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The Arabian Carpet magic item says "The owner has Fly special rule but may not join units". Does hiding in a unit count as joining said unit? Or can you hide an assassin with the arabian carpet in a unit? If you can, then would an assassin with the Arabian Carpet need to immediately leave the unit once revealed?

I would argue that the carpet prevents the assassin from hiding in the unit, and you would have to deploy it normally instead.

1. Let's review the rules:
BRB p.505 Arabyan Carpet: "The owner cannot join units".
BRB p.97 Joining units: "To join a unit a character must move into base contact with it during the movement phase."
BRB p.142 Deployment: "Characters may be set up in separate locations or units in their deployment zone." (note that FAQ leads to understand that "set up in units" means "to join units").
AB p.36 Assassin hidden deployment: "assassin can be deployed "hidden" in an infantry unit. ... A hidden assassin can be revealed... place him like you would do if a character joined the unit."


2. There are two approaches.

2.1. RAI, the carpet obviously prevents the assassin to be deployed inside the unit. If he selected to be hidden, he would never ever be able to be revealed at all, becoming useless.
Therefore, the only way to use a flying assassin is to deploy him alone in the deployment zone, and to play him alone thereafter.

2.2. RAW, along with a ruthless RAW lawyering approach, you could try and argue the following:
Note that "the owner cannot join units" means that it cannot start inside a unit nor join later on.
However, it does not mean that the owner cannot "be" in a unit, only "joining" is prohibited (that's where the argument plays on words and lacks sincerity).
Note also that the hidden deployment is not described as "joining" a unit.
Note that revealing the assassin is described "like if" it was a character joining, the word "if" means that it is not an actual joining process, and as a matter of fact, revealing is not at all the same as joining, as described p.97; anyway AB>BRB, AB describes a new way to find itself inside a unit, which is not "joining".
Therefore, a carpet assassin could well be deployed hidden in a unit (that's not "joining"), he could be later on revealed (that's not "joining" either) and remain there as long as he wish (still not "joining").
In the same way, he could find himself inside the unit thanks to "Smoke & Mirrors" Shadows attribute (which is not "joining", once more), and there again, he would be able to remain as long as he wishes.
Obviously this approach is borderline cheating, despite arguably IAW RAW. It will not help you to win a fair play reputation, and I'm not convinced that an opponent would even agree to toss a die on that.


3. Conclusion.
The assassin with a carpet should never be deployed hidden, and should never join any unit afterwards.

Calisson, I would like to note that I really appreciate the way you approach rules questions.

Thanks!

Thanks calisson, very informative and interesting. Oh well, there goes that hope.