction, then all players may bid as usual. The winner of the auction chooses which copy remains in play; all other copies are placed in their owners’ toasted piles.
32.0 Blanking
When a card is blanked, its rules text (8.3) (including any copied rules text) is inoperative. Blanking a card does not remove restrictions (49.0) or abilities (10.0) granted to it by other cards. Any rules text copied (36.0) to the card after it was blanked does not become blanked. Blanking does not change or remove effects already generated by the rules text; instead, see 33.0 Canceling. Note that innate Character abilities (10.3) are not part of a Character’s rules text and are not removed by blanking.
Note: Blanking and canceling last until the card leaves play, unless the effect that caused it says otherwise.
33.0 Canceling
Canceling is a stronger form of blanking (32.0). In addition to having its rules text blanked, when a card is canceled, all unresolved effects it has generated in the scene (23.0) are removed from the scene when the canceling effect resolves.
33.1 Cancels Anything
Effects that cancel any type of card may be used in response to cancel any unresolved effect including those triggered on the play of the card itself, if applicable.
33.2 Canceling Out-of-Play Cards
Cancel effects may cancel unresolved effects even if the generating card has left play.
33.3 Canceling Restrictions
Restrictions (49.0) of a card are always effective and cannot be canceled or blanked.
Note: If you play a One-Shot (49.5) Event and it is canceled, you still may not play any further copies of the Event.
34.0 Card Memory
Cards are unaware of anything that happened before they were played. Also, if a card leaves play (9.1), your smoked pile, or your hand, then it loses all memory of its game state, such as any damage, copied text, canceling (33.0), etc., that might have been applied to that card when it was in its previous area. (See also 24.1.3.3 Affected Card Changes Area.)
35.0 Control
You are the controller of all cards you put into play, unless the card you played or the effect you used to put the card into play says otherwise. You control all effects generated by cards you control or in your smoked pile, and from Events that you play.
35.1 Control of Event Cards
Despite being played directly out of play (see 9.2.1 Smoked Pile), Events you play count as “cards you control”.
35.2 Control of State Cards
Unless a restriction (see 49.6 Schtick, 49.10 Vehicle, 49.11 Weapon) says otherwise, you control the States you have played, even when they are played on cards controlled by an opponent.
35.3 Taking Control
Some cards allow you to take control of other cards. When a card changes controller, it unturns as soon as the change-of-control effect resolves and may be placed in any legal position (see 25.4 Playing Characters, 9.1.3 Adding a Site). See also 18.3 Resource Control.
35.3.1 Already Controlled
If you use an effect to take control of a card that you already control, the card does not change controller and does not move or unturn.
35.3.2 Card State Transfer
When you take control of a card, you receive everything on that card as well: counters, damage, States, and permanent changes (such as Fighting bonuses or penalties). Control of States not marked with the restriction Schtick (49.6), Vehicle (49.10), or Weapon (49.11) remains with their original controller.
35.3.3 Taking Control via Seizing
Seizing (30.3.3.2) a Site is a form of taking control of a card.
35.3.4 Control Expiration
Control acts like a stack. When an effect that takes control of a card ends, the card's previous controller in the current stack of that card’s controllers gains control again. This is considered a change of controller, so the card will unturn. However, for the purpose of triggering effects, the previous owner is not considered "taking control" of the card.
35.3.5 Controlled Card Leaving Play
When a card that has changed controller leaves play, it is returned to its owner’s smoked pile (9.2.1), toasted pile (9.3.1), or hand (9.2.2) depending what happened to the card.
35.3.6 Taking Control during an Attack
Attackers or interceptors that change controller immediately cease to attack (see 28.5) or intercept (see 28.6.6). If a player takes control of the target of an attack, it remains target of the attack; however, any attackers now attacking a target controlled by their controller cease to attack (see 28.1.3).
36.0 Copying
Copying abilities allow the anatomy (8.0) of a card to be copied to a card. Copied rules text is added to the receiving card’s text. Copying a card does not copy its restrictions (49.0), damage, counters, nor abilities (10.0) (or lingering effects) granted by other cards unless otherwise specified.
36.1 Implicit Copying
Whenever an effect copies printed anatomy from a card and assigns that value to a card that is considered copying, even if the word “copy” is not used.
36.2 Copying Printed Values
Copying rules text or a printed value, such as Fighting or Cost, always copies what is printed on a card regardless of other modifications.
