The Most Common SWU Rules Questions from New Players - Answered!

[@chasesmith87]

You're absolutely incredible! I can't get enough of these videos! I've just dove into Star Wars Unlimited, and as a massive Star Wars fan, it's everything I've been looking for! I've always wanted to explore TCG games, but nothing has captivated me like this one. Your videos make it so easy to grasp and super enjoyable-I'm having a blast! Keep up the amazing work! Thank you a million times over!

[@MaindeckGames]

Oh man, that's super kind of you, thank you! Also the motivation I needed to record the next Rules video for Twilight. This comment really meant a lot to me!!

[@AndrewFishman]

I had someone have a tantrum and claim I had triggered their anxiety and quit when I played Overwhelming Barrage on my 907th and did NOT exhaust them. I tried to explain that it was damage from the secondary card using their power rating, not an attack, so they were free to attack that phase and not exhausted. They were trying to equate that effect with Leia's double attack ability, which was their leader.

[@MaindeckGames]

You were definitely correct in that scenario - and this question is coming up a lot, so expect to see it in a part 2!

[@DiegoDeschain]

If only reading the card explained the card...

[@JustinKSweet]

What ever happened to good sportsmanship among humans? Kudos for likely keeping your cool under the circumstance.

[@AndrewFishman]

@@JustinKSweet Plot twist:- I was asked not to go in last week to the games store because, apparently, I had made the experience unbearable for the other player. AND, apparently, my son and I were cheating in the pre release by swapping cards with each other. I know for a fact that this did not occur, and would not tolerate it for an instance. How I made the game unplayable for the other player, by pointing out that the cards did not just do as she wished them to do, I do not yet know. That comes down to a meeting with the game store owner to assess whether we are allowed back in. Regardless of the outcome, I will not ever be a paying customer of theirs again. To say I made someone's game unplayable is one thing, though I do not know how, HOWEVER - to accuse me of cheating, another level altogether, with no proof as none can exist. THAT I will not tolerate. I do not steal, lie or cheat. Especially when all the prizes were the same, a couple of boosters if you went 3/0 or 0/3 did not matter. So why cheat at all? If you are interested, I will let you know the outcome of my meeting with the store owner, which should be interesting lol.

[@DiegoDeschain]

@@AndrewFishman ward for the outcome

[@owlxoggest6247]

I think it would be helpful to expand this to include multiple actions and order of resolution. For example activating Energy Conversion Lab to play Fleet Lieutenant. There is a lot going on in this interaction and new players could benefit from knowing how to unwind this kind of interaction

[@That_Eriksson]

Some fun ones that I see too are Leaders are considered in play since the start of the game. Also some interesting interactions with cards like Guerrila Assault Pod with ECL, basically you can choose order of Ambush, and Enter Play Ready trigger from him to attack 2 times. Run it into something for some grit buffs then swing at base.

[@roka102]

Wait so it’s legal for it in this case to attack twice in a row? Please explain

[@ameliorate2222]

@@roka102 So, as far as I understand this is because of timing windows and Triggered abilities. If you are playing with ECL and use the ability to play Guerilla Attack Pod you give the unit an Ambush and you can attack immediately. Because of how timing structure works you get to choose if you are resolving Ambush or When Played ability first, so if you decide to use Ambush you attack immediately (either a Unit for extra dmg from Grit or base) and then if ANY of the bases has 15 dmg or more you can use When Played ability and ready GAP. Then, it's their action and after that you can attack with GAP once again (provided it wasn't destroyed by your opponent).

[@roka102]

@@ameliorate2222 thats wild! And thanks for explaining

[@theprophet25]

U can’t attack a base using ambush

[@roka102]

@@theprophet25 good point, so you can attack twice in the phase but the first attack would have to be a unit

[@trogman]

Very helpful information. When most YT videos baiting viewers with box openings, meta decks and card rankings, you made an effort to help new players to play the game correctly. Looking forward for more SWU videos in future.

[@mexitele]

Very helpful. The base as a unit was what I was unsure of, as a new player

[@obsidiantain]

Yes, this helped! Keep this series coming as you notice more! :)

[@KrishekTheCruel]

Thank the force for your videos! I missed out on pre-release (being new to CCGs didn’t even know it was a thing). You’ve been a great help in catching up to the more experienced players.

[@lantinian]

This video was extremely helpful. Thank you. I hope to see a part 2 one day :)

[@MaindeckGames]

Part 2 will definitely be coming! Thank you for taking the time to comment!!

[@ajtame]

I did not realise that boba's damage happened before the attack damage, I thought they would be simultaneous, so thanks for the lesson, this has helped me avoid a future embarrassment :D

[@vancejohnson5807]

I am so glad you led with the not being able to attack with an exhausted unit. It has become a pet peeve of mine seeing that question asked over and over in the fb group.

