Published on 11/08/2021
Three Months of Halloween
By Carsten Haese, Nathan Long, and Justin Hovdenes
This Article from: Nathan Long
Cranial Translation
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Note: This article is over two years old. Information in this article may be out of date due to subsequent Oracle and/or rules changes. Proceed with caution.
Yep, it's still Halloween
So let's put on our costumes again and trick or treat while we answer some rules questions. If you have a short question, you can Tweet it to us via Twitter at @CranialTweet, and you can send us longer questions to our e-mail at moko@cranialinsertion.com .
Q: What happens to the slime counters from Sludge Monster when it leaves the battlefield?
A: Nothing. Nothing on Sludge Monster says to remove the counters if it leaves play, so they'll stay on the creature. However, without Sludge Monster in play, those counters aren't doing anything, so they'll have their normal abilities, power, and toughness. But if Sludge Monster returns, then those counters will start mattering again and the non-horror creatures with the slime counters would once again be 2/2s without any abilities.
Q: I control Lurrus of the Dream Den and I have The Meathook Massacre in my graveyard. Can I cast the Massacre from my graveyard with X=5?
A: You can cast it, but only with an X equal to zero. Lurrus cares about the mana value of the spell on the stack, not its mana value in the graveyard. While the Massacre is on the stack, X is equal to the value you set it at, not zero. So while you can cast the Massacre from your graveyard, the only value you can choose for X is zero - if you pick one or more, then its mana value on the stack is three or greater, and violates Lurrus's casting restriction.
Q: I control a Saryth, the Viper's Fang and a Prodigal Pyromancer. If I tap the Pyromancer to use its ability, will it destroy the damaged creature?
A: Yep, if you target and damage a creature, it will be destroyed. Tapping the Pyromancer is a cost to activating the ability, and once it's tapped, it gains deathtouch from Saryth. When the ability resolves, the damage is from a source with deathtouch, so if you damaged a creature with the Pyromancer's ability, the creature will end up destroyed thanks to deathtouch.
Q: I have a Adeline, Resplendent Cathar in my graveyard. If I cast Dawn, will I return Adeline to my hand?
A: That depends on how many creatures you control on the battlefield. Adeline's ability that sets its power is a characteristic-defining ability - it works in every zone, not just the battlefield. That means if Adeline is in your graveyard, its power is based on how many creatures on the battlefield you control. So if you have two or fewer creatures in play, then Adeline's power is 2 or less and can be returned by Dawn. But if you have three or more, then Adeline will stay in your graveyard.
Q: I cast First Day of Class. When I'm instructed to learn, I choose to discard Blazing Rootwalla. Assuming I cast the Rootwalla for its madness cost, will it get the +1/+1 counter and haste from the Class's effect?
A: Yep, your Rootwalla will benefit. The madness trigger from the Rootwalla can't go on the stack until after First Day of Class is completely done resolving. Once you're casting and then resolving the Rootwalla, it will benefit from the Class's effect, and it will enter with the counter and haste.
Q: Can I activate Chainer, Nightmare Adept on my opponent's turn, or can I only activate it on my own turn?
A: Sure, you can activate it on your opponent's turn. Normally, this is not going to be very useful - Chainer doesn't change when you can cast the creature spell, so unless you have a creature with flash in your graveyard, you won't be able to cast anything on your opponent's turn. But if you're just interested in discarding a card for other reasons (for example, you want to cast a spell with madness), then you're free to activate Chainer's ability on any player's turn.
Q: I control a Volo, Guide to Monsters. I cast Junk Winder and get a token copy. Will the token Winder trigger its own ability?
A: Yep, it will trigger. Since Junk Winder itself is entering as a token, its ability will trigger and you'll be able to tap down an opponent's permanent. However, note that the token will be entering the battlefield before the original Winder resolves, so the original Winder will not trigger from the token Winder entering the battlefield.
Remember to replace your pumpkins once a week.
Q: I control a Twinning Staff and have cast four spells this turn. I cast Grapeshot. How many copies of Grapeshot will I end up with?
A: Five copies. The Staff adds one copy to the total number of copies that the storm trigger would create. It doesn't double the copies that the storm trigger makes. The storm trigger would create four copies, but the Staff will add one to that total and you'll end up with five copies of Grapeshot (plus the original).
Q: I cast and resolve a Deadeye Navigator, intending to pair it with my Bane of Progress. In response to the enter the battlefield trigger, my opponent flashes in Dress Down. What happens?
A: When Dress Down enters the battlefield, creatures lose all of their abilities. But that won't do anything to the Navigator's trigger that's already on the stack, so it will still resolve like normal and the Navigator can pair it with the Bane. However, since the Navigator doesn't have its abilities, the Navigator and the Bane don't gain the flicker ability from the Navigator. However, once Dress Down leaves play when it's sacrificed during the end step, the creatures regain their abilities, and the Navigator and the Bane will gain the flicker ability.
