Cactus Game Design Message Boards

The artifact you leave up is the artifact you activated, doesn't seem too convoluted. Like if you miss an optional trigger, you can't go back it's just assumed you passed. It's much more complicated to retrain everyone to formally announce their artifact activation, because most people are not in the habit of doing that. But if captured ark isn't treated this way, to be consistent, how would you suggest treating three nails? I leave three nails up but don't activate it and my opponent doesn't block with demons  because he thinks it's active. Yet on his turn I can block with demons because I didn't activate it?

Three Nails isn’t an optional trigger; it is an ongoing ability. I’m not talking about arts that have ongoing abilities, optional or mandatory triggers, or “at any time.” I’m talking about ones that read “upon activation” or have to be declared each time (such as Golden Censer or IotB). Meaning they have to be intentionally activated in order for them to work. If one of these, such as Denarius, Eternal Covenant, etc., was already activated on your last turn and now it’s your turn again, you would either have to manually deactivate then reactivate it, or announce you’re using it again. If I passed my prep phase and forgot to reactivate it then I missed out on the benefit (discard a card from my opponent’s hand or resurrect a human hero from discard in the two examples I gave).

@Christiansoldier If that’s the case then why would the elders put “upon activation” on some arts all the way up to CoW? What was the purpose of that if that was always the rule since Priests?

You're splitting hairs here with language like "intentionally activated"; no such terminology in redemption exists. Ongoing or not, artifacts still have to activate to take effect. So advocating for ongoing artifacts to automatically take effect when flipped up but requiring an announcement for upon activation artifacts actually make artifact interactions more convoluted and inconsistent.

You're splitting hairs here with language like "intentionally activated"; no such terminology in redemption exists. Ongoing or not, artifacts still have to activate to take effect. So advocating for ongoing artifacts to automatically take effect when flipped up but requiring an announcement for upon activation artifacts actually make artifact interactions more convoluted and inconsistent.

I don't think you're understanding what I'm saying.