Incarna

Frequently Asked Questions

Aspects

• If the Lair Aspect finds a way to move their Incarna without counting it as Presence, can you it move to a Coastal land?
  No, "Home of the Island's Heart" applies to your Incarna whether or not it counts as Presence at the time. Any attempt to move it to a Coastal land fails – it and all Invaders, Dahan, Beasts, and Presence that would move with it instead stay where they are.

  (There wasn't space to fit this extra restriction on the Aspect card.)
  Tags: Move, Counts As, Incarna, Lair Aspect (Lure of the Deep Wilderness), 2 more...

Effect Rules

• When a Spirit with an Incarna adds Presence, may it add its Incarna?
  Yes, but only to reposition an Incarna already on the island. If the Incarna is not on the island, it doesn't count as Presence, so it can't be added by an action that adds Presence.

  The Incarna is considered added even if it's repositioned back into the land it came from. (It's not considered moved.)
  Tags: Adding Presence, Repositioning Presence, Counts As, Incarna, 2 more...
• If your Incarna and 1 of your Presence are in the same land, is that land a Sacred Site for you?
  Yes, if you choose to count your Incarna as Presence for that action.
  Tags: Sacred Sites, Counts As, Incarna, Ember-Eyed Behemoth, 4 more...
• What happens to pieces when they get replaced? Do they go back to the box?
  During setup, they're removed from the game and returned to the box. [Nature Incarnate, page 14]

  During play, they return to the supply unless the effect explicitly says otherwise. (The exact formatting of "Call Forth Predators" in earlier printings of Branch and Claw implies otherwise, but the Jagged Earth rulebook explicitly states on page 28 that this is the general rule going forward.)

  Most pieces aren't component-limited, so this doesn't usually matter one way or the other. Nevertheless, it's occasionally relevant for a few cases with piece limits:

  • Blight returns to the Blight Card/Space.
  • Against The Kingdom of France (Plantation Colony), a replaced Town returns to France's limited supply of Towns rather than permanently decreasing the number of Towns in the game.
  • Replaced Presence goes to the destroyed Presence supply, like all other cases where Presence leaves the island without a specified destination.
  • Incarna return to the Incarna supply when they leave the island.

  Tags: Replace, Downgrade, Upgrade, Incarna, 3 more...
• Is it possible to Remove, Replace, or Destroy an Incarna that is counting only at itself?
  Yes, with either Fragments of Yesteryear or thresholded Cast Down Into the Briny Deep. If you don’t have an easy way to get your Incarna back, using either of those Powers near your Incarna is not recommended.
  Tags: Destroy, Remove, Replace, Incarna, 2 more...
• If both a Beasts and something that counts as a Beasts (e.g., a sacred site of Many Minds Move as One) are in the same land and something destroys a Beasts there, can you choose which one is destroyed?
  Yes. Even if there are two ordinary Beasts tokens in a land, players get to choose which one gets destroyed – it just doesn't usually matter which one you pick.

  Similarly, if a Presence and an Incarna are both in a land and something would destroy Presence there, the Spirit can choose whether to destroy the Presence or the Incarna.
  Tags: Counts As, Incarna, Many Minds Move as One, A Joining of Swarms and Flocks (Many Minds Move as One), 8 more...
• If your Incarna is the only Presence you have left on the island, do you need to continually count it as Presence to avoid losing?
  No. You can choose to count it as Presence for victory and defeat checks without having to count it as Presence for everything else.

  Similarly, pieces that can count as Beasts don't need to continuously count as such against the Tsardom of Russia, just for the victory and defeat checks.
  Tags: Victory and Defeat, Counts As, Incarna, Settle Into Hunting-Grounds, 3 more...
• If an Incarna is removed from the game or put back into the box (e.g., by Transform to a Murderous Darkness), can it be added back into the game?
  No, it's no longer in the game. Permanently losing an Incarna this way generally isn't advisable.
  Tags: Bargain, Incarna, Bargains of Power and Protection, Transform to a Murderous Darkness, 1 more...
• If an effect skips destruction effects against a particular piece type (e.g., "Heart-Tree Guards the Land" protecting Beasts), does it also protect pieces that count as that type (e.g., Presence that counts as Beasts due to "Settle Into Hunting-Grounds")?
  Yes, but only from being destroyed as that type, not from being destroyed as a different piece type. E.g., Presence that counts as Beasts can still be destroyed at the Heart-Tree Incarna by effects that destroy Presence – they're only safe from effects that destroy Beasts.
  Tags: Counts As, Incarna, Heart-Tree Guards the Land (Towering Roots of the Jungle), Towering Roots of the Jungle, 4 more...
• If a Spirit has a Growth Action that adds or moves its Incarna, can it just leave its Incarna in place (whether on the island or in the supply)?
  No, the Growth Action isn't optional: if the Incarna is in the supply, it must be added; if it's on the island already, it must be moved.

