Rules
Transcribed from Comprehensive Rules v2.0, dated June 21, 2024.
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8. Additional Rules
- 8.1. Aspect Penalty
- 8.2. "Attacks and Defeats"
- 8.3. Attribute
- 8.4. "Can" and "Can't"
- 8.5. Choose
- 8.6. Copy
- 8.7. Empty Deck
- 8.8. Enters Play
- 8.9. First
- 8.10. “If You Do”
- 8.11. Ignore
- 8.12. Last Known Information
- 8.13. Leaves Play
- 8.14. Look At
- 8.15. Lose, Loses
- 8.16. Modifiers
- 8.17. “Must”
- 8.18. Name a Card
- 8.19. Other, Another
- 8.20. Play Restrictions
- 8.21. Prevent (Damage)
- 8.22. Printed
- 8.23. Random
- 8.24. Referential Abilities
- 8.25. Return
- 8.26. Reveal
- 8.27. Search
- 8.28. Take Control
- 8.29. “Then”
- 8.30. Unique, Unique Icon (⟡)
- 8.31. Up To
- 8.32. You
- 8.33. “You May”
- 8.34. Capture
- 8.35. “For Each”
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1. Game Concepts
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1.1. General
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1.1.1. The rules in this Comprehensive Rules document apply to any game of Star Wars™: Unlimited, unless otherwise specified. The game is most commonly played between two players, so the language and examples used outside of Sections 11 and 12 assume that two people are playing the game. Multiplayer games use most of the same rules as two-player games.
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1.1.2. To play a game, players need one deck each, an initiative counter, damage counters, and token cards matching any types created by their decks. Counters and tokens may be substituted with other objects, such as dice.
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1.2. Deck
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1.2.1. There is no maximum number of cards a deck can have. The minimum number of cards in a deck varies by format.
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1.2.2. Leaders and bases are considered part of a deck for deckbuilding, but are not considered part of a deck during gameplay.
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1.2.3. Tokens are not part of a player’s deck and do not count toward deck size.
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1.2.4. Players may include cards from any aspect in their deck, even cards with aspect icons that don’t match the ones provided by their leader and/or base (though playing these cards may incur the aspect penalty).
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1.3. Golden Rules
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1.3.1. Card and Rulebook Precedence: If the text of this Comprehensive Rules document directly contradicts the text of the Star Wars: Unlimited Quickstart rules, the text of the Comprehensive Rules takes precedence. If the text of a card directly contradicts the text of the Comprehensive Rules, the text of the card takes precedence.
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1.3.2. Do as Much as You Can: While resolving a card ability, resolve as much of the ability as possible, and ignore any parts of the ability that cannot be resolved. (Note that you may choose to resolve abilities involving hidden information as though you have fewer options than you really do.)
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1.3.3. Restrictions Override Permissions: In case of a conflict between a restrictive ability and a permissive ability, the restriction takes precedence. For instance, an ability that says a unit “can’t attack bases” would override an ability that allowed a unit to “attack an enemy base.”
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1.4. Players, Active Player
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1.4.1. A player is a person participating in the game.
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1.4.2. A player’s opponent is the other person playing the game.
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1.4.3. The active player is the player that is currently taking an action. Players take turns being the active player during the action phase
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1.4.4. The first active player in a game is the player that started the game with the initiative counter. Once that player takes their first action, their opponent becomes the active player and takes an action, then the first player becomes the active player again and takes an action, and so on. Players continue taking turns this way until each player has passed consecutively, which ends the action phase.
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1.4.5. If no player is currently taking an action, such as during the regroup phase, the player with the initiative counter is considered to be the active player.
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1.5. Cards
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1.6. Abilities
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1.6.1. An ability is special text on a card that explains how the card can affect the game. A card may have one or more abilities printed in its text box or gain an ability from other cards in play. If a card has multiple different abilities, each ability begins on a new line.
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1.6.2. When a player resolves an ability, they resolve as much of the ability as possible, and ignore any part of the ability that cannot be resolved
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1.6.3. An ability that is able to be resolved must resolve, unless the ability includes the phrase “you may.” An ability that includes “you may” gives the player resolving the ability the option of whether or not to resolve that ability.
For example, a unit with an ability that reads, “On Attack: You may deal 1 damage to another friendly unit and ready it,” allows the player to choose whether or not to deal 1 damage when the unit attacks.
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1.6.4. There are 5 types of abilities in the game: action abilities, constant abilities, event abilities, keyword abilities, and triggered abilities. See 7. Abilities and Effects
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1.7. Resources
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1.7.1. A resource is a game object used to pay the costs of cards and certain abilities. A card becomes a resource when placed into a player’s resource zone.
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1.7.2. When paying a card’s cost or the cost of an ability that uses a {R} icon, a player must exhaust ready resources they control equal to the number indicated by the cost. An exhausted resource cannot be used to pay a cost.
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1.7.3. Resources are placed facedown and remain facedown while in a player’s resource zone. A player may view facedown resources they control at any time.
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1.7.4. The order of cards in a player’s resource zone does not need to be maintained; a player may rearrange those cards at any time.
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1.7.5. If a player controls cards in their resource zone that are owned by an opponent, the ownership of those cards is open information.
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1.7.6. Players can choose to add a card from their hand to their resource zone during each regroup phase. See 5.5. Regroup Phase
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1.7.7. If an ability instructs a player to put a card into play as a resource, the card is placed facedown and exhausted in that player’s resource zone unless otherwise specified. The card is not considered “played” and no “When Played” abilities trigger.
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1.7.8. While a card is in play as a resource, it is considered a blank resource card. Its facedown side is considered out-of-play, and its printed attributes—including its name, aspects, traits, and abilities—are inactive and do not affect the game unless otherwise specified. An ability only is active while in the resource zone if it explicitly states so in the ability or the associated rules text (as with Smuggle).
For example, a player can control one copy of a unique card faceup in an arena, as well as another copy of that unique card facedown as a resource, without needing to defeat one of those copies as per the rules of uniqueness.
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1.8. Cost
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1.8.1. A card’s “cost” is the number of resources that must be exhausted in order to play that card. This is indicated with a numeral in a yellow box located in the top left corner of the card.
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1.8.2. When a card is being played, its cost can be modified through abilities and/or the aspect penalty. Any active modifiers to a card’s cost must be taken into account when paying for the cost of a card; if the player cannot pay a card’s cost, they cannot play the card.
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1.8.3. Any modifiers to a card’s cost are cumulative. When calculating modified cost, any modifiers that increase cost are applied before any modifiers that decrease cost.
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1.8.4. A card’s cost cannot be modified below 0. If an ability would cause the cost of a card to be modified below 0, treat that card as having 0 cost instead.
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1.8.5. If an ability instructs a player to play a card “for free,” the player bypasses all modifiers to that card’s cost (including the aspect penalty), and does not pay any resources to play that card. The player must still pay any additional non-resource costs applied to the card.
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1.8.6. If an ability refers to the “cost” of a card, that ability always refers to the printed cost of the card. It does not take into account any modifiers to the card’s cost as it was played. See 8.16. Modifiers
For example, Andre has Admiral Piett (SOR #079) in play, who has an ability that gives Ambush to friendly units that cost 6 or more. Andre plays Galactic Ambition (SOR #235) to play Relentless (SOR #089) for free. Although Andre didn’t spend any resources to play Relentless, its printed cost is still 9, which means that Admiral Piett will still give it Ambush.
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1.8.7. Each leader's Leader Unit side has a printed cost equal to the number of resources required to deploy it, even though deploying that leader doesn't require spending resources. Once deployed, card abilities that affect units with a specific cost can also affect a Leader Unit in play with that cost.
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1.8.8. Some abilities add an “additional cost” to play a card, applying a non-resource cost to that card. In order to play that card, a player must both pay the card’s cost in resources, and all additional costs applied to the card.
For example, Saw Gerrera (SOR #153) has an ability that requires each opponent to pay an “additional cost” to play an event, dealing 2 damage to their base. If Saw Gerrera is controlled by Ken’s opponent, and Ken wanted to play Vanquish (SOR #078), he would have to pay 5 resources and deal 2 damage to his base in order to play Vanquish.
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1.8.9. Some cards have action abilities with an ability cost, indicated in brackets following the word “Action.” In order to use such an ability, the player who controls the card with the ability must pay the cost in brackets. This cost may include various forms of payment such as spending resources, exhausting cards, or defeating friendly units. Resolving an action ability this way counts as the player’s action for the turn.
For example, Emperor Palpatine: Galactic Ruler (SOR #006) has an action ability on his Leader side with an ability cost indicated in brackets. In order to use the ability, Palpatine’s controller must first pay the full cost of the ability: paying 1 resource, exhausting Palpatine, and defeating a friendly unit. After paying this cost, the controller resolves the ability’s effect.
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1.8.10. If a replacement effect replaces part or all of a cost with another effect, the cost is still considered paid as long as that other effect can be resolved. If a replacement effect can’t be resolved, the original cost must be paid in full.
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1.9. Damage
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1.9.1. Cards with HP values (units and bases) can be dealt damage by attacks and abilities. Damage dealt is represented by damage counters.
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1.9.2. When damage is dealt to a card, place that many damage counters on that card.
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1.9.3. When damage is healed from a card, remove that many damage counters from that card. If the damage healed exceeds the damage that was on the card, remove as much damage as possible instead. An effect only is considered to have healed a unit if at least one damage counter is removed.
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1.9.4. A card is considered “damaged” if it has at least 1 damage counter on it.
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1.9.5. Damage is persistent. Damage counters remain on cards until either the card leaves play, or the damage is healed. When a card with damage on it leaves play, remove any damage counters that were on that card.
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1.9.6. If a unit has damage on it equal to or greater than its HP value, that unit is immediately defeated.
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1.9.7. If a base has damage on it equal to or greater than its HP value, its owner immediately loses the game, and their opponent wins the game.
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1.9.8. If an ability deals damage to multiple units, all damage is dealt simultaneously. If an ability deals multiple instances of damage to one unit, each instance of damage is dealt sequentially. Resolve any triggered abilities after all damage is dealt.
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1.9.9. If an ability prevents damage from being dealt to a unit or base, no damage is considered dealt to that unit or base, and abilities that trigger when damage is dealt don’t trigger.
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1.9.10. “Combat damage” is damage dealt during the second step of an attack. Combat damage is both the damage an attacker deals to a defender/base, and the damage a defender deals to an attacker. See 6.3. Attack With a Unit
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1.9.11. “Excess damage” refers to damage that would be dealt to a unit beyond the amount needed to defeat that unit. Abilities such as the Overwhelm keyword can affect excess damage. If a unit is defeated prior to being dealt combat damage by an attacker with Overwhelm, all combat damage that would have been dealt to the unit is considered excess damage.
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1.10. Power
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1.10.1. Power represents the amount of damage a unit deals during combat.
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1.10.2. Units have power values, indicated by a number in a red box in the bottom left corner of the card art. In rules text, this may be referred to a card’s “printed power.”
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1.10.3. A unit’s power can be modified by upgrades attached to it, or through certain card abilities. Any modifiers to a unit’s power are cumulative. When calculating modified power, any modifiers that increase power are applied before any modifiers that decrease power.
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1.10.4. A card’s power cannot be modified below 0. If a card’s power would be modified below 0, treat the card’s power as 0 instead.
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1.10.5. If an ability refers to the power of a card in play, include any modifiers to its power. If an ability refers to the power of a card in an out-of-play zone, use the printed power of the card.
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1.11. HP
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1.11.1. HP, or Hit Points, represents the number of damage counters that can be placed on a card before it is defeated.
For example, a unit with 3 HP is defeated when it has 3 or more damage on it.
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1.11.2. Units and bases have HP values, indicated by a number in a blue box in a corner of the card art (bottom right for units, top left for bases). In rules text, this may be referred to a card’s “printed HP.”
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1.11.3. A unit’s HP can be modified by upgrades attached to it, or through certain card abilities. Any modifiers to a unit’s HP are cumulative. When calculating modified HP, any modifiers that increase HP are applied before any modifiers that decrease HP.
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1.11.4. A card’s HP cannot be modified below 0. If a card’s HP would be modified below 0, treat the card’s HP as 0 instead. A card is defeated immediately if its HP is modified to 0.
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1.11.5. A card cannot be healed in excess of its HP. If a card would be healed in excess of its HP, heal as much damage as possible instead. Note that the player is considered only to have healed damage equal to the number of damage counters removed.
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1.11.6. A card’s “remaining HP” is calculated by subtracting the number of damage counters on it from its HP (accounting for any modifiers to its HP). If the remaining HP of a card is 0 or less, that card is defeated immediately.
For example, a unit with 5 HP and 3 damage counters on it has 2 remaining HP.
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1.12. Counters
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1.12.1. Counters are cardboard pieces used to track information during the game. There are three different types of counters: the initiative counter, epic action counters, and damage counters. Counters may be substituted with other objects, such as dice.
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1.12.2. The initiative counter is used to keep track of which player has the initiative in the game. The player who starts a round with the initiative counter is the first active player for that round and takes the first action in that round.
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1.12.3. An epic action counter is used to indicate when a card’s Epic Action ability has been used. After using an Epic Action ability, place an epic action counter over the text of the ability to remind players that the ability was used and cannot be used again that game.
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1.12.4. Damage counters are used to track damage on cards with HP values, including units and bases. When damage is dealt to a card, place that many damage counters on it. If a unit or base ever has damage on it equal to or greater than its HP, it is defeated.
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1.13. Drawing a Card
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1.13.1. To draw a card, a player takes the top card of their deck and adds it to their hand. Players draw cards during the regroup phase, or through certain abilities.
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1.13.2. When a player is instructed to draw multiple cards, those cards are considered to be drawn simultaneously, unless the draw effect specifies the cards are drawn “one at a time.”
For example, when players are instructed to draw 2 cards during the regroup phase, these cards are considered added to that player’s hand at the same time.
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1.14. Discarding a Card
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1.14.1. To “discard” a card means to move it to its owner’s discard pile from another zone, usually from a player’s hand or deck. Certain abilities can cause a player to discard a card.
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1.14.2. When an ability discards one or more cards from a player’s hand, the player resolving the ability chooses which card(s) to discard, unless otherwise specified. In most cases, the player discarding from their own hand chooses, but some abilities have their opponent choose instead, usually after the opponent has looked at the player’s hand.
