Hogwart's Battle: Rules Clarification and FAQ (Last Updated 2017-06-28) Document Organization and Spoiler Hogwarts Battle is a game that is somewhat unique in that the game starts off with simple mechanisms and gradually adds more components to make a larger game with more cards, new kinds of cards, and new rules. Many people who buy this game would like to avoid “spoilers” and not know what is inside future game boxes. This document is organized in a way to minimize exposure to spoilers, but be aware that for various reasons some spoilers cannot be avoided. The first section of this document addresses general gameplay questions. Most examples in this section are explained using cards that appear in Games 1 or 2. However, there are a couple of places where it is necessary to use cards from later games as examples. Following General Gameplay Questions, any questions about specific cards or mechanism that appear in a specific game box appear in under that game header. For example, there is a rule clarification about a spell that doesn't appear until Game 3, so it is under the “Game 3” header. With this in mind, you can choose to stop reading the document when you get to a particular Game header you don't wish to know about. There are several questions regarding how to resolve two different effects when triggered simultaneously. Because the answer to this question is “spoiler heavy” it has been moved to the end of the document (Page 9). However, be aware that you may need to refer to this question before you open to the Game Seven box. General Gameplay Question: Q: Do | keep cards in my deck when going from one game to the next? Do | have to play the same character each game? ‘A: No. Hogwarts Battle is not a “campaign” game. Anything you acquire in a given game does not carry over into the next. The game has no memory. Even though the rules and components carry over, players will start from scratch every time they open a new game box. Q: Where are cards that have been played located? Are they in the discard? A: Although the rulebook does not explicitly explain this, you should consider cards that have been played to be in a “play area.” This means they are neither in your hand nor in the discard pile. As such, played cards do not trigger discard effects, they cannot be retrieved using Accio, and on the rare occasion that you have to shuffle your deck in the middle of your turn, they would not be shuffled into your new draw pile. Similarly, they are no longer in your hand and cannot be used as payment for cards that require you to discard. During Step 4-4 of the player's turn, the player will move all cards from this “play area’ into his/her discard pile, but this does not count as a discard for the purpose of triggering discard effects. Source: httos:/Awww.boardaamegeek, com/article/24681778#24681778 Source: httos:/iwww.boardgamegeek.com/article/24887751#24887751 Page 1 of 10Hogwart's Battle: Rules Clarification and FAQ (Last Updated 2017-06-28) Q: How often can I collect a reward on a card? A: There are several questions on the forum about how often a reward on a card will trigger and it would be time consuming to list every example, However, the general rule in any game (not just Hogwart Battle) is that if a card uses the word "each" it can be triggered multiple times. Without this keyword, you should assume it can only trigger once for every time it is played. The easiest example of this is to look at Bernie Bott's and the Cleansweep from Ron's starting deck. The Cleansweep does not say “each,” so you may only claim a total of one influence even if you defeat two or three villains in one tum. In contrast, Bernie Bott's says “For each Ally...” and thus can be triggered muttiple times on the same turn Source: httos:/iwww.boardgamegeek.com/thread/1687951/ Q: Where do “revealed” cards go? A; Starting in year three, some game effects will instruct the player to reveal the top card of their deck and discard it under certain conditions, but does not instruct the player otherwise. The standard rule in most board games is that revealed cards return to their original location unless another instruction gives direction otherwise. In these cases, the player will return the revealed card to the top of the player deck if the instruction does not tell them to discard, Source: General board game standard; not yet contradicted by game’s designer. Q: Isa card discarded from the top of your deck still considered a discard? ‘A: Yes. In conjunction with the previous question, a player may be told to discard the top card of their deck. This still counts as a discard and would thus trigger any discard effects of that card (such as Neville's Remembrall) and/or trigger Crabbe & Goyle’s attack if they are in play. Players should treat the word “discard’ like a keyword, meaning any time two different cards use the word “discard,” it they are referring the same effect. Source: https:/iwww,boardgamegeek,com/article/24787812#24787812 Dark Arts and Villain Cards: Q: If'a Dark Arts card or Villain card attacks all