[@BlaineFranklin-e2s]

Great, well thought out run down! I think another area that would be a good idea to go over the idea of 'soft passing' before initiative has been taken, why you might want to do it, and what happens if you soft pass and your opponent takes initiative. I feel like this whole area has lead to some confusion among some players.

[@andrewburgoyne4728]

I wondered what a hyperspace variant card was! Thanks for answering.

[@TheBlakeWhitaker]

Video was super helpful! Really appreciate the content man!

[@IanArmitage-n4g]

Thanks for the video. Thought my son and I were playing the game correctly, turns out we were. We have been looking for clarification about units exhausting or not when another card allows them to attack.

[@9thimmortal]

Good rundown. Another I saw was that you DON’T have to play a resource. People miss that.

[@KuneTear]

Is there a strategic reason not to do that?

[@9thimmortal]

More cards to play. Say you have 7 resources down, and draw two with an empty hand - you might want to just keep the 2 to play them both that turn. @@KuneTear

[@jerryreinhart9640]

Awesome video, super clear and I appreciate the explanations! Just now getting into SWU, you have my definitely earned a subscription lol

[@MaindeckGames]

Thank you so much, happy to have been helpful and I hope you find more content you enjoy weekly here!

[@BoxOfFear]

This did help. I thought Leia Leader was awesomely overpowered, but I wanted to be certain. Sure enough, you answered my question first thing. Leia is still pretty great; A tier for sure.

[@MaindeckGames]

Leia is very good still for sure!!

[@NowWeAreAllGames]

Something that came up in play a couple times for me: If you play Pirated Starfighter with no other units in play, does it force itself back into your hand? I believe the answer is "yes" but I'm not 100% sure.

[@Grimmlocked]

yes

[@MaindeckGames]

Yep, something must be returned and it can return itself!

[@AndrewFishman]

@@MaindeckGames Like with the Deathtroopers doing +2 damage to themselves if they are the only unit when placed on the field.

[@melondonkey]

Thanks very helpful. I also didn’t know ambush only applied to attacking units but helped me win a game😢

[@SidoDyas]

Nicely done. Really appreciate it.

[@TVRabbitOC]

This helped a lot, thank you!

[@TravyDead]

Love the Luke and Moti tricks!

[@schmelzwah]

another common rule question I am seeing these days is taking initiative counts as passing. If you pass and your opponent takes the initiative you move onto the next round you don't get to keep playing.

[@timokimm]

Earned my sub with this video.

[@MaindeckGames]

Really glad you found it useful, thank you so much!

[@lukewright9145]

Great info for new players !!

[@ryanjensen434]

Something that is so basic but my son and I got confused about is that units can attack the base directly without getting rid of all units in that arena first like you would in Magic. (Unless a “def being” unit has Sentinel) We played our whole first game and it took so long because we kept trying to whittle down the defenders first. I know “read the rules!” But it was an oversight and I feel like I can’t be the only person to make this mistake

[@MaindeckGames]

Don't worry, you are not! I've had other people mentioning the same thing in the comments. It's worth making clear for sure!

[@markusbiewer2756]

I actually expected this to be in the video, since this question was asked countless times during our prerelease!

[@seanv3997]

Great video idea. Be nice to see more of in the future. clarify that aspects are by symbol not by color (double aspects of the same color may require the +2 resources), correct? Ie a two green and I only have one green on my leader and none on my base- would be +2 aspect penalty.

[@MaindeckGames]

Yep, that's right. Your example is spot on!

[@AndrewFishman]

But. if you have a double red/black, for example, you can use single blacks with no penalty. Just to extrapolate on your example a little more.

[@RollDiceTakeNames]

Very useful video, thanks Dan!

[@Thinkworldwild]

Great and useful video. Great job

[@MaindeckGames]

Thanks so much! So happy I could help!

[@DaletheCasualGamer]

Thanks! Very helpful!

[@veitus]

I am a complete beginner (befor buying the 2p starter set) and i think this questions would have been coming up in my first games or i would have played it wrong...so thank you for the video. :)

[@MaindeckGames]

You are very welcome, I'm so happy I could help!

[@tuckleberryfinn5271]

Very helpful video, thank you!

[@marksutter182]

At the prerelease, I won one match by unintentionally cheating. I'm pretty new to card games (competitively) and I misinterpreted the cards that allow a unit to attack. Live and learn! There are a lot of rules in games like these that assume players will already know some things and that's not always the case.

[@doublea377]

Thanks !!! I was wondering about having multiple same unit and now I know it is forbidden

[@MaindeckGames]

You CAN have multiple of the same unit - unless that unit is UNIQUE with the little STAR next to its name! Just make sure you watch for that - but you can absolutely have multiple "Death Star Stormtrooper", etc in play because it does not have the Unique star to the left of the name!

