Matches

Frequently Asked Questions

Adversaries

• Does making Explorers not participate in Ravage (e.g., with Lure of the Deep Wilderness) prevent "Competition Among Hunters" (The Tsardom of Russia Level 3) from causing Ravages?
  Yes.

  Since "Competition Among Hunters" modifies which lands match Ravage Cards, it only checks for Explorers that are participating in Ravage.
  (Discussion elsewhere)  Tags: Do not participate in Ravage, Ravage, Matches, Enthrall the Foreign Explorers (Lure of the Deep Wilderness), 5 more...
• When Fortune-Seekers modifies the Salt Deposits card against the Habsburg Mining Expedition, which lands match the Explore Card?
  The ones without Towns/Cities.

  “Non-Mining lands” is a printed land type on the Salt Deposits card, even if it’s not a standard one, so it gets replaced by the condition from Fortune-Seekers.
  Tags: Matches, Explore, Fortune-Seekers, Habsburg Mining Expedition, 0 more...
• When the Ravage Card is Salt Deposits, does "Farmers Seek the Dahan for Aid" cause it to Build in Mining lands, Ravage in Mining lands, or Build in non-Mining lands?
  Build in Mining lands.

  Which lands the Salt Deposits card matches is determined by the space it’s in on the Invader Board, so it always matches Mining lands in the Ravage space. "Farmers Seek the Dahan for Aid" then turns the Salt Deposits card into a Build Card. Since "Ceaseless Mining" only affects the Build Step, Invaders thus only Build during this rather unusual Ravage Step.
  Tags: Action Modifiers, Ravage, Matches, Farmers Seek the Dahan for Aid, 1 more...
• What does "Escalation ignores S" on Habsburg Mining Expedition level 4 mean?
  The Mining Tunnels Escalation checks terrains, and neither "Mining land" nor "non-Mining land" are terrains.

  Similarly, Mining Tunnels will ignore the "Coastal Lands" Invader Card at Levels 0-3. The Fortification Event works similarly.
  Tags: Terrain, Matches, Habsburg Mining Expedition
• Does a Build have to happen for Habsburg Monarchy (Livestock Colony) Level 1 to Gather Towns?
  No, there is always a Build Step, so the Level 1 "Migratory Herders" effect still Gathers Towns into every matching land, even if a Build Action didn't happen there because there were no Invaders present or because the Build Action was explicitly skipped.
  Tags: Build Step, Skipping Actions, Matches, Habsburg Monarchy (Livestock Colony), 0 more...
• What does "in board/land order" mean for Habsburg Monarchy (Livestock Colony) Level 1?
  It specifies exactly what order lands Gather Towns in: any relevant lands on Board A resolves first (starting with the lowest-numbered land matching a Build card and going up), then Board B, etc. On the thematic boards, go in "reading order" of left to right, top to bottom: NW, NE, W, E, SW, and finally SE.

  You go by order of lands to Gather in to. As usual, they can come from any adjacent land, including on another board.

  The primary motivation for this rule is speed of play – if it's not in a deterministic order, it usually doesn't matter much, but occasionally it really does, and searching for those cases and choosing the precise ordering of lands can slow the whole process down.

  If you want to handle all boards simultaneously for further speed, you can, so long as you avoid Gathering Towns that an earlier land might Gather.
  (Discussion elsewhere)  Tags: Ordering, Thematic map, Matches, Habsburg Monarchy (Livestock Colony), 0 more...

Definitions

• What does it mean that a land "matches" an Invader card? Most places, it seems to mean "has the land type shown on the card" and nothing else, but the Notes on England (p. 27 JE) use it differently.
  The p. 27 note on England (first JE printing) is incorrect – all "match" means is "matches the land type shown on the card". Limitations from the Invader Action are separate.

  The England example should instead say, "Invader Build Cards affect matching lands without Invaders if they are adjacent to at least 2 (town)/(city)".
  (Discussion elsewhere)  Tags: Invader deck, Matches, Build, Kingdom of England, 0 more...

Event Cards

• Can the "3 or fewer Towns/Cities" effect of "Bureaucrats Adjust Funding" cause a Build Action in a land without Invaders?
  Yes, and the resulting Build Action will usually Build a Town in that land.

  "Bureaucrats Adjust Funding" only checks if the land matches the Build Card, not if it contains Invaders. This is different from "Pour Time Sideways," which checks where Invader Cards are already creating Invader Actions.
  Tags: Build Cards, Matches, Bureaucrats Adjust Funding, Pour Time Sideways (Fractured Days Split the Sky), 1 more...
• Exactly where does Fortune-Seekers cause exploration?
  The Explore card will be considered to match every land without Towns/Cities. It does not override the usual rules about sources of Explorers.

  So (if nothing else happens) it will explore every land that has no Towns or Cities and is either Coastal or adjacent to a Town or City.

  Note also that the subsequent Build and Ravage effects are not modified.
  Tags: Matches, Fortune-Seekers

Invader Actions

• What happens when multiple Invader Cards are in the same space on the Invader Board? (e.g., due to Explorers are Reluctant)
  In the corresponding step of the Invader Phase, resolve each card one at a time, starting with the oldest card – the one closest to the Invader Board. When Invader Cards advance at the end of the Invader Phase, the cards move together. [B&C p. 14, JE p. 11]

  Each card separately determines where it creates Invader Actions. If a land matches multiple cards, it can thus get an Invader Action from each one! Clarifications for specific actions:

  • Ravage: Defend applies separately to each Ravage. Only add Blight if a single Ravage deals 2+ Damage to the land. In the uncommon case that a Ravage created by the first card adds or moves Invaders, it can change which lands Ravage due to the second card.
  • Build: Towns/Cities added by the first Build Card affect what is built in that land by the second Build Card.
  • Explore: Pieces added by the first Explore Card can be sources for the second Explore Card, though this only matters if something makes an Explore Action add Towns/Cities or allows Explorers to be sources.