players, in what order should effects be resolved? A: The Dark Arts or Villain attack should be treated as ifit attacks all players simultaneously. Once resolved, any abilities gained from Discard effects or other player abilities can then be resolved. For example, if Heir of Slytherin causes all players to discard a card, but one player has Marauder's Map (all players draw one card if discarded), all players must perform their discard before executing the benefits of the Marauder's Map. Source: httos:/www.boardgamegeek.com/article/23812356#23812356 Page 2 of 10Hogwart's Battle: Rules Clarification and FAQ (Last Updated 2017-06-28) Q: When a Dark Arts card or Villain attack offers the player a choice of losing health or some other effect, can you choose to lose health when you are stunned? If you are not stunned, can you choose to lose an item/ally/spell if you do not have one? ‘A; No. In short, you cannot choose a penalty you are unable to pay (unless you are unable to pay either). For example, Relashio says to discard an item or lose 2 health. if a stunned player draws Relashio they must discard an item, if they have one. Similarly, if a player is not stunned and has no item, they cannot choose the “discard an item” option and must lose two health. ‘Source: hitps://www,boardgameaeek,com/article/23849427#23849427 Source: https:/;www.boardgamegeek.com/article/23802402#2. Source: httos:/Awww.boardaamegeek. com/article/23991497#23991497 Q: In some circumstances, the order in which villain cards are resolved can produce different outcomes. In what order are villain cards resolved? A: Villain abilities should be resolved in order from left to right. The exception to this is Bellatrix, whose ability should be resolved during the Dark Arts phase (Step 1), Similarly, if two villains are defeated in one turn, empty villain slots should be filled from left to right, Source: httos:/www,boardgamegeek,com/article/23840834#23840834 Source: httos:/www.boardaamegeek.com/article/25666333#25666333 Q: Ifa villain is destroyed during your turn, do any “Step 3" effects of that villain go away? ‘A: Yes. For example, normally when the Basilisk is in play you cannot draw cards. If you defeat the Basilisk during your turn, you can draw cards on the same tum it was defeated Source: httos:/www.boardaamegeek. com/article/23849516#23849516 Q: Do Villain effects prevent the collection of other Villain rewards? ‘A: Yes. For example, If Barty Crouch is in play you may not remove control tokens from the location. Ifa hero defeats a Dementor, they do not get to remove the control token as part of the reward printed on the Dementor card. This rule also affects healing rewards if Fenrir is in play. Source: hitos://www,boardgamegeek,com/article/23812263#23812263 Q: Ifa Villain blocks part of a card effect, can you or must you execute the rest of the action? ‘A: Yes. For example, Lockhart says “Draw one card, then discard any one card.” If the Basilisk is in play and you choose to play Lockhart, you would not draw the card but you would still have to discard. Neville could thus use Lockhart to discard his Remembrall to gain two influence. Source: httos:/www.boardaamegeek. com/article/24479506#24479506 Q: Does a card count as played even if a villain card blocks its effects? ‘A: Yes. For example, the Basilisk prevents card draw while Lumos allows all heroes to draw a card. You could play Lumos with no effect and it would still count as one of the four cards needed to trigger Hermione’s hero ability Source: hitos://www,boardgamegeek,com/article/24479506#24479506 Page 3 of 10Hogwart's Battle: Rules Clarification and FAQ (Last Updated 2017-06-28) Hogwarts Cards: Q: When a Hogwarts card is purchased, is it immediately replaced in the purchase area or replaced at the end of the hero's turn? ‘A; Per the rules as written, the cards in the purchase area are replaced at the end of the tun. However, the designer has clarified that immediate replacement is an acceptable variant. Source: httos:/www.boardgamegeek.com/atticle/24031541#24031541 Q: Is there any way to remove cards from the Hogwart’s Deck purchase area? ‘A: Yes. The rulebook, as written, does not allow you to do this. However, because players have encountered issues of not being able to afford to purchase cards, the designer introduced the following rule: Once per game, one player may forego acquiring any cards during his/her tum. If s/he does, take all six available Hogwarts cards, place them on the bottom of the deck, and replace them with six new cards. Source: httos:/www.boardgamegeek.com/article/23841048#23841048 Q: How do you remove cards from your player deck? A: Avid players of deck building games are aware of abilities that let you remove cards from your deck, such as “Trash” in Dominion or “Destroy” in Ascension. Hogwarts Battle has no such mechanism, Your ten starting cards will remain with you for the duration of the game, as will any other purchases you make. Q: Ifa Hogwarts card has a discard effect, do you get that effect when discarding your hand at the