[@DrakDecks]

I actually have a couple questions I’ve been wrestling with. The first is Fifth Brother. If you ready him with the Grand Inquisitor’s ability then attack with Fifth Brother in your next action, does the attack resolve? He’s dealing 1 damage to himself and another ground unit ‘on attack’ so would he just… defeat himself before the attack goes through? Or does the attack happen even though he’s defeated as a result? Second is just a wording clarification. You can’t attack units in other zones. But can you deal damage across zones with cards like Strike True? So using your friendly ground unit to deal its power to a space unit? Usually the cards will specify if it needs to be a ground or space unit but I wanted to be sure.

[@MaindeckGames]

Fifth Brother actually has 4 HP, so if he is totally undamaged, he wouldn't defeat himself from this play - Inquisitor deals 2, and he deals 1 to himself if you choose to use his ability (which is optional as well!), so he'd still have 1 HP left (and because of his ability, he'd have Raid 3 for that attack as well!). But in any situation where this would come up and he would defeat himself from his on attack, his attack wouldn't go through after that. The combat would simply proceed to the end with no attack damage dealt. For the second question, yes. Effects can always target units in either arena unless it specifies an arena.

[@DrakDecks]

@@MaindeckGames thanks!

[@harrytzakis2345]

Great Job! However I think if you were to give animated examples to go with your explanations like you did of your short game play demo (which was friggen awesome) you would stand out of the rest. It would be amazing balls, and I think everyone would love it! It would take out all the ambiguity when they physically see how it is played out after you have explained it.

[@MTGUnpacked]

Very helpful! One interaction I'm not sure about is if you're attacking your opponent's unit, can they attach a shield token to it in response, provided they can pay the shield cost?

[@MaindeckGames]

Hey! I'm not 100% sure what you are referring to here - but no actions are done "in response" in SWU! If you mean using the Luke leader ability, that has to be done as an action just like everything else! Unlike MTG, there is nothing at instant speed and all actions are done back-and-forth in SWU. Our Ultimate How to Play video details the action system if that might help refresh anything as well!

[@josevega9778]

What happens when I play a card like Tactical Advantage which gives a unit +2/+2 for this phase, I use that unit (it’s original stats being 2/2) to attack and the unit takes 2 damage. Would the unit be defeated at then end of the phase because it loses the +2/+2 buff and therefore becomes a 2/0 unit. Or would it remain in play?

[@MaindeckGames]

At the end of phase, when the +2/+2 wears off, if the unit now has lethal damage on it, it will be immediately defeated!

[@jaimelumayog5353]

Question regarding Relentless Card. "The first event played by each opponent each round losses all abilities". Does this mean if the opponent already played an event this round before the card was in play, it will not nullify the second event being played in the round by each opponent after the card comes out that round? Since those events are not the first event cards being played in a round even though the card was not in play yet

[@MaindeckGames]

That's an excellent question! Yes, the opponent only has one "first event" each round, regardless of when Relentless was played. If they already played an event before Relentless was played, the effect of Relentless won't be useful that phase and any other events played that phase will still have their effects.

[@misterwile]

sharing to our fb group! thanks!

[@MaindeckGames]

So glad I could be helpful!

[@CordelFinton]

Super helpful!!

[@jamess935]

I have a rules question regarding the cardtext "when attacked". If I kill a unit with a card like "open fire" which deals damage but isn't attacking an unit via another unit of mine, is it still an attack? Cuz in twilight of the Republic is a card which creates marker everytime it is being attacked but we were unsure whether it still activates when I play an open fire and deal damage.

[@Dazbi1705]

very helpful. Subbed, more star wars unlimited please

[@MaindeckGames]

Another vid in the works for Wednesday, plus podcast on Friday :)

[@madweebobsbib]

Nice. Thank you 😊

[@junosynth]

Leia Organa - When Played: Either ready a resource or exhaust a unit.. Why would someone want to exhaust a unit on this card vs ready a resource?

[@MaindeckGames]

Exhausting your opponent's unit can prevent it from attacking you this phase!

[@junosynth]

Thanks for the clarification. I wasn't sure you could exhaust a opponents unit. I know wording is everything in these types of games.

[@danielcharles4085]

Very helpful

[@jamesbusby5454]

Question on Chirrut Îmwe, I found in the rules that a unit can not be healed past it maximum value for life, but can one be damaged past zero into the negative. Example - Chirrut does not die during the action phase if he is reduced to zero life. If he would be sitting at say 5 life left and he gets hit for 7, would he be considered to be at zero or -2. Reason im asking is lets say he is considered to be at zero, then on my next action I give him an experience counter, he would get +1/+1 and then not die, but if he was at -2 he would still die. Guess a long winded way to ask does a unit go into the negative for HP or be considered at zero.

[@MaindeckGames]

He would have 7 damage counters in that case, totaling -2. You'd have to use a bigger HP upgrade like Resilient or Entrenched, multiple Experience upgrades, or healing like Repair or Redemption to make him survive the turn. One interesting quirk is that if that 7 damage was dealt from an attack from a unit with Overwhelm, any damage past what would bring him to 0 would go to the Base instead. So in that case, 5 would be dealt to Chirrut, 2 would go to base, and then your Experience upgrade would actually allow him to survive past the end of the turn.

