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Pojo's Magic The Gathering
Judge's Corner
A Hodgepodge of
Questions
First, as a reminder, the
only column next week will be on Wednesday, due to me
judging at Grand Prix: Los Angeles.
Second, a couple of answered questions without the
questions, which you can use as guidelines for similar
type questions:
-You can let Standstill’s triggered ability resolve, and
use the cards from Standstill to counter the spell that
triggered it.
-Enchant Creature cards are enchantments, and can be
destroyed by cards that destroy enchantments.
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Q: Can I use the above spells to change the chosen
colour of a spell when the colour isn't explicitly
defined in the text (such as Washout or Teferi's Moat).
The Oracle description says it must change the text on a
card, but the card details for Sleight of Mind says it
can target a card with no colour words on it.
Is a card that 'chooses' its colour immune to these
kinds of effects?
-Neil R.
A: Sleight of Mind
{U}
Instant
Change the text of target spell or permanent by
replacing all instances of one color word with another.
#(For example, you may change "target black spell" to
"target blue spell.") (This effect doesn't end at end of
turn.)#
The color word has to be physically on the card to
change. If the color isn’t printed on the card, then you
can’t change it.
As to your second question, let’s use Shifting Sky as an
example …
Shifting Sky
{2}{U}
Enchantment
As Shifting Sky comes into play, choose a color.
All nonland permanents are the chosen color.
Since the color word isn’t physically on Shifting Sky,
you won’t be able to change the color choice with
Sleight of Mind.
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Q: Let’s say I have a Lightning Rift and an Astral Slide
in play; I then cycle a card. Can I remove a creature
from the game with Astral Slide, and pay 1 for the
Lightning Rift to do 2 damage, or do I need to cycle 2
cards to do both. Thank you.
-Disguy
A: One card cycled will trigger both abilities. So you
only need to cycle one card to remove a creature and do
2 damage with both Astral Slide and Lightning Rift out.
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Q: If there is Spreading Plague in play, and I
simultaneously bring back 5 white creatures from my
graveyard, would they all die or what? (say with
Replenish [using Opalescence])
-Sp1ke89
A: Yes, they would all die.
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Q: How do you determine a land's type, and, as an
extension, are Snow-covered lands a different type than
plain basic lands?
In other words, with one of each land and one of each
snow-covered land out, will a Tribal Flames net me 10
damage?
-Arthur
A: You can never do more than 5 damage with a Tribal
Flames, as there are only 5 basic land types.
Snow-Covered lands are of the same type as the
non-Snow-Covered land would be.
214.9d The basic land types are plains, island, swamp,
mountain, and forest. A land with one of these words as
its name is a basic land. Other lands can state that
they are lands of one or more basic land types. A land
that has one or more basic land types is not necessarily
a basic land. Moreover, the name of a land with a single
land type that's basic becomes that basic land-type
word.
502.14b Five snow-covered lands were printed in the Ice
Age™ expansion. Their names are Snow-Covered Plains,
Snow-Covered Island, Snow-Covered Swamp, Snow-Covered
Mountain, and Snow-Covered Forest. These lands are basic
lands, even though they have a different name and they
have the snow-covered ability.
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Q: If I put an entangler on a Commander Eesha, could I
block twenty 10/10s and kill them all?
-Person51090
A: Entangler
{2}{W}{W}
Enchant Creature
Enchanted creature may block any number of creatures.
Even though an Eesha with an Entangler on it will be
able to block any number of creatures, she still does
only 2 damage. So you couldn’t kill one 10/10, much less
twenty.
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Q: My question is concerning Cumulative Upkeep. My
friends and I aren't sure how it works. Let's use
Prismatic Circle for an example, it has a cumulative
upkeep cost of 1, so does that mean I would pay 1 each
turn? Or does it double each turn, so the next turn I'd
have to pay 2, then 3, then 4, etc.?
~Kevin
A: At the beginning of your upkeep, you put a counter
called an “Age Counter” on any permanent with Cumulative
Upkeep. Then, you pay the Cumulative upkeep cost printed
on the card times the number of Age Counters on the
card, or you sacrifice that permanent. (For math buffs,
the series of Cumulative Upkeep payments is an
arithmetic series.)
Let’s take an example, using the card you mentioned.
Prismatic Circle
{2}{W}
Enchantment
Cumulative upkeep {1}
As Prismatic Circle comes into play, choose a color.
{1}: The next time a source of your choice of the chosen
color would deal damage to you this turn, prevent that
damage.
Let’s call the turn you cast Prismatic Circle “turn 1”
for reference purposes. So on the beginning of “turn
2”’s upkeep, you put an Age Counter on Prismatic Circle.
Then, since there is one Age Counter on Prismatic
Circle, you pay 1 Age Counter * 1 Cumulative Upkeep Cost
= 1 mana, or you sacrifice Prismatic Circle.
