Rules Clarifications- Special Abilities
Q: If my unit has two icons of the same special ability, do I get the benefit of both?
A: Yes. Any figure special ability that is ready (on an occupied slot) has its effect – it’s just a matter of whether that effect does anything in multiples.
Cumulative abilities – that is, abilities that add to or subtract from an existing statistic (extra dice, movement points, order points, etc. – stack very logically. Twin icons that each grant an extra attack die would simply provide 2 extra attack dice.
If an ability instructs you to stack multiple icons in a different way, then that is how you stack it, and no further discussion is required. Fireburst, for instance, grants extra damage to the target for each extra ready icon, but not to the units adjacent to the target.
An ability which simply negates a penalty can’t really do so twice, in which case a second icon merely makes it harder for a sniper or a concentrated attack to take the ability away. Likewise, an ability which requires a special order would not do so twice – it would have to include instructions on how to resolve multiple icons if it were to have any additional effect.
I must apologize for the confusion that has come up regarding this issue. It mainly stems from the text in the rulebook which states “some special abilities get more powerful the more ready icons they have, so be sure to read the special ability card carefully.” This inadvertently implied that only some special abilities do this, which is not the case.
The wording of the special abilities has been updated to remove wording related to ability stacking that was causing some of the confusion.
Hopefully, this explanation will help to prevent any further confusion on this point.
Q: If I have no ready defense dice, does a special ability that adds defense dice still work?
A: Yes. Because defense doesn’t require you to give the unit an order, it’s okay that it has a base number of 0. Special abilities will still add up.
Q: What about ranged dice or close combat dice? If I have zero ready of those, will my special abilities still modify them to a positive number?
A: No. Ranged and close combat attacks are active; the rules state that a unit with no ready attack or ranged icons cannot be given an order of that kind, so they would never have the chance to apply their modifiers.
Q: Is the Fireburst special ability affected by line of sight?
A: Yes. Fireburst is blocked by blocking terrain. Otherwise it would be simply too powerful.
Q: From where exactly is a range of “2 steps” measured for abilities like Aura of Peace?
A: All ranges are measured from a notch in your base to a notch in another unit’s base. In the case of a radiating ability like Aura of Peace, it is measured from any notch in your base to any notch in the base of the unit in question.
Q: Does the Good Fortune ability allow me to reroll my single lowest die, or can I reroll all the dice that share the same result as my lowest die?
A: You get to reroll only one die with Good Fortune. If you have rolled three 1s, then you pick one of them to reroll. If you had another ability affecting that same unit that also allowed you to reroll your lowest die, then you would be able to reroll your two lowest dice.
