If my only unit on Battlefield A is charmed to Battlefield B during my opponent's turn, and I use Ride the Wind to move it back to the now-empty Battlefield A, do I score a conquer point from Battlefield A?

Question

Accepted Answer

If Battlefield A became uncontrolled (you lost Control) before you try to move your unit back, then using Ride The Wind to move your unit there will establish Control and cause a Conquer — you will score that Battlefield, provided you have not already scored that Battlefield this turn. If Battlefield A never lost Control (control was still yours because cleanup hadn’t processed the loss) or you already scored that Battlefield this turn, moving the unit back does not give you another Conquer point.

Yes — provided Battlefield A was not Controlled by you at the moment you move the unit back (i.e., you had lost Control earlier and the battlefield is eligible to be Scored) and you have not already Scored that Battlefield this turn, moving your unit back to A with Ride The Wind will cause you to gain Control and thus Conquer that Battlefield, awarding the Conquer point. If you still controlled A (control never left you because the loss hadn’t been processed) or you already Scored A this turn, you will not score a Conquer point.

Determine whether you still Controlled Battlefield A after the charm moved your unit away — Control losses are resolved in the cleanup if the battlefield is empty and there is no combat/showdown there [187]. If you had lost Control of A (so A was available to be Conquered), moving a friendly unit to A establishes Control (Contested is applied first as part of establishing Control) and that Control results in a Conquer if you have not yet Scored that Battlefield this turn [464.1] [464.1.b] [461]. Play Ride The Wind to move the unit back to A. If that move causes you to gain Control under the above conditions, you Conquer and thus score the Conquer point; if it does not change Control (you already controlled A), you do not score.

If the charm occurred on the opponent’s turn but the game had not yet processed the cleanup that removes your Control from A, Control may still belong to you and moving the unit back won’t re-Conquer A. If you (or your team, in partnered modes) already Scored Battlefield A earlier this same turn, regaining Control will not Conquer/score it again [461]. If some other card or effect granted Control of A to another player or prevented Control changes, that effect’s timing and text would alter the outcome (not covered by the provided rules). In Modes with teammates, battlefield-control/disqualification rules (e.g., beginning-phase occupancy) can change whether a Conquer is possible [484.8.b].

Conquering is defined as gaining Control of a Battlefield you have not yet Scored this turn [464.1]. The rules tell us that a player gains Control after establishing Control by applying Contested first [464.1.b], and that when Control results it is treated as a Conquer if that player has not yet scored that Battlefield this turn [461]. Whether you can Conquer when you move your unit back therefore hinges on whether you were considered to have lost Control of Battlefield A after your unit was charmed away. The Core Rules state that if a Battlefield is empty and the turn is in an Open state, the previous Controller loses Control of that Battlefield in the following cleanup unless a combat or showdown is ongoing there [187]. If the charm removed your only unit during your opponent’s turn and the game processed the cleanup that removed your Control, then Battlefield A was available to be Conquered. Moving your unit back to A with Ride The Wind will establish Control (via Contested) and that Control will Conquer the battlefield and award the point, provided you have not already Scored A this turn [464.1] [464.1.b] [461]. If instead Control never left you because cleanup hadn’t yet processed (so you still Controlled A), moving the unit back does not constitute gaining Control and thus does not Conquer. Also, if you already Scored A earlier this turn, regaining Control does not score again [461]. The ruling above assumes standard timing for cleanup and no other overriding effects; if additional timing or effects are relevant, those specifics could change the outcome.