end of your turn? ‘A: No. Page 14 lists the conditions which trigger discard abilities. End of tum discards are not on this list. For example, if you do not play Remembrall during Step 3 of the player phase, you do not gain 2 influence when discarding during Step 4. (However, note the changes to this rule discussed in year six below.) Source: Page 14 of manual Q: For Hogwarts cards that specify “If you play an item...” or similar, does it matter which order the cards are played in? ‘A: No. “If you play.” cards have floating triggers, meaning you can satisfy the trigger either before or after playing the requisite card, For example, if Ron has both Pigwidgeon and Bernie Bott's in his hand, it does not matter when they are played. He will get the bonus attack token from Bernie Bott's regardless of which order the two cards are played Exception: Sybill Trelawney's reward can only be triggered from the discard she causes. Source: httos://www,boardgamegeek,com/article/24031977#24031977 Source: httos:/iwww.boardgameaeek.com/article/25195152#251 Q: Ifa Hogwarts card specifies that it affects two heroes, can you choose the same hero twice? ‘A: No. For example, when Butterbeer is played, you must pick two different targets. Source: https://www,boardgamegeek,com/arlicle/24162814i#24162814 Page 4 of 10Hogwart's Battle: Rules Clarification and FAQ (Last Updated 2017-06-28) Game Q: Does Polyjuice potion count as an ally? ‘A: No. Item, Ally, and Spell are keywords printed on each card, Even though Polyjuice copies the effect of an Ally, the keyword printed on the card says “Item.” Source: httos:/www.boardgamegeek. com/article/25195207#25195207 Q: Some Allies, such as Fawkes, give the player a choice of reward. If Polyjuice potion is played, must the player copy the previously chosen effect or do they get the choice again? A: The player may choose a different effect from the Polyjuice copy. Source: httos:/iwww.boardgamegeek.com/article/25195180#25195180 Q If the Basilisk is in play, do “search” abilities count as card draw? A: No. As with a previous example regarding “discard,” the word “draw” is also a keyword. In later years, the players will encounter abilities that allow them to search their discard or player deck for a card and put it into their hand, Because these abilities do not use the keyword “draw” they can be used while Basilisk is in play. Source: httos:/www.boardaamegeek. com/article/25006578#25006578 1e 3: Q: Some Villains have abilities that trigger during step three of the player's tum. For example, the Basilisk prevents players from drawing cards. Does Petrificus Totalus negate these effects on the turn it was cast? A: Yes. If'a player casts Petrificus on the Basilisk, that hero may draw cards on their turn. This rule also applies to other villains you will see in later game boxes. Source: httos:/iwww.boardaamegeek. com/article/24091729#24091729 Game Q: The third location for year 4 says that all heroes must discard an Ally when this location is revealed. The third location for year § says all heroes must discard a Spell when revealed. This contradicts the year 5 manual which says to discard an Ally, while the Year 4 manual makes no mention of rules regarding revealing locations. Which is correct? ‘A: The rules as printed on the location cards are correct. This appears to be an error in the printing of the manuals. The paragraph in the year five manual should be in the year four manual. Source: hitos:/www.boardgamegeek.com/article/24408251#24408251 Page 5 of 10Hogwart's Battle: Rules Clarification and FAQ (Last Updated 2017-06-28) Q: Does the Death Eater attack all heroes for one damage upon being revealed? A: Yes. The Death Eater card triggers itself. Also, Death Eater is the only villain that triggers during Step 4 of the player's tum, The “new villain" trigger happens during substep 2, before the discard and draw actions (substep 4-6). Thus, if a Death Eater stuns the active player during Step 4, it happens before the player draws their new five cards. Similarly, an already stunned hero would not take damage as the Death Eater's attack occurs before stunned heroes recover. Source: httos:/www.boardgamegeek.com/article/23916325#23916325 ‘Source: hitps://www,boardgameaeek,com/article/25200725#25200725 Source: Page 10 and 13 of manual. Q: Fleur Delacour has an ability that reads “If you play another ally, you may also gain 2 health. ‘Suppose you play Fleur and then use Polyjuice Potion to copy her. Can the copy of Fleur use the original Fluer as a trigger for this ability? ‘A: Yes. This may seem to contradict an earlier question, but it does not. In this example, there are two Fleur's in the play area. Original-Fleur is an Ally. Copy-Fleur is an Item, because it was created by the polyjuice potion. Original-Fleur requires an Ally to trigger, but there isn’t one on the board, Copy-Fluer requires an Ally to trigger, and Original-Fluer is an Ally, This satisfies the condition of the “virtual text” of Copy-Fluer (Polyjuice) and thus triggers. The Original satisfies the trigger of the