RulingHall of Heroes (rules 1.5)2024-05-30

200 – The rules state that “cannot is absolute”, but how “absolute” is it really? Specifically can the…

Question

200 – The rules state that “cannot is absolute”, but how “absolute” is it really? Specifically can the “golden rule” take precedence over something that cannot be done according to the rules reference? For example. The rules reference states: “Identity cards cannot be discarded from play” but the side scheme “Mutants at the Mall” (Project Wideawake scenario) states: “Flip this card and put Jubilee into play, discarding any other version of Jubilee from play.”
This looks like a very clear golden rule scenario to me, the card text specifically mentions any other versions of “Jubilee” and that should include the identity card with that very same name. However in this situation the golden rule would need to take precedence over a rule that uses the “absolute” cannot. If I were to play this scenario with the Jubilee hero, would the existing rules prevent my identity card from being discarded, because “cannot” is absolute, or would I need to follow the golden rule and thus I would have no choice but to never defeat the “mutants at the mall” side scheme?

Answer

It’s still true that identity cards cannot be discarded; Mutants at the Mall does not create an exception to that rule. We try to design the game to have “cannot” overrule just about everything else, even The Golden Rule. The way you should resolve the second sentence of Mutants at the Mall when the Jubilee identity card is in play is to flip Mutants at the Mall, recognize that the Jubilee ally and Jubilee hero are both unique and cannot both be in play, and remove the Jubilee ally from the game (do not put her in the victory display).

— Alex