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The rules for Prince Arnaud say:

When you discard Prince Arnaud, choose one player still in the round (including yourself). That player discards his or her hand (do not apply its effect) and draws a new card.

but for the Princess, they say:

If you discard the Princess-no matter how or why-she has tossed your letter into the fire. You are knocked out of the round.

https://www.ultraboardgames.com/love-letter/the-people.php

If Prince Arnaud is used on someone holding the Princess, does that person lose due to discarding the Princess, or do they not apply its effect? Given that the wording of Prince Arnaud says "discards his or her hand" rather than "discards the card in his or her hand", does this count as discarding the Princess?

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The player does lose. The full rule book is explicit about this:

If you discard the Princess—no matter how or why—she has tossed your letter into the fire. You are immediately knocked out of the round. If the Princess was discarded by a card effect, any remaining effects of that card do not apply (you do not draw a card from the Prince, for example). Effects tied to being knocked out the round still apply (eg. Constable, Jester), however.

When you discard Prince Arnaud, choose one player still in the round (including yourself). That player discards his or her hand (but doesn’t apply its effect, unless it is the Princess, see page 8) and draws a new one.

Using the prince on a player with the princess is one of the main ways to eliminate a player during the round. The big three ways to eliminate a player mid-round are:

  • Using a guard (and either guessing correctly or having advance knowledge of their card from the King/Priest)
  • Using the Baron
  • Using the prince on a player with the princess
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    One of the more interesting things that can happen is when there are 2 players left. One plays a Handmaid (so they cannot be chosen by other cards) and the other player draws into Prince + Princess. They lose because they are forced to discard the Princess outright or use the Prince on themselves and still discard the Princess.
    – ryanyuyu
    Apr 23, 2019 at 14:53
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    @ryanyuyu Yep. I chose not to call this out separately because this is technically a player being eliminated by being the target of the prince while holding the princess.
    – Zags
    Apr 23, 2019 at 18:23
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    @ryanyuyu That can also happen with a king/princess when you won't get another turn
    – Joe W
    Apr 23, 2019 at 19:36
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    How can you use the Baron to eliminate the princess? You will always lose the duel against the Princess.
    – Conffusion
    Apr 25, 2019 at 11:52
  • @Conffusion You don't use the Baron to eliminate the princess. You use the Baron to eliminate a player.
    – Zags
    Apr 25, 2019 at 13:51
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Yes as the card says you lose the game. It doesn't matter how the princess gets into the discard pile but when it does the person who was holding it loses.

If you discard the Princess-no matter how or why-she has tossed your letter into the fire. You are knocked out of the round.

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