[MECCG] CRF 8, Turn Sequence Rulings

[Ichabod‏]

Collected Rulings

This booklet is a collection of clarifications to the rules for the
Middle-earth: Collectible Card Game, up to October 23, 1997. Some of these
clarifications are considered errata to the rules or cards, and are noted
as such. The Turn Sequence and Rulings by Term sections are specifically
considered clarifications to the rules, and are therefore overridden by
card text that specifically does so. A complete list of errata is included
on the back page of this booklet. There will be periodic updates to this
booklet, and items marked with a "@" are new or changed since the last
version.
New rulings that clarify ambiguous situtations take effect immediately.
Reversals of old rulings, changes to the rules, and new rulings not
covering ambiguous situations will not have an effect on tournament play
until two to four weeks after they are made. Every other Monday, starting
November 3, 1997, will be a Rulings Monday. On a Rulings Monday, delayed
rulings that have been made will be announced on the internet, and rulings
that were announced on the previous Rulings Monday will take effect.
The main thing to remember, when making rulings based on the rules and
the cards, is that if it isn't there, then it isn't there. If a card says
a site counts as a Haven for purposes of healing, that does not mean the
site counts as a Haven for any other purposes. If a card says it can be
played as a resource, that does not mean it counts as a resource at any
time except when it is being played. Remember: If it isn't there, it isn't
there.
Tournament rules for MECCG differ slightly from the rules for casual
play. Rulings marked with a "#" differ from those in tournament play. When
playing in a tournament, be sure to check the Tournament Rulings section.
If you have any further questions concerning MECCG, you can either:

* Write Iron Crown Enterprises at P.O. Box 1605, Charlottesville, VA, 22902.
* Email the official rules representative, Craig "Ichabod" O'Brien, at <ichabod
@cstone.net>
* Post the message to the Usenet news group rec.games.trading-cards.misc,
with "[MECCG]" in the subject line, or
* Join the official MECCG mailing list by sending a message to
list...@tower.ml.org with "subscribe metw" and your email address in the
body of the message.

Turn Sequence Rulings

Beginning of the Game
# If a character is put in the deck due to duplication in the starting
company, then it does not count against the 10 character limit.
# You should either draw numbers for the whole game or roll dice for the
whole game.

Untap Phase
Corruption checks triggered at the end of the untap phase happen after
everyone untaps.

Organization Phase

Choosing a New Site
Rules Erratum: When a company splits, any of the resulting companies
can move with region movement. Region movement is not limited to one
company of a split.
Any single site path cannot have more than one copy of a particular region.
Any company may declare as its new site a site already on the table.
That site will remain on the table at least until the end of that
company's movement/hazard phase.
Two companies may not start at the same site of origin and move to the
same new site.
Effects that are played during the organization phase, and depend on
the site or site path of a moving company, create an effect which is not
declared until the new site is revealed. If the site or site path is not
of the appropriate type when the effect resolves, the resource has no
effect. If the company has multiple movement/hazard phases on the same
turn, the card applies separately to each phase, having an effect only if
the correct conditions are met.

Followers
A character cannot use a bonus to direct influence against "Blue
Mountain Dwarves" to control characters with the home site Blue Mountain
Dwarf-hold. The bonus only applies to the faction.
Bonuses to direct influence against characters apply only once, not for
each character.

Organizing Companies
When a company splits up, its player chooses which characters are the
original company and which characters are a new company, unless otherwise
directed by a card. All resource permanent-events played on the original
company stay with the original company.
Company composition changes that you choose to make, including bringing
a character into play, must all be done at the same time during the
organization phase. During this time no other actions may be taken.
See also Rulings by Term, Company and Influence

Playing Characters
Rules Erratum: You may play a character if you do not have enough
influence to control them. However, if there are any characters you do not
have the influence to control at the end of your organization phase, the
character you brought into play this turn must be returned to your hand.

Storing Items
Minions who roll equal to or one less than their accumulated corruption
when storing an item are only tapped.
@ A minion who taps from a corruption check for storing/transferring an
item still successfully stores/transfers that item.

