Can I choose to lose zero cards or zero resources if that is how many I have of the respective...thingies.

Sure can.

Ouch!

Punisher cards are almost always deceptively bad, and this one is right up there. The most you can count on is 2 resources, maybe, if you're going first. The alternative is to deprive your opponent of their hand, which isn't all that powerful when you factor in the re-draw up to your hand size (usually five). There's a corner case where this might be good, but villain mill isn't reallly a thing just yet. You're basically either trading resources - 2 for 2 - or taking away their ability to re-roll for a turn. Neither of those warrant the resource or opportunity cost.

Yeah I used X-wing logic to justify it (That you can spend a focus token to convert any number of dice, including zero). Overall if I can't force someone to lose all resources when their hand is empty (which won't be much anyway because they likely spent lots of resources to get to that point unless they reroll lots) or dump their whole hand if they have no resources (A more likely possibility), I don't see the value of this card.

This card is a counter to expensive supports or upgrades. 4 costers or higher.

When you see your opponent pass on using their 2 resources one round and have 4 resources or more the next round that's when you play this card. Now they have to lose the high cost support or upgrade in hand, or lose the ability to play it that round and most likely another round by losing their resources.

It also effectively makes it so less shenanigans can happen. If they have no resources there are plenty of cards you don't have to worry about, and if they don't have any cards, there is no surprise that can happen.

I've used it effectively plenty of times.

My opponent claims the battlefield. I finish up my turn collecting 3 resources for a total of five. The next turn, I draw my Falcon! First time in 4 games, I am finally going to play the Falcon!!! I am freaking pumped.

My opponent plays Abandon All Hope...

The card name said it all...

Cards that are either extremely situational or possess large variance in reliability are almost never a good competitive choice. There are better things you can be doing with two resources at every point in the game, "but this happened once" stories notwithstanding.

My opponent claims the battlefield. I finish up my turn collecting 3 resources for a total of five. The next turn, I draw my Falcon! First time in 4 games, I am finally going to play the Falcon!!! I am freaking pumped.

My opponent plays Abandon All Hope...

The card name said it all...

Lessons learned: play cheaper cards. Camping resources and/or cards is generally a very bad idea in this game.

Cards that are either extremely situational or possess large variance in reliability are almost never a good competitive choice. There are better things you can be doing with two resources at every point in the game, "but this happened once" stories notwithstanding.

My opponent claims the battlefield. I finish up my turn collecting 3 resources for a total of five. The next turn, I draw my Falcon! First time in 4 games, I am finally going to play the Falcon!!! I am freaking pumped.

My opponent plays Abandon All Hope...

The card name said it all...

Lessons learned: play cheaper cards. Camping resources and/or cards is generally a very bad idea in this game

It will all depend on the meta, and of course your built deck.

Even if its just you using two resources to deprive your opponent of two resources depending on your build, that could be exactly what you want. In a pure damage build you are more about what upgrades you have and dice in your pool,, the less your opponent can do to your own dice the better chance you have to get that damage out.

Aslo, you said "You're basically either trading resources - 2 for 2 - or taking away their ability to re-roll for a turn. Neither of those warrant the resource or opportunity cost."

No, that's not all that is happening and can easily warrant the resource cost and can easily allow you more opportunities. In either case, if they choose resources, you are stopping them from being able to play upgrades, or dice manipulation cards that cost resources, or if they discard their hand, then they cant do anything but play their own dice. Not just stopping them from discarding to reroll. If they discard their hand, You have so much more freedom with your moves that round. (They would of course be dumb if they discarded their hand if it was just to save two resources (for most scenarios anyways.)

As well as, if they do end up still being able to stop you with resource needed cards, they would of had to use other cards, or their dice to gain those resources, which means that round was not so effective for them either.

Now if they have supports out that grant them easy access to resources, it wouldn't be the best time to play the card.

Now im not saying it should be in all decks, but that's the beauty of this game, the variety and surprises that can be in the deck. Most ppl don't run this card. Uh oh, Surprise!

You can much more reliably force someone to discard or lose resources with your dice, and that doesn't occupy 2/30 of your deck. Cards, and especially resources, are so finite that if you're playing a grindy control deck you probably have everything you already need without having to pay for AAH.

You can much more reliably force someone to discard or lose resources with your dice, and that doesn't occupy 2/30 of your deck. Cards, and especially resources, are so finite that if you're playing a grindy control deck you probably have everything you already need without having to pay for AAH.

If your "cards and resources, are so finite" maybe your opponent's are as well? Abandon all hope dies a very nice job of messing with them.

In the right situation the card is devestating.

I did mean that your opponent's cards and resources are finite; there's a terminal limit on how effective it is for you to tinker with them. Say you roll either 2 discard on Count Dooku or 2 disrupt on Jabba. Do you still play AAH?

I don't know what your experience with Destiny is so far, but 95% of the turns begin like this: spend your resources for an upgrade, activate the character that upgrade is attached to, and then resolve dice (prioritizing damage, unless you can disrupt/discard). There's a reason why aggro decks with < 3-resource upgrades seem to be the most viable right now; it's because the only thing you can count on are those 2 resources you're guaranteed every turn. So assuming that you have a competent opponent, where and when are you getting value out of AAH?

Honestly, there's only one scenario where I see you coming out ahead with AAH, and that's on a turn where you're going first and both your opponent and you have 3+ resources. Even then, if I'm your opponent I'm just going to sacrifice my resources, roll all my dice, and use the now unplayable cards in my hand to re-roll as many of those dice as I like. Spending two of your resources to stall me from playing cards in my hand for a turn is hardly neutering my ability to interact and deal damage, and only wins you the race if you have enough of your own resources to play other cards yourself, otherwise it's just as much of a dead turn for you. Until villain mill becomes a thing, at any rate.

I think you're looking at it in the wrong way. Abandon All Hope is an answer to a question the game doesn't yet ask. What happens when they print more expensive supports or upgrades? What happens if a consistent Poe deck arises that builds to a powerful vehicle on the board very quickly? We don't have to worry about that currently due to the limited number of vehicles and limited resource generation. Abandon All Hope is just a preemptive answer to a deck type that could dominate the format under the correct circumstances. We don't know what the future holds.

It isn't worth the deck slots in the emerging format, but just because it is situational doesn't mean it doesn't deserve a deck slot ever. Every situational card can still be used as fodder for rerolls, meaning no card in the deck is completely useless.