I played in the IG 8 tournie today and about half the teams used FF S Witch. After which I talked to a friend who I play with at another venue and told him the winning team and he said that you cannot use FF as they have a different set symbol and the rules only stat All figures must be from Incredible Hulk, Galactic Guardians and/or Chaos War.

is that true?

First, the format for IG month 8 is up to the venue and the judge running the event. The suggested format is vague, so not everyone will be running it the same.

Fast Forces have their own set symbol and their own numbering. To do a quick check, just look at who Chaos War 001 is. Captain America. Then look at Chaos War fast forces Iron Man. He is also 001.

Most places consider them a separate set, and the rules support this. Now even if they are different, some venues may include them under the banner of their "parent" set for tournament purposes.

i know a lot of the consensus from the oranges was that they were different sets.

but like said, it depends on the judge.

They are for sure their own set. They have a unique set symbol and numbering. The only question is how your judge considers them for tournament status.

i believe they are considered different sets if they come out at different times. Like Watchman Collector's set and the Fast forces. 1 is legal, 1 is not.

But really... who considers fast forces of Chaos war not part of Chaos war...

Anyone going by the set symbols and numbering. And the Rules.

But as has been pointed out, just because they aren't the same set doesn't mean they will be disallowed in certain tournament settings.

FF are their own set and have there own symbol. It is at the judges discretion on whether they are allowed for the IG 8 event. If half the people played them like you say the judge must have allowed them. If the judge did not allow them the event is done and the prize is given and there is nothing that can change that fact. And there are no official rules for the event just a suggestion.

Why can't they do every set like DKR all 001-029/100-106/201-210 all have same set symbol and no duplicates.

I dunno. That would make things easier for sure. They could also be a bit more specific on their suggested tournament formats. Instead they just put some words on paper and then say do what you want.

They can not be any more specific. It is a SUGGESTED format. It is up to the venue to run it how they want. If they wanted you to run it a certain way then the format would be required. If the venue wanted to run 5 boosters of Universe then that is their right and no one could make them change it. Probably would not have a good turn out but, they can run what ever they want.

I do have some unopened hypertime starters and some Icons boosters at my store... but no IG8 OP kit oh well maybe next time.

Those words are just there for the sheep who don't think for themselves.

our venue considered FF sets a part of the "parent" set as mentioned earlier. Yes, all the top teams had FF SW if not two of them on the team. There is a reason why this figure seems to be going for $8 or so.

Hopefully I am asking this question in the right place, seeing as it is basically a rules issue, but recently the question has been asked more and more:

Are Fast Forces packs considered to be a part of the set they are named for (i.e. Is Chaos War FF part of the CW set; Is Incredible Hulk FF part of the IH set; etc)?

At the venue I play most at it was ruled that they are NOT because they have a different set symbol. And I tend to agree with that. In fact, I think Hammer Of Thor is a prime example. The Fast Forces set didn't get retired when the main set was retired (probably mostly due to the late release date of the FF set) so that would lead me to believe it is considered a different set. If it was a part of the main set then I would have expected the retirement to come at the same time but it didn't. Also the units section on the Realms has them separated (as though they are different sets) but did not do the separation for the Gravity Feeds (which share the main sets symbol).

The importance of the OFFICIAL answer to this is whether or not you can use FF figures in an IG8 event that says specifically that figures and special objects must come from CW, IH or Guardians Of The Galaxy sets ONLY. If FF are considered different then those figures aren't legal to be used (like the ever popular FF Scarlet Witch that I keep seeing people list as a part of their IG8 teams) and that makes a big difference on team construction.

Anyone know the OFFICIAL ruling on this?

Yes, we do. The set is defined by the set symbol: same set symbol, same set. Different set symbol, different set. The Fast Forces sets have unique set symbols so they are different sets. That's the official answer.

The issue with IG8 is that the suggested restriction to figures (not special objects) Incredible Hulk, Galactic Guardians and Chaos War is a recommended format, not a mandated one. So if your venue/judge is following the recommendation exactly, ff is not allowed. But if the venue/judge chooses to allow the FF sets, or allow any Modern-legal marvel figures, or make it Golden Age and any universe they are free to do so. Hopefully they are documenting that in the WES, but they are not required to follow the recommended format.