When you use the book of skulls I thought that when you are 5 squares away from a starting area you could use a power action to pick up a hammer with a character. Another character could use a power action to throw a hammer in a friendly characters square 5 away from any starting area, and then they have to roll to see if they get to pick up the hammer and they get to use quake as a free action. Am I mistaken. I've seen a match online where they were just picking up hammers without having to roll for that second hammer.

Was "Splitlip the idiotic cheese-dwarf" around? He removes any limitation to the Book of Skulls.

At the start of your turn you may drop a hammer without using an action. You get to Quake as a free action and then use a Power Action to "pick up" the hammer.

After that, you must give a power action to call another hammer down into another friendly character's square. They still have to use a Power Action (unless Splitlip is dancing around) to be assigned the hammer, though.

I hope that helps.

Yeah splitlip was used. So if hes on the board you dont have to roll for that second hammer.

you still roll, but it is no longer a power action to do so. it is now a free action

And because of The wording the Rollins an auto success if you brought the hammer out that turn. Isn't that nice?? (I may have used this on a four person Stark Industries team lately to get all 8 hammers out ASAP....

Splitlip lets you roll as a free action and you get a +1 to your roll right. I thought you still had to roll for it, but that werent in the match I watched online.

Roll? Roll for what?

what do you mean. if splitlip is on your team you dont have to roll for the hammer.

Here is a brief breakdown of how the book works throughout the turn:

During the beginning of your turn you may remove one of the hammers and place it in the square of a friendly character that is at least 5 squares away from a starting zone. If you do that character preforms a quake as a free action after placing the hammer. Then at any point during the following turn you may give the character you placed the hammer in the square of a power action. If you do that character automatically succeeds on its relic roll and places the hammer on their character card, and is considered 'equipped' for the purposes of the book.

Additionally during your turn you may, once, give any character a power action to place a hammer following the same restrictions and benefits as the hammer placed during the beginning of the turn. If the character you placed the hammer in the square of wishes to equip up the hammer they may automatically succeed in their relic roll again.

If Splitlip is on the force he changes the action to equip up the hammer from a power action to a free action. In addition he gives +1 to relic rolls. This comes into play in the event the character you placed the hammer in does not pick up the hammer during the turn you dropped it or if you wish to pick up the relic with a character other than the character you placed it on. Then you must make the relic roll for the hammer. If you pick up the relic in this manner it is not considered to be 'equipped'

doesnt the character have to roll to pick up the hammer which is a free action to do if splitlip is on your force. otherwise dont you have to use a power action to pick up the hammer.

so basically play splitlip with the book of skulls in constructed

Yes, Split Lip is an amazing 20 points. There was an issue the other week at my venue about this, BUT we cleared it up, and NOW everyone has and uses a Splitlip.

You roll no matter who is around. If no Splitlip is on the team than you succeed automatically but it is a power action that gives you a token. If you are playing Splitlip than it is a power action as a free action.

When a character uses a power action to drop a hammer it doesn't change anything from how the free drop works so follow as I posted above.

The free Quake comes before the picking up of hammers (free pickup or not).

This is where you're mistaken. If it's on the same turn, you don't have to roll for the hammer. You only have to roll if it's still there on subsequent turns.

As I stated above you roll dice regardless. Yes simpkins does seem to misunderstand the idea of possibly failing to pick up the second hammer but there is still a roll.

..the roll automatically succeeds...

A roll cannot automatically succeed if there is no roll.

It's almost kind of like psy blast shooting imperv. Imperv still rolls a d6 but the results don't matter, unless you're the new Darkseid;

LORD OF APOKOLIPS: When Darkseid is dealt penetrating damage, it can be reduced. If Darkseid didn't use Outwit during your last turn, his powers can't be countered.

but either way the rolls are supposed to occur.