This is THE GUARDIANS FAQ -Updated 4/5/96- By Dave Gentzler, Joe Babinsack, Jr and Luke Peterschmidt

Q: How does the Agent of Shadow work? What about moving combat into an opponent's Stronghold?

A: If I play the Agent of Shadow, the entire Combat is moved to the spot that the attacking Shield STARTED its move from, even if this is "impossible" given the position of the Shields (turned or not). The attack takes place on the space that the attacker came from with all the pertinent modifiers, even if that space turns out to be a Stronghold space. If combat moves into an opponent's Stronghold space due to Agent of Shadow being played, the owner of the Stronghold is the one who receives any bonuses the Stronghold gives. The owner of a Stronghold is always considered to be "defending" his Stronghold. A player can never receive a bonus from an opponent's Stronghold.

Q: Can a Titan change to "Small" size in order to allow more space under a Shield?

A: No. Both Titans have been reworded for Revised. The new wording begins, "While face-up, the Titan can change size..."

Q: What happens when a player runs out of cards?

A: When a player runs out of cards, he draws no new cards for the rest of the game (should have used a bigger deck!). Each turn, a player with no cards will randomly draw a new Up-card from the discard pile, but that card isn't taken into the Storage Hand during the next Draw and Organize phase. It is simply used as the current Up-card.

Q: What happens when both opposing Creatures have the same amount of Vitality in a match-up?

A: This is called a push, and neither Creature will kill the other. A secondary attacker could still be used to possibly kill the opponent's Creature.

Q: What happens when the total surviving Vitality for both sides is equal at the end of combat?

A: The defender is considered to have held off the attack successfully and wins the Combat. The attacker must retreat.

Q: Does a Creature on a Stronghold Upgrade count towards the 30-point Vitality limit for the attached Stronghold space?

A: No. Creatures placed in/on a Stronghold Upgrade do not count as being "in" the Stronghold. If the Stronghold space that the Upgrade card is attached to is rubbled, the Upgrade and any Creature in/on it is lost. This assumes that the Creature was placed on the Upgrade legally to begin with (see the Upgrade cards for specifics).

Q: When can I play a Spell?

A: Spells can be played at any time, unless the card reads otherwise.

Q: How does Terrain Settlement work?

A: After ALL movement and combat for both sides is complete, any space just taken must have a Terrain card laid upon it. If you take a space from an opponent, that opponent's previously placed Terrain card is discarded. You cannot replace your own previously placed Terrain. If you do not have a Terrain card, you may make a Terrain card from a card in your hand by spending a Power Stone and placing that card face-down on the taken space, with the word "Guardians" facing you. This is called a "proxy" land. If you cannot make a Terrain, or choose not to proxy for some reason, you must discard a Creature from the Shield stack on the disputed land space in question.

Q: Please explain bribery. When do I do it?

A: If bribery is to be used against a Creature, it must be used as soon as the target Creature is played. You may either bribe or fight, but not both. Bribery is not a magical effect and thus cannot be dispelled. And no, you can't bribe your own Creatures!

Q: What can be kept secret during the game?

A: Before combat, the amount of cards under the Shields is to be kept secret. You may not physically examine the stacks of your opponent. Any Creature-Magic Items (Items with a "C" in the upper left corner) beneath a Shield must be placed face-up on the table prior to combat. After the combat occurs, all the remaining contents under both Shields must be revealed. Also, you may NEVER examine an opponent's discard pile or face-down Terrain cards.

Q: What's up with secondary attackers?

A: Secondary attackers are any Creatures left in a player's hand after the primary combat match-ups have been completed. Only one player can have secondary attackers. These can be used to attempt to kill the opponent's Creatures locked in match-ups. Play one secondary attacker at a time, to allow for bribery. Defending Creatures cannot channel to protect against a secondary attacker, but the secondary attacker can receive channeling. A secondary attacker cannot be harmed.

Q: What happens when I play Dispel Magic against a Command card?

A: The targeted Command Creature loses its Command ability for that combat, but remains face-up on the table beside the combat. The Creature can be attacked by secondary attackers, if they're available.

Q: How does Reinforcement work?

A: Reinforcing a Shield is a Movement Option, using the "turn" of a Shield. Creatures that are reinforcing can move without a Shield, but must obey the limitations of a moving Shield, cannot enter into a combat situation, and must end movement under the Shield they are to reinforce. Reinforcement cannot exceed the 30-point Vitality Limit of a space/Shield. Creatures can reinforce FROM different spaces, but cannot reinforce more than ONE Shield during that "turn" of a Shield. You may fly Creatures to reinforce, provided they can fly. These Creatures must be revealed when flying.