For example, if Lin controls K-2S0 (SOR #145) and Becca defeats him, Lin can choose how to resolve K-2S0’s “When Defeated” ability, either dealing 3 damage to Becca’s base or making Becca discard a card from her hand. If Lin chooses the discard, Becca then chooses which card in her hand to discard; Lin does not choose for Becca.
For another example, if Lin later played Spark of Rebellion (SOR #200), its ability instructs Lin to look at his opponent’s hand and discard a card from it. For this ability, Lin chooses which of Becca’s cards is discarded.
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1.14.3. Cards discarded from a deck are always discarded from the top of the deck.
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1.14.4. When an effect discards multiple cards, they are considered discarded simultaneously, unless the ability specifies “one at a time.”
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1.14.5. If a player has no cards in their hand, they cannot discard a card from their hand.
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1.14.6. When instructed to “discard your hand,” a player must discard cards from their hand until they have no cards in hand. If they already have no cards in hand, they are considered to have discarded their hand for relevant game effects.
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1.15. Actions
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1.15.1. During the action phase, players take turns performing one of five actions: Play a Card, Attack With a Unit, Use an Action Ability, Take the Initiative, or Pass.
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1.15.2. To play a card, a player chooses a card in their hand, pays resources equal to the cost of the card (accounting for modifiers), then either puts it into play (if it is a unit or upgrade) or resolves its ability (if it is an event). A player may also play a card from a non-hand zone if that card explicitly allows it (for example, cards with Smuggle). See 6.2. Play a Card
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1.15.3. To attack with a unit, a player exhausts a unit they control (the “attacker”) and chooses what that unit is attacking: either an enemy unit in the same arena (the “defender”) or the opponent’s base. See 6.3. Attack With a Unit
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1.15.4. To use an action ability, a player chooses a card they control with an action ability. They pay the ability’s cost if it has one, then resolve the ability’s effect. A player may also use an action ability on a card in one of their out-of-play zones if the ability explicitly allows it. See 6.4. Use an Action Ability
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1.15.5. To take the initiative, a player takes the initiative counter (even if they already have it) and places it near them, showing they have control of it. Then they flip the initiative counter to its “taken” side (the side without text) to remind both players it cannot be taken again that phase. They flip it back to its “available” side (the side with text) at the start of the next action phase.
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1.15.6. To pass, a player declares that they are passing.
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1.16. Game State
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1.16.1. “The game state” refers to: each card’s current zone, controller, attributes, and status (ready/exhausted and faceup/facedown); the initiative counter’s controller and status (taken/available); the status of open and hidden information for a player; the status of all active lasting effects and delayed effects; and the status of Epic Action abilities (used/unused). An action, ability, or payment of a cost that changes any of these elements is considered to change the game state.
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1.16.2. A player must change the game state when they take any action other than passing during their turn. If a chosen action would not change the game state, a player must choose a different action to take or pass.
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1.16.3. Examples of changing the game state include, but are not limited to: paying a cost, drawing/discarding a card, readying/exhausting a card, damaging/healing a card, looking at/searching/revealing a card, changing a card’s zone (via playing it, defeating it, etc.), modifying a card’s power or HP, creating a lasting effect or delayed effect, taking the initiative, and triggering an Epic Action.
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1.16.4. A change in the game state must be caused by a rule or ability of the game; a player cannot make a change in the game state with no identifiable cause, such as exhausting a resource when they aren’t paying a cost.
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1.17. Open and Hidden Information
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1.17.1. “Open information” refers to information that any player is entitled to know. Open information includes the attributes of faceup cards in play (units, upgrades, bases, and leaders), the number of counters on cards, the number of cards in each player’s hand and deck, the cards in each player’s discard pile, and the reverse side of each player’s leader. A player cannot refuse to disclose or attempt to prevent the access of open information by their opponent.
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1.17.2. “Hidden information” refers to information that has restrictions on when it can be known, and by whom. All information that is not open is considered hidden, such as the order of cards in each player’s deck. Certain information may be considered hidden information for only one player and not both players, such as cards in a player’s hand or a player’s resources.
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1.17.3. Players may only view cards considered hidden information to them when a card ability or effect specifically allows it.
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1.17.4. A player may choose to resolve an action or ability that involves information hidden to an opponent as though they have fewer options than they really do. That player still must do as much as they can when resolving such an ability, up to the point of hidden information being revealed. The player must still change the game state in some way for this to be considered an action.
For example, Mon Mothma (SOR #096) has an ability that searches the top 5 cards of the player’s deck for a REBEL card, reveals it and draws it. A player must make the search upon playing Mon Mothma. However, regardless of if they find a REBEL card in the search or not, the player may choose to resolve the ability as though they did not find a REBEL card, reveal no card, and place all searched cards on the bottom of their deck.
For another example, Chewbacca: Walking Carpet (SOR #003) has an action ability on his Leader side allowing the player to exhaust Chewbacca and play a unit that costs 3 or less from their hand. A player may pay the cost of the ability by exhausting Chewbacca, but may choose to resolve the ability as though they do not have a unit that costs 3 or less in hand, regardless of if they have one in their hand or not. They have still successfully changed the game state, as Chewbacca’s status has changed from ready to exhausted as part of the cost of his ability.
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2. Card Anatomy
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2.1. General
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2.1.1. The parts of a card include a card’s name, subtitle, card type, arena type, cost, aspect(s), power, power modifier, HP, HP modifier, trait(s), text box, and credit line. These parts, with the exception of the credit line, are also known as a card’s “attributes.” Each Star Wars: Unlimited card has at least a name, card type, trait(s), and credit line.
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2.2. Name
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2.2.1. A card’s name is located at the top of the card (an upgrade’s name is also reprinted on the bottom of the card). Each card has a name.
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2.2.2. Regardless of its printed language, a card’s name is considered to be the English version of its name.
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2.2.3. Some cards have a unique icon (⟡) before their names, indicating the card is unique. A unique card depicts an iconic Star Wars character, vehicle, or object. See 8.30. Unique, Unique Icon
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2.3. Subtitle
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2.4. Card Type
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2.4.1. A card’s type is located in the top left of the card. A card can be one or more of these types: base, event, leader, unit, upgrade, or token. Each type of card has its own associated rules. See 3. Card Types
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2.5. Arena Type
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2.5.1. A card’s arena type is located in the top right of the card, which indicates which arena the card is played into (ground or space). Only units have an arena type. See 4. Zones
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2.6. Cost
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2.6.1. A card’s cost is located in the top left corner of the card and indicates how many resources must be spent to play the card. If it is a leader card, this number instead indicates how many resources a player must control to deploy it. Units, events, upgrades, and tokens have a cost. See 1.8. Cost
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2.7. Aspects
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2.7.1. If a card belongs to one or more aspects, those aspects are indicated by aspect icons located on one side of the card. Bases and both sides of leaders have aspect icons on the right, while units, events, and upgrades have aspect icons on the left. Each card has between 0 and 2 aspect icons. See 1.5.6. Aspects
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2.7.2. Aspects categorize cards into different themes and play styles. There are six aspects: Vigilance , Command , Aggression , Cunning , Villainy , and Heroism .
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2.7.3. A card without any aspect icons does not belong to any aspect, and is considered a “neutral” card.
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2.8. Power
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2.8.1. A card’s power is located on the left side of the card and indicates how much damage the card deals in combat. Only units have power. See 1.10. Power
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2.9. Power Modifier
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2.10. HP
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2.10.1. A card’s HP indicates how much damage the card can be dealt before it is defeated. Units and bases have HP; a unit’s HP is located on the right side of the card, and a base’s HP is located in the top left corner of the card. See 1.11. HP
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2.10.2. A card’s “remaining HP” is determined by subtracting the number of damage counters on it from its HP value, including modifiers. When a card’s remaining HP reaches 0 or less, that card is defeated.
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2.11. HP Modifier
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2.12. Traits
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2.12.1. A card’s traits are located directly underneath the card’s name (for events), underneath the card’s art (for units), or on the bottom of the card (for upgrades). Traits are flavorful attributes that categorize the card and have no inherent rules, but may be referenced by card abilities. Each card has at least one trait.
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2.12.2. Unit traits can represent a number of thematic elements, from factions to species to professions. Faction traits represent organizations that a unit belongs to, such as (but not limited to) Rebel, Imperial, Jedi, Sith, New Republic, Underworld, or Naboo. Species traits represent certain prominent species found in the Star Wars universe, such as Twi'lek, Droid, or Hutt. Profession traits represent famous professions in Star Wars, such as Bounty Hunter or Inquisitor.
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2.13. Text Box
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2.13.1. A card’s text box contains any abilities that the card has. An ability is a unique way that a card interacts with the game. See 1.6. Abilities
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2.13.2. A card’s ability may be followed by italicized text in parentheses. Such text is called “reminder text,” and offers a simplified clarification of how that ability affects the game. Reminder text serves as a guide for ease of play, but does not override any rules in this Comprehensive Rules document. The presence or absence of reminder text does not mechanically affect the abilities on a card.
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2.14. Credit Line
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2.14.1. A card’s credit line is located on the bottom of the card and contains credit and set information for that card. These items do not have any effect on gameplay.
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2.14.2. On the left side of the credit line is the name of the artist that created the card’s art.
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2.14.3. In the center of the credit line is licensing information.
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2.14.4. Toward the right side of the credit line is the card’s set abbreviation, language, rarity, and set number. A card can be one of five rarities: Special, Common, Uncommon, Rare, and Legendary.
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3. Card Types
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3.1. General
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3.1.1. A card’s type is located in the top left corner of the card. There are 6 different types of cards: bases, events, leaders, units, upgrades, and tokens. Each card can be one or more of these types.
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3.1.2. A “resource” is not a type of card, but a game object that a card becomes when placed in the resource zone. See 1.7. Resources
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3.2. Base
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3.2.1. A base is a type of card that represents a location in Star Wars. Each base has a name, trait(s), HP value, and aspect icon. Some bases also have an ability.
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3.2.2. Each player’s deck must have exactly 1 base. Each base begins the game in its owner’s base zone.
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3.2.3. Bases can be dealt damage through abilities and enemy attacks. Unless prevented by an ability, any unit can attack an enemy base directly. When a unit attacks a base, the unit remains in the arena it attacked from.
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3.2.4. Some abilities heal damage from a base, such as the Restore keyword. A base cannot be healed beyond its HP value.
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3.2.5. When a base has no remaining HP, its owner immediately loses the game, and its opponent immediately wins the game. A player cannot resolve actions, abilities, or effects once their base’s remaining HP reaches 0.
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3.3. Event
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3.3.1. An event is a type of card. Each event has a name, cost, trait(s), and ability. An event may also have aspect icons.
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3.3.2. To play an event, pay its cost—following any additional costs or play restrictions in effect for that event—and place it in its owner’s discard pile. Then, resolve the event’s ability. See 6.2. Play a Card
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3.3.3. When played, an event moves directly from the player’s hand to their discard pile, never entering play. (A player may place the event in front of them while resolving its ability, but the event is considered to be in their discard pile for the purposes of abilities and effects.)
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3.3.4. An event that affects cards in a player’s discard pile can affect itself.
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3.3.5. An event ability must be resolved as completely as possible. Any part of the event ability that cannot be resolved is ignored. A player may play an event even if none of that event’s ability can be resolved. See 7.4. Event Abilities
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3.3.6. If a triggered ability has the triggering condition “When you play an event,” the event ability must be resolved as completely as possible before resolving the triggered ability.
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3.4. Leader
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3.4.1. A leader is a double-sided card with a horizontal “Leader side” and a vertical “Leader Unit side.” Each side of a leader has two aspect icons, a name, subtitle, trait(s), and abilities.
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3.4.2. Each player’s deck must have exactly 1 leader. Each leader begins the game in the base zone on its Leader side, and flips to its Leader Unit side when it is deployed.
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3.4.3. A leader may have different abilities on its Leader side and Leader Unit side. Only the faceup side of a leader card is considered to be “in play,” so only abilities on the faceup side of a leader can be used at a given time.
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3.4.4. A leader is deployed using the Epic Action ability on its Leader side. A leader may be deployed regardless of whether it is ready or exhausted. When a leader is deployed, flip it to its Leader Unit side and move it to the ground arena, ready. It is considered deployed, not played. The Leader side leaves play, and the Leader Unit side enters play simultaneously. That leader is then considered to be a unit in play: it can attack, be attacked, and use the abilities on its Leader Unit side.
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3.4.5. When a Leader Unit has no remaining HP, it is defeated: flip it to its Leader side and move it to its owner’s base zone, exhausted. The Leader Unit side leaves play, and the Leader side enters play simultaneously. Place an epic action counter on its Epic Action ability to show that it cannot be used again for the rest of the game. Any other abilities on its Leader side can still be used.
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3.4.6. If an ability would case a Leader Unit to move to an out-of-play zone or change control for any reason, it is defeated instead.
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3.5. Unit
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3.5.1. A unit is a type of card depicting a Star Wars character or vehicle. Each unit has a name, cost, power, HP, trait(s), and arena type. A unit may also have a subtitle, aspect icons, abilities, and a unique icon (⟡) before its name.
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3.5.2. To play a unit, pay its cost—following any additional costs or play restrictions in effect for that unit—and place the unit in its designated arena (ground or space). See 6.2. Play a Card
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3.5.3. A unit enters play exhausted and remains in play until it is defeated.
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3.5.4. A unit is defeated when it has no remaining HP or when an ability defeats it directly. When a unit is defeated, place it in its owner’s discard pile.
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3.5.5. Leader Units are a type of unit. Leader Units have the same rules as non-leader units, except that they are deployed instead of being played, and they are returned to the base zone instead of being discarded.
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3.6. Upgrade
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3.6.1. An upgrade is a type of card that attaches to a unit. Each upgrade has a name, cost, trait(s), power modifier, and HP modifier. An upgrade may also have aspect icons, abilities, and a unique icon (⟡) before its name.
