From the dark gothic recesses of ancient brooding castles, draped in black velvet, and probably listening to Bauhaus, the children of the night come to drink deep from Smash Up! Draining the very life from their victims, these cursed souls
willgain power upon destroyingyour opponents’opposing minions.
- - Monster Smash rulebook (updated in The Bigger Geekier Box rulebook)
The Vampires are one of the 4 factions from the Monster Smash set.
The Vampires gain +1 power counters from the destruction of minions.
Other factions from the same set: Giant Ants, Mad Scientists, Werewolves.
Cards[]
The Vampires have the usual 10 minions and 10 actions. The total minion base power (not counting any abilities) is the usual 30 or an average of 3 per minion. They are also one of the rare factions to have received a titan from the TITANS Event Kit.
Among their actions, there are:
- 1 play-on-minion action: Opportunist,
- 1 play-on-base action: Summon Wolves,
- 8 standard actions (all of them affect one or more minions): Big Gulp, Buffet, Crack of Dusk (2x), Cull the Weak, Dinner Date (2x), Mad Monster Party,
- 7 actions that directly increase a minion's power: Buffet, Crack of Dusk (2x), Cull the Weak, Dinner Date (2x), Mad Monster Party.
Minions[]
1x The Count - power 5 - Ongoing: After another player’s minion is destroyed, place a +1 power counter on this minion. FAQ
2x Nightstalker - power 4 - Destroy a minion of power 2 or less here to place a +1 power counter on this minion. FAQ
3x Heavy Drinker - power 3 - You may destroy one of your minions to place a +1 power counter on this minion. FAQ
4x Fledgling Vampire - power 2 - After you play this minion, if another player has more power here than you do, place a +1 power counter on this minion. FAQ
Actions[]
1x Big Gulp - Destroy a minion of power 4 or less. FAQ
1x Buffet - Special: Play after a base scores. If you were the winner, place a +1 power counter on each of your minions. FAQ
2x Crack of Dusk - Play a minion of power 2 or less from your discard pile as an extra minion. Place a +1 power counter on it. FAQ
1x Cull the Weak - Choose your minion. Discard any number of minion cards from your hand. For each minion discarded, place a +1 power counter on that minion. FAQ
2x Dinner Date - Place a +1 power counter on your minion. Destroy a minion of power 2 or less at that minion’s base. FAQ
1x Mad Monster Party - Place a +1 power counter on each of your minions that does not have one. FAQ
1x Opportunist - Play on a minion. Ongoing: After another player’s minion is destroyed, place a +1 power counter on this minion. FAQ
1x Summon Wolves - Play on a base. Ongoing: At the start of your turn, place a +1 power counter on this card. If you have a minion here, counters on this card add to your power total. FAQ
Titan[]
- (available in each Smash Up TITANS pack released with the TITANS Event Kit)
1x Ancient Lord - Special: After you place two or more +1 power counters on minions in a turn, you may play this titan. Ongoing: After you place a +1 power counter on one of your cards that had no such counters on it, place another +1 power counter on it. Talent: Place a +1 power counter on one of your minions here that already has one. FAQ
Bases[]
Clarifications[]
Here are the official clarifications as they appear in The Bigger Geekier Box rulebook:
Dinner Date: You may place the +1 power counter even if there is no other minion at the base.
Mechanics[]
Vampires focus primarily on gaining +1 power counters, generally through destroying minions.
Strategy[]
- This section was adapted from a post by Lasher Mayfair in the BoardGameGeek forums.[1]
Vampires are sadly one of the weaker factions out there. Aside from what was already said, they seriously lack a way to protect their minions. As it stands, you can farm power counters on The Count or on the minion with Opportunist on it, only to have them be destroyed or otherwise disposed of by the enemy. Most of the time, I see The Count only used for the burst, and not for its ability, because it simply takes too long for the ability to compensate not having used your strength 5 minion for breaking a base.
Summon Wolves is a nice card, but takes too long to be really strong. It is good to play it on a base everyone is ignoring due to a more pressing concern, so you have some power already built up when you do get there.
Buffet is rarely ever used, but when it is, it can be truly overwhelming. I've seen the vampires played 6 times so far, of which they only won one game. The one time they won, I had enough minions on the board to use Buffet to win two bases on my last turn. In that game, I played a minion and Mad Monster Party to give +1 power counter on all my minions that did not already have one, broke a base, played Buffet, broke another base. Using Buffet to win two bases at once is the best ideal usage of that card, unfortunately you rarely have enough minions on other bases when you win a base, so this requires some planning ahead to pull off. Otherwise, this is a card that is often used rather underwhelmingly for only a couple tokens, or else not used at all, and even discarded due to hand size limit.
Talking about Mad Monster Party, I think it is a shame it only works on minions that do not already have power counters (unlike the much stronger Mad Scientists Jolt), since your vampire minions often gain a single power counter when played (or in case of The Count, soon after that). This also means that if one wants to combo it with Buffet, Mad Monster Party needs to come first. Overall, all but 2 of your actions give power counters to your minions, so having many minions with no power counters is rare. Mad Monster Party is best used with your other faction's minions (that do not gain power counters except through your Vampire actions) and can ideally provide a nice burst for taking down a base.