Long Event Phase

Movement/Hazard Phase

General
Annotation 25: A company is considered to be at the site given by its
site card at all times except from the moment their new site card is
revealed during their movement/hazard phase until their old site card is
discarded during the same movement/hazard phase. During this period a
company is considered to be en route between sites and not at any site.
Annotation 25a: A company's movement/hazard phase is concluded when a
moving company removes its site of origin and both players agree to
reconcile (discard down to/draw up to) their hand sizes. No resources (and
obviously no hazards) can be played卟nd no resource effects can be
activated𠹹ntil the site phase or until both players have drawn cards for
the movement of a following company.
Annotation 25b: Players drawing cards when a new site is revealed is
synonymous with the resolution of the new site being revealed. It happens
immediately, not in the following chain of effects.
Annotation 26: If at the start of a player零 movement/hazard phase,
there are multiple effects in play such that their net effect depends on
the order they are applied, the player who is currently not taking his
turn (i.e., the hazard player) decides the order in which they are to be
applied. Once this interpretation is established, all further actions are
applied in the order they are resolved for the rest of the turn.
Once the effects of an environment card have been applied to a target
during a given movement/hazard phase, that effect is not applied again to
that target during the current turn.
When you draw cards for movement, you may continue drawing cards until
you either want to stop, or have drawn the number of cards allowed for the
movement.
Companies at the same non-Haven/non-Darkhaven site must join at the end
of all movement/hazard phases, before the site phase starts. Companies at
the same Haven/Darkhaven site may join at this time.
If companies would join at the end of the movement/hazard phase such
that the company composition rules are violated, one company of the hazard
player零 choice must return to its site of origin.
If two companies join at a site, cards affecting one of the companies
now affect them both.
@ Removing the site of origin and resetting to hand size are simultaneous
actions, and they are the last actions in any movement/hazard phase. This
means a moving company is not at a site until the site phase. [effective
11/17/97]

Movement

General
If a company does not move, it still has a movement/hazard phase. No
cards are drawn based on the company's movement, and the only hazards that
can be played on the company are creatures that can be keyed to the
company's site and events.
Lebennin and Ithilien are not adjacent, even though they look that way
on some maps.
If a company moves twice in one turn, resources played during the
organization phase, like Secret Passage, are reapplied to the company at
the beginning of each of their movement/hazard phases, if the conditions
of the card are met.

Playing Hazards
@ Some hazard permanent-events allow you to tap or discard them for an
effect, and this does not count against the hazard limit unless specified
otherwise on the card. [effective 11/17/97]
Hazards may only be played on a company whose movement/hazard phase is
being resolved, or on the site they are moving to. Long-events and
permanent-events may effect more than one company even though they are
only played "on" one company.
If a card must be keyed to two or more instances of a region type,
those region types do not have to be consecutive in the site path.
If you say you are done playing hazards and your opponent plays a
resource before the movement/hazard phase ends, you may then resume
playing hazards, assuming you have not yet reached the hazard limit.
If a company is moving from a surface site to an Under-deeps site,
hazards may not be played keyed to the region of the surface site.
Angmar Arises, In Darkness Bind Them, and Reaching Shadow may not be
used to play creatures keyed to double shadow-lands.
@ A creature "played at" a site is the same as being "keyed to" the site.
@ A creature "played at a site in" a region is the same as being "keyed
to" the site by name.

Returning to Site of Origin
If a company returns to its site of origin, its site path immediately
disappears, and its movement/hazard phase immediately ends.
An effect that returns a company to its site of origin may not be
declared in the middle of an attack.

Combat

General
Side effects of losing a character are resolved immediately after the
character is lost, before other characters resolve their strikes.
@ All strikes of an attack must be assigned before any are resolved.
See also Rulings by Term, Body Check; and Turn Sequence, Site Phase,
Company vs. Company Combat.

