Ritual of Shadows - problem with the Staff of Shadows

By michalplatek, in Descent: Journeys in the Dark

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Hello. While I was playing Descent (2nd edition) today with my girlfriend I encountered a problem. We played the "Ritual of Shadows" adventure. Prior to that, in the 1st act, we didn't play "The Cardinal's Plight, so the Overlord didn't have the opportunity to get the Staff of Shadows. According to the rules, in order to play the "Ritual of Shadows" we assumed, that "The Carinal's Plight" was won by the OL. The OL won the quest "Ritual of Shadows". In the storytelling text in the end of the quest there is written (my translation from polish):

The Staff of Shadows comes into possession of the Overlord

On the other hand, the Staff of Shadows is not even mentioned in the Prizes section of the quest (it can be obtained by the OL only in "The Cardilal's Plight").
The question is: should the OL get the Staff of Shadows as described in the storytelling text?

Thanks in advance for all replies :)

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In the English version of the Quest guide it states one the of the rewards as The Staff of Shadows...

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You are right. I found the english version and in the Prizes section it states:

If the heros win, they receive 25 gold per hero and claim the "Staff of Light" relic from the overlord.

But it doesn't say that the Overlord gets the Staff of Light if he wins. But in the storytelling text there's this sentence:

Lord Merick is gone, his prize borne back to the overlord!

Which part is more important in this situation - the prizes section or the storytelling text? Another thing that could be taken into account is that when we choose the quest, we make an assumption that the Overlord has won "The Cardinal's Plight", in which he can win the Staff of Light. Does it mean that he possesses the Staff of Light? I am really confused now.
When we choose a quest and make an assumption, that the Overlord has won the corresponding quest from the 1st act (which in fact didn't happen), do we need to give the prizes from that quest to the Overlord?

Edited by michalplatek
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I was under the impression that Ritual of Shadows was only available as an option in act two if the act one quest (Cardinal's Plight) had been played.

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That is odd, because on page 9 of my quest guide it specifically says, "If the overlord wins, he receives the "Staff of Shadows" relic."

It is the last bit of text on that page under "rewards".

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I was under the impression that Ritual of Shadows was only available as an option in act two if the act one quest (Cardinal's Plight) had been played.

Whitewing, to the very last sentence on the page 21 of the rulebook is:

It’s important to note that, for the purposes of determining which Act II quest is available, any Act I quest that the heroes did not attempt is assumed to have ended in an overlord victory.

so yes, you can choose the quest in the 2nd act even if the corresponding quest from the 1st act was not played. :)

That is odd, because on page 9 of my quest guide it specifically says, "If the overlord wins, he receives the "Staff of Shadows" relic."

It is the last bit of text on that page under "rewards".

That's right, the Overlord can get the "Staff of Shadows" in "The Cardinal's Plight", but in our case we did not play this quest in the 1st act. We only assumed that it was won by the overlord for the purposes of determining which Act II quest is available . So the Overlord did not get the Staff of Shadows in the 1st act. Our problem emerged after the Overlord won the "Ritual of Shadows". Please, refer to the post number #3 :)

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Sorry, I must not be understanding then... :huh:

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Ok, the problem is solved :) On other forum, somebody linked unofficial FAQ from boardgamegeek:

Q: The Shadow Ritual: What happens with the Relic if the Overlord wins this quest? Does he keep it or will it be returned to the gamebox? The victory for the heroes says that the heroes recieve the Relic from the Overlord, but the Overlord does not have it explicitly in the first place under his pocession. Only during this quest Merric wields it, someone could read. So which side is correct? The Ol recieves it after winning this map pernamently or it is returned to the gamebox?

A: If the overlord did not receive the Staff of Shadows by winning "The Cardinal's Plight" in Act I, he is only able to gain the use of that relic during "The Ritual of Shadows" and does not receive it for winning.

The overlord may be "considered to have won" any quest not played in Act I, but that doesn't automatically grant him the rewards from those quests.

I'm saying he doesn't get to keep the Staff of Shadows to avoid having the overlord gain too much from winning a single quest as well as to most closely reflect the specific rules as written, which don't say he gets to obtain or keep it.

So we can close the topic. Thank you for all answers :)

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That is odd, because on page 9 of my quest guide it specifically says, "If the overlord wins, he receives the "Staff of Shadows" relic."

It is the last bit of text on that page under "rewards".

This is for the quest "Cardinal's Plight".

Sorry, I must not be understanding then... :huh:

If the group plays Cardinal's Plight and the Overlord wins: He gets the Staff of Shadows and The Ritual of Shadows is available to play in Act II.

If the group plays Cardinal's Plight and the Heroes win: The heroes get the Staff of Light and Enduring the Elements is available to play in Act II.

If the group does not play Cardinal's Plight (as is the case listed above): nobody gets the Staff of Light/Shadows, The Ritual of Shadows is available to play in Act II, and for that quest, and that quest only, The Staff of Shadows is given to Lord Merick Farrow. After the quest, The Staff of Shadows is returned to the box.