Crack of Dusk is a very nice action, it will give you at least +3 on a base, +4 if used well in conjunction with Fledgling Vampire. It is at its best when paired up with a faction with strong power 2 minions.
Cull the Weak is amazing, but only if kept for your last turn. You do not really want to discard many minions in your hand as that would seriously hurt your next few turns. However, when the game is almost over, you don't really care and you can use it to give yourself a very good boost. When coupled with Zombies or Ghosts, you can make use of it at other times as well. Obviously, it gets better with factions that give you card draws.
As stated by others, the vampire ability to destroy other players' minions of power 2 is not that amazing, but it is something they are good at and their Big Gulp can even destroy a minion of strength 4, nice for getting rid of that Mole or Archmage that is being just a little too useful.
The benefit of Heavy Drinker, that most people are not seeing is that you can destroy your minion that is on another base. Destroying a minion on another base for plus one power counter on the Heavy Drinker could actually make the difference when breaking a base, or you could use this ability to make some use of a minion that has been moved to some useless base like the Ninja Dojo.
The bases where Vampires really shine are Cave of Shinies and Field of Honor, for obvious reasons. If either of them shows up, farm them as much as possible, unless your other faction allows you to have even better things to do. Other good bases are Faceless City (card draws that you do not normally get), Egg Chamber (protecting your minions from being destroyed is nice, and especially useful if you have The Count or Opportunist in play), Crypt (more benefits from your destructions), Golem Schloß (if you can combo its effect with Buffet and/or Mad Monster Party to break another base with it) and R’lyeh (since you can replay your weak minions from discard and easily kill other players weak minions, you are likely to benefit from it more than others).
Overall, Vampires have a solid burst when using Crack of Dusk, Mad Monster Party or Cull the Weak, though their burst is definitely not one of the best. They are good at killing their own minions and other players' minions of power 2 or less. They can make a truly amazing finale to the game, with Cull the Weak and Buffet being excellent end game cards, thus breaking two bases on their last turn is a real possibility. They combo well with factions that have strong low power minions for replaying from discard, who have a good card draw to complement vampires not having any or who are very good at using power counters. They have no card draw and virtually no ability to play extra cards, so pairing up with a support faction is necessary, although there are some exceptions to this due to strong card synergy. Oddly enough, I find that the best synergies come from other non-support factions, but in the absence of the below combinations, complementing Vampires with a support faction is strongly preferred.
Synergies[]
Strong combos for Vampires are the following, in no particular order:
Robots: Replaying Microbot Alpha or Microbot Fixer from your discard pile... Need I say more? Also, extra minion plays make Mad Monster Party and Buffet much more awesome.
Tricksters: Killing your own Gremlins is awesome as are extra minion plays. Giving just one more power counter to the Leprechaun makes him much stronger, and Brownie is a great target for Opportunist and for extra power counters, since enemy players are rarely willing to pay the price for affecting the Brownie. Beware however, that you will be painfully short on cards.
Pirates: Giving Opportunist and other extra power counters to your First Mates, then replaying them from discard if they are destroyed. Also, Full Sail can beautifully complement an end game finale, considering how it can be used for breaking two bases. I played this combo, but sadly, my First Mates were getting killed too much, and the awesome Giant Ants Zombies proved stronger as a consequence... but it was solid, though its shortcoming again emphasizes the weakness Vampires have of not being able to protect their minions.
Dinosaurs: It is awesome to resurrect War Raptors and play them in pairs, making a burst of 9 using mere power 2 minions, in addition to the busts Dinosaurs and Vampires can otherwise do on their own.
Wizards: Lots of power 2 minions, a good draw and ability to play many cards, all complement Vampire strengths and weaknesses.
Aliens: This is so far the only Vampire win in my group... You can use Terraforming to get Cave of Shinies, or whatever base your Vampires desire, you can use Crack of Dusk on Collectors as an additional way to get Invaders back in hand. Your hand filling up due to taking Invaders and Scouts go back into your hand is great for when you'll want to play Cull the Weak.
Ghosts: Just dump all the weak Vampire cards when discarding and use their strong actions, Crack of Dusk, Mad Monster Party and Cull the Weak to complement the awesome Ghost bursts. Cull the Weak is especially good because it lets you discard cards when you need to.
Elder Things: You can easily get power 2 minions in play, so you'll have less trouble paying the price for the Elder Thing, and your power counter giving actions will make it much easier to play the Shoggoth. Playing Byakhees from your discard is great to flood your enemies with madness and to have disposable creatures around for the Elder Thing.
Super Spies: There are so many poor Vampire cards that spying on your deck is awesome. Vampires have actions that work beautifully with Mole, and using The Base Is Not Enough to win a base you were not too involved in can give you the opportunity you need to make a strong use of Buffet. Try to win the game before having to draw all those weak cards you spied away. Alternatively, use smart deck management with Discards Are Forever to get as many poor cards as possible out of your deck and reshuffle rather than draw them. For My Eyes Only, when you have 3 or 4 cards left is also great.
Werewolves: Crack of Dusk on Howler and extra ways to destroy your enemies. Leader of the Pack and Moontouched work better with power counters around, and Unstoppable can protect your Count from being destroyed.
