Published on 03/31/2025
All in Jeopardy
Can you answer in the form of a question?
By Carsten Haese, Nathan Long, and Justin Hovdenes
This Article from: Justin Hovdenes
Cranial Translation
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"Alex, the answer is "What would be an
example of an oximoron?"
example of an oximoron?"
Today we have a collection of questions found on the IRC Chatroom #magicjudges-rules and the Facebook group Ask the Judge - Magic: The Gathering Rules and Policy Questions. Feel free to join us in either or both groups.
If you have any Magic questions burning at the back of your brain, you can send them to us. We may even use them in a future article. If you have a short question, you can send it to us via our Twitter account at @CranialTweet, and you can send us longer questions at moko@cranialinsertion.com .
Q: I have two Squires on the battlefield and I have Custodi Soulbinders and four copies of Bear Cub in my graveyard. If I cast Living Death, how many +1/+1 counters will Soulbinders enter with?
A: Custodi Soulbinders will enter with zero +1/+1 counters. Souldbinders and the Bears will enter simultaneously. Soulbinders' first ability is a replacement effect that checks to see how many creatures are on the battlefield just before it enters. At that point there are no creatures on the board, so it gets no counters as it enters.
Q: My commander is Grimgrin, Corpse-Born. Grimgrin was Murdered last turn and I choose to move him to the command zone. I control Rooftop Storm. If I try to cast Grimgrin from the command zone, will he cost
or will he be free?A: He will cost
. Commander "tax" is an additional cost that must be paid in addition to the normal cost for casting your commander. Rooftop Storm gives you the option of replacing the normal cost of casting your Zombies with
. This has no effect on additional costs. Q: My opponent exiled Wheel of Fate with Reckless Impulse. She now claims she can cast Wheel of Fate because it's in exile. Is that true?
A: Your opponent is wrong. The part of suspend that lets you cast a card with no mana cost is casting it without paying its mana cost, not that it's casting it from exile.
Q: I control four Bear Cubs, Agrus Kos, Eternal Soldier, and Thundering Raiju. None of my creatures are currently modified. I attack with the Raiju and have its attack trigger target Agrus. When Agrus's ability triggers because he became targeted, I pay the cost. After all these triggers resolve, how much damage will Raiju deal to each opponent?
A: The Answer is between 15-19 damage, depending on when you let the trigger targeting Raiju resolve.
When Agrus's trigger resolves, it creates five copies of Raiju's trigger, one for each Bear and one for Raiju, making a total of six Raiju triggers. The last trigger to resolve has to be the one targeting Agrus, and the other five resolve before it in the order of your choosing.
For our first example, we will have the trigger targeting Raiju resolve first, then the four triggers targeting Bears, and finally the one targeting Agrus.
Raiju gets a +1/+1 counter, no damage is dealt as Raiju only checks modified creatures other than himself. Total damage 0.
Bear #1 gets a +1/+1 counter, 1 damage is dealt as there is only one modified creature other than Raiju. Total damage 1.
Bear #2 gets a +1/+1 counter, 2 damage is dealt as there are now two modified creatures. Total damage 3.
Bear #3 gets a +1/+1 counter, 3 damage is dealt. Total damage 6.
Bear #4 gets a counter, 4 damage is dealt. Total damage of 10.
Agrus get a a counter, 5 damage is dealt. Total damage of 15.
Now let's have the four Bears' triggers resolve first, then Raiju, followed by Agrus.
Bear #1, 1 damage is dealt. Total damage 1.
Bear #2, 2 damage is dealt. Total damage 3.
Bear #3, 3 damage id dealt. Total damage 6.
Bear #4, 4 damage is dealt. Total damage is 10.
Raiju, 4 damage is dealt. Total damage is 14.
Agrus, 5 damage is dealt. Total damage is 19.
The later the trigger targeting Raiju resolves, the more the total damage.
Alex, the answer is "What is used to
keep the dead from escaping their graves?"
keep the dead from escaping their graves?"
