Ye Olde Inn

Edited by HispaZargon: thread title changed for better tracking. Original title was "Spell Ring Artifact question". Aditionally, due to similarity with the discussed topic, the first seven posts have been moved to this thread from the Ye Olde Inn's room Game Systems old thread titled "Spell Ring and Expansion spells".

I'm aware of what the artifact card says:
"This ring enables the Wizard or Elf to cast one spell two times (not simultaneously). At the beginning of a quest, the wearer of this ring must declare which of his spells he is storing in this ring."

The same spell can be cast twice during a quest, but the artifact card was made when only 4 spell sets were available. Suppose the Elf has the Spell Ring at the start of Mage of the Mirror, where he has extra spells.
Would anyone else allow the Elf to add an unused spell into the ring?
I understand the artifact card says the same spell twice. But this was before any expansion spells were added to the Elf's or Wizard's use.

Also, even though the card says it can't be used simultaneously, the Wand of Magic probably bypasses this.

My interpretation is that the ring wearer should chose 1 spell from the range of spells he has already chosen.
So if he chosed Elf Spells (maximum of 3) he can store into the ring only one of the 3 chosen spells and not one from another set.

I guess... if you use the Wand of Magic you can cast 2 spells. One of these is the one you have stored inside the ring. But the ring will not allow to use the same spell you have already used in the same turn (not simultaneously it says)

I would rule that it has to be one of the spells he has prepared before the quest. Otherwise, you open an ugly pit of snakes: if the Wizard and Elf both choose spells, would the Wizard then be able to copy one of the Elf's spells into the Ring, or vice versa, if the Elf has the Ring?

Elf or Wizard doesn't matter, I will manage the situation like this:
1) the hero choses his favourite set of spells (9 for the wizards from any available set you own or 3 for the Elf, from any available set);
2) from the selected spells you can pick one to store into the ring;
3) when you have to use your action you can use the Wand Of Magic (allow 2 spells) OR use the Ring (1 spell).

The Wand of Magic allows the Hero to cast two spells instead of one but it counts as "1 action". You can not use half of your action (casting just one spell instead of two) and then perform another full action by using the Ring (or any other item).
If my hero own both Orc's Bane and Spirit Blade: I can attack the Orc twice by using the Orc's Bane, but I can not attack it once with the Orc's Bane and the second time using the Spirit Blade in the same turn, right?
It is the same with the Wand and the Ring. Two different artifacts, two different and separated actions.

I have a doubt about the Spell Ring.
It says you can use a spell TWO times.
Do you think it means that you can use the spell into the ring TWICE (and a third time is by using the standard spell card) or does it mean you can use that spell A SECOND TIME after you used the standard spell card?
Example: I associate GENIE to the Spell Ring. I use the Genie spell once with the card (AIR Spell). Now I have the Spell Ring, it allows me to use Genie TWO TIMES. So can I cast it a total of 3 times or only 2?

lestodante wrote:I have a doubt about the Spell Ring.
It says you can use a spell TWO times.
Do you think it means that you can use the spell into the ring TWICE (and a third time is by using the standard spell card) or does it mean you can use that spell A SECOND TIME after you used the standard spell card?
Example: I associate GENIE to the Spell Ring. I use the Genie spell once with the card (AIR Spell). Now I have the Spell Ring, it allows me to use Genie TWO TIMES. So can I cast it a total of 3 times or only 2?

That's an interesting interpretation of the card, but I don't think that's the intended way to read it. If I wanted to write a card that worked the way you describe (i.e. +2 spells for a total of 3), I would probably use the phrasing "two ADDITIONAL times". Since they didn't write Spell Ring's effect with the word "additional", I suspect they wanted it to mean "use a total of two times [instead of the 1 time you normally get]".

I've always thinked it is so (just 1 additional time) but recently I was translating the US cards in Italian and noticed that TWICE, so my doubts started.

Edited by HispaZargon: thread title changed for better tracking. Original title was "Spell Ring Artifact question". Previous old posts have been moved to this thread due to similarity with the discussed topic.

Well, after so many years, I have a serious doubt about Spell Ring... I've always played the ring can cast one of the player's spell for a second time (one additional cast per quest).
Reading with more attention the card, it says, "to cast one spell two times".
Does "two times" mean the spell can be cast (per quest) a total of two times, once with the Ring and once with the spell card OR three times, of which twice are by using the ring and once using the spell card?

Here we have the original classic card:


Well, I have always played with the Spell Ring exactly as you play (the ring allows its user to cast a second time one of his spells that has been already cast during the running quest and in a different turn than current one).

Nevertheless, your doubt is logical due to the looking vagueness of the text written in the card. However, if we attend to the usual wording used by MB in other North American HeroQuest cards, if the Spell Ring could allow up to 3 total uses of a spell instead of 2, I would bet the wording should have been something like the following: "... to cast one spell two extra times ..." or "... to cast one spell two more times ...", and it is not.

Additionally, the last sentence in the card also suggests me that using the ring eliminates the posibility of casting, in the usual way, the spell you have selected because 'you have taken one of your spells to store it inside the ring', so now you can only cast it by using the Spell Ring since it is the only place where the spell can stay. That's how I think they wanted to interpretate it, it is not the unique place where the spells are officially treated as 'objects' from rules point of view... so I guess the easier interpretation is probably the correct one.

Then, in my humble opinion I think we are playing it correctly.

The ring is supposed to give you an extra casting of one spell. As Hispazargon mentioned if the intent was to cast a spell three times the wording would have been: cast one spell three times, or cast one spell two extra times.

In the quest you get the ring, its mentioned the Witch Lord can cast Fear twice. I always assumed this was because he was wearing the Spell Ring the first time you fight him. I see this as further support for the ring giving the wearer a total of two casts of one spell.