If you don’t see your question answered among these, please email us at:
FAQ@looneylabs.com
- Q: Does using a special ability listed on a Keeper or Creeper count as a Play?
- Q: When you do a Field Promotion in Martian Chess, where does the new piece come from?
- Q: In Martian Chess, what happens if players keep moving a potential last piece back and forth over the border so that the end condition cannot be reached?
Q: Does using a special ability listed on a Keeper or Creeper count as a Play?
A: No, using any special powers or abilities listed on Keepers or Creepers does not use up one of your plays for your turn.
Q: When you do a Field Promotion in Martian Chess, where does the new piece come from?
A: For both types of promotion, the pip count of the new piece is the same as the pip count of the old pieces. Since scoring is by pip count, you can take the new piece from either player and give them the old pieces. Their score remains the same.
(Thanks to Jeff Wolfe for fielding this question a bunch of times, and writing it up for the FAQ.)
Q: In Martian Chess, what happens if players keep moving a potential last piece back and forth over the border so that the end condition cannot be reached?
A: Ending a Deadlock: During the final stages of the game, the action slows down and may become stagnated. If any player feels the game has reached a state of deadlock, during their turn they may “call the clock.” From that point on, if seven moves go by in which neither player captures a piece, the game ends and the final score is computed. If someone makes a capture, the counter is reset.
Resolving a Tie: If the final score is tied, and one Zone is empty, the player who ended the game is the winner. But if the game ends in a deadlock with a tie, the result is simply a tie. Play again!
This has been added to the rules in the stand-alone small box set, but previous iterations of the rules did not include this info.