Q: What does ***(insert word here)*** mean?

A: There is a glossary of terms in the back of the rulebook that covers most, if not all, of the terms used in the game. If you come across a word you are unfamiliar with, please consult the glossaries in the rulebook and in this Guide before posting the question online.

Q: Do I need to read the Quick Start rules if I want to learn the game?

A: It would DEFINITELY be to your advantage. The Quick Start rules contain all the necessary "groundwork" information for learning the game, but avoid some of the stickier details. If you ignore this section, the sections following may become confusing.

Q: Please explain the Amber Well & the Drooling Clamjack. I'm dumbfounded.

A: These have been reworded for the Revised Edition. The Amber Well now reads, "If beaten as a primary attacker, your secondary attacks versus the Amber Well's match-up opponent get an extra +4 Vitality." The Drooling Clamjack has been reworded similarly. The idea with these two Creatures is that you WANT them to get moshed in primary match-ups so that the secondary attackers you play versus the Creature that beat them have a much easier time. It's an easy concept, it's just really hard to word clearly.

Q: Can a Guardian channel to itself?

A: No. A Guardian can only receive channeling if a Power Lunch is played on it, and then it can only receive channeling from a Creature with that ability. A Guardian can't Power Lunch to itself because it would be technically transferring power FROM itself TO itself.

Q: Does the design on my Standard Bearer have to match the design on my normal Shields?

A: Unless both players are using only Starter Decks, yes. And all of your NON-Standard Bearer Shields must match as well.

Q: How can I tell which edition or expansion a card is from?

A: There is a small change in the Artist Credit line at the bottom of each card. For the Limited Edition, there is a blue dot after the artist's name. Revised Edition has a white dot instead. Promo cards have a black dot. DAGGER ISLE cards have a small stylized dagger in place of the dot. DRIFTER'S NEXUS cards have an infinity symbol in place of the dot.

Q: How many cards are in the Limited set?

A: 279 cards, not counting different Shield Vitality numbers. We had to drop two cards at the last minute due to some real strange circumstances... Dust Geysers in the art studio.

Q: Can an opponent stop my St. Ballantine's Evocation by bribing the Knight?

A: No. Once St. Ballantine's is played, it's too late to bribe. A Dispel Magic would have to be used against the St. Ballantine's.

Q: If a Creature is immune to Externals, what happens when an External fires an AOE?

A: A Creature would have to be immune to the source of the AOE (fire, fear, etc...) to not be affected. The damage comes from the AOE, NOT from the External.

Q: Explain Tes Let's special power.

A: If you're using Tes Let, when it's time to draw cards you can choose to discard your Up-card to the discard pile instead of making it your first draw card, and draw all allowed cards from the deck instead.

Q: Why would I ever use the Limited Edition Phantom Stalker?

A: This card had a typo in the Limited Edition. The last sentence SHOULD read, "... return to Combat Hand..." not "...Storage Hand." This has been fixed in Revised.

Q: Are there any other "error cards" from Limited?

A: Yes. The Potion of Movement Essence should read, " +1 movement to any NON-FLYING Shield...." This is a biggie...

Q: Why would I use Pink Flamingos? They can't beat ANYTHING, the losers!

A: True, the Flamingos don't inflict any casualties on their own, but they DO have a nasty tendency to hang around and win control of spaces. THEY don't beat you, YOU have to beat THEM! Plus, they look so darned cool and majestic...

Q: Why would I use the Idiot? It's got a ZERO Vitality!

A: Because he also takes up no space under a Shield. Play him first in combat and watch your secondary attackers clean up. Play him with Pink Flamingos (see above) for maximum hilarity, if you can afford to assemble lots of each.

Q: Does the Cow's methane AOE cause affected Creatures to be discarded? Are cows really that tough where you live?

A: No and no. When the Cow is played, your opponent must remove any Creatures with 3 Vitality or less from his Combat Hand and put them face-up onto the table. These Creatures can't attack and don't count for control of the space, but can be attacked by secondary attackers. They're not killed, just gassed into submission.

Q: Monolith of Power: Does the effect extend diagonally?

A: No, just horizontally and vertically (in the shape of a big plus sign).

Q: When do I have to show Creature-Magic Items in combat?

A: Unless stated otherwise on the card (Heels of Speed, for example), place any Creature-Items face-up on the table before Command cards are revealed. They may be dispelled at this time.

Q: What does "lost" mean?

A: If a Creature is beaten or destroyed, it is considered "lost." This does not include Creatures which are "discarded" or sacrificed."