[@stephencook8398]

Don't change uniqueness rule its perfect. Only one that got me was the search rule. I thought you had to shuffle the whole deck. Good to know.

[@VOWelAHC]

So for the first one, you attack with a unit, is that unit then exhausted?

[@MaindeckGames]

Correct! Attacking will exhaust the unit!

[@_masfueg0_]

Is Sentinel still active if that unit is exhausted?

[@MaindeckGames]

Yes!

[@IntoTheBlueBoxTV]

When Outmaneuver is played (choose an area, space or ground. All units are exhausted) would Leader cards played that round be exhausted as well if ground is chosen as the exhausted area?

[@MaindeckGames]

If the Leader Unit is already in the arena when Outmaneuver is played, it would exhaust it as well. But if the Leader was deployed AFTER Outmaneuver is played, it would still enter ready.

[@Festus-lt6gq]

This is probably the same as the on attack wording you already mentioned but with Bossk it says “when you play an event: you may deal two damage to a unit”. You can deal the two damage before you resolve the event, correct? For instance, if Bossk is in play but exhausted and I have Syndicate Lackey who is ready. And I am against Leader Vader with eight health. I can play event “shoot first”, deal two damage to Vader from Bossk first, then apply “shoot first” to Sydicate Lackey and defeat Vader while taking zero damage?

[@MaindeckGames]

This is a little different actually! The answer to this comes down to when the game resolves "When you play an event" triggers. The event is not considered "Played" until it has been placed in the discard pile after using its effects, and a trigger also cannot interrupt a non-attack action. So Bossk's trigger to deal 2 damage won't happen until AFTER the Event played fully resolves - meaning your (really cool idea!) play unfortunately doesn't quite line up - the Shoot First would have to fully resolve before the 2 damage can be dealt. The lackies will have to die to do it!

[@christopherr6467]

If I use an ability to ready an exhausted unit that has already attacked this turn/action phase, can I attack with it once more and so on?

[@MaindeckGames]

Yes, readying it will allow you to attack again!

[@WhiskeyjackZA]

Yes - Chewbacca - is a great example.

[@RobertSearing]

Great video! Question though…with Vader’s “on attack” ability, can he attack a shielded unit and use the on attack to damage it with the two….remove it….then do his attack damage?

[@MaindeckGames]

That's exactly something he can do, yes! The On Attack is a separate damage source so it will defeat the shield and allow Vader's attack damsge to connect!

[@louislittle4861]

I’ve heard mixed perspectives of unit abilities that affect other units; do the affected units have to be in the same arena as the unit with the triggered ability? Or in any arena?

[@MaindeckGames]

For abilities, they will *always* specify if there is a particular arena they effect. If an ability says something simple like "Deal 2 damage to a unit", that unit can be in ANY Arena!

[@AndrewFishman]

For example, AT-AT Suppressor - When played - Exhaust all GROUND units. Sentinel - Units in THIS arena can't attack other units the Base. Blizzard Assault AT-AT - When attacking and defeating a unit - you may deal the excess damage to an enemy GROUND unit. [this prevents you having to put it on your own units if no other enemy are in the GROUND arena] 7th Brother, 5th sister and the Fallen and Vader's Lightsabers all restrict to Damage to GROUND units. Bombing Run - CHOOSE an Arena (Ground or Space) Deal 3 damage to each unit in that arena. [Including any of yours] Outmanoeuvre - CHOOSE an Arena (Ground or Space) Exhaust all units in that arena. And then, Strafing Gunship - This unit can attack units in the GROUND arena. This is pretty much examples of any arena specific effects you will find at present

[@ussenterprise1394]

Question about Ezra: If you play the revealed card, you still need to pay its cost just like with ECL yes?

[@MaindeckGames]

That's correct! It doesn't list any cost adjustments, so to Play it you must pay its full cost!

[@amc6354]

Very helpful stuff

[@joaocarlosmatos]

When a Leader uses his ability and then comes into play deployed, does he come ready or exausted? I've seen both way being played on tournaments.

[@MaindeckGames]

If you've seen anyone deploy their leader exhausted, even in a tournament, that was done wrong! Leaders can use their epic action to deploy whether they are ready or exhausted, and they ALWAYS deploy as a unit in the Ready state.

[@mar2989]

Hello, Question regarding Damage on units provided by effects like Overwhelming Barrage. 1. Can this be applied to a leader in play? For example, opponent choosing Darth Vader leader unit (5/8) allowing to deal 7 damage to my units. 2. How do shields come into play/ can the same target be chosen multiple times? For example, My opponent plays Overwhelming Barrage and chooses a legal 5 power unit (if leader unit is not legal). If I have Chopper (1/3) and Ezra (3/4) with no shields, he kills both via damage. Understood. However, lets say both have 1 shield each. Can my opponent choose 1 damage to Chopper to destroy shield, One damage to Ezra to destroy his shield, And then go back and choose Chopper again to damage 3 for knockout with the remaining 5 damage? Thanks in advance

[@MaindeckGames]

1. Yes, a Leader Unit is still a Unit so it's a legal target for overwhelming barrage. 2. You can't choose to deal multiple sources of damage to a single unit with Overwhelming Barrage. You choose any number of units and deal that much damage to them simultaneously. If they have a shield, the shield will absorb all the damage assigned from the effect. There's no way to choose the same unit twice to pop the shield and still damage the unit. A card like Maximum Firepower is worded to deal damage in two instances to a single unit, so THAT would be able to pop a shield and still damage the unit. Hope that helps!

