From: smneyln@ariel.lerc.nasa.gov (Michael Neylon)
Subject: Re: a few questions...
News-Software: VAX/VMS VNEWS 1.41    
Organization: NASA Lewis Research Center
Date: 31 Aug 1992 11:18 EST  

In article <FASCIANO.92Aug30213611@nil.IRO.UMontreal.CA>, fasciano@nil.IRO.UMontreal.CA (Massimo Fasciano) writes...
>Hi,
> 
>i have a few questions about Mayfair CE:
> 
>1) In the description of a valid deal, the rulebook says: "The deal
>need not be equitable. The players cannot trade nothing for nothing,
>and no player can gain more than one base as part of a deal." Am i to
>assume that trading something for nothing is valid (ex: i give you all
>my challenge cards and you give me nothing).
>
Yes that is possible.  For example, If I were Zombie, and you had only
3 tokens left in the game (but it was your turn next and you had a 
Mobieus tube...), I could force you to agree to <anything for me> and
nothing for you.  Either you accept, or you are out of the game, and Zombie
doesnt lose a thing.

>2) The description of the Wrack says: "On each torture, you may select
>one of his tokens to send to the warp or ...". Does this mean any
>token (on bases or in the cone)? If all of the main offensive player's
>tokens are removed from the cone, what happens? Does he automatically
>lose the challenge? Does the wrack lose the challenge but not his
>base? In general, what happens if the offensive player has no more
>tokens in the cone? I think the wild anti-matter says something about
>this. Is it specific to that flare?
>
Err, dont have the game w/ me, but I believe that you can only torture
the other player for as many tokens as he has in the challenge, and you
remove one token.  I think something happens then when you fail to
make him submit (you lose tokens as well?) and the game passes on.  If not,
I would suspect that the offensive player would continue to play, but gets
no bonus from his non-existant tokens (but this doesnt make sense, so I think
the challenge ends earlier...)


>3) A cosmic zap nullifies the explosion of one of the Terrorist's
>bombs. Does that mean that the bomb stays there (with its location
>revealed) without exploding, or that it explodes without affecting
>anybody?
>
The bomb is used up.  Noone is affected.

>4) Zombie is immune to Void, right?

Yepper.  Zombie recovers tokens as they go to the warp, not after they have
arrived, when the Void takes over.
> 
>5) When two players can use their respective powers at the same time
>and the knowledge obtained from announcing your decision last is
>important, what do you do? The timing rules mention "contradictory
>effects" but i think this does not apply here. For example, Mirror vs
>Sorcerer. If Sorcerer plays an 08, he might want to switch the cards,
>unless Mirror reverses the digits, which would turn the 08 into an 80.
>In this case, the effects are not contradictory, it's the knowledge of
>the other's decision that gives you the edge.  In our group, the
>players have to write down their decision, and the results are
>revealed simultaneously.

The use of simulatenous powers occurs starting with the defensive player,
then the offensive player, then others starting to the left of the 
def. player and continue clockwise.  (chech this...this is explained in
the book)

> 
>6) Do the timing rules apply when a player plagues you. Suppose i want
>to play a card (my last edict), but before i find it in my hand,
>another player plagues me. If the timing order is in my favor, can i
>play the edict before his plague (and not lose it), even though he
>dropped it (the plague) first on the table? If so, can i play my last
>edict AND my last flare before the effect of the plague, or are the
>timing rules limited to one "effect" (card or power use). I interpret
>this situation as "contradictory effects". What do you all think?
>
If you called, Im going to play an Edict... and then proceed to look
through the cards, then you play before you are plagued (You announced
that you would do it).  But if you are plagued while looking, but did
not announce anything, then you are plagued, and gotta get rid of that 
card.  Furthermore, unless it prevent the plague, you cannot play
any edict/flares until after you drop the required ones.

>7) I assume that if the offensive player has no more attack cards
>during the challenge, the challenge ends immediately. But what if he
>has none a the beginning, draws seven new ones, and still has none.
>His challenge ends, right? (he doesn't get to discard and draw a new
>hand again) What about the defender? What happens if he runs out
>during the challenge (plague)? What happens if at the beginning of the
>challenge (as soon it is known that he is the defender), he draws his
>new hand and still has no challenge cards? Does the attacker win
>immediately? Does the defender discard his hand and draw a new one
>(until he gets one with challenge cards).

No, I (IMO) would let the player (be it off or def) draw again.  Its
require for the defense (ie what does he do without an attack during the
challenge), so its responable for the off to do the same ON HIS FIRST
CHALLENGE of his turn.  If the off/def runs out mid-challenge (before
cards are placed), they may still draw the new hand until they get a 
challenge card.  And for the new hand, they must discard the previous
7 card hand (unless keepered) beofer drawing the next.
> 
>Thanks in advance for your answers... I LLLLOVE this game, but
>sometimes the rules are so confusing (i guess this is what makes it so
>great).
> 
>Oh, yes, to those of you who have obtained a copy of MCE, what are
>your impressions? Can you describe some of the new powers?
> 
>	Massimo-
> 
>--
>=================================================================
>=  Massimo Fasciano       E-MAIL: fasciano@IRO.UMontreal.CA     =
>=================================================================
Michael Neylon   aka Masem the Great and Almighty Thermodynamics GOD!
      //         | Senior, Chemical Engineering, Univ. of Toledo
  \\ // Only the |   Summer Intern, NASA Lewis Research Center
\  \X/   AMIGA!  |          smneyln@ariel.lerc.nasa.gov              /
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