The story The Well has the following text:

Each player chooses one story card he has won (except this one) and shuffles it into the story deck. Then destroy all Day and Night cards in play.

The FAQ says:

If a card uses the word “then,” then the preceding effect must have been resolved successfully before the subsequent dependent effect can be resolved.

So does this mean if I trigger the story and I or my opponent does not have already won another story the first effect isn't completely resolved and the Day and Night cards will not be destroyed?

I would say so but my playing partner has a different opinion because it is a story and therefore the first then formula doesn't apply. He regards the first part of a first then effect as a cost and a story card can't have costs he says.

mischraum.de said:

This came up at Nationals 2 years ago with the other story (Dreamwalkers or something?) that does the same kind of thing. When called upon to make a decision during the tournament, it was determined that this story can work despite the language. I argued elsewise (I was involved in the game, and mistakenly thought that it could not hurt me - I was up 2 stories to 0). I thought if my opponent could not choose a story, then it couldn't fire. But the FFG team (including Nate French) ruled the opposite.

Okay I submitted this as a rule question to FFG now.

And here is the answer from Damon Stone:

All story cards have an inherent cost, winning the stories so your friend is wrong on that count. The Do X and then Do Y is not a cost and effect statement. That would be written out as Do X *to* Do Y. The Well is written as a conditional effect. Do X. Then Do Y. If X is not done you cannot proceed to do Y because why is only actionable after you have done X.

This, I should mention, overturns a previous ruling from the CCG era.

I must say I am quite satisfied with it :-)

mischraum.de said:

So let me get this straight. What you're saying, after all the algebra, is: if either player does not have an already won story card to shuffle back into the story deck then no day or night cards will be sacrificed. Is this correct.

Sounds like it.

If you can eat 100 donuts in 30 minutes then I will give you $100.

You must eat the full 100 donuts to get the full $100.

Each player must shuffle a won story card that is not The Well into the story deck. Then destroy all Day or Night cards in play. Can't get the latter without having successfully done the former. And now I want donuts.

Forgetting the second part of the card, what happens if only one player has a story won. Does he lose it? In another thread, it seems to be saying that unless both players have at least 1 story, this card has no effect.

That is correct.

Penfold said:

Did I mention I'm less than happy about some of the official answers we got?

Shouldn't there be an 'if able' somewhere? I'm rapidly losing faith in my ability to interpret this game's rules.

It is a Then statement. It can't happen if what is written before it does not happen.

great post , nice clarification