The Shortening Rules Questions

[The Giant]

Some questions about the Shortening. Hopefully the Giant or apegamer will chime in on the intent questions.

No Turning Back:

If there are two sets of stairs down from floor X to floor X+1, and floor X+1 has reached 8 rooms without connecting the two segments, then players on the side that doesn't connect to the next floor down are allowed to move upwards to come back down the right way, right?

Sure.

If I lose my last wound, after missing my turn, do I heal automatically? Am I required to rest or get cured as soon as possible, or can I keep playing without healing? What happens if I lose another wound before I get a chance to heal?

Answered in my first post on this thread. Note that you cannot lose Wounds by any means while you are in the middle of missing that turn.

Wandering Xykon:

Is killing Xykon no longer worth any X's?

No, he's still worth two X's. They should be listed on his large Character Card.

The I Hurt Xykon cards mention Xykon returning to his Throne Room. That should say Safe Haven, right?

Yes; an early version of the rules included a new version of Xykon's Throne Room specifically for Wandering Xykon instead of just using Safe Haven, and I guess we never caught the change on those cards.

Once Xykon's attention is caught and his move token is put in the Safe Haven, does he first move on that same turn, or starting after that player's next turn?

His first turn occurs immediately after the turn in which his attention is caught.

Is Xykon subject to any room effects that normally affect players, such as A Dark Room or The Room With All The Spikes? What about Explosive Runes?

As above, Xykon is a Monster that moves, not a player. He is unaffected by Room text that specifies players.

If all players who are not holding I Got My Ass Kicked By Xykon are camping out in the Dungeon Entrance, how does Xykon move? Would he head toward the Dungeon Entrance and camp out in the first room of the dungeon until one of the players reenters the dungeon?

No, in that event, Xykon would stand still until someone re-entered the dungeon.

Since Xykon's choice of who to battle uses the number of shticks as a tiebreaker, should his decision of where to move also use that? Less significant than distance and the choice of floor, but more significant than the die roll?

You can certainly institute that as a houserule if you wish, but by the rules, it should be distance, deeper floor, then random die roll. Xykon doesn't know who's the strongest unless he's looking right at them.

The rules say you can attack Xykon "as you would initiate a Player vs. Player battle." A strict reading would imply that you can't choose to attack Xykon if there is also a monster stack in the room. Is that the intent, or should I be allowed to fight Xykon instead of the room's stack?

Yes, obviously the presence of Monsters in this case is an exception to the rule that you can't initiate PVP when there are Monsters present, because Xykonn is himself a Monster and it would be impossible to attack him at all otherwise.

However, to clarify: When Xykon and his Minion Stack are in a room with existing face-up Monsters, there is no difference between his stack and the stack in the room. Xykon is treated as being part of the room's stack, as are all the Monsters that are following him. Think of it as one large stack with Xykon at the top, all of his Minion Stack in order beneath him, and the entire face-up Monster stack in the room beneath them.

If a room contains Xykon but no monster stack, can I pick up loot there? The rules don't prohibit it, but I'm guessing that's an oversight.

A room containing Xykon does contain Monsters, because Xykon is a Monster. Therefore, no, you may not pick up Loot.

If I attack Xykon's stack with Turn Undead, do I have to turn in I Got My Ass Kicked By Xykon even though I can't actually defeat Xykon himself?

Yes. Your chance of victory (in this case, nil) is not a determining factor in whether or not you must turn in the "I Got My Ass Kicked By Xykon" card. If you initiate an Attack that targets Xykon, you must turn in the card. (The card represents whether or not Xykon considers you a threat, and if you try to turn him, he'll consider you a threat even if you don't have a chance of succeeding.)

Note, however, that if you initiate an Attack that targets cards from his Minion Stack but does not include Xykon, you do not need to turn in the card.

The rules say Xykon is immune to multi-wound shticks. In the case of a successful Area Effect attack that also targets an Exploding monster, is Xykon also immune to the explosion, or can he take a second wound that way?

He can take a second Wound that way, because that is a separate Wound source.

Can Poorly-Planned Illusion move monsters out of Xykon's minion stack?
If so, do they have to be moved into neighboring rooms, or can they be moved from the minion stack into the same room Xykon is in?

Yes, they can be moved from the Minion Stack. They must be moved to neighboring rooms because they are all considered the same stack while Xykon is present in the room.[/LIST]

New shticks:

Take Yer Medicine: can Durkon use this to heal a player who is already at full health?

No. No one can ever have more than 4 Wounds.

Can it only be used on his own turn?

No, it may be used at any time, even during another player's turn.

The Hope of Returning Home: does this override the requirements of Broken Weapon/Turned Into a Newt/Hysterical Aphasia?

Answered in my first post on this thread. SHort answer: "Sort of."

Friendly Fire(ball): does the copy that V is currently using and flipping get counted as one of the face-up copies?

Yes, because the flipping of Battle Shticks does not occur until after the battle is concluded (Step 7, "Aftermath" in the core rules.

Carry Along: if Roy explores a new room, does the carried player also encounter one-time room effects, such as A Room with a Motivational Poster or The Corridor of Very Toxic Sulfur Fumes?

Yes, because they are affected by any card that affects all players in the same room.

Petty Threats: I'm guessing this is supposed to hold only one Screw This card at a time, but it doesn't actually say that. If it can hold multiple cards, can they be played simultaneously with a single flip of the shtick, or only one at a time?

It should only allow one Screw This! card at a time.

Personification of Self-Loathing: does this take effect before the trap/battle resolution? In particular, can Haley save herself from losing her last wound?

Yes, it happens immediately, before any other effect and before the trap/battle resolution. Strictly speaking, it happens as part of Step 5, "Make an Attack/Defense Roll," while losing a Wound doesn't happen until Step 6, "Apply Results."

Grand Theft: Your Stuff: can this be unflipped while it is placed in a room, either by resting or by other means? Haley would still have to wait until it was returned to her to before using it again, right?

No, it cannot be unflipped while it remains in a room, and she does not get it back until the Monster is defeated or would otherwise drop Loot. Note that because all Monsters disappear and drop their Loot when Xykon is beaten, she automatically will get her shtick back at that time if she hasn't already.