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3.6.2. To play an upgrade, pay the upgrade’s cost—following any additional costs or play restrictions in effect for that upgrade—and attach it to a unit in play. When attaching an upgrade, tuck the upgrade halfway under the unit so that the upgrade’s ability and modifiers can be seen clearly. See 6.2. Play a Card
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3.6.3. An upgrade may specify that it must “attach to” a specific type of unit. This is considered a play restriction for that upgrade. If there is no unit of the specific type in play for the upgrade to attach to, the upgrade cannot be played. If there are no units in play, no upgrades can be played.
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3.6.4. There is no limit to the number of upgrades that can be attached to a unit.
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3.6.5. Upgrades may be played on friendly units or enemy units. If a player plays an upgrade onto an enemy unit, that player still controls the upgrade. If that upgrade gives abilities to the attached unit, the unit’s controller resolves those abilities.
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3.6.6. When an upgrade is attached to a unit, the unit also is attached to that upgrade. If an upgrade becomes unattached from a unit, the unit also becomes unattached from that upgrade.
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3.6.7. Each upgrade has a power modifier and HP modifier. A unit’s power and HP are cumulatively modified by each upgrade attached to it.
For example, if a unit originally has 1 power and 3 HP, then receives two Experience token upgrades, those upgrades will modify that unit’s power and HP positively, resulting in the unit having 3 power and 5 HP.
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3.6.8. Some upgrades give abilities to the unit they’re attached to. If an upgrade’s text box uses the phrase “attached unit gains _,” the text following “gains” is considered an ability that the attached unit has while the upgrade is attached to it, and such an ability can be lost, ignored, or affected by other abilities.
For example, Protector (SOR #057) has the text “Attached unit gains Sentinel” in its text box. The unit Protector is attached to is considered to have the Sentinel keyword while Protector is attached to it. If Protector is defeated, the attached unit immediately loses Sentinel. Additionally, the attached unit’s opponent could play SpecForce Soldier (SOR #140) and cause the attached unit to lose Sentinel for the phase.
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3.6.9. If a unit has multiple attached upgrades that give the same ability, it gains that ability multiple times. Keyword abilities do not “stack” (meaning, the card does not gain any additional effects) unless those keywords are followed by a numeral.
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3.6.10. Some upgrades have abilities that affect the unit they’re attached to, but do not give the attached unit an ability. Such abilities refer to the attached unit but do not use the phrase “attached unit gains _.”
For example, Entrenched (SOR #072) has the ability: “Attached unit can’t attack bases.” This ability affects the attached unit, but it is not an ability given to the unit. If the attached unit loses all abilities (such as by Force Lightning, SOR #138), the ability on Entrenched would still be in effect.
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3.6.11. An upgrade is defeated when either the unit it is attached to leaves play, or when an ability defeats it directly. When an upgrade is defeated, the attached unit loses all power, HP, and abilities given to it by the upgrade, and the upgrade is placed in its owner’s discard pile.
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3.6.12. Some upgrades are also tokens and have the “token upgrade” card type. Token upgrades follow the same rules for upgrades outlined above, except that they are put into play differently and are set aside when defeated.
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3.6.13. A unit is considered “upgraded” while it has at least one upgrade attached to it.
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3.6.14. An upgrade is always considered attached to a unit while in-play. If an ability attaches an upgrade that is already in-play to a new unit, it is considered to become unattached from the first unit and attached to the new unit simultaneously.
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3.7. Token
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3.7.1. A token is a type of card that also has a second type, such as a “token upgrade.” Each token has the same formatting as its non-token card type.
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3.7.2. Tokens are set aside at the start of the game. They cannot be shuffled into decks, cannot be discarded, and are not considered “played” when they enter play (meaning they don’t trigger abilities that depend on a card being played).
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3.7.3. If a token would move to an out-of-play zone for any reason, set it aside instead. It is still considered to have left play.
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3.7.4. There is no limit on tokens available to a player. A player may substitute any available object (such as dice) for a token.
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3.7.5. An Experience token is a type of token upgrade. An Experience token is an upgrade that gives the unit it is attached to +1 power and +1 HP. If a unit has multiple Experience tokens attached, it will receive bonus power and bonus HP from each Experience token. When an ability instructs a player to give an Experience token to a unit, they take an Experience token that has been set aside and attach it to that unit.
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3.7.6. A Shield token is a type of token upgrade. A Shield token is an upgrade that gives the unit it is attached to +0 power and +0 HP and has the text: “If damage would be dealt to attached unit, prevent that damage. If you do, defeat a Shield token on it.” When an ability instructs a player to give a Shield token to a unit, they take a Shield token that has been set aside and attach it to that unit.
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4. Zones
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4.1. General
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4.1.1. Zones are defined areas of the game with specific rules. There are seven different types of zones in the game: each player’s base zone, the ground arena, the space arena, each player’s resource zone, each player’s deck, each player’s hand, and each player’s discard pile. The ground arena and space arena are shared between players, while the other zones are separate for each player.
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4.1.2. Cards that are set aside are not considered to be in any zone.
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4.1.3. The “game area” refers to all zones in the game collectively.
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4.2. Base Zone
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4.2.1. Each player has their own base zone, which is located in the center of their play area. Each player’s base and leader start the game in this zone.
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4.2.2. Bases always remain in their owner’s base zone. Leaders move from their owner’s base zone to the ground arena when deployed, and from the ground arena to their owner’s base zone when defeated.
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4.2.3. Units in either arena may attack enemy bases directly, and do not leave their arena when doing so.
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4.3. Ground Arena
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4.3.1. The ground arena is a zone shared by players, located next to each player’s base zone. Each player’s ground units are played into this zone, and face their controller when they’re ready.
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4.3.2. The ground arena can be on either the left or right side of the base zone. The side is determined when a player plays the first unit of the game—that unit’s arena type (ground or space) establishes the matching arena on whichever side of the base zone that the unit was played in, and automatically establishes the opposite arena on the other side. These sides will remain the same for the rest of the game, even if there are no units in either arena later on.
For example, if the first player plays Death Star Stormtrooper (SOR #128) on the left side of their base zone, they have established the shared ground arena on their left side and have established the shared space arena on their right side. (Note that their opponent’s perspective of the arenas will be mirrored, with the ground arena on their opponent’s right side.)
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4.3.3. Friendly ground units can attack enemy ground units in the ground arena, as well as the enemy base. They do not leave the ground arena when attacking the enemy base.
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4.3.4. Ground units cannot attack enemy units in the space arena unless an ability specifically allows it. However, ground units may be able to deal damage to units in the space arena through abilities.
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4.4. Space Arena
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4.4.1. The space arena is a zone shared by players, located next to each player’s base zone. Each player’s space units are played into this zone, and face their controller when they’re ready.
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4.4.2. The space arena can be on either the left or right side of the base zone. The side is determined when a player plays the first unit of the game—that unit’s arena type (ground or space) establishes the matching arena on whichever side of the base zone that the unit was played in, and automatically establishes the opposite arena on the other side. These sides will remain the same for the rest of the game, even if there are no units in either arena later on.
For example, if the first player plays Green Squadron A-Wing (SOR #141) on the left side of their base zone, they have established the shared space arena on their left side and have established the shared ground arena on their right side. (Note that their opponent’s perspective of the arenas will be mirrored, with the space arena on their opponent’s right side.)
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4.4.3. Friendly space units can attack enemy space units in the space arena, as well as the enemy base. They do not leave the space arena when attacking the enemy base.
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4.4.4. Space units cannot attack enemy units in the ground arena unless an ability specifically allows it. However, space units may be able to deal damage to units in the ground arena through abilities.
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4.5. Resource Zone
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4.5.1. Each player has their own resource zone. Cards in a resource zone are called “resources,” which can be exhausted to pay the costs of other cards. See 1.7., Resources
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4.5.2. Resources are placed facedown and remain facedown while in a resource zone. A player may view facedown resources they control at any time, returning them facedown when finished. Those cards are considered hidden information for that player’s opponent.
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4.5.3. Players can choose to add a card from their hand to their resource zone during each regroup phase.
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4.6. Deck
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4.6.1. Each player’s deck is its own zone. By default, cards in a player’s deck are facedown, out of play, and cannot be viewed except through abilities. The cards in a player’s deck are considered hidden information for both players.
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4.6.2. Cards in a deck leave the deck when they are drawn, discarded, or played directly from the deck. A card is not considered to leave a deck when searched, looked at, or revealed from the deck (unless it is immediately drawn, discarded, or played).
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4.7. Hand
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4.7.1. Each player’s hand is its own zone. A player can have any number of cards in their hand.
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4.7.2. Cards enter a player’s hand when a player draws from their deck, or when an ability returns a card from another zone to their hand.
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4.7.3. Cards leave a player’s hand when played or discarded. A card is not considered to leave a player’s hand when looked at or revealed (unless it is immediately played or discarded).
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4.7.4. The cards in a player’s hand may be looked at only by that player, and the faceup sides of those cards are considered hidden information for that player’s opponent. The number of cards in a player’s hand is considered open information.
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4.8. Discard Pile
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4.8.1. Each player’s discard pile is its own zone. Played events, defeated (non-leader) units, defeated upgrades, and discarded cards are placed in a player’s discard pile, faceup.
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4.8.2. Cards in a player’s discard pile are considered open information and can be viewed by any player at any time.
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4.8.3. The order of cards in a discard pile does not need to be maintained; a player may rearrange the cards in their discard pile at any time.
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4.8.4. If an ability allows a player to play a card from their discard pile, they must still pay all costs for the card, accounting for any modifiers and additional costs applied to the card.
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4.9. In-Play and Out-of-Play
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4.9.1. There are four types of “in-play” zones: each player’s base zone, the ground arena, the space arena, and each player’s resource zone. The faceup sides of cards in these zones are considered “in play,” which means that by default they have the potential to affect the game through use of their abilities, power, and HP. A player controls the cards they play in these zones, or put into play in these zones.
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4.9.2. There are three types of “out-of-play” zones: each player’s deck, each player’s hand, and each player’s discard pile. Cards in these zones are considered “out of play,” which means that by default they cannot affect the game through use of their abilities, power, or HP. For an ability to resolve from an out-of-play zone or to affect a card in an out-of-play zone, the ability must either explicitly state the out-of-play zone it resolves from or affects, or it must be a type of ability that by default resolves from an out-of-play zone.
For example, if a player played Waylay (SOR #222), they could only return a non-leader unit from play to its owner’s hand, as the ability does not specify it affects the discard pile. However, The Emperor’s Legion (SOR #091) does specifically return units from the discard pile.
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4.10. Play Area
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4.10.1. A player’s “play area” consists of cards that player controls in in-play zones, with the exception of any upgrades that player controls attached to enemy units (which are in the unit’s controller’s play area). A player’s play area includes cards in that player’s base zone, cards in that player’s resource zone, units that player controls in the ground arena and space arena, and any upgrades attached to units that player controls.
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4.10.2. If a player plays an upgrade onto an enemy unit, that player still controls that upgrade, but that upgrade is not in their play area.
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4.10.3. There is no limit on the number of cards a player can control in their play area.
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4.11. Set Aside/Being In No Zone
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5. Game Structure
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5.1. General
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5.1.1. A game consists of multiple rounds, and each round consists of an action phase and regroup phase. During the action phase, players take turns taking an action. During the regroup phase, players can put a resource into play and ready exhausted cards.
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5.1.2. Each step of setup and each step of both phases must be completed in full unless otherwise specified.
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5.1.3. Before starting the game, each player needs a deck, including a leader and base, and token cards matching any types that their decks create. Players also need damage counters and one initiative counter. (Counters and tokens may be represented by other objects, such as dice.)
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5.2. Starting the Game and Setup
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5.2.1. Players set up the game following these steps in order: Put bases into play, Put leaders into play, Determine the first player, Shuffle decks and draw opening hands, Choose whether to mulligan, and Resource two cards.
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5.2.2. Then, the players start the first round with the first action phase.
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5.3. Round
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5.4. Action Phase
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5.5. Regroup Phase
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5.6. Ending the Game
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5.6.1. A game ends immediately once a player’s base reaches 0 remaining HP and is defeated. A player whose base is defeated loses the game, and their opponent wins the game.
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5.6.2. Once a player’s base has 0 remaining HP, they cannot take any actions, and cannot resolve any abilities or effects.
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5.6.3. In a case where both players’ bases reach 0 remaining HP at the same time, the game ends in a draw.
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5.6.4. A player can concede the game at any time (such as by saying “I concede” or making a clear gesture). If they do, they lose the game immediately.
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6. Action Timing and Clarifications
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6.1. General
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6.1.1. This section provides clarifications and timing charts for the following actions: Play a Card, Attack With a Unit, and Use an Action Ability. For each type of action, perform each step in order and as completely as possible. Note that subheadings begin with 0 in this section for clarity when referring to the steps of an action.
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6.2. Play A Card
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6.2.0. General
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6.2.1. Declare intent. The player reveals the card they intend to play from their hand, so that all other players can view it. Any abilities that are active “while playing” a card become active.
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6.2.2. Check restrictions. Determine if there are any active abilities, effects, or other play restrictions that would prevent the card from being played at this time. If there are any, the card cannot be played.
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6.2.3. Determine cost(s). A card’s cost is in the upper left corner of the card and indicates how many resources must be exhausted in order to play it. Some abilities modify a card’s cost or apply additional costs to a card before it can be played.
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6.2.4. Pay cost(s). Exhaust resources equal to the card’s modified cost. If there are any additional costs required for the card, also pay those now.
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6.2.5. Put card into play/discard.
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6.3. Attack With A Unit
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6.3.0. General
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6.3.1. Declare the attack. The active player chooses and exhausts a ready unit they control and then chooses what to attack: either an enemy unit in the same arena as it or the opponent’s base. Any abilities that are active “while attacking” become active.
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6.3.2. Deal combat damage. If attacking a base, the attacker deals damage equal to its power to that base. If attacking a unit, the attacker and defender simultaneously deal damage equal to their power to each other.
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6.3.3. Complete the attack. Any abilities or lasting effects that were active during the attack expire, including Raid and “While this unit is attacking” abilities.
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6.4. Use an Action Ability
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6.4.0. General
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6.4.1. Declare intent. The player indicates the ability they intend to resolve.
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6.4.2. Check restrictions. Determine if there are any active abilities or other restrictions that would prevent the action ability from resolving. If there are any, the action ability cannot be used.
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6.4.3. Determine cost(s). If the ability has a cost, determine that cost at this step.
