Ruling Fossils

[cacgbass]

Hello everybody, i have a few questions about fossil cards and how are they palyed.
lets take skull fosil as an example.
I take my 7 cards at the beginig of the game, and i got no basics, just an skull fossil. can i use it as my beginig pokemon? or i need to shuffle the 7 cards and get a real basic? due the rules say "the first player cannot play any trainer cards on the first turn.
My second question is: if bannette SW attacks my skull fossil with gost head "put damage counters in the defending pokemon...." does it triggers its pokebody? (obviously it get ko). because the pokebody says "...if skull fossil would be kcnoked out by DAMAGE from an opponents attack..."
Im not sure if damage couters are "damage" or an efect...
Thank you for your help.

 

[elekid957]

first question is yes cause a fossil counts as a pokemon and second question is no because skull fosill says damage and banette is placing damage counters not actully doing real dmage

 

[Chairman Kaga]

I take my 7 cards at the beginig of the game, and i got no basics, just an skull fossil. can i use it as my beginig pokemon?

Actually, you have to take it as your starter. A Fossil counts as a Basic during setup.

A long time ago, it was the player's option to use a Fossil as a Basic during setup, and people designed decks to abuse this fact by engaging in constant mulligans until they drew a god hand. The rule was changed to put a stop to that.

due the rules say "the first player cannot play any trainer cards on the first turn.

Now that still holds true. If you go first, you can't play a Fossil to the Bench. It still counts as a Trainer card.

Im not sure if damage couters are "damage" or an efect...

Placing damage counters is not damage. Things that trigger when a Pokemon "is damaged" don't get triggered by something placing damage counters. So Skull Fossil's Poke-Body does not save you from Banette's Ghost Head.

 

[cacgbass]

thaks!!! very useful.