- Automatic Success/Failure & Automatic Evasion: Some card effects make an investigator automatically succeed or automatically fail a skill test. If this occurs, depending on the timing of such an effect, certain steps of the skill test may be skipped in their entirety.
- If it is known that an investigator automatically succeeds or fails at a skill test before Step 3 (“Reveal Chaos Token”) occurs, that step is skipped, along with Step 4. No chaos token(s) are revealed from the chaos bag, and the investigator immediately moves to Step 5. All other steps of the skill test resolve as normal.
- If a chaos token effect causes an investigator to automatically succeed or fail at a skill test, continue with Steps 3 and 4, as normal.
- If an ability “automatically evades” 1 or more enemies, this is not the same as automatically succeeding at an evasion attempt. As per the entry on “Evade” in the Rules Reference, if an ability automatically evades 1 or more enemies, no skill test is made for the evasion attempt whatsoever. Consequentially, because no skill test is made, it is not considered a “successful” evasion. The investigator simply follows the steps for evading an enemy (exhausting it and breaking its engagement).
- For example: Patrice uses the ability on Hope, which reads: “ If Hope is ready, exhaust or discard him: Evade. Attempt to evade with a base value of 5. (If you discarded Hope, this test is automatically successful.)” If Patrice chooses to discard Hope, the skill test automatically succeeds before chaos tokens are revealed; therefore Steps 3 and 4 of the skill test are skipped. However, the skill test still takes place. Cards may still be committed to the test, and the investigator’s total modified skill value is still determined, as it may have some bearing on other card abilities. However, if Patrice instead uses the ability on Stray Cat, which reads: “ Discard Stray Cat: Automatically evade a non-Elite enemy at your location,” no skill test is made whatsoever. - FAQ, v.1.7, March 2020
Umiejętność
Nabyta.
Jeśli ten test umiejętności zakończy się sukcesem podczas ataku, automatycznie wymykasz się atakowanemu wrogowi.
FAQs
(from the official FAQ or responses to the official rules question form)- Automatic Success/Failure & Automatic Evasion: Some card effects make an investigator automatically succeed or automatically fail a skill test. If this occurs, depending on the timing of such an effect, certain steps of the skill test may be skipped in their entirety.
- If it is known that an investigator automatically succeeds or fails at a skill test before Step 3 (“Reveal Chaos Token”) occurs, that step is skipped, along with Step 4. No chaos token(s) are revealed from the chaos bag, and the investigator immediately moves to Step 5. All other steps of the skill test resolve as normal.
- If a chaos token effect causes an investigator to automatically succeed or fail at a skill test, continue with Steps 3 and 4, as normal.
- If an ability “automatically evades” 1 or more enemies, this is not the same as automatically succeeding at an evasion attempt. As per the entry on “Evade” in the Rules Reference, if an ability automatically evades 1 or more enemies, no skill test is made for the evasion attempt whatsoever. Consequentially, because no skill test is made, it is not considered a “successful” evasion. The investigator simply follows the steps for evading an enemy (exhausting it and breaking its engagement).
- For example: Patrice uses the ability on Hope, which reads: “ If Hope is ready, exhaust or discard him: Evade. Attempt to evade with a base value of 5. (If you discarded Hope, this test is automatically successful.)” If Patrice chooses to discard Hope, the skill test automatically succeeds before chaos tokens are revealed; therefore Steps 3 and 4 of the skill test are skipped. However, the skill test still takes place. Cards may still be committed to the test, and the investigator’s total modified skill value is still determined, as it may have some bearing on other card abilities. However, if Patrice instead uses the ability on Stray Cat, which reads: “ Discard Stray Cat: Automatically evade a non-Elite enemy at your location,” no skill test is made whatsoever. - FAQ, v.1.7, March 2020
Reviews
This is a FANTASTIC multiplayer card. An incredibly powerful tool that gives you an exclusive type of action compression useful mostly in a very particular circumstance.
The scene that I am referring to is the big moment where you engage the big-boss. The fat big bad with a health pool dependent on player count, a guy too large for a single investigator to take on unaided or just some moderately large monster that you happen to run into.
Let me explain: Often in multiplayer you will find yourself up against some threat that your limited number of actions will prevent from killing in one round, either the foe is standing a couple locations away, engaged with somebody else, or just outright too healthy to die in a single round. This card lets you:
- A, do what you want to be doing (killing this enemy).
- B, save the evade action to ensure that this boss doesn't just kill you.
All of this is compressed, in a single action, that is probably easy for you to strength buff and max out since you're the designated boss-killer. Oh and you get a +1 on the attack attempt too.
I think I've now mentioned all that this card has to offer, compress an evade action into your attack action to lay down the hurt on a major scenario threat. It's better in multiplayer than single-player due to the significantly increased health pools, this card effectively buy's you the breathing room you need to, without pause, work on that massive health pool.
Edit: In multiplayer you can also use Stunning Blow to dislodge a friend in trouble, a friendly William Yorick or "Ashcan" Pete running up and knocking out the thing holding up the clue dude can really grease things along.
I wanted clarification on the rules regarding the elusive keyword and effects that would cause an enemy to become exhausted as part of an attack (i.e with Stunning Blow). FFG kindly got back to me to clarify:
Q: How does elusive work if an investigator attack would cause the enemy to become exhausted? For example, if an investigator commits Stunning Blow to their attack. Does the elusive keyword trigger before the automatic evade occurs? Thanks!
A: Yes; an elusive enemy that was ready before attacking will still move after attacking, and it does not exhaust until after it moves. If an effect causes it to exhaust in the middle of an attack triggered by elusive, the enemy still moves, and remains exhausted at the new location.
For instance, if an investigator commits Stunning Blow while attacking an elusive enemy, they’d resolve the attack & effects as normal (including exhausting and disengaging from the enemy), then that enemy would still move to a connecting location and remain exhausted.
Sincerely, Alex Werner, FFG Game Rules Specialist
I know this is more of a question about the elusive keyword than Stunning Blow, but there isn't currently a way to write posts about keywords specifically. Hope this helps anyone else wondering this.
Can I review the card's illustration and flavour text only? It might be my favourite in the game; where else does one see a monster looking so foolish?
Hey, why don't we have a pipe or a pipe wrench as a weapon?
It MIGHT be worth taking this in Yorrick. Throwing a punch to dodge a boss for a round and finish them off later can be really good.
It also lets you fight an enemy engaged with an ally so that they can be evaded.
But lets be realistic, it isn't really doing a ton for you right this second.
Some people bring up the Waylay combo, but I don't see it right now. If you are waylaying them after you need high evade as well as high fight.
Not hot on this one right now due to its really narrow application as a way to tie up a boss or threat for a round. Hopefully it plays well with the inevitable pipe or pipe wrench weapon for theme.
For solo Rita Young this is almost an auto-include. Keeping a hand free for a simple Flashlight or Old Keyring means that taking an Ornate Bow or my fave the Old Hunting Rifle is less practical. Better to one-hand a Meat Cleaver or Fire Extinguisher and run a clue helper in the other hand. So Stunning Blow becomes a super-useful tool to add damage and evade, then recur with Resourceful.
Im very surprised how good this card is. Yorrick and Ashcan Pete should always have it in their deck, especially in multiplayer. It really helps with tricky situations like moving on your second move to a location with an enemy you cant kill with one attack. It also helps avoiding accidental hits.