Edge case with movement during encounter

[elcoderdude]

Lini playing Story mode solo, scenario 5-A Trouble in Sandpoint.

Encounters the villain Scribbler at Thassalonian Dungeon.

Before-you-act power summons a random monster: Spectre.

Spectre has a power that if your check does not have Magic it is undefeated, and also has a power that if undefeated you are moved to a random location.

Lini defeats the Spectre without magic.

Lini is moved to another location.

The encounter with the Scribbler ends and he escapes.

 

I'm not sure if this edge case was missed, or (what seems likely) it was deemed impractical in the digital game, but in the rules for the card game, the encounter with the Scribbler should have continued with Lini at the new location and the Scribbler at the old one. If Lini defeated the Scribbler, and it was the second time in the scenario he was defeated (due to his power), the Scribbler's location should have closed.

 

I thought there was a FAQ on exactly this question, but I don't see it. The closest I find is: FAQ question. This clearly indicates a villain encounter continues when a character is moved during it.

 

It's also possible the Scribbler is being treated as if failing to defeat the summoned monster causes you to lose the encounter with the Scribbler (but I doubt that). Note his card does not indicate that should be the case.

Edited November 14, 2016 by elcoderdude

[Ethics Gradient]

This may take some serious rules-lawyering, but I'm not entirely convinced it is a bug.  Feels more like terrible luck, and the app doing it's best to find a way to resolve it.
 
According to the FAQ you posted, a villain encounter may continue if the initial character who did the explore gets moved after the first check.  However, you never actually attempted the villain's check.  You were still in the before-you-act phase of things when you got kicked out of the villain's location.  Since you were unable to succeed at the checks, it proceeded as if the villain were undefeated.

 

Edit: Looks like my interpretation is wrong.  Anyone else amused by the fact that Pathfinder ACG has rules discussions that are about as lively as religious scholars debating the meaning of some text?

Edited November 14, 2016 by Ethics Gradient

[elcoderdude]

Yep, I saw that FAQ. 

 

It's true that being moved after taking a check to defeat and being moved during the before-you-act step are different things. But I don't think the difference is material here.

 

The encounter with the Spectre is a nested encounter.  The encounter with the Scribbler was never something happening after the encounter with the Spectre. The only reason Lini is encountering the Spectre is because she is in the before-you-act step of the Scribbler encounter. 

 

Note Lini was not moved in the middle of the Spectre encounter.  She was moved by the resolution of the Spectre encounter -- in the middle of the Scribbler encounter.

 

When the Scribbler question first came up, the technical director indicated he was at least leaning in the direction of just continuing the encounter at the new location (thread). The understood position on the paizo board is that this is the case (here and here).

 

I found this. The technical director, Vic Wertz, indicates the encounter continues. [Edited after EG made me realize I didn't read my own example closely enough.]

Edited November 15, 2016 by elcoderdude

[Ethics Gradient]

I found this. The technical director, Vic Wertz, appears to be agreeing that the encounter continues, although I agree his post is not clear on that point.

Well, in aggregate, that last post does seem to settle it.  Either the villain encounter continues, or it doesn't, and Vic leans heavily towards the encounter following the character, even if they get booted from the original location.

 

I'm sure that will be a fun one to code.  Until then, at least the encounter fails gracefully.  It would stink if this was another game-breaker.