Never underestimate the power of an old lady to Smash All The Bases! - AEG
Everybody loves grandma! And grandma loves you, let me find something in my bag here for you... Grannies keep close tabs on the family, even if
thethat family includes dinosaurs or zombies! They always knowwho iswho’s coming and going, and that slight busybody-ness can come in incredibly handy when planning your strategies for smashing bases.
- - What Were We Thinking? rulebook (updated in The Bigger Geekier Box rulebook)
The Grannies are one of the 4 factions from the What Were We Thinking? set.
The Grannies focus on arranging the top and bottom of your deck, allowing them to draw and play minions from the bottom, and to draw and play actions from the top.
Other factions from the same set: Explorers, Rock Stars, Teddy Bears.
Name[]
This faction is called "Grannies" in the rulebook and on the divider included in this set. However, AEG's product page for this set calls this faction "Grandmas".
Cards[]
The Grannies 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.
Among their actions, there are:
- 0 play-on-minion actions,
- 2 play-on-base actions: Don’t Mess With My Babies!, Family Reunion,
- 8 standard actions (1 that affects one or more minions, in bold): Always Room at Granny’s, Attic Treasures (2x), Chicken Soup, Granny’s Purse (2x), Hush, My Stories are On, Knitting Circle,
- 0 actions that directly increase a minion's power.
Minions[]
1x Matriarch - power 5 - Talent: Reveal the bottom two cards of your deck. Draw any minions revealed, and discard the rest. FAQ
2x Granny - power 4 - Talent: Look at the top card of your deck. Place it on the top or bottom of your deck. FAQ
3x Nana - power 3 - Reveal the top card of your deck. If it is an action, draw it or play it as an extra action. Otherwise place it on the bottom of your deck. FAQ
4x Grandma - power 2 - Look at the top card of your deck. Place it on the top or bottom of your deck. FAQ
Actions[]
1x Always Room at Granny’s - Special: Play after a base scores. Place up to three of your minions there on the top and/or bottom of your deck in any order. FAQ
2x Attic Treasures - Place three cards from your hand on the bottom of your deck in any order. Draw three cards. FAQ
1x Chicken Soup - Place up to two cards from your discard pile on the top and/or bottom of your deck. FAQ
1x Don’t Mess With My Babies! - Play on a base. Ongoing: Your minions here cannot be affected by other players’ cards. FAQ
1x Family Reunion - Play on a base. Ongoing: After you play a minion here, reveal the bottom card of your deck. If it is a minion, draw it, otherwise place it on top of your deck. FAQ
2x Granny’s Purse - Reveal the top card of your deck. If it is an action, you may draw it or return it. Otherwise place it on the bottom of your deck. Play an extra action. FAQ
1x Hush, My Stories are On - Reveal the bottom card of your deck and draw it. If it is a minion you may play it as an extra minion. FAQ
1x Knitting Circle - Destroy up to three actions played on minions and/or bases. Draw a card for each one destroyed. FAQ
Titan[]
- (available in the 10th Anniversary set)
1x Great Grandma - Special: On your turn, if you have no titan in play, you may say either “action” or “minion”, and reveal either the top or bottom two cards of your deck. If both cards are of that type, play this titan. Return them in the same order. Ongoing: After you reveal or look at one or more cards from your deck, you may give one of your minions +1 power until the end of the turn. Talent: Reveal the bottom card of your deck. If it is a minion of power 3 or less, play it here as an extra minion; otherwise, return it. FAQ
Bases[]
Clarifications[]
Here are the official clarifications as they appear in the What Were We Thinking? rulebook:
Attic Treasures: If you have fewer than 3 cards in hand, place all you have and still draw 3 cards.
Mechanics[]
Grannies focus on sorting your deck and drawing/playing cards from your deck if your deck is correctly sorted.
There are mainly two kinds of cards in the Grannies faction. Those that help you check and/or sort the top and bottom of your deck, and those that check the top or bottom of your deck and give you an advantage if the right type of card is present, usually the drawing of the card and/or playing it as an extra card.
Regarding how to sort your deck correctly, Grannies like when actions are present on top of your deck and minions are present on the bottom.