36.3 Copying Blanked Text
Copying will work even if the text being copying is already blanked (32.0) or canceled (33.0). See also blanking copied text, 32.0 Blanking.
36.4 Copy on Generation
When a copying effect identifies the text it is copying (see 24.1.4 Game State Determination), the text copied cannot be changed by the source of the text leaving play, gaining Immunity (50.7), being blanked (32.0), being canceled (33.0), or becoming Uncopyable (49.8).
36.5 Copying “When Enters Play”
You may copy effects that trigger when the effect’s card enters play, but since the card you are copying the ability onto has already come into play by the time you use the copying ability, this usually has no effect, unless the copying effect occurs on generation (like Evil Twin).
36.6 Copying References
Any self-referential portion (see 42.0) of the text will refer to the card it is copied to. Titles in quotation marks, as well as designators (14.0), do not change when copied to a different card.
36.7 Copying Onto Self
A card's anatomy (8.0) may be copied to itself.
36.8 Copying Cumulative Abilities
Cumulative abilities, such as Toughness (50.18) and damage bonuses, will add together when copied abilities are added to a card.
Example: If a Character with Toughness: 1 has its rules text copied to itself, it gains another Toughness: 1, for a total of Toughness: 2. If you copy the Character’s rules text on itself a second time, you only copy the printed text, and thus end up with Toughness: 3 in total.
36.9 Copying Turning Abilities
Abilities that require you to turn the card as part of the cost are not cumulative, since each turning of the Character only pays the cost of one effect. However, a triggered ability (26.0) like "When this card turns to attack, inflict 2 damage on all Sites at the location of its target." triggers on turning of the card, and thus would be cumulative.
Note: It is possible to unturn a card and turn it again to pay the cost of a second copied “once-per-turn” turning ability.
36.10 Copying Bold-Faced Abilities
Some effects do not copy the entire rules text, but only part of it, such as bold-faced abilities (50.0). When copying a card in this way, you only copy the abilities printed on the card, and not conditional abilities that the card currently has, even if the ability is granted by the card’s own rules text. Note that the definition of “X” for a bold-faced ability that has it (e.g. Toughness: X) is part of the ability and will be copied as well. (See also 48.0 Value of “X”.)
Example: If a card were to copy the Bold-Faced ability of an attacking Bulletproof Monk (“Toughness: 1 while attacking,”) no ability would be copied, since the Bulletproof Monk does not have a bold-faced ability printed on him, just a conditional ability that lets him gain a bold-specific cirumstances. faced ability under
37.0 Cost Reduction
A card's cost can be reduced by any number of cards. However, cost-reduction effects that play or put into play cards can only be combined with cost-reduction abilities and not other cost-reduction effects because only one such effect can actually put the card into play. Reducing the cost does not affect the printed cost (8.5) of the card for the purposes of other effects.
Example: You cannot use more than one Proving Ground, “Turn :: Play a Character at -2 cost,” to reduce the cost of playing a Character because the effect generated by the Proving Ground plays the Character at a specific time, at resolution. Once the Character is in play, any other Character-playing effect to resolve would be too late to affect the cost since it was already paid.
Example: A cost-reduction effect like Proving Ground, can be combined with a cost-reduction ability like The Dragon Throne, “You may play Characters… at -1 cost.”, since Dragon Throne does not also play the card like Proving Ground does. It provides a cost-reduction ability that can be used whenever matching cards are played.
38.0 Damage Redirection
Damage redirection occurs when damage inflicted on a card is sent to another card. Any effect that redirects damage sets a “signpost” that identifies where the damage will now be inflicted.
38.1 Signpost
Signpost is an abstract concept used in damage redirection. The signpost is not anything that is actually in play. It is merely a mechanism whereby damage coming from a source that should go to an intended recipient is now being pointed toward and redirected to a new recipient. The use of a signpost is not an effect or declaration.
38.1.1 Single Signpost
There may be only one signpost set to affect a particular source of damage. If any player generates another redirection effect that redirects the same source of damage, then the last redirection effect to resolve erases any previous signposts for that source of damage.
38.1.2 Signpost Duration
Signposts created in response to an effect (such as playing an Event) last until that effect resolves. Signposts created during an attack last until the end of that attack. Any signpost not used by that time expires and is no longer active.