A: Well, in the important ways, yes. They still "manifest dread", but some parts they can't complete. Manifest Dread is "Look at the top two cards of your library. Manifest one of them, then put the cards you looked at that were not manifested this way into your graveyard." Since you can't put a creature from your library into play, both cards looked at are put into the graveyard.
Q: Last turn my opponent stole my Bear Cub by casting Sower of Temptation. This turn I used Ovinize to make the Sower lose all its abilities. I did this because I think I'll get my Bear Cub back, since the Sower no longer has the "steal your creature" ability. My opponent disagrees. Who is right?
A: Your opponent is correct. Removing the enters ability (that creates an effect with a duration) after the ability has resolved, doesn't stop it from functioning.
If it helps, an example that seems more intuitive would be the following: My opponent used Rootwater Matriarch to steel my Hill Giant enchanted with Spirit Link. Killing the Matriarch won't get the Hill Giant back, even though that removes where the steal ability came from. The duration is based on whether or not the Hill Giant is still enchanted.
So with the original question, removing Sower's abilities doesn't stop the steal effect. You have to remove the Sower to gain the creature back because that ends the duration of the effect.
Q: So continuing with the last question, what if instead of Ovinizeing the Sower of Temptation I phased it out with Reality Ripple?
A: You would get your creature back. If a creature phases out, it's treated as though it's no longer on the battlefield. The duration of its effect has been met, so the effect ends and the stolen creature returns to its last controller, usually its owner.
Q: I block my opponent's attacking Bear Cub with Manor Gargoyle. After combat ends, the opponent then casts Disfigure targeting my Gargoyle. They claim they just killed my Gargoyle. Is this true?
A: It is not true, your Gargoyle lives through this. Many new players make this same wrong assumption. Damage doesn't reduce toughness. You have a 2/2 Gargoyle with 2 damage marked on it. Because it's indestructible, the state based action that tries to destroy it for having equal or more damage than it has toughness fails to do anything. If they want to get your Gargoyle into the graveyard, they need to give it enough -X/-X to make its toughness 0 or less, or force you to sacrifice it.
Q: If Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer is my commander, can I cast him for his dash cost from the command zone?
A: Yes, you can. Dash can be used from any zone, so long as you are allowed to cast that card from that same zone normally.
Q: Following up with the last question, do I have to pay commander tax if I dash out my commander?
A: Yes, you do. Suppose you cast Ragavan normally on turn one, then later he died and returned to the command zone. When you go to dash him he now costs
to dash. Then if he dies again and returns to the command zone, the next time you go to cast him he costs either 
to cast normally or 
to dash.Q: I have eight cards in my hand. I go to my cleanup step and discard Blazing Rootwalla to get down to maximum hand size. Can I cast the Rootwalla even though I'm in my cleanup step?
A: Yes, you can. During most cleanup steps, no players get priority. However, if an ability triggers during the cleanup step, or a state based action applies during a cleanup step, then the active player gains priority and may cast spells and activate abilities.
This is when you can cast the Rootwalla, as discarding it to madness puts a trigger on the stack.
A normal priority pass will begin from here and until all players pass in succession with an empty stack, players may add new items to the stack when they have priority. Once all players pass with an empty stack, this cleanup step ends and a new one begins. If that new cleanup ends normally, then the game will move on to the next player's turn.
Q: While resolving Burning Inquiry I discarded Basking Rootwalla and two Mountains. My opponent controls a Rest in Peace. My opponent claims I can't cast the Rootwalla for its Madness cost as it got exiled by Rest in Peace when I discarded it. Is this true?
A: Your opponent is wrong. You can cast your Rootwalla for its madness cost. The Rootwalla hasn't been exiled by Rest in Peace yet. This is because madness doesn't quite work the way most people think it does. If a card with madness gets discarded, it goes to exile instead of being put into its owner's graveyard. Then the next time a player would get priority, a trigger allowing its owner to cast it for its madness cost is put on the stack. When this trigger resolves, the owner may cast the card, but if they don't then the card is put into their graveyard.