[@mar2989]

@@MaindeckGames helped a lot. Thank you!

[@austinhayes7831]

Appreciate the info. Question, When a card allows you to take control of a unit, does that unit keep all current tokens (damage, experience, etc), and other upgrades?

[@deeterful]

Yes. See page 37 in the Comp Rules.

[@infinitec1]

I played in a SWU draft recently and attacked Chewbaca (Leader) who has Grit and Overwhelm. The player indicated that means the Grit bonus applied to the overwhelm on the attack. I'm not sure that is how it would work, but wanted other opinions. What do you think?

[@MaindeckGames]

Grit will increase the units power in any circumstance - including when it is defending in combat. However, Overwhelm only applies when the unit is Attacking, not when it's defending, so no excess damage is dealt to an attacking opponent when an Overwhelm unit is defending.

[@unwisemonkey2945]

I have scrolled through the comments but can’t see the question I have which is; The when played deal damage ability. Does the unit get damage back like it normally would when attacking or not? Great video by the way

[@MaindeckGames]

Only Attacks cause damage to be dealt back. If the effect does not say "attack", you only do what the card says!

[@tcgboardgames5759]

WAIT!!! So, do all resources come into play exhausted? I come from Magic so if they ALL come in exhausted thats surprising to me! For example in Magic if I play a land on my turn it comes in untapped (not exhausted in SWU terms) and ready to use! Now should I play a card such as Rampant Growth, which allows me to search up another land, that does come into tapped (exhausted) but it usually says so on the card! Please help me clarify because I may be playing incorrectly!

[@MaindeckGames]

They do all come in exhausted, but your untap step is right after the step when you play a resource, so it's not relevant with cards right now except for cards like Resupply that put a resource into play outside of the Resource step.

[@hexNjelli]

The first 2 at the start of the game do not. Every one you add in after that does

[@sly979]

I have 2 questions, if a leader used it’s ability and is exhausted can you still use it’s epic action? Also leaders have a cost on them so would you pay to summon your leader or would it be free since it’s an epic action?

[@WhiskeyjackZA]

Yes you can use the leader's ability (exhaust card) and then deploy it as part of its epic action. Leaders deploy ready. You don't have to pay the cost of the leader when deploying, but the cost is relevant for other card effects.

[@mjackels1377]

Need a bit more clarification of “On Attack” effects if you don’t mind.. Namely in instances where the effect is damage “On Attack” (as in your Sabine Wren example), would that 1 dmg “On Attack” trigger and remove an opponent unit’s Shield token? Or is it immune to shields? Also, would that “on attack” dmg trigger the unit’s simultaneous defensive dmg equal to their power? Thx

[@MaindeckGames]

The On Attack damage would remove a shield before you move to Attack damage, yes! ALL sources of damage will remove shields, there is no damage that Shields are immune to. And no, the only time the defender deals damage back is during the actual attack resolution. That's why Boba Fett - Disintegrator can sometimes destroy exhausted units before they even have a chance to deal any damage back, as long as his On Attack's 3 damage is lethal to them.

[@hudsonjesse3177]

Rules question on damage to "any unit". I'm still not clear when damage can be dealt to any arena, and when it can be dealt only in one arena. As a leader, Darth Vader can deal 1 damage to any unit, i.e. any arena. As a unit in the ground arena, however, my assumption is that he can only do his 2 bonus damage to an opponent's unit on the ground. I say that because, there are cards which specifically state when a unit can do damage in the opposite arena. Because Vader's ability does not say ground and space, I assume it's only ground because that is where he is deployed as a unit...

[@MaindeckGames]

The default for any effect is that it can target *any* arena unless it says otherwise. Thus, Vader's On Attack can be directed to a unit in any arena since it does not specify. But if an effect can only target a specific arena, it will *always* list that arena. For example, Vader's Lightsaber says "Ground Arena". If you don't see an Arena listed, it can target any. For another example, look at Admiral Ackbar - who deploys to ground, but lets you do damage to any unit "equal the number of units you control in its arena". He doesn't specify an Arena, so it can be any unit in either arena, and the damage is equal to the number of units you control in that arena. That wording wouldn't make any sense if he could only target Ground units! Hope that makes it a little more clear!

[@prudentparatrooper385]

You very much did, but I have another question. Do you have to deploy your leader as soon as you reach the resource amount?

