Council of Elrond

ADÛNAPHEL UNLEASHED ‐ Short‐event
Playable on any attack against Adûnaphel the Ringwraith (as your Ringwraith) if she is the only character in her company. The number of strikes of the attack is reduced to one and the attackʹs body is modified by ‐2.
Alternatively, playable on any attack by a lone Adunaphel the Ringwraith (as your Ringwraith). You choose defending characters. Any resulting body checks for defending characters are modified by +2. Cannot be duplicated on a given attack.

The first use of this card specifies that Adunaphel must be the only character in her company. This means the card can be used if an ally is also present with Adunaphel.

The second use of the card uses the wording "by a lone" Adunaphel. Does this mean (like the first use) that an ally may be present and attacking with her? Or does it mean she must be the only attacking entity (an ally is not allowed)?

My bet: "an ally is not allowed".

The first use of Adûnaphel Unleashed requires a facing the target attack. Allies count as characters for purposes of combat.
They can tap to cancel of an attack from Slayer, so they are considered as characters in a company facing an attack.

Allies are not considered characters during combat.

They are considered characters for the purposes of combat.

Company composition requirements of Adunaphel Unleashed are not a purpose of combat; they are a purpose of whether the card is playable.

"Lone" seems to be a unique term, but in the context, it would indicate that if there are any non-Adunaphel strikes in the attack, the card may not be played.

Are allies considered as facing an attack as though they were a characters in company facing the attack?
If not, why they can cancel an attack of Slayer as though they were a characters?

Because cancelling an attack is a combat purpose. Cancellation of the attack is one of the possible ways to resolve combat (mentioned under the "Defeating An Attack" section of the Combat rules).

Bandobras Took wrote: ↑Mon Nov 26, 2018 2:57 pm Allies are not considered characters during combat.

They are considered characters for the purposes of combat.

Company composition requirements of Adunaphel Unleashed are not a purpose of combat; they are a purpose of whether the card is playable.

"Lone" seems to be a unique term, but in the context, it would indicate that if there are any non-Adunaphel strikes in the attack, the card may not be played.

Agree 100%, She can be with an Ally.

Bandobras Took wrote: ↑Mon Nov 26, 2018 7:02 pm Because cancelling an attack is a combat purpose. Cancellation of the attack is one of the possible ways to resolve combat (mentioned under the "Defeating An Attack" section of the Combat rule

CRF wrote:Annotation 15: An attack must be the first declared action in a chain of effects, i.e., a
creature card may not be played in response to another card in the same chain of
effects. Revealing an on-guard creature is an exception. In order to cancel an attack or
to directly affect an attack, the character doing so must be in the company facing the
attack. Note that the region/site type a hazard creature was keyed to can be affected
otherwise. Cards only modify attacks if they say they specifically mention attacks.

Underline mine.

Are you suggesting that at time when an attack against Adûnaphel's company resolves it is not determined which characters are in company facing the attack?

That an allies become characters (for purposes of combat) when they tap to cancel attack of Slayer, not earlier?

Konrad Klar wrote: ↑Mon Nov 26, 2018 7:16 pmAre you suggesting that at time when an attack against Adûnaphel's company resolves it is not determined which characters are in company facing the attack?

That an allies become characters (for purposes of combat) when they tap to cancel attack of Slayer, not earlier?

I have said nothing about earlier or later. If a given event is a purpose of combat, allies will be considered characters. If something is not a purpose of combat, allies will not be considered characters. It is possible for allies to be considered characters and not characters simultaneously. Black Horse is a character for the purpose of facing an attack, but is not a character for determining whether a Ringwraith is in a company with non-Ringwraith characters. Both can happen simultaneously; otherwise, it would be impossible to attack a Ringwraith with a Black Horse ally, since any attack would cause a composition violation.

Both Adûnaphel Unleashed and Pierced by Many Wounds may be played at the same time and both require almost the same information to determine whether they may be played: how many characters (able to face a strike, for PbMW) is in defending company.

Is the number different depending on who asks?

Playable on an attack with more strikes than defending characters before strikes are assigned

The phrase "defending characters" has no meaning outside of combat. Pierced By Many Wounds makes direct reference to characters in combat. If Adunaphel Unleashed looked for defending characters, allies would invalidate it, but Adunaphel Unleashed only looks for characters.

Bandobras Took wrote: ↑Tue Nov 27, 2018 2:36 pm The phrase "defending characters" has no meaning outside of combat.

Right.
At point in which Pierced by Many Wounds may be played it is only known which characters at the point will not defend (these under effect like More Sense than You, or that may not be attacked due to their texts, like e.g. Blackbole, Goldberry*).
The number of such characters may increase (More Sense than You may be played after Pierced by Many Wounds), number of strikes may change too.
All other allies and characters are potentially a defending characters.

Defending characters is (I think that obviously) a subset of characters.

Can Adûnaphel Unleashed be played outside of combat, or at different point than Pierced by Many Wounds may be played?
If check made by Pierced by Many Wounds matches some allies as a defending characters, why the check for superset of a defending characters (i.e. for characters) made by Adûnaphel Unleashed does not match the same allies as a characters?


*) or hypothetical hybrid of them: Blackberry

Because allies are not characters for all purposes. If the purpose in question is a combat purpose, then the ally will count as a character. If not, then it won't. Figuring out if there are characters in a company isn't a combat purpose even if it takes place during combat. Figuring out the number of defending characters in a company is a combat purpose.

The fact that something takes place during combat is not enough to make it a combat purpose. It must have to do with Combat as detailed in the Combat section of the rulebook.

For comparison: if an action requires a sage skill it must be known prior declaring the action whether the entity (character/ally) enacting the action is a sage or not. Not at moment of declaring the action.
If an ally does not count as a character for purposes of taking a some activity, the ally does not become counting as a character at moment of taking the activity.

Pierced by Many Wounds enumerates a defending characters potentially* before any of characters will take an action "for purposes a combat".
Adûnaphel Unleashed enumerates a characters at the same moment.

*) After is possible too. Pierced by Many Wounds may be declared in response to tapping an character, that taps to cancel Assassin's attack, for example.

Combat purposes are more than just actions. If you need to count defending characters, potential or otherwise, in a company, than allies will count, because defending against an attack is a purpose of combat.