To get back to the original question, Rest in Peace can only exile a discarded Madness card after the owner has decided not to cast it for madness and choses to let it go to the graveyard.
Q: My opponent pays
to gain level 2 on their Stormchaser's Talent. Before it becomes level 2, I Boomerang it to their hand. The opponent says they still get to return an instant or sorcery to their hand, I say they don't, who is right?A: You are correct, they do not. Gaining a level is an ability that uses the stack and can be responded to. Stormchaser's level 2 ability is a trigger that triggers upon it becoming level 2 and happens only after it becomes level 2. If it's not on the battlefield when its level 2 ability resolves, there is no ability to trigger (nor a permanent to become level 2).
Alex, the answer is "What is another
name for Ursine Child?"
name for Ursine Child?"
A: You get to choose as you control the Sigil of Sleep.
Q: I attack with Geist of Saint Traft while I control Anointed Procession. When combat ends, will both Angel tokens get exiled or do I get to keep one?
A: Both still get exiled. Saint Traft's triggered ability still made both tokens and tracks them to be exiled at the end of combat. Procession doesn't make tokens, it just changes how many tokens other cards and abilities make.
Q: I attack with Geist of Saint Traft, but before blocks, I cast Eyes in the Skies choosing to populate the Angel token. When combat ends, will both Angel tokens get exiled or do I get to keep one?
A: You get to keep the one made by Eyes in the Skies. Unlike Anointed Procession from the last question, Eyes in the Skies makes the token and the token has no link to the ability that made the original Angel token. This includes that the second Angel token is not attacking, is not tapped, and it won't get exiled at the end of combat.
Q: I don't understand what Emrakul, the World Anew has protection from. Can you clarify this?
A: Emrakul has protection from spells and separately protection from permanents cast "this turn". This turn is whichever turn it currently is, even if it's been many turns since Emrakul herself was cast.
So for example, if I cast Visara the Dreadful and gave her some Lightning Greaves the same turn I cast her, she can't target and destroy Emrakul that turn. However, if I pass to my opponent's turn, Visara can now kill Emrakul as it's no longer the same turn Visara was cast. If I used Goryo's Vengeance to reanimate Visara, then Visara could kill Emrakul that same turn as Visara wasn't cast at all.
Emrakul's protection ability acts similar to having protection from Auras. Auras when cast target what they will enchant, so Emrakul is safe from most Auras. However, on later turns, an Aura could be moved from its original target, to enchant Emrakul. For example, you could move Pacifism from a 1/1 Goblin token to Emrakul using Crown of the Ages.
Q: I cast Season of Weaving choosing the two paws mode (to copy my Arcanis the Omnipotent) and the three paws mode. Will I have to put one Arcanis into my graveyard due to the legend rule before bouncing all nonland and nontoken permanents?
A: You will not and you can not. The legend rule is a state based action. It's never checked in the middle of resolving a spell. You will put the original Arcanis into your hand before Season of Weaving fully resolves. The legend rule doesn't come into play during this situation.
Q: If I cast Righteous Confluence choosing mode two once to exile my opponent's Leyline of Sanctity and mode three twice to gain 10 total life, and the opponent responds by Boomeranging the Leyline back to their hand, do I still gain 10 life?
A: You do not. Righteous Confluence had only one target, Leyline of Sanctity, and that target has disappeared. If a spell loses all of its targets by the time it goes to resolve, it fizzles and none of its effects happen.
Q: I just cast Cultivate putting a Swamp onto the battlefield and a Forest into my hand. I haven't played a land from my hand yet this turn. Can I still play the Forest as my land drop for the turn, or did the Swamp use up my land drop for the turn?
A: You may still play the Forest. Putting a land onto the battlefield with a spell or ability doesn't use up your one land drop per turn.
Each Question in my last article had a hidden reference to a different pop-culture pig. With ten different questions there were ten different pigs. The spoiler below has the answer key to those references.
Spoiler:
- Justin Hovdenes AKA Hovey
Level 2 Magic Judge
Rapid City, SD
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