THIRD WHEEL Phase 1, 3
Third Main Player In A Challenge
You have the power to crash the party. On your turn after you take
Lucre and a tokens out of the warp, if applicable, you may discard
your hand, even if you have challenge cards, and draw a new one. Your
turn then ends. You may add yourself as a third main player to a
challenge in which you are not already a main player. You may only do
this if you have a challenge card in your hand. You place tokens into
the challenge as if you were the offensive main player on a second
cone. You may invite allies after the offensive and defensive main
players. The challenge is played out as normal. You are treated an
offensive player versus the defensive main player and a defensive
player versus the offensive main player. In some cases your total may
be different versus the offensive main player than the defensive main
player and their totals may be different against you than against each
other. Your results versus the offensive player determines whether you
and your allies lose tokens. Your results versus the defensive player
determine whether you establish a base and your allies receive rewards
as allies. On Reverse Cone this is reversed. If necessary you and
your allies may take tokens, equal to the number in the challenge,
from other bases to establish a base. If either the offensive or
defensive main player defeat the other but lose to you, they and their
allies do not lose tokens but must return/send their tokens to other
bases and do not receive rewards; this is considered a lost challenge.
In other cases the offensive and defensive main players behavior is
controlled by their results versus each other. If 1 main player plays
a Compromise, he may take consolation in any combination from the
other main players. If 2 main players play Compromises, they may both
take consolation from the remaining main player, in the same order
allies are requested; no deal is made. If all 3 main players play
Compromise, they may try to make a 3 way deal as normal.
History: The Wheels have discovered that it is easier to horn in on
someone else's action than to create their own.
Do Not Use In Games With Filth
Not Recommended For A Three Player Game
FLARE
Infinity
Wild: When another player establishes a base for a reason other than
winning a challenge, you may establish a base on the same planet.
This is a "Use once and discard" Flare for Ancients.
Phase 8
Super: If you lose to the offensive main player you do not lose
tokens.
PULSAR
Phase 3
Con: As main player, Third Wheel is involved only with your opponent.
Use of his power has no bearing on you.
Phase 1, 8
Pro: You may take your turn as normal. Keep this card before
discarding. Also, if you are one of the two main players who played a
Compromise Card, instead of taking consolation, you and the other main
player may try to make a deal as normal. The third main player wins
as normal but opposing tokens are not lost in any way except through
failing to deal.
Eon/Avalon:
Power
No Changes
Flare
Wild: add "Use once and discard."
Pulsar
No Changes
Experience Rating: Expert
Cosmic Monopoly
Long version only. You always have your Monopoly turn as normal. You
cannot challenge properties on your turn. You may discard your hand
and get a new one as per the cosmic power. The cosmic power is
otherwise normal.
Commentary: This a rules power created by Eric Clason and posted on
the newsgroup. Only the Pulsar is mine. Everything else is his. For
my tastes I made slight changes. Eric did not allow Third Wheel to
take a token out of the warp on his turn. I didn't think that was
necessary. The idea I suppose is that Third Wheel doesn't get a turn,
but I don't see a problem ending the turn after retrieving the token.
I mentioned Lucre for brevity. The Wild Flare is as Eric created it,
with my Ancient clarification for my set. He also created a Flare for
Eon/Avalon rules where as instead of getting a base, when another
player gets cards from the deck other than getting a new hand, you get
an equal number. I prefer the getting of the base. "Use once and
discard" happens in Eon Flares so that was an easy fix.
I find Eric was creative with this power. I use to have an Edict I
created called Time Warp where everyone attacked the player to his
left at once. I got rid of it because in practice it was complicated
to carry out and disrupted the game in an unfun way. I'm pleased in
the great minds think alike department Eric found a way to utilize the
concept by his own creation and actually make it work.
A clarification in case it=92s not clear. If you lose to the offensive
player but defeat the defensive player, you do get a base. Your
tokens on the cone are lost. You use other of your tokens to
establish the base.
Commentary from Eric Clason: This is a 'High Concept' power; the idea
is simple but the implementation is not. Handling all the win/lose
combinations makes this power's description horribly long. I hope that
it is intuitive enough that it's lengthy description does not bog
things down. But I fear that if I came across this power on the web
somewhere, I would discard it as being too complicated.
