Elestrals

Hello Casters,

Introducing the Elestrals Judge Program!

A Judge is an official referee for the Elestrals Play Network. Judges have an advanced knowledge of the game rules and a robust understanding of tournament policy and how to apply it. They are mediators who can de-escalate delicate situations to put everyone at ease, an investigator who’s able to discover the truth in cases where something afoul is at play, and most importantly someone the players can put their trust in and know they can rely on to have their back.

Being a Judge does not mean just being very good with rulings, it’s the complete package. If you are simply interested in expanding your knowledge of the game rules then you should become a Rules Helper, the intermediate step between a full-blown Judge and a regular player!

All you need to do to become a Rules Helper is take and score 80% or higher on the [Rules Helper Exam](https://elestra.ls/rules-helper-exam), a multiple-choice questionnaire covering various aspects of the game over 20 questions. Please be advised, if you fail the Rules Helper Exam you cannot take the quiz again for two weeks, so you’d better get studying.

Being a Rules Helper signifies enough proficiency with the rules of the game to answer most questions that might come up at a local tournament. It also grants you access to the Elestrals Judges Discord, the main hub for discussion and debate regarding all topics connected to Judging. Most importantly, you get a snazzy role in the Official Elestrals Discord.

The documents that a Rules Helper needs to master are the [How to Play Guide](https://elestra.ls/h2p) and the [Judge Training Modules](https://elestra.ls/judge).

Becoming a Judge is a harder journey. After becoming a Rules Helper you can become a certified Judge by:

* Completing the Advanced Judge Test, which is made up of 12 open questions to be completed in 90 minutes;
* Judging a small number of events (Either online under the supervision of other Judges or in person by providing complementary player and/or Tournament Organizer feedback that you did a good job). Having been a Judge for a different TCG can also satisfy this requirement;
* Completing a brief interview with the Rules Managers in which we’ll look at your general aptitudes and philosophy, as well as putting to the test some skills that are harder to demonstrate in a written exam.

Once you do all of the above, then congratulations! You have just become a certified Elestrals Judge. To be a Judge is to be someone well-versed in even the more technically precise aspects of the rules, who can be trusted to arbitrate tournaments fairly and consistently, and who can be a solid pillar on which everyone in their community can rely. In a sense, you’ll be a steward of the game, so raise that torch high! We don’t expect you to become an overnight expert, but it’s the first step in a long and rewarding journey.

As Judges, you’ll receive some exclusive Judge Rewards, which will be announced at a future date. And of course, an even snazzier role in the Official Elestrals Discord.

The documents that a Judge needs to master are the [Comprehensive Rules](https://drive.google.com/file/d/14utOJ7LOz0BhGtE-wB3dmjwdBdDqJzQb/view?usp=sharing), the [Tournament Rules](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1plH0nSbv9DtFDJ5ZEOwQuPyHE0a6H4jI/view?usp=sharinghttps://drive.google.com/file/d/1plH0nSbv9DtFDJ5ZEOwQuPyHE0a6H4jI/view?usp=sharing), and the [Errors, Penalties, and Remedies](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1j2EgU1NpZbe6fbCB-Wg6LdRU4H6GLPng/view?usp=sharing).

Elestrals Judge Program

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## Two-part effects that activate “When you do” an instruction are separated

Certain cards (like Equilynx, Kindleo, and Sparkitt) have two-part effects that give an instruction first, then have a condition “when you do” that instruction. Previously these were known as “compound” effects - the second effect was bundled into the first one, meaning the “when you do” portion could be activated even if that Elestral wasn’t Enchanted anymore.

Now these are known as “linked” effects - the “when you do” condition can only be met by the first effect, but otherwise, the two effects activate and resolve separately. This means that like other conditional effects, your Elestral must be Enchanted and cannot be Suppressed for you to activate it. For example, if you activate part one of your Kindleo’s effect and Nexus its only Spirit away to another card, you won’t get to target and destroy an Elestral because that Kindleo no longer has the Spirit it needs.

## Removing the “pending effects” exception to field checks

“Field checks” were introduced during the “Set 1 Rules Update” to organize how illegal game states are handled. After each chain resolves, field checks are performed; any Elestral or Rune that has too few Spirits to meet its Enchantment Cost is sent to its owner’s Underworld. The same happens to any Artifact Runes no longer Empowering an Elestral.

Introducing field checks changed how a few cards worked in some cases. In particular, Gorgon’s Gaze can Negate an Elestral’s effect on the chain, but only if it can still target that Elestral on the field. “Compound” effects like Kindleo’s or Sparkitt’s sometimes allowed that Elestral to chain an effect even if the Elestral was leaving the field during field checks. To make sure Gorgon’s Gaze could still interact with those effects the way it was meant to, an exception was added: “Elestrals or Runes with a conditional effect waiting to be chained are ignored by field checks.”

Now that compound effects are being deprecated (above), this interaction with Gorgon’s Gaze no longer exists. To simplify field checks, this exception is now removed.

## Unusual cases with conditional effects and field checks

Although “when you do” linked effects no longer work this way, there are some rare cases where a Rune or Elestral sent to the Underworld by a field check can still have a conditional effect waiting to be chained. When this happens, that card is sent to the Underworld as usual, then its waiting effect can be activated as the next chain opens.

For example: say you have a Hummbust on your field and you Cast Altar of the Stars. A card is considered “successfully Cast” as soon as it starts to resolve, so before we follow any of Altar’s instructions, Hummbust’s effect has already met its condition of “when a player Casts a Rune”. That effect is added to Limbo and waits to join the next open chain. Now if you Nexus your Hummbust’s last Spirit away from it with that Altar of the Stars, it will be sent to your Underworld during the next set of field checks. But because Hummbust’s effect is already waiting in Limbo it can still be activated when the next chain begins.

The key difference in this example versus linked effects is the timing when a condition is checked. Cards like Kindleo or Sparkitt tell you to Nexus Spirits first, and then check “when you do” to try to activate their second effect. Since this check happens after the Nexus, it won’t work if the Elestral is Misenchanted at this point. But Hummbust’s effect checks as soon as a Rune starts to resolve, before any of its instructions are followed. As long as Hummbust is Enchanted at that point then its effect will be added to Limbo, waiting for the next chain, and any instructions that cause it to be Misenchanted or leave the field are too late to stop the effect at this point.

Linked Effects Rules Update

Set 1 Rules Update Bulletin

Month 1 of Shattered Stars packs are expected to be shipped by January 31, 2024. Month 2 will not be charged until AFTER Month 1 has been shipped.

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