[@MaindeckGames]

Great question! No, nothing forces you to deploy your leader then. You get to choose when to take the Epic Action.

[@SirElkley]

How doea the veers card work? As long as veers is in play all frendly (imperial keyword) get +1 +1?

[@danielmaya508]

How does takedown work? Does the opponents card need to be damaged or can it simply take out a card of cost 5 or less without it being damaged, its a question that came up last game

[@freewaydancestudios-ammanj1068]

Thank you for the video, help a lot 😊 One more question, about the event card, like Rebel Assault, when we use it's ability and attack a unit, do we get attack back from them?

[@MaindeckGames]

Yes, any time a unit performs an attack against another unit, both of them will deal damage to each other in the combat step.

[@calebross8174]

@@MaindeckGamesdoes damage stick until they die?

[@DanielRedMoon]

@5:40 Wait.. is that correct? Doesn't the "when played" resolve before defeating the Luke copy??

[@MaindeckGames]

This is correct. The relevant section of the comprehensive rules is 8.30.4, which I've pasted below: A player can only control one copy of each unique card at a given time. If a player ever has more than one copy of a unique card in play under their control at a given time, they must defeat one of them. Defeating one of the copies occurs immediately and is not a triggered ability. The player still must resolve any abilities that trigger upon either copy being played or defeated.

[@UnlimitedDOE]

So for Ezra, if you play a card with his effect you would still have pay resources to play that. Right?

[@MaindeckGames]

Correct, Ezra doesn't give any discounts so you pay the full cost if you choose to play it!

[@almightyelm5695]

If you played a card that said it cost less if a type of unit is in play but the only character with that type is your leader but they are not currently an active unit do they still count as the requirement for that card. Ex: Luke is your leader and you play the force is with me. Would you get the shield just because he’s your leader? Also another question. One card said that you picked units and they dealt damage to another unit based off their attack stat. Does that 1: exhaust them and 2: activate any on attack abilities?

[@deeterful]

A Leader is not a Unit until it’s been deployed.

[@MaindeckGames]

As @deeterful said, you can look at the type of the card in upper left to know - a Leader is not considered a Unit until it is on its Leader Unit side! For the second question - if you are talking about a card like Maximum Firepower, no. Only abilities that allow you to perform Attacks will trigger On Attack abilities, as well as cause the attacker to exhaust and the Defender to deal damage back. Abilities that just let your units deal damage like Maximum Firepower and Strike True simply deal damage without being an attack - think of them like fancy versions of Open Fire, just using one of your unit's stats to determine the number.

[@almightyelm5695]

Thanks to both of you so much for the help! Me and my brother were playing the game and were really confused with these rulings. Thanks again!

[@almightyelm5695]

@@MaindeckGames Another question: With Vader if you target someone with sentinel and kill them with the 2 damage from his ability does that then allow you to use the actual attack if Darth Vader against someone else?

[@MaindeckGames]

Vader will not get his On Attack trigger until after he actually declares an Attack - and when he declares an Attack, if there is a Sentinel in play in his Arena, he must declare the Attack against it. If Vader attacks a Sentinel, then uses the On Attack to deal damage to it before the Attack Damage is dealt and that damage defeats it, Vader does *not* get to redirect his attack - in this case, no combat damage will be dealt at all. The exception to this is if Vader (or a similar character with a similar effect) had the Overwhelm keyword. Overwhelm allows a unit to deal any excess damage to the opponent's base, and if the Defender is defeated before Combat damage would be dealt (due to an On Attack trigger, for example), instead of no damage being dealt, the Overwhelm unit would deal *all* of its damage to the base as *all* of it is now considered excess.

[@whitwhitmore7921]

Can you deploy an exhausted leader unit? Like can I use Sabine to ping both bases then deploy her later in the turn as an action? When leaders return after being defeated, do they return exhausted?

[@MaindeckGames]

Yes, you can deploy your leader after exhausting it for an action, and it will deploy ready as usual! When a leader is defeated, it returns to the Leader zone exhausted no matter what.

[@JDS8515]

Is a unit with multiple aspect icons considered a unit of all of those aspects regardless of the color of the card? For example a red card that has the red and black icon.

[@MaindeckGames]

Yes - actually, the border changes between Heroism, Villiany, and cards with neither! You'll see white linework on Heroism, black linework on Villainy, and neither when it's not aligned. I think I understood your question, but let me know if I was answering the wrong thing!

[@JDS8515]

@MaindeckGames I think my question is for example with Luke from the starter set. Can he only give a shield to a white card or could he give it to a red card too if it happened to also have the icon for white?

[@RobertM179]

I thought I heard somewhere that the Luke and Vader leader (S rarity) are not allowed in standard?

[@MaindeckGames]

That's untrue. Luke and Vader may both be played in Premier (standard constructed)!

[@RobertM179]

Thank you! Love the content !

[@CordelFinton]

They are not allowed in draft play.

