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Frantic Madness Card of the Day (COTD) Errata: 1) I've seen so much of the Cabal Archon in the same deck with Unholy Grotto, I assumed he was a zombie. He is only a cleric, so you can't recur him with the Grotto. I stand by the rest of my review there, though. 2) I wrote the COTD reviews for the week on Saturday, before I wrote my column (on Sunday). Then on Sunday, I come down with a cold, and forget to discuss the Callous Oppressors in the sideboard, as I said I would in my review today. So here goes... The Oppressors are very metagame dependant. It will be good for Regionals, or any unknown metagame, as it is good against U/G and R/G. However, if you have very few non-tribal creature decks, he is not as good. One of the cases where you have to know your local metagame, and adjust appropriately. --- Now, on to the questions... Q: My friend plays Merfolk Looter's ability, and then in response to that he uses his other Merfolk Looter to do the same. then he draws 2 cards at the same time and then discards 2. I tell him that he can't do that as you can't resolve another spell as another is resolving. then he makes the argument that the Merfolk Looter's ability is 2 separate parts (spells), and resolve differently: (1) draw, and (2) discard. so basically, he is saying that he draws, and then resolves the other Merfolk, finishes that spell, then finishes the first ability. A: You are correct. Your friend is correct in saying that each is a separate ability, but neglects to figure out that since they are separate abilities, you have to resolve them separately. So he will draw and discard once, then draw and discard again. --- Q: Then he goes on to talk about Frantic Search, and how you can play Arrogant Wurm as part of the discarding. This was his logic: (1) untap three lands, (2) discard 2 cards and madness the Arrogant Wurm, (3) draw 2 cards. So here, he says that the Arrogant Wurm thing resolves before the draw 2 cards. And he won't listen to me that the Frantic Search has to finish resolving first, and that it is only 1 spell. And then he confuses me a bit more. I think the Arrogant Wurm case works because it's madnessing, but you can't do it for the Merfolk Looter, right? -Kevin A: Let me fully walk you through the Frantic Search resolving. 1) Draw 2 cards. 2) Discard 2 cards from your hand. You remove the Arrogant Wurm from the game instead of putting it into the graveyard. This sets up a triggered ability, which, when the triggered ability resolves, allows you to play the Arrogant Wurm for its madness cost until you pass next. However, we are in the middle of resolving something, so that triggered ability has to wait until someone would be given priority (which would be when Frantic Search finishes resolving). 3) Untap up to 3 lands. 4) Frantic Search is done resolving, so we put it into the graveyard. 5) Now, the active player would be given priority here, but we have the madness trigger waiting to go on the stack. So we put the Arrogant Wurm's madness ability on the stack, and then 6) The active player receives priority to do stuff. Note, you can't yet play the Arrogant Wurm. You have to wait for the madness trigger to resolve, and only _then_ can you play the Arrogant Wurm. --- Q: Does playing Celestial Dawn change the color of a spell? For example, I have Powerstone Minefield, Celestial Dawn and Paladin en-Vec in play. I attack or block with Paladin...does he take 2 damage since he is not pro white? Is the Celestial Dawn changing the Powerstone Minefield to a white source? -JF A: Celestial Dawn {1}{W}{W} Enchantment Nonland cards you own that aren't in play and nonland permanents you control are white. Lands you control are plains. Spells and abilities you control produce white mana instead of any other color. You may spend white mana as though it were mana of any color. Since the Powerstone Minefield is now white, it deals its 2 damage to the Paladin, and the Paladin dies. --- Q: A few weeks ago I was drafting at my local store. I had an Aurification out and most of his creatures were walls. I was at 6 and he was at 3. I had plenty of cards in my library but my opponent had 1. I passed my turn and he drew his last card. He proceeded to attack with the creatures he had available to attack with. I had 5 creatures and he had 7, 2 of which were elves. I blocked and left one or both of the elves open. Before damage was on the stack, he cycled Gempalm Strider to give his elves +2/+2 until end of turn. Would he have lost the game because he had to draw from the cycling before the ability or does the card drawing effect even count as a loss? He ended up winning of course and I was just curious as to what the rulings on decking state. -Risa A: You should have won. When your opponent cycled Gempalm Strider, he had to draw a card. Since he couldn't he loses the game right there, long before you would have taken damage. --- Q: My friend and I were playing a game and I had destroyed all his other lands and the turn before I played Thresher Beast. I said he could not block my Thresher Beast, but he said he could. Who is right, him or me? -tt kuhn A: Your friend is. Sacrificing a land is not a cost of blocking, he can block just fine. When it comes time to sac a land, he tries to, but can't, since he doesn't have one. But the block still happens. --- Q: I was playing against my opponent and I had a Weathered Wayfarer, Plains, and a Flooded Strand all untapped. After he played his second land, I saced the Flooded Strand, but in response to this, I tapped the Plains and the Wayfarer saying I had only 1 land (since the Flooded Strand went to graveyard first) and searched for another land to put into my hand. I also got the land from the Sac land I said. He said that I had 2 lands at all times since sacing the Flooded Strand automatically gets a land the second you tap and sac it, but I say there is a short time when it goes to the graveyard before I get the land. Am I right? Can I get another land into my hand with the Wayfarer? A: You are right. Flooded Strand goes on the stack like all other abilities. --- Q: If I had an Enchantress's Presence in play, and play a Squirrel Nest, does it count as an enchantment? -Rob A: Yes. "Enchant [foo]" cards are still enchantments. --- Q: I attack my opponent with a Basking Rootwalla as a 1/1. He blocks with a Wild Mongrel with no cards in hand. Before damage goes on the stack I pump my Rootwalla but in response he activates his Grim Lavamancer and shoots my Rootwalla. My question is, can I activate the Rootwalla's pump ability after the Lavamancer's ability again if I did not get the chance to activate it before to keep it alive long enough to deal damage to the Wild Mongrel or I can only pay for the pumping cost once even if it never got activated? -Henry Nguyen A: "Play this ability only once each turn" means exactly that, you can only play that ability once each turn. Since you've already played the ability, you can't play it again. --- Q: Say my friend has have Doubtless One with power 15/15. I have Silvos block to his Doubtless One, does he gain 15 life or 5 life? Can he only do enough damage to kill a creature or will he deal all 15? -Jacob R. A: He will deal all 15. --- Q: If I have Mirari in play and I cast Chainer's Edict, and I pay 3 mana to copy it, will I have two Chainer's now with flashback? -Mark M. A: You will have 2 spells on the stack, one card and one "pseudospell." So when they both resolve, you will only have 1 more card named Chainer's Edict in your graveyard than you did before. --- Q: I cast a spell and my opponent flips a Willbender to change it's target. Can I flip my own Willbender, and change the target of his Willbenders' ability to my own Willbenders' ability, thus preventing him changing the target of the original spell? I realize I could just wait for his Willbenders' ability to resolve and then change the target back using my own, but this way seems cooler... A: Yes. This is exactly like Deflecting a Counterspell onto the Deflection. --- Q: Also, is there any way, barring Shared Triumph (Elves) or similar, to disenchant an Engineered Plague (Elves) with an Elvish Lyrist? Even if the Lyrist is in play, does it die form the Plague before you can activate its ability? And if the Lyrist isn't in play, is there any way to play it? -Andy S. A: No. When the Plague enters play, the Elvish Lyrist gets -1/-1, making its toughness 0. Therefore, it is immediately put into the graveyard, before anyone gets priority. See you Monday. -Bill Guerin Ask Judge Bill A Question Here DCI Level 2 Judge
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