External Strategy Guides[]
- The Smash Up Faction Series: #10, Grannies
- Grannies: The Best Smash Ups in Smash Up
- Smash Up KOTH #60: Matriarch
- Smash Up Action Awareness #60: Grannys Purse
- Smash Up Calling All Titans: Great Grandma
FAQ[]
Questions on Matriarch[]
Q: If I reveal a card I don't own, what happens?
A: There are two different paths for the revealed card:
- If it's a minion, it goes to its owner's hand, that's because the other players can see who owns the card and the card changes location.
- If it's an action, it goes to its owner's discard pile, that's because the other players can see who owns the card and the card changes location.
Q: I already have ten cards in hand. What happens if I decide to use this talent? Do I draw the minions and immediately discard down to 10?
A: You draw the minions and don't discard any card until your upcoming Draw 2 Cards phase. At that point, you will indeed need to draw two cards and discard down to 10 if you have more than 10. That's the only moment where you must discard down to 10. At any other time, you keep your hand of cards.
Questions on Granny[]
Q:
A:
Rule:
Questions on Nana[]
Q: If I reveal an action that I don't want to either draw or play, what happens?
A: It's placed on the bottom of your deck. Basically, you must choose between drawing it or playing it. If you choose to play it, you don't have to do it, because playing a card is always optional. If you choose not to do it, then you apply the "otherwise" instructions and place the card on the bottom of your deck.
Q: If I reveal a card I don't own, what happens?
A: There are three different paths for the revealed card:
- If it's an action and you choose to draw it, it goes to its owner's hand, that's because the other players can see who owns the card and the card changes location.
- If it's an action and you choose to play it, then you control it like any card you play.
- If it's a minion, or an action that you don't want to either draw or play, it goes to the bottom of its owner's deck, that's because the other players can see who owns the card and the card changes location.
Rule: When a player plays a card, they become the card's controller.
Q: After playing this card and choosing to draw the action, I (somehow) have more than 10 cards in hand, do I immediately discard down to 10?
A: You don't discard any card until your next Draw 2 Cards phase (so not any Draw 2 Cards phase!). At that point, you will indeed need to draw two cards and discard down to 10 if you have more than 10. That's the only moment where you must discard down to 10. At any other time, you keep your hand of cards.
Questions on Grandma[]
Q:
A:
Rule:
Questions on Always Room at Granny’s[]
Q: It tells me to place "up to three of my minions" into my deck. Can I place a minion 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 I play it from stasis after a base scores?
A: No, while in stasis, the only abilities that can do anything are the ones that explicitly state that they do something there.
Rule: Abilities of cards in stasis do not work unless they refer to stasis.
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 is placed on the top or the bottom of its owner's deck, regardless of whoever owns the minions that were directly affected by the action and even if there were already three minions that were directly affected by Always Room at Granny’s.
- If Dancing King copies it onto a minion (it can be itself), that minion is considered as indirectly affected by the action and is placed on the top or the bottom of its owner's deck, regardless of whoever owns the minions that were directly affected by the action and even if there were already three minions that were directly affected by Always Room at Granny’s. Note that if more than one minion were directly affected, Dancing King only triggers once, not once per affected minions. Also, note that if the minion is a monster or a treasure, it is discarded instead. This is a different answer compared to cards that refer to a minion's owner; this card never refers to the card's owner ("you" means "the controller", who may not be the owner) and so the rule is that the treasure/monster is discarded.
- If We are Family copies it, the minion it is on is considered as indirectly affected by the action and is placed on the top or the bottom of its owner's deck, regardless of whoever owns the minions that were directly affected by the action and even if there were already three minions that were directly affected by Always Room at Granny’s. Also, note that if the minion is a monster or a treasure, it is discarded instead. This is a different answer compared to cards that refer to a minion's owner; this card never refers to the card's owner ("you" means "the controller", who may not be the owner) and so the rule is that the treasure/monster is discarded.
- 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 is placed on the top or the bottom of its owner's deck, regardless of whoever owns the minions that were directly affected by the action and even if there were already three minions that were directly affected by Always Room at Granny’s. Note that if more than one minion were directly affected, Funky Town only triggers once, not once per affected minions.
Rule: Monsters and treasures go to their own discard pile when they leave play.
Questions on Attic Treasures[]
Q: What happens if I only have two cards in hand?
A: If you have less than three cards in hand, place your entire hand on the bottom of your deck, then draw three cards.