Giant Ants: Ants love power counters, as well as Crack of Dusk on Soldier for 4 strength in mostly power counters. Giant Ants are the main faction here and Vampires are turned into a super support faction that dishes out even more power counters, while adding a little control that the Ants lack. Also, having Drones around makes the Count and Opportunist far stronger. Buffet is really awesome when you also have We Will Rock You, Under Pressure and We Are the Champions, to make for a totally overpowering chain of base breaking. This combo is absolutely awesome, to the point that it should never happen in a draft situation.
Mad Scientists: While this combo has a serious lack of card drawing that will hurt like hell, they are both power counter factions and mad scientists can benefit from the power counters vampires provide them with, especially if they go on The Monster. Überserum can nicely protect The Count if necessary, Opportunist can be used to great potential when played on The Monster. Killing Igors is fun, if you have one on a different base, then Heavy Drinker adds a 5 power burst, before considering your action or extra minion play. There are many ways of playing extra minions, making all those actions that add power counters everywhere quite useful. Angry Mob is yet another great final turn action, while you can sadly not do multiple actions in a single turn, Angry Mob is better than Cull the Weak. I have seen this combo played in a two player game against Giant Ants Werewolves. While it managed to stand its ground, the other combination proved stronger.
External Strategy Guides[]
- The Smash Up Faction Series #2-3: Vampires and Shapeshifters
- Calling All Titans: Ancient Lord
- Smash Up Action Awareness #34: Summon Wolves
- Smash Up KOTH #35: The Count
- Cull the Weak: Vampires vs Mad Scientists
FAQ[]
Questions on The Count[]
Q: I have The Count in play. If I take control of another player's minion and destroy it, does it trigger The Count's ability?
A: No. Since you took control of another player's minion, it's no longer another player's minion", but "your minion". So if it's destroyed, it doesn't trigger The Count's ability.
Rule: "Other players" on a minion, action or titan means everyone except the controller of the card.
Q: If The Count's ability is cancelled, are the +1 power counters placed on it by its own ability removed?
A: No. When you place a +1 power counter, it's a definitive effect, so the +1 power counters remain even if the card that placed them has its ability cancelled (like drawing cards, if you play Enchantress, you're not going to discard the card you drew if Enchantress's ability is cancelled). Besides, how are you going to keep track of which +1 power counters were added by The Count's ability and which ones were not (e.g. placed by Buffet or Dinner Date)? That would be very cumbersome.
Rule: Cancelling (or losing) an effect does not necessarily undo what it did.
Questions on Nightstalker[]
Q: When I play Nightstalker, do I have to destroy a minion?
A: No. While it doesn't say "you may", "Do X to do Y" abilities imply that doing X is optional.[2]
Rule: When a card says "Do X to do Y" or "You may do X to do Y", doing X is optional in both cases.
Q: Can I choose to destroy a minion that cannot be destroyed?
A: Yes, you can choose a minion that cannot be destroyed. In that case, the minion does not die, but Nightstalker does not get a +1 power counter.
Q: Another player plays a Nightstalker and targets one of my minions for destruction. If an Ensign intercepts the destruction, does that player still get the benefit?
A: It depends. For "Do X to do Y" effects, you need for X to actually happen for you to do Y. In your scenario, if Ensign is a minion of power 2 or less, then the other player did destroy a minion of power 2 or less and so Nightstalker does get a +1 power counter. On the other hand, if Ensign has a power of 3 or more, then it's equivalent to preventing you from doing X with an indestructible minion: You did not actually destroy a minion of power 2 or less. So you can't place a +1 power counter because X didn't actually happen.
Q: Mimic is currently power 2. I play a Nightstalker on its base, can I immediately destroy Mimic with Nightstalker's ability?
A: No. As soon as Nightstalker is in play, Mimic changes its own power and becomes power 4.
Q: If I destroy a power-2 minion on Nightstalker's base using another card (e.g. Big Gulp), does the Nightstalker also gets a +1 power counter from the destruction?
A: Not with its own ability. Nightstalker's ability is an on-play ability, so when you play it, you resolve it once and it no longer has an effect.
Rule: On-play abilities are resolved only once and have no further effect.
Q: If Nightstalker's ability is cancelled, are the +1 power counters placed on it by its own ability removed?
A: No. When you place a +1 power counter, it's a definitive effect, so the +1 power counters remain even if the card that placed them has its ability cancelled (like drawing cards, if you play Enchantress, you're not going to discard the card you drew if Enchantress's ability is cancelled). Besides, how are you going to keep track of which +1 power counters were added by Nightstalker's ability and which ones were not (e.g. placed by Buffet or Dinner Date)? That would be very cumbersome.
Rule: Cancelling (or losing) an effect does not necessarily undo what it did.
Questions on Heavy Drinker[]
Q: It tells me to destroy "one of my minions". Can I destroy a minion I own that I don't control? I don't control it but I "own" it, so it's "my" minion, right?
A: No. "Your minions" are minions you control, whether or not you own them. A minion you own but don't control isn't yours.
Q: Can I get the bonus from Heavy Drinker if I try to destroy a minion but use Drone or something to save him?
