Draft of CoE Digest #202 Q2 - Thrall of the Voice on an Orc/Troll character - Open until Nov 22

[Manuel]

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1) The thread will be open until Nov 22.
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3) After the review period, the ROC will carefully consider everyone's contributions, revise the draft as appropriate, and then the Digest will be published and official.

Can a Fallen-wizard play an Orc/Troll character with Thrall of the Voice even if they don’t have Bad Company in play?

CoE digest #39 ruled the following:

16-09-2002 NetRep: Chad Martin Source

QUERY 6

Is that true? Can you play Orcs and Trolls with Thrall of the Voice even if Bad Company isn’t in play?

It’s true. Brian ruled that, and I support the ruling.

However, ICE digest #55 ruled the opposite:

12-03-1998 NetRep: Craig Ichabod O'Brien Source

QUERY 2

From: _maar...@wfw.wtb.tue.nl_

Can Thrall of the Voice be played to play a Troll character when Bad Company is not in play?

No.

And this was further backed up by ICE digest #88:

31-05-1998 NetRep: Craig Ichabod O'Brien Source

QUERY 28

From: “Justin Doheny”

_Hey, I was wondering if anyone could answer me this question... While a Fallen-wizard, do you need to have _Bad Company in play to play with Half-Orc characters??

Either that or A Strident Spawn. That is required to bring them into play. Once they are in play they no longer care.*

Ultimately the ICE digests are correct, because according the MEWH rules:

You may not play Orc and Troll characters until you have played the appropriate card (e.g. Bad Company).

Since Thrall of the Voice does not explicitly override the restriction on Orc/Troll playability, that restriction is still in effect for Fallen-wizard players until a card (e.g. Bad Company) explicitly allows those characters to be played. A player could, however, play Half-orcs without Bad Company if the player has A Strident Spawn in play. Thanks to CDavis7M for help identifying this previously incorrect ruling.

Note that this ruling overturns CoE Digest #39 Q6.

[Konrad Klar]

The White Hand: Thrall of the Voice
Rarity: Common, Precise: C4

Resource: Permanent-event

Instead of a normal character, during your organization phase you may bring into play one character (including a minion agent) with up to a 6 mind. Place this card with the character. -1 to his mind to a minimum of 1. Such a character may also be in your starting company. "...for those who it conquered the spell endured when they were far away..."-LotRIII

Thrall of the Voice is not a card that specifically allows for playing of Orcs or Trolls character.
It allows for playing instead of a normal character character (including a minion agent) with up to a 6 mind.
Orc or Troll character with up to a 6 mind fits in the constraints.

Reason for which "minion agent" is mentioned is that otherwise agent character could not be included in starting company.
This restriction is separate from restriction of a character that normally may be played. Likewise restrictions up to five characters in starting FW company and limit 20 of total normal mind of characters.

"appropriate card" allowing for Orc and Troll character does not need to be a card that explicitly says that it allows for Orc and Troll character.

[Zboku]

I support the approach that "Thrall" does NOT allow to include Orc/Troll character in the starting company either does it allow to bring such a character later on during the game.

White Hand (WH) rules include (amont the others) 2 separate restrictions to be met while creating your starting company / bringing a character into play:
1) (...) you may not start a character with a mind greater than 5
2) (...) you may not start Orc and Troll characters unless you start with an appropriate stage resource card (eg. Bad Company)

Thrall of the Voice refers only to the first restriction and overrides it by saying that you may bring into play (or include it in the starting company) a character with a mind of up to 6. It says nothing about Orc/Troll characters which - in my opinion - means that this card does NOT deal with a specific restriction. Yes, the card text in general overrides the rule text - but only if it refers to that rule.

Side note - I came across this issue while reading a FW Pallando "Lost Challange Deck". Counting myself as a newbie and reading "Thall of the Voice" card text withount any knowledge about any CoE rulings - it was clear for me that this card does not overrides all the restictions mendtioned in the rules but just the one with character's mind.

[Manuel]

Thanks everyone for your contributions. The RC will study them carefully and come up with a final digest soon.