Q: If I play Force Barrier and an opponent dispels it, do I still have to pay a Power Stone?

A: Yes. Any Spell that requires a Power Stone to cast will burn the Stone, even if dispelled.

Q: What about Rocks of Skull Cracking? If it gets dispelled, do I still lose a Power Stone for each Creature I tried to destroy?

A: No. For Rocks and other such Spells, the Power Stones are used to increase the effect, not activate the Spell. If dispelled, you keep the Stones.

Q: Stronghold Upgrades: "... two spaces in front of the Upgrade." Is that two DIRECTLY in front, or the one in front and the one adjacent?

A: Two spaces DIRECTLY in front. In a four-player game, it's the space directly in front of the Upgraded space and the next adjacent enemy space connected to that space with a red line (see page 48 of the Limited Edition rulebook).

Q: How do Standard Bearer effects work?

A: Standard Bearers work like a Command ability, although they can't be dispelled by Dispel Magic. If two Standard Bearer abilities conflict, or a Standard conflicts with a Command ability, treat the situation as if they were both Command cards (the one with the lower Up-card number has its ability dispelled. If equal, they are BOTH dispelled. See page 32 in the rulebook).

Q: I have the Standard Bearer Brom's Angelic 13 in play. Can I spend a Power Stone and use its power to return a Knight to my Storage Depot after using St. Ballantine's Evocation? How about a Thunderhawk used as a ranged attacker?

A: Yes, for both. You can spend a Power Stone to activate the Standard and "rescue" any of your Creatures lost in combat. Destroyed Creatures are considered lost.

Q: Can a Creature with a ranged attack use that ranged attack when played as a secondary attacker?

A: No. Ranged attacks may only be used during primary match-ups.

Q: What's that red number under the black Vitality number on some of my Creatures?

A: The red number is the Creature's Vitality for DETERMINING VITALITY ON A SPACE PURPOSES ONLY. During combat and when determining Up-card, use the black Vitality number. When determining the number of Vitality points under a Shield or on a Stronghold space, use the red number.

Q: When a card allows my Command card to be attacked, may I use channeling and ranged attackers?

A: Yes. You may not use secondary attackers, however, until ALL primary match-ups have been made.

Q: If I play one of the Fiends (Mad Fiend, Greedy Fiend, Ugly Wart Fiend) which prohibits a type of bribery unless they're bribed first, does that apply to just my opponent or me too?

A: The Fiends affect BOTH sides in a combat. If you play a Greedy Fiend and he isn't bribed immediately by your opponent, neither of you can use Gold Bribery for the rest of the combat.

Q: When a card refers to "Elementals," is it just the Elemental Creatures (Fire Elemental, Air Elemental, etc.) or all gray bordered cards?

A: All gray bordered cards. The Fire Elemental, et. al, are classed as "elements" in the lower right of their text boxes.

Q: When can I Dispel Magic an Item or Spell?

A: Dispel Magic must be used as soon as the Item is revealed. You can't, for example, Dispel an Amulet of Flying midway through a Shield's movement. Spells must be Dispelled as soon as they're played, so you can't wait until midway through a turn to Dispel a Force Barrier played earlier. Dispelled Items and Spells are discarded immediately.

Q: If I change a Creature's border color, does its Off-color bonus change as well? Also, is just the border color changed, or does the Creature class change as well?

A: When a Creature's border color changes, its Off-color bonus remains the same. However, the Creature's class DOES temporarily change to match the new border color. For example, Player A plays an Earth Elemental in a match-up. Player B plays Death. Player B uses a Standard Bearer to change the Elemental's border color to white, making it a Mortal. Death destroys the now Mortal Elemental!

Q: What promo cards have been released to date and where did they appear?

A: There have been four. Barrow Wight appeared originally in Combo magazine #8. Druk appeared originally in Ventura magazine Sept./Oct. '95. Land Drake originally appeared as a special advance promo in Capital City Advance, a comic/game distributor magazine, in summer of 1995. All three of these returned in DAGGER ISLE, although in slightly different form (especially the Land Drake, which had a different card back and bribery symbol as a promo). In addition to these, the Chaos Summoner appeared in Inquest #8, which also features the art from that card on the cover. That one may not be back for quite a while....

Q: Please clarify channeling timing. Is channeling simultaneous?