A: No. The minion wasn't destroyed, so you don't get a +1 power counter.
Q: I take control of a minion, and then play Heavy Drinker to destroy that minion I took control of, does The Count or a minion with Opportunist get the +1 power counter?
A: No. Since you took control of another player's minion, it's no longer another player's minion", but "your minion". So if it's destroyed, it doesn't trigger either The Count's ability, or Opportunist's ability.
Rule: "Other players" on a minion, action or titan means everyone except the controller of the card.
Q: If Heavy Drinker's ability is cancelled, are the +1 power counters placed on it by its own ability removed?
A: No. When you place a +1 power counter, it's a definitive effect, so the +1 power counters remain even if the card that placed them has its ability cancelled (like drawing cards, if you play Enchantress, you're not going to discard the card you drew if Enchantress's ability is cancelled). Besides, how are you going to keep track of which +1 power counters were added by Heavy Drinker's ability and which ones were not (e.g. placed by Buffet or Dinner Date)? That would be very cumbersome.
Rule: Cancelling (or losing) an effect does not necessarily undo what it did.
Q: Can you destroy one of your minions in stasis?
A: No, cards in stasis cannot be affected by cards that do not explicitly state they work on cards in stasis.
Questions on Fledgling Vampire[]
Q: If I play a Fledling Vampire with Crack of Dusk on a base where another player has a total power of 3, how many power counters are placed on Fledgling Vampire?
A: Two +1 power counters. First, you play Fledgling Vampire and resolve its ability (another player has more power than you, so it gets a power counter). Then, you place a +1 power counter on Fledgling Vampire because of Crack of Duck.
Rule: When you play a card, resolve the played card's ability immediately and completely.
Rule: Multiple parts of a card’s ability must be done in their stated order.
Q: If Fledling Vampire's ability is cancelled, are the +1 power counters placed on it by its own ability removed?
A: No. When you place a +1 power counter, it's a definitive effect, so the +1 power counters remain even if the card that placed them has its ability cancelled (like drawing cards, if you play Enchantress, you're not going to discard the card you drew if Enchantress's ability is cancelled). Besides, how are you going to keep track of which +1 power counters were added by Fledling Vampire's ability and which ones were not (e.g. placed by Buffet or Dinner Date)? That would be very cumbersome.
Rule: Cancelling (or losing) an effect does not necessarily undo what it did.
Questions on Big Gulp[]
Q: Can you destroy a minion in stasis?
A: No, cards in stasis cannot be affected by cards that do not explicitly state they work on cards in stasis.
Q: How does this interact with the Disco Dancers' mechanic and Funky Town's ability?
A: - If Diva copies it (and it can copy it even if its power is more than 4), Diva is considered as indirectly affected by the action and is destroyed.
- If Dancing King copies it onto a minion (it can be itself and it can copy it even if the power of the minion that gets the copy is more than 4), that minion is considered as indirectly affected by the action and is destroyed.
- If We are Family copies it (and it can copy it even if the power of the minion it is on is more than 4), the minion it is on is considered as indirectly affected by the action and is destroyed.
- With Funky Town, you can only copy it if you're the one who played the action and if it destroys one of your minions, but if Funky Town does copy it (and it can copy it even if the power of the minion that gets the copy is more than 4), the minion is considered as indirectly affected by the action and is destroyed.
Questions on Buffet[]
Q: Who's the winner? The one with the most VP or the one who was in first place on the scored base?
A: The winner is the one who gets first place on a scoring base.
Rule: The player with the most power on a base is the winner.
Q: Can I play this card even if I'm in 2nd or 3rd place?
A: Yes, but you will not get any power counters because you were not the winner (i.e. in first place)
Rule: The player with the most power on a base is the winner.
Q: It allows me to place +1 power counters on "each of my minions". Does it also place one on minions I own that I don't control? I don't control them but I "own" them, so they are "my" minions, right?
A: No. "Your minions" are minions you control, whether or not you own them. A minion you own but don't control isn't yours.
Q: Can you place a +1 power counter on one of your minions in stasis?
A: No, cards in stasis cannot be affected by cards that do not explicitly state they work on cards in stasis.
Q: How does this interact with the Disco Dancers' mechanic and Funky Town's ability?
A: - Diva can't copy it because it would already be directly affected by it.
- If Dancing King copies it onto a minion (it can be itself), that minion is considered as indirectly affected by the action and has a +1 power counter placed on it.
- If We are Family copies it, the minion it is on is considered as indirectly affected by the action and has a +1 power counter placed on it.
- Funky Town can't copy it because you need to be the one who played the action and so all your minions are already directly affected by it.
Questions on Crack of Dusk[]
Q: Do I have to play the extra minion immediately or can I delay it until later and finish doing the rest of the card when I do it?
A: Normally, extra minions can be banked for later, but in this case, you can't do the rest of the ability without playing the minion, so you have to play it immediately or not at all.
Q: When is the power counter placed? Before resolving the minion's ability or after?
A: After. You resolve the card in order, so you first play the minion, then resolve its ability, and finally you place the +1 power counter on it.[3]
Rule: Multiple parts of a card’s ability must be done in their stated order.
