A lot of players, especially newer players, might not know the difference between “dealing damage” and “taking” damage”. In a game system that has a heavy emphasis on keywords, syntax, and nomenclature, knowing the difference is very important. In this first article in the “How That Works” series, we explain the difference between the two.
“Dealing Damage” vs “Taking Damage”
Distinguishing between these two is very important for certain cards, and the effects on their abilities. “Dealing damage” sounds like it should be synonymous with “taking damage” when it comes to abilities, but it’s not, and the reason for that is “Shields”.
You may very well “deal” a boat-load of damage to a character, but that character doesn’t necessarily “take” any damage.
When this matters:
Count Dooku (AW9)
His card text reads “Before this character is dealt 1 or more damage, you may discard a card from your hand to give him 1 shield.”
In this instance, he doesn’t have to actually take any damage for his ability to work, because it merely needs a trigger of dealing damage for it to work, and because it’s a “before” ability, it will ignore the queue and resolve it’s ability before anything else.
The other good thing to know about his ability is that you can discard a card for EACH instance that he would be dealt damage. Since each die is resolved one at a time (aside from modified dice; they are resolved together with an unmodified die) you can discard one card for EACH instance of damage. This makes Count Dooku much harder to kill.
It’s also important to note that he could still gain a shield by discarding a card when unblockable damage is dealt, but he would still take the one damage, because it’s unblockable, but hey, it’s an extra shield, AMIRITE?
Now, if we look at Backup Muscle (AW99), it doesn’t have the keyword “deals”, so it would not trigger his ability, as moving damage doesn’t deal damage. It’s important to note as well, that any card that says move damage ignores all shields. (Note: “Deal” is the key root word, and the effects include such phrasing as “is dealt”, “would be dealt”, etc.)
Hunker Down (AW164):
Hunker Down says “If attached character takes melee damage, discard this upgrade.”
In this case, the card uses the keyword “takes” rather than “is dealt”. What this means is that your opponent must remove all shields before any damage is actually taken, as shields protect you from taking damage. The other way around it is to deal unblockable melee damage, as unblockable damage ignores shields.
So as long as your opponent doesn’t penetrate your defenses (shields) with melee damage, you DO NOT have to discard this upgrade.
The Short Version
“Dealing damage” is a function of the attacker. For example, any character resolving a damage face on a die is “dealing” damage to a target, regardless of whether the target actually takes that damage.
“Taking damage” is a function of the target. For a character to “take” damage, the dealt damage must get to the character, either by bypassing shields or by removing shields via damage or other game effects and apply any remaining damage to the target. Any damage that has been completely stopped by shields has not been “taken”.
Hopefully this clarifies the difference between dealing and taking damage. Please feel free to comment below with any questions, or if you still find anything confusing.
Support The Chance Cube
Do you enjoy the content provided by The Chance Cube? Would you like to connect even further with The Chance Cube Family? Consider supporting this content by joining our Patreon. We are a team dedicated to media coverage and community building, committed to bringing you the best of this game, sharing the joy and community that comes with it. Our Patreons enjoy membership in The Chance Cube Hangout, our Facebook group for supporters of the channel, and we have additional tiers that include gifts from us to you as a thanks for the generous support. Find out more at patreon.com/thechancecube.