The Book of the Skull is just writing out the method by which you normally pick up a relic. If the rules for a relic were that you dealt your figure 1 unavoidable damage and rolled anything but a 1 you would get a relic, the Book of the Skull would say if this character is dealt 1 unavoidable damage to equip this hammer their roll automatically succeeds.

The Book of the Skull drops the hammer. That hammer is a relic. If the character wants to attempt to pick it up per the relic rules, if its on the same turn it dropped the Book says it succeeds automatically. Splitlip just changes that attempt from a power action to a free action. It works with the Book of the Skull just fine.

In other words, the Book of the Skull is not referencing some unique power action used to equip the dropped hammer. It is referencing the relic roll used to pick that hammer up.

Subscribing for an Orange answer.

Curious

Now would this idea work if you added the relic roll and actually rolling the die instead of automatically? And if it fails as a normal roll, pick it up with a power action as the book states?

One other rule to look at is what it says for Relics in the rule book

So, looking at this, and then looking at the way the BOS is worded, did they intend to word it the way they did so it doesn't align with the way the relic rules are worded?

Normally the character isn't given a power action to place it on the card, they are given a power action to roll a d6. With the BoS, it's a Power action, the puts it on the card, but it's as if the roll automatically succeeds. This seems to imply that this is the action that was intended to be made to put it on the card.

I am inclined to agree with Pukka, though for different reasons. If you read further in the Book of Skulls rules it says that if you do not pick it up that turn it then becomes a relic. If it becomes a relic at the end of the turn, then Splitlip does not apply until after the turn is over. Feel free to find the exact quote in BoS.

That point of BoS is more to let you know that you only have until end of the turn to make the pickup an automatic success. After that, you just follow standard relic rules to attempt the pickup. It doesn't actually change the hammer type.

It seems the Book of Skulls is describing a relic roll, but if going verbatim by how it's worded you would still need a power action to pick it up automatically since it specifically says if you use a power action. I really think we need a rules arbiter to figure out what the intent is.

Bumping. I played him last night and had 2 hammers on turn 1. Feels dirty. I gotta know if I did it right or not now.

The rule on the book only muddies the waters further:

Bold mine. This indicates it is a relic when it comes onto the map.
However, I am inclined to think Splitlip does not work and that the requirement of a power action is the key wording. I will be veryinterested in what the rules arb /Final Word on this is.

i might be wrong myself, but im reading it as... beginning of turn-book drops hammer, Char 1 takes power actions to equip (automatic). Char 2 takes power action to drop hammer in friendly square of Char 3. Char 3 power actions to equip (automatic). so with Splitlip, the only char taking the action is think would be Char 2 (dropping optional turn hammer for Char 3).
i think i remember reading somewhere (might be horribly wrong), Can Use--has to and May Use--optional? if so, the free action straight replaces the power action of the book. so its either, splitlip makes book even more awesome, or kinda breaks the automatic rolling win for a chance to hope hitting the 4-6. now to just hope im not completely wrong

Equipping a Character - At the beginning of each of your turns, you may remove a Hammer from The Book of the Skull and place it in the square of a friendly character that is at least 5 squares from any starting area. Also, once per turn you may give a character a power action and remove a Hammer from The Book of the Skull and place it in a friendly character's square that is at least 5 squares from any starting area. Whenever a Hammer is placed in a character's square, that character may immediately use Quake as a free action. If the friendly character is given a power action to place that Hammer on its character card this turn, the roll automatically succeeds and the Hammer is considered to be "equipped" to that character and that character can use its abilities as listed on the Hammer's card.

Equipping a Character - At the beginning of each of your turns, you may remove a Hammer from The Book of the Skull and place it in the square of a friendly character that is at least 5 squares from any starting area. Also, once per turn you may give a character a power action and remove a Hammer from The Book of the Skull and place it in a friendly character's square that is at least 5 squares from any starting area. Whenever a Hammer is placed in a character's square, that character may immediately use Quake as a free action. If the friendly character is given a power action to place that Hammer on its character card this turn, the roll automatically succeeds and the Hammer is considered to be "equipped" to that character and that character can use its abilities as listed on the Hammer's card. Unless specified otherwise, a character may only be equipped with one Hammer. If the friendly character does not place the relic on its card this turn, then for the remainder of the game, it is a relic as described on its card.

So we know it is a relic roll to pick up a hammer, so we just need to know if they intended it to hinge on a power action for automatic success or they were just describing a relic roll for people. It could be argued that they were just describing a relic roll since it says if they don't place it on their card this turn.

I really hope splitlip allows for free actions for picking up hammers, I think that'd give a number of characters more use and open up team options, and I'd really like to be able to have secondary attackers with hammers to fight against alpha strikes.

i would agree that wizkids is just describing relic rolls basically as a redundancy. they are known for doing the most intelligent things ever to make things easy to understand. so with splitlip turing power actions into free actions and the rolls automatically succeeding for the power actions, i would say the rolls are auto succeeding because of Power actions are Auto succeeds and Power actions are Free actions so that makes Free actions becoming Auto succeeds right?

You still have to roll for it, but SplitLip allows you to use a Free Action instead of burning a Power Action. If the outcome of the roll were predetermined, then there'd be no reason for him to boost your roll by +1. So you don't automatically pick it up just because SplitLip is there.

But you only get one relic roll per game. So if you fail the free action roll then there's no rolling again later. Now, can you use the Free Action to attempt to roll for it and, if that roll fails in spite of the +1 boost, could you then take a Power Action to automatically equip it? I think so. You aren't attempting a second roll, just burning a Power Action to pick up the hammer.

Y'know what. Upon further reading, I don't know either.

Help us Orange-one, you're our only hope.

Why does he give a +1 to your roll if it is just going to automatically succeed?

Why does it include the phrase "...and modify their roll by +1 if not already modified by this effect" when SplitLip is unique and the power only affects Friendly Characters?

He has the "You get +1 to your relic rolls" because you can play him and not play the Book on your team. The thing that lets you pick them up automatically is the book, not Splitlip.