Are the ancient ones that make you pass a check or discard a monster/gate/clue/etc. kill you even if you can discard the respective thing, but it is your last? For example, You fail the check against Shub and discard a monster trophy, but that was your last trophy. Are you devoured? I'm pretty sure you do, and this is how I played so far, but it doesn't feel right. Have I been playing wrong?

From what I remember, these AOs state that any investigator without X is devoured, so if you gave up your last X due to a failed check, you are then devoured. Think of these items in the same terms as Sanity or Stamina -- when you lose that last point of Stamina, you are at 0, and devoured. When Shub eats your last monster trophy you are at 0, and devoured (and it thanks you for the appetizers).

That is the way how I play. If you spend your last clue token during battle with Nyarlathotep, you will not be devoured until his attack (regardless of if you pass or fail the defense check).

My group has been debating this as well. Their Start of Battle usually specifies that they are devoured if they have none at that point, but not if you loose your last. We usually play that you are devoured if you cannot discard the required amount. I believe one of the Epic Battle cards led us to that ruling, but I can't remember for certain.

There are only three that use this phrasing I think - Nyarlathotep, Shub-Niggurath and Yog-Sothoth.

The wording is: "Each investigator must pass a [blank] (+1) check or lose 1 [token/trophy]. Any investigator with no [token/trophy type] left is devoured. This check's modifier decreases by 1 every etc. etc."

That seems to imply that the devouring takes place simultaneously with the attack, or takes place 'after' the check is made. If it takes place after the check is made, then obviously anyone who has just discarded their last trophy is a goner. But if the clause is meant to sort of 'replace' the attack for anyone who has no trophies left, then you'd get the extra turn. So...now I'm actually more confused than I was before.

Surely this MUST have come up before and be in an FAQ somewhere? If not, can someone get Commissioner Gordon to switch on the Kev-Signal?

thecorinthian said:

I'm pretty sure that when you discard your last thing you're devoured, otherwise it should have said "Each investigator must pass a [blank] (+1) check or lose 1 [token/trophy]. Investigators that can't discard the [token/trohpy] are devoured.

The "pass check or discard" and "devoured when at 0" are two different sentences. I don't see anything to suggest that they are codependent—only that one follows the other. If you have 0 clue tokens immediately after passing or failing Nyar's Lore check, you're devoured.

That's how I feel anyway. This has come up a number of times, and I hope it's addressed in the FAQ.