So I’ve played this game for quite some time, but most of that time was done using the rules that came in the packs, not the 60+ pages of rules and other tidbits found in the Code. I apologize if it comes off as rude or ignorant, but a LOT of the stuff in the Code feels… wonky. A prime example I can give is the captain and reverse captain deal. The “official” rules (the ones found in every game pack) say NOTHING about this, yet the Code says you can’t use both at the same time for what I can only describe as “your little brother made the rule up on the spot” reasons. To the contrary, the points cost and the fact certain crew/ships have this combo (e.g. Jack Hawkins, DJC) seem to REALLY indicate you were supposed to be allowed to use them together. The Code goes into some reasoning about it (needing to use a shoot action to use reverse captain, and the captain ability itself gives the pew pew is considered a free action), but even that explanation feels almost like it was pulled out of the ether to justify banning the combo.
There’s a plethora of other examples too (e.g. the apparent rule that a canceller can’t cancel himself or his own ship, except the printed card rule says “within S of this ship” and his own ship is quite literally within S of itself). It feels almost as if the Code is trying to stop you from having wacky combos for tournament purposes, and the rationale for banning the combos is some convoluted logic gymnastics instead of just saying “Yeah we F’d up the combo is just THAT broken and shouldn’t be allowed.”
So I guess the point of my rambling here is this: What exactly is the authority of the Code? My limited understanding was that it is more or less the rules set down by Wizkid’s rule arbitrator. But if that’s the case, why isn’t this printed on the cards or in the rules pamphlet that comes with the game itself?