Hi all,

My friends and I are relatively new to Talisman, and have been enjoying it very much. Recently, we came across a situation in a two-person game that has us stumped. I was curious to see how others would resolve it.

One player (the warrior) has made it to the crown of command, while the other player is still in the outer region (the cleric). The cleric pulled a poltergeist, limiting her movement to one space per turn. She then pulled the cathedral card. Basically, the cleric can just move from the cathedral, to the adjacent space, then back to the cathedral indefinitely to regain her life. Obviously, no one wants to play this way for the next few hours. Are there any loopholes here that could allow either player to resolve this situation? Does this mean the game should end in a draw, or should the victory go to the one at the crown of command?

Thanks!

What is the adjacent space?

This stalemate with the Poltergeist is as old as Talisman itself. It can happen with a good Character + Poltergeist + Chapel, or with any character with Poltergeist combined with Healer or with Poltergeist + Prince/Princess while adjacent to the Castle. With the expansions, the number of these situations can only increase.

If the character to the Crown has no ways to gain Spells and try to break the stalemate from afar, he can't force the opponent out of the game. The character with Poltergeist may lose the Poltergeist , or the healing place might be moved/destroyed if he draws cards while going back and forth, but chances are tiny and usually nobody cares to see if it ever happens. He might as well slowly increase his stats and become stronger than the character on the Crown, thus being able to reach and beat him. To know exactly you would have to play it through, but that's nonsense.

Some forum users have proposed that a character who's not actively doing anything to win should lose the game. This is a fair way to resolve stalemates like this, even though there are no official instructions to follow.

I was in a similar situation and built up my stats.

I got to the crown, losing the poltergeist in the process.

Didn't win the game though...