Axe of the Azanulbizar Question

[Morgoth]

Axe of the Azanulbizar says:

When you are attacking an enemy with an Attribute level of 7 or less, if you get a Rune of Gandalf on the Feat die using this axe, your opponent is made Weary for the remainder of the combat.

Piercing Blow says:

Characters hit by a Piercing blow must immediately make a Protection test to avoid being Wounded.

So my question is, which happens first? Is the enemy considered weary, then he makes the protection test? Or does he make the protection test and afterwards is considered weary? Sorry if this has been asked before, I couldn't find any answers searching the forum.

[Morgoth]

If it helps, here's the google definitions for two key words:

Immediately:

1. at once; instantly.
2. without any intervening time or space.

Remainder:

1. a part, number, or quantity that is left over.

[Rich H]

So my question is, which happens first? Is the enemy considered weary, then he makes the protection test? Or does he make the protection test and afterwards is considered weary? Sorry if this has been asked before, I couldn't find any answers searching the forum.

The enemy is considered Wearied as soon as the player rolls his first Gandalf rune on the Feat die when attacking and therefore before the protection test of the enemy. This is because the enemy makes his protection test after the Feat die roll and the effect associated with it - ie, the effect is resolved and applied as part of the Gandalf result, the protection test occurs in response to a piercing blow, so follows afterwards; therefore the Wearying effect of the Axe has been applied to the enemy and their protection test.

[Glorelendil]

Plus the Axe is statistically so weak as it is that it would just be mean to interpret it the other way around.

[zedturtle]

Plus the Axe is statistically so weak as it is that it would just be mean to interpret it the other way around.

Truth-burn.

[Glorelendil]

Plus the Axe is statistically so weak as it is that it would just be mean to interpret it the other way around.

Truth-burn.

"Yes! I rolled a Gandalf! That goblin is WEARY! Mwuhahahahaha...."
"Sorry, the effect occurs after the Pierce, and he failed against TN 20, so he died before becoming Weary."
"But...but..."
"And he would have died to Endurance loss, anyway."
"But...but...I spent a Reward on this thing!"

[Falenthal]

"Don´t cry! The elf spent a Virtue in Deadly Archery!" (The whole table, except one player, laughs out loud)

[Glorelendil]

...slowly the mirth died away as, one by one, each of the players gave a final, laughing gasp and slumped from their chairs, glazed eyes staring sightlessly. When only the player of the Mirkwood Elf remained, he nodded in understanding. "So that's how that virtue works..."

[Angelalex242]

Speaking of Axe of Az...

If it didn't have that attribute cap, how much better would it be? It seems to be if it worked on trolls, it'd be quite useful for them.

[Glorelendil]

Speaking of Axe of Az...

If it didn't have that attribute cap, how much better would it be? It seems to be if it worked on trolls, it'd be quite useful for them.

Yeah, it would be useful on them. I mean, not super useful, because the odds of rolling a Gandalf before their Endurance reaches zero aren't so great, but certainly more useful than it currently is.

I suspect what the designers were thinking with the attribute cap wasn't that it was too powerful against trolls, but that lucky shots against named adversaries (Nazgul, etc.) could cause problems.