Q: If I play a Fledling Vampire with Crack of Dusk on a base where another player has a total power of 3, how many power counters are placed on Fledgling Vampire?
A: Two +1 power counters. First, you play Fledgling Vampire and resolve its ability (another player has more power than you, so it gets a power counter). Then, you place a +1 power counter on Fledgling Vampire because of Crack of Duck.
Rule: When you play a card, resolve the played card's ability immediately and completely.
Rule: Multiple parts of a card’s ability must be done in their stated order.
Q: If the minion is Sidelined Girlfriend and you place in in stasis, can you still place a +1 power counter on it?
A: No, cards in stasis cannot be affected by cards that do not explicitly state they work on cards in stasis.
Q: How does this interact with the Disco Dancers' mechanic and Funky Town's ability?
A: - If Diva copies it (and it can copy it even if its power is more than 2), Diva is considered as indirectly affected by the action and has a +1 power counter placed on it.
- If Dancing King copies it onto a minion (it can be itself and it can copy it even if the power of the minion that gets the copy is more than 2), that minion is considered as indirectly affected by the action and has a +1 power counter placed on it.
- If We are Family copies it (and it can copy it even if the power of the minion it is on is more than 2), the minion it is on is considered as indirectly affected by the action and has a +1 power counter placed on it.
- With Funky Town, you can only copy it if you're the one who played the action and if it affects one of your minions, but if Funky Town does copy it (and it can copy it even if the power of the minion that gets the copy is more than 2), the minion is considered as indirectly affected by the action and has a +1 power counter placed on it.
Questions on Cull the Weak[]
Q: It tells me to choose "one of my minions". Can I choose a minion I own that I don't control? I don't control it but I "own" it, so it's "my" minion, right?
A: No. "Your minions" are minions you control, whether or not you own them. A minion you own but don't control isn't yours.
Q: If I discard an Igor with Cull the Weak, can I place an extra +1 power counter?
A: No, Igor's ability is an Ongoing, so it must already be in play for you use its ability.
Rule: An Ongoing ability only becomes active when the card is in play.
Q: If I discard a Fan with Cull the Weak, do I draw a card?
A: No, Fan only allows you to draw a card if it was discarded through its own ability.
Q: Can I choose a minion in stasis?
A: No, cards in stasis cannot be chosen by cards that do not explicitly state cards in stasis can be chosen.
Q: How does this interact with the Disco Dancers' mechanic and Funky Town's ability?
A: - If Diva copies it, Diva is considered as indirectly affected by the action and gets the same amount of +1 power counters placed on it from the pool. Note that you won't discard additional minions from your hand for affecting a second minion; that part was already resolved before the part that can be copied and so the number of +1 power counters is already set.
- If Dancing King copies it onto a minion (it can be itself), that minion is considered as indirectly affected by the action and gets the same amount of +1 power counters placed on it from the pool. Note that you won't discard additional minions from your hand for affecting a second minion; that part was already resolved before the part that can be copied and so the number of +1 power counters is already set.
- If We are Family copies it, the minion it is on is considered as indirectly affected by the action and gets the same amount of +1 power counters placed on it from the pool. Note that you won't discard additional minions from your hand for affecting a second minion; that part was already resolved before the part that can be copied and so the number of +1 power counters is already set.
- With Funky Town, you can only copy it if you're the one who played the action, but if Funky Town does copy it, the minion is considered as indirectly affected by the action and gets the same amount of +1 power counters placed on it from the pool. Note that you won't discard additional minions from your hand for affecting a second minion; that part was already resolved before the part that can be copied and so the number of +1 power counters is already set.
Questions on Dinner Date[]
Q: When I play Dinner Date, do I have to destroy a minion? Even my own minion?
A: Short answer: yes. If there are one or more minions of power 2 or less on your minion's base, you must target one of them for destruction, even if it's your own minion (it can even be the minion on which you placed the +1 power counter if it's total power is still 2 or less).
Q: Can I choose to destroy a minion that cannot be destroyed?
A: Yes, you can choose a minion that cannot be destroyed. In that case, the minion does not die
Q: If no minion is destroyed, I suppose I have to remove the +1 power counter, right?
A: No, the placing of the +1 power counter is independent from the destruction. What's more you have to place +1 power counter before even attempting to destroy a minion.
Rule: Multiple parts of a card’s ability must be done in their stated order.
Q: It tells me to place a +1 power counter on "one of my minions". Can I place it on a minion I own that I don't control? I don't control it but I "own" it, so it's "my" minion, right?
A: No. "Your minions" are minions you control, whether or not you own them. A minion you own but don't control isn't yours.
Q: Can you place +1 power counters on one of your minions in stasis?
A: No, cards in stasis cannot be affected by cards that do not explicitly state they work on cards in stasis.
Q: How does this interact with the Disco Dancers' mechanic and Funky Town's ability?
A: Dinner Date affects minions at two different moments. First when you place a +1 power counter on one of your minions, and then when you destroy a minion. When you use any of the effect-copying cards, each one may only copy one of the two effects, either the counters or the destruction, not both. Of course, if you have several effect-copying cards that are triggered, you may have each one copy a different effect.