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 doesn't affect any minions in play and so its effect can't be copied.
Questions on Chicken Soup[]
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 doesn't affect any minions in play and so its effect can't be copied.
Questions on Don’t Mess with My Babies![]
Q: An opponent plays this card on a base, so if I have a minion there, it's no longer affected by my opponents' cards, right?
A: No. Your opponent played the action, so they control it, and therefore the action only addresses them and the ability must be interpreted from their point of view. So "your minions" means "their minions" and "other players" means "their opponents".
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.
Rule: "Other players" on a minion, action or titan means everyone except the controller of the card.
Q: It protects "my minions". Does it also protect 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: An opponent plays Bear Hug (or Unfathomable Goals, Griefer, Out of Sight), forcing me to affect one of my minions. Can I choose my minion on the same base as Don't Mess with My Babies!? If so, does Don't Mess with My Babies! protect it?
A: First of all, you can indeed choose any of your minions, but you must choose one if you have any in play. Secondly, since the cause of the affect is "another player's card", then yes, Don't Mess with My Babies! protects your minion.
Q: How does this interact with the Disco Dancers' mechanic and Funky Town's ability?
A: - If you're asking about when Don’t Mess with My Babies! is played, it doesn't interact with them at all, because it says "Play on a base", which means that it is not a standard action.
- If you're asking about when you copy an effect onto an opponent's minion with Don’t Mess with My Babies! protecting it, then the minion isn't affected. Note that Don’t Mess with My Babies! only protects against other player's cards, so if Don’t Mess with My Babies!'s controller plays a standard action, you can copy it with Dancing King and have it affect one of that player's minion, bypassing Don’t Mess with My Babies!'s protection because the minion is considered as being affected by its own controller's action and what Dancing King does is copy the effect onto it, which itself doesn't count as affecting the minion.
- If you're asking about when an opponent's minion with Don’t Mess with My Babies! protecting it is directly affected by your standard action and you want to copy that, then it's not possible because the minion isn't affected by your action and because no minion was affected, you can't copy the effect.
- If you're asking about when an opponent's minion with Don’t Mess with My Babies! protecting it is directly affected by that player's standard action and you want to copy that, then you can indeed copy it the same way.
Rule: "Can't" trumps "can".
Rule: Definition of "standard".
Questions on Family Reunion[]
Q: An opponent plays this card on a base, so if I play a minion there, I reveal the bottom card of my deck and draw it if it's a minion, etc., right?
A: No. Your opponent played the action, so they control it, and therefore the action only addresses them and the ability must be interpreted from their point of view. So its ability should be interpreted as "After they play a minion here, they reveal the bottom card of their deck. If it is a minion, they draw it, otherwise they place it on the top of their deck."
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: If I reveal a card I don't own, what happens?
A: There are two different paths for the revealed card:
- If it's a minion, it goes to its owner's hand, that's because the other players can see who owns the card and the card changes location.
- If it's an action, it goes to the top of its owner's deck, that's because the other players can see who owns the card and the card changes location.
Q: If I play an Argonaut instead of an action on Family Reunion's base, do I still reveal the bottom 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.
Q: I have They’re Coming To Get You on the same base as Family Reunion. I also have ten cards in hand. What happens if I decide to play a minion from my discard pile with They’re Coming To Get You and reveal a minion from the bottom of my deck? Do I draw it? If so, is it immediately discarded because of the ten-card limit? or do I draw it and immediately discard a card?
A: You draw the minion and don't discard any card until your upcoming Draw 2 Cards phase. At that point, you will indeed need to draw two cards and discard down to 10 if you have more than 10. That's the only moment where you must discard down to 10. At any other time, you keep your hand of cards.
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.
Rule: Definition of "standard".
Questions on Granny’s Purse[]
Q: If I reveal an action that I don't want to either draw or return to the top of my deck, what happens?
A: It's placed on the bottom of your deck. Basically, choosing between drawing it or returning it is optional (notice the "you may"). If you choose not to do either, then you apply the "otherwise" instructions and place the card on the bottom of your deck.
Q: If I reveal a card I don't own, what happens?
A: There are three different paths for the revealed card:
- If it's an action and you choose to draw it, it goes to its owner's hand, that's because the other players can see who owns the card and the card changes location.