Example: If you turn Devil’s Mountain to redirect an attacker’s damage before all the interception is declared, the signpost for that attacker’s damage lasts until the attack is fully complete.
38.1.3 Signpost Reuse
A signpost is usable only once. After damage passes through the signpost once, it ceases to exist, unless otherwise specified.
38.2 Playing Redirections Effects
When you generate a redirection effect (24.0), you must specify the source of the damage being redirected, the original recipient and the new recipient that is a card in play. The signpost is set when the redirection effect resolves.
Note: Some cards won’t require you to specify all three items, but that will be explained in the rules text of the card.
38.2.1 Responding With Redirection
If the source of the damage is an effect (such as a played Event), then the signpost can only be set up in response to that effect and is played like a triggered effect (26.0).
38.3 Redirecting Combat Damage
To redirect a Character’s combat damage (29.1), you must wait at least until that Character has been declared as an attacker (see 28.2.1) or interceptor (see 28.6.3), or is the target of an attack and before the Character enters combat (30.0). Combat damage that is redirected becomes non-combat damage (see 29.2). See also 29.6.1 Reduction versus Redirection.
Example: If you redirect a Character’s combat damage from one Feng Shui Site to another and that damage reduces its Body to zero, the Site cannot be burned or seized since the redirection effect inflicted non-combat damage on it. See 20.1.
38.4 Recipient Leaves Play
Once the signpost is set (the redirection effect resolves), the damage will still be directed to the new recipient, even if that recipient leaves play, in which case nothing gets damaged.
38.5 Redirection Source
The card that causes the redirection becomes the source of that damage.
38.6 Redirecting to the Same Card
You cannot redirect a particular source of damage to the card that the current signpost is redirecting damage away from.
38.7 Canceling Redirection
A redirection effect can be canceled (33.0) in response, but it cannot be canceled after it has resolved (the signpost is set). See 38.4 Recipient Leaved Play.
39.0 Discarding
Cards that you discard go into your toasted pile. However, discarding a card isn’t considered the same as toasting (46.0) for game purposes.
Tip: You may announce cards you are discarding so your opponents don’t feel the need to inspect your toasted pile.
40.0 Immunity
Cards with Immunity or "cannot be affected by" in its rules text cannot be directly affected by abilities or effects generated from identified cards. For the purpose of abilities on the identified cards, the immune card is not in play. Specifically, those identified cards cannot:
- Inflict non-combat damage or remove the immune card from play.
- Redirect, cancel or otherwise change effects generated by the immune card.
- Change its game state in any way (turn it, change its location, affect whether it’s attacking, and so forth).
- Change any value on the immune card.
- Choose or target the immune card.
- Use effects to reduce or redirect damage inflicted by the immune card.
- Use Lethal, Stealth or Superleap against the immune card.
- Use conditional abilities against the card that look for the immune card.
- Count the immune card.
Note: The above is only true for cards or effects that are affecting the immune card directly, but not for cards and effects that affect other cards.
Example: Scrounging would not be able to count Characters that are immune to Hi-Tech cards due to Lantern Festival.
Example: The Seven, which is not affected by Events, Edges, States or Sites, cannot be smoked by Neutron Bomb, damaged by Final Brawl, or have its damage reduced by Armies of the Monarchs or Poisoned! If The Seven is intercepted by a Golden Candle Society that had Iron and Silk played on it before combat, The Seven’s damage is still reduced to 0 because Iron and Silk chose the Golden Candle Society and not The Seven. The same is true for a Crane Stance: it also affects its subject and not The Seven, and thus can reduce the damage it would inflict on the subject.
Example: Beaumains’ conditional ability “Toughness: 3 against non-Unique cards” would not be usable against a non-Unique card with Immunity to Characters.
40.1 Immunity to States
Cards that are immune to States (7.4) are considered not in play by States, so are not legal subjects for playing States. Also, if a card that is the subject of a State gains Immunity to States, then any States on the card can no longer “see” its subject and are smoked. See also 25.5.3 Subject Gains “Not Legal for States”.
41.0 Faceoffs
A Faceoff represents one Character seeking out another to fight in one-on-one combat for personal reasons, without anybody else getting involved.
41.1 Faceoff Timing
An effect that creates a Faceoff may not be played during an attack (28.0).
41.2 Faceoff Location
When a Faceoff effect you have played resolves, your Character moves to the location of the opponent's Character. This is not considered to be "changing location" (12.0) for the purposes of other game effects. Your Character will also move to follow the other if it changes location during the Faceoff.