Copy, but not vice versa Source: httos:/www.boardgamegeek.com/article/25195207#25195207 Game 5: Q: There are two copies Confundus in the year five box, but this is a year six spell. Why? A; This is a misprint with early printings of the game, Year five should come with two copies of Stupefy. If you don't have the Stupefy cards with your game, it is OK to use the Confundus cards when playing a year five game. You can contact OP customer service for replacements. Source: httos:/iwww.boardgamegeek, com/article/23812328#23812328 Customer Service Link: htips:/itheop.games/replacements/ Q: When Voldemort is revealed, you cannot attack him. How does this affect the trigger on the Confundus spell? ‘A; Confundus allows you to remove a control token provided you place one attack on each villain. Since Voldemort cannot be attacked when other villains are in play, this prevents the hero from satisfying the trigger. In contrast, once all ‘regular’ villains are defeated, Voldemort is the only villain on the board. Attacking him is equivalent to attacking all villains on the board, so itis very easy to satisfy the trigger. Source: httos://www,boardgamegeek.com/article/24091815#24091815 Page 6 of 10Hogwart's Battle: Rules Clarification and FAQ (Last Updated 2017-06-28) Game Proficiencies: Q: Ifa Hogwarts card with a discard effect is discarded as the result of a Proficiency or Horcrux ability, does this still trigger the discard effect? ‘A: Yes. These two conditions are not mentioned on page 14 of the manual, but the designer has clarified they are valid discard triggers. (Presumably they were omitted from the manual to avoid spoilers.) The discard effect ocours before the Proficiency. Source: https:/iwww.boardgamegeek.com/article/24 Source: httos:/Awww.boardaamegeek. com/article/25221633#25221633 Q: Can Arithmaney be used to re-roll Heir of Slytherin or Year Six Voldemort? ‘A: No. Arithmancy allows its controlling player to re-roll their dice. In this case, the villain is [thematically] rolling the die, not the player. Source: httos:/iwww.boardaamegeek.com/article/25848223#25848223 Q: Ifa hero has Defense Against the Dark Arts, does the hero gain attack tokens from this ability when discarding cards as a result of being stunned? ‘A: No. DADA specifically states it only triggers from effects listed on the Dark Arts cards or Villain abilities. Being stunned is considered a different effect, even if caused by one of these cards. Source: httos://www.boardgamegeek.com/article/23831155#23831155 Q: If you play an item allowing card draw with Divination in play, which effect happens first? ‘A; The played card would execute before Divination. Source: https://www,boardgamegeek,com/article/25848171#25848171 Q: Can you use Transfiguration to retrieve a starting card from your deck? A: Yes. Starting cards effectively have an influence value of zero. Source: hitos://www,boardgamegeek,com/article/24031563#24031563 Q: If your draw deck is empty, can you shuffle your discard pile when triggering Transfigurations? ‘A: Yes. You may shuffle your discard to make a new deck and search for a card as normal. Source: https:/ww boardgamegeek.com/article/241 2A Q: Ifa hero is at 8 or 9 health, is it possible for them to acquire a card draw from Herbology? ‘A: No. Heroes cannot gain health beyond 10. They cannot “gain” three health in this situation, regardless of the healing value of any game effects. Source: https://www_boardgamegeek.com/article/24316692#24316692 Page 7 of 10Hogwart's Battle: Rules Clarification and FAQ (Last Updated 2017-06-28) Game Q: When Voldemort is in play, if a game effect allows you to remove multiple control tokens as a single action, do you lose one health per token or one health for the entire action? ‘A: You lose one health per token. Using the Deluminator or Nagini will cause the heroes to lose two or three health respectively. Source: httos:/iwww.boardgamegeek.com/article/24214025#24214025 Horeruxes: Q: When rolling a Hogwarts die, do you specify you are attacking a Horcrux before the roll? ‘A: No. When a Hogwarts card instructs you to roll a die, you roll the die first and then decide if you want to apply the roll to a Horcrux or use the roll for its ability Source: httos:/www.boardaamegeek. com/article/24261377#24281377 Q: Do all symbols required to destroy a Horcrux need to be rolled on a single turn or can this, span several turns? ‘A: AHorcrux can be destroyed over multiple tums. For example, if Hermione rolls a heart against the Cup, you leave the heart token on the Horcrux at the end of her turn. Another hero, or even Hermione, can roll an influence on a later tum and claim the Cup. Source: htips:/iwww.boardgamegeek.com/article/24194850#24 194850 Q: May any hero use a Horerux ability or only the hero who acquired it? ‘A: Only the Hero who completes the destruction of the Horcrux may use it's power, and only on his or her turn, Source: https:/iwww,boardgamegeek,com/article/24 Q: Suppose a hero has only one health. If Tom's Diary is in play and a hero plays an Ally that grants healing, which