Hi folks,
I had an army commander die. He had a juicy artifact that I’d like to get back. There was another character in his army that did not get the artifacts. I assume they are ‘on the ground’? The new commander is a pure commander. Is there any order he can issue that will allow him to recover the artifact? What factors would success depend on?
Thanks in advance for any assistance!
John
Any character can issue a 900 order. A non-mage has a rather low chance of success, but using the artifact number increases it greatly, especially if it’s just lying in a ditch someplace instead of hidden behind an encounter.
Be aware, though, that if the commander was killed by a challenge, there is a chance that the character that killed him got the artifact. If you think that might be the case, have your team scrounge up a Locate Artifact casting to make sure, as that will tell you if it is owned by anyone.
Ok. Thanks!
What about order 796 (pick up artifact)? Is that of any use to recover an artifact dropped on the ground due to character death? (assuming no one else already has it)?
Thanks,
John
796 only works for an artifact on your pdf that is listed at a location and not with a person. Check the 1650 Noldo startup… Otherwise, it’s 900 time and you should look for a mage within range.
Yeah it’s confusing. Lots of people have wondered the same thing.
What happens to held artifacts when a character dies depends on what caused his death:
[ul]
[li]If he died from Personal Challenge, as Brad says, the artifacts usually end up with the victor. If the victor fills up on his max of 6 artifacts, any additional will drop on the ground.
[/li][li]If he was Cursed to death, artifacts just drop on the ground in the hex.
[/li][li]If he died of wounds sustained from army combat, same thing.
[/li][li]If he was assassinated, artifacts are usually recovered by the assassin, though same rules apply for maximum held.
[/li][li]If died while performing a guard duty, I’m not sure. I think the assassin may recover them.
[/li][li]If he dies while performing an assassination or kidnap, his artifacts can end up with the target or the guard.
[/li][/ul]
Once artifacts drop in the hex from one of the above reasons, you’ll need a Mage to have the best chance of success picking them back up. Terrain and the power of the artifact influence the outcome as well. I’ve definitely failed with 50+ Mages picking up mid-level dropped artifacts in Mountains before. I’ve never seen a guess on this algorithm to predict success odds.
Also, sometimes you’re absolutely convinced the artifact is in the dirt, but w/o Locate Artifact True, you can be mistaken. I’ve certainly had the rug pulled out from under me on this by crafty enemies.
Hope that helps!
Thanks very much Brad and trozdo!
Nice Post Trodzo. I had Bilbo assasinate Beorn in a BOFA game once and he got tooled up with all of the aritfacts people had given Beorn.
Luckily there were targets in that hex for the rest of the game. Bilbo never moved his orders were always Challenge target 1, assassinate target 2.
Dean 
Who knew Bilbo was so tough? Did you put him on the juice? 
He got tough real fast!
Dean