41.3 Faceoff Scenes
After the Character moves to the Faceoff location (9.1.2), any player may play effects onto the open scene (23.1).
41.4 Faceoff Combat
The Characters then go through steps 30.2, 30.3 and 30.4 of combat. If one of the Characters is in play at the end of combat, and the other was smoked by combat damage, then the controller of the survivor is the winner, and a beneficial effect will usually be triggered.
41.5 End of Faceoff
Once the combat has ended (see 30.4), and anything resulting from it has resolved, your Character returns to its prior location, and the scene picks up where it left off before the Faceoff generated.
41.6 Faceoff vs. Attack
A Faceoff is not an attack (28.0) and neither Character is considered to be attacking or intercepting. Thus, Ambush, Tactics, and other abilities (10.0) that require you to be attacking or intercepting will not work.
41.7 Ceasing to Faceoff
If, before combat damage is inflicted, either Character leaves play or changes controllers, the remaining Character is no longer considered to be in a Faceoff while the rest of the Faceoff scene resolves normally. Your Character, if it is still in play, returns to its prior location when the scene has resolved.
41.8 Faceoff Fighting Difference
There is no inherent requirement about the Fighting difference; the usual rule stated as "Fighting no more than two lower" is a property of those specific cards.
42.0 References
Most cards are self-referential, meaning if a card doesn’t specify to what it is doing something, then it is referring to itself. A card that uses its title (8.1) or a pronoun in its rules text is the same as using the phrase “this card”. If a title appears in quotation marks, it refers to any card with a matching title, including that card itself if it matches. (See also 36.6 Copying References.)
Example: Blue Monk’s rules text says “…Blue Monk cannot be intercepted by Characters…” This ability is simply referring to the card it is printed on.
Example: Undead Horror’s rules text says “You may return this card if you have not already returned an ‘Undead Horrors’ to play this turn.” This ability is referring to the card it is on, but its constraint considers any Undead Horrors card including itself.
Example: Sapphire Guards’ rules text says “…all Sapphire Guards gain Superleap…” The italicized words in this ability are looking for matching designators (14.0), not card titles. Sapphire Guards matches itself.
43.0 Reload
Some cards will tell you to reload a card. On the resolution of a Reload effect, take a card from your smoked pile (9.2.1) and put it on top of your deck (1.2). The card to be reloaded is chosen upon generation of the Reload effect. If the card is no longer in your smoked pile by the time the effect resolves, then it does not go onto your deck.
44.0 Return to Play, Play from Smoked Pile, Place
There are three different ways of playing or moving cards other than playing them from your hand: playing them from your smoked pile, returning them to play, and placing them (States only). All three have different mechanics associated with them and are not synonymous with each other for the purpose of triggering effects or interacting with abilities.
44.1 Return to Play
Cards that are returned to play ignore timing restrictions and play restrictions. No additional cost is paid beyond the cost of the effect that returned the card to play. The return to play will trigger any effect that triggers off of "entering play", but not effects that are triggered by "playing" the card. States may only be returned to play on a subject that fulfills all subject constraints (see 25.5.1) at the time the subject is chosen.
44.2 Play from Smoked Pile
To play a card from the smoked pile (9.2.1), either the card itself or another card in play must permit you to play it from the smoked pile. Cards that are played from your smoked pile behave as if they were played from your hand: their cost must be paid and they obey all of their play restrictions (such as timing, subject card, resource requirements). Any applicable cost reduction and timing modification can be applied. Cards played from the smoked pile trigger any effect that triggers off of "playing" a card. See 25.0 Playing Cards.
44.3 Place, Put, Move
Some effects will allow you to “place”, “put” or “move” a card. This is not the same as “playing” a card. For States, the new subject that the State is placed on must fulfill all of the State's subject constraints (see 25.5.1) at the time the new subject is chosen. However, the timing restrictions of the State (see 25.5) may be ignored. The placed State is considered to have been played at the time the placing effect was played for the purpose of determining the most recent effect.
44.4 Triggering Enter Play Effects
When an effect plays or returns to play one or more cards, resolve step 24.5.1 and 24.5.2 of the entering play sequence for each card that enters play, and then process the resolution sequence of the effect that played the card(s) (see 24.8).