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6.4.4. Pay cost(s). Pay the ability’s determined cost, if it has one. If the action ability doesn’t have a cost, skip this step.
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6.4.5. Resolve the action ability. If the cost was successfully paid, resolve as much of the ability as possible and ignore any part of the ability that cannot resolve.
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7. Abilities and Effects
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7.1. General
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7.1.1. An ability is specialized game text that indicates how a card affects the game. If a card has any printed abilities, they are found in the text box of that card. An upgrade can give an ability to a unit if that upgrade indicates that the attached unit “gains” the ability; treat the unit as having the ability in its text box for as long as the upgrade is attached to it. Unless otherwise specified, a player controls the abilities on cards they play and control.
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7.1.2. There are five types of abilities: action abilities, constant abilities, event abilities, keyword abilities, and triggered abilities. Each type of ability has its own associated rules.
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7.1.3. An effect is a non-cost part of a card ability that has the potential to change the game state. Some effects resolve separately from the ability that created them, or replace the standard resolution of the ability that created them.
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7.1.4. If an ability that affects both players can be resolved simultaneously, resolve the ability simultaneously. Otherwise, the player that controls the card with the ability can choose the order in which each player is affected by the ability.
For example, Grand Admiral Thrawn (SOR #016) has an ability where his controller looks at the top card of each player’s deck. This ability cannot be resolved simultaneously, so Thrawn’s controller chooses the order in which they look at the cards. They are not required to look at the cards in a specific order.
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7.1.5. When a player resolves an ability, they must resolve the effects of that ability in the order they are written. If an ability allows a player to choose some number of options, they may resolve those options in any order.
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7.1.6. Abilities that Modify Actions
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7.1.7. If an ability instructs a player to take multiple actions (e.g. “Play three cards,” “Attack with two units”), that player performs each action sequentially. Any abilities triggered during or as a result of each action are considered nested abilities, and must be resolved before proceeding to the next action.
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7.2. Action Abilities
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7.2.1. An action ability is an ability indicated by the bolded word “Action.” Most action abilities have a cost in brackets that must be paid in order to use the ability. Using an action ability is one type of action a player can take during their turn.
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7.2.2. A player must pay the full cost of an action ability in order to resolve that ability. After a player pays the cost to use an action ability, they resolve that ability’s effect, described by the non-bold text after the word “Action.”
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7.2.3. As long as an action ability has a cost that changes the game state, a player can pay that cost and resolve the ability even if the ability’s effect would not change the game state. Resolving an action ability this way still counts as the player’s action for their turn.
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7.2.4. An Epic Action ability is a type of action ability. An Epic Action ability operates like any other action ability, except that each Epic Action ability can only be used once per game. Once an Epic Action ability is used, place an Epic Action counter over the text of that ability to remind players that it was used.
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7.3. Constant Abilities
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7.3.1. A constant ability is always in effect while the card it is on is in play. Constant abilities don’t have any special styling.
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7.3.2. A constant ability immediately comes into effect when the card it is on enters play and remains in effect while the card is in play.
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7.3.3. Some constant abilities continuously check the game for a specific condition to be met for their effects to apply to the game. These abilities usually include the word “while.”
For example, Vigilant Honor Guards (SOR #048) has a constant ability: “While this unit is undamaged, it gains Sentinel.” Although Vigilant Honor Guards always has this ability text, the ability’s effect—giving this unit the Sentinel keyword--only applies if it is undamaged.
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7.3.4. Constant abilities remain in effect even if the card they’re on is exhausted.
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7.4. Event Abilities
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7.4.1. An event ability is an ability found in the text box of an event and is resolved when the event is played.
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7.4.2. When an event is played, it is placed in its owner’s discard pile before its ability resolves. Events do not enter play; they move directly from the player’s hand to their discard pile. (A player resolving an event ability may place the event in front of them while doing so, but the event is considered to be in their discard pile while its ability resolves.)
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7.4.3. Events that affect cards in a player’s discard pile can affect themselves.
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7.4.4. When resolving an event ability, resolve as much of the ability as possible and ignore anything that cannot resolve. A player may pay the cost of an event and play it even if none of that event’s ability would change the game state.
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7.4.5. An event is both “played” and “resolved” during the action in which it is played, even if the event ability creates a lasting effect or delayed effect that must be resolved at a later point in the game.
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7.5. Keyword Abilities
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7.5.1. A keyword or keyword ability is a card ability indicated with bold red text and that has specific associated rules.
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7.5.2. A keyword ability resolves automatically unless its definition includes the word “may.”
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7.5.3. Card abilities may give a keyword to a unit, either as a constant ability or a lasting effect. While the ability or effect persists, the unit is considered to have that keyword in its text box, and that keyword can be lost, ignored, or affected by other abilities.
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7.5.4. If a card is given a keyword it already has, those keywords do not “stack” (meaning, the card does not gain any additional effects) unless those keywords are followed by a numeral, a cost, or an em dash and ability text. If they are followed by a numeral, the numbers following each keyword are added together. If they are followed by a cost or an em dash and ability text, each keyword is considered its own ability.
For example: If a card with Grit later gains Grit from an ability, will not receive any bonus power from the second instance of Grit, since that keyword does not stack. But if a card with Raid 1 later gains Raid 2 from an ability, these instances stack and the card will function as having Raid 3, getting +3 power when it attacks.
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7.5.5. Ambush
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7.5.6. Grit
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7.5.7. Overwhelm
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7.5.8. Raid X
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7.5.9. Restore X
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7.5.10. Saboteur
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7.5.11. Sentinel
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7.5.12. Shielded
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7.5.13. Bounty
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7.5.14. Smuggle [Y]
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7.6. Triggered Abilities
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7.6.1. Triggered abilities have bold text indicating their triggering condition, starting with the word “When” or “On”, followed by a colon and an effect. Examples of triggered abilities are “When Played,” “When Defeated,” and “On Attack” abilities.
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7.6.2. If a triggered ability has a forward slash (‘/’) separating multiple triggering conditions, the ability triggers for each of those conditions. For example, an ability with a “When Played/When Defeated” condition triggers both when the card it is on is played and when the card is defeated.
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7.6.3. For a triggered ability to resolve, the card with the ability must be in play when the triggering condition occurs, unless the ability specifies that it can be triggered from an out-of-play zone. Additionally, the triggered ability must resolve once triggered, even if the card with the ability leaves play before the triggered ability resolves.
For example, “When Defeated” abilities on a card trigger when the card is put into a discard pile from play. The card is in the discard pile, an-out of-play zone, when the ability resolves.
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7.6.4. Triggered abilities on a unit still trigger if the unit is defeated by the action that triggers the ability (though they only resolve after the action has finished resolving). Triggered abilities on a unit that trigger when other units are defeated still trigger if that unit is defeated simultaneously to the other units.
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7.6.5. A triggered ability is considered to resolve during the same turn or game step that it was triggered.
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7.6.6. Resolving a triggered ability is not the same as taking an action. A player can resolve a triggered ability outside of their turn.
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7.6.7. A triggered ability must resolve once its triggering condition is met unless the ability uses the phrase “you may.” Once triggered, these abilities must resolve at the next available opportunity.
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7.6.8. If an ability triggers during or as the result of a non-attack action, resolve that ability at the next available opportunity after that action is fully completed. If an ability triggers during an attack, resolve that ability at the appropriate timing point within that attack. Resolving a triggered ability never interrupts an action or ability that is currently resolving (other than the specified timing points during an attack). See 6.3. Attack With a Unit
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7.6.9. If a player must resolve multiple triggered abilities on cards they control at the same time, that player chooses the order in which to resolve those abilities.
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7.6.10. If both players must resolve triggered abilities on cards they control at the same time, the active player chooses one player at a time to resolve abilities. When chosen, that player resolves all abilities triggered on cards they control in the order of their choice, and once they finish, the other player does the same on cards they control.
For example, if the active player Addy defeats Benji’s unit with an attack, and Addy then has 1 triggered ability to resolve while Benji has 2, Addy chooses whether she resolves her 1 ability first, or Benji resolves his 2 first. Addy can only choose which player resolves their abilities first; she cannot choose the order in which Benji resolves his 2 abilities.
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7.6.11. After resolving a triggered ability “A”, if any new abilities were triggered while resolving it, the new abilities are considered “nested abilities” and must be resolved before any other abilities triggered at the same time as ability “A”.
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7.6.12. Any abilities triggered while resolving a nested ability are likewise nested abilities, and must be resolved before other triggered abilities waiting to resolve. When resolving a series of nested abilities, each new layer of abilities must be fully resolved before returning to an earlier layer.
For example, Grayson chooses to attack Mimi’s Vanguard Infantry (SOR #108) with his Greedo (SOR #204). Both units are defeated, simultaneously triggering the When Defeated abilities on each. Since Grayson is the active player, he gets to decide which player will resolve their triggers first. He chooses himself, and manages to use Greedo’s When Defeated ability to defeat another of Mimi’s units, Admiral Motti (SOR #226), that has its own When Defeated ability. Admiral Motti’s ability is a nested ability, since it triggered during the resolution of Greedo’s ability, so it must be resolved next. Only after readying a unit with Admiral Motti’s ability may Mimi resolve Vanguard Infantry’s When Defeated ability from the earlier ability layer.
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7.6.13. When Played
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7.6.14. When Defeated
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7.6.15. On Attack
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7.7. Effects
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7.7.1. An effect is a non-cost part of a card ability that has the potential to change the game state. Some effects resolve separately from the ability that created them, or replace the standard resolution of the ability that created them.
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7.7.2. Though there are many different effects in the game, there are three types of effects that require additional rules clarifications: lasting effects, delayed effects, and replacement effects.
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7.7.3. Lasting Effects
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7.7.4. Delayed Effects
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7.7.5. Replacement Effects (Instead, Would)
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8. Additional Rules
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8.1. Aspect Penalty
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8.1.1. The aspect penalty is a special modifier to a card’s cost. When a player attempts to play a card with aspect icons beyond those provided by that player’s leader and/or base, the player incurs the aspect penalty, and must pay 2 additional resources for each icon beyond those provided. If the player cannot pay these additional resources along with other costs, they cannot play the card.
For example, a player that has a leader with and icons and a base with a icon could play any cards with 1 , , and/or icon without paying additional resources. If that player attempted to play a card with 1 icon, they’d have to pay 2 additional resources for that card, and if they attempted to play a card with and , they’d have to pay 4 additional resources for that card.
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8.1.2. Each aspect icon depicted on a leader or base provides only 1 icon of the given type. In order to play a card that has 2 of the same type of aspect icon without incurring the aspect penalty, the player’s leader and base must each have an icon of that type.
For example, Luke Skywalker: Faithful Friend (SOR #236) provides only 1 icon and 1 icon. If Luke’s player wants to play Protector (SOR #41)—a card with 2 icons--but doesn’t want to incur the aspect penalty, Luke’s player must build their deck using a base that provides a second icon, such as Capital City (SOR #20).
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8.1.3. If an ability instructs a player to play a card “for free,” the player bypasses all modifiers to that card’s cost, including the aspect penalty, and does not pay any resources to play that card. The player must still pay any additional non-resource costs of the card.
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8.2. "Attacks and Defeats"
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8.3. Attribute
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8.3.1. An attribute is a part of a card’s anatomy. Attributes include a card’s name, subtitle, card type, arena type, cost, aspect(s), power, power modifier, HP, HP modifier, trait(s), and text box. A card’s attributes can be modified through upgrades and abilities. See 2. Card Anatomy
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8.4. "Can" and "Can't"
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8.4.1. When “can” is used in a card ability, that ability adjusts or overrides a default rule of play. The player controlling a card with such an ability is able to choose whether to use that ability in the way specified or follow the default rule of play instead.
For example, by default space units are unable attack ground units. However, Strafing Gunship (SOR #212) has an ability that states, “This unit can attack units in the ground arena.” The “can” in the ability means that Strafing Gunship is able to do something that another space unit without the ability cannot do. That said, Strafing Gunship is still able to attack other space units, which is a default rule of play for space units. Its controller gets to choose which type of unit Strafing Gunship attacks.
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8.4.2. When “can’t” is used in a card ability, that ability adjusts or overrides a default rule of play. The player controlling a card with such an ability must follow that ability over the default rule of play.
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8.4.3. Restrictive abilities override permissive abilities. If an ability with the word “may” or “can” directly contradicts an ability that uses the word “can’t”, then the ability that uses “can’t” takes precedence.
For example, if an ability that was in effect stated that a unit “can attack a base this phase,” but a different ability that was in effect stated that unit “can’t attack bases,” the ability with “can’t” takes precedence, and the unit couldn’t attack a base that phase.
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8.5. Choose
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8.5.1. When an ability instructs a player to “choose” a game object, they must choose a game object that matches the criteria specified by the ability.
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8.5.2. If instructed to “choose a unit,” that unit must be in play when resolving the ability, unless otherwise specified.
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8.5.3. If instructed to “choose a player,” either player in the game can be chosen, including the player resolving the ability.
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8.5.4. Some abilities instruct a player to “choose” a number of options from a bulleted list. When resolving these abilities, the player must choose a different bulleted option each time.
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8.5.5. When an ability instructs a player to deal an amount of damage “divided as you choose” among eligible cards, the player chooses how much damage is placed on each eligible card, up to the number specified. The player must deal all damage specified by the ability, and can deal damage in excess of a card’s remaining HP. All damage dealt is applied simultaneously.
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8.5.6. When a player must choose “a number” or “any number,” they may choose any whole number they wish, including 0. If a player must divide damage among any number of units, they may choose to deal damage to 0 units.
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8.6. Copy
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8.6.1. A card is considered a “copy” of another card if both cards have all of the same printed attributes: the same name, subtitle, uniqueness, card type, arena type, cost, aspect(s), trait(s), power or power modifier, HP or HP modifier, and abilities. Disregard any reminder text when evaluating whether two cards are “copies” of one another.
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8.6.2. A card may have the same name as another card, but otherwise have one or more different printed attributes; these cards are not considered copies of each other.
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8.6.3. Printed attributes are what determine if a card is a copy of another card. Ignore any modifiers, abilities, or effects applied to a card when determining if it is a copy of another card.
