Bases FAQ/What Were We Thinking?

This is the FAQ page for each individual base in What Were We Thinking?.

Questions on Ancient Temple

Q: At the start of my turn, I have only one minion there, so it gains +5 power. Does it keep it if it is moved to another base?

A: No. It will only have it while it is on Ancient Temple. It will lose while it is on another base.

Rule: Do exactly what the card says.

Q: At the start of my turn, I have only one minion there, so it gains +5 power. If I play another minion there during the turn, does it lose the +5 power?

A: No. It only needed to be alone at the start of your turn. So once it got it, it will keep it until the end of the turn as long as it remains on Ancient Temple.

Rule: "Until the end of the turn" effects persist until the end of the turn even if the cards with the "Until the end of the turn" abilities are removed from play, even if those abilities are lost or cancelled, and even if their cards change controllers.

Q: At the start of my turn, I have only one minion there, so it gains +5 power. I move it to another base, so it loses it. Then I move it back to Ancient Temple. Does it get back its +5 power?

A: Yes. It has +5 power while it is on Ancient Temple, and not on the other bases.

Rule: Do exactly what the card says.

Q: It says "if I have only one minion" there. I suppose I won't get the benefit if I control a minion there and there's also a minion there that I own but don't control, right? I don't control it but I "own" it, so I "have" it, right?

A: No. "If you have a minion" means "if you control at least one minion (whether or not you own it)". Minions you just own but don't control don't count.

Rule: "Having" cards at a base means you control them.

Q: It says "if I have only one minion" there. If my only minion there is a minion I own but don't control, can I give it +5 power? I don't control it but I "own" it, so I "have" it, right?

A: No. "If you have a minion" means "if you control at least one minion (whether or not you own it)". Minions you just own but don't control don't count.

Rule: "Having" cards at a base means you control them.

Q: I have Infiltrate on this base. What happens if I choose to ignore this base's ability?

A: At the start of your turn (and only your turn, not each player's turns), your minion there won't get +5 power because it would be immune to the base's ability.

Rule: Definition of "ignore".

Questions on City of Gold

Q: Do I have to have only one minion there to gain 1 VP?

A: No, you must have at least one there at the start of your turn to gain 1 VP.

Rule: Do exactly what the card says.

Q: It says "if I have a minion" there. If there is a minion there that I own but don't control, I suppose it's enough to gain the VP, right? I don't control it but I "own" it, so I "have" it, right?

A: No. "If you have a minion" means "if you control at least one minion (whether or not you own it)". Minions you just own but don't control don't count.

Rule: "Having" cards at a base means you control them.

Q: I have Infiltrate on this base. What happens if I choose to ignore this base's ability?

A: You (and only you, not all players) won't get 1 VP from the base's ability.

Rule: Definition of "ignore".

Questions on Grandma’s House

Q: It doesn't say "each time" like Cave of Shinies or The Homeworld, so I suppose I can only check the top card of my deck after playing my first minion there, right?

A: No, you look at the top card of your deck after each time you play a minion there. For it to only work once, it has to explicitly state it for example by saying "once per turn", "the first time" or "the first minion". Grandma's House's ability is a triggerable one, and unless otherwise stated it must be resolved each time it is triggered. If it said "each time", it would just be redundant.

Rule: For cards in play that say "If X/After X/When X/If X would happen/Before X, do Y", if X is done (or is about to be done), then you must do Y; not being able to do Y doesn't undo X.

Q: If I play an Argonaut instead of an action on Grandma's House, do I still look at the top card of my deck?

A: Yes. Playing an Argonaut, whether as a minion or instead of an action, still counts as playing a minion. It IS a minion after all.

Rule: Do exactly what the card says.

Q: I have Infiltrate on this base. What happens if I choose to ignore this base's ability?

A: When you (and only you, not all players) play a minion there, you won't look at the top card of your deck.

Rule: Definition of "ignore".

Questions on Lake Minnetonka

Q: Is the restriction "to here" only for moving a minion or also for playing it?

A: It's for both, for the minion to gain +1 power, it must be played on or moved to Lake Minnetonka.

Rule: Do exactly what the card says.

Q: It doesn't say "each time" like Cave of Shinies or The Homeworld, so I suppose only the first minion either played or moved to there gets the +1 power, right?

A: No, the +1 power is given to each minion moved or played there. For it to only work once, it has to explicitly state it for example by saying "once per turn", "the first time" or "the first minion". Lake Minnetonka's ability is a triggerable one, and unless otherwise stated it must be resolved each time it is triggered. If it said "each time", it would just be redundant.

Rule: For cards in play that say "If X/After X/When X/If X would happen/Before X, do Y", if X is done (or is about to be done), then you must do Y; not being able to do Y doesn't undo X.

Q: I move a power-2 minion on Lake Minnetonka where another player has a Cub Scout. Is the minion destroyed?

A: It depends. Both Lake Minnetonka's and Cub Scout's abilities are mandatory and activated after you're done moving the minion. According to the rules, it's the current player who decides the order in which these two mandatory abilities are activated. If Lake Minnetonka is activated before Cub Scout, the minion gets a +1 power and therefore is power 3 and survives to Cub Scout. However, if Cub Scout is activated before Lake Minnetonka, the minion is destroyed by Cub Scout and when you want to resolve Lake Minnetonka's ability, the minion is no longer in play.