45.0 Sacrifice
Some cards will require you to sacrifice a card, either as cost or effect. To sacrifice a card, choose a card you control and place it into your smoked pile (9.2.1). This is not considered smoking (19.0) the card for the purpose of other game effects. Cards that are sacrificed upon generation of an effect as part of the cost are removed from play at once.
45.1 Chose Which Card
The text of the sacrifice effect will tell you which card to sacrifice. Some cards sacrifice themselves. Others require you to sacrifice a card of a specific type (such as Character). You may choose which card to sacrifice if you control multiple cards of that type.
45.2 Cannot be Sacrificed
Cards that have “cannot be sacrificed” cannot be chosen for sacrifice. Additionally, cards that are immune (40.0) to specific types of effects cannot be chosen when that type of effect requires a sacrifice.
Example: A Character that is immune to Events cannot be chosen if an Event requires you to sacrifice a Character.
45.3 Sacrifice Cards You Control
Sacrifices are only performed by the player that controls the card being sacrificed, not by the player that controls the effect that causes the sacrifice.
Example: Dark Sacrifice forces an opponent to sacrifice a Character. That opponent is the sacrificer, not the player who played Dark Sacrifice.
46.0 Toasting
Toasted cards are permanently out of the game. When a card is toasted, place it in its owner’s toasted pile, regardless of who currently controls it. See also Toast It (49.7).
47.0 Tokens
Tokens are cards that are abstract representations of card types (7.0) and are created by game effects (24.0). Tokens have the restriction Toast It (49.7). The effect that generates the token will provide it with basic card type values; for example, a token Character generation effect will provide the Character with a title (8.1), printing Fighting (8.7), and printed cost (8.5). You may use cards from outside the game to represent Tokens or anything else that can be understood as turned (21.0), unturned and have damage counters assigned to it. The player who initially controls a token, regardless of the effect which generated it, is considered the owner of that token.
48.0 Value of X
Some cards use an X instead of a number for their cost, Fighting, or effects and abilities. The X is always defined in the text. If X has a minimum value, this will also be given in the text. Otherwise, the minimum value is zero.
48.1 Canceling or Blanking X
If the definition of X is blanked (32.0) or canceled (33.0), the X value immediately becomes 0. Thus, a Character with a Fighting of X that is canceled or blanked has a printed Fighting of 0, and it will be smoked unless it has other Fighting bonuses that exceed its damage (See also 24.8.1.3 Step: Recalculation.)
48.2 Copying X
If a Character without an X Fighting copies the abilities of one with X Fighting, its Fighting remains unchanged. If a Character with an X Fighting copies the abilities of another one with X Fighting, the most recent definition of X is applied when calculating X. If an ability that defines X upon entering play (like Fire Serpent) is copied onto another Character that has X Fighting, then the Fighting becomes undefined (and thus 0) and that Character is smoked.
48.2.1 Copying with Multiple X’s
If an ability with X is copied onto another card with a Fighting of X or a different ability containing X, both abilities work normally; each X knows which rules text it is defined by.
48.3 Cost of X
A card with a cost of X is considered to have a cost of the amount of Power spent when it is played until it leaves play. If the cost is reduced by another card, the cost is considered to be the original cost before reduction.
48.3.1 Reduced Cost of X
When a card with a cost of X is played at no cost, the card is considered to have been played with the minimum value for X (see 48.0). When a card with cost X is discarded to Power an effect, the cost is considered to be the minimum value for X.
Example: Discerning Fire specifies that X must be larger than 1, and so would be played at X = 2 when it is played for free. Slo Mo Vengeance, on the other hand, does not specify a minimum, so X is 0 when it is played for free.
49.0 Restrictions
Restrictions are keywords that limit the way a card can be played or how it interacts with other cards. Restrictions are not part of a card’s rules text (8.3), and thus are not canceled (33.0) or copied (36.0) when a card is canceled or copied. A restriction is always active.
49.1 Identity
Cards with the restriction Identity: X should be considered to match card titles where X is the title (8.1). This may cause Uniqueness auctions (31.0).
49.2 Limited
You can’t voluntarily play or return to play a Limited card if you already control a copy of that card (even if the other copy is a face-down Feng Shui Site). You can’t play a particular Limited Event more than once during each player’s turn. However, you may take control of or seize another Limited card with the same title as a Limited card you already have in play. If an effect that randomly plays or returns cards to play would force you to play a second copy of a Limited card, you may play the second copy.