If you choose to copy the placing of the counters:
- If Diva copies it, Diva is considered as indirectly affected by the action and has a +1 power counter placed on it. Note that placing an additional +1 power counter doesn't give you an additional destruction effect. The rest is resolved as written and there's no dependence on the number of +1 power counters that were placed or on the number of affected minions.
- If Dancing King copies it onto a minion (it can be itself), that minion is considered as indirectly affected by the action and has a +1 power counter placed on it. Note that placing an additional +1 power counter doesn't give you an additional destruction effect. The rest is resolved as written and there's no dependence on the number of +1 power counters that were placed or on the number of affected minions.
- If We are Family copies it, the minion it is on is considered as indirectly affected by the action and has a +1 power counter placed on it. Note that placing an additional +1 power counter doesn't give you an additional destruction effect. The rest is resolved as written and there's no dependence on the number of +1 power counters that were placed or on the number of affected minions.
- With Funky Town, you can only copy it if you're the one who played the action, but if Funky Town does copy it, the minion is considered as indirectly affected by the action and has a +1 power counter placed on it. Note that placing an additional +1 power counter doesn't give you an additional destruction effect. The rest is resolved as written and there's no dependence on the number of +1 power counters that were placed or on the number of affected minions.
If you choose to copy the destruction:
- If Diva copies it (and it can copy it even if its power is more than 2), Diva is considered as indirectly affected by the action and is destroyed.
- If Dancing King copies it onto a minion (it can be itself and it can copy it even if the power of the minion that gets the copy is more than 2), that minion is considered as indirectly affected by the action and is destroyed.
- If We are Family copies it (and it can copy it even if the power of the minion it is on is more than 2), the minion it is on is considered as indirectly affected by the action and is destroyed.
- With Funky Town, you can only copy it if you're the one who played the action and if it affects one of your minions, but if Funky Town does copy it (and it can copy it even if the power of the minion that gets the copy is more than 2), the minion is considered as indirectly affected by the action and is destroyed.
Questions on Mad Monster Party[]
Q: It allows me to place +1 power counters on "each of my minions" that do not have one. Does it also place one on minions I own that I don't control? I don't control them but I "own" them, so they are "my" minions, right?
A: No. "Your minions" are minions you control, whether or not you own them. A minion you own but don't control isn't yours.
Q: Can you place a +1 power counter on one of your minions in stasis?
A: No, cards in stasis cannot be affected by cards that do not explicitly state they work on cards in stasis.
Q: How does this interact with the Disco Dancers' mechanic and Funky Town's ability?
A: - Diva can only copy it if it already had +1 power counters on it before Mad Monster Party is played. If it had no +1 power counters, then Mad Monster Party would already directly affect it. So, if Diva does copy it, Diva is considered as indirectly affected by the action and has a +1 power counter placed on it. Note that if several minions on the same base directly received a +1 power counter, you can only choose one of them to copy and get one +1 power counter, not one per affected minions.
- If Dancing King copies it onto a minion (it can be itself and it can already have a +1 power counter), that minion is considered as indirectly affected by the action and has a +1 power counter placed on it. Note that if several minions on the same base directly received a +1 power counter, you can only choose one of them to copy and get one +1 power counter, not one per affected minions. Also, note that while the action is restricted to a minion controlled by the action player, the effect's copy still works if applied to a minion not controlled by that player.
- If We are Family copies it, the minion it is on is considered as indirectly affected by the action and has a +1 power counter placed on it (it can already have a +1 power counter). Note that if several minions on the same base directly received a +1 power counter, you can only choose one of them to copy and get one +1 power counter, not one per affected minions. Also, note that while the action is restricted to a minion controlled by the action player, the effect's copy still works if applied to a minion not controlled by that player.
- With Funky Town, you can only copy it if you're the one who played the action and the minion it is copied to must already have +1 power counters on it before Mad Monster Party is played, but if Funky Town does copy it, the minion is considered as indirectly affected by the action and has a +1 power counter placed on it. Note that if several minions on the same base directly received a +1 power counter, you can only choose one of them to copy and get one +1 power counter, not one per affected minions.
Questions on Opportunist[]
Q: I have a minion with Opportunist. If I take control of another player's minion and destroy it, does it trigger Opportunist's ability?
A: No. Since you took control of another player's minion, it's no longer another player's minion", but "your minion". So if it's destroyed, it doesn't trigger Opportunist's ability.
Rule: "Other players" on a minion, action or titan means everyone except the controller of the card.
Q: If Opportunist is removed from play (e.g. destroyed, returned, etc.) or has its ability cancelled, are the +1 power counters placed by its ability removed?
A: No. When you place a +1 power counter, it's a definitive effect (like drawing cards, if you play Enchantress, you're not going to discard the card you drew if Enchantress is destroyed or has its ability is cancelled), so the +1 power counters remain even if the card that placed them is removed from play or has its ability cancelled. Besides, how are you going to keep track of which +1 power counters were added by Opportunist's ability and which ones were not (e.g. placed by Buffet or Dinner Date)? That would be very cumbersome.
Rule: Cancelling (or losing) an effect does not necessarily undo what it did.
Rule: Removing a card from play does not necessarily undo what it did.