Rule: When a card says "After X, do Y", you need "X" to happen and be resolved completely before you do the effect stated as "Y".

Rule: The current player decides the order of events that are supposed to happen simultaneously.

Q: I play a power-4 minion on Lake Minnetonka where another player has a Leprechaun. Is the minion destroyed?

A: It depends. Both Lake Minnetonka's and Leprechaun's abilities are mandatory and activated after you're done playing the minion. According to the rules, it's the current player who decides the order in which these two mandatory abilities are activated. If Lake Minnetonka is activated before Leprechaun, the minion gets a +1 power and therefore is power 5 and survives to Leprechaun. However, if Leprechaun is activated before Lake Minnetonka, the minion is destroyed by Leprechaun and when you want to resolve Lake Minnetonka's ability, the minion is no longer in play.

Rule: When a card says "After X, do Y", you need "X" to happen and be resolved completely before you do the effect stated as "Y".

Rule: The current player decides the order of events that are supposed to happen simultaneously.

Q: If I play an Argonaut instead of an action on Lake Minnetonka, does it still get +1 power?

A: Yes. Playing an Argonaut, whether as a minion or instead of an action, still counts as playing a minion. It IS a minion after all.

Rule: Do exactly what the card says.

Q: I have Infiltrate on this base. What happens if I choose to ignore this base's ability?

A: There are three possible situations:
- If you play a minion there, it won't get +1 power because your minions will be immune to this base's ability.
- If one of your minions is moved to there, it won't get +1 power because your minions will be immune to this base's ability.
- If you move another player's minion to there, it gets +1 power because you can't ignore having triggered the base's ability and since it's not a minion you control, it's not immune to the base's ability.

Rule: Definition of "ignore".

Questions on Out in the Woods

Q: What is that ability? It doesn't change the scoring at all since all the players get the bonus.

A: Actually, it can change the scoring. When the base scores, suppose you have a single impressive power-10 minion and another player has four boring power-2 minions. You're in the lead with 10 power, while they have 8 power. When you apply Out in the Woods's ability, you only get +1 power (=one minion), for a total of 11, while your opponent gets +4 power (=four minions), for a total of 12. So the scoring changed.

Rule: Do exactly what the card says.

Q: What's the point of this ability? Isn't VP determined by the power each player has before the base scores?

A: Not quite, the amount of VPs each player gets is determined by the power each player currently has when you are handing out VPs, so any before-scoring abilities (including this one) that affect how much power you have on the base will affect the amount of VPs you'll eventually get.

Rule: VPs are awarded according to the current power totals.

Q: I have Infiltrate on this base. What happens if I choose to ignore this base's ability?

A: When this base scores, your minions there (and only your minions, not all minions) won't get +1 power from the base's ability because they will be immune to it.

Rule: Definition of "ignore".

Questions on Palooza

Q: It tells me to move "one of my minions". Can I move 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.

Rule: "Your minion" means "a minion that you control".

Q: I'm currently in the lead on that base. Before it scores, is there any why I should move one of my minions there? Even if another player moves their minions to Palooza and gets ahead of me in power, don't I still get the winner VPs because I was winning at the start of the scoring?

A: No, the amount of VPs each player gets is determined by the power each player currently has when you are handing out VPs, so any before-scoring abilities (including this one) that affect how much power you have on the base will affect the amount of VPs you'll eventually get.

Rule: VPs are awarded according to the current power totals.

Q: I have Infiltrate on this base. What happens if I choose to ignore this base's ability?

A: You (and only you, not all players) won't be able to move one of your minions to there when it scores.

Rule: Definition of "ignore".

Questions on Retirement Community

Q: It tells me to place "one of my minions". Can I place 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.

Rule: "Your minion" means "a minion that you control".

Q: Can I choose another player's minion that I took control of and put it on or under my deck?

A: You can choose any minion you control, but if you don't own it, it will go on the top or bottom of its rightful owner's deck.

Rule: When a card that others can see goes to the hand, deck or discard pile, it goes to the one belonging to the card’s owner.

Q: I have Infiltrate on this base. What happens if I choose to ignore this base's ability?

A: You (and only you, not all players) won't be able to use this base's ability when it scores.

Rule: Definition of "ignore".

Questions on Under the Bed

Q: If I played minions on two other bases, do I get one or two extra minions on Under the Bed?

A: Only one extra minion.

Rule: Each "on your turn" ability can be activated once on each of your turns.

Q: Can I use this base's ability to play a minion of power 2 or less multiple times in one turn?

A: No. The Bigger Geekier Box rulebook now restricts all "on your turn" abilities to a single use on each of your turns.

Rule: Each "on your turn" ability can be activated once on each of your turns.

Q: I have Infiltrate on this base. What happens if I choose to ignore this base's ability?

A: You (and only you, not all players) won't get an extra minion from this base's ability.

Rule: Definition of "ignore".