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[Tables]

He can return them at any time (e.g. when they're needed for infection).

[Voltgloss]

While I originally posited the idea of Galz starting to harvest Yellow, I'm not so sure about that anymore.  Because Galz's Santiago card may be put to better use making a research station in that area later in the game, instead of being kept in reserve to use as part of a cure.  And we really would benefit significantly from making the strain some color other than Black.

So I think I'd suggest Galz help out on Black this turn.  If things change such that we want to send Galz down to South America on his next turn, we can certainly do that - Algiers is only two moves away from Sao Paulo, anyway.

[Galzria]

While we do have the power to pick up burned cards, one thing that is really, really important is conserving when and where you can. There are only a certain number of each card in the deck (equal to the cities, obviously) and getting enough of them to one player can be a challenge in and of itself. If the deck is heavy Yellow at the bottom, and we've burned a few nonchalantly early on to fly/build stations, we can make it very difficult on ourselves to cure. Generally I've found that spending the cards should only be done when necessary, and not just because it could be helpful down the line.

With that in mind, I don't think that I should be looking to spend my card for a Station unless the need arises. However, I agree with the goal of not letting black be our Strain Color, so I think I should just forget about my current hand for now and focus on bringing black down.

[Tables]

It's perfectly reasonable to use a few cards to set up research stations, especially as I can pick them up relatively easily, but Galz is right, we shouldn't use cards too speculatively. In particular, Santiago is a miserable location for a research station. The only city it's closer to than Atlanta is, is Lima!

Right now, I think Galz should treat Black, as everyone seems to be in agreement over. Especially considering we've made little progress in the way of black cure, so grabbing those cubes will give us an option to make the black cure, which may or may not turn out to be useful. But there's currently 11 out of 54 cards in the deck being black, so that's decent odds he'll draw at least one Black card (I make it 39.5% of drawing at least one black, 3.6% of drawing two, assuming there were 11 cards in the first pile w/1 epidemic).

[Galzria]

Sooo...:

Shuttle Flight to Madrid.
Ferry to Algiers.
Remove One Cube To Card.
Treat a Cube.

[Voltgloss]

Rules question:  If Galz tries to cure Purple using his special ability, does he need to have three Purple cubes on his card?

[Tables]

Yes. Three Purple cubes, three cities, including one city with a purple cube on it.

[Qvist]

Galzria (Field Operative) draws Commercial Travel Ban, Jakarta.

Infector: Shanghai, Toronto



Player 1: Tables (Archivist)
Washington, Chicago

Player 2: Galzria (Field Operative) (■)
Santiago, Remote Treatment, Commercial Travel Ban, Jakarta
Remote Treatment: Remove any two cubes from the board. Play at any time during any turn before the infection phase of that turn begins.
Commercial Travel Ban: The Infection Rate becomes 1 until the start of the current player's next turn.

Player 3: Voltgloss (Epidemiologist)
Airlift, Baghdad, Atlanta
Airlift: Move a pawn (yours or another player's) to any city. You must have a player's permission to move their pawn.

Player 4: bozzball (Containment Specialist)
London, Milan

Voltgloss (Epidemiologist) is next.

[Qvist]

I'm now V/LA until tomorrow.

[theorel]

The card works in 5 steps:

1. You draw the card.

2. You Increase the infection rate.

3. You Infect a city with 3 cubes.

4. You reset the Infection Discard pile.

5. You get hit by the effect of the Strain.

You may use any abilities PRIOR to step 3. After you conclude step 2 and step 3 begins, you play to the finish.

<rules lawyer>
(am I allowed to post here?) I think this is wrong.  Matt Leacock "clarified" it, but not necessarily well enough for me to say so conclusively.

You CANNOT interrupt the infector phase.  and you CANNOT ply a special event after drawing an infection card but before placing cubes.  However, you can play a special event after drawing an epidemic and before reshuffling.