  Anything effect that checks which lands match the Invader Cards in a particular space (e.g., the Hard-Working Settlers Event) or the terrains showing on those cards (e.g., the Fortification Event), checks all of those cards. (It generally won't matter how many times those lands match or those terrains appear, just if they do.)
  Tags: Invader deck, Matches, Tsardom of Russia, Surges of Colonization, 6 more...
• I'm confused - when do restrictions like "there must be Invaders" for Build and "there must be a source of Explorers" for Explore apply?
  Those apply when resolving Invader Cards – specifically, when making a list of what lands are affected by the Invader Card (JE rulebook p. 27)

  If an Event tells you to perform a single Build action – e.g., "On Each Board: Build in a land with Dahan" – don't check whether that land has Invaders.

  But if it tells you to resolve an entire Build Step / Build Card for a particular terrain, it works just like it would if you had a physical card – you're making a list of which lands match and will be affected, so the normal Build/Explore restrictions apply. The Events "Fortification" and "New Cash Crops Take Hold" work this way (and do not usually build in empty lands), though it's not how they're phrased. (See the Errata in the JE rulebook p. 27)
  Tags: Build, Explore, Ravage, Events, 3 more...
• When a Ravage changes which pieces are in other lands, can that cause additional Ravages from the current Ravage Card?
  No. Determine which lands Ravage before resolving any of those Ravages. A land with no Invaders at this point won't Ravage even if Invaders are later added or moved there. However:

  • If a land already has Invaders participating in Ravage, the new Invaders also participate in that Ravage. Depending on how well the land is Defended and how many Dahan are present, this could be good (more Invaders destroyed in the counterattack) or bad (the Ravage now adds Blight from the extra Damage). You can resolve the two Ravages in whichever order is more advantageous.
  • If there's another Ravage Card this turn, that card can now cause Ravages in any matching lands that are no longer empty.

  This applies both to lands that "naturally" match the Ravage Card (e.g., a Jungle when the Ravage Card is Sands+Jungles) and to lands that match the Ravage Card due to an extra effect (e.g., lands with 3+ Explorers against the Tsardom of Russia Level 3+). Thus, for instance, against the Tsardom of Russia level 3+, if a Ravage pushes an Explorer by the Level 2 effect "A Sense for Impending Disaster", it can't cause a Ravage to happen by the Level 3 effect "Competition Among Hunters" from the same card, but can cause a Ravage from a following Ravage Card added by the Level 5 effect "Entrench in the Face of Fear."

  Explore and Build Cards work similarly, albeit without the concern around the amount of Damage.
  (Discussion elsewhere)  Tags: Ravage, Ordering, Do not participate in Ravage, Matches, 4 more...
• If a land matches an Invader Card multiple ways – eg, if the Stage III Jungle + Wetland comes up and "Weave Together the Fabric of Place" has been used to merge a Jungle with a Wetland – does it perform that action multiple times?
  No. Invader Cards check "what lands match the land type(s) printed on me and are affected by the rules for the current action?", then perform that action once in each matching land.
  Tags: Invader deck, Land Types, Matches, Weave Together the Fabric of Place, 0 more...

Play Options

• When combining the two Habsburg Adversaries, when does Migratory Herders (Livestock Colony Level 1) Gather check which lands match the Salt Deposits card (Mining Expedition Level 4)?
  Migratory Herders checks which lands match (i.e., non-Mining lands) after the Build Step is over. Builds in the non-Mining Lands might turn them into Mining Lands before Towns are Gathered, reducing the number of lands where Migratory Herders does anything. The list of lands that will be Gathered into is fixed at this point, before any Gathers happen.

  However, which lands can be gathered from, the lands that don't match (i.e., Mining lands) is checked when actually Gathering the Town, so it's possible to Gather a Town into a non-Mining land to turn that land into a Mining land, and then Gather that Town into the next non-Mining land.

  Tags: Combining Adversaries, Matches, Timing, Habsburg Monarchy (Livestock Colony), 1 more...

Power Cards

• If Weave Together the Fabric of Place joins lands from two different boards, what happens if an effect skips an entire Invader Card on one of those boards? (e.g., "Dream of the Untouched Land")
  The land can still match the Invader Card due to being on the other board.

  In cases where multiple boards can be protected, like sacrificing Presence to "New Cash Crops Take Hold," the land is only protected if both boards are skipped.
  Tags: Matches, Weave Together the Fabric of Place, Dream of the Untouched Land, New Cash Crops Take Hold, 0 more...

Spirits and Innate Powers

• Do Adversary effects based on lands (e.g., the loss condition of the Kingdom of England) work in The Endless Dark?
  No, The Endless Dark is not a land for Adversaries.

  In particular:

  • The Kingdom of England can't count The Endless Dark as a "Proud and Mighty Capital" to cause a loss.
  • The Habsburg Monarchy (Livestock Colony) can't make Towns Durable there with "Herds Thrive in Verdant Lands."
  • The Habsburg Mining Expedition can't match The Endless Dark with its Salt Deposits card, nor can Russia match The Endless Dark to a Ravage Card via "Competition Among Hunters."

  However, Towns in The Endless Dark are still not available to be placed against the Kingdom of France.
  Tags: Matches, Victory and Defeat, The Endless Dark (Breath of Darkness Down Your Spine), Kingdom of England, 3 more...