Duration
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== Other rules clarifications == | == Other rules clarifications == | ||
+ | In most cases, a Duration will stay in play until the Clean-up phase of your next turn. But a Duration card played in such a way as to have no effect next turn will be discarded from play the turn it was played. This may happen because the next-turn effects are optional and you chose not to activate them (e.g. {{card|Barge}}), or because they are conditional and that condition wasn't met (e.g., a {{card|Cargo Ship}} that didn't set aside a card), or if you didn't follow its instructions (due to {{Card|Enchantress}} or [[Way]]s). A card like {{Card|Caravan}} that provides +Cards on your next turn stays in play even if you don't have enough cards in your deck to actually draw any on the next turn. | ||
− | + | Some Durations can stay out for longer than one turn. Durations that set cards aside and return them to you one at a time (like {{Card|Archive}} and {{Card|Crypt}}) remain in play until they run out of cards. {{Card|Voyage}} stays in play until the Clean-up of its extra turn; if you take multiple extra turns at once, {{Card|Voyage}} could stay out for more than one turn. {{Card|Champion}}, {{Card|Hireling}}, and {{Card|Prince}} stay in play permanently. | |
− | + | When you use a [[Throne Room variant]] on a Duration, it stays in play for as long as the Duration does, even if the Duration is only going to have one effect on the next turn (e.g., if you play a {{card|Tactician}} twice with {{Card|Throne Room}}, or if you play a {{card|Barge}} twice with {{Card|Throne Room}} and opt for one same-turn effect and one next-turn effect). If a card plays a Duration only one time (such as {{Card|Elder}} or {{Card|Contract}}), it will not stay in play. | |
− | + | Effects that resolve at the start of your turn can be resolved in any order; this includes multiple plays of the same Duration card by a Throne Room variant. For example, if you played both a {{Card|Wharf}} and played a {{Card|Throne Room}} on an {{Card|Amulet}} last turn, on this turn you could choose to first gain a {{Card|Silver}} from the first {{Card|Amulet}} play, then draw 2 cards from {{Card|Wharf}} (perhaps triggering a [[reshuffle]] and maybe drawing that {{Card|Silver}}), and then choose to trash a card with the second {{Card|Amulet}} play. | |
− | + | ||
− | Effects that resolve at the start of your turn can be resolved in any order; this includes multiple plays of the same Duration card by a Throne Room variant. For example, if you played a {{Card|Wharf}} and | + | |
When you use a [[Command variant]] such as {{Card|Band of Misfits}} to play a Duration card, the Duration doesn't go into play, but the {{Card|Band of Misfits}} stays in play as long as the Duration card would. If {{Card|Band of Misfits}} plays a {{Card|Throne Room}} that plays a Duration from your hand, {{Card|Band of Misfits}} will stay in play with that Duration. If it plays multiple Duration cards that would stay in play for different amounts of time (e.g. using {{Card|Throne Room}} on {{Card|Overlord}}, and it plays a {{Card|Swamp Hag}} and an {{Card|Archive}}), it stays in play until the last of those Duration cards would leave play. These rules also apply when a Duration card is played via {{way|Way of the Mouse}} or {{event|Inheritance}}. | When you use a [[Command variant]] such as {{Card|Band of Misfits}} to play a Duration card, the Duration doesn't go into play, but the {{Card|Band of Misfits}} stays in play as long as the Duration card would. If {{Card|Band of Misfits}} plays a {{Card|Throne Room}} that plays a Duration from your hand, {{Card|Band of Misfits}} will stay in play with that Duration. If it plays multiple Duration cards that would stay in play for different amounts of time (e.g. using {{Card|Throne Room}} on {{Card|Overlord}}, and it plays a {{Card|Swamp Hag}} and an {{Card|Archive}}), it stays in play until the last of those Duration cards would leave play. These rules also apply when a Duration card is played via {{way|Way of the Mouse}} or {{event|Inheritance}}. | ||
− | If you play a {{card|Throne Room}} that plays a non-Duration card that | + | If you play a {{card|Throne Room}} that plays a non-Duration card that stays in play (such as another {{Card|Throne Room}} that plays a Duration twice, or a {{Card|Band of Misfits}} that plays a Duration), the first {{Card|Throne Room}} does not stay out. However, if you {{Card|Mastermind}} a {{Card|Mastermind}}, it's possible to have a chain of {{Card|Mastermind}}s stuck in play for several turns if they keep playing Duration cards, because {{Card|Mastermind}} is itself a Duration. |
+ | |||
+ | It is possible to remove Duration cards from play even if they have future effects. Examples include trashing them with {{Event|Bonfire}}, using {{Card|Counterfeit}} on {{Card|Contract}}, or using {{Card|Throne Room}} on a Duration, and playing it once for its normal effect, and once as {{Way|Way of the Turtle}}. In these cases, the Duration card's effects will still carry over to future turns (which you will have to remember), and if any [[Throne Room variant]] or Command variant was supposed to stay in play with the the now-removed Duration card, that Throne Room variant will now be discarded from play during Clean-up. | ||
