Absorb Essence (Serpent Slumbering Beneath the Island)

Frequently Asked Questions

Elements and Elemental Thresholds

• If you gain presence during the turn (after Growth) and uncover the "any" or another element, can you then use it for other powers?
  Yes, you can start using elements as soon as you gain them. (p. 14) Similarly, if you are able to play a card mid-turn, you get the effects of its Elements immediately.

  (And if some effect were to cover an Element by returning Presence to your track, or destroy a Power card in play, you'd immediately lose access to the elements.)
  (Discussion elsewhere)  Tags: "Any" element, Elements, Adding Presence, Indomitable Claim, 13 more...

Power Cards

• What happens if you use Entwined Power to give another Spirit a card with Spirit-specific effects? (E.g., Absorb Essence, Swallow the Land-Dwellers)
  As usual, do as much as you legally can, skipping instructions you can't perform. However, Special Rules can define new types of effect (like "Drown") usable by anyone with a Power referencing it.

  More specifically:

  • Absorb Essence effectively becomes "Gain 3 Energy. Target Spirit gains Any Element and 1 Energy." (You cannot follow the instruction "Move 1 of target Spirit's Presence to your 'Deep Slumber' track", because you do not have a Deep Slumber track.)
  • Ocean's Special Rules define what "Drown" means: "Destroy Drowned pieces, placing Drowned Invaders here [on Ocean's playmat]." So if another Spirit Drowns an Invader, it is Destroyed (by that Spirit), then goes onto Ocean's playmat. Similarly, since Terror Stalks the Land defines what "Abduct" means, abducted pieces go to The Endless Dark whether or not Breath of Darkness Down Your Spine is the one using the Power.
  • Elemental Teachings lets other Spirits prepare Element Markers, but what what they can do with them depends on whether or not Shifting Memory of Ages is using an Aspect.
  • Powers that reference specific Incarna can still interact with that Incarna, but may be less effective.
  • While any Spirit could perform the effects of many of Fractured Days' Unique Powers, they can't pay the time cost to use them in the first place.
    Tags: Transferring Power Cards, Drowning (Ocean's Hungry Grasp), Entwined Power, Swallow the Land-Dwellers (Ocean's Hungry Grasp), 8 more...

Spirits and Innate Powers

• If Serpent Slumbering Beneath the Island fills its Deep Slumber track (so only 13 is visible), does Absorb Essence still work?
  Yes. Put the Presence on the track, but don't cover any numbers. The Power otherwise works normally.
  Tags: Absorb Essence (Serpent Slumbering Beneath the Island), Serpent Slumbering Beneath the Island, Deep Slumber (Serpent Slumbering Beneath the Island)
• If you gain a flexible Element (e.g., an "Any" Element, or multiple Elements separated by slashes) from something other than a Presence Track, when do you choose which Element to gain?
  When directly gaining flexible Elements from an Action mid-turn, like from Absorb Essence or Lure of the Deep Wilderness’ 3rd Growth option, you must choose a specific Element immediately.

  Passive Elements on Presence Tracks or in Bonus Spaces can be chosen at any time. [Core rulebook, p. 14, last item under Presence Tracks]
  Tags: "Any" element, Elements, Growth, Presence track, 9 more...
• How does Serpent Slumbering Beneath the Island work in a solo game?
  The Presence limit from its special rule Deep Slumber still applies. It can use Absorb Essence on itself [p. 22]. Presence on its Deep Slumber track is not "on the Island" and does not count against the limit. It cannot get a double benefit from the Serpent Wakes in Power innate power.
  Tags: Solo games, Serpent Slumbering Beneath the Island, Deep Slumber (Serpent Slumbering Beneath the Island), Absorb Essence (Serpent Slumbering Beneath the Island), 1 more...