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8.6.4. Whenever a card leaves and later re-enters play, it is considered a “new copy” of that card for the purposes of game rules and does not regain any modifiers or reapply any effects from when it was previously in play. It continues to be considered a new copy even if it changes zones.
For example, Regional Governor (SOR #062) has an ability that says “When Played: Name a card. While this unit is in play, opponents can’t play the named card.” If Regional Governor is defeated and later replayed from the discard pile, its “When Played” ability would trigger again, but it would not resume preventing opponents from playing the originally chosen card.
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8.6.5. A player may have up to 3 copies of any non-leader, non-base card in their deck, regardless of if that card is unique or not.
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8.6.6. A player can only control 1 copy of each unique card at a given time. If a player ever has more than one copy of a unique card in play under their control at a given time, they must immediately defeat one of them. (This occurs before resolving any abilities that trigger when the new copy enters play.) The player still resolves any abilities that trigger upon the copy being defeated in this way, such as any “When Defeated” abilities on it. If a new copy with a “When Played” ability enters play and is immediately defeated, the ability is still triggered.
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8.6.7. A player may control any number of copies of a non-unique card at a given time.
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8.7. Empty Deck
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8.7.1. If a player runs out of cards in their deck, they continue playing with the cards they have in play and in hand. If a player would draw a card from their empty deck, they instead deal 3 damage to their base for each card they would draw.
For example, if a player with an empty deck would draw 2 cards during the regroup phase, they instead deal 6 damage to their base.
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8.7.2. If an ability would cause a player to shuffle, discard, search, reveal, or look at cards from an empty deck, they ignore that part of the ability.
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8.8. Enters Play
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8.8.1. A card enters play when it moves from an out-of-play zone to an in-play zone or when it is turned faceup..
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8.8.2. Leaders begin the game with their Leader side in-play and their Leader Unit side out-of-play. When a leader is deployed, its Leader Unit side enters play. When a Leader Unit is defeated, its Leader side enters play.
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8.8.3. Whenever a card enters play, it is considered a “new copy” of that card. This includes cards played from the discard pile and cards that re-enter play after being rescued.
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8.9. First
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8.9.1. Abilities that refer to the “first” occurrence in a phase or round (e.g. “The first event played this phase”) always refer to the very first occurrence in that phase or round, not the first after an ability becomes active. Abilities that affect the “first” occurrence in a phase or round do not apply their effects retroactively if they become active after the first occurrence has already taken place.
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8.10. “If You Do”
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8.10.1. Some abilities use the phrase “if you do.” In order to resolve the text following “if you do,” the text preceding “if you do” must be resolved in full. Additionally, the text following “if you do” must resolve if the text preceding “if you do” is resolved in full.
For example, ISB Agent (SOR #176) has an ability that reads, “When Played: You may reveal an event from your hand. If you do, deal 1 damage to a unit.” If Evan controls ISB Agent, he can choose to resolve the ability and deal 1 damage by revealing an event from his hand. He must have an event in his hand to do this, and he must reveal it before dealing 1 damage. If he doesn’t reveal an event, he doesn’t deal damage.
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8.10.2. If a replacement effect replaces the resolution of the text before “If you do” with another effect, the controlling player is still considered to have resolved that text. That player still resolves the text after “If you do.”
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8.11. Ignore
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8.11.1. If a player is instructed to “ignore” a keyword ability, they treat that ability as inactive, as specified by the “ignore” effect.
For example, the Saboteur keyword instructs the player to “ignore” the Sentinel keyword. An attacking unit with Saboteur is unaffected by an opponent’s unit with Sentinel in its arena; it may attack either a non-Sentinel unit in that arena controlled by that opponent, or that opponent’s base.
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8.11.2. If a player is instructed to “ignore” the aspect penalty for a card, they pay the cost of the card without adding an aspect penalty. The card is still considered to have those aspect icons while the aspect penalty is ignored, which may trigger other abilities that depend on aspects. If any other additional costs are being applied to that card, the player still pays those additional costs.
For example, the leader card Hera Syndulla: Spectre Two (SOR #008) has the following ability on both sides: “Ignore the aspect penalty on Spectre cards you play.” When Hera’s owner plays a Spectre-traited card with aspect icons that don’t match the icons on Hera or their base, they do not incur the aspect penalty. They must still pay the card’s cost, including any other additional costs.
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8.12. Last Known Information
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8.12.1. “Last known information” is information about a card that’s no longer in play, accounting for the controller of the card and modifiers applied to that card, abilities on that card, and upgrades attached to that card immediately before it left play. Last known information is used primarily when resolving a “When Defeated” ability on a card that left play.
For example, if a unit had a “When Defeated” ability that dealt damage equal to its power to a base, the damage dealt by the ability would account for any modifiers to that unit’s power at the time the ability was triggered.
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8.13. Leaves Play
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8.13.1. A card leaves play when it moves from an in-play zone to an out-of-play zone or when it is turned facedown. Defeating a unit or returning a unit to hand from play both cause the unit to leave play. If a unit leaves play, any upgrades attached to it are defeated, but lasting or delayed effects from its abilities remain active.
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8.13.2. When a leader is deployed, its Leader side leaves play. When a Leader Unit is defeated, its Leader Unit side leaves play and it is returned to the Base Zone exhausted, with its Leader side faceup.
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8.14. Look At
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8.14.1. When a player is instructed to “look at” cards from a specific zone, the player picks up those cards and views them, keeping them secret from other players. The player cannot change the order of those cards. After viewing, the player returns the cards to the zone in the same order and orientation (faceup or facedown) as they were previously, unless otherwise specified.
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8.14.2. Looked-at cards are not considered to leave the zone they were originally in, unless otherwise specified.
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8.15. Lose, Loses
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8.15.1. If an ability causes a unit to “lose” a keyword, the unit ceases to have the specified keyword and any abilities granting it that keyword when the “‘lose” effect is resolved cease granting the keyword for the duration of the “lose” effect. Unless otherwise specified, the unit can regain that keyword through new effects.
For example, Samir plays SpecForce Soldier (SOR #140), which has the ability “When Played: A unit loses Sentinel for this phase.” Samir chooses to have Devi’s System Patrol Craft (SOR #066) lose Sentinel for the phase. Devi can then play Protector (SOR #057) on her System Patrol Craft to give it Sentinel again.
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8.15.2. If an ability causes a card to “lose all abilities,” the card ceases to have any abilities, including abilities given to it by other cards, for the duration of the “lose” effect. Unless otherwise specified, the card can still gain abilities through new effects.
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8.16. Modifiers
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8.16.1. A “modifier” refers to a change of a printed value on a card through an ability applied to that card or an upgrade attached to that card. When a modifier is applied to a printed value, it creates a modified value, which in turn is used when resolving abilities or actions that depend on that value.
An example of a modifier is “Give a unit +1/+1 for this phase,” which modifies a unit’s power and HP until the end of the phase.
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8.16.2. When calculating a modified value, start with the printed value, then apply any modifiers that increase that value before any modifiers that decrease that value.
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8.16.3. Modifiers are cumulative. Any time a new modifier is applied to a value, the value is recalculated immediately, accounting for the printed value and all active modifiers.
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8.16.4. A value cannot be modified below 0. If a value would be modified below 0, treat that value as 0 instead. However, any new modifiers applied after a value is treated as 0 will still account for any previous modifiers applied to that value.
For example, Keith plays Make an Opening (SOR #076) and gives his opponent’s Cantina Braggart (SOR #157) -2/-2 for the phase. Cantina Braggart’s printed power is 0, and though its power was modified by -2, its power is still treated as 0. If Keith’s opponent then attacks with Cantina Braggart, its Raid 2 gives it +2/+0, but the -2/-2 applied to it that phase is still accounted for, and Cantina Braggart attacks with 0 total power.
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8.16.5. Modifying Cost
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8.16.6. Modifying Power
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8.16.7. Modifying HP
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8.17. “Must”
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8.17.1. If a card ability states that an effect “must” happen or a specific choice “must” be made, the player has to resolve the ability as specified, as much as they are able.
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8.17.2. If a card ability with the word “must” directly contradicts a card ability that uses the word “can”, then the ability that uses “must” takes precedence.
For example if an ability that was in effect stated that a unit “can ready and attack an enemy unit this round,” but a different ability that was in effect stated that the unit “must attack a base for its next attack this round,” the ability with “must” takes precedence and the unit only would be allowed to attack a base for the round.
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8.17.3. If a card ability with the word “must” directly contradicts a card ability that uses the word “can’t”, then the ability that uses “can’t” takes precedence.
For example, if an ability in effect stated that a unit “must attack a base this round,” but a different ability in effect stated that unit “can’t attack bases,” the ability with “can’t” takes precedence, and the unit cannot attack a base.
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8.18. Name a Card
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8.18.1. If an ability instructs a player to “name a card,” that player clearly indicates the name of any card in Star Wars: Unlimited (such as by saying its name out loud), and applies the rest of the ability to any cards with that name in the game. These abilities do not account for subtitles; the player does not need to specify a subtitle when naming a card.
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8.18.2. A card “shares a name” with another card if their full names are identical. A card does not need to share a subtitle with another card to share a name with it.
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8.19. Other, Another
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8.19.1. A card with an ability that uses “other” or “another” cannot apply the effects of its ability to itself.
For example, Bail Organa (SOR #094) has an action ability that gives an Experience token to “another” friendly unit. Bail’s controller cannot use this ability to give Bail the Experience; they must give the Experience to a different friendly unit.
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8.19.2. An ability may use “other” or “another” to separate the first card it affects from a different card that it affects.
For example, Overwhelming Barrage (SOR #092) is an event that gives a friendly unit +2/+2 for the phase, and deals damage to any number of “other” units. The “other” in this ability means that the damage cannot be applied to the friendly unit given +2/+2.
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8.20. Play Restrictions
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8.20.1. A play restriction is a condition that prevents a card from being played. Play restrictions are checked before paying the costs to play a card.
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8.20.2. The phrase “attach to” is a play restriction found on some upgrades, indicating a specific type of unit that’s eligible for that upgrade. If there is no eligible unit in play for the upgrade to attach to, the upgrade cannot be played.
For example, Jedi Lightsaber (SOR #054) is an upgrade that has a play restriction: “Attach to a non-Vehicle unit.” In order to play Jedi Lightsaber, there must be an eligible unit in play for it to attach to, which is any unit without the Vehicle trait. If there are no units in play without the Vehicle trait, Jedi Lightsaber cannot be played.
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8.20.3. The phrase “can’t play” is a play restriction used in certain card abilities. A player cannot play the specified type of card for as long as the ability is in effect.
For example, Regional Governor (SOR #062) has the ability: “Name a card. While this unit is in play, opponents can’t play the named card.” This ability is a play restriction that prevents opponents from playing the named card while Regional Governor is in play.
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8.21. Prevent (Damage)
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8.21.1. If an ability prevents all damage from being dealt to a unit or base, do not place any damage counters on that unit or base. Damage is not considered dealt to that unit or base, and abilities that would trigger when damage is dealt don’t trigger.
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8.21.2. If an ability prevents a specific amount of damage from being dealt to a unit or base, reduce the amount of damage counters placed on that unit or base by the prevented amount. If all damage is prevented in this way, any abilities that would trigger when damage is dealt don’t trigger.
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8.22. Printed
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8.22.1. “Printed” is a term used in rules text to refer to an attribute physically printed on a card to differentiate that attribute from modifiers, abilities, and effects applied to the card. This term is used for rules clarification purposes, such as when explaining the steps of modifying a card’s cost.
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8.23. Random
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8.24. Referential Abilities
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8.24.1. A referential ability is an ability that refers to a specific card by name.
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8.24.2. Most referential abilities have an effect that occurs if a player controls a card with the specified name. A referential ability only accounts for the name of the card, and does not account for that card’s subtitle or card type.
For example, Emperor’s Royal Guard (SOR #082) has the ability: “While you control Emperor Palpatine, this unit gets +0/+1.” This ability will give the Emperor’s Royal Guard increased HP if its controller also controls Emperor Palpatine as a leader or a unit.
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8.24.3. Some upgrades have referential abilities that specify an effect that occurs if the attached unit is the named unit. Such an upgrade can be attached to a unit that isn’t the named unit, but the part of the ability that references the named unit won’t resolve.
For example, Vader’s Lightsaber (SOR #136) has a “When Played” ability: “If attached unit is Darth Vader, you may deal 4 damage to a ground unit.” A player can attach Vader’s Lightsaber to a non-Vehicle unit other than Darth Vader, but they will only be able to deal the 4 damage if the attached unit is Darth Vader.
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8.25. Return
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8.25.1. Some card abilities will “return” a specific type of card to its owner’s hand. By default, only cards that are in play can be returned this way; an ability must specify if it is returning a card from an out-of-play zone in order to do so. A card need not have been in a hand previously in order to be returned to a hand.
For example, an ability that reads, “Return a non-leader unit to its owner’s hand,” can only return a unit that’s in play to its owner’s hand; the ability cannot return a unit from another zone. However, an ability that reads, “Return a unit from your discard pile to your hand,” specifically returns a unit from the discard pile.
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8.25.2. A card that is returned from play to its owner’s hand is not considered to have been defeated.
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8.26. Reveal
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8.26.1. To “reveal” a card means to make a card temporarily open information by showing it to both players. Abilities can cause a player to reveal cards from their deck, hand, or resource zone.
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8.26.2. When a player must reveal one or more cards from their hand, they choose which cards to reveal that match the ability’s specifications.
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8.26.3. A revealed card is not considered to have left the zone it was revealed from unless otherwise specified.
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8.26.4. Once a reveal ability has been resolved, return any revealed cards to their respective zones, in the same orientation as they were before being revealed. If a card was considered hidden information before being revealed, it is considered hidden information again.
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8.26.5. If a player revealed a card to their opponent, the opponent cannot ask to view that card again once the card has returned to its zone and previous orientation. The opponent can only view that card if another ability causes the card to be revealed, or if that card is later faceup.
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8.26.6. When a player is instructed to reveal a resource, they show the faceup side of that card (the side with attributes) to both players.
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8.27. Search
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8.27.1. When an ability instructs a player to “search” their deck, that player looks at certain number of cards from their deck to find one or more cards, often with a specified attribute. The player chooses one or more cards (as indicated by the ability) and returns the other cards to their deck as specified below. The ability then instructs the player on what to do with the card(s) they have chosen. The player may also choose to resolve the ability as though no appropriate card was found.
