Published on 06/24/2013
What happens in North Canton...
...stays in North Canton
By Eli Shiffrin, Carsten Haese, James Bennett, and Callum Milne
This Article from: Carsten Haese
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 Information in this article may be out of date due to subsequent Oracle and/or rules changes.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.
When you've had enough of the slot machines,
try gambling at the all-you-can-eat shrimp buffet!
First prize: agonizing stomach cramps!
try gambling at the all-you-can-eat shrimp buffet!
First prize: agonizing stomach cramps!
While we're waiting for Magic 2014 to come out, there are still plenty of questions to answer about Standard, Modern, Legacy, Vintage, and Commander. Send yours in to moko@cranialinsertion.com to be answered by one of our writers, and they might even appear in a future issue.
Q: How does split second interact with Possibility Storm?
A: There is no interaction there. The Possibility Storm trigger still goes on the stack above the spell as usual, since split second only prohibits casting spells and activating non-mana abilities. It doesn't prevent triggered abilities from going on the stack. When Possibility Storm's trigger resolves, it begins by exiling the split second spell, so the effect that prohibits you from casting spells ends and you get to cast the free spell that you run into.
Q: Let's say I control Varolz, the Scar-Striped and there's a Deadbridge Goliath in my graveyard. Which cost would I have to pay to scavenge five counters onto one of my guys?
A: You choose! Varolz gives Deadbridge Goliath a second instance of scavenge, so Deadbridge Goliath now has "scavenge
" and "scavenge 
." You can choose whichever of the two you want to activate, so you'll probably use the cheaper one. Q: Could I pay both costs to get ten counters?
A: Nice try, but no. You can only activate one ability at a time, and part of the cost to activate scavenge is to exile the card from your graveyard. Unless you somehow get the card back from the exile zone, you can only scavenge it once.
Q: I still control Varolz, the Scar-Striped, there's only a Tarmogoyf in my graveyard, and my opponent's graveyard is empty. How many counters would I give to Varolz if I scavenged Tarmogoyf onto it?
A: One counter. Scavenge looks at the power of the creature card that you exiled in order to activate the ability, so it looks at the card as it existed in the graveyard, not at the card as it exists in the exile zone. In the graveyard, Tarmogoyf's power was 1 because it could see itself being in the graveyard.
Q: I suspended Ancestral Vision four turns ago, and in the meantime my opponent stuck a Thalia, Guardian of Thraben on the battlefield. I know that Ancestral Vision costs
when the last time counter comes off, but do I have to pay that if I don't want to?A: No, you don't have to. (Well, you have to if there happens to be mana in your mana pool for some reason, but that happens so rarely that I'm not even sure why I'm mentioning this.) While casting the spell is mandatory if you're able to cast it, it is not mandatory to activate mana abilities to enable you to cast it. If you decline to produce the necessary mana, or if you're unable to do so, the card simply remains in exile indefinitely.
Q: My opponent has locked me out of my cheap spells with a Chalice of the Void at 1. If there's a Trinisphere on the board, can I Brainstorm for 3 and not get it countered?
A: Sadly, no. Chalice of the Void looks at Brainstorm's converted mana cost, which is derived only by the mana cost in the top right corner. Trinisphere adds two mana to the total cost to cast Brainstorm, but Brainstorm's converted mana cost is still 1.
Q: Can I still cast Force of Will for its alternative cost if there's a Trinisphere on the board?
A: You can, but it'll cost you
extra. As the very last step of casting Force of Will for its alternative cost, Trinisphere looks at how much mana is in the total cost so far. "None at all" is not enough, so Trinisphere adds to the total cost. Do you feel lucky?
A: Yup! Since none of the creatures have first strike or double strike, they all deal combat damage to each other at the same time, then they all die at the same time, and then Moldgraf Monstrosity's trigger goes on the stack. When Moldgraf Monstrosity's trigger resolves, your two vanilla creatures are in the graveyard, and they're the only creature cards in your graveyard, so you "randomly" return them to the battlefield.
Q: I cast Firestorm and my opponent counters it. Do I still have to discard cards?
