Last I checked, I don't believe there is a way to ready attachments. I'm curious if we will ever see a card that readies attachments. Using a single unexpected courage more than once would be nice.

What would such a card look like? Obviously I would imagine it would have to cost 2 or more (if an event) otherwise you can ready Steward over and over again to reap the benefits. And the big question is: how abusable would this be? What kind of flood gates would open if such a card exists?

Some food for thought.

It could be an event so you can't abuse it on Steward or many other possibilities, but it ought still to cost 1 or 2, or some extra cost such as discarding from hand.

I really hope it never shows up. Too many attachments would be ridiculous. I've thought about it for a while and am just glad it doesn't exist. If they do make it an event, there would need to be a way to prevent reuse: making it neutral so the record attachments and Hama can't recycle them would be a decent step, but Will of the West can still do it. I would say it needs to remove itself from the game or go to victory display. I agree it should cost at least 2 so that you gain little by using it with Steward of Gondor.

Even if it was an event, it could prove too powerful IMO. Steward or UC could be abused as well as other cards like silver harp.

Or, imagine Elrond, Vilya and UC. Exhaust the duo to play your top deck card. Then ready Elrond, ready Vilya with the card we speak of and play another top deck by again exhausting. Ridiculous

I tried a couple of custom attachment readying effects. Never felt well.

Well, since we're talking crazy here:

Exquisite Skill

Attachment, 2, Sphereless

Attach to an attachment that is attached to a character in play. Action: Discard Exquisite Skill to ready the attached attachment.

Spark of Eru

Event, 0, Sphereless

Limit 1 per deck. Choose a character in play. Ready that character and an attachment on that character. Remove Spark of Eru from the game.

I think an attachment-readying attachment might be workable with two conditions:

1) It is unique

2) It only works on attachments that are *not* unique.

That way it wouldn't work on Vilya or Steward of Gondor. It would work on Unexpected Courage, but all that's keeping you from having three UC on the same person is buying three core sets and drawing them.

Attach to an attachment that is attached

I feel attached to this idea...

Sorry, couldn't help it

For me the right and thematic way to do it would be to force the downside on the attachment itself - you are overusing it, so it eventually brakes/ceases to function. A 2-cost spirit event (Served to the End seems like an appropraite name for it) that readies an attachment and then discards it at the end of the phase wouldn't be that bad - yes, you can net 2 resources from changing a Steward of Gondor that way, but using 3 cards for such effect won't be that bad from a balance perspective (We Are Not Idle may yield much more for less). Adding the event to the victory display is an option, too.

I like the idea of attachment readying - Vilya is not much of a problem when looked that way - you are giving 4 resources away for that combo, which is pretty much 95% of the allies. Narya seems more broken but still comaprable to other readying effects. It is King Under the Mountain that seems to break with such event, as drawing more cards will most likely help you find the next one, and there are plenty of ways to gain back the resources.

I'M sure that we will see a card, probably an event, that will allow us to trigger the effect of an active attachment from a copy of that attachment that is in our discard pile, or something similar.

That would be nice!

I can tell you from having discussed this with the designers. That is never going to happen. The potential to completely break the game is too great. Sorry to rain on the parade.

You can ready attachments, you just have to get creative and do lots of dumb stuff.

For example, this works in any phase for using that Unexpected Courage again: just discard it with a sneak attack Miner of the Iron Hills, put it in your hand with a sneak attack Erebor Hammersmith, Put it on top of your deck by exhausting Gildor Inglorion, and then use Elrond/Vilya to play it back on the same hero. Now your attachment is ready and fresh as a daisy!

Erebor Hammersmith only triggers when you play him, so Sneak Attacking him doesn't work, alas.

You are correct! In that specific example Dwarven Tomb would work too.

I too think we will not see it in the foreseeable future, and honestly I don't think we need it.

I can tell you from having discussed this with the designers. That is never going to happen. The potential to completely break the game is too great. Sorry to rain on the parade.

I'm not surprised haha. It would have the very real chance to break the game in many ways. But a part of me wants to see one made just to see the crazy combo (infinite?) decks someone can create. One of my favorite things in Magic was figuring out how to go infinite, my friends hated me.

I've thought about this before and I am with those who think it's a bad idea.

Some Things just shouldn't exist. There are few such Things, but readying attachments is one of them. There is a reason why some of them are unique and Need to be exhausted: The potential stuff that could be possible is insane. Even if you word the Card that way that it is not problematic at the release a future Card/multiple futere cards could break it (see horn of gondor: CS Card, errata years later). If a possible "readying" is "allowed" by FFG the attachment either wouldn't be unique or the would be a similar one (see all those hero readying attachments).

