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Pojo's Magic The Gathering
Judge's Corner
Okay … I've been getting
a lot of repeat questions dealing with protection and
trample. I've been trying to hold off on new mantras,
but I now have to add two in one column, dealing with
protection and trample. Questions first, mantras follow,
then a mantra compilation before I answer the other
questions.
As a side note, I had to separate the questions that
generated the mantras from the other questions sent by
those persons. So if you are one of the two people who
sent the first two questions, keep reading … your other
questions are down below.
---
Q: I am a big Iridescent Angel fan... but can I enchant
it with Armadillo Cloak? Does it get +1/+1 from Mirari's
Wake? Can I give it +7/+7 with Might of Oaks?
-Beth W.
A: Mantra #4 - "Protection is a DEBT we owe some of our
permanents."
DEBT is an acronym. It stands for Damage, Enchantments,
Blocking, and Targeting, which are the 4 things you
can't do to a creature with protection.
For an extended definition, protection is usually
written on a card as "Protection from [quality]." (For
example, "Protection from green.")
-Damage: All damage dealt to the permanent from a source
with the stated quality is prevented.
-Enchantments: The permanent can't be enchanted by
permanents with the stated quality.
-Blocking: The permanent can't be blocked by permanents
with the stated quality.
-Targeting: The permanent can't be targeted by spells
with the stated quality, or abilities from permanents
with the stated quality. (Remember Mantra #3 here,
repeated below.)
So your answers are no, yes, no.
---
Q: Is there such a thing as "Pro-trample damage"?
Example: My friend plays an Avatar of Might and ends his
turn. I play a Floating Shield (Pro Green) on my
Stormscape Familiar and end my turn. He attacks with his
Avatar and I block with my Familiar. Do I take any
damage at all?
A: Mantra #5: When assigning trample, look only at the
toughness of the blocking creatures. Assign damage so
that they would have that much damage on them, and then
you can assign the other damage to your opponent.
I know, it's a little unwieldy, but I couldn't make it
any shorter. Sorry.
Note: You can assign the extra damage to the creatures
if you want, or assign all the damage to one or more
creatures (even though the damage being dealt is greater
than the toughness of that creature) and none to the
other creatures. But you have to assign damage as the
mantra says before you can assign trample damage to your
opponent.
Example 1: Your example. The Avatar only needs to assign
1 damage to the Familiar, and can assign the other 7
damage to either you or the Familiar in any combination
your opponent likes.
Example 2: He attacks with the Avatar again. You block
with Commander Eesha (2/4, Flying, Protection from
Creatures) this time. He only needs to assign 4 to Eesha,
and can assign the other 4 between you and Eesha, again,
in any combination he likes.
Example 3: The next turn rolls around, and he plays a
Powerstone Minefield before attacking. You block with
Eesha again. Since Eesha already has 2 damage on her
when it's time to assign damage, your opponent only
needs to assign 2 damage to Eesha, and can assign the
other 6 to you.
---
OK. Now it's time for a Mantra Review. The Mantras
first, followed by footnotes.
1. "I can't play any spells or abilities while something
is resolving." (18 April)
2. "Increasing the power of creatures once their damage
has been put on the stack won't make them do more
damage." (13 May) (Footnote A)
3. "If the card doesn't say 'TARGET,' it doesn't
target." (31 May)
4. "Protection is a DEBT we owe some of our permanents."
(26 September) (Footnote B)
5. "When assigning trample, look only at the toughness
of the blocking creatures. Assign damage so that they
would have that much damage on them, and then you can
assign the other damage to your opponent." (26
September) (Footnote C)
Footnote A: A corollary to this mantra is, "Decreasing
the power of creatures after damage is on the stack
won't make them do less damage." (14 June)
Footnote B: DEBT is an acronym. It stands for Damage,
Enchantments, Blocking, and Targeting, which are the 4
things you can't do to a creature with protection.
For an extended definition, protection is usually
written on a card as "Protection from [quality]." (For
example, "Protection from green.")
-Damage: All damage dealt to the permanent from a source
with the stated quality is prevented.
-Enchantments: The permanent can't be enchanted by
permanents with the stated quality.
-Blocking: The permanent can't be blocked by permanents
with the stated quality.
-Targeting: The permanent can't be targeted by spells
with the stated quality, or abilities from permanents
with the stated quality. (Remember Mantra #3.)
Footnote C: You can assign the extra damage to the
creatures if you want, or assign all the damage to one
or more creatures (even though the damage being dealt is
greater than the toughness of that creature) and none to
the other creatures. But you have to assign damage as
the mantra says before you can assign trample damage to
your opponent.
---
Boy, this is starting to get a little large with the
footnotes. Hopefully though, you won't need to remember
the footnotes after you've applied the mantras once or
twice.
Remember, once I've issued a Mantra, I generally won't
answer any questions that it answers.
---
Now, on to the other questions…
Q: I'm using Yawgmoth's Agenda. Are the cards in my
graveyard discardable or only useable in the spell
sense? I'm saying, does my graveyard basically become my
hand?
-Nmac027
A: The only thing you can do with a Yawgmoth's Agenda
out is play the cards in your graveyard. You can't do
anything else with them that you couldn't normally.
---
Q: I have a question about Abundance and Words of
Wilding. If I have an Abundance in play and a Words of
Wilding in play, may I use Abundance's ability and in my
response to my using Abundance's ability may I use
Word's of Wilding to put a 2/2 bear creature token into
play and still get a card into my hand through
Abundance?