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8.27.2. If an ability searches the top X cards of a player’s deck, after searching, the player puts any cards not chosen with the ability on the bottom of their deck in a random order. If an ability searches a player’s entire deck, after searching, they shuffle their deck.
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8.27.3. While searching, players must keep searched cards hidden from their opponent.
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8.27.4. If multiple cards have the attribute specified by the search, the player may choose which card(s) to use to satisfy the ability.
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8.27.5. If no cards have the attribute specified by the search, the player still resolves as much of the ability as possible.
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8.27.6. A player is not required to reveal hidden information in order to resolve a search ability. That player still must do as much as they can when resolving such an ability, up to the point of hidden information being revealed.
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8.27.7. Searched cards are not considered to leave the deck while searching. Cards chosen by a search are considered to be in the deck zone (but no longer in the deck) until they are put into a different zone by drawing, discarding, or playing them.
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8.28. Take Control
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8.28.1. If an ability instructs a player to “take control” of a card, that player will become that card’s controller, and remain so until either that card leaves play or their opponent takes control of that card.
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8.28.2. When a unit is defeated, it is placed in its owner’s discard pile, but any “When Defeated” abilities are resolved by whichever player controlled it when it was defeated.
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8.28.3. If control of a unit that is attacking or defending changes during an attack, that unit is no longer considered to be part of the attack, and is no longer considered to be either an attacker or defender.
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8.29. “Then”
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8.29.1. If an ability contains two effects separated by “then,” the ability is resolved by resolving the first effect, followed by resolving the second effect. If the first effect can be resolved, it must be resolved as completely as possible before the effect following “then” can be resolved. If the first effect cannot be resolved, the second effect is still resolved.
For example, Heroic Sacrifice (SOR #150) has the text: “Draw a card, then attack with a unit.” The player resolving the ability must draw the card, or attempt to draw the card, before making the attack.
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8.29.2. Any abilities triggered by either effect are not resolved until both effects finish resolving. See 7.6. Triggered Abilities
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8.30. Unique, Unique Icon (⟡)
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8.30.1. A unique card is indicated with a unique icon (⟡) before the card’s name. Unique cards represent iconic characters, objects, or ships in the Star Wars universe. “Uniqueness” refers to whether or not a card is unique.
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8.30.2. Each unique card has a subtitle to differentiate it from other unique cards with the same name.
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8.30.3. If a unique card has all of the same printed attributes as another unique card, it is considered a “copy” of that card and vice versa; but if one unique card has one or more different printed attributes from another unique card, it is not a “copy” of that card. See 8.6. Copy
For example, Luke Skywalker: Faithful Friend (SOR #005) and Luke Skywalker: Jedi Knight (SOR #051) are not considered to be “copies” of each other; each has multiple different printed attributes, including different costs, subtitles, and abilities. A player can have both of these cards under their control at the same time.
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8.30.4. A player can only control one copy of each unique card at a given time. If a player ever has more than one copy of a unique card in play under their control at a given time, they must defeat one of them. Defeating one of the copies occurs immediately and is not a triggered ability. The player still must resolve any abilities that trigger upon either copy being played or defeated.
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8.30.5. The unique copy limit only refers to unique cards in play, and does not affect cards in a player’s hand, deck, discard pile, or resource zone.
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8.30.6. The unique copy limit is player-specific. A player and their opponent can each control a copy of the same unique card at the same time.
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8.31. Up To
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8.31.1. When resolving an ability that uses the phrase “up to X” (where X is some number), the player chooses any integer between 0 and X to resolve the ability with.
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8.31.2. If a player is instructed to “defeat up to X” cards, but they defeat 0, they are not considered to have defeated any cards.
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8.31.3. If a player is instructed to “deal up to X damage,” but they deal 0 damage, they are not considered to have dealt any damage.
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8.31.4. If a player is instructed to “heal up to X,” but they heal 0, they are not considered to have healed any damage.
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8.31.5. If a player is instructed to “attack with up to X units,” but they attack with 0, they are not considered to have made any attacks.
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8.32. You
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8.33. “You May”
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8.33.1. If an ability uses “you may,” a player may choose whether or not to resolve the ability in the way specified following “you may.” If the player chooses to resolve the text following “you may,” they must resolve as much of it as possible.
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8.33.2. Some abilities with “you may” are followed by the phrase “if you do.” If the player resolves the “you may” part of the ability in full, the player must then resolve the “if you do” part of the ability as well. If they don’t resolve the former in full, they ignore the latter.
For example, ISB Agent (SOR #176) has an ability that reads, “When Played: You may reveal an event from your hand. If you do, deal 1 damage to a unit.” If Evan controls ISB Agent, he can choose to resolve the ability and deal 1 damage by revealing an event from his hand. He must have an event in his hand to do this, and he must reveal it before dealing 1 damage. If he doesn’t reveal an event, he doesn’t deal damage.
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8.33.3. Some abilities with “you may” are followed by the phrase “Use this ability only once each round.” If a player chooses to resolve the text following “you may,” they may not choose to resolve that text again that round, even if the ability is triggered again. The ability is only considered “used” if the player resolving the ability chooses to resolve the text following “you may.”
For example, Agent Kallus (SOR #115) has an ability that reads, “When another unique unit is defeated: You may draw a card. Use this ability only once each round.” If Saoirse controls Agent Kallus when another unique unit is defeated, she can choose to resolve the ability and draw a card. If she does, she cannot use the ability again until the next round. If she chooses not to draw a card, she may choose to resolve the ability and draw a card when a different unique unit is defeated later in the same round.
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-
8.34. Capture
-
8.34.1. If an ability instructs a unit to “capture” another unit, remove all damage counters from and defeat all upgrades on the unit to be captured, then place it facedown under the capturing unit. A captured card is considered out-of-play while captured, but is still public information to all players.
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8.34.2. A unit that has captured one or more other units is “guarding” those units.
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8.34.3. If an ability instructs a player to “rescue” a captured unit, that unit is retrieved from under the unit guarding it, flipped faceup, and returned to play exhausted under its owner’s control. It is considered to enter play but is not played and does not trigger any “When Played” abilities.
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8.34.4. If a unit that is guarding any number of captured units leaves play, immediately rescue all captured cards that were guarded by that unit.
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-
8.35. “For Each”
-
8.35.1. Abilities that use the phrase “for each” to create multiple effects are resolved by determining how each effect of the ability will be resolved, then resolving all effects simultaneously.
For example, Calculated Lethality (SHD #039) is an event that reads, “Defeat a non-leader unit that costs 3 or less. For each upgrade that was on that unit, give an Experience token to a friendly unit.” To resolve the second half of this ability, the player that played the event determines how many Experience tokens they will give and which units they will give them to, then gives all Experience tokens simultaneously.
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-
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9. Two-Player Constructed Formats
-
9.1. General
-
9.1.1. Star Wars: Unlimited can be played using several different game formats. A game format is defined by its player count and deckbuilding method. This section describes two-player constructed formats.
-
9.1.2. A “constructed” deckbuilding format is any format in which players build decks ahead of time from cards in their collection.
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9.1.3. Unless otherwise specified, all rules in the Comprehensive Rules apply to all constructed formats.
-
-
9.2. Premier Format
-
-
10. Limited Formats
-
10.1. General
-
10.1.1. Star Wars: Unlimited can be played using several different game formats. A game format is defined by its player count and deckbuilding method. This section describes the following limited formats: sealed and draft.
-
10.1.2. A “limited” deckbuilding format is any format where each player in a group builds a deck using cards they receive opening packs from a common cardpool.
-
10.1.3. Unless otherwise specified, all rules in the Comprehensive Rules apply to all limited formats.
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-
10.2. Sealed Format
-
10.3. Draft Format
-
-
11. Playing With More Than Two Players
-
11.1. General
-
11.1.1. Star Wars: Unlimited can be played using several different game formats. A game format is defined by its player count and deckbuilding method. This section describes multiplayer formats, which are for games with more than two players, usually three or four.
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11.1.2. Multiplayer games can be played with decks created with either constructed or limited rules. For example, four players may construct decks according to the Premier format rules, then play a four-player game together. Or three players could draft with nine booster packs and play a three-player game with the decks they build from their draft pool.
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11.1.3. Unless otherwise specified, all rules in the Comprehensive Rules apply to all multiplayer formats.
-
-
11.2. Gameplay Overview
-
11.2.1. Setting up a multiplayer format game is the same as setting up a two-player game, with the adjustment that each player chooses in clockwise order whether or not to take a mulligan—the active player is the first to decide, then the next player clockwise from them decides, and so on.
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11.2.2. For the ground arena and space arena, each player has a portion of each arena contained to their play area, where each player has a ground arena portion on one side of their base zone, and a space arena portion on the other side. Each player’s portion of an arena is considered part of the larger arena. For instance, a player might play a ground unit into their ground arena portion, and later use it to attack an enemy ground unit in an opponent’s ground arena portion.
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11.2.3. The player that starts a round with the initiative is the first active player and takes the first action. Then, the next player clockwise from the first player becomes the new active player and takes an action. Play continues this way until the end of the action phase.
-
11.2.4. Once each player has passes consecutively, the action phase ends.
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-
11.3. Player Elimination
-
11.3.1. Once a player’s base has no remaining HP, that player is eliminated from the game and they cannot take any more actions. All cards they own are removed from play and any cards owned by other players in their play area are placed in their owners’ discard piles. (The removed cards are not considered defeated or discarded, and do not cause abilities to trigger.) Any of their triggered abilities still waiting to resolve are ignored.
-
11.3.2. An eliminated player cannot be brought back into play; their base cannot be healed, and they cannot be affected by abilities.
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11.3.3. If an eliminated player created a lasting effect or delayed effect earlier in the round they were eliminated, that effect remains active in the game, and the remaining players must resolve it as completely as possible.
For example, if the eliminated player had played Make an Opening (SOR #076) during an earlier turn, the unit chosen for the ability still would have -2/-2 for the rest of the phase.
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11.3.4. If an eliminated player controlled the initiative counter, return the initiative counter to the center of the game area, “available” side faceup. It can then be taken by a different player.
-
-
11.4. Additional Clarifications
-
11.4.1. There are no rules dictating how players may converse with one another in a game. Players may discuss potential actions, open information, and hidden information freely. Any deals made between players are not binding.
-
11.4.2. For the purposes of card abilities, a player’s “opponent” is any one of the other players in the game, and a player’s “opponents” is each other player in the game. Even if a player makes a deal with another player, they are still “opponents” to each other for the purposes of card abilities that affect opponents. If a card ability only affects a single opponent, the player who played (for events) or controls (for unit abilities) the card chooses which opponent it affects.
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11.4.3. If an ability that affects multiple players can be resolved simultaneously, resolve that ability simultaneously. Otherwise, the player that controls the card with the ability can choose the order in which each player is affected by the ability.
For example, Grand Admiral Thrawn (SOR #016) has an ability where his controller looks at the top card of each player’s deck. This ability cannot be resolved simultaneously, so Thrawn’s controller chooses the order in which they look at the cards. They are not required to look at the cards in a specific order.
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11.4.4. A unit with Sentinel only prevents units in the same arena from attacking its controller’s non-Sentinel units or base. It does not prevent one opponent’s units from attacking another opponent’s non-Sentinel units or base.
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-
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12. Twin Suns (Multiplayer Format)
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12.1. General
-
12.1.1. Twin Suns is a special multiplayer format with unique rules, counters, and deckbuilding requirements. In the Twin Suns multiplayer format, each player’s deck has two leaders instead of one, and each deck can only contain one copy of each card.
-
12.1.2. All of the rules for playing with more than two players also apply to the Twin Suns format unless otherwise specified.
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-
12.2. Deckbuilding
-
12.3. Two Leaders
-
12.3.1. Each player’s deck must contain two leaders, both of which must share either the or aspect. The leaders may have the same name, but must not be copies of each other, in order to avoid violating the uniqueness rule.
-
12.3.2. Both leaders provide their aspect icons to the player’s deck.
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12.3.3. A player’s leaders can be exhausted, deployed, and defeated independently of each other. A player may have both of their leaders deployed at the same time.
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12.4. Setup
-
12.5. Counters
-
12.5.1. Twin Suns games require two additional counters: the blast counter and the plan counter. These counters are similar to the initiative counter in that a player can use their action to take control of one of them, effectively ending that player’s participation in a round.
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12.5.2. Both the blast counter and plan counter have an additional effect when they are taken. Resolve this effect immediately when the counter is taken.
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12.5.3. In multiplayer games, the Take the Initiative action in two-player games is replaced with the Take an Available Counter action. When a player takes this action, they take control of any one counter that has not been taken (initiative, blast, or plan) and flip that counter to its “taken” side. The player is considered to have “passed” for their action and must “pass” for any subsequent actions they would take that round, though they still resolve any abilities triggered on cards they control during that round. A player can only take this action if they haven’t yet taken a counter that round.
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12.5.4. A player cannot take more than one counter in a single round; however, a player may control more than one counter at the same time, such as if a player already has control of the initiative from a previous round when they take a different counter.
-
12.5.5. At the start of each regroup phase, return the blast counter and plan counter to the center of the game area, “available” side up.
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12.6. Action Phase
-
12.6.1. Players may take one of the following actions during each of their turns: Play a Card, Attack With a Unit, Use an Action Ability, or Take an Available Counter (once per player per round).
-
12.6.2. Any player who eliminates another player (such as by being the last player to damage the eliminated player’s base) immediately heals 5 damage from their own base. If a player eliminates themself through an ability, no player heals damage from their base this way.
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12.7. Ending the Game
-
12.7.1. Once one player is eliminated, the game will end once the current phase ends. The player with the most HP remaining on their base at the end of the current phase wins the game.
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12.7.2. At the end the phase, any “for this phase” or “until the end of the phase” abilities still expire, and players still resolve any abilities triggered “at the end of the phase.”
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12.7.3. If multiple players are tied for the most HP remaining on their bases at the end of the game, they share the victory.
