Board Game Arena

YilanBigfooter wrote: ↑13 April 2026, 11:00 I've read the rules and played about a dozen games... can someone explain why I don't get 3 cooldown when I'm in first gear? Does "gain access" mean I still have to do something?

"You gain access to Cooldown in a few ways but the most common is from driving in 1st gear (Cooldown 3)"

Possibly you didn't have enough heat cards in hand? Or you were on a stretch of the race track where cooling wasn't possible (weather effect)?

And maybe someone can clarify this re: cooldown -- I've experienced getting a cooldown button that was gray and had a 'heat' symbol superimposed on it. Why? I was in 1st gear in a section of track with weather that prevented cooldown -- had 2 heat cards in my hand and had just overdriven the corner by 1. I think the effect was correct -- i clicked the button and lost a heat. But I was confused about why the button had the cooldown symbol.

YilanBigfooter wrote: ↑13 April 2026, 11:00 I've read the rules and played about a dozen games... can someone explain why I don't get 3 cooldown when I'm in first gear? Does "gain access" mean I still have to do something?

"You gain access to Cooldown in a few ways but the most common is from driving in 1st gear (Cooldown 3)"

Unless you’re in a weather section that specifies “no cooling”, you should always have the option to cool up to three heat if you are in first gear. I’ve never seen that not be the case.