Dark Charm rules question

By HavocDreams, in Descent: Journeys in the Dark

I have a question about Dark Charm.

If I cast Dark Charm on a hero and move that hero on Lava/Hazard, is hero then knocked out? (Since I use hero as a monster in OL turn.)

If that hero is still on the Lava space AT THE END OF HIR TURN, then ze is defeated.

So no, what you describe doesn't defeat the hero. But the hero will take one damage each time ze enters a lava space, which could be enough to kill hir.

Edited by Indalecio

I have a question about Dark Charm.

If I cast Dark Charm on a hero and move that hero on Lava/Hazard, is hero then knocked out? (Since I use hero as a monster in OL turn.)

No, because the hero does not end its turn , that is, its own turn, in lava. It does, however, take damage, since it's entering a lava space.

Want to have fun? Move them into Lava and Immobilize them.

Got an answer from Nathan today!

As I anticipated, dark-charmed heroes cannot spend valor tokens via skills performed by a "hero". Thus, a dark-charmed hero attacking himself cannot use Glory of Battle to generate an additional shield. Keep in mind that the hero is still allowed to use a physical shield he has eqipped.

Unfortunately, we got no overall ruling how to deal with passive abilities of dark-charmed heroes. However, Nathan confirmed that the skirmisher's Unstoppable cannot be used by the OL. His answer indicates that as soon as a decision by the hero (e.g. as in an ability including a "may") is involved in the effect, OL cannot use it. Not too bad for a general guideline.

I recently researched the overlord card Dark Charm that had been subject to a number of support questions in the past. To help players to deal with rules associated, I restructured and updated the unofficial FAQ wiki at BGG, which should now include most recent rules for Dark Charm (see https://boardgamegeek.com/wiki/page/Descent_Second_Edition_Unofficial_FAQ#toc64 ). However, I could not find anything on these topics:

1. Can a dark-charmed hero attacking himself spend valor tokens for his defence rolls through Glory of Battle?
I think not, as he is treated as a monster for this attack.

2. Does a dark-charmed Stalker hero attacking himself (or other heroes) benefit from an adjacent trap token (using Set Trap) during his attack roll?

3. The rules for using "passive" hero abilities or "passive" effects from items are difficult to grasp. In general, passive effects (Brute, Inscribe Rune, Runic Knowledge, etc.) are active on dark-charmed heroes. However, e.g. Skirmishers' "Unstoppable" has been judged to be inactive (OL is not allowed to reroll dice). Could you please try to give a general guideline for players, how to deal with passive effects of dark-charmed heroes?


Thanks for the link, it was helpful to reread all of the many things we’ve said about this card over the years :P

1. Because Glory of Battle instructs that a “hero” may spend the valor token, the not-hero cannot spend the valor token.

2. Yes, a stalker adjacent to a trap would automatically gain the +1 damage. There is not choice and it does not require a hero—it’s just a thing that happens.

3 . I can speak specifically to the Unstoppable — the Skirmisher “may” change the result. It is not an automatic effect, so it is not passive.

If there are other specific combinations of effects that you would like me to clarify, let me know.

Thanks,

Nathan Hajek
Game Developer
Fantasy Flight Games

Edited by HavocDreams