More Commentary By Me: I didn't mind the verbosity, especially since I
created such verbose powers as Serling and Bermuda :b. In any case,
Eric did rewrite it in a shorter version:
You have the power to crash the party. On your turn you do not make
challenges but you may discard your hand, even if you have challenge
cards, and draw a new one. If you have challenge card(s) in your hand,
you may add yourself as a third main player to a challenge in which
you are not already a main player. You place tokens into the
challenge as if you were the offensive main player and invite allies
last. The challenge is played out as normal. You are treated as an
offensive player versus the defensive main player and a defensive
player versus the offensive main player. A main player might have
different totals versus the other 2 players. A main player must defeat
both the other main players or they lose. It's possible that all 3
main players lose. You and your allies are treated as if you were the
offensive player if you win. If 1 or 2 main player(s) play a
Compromise, they may take consolation from the challenge winner, in
the same order allies are requested. If all 3 main players play a
Compromise, they may try to make a 3 way deal as normal.
History: The Wheels have discovered that it is easier to horn in on
someone else's action than to create their own.
Wild1: When another player establishes a base, for a reason other than
winning a challenge, you may establish a base on the same planet.
Wild: When another player draws cards from the deck, other than for a
new hand, you may draw the same number of cards.
Super1: You may land your tokens and create a base if you defeat
either of the other main players.
Super: You may land your tokens and create a base if you defeat the
defensive player even if you lose to the offensive player.
Restriction: Do not use in games with fewer than 4 players.
Commentary By Me Again: I notice here Eric permits taking token out of
the warp and removed restriction against Filth. I don't know if this
was intentional or oversight when he rewrote the power. Third Wheel
should be permitted to take a token out of the warp. As for Filth,
while by game mechanics nothing prevents Third Wheel from being used
properly, things get complicated to determine if a winning Third Wheel
gets to keep his base depending upon if Filth is offensive player,
defensive player, and whether he won or lost to Third Wheel or the
other player or both. For the Cosmicness of it they could be in the
same game, but for some simplicity the restriction is probably best
over all.
Commentary By Eric Again: This is an attempt to simplify the Third
Wheel by both changing parts of it and contracting the explanation of
other parts. It's still pretty long. In this version, the Third Wheel
leans more towards being an offensive player.
Third Wheel, for his power, gives up his normal turn for a skewed turn
and can be defensive player by normal means. I have no problem with
that. However, because of this, I don't think when using his power he
should be considered defensive player as well. If anything, he doesn't
get anything out of it should he win.
Just being another offensive player is fine. For one thing, it clears
up confusion as to what happens when the original offensive player
wins against one defender but loses against the other. Does he get a
base? Where? Shouldn't he lose his tokens because he lost a challenge
though?
As a second offensive player, the defender has to win against both to
keep his base. Both offensive players only have to worry about their
challenges. The defender will need two challenge cards. Gets a new
hand if he does not. Clarify that each challenge are completely
independent challenges, in case it matters. For example, someone
playing a Flare can only affect one of the challenges. Also, Third
Wheel can only take a second challenge in the turn if he wins his
first challenge and the original offensive player takes a second
challenge.
Commentary By Me Again: I also notice that now Third Wheel would have
to win against both players to benefit. While possible, I think it=92s
too much of a burden. Allowing winning against one but losing to the
other gives Third Wheel an incentive to try. Third Wheel does get
something out of being a second defender. He can help prevent the
offensive player from getting the base because the offensive player
has to defeat him as well. If he defeats the defender but loses to
Third Wheel, he does not get the base.
Interesting distinction with regards to Edicts and Flares and which
challenge they affect. For simplicity it is good they only affect one
challenge, but whether they can affect all the challenges if you want
to go that route would have to be a case by case basis. Hello
Continuum. Add my Hydra power into the mix and things get really
interesting. Hydra/Third Wheel, though, is a conflict combo.
I don't understand why Eric writes "Also, Third Wheel can only take a
second challenge in the turn if he wins his first challenge and the
original offensive player takes a second challenge." Third Wheel is
not getting a normal turn. As long as he is not the defensive player
and has a challenge card he can involve himself if he wishes. The
concept of first and second challenges have no meaning for him.
Gerald Katz
Don't forget to tip the Butler!
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