− | It | + | It's also possible for a Duration card to remain in play at the end of your turn, and yet it gets discarded from play during the end of another player's turn. This may happen if you play a {{Card|Voyage}}, and then its extra turn gets skipped with {{Card|Lich}}. (Choosing which extra turn to take happens after Clean-up.) Since you don't get a Clean-up phase during a skipped turn, the {{Card|Voyage}} will stay in play until the Clean-up of the next turn that happens (either yours or another player's). |
− | {{Card|Possession}} is not a Duration card, even though it does have effects on future turns, and so the Duration rules do not apply to it. (The same was true of an earlier version of {{card|Prince}}, but after the card was revised in 2022, <span class="card-popup">[[Prince]]<span class="noprint">[[File:PrinceDigital.jpg|200px|link=]]</span></span> now is a Duration.) For example, unlike {{Card|Outpost}}, {{Card|Possession}} is discarded before the extra turn it creates. | + | {{Card|Possession}} is not a Duration card, even though it does have effects on future turns, and so the Duration rules do not apply to it. (The same was true of an earlier version of {{card|Prince}}, but after the card was revised in 2022, <span class="card-popup">[[Prince]]<span class="noprint">[[File:PrinceDigital.jpg|200px|link=]]</span></span> now is a Duration.) For example, unlike {{Card|Outpost}}, {{Card|Possession}} is discarded before the extra turn it creates. And if you play it twice with {{Card|Throne Room}}, the {{Card|Throne Room}} doesn't stay in play. |
== Prior Rules == | == Prior Rules == |
Revision as of 14:16, 29 March 2022
Duration is a card type that was introduced in Seaside and revisited in later sets, starting with Adventures. Duration cards have orange frames, and usually have an effect on the turn after they are played. A Duration is not discarded from play until the Cleanup phase of the last turn on which it does something - usually the turn after the turn on which it is played.
The majority of Duration cards are Action cards, but a few belong to the Night type introduced in Nocturne.
Contents |
List of Duration cards
- Guardian, Haven, Lighthouse
- Amulet, Caravan Guard, Cargo Ship, Church, Dungeon, Enchantress, Fishing Village, Gear, Ghost Town, Importer, Secret Cave
- Caravan, Conjurer, Research, Royal Galley, Village Green, Garrison, Voyage
- Ghost
- Archive, Barge, Bridge Troll, Cobbler, Contract, Crypt, Den of Sin, Gatekeeper, Haunted Woods, Highwayman, Mastermind, Merchant Ship, Outpost, Swamp Hag, Tactician, Warlord, Wharf
- Captain, Hireling, Raider, Stronghold
- Champion
- Prince
Official Rules
- Duration cards are orange, and have abilities that affect future turns.
- Duration cards are not discarded in Clean-up if they have something left to do; they stay in play until the Clean-up of the last turn that they do something.
- Additionally, if a Duration card is played extra times by a card such as Scepter, that card also stays in play until the Duration card is discarded, to track the fact that the Duration card was played extra times.
- Keep track of whether or not a Duration card was played on the current turn, such as by putting your cards into two lines.
Other rules clarifications
In most cases, a Duration will stay in play until the Clean-up phase of your next turn. But a Duration card played in such a way as to have no effect next turn will be discarded from play the turn it was played. This may happen because the next-turn effects are optional and you chose not to activate them (e.g. Barge), or because they are conditional and that condition wasn't met (e.g., a Cargo Ship that didn't set aside a card), or if you didn't follow its instructions (due to Enchantress or Ways). A card like Caravan that provides +Cards on your next turn stays in play even if you don't have enough cards in your deck to actually draw any on the next turn.
Some Durations can stay out for longer than one turn. Durations that set cards aside and return them to you one at a time (like Archive and Crypt) remain in play until they run out of cards. Voyage stays in play until the Clean-up of its extra turn; if you take multiple extra turns at once, Voyage could stay out for more than one turn. Champion, Hireling, and Prince stay in play permanently.
When you use a Throne Room variant on a Duration, it stays in play for as long as the Duration does, even if the Duration is only going to have one effect on the next turn (e.g., if you play a Tactician twice with Throne Room, or if you play a Barge twice with Throne Room and opt for one same-turn effect and one next-turn effect). If a card plays a Duration only one time (such as Elder or Contract), it will not stay in play.
Effects that resolve at the start of your turn can be resolved in any order; this includes multiple plays of the same Duration card by a Throne Room variant. For example, if you played both a Wharf and played a Throne Room on an Amulet last turn, on this turn you could choose to first gain a Silver from the first Amulet play, then draw 2 cards from Wharf (perhaps triggering a reshuffle and maybe drawing that Silver), and then choose to trash a card with the second Amulet play.
