This has been a bit of an annoyance forever, but I'm surprised it wasn't addressed in 2.0. Nowhere on the device upgrade card does it tell you what the device does. Instead, it provides the rules for dropping the device, which are nearly standardized across devices. The player is expected to remember the effects of the devices, or carry the rulebook around.

2.0 now has the Mine and Bomb keywords, which can (and should) entirely replace the text that we currently see on the upgrade cards, leaving room for the rules about detonation.

My proposed mine/bomb cards would look like this:

This leaves us with 2 simple rules that most people probably already know:

MINE:

Mines are a Device Upgrade. During the System Phase, you may spend 1 charge to drop a Mine using the 1-straight template. After a ship overlaps or moves through a Mine, it detonates. Mine Device Upgrades cannot recover charges.

BOMB:

Bombs are a Device Upgrade. During the System Phase, you may spend 1 charge to drop a Bomb using the 1-straight template. At the end of the Activation Phase Bombs detonate.

As you can see, there is even extra space left on the device card for additional effects, conditions, rules, etc. that can be unique to each device. This change standardizes devices and makes it easier to understand the effects, especially since we no longer have bomb reference cards.

TL;DR

The effect of the device detonation should be on the card, and we already have the framework to do it.

Edit:

Thinking about it more, devices are just weird. Imagine if other upgrades didn't have the effect printed on them.

Crack Shot, if it was worded like a Device.

Every upgrade now comes with a rule in the rulebook to reference the effect.

i just printed out the effects descriptions in the reference guide and slipped them in the other side of my my bomb card sleeves.

Great idea I do not like having the bomb reference separate.

some other sleeve-fu:

I print all the errata on label paper and put this on the card sleeve over the corrected text.

I might use those little colored sticker dots to put points on the cards if they are stable enough.

You could probably even print the points pdfs on label paper, cut out the upgrade icon bars, and put those on the sleeves as well.

oh and do the same with the condition cards. just put them reversed in the sleeve with the upgrade or pilot.

I think it would be possible to include iconography like torpedoes and missiles have as well. Include an icon of the template the device uses to drop in order to easily allow for devices that drop with banks, turns, or higher speed maneuver templates.

Your proposed solution just restricted much of the design space with both bombs and mines and also prevented them from modifying the bomb effects easily should they become overpowered.

If you really care, make a label and stick it to your bomb templates with the effects listed.

17 minutes ago, ID X T said:

and also prevented them from modifying the bomb effects easily should they become overpowered.

I suspect this is the primary reason. By not having the effects on the card (which is, indeed, very annoying) they can tweak the effects if need be.

If they do this then they cant change how devices work in the future. No thanks.

i suspect they didnt do this so they can more easily change the effect.

We've had bombs get eratta'd before so its bound to happen again. Clusters went from utter hot garbage to pretty decent in 1.0 thanks to the faq to allow them to cause damage with a crit.

1 hour ago, ID X T said:

Your proposed solution just restricted much of the design space with both bombs and mines and also prevented them from modifying the bomb effects easily should they become overpowered.

If you really care, make a label and stick it to your bomb templates with the effects listed.

1 hour ago, HolySorcerer said:

If they do this then they cant change how devices work in the future. No thanks.

I know what you mean, but this is 2.0. Theoretically they'll be more willing to issue reprints, or errata. Plus points can be adjusted, rather than effects.

54 minutes ago, Vineheart01 said:

i suspect they didnt do this so they can more easily change the effect.

We've had bombs get eratta'd before so its bound to happen again. Clusters went from utter hot garbage to pretty decent in 1.0 thanks to the faq to allow them to cause damage with a crit.

I understand this logic. It's easier to change the effect (which they have done in the past) if the cards don't list their effects. However, why do we have cards in the first place? The primary purpose of an upgrade card is a place to put text that changes the rules and provide additional effects. It only seems normal on devices since we're used to it. Think about how frustrating it would be if more upgrades work this way, for instance:

Crack Shot, if it was worded like a Device. Every upgrade now comes with a rule in the rulebook to reference the effect.

This would be insane, but it's how bombs work right now.

Points can still be adjusted, and errata can still be issued, same as any other card. I don't see any reason devices have to be special.

They errated proxy mines before 2.0 even launched.

If FFG was smart, one of their "everyone gets one" promo cards will be a card saying what the devices do. If they need a change, print a new card and give them out to everyone.

As is, you need to go digging in a rule book to figure it out. Changing what the device does is fair, but at least give people a convenient way to know what it does.

7 hours ago, Mep said:

As is, you need to go digging in a rule book to figure it out. Changing what the device does is fair, but at least give people a convenient way to know what it does.

That's my big thing there isn't a quick reference for it. You need the sheet from the conversion kit or to go to page twenty in the online reference guide. That page should be at least its own download under "Support" on the product page where you go to get the rules ref. and rulebook, and points lists.

And they did actually print the thing in the conversion kits. There isn't a reason why there can't be some other easy to get version. That last page of the printed rulebook with the quick reference could have been its own sheet with the bombs on the other side.

4 hours ago, Frimmel said:

That's my big thing there isn't a quick reference for it. You need the sheet from the conversion kit or to go to page twenty in the online reference guide. That page should be at least its own download under "Support" on the product page where you go to get the rules ref. and rulebook, and points lists.

And they did actually print the thing in the conversion kits. There isn't a reason why there can't be some other easy to get version. That last page of the printed rulebook with the quick reference could have been its own sheet with the bombs on the other side.

Agreed. It's just so strange to me that 2.0 came around and they had the perfect opportunity to clean up the design for devices, but it's actually slightly worse . Don't get me wrong, I really like that they separated bombs and mines formally, and the rules in general seem cleaner, but there's no way I can remember all of the different bombs effects without a reference. Devices are the only reason I need to carry around the rulebook right now. Printed reference cards would be better, but it still only solves a problem that shouldn't really exist in the first place.