Cactus Game Design Message Boards

You can. Covenants can be used as an enhancement, which it would be in this case.

Yeah, that's basically it. If it's in deck or discard, it is a "covenent." Once it's in play (or in your hand) you get to choose what it is. 

Thats a pretty good question actually... I'm not sure.

The difference is, a Covenant in hand is a Covenant, not an Artifact and an Enhancement. In hand, Philosophy is a Good Enhancement and an Evil Enhancement.

Quote from: Cameron the Conqueror on September 29, 2009, 11:20:50 PM

However, when I use this type of logic on a ruling, I always seem to be wrong. lol 

You're not wrong, because if you are wrong then I am wrong, and I don't feel like being wrong tonight.

The SA says that "you may play a Genesis enhancement." When Covenant of Noah hits the Field of Battle, it is officially a Genesis enhancement. That is the only time that a "card check" would ever occur. I don't see any issue here.

Completely Agree. CoN is both and can be played as either.

Jake could play CoN as a GE in the same way that Zimri can discard Captured Ark to fulfill his SA.

Zimri can't Discard Captured Ark. In hand, they are Curses/Covenants and can't be targeted as Enhancements by a Play Next or Discard ability.

Okay... so Polarius disagrees. Anyone official wanna comment? 

Quote from: BrianGabe on August 14, 2009, 01:41:02 PM

Another change that I found out about at Nationals is that a Curse or Covenant in your hand can be used as an Enhancement to satisfy a cost.  For example you can discard Capture Ark for King Zimri or Covenant with Noah for Stone Pillar at Bethel.

Quote from: frisian9 on February 17, 2009, 08:19:05 PM

Correct. When it is in your hand, it is face value. However, when you pull it from your hand with the intent to use it as an enhancement, it is an enhancement. Similarly it becomes an artifact when you are taking it from your hand with intent to use it as an artifact.

Mike

Now does that mean you can search for a covenant in the deck and discard pile if you put it in play? Could I play Go into Captivity, then play Pride of Simon to grab GiC from the discard pile with the "intent of playing it" as an enhancement?

If you are searching for a card to immediately put into play, then it would become an enhancement or artifact and you would be making that choice.  I don't know the official answer to this situation, but I personally think it would be ok.

Thats exactly what I was asking. If I search for a covenant and put it into play.

...

Evil combos just potentially opened up.  I gotta read some abilities.

Quote from: Lamborghini_diablo on September 30, 2009, 04:53:47 PM

Now does that mean you can search for a covenant in the deck and discard pile if you put it in play? Could I play Go into Captivity, then play Pride of Simon to grab GiC from the discard pile with the "intent of playing it" as an enhancement?

If you are searching for a card to put it into your hand, then it will not be an enhancement or artifact where it is going (hand), and therefore you are not deciding yet, and therefore I don't think you could grab it.

If you are searching for a card to immediately put into play, then it would become an enhancement or artifact and you would be making that choice.  I don't know the official answer to this situation, but I personally think it would be ok.

Taking the definition directly from the REG on this one:

Covenant

A Covenant may be used either as an artifact or as an enhancement. Both a grail and a Bible picture together in the icon box show the card is a Covenant. When you play a Covenant, you decide how to use it. If you want to use it as an artifact, disregard the Bible picture and play the card as you would any other artifact. If you want to use it as an enhancement, disregard the grail picture and play the card as you would any other enhancement.

A covenant type is only chosen when you play the card, not when searching for a card.  On play next enhancement abilities, it is not targeting an enhancement in hand, but creating a special initiative to play an enhancement.  From the Play Next Enhancement Section:

The rules of initiative require that the player with initiative may play the next enhancement card or pass.  However, ‘play the next enhancement’ cards allow the holder to temporarily suspend the initiative rules until the effect is completed.  If playing the next card depends on a condition to be satisfied, the special ability to play the next card may either be delayed or not completed at all.  For example, some ‘play next enhancement’ cards cannot be completed until a blocker is presented in battle.  In this condition, an enhancement card cannot be played until the blocker is presented and the blocker’s special ability is activated.  If no blocker is presented, no enhancement card can be played.

So playing a Genesis enhancement means that you have special initiative to play an enhancement from hand, and a covenant may be played as an enhancement from hand.  However, because a Covenant card is a Covenant and not an artifact/enhancement except when being played, a card that searches for an enhancement cannot find a covenant as part of its search.