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-
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13. Index / Glossary
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The following index and glossary contains brief summaries of terms discussed in the Comprehensive Rules. For more in-depth rules and clarifications, see the indicated rule number after each entry. This index and glossary is intended for quick reference only; rulings in the Comprehensive Rules above take precedence over any summary found below.
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- ABILITY
An ability is special text on a card that explains how the card can affect the game. A card may have one or more abilities printed in its text box, or gain an ability from other cards in play. Abilities must be resolved as fully as possible. See 1.3.2. for more on “Do As Much As You Can” & 1.6. Abilities
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- ACTION ABILITY
An action ability is an ability indicated by the bolded word “Action.” Most action abilities have a cost in brackets that must be paid in order to use the ability. Using an action ability is one type of action a player can take during their turn. See 7.2. Action Abilities
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- ACTION PHASE
Each game round is made up of two phases: an action phase and a regroup phase. During an action phase, players take turns taking actions. See 5.4. Action Phase
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- ACTIVE PLAYER
The active player is the player that is currently taking an action. Players take turns being the active player during the action phase. See 1.4. Players, Active Player
-
- ADDITIONAL COST
Some abilities add an additional cost to play a card, applying a non-resource cost to that card. In order to play that card, a player must pay both the card’s cost in resources, and all additional costs applied to the card. See 1.8.8. for more on additional costs
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- AMBUSH
After a unit with the Ambush keyword is played, its controller may ready it and use it to attack an enemy unit. See 7.5.5. Ambush
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- ANOTHER, OTHER
A card with an ability that uses “other” or “another” cannot apply the effects of its ability to itself. Additionally, an ability may use “other” or “another” to separate the first card it affects from a different card that it affects. See 8.19. Other, Another
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- ARENA
There are two arenas in the game: the ground arena and the space arena. Each arena is its own zone shared by players. A unit’s arena type indicates which arena it is played into. See 4.3. Ground Arena & See 4.4. Space Arena
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- ASPECT
Aspects are colored icons on a card that represent a different philosophy or motivation that card embodies. The six aspects and their associated colors are: Vigilance , Command , Aggression , Cunning , Villainy , and Heroism . See 1.5.6. Aspects
-
- ASPECT PENALTY
When a player plays a card with one or more aspect icons beyond the aspect icons provided by their leader and/or base, they incur the aspect penalty, and must pay 2 resources for each missing icon. See 8.1. Aspect Penalty
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- ATTACHED
Upgrades are put into play attached to units. When an upgrade is attached to a unit, the unit is attached to that upgrade. See 3.6. Upgrade
-
- ATTACK WITH A UNIT
As an action or through certain abilities, a player may attack with a unit by exhausting a unit they control to be “the attacker” and choosing what it attacks: either a “defender” or the opponent’s base. See 6.3. Attack With a Unit
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- ATTACKER
An attacker is a unit chosen to make an attack. See 6.3. Attack With a Unit
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- ATTRIBUTE
An attribute is a part of a card’s anatomy. Attributes include a card’s name, subtitle, card type, arena type, cost, aspect(s), power, power modifier, HP, HP modifier, trait(s), and/or text box. A card’s attributes can be modified through upgrades and abilities. See 8.3. Attribute
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- BASE
Each deck has 1 base, which represents a location in the Star Wars universe. If a player’s base is defeated, that player loses the game. See 3.2. Base
-
- BASE ZONE
Each player has their own base zone, which contains their base and their leader when the leader isn’t deployed. See 4.2. Base Zone
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- BLAST COUNTER
The blast counter is an additional counter added in the Twin Suns format used to end a player’s participation in a round. When a player takes the blast counter, they immediately deal 1 damage to each opponent’s base. See 12.5. Counters
-
- BOUNTY
When a player’s unit with a Bounty is defeated or captured, an opponent gets to collect its Bounty and resolve its ability. See 7.5.13. Bounty
-
- “CAN”
When “can” is used in a card ability, that ability adjusts or overrides a default rule of play. The player controlling a card with such an ability is able to choose whether to use that ability in the way specified or follow the default rule of play instead. See 1.3.3. for more on “Restrictions Override Permissions” & 8.4. “Can” and “Can’t”
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- “CAN'T”
If the word “can’t” is used in an ability or rule it overrides permissions. If an ability with the word “may” or “can” directly contradicts an ability that uses the word “can’t”, then the ability that uses “can’t” takes precedence. See 1.3.3. for more on “Restrictions Override Permissions” & 8.4. “Can” and “Can’t”
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- CAPTURE
When a unit captures another unit, the captured unit is removed from play and placed facedown under the capturing unit, which is now guarding it. The captured unit is rescued when the unit guarding it is removed from play. See 8.34. Capture
-
- CARD TYPE
A card’s type is located in the top left corner of the card. There are six different types of cards: bases, events, leaders, units, upgrades, and tokens. Each type of card has its own associated rules. A resource is not considered a type of card. See 3. Card Types
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- CHOOSE
When an ability instructs a player to “choose” a game object, they must select a game object that matches the criteria specified by the ability. When an event ability instructs a player to “choose” a number of multiple bulleted options, they must choose a different option each time. See 8.5. Choose
-
- COMBAT DAMAGE
Combat damage is damage dealt during Step 2 of an attack. Combat damage is both the damage an attacker deals to a defender/base, and the damage a defender deals to an attacker. See 6.3. Attack With a Unit
-
- COMPLETES AN ATTACK
Abilities with a triggering condition of “When this unit completes an attack” trigger during Step 3 of an attack. The unit with the ability must survive the attack for the ability to trigger. See 6.3. Attack With a Unit
-
- CONSTANT ABILITY
A constant ability is always in effect while the card it is on is in play, regardless of if that card is ready or exhausted. A constant ability may require a condition to be met for it to affect the game. See 7.3. Constant Abilities
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- CONTROL, CONTROLLER
A player is the controller of any card they played or put into play, unless another player used an ability to take control of such a card. Control of a card is constant; if a player takes control of a card, they remain the controller of that card until otherwise specified. See 1.5.2. Ownership and Control & 8.28. Take Control
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- COPY
A card is a copy of another card if both cards have all of the same printed attributes. See 8.6. Copy
-
- COST
A card’s cost indicates how many resources must be spent to play the card. See 1.8. Cost
-
- DAMAGE
Cards with HP values can be dealt damage by attacks and abilities. Damage is represented by damage counters. See 1.9. Damage
-
- DECK
A player’s deck is the collection of cards that they use to play the game. Each player’s deck is its own zone. See 1.2. Deck
-
- DECKBUILDING
Deckbuilding rules vary based on the format being played. See 9.2. Premier Format, 10.2. Sealed Format, 10.3. Draft Format, & 12.2. Deckbuilding (Twin Suns).
-
- DEFEAT
A card is defeated when it leaves play, either when it has no remaining HP or an ability defeats it directly. See 1.5.5. Defeating Cards
-
- DEFENDER
A defender is a unit in combat being attacked. See 6.3. Attack With a Unit
-
- DEFENDING PLAYER
A defending player is the controller of a unit or base being attacked. See 6.3. Attack With a Unit
-
- DELAYED EFFECT
A delayed effect is created when a card ability indicates a future timing point or a future condition that may arise and an effect that will happen at that time. Once created, a delayed effect will resolve at the specified timing point or condition, even if the ability that created it was on a card that left play. See 7.7.4. Delayed Effect
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- DEPLOY
To deploy a leader, flip it to its Leader Unit side, ready it, and move it from the base zone to the ground arena. A deployed leader can attack, be attacked, and use the abilities on its Leader Unit side. See 3.4. Leader
-
- DISCARD
To discard a card means to move it to its owner’s discard pile from another zone, usually from a player’s hand or deck. See 1.14. Discarding a Card
-
- DISCARD PILE
Each player has a discard pile, and each discard pile is its own zone. Played events, defeated (non-leader) units, defeated upgrades, and discarded cards are placed in a player’s discard pile, faceup. See 4.8. Discard Pile
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- DRAFT FORMAT
The draft format is a two-player game format that uses limited deckbuilding. To build a draft deck, each player in a group opens three booster packs from a single Star Wars: Unlimited set and drafts their contents, first by drafting three leaders from those packs, then by drafting the rest of the cards from those packs. Once all cards have been drafted, each player creates a deck using their draft pool. See 10.3. Draft Format
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- DRAW
To draw a card, a player moves the top card of their deck into their hand, unless otherwise specified. See 1.13. Drawing a Card
-
- EFFECT
An effect is a non-cost part of a card ability that has the potential to change the game state. Some effects resolve separately from the ability that created them or replace the standard resolution of the ability that created them. See 7.7. Effects
-
- EMPTY DECK
If a player runs out of cards in their deck, they continue playing with the cards they have in play and in hand. If a player would draw a card from their empty deck, they instead deal 3 damage to their base for each card they would draw. See 8.7. Empty Deck
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- ENEMY
A card that a player’s opponent controls is considered an “enemy” card for that player. See 1.5.3. Friendly and Enemy
-
- ENTERS PLAY
A card enters play when it moves from an out-of-play zone to an in-play zone (for example, when a unit is played from a player’s hand into the ground arena) or when it is turned faceup. See 8.8. Enters Play
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- EPIC ACTION
An Epic Action ability is a type of action ability that can only be resolved once per game. See 7.2.4. for more on Epic Actions
-
- EVENT
An event is a type of card. When a player plays an event, they place the event in its owner’s discard pile, then they resolve the event’s ability. See 3.3. Event
-
- EVENT ABILITY
An event ability is an ability found in the text box of an event card. See 7.4. Event Abilities
-
- EXCESS DAMAGE
“Excess damage” refers to damage that would be dealt to a unit beyond the amount needed to defeat that unit. See 1.9.11. for more on excess damage
-
- EXHAUSTED
A card is exhausted when it is turned sideways (rotated 90 degrees). Some action abilities require a card to exhaust itself, and will indicate this with the symbol. See 1.5.4. Ready and Exhausted
-
- EXPERIENCE TOKEN
An Experience token is a type of token upgrade that gives a unit +1 power and +1 HP. See 3.7. Token
-
- FIRST
Abilities that refer to the “first” occurrence in a phase refer to the very first occurrence that phase, regardless of whether the card with the ability was in play when it occurred. See 8.9. First
-
- “FOR EACH”
Abilities that take the form “For each X, do Y” are resolved by determining how each instance of the ability will be resolved, then resolving all instances simultaneously. See 8.35. “For Each”
-
- “FOR FREE”
If an ability instructs a player to play a card “for free,” the player bypasses all modifiers to that card’s cost, including the aspect penalty, and does not pay any resources to play that card. The player must still pay any additional non-resource costs applied to the card. See 1.8.5. for more on “for free”
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- FOR THIS ATTACK, FOR THIS PHASE
Abilities that specify a duration, like “for this attack” or “for this phase,” are known as lasting effects. Lasting effects only affect the game for the specified amount of time. See 7.7.3. Lasting Effects
-
- FRIENDLY
A card that a player controls is considered a “friendly” card for that player. See 1.5.3. Friendly and Enemy
-
- GAME AREA
The “game area” refers to all zones in the game collectively. See 4. Zones
-
- GAME STATE
The “game state” refers to: each card’s current zone, controller, attributes, and status; the initiative counter’s controller and status; the status of open and hidden information for a player; and the status of all active lasting effects and delayed effects. An action, ability, or payment of a cost that changes any of these elements is considered to change the game state. A player must change the game state when taking any action other than passing. See 1.16. Game State
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- GIVE/GET
Abilities often tell a player to “give” a unit a token or a power/HP modifier or indicate that a unit “gets” that modifier. See 3.7. Token & 8.16. Modifiers
-
- GRIT
A unit with the Grit keyword gets +1 power and +0 HP for each damage on it. See 7.5.6. Grit
-
- GROUND ARENA
The ground arena is a zone shared by players. Ground units are played into the ground arena. See 4.3. Ground Arena
-
- HAND
The ground arena is a zone shared by players. Ground units are played into the ground arena. See 4.3. Ground Arena
-
- HEAL
When an ability or effect heals a number of damage from a card, remove that many damage counters from that card. See 1.9. Damage
-
- HIDDEN INFORMATION
Hidden information refers to cards that have restrictions on when they can be viewed, and by whom. A card may be hidden information for one player but not another. See 1.17. Open and Hidden Information
-
- HP
HP, or Hit Points, is an attribute that indicates how much damage a card can have on it before it is defeated. Units and bases have HP values. See 1.11. HP
-
- HP MODIFIER
An HP modifier is an attribute that modifies the attached unit’s HP value by the printed number. Only upgrades have an HP modifier. See 2.11. HP Modifier
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- “IF YOU DO”
If an ability uses the phrase “if you do,” the text preceding “if you do” must be resolved in full in order to resolve the text following “if you do.” See 8.10. “If You Do”
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- IGNORE
If a player is instructed to “ignore” a keyword ability, they treat that ability as inactive, as specified by the “ignore” effect. If a player is instructed to “ignore” the aspect penalty for a card, they pay the cost of the card without accounting for any aspect icons on the card that aren’t provided by the player’s leader and/or base. See 8.11. Ignore
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- IN-PLAY
Cards in the ground arena, space arena, base zones, and resources zones are considered “in-play.” By default, cards that are in-play have the potential to affect the game through use of their abilities, power, and HP. See 4.9. In-Play and Out-of-Play
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- INITIATIVE, INITIATIVE COUNTER
The initiative is a game concept represented by the initiative counter. The player that controls the initiative counter is the first active player in a round and takes the first action. During a player’s turn, they may use the Take the Initiative action, ensuring they will go first in the next round. See 1.15.5. Take the Initiative
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- INSTEAD
An ability that uses “instead” indicates a replacement effect in which the standard resolution of a triggering condition or ability is replaced with an alternate resolution. See 7.7.5. Replacement Effects
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- KEYWORD, KEYWORD ABILITY
A keyword or keyword ability is a card ability indicated with bold red text and that has specific associated rules. See 7.5. Keyword Abilities
-
- LAST KNOWN INFORMATION
Last known information is information about a card that’s no longer in play, accounting for the controller of the card and modifiers applied to that card immediately before it left play. Last known information is used primarily when resolving a “When Defeated” ability on a card that left play. See 8.12. Last Known Information
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- LASTING EFFECT
A lasting effect is a part of an ability that affects the game for a specified duration of time. Most lasting effects include the phrase “for this phase” or “for this attack.” See 7.7.3. Lasting Effect
-
- LEADER
A leader is a double-sided card that represents an iconic Star Wars character. Each deck has 1 leader. Each leader starts the game in its owner’s base zone, and can be deployed as a unit during the game. See 3.4. Leader
-
- LEAVES PLAY
A card leaves play when it moves from an in-play zone to an out-of-play zone (for example, when a unit is defeated and moved to its owner’s discard pile) or when it is turned facedown. See 8.13. Leaves Play
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- LOOK AT
When a player is instructed to “look at” cards from a specific zone, the player picks up those cards and views them, keeping them secret from other players. The player cannot change the order of those cards. After viewing, the player returns the cards to the zone in the same order and orientation as they were previously. See 8.14. Look At
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- LOSE (AN ABILITY)