card is triggered first? A; The Diary triggers before the Ally. See the timing rules at the end of this document. Source: httos:/www.boardaamegeek.com/atticle/24299881#24299861 Q: Does Harry's cloak protect him from Horcrux attacks? ‘A: No. The cloak only states that it protects against Dark Arts and Villains, The omission of Horcruxes from the card is deliberate. Source: https://www_boardgamegeek.com/article/24340315#24340315 Q; Can cards discarded via being stunned be used to pay for costs of Horcrux abilities? A: No. The cost of triggering a Horcrux must be paid independently of any other effect. Source: https://www_boardgamegeek.com/article/24416363#244 16363 Page 8 of 10Hogwart's Battle: Rules Clarification and FAQ (Last Updated 2017-06-28) General Timing Rules: Once players reach Game 7, there are many different mechanisms in play. This has resulted in several situations in which more than one card may be triggered simultaneously. Consequently, many questions have arisen regarding which card or effect should be resolved first when this, happens. Some specific questions have been answered on previous pages of this document, but this section attempts to prioritize all game effects in a manner that will answer most timing questions that may come up. As a general rule if there is a question about timing, cards or effects should be resolved in the following order: 1) Stunning - If anything stuns a hero, the stun interrupts all game effects and happens immediately. In some cases, this can even occur in the middle of executing a card. ) Dark Arts Cards ) The currently active Horcrux (if any) }) Voldemort ) ) ) Been Villain Cards, from left to right. (Including rewards for defeating a villain) Discard effects of Hogwart's Cards. Hogwarts Cards played by Heroes 8) Hero Abilities 9) Proficiencies 10) Abilities earned from destroyed Horcruxes. x2 Be aware that the printed text on the card always supersede these rules. For example, Bellatrix’s ability will always happen during the Dark Arts phase. A notable exception is that Horcruxes always trigger after Dark Arts cards, The phrase “At the start of each turn...” on the Cup, Diadem, and Nagini are only there to clarify that events from Steps 2 or 3 of the player's turn cannot re-trigger the card. It is possible that a Dark Arts card could prevent the Diadem from triggering. Similarly, Nagin’s attack ocours between Steps 1 and 2 of the player's tun, ‘An easy thing to note about the list above is that “bad stuff’ like Dark Arts cards and Villain attacks always happen before “good stuff like Hogwarts Cards or Abilities. So a general rule you can follow is that if something harming the player and something helping the player are triggered at the same time, the harmful thing is going to happen first. portant because most timing questions revolve around discards. If something "bad" is causing a player to discard, the bad things complete before the discard effect triggers. In contrast, if the player herself does something to cause a discard, the discard effect interrupts the player immediately, and then the player continues their action Source: hitos://www.boardgamegeek.com/thread/1676260/ (entire thread) Source: hitos://www,boardgamegeek,com/article/25274813#25274813 Page 9 of 10Hogwart's Battle: Rules Clarification and FAQ (Last Updated 2017-06-28) Other issue: Q: When playing a game with all three Voldemort cards, do the Year 5 & 6 Voldemort cards drop into the villain space when revealed or stay in the topmost space? A: The “Three Voldemorts” variant was intended to played with only one Voldemort in play at a time. Thus the Year 5 Voldemort would stay on the upper villain location. Once defeated you would reveal Year 6 Voldemort, and so on. However, the designer has commented that having multiple Voldemorts in play as another variant would increase the difficulty. When played this way, heroes must assign attack tokens to each Voldemort in year order. Source: httos://www.boardaamegeek.com/article/24113539#24113539 Q: How is the Basilisk Fang card acquired? ‘A; The Basilisk Fang should be set aside at the start of the game. It does not go into the Hogwarts deck. The player who defeats the Basilisk villain acquires this card for free, placing it in their discard pile like any other purchase. (Note: Basilisk Fang is a promotional card that did not come with the game.) Source: httos://boardaamegeek,con/article/24113483#24113483 Source: (Missing source post that itis placed in discard.) Questions or corrections? Feel free to contact me at davypi on Board Game Geek or post your comments here: hitos://www. megeek.com/thread/1687737/ APODF version of this FAQ may be downloaded here: hilos://mmwboardgamegeek,com/flepage/141111/ Many thanks go to Andrew Wolf for answering player questions on the BGG forums. Thanks also to Kami Mandell for filing in for him on occasion. A final thanks also to USAopoly (now The OP), not only for making the game, but also for the outstanding customer service they have provided to many of us on “The Geek.” Page 10 of 10