FAQ
65 answered questions59 official
Rules questions from the BoardGameGeek forum. Answers marked Official were confirmed by Fantasia Games or the designers.
Common mistakes
- Treating one Client with two Dreams in a turn. One Dream per Client per turn; Heart-Shaped Boxes at the end may still go to it. Ruling · Rule
- Taking the Reputation track rewards when you gain Reputation. Gaining moves markers; only triggering the track gives rewards. Ruling · Rule
- Overpaying to resize an Insight. A bigger Insight can pay for a smaller one, but you cannot Suppress freely. Ruling · Rule
- Recalling Bright Ideas, or Recalling with only Bright Ideas placed. They leave at the end of the turn. Ruling · Rule
- Discarding the Manifest Dream when boxes bring a Client to Catharsis. A Dream goes only when you use it. Ruling · Rule
- Moving the Therapy marker back when the Grief Layer comes off. The remaining points stay as they are. Ruling · Rule
- Citing an extra Volume to reach the one you need. You may cite only Volumes your Treatise uses, rightmost first. Ruling · Rule
- Leaving a Location Goal for later. You must claim every goal you qualify for at once. Ruling · Rule
Showing 65 of 65
Can Bright Ideas be Recalled? Official
No. Bright Ideas are discarded at the end of the turn you place them and leave no trace. If you have none of your own Ideas on the Meeting Table you cannot take a Recall turn. Placing Bright Ideas has a tactical upside: since they are cleaned up, you can trigger the same action space again on a later turn before you Recall.
Source: BGG thread
Can I place only Bright Ideas, without one of my own Ideas? Official
Yes — the rulebook says two Bright Ideas can trigger an action space twice. They don't block you later, because they are removed at the end of your turn; you just can't point them at a space your own Ideas already point at.
Source: BGG thread, BGG thread
Can I Recall if I cannot place any Idea? Official
If you have no Ideas on the Meeting Table and there is no legal space for you to place one, you may spend your turn Recalling, skipping the Coffee and return steps. The designer added this note after a rules change in the second printing allowed Recalling with no Ideas on the table, which created an exploit.
Source: BGG thread
What if the table is full and I can neither place, Recall nor treat? Official
That player simply passes — fine, though the rules don't say so. The designer's tip: place two Ideas per turn whenever you can; it helps your tempo and keeps the table from locking up.
Source: BGG thread
Must I do everything an action space shows? Official
No. Do as much or as little as you like, in any order — for example any of the Elevations and the Transfer of the Insight action.
Source: BGG thread
If I take a Notebook tile action twice, do I pay the Coffee twice? Official
Yes, each action is paid in full.
Source: BGG thread
Is there a limit to how far Bright Ideas can push my Inkpot? Official
No upper limit, as long as you pay a Bright Idea per step — for example 4 + 2 = 6 spaces. You just can't make it move zero.
Source: BGG thread
An effect advances my Inkpot 1–2 spaces. Can I choose zero? Official
No — move 1 or 2, then trigger where it lands (Bright Ideas may modify it). Zero is only possible by skipping the whole effect, which is legal but rarely wise.
Source: BGG thread
On the top Inkpot space, can I use a tile I gain during that same activation? Official
Yes. If a tile effect gives you a new tile in that column, or completes it and unlocks its Insight space, you may trigger those too. When in doubt about combos, assume yes.
Source: BGG thread
Can I skip effects in a row or column I trigger? Official
Yes. You can skip effects or complete them only partly — for example when you lack the Coffee, or want to keep your Insights for a Client.
Source: BGG thread
Can I cure a Client mid-turn to meet the requirement of the last Notebook column? Official
Yes, combine timings as you like: if a Dream Cures your Client and also gains you a tile, that Cure counts for where you place the tile.
Source: BGG thread
When a Notebook stack is empty, do the tiles still slide right? Official
Yes. Slide the remaining tiles to the right; only the refill from the empty stack is skipped.
Source: BGG thread
May I replace a tile even if there is an empty space for the new one?
No. You may only replace a tile when the new tile can't go anywhere (not enough Cured Clients, or no empty space). Players note it was played more loosely in testing, so a house rule won't break the game.
Source: BGG thread
Can you Suppress or overcompensate at will? Official
No. Overcompensating means paying with a bigger Insight of the same quality, not resizing it first: with Franz Kafka, for example, you need an actual Minor Insight to Transfer freely. You cannot Suppress freely.
Source: BGG thread
Can I pay a cost in steps, Suppressing an Insight and then spending the same piece? Official
Yes. With a cost of "Suppress a Median Freedom and spend a Minor Freedom", you may Suppress the Median first and then spend it as the Minor. You choose the order.
Source: BGG thread
Can I overpay the Insight set that buys a Heart-Shaped Box? Official
Yes — for example a Major and two Medians instead of a Major, a Median and a Minor.