A: Yes, or more accurately, you're supposed to have discarded cards already before your opponent even gets the chance to counter Firestorm. Contrary to the printed text that looks like an activated ability, discarding cards is an additional cost to cast Firestorm, and just like all other costs, this cost won't be refunded if the spell is countered.
Q: My opponent controls Rule of Law and he tries to cast a spell during his turn. If I counter that spell, can he then cast another spell?
A: Nope. Your opponent didn't merely try to cast a spell; he actually did cast a spell. The fact that your counter prevented it from resolving doesn't undo the fact that he cast it. Both you and your opponent have cast one spell this turn, so both you and your opponent are locked out from casting any more spells for the remainder of the turn.
Q: How can Clone target creatures with hexproof or shroud? Doesn't Clone target?
A: Clone might take a very long and intrusive look at the creature it's about to copy, but it's not targeting that creature. Apart from keywords that have the word "target" baked into their definition, an ability only targets something if it literally uses the word "target" in the description of the thing. Since Clone's ability is not a keyword ability and doesn't use the word "target," it doesn't target, so shroud and hexproof are no obstacles for it.
Q: My opponent casts a Glacial Ray targeting my Pestermite and splices on another Glacial Ray targeting my Spellstutter Sprite. If I counter the original Glacial Ray, what happens to the spliced Glacial Ray?
A: The splice is copied onto the original spell, so all that damage is coming from one spell. If that spell is countered, none of its effects happen, so both of your Faeries are safe.
Q: My opponent casts a Chalice of the Void for 1. Can I Spell Snare it?
A: Certainly! The converted mana cost of Chalice of the Void is X+X, and for a spell on the stack you count X as the value that was chosen for it, so the CMC of a Chalice for 1 is 2, which makes it fair game for your Spell Snare.
Q: Can I stop my opponent from flashing back Ancient Grudge by naming it with Phyrexian Revoker?
A: Nope. Phyrexian Revoker stops activated abilities, which flashback unfortunately is not. Flashback is a static ability that allows a player to cast the card from the graveyard for an alternative cost.
Strange, nobody ever bets on "skull."
A: No, that doesn't work. When you change the target of a spell, the new target has to be a legal target for that spell. Mental Misstep can only target a spell with converted mana cost 1, which Misdirection isn't, and Mental Misstep can't target itself because a spell can never target itself. Chances are that the only legal target for Mental Misstep is the spell that it was already supposed to counter, so your Misdirection does nothing.
Q: Can I give flashback to Mental Misstep with Snapcaster Mage and then cast it for 2 life?
A: Sure, you can do that. Snapcaster Mage gives Mental Misstep a flashback cost that's the same as its mana cost, which is
. This cost can be paid with one blue mana or with 2 life. Q: So, if that works, then why can't I flash back Force of Will by pitching a blue card and paying 1 life?
A: For the same reason, actually. Snapcaster Mage gives Force of Will a flashback cost equal to its mana cost, which is
, and there's only one way to pay that cost. Force of Will has an ability that creates an alternative cost, but that means nothing to Snapcaster Mage. Mental Misstep offers the life payment alternative as part of its mana cost, which is what Snapcaster Mage cares about. Q: I control Goblin Welder and Grafdigger's Cage. Can I use the Welder to swap the Cage for a Lodestone Golem in my graveyard?
A: You can try, but you'll just end up sacrificing the Cage without getting a Golem in return. Welder's ability asks you to put the Golem onto the battlefield and to sacrifice the Cage at the same time. In order to figure out how much of this action is possible, the game looks at the board state right before this action. At that moment, the Cage is still on the battlefield, so the ability that forbids creature cards from entering the battlefield from the graveyard is still in effect. This means that only the part that tells you to sacrifice the Cage is possible. The impossible action of returning the Golem to the battlefield is ignored, and the Golem stays where it is. Poor Golem.
Q: We're going to game 3 of our match. I am keeping seven, and while my opponent is taking a mulligan, the end of the round is announced. What happens?
