Published on 07/11/2022
Double Double Masters
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 Information in this article may be out of date due to subsequent Oracle and/or rules changes.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.
Wanna see a dead body?
Hello everyone, and welcome back to Cranial Insertion! This week, we're going to take a quick look the latest Magic release, Double Masters 2022! This is a reprint set (with one exception - see the first four questions below), so it's a bunch of cards we've already seen in the past. But it's always nice to get a refresher on how some of these cards work, especially if players haven't played with them in years. So let's get ready to talk about some of the interactions you may run into when playing with Double Masters 2022!
And remember, if you have a rules question of your own, you can send it in and we can send you an answer back. It may even be used in a future article. If you have a shorter question, you can send it to our Twitter account at @CranialTweet, and you can send us your longer questions to our e-mail at moko@cranialinsertion.com .
Q: How exactly does Cryptic Spires work?
A: Cryptic Spires is the only new card featured in Double Masters 2022. As you're building your deck, you'll choose two of the colored mana symbols in the box below the card. Once you play the Spires, you'll be able to tap it for either of the chosen colors.
Q: If I have multiple Cryptic Spires in my deck, do I have to pick the same color for all of them?
A: Nope, you can make different choices for each Spires as you're building your deck. If you want one Spires to be able to tap for red and green, and a second one that can tap for green and black, you can do that. Just make sure it's clear to all players which colors were selected for each Spire.
Q: What if my opponent copies my Cryptic Spires with Vesuva? What colors will their Spires tap for?
A: Your choice of colors is part of the copiable characteristics of the card, so whatever choices you made for your Spires will be copied by their Spires. If your Spires can tap for red or green mana, then their Vesuva Spires will also tap for red or green mana.
Q: What formats will Cryptic Spires be legal in?
A: Cryptic Spires will be legal in eternal formats like Legacy, Vintage, and Commander. You won't be seeing it played in Standard, Pioneer, or Modern, since it's not printed in a set that's legal in those formats.
Q: Can I cast Martial Glory and target the same creature to give it +3/+3?
A: Yep, you can. Since it uses the word "target" twice, you can choose the same creature as both targets. If you want to turn Martial Glory into a red/white Giant Growth, you can do that (and Agony Warp also works the same way - you can target the same creature to give it -3/-3).
Q: How does Animar, Soul of Elements work with a creature with X in the cost, like Hydroid Krasis?
A: Animar looooves creatures with X in their mana cost. You'll choose a value of X for your spell, and then Animar can help reduce the total cost of that spell, including that X you just picked. For example, let's say Animar has four +1/+1 counters on it, and you want to cast the Krasis with X=8. The base cost of the Krasis starts at
. Since Animar has four +1/+1 counters on it, it reduces the cost of the spell by four generic mana, and you'll end up paying 
to cast the Krasis.Q: Will Hardened Scales affect the bonus given to my creatures by Heroic Reinforcements?
A: Nope, those cards don't interact at all. The Scales only applies if one or more +1/+1 counters would be put onto a creature you control. The Reinforcements doesn't give your creatures +1/+1 counters, it just gives them a static +1/+1 for the turn. Since there are no counters involved with the Reinforcements, Hardened Scales won't apply and it won't give your creatures a larger bonus from the Reinforcements.
You can't not enjoy countering
your opponent's spells.
your opponent's spells.
Q: I control a Coiling Oracle. If I play Murkfiend Liege, how big is my Coiling Oracle?
A: It's a 3/3 creature. Murkfiend Liege has two abilities that pump your creatures - one ability that gives your green creatures +1/+1, and a second ability that gives your blue creatures +1/+1. If you have a creature that's both blue and green, like the Oracle, it will get a total of +2/+2 from the Liege, and the Oracle will end up as a 3/3 creature.
Q: I control Ezuri, Claw of Progress and a Murkfiend Liege. If I cast Tuskguard Captain, will Ezuri still trigger and give me an experience counter?
A: Nope, Ezuri doesn't trigger. After the Captain resolves and enters the battlefield, we check for enter the battlefield triggers. But since it's on the battlefield, it's getting +1/+1 from the Liege, making it a 3/4. Since its power is not two or less, Ezuri won't trigger and you will not get an experience counter.
Q: I have an Experiment One with two +1/+1 counters on it, making it a 3/3. I use it to block an opponent's 1/1, then after combat, my opponent casts Staggershock targeting Experiment One. If I regenerate my One using its ability, will it die?
A: Yep, the One is going to die since it had damage marked on it from combat. You can respond to Staggershock by activating Experiment One's ability to regenerate it. However, removing two +1/+1 counters is a cost to activating the ability, so immediately after you activate the ability, the One is a 1/1 creature with one damage marked on it, and it dies. This is before it can get the regeneration shield from its ability, so it won't be able to regenerate in time to save itself
Q: If I have a Forbidden Alchemy in my graveyard, how many counters do I need to have on my As Foretold to be able to cast it via flashback for free?