A: Channeling occurs one Stone at a time. The attacker has the first channel option in a match-up. He announces the channel, spending a Power Stone (this assumes the use of the Guardian to channel). His opponent can respond, if possible. This then goes back and forth, one Stone at a time, until either opponent elects to stop, runs out of Stones, or stops channeling with a Spell, Item or effect. If a Spell, Item or effect is used by either player to affect channeling, ONLY THE LAST STONE'S WORTH OF CHANNELING IS AFFECTED, unless a card says otherwise (Channeling Flux, for example). So, if a player uses Siin's special power to stop his opponent from channeling after that opponent uses three Power Stones, only the third Stone's worth of CMP is canceled. Likewise, Energy Eater will only reduce a channel receiving Creature by the amount of the last Power Stone's worth of CMP channeled into it. For Creatures which channel, the entire channel is affected or negated, since a Creature doesn't spend Power Stones and can only channel once per combat.

Q: Can my Stronghold Upgrades from the DAGGER ISLE expansion be used on Strongholds other than the Freebooter Stronghold?

A: Yes. Any Stronghold Upgrade can be played on any Stronghold.

Q: If my Creature's text box reads, "...can only channel to {Creature class}," does that mean ANY Creature of that Creature class?

A: Only those which could normally accept channeling, unless the channeling card's text box reads, "... even to that normally cannot accept channeling."

Q: Does the number on a Creature-Magic Item count towards my Shield's Vitality limit?

A: No. The number is currently only used for Up-card purposes.

Q: Can I place more than one Creature in the Teleport Tower or Ranged Attack Platform?

A: No. Only one Creature at a time. You can change the Creature during the Draw and Organize phase.

Q: The Great Horned Troll's text box reads, "When defending a space, opponent must...." Does this mean when the TROLL is defending, or when my OPPONENT is defending?

A: The text applies to the Troll. Read it as, "When the Troll's Shield is defending a space, opponent..."

Q: Please clarify card timing.

A: Any time a card is played, you MUST allow a chance for your opponent to respond to that card. Once another card is used, it is too late to cancel the previous card. For example, Player A plays a Pirate Gunner as a ranged attacker, then plays a Great Balderoon to enhance the ranged attack. Player B wants to play his Seraphim card. Player B must use the Seraphim BEFORE the Balderoon is played, even if this means simply saying, "Stop. I'm using a spell before the Balderoon works." Player B must have a chance to react to the Gunner. In the above case, the Balderoon would no longer be usable, since the ranged attack was canceled by the Seraphim. However, if Player A played the Gunner, asked, "Are you doing anything?" and Player B said "No," then Player A played the Balderoon, Player B could NOT now say, "Waitaminute, I'm using Seraphim on the Gunner." It's too late.

Q: What's up with the Ranged Attack Platform?

A: During the Draw and Organize phase, the owner of the Platform can place any one Creature capable of a ranged attack face-down on the Platform. That Creature can then fire from the Platform into any ONE combat taking place in the two disputed land spaces directly in front of the Platform during the Movement and Combat phase. When you wish to use the Creature on the Platfrom, simply turn it face-up and apply its ranged attack effect to the combat match-up you wish to modify. The ranged attacker remains on the Platform, and its Vitality does NOT count toward determining which side wins the combat. The Creature on the Ranged Attack Platform acts very similarly to a Creature which channels from beneath a Stronghold card. During any Draw and Organize phase you may pull a Creature off of the Platform and replace it with another, but only one Creature may ever occupy the Platform.

Q: Is there a Blood Gambit card, or what?

A: Blood Gambit was a Spell which was originally slated for release in the DAGGER ISLE expansion. It was even included in preliminary card lists sent to industry publications. Unfortunately, just prior to DAGGER ISLE going to press it was decided that the art just didn't fit the card's effect, and new art was substituted. THe new art had a very different feel, and we felt a name change was also warranted. Thus, Blood Gambit became Spectre's Ward. So, if you're still out there frantically searching for a Blood Gambit to complete your DAGGER ISLE set, but you have a Spectre's Ward, relax. You're done.

Q: If a player is found to have cheated by exceeding the 30-point Vitality limit during a combat, what happens to Power Stones, Spells, Bribery or Items spent during that combat?

A: The player who was over the 30-point Vitality limit loses any Spells, Items, Bribery or Power Stones spent (the price of being caught!), but the opponent gets back any Spells, Items, Bribery or Power Stones spent during the combat, since they were spent uneccessarily.

Q: If I use a Petrified Heart to avoid a Creature's Shield penalty number, and during combat the Petrified Heart is dispelled, do I have to forfeit the combat since I'm now over the 30-point Vitality limit?

A: No. You went into the combat with a legal Shield. However, after combat if you still have over 30-points Vitality of Creatures left you'll have to discard to get down to 30 or below, since you no longer have the Petrified Heart.

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