Observe the Ever Changing World (Shifting Memory of Ages)

Frequently Asked Questions

Aspects

• Does the Bonus space on the Intensify Aspect grant extra Element Markers?
  No, that space works like any other Elements on a Presence Track: Shifting Memory of Ages adds those Elements to its total for the purpose of hitting Elemental thresholds and paying for Choice Events.

  However, the Moon element gives the Intensify Aspect reliable access to at least one Element Marker each turn via "Observe the Ever-Changing World."
  Tags: Bonus Spaces, Elements, Element markers, Intensify Aspect (Shifting Memory of Ages), 1 more...
• Does Deeps flipping Deeps tokens into markers count as changing the pieces in a land for the purpose of Observe the Ever-Changing World?
  Yes, since the Deeps tokens are no longer pieces in the land.

  However, this rarely matters. Reclaimed by the Deeps will almost certainly change the contents of the land anyway by doing at least one of:

  • Destroying the last Towns/Cities
  • Drowning all Explorers/Dahan
  • Pushing all but 2 Deeps
  • Merging into the existing Ocean, if it has any pieces in it.
    Tags: Pieces, Observe the Ever-Changing World (Shifting Memory of Ages), Shifting Memory of Ages, Deeps Aspect (Ocean's Hungry Grasp), 0 more...

Fear and Fear Cards

• At Terror Level 2 and 3, how many actions is Scapegoats? It's very relevant against, eg, Russia Lvl 2.
  One action per land with Towns/Cities - treat it as if it said:

  • Terror 2: In each land with (Town)/(City): Destroy 1 (Explorer) per (Town) and 2 (Explorer) per (City).
  • Terror 3: In each land with (Town)/(City): Destroy all (Explorer). Destroy 1 (Town) per (City).

  A strict reading of the Terror 2 text would be "one action in each land with Towns followed by one action in each land with Cities", which, when it matters at all, is super-fiddly and counter to the card's intent. A strict reading of the Terror 3 text would probably be similar (though there's a case to be made that the Explorer destruction would be a single action total, which is even weirder).
  Tags: Actions, Scapegoats, Tsardom of Russia, Observe the Ever-Changing World (Shifting Memory of Ages), 0 more...

General Play

• If you "move" a piece to where it was (Range 0), does it still trigger effects like Wildfire's Blazing Presence?
  Yes, the piece has still formally moved. It never leaves the land, however, so would not trigger, e.g., Shifting Memory's Observe the Ever-Changing World, because the pieces in the land have not changed.

  Thematically, the piece has moved within the land.

  Note that if you use "add Presence" to instead reposition Presence already on the island (usually because you have run out – sidebar p.14 core rules), that is still considered an "add" rather than a "move".

  The Glossary entry for "move" was written before considering these cases.
  (Discussion elsewhere)  Tags: Repositioning Presence, Move, Blazing Presence (Heart of the Wildfire), Wrap in Wings of Sunlight, 6 more...

Scenarios

• When are Scenario Markers / Element Markers considered pieces?
  Nearly anytime they're placed on the board. The only exception is if they're purely a visual reminder, like in The Great River, or if used to mark Inner Lands for Guard The Isle's Heart. (JE p. 35, "Piece")

  This might be revisited if future content results in weird situations, as some of the cases are kind of borderline (eg: Rituals of the Destroying Flame), but for now the simplicity of "always" wins out.

  Element Markers placed on the board for Elemental Invocation are not considered "pieces" - the first printings of Jagged Earth considered them as pieces that were basically non-interactable (since they're not in any land); it's cleaner to just not count them as pieces at all.
  Tags: Element markers, Pieces, Changed rulings, Despicable Theft, 9 more...

Spirits and Innate Powers

• For Shifting Memory of Ages' innate which lets them prepare element markers: does damaging pieces count? How about adding Strife? Scenario markers?
  Damaging a piece doesn't change which pieces are in the land, so no. Adding Strife adds a new piece, so yes. Scenario markers aren't generally considered pieces, so no.
  Tags: Strife, Element markers, Prepare, Observe the Ever-Changing World (Shifting Memory of Ages), 1 more...
• For Shifting Memory of Ages' innate which lets them prepare element markers: if a single power changes a bunch of things in the target land, can I get multiple element markers?
  No. You can only earn 1 Element Marker per Action, no matter how many changes that Action makes to the land. (Because the rule is phrased as “After X do Y “, it triggers exactly once after each qualifying Action.)
  Tags: Triggered Actions, Actions, Element markers, Prepare, 2 more...
• For Shifting Memory of Ages' innate which lets them prepare element markers, if the pieces in the land change during an Action but end up the same as they were, do you get an Element marker?
  Yes. The pieces in the land change, so the effect triggers.

  The word "After" just signals that you only get the Elements after the first power finishes.
  (Discussion elsewhere)  Tags: Triggered Actions, Element markers, Prepare, Observe the Ever-Changing World (Shifting Memory of Ages), 1 more...
• With Shifting Memory of Ages and the Elemental Invocation scenario, are the Element Markers considered to be in the adjacent lands for the purposes of Observe the Ever-Changing World?
  No - they're not in the land, they're on a corner between lands.
  Tags: Pieces, Element markers, Observe the Ever-Changing World (Shifting Memory of Ages), Elemental Invocation, 0 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...
• When does Observe the Ever-Changing World expire?
  It expires when Time Passes like other effects do. The Element Markers stacked up in in the target land are a reminder of how many more times it can trigger this turn, not an actual change to the board state that persists into future turns.

  All effects in Time Passes expire simultaneously, so if something else causes the pieces to change during Time Passes, Observe the Ever-Changing World does not trigger.
  Tags: Time Passes, Element markers, Observe the Ever-Changing World (Shifting Memory of Ages), Shifting Memory of Ages, 0 more...