Quote:
Originally Posted by Hobbs5212
Also that would mean that the item always has his protection whether it's in play in your hand or in any other situation. If it's the only card on the board and you have to sacrifice 500 coins you can just say I don't have $5 coins you can lie and there could be easily 500 coins in your hand. If you received bad stuff that forced you to swap hands with another player based on the moderators response the card itself is protected not you so it can't be lost
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I didn't see this post before my previous response, so let me respond to it now.
As a general rule, cards in your hand are ONLY cards and don't have any effects or abilities until played. We have consistently ruled that cards in your hand are not targetable by Curses or Bad Stuff unless the specific effect mentions your hand.
For instance, if a Curse tells you to lose all your Armor, you don't have to discard Armor cards in your hand. This is also explained in the
Munchkin FAQ.
Cards that are in play but not equipped usually don't have any of their abilities, either, but are vulnerable to effects that target them (for instance, if you're told to lose a small Item, an unequipped Item on the table is a valid target). There are some cards that say they have their effects even when only carried, not equipped, such as
Rat on a Stick -- the implication is that other cards do NOT have their effects when not equipped.
So for your card that is protected from loss to Curse or Bad Stuff, that effect is only in play when the Item is equipped. If you're merely carrying it (in play but not active), the card is vulnerable. And if it's in your hand, it probably can't be targeted in the first place, unless the effect says that it includes cards in your hand.
Thread is reopened for further discussion, bearing in mind that we have been very consistent in these rulings over the years and I don't see us changing them now.