I think readying attachments would turn out like having a charater with the text: Does not exhaust to defend (game-breaking).

I think readying attachments would turn out like having a charater with the text: Does not exhaust to defend (game-breaking).

I think you picked a poor example given that hero Beorn does have that text.

I think readying attachments would turn out like having a charater with the text: Does not exhaust to defend (game-breaking).

You mean something like Boromir (The Dead Marshes)? Yup, that would be broken *obvious tasteless sarcasm included*

I just went through the general non-campaign attachments and found just a few that would break the game so hard: Asfaloth, Gandalf Staff, Heir of Valandil, King Under the Mountain, Mirror of Galadirel, O Lórien!, Shadofax(not so much, but I include it anyway), Steward of Gondor, The Day's Rising, Vilya. Well, not a few cards, but first, all of them are uniques and second - if the readying effect removes the attachment from play and costs at least 2 it shouldn't be such a big deal. If the card that allows it is reasonably costed resource-generating or cost reducing attachments won't be an issue either. Card draw and progress tokens however have the potential of breaking the game. Just ready the attachment and state that if it is exhausted by the end of the round, it is removed from play(victory display if needed). There, wasn't that hard.

TL,DR: Multiple readying is not a big issue seeing that we have so many ways to ready characters and Boromir actually exists - threat reduction is not uncommon and is much cheaper per readying for him.

Could be more specific like "Ready a non-unique weapon attachment".

Would let you use it to trigger some of those nice tactics events multiple times; maybe even without being too OP.

I think it's entirely possible to design an attachment-readying effect that wouldn't break the game. Here's one:

Cost 2 Neutral event. Limit 1 per deck. Action: Ready an attachment you control. Remove this card from the game.

It gets you a one-time extra use out of the attachment. Sure, readying something like Vilya for 2 uses in one round is powerful, but not game-breaking or anything. If you had just layed Vilya 1 turn earlier than you did it amounts to a similar effect. In fact, I doubt this card would even get much play.

But something like it could be quite fun. It could make some attachments more interesting. You could use Great Yew Bow twice in 1 round, you could try to engage 2 enemies at separate times during the combat phase to trigger Captain of Gondor twice, you could get a one-time super strong attack with Herugrim, etc.

I can't imagine many attachments, real or imaginary, that are just fine when you use them once but game-breaking if you ever manage to use it twice in one round, once per game.

I can't imagine many attachments, real or imaginary, that are just fine when you use them once but game-breaking if you ever manage to use it twice in one round, once per game.

If limited to 1 per deck it won't be such an interesting option in my opinion, not to mention that you can get extra copies via Message from Elrond. Otherwise that is the general way a restriction should be apllied to prevent abuse.

Besides the design opportunity, I am not that fascinated about such an effect - there are plenty other interesting ideas regarding attachment manipulations that are still untouched and will provide more interesting options - changing attachments between characters, attachments that are really strong, but when used gain resource token and their effect is reduced for every token on them (they are slowly breaking), attachments that automatically enter play when drawn or are discarded if there is no eligible target (which will lead to interesting deck building choices), or even positive attachments intended for the encounter deck (Elf-stone is actually such an attachment - gives a minor bonus to the location in exchange for a powerful effect) - how about giving that orc a sword to boost his attack by 2, but when he is defeated you reduce your threat by 5 or increase the engagmenet cost of other enemies (because enemies have seen your might and are more considerate to fight you).

Those are ideas just quickly assembled and they all seem more interesting than triggering an effect a second time. Beside the Herugrim idea, I like that a lot (but Tactics Eowyn actually makes this a bit redundant ).

Miruvor is an attachment that can essentially recur itself endlessly as long as you have card draw. Even though it's not the most powerful effect, it's pretty fun to use.

I would like to see more Miruvor or Gandalf's Staff type of attachments that have a lot of flexibility. Having to exhaust an attachment and choose between different effects each round adds a healthy amount of decision making to the game, in my opinion. Being greedy and exhausting the Staff for a resource early in the round, and then being burned by a nasty shadow effect later is painfully fun.

I'm starting to change my mind. At first I was a definite no, but now I'm thinking that as long as it is an event that prevents itself from being recycled and has a decent cost, it could definitely be possible to throw into the card pool without too much risk. I'd still prefer to keep a card like that or of Seastan's hands though ;-)