Q: It says "Play on a minion", so I suppose I can play it on another player's minion, right? So it will get +1 power counters after each time one of that player's opponents' minions is destroyed, right?
A: Yes, you can play it on any minion, but since you played the action, you will be the action's controller and so "After another player’s minion is destroyed" really means "After one of your opponents’ minions is destroyed", regardless of whoever controls the minion, so the minion will get a +1 power counter each time one of your opponents' minions, including that player's own minions, is destroyed.
Rule: If you play an action on another player's minion, you're still the action's controller.
Rule: "You" on a minion, action or titan means the controller of the card.
Q: An opponent played this card on one of their minions. If I transfer it to one of my minions, e.g. with Tinx or Rules Lawyer, do I also transfer the +1 power counters gained from Opportunist to my minion? Also, I suppose from now on, I will place a +1 power counter on my minion after each time one of my opponents' minions is destroyed.
A: No and no. When you place a +1 power counter, it's a definitive effect, so the +1 power counters remain on that minion even if the card that placed them is transferred to another. Besides, how are you going to keep track of which +1 power counters were added by Opportunist's ability and which ones were not (e.g. placed by Buffet or Dinner Date)? That would be very cumbersome. Also, transferring an action doesn't make you its controller and transferring it to a different player's minion doesn't grant that player control of the action. The action's controller simply doesn't change. So, the player who played it still controls it, and therefore the action only addresses them and the ability must be interpreted from their point of view. So "another player" means "one of their opponents" and "Place..." means "they place". In summary, each time one of their opponents' minions (including your minions) is destroyed, they will place a +1 power counter on your minion.
Rule: When you transfer an action, it doesn't change controller.
Q: Can you play it on a minion in stasis?
A: No, cards in stasis cannot be affected by cards that do not explicitly state they work on cards in stasis.
Q: How does this interact with the Disco Dancers' mechanic and Funky Town's ability?
A: It doesn't interact with them at all, because it says "Play on a minion", which means that it is not a standard action.
Questions on Summon Wolves[]
Q: I need to "have" a minion there to get the power. If there are only minions there that I own but don't control, do I still get the power? I don't control them but I "own" them, so I "have" them, right?
A: No. "Where you have a minion" means "where you control at least one minion (whether or not you own it)". Minions you just own but don't control don't count.
Q: Do the tokens on Summon Wolves count as Power Tokens on the minion I have played there, or just as if I had a minion of Power x on the base, where x is equal to the number of tokens?
A: Neither. It doesn't do anything to your minions, it just needs a minion on the same base to be useful. And it doesn't count as a minion. A comparable card is Aggromotive.
Q: If I play We Will Rock You, does it affect the power counters on Summon Wolves?
A: No. We Will Rock You only affects minions and Summon Wolves is an action.
Rule: Specific words are not synonymous no matter how similar they seem.
Q: If I play a card on a base with an Ongoing (ex. Summon Wolves) does the card affect all players on that base? Or is the card effect only for me unless otherwise specified?
A: The card only works for you.
Rule: A play-on-base action doesn't give an ability to the base that any player can use.
Rule: "You" on a minion, action or titan means the controller of the card.
Q: With the release of Big in Japan, we can now have power without needing a minion, so if I have Summon Wolves with no minions there, the counters on Summon Wolves are now added to my total power, right?
A: No. Big in Japan's new rule is only about the eligibility of getting VPs when a base scores. It doesn't change how Summon Wolves works at all: You still have to have a minion on its base for the power counters to be added to your total power (exactly as written); if you don't have any minions on that base (and no, having an action with power there isn't enough!), then the counters on Summon Wolves will do nothing.
Q: If Summon Wolves's ability is cancelled, are the +1 power counters placed on it by its own ability removed?
A: No. When you place a +1 power counter, it's a definitive effect, so the +1 power counters remain even if the card that placed them has its ability cancelled (like drawing cards, if you play Enchantress, you're not going to discard the card you drew if Enchantress's ability is cancelled).
Rule: Cancelling (or losing) an effect does not necessarily undo what it did.
Q: How does this interact with the Disco Dancers' mechanic and Funky Town's ability?
A: It doesn't interact with them at all, because it says "Play on a base", which means that it is not a standard action.
Questions on Ancient Lord[]
- Main article: Titans
Q: The card says "Special" so I can use it at any time, even outside of my turn, right?
A: Be careful, "Special" does not mean the card can be played out of turn. "Special" simply means that it's an ability that can be used when its condition is met. Whether it can be used out of turn, activated straight from your hand/discard pile, or if it can only be used when it's already in play (essentially being a synonym of Ongoing), it entirely depends on the wording. In the case of Ancient Lord, the condition is "After you place two or more +1 power counters on minions in a turn", so you can play it immediately after you place your second or higher +1 power counter on a minion on any player's turn. So Ancient Lord can indeed be played on any turn, but only after you've placed your second +1 power counter on a minion in that same turn.
Q: To summon Ancient Lord, do I have to place the two +1 power counters on the same minion? Or is placing a +1 power counter on two minions enough?