- If it's an action and you choose to return it, it goes to the top of your deck, that's because, while the other players can see who owns the card, the card is merely revealed and doesn't change location.
- If it's a minion, it goes to the bottom of its owner's deck, that's because the other players can see who owns the card and the card changes location.
Rule: Cards you don’t own that are merely revealed in your hand or deck stay there.
Q: After playing this card and revealing an action, I (somehow) have more than 10 cards in hand, do I immediately discard down to 10?
A: You don't discard any card until your next Draw 2 Cards phase (so not any Draw 2 Cards phase!). At that point, you will indeed need to draw two cards and discard down to 10 if you have more than 10. That's the only moment where you must discard down to 10. At any other time, you keep your hand of cards.
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 doesn't affect any minions in play and so its effect can't be copied.
Questions on Hush, My Stories are On[]
Q: If I reveal a card I don't own, what happens?
A: It goes to its owner's hand, that's because the other players can see who owns the card and the card changes location. If it's a minion, you won't be able to play it because it's not in your hand.[1]
Q: After playing this card, I (somehow) have more than 10 cards in hand, do I immediately discard down to 10?
A: You don't discard any card until your next Draw 2 Cards phase (so not any Draw 2 Cards phase!). At that point, you will indeed need to draw two cards and discard down to 10 if you have more than 10. That's the only moment where you must discard down to 10. At any other time, you keep your hand of cards.
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 doesn't affect any minions in play and so its effect can't be copied.
Questions on Knitting Circle[]
Q: Can I target an action that cannot be destroyed? (e.g. Heirloom)
A: Yes, but it won't be destroyed and you won't draw a card for that action.
Rule: "Can't" trumps "can".
Q: After playing this card, I end up with more than 10 cards in hand, do I immediately discard down to 10?
A: You don't discard any card until your next Draw 2 Cards phase (so not any Draw 2 Cards phase!). At that point, you will indeed need to draw two cards and discard down to 10 if you have more than 10. That's the only moment where you must discard down to 10. At any other time, you keep your hand of cards.
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 doesn't affect any minions in play and so its effect can't be copied.
Questions on Great Grandma[]
- 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 Great Grandma, the condition is "On your turn", which already restricts its usage during your Play Cards phase, not at any other times. Note that it's restricted to your Play Cards phase only, not any other phases of your turn either.
Rule: "On your turn" means "during the Play Cards (phase 2) of each of your turns".
Q: If I reveal a card I don't own, what happens?
A: Whether it's from this titan's Special ability or its talent, if the card is to be returned, the card goes to the top or bottom of your deck (whichever is appropriate), that's because, while the other players can see who owns the card, the card is merely revealed and doesn't change location. With the talent, if you choose to play the minion you revealed, then you control it like any card you play.
Rule: Cards you don’t own that are merely revealed in your hand or deck stay there.
Rule: When a player plays a card, they become the card's controller.
Q: Its Ongoing ability allows me to give +1 power to "one of my minions". Can I give it to 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: A base is chosen to score. I have no minions there, but I have Great Grandma 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. Great Grandma 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 Great Grandma 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: Can you give +1 power to 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.
Trivia[]
- The artist is Marcel Stobinski, who also designed the art of a few other factions.
- The artist for the titan (which was released after What Were We Thinking?) is Francisco Rico Torres, who also designed the art of many other factions.
- Their divider (updated in The Bigger Geekier Box) features Granny.
- The font used for the Granny cards is AnAkronism.
- A portrait of The Count can be seen behind the Matriarch.
- A Pirate child is present on the Nana card.
- A Deep One child, a Superhero child, a Ghost child, and a Steampunk child are present on the Always Room at Granny's card.
- A Zombie is being taken care of on the Chicken Soup card.
- A child Jason and a child Snow White are being protected from a Werewolf in Don't Mess With My Babies!
- A Cyborg Ape is tied on the Knitting Circle card.
- The Archmage, a Hatchling, the Zombie Lord, the Sea Dogs pirate, one of the Probe Aliens, a Gnome, and the Star-Spawn of Cthulhu are attending the Family Reunion.
In other languages[]
| Language | Name |
|---|---|
| French | Grand-Mères |
| German | Omis |
| Russian | Бабульки |
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