Abilities may cause a card to lose some or all of its abilities, including specific keywords. See 8.15. Lose, Loses
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- MODIFIER
A modifier refers to a change of a printed value on a card through an ability applied to that card or an upgrade attached to that card. When a modifier is applied to a printed value, it creates a modified value, which in turn is used to resolve abilities or actions that depend on that value. See 8.16. Modifiers
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- MULLIGAN
During game setup, if a player is unsatisfied with their opening hand, they may take a mulligan by shuffling that hand back into their deck and drawing a new opening hand. The player must keep this new hand. See 5.2. Starting the Game and Setup
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- “MUST”
If a card ability states that an effect “must” happen or a specific choice “must” be made, the player has to resolve the ability as specified, as much as they are able. See 8.17. “Must”
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- NAME
A card’s name is located at the top of the card. An ability may refer to a card’s name or require a player to name a card. See 2.2. Name
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- NAME A CARD
If an ability instructs a player to “name a card,” that player clearly indicates the name of any card in Star Wars: Unlimited (such as by saying its name out loud), and applies the rest of the ability to any cards with that name in the game. These abilities do not account for subtitles; the player does not need to specify a subtitle when naming a card. See 8.18. Name a Card
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- NESTED ABILITY
A nested ability occurs when resolving one triggered ability causes a second ability to trigger; the second ability is a nested ability. Any abilities triggered before a nested ability is triggered must be put on hold until the nested ability resolves. See 7.6.12. Nested Abilities and Nested Actions
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- ON ATTACK ABILITY
Some triggered abilities are indicated with “On Attack” in bold, followed by a colon and an effect. On Attack abilities are resolved when the unit they’re on attacks, after the defender is chosen but before units deal combat damage. See 7.6.15. On Attack
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- OPEN INFORMATION
Open information refers to cards that can be viewed by any player at any time. See 1.17. Open and Hidden Information
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- OPPONENT
A player’s opponent is a person playing the game other than that player. See 1.4. Players, Active Player
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- OTHER, ANOTHER
A card with an ability that uses “other” or “another” cannot apply the effects of its ability to itself. Additionally, an event ability may use “other” or “another” to separate the first card it affects from a different card that it affects. See 8.19. Other, Another
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- OUT-OF-PLAY
Cards in decks, hands, and discard piles are “out-of-play.” By default, cards that are out-of-play don’t have the potential to affect the game through use of their abilities, power, and HP; an ability must state that it affects the game while out-of-play, or be a type of ability that does. See 4.9. In-Play and Out-of-Play
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- OVERWHELM
When an attacker with the Overwhelm keyword deals combat damage to a defender, its controller deals any excess damage to the defending player’s base. See 7.5.7. Overwhelm
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- OWNER
A player is the owner of any card that started the game in their deck. See 1.5.2. Ownership and Control
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- PASS
When a player passes, they are considered to have done nothing during their action. See 1.15.6. Pass
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- PERMISSION (VS. RESTRICTION)
In case of a conflict between a restrictive ability and a permissive ability, the restriction takes precedence. See 1.3.3. for more on “Restrictions Override Permissions”
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- PHASE
A round is made up of two phases: an action phase and a regroup phase. See 5.4. Action Phase & 5.5. Regroup Phase
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- PLAN COUNTER
The plan counter is an additional counter added in the Twin Suns format used to end a player’s participation in a round. When a player takes the plan counter, they immediately draw 1 card from their deck, then place 1 card from their hand on the bottom of their deck. See 12.5. Counters
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- PLAY A CARD
To play a card, a player selects a card in their hand, pays resources equal to its cost, and either puts it into play if it is a unit or upgrade, or puts it in their discard pile and resolves its ability if it is an event. See 6.2. Play a Card
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- PLAY AREA
A player’s play area consists of cards the player controls in in-play zones, with the exception of any upgrades the player controls attached to enemy units; this includes cards in their base zone, cards in their resource zone, units they control, and upgrades attached to units they control. See 4.10. Play Area
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- PLAY RESTRICTION
A play restriction is a condition that prevents a card from being played. Play restrictions are checked before paying the costs to play a card. See 8.20. Play Restrictions
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- PLAYER
A player is a person participating in the game. See 1.4. Players, Active Player
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- POWER
Power is an attribute that indicates how much damage a unit deals in combat. See 1.10. Power
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- POWER MODIFIER
A power modifier is an attribute that modifies the attached unit’s power value by the printed number. Only upgrades have a power modifier. See 2.9. Power Modifier
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- PREVENT (DAMAGE)
If an ability prevents damage from being dealt to a unit or base, do not place any damage counters on that unit or base. Damage is not considered dealt to that unit or base, and abilities that would trigger when damage is dealt don’t trigger. See 8.21. Prevent (Damage)
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- PRINTED
Printed is a term used in rules text to refer to an attribute physically printed on a card to differentiate that attribute from modifiers, abilities, and effects applied to the card. This term is used for rules clarification purposes, such as when explaining the steps of modifying a card’s cost. See 8.22. Printed
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- PUT INTO PLAY AS A RESOURCE
If an ability instructs a player to put a card into play as a resource, the card is placed facedown and exhausted in that player’s resource zone unless otherwise specified. The card is not considered “played” and no “When Played” abilities trigger. See 1.7. Resources
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- RAID
When a unit with the Raid keyword attacks, it gets extra power equal to the value following Raid. See 7.5.8. Raid
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- READY
A card is ready when it is turned upright. See 1.5.4. Ready and Exhausted
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- REGROUP PHASE
Each game round is made up of two phases: an action phase and a regroup phase. During a regroup phase, players draw cards, choose whether to resource, and ready exhausted cards. See 5.5. Regroup Phase
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- REMAINING HP
A unit’s remaining HP is determined by subtracting the number of damage on it from its HP value. If a unit’s remaining HP is zero or less, that unit is defeated. See 1.11. HP
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- REMINDER TEXT
Reminder text is italicized text in parentheses following an ability that helps clarify rules for that ability. Reminder text has no inherent mechanical effect. See 2.13.2. for more on reminder text
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- REPLACEMENT EFFECT
A replacement effect occurs when the standard resolution of a triggering condition or ability is replaced with an alternate resolution. This alternate resolution is the replacement effect. See 7.7.5. Replacement Effect
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- RESOURCE
A resource is a type of game object a card becomes when put into a play in a resource zone. Players pay the cost of cards by exhausting resources they control. A resourced card’s printed attributes are inactive and do not affect the game unless otherwise specified. See 1.7. Resources
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- RESOURCE ZONE
Each player has a resource zone which contains the resources that they control. See 4.5. Resource Zone
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- RESTORE
When a unit with the Restore keyword attacks, its controller heals damage from their base equal to the value following Restore. See 7.5.9. Restore
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- RESTRICTION (VS. PERMISSION)
In case of a conflict between a restrictive ability and a permissive ability, the restriction takes precedence. See 1.3.3. for more on “Restrictions Override Permissions”
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- RETURN
Some card abilities will “return” a specific type of card to its owner’s hand. By default, only cards that are in play can be returned this way; an ability must specify that it is returning a card from an out-of-play zone in order to do so. See 8.25. Return
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- REVEAL
To reveal a card means to show the faceup side of the card to all players. Abilities can cause a player to reveal cards from their deck, hand, or resource zone. See 8.26. Reveal
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- ROUND
A game round consists of two phases: an action phase and a regroup phase. See 5.3. Round
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- SABOTEUR
When a unit with the Saboteur keyword attacks, it ignores enemy units with the Sentinel keyword in its arena, and it also defeats all Shield tokens on the defender. See 7.5.10. Saboteur
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- SEARCH
When an ability instructs a player to search their deck, that player views either a certain number of cards from their deck or their entire deck to find one or more cards with a specified attribute. The ability then instructs the player on what to do if they find a card with that attribute. The player may also choose to resolve the ability as though no such card(s) was found. See 8.27. Search
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- SENTINEL
A unit with the Sentinel keyword prevents enemy units in its arena from attacking its controller’s base or other non-Sentinel units its controller controls. Enemy units with Saboteur ignore the Sentinel keyword when attacking. See 7.5.11. Sentinel
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- SET ASIDE
A card that is set aside is not considered to be in any zone. See 4.11. Set Aside/Being in No Zone
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- SHIELD TOKEN
A Shield token is a type of token upgrade. When a unit with one or more attached Shield tokens would take damage, instead defeat a Shield token on that unit. See 3.7. Token
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- SHIELDED
When a unit with the Shielded keyword is played or deployed, give it a Shield token. See 7.5.12. Shielded
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- SHUFFLE
To shuffle a deck means to randomize the order of the cards in a deck. Players shuffle their decks during setup and anytime they search their entire deck. See 5.2. Starting the Game and Setup & See 8.27. Search
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- SIMULTANEOUS TRIGGERS (MULTIPLE PLAYERS)
If multiple players must resolve abilities that are triggered at the same time, the active player chooses one player at a time to resolve abilities. See 7.6.10. for more on simultaneous triggers
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- SIMULTANEOUS TRIGGERS (ONE PLAYER)
If one player must resolve multiple abilities that are triggered at the same time, the player resolves them in any order they choose. See 7.6.9. for more on simultaneous triggers
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- SMUGGLE
Smuggle is an ability that allows a player to play a card from their resource zone by paying the Smuggle ability’s cost. The card is replaced in the resource zone by the top card of the player’s deck, which enters play exhausted. A resource may be exhausted to pay for its own Smuggle cost. See 7.5.14. Smuggle
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- SPACE ARENA
The space arena is a zone shared by players. Space units are played into the space arena. See 4.4. Space Arena
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- SUBTITLE
Each unique card has a subtitle to differentiate that card from other unique cards with the same name. See 2.3. Subtitle
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- TAKE CONTROL
Abilities may tell a player to take control of an enemy unit. When a player takes control of a unit, they become its controller and orient it facing them. See 1.5.2. Ownership and Control & 8.28. Take Control
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- TAKE INITIATIVE
As an action during their turn, a player may “take the initiative,” taking control of the initiative counter and flipping it to its “taken” side. A player is considered to have “passed” during this action and must pass during any other actions they would take during that round. See 1.15.5. Take the Initiative
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- TEXT BOX
A card’s text box contains any abilities that the card has. See 2.13. Text Box
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- “THEN”
If an ability uses “then,” the text before “then” must be resolved as completely as possible before the text following “then” can be resolved. See 8.29. “Then”
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- TOKEN
A token is a type of card that is set aside at the start of the game and put into play by specific abilities. If a token ever leaves play, set it aside. See 3.7. Token
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- TRAIT
A card’s traits are located directly underneath the card’s art, and are flavorful attributes that categorize the card. Traits have no inherent rules, but may be referenced by card abilities. See 2.12. Traits
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- TRIGGERED ABILITY
Triggered abilities have bold text indicating their triggering condition, starting with the word “When” or “On”, followed by a colon and an effect. A triggered ability must resolve once its triggering condition is met unless the ability uses the phrase “you may.” Once triggered, these abilities must resolve at the next available opportunity. See 7.6. Triggered Abilities
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- TRIGGERING CONDITION
A triggering condition is a game occurrence that prompts a triggered ability to resolve. Triggered abilities have their triggering conditions printed in bold, such as “When Played,” “When Defeated,” or “On Attack.” See 7.6. Triggered Abilities
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- UNIQUE
A unique card is indicated with a unique icon (⟡) before the card’s name. Unique cards represent iconic characters, objects, or ships in the Star Wars universe. A player can only control one copy of each unique card at a given time. See 8.30. Unique, Unique Icon
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- UNIT
A unit is a type of card depicting a Star Wars character or vehicle. Units in play can attack, be attacked, and have their abilities used. See 3.5. Unit
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- UP TO
When resolving an ability that uses the phrase “up to X” (where X is some number), the player chooses a number between 0 and X to resolve the ability with. See 8.31. “Up to”
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- UPGRADE
An upgrade is a type of card that attaches to a unit. An upgrade can only be played if there is an eligible unit in play for it to attach to. Upgrades may modify the attached unit’s attributes or give the attached unit abilities. See 3.6. Upgrade
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- USE AN ACTION ABILITY
As an action, a player may use an action ability on a card they control: they pay the ability’s cost if it has one, then resolve the ability’s effect. See 6.4. Use an Action Ability
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- WHEN DEFEATED
“When Defeated” abilities are triggered abilities that resolve when the card they’re on is defeated, after the card is placed in its owner’s discard pile. These abilities are resolved by the player that last controlled the card before it left play. See 7.6.14. When Defeated
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- WHEN PLAYED
“When Played” abilities are triggered abilities that resolve when the card they’re on is played, after the card’s cost is paid and it is put into play. See 7.6.13. When Played
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- WOULD
An ability that uses “would” indicates a replacement effect in which the standard resolution of a triggering condition or ability is replaced with an alternate resolution. See 7.7.5. Replacement Effects
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- “YOU MAY”
If an ability uses “you may,” the player may choose whether or not to resolve the ability in the way specified following “you may.” If the player chooses to resolve the text following “you may,” they must resolve as much of it as possible. See 8.33. “You May”
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- ZONE
A zone is a defined area of the game with specific rules. There are seven different types of zones in the game: each player’s base zone, the ground arena, the space arena, each player’s resource zone, each player’s deck zone, each player’s hand, and each player’s discard pile. See 4. Zones
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FFG Developer Clarifications
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Here's a link to a community maintained collection of rules clarifications: Github Maintained by MacFergusson
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