I´m sure this is an old question, and probably has been answered several times, but I looked for it for about an hour and couldn´t find it, so...

Quentyn Martell states that if he "is going to die, INSTEAD bla bla bla". So, when excatly does it go away? I know dying chars become moribound and leave game only at step 6, but since this card specifically states "instead", it sounds like it´s a kind of salvation, and therefore it should be used right at the moment of the char becoming moribound.

In other words, I have Quentyn out there, and a couple unique chars knelt. Now I lose a military challenge... Yes, you guessed it right, I chose Quentyn to die. Now, if his ability to become an agenda is some kind of passive salvation, he would become my agenda right away, and at the keywords step, my knelt chars would stand up...

I´ve always set it as agenda at step 6, but reading the wording carefully, I´m not sure anymore...

Also, if I´ve been doing it wrong and it´s some kind of salvation, can it be cancelled without blanking the text?

Thanks in advance!

It is in fact step 6 - his ability changes his moribund destination from moribund:Dead to moribund:agenda, but he still won't leave play until step 6, well after anyone could benefit from his agenda-abilities.

It is in fact step 6 - his ability changes his moribund destination from moribund:Dead to moribund:agenda, but he still won't leave play until step 6, well after anyone could benefit from his agenda-abilities.

So I assume it actually dies for all porpouses, and the word "instead" is just bad wording (I checked other char agendas and they usually say "when ...die, then", not "instead"). Therefore it can´t be cancelled (without blanking it) and i can use nasty things like Blood for blood, is all that correct??

Just in case my friends don´t agree without further explanation, is there some mechanic I´m missing that states this??

Thanks again

These are not saves. You can tell because they are not triggered responses that use the word "save." They are replacement effects.

You may want to check the character agendas again. All the character agendas are all worded the same way: "If X would be killed, instead attach...." The wording is fine. All replacement effects use the word "instead." Replacement effect do not change what effect initiates and resolves - they only change what happens when that effect actually resolves. So whatever kills Quentyn is considered successful. All the replacement effect does is tell you to attach him to your House card as an agenda instead of putting him in your dead pile. Nothing else changes.

Because they take place as part of the resolution of the effect, replacement effects happen after the save/cancel window. You cannot cancel the effect that moves Quentyn to the House card as an agenda instead of to the dead pile. What you CAN do is cancel the kill effect or save Quentyn from being killed (I have seen people do this: save an opponent's Quentyn to prevent him from becoming an agenda).

So - short answer: The kill is successful for all purposes. Moving him to your House card (during Step 6 of the action window) takes the place of moving him to your dead pile after the successful kill. That's the replacement effect (identified by the word "instead") that happens when he dies, whether you want it to or not.

Oh, and BTW, even if it was some sort of save (it isn't, of course), that wouldn't change the fact that he doesn't actually become your agenda until Step 6. Even if you had been interpreting the timing wrong (you weren't), the outcome should have been the same. Since Quentyn starts in play and then leaves play (to become an agenda), he has to go through a moribund state. That's what "moribund" is. It doesn't matter whether he becomes moribund in Step 1 (because of a cost), Step 2 (because of a save or cancel), Step 3 (because of an effect), Step 4 (because of a passive) or Step 5 (because of a Response): If he starts in play, he won't physically go to his out-of-play destination until Step 6.

Thank you both. I´m glad I´ve been using it correctly, yet it´s a pity I can´t get some more form it xD

As usual, both of you were very clarifying, thanks!

PD You wew right, as usual. All chars that becomee an agenda use the word "instead" in English. My mistake was checking them in Spanish, the traslators didn´t use the same words

Or I was wrong because I didn't realize you were using the Spanish cards.