Note: If a Limited card is canceled, you still can’t play another copy in the same turn.
49.3 No Max
There is no limit to the number of copies of a No Max card that you can put into your deck (see 1.2.1 Card Multiples).
49.4 Not Cumulative
Not Cumulative restricts abilities and effects from cards with the same title. Similar abilities or effects that are Not Cumulative and from a matching card overlap with each other and do not combine when modifying a single card or player. If there are overlapping modifications, the largest one will win. Abilities and effects that are overlapped are still active and become effective if the ability or effect overlapping it expires, is blanked, or is canceled.
Example: Multiple Enhanced Bananas can be played on a single Character, but their Fighting bonuses overlap. If one is sacrificed, its +2 Fighting bonus will overlap with the other’s +1 bonus for a total of +2. Additional Bananas played while the +2 is in effect will not increase this total. When the +2 expires, any remaining Bananas will provide a total of +1 Fighting.
49.4.1 Different Effects or Abilities
Not Cumulative abilities or effects that provide different types of results can be used together toward a single card or player, even if they are from the same card.
Example: A Character with two Training Sequences can turn one to gain +1 combat damage and Toughness: 1 while still gaining +1 Fighting from the unturned one.
49.4.2 Non-Cumulative Triggered Effects
Triggered effects that are Not Cumulative and do not provide a continuous ability, such as effects that inflict damage, draw a card, or gain a Power, all generate normally, but only the first one resolved will be effective.
Example: If you copy your Old Uncle with an Evil Twin, you may draw four cards each time you attack with both, but neither more Evil Twins nor more Old Uncles can increase this total.
49.5 One-Shot
A One-Shot card may only be played only once per game by each player. You cannot play another copy of that card by any means, even if the card was canceled (33.0).
49.6 Schtick
A Schtick State (7.4) is always controlled (35.0) by the controller of its subject (25.5.1) card. That controller makes all decisions involving use of the Schtick card.
49.7 Toast It
A Toast It card is always put into its owner’s toasted pile (9.3.1) and never goes to any other out-of-play area (9.2) if it leaves play by any means. Toast It cards are not considered toasted (46.0) unless the effect or ability that removed it from play specifically toasted the card. Toast It Events are played directly into the toasted pile.
Note: An effect that removes a Toast It card from play briefly and then does something else with it, only succeeds at removing it from play.
Note: Smoking a Toast It card or returning it to your hand is still considered smoking or returning to your hand.
49.8 Uncopyable
An Uncopyable card can’t be copied (36.0) by any means and is immune (40.0) to effects that copy, transfer, swap or switch its anatomy (8.0) onto a card, including when that card is not in play.
49.9 Unique
Only one copy of a face-up Unique card may remain in play at any moment. If a Unique card enters play or is revealed that has the same title as a Unique card already in play, a uniqueness auction starts (31.0). You cannot voluntarily play or return to play a Unique card if you already control a copy of that card, even if the other copy is a face-down Feng Shui Site.
49.10 Vehicle
A Vehicle State (7.4) may only be played on a Character and is always controlled by the controller of the subject Character (see 49.6 Schtick). You may not play, return to play, or move (44.3) a second Vehicle onto a Character that is already the subject of a Vehicle.
49.11 Weapon
A Weapon State can only be played on a Character, unless otherwise specified on the card. It is always controlled by the controller of the subject card (see 49.6 Schtick). Any number of Weapons may be played on a single card.
50.0 Bold-Faced Abilities
Bold-faced abilities are keywords that refer to some positive aspect of a card. Bold-faced abilities are not cumulative unless otherwise noted.
50.1 Ambush
When an attacker with Ambush enters combat (30.0) with a Character, the attacker inflicts combat damage (29.1) first. Perform steps 30.3 and 30.4 in Combat first for all attackers with Ambush, and then for all other Characters still involved in that combat. Characters with Ambush only inflict combat damage once per combat.
50.2 Assassinate
An attacker with Assassinate cannot be intercepted while the target of its attack is a Character. This ability has no effect when the Character is not attacking.
50.3 Corrupted
Damage inflicted by cards with Corrupted cannot not be removed (see 16.0 Healing) by any means (unless the damaged card leaves play).
Note: Canceling (33.0) or blanking (32.0) the source of Corrupted damage after the damage is inflicted will not allow you to heal that damage.