[@RobertM179]

@@CordelFinton that’s where the confusion was

[@thrasosmastoras9504]

Very helpful video. I have a question. Darth Vader (Leader Unit) attacks a unit with a shield token on it. Vader uses his ability to deal 2 damage to it and lose its shield and then deal the whole 5 damage to it. Is that correct? Also, if that unit were to die from Vader's ability, does the attacks still resolve or is it abandoned?

[@MaindeckGames]

That's correct, the On Attack trigger resolves first and separate from the Attack damage. If the On Attack trigger defeats Vader's target, unless Vader has Overwhelm from some other effect, Vader's attack damage isn't dealt as the Target is no longer in play. If he DOES have Overwhelm from something, then, with his target gone, all of his attack damage would be considered excess and go to the opponent's base.

[@lirrion]

Could you help me? What happens with the upgrades, when an effect puts a unit into in its owners hand, with upgrades on?

[@MaindeckGames]

When a unit leaves play, any upgrades on the unit are defeated!

[@lirrion]

@@MaindeckGames Thank you!

[@paulcave87]

Can you play multiple vader lightsaber upgrades on Vader? (Since they both would be unique cards that are the exact same? Or are upgrades an exception

[@MaindeckGames]

Unique cards are unique cards, no matter what card type they are - if you had a Vader's Lightsaber on Vader and played a second one, you would have to defeat one of them - but you would still get the When Played ability, so it can be worth it as a way to remove a unit still!

[@massimilianomandarino2697]

If I summon the leader once I have enough resources. do I have to pay for it and does the leader come exhausted into play?

[@MaindeckGames]

The Epic Action to deploy your leader costs no resources, and the leader is deployed Ready, not exhausted!

[@Sologeist_Arts]

A question I haven’t seen an answer for yet is: My opponent plays Maximum Firepower to try and have two imperial units do their damage to my unit, but my opponent only has 1 imperial unit in play. Will the one imperial unit deal damage and the second ability fizzle or can they not play the card because they just don’t have two Imperials?

[@MaindeckGames]

You would "do as much as you can" in this case - so you can play Maximum Firepower with only a single Imperial in play, and only get that Imperial's power dealt to the target. The second part of the effect would have no legal sources for damage, so it would "fizzle".

[@jeffbrantz6620]

I would really like a how a shield works. For instance, Vader attacks, can his 2 dmg clear the shield before he hits? or is it all one damage and shield is defeted at the end of combat?

[@MaindeckGames]

Vader's effect damage is separate from Attack damage, so if he attacks a Shielded unit, then chooses to send his effect damage at the same unit, the Effect damage will defeat the Shield, and then his Attack damage will be dealt to the defender (and the defender's damage will be dealt to Vader as normal).

[@doctadante1911]

Soo as a new player my question is if someone has units in the same field as you that are not senteniel and readied or exhausted do you have to clear them first before direct base damage? Or can you just ignore them and do hits to the face?

[@MaindeckGames]

You can always choose to attack the base if there isn't a Sentinel (or some other effect) preventing you from doing so. There is no need to attack units first if they don't have Sentinel!

[@doctadante1911]

Copy thanks for the info that helps alot tbh

[@AndrewFishman]

@@MaindeckGames This is one mechanic of the game I think they messed up, personally. I think that ground units, at least, should have to clear opposing forces before attacking the base (aka Hoth) and that only vehicles with abilities (At-At, Capital ships etc) should be able to attack bases while opposed. That would give more room for control decks, less joy to aggression players. The only meta at present is base beat down. Where's the fun in that? Or at least base shields or something. "The deflectors are too powerful, my Lord..."

[@WhiskeyjackZA]

@@AndrewFishman They are a few sets in already in terms of development. While we don't know for sure, I cannot imagine that this was not considered as part of game design. Let's see what tools come out for control and preventing direct base damage in the future. Even in its current state of the game - we have a control deck as one of the three meta decks. We already have sentinel, direct damage, removal, return, cannot attack base and exhaust cards - that all prevent damage to the base.

[@NormandyN7]

Need Help with Markers and Upgrades .. like Power Failure .. destroys it Markers too ? Because there are Token-Upgrades ?

[@madskillzds5770]

Hi, great video, thanks. Could you please help me with the following question: Darth Vader is attacking a base, before he does 2 damage to his Admiral Motti card. Can Admiral Motti ready Darth Vader card or Admiral Motti can ready only a card that is already exhausted?

[@MaindeckGames]

Vader WILL be exhausted when the attack is declared - that happens before the On Attack trigger. So if he uses his 2 damage to defeat Motti, Motti will be able to ready Vader and he can attack again in a future action that phase!

[@madskillzds5770]

@@MaindeckGames Thank you so much for the explanation! 👍👍

[@MerliniusAmbrosius]

Does the uniqueness rule apply as every player at once or just your side of the field

[@MaindeckGames]

You only have to worry about your own side of the field for Uniqueness. Your opponent's Luke Skywalker - Faithful Friend will not cause you to defeat YOUR Luke Skywalker - Faithful Friend.