When you use a Command variant such as Band of Misfits to play a Duration card, the Duration doesn't go into play, but the Band of Misfits stays in play as long as the Duration card would. If Band of Misfits plays a Throne Room that plays a Duration from your hand, Band of Misfits will stay in play with that Duration. If it plays multiple Duration cards that would stay in play for different amounts of time (e.g. using Throne Room on Overlord, and it plays a Swamp Hag and an Archive), it stays in play until the last of those Duration cards would leave play. These rules also apply when a Duration card is played via Way of the Mouse or Inheritance.
If you play a Throne Room that plays a non-Duration card that stays in play (such as another Throne Room that plays a Duration twice, or a Band of Misfits that plays a Duration), the first Throne Room does not stay out. However, if you Mastermind a Mastermind, it's possible to have a chain of Masterminds stuck in play for several turns if they keep playing Duration cards, because Mastermind is itself a Duration.
It is possible to remove Duration cards from play even if they have future effects. Examples include trashing them with Bonfire, using Counterfeit on Contract, or using Throne Room on a Duration, and playing it once for its normal effect, and once as Way of the Turtle. In these cases, the Duration card's effects will still carry over to future turns (which you will have to remember), and if any Throne Room variant or Command variant was supposed to stay in play with the the now-removed Duration card, that Throne Room variant will now be discarded from play during Clean-up.
It's also possible for a Duration card to remain in play at the end of your turn, and yet it gets discarded from play during the end of another player's turn. This may happen if you play a Voyage, and then its extra turn gets skipped with Lich. (Choosing which extra turn to take happens after Clean-up.) Since you don't get a Clean-up phase during a skipped turn, the Voyage will stay in play until the Clean-up of the next turn that happens (either yours or another player's).
Possession is not a Duration card, even though it does have effects on future turns, and so the Duration rules do not apply to it. (The same was true of an earlier version of Prince, but after the card was revised in 2022, Prince now is a Duration.) For example, unlike Outpost, Possession is discarded before the extra turn it creates. And if you play it twice with Throne Room, the Throne Room doesn't stay in play.
Prior Rules
In the past the rules around tracking cards that play Durations extra times were different.
- Originally, cards that played cards that played Durations extra times were left in play as well (e.g. Throne Room plays Throne Room that plays a Duration). This was changed via a ruling to only be the card that directly played the Duration extra times was left out.
- Also, originally the cards playing Durations extra times stayed in play only until they stopped doing something. This was changed with the release of Empires to have them always stay in play until the Duration left play instead. This affects situations where either the Duration leaves play earlier (e.g. Procession) or the extra play(s) of the card didn't trigger the Duration effect (e.g. when playing Tactician with a Throne Room under normal circumstances).
Strategy
On the turn on which they are played, Duration cards typically have weak effects (relative to their cost), or even detrimental effects; their strength comes in part from the fact that their effects on the next turn do not consume an Action to play or a card slot in your hand. For example, Caravan, on the turn it is played, is a cantrip with no effect; on the next turn, however, it gives you a sixth card in your hand for free—thus playing a Caravan on one turn has the same effect as playing a Laboratory on the next turn.
Although Duration cards' next-turn effects are typically quite strong, they cost less than and are usually considered weaker than cards that have those same effects immediately—for instance, Caravan costs while Laboratory costs . This is in part because it's better to receive benefits earlier—playing a Caravan on the last turn of the game gives no benefit while Laboratory does—and in part because the fact that Durations stay in play for two turns is a disadvantage, since it means that they can actually be played less frequently. For instance, it's possible to draw an extra card every turn by having a single Laboratory and playing it every turn; in order to play a Caravan every turn, you have to have two copies of the card.
Reserve cards can play rather similarly to Durations; most have a weak effect now for a stronger effect later. The difference is that Reserves don't have to be triggered on your next turn; you can wait a few turns to use them, or even use some of them the same turn you play them.
Trivia
In other languages
- Czech: Dlouhodobá
- Dutch: Duurzaam (lit. sustainable)
- Finnish: Toistuva (lit. recurring)
- French: Durée
- German: Dauer
- Polish: Następstwo (lit. succession)
- Russian: Длительность (pron. dlityelnost)
Donald X.'s remarks
Development
Throne Rooms staying in play
In retrospect it would have been better if duration cards not in play didn't do anything (and, if cards you couldn't put into play also didn't do anything). That clears up Procession.
Outpost has an anti-Throne clause. Ideally it would have some form that didn't need that.
Tactician has an extra cost on getting your bonus next turn; that premise requires dealing with the tracking rule, unless the extra cost is something you can always pay (e.g. taking Debt).Ways and removing Durations from play
Lack of Treasure-Durations
Durations in later expansions
Every expansion after Adventures has had at least two Duration cards.