Source: BGG thread
At the end of my last turn, can I convert Insights into a Heart-Shaped Box and use it at once? Official
Yes. Converting Insights is an anytime effect, so you can turn a set into a box and spend it as a Therapy point at the end of the turn — inefficient, but useful on your last turn.
Source: BGG thread, BGG thread
Do leftover Insights score at the end?
Not by themselves, but you may still convert a Minor + Median + Major set into a Heart-Shaped Box, worth 2 VP.
Source: BGG thread
Can I claim more than one District bonus in the same District? Official
Yes, over several Recalls (one bonus per Recall), as long as you have the tags. The big end-game score rewards player-color Insights in different Districts, though.
Source: BGG thread, BGG thread
Does the “6” District slot give Reputation, and can I get two at once? Official
Yes. The “6” slot of each District gives a Reputation point, and the top District token gives another, so claiming the “6” slot with the first token of a District gains two.
Source: BGG thread
When I claim a bonus with a Reputation token, which comes first? Official
Gain the effect of the slot you cover, then the Reputation. It was written this way so you don't have to remember covered icons; choosing the order won't break the game.
Source: BGG thread
Do the tags of a Client in my Office count before it is Cured?
Yes, once its Grief Layer is gone: everything under the red line is active. The Victory Points on the Client are only scored when it is Cured.
Source: BGG thread
Can I cite a player twice to reach a Volume that isn't their rightmost? Official
No. You can't end up with an unused Volume, so you may only cite what your Treatise needs.
Source: BGG thread
Can others cite the leftmost Volume of my Treatise? Official
Yes. You must provide the leftmost Volume from your own in-play cards when you publish, but once the Treatise is in play others may cite from it as usual.
Source: BGG thread
Can I treat the same Client twice in one turn? Official
Not with two Dreams. But you may treat a Client with a Dream and then, at the end of the turn, give it Heart-Shaped Boxes too.
Source: BGG thread, BGG thread
How do I finish a Client whose Dreams are used up? Official
With Heart-Shaped Boxes at the end of your turn, before drafting new Clients. You may also Cure a Client with boxes alone; discard any unused Dreams without effect. New Clients can't receive boxes on the turn they arrive.
Source: BGG thread, BGG thread
Can I use Heart-Shaped Boxes at the end of a Treat Clients turn? Official
Yes, at the end of every kind of turn.
Source: BGG thread
If boxes take a Client to Catharsis, is its Manifest Dream discarded? Official
No. A Dream is only discarded by using it (or when the Client is Cured without it). The Manifest Dream stays on top until you use it.
Source: BGG thread
Does removing the Grief Layer change how many Therapy points are left? Official
No. You set the marker from the Client plus Grief Layer when you draft it; removing the layer doesn't move the marker. A 4-heart Client with a 4-heart layer needs 8 points, 5 to reach Catharsis, then 3 more.
Source: BGG thread
Are the bonuses on a Dream mandatory? Official
No, you can ignore any benefit, such as a move you don't want. Only Madness from the Nightmares expansion is mandatory — it is a cost, not a benefit.
Source: BGG thread, BGG thread
In what order do I resolve a Dream that triggers Catharsis and a Cure at once? Official
Choose the order of the bonuses on cards and tiles yourself; it can change the outcome.
Source: BGG thread
What does a matching Dream icon give?
A Heart-Shaped Box, when you use that Dream to treat a Client whose Grief Layer shows the same icon — nothing else.
Source: BGG thread
Can Gabriele Possanner be used when I have nothing to Elevate, and more than once? Official
Yes to both. Her effect lets you forgo an Elevate icon to Generate two Minor Insights instead, whether or not you had an Insight to Elevate, as often as you gain Elevations.
Source: BGG thread, BGG thread, BGG thread
How does Tilla Durieux work? Official
When you Recall, you may claim your bonus (Location or District) from any Location, not only where your Professor or Freud is.
Source: BGG thread, BGG thread
What exactly does Sophie Zimmermann give? Official
The intention: after claiming a Location bonus on a Recall, claim one more Location bonus, at your Professor's or Freud's Location — so two different Locations if they are apart. The designer accepts the literal reading too (one extra Location bonus alongside a District bonus); it won't break the game.
Source: BGG thread, BGG thread
Does Gustav Mahler trigger on the Dream that removes his own Grief Layer? Official
No. His effect is only active after his layer is removed, so it can't stack with the matching-icon Heart-Shaped Box on that treatment.
Source: BGG thread, BGG thread
Can effects without the infinity icon be repeated? Official
Yes, whenever their condition is met. The infinity icon was kept only on passive effects that need no input; it was removed elsewhere to declutter the cards.
Source: BGG thread
Can Egon Schiele and Bright Ideas take my Inkpot round a full lap? Official
Yes.
Source: BGG thread
Does gaining Reputation trigger the Reputation track? Official
No. Gaining Reputation moves markers (yours and Freud's); triggering the track gives the rewards above your marker and an action below Freud's and moves nothing. When the Id or a player gains Reputation, no bonus is taken.
