Wyrmking001's page

The recharge check is always meant to be optional. It's been stated that the wording on some of the new cards makes it sound as though the recharge check is mandatory, but that is not how it should be. Just as in RotR, recharge checks are NEVER supposed to be mandatory.

Though the check itself is not mandatory, the paragraph that contains it is. The rules themselves state that you must deal with that paragraph.

Look at it this way:
Step 1: Check to see if the caster has Arcane/Divine. If yes, move to Step 2. If no, banish it.
Step 2: Do you want to recharge? If yes, then roll. If not, then discard.

No matter what decision you make for step 2, you MUST do step 1.

You know, since the recharge text is now part of the powers section of a card, and since the S&S Rulebook describes powers as "special rules", which would seem to include the recharge text. Why not...

"For the powers of a spell that does not have the Attack trait, you may replace the Arcane or Divine skill with the Craft skill."

That would seem to mean replacing any reference to using your Arcane/Divine skill. It would cover the Arcane/Divine skill being used when you played the card, the Arcane/Divine skill being required to not banish the card, and the Arcane/Divine skill being used to recharge the card.

The one difference being, you wouldn't actually ever be using the Arcane/Divine skill. But is that a problem? If the spell was somehow played to "Determine the skill you're using" it would also have the Arcane/Divine trait and therefore the check would still be an Arcane/Divine check. And if it wasn't played to "Determine the skill you're using" it never would have been an Arcane/Divine check in the first place. Blessing of Pharasma would still apply, because you are still playing a spell.

Is there something I'm missing with that? It seems short and sweet and pretty clear.

The problem is that the part where you recharge a card is NOT a power of that card. It is something you are required to do as the rules state it is mandatory for you to do it. Now the recharge for spells does say "may" which means that you do not have to roll for recharge but you must deal with that paragraph. After all, it is that paragraph that states you must have Arcane/Divine or banish the spell.

Any paragraph in the power section of a boon that doesn’t involve playing the card for a particular effect is not itself a power—it’s a mandatory action you must take when you play the card.

All of this leads me to believe that Damiel needs to have some language to deal with the fact that he needs arcane/divine for the recharge of a non-attack spell he plays.

"After playing a spell without the attack trait, when resolving the spell, Dameil has Arcane/Divine equal to his Craft skill."

Or something similar.

I think the "finish one thing before you do the next" would disagree with this statement. If you haven't finished playing the spell, you wouldn't be able to move on with the rest of your turn.

As Vic clarified here, the act of "playing a card" ends when you resolve that power, which for "display" spells end after you display the spell. The effect may be ongoing, but the "play a spell" step is not. The "at the end of your turn" effect is not part of playing the spell, it is a directive that tells you what to do with it at a certain time.

Finish one thing before you do the next It states that "you do many things in a specific order." Not everything is in a specific order and cards overrule the rule book. The "finish one thing" for playing a card includes a check to recharge it at the end. However, display cards overrule that portion since they explicitly state you make a check at the end of the turn rather than the end of playing a card.

Vic did clarify that recharging is not playing a card, back when there was a recharge box and therefore recharging was separate from the powers box. However, the recharge box has been removed and therefore the roll to recharge is now part of a mandatory action you must take when you play the card.

Since the card has memory while in play(if it did not have memory, then the card would not remember who it was played on), it would remember that Damiel had Arcane/Divine when it was played because that is what HIS card says.

Any paragraph in the power section of a boon that doesn’t involve playing the card for a particular effect is not itself a power—it’s a mandatory action you must take when you play the card.

NEW: NO MORE RECHARGE BOX

In Rise of the Runelords, many boons had a Recharge section that explained how you could recharge the card after playing it. In Skull & Shackles, the necessary information appears in the Powers section.

Mechalibur wrote:

Hawkmoon269 wrote:

I've not seen what any of the display spells in S&S are worded as. So maybe that is tweaked to take care of...

For your reference, here is strength's wording in S&S: "Display this card next to a character. While displayed, that character's checks using her Strength skill are increased by 3. At the end of the turn, if you do not have either the Arcane or Divine skill, banish this card, otherwise, attempt an Arcane or Divine 8 check. If you succeed, recharge this chard; if you fail, discard it."

Thanks for sharing. So that is interesting. With Damiel only having Arcane/Divine until the end of the step, no matter what "step" means, I can't figure any way he wouldn't be banishing Strength. (Unless of course a developer tells us he doesn't banish it.)

The "step" would be "Playing a Card." Playing a Card is a step. When you play a spell that is displayed, the playing a card step, for that spell, is not over until the end of the turn. When that step is done, then you roll for recharge. Or at least that is the way I see it.

Damiel has Arcane/Divine for the entire step. Which includes recharging the spell at the end. Contrast this with Flenta which only has Arcane only on the combat check itself.

Gen Con Player: "My character just died. What happens now?"

Me: "It's organized play, son. If your character dies, you die too."

That is up there with attacking the Gazebo.

A DM handed out a simple magic item for each player. The bard was a late addition so he did not get an item. He asked for one and the following was actually said:

DM: "Okay, I shall give you a runed guitar."
Bard: "What? I don't want a ruined guitar."
DM: "No, a RUNED guitar."
Bard: "I said I don't want a RUINED guitar."

This went back and forth for at least 5min.