1) Poltergeist states that you can move every figure up to two spaces. If a hero is in a pit, can you use one space to pull them out, then the second space to drop them back in, dealing one wound?

2) Can you use Telekinesis to repeatedly drop a monster into a pit, wounding it multiple times in one turn?

3) Can you use Poltergeist to move a hero, then play a pit or block trap on them? If this is possible, could you feasibly move them one space, play a block on them, play a pit underneath them, move them one more space out of the pit, play a block on them, then have the block shunt them back into the pit (providing they were moved into a space non-adjacent to the first block)?

McRae said:

1) Not sure, would have to check the wording of Poltergeist. TBH there are usually more nasty things you can do to a hero than cause them a single wound.

2) Yes (with our house rules you'd have to be standing next to the pit as the LOS restrictions go both ways - but this is a house rule). Again, at 1 damage for 2 Fatigue, there are usually more effective ways to spend your fatigue.

3)Probably. Again, have to check the wording of Poltergeist.

If you play blocks next to pits, it flies in the face of what is clearly stated in the first rulebook and the Crushing Block card, FAQ notwithstanding. There's no good reason to believe the FAQ meant to change that: it looks like the FAQ answer was compiled from skimming the RtL rulebook for props that "Block Movement", which was not the original definition of "Obstacle" (that definition was somewhat arbitrary)..

Thundercles said:

Well, yes. But the official FAQ is an official rule IMO (sadly, in this case).

Apparently its dreadfully rude of us to comment on the incompetence (or more accurately, general laziness) that went into some of the FAQ answers so I won't. OTOH, its a tough job and requires more game experience than most FFG employees are likely to have an opportunity to get to look past the occasionally badly written rules and come up with a really good answer to some of the trickier questions.

Hopefully the new FAQ, when it comes (word is someone is working on one) will not just add stuff to the old FAQ but completely overhaul it. Hopefully... Hope is dat stuff wot springs 'ternal right?

IMO, when writing any sort of FAQ for any reason, every question should be looked at in two ways.

1. What is the answer?

2. Why is this question being asked?

It is far more important to resolve what comes up when 2. is looked at than to answer 1. directly.

Ok, not to sound rude, but just a few topics back there already was a block next to pit discussion, and the general consensus was that you could. So moving on with this assumption, what my poltergeist question REALLY boils down to is can you play traps between usage of the two spaces per figure? In other words, play Poltergeist, move hero one space, play trap, move hero another space, play trap?

IMO don't you have to end the action on the card before playing a new one ?!

I don't know, but that's a good point. Is there an official rule somewhere stating that a card has to be completely resolved before another one can be played? That would answer this question pretty quickly.....

There is no such rule, and since cards like Ambush and Alarm (which activate a certain number of monsters) can be interrupted with other cards (which relate to monster activation), I'd say that the "no interrupting cards" rule would be out of place. Furthermore, since Knockback has a specific mention about the OL only being able to play trap cards at the end of the victim's movement, I figure that playing trap cards on each space of Poltergeist movement is completely legal.

I would look at Poltergeist as a one-shot deal. You pick things up, move them around accordingly, and set them down. Not sequential pick-ups and set-downs. It's not really in the rules, but it's what seems to make sense (to me). Sort of like the heroes blank out for a second, while a poltergeist comes in and mixes up the room.

Another question that arises, is can Heroes be moved over obstacles w Poltergeist? Like a Water or Rubble? Or Lava? (and would they take damage, if being moved "over" a Lava, much like if they'd jumped? I would say no, things are just "picked up", floated around, and set down. That seems to be the most in line w a poltergeist card, but I could certainly see arguments for the "push" mechanic instead, treating the heroes as chess pieces that are nudged around thru various things, and blocked by obstacles.

That's the thing, Poltergeist doesn't say "pick up" or in any other way define the movement as ignoring all spaces but the destination (like Knockback does). Going off of the RAW, each space of poltergeist figure movement is handled as legal, normal movement.

I would say it's not in the RAW at all, and subject to interpretation.

If it says "move each figure X spaces"... does that mean "move them, treating the movement as a player moving"? Does it say "move the figure, per legal movement, and consuming X number of movement points"? Or does it mean the less specific sense of "move this figure 3 spaces away, as in move it to the space that is 3 spaces away".

I tend toward the latter in my interpretation.

It doesnt explicitly say. If you want to read the "move each figure" as "treat the movement as a hero being moved thru each intermediate space" then that's fine, but you cannot claim it is in the RAW specifically stating that the unit absolutely DOES require to be passed thru the intermediate spaces.

It does not say "treat this as legal, normal movement"... it just says something like move the figure X spaces. otherwise you'd be subject to things like 2mp to move a unit onto a table, for example, and I do not believe it states you are "consuming movement points up to X spaces" but rather just moving a unit somewhere up to so many spaces away.

This could be on the other side of a wall of tables, 3 spaces away, which would not be POSSIBLE even by normal movement, due to the extra movement required to move onto the tables.

Well, I'm basing my interpretation from the fact that every single other "move a figure" effect either moves the figure as normal or explicitly has special movement rules. When moving figures, the rules basically define one standard way of moving them. I'm not convinced that Poltergeist constitutes a new and special movement method, since it doesn't say anything of the kind.

So then do you play that moving over a table (or out of a pit) would take 2 movement points, and that poltergeist cannot move something past a water obstacle?

Poltergeist isnt "animating" the characters to make them move there... it's just "moving" them. That's using the word in a sense other than the concept of movement points.

"can move each character up to 3 spaces, and open or shut doors". that is just such a simple statement to me, it does not mean move them thru up to 3 traps, nor subject them to 3 crushing blocks / pits. You just move them up to 3 spaces, and you're done. I think anything else is reading way too much into it, looking for technical ways to abuse and create killer combos with what is otherwise a really simple card.

While a good diplomat could surely push your logic, I dont think it's right, per the writing on the card.

(does anyone have the card handy to actually quote it?)

If I were the one writing the whole game, I would probably try to write it in such a way that poobaloo's interpretation would be correct. However, with the actual Descent game, I think precedent is on Thundercles' side. Trap (space) cards don't say that the hero has to spend movement points, just enter the space, and since they made a big deal about figures not actually entering the intervening spaces with Knockback , it's only reasonable to assume that any case where they don't specify doesn't work like Knockback .

If you want to get things even more complicated, consider whether a hero could interrupt the resolution of the Poltergeist card to use a Guard order. The rules say that if you choose not to pre-empt an action with a Guard order, you have to wait for it to be fully resolved before your next chance (for example, if a monster declares an attack, you can interrupt it, but you can't wait until the dice have been rolled to do so). But if the overlord declares a new action, such as playing a Spiked Pit card, before the Poltergeist is fully resolved...