Had your opponent responded to the Navigator spell by casting Dress Down, when the Navigator enters the battlefield, its doesn't have its abilities, so the enter the battlefield trigger from soulbond would not trigger and you would not be able to pair the Navigator with the Bane.
Q: If I have an Ugin, the Ineffable in play, will that reduce the cost I pay for a spell with devoid like Benthic Infiltrator?
A: Yes it will! A card with devoid has no color in every zone, not just the battlefield. When you cast the Infiltrator, you're casting a colorless spell, so Ugin's effect will apply and you'll end up paying only
to cast the Infiltrator.Q: I have an Endless Horizons in play, with some Plains still exiled by it. My opponent destroys my Endless Horizons. What happens to those Plains?
A: Nothing - they stay in exile. The Horizons doesn't say to do anything to the exiled cards when the Horizons leaves play, so the Plains will remain exiled for the rest of the game. Even if you replay the Horizons, it's a different object and won't have access to the cards that were exiled by the other Horizons.
Q: I have a Genesis in my graveyard and an Embalmer's Tools in play. Will the Tools reduce what I pay for Genesis's ability by
?A: No it will not. Genesis has a triggered ability, not an activated ability. To be an activated ability, it has to be written "Cost: effect" (look for the colon). Since Genesis has a triggered ability, it won't be affected by the Tool's ability and you'll still have to pay
to use Genesis's trigger during your upkeep.Q: Can I sacrifice Blastoderm to Ravenous Baloth's ability, or does that count as targeting Blastoderm?
A: Nope, you can sacrifice Blastoderm just fine. The Baloth's ability does not target the Beast that you're sacrificing, so Blastoderm having shroud doesn't stop you from sacrificing it to Ravenous Baloth's activated ability.
Q: If my opponent controls a Tectonic Instability, can I play a land and tap it for mana before it's tapped by the Instability trigger?
A: Yes you can. The Instability has a normal triggered ability, so it goes on the stack and can be responded to. After you play your land, you'll get priority before your lands become tapped by the Instability trigger, so you can tap it (and your other lands) before the Instability's trigger taps them.
A new costume every hour? That's a lot
of costume changes over the last three months.
of costume changes over the last three months.
Q: I control an Elementalist's Palette. If I cast Thieving Skydiver and kick it, will the Pallete get charge counters?
A: It will not. For the Palette to trigger, X must be in the mana cost of spell. While the total cost of the spell ends up with an X since you're kicking the Skydiver, there is no X in the actual mana cost of the Skydiver, so the Palette doesn't care about it and won't trigger off of the kicked Skydiver.
Q: I control a 2/2 creature enchanted with an Octopus Umbra. My opponent targets it with a Vendetta. How much life does my opponent end up losing?
A: They end up losing 2 life. When we resolve Vendetta, we follow the instructions in the order they're listed on the card. First, the creature is destroyed, but because of the Umbra, the Umbra is destroyed and the creature remains on the battlefield. Then your opponent loses life equal to its toughness. Normally, this would be based on the last known toughness of the creature since it was destroyed and isn't on the battlefield anymore, but in this case, the creature is still on the battlefield, so we look at its current toughness. Since the Umbra is no longer attached to it, its toughness is 2, not 8, so your opponent will be losing 2 life to Vendetta.
Q: I'm in a multiplayer game, and I'm down to 5 life. If one of my opponents casts Gray Merchant of Asphodel with a total devotion to black of 10, will my opponent gain 5 life from me or 10 life?
A: They'll gain 10 life. Even though you only have 5 life, there's nothing preventing you from losing 10 life and going into the negatives. And Gray Merchant doesn't care that you ended up losing more life than your life total. You lost 10 life from the Merchant's trigger, so your opponent will gain 10 life.
Q: I'm in a multiplayer game, and on my turn, I cast a spell that ended up being countered by my opponent's Arcane Denial. As revenge, I attacked and kill that opponent. Will I still get to draw two cards during the next upkeep?
A: You do not. The delayed triggers from the Denial are controlled by your opponent, since they were the one that cast the Denial. But since that opponent is no longer in the game, their delayed triggers from the Denial can't go on the stack. You may have had the last laugh by killing them, but by doing so, you won't get to draw any cards from their Denial trigger.
Q: I control a Desecrated Tomb. My commander is on the battlefield, but it dies and I move it to the command zone. Do I get a Desecrated Tomb trigger?
A: You do! Your commander goes to the graveyard for a brief time until you get the option of moving it to the command zone when state-based actions are checked. Since it leaves the graveyard when you move it to the command zone, the Tomb's ability will trigger and you'll get your token.
Q: We're in a game of planechase, and we're currently on The Dark Barony. If a green insect creature token dies, will its controller lose 1 life?
A: They will not. The Dark Barony only triggers if a card is put into a player's graveyard, and a token isn't a card. Since tokens aren't cards, you won't lose any life if your token creature dies while on The Dark Barony.
That's all I have for you this week. See you again next week!
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