*Spoiler* Excess County Express question

[Seam 60]

Sorry, if this was asked already.

Locations say something along the line: discard cards with at least 2 "Book" symbols, if you don't and so on.

Can I use "?" cards as substitutions for the "Book" cards?

Thanks.

[General Zodd 459]

I think you could, then they decided you couldn't, then I think they've decided you could again. So I think you can use ? icons. Check the FAQ, it's downloadable for free from the player resources section of the product page for AHLCG.

[Aaron Foss 500]

Short answer: yes.

Slightly longer answer: Until the most recent FAQ (a month or two ago) no, but the designers rightfully saw that it was foolish and not very good design to contradict what whas obviously the intuitive answer, so they changed the rule to match expectations rather than fighting human nature.

Hot tip to game designers everywhere: if you have a rule that players constantly get wrong because it makes more sense the 'wrong' way, change the rule.

[General Zodd 459]

2 minutes ago, General Zodd said:

I think you could, then they decided you couldn't, then I think they've decided you could again. So I think you can use ? icons. Check the FAQ, it's downloadable for free from the player resources section of the product page for AHLCG.

Edit; Just checked, it's under section 1.9 in the FAQ, you can use Wild icons to resolve card abilities as well as skill tests. There you go!

[Radix2309 355]

Can you use other icons for the wild location?

[Jobu 720]

12 hours ago, Aaron Foss said:

Short answer: yes.

Slightly longer answer: Until the most recent FAQ (a month or two ago) no, but the designers rightfully saw that it was foolish and not very good design to contradict what whas obviously the intuitive answer, so they changed the rule to match expectations rather than fighting human nature.

Hot tip to game designers everywhere: if you have a rule that players constantly get wrong because it makes more sense the 'wrong' way, change the rule.

I actually found the original ruling more intuitive than the ruling currently in the FAQ.  I can't be the only one in that does so, the card is pretty unambiguous using the verbiage of "icon(s)".  Also, its pretty clear from the rules rulebook that a wild icon was different from a matching icon when the game was printed.  (page 26 "...is either one that matches the skill being tested, or a wild icon.)

That being said, the ruling also dovetails nicely into Minh's weakness, which is what I think drove the ruling.  Minhs weakness would be crippling if this ruling was not in place and its better to have an investigator function and one scenario slightly easier than the other way around. 

Follow up question: if you can spend a wild card symbol for any specific symbol, could you spend any specific symbol for a wild card symbol?  I would have originally said no, but with the ruling,  I can't tell anymore.

Edited July 22, 2017 by Jobu

[Buhallin 4,563]

If something requires a wild icon, I think it has to be a wild.  A wild can be anything (and hence satisfy the requirement for anything), but that does not mean anything satisfies the need for a wild.

Or put in poker terms: Just because aces are wild doesn't mean any other card can count as an ace.

[BD Flory 695]

On ‎7‎/‎22‎/‎2017 at 1:59 PM, Jobu said:

Follow up question: if you can spend a wild card symbol for any specific symbol, could you spend any specific symbol for a wild card symbol?  I would have originally said no, but with the ruling,  I can't tell anymore.

The FAQ is pretty specific that you can use wild skill icons on player cards as any symbol for resolving tests or card abilities. It doesn't allow you to treat other icons as wilds, or wild icons in the text of abilities as other symbols.

So the wild requirement on the passenger car can only be fulfilled with a wild.