Here's a link to the relevant post from Leacock:
http://www.boardgamegeek.com/article/2485302#2485302 (see scenario 1 specifically)
here are some others interpretting it to mean you can interrupt the epidemic card:
http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/533354/is-there-a-pause-between-the-3-actions-in-epidemic

Anyways, make of it what you well </ rules lawyer>

[Galzria]

The card works in 5 steps:

1. You draw the card.

2. You Increase the infection rate.

3. You Infect a city with 3 cubes.

4. You reset the Infection Discard pile.

5. You get hit by the effect of the Strain.

You may use any abilities PRIOR to step 3. After you conclude step 2 and step 3 begins, you play to the finish.

<rules lawyer>
(am I allowed to post here?) I think this is wrong.  Matt Leacock "clarified" it, but not necessarily well enough for me to say so conclusively.

You CANNOT interrupt the infector phase.  and you CANNOT ply a special event after drawing an infection card but before placing cubes.  However, you can play a special event after drawing an epidemic and before reshuffling.

Here's a link to the relevant post from Leacock:
http://www.boardgamegeek.com/article/2485302#2485302 (see scenario 1 specifically)
here are some others interpretting it to mean you can interrupt the epidemic card:
http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/533354/is-there-a-pause-between-the-3-actions-in-epidemic

Anyways, make of it what you well </ rules lawyer>

That's exactly what I said in my post. Those are the 5 steps of an Epidemic card. You can play a special event all the way up until you begin step 3, which is the step in which you draw and add cubes to a new city. Once that step begins, you can no longer play any special event.

[Voltgloss]

I assume we'll want to save Commercial Travel Ban as long as we can, so we can use it when the infection rate is 3 or maybe even 4?

Current cube totals:

Blue:  6
Yellow:  3
Black:  8
Red:  3

I assume I should treat at least one Black cube this turn.  That way, if I draw Virulent Strain, Galz can use Remote Treatment to bring the Black total down to 5, and the only way Black would be the Virulent Strain is if we draw it from the bottom of the deck.

Question:  Should I use the Atlanta card for a charter flight to Baghdad as originally planned?  Or should I keep it in hand, with the ultimate goal of gathering Blues from Tables and bozzball and thus effecting the Blue cure?

I see a few options for me:

Option #1  (my original plan)
- Charter flight to Baghdad
- Build research station
- Drive to Karachi
- Treat a cube

Option #2  (slight variant; cube comes from Baghdad, not Karachi, but I also pick up a Blue card)
- Take a Blue card from bozzball
- Charter flight to Baghdad
- Build research station
- Treat a cube

Option #3  (treats cube from Karachi but leaves me in Baghad - maybe more efficient for next turn, with me starting in a research station?)
- Charter flight to Karachi
- Treat a cube
- Drive to Baghdad
- Build research station

Option #4  (keeps Atlanta in hand, accelerating Blue cure development, but doesn't get research station in Baghdad yet)
- Take a Blue card from bozzball
- Shuttle flight to Madrid
- Ferry to Algiers
- Treat a cube

Option #5  (fastest Blue cure development but doesn't treat a Black cube; would be relying on Airlifting bozzball if I draw Virulent Strain)
- Take two Blue cards from bozzball
- Shuttle flight to Madrid
- Take a Blue card from Tables

Thoughts, gang?

[Tables]

Option 5 isn't going to work; Epidemologist is once per turn. I think I agree with working on the blue cure, we can remote treat to prevent any outbreaks from the current 3 cube cities if an epidemic occurs, but it'd be nice to treat a few more cubes first.

...Although, I think the blue cure might be better left to me or Bozz, actually. I can grab Madrid on my turn, and also one of London or Milan if Bozz can end his turn in one of those cities (actually, that's not a great idea, unless we airlift him, which seems a little wasteful). But on the turn after, I could move to Atlanta, pick up the card and make the cure.  That's quite a time away, though, and we might find an easier way for me to make that cure, but I can easily get at least 4 blues, assuming you spend Atlanta this turn. So I think, our original plan (possibly with end in Baghdad version) might still be best.