A: Your match ends right then and there with a 1-1-0 result, which is a draw because neither player won more games than the other player. Since you were still in the middle of the pre-game procedure, game three hadn't started yet when time was called, so you don't get to play five additional turns to try for a quick win.
Q: My opponent controls a Blind-Spot Giant, an Avian Changeling, a Ballynock Trapper, and an unattached Runed Stalactite. He asks "Go to combat?" and I respond by killing his Changeling so that his Giant can't attack. He claims that he can equip the Stalactite to the Trapper because the game is still in his main phase. Is he right?
A: No, that's not right. By asking to go to combat, your opponent passed priority until you have priority in the beginning of combat step. Since you didn't specify otherwise, that's the step in which you destroyed the Changeling. The game won't rewind to the main phase just because that would make your opponent happy.
Q: My opponent just cast a Sire of Insanity, and then he passed the turn to me. He discarded his hand but didn't tell me to discard mine. Do I still have to discard my hand or did he miss that trigger?
A: Sire of Insanity has one trigger that forces both players to discard their hands. Your opponent discarded his hand, so he clearly didn't miss that trigger. Since he's resolving the trigger, you now have a shared responsibility in making sure that it resolves correctly, so you should discard your hand even if your opponent doesn't remind you.
That's all the time we have for now. Please come back next week when Callum presents another selection of questions and some souvenirs from Las Vegas! I'll see you in three weeks for our Magic 2014 prerelease special. Don't miss it!
- Carsten Haese
About the Author:
Carsten Haese is a former Level 2 judge based in Toledo, OH. He is retired from active judging, but he still writes for Cranial Insertion and helps organize an annual charity Magic tournament that benefits the National MS Society.
kingofthebush
In the second to last question, couldn't the player who asked "go to combat?" have meant 'move to combat phase?', only intending to pass priority on his main phase(and not past his priority on the beginning of combat step), in which case if his opponent did something, he gets priority again on his main phase? If the attacking player says this is the case, how is something like this handled in a real-world situation by a judge?
#1
• Date: 2013-06-24 • Time: 03:43:51 •
Carsten
Quote (kingofthebush):
|
In the second to last question, couldn't the player who asked "go to combat?" have meant 'move to combat phase?', only intending to pass priority on his main phase(and not past his priority on the beginning of combat step), in which case if his opponent did something, he gets priority again on his main phase? If the attacking player says this is the case, how is something like this handled in a real-world situation by a judge? |
The Magic Tournament Rules specify standard shortcuts, one of which is that any statement similar to "move to combat" offers to pass priority until the opponent has priority in the beginning of combat step, and that the opponent is assumed to act in that step unless he or she specifies otherwise.
Even if the AP only meant to pass priority in the main phase, what matters is when NAP wants to act. If NAP wants to act in the beginning of combat step, then that's when NAP is acting. There is nothing that AP can say to trick NAP into misplaying his pre-combat play in the main phase, and judges generally take a dim view of players that try to play word games with their opponent.
#2
• Date: 2013-06-24 • Time: 06:58:58 •
I had meant it, as if it had been an honest mistake, but I see what you're saying. Thanks.
#3
• Date: 2013-06-24 • Time: 12:57:46 •
Three questions...
Re: Mental Misstep, in that scenario, couldn\'t you have Mental Misstep target itself on the stack as it\'s also a spell on the stack that is CMC 1?
Re: Goblin Welder/Grafdigger\'s Cage/Lodestone Golem, Goblin Welder\'s oracle text specifically says \"If both targets are still legal as this ability resolves\", which would prevent the rest of the card from going off in that case, correct? The Lodestone Golem is still considered to be \"legal\" because you can still choose to target something knowing what you want to do with it (have it ETB from the yard, in this instance) is prohibited by an effect (Grafdigger\'s static)... Is that right?
Re: the \'move to combat\' question, Could you guys list the different phases in a turn? By the sounds of this, there is a phase (and priority) in between \'precombat main phase\' and \'declare attackers\' that I wasn\'t aware of.
Last edited on 2013-06-26 07:09:54 by thepowda
Re: Mental Misstep, in that scenario, couldn\'t you have Mental Misstep target itself on the stack as it\'s also a spell on the stack that is CMC 1?