Source: BGG thread
If my marker and Freud's both cross the Freud icon, does Freud walk twice? Official
Yes.
Source: BGG thread
On space 9, do I score 3 VP every time I gain Reputation? Official
Yes, each time you gain Reputation there you score 3 VP again.
Source: BGG thread
Can I claim several Location Goals in one turn? Official
You must claim every goal you qualify for, each with its Reputation (and Freud moves once per point). It is not optional: if forgotten, roll back and correct it — nobody else can take it instead.
Source: BGG thread
How does a wild tag count at Final Scoring? Official
Per scoring step, as whichever single tag helps most: as one icon for each Case-Study Client, and again as one tag for the different-tags score — but never as all six.
Source: BGG thread, BGG thread
What does Arjun Raval count? Official
Your own Research cards: face up in play and as Volumes under your Treatises. Not the tiles, and no Client scores other players' cards; cited cards count for whoever holds them.
Source: BGG thread, BGG thread
For Selma Kurz, must a pair be on the same card?
No, the two identical tags can come from anywhere in your play area.
Source: BGG thread
Does the Journalist matter for tag triggers on Notebook tiles? Official
No. A tag trigger works as usual; the Journalist only adds other players' Treatise tags when you move him and count tags.
Source: BGG thread, BGG thread
How much Coffee does the Id get for Location effects? Official
1 Coffee per time the Location triggers, up to 5 (the gears) — including a banner effect that triggers a Location once plus matching tags.
Source: BGG thread, BGG thread
What does the Id do when the right Notebook stack is empty? Official
It simply scores the 6 VP shown in the empty space; the Coffee stood in for the tile's effect. Giving it the Coffee too won't break the game.
Source: BGG thread
Why does the solo setup put the Cure-five goal in the middle? Official
The Id has an effect that takes goals from the ends of the row; the middle protects that hard goal and buys you time.
Source: BGG thread
What if the Id runs out of Client overlay tiles? Official
There are four of each kind. Ignore the effects of further Clients where an overlay would go; Cured Clients still score. At that point you have probably lost anyway.
Source: BGG thread, BGG thread
What does the Id do with Dreams when it Cures a Client? Official
It discards them without effect, like a player.
Source: BGG thread
The Id keeps landing where nothing flips. Is that right? Official
It can happen. The designer suggests the level that starts with the whole left column active (and perhaps 3 Coffee per box), which swings much less.
Source: BGG thread, BGG thread
[Nightmares] Can a Mad Insight be Transferred or Suppressed? Official
No. Once in a crack it can't be moved — only used (back to the reserve). You may still spend it as a Major, Median or Minor of its quality.
Source: BGG thread
[Nightmares] If a crack is full, can an Insight skip over it? Official
No, never skip a crack, full or not. If the Insight can't slide there naturally, the move is illegal. Dark Insights stay yours for the game but can't leave the dial.
Source: BGG thread
[Nightmares] What does the lone trigger icon on some Nightmare Dreams mean? Official
Gain a Dark Insight at once, in the section shown.
Source: BGG thread
[Nightmares] Must the Treatise of the Dead start with one of my own cards? Official
No. Its leftmost Volume lacks the “your own card” mark, so you may cite both gray Volumes.
Source: BGG thread
[Nightmares] With the Gramophone and 5+ Madness, can I point three Ideas at three actions? Official
No — at most two different actions: twice at one and once at another.
Source: BGG thread
[Nightmares] With the Gramophone, does the Pet's Treat effect treat two Clients? Official
It treats the same Client twice: the Gramophone adds one to every effect with a gear.
Source: BGG thread
[Nightmares] Can a Mad Insight gained during a treatment buy the Gramophone for a second treatment? Official
No — you need the Gramophone at the start of that treatment.
Source: BGG thread
[Nightmares] With my Pet on the top level, may I still take Inkpot steps off for it? Official
No. You must be able to advance the Pet to spend the movement.
Source: BGG thread
[FreeAssoc] Do player-color Insights in the reserve count for the Rendezvous requirement? Official
Yes, anywhere on the dial including the reserve — not the locked ones, nor those already on Treatises or the City Map.
Source: BGG thread
[FreeAssoc] Do Mad Insights count as the three Major Insights of a Rendezvous card? Official
No. It is a check of what you have, not a payment, so they must be Major.
Source: BGG thread
[FreeAssoc] Can Scholarly Research effects chain into each other? Official
Yes. Finish the whole chain of plays, then come back to the publish part of the first card. If the nested actions feel too much, leave the module out.
Source: BGG thread
[FreeAssoc] With an Illusion Dream, do I still take a Manifest Dream?
Yes, the Illusion Dream only replaces the Latent Dream; a Manifest Dream still goes on top.
Source: BGG thread
[FreeAssoc] Are Illusion Dreams reshuffled when they run out? Official
No, once gone there are none left — reshuffling is fine as a house rule.
Source: BGG thread