  That being said, you can count an Incarna on the island as Presence for the purpose of checking where it moves. So, e.g., Wandering Voice Keens Delirium can count its Incarna as the Presence it's moving the Incarna to, thereby moving the Incarna to the land it's already in (which would then add Strife with Spread Tumult and Delusion).

  Similarly, with its empowering growth option Ember-Eyed Behemoth can choose to move its Incarna to any land within range 1, including the land it's already in.
  Tags: Move, Counts As, Incarna, Wandering Voice Keens Delirium, 3 more...
• What happens if a Power that references an Incarna is used by a Spirit that doesn't have that Incarna (e.g., if it's transferred via "Entwined Power")?
  Resolve the Power exactly as written. Though an Incarna is associated with a particular Spirit, it's still a piece that other Spirits can interact with — they just don't normally have a way to do so.
  

  Depending on the Power and Incarna in question, this may be weaker than when used by the original Spirit. For example, while "Frightful Keening" can still push the Incarna of Wandering Voice Keens Delirium, and still generates Fear if pushing into a land with Invaders, only Wandering Voice Keens Delirium can use that Power to add Strife via "Keening Spurs Grievances."
  Tags: Transferring Power Cards, Incarna, Entwined Power, Blazing Intimidation (Ember-Eyed Behemoth), 7 more...
• Unlike for other Incarna, there is no way to bring back the Incarna of the Lair and Warrior Aspects. What happens if those Incarna get Destroyed/Removed/Replaced?
  They usually remain in the Incarna supply for the rest of the game, since there's normally no way to bring them back[†]. Letting this happen is generally not a good idea. Fortunately, it is effectively impossible to Destroy, Remove, or Replace an Incarna without deliberately trying to do so, since the owner can choose to count the Incarna as no piece other than itself, and very few effects Destroy, Remove, or Replace pieces in general.

  [†] As of the release of Nature Incarnate, the only way to restore these Incarna is via the optional high-tracking rules for Fragments of Yesteryear.
  Tags: Remove, Destroy, Replace, Incarna, 3 more...

General Play

• If a Spirit's Presence counts as Beasts (say, due to "Settle Into Hunting-Grounds"), and a "destroy Beasts" effect destroys their Presence, is it still considered destroyed Presence? More generally, if Piece A also counts as Piece B, and a "destroy/remove Piece B" effect destroys/removes it, does it go to the supply for A or B?
  It's considered destroyed Presence. When a piece is removed from the board, it goes to the supply (or other destination) for that physical type of piece.
  Tags: Presence, Pieces, Counts As, Beasts, 15 more...

Power Cards

• If Pent-Up Calamity removes a Spirit's Presence to deal damage (via that Presence counting as, e.g., Beasts): can the threshold replace that Presence?
  No, it will replace an actual token of the type you chose to remove.

  When a piece is removed from the board, it goes to the supply (or other destination) for that physical type of piece, it doesn't "remember" what it was while on the island.
  (Discussion elsewhere)  Tags: Pieces, Counts As, Incarna, Pent-Up Calamity, 4 more...
• If a Spirit with an Incarna uses Settle Into Hunting Grounds, can the Incarna still move that turn?
  Yes, but only if you choose not to count it as Presence for that action (and therefore not count it as Badlands or Beasts with Settle Into Hunting Grounds either).

  For instance, Breath of Darkness Down Your Spine using Leave a Trail of Deathly Silence can't get the Badlands bonus if they choose to Push the Incarna.
  Tags: Counts As, Incarna, Settle Into Hunting-Grounds, Leave a Trail of Deathly Silence (Breath of Darkness Down Your Spine), 1 more...

Scenarios

• Is it possible to add an Incarna that was never in the game in the first place (e.g., if a Power Card that adds an Incarna is carried over in Second Wave)?
  No, Incarna for Spirits not in the game are left in the box.

  All other effects of the Power Card still work normally.
  Tags: Incarna, Second Wave, Breath of Darkness Down Your Spine, Emerge from the Dread Night Wind (Breath of Darkness Down Your Spine), 0 more...