Re: Goblin Welder/Grafdigger\'s Cage/Lodestone Golem, Goblin Welder\'s oracle text specifically says \"If both targets are still legal as this ability resolves\", which would prevent the rest of the card from going off in that case, correct? The Lodestone Golem is still considered to be \"legal\" because you can still choose to target something knowing what you want to do with it (have it ETB from the yard, in this instance) is prohibited by an effect (Grafdigger\'s static)... Is that right?
Re: the \'move to combat\' question, Could you guys list the different phases in a turn? By the sounds of this, there is a phase (and priority) in between \'precombat main phase\' and \'declare attackers\' that I wasn\'t aware of.
Last edited on 2013-06-26 07:09:54 by thepowda
#4
• Date: 2013-06-26 • Time: 07:01:12 •
Carsten
Quote (thepowda):
|
Three questions... Re: Mental Misstep, in that scenario, couldn't you have Mental Misstep target itself on the stack as it's also a spell on the stack that is CMC 1? Re: Goblin Welder/Grafdigger's Cage/Lodestone Golem, Goblin Welder's oracle text specifically says "If both targets are still legal as this ability resolves", which would prevent the rest of the card from going off in that case, correct? The Lodestone Golem is still considered to be "legal" because you can still choose to target something knowing what you want to do with it (have it ETB from the yard, in this instance) is prohibited by an effect (Grafdigger's static)... Is that right? Re: the 'move to combat' question, Could you guys list the different phases in a turn? By the sounds of this, there is a phase (and priority) in between 'precombat main phase' and 'declare attackers' that I wasn't aware of. |
1) No. As I already said in the article, a spell can never target itself.
114.4. A spell or ability on the stack is an illegal target for itself.
2) Both targets are still legal, so the ability resolves and does as much as it can. The fact that the Golem can't be returned from the graveyard doesn't mean that it's an illegal target. It meets the targeting restriction of "target artifact card in that player's graveyard," so it's a legal target.
3) The phases are Beginning, Main, Combat, Main, and Ending. The Beginning Phase has three steps: untap, upkeep, and draw. The Combat Phase has five steps: beginning of combat, declare attackers, declare blockers, combat damage, and end of combat. The Ending Phase has two steps: end and cleanup. The priority pass you were previously unaware of is happening in the beginning of combat step.
#5
• Date: 2013-06-26 • Time: 19:08:32 •
Thanks Carsten!
1) I totally missed the part where you stated spells can't target themselves. My apologies.
2) Thanks. By reading CI weekly, I'm slowly getting up to speed with the way the magic rules "think" and my second question was trying to make sure I got the full understanding of the rules in play.
3) My playgroup is absolutely unaware of all of the phases and steps. Looking forward to bringing that info back to the group.
**
Last question... The first step/phase that players can get priority in a turn is Upkeep, correct? After upkeep, all phases and steps that follow allow players priority to cast legal spells and activate abilities, yes?
1) I totally missed the part where you stated spells can't target themselves. My apologies.
2) Thanks. By reading CI weekly, I'm slowly getting up to speed with the way the magic rules "think" and my second question was trying to make sure I got the full understanding of the rules in play.
3) My playgroup is absolutely unaware of all of the phases and steps. Looking forward to bringing that info back to the group.
**
Last question... The first step/phase that players can get priority in a turn is Upkeep, correct? After upkeep, all phases and steps that follow allow players priority to cast legal spells and activate abilities, yes?
#6
• Date: 2013-06-27 • Time: 08:29:40 •
Natedogg
The first chance to cast anything during a turn is during the upkeep, after all 'at beginning of upkeep' triggers have gone on the stack. No player gets priority during the untap step, and it's really hard to get priority during the cleanup step (you need something to trigger during the cleanup step or one of the state-based actions needs to happen during the step in order for someone to get priority. If someone does get priority during the cleanup step, there will be another cleanup step. This will repeat until no one gets priority during the cleanup step, then you'll move on to the next turn).
#7
• Date: 2013-06-27 • Time: 09:50:00 •