A: I have some bad news for you - you'll never be able to flash it back for free. When you're casting a spell, you can only use one alternate cost to cast the spell. Flashback is an alternate cost, and so is paying
instead of its mana cost, so you cannot combine the two. You'll have to pay 
to flashback the Alchemy from your graveyard - you won't be able to use As Foretold to cast it for free.Q: I have a creature that's enchanted with an Eel Umbra and a Hyena Umbra, but it's being destroyed by my opponent's Terminate. Will my creature lose both Umbras or just one of them?
A: It will only lose one Umbra. Both Umbras want to replace the destruction of the creature, so you choose which Umbra's effect will replace the destruction. For example, you can choose to apply Eel Umbra's effect first. Now, Eel Umbra is being destroyed, and since the creature is no longer being destroyed, Hyena Umbra's ability won't do anything, and you'll only lose Eel Umbra and not Hyena Umbra.
Q: If I cast Seasoned Pyromancer, do I have to discard two cards?
A: The Pyromancer's enter the battlefield trigger is not optional. When the trigger resolves, you have to discard two cards - it doesn't use the word "may" or "up to". Note that if you have one (or, even better, zero) cards in hand, you'll end up discarding all of those cards, but you'll still end up drawing two cards from the next part of the effect.
If you think you're seeing double, you're right.
Q: If my Atla Palani, Nest Tender dies at the same time as an Egg token, will Atla Palani still trigger?
A: Yep, it'll still trigger. Atla Palani will see the Egg token dying at the same time as itself, so it will still trigger for that Egg token and you'll still get your free creature from your library.
Q: If I attack with a Graveblade Marauder and a 1/1 creature, and my opponent blocks my 1/1 with their 2/2, will my 1/1 die in time to count for the Marauder's triggered ability?
A: Yep, it will. We count the number of creature cards in your graveyard when the Maurader's trigger resolves. Your 1/1 has died and gone to the graveyard before that trigger resolves, so it will count for the Marauder's triggered ability.
Q: If I control a colorless permanent like Firemind Vessel, can my Bloom Tender tap for colorless mana?
A: No, it cannot. Bloom Tender is only looking for colors among permanents you control - black, blue, green, red, and white. Colorless is still not a color, so Bloom Tender will not count a colorless permanent you control and can't tap for colorless mana.
Q: How does the World supertype work?
A: World is a supertype that you don't really see much of anymore. It's something from the early days of Magic. The last time one was printed in paper was back in Visions, 25 years ago. The idea is that there can only be one World enchantment in play at a time. If a new World enchantment enters the battlefield, all of the old World enchantments that were previously in play go to the graveyard as a state-based action, and if multiple World enchantments entered the battlefield at the same time, all of them would end up in the graveyard.
Keep in mind that this only applies if the enchantment has the "World" supertype - it doesn't just apply to any old enchantment, so as long as you're not digging up your copies of Bazaar of Wonders or Gravity Sphere, you're not going to run into the World rule very often.
Q: If me and my opponent both control a Consecrated Sphinx, are we going deck each other the next time a player draws a card?
A: You probably won't deck each other, but you can both draw a bunch of cards. If you have the Sphinx and your opponent draws for the turn, your Sphinx will trigger and you can draw two cards. If you do, your opponent's Sphinx will then trigger twice, and each of those triggers can cause them to draw two cards. Each time you or your opponent draw from your Sphinx trigger, the other player's Sphinx will then trigger twice. But luckily for you and your opponent, the Sphinx uses the word "may", so you can opt out of drawing when the trigger resolves. Eventually, one of you is going to be content with the number of cards drawn, and you'll choose to stop drawing from your triggers.
Q: I control Marchesa, the Black Rose. I gain control of an opponent's creature, put a +1/+1 counter on it, then sacrifice it to Bloodflow Connoisseur. Will I get their creature at the end of turn?
A: Yep, you can permanently steal their creature this way. Since it died under your control, and since it had a +1/+1 counter on it, Marchesa will trigger. At the end of turn, Marchesa will trigger and will return the creature that you sacrificed to the battlefield under your control, even if it ended up in the opponent's graveyard.
Q: If I attack with Kaalia of the Vast and put Aurelia, the Warleader onto the battlefield tapped and attacking with its trigger, will I get an additional combat phase?
A: No you will not. Aurelia's ability will only trigger if Aurelia is declared as an attacker. It won't trigger of Aurelia is put onto the battlefield attacking. So while Kaalia and Aurelia will be tapped and attacking, since Aurelia was not declared as an attacker, you will not get an additional combat phase.
That's it for this week. We'll see you again next week!
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