Attack
Annotation 12: An attack is considered to be resolved and concluded
when the final strike, all special actions resulting from the final
strike, and the associated body check are resolved.
Annotation 13: An attack may not be canceled once its strikes have been
assigned. A strike may not be canceled once the dice-roll for the strike
has been made.
Annotation 14: A canceled attack has no effect on its target company,
except that the company is considered in its history to have faced the
attack.
Annotation 15: An attack must be the first declared action in a chain
of effects, i.e., a creature card may not be played in response to another
card in the same chain of effects. Revealing an on-guard creature is an
exception.
In order to cancel an attack or to directly affect an attack, the
character doing so must be in the company facing the attack. Note that the
region/site type a hazard creature was keyed to can be affected otherwise.
Cards only modify attacks if they say they specifically mention attacks.
When a minion company defeats an attack with no * by the MPs, the
creature goes to the out-of-play pile belonging to the person who played
the attack. They may still be taken as a trophy, but go to the appropriate
out-of-play pile when the trophy is discarded.
Excess strikes applied as -1 modifiers do not have to have their body
defeated.
If an attack states all characters in a company face a strike, then
effects which allow a character to face more than one strike have no
effect against the attack. Similarly, effects that change the attack's
number of strikes have no effect. As an exception, effects which reduce
the number of strikes to a specific number do work.
Any effect that would change the number of strikes for an attack may
not be played after strikes are assigned. This includes cards that have
other additional effects, and cards that only indirectly change the number
of strikes.
@ Attacks created by events are not keyed to anything unless specifically
stated as being keyed to something on the card.
@ There are three levels of cards which reassign strikes. Alatar is the
top level, and overrides any other conflicting card which changes the
assignment of strikes. Cards which say they "always" or "in all cases"
change the assignment of strikes are the next level, and override any
other conflicting effects except Alatar. Cards which say they change the
assignment of strikes "regardless of ..." certain factors are the third
level, and are overridden by all other effects from conflicting cards. If
two effects on the same level conflict, the resource overrides the hazard.

The Strike Sequence
Annotation 16: When a wounded character becomes unwounded, he is
considered in his history to have been wounded and must face any special
actions the wounding strike presented him.
Annotation 17: The only actions that may be declared during a strike
sequence are those outlined in Annotation 18.
Annotation 18: When a defending player chooses to resolve a strike
against a particular character, the only actions that may be taken by
either player until the strike dice-roll is made are the following:
playing hazard cards that affect the strike, the attacker may decide to
use any or all of his remaining -1 modifications due to strikes in excess
of the company's size, a target untapped character may take a -3
modification so that he will not automatically tap, and the defending
character may play resource cards that affect the strike. An action that
has the condition that a target character tap, but which otherwise has an
effect not outlined here, may not be declared at this point. This is true
even if the recipient of the strike would be the target character tapping
and thus receive -1 to his prowess.
Annotation 19: Following each successful strike or failed strike, a
body check must be rolled (unless the failed strike has no body). However,
if the strike calls for any special actions to follow it (e.g., a
character wounded by "William" may be required to discard his items),
these special actions are resolved before the body check. The body check
is the first declared action in a nested chain of effects that immediately
follows the strike dice-roll and special actions resulting from the
strike. Other actions may be declared in response to a body check, in the
same chain of effects, but these are limited to those actions that
directly affect the body check dice-roll. E.g., Tookish Blood could not be
declared in response to the body check caused by Giant Spiders wounding a
Hobbit. No action may be declared in response to a special action
resulting from a strike unless the special action is a dice-rolling
action, i.e., a special action is generally considered synonymous with the
strike dice-roll. If the special action is a dice-rolling action, an
action may be declared in response to it if the action directly affects
the dice-roll.
Annotation 20: If more than one special action is to follow a strike,
the defending player decides the order they are resolved.
Annotation 21: A successful strike against a character is synonymous
with that character being wounded, i.e., inverting a character card on the
playing surface is not a separate action from the successful strike.
Wounded characters only suffer a -2 prowess. In general, wounded
characters are not considered tapped.
Non-item prowess bonuses are applied in the order the player
controlling the character decides.
If a character is facing two strikes, and the first strike kills the
character, the second strike is considered successful.
@ There is time between the strike sequences to take actions that are
otherwise legal.

Site Phase

General
Items, factions and allies must be played during the site phase.
There is no one resource card per site phase rule. However, the tapping
of the site usually limits you to one card per site phase.
The site taps upon successful play of the resource that would tap it.
@ A company may not play any resource during the site phase until they
have faced all automatic-attacks, unless that resource directly affects an
automatic-attack. Removing an automatic-attack does not directly affect
it, although cancelling does.