50.4 Crisis
Cards with the ability Crisis will have a cost after them (like Crisis: 0). These cards may be played at that cost instead of their printed cost. You may play only one card at Crisis cost per turn. If played at Crisis cost, the Crisis cost is the card’s “cost” (8.5), the card gains Toast It (49.7), and you do not generate Power during your Establishing Shot (22.2) on your next turn.
Tip: Put something on top of your deck or Power pool to remind you not to generate Power on your next turn. You will be able to discard (22.2.4) more than one card since you will not be generating Power.
50.5 Guts
A Character with Guts inflicts combat damage as if it were not damaged, regardless of the amount of damage the Character inflicted on it. Its Fighting is reduced as usual, and the Character is smoked as usual when its Fighting is reduced to zero.
50.6 Independent
You can declare an attack with Independent Characters even if an attack you declared previously in the turn failed (28.12).
50.7 Immunity
Cards with Immunity are immune (40.0) to a card type (7.0), a card with a specified designator (14.0), or type of effect.
50.8 Influence
A card with Influence gains the following ability: "Turn one or more cards with total Influence greater than or equal to an interceptor's cost :: That Character ceases intercepting." Influence is also used on some cards to pay for effects.
You cannot divide up the Influence generated by a single card to remove several interceptors or pay for multiple effects. Influence is cumulative. A card with Influence: 3 that gains Influence: 2 would have Influence: 5.
50.9 Lethal
A card with Lethal inflicts Lethal combat damage. If Lethal (combat or non-combat) damage is inflicted on a Character, smoke that Character if it is still in play after evaluating whether its Fighting has been reduced to zero (see 24.5.3 and 24.8.1.1 in Effects and 30.3.3 in Combat). Characters smoked in this manner are considered smoked by damage (as well as having been smoked by the source of the damage).
50.10 Loyalty
Cards with Loyalty cannot be taken control (35.3) of by effects and abilities.
50.11 Mobility
A Character with Mobility may use the innate ability to Turn to Change Location (10.3.1) without turning whether or not they are already turned.
50.12 Regenerate
A card with Regenerate has the following triggered ability: "At the start of your turn, heal this card." See 22.2.1 Start of Turn, 16.0 Healing.
50.13 Reload
To Reload a card, see 43.0 Reload. If a card with Reload: X is in your smoked pile, you may use the following effect: "Pay this card's Reload cost :: Reload the card.", where X is the cost. The cost is paid in Power if nothing else is specified; for example, “Reload: 1.” You may pay a card's reload cost more than once, but you don't get any benefit after the first Reload resolves. Reload costs are not part of the card's normal effect.
50.14 Sentinel
Characters with Sentinel cannot be prevented from intercepting. A Character with Sentinel must still be at the location of the attack to be declared as an interceptor.
50.15 Stealth
A Character with Stealth has the ability: "Once during each attack, you may choose a Character intercepting this card :: That Character ceases intercepting." Stealth may only be used once per attack, even if the Character has the ability multiple times.
50.16 Superleap
An attacker with Superleap cannot be intercepted by turned Characters. This ability has no effect when the Character is not attacking.
50.17 Tactics
A Character with Tactics has the ability: "While attacking, you may choose this Character to cease attacking :: This Character ceases attacking."
Note: The Pre-Combat Scene (30.1) is the last step during combat in which a voluntary Tactics effect can be generated before damage is inflicted for that combat.
50.19 Toughness
A card with Toughness: X reduces any damage (see 29.6) inflicted on it by the amount specified after the colon (see 48.0 Value of X). Each separate source of damage that is inflicted is reduced by Toughness. Toughness bonuses are cumulative.
Example: A Maverick Trucker with Toughness: 1 that is the subject of a turned Big Ass Car gains another Toughness: 1 for a cumulitive total of Toughness: 2. If the Trucker is attacked by more than one Character, each Character’s damage is reduced by 2.
50.19 Unstoppable
Unstoppable damage cannot be reduced (see 29.6) or redirected (see 38.0). Cards with Unstoppable cannot have their damage reduced or redirected.
Appendix 1: Turn Flowchart
Reference this simplified flowchart to help understand how to take a turn. (This chart does not supersede rules earlier in this rulebook.)
Figure 4 — Turn Flowchart
Establishing Shot: Start Turn → Unturn → Skip Power Gen?
