Bully rules issue

[JasonJ2 0]

Simple one - does the wording of Bully's wild flare allow a choice of two options selected by the user, or a choice of two options selected by the victim?

 

Choice by user is most strongly suggested by the wording (I read nothing there indicating that the victim gets a choice), but also makes option two highly unlikely to see use.

 

Choice by victim is suggested only by one of our gaming group (who is insisting on using a previous edition by another publisher as a guide), but makes option one highly unlikely to see use.

 

Exact wording from the card:

"As a main player, when your opponent reveals a negotiate card, you may force that player to either immediately give you a colony on a planet of your choice where he or she has a ship or else lose two ships of his or her choice to the warp. Cards changed to negotiate cards (such as by Emotion Control) still trigger this effect."

 

If it were worded "force that player to immediately give... or else lose two ships", then it would unequivocally be an extortion with a choice (do this, or else that).

 

The "you may force that player to either" that is actually printed, though, makes it a choice connected to the user.

[Just_a_Bill 84]

The victim, according to the position of the word "either" in the sentence structure.

• "Force that player to either x or y" is victim's choice.
• "Either force that player to x or force that player to y" would have been user's choice.

This is also preferable from a game balance standpoint.

[Kobold Curry Chef 30]

Bill is correct.  Drilling down into the choices even further if the victim chooses to give a colony, the Bully-Flare-playing-dude then gets to choose which plaent.  If the victim chooses to lose ships, the victim chooses which ships.