Pojo's Magic The Gathering
Judge's Corner

It Takes A Village

First, a word concerning my Card of the Day reviews, since I've gotten several emails this week about them.

I am first and foremost a tournament player. While I play casual on MTGO a bit, I have no idea how cards should be ranked in that forum. So if you have a goofy idea that will work in a casual format, more power to you.

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Short answers:

-102. Authorized Cards

Participants may not use cards from any special-edition sets or supplements, such as Collector’s Edition, International Collector’s Edition, Pro Tour™ Collector Set, World Championship decks, or Unglued™ cards. Note: Unglued basic land cards are allowed in sanctioned Magic tournaments.

-Creatures, while they are being played, are spells.

-Dual lands count as both types of land for cards like Collective Restraint.

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Long Answers:

Q: If I play Rancor on Treetop Village after it has become a land, does my Rancor return to my hand at the clean up step?

A: Yes. It is going to the graveyard from play, so it returns.

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Q: If I put a counter (+1/+1) on the Treetop Village, does the counter gets removed at the clean up step?

A: No. The counter stays on the Village. (It doesn't do anything when the Village isn't a creature, but it stays there anyway.)

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Q: Do I draw a card when I play a enchantment when I have a Argothian Enchantress in play but the enchantment is counter by Counterspell?

A: Yes.

Argothian Enchantress

{1}{G}

Creature -- Enchantress

0/1

Argothian Enchantress can't be the target of spells or abilities.

Whenever you play an enchantment spell, draw a card.

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Q: I control a Planar Void and my opponent has a Serra Avatar, and I kill the Serra Avatar, where does the Serra Avatar go?

A: Back into his deck. The ability to shuffle it in when it would go to the graveyard is a replacement effect, so the Avatar never even touches the graveyard - it's shuffled in instead.

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Q: If I Replenish 3 Opalescence and 1 Rancor, my opponent controls a Land Tax, what happened to the Rancor?

A: Unless there is another creature in play, the Rancor stays in the graveyard. The enchantments aren't creatures until they're in play, so they're not legal cards for the Rancor to enchant.

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Q: I play a Shock on my friends River Boa, he then response with his ability to put regeneration shell on his creature, we let it resolve. I then play my Hurr Jackal's ability targeting the River Boa and let it resolve. I then play Debt of Loyalty on River Boa and then it resolved, then the Shock resolved, what will happened to the River Boa?

A: It will go to the graveyard. Since it never regenerated, Debt of Loyalty can't give it to you.

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Q: If I'm at 1 and I play Corrupt with 7 swamps targeting my opponent. Then my opponent responds with Misdirection on the Corrupt, making it target me. Does my life goes to 8 or am I still at 1?

-Bahamut O.

A: You are still at 1. You lose 7 life, then you gain 7 life, all during the resolution of Corrupt.

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Q: I have out Noxious Ghoul. I play a morphed creature, then morph it up & it is a zombie. Since it came into play as a morphed card, all non-zombie creatures DON'T get -1/-1 until end of turn, because morphing a card face up does not mean it came into play, correct?

-Jacob R.

A: Correct.

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Q: My opponent plays a Duress and targets me, I then tell him I have no cards in my hand. He says that Duress goes back to his hand and he gets to untap his land, I say the spell "fizzles" and goes to the graveyard, who is right?

-Arturo T.

A: Neither of you. Your opponent looks at your (empty) hand, and since he can't choose a non-creature, non-land spell, Duress is done resolving.

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Q: Let's say I have an Unnatural Selection out, and a Standard Bearer. I have 2 untapped mana. My opponent "Matt" plays Unsummon targeting the flagbearer. In response, I pay 1 to make my Standard Bearer's creature type into an Uncle Istvan creature type, and pay 1 to turn one of his creatures into a creature type of Flagbearer. Now he has to unsummon his creature, correct?

-Random Scrub

A: Incorrect. Standard Bearer's Flagbearer ability looks, sees that the Unsummon is currently targeting a Flagbearer, and doesn't trigger. Your Standard Bearer will still be Unsummoned.

See you Monday.

Bill Guerin

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DCI Level 2 Judge