Company vs. Company Combat
The defender may take actions that affect the attack or any of the
strikes. The attacker may only take actions that affect individual
strikes.
True Fana and Sacrifice of Form cannot be used in company versus
company combat.
Hazards have no effect on company vs. company combat.

Exploring A Site/Automatic-attacks
A card that can cancel an attack can cancel an automatic-attack, and
this counts as facing the automatic-attack.
Automatic-attacks added to a site are faced after the normal
automatic-attacks for the site. Multiple automatic-attacks are faced in
the order listed and/or resolved.
Company composition and overt/covert status is checked before each
automatic attack.
@ Any character may tap to cancel one automatic-attack at his home site.

Influence Attempts
It is not possible to influence an item away from a Wizard or Ringwraith.
You may influence a Hobbit if you are not at Bag End.
A successful influence attempt on an opponent's resource does not tap
the site.
@ You may only make one influence attempt against your opponent's
resources during each turn.

On-Guard Cards
Rules Erratum: An on-guard card may only be revealed if it could have
also been played during the movement/hazard phase. This means all targets
of the card must have existed during the movement/hazard phase in order
for the card to be revealed.
A revealed on-guard card retroactively takes effect as though it were
both declared and resolved immediately prior to the chain of effects
during which it was revealed.
An on-guard card may be revealed when the company plays a resource that
potentially taps the site. The card must affect the company or a character
in the company that site phase. Note that this clarification is looser
than the rule printed on p.61 of the Unlimited Rules book
A successful ring test does not allow an on-guard card to be revealed.
You may reveal a card in response to an influence attempt against a
faction even if the on-guard card only has an effect if the attempt is
successful. You may also reveal a card in response to such an attempt that
affects the actual influence attempt.
Only declared or on-going cards and effects can be considered when
determining the validity of revealing an on-guard card. Potential effects
that have not been triggered cannot be considered.
A card cannot be revealed that:

* Returns a company to its site of origin.
* Taps a company's site.
* Potentially removes a character from a company, besides combat or
corruption checks.
* Forces a company to do nothing during its site phase.
* Directly taps a character in the company.

A card that potentially removes an ally from the company can be
revealed, so long as it otherwise is legal.
The on-guard card is not considered to be in any player's hand.
When an on-guard card is revealed, it immediately ceases to be
considered an on-guard card.
See also Rulings By Term, Burglary Attempts

End-of-Turn Phase
@ End-of-Turn effects are triggered by the ending of the End-of-Turn
phase. Once both players are done with all actions in the End-of-Turn
phase, all End-of-Turn effects are declared and resolved in the order
chosen by the current player. No further actions may be declared that
turn.
Cards may be played during the End-of-Turn phase after hand size has
been reconciled.
@ Replacing one site with another at the end of the turn counts as
movement, without a movement/hazard phase.

Free Council
These rulings apply to any end game, whether it is the Free Council,
the Audience with Sauron, or the Day of Reckoning.
Characters may tap to aid corruption checks, if they are in the same company.
Long- and permanent-events still in play will still have an effect.
Only resources that directly affect corruption checks may be played
during the Free Council.
@ To calculate marshalling points at the Free Council, follow these steps:

1) Total up the marshalling points for each category. The modifications
from My Precious, factions played on a leader, and eliminated characters
apply now.
2) If your opponent has no points in a category double your points in that
category. Doubling does not apply to the Miscellaneous or Kill categories.
3) If one of your categories accounts for more than half of your
marshalling point total, reduce it so that it has the same number of
points as the rest of your categories combined.
4) Subtract any points that are subtracted from your total, including
points from unique resources your opponent has duplicated in his hand.

@ Marshalling points that minions have at an Under-deeps site do not
count for calling the Audience with Sauron, but do count at the Audience
with Sauron.

------- "The Crossing-guard of Mordor" -------
Craig "Ichabod" O'Brien http://www.cstone.net/~ichabod
ich...@cstone.net Me:CCG Official Netrep
"It's for discipline that the Lord scourges his worshippers" Jdt 8:17
-- Check out my Shadowfist, INWO, and MECCG traders on my web page --