- Yes → Discard X → Draw
- No → Power Generation → Discard Zero/One → Draw
Main Shot: from Draw, and after every resolved scene, you return to a Choice point. From the Choice point:
- Have Abilities? No → back to the Choice point. Yes → Generate Effect → open "Resolution" Scene.
- Play Card? Yes → Generate Effect → open "Resolution" Scene.
- Have Eligible Character? → Turn to Heal → open "Resolution" Scene; or Turn to Change Location → open "Resolution" Scene; or Declare Attack → see 27.0 Attacks → Burn for Power?
- No → back to the Main Shot choice point.
- Yes → closed "End of Turn" Scene.
- Declare End of Turn → Opponent Effects?
- Yes → the responses resolve and you return to the Main Shot choice point.
- No → closed "End of Turn" Scene.
Appendix 2: Attack Flowchart
Reference this simplified flowchart to help understand how to attack and resolve combat. (This chart does not supersede rules earlier in this rulebook.)
Figure 5 — Attack Flowchart
Attack Flow: Declare Attack → open "Response" Scene → Have All Players Joined or Passed?
- No → the player to the left (of the attacker or of the last player) joins or passes, then re-check.
- Yes → Still Attackers?
- No → closed (or open if premature) "End of Attack" Scene.
- Yes → Have All Players Intercepted or Passed?
- No → open "Move" Scene → the player to the left (of the target or of the last player) declares or passes → Interceptors Assigned?
- No → back to Have All Players Intercepted or Passed?
- Yes → Combat with Interceptor (see Combat Flow) → Still Attackers?
- No → closed "End of Attack" Scene.
- Yes → Is there another Interceptor? Yes → Combat with Interceptor again; No → back to Have All Players Intercepted or Passed?
- Yes → Still Attackers?
- No → closed "End of Attack" Scene.
- Yes → Combat with Target(s) (see Combat Flow) → closed "End of Attack" Scene.
- No → open "Move" Scene → the player to the left (of the target or of the last player) declares or passes → Interceptors Assigned?
After the "End of Attack" Scene the attack is complete → Burn-for-Power? Yes → closed "End of Turn" Scene.
Combat Flow: open "About to enter combat" Scene → closed "Combat" Scene, which contains: Step: Trigger and Resolve "When enters combat" Effects → Step: Assess and Inflict Damage → trigger damage effects → Step: Apply Result: Smoke, Seize, or Burn → trigger smoking, seizing and burning effects → Step: Cleanup: Resolve All Triggered Effects.
Glossary
-
Active Player — The current player whose turn it is. See 22.1 Player Priority.
-
Adjacent — Used to describe Sites or locations that are to the immediate left or right in a single player’s Site structure (9.1.1).
-
APG — An acronym for the unofficial term “alternate Power generation”. This refers to any other effect that can gain you Power outside of the Power Generation phase.
-
BFP — An acronym for burn for Power (30.3.3.4).
-
BFV — An acronym for burn for victory (30.3.3.3).
-
Classic — Shadowfist cards from every set ever printed. See Modern.
-
Column — Properly known as a location (9.1.2). A location is a vertical column in the grid that is your Site structure (9.1.1).
-
Controller — A player is considered the controller of cards he or she has played or has taken control of.
-
Faction — A classification of resources, indentified by a single symbol, such as The Ascended, The Guiding Hand, The Dragons, The Eaters of the Lotus, The Four Monarchs, or The Jammers. A faction represents a group vying for control in the Secret War.
-
FSS — An acronym for Feng Shui Site (7.3).
-
Generation — The beginning phase of an effect’s lifespan; or the playing of an effect. The generation of an effect puts it onto the scene’s stack for resolution. Effect generate as soon as are triggered or played, even if there is no current scene.
-
Hitter — An unofficial term for a Character that can inflict significant damage (see Stick).
-
LIFO — An acronym for Last-In-First-Out. When processing effects in a scene, the effects begin resolving in last in, first out order. This is the same as First-In-Last-Out (FILO).
-
Mandatory — Effects that are phrased with unconditional costs; for example, they don’t contain the word “may” in their effect requirement.
-
Modern — Shadowfist cards from every set starting with Combat in Kowloon and every set since. See Classic.
-
Owner — The player from whose deck a card was played is considered the owner of that card.
-
Pass — Decline to do anything and give priority to the player to your left.