Spirits and Innate Powers

• How many times can Ember-Eyed Behemoth use Unrelenting Strides if its Incarna is Empowered?
  Still just once, and only if Smash, Stomp, and Flatten hasn’t been used at all.

  Unrelenting Strides checks if Ember-Eyed Behemoth has used an Innate Power in any way; it doesn’t replace one use of an Innate Power.
  Tags: Empower, Incarna, Unrelenting Strides (Ember-Eyed Behemoth), Ember-Eyed Behemoth, 0 more...
• What happens when an Incarna would go to place off the island that only Presence goes, like being returned to a Presence Track by "Numinious Crisis" or moved to Serpent's "Deep Slumber" track by "Absorb Essence"?
  It leaves the island, ceases to be Presence because it's no longer on the island, and returns to the Incarna supply instead of wherever it was going to go. It can then be added to the island normally by anything that adds that Incarna.

  For "Absorb Essence" in particular, both Serpent and the other Spirit will get the immediate benefits of using the Power, but Serpent's Presence limit won't go up.
  Tags: Counts As, Incarna, Absorb Essence (Serpent Slumbering Beneath the Island), Deep Slumber (Serpent Slumbering Beneath the Island), 2 more...
• Moving (or otherwise affecting) "a Sacred Site" usually affects 2 Presence from that Spirit. What about River Surges in Sunlight when it has Presence in a Wetland? Or Incarna that count as Sacred Sites?
  The player may choose whether 1 or 2 Presence are affected.
  Tags: Sacred Sites, Incarna, River's Domain (River Surges in Sunlight), River Surges in Sunlight, 3 more...
• If the Incarna of Towering Roots of the Jungle is destroyed in the middle of an action, do Invaders/Dahan/Beasts become vulnerable immediately?
  Yes, those pieces are vulnerable to any Damage or Destroy effects after that point. Usually the Incarna is destroyed by choosing to count it as a Presence when Blight is added.

  To cover some of the common situations:

  • Ravage (without other effects): The Dahan are protected by the Incarna, since it was present when they were dealt Damage. But the Incarna is gone during the Dahan counterattack, so the Invaders take Damage normally.
  • "Draw Towards a Consuming Void," "Drought," "Poisoned Land," "Pyroclastic Flow," "Pillar of Living Flame," "Volcanic Eruption": The Incarna is destroyed at the end of the base effect, so only the threshold can successfully deal Damage or destroy anything.
  • "Insatiable Hunger of the Swarm": The Incarna is destroyed at the beginning of the power, so doesn't protect anything.
  • "Cast Down Into the Briny Deep" threshold: The Incarna protects the Invaders/Dahan/Beasts in its land before being destroyed. Those pieces are then cleaned up for being in an illegal location.
    Tags: Ravage, Incarna, Draw Towards a Consuming Void, Drought, 8 more...
• Can Towering Roots of the Jungle replace Presence with its Incarna even if its Incarna is already on the island?
  Yes. The Incarna leaves whichever land it was in and ends up where the Presence used to be.

  This doesn't count as adding or moving the Incarna.
  Tags: Replace, Incarna, Heart-Tree Guards the Land (Towering Roots of the Jungle), Towering Roots of the Jungle, 0 more...
• When a Spirit uses a special rule to make a sacred site with only one Presence (e.g., River Surges in Sunlight using River's Domain in a Wetland), do they count as having two Presence there?
  No, they still just count as having as many Presence as they have disks in the land.

  Similarly, when an Incarna counts as a Sacred Site, it's still just counts as one Presence.

  While two Presence is enough to make a land a Sacred Site (as suggested by the iconography), the reverse is not true.
  (Discussion elsewhere)  Tags: Sacred Sites, Counts As, Incarna, River's Domain (River Surges in Sunlight), 4 more...
• Can you use an optional “counts as” effect to get an Element marker from Observe the Ever-Changing World? (e.g., by making a Presence count as a Beasts with Settle into Hunting Grounds)
  No, "counts as" effects don't change which pieces are in a land, just which traits those pieces have. A Presence turned into a Presence-Beasts-Badlands by Settle into Hunting Grounds is still the same Presence it always was; it just also counts towards effects that check Badlands and Beasts.
  Tags: Counts As, Incarna, Observe the Ever-Changing World (Shifting Memory of Ages), Shifting Memory of Ages, 1 more...