A: It's two or more +1 power counters spread in any way among minions. Basically, keep count of the total number of +1 power counters you've placed on minions in the same turn. Once you've placed your second or higher +1 power counter on a minion in a turn, Ancient Lord can immediately be played.
Q: Ancient Lord isn't in play yet. I place a +1 power counter on Summon Wolves and another +1 power counter on a minion. Can I summon Ancient Lord?
A: No, while you did place two +1 power counters in total, one of them was placed on an action, so that doesn't qualify.
Rule: Specific words are not synonymous no matter how similar they seem.
Q: Ancient Lord isn't in play yet. I place two or more +1 power counters on other players' minions, e.g. with Ancient Chinese Art. Can I summon Ancient Lord?
A: Yes, you did place two or more +1 power counters on minions. It doesn't matter if they were placed on your minions or other players' minions.
Q: Ancient Lord isn't in play yet. I place my second +1 power counter in a turn on a minion that had no +1 power counter. I play Ancient Lord, does the minion get another +1 power counter from Ancient Lord's Ongoing ability?
A: No, Ancient Lord is played after you place the +1 power counter, so it didn't "witness" you placing it, so its Ongoing ability wasn't triggered.
Q: I use Expert Timing to transfer +1 power counters on Ancient Lord while it had none. Ancient Lord gets an extra counter, right?
A: No, Expert Timing transfers +1 power counters, it doesn't place them, so Ancient Lord's ongoing ability won't work.
Rule: Specific words are not synonymous no matter how similar they seem.
Q: With Ancient Lord in play, I place a +1 power counter on Summon Wolves while it had none. Summon Wolves gets an extra counter, right?
A: Yes, Ancient Lord's Ongoing ability applies to you placing a +1 power counter on one of your cards, so actions are included.
Q: With Ancient Lord in play, I place two +1 power counters on a minion while it had none. Does the minion still get an extra counter? Or does it only get the extra counter when I place exactly one counter?
A: Yes, it gets the extra +1 power counter. "After you place a +1 power counter" should be understood as "After you place one or more +1 power counters".
Q: With Ancient Lord in play, I transfer +1 power counters to one of my minions while it had none. Does the minion get an extra counter?
A: No, you've transferred, not placed +1 power counters on it, which are two distinct effects. When you place a +1 power counter, you take it from the common pool of counters. When you take it from a card and put it on another, that's a transfer. Ancient Lord only triggers when you place the counters.
Rule: Specific words are not synonymous no matter how similar they seem.
Q: Its talent tells me to place a +1 power counter on "one of my minions". Can I place it on a minion I own that I don't control? I don't control it but I "own" it, so it's "my" minion, right?
A: No. "Your minions" are minions you control, whether or not you own them. A minion you own but don't control isn't yours.
Q: Its ongoing ability applies to the placing of a +1 power counter on "one of my cards". Does it also apply to cards I own that I don't control? For example, if another player gets control of my Summon Wolves (through Mass Enchantment, Hotwire). I don't control it but I "own" it, so it's "my" card, right?
A: No. Firstly, "your cards" are cards you control, whether or not you own them. A card you own but don't control isn't yours. Secondly, its Ongoing ability applies whenever you place the +1 power counter, not any player. In the case of Summon Wolves, its controller places the +1 power counter, regardless of who the owner is.
Rule: "You" on a minion, action or titan means the controller of the card.
Q: A base is chosen to score. I have no minions there, but I have Ancient Lord there. It is similar to a minion, right? So I can still get VPs from the base if 0 is among the top three total power, right?
A: No and no. Ancient Lord is a titan, not a minion. To be eligible to receive VPs, you must have at least one minion or at least 1 total power on the base. If you have no minions and your total power there is 0, then you can't receive any VPs from the base. Now, if Ancient Lord had any +1 power counters on it or gave you any total power (e.g. on Kaiju Island), then you would have at least 1 total power and be eligible. Otherwise, no.
Q: An opponent is playing with the Vampires with their titan. Their Ancient Lord isn't in play. I manage to place two or more +1 power counters on minions in a turn, I can then invoke Ancient Lord through its Special ability and play it, right?
A: No, only the player who has it next to their deck can play it.
Rule: Playable Special cards can only be played by their current possessor.
Trivia[]
- The artist is Francisco Rico Torres, who also designed the art of many other factions.
- The artist for the titan (which was released after Monster Smash) is also Francisco Rico Torres.
- Their divider (available in The Big Geeky Box and The Bigger Geekier Box) features The Count.
- An Operative and a Saucy Wench can be seen fighting on the Opportunist card.
- Nightstalker's appearance is based on Blacula, while its name is a reference to the TV show "Kolchak: The Night Stalker".
- Heavy Drinker's appearance is based on Count Orlok from the expressionist vampire movie Nosferatu.
- The Count is a reference to Christopher Lee's portrayal of Count Dracula in the 1958 film "Dracula".
- The Ancient Lord's appearance is based on Vlad Tepes, inspiration to the nowadays vampires.
- Summon Wolves is the first non-standard action that can get +1 power counters.
In other languages[]
| Language | Name |
|---|---|
| Chinese | 吸血鬼 |
| French | Vampires |
| German | Vampire |
| Italian | Vampiri |
| Spanish | Vampiros |
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