Arcs · Board game rules
Can Arcs be removed from the board permanently?
Quick answer
Yes — this happens through "Scrap," which makes a card or piece permanently out of play, or through destroying pieces in battle, which removes them from the map.
Details
The Glossary defines Scrap as: "Make out of play permanently" [p.23 — GLOSSARY]. This term appears in card effects (not covered elsewhere in the base rules) that permanently remove something from active play.
Separately, pieces can be destroyed during play — for example, in Battle, hitting an already-damaged piece destroys it and removes it from the map, typically going to the attacker's Trophies box [p.14 — Battle (Aggression)]. Destroyed cities also trigger further effects like Outrage and Ransacking the Court [p.16 — Destroying Cities].
Additionally, entire clusters of the map (with their gates and planets) are made permanently out of play during setup, using path markers and out-of-play markers — these systems cannot be interacted with for the rest of the game [p.6 — The Map].
Watch out: "Scrap" and "Destroy" are distinct terms — destroyed pieces often return to a Trophies box (still part of the game state), while scrapped things are removed from the game entirely with no further use.