Understanding Key Terms

Terminology Clarifications

Discard: When we talk about discarding a card from the Battlefield, it means putting the card face-up into your Discard Pile. Remember, this goes for the player who discards the card, not necessarily the owner of the card.

Destroy: When a card is ‘destroyed,’ it is placed face-down on top of the Magic Pile of the player who destroyed it. Again, this doesn’t always mean the owner of the card.

Movement Terminology: When it comes to movement abilities, it’s important to understand the meaning of certain terms. One such term is ‘through’. Here’s what it means: a card is not considered to have moved through another card until it has moved onto and then back off of that card. Let’s take Torodin’s Trample ability as an example. It says, “Torodin may move through Common Units. Every Unit that Torodin moves through receives 1 Wound Marker. Torodin must end his move on an unoccupied space.” So, in the case of Torodin’s Trample, the Unit he is trampling does not receive the wound until Torodin moves onto and then back off of that Unit.

Place or Exchange Places: Another important term to understand is ‘place’ or ‘exchange places’. Some Special Abilities use these terms. For example, a card may say, “place this Unit adjacent to a Wall card” or “this Unit may exchange places with an adjacent Unit.” It’s essential to note that, for rules purposes, placing a Unit or having a Unit exchange places with another card is not the same thing as moving that Unit.

You’re in Control and It’s Friendly: When a card says ‘you control’, it’s talking about a card that’s on the Battlefield, which you put there or gained control of using an Event or Special Ability. You can’t have two players controlling the same card at once, so if another player takes control of your card, even for a little while, you won’t have control over it during that time. If a card says ‘friendly’, that means it’s talking about a card on the Battlefield that you or one of your teammates controls.

The Difference Between Wounds and Hits: Usually, when you attack a unit, you cause wounds. However, certain special abilities can alter this rule. Take the Tough ability, for instance. It says, “When someone tries to attack this unit, this unit only gets wound markers if the dice result is 4 or higher.” In other words, you can hit a unit with all your rolled dice during an attack, but only some of those hits will result in wounds.

Some Special Abilities allow you to avoid the uncertainty of rolling dice and causing damage. Take the Precise Ability, for instance. It says, “When you use this Ability to attack, you don’t have to roll any dice. Instead, you count the number of dice you would have rolled and put that many Wound Markers on the target Unit.” So, with Precise, the Unit doesn’t get Hit; it simply takes Wounds equal to the number of dice that would have been rolled for the attack.

The Sluggish Ability is an interesting ability that works in a unique way. Let me explain it to you. When a Unit with the Sluggish Ability is attacked, instead of rolling the dice, we count the number of dice that would be rolled. Then, we place that same number of Wound Markers on the Unit with the Sluggish Ability. It’s like a shield that absorbs the damage!

Now, here’s something really cool. If a Unit with the Precise Ability attacks a Unit with the Sluggish Ability, we only need to count the dice that would be rolled for that attack once. So, we inflict that exact number of Wounds on the Unit with the Sluggish Ability. We don’t repeat the counting for each ability. Pretty neat, right?

Let’s talk about discarded and destroyed cards now. When we discard a card, we always put it face-up into a Discard Pile. On the other hand, when a card gets destroyed, it goes face-down on top of a Magic Pile, unless the card’s text tells us to do something different. It’s important to remember that during the game, our cards will get mixed with our opponent’s cards. But don’t worry, at the end of every game, we need to separate our cards back into their original decks. It’s like organizing them and giving them a fresh start for the next game!

If you have ever encountered Special Abilities like Blerg’s Adapt ability, then you may have come across a situation where you need to place cards under a Unit Card on the Battlefield.

When you move a Unit that has other cards beneath it, all of those cards will move along with the Unit. It’s like they are attached!

However, if the Unit with other cards beneath it gets destroyed, both the Unit Card and all the cards beneath it will be placed face-down on top of the Magic Pile of the player who destroyed the Unit. It’s a sad fate for them.

Similarly, if the Unit with other cards beneath it is discarded, both the Unit Card and all the cards beneath it will be placed into the Discard Pile of the player who discarded the Unit. It’s like they are saying goodbye.

Now, I should mention that Vine Walls are a bit different from the other cards. While they can be under a Unit card, they are not treated as a regular card under that Unit card. So, when it comes to rules interpretation, things get a little tricky.

When it comes to counting spaces, it’s important to remember not to count diagonally, unless a Unit’s Special Ability explicitly allows for diagonal attacks. This means that when determining the range of a Special Ability, you should count the spaces to the affected Unit just like you would count movement.

There are certain Events and Special Abilities that give you the ability to move or attack with Units outside of your regular Movement and Attack Phases.

Mighty and Unyielding

When it comes to the ferocious Goblin Fighters, they possess a unique ability that sets them apart from other warriors. Unlike most warriors, Goblin Fighters do not engage in combat during the traditional Attack Phase. Rather, they bide their time, waiting patiently for the opportune moment to strike.

After your normal Attack Phase, you have the chance to unleash the power of up to 2 Goblin Fighters under your command. These skilled warriors take advantage of the chaos, launching their assaults when the enemy least expects it.

While Goblin Fighters do not contribute to the total number of Units you can attack with during your Attack Phase, they grant you an advantage. Their attacks are not constrained by traditional rules and regulations. Instead, they function as free movements and attacks, allowing you to unleash devastating blows without hindrance.

Therefore, when the dust settles from your normal Attack Phase, you can unleash the relentless fury of up to 2 Goblin Fighters upon your foes. This grants you an additional advantage of attacking with a maximum of 3 Unit Cards, alongside your fearless Goblin warriors.

So, here’s the deal: some Event Cards can give Units a temporary Special Ability. You can get multiple Special Abilities like this, but if they have the same name, they don’t combine. Let me explain with an example: if you play a DUCK AND COVER Event Card, your Sand Goblins will get the CAMOUFLAGE Special Ability. But if you play another DUCK AND COVER Card, it won’t do anything. The CAMOUFLAGE Special Ability that your Sand Goblins already have won’t get any better.

Now, the effects of different Event Cards can add up. That means if you play multiple Event Cards, their effects will all happen. And this includes playing multiple Event Cards that do the same thing. But remember, if you already have a Special Ability with a certain name, playing more Event Cards won’t make it stronger. Here’s an example: let’s say you play a STALKING ADVANCE Event Card, which lets you move each of your Shadow Elves 1 space. Then, you play another STALKING ADVANCE Card, and you can move your Shadow Elves 1 space again. Cool, huh?

If two Special Abilities or Event Cards have effects that trigger at the same time, I get to decide the order in which those effects happen. And if I’m the one launching an attack that hits multiple Units, I also choose the order in which they get hit. It’s all up to me!

Now, if an Event or Special Ability gives me the option to use it at any time, I have the freedom to use it whenever I want. Whether it’s during my turn or while my opponent is doing their thing, I can play it whenever it suits me.

But here’s something important to keep in mind: if I ever take control of one of my opponent’s cards using a Special Ability or Event, I need to turn that card around so that it’s right-side up from my perspective. That way, I can easily tell which cards I control and which ones belong to my opponent. And if control of that card switches back to my opponent, I’ll turn it around again so that it’s right-side up from their side of the Battlefield. This way, we’ll always know who’s in charge of what.