So I was just having a look at the Superlaser Blast and Emperor Palpatine and I already have a question on timing. When you play an event card, when does it go to the discard pile? If I play Superlaser Blast, and destroy an objective, does Emperor Palpatine's reaction happen before Superlaser Blast goes to the discard pile, or after? It seems that if it went to the discard pile before the reaction, that would be too powerful.

But if you get two Superlaser Blasts and Emperor Palpatine, you could just blow an objective away every turn by using one, then using the other to draw the first, and back and forth.

Let me add more detail. I had been looking for a place in the rule book that says when event cards are discarded. Page 25 does say that event cards are discarded after the event's effect is resolved. Page 25 states that reactions happen after the triggering ability is completed. The triggering ability in this case is destroying a light side objective. So after the destruction of the objective, two effects come into play: 1) The event's effect is finished so the event should be discarded; 2) Emperor Palpatine's reaction to destroying a light side objective kicks in to allow him to draw an event from the discard pile.

Now, I'm inclined to say that Palpatine comes first, but reactions are not interrupts, but is there a definitive reason for why his ability should resolve first? Could you choose which resolves first since they are both results of the same effect?

Probably a bad idea to help without the cards in front of me at the moment. But isn't Emperor Palpatine's effect for Sith cards and the Superlaser is an Imperial Navy card?

Pretty sure you can play a event and then get it back, why Force check has a limit on it.

Yep, the Emperor's reaction only works on Sith event cards.

I'm going to ignore that this particular thing can't happen for a moment just to explore the original question. It'll be useful down the road I think.

All events are one of three things, an Action, Reaction, or Interrupt.

The steps of an event are the following:

1. play event card
2. pay it's cost
3. execute and resolve it's effects
4. discard the card

The Reaction trigger in this case is the destruction of a objective, not playing an event card. Because reactions must occur after a trigger happens, and the trigger is completely part of step 3 in this case, the Event card is not in the discard pile yet. So if Palpitine could take an Imperial Navy event out of the discard, Superlaser Blast wouldn't be in there yet.

…Everyone in the West feared the raisin-faced kid and his repeating super laser. He was the baddest hombre this side of hell itself….

Aahzmandius_Karrde said:

This is not necessarily true.If the removal of both cards is simultaneous, then Palpatine could get the card back(well, if it were sith). If the removal of the objective occurs first, then you're definitely correct. If resolving an event and discarding it are simultaneous occurrences for timing purposes, then Palpatine could get the card bacl(if it were sith). Thank you.

Ha. I worried too much about the rule and not enough about the cards. But thanks for entertaining the original timing question anyway.