Spirit Phase
Frequently Asked Questions
For instance, Downpour Drenches the World could choose its second growth option (which has 2 "Add a Presence" icons), add 1 Presence to uncover a "Move Presence 1" space, use the Move 1 to shift a Presence, then place a second Presence from the new position. Or Many Minds Move as One could gain Energy with its 3rd Growth option, then use it to gain a Power Card before deciding where to place Presence.
If you have a Growth option which lets place two Presence, can you chain them, placing the second one within range of the first one?
Yes, you can do this. In general, after you choose a Growth option, you do everything under that option, in any order you wish.
(p. 8)
(Discussion elsewhere) Tags: Presence, Growth, Thunderspeaker, Lightning's Swift Strike, 1 more...
The sequence of events for adding Presence during growth, you
- Choose a land to add Presence to. This must be measured from your Presence on the board at that moment.
- Add a Presence to that land.
The only rules constraints are that each individual Spirit must Grow / Gain Energy / Play Power Cards in that order, and that all Spirits must complete the Spirit Phase before anyone starts resolving Fast Powers. [p. 8] Other than that, players play simultaneously and may confer as they wish, so for instance, one Spirit could plan out their whole turn before another decides which Growth they're taking, or two Spirits gaining Power Cards could base their decisions on what to keep based on each others' draws. How lenient you are about individual Spirits rewinding - eg, going back to choose a different Growth option - is ultimately a playgroup decision, but most people seem to be fine with it so long as you're not rewinding "gain a Power Card".
How does one move Presence during Growth?
When a Growth choice says "Move Presence" (with a curved arrow), move one of your Presence up to the shown number of lands away from where it currently lies. When the Growth option says "Add Presence", but instead of adding from your Presence track you choose to add one already on the board
(per the p. 14 sidebar), you can take it from anywhere. (This is still considered "adding a Presence", not "moving a Presence"; later reprints of the rulebook use the term
repositioning.)
Usually, there's no downside: Reclaiming, gaining Energy/Power Cards, and adding Presence are strictly good. (You can always move a Presence already on the island when adding Presence [p. 14], so "running out" isn't a concern.) Spirits with "Move a Presence up to Range N" Growth effects can Move it 0. However, a few Spirits do include things you'll have to work around - eg:
- Ocean's Hungry Grasp often requires you to Push or Gather Presence;
- Heart of the Wildfire often adds Blight along with Presence, so being required to add Presence can be dangerous.
If you can't do something in a Growth option, you do as much as you can and skip the rest. (Eg: if you're supposed to Push Presence from each Ocean, and there's a board where none of your Presence is in the Ocean, you don't Push on that board.)
This holds true even if you're restricted on which Elements you can choose (e.g., Wounded Waters Bleeding having a "Water / Animal" space instead of a full "Any"). [Nature Incarnate rulebook p. 9]
