Ok, since Hyperspace-Season is running and you're seeing a lot of TIE-Swarms based around Iden Versio lately´: Lets try to figure out what she 's (edited that: thanks to magnus grendel) capable off, and what not.

Ok, lets get the basics first:

A) Her ability can only be used on TIE-Fighters (not on TIE-Interceptors, -Advanced or anything else)

B) She can use her ability to protect herself (since it works on range 0 and doesnt say "another friendly ship")

C) She says "before [...] would suffer [...] damage. This means her ability doesn't only apply on damage from attacks, but basically can trigger on any game-effect, that makes you suffer 1 or more damage.

You could use her when you've overlapped an obstacle (and rolled a hit/crit). You could use her when you've got hit by a bomb. Or you could even use her when you have to roll for the effect of console-fire and the result would let you suffer a damage.

Think everybody would agree until this point, right?

Then lets go to more advanced stuff:

D) Iden's exact timing-frame (during attacks): So...when do you have to decide if you gonna use her ability or not?
In my opinion you have to use her at the beginning of "step 5" of the "perform an attack" step. (see rules-reference, page 4+5).
This is where this is going to happen:

Quote

5. Deal Damage: If the attack hits, the defender suffers damage for each uncanceled hit/crit ⁧ ⁨ result in the following order:

a. The defender suffers 1 damage for each uncanceled hit result.Then cancel all hit results.

b. The defender suffers 1 critical damage for each uncanceled critical result. Then cancel all critical results.

⁨ Ok...so basically you are rolling attack- and defense-dice first (using all modifications as usual). Then you are neutralizing results (where the attacker has to decide if he uses crackshot and similar stuff). Then Idens ability kicks in prior/at the beginning of the "deal damage" step. Agreed?

E) How does Iden Versio interact with Ion-Weapons?

Since she's not cancelling the results, but only prevents you to suffer the damage it has to be assumed, that the ionization-effect would still apply on the target, even though it doesn't take the damage from the attack.

F) How does Iden Versio interact with critical damage from attacks?
So, based on our observations at D): Does the defending player get to see the faceup-damage-cards he would have to suffer from an attack, before his decision about Iden Versios ability?

An not so uncommon example: Your average Rebel-Proton-Torpedo-attack generates hit hit hit crit - TIE-Fighter is able to evade 2 of these.
So he would have to suffer a hit and a crit. Now it's kind of a gamble, right? A direct hit might kill the poor TIE-Fighter - but can the Iden-player take a look at the faceup damage-card first`?

I would assume he couldn't because he has to decide at the beginning of step 5, as seen above. But I think people might have different opinions about that?

Ok, now last but not least. The question for all the pros and rules-lawyers out there:

G) Does a "direct hit" create a new opportunity for Idens ability?

Ok, for now lets assume my ruling on F) is correct: Iden-player decides not to use Idens ability and suffer a hit and a crit instead. He flips up the 2nd damage-card and, well you guessed it: it's a direct hit of course. D'oh!
So, he missed his opportunity and can't prevent the first 2 damage cards. But lets take a closer look at the direct hit:

Since the direct hit says "suffer 1 damage" -> can Iden intervene here and prevent that last damage from being applied?
It would be kind of a waste, cause you only prevented 1 damage, while you could have avoided all 3 of them.
BUT: Your poor little TIE-Fighter is still alive, and that's what matters, right?

Do you think that's correct`? What would be your ruling on this? How about if you compare the damage from the direct hit to the one you might suffer from a console fire?

Do you feel like a FAQ is needed for some of the points mentioned above?

No, it's all very clear, and you've articulated it accurately as far as I can tell.

I'm not sure why you think this thread is necessary.

Thoughts:

1. Not that it really matters, but Iden Versio is a she.
2. I agree on timing; basically, when an attack hits and you're being instructed to suffer damage, you get to trigger Iden's ability, interrupt, and make the damage go away. That won't affect any other consequence of the attack hitting, like tractor tokens, ion tokens, Whisper getting a free evade, or whatever, because it still hit.
   1. By comparison, see "Countdown", who after the neutralize results step empties the dice pool - so the attack has still hit, but "Countdown" leaves no results to 'turn into' ion or jam tokens.
3. Since you trigger her ability when you suffer damage, that's before you get to the consequences of suffering damage - so you most definitely do not get to look at damage cards before chosing to trigger Iden.
4. Direct Hit - for that matter every face-up card causing 'more damage' causes you to suffer that damage, so yes, you can use Iden Versio. So you can use her to stop a direct hit! causing extra damage - which as you note, is arguably worth it if it's the difference between "a kill" and "not a kill" - regardless of whether it's one damage or six, that's basically the yes/no criteria for whether you should use Iden's ability.

I think you nailed it. The reason Iden can't look at the crits before canceling is because Iden specifically reads " Before [the ship] would suffer 1 or more damage." You don't get to look at the damage cards before suffering them.

Game effects are always resolved first, so even though damage are suffered one at a time (Rules reference p. 8), she can't choose to only cancel the last in a string of damage (I have no idea why you would want that).

She will also work on all the damage from a Proximity Mine (the auto damage and from the dice), since they have the same timing window. I think that's the only other effect that allows a ship to suffer more than one damage at the same time?

I think everyone agrees, but just to do it point by point for clarity.

A) Yes, her ability only works on TIE/ln fighters. Pretty obvious one that, as it's spelled out.

B) She can protect herself, yes.

C) Yes, she can trigger outside of attacks. Yes, she can trigger to prevent herself taking damage from going over a rock.

D) Yes, she triggers after Neutralise Results, before Deal Damage

E) Iden can cancel the single damage from an attack, but she cannot cancel the ion tokens. You're right that those results have already been 'cancelled' (or spent) before Iden triggers. She only affects damage, and so cannot affect ion tokens.

F) You cannot trigger Iden after looking at faceup damage cards. She triggers before you take the cards from the deck.

G) She can cancel the damage from a Direct Hit, yes. And yes, there are times when saving a ship from being destroyed might be more useful than saving her ability to avoid high burst damage later on. So it's good to know she can work like that.

What about if you have Stunned Pilot and run into a rock, can you use Iden to avoid both the damage from the crit and the rock itself? And in a similar vain if you have a Loose Stabilizer and do a non straight maneuver onto a rock?

They all have " After executing a maneuver " as timing window.

6 minutes ago, mcgreag said:

What about if you have Stunned Pilot and run into a rock, can you use Iden to avoid both the damage from the crit and the rock itself? And in a similar vain if you have a Loose Stabilizer and do a non straight maneuver onto a rock?

They all have " After executing a maneuver " as timing window.

Regardless of the timing the damage in your examples come from 2 separate sources. The roll triggered by the obstacle and the Crit cards' effects.

Iden only has 1 non-recurring charge so could only cancel out one source's damage.

Concur. Those are separate instances of 1 damage, not 1 instance of 2 damage.