[Voltgloss]

Thanks, Tables.  I wasn't aware my special ability was only once a turn - that definitely helps focus things.  OK, here we go, with Option #3.

1.  Use Atlanta secrets to teleport to Middle East (Charter flight to Karachi)
2.  Shoot indigenous peoples with syringe gun (Treat a cube)
3.  Flee rapidly before indigenous peoples shoot back (Drive to Baghdad)
4.  Stumble on well-stocked lab facility (Build a research station)

[Qvist]

A Virulent Strain card has come up, do you want using the Remote Treatment card or any other Event card?
(The effect of the Virulent Strain card can be ignored, see later in the update).

[Galzria]

What is the currant cube count?

[Qvist]

Black 7
Blue 6
Yellow 3
Red 3

[Galzria]

There are currently 4 blue cards in the discard, as well as 4 black. What're your thoughts gentlemen?

[Galzria]

Personally, I think the spread of the cities for blue is much, much less dangerous than our spread in black. While having the Virulent spread out might cause issues, I think it's far more dangerous to have it condensed.

Of course, we can't control the infect card that's going to come up from the button, but I can at least make it so if it's not black, then black is not the strain.

[Galzria]

Button = bottom

[Voltgloss]

Personally, I think the spread of the cities for blue is much, much less dangerous than our spread in black. While having the Virulent spread out might cause issues, I think it's far more dangerous to have it condensed.

Of course, we can't control the infect card that's going to come up from the button, but I can at least make it so if it's not black, then black is not the strain.

Agreed.  Also, a simpler point:  if you don't take some cubes from Cairo, it (Cairo) might outbreak right now.

I say you use Remote Treatment to take 2 cubes from Cairo.  I will hold onto Airlift.

[Voltgloss]

Or 1 from Cairo and 1 from Karachi, is another option.

[Galzria]

Remote Treatment:

1 cube from Karachi
1 cube from Cairo

[theorel]

The card works in 5 steps:

1. You draw the card.

2. You Increase the infection rate.

3. You Infect a city with 3 cubes.

4. You reset the Infection Discard pile.

5. You get hit by the effect of the Strain.

You may use any abilities PRIOR to step 3. After you conclude step 2 and step 3 begins, you play to the finish.

<rules lawyer>
(am I allowed to post here?) I think this is wrong.  Matt Leacock "clarified" it, but not necessarily well enough for me to say so conclusively.

You CANNOT interrupt the infector phase.  and you CANNOT ply a special event after drawing an infection card but before placing cubes.  However, you can play a special event after drawing an epidemic and before reshuffling.

Here's a link to the relevant post from Leacock:
http://www.boardgamegeek.com/article/2485302#2485302 (see scenario 1 specifically)
here are some others interpretting it to mean you can interrupt the epidemic card:
http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/533354/is-there-a-pause-between-the-3-actions-in-epidemic

Anyways, make of it what you well </ rules lawyer>

That's exactly what I said in my post. Those are the 5 steps of an Epidemic card. You can play a special event all the way up until you begin step 3, which is the step in which you draw and add cubes to a new city. Once that step begins, you can no longer play any special event.

last time I promise.  Step 2 of epidemic card, infect city with 3 cubes (your #3.)
Step 3 of epidemic card, reset infection discard (your #4).
You MAY play a special event between these two events.  (i.e. after resolving the "infect" step of epidemic before resolving "intensify").  You can't interrupt step 3 itself, but you can go between 3 and 4 or 4 and 5.  Or between drawing and resolving the epidemic and then drawing new infections for the end of the turn.  So for example, you could have waited to see what city received 3 new cubes before deciding what to remote treat.

[Qvist]

Wait. I just wanted to post an update. But theorel's last post made me think.

So for example, you could have waited to see what city received 3 new cubes before deciding what to remote treat.

You could that right, but the Virulent Strain then is already determined. Because you have to determine the Virulent Strain before the 3 new cubes are added, right?