Just got Dunwich...

1.- Can you use Vision Quest just returning from another world, and before closing a gate?

2.- Exactly when do you use Flesh Ward? Before entering combat or before you get dealed damage after failing a combat check?

THANKS!!!

1. Vision Quest: it never happened to me, but yeah, I think it's a legitimate move. You're not allowed to cast Movement phase spells only when delayed, so, since you perform a normal movement, I'd say you may. Also, I'm 100% confident that Tibs will explain this much better than me

2. As soon as you're asked to lose Stamina, you may cast Fesh Ward to prevent it. Hence, after a failed combat check, but also after failing a skill check resulting in a Stamina loss and similar stuff

I actually think Julia has it in both cases. I can't think of a good argument for why you couldn't cast Vision Quest. Maybe someone could argue that casting Find Gate would replace your movement and disallow it, but that's a stretch.

And, as Julia said, Flesh Ward is a reactionary spell, in any case where you're supposed to suffer a stamina loss.

Thank!!! Another question.

When you decide to gain an injury card, you move to the hospital, but do you also get delayed?

You do not get delayed when taking an Injury card, nor when you are knocked unconscious but do not take an Injury card. In both cases, you lose the rest of your turn.

Incidentally, Julia, do we have an official ruling that being delayed prevents you from using Movement phase spells? It prevents you from moving, but it doesn't cause you to skip your Movement phase, and casting Movement phase spells doesn't necessitate moving.

We have been playing a year delaying the investigators when unconscious or insane!!!!

oh, the horror.

satanito said:

a year? that's small cake. we did it several years until realizing we're doing it wrong just about a month ago.
and about a month earlier we realized you don't lose half your money when unconscious..

Walk said:

We don't have an official ruling *yet*. It's something lingering in the air, waiting for an official FAQ. But, more or less whenever we speak about this issue, it's kind of a general opinion that you cannot cast Find gate while delayed (and the rest by extension). Basically, when you're delayed, you move the standee up, you deal with eventual monsters in your area, and that's it. No tomes, no spells, no movement phase only items, etc

Here's the deduction we can make.

1. When you're delayed, you do something "instead of" normal movement.

2. You're delayed when a gate opens on you: the intent is that you'll have at least two OW encounters before returning.

3. A successful casting of Find Gate circumvents your regular OW movement.

If a gate opened on you during Mythos and you were delayed, and then next movement phase you were allowed to cast Find Gate, you would escape the OW with no encounters. It can be concluded that Find Gate cannot be cast if you begin your turn delayed. But what's special about Find Gate? Perhaps nothing, so to encapsulate a general rule, no movement spells should be cast if you began delayed.

That's not to say it's impossible to return with 0 encounters: Mythos opens gate on you; Mythos text is "all investigators in Other Worlds return to Arkham." But, as you can tell, that's extremely rare.

Tibs: My issue is that being delayed is specifically related to movement. I get your point about Find Gate, but not all spells cast during the Movement phase involve movement. Plague of Locusts, for instance, could be cast during Upkeep and its utility wouldn't change all that much. You say that Find Gate should be disallowed when delayed and therefore so should all other Movement phase spells; I'm more inclined to say that Plague of Locusts should be allowed when delayed (since it involves no movement) and therefore so should all other Movement phase spells. Partly, this is because of my reasoning above, but basing rules interpretations off rules maxims that generally hold true (such as "you should never be able to leave an Other World without having any encounters") can be dangerous, particularly when there are known exceptions (such as your example of Mythos effects, Plumb the Void, or, taking your analysis of Find Gate as correct, Find Gate + Erich Weiss/Mark Harrigan).

Well, when I say "you should never leave without at least one encounter" I mean to say that the designers probably wanted to make this as rare as possible. Find Gate is by no means a rare spell, and plenty of investigators get drawn through gates.

I don't recall if Plague of Locusts is a movement spell anyway (cast on only the movement phase, that is).

Maybe I should say that the only thing you may do during the movement phase if you're delayed is stand up; no more, no less. This would automatically disallow Find Gate without having to make a special rule.

Tibs said:

you should fight the monsters too, e.g. a child of the goat..

Whoops! I knew there would be a hole poked in there. Yeah, you need to deal with monsters too.