[@MerliniusAmbrosius]

Fantastic, thank you

[@brandonchase2446]

When you return a unit to an owners hand what happeneds to any equipment or upgrades on the unit

[@MaindeckGames]

Any upgrades on the unit are defeated if the unit leaves play in any way!

[@tpuccia88]

Question on Energy Conversion Lab. What is the point of using a base that allows you to play a card at cost? Don't you just do that anyways no matter what?

[@MaindeckGames]

It gives the card Ambush, which allows you to immediate attack a unit with it. That is sometimes a massive swing worth well more than 5 HP!

[@tpuccia88]

Thank you for the help!

[@sineahmylanski5991]

If you are playing Iden Verso and he's flipped to his leader unit side and you play super laser blast do you still gain life for all defeated units or do they all go to the discard pile simultaneously?

[@IcelynxPheonixFire]

I would like to know the answer to this as well

[@MaindeckGames]

Yes, I plan to cover this one in another video for sure. Units with abilities that trigger when something is defeated will still "see" things get defeated if they are defeated in the same action. It's the same reason a card can see when ITSELF Is defeated, like Obi-Wan Kenobi. So if there are 7 enemy units and Iden in play, that Superlaser Blast will cause you to heal 7!

[@deeterful]

@@MaindeckGames thanks, could this be better clarified in the Comp Rules under "last known information" perhaps? The examples used there don't cover this specific scenario and they probably should.

[@MaindeckGames]

If you check 7.6.3 and 7.6.4 covering Triggered Abilities, those I think are fairly clear actually! Specifically, 7.6.4 says "Triggered abilities on a unit that trigger when other units are defeated still trigger if that unit is defeated simultaneously to the other units."

[@deeterful]

@@MaindeckGames , found it thanks. I suppose that it is more of a triggered ability issue than a "last know info" issue.

[@maartencorthouts6265]

Question: can a Ground Unit deal damage with card text (not by attacking) to a Space Unit.. For example "ISB AGENT": you play him in the Ground Arena (duh), you reveal an Event, can you then deal 1 damage to a Space Unit, for example kill of a "Patrolling V-Wing"??

[@MaindeckGames]

Yes! If the effect does not specify an Arena, it can target a unit in any Arena. ISB Agent can definitely deal its effect damage to the V-Wing.

[@roka102]

Thanks for clarifying these things. That being said I just wish the are text in this game was much more clear in general instead of forcing people to make these videos

[@deeterful]

Everything in this video can be found in the Comp Rules. But that is a lot to take in all at once. Not every rules nuance can be printed on cards otherwise the text boxes would become too cluttered. Now matter how succinctly you word something there will always be people with questions, that’s just unavoidable. What they need is a Q&A rules forum.

[@roka102]

@@deeterful good point, and agreed!

[@PicnicBasketNinja]

If I use Luke’s power to give a unit -3/-3 and that reduces the health to zero is that unit defeated?

[@MaindeckGames]

Yes, if a unit's HP stat is ever reduced to 0, it becomes defeated instantly!

[@geoffreythomas2022]

Does Vanquish defeat a unit regardless of shield tokens or just remove one shield?

[@MaindeckGames]

Shields only prevent damage - Vanquish would defeat a unit regardless of any shields on it!

[@deeterful]

At some point it might become necessary to create an online rules forum for people to post questions.

[@hexNjelli]

I think we need an official rules clarification for Energy Conversion Lab from the devs themselves. Seeing as you're talking about not being able to use the once per game ability until round 7 and all this epic once per game action, that I am sacrificing 5 health for, is to give that card ambush? That seems woefully useless. 5 HP can make the difference between a match so the one time use thing should be worth it. Hell, I can't even tell you how many times that I've played where the winner had 1 hp left.

[@MaindeckGames]

I think you've misunderstood something I've said - Energy Conversion Lab can be used any round of the game. You simply have to pay the cost for the unit you play with it. We actually have a very complete understanding of how ECL works, and it's widely regarded as the best of the 25 HP bases! Is there anything more specific I can help clear up about it?

[@danelawson6589]

Is there a hand size in this game?

[@MaindeckGames]

There is no maximum hand size.

[@josepaolo8247]

Which one will be the better game in the long run? Or your go to choice? Altered or SWU? 😅

[@MaindeckGames]

They are both great games!

[@junosynth]

9:46 Open Fire - This card can attack Space units correct?

[@MaindeckGames]

Correct, it does not specify an arena so it can target a unit in either.

[@planb6041]

As everybody else is saying, very great Video! Darth Vader as a Leader can deal damage to a unit. Does this mean he can deal it to air and ground? Does that change after he becomes a ground unit?

[@MaindeckGames]

Yes, he doesn't specify an arena so no matter if he is in the leader zone or deployed as unit, his ability can target either. I go over this in part 2 as well! Thanks for the kind words!