-Scott F.
A: No. Once you replace the draw with either the
Abundance effect or the Words effect, the other effect
doesn't have a draw to replace, so it won't happen. So
you can either put a Bear into play, or choose land or
nonland and reveal cards until you hit what you chose.
419.8a If two or more replacement or prevention effects
are attempting to modify the way an event affects a
permanent or player, the affected permanent's controller
or the affected player chooses one to apply to that
permanent or player. Then the other applies if it is
still appropriate. If one or more of the applicable
replacement effects is a "self-replacement effect" (see
rule 419.6d), that effect is applied before any other
replacement effects.
---
Q: My friend has a Thorn Elemental and a Bloodshot
Cyclops in play. He attacks with his Thorn Elemental and
it deals 7 damage to me. In his second main phase he
sacrifices his Thorn Elemental with the Bloodshot's
ability on me. Am I able to use a Chastise in response
to his Bloodshot's ability?
-Alex Y.
A: No. Once you go into the second main phase, the
Cyclops is no longer attacking.
308.5. A creature becomes an attacking creature when it
has been declared as part of a legal attack and all
attack costs have been paid, but only if it's controlled
by the active player. It remains an attacking creature
until it's removed from combat or the combat phase ends,
whichever comes first. The nonactive player is
considered to have been attacked that turn at this time
if one or more creatures are attacking.
---
Q: When my friend declares his attackers, can I tap one
of his attackers using a Benalish Trapper so that it is
remove from combat?
A: No. You have to tap it before it is declared as an
attacker (typically, in the beginning of combat step. If
the creature is declared as an attacker, tapping (or
untapping) it won't remove it from combat.
Attacking Creature
A creature becomes an attacking creature when (a) it's
declared as part of a legal attack during the combat
phase and (b) all attack costs have been paid. It
remains an attacking creature until it's removed from
combat, it stops being a creature, its controller
changes, or the combat phase ends. Attacking creatures
don't exist outside of the combat phase. See rule 308,
"Declare Attackers Step."
---
Q: My friend has an Avatar of Might in play and I have a
Jackal Pup in play. He attacks with his Avatar and I
block it with my Jackal pup. So, do I take 16 damage
altogether or do I only take 9 damage?
A: No matter how trample damage is assigned, you will
only take 8 damage.
---
Q: My friend and I have a Prodigal Sorcerer each in
play. He uses his ability and attempts to kill my
Prodigal Sorcerer. I responded by playing my Prodigal
Sorcerer's ability and targeted his Prodigal Sorcerer.
So do my prodigal sorcerer die? Since I played "in
response", my ability should resolve faster than him
right? Or am I wrong?
-Darren N.
A: Both Prodigal Sorcerers will die.
No spell or ability is “faster” than another spell or
ability. They all go on the stack, in the order they
were played, and resolve one at a time. Some spells or
abilities just have restrictions on when you can play
them.
402.6. Once activated or triggered, an ability exists
independently of its source (the card on which it's
printed) as a pseudospell on the stack. Destruction or
removal of the source after that time won't affect the
ability. Note that some abilities cause a source to do
something (for example, "Prodigal Sorcerer deals 1
damage to target creature or player") rather than the
ability doing anything directly. In these cases, any
spell, activated ability, or triggered ability that
references information about the source will check that
information when the ability resolves, or will use the
source's last known information if it's no longer in
play.
---
Q: Can I enchant my opponent?
A: Outside of playing with Unglued cards, no.
---
Q: … Like with that enchantment that says you don't lose
the game with 0 life you lose when you have 20 or more
and you gain 2 life for each 1 life you lose?
-Beth W.
A: If you play Transcendance, it will be under your
control and affect you. You cannot play a global
enchantment card and have it affect your opponent
(unless the card says to).
---
Q: Let's say I have an Academy Rector in play and my
opponent has a Blastoderm. He attacks and I block with
the Rector. The Rector dies. I go fetch a Confiscate.
Can I Confiscate the Blastoderm?
-Tin.it
A: Yes. Enchantment spells only target when they are
being cast. Since you are not casting Confiscate, but
putting it into play instead, you can put it on
something untargetable.
---
Correction:
C: You recently addressed the following inquiry:
>>>Q: My friend plays a promo Japanese Shivan Dragon in
type II on the table next to me, and his opponent
notices that the card wasn't the real 7th edition Shivan
Dragon, he said it was give out from the magazine from
Japan, so he ask me does the player get a penalty for
that? I told him that I need to see the card, and the
card has exactly the same back, casting cost, artist,
and so it was published by Wizards, so I say yes he may
play the card since the card was fit to the rule, am I
right?
-bahamut o.
A: First of all, I am assuming you are talking about the
card that was included in Coro Coro #281. (For
reference, I found this information at the Magic
Rarities page, and the specific link is http://www.flaminio.com/magic/rarities-comics.html).
I have not seen the card, but if it is that card, then I
believe it would be legal for play in any format that
Shivan Dragon is legal for play."<<<
Just a note, the Coro Coro #281 Shivan Dragon does not
have the traditional M:tG back. I have one. It is a
promo card with a stylized 7th edition logo. Whatever
Shivan Dragon the player in the question was using
sounds like it was just a "normal" foreign language
version. It would have patently obvious if it was the
Coro Coro version.
-Michael S.
A: Thank you for the correction.
See you Monday.
-Bill Guerin
PojoMagicJudge@hotmail.com
DCI Level 2 Judge
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