February Rules Update

by Jon Carter, First Edition Rules Master

2nd February 2015

Trapped by a blizzard, your rules master has failed to return to Andoria to file this update.

After being dug out, we have surmised the following updates from notes scratched into the walls and his mad ravings.

What follows is a dramatic recreation of what we assume the rules would have looked like:

Hi all!

This month, we have a range of rulings for you all. We also have four new additions to the OTF ban list, as well as some clarification on how the ban list is going to be used from now on (more on that later).

Let's start with the rulings.

This months' rules update makes a few minor updates occasioned by the release of The Gamma Quadrant:

* The function of skills on ships (as on U.S.S. Pasteur, Starship Excelsior, U.S.S. Grissom, and Dosi Trade Vessel) is clarified and moved into a central location.

* The uniqueness of Articles of Jurisprudence and Strategic Base is clarified, in light of the new card: A Better Alternative.

* A paragraph from the "corresponding" entry, which was accidentally deleted during the last CRD merge, is restored.

* The identity of "modified" and "advanced" ship classes is clarified, and a card-specific ruling on the same subject (for D'Deridex Advanced) is removed.

Now on to the ban list.

As First Edition continues to grow, most things stay the same. The designers build upon that which has been made in the past and sometimes have to build around cards that are a bit “in the way” of expansion. So, in order to benefit a growing game and smoother game play, some cards will have to step aside to open up design space. That, combined with some recent Rules clarifications and abusive decks, four more cards needs to be added to the OTF Ban list.

*Access Denied - This card has presented a problem for design. It has made it nearly impossible to make quality dilemmas with Computer Skill as a requirement. Additionally, we feel it is not being used for its real intended purpose, as Referee cards were intended to be defensive rather than offensive.

*Loss of Orbital Stability - In an effort to clarify the valid response rules, this card has subsequently become too powerful. It allows lockdown with no functional cost.

*What Does God Need With a Starship? - Similar to above, it allows some strong lockdown. However, the real breaker was the ship download. Design has been hesitant to do fun things with ships because this card lets them show up too easily in any deck.

*Security Drills - Second Edition (2E) style skill cheating is simply too powerful in 1E. This ban, coupled with recent conversions, is an effort to remove these options from the game.

The First Edition Rules Committee is scheduled to release rules updates on the first Monday of each month, if necessary. This update takes effect immediately. All impacted documents are updated and available for viewing and may be downloaded from the front page of The Continuing Committee's website.

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