On the beginning of “turn 3”’s upkeep, you again put an
Age Counter on Prismatic Circle. Then, since there are
two Age Counters on Prismatic Circle, you pay 2 Age
Counters * 1 Cumulative Upkeep Cost = 2 mana, or you
sacrifice Prismatic Circle.
On the beginning of “turn 4”’s upkeep, you again put an
Age Counter on Prismatic Circle. Then, since there are
three Age Counters on Prismatic Circle, you pay 3 Age
Counters * 1 Cumulative Upkeep Cost = 3 mana, or you
sacrifice Prismatic Circle.
You should be able to take it from there.
---
Q: I have an Astral Slide out and a Pardic Arsonist in
play, and I have threshold. My opponent declares that it
is my turn and I declare, "at the end of your turn...
cycle {this} and activate Astral Slide's ability
targeting my Arsonist." Would the Arsonist leave play,
and return again during my opponent's same end of turn
step, dealing 3 damage again to target creature?
A: No. Since the End step has already started, you’ll
have to wait for the next End step (typically on your
turn) for the Arsonist to come back. Once an End step
starts, anything that would do something “at end of
turn” waits until the next End step.
(Hint: Cycle the card in his second main phase if you
want it back that turn. Yes, he will be able to play
creatures and sorceries before it comes back, but that’s
the best you can do.)
---
Q: Could I then respond to its come into play ability,
putting it on the stack, and cycle another card again
triggering Astral Slide's ability on the Arsonist again
on the same end of turn step? In other words, could I
"Arsonist" multiple times on the same turn, depending on
the number of cyclers and amount of available mana to
avoid having the 3 damage "removed" as a result of the
switching of turns?
-Alex W.
A: No to both questions. The most damage you could do in
one turn using one Pardic Arsonist and one Astral Slide
is 3 damage.
---
Q: Can Meddle target a Cruel Revival? I don't think so
since it has two targets (creature and card), but my
friends think it can because it targets only one
creature or player.
-Jason S.
A: If the Revival targets a zombie in the graveyard, no,
because it has two targets. If it only targets a
creature to kill, however, then yes, you can Meddle it.
---
Tournament Report - FNM – Orange, CA – 3rd place
I got tired of playing U/G, and decided to switch decks.
I had Nassif’s BUG Braids deck available, and I also put
together Zev Gurwitz’s new Tog deck. I went to my
mailbox coming home from work Friday, and my Oppositions
hadn’t arrived yet. So I played Tog.
Zevatog, V2.0
By Zev Gurwitz
4 Shadowmage Infiltrator
3 Merfolk Looter
3 Psychatog
4 Counterspell
4 Circular Logic
4 Standstill
4 Aether Burst
4 Smother
3 Cunning Wish
2 Upheaval
4 Underground River
4 Polluted Delta
4 Lonely Sandbar
2 Barren Moor
2 Swamps
8 Islands
1 Darkwater Catacombs
Sideboard:
2 Ghastly Demise
4 Engineered Plague
2 Hibernation
1 Haunting Echoes
1 Divert
1 Read the Runes
1 Skeletal Scrying
1 Coffin Purge
1 Mana Short
1 Psychotic Haze
I changed the 4 Duresses that were originally in the
board out for other cards.
Let’s just get straight to the action.
Round 1 – Daniel Jacoby – Mono-Red Goblins
Ack. No first round bye for me this week. This is one of
the better players there. Too bad one of us has to take
a loss in the first round.
Game 1 – He wins the roll, 17-6, and plays first. He
gets in an attack for 4 early, but I drop an early
Infiltrator, then a Tog as a blocker. He goes for the
dome with a couple of Firebolts and a Volcanic Hammer,
but is stuck at 3 mana, and my Tog comes over to kill
him from 14. The last turn, he broke a Standstill, and I
cycled 5 lands before untapping. Yeah, that’s fair.
Sideboard: In – 4 Engineered Plague (which really makes
this matchup unfair). Out – 2 Merfolk Looter, 1
Standstill, 1 Upheaval.
Game 2 – He goes first. He drops Goblins on each of the
first 4 turns, including a Piledriver. I counter the
Raider on his turn 3, so the Piledriver won’t get any
bonuses, and drop a turn 3 Plague. He drops a Lavamancer,
and I Smother it. 2 Finkels get me to a Tog, and a
Diverted flashbacked Firebolt removes the Piledriver for
the kill.
Games: 2-0, Matches: 1-0
Round 2 – Chris Lim – U/G Squirrels/Elves
Game 1 – I win the roll, 18-4, and play first. I get
absolutely no pressure early, and he just comes over
very slowly and kills me.
Sideboard: In – 4 Engineered Plague. Out – I don’t
remember, as I didn’t write it down. I barely remember
siding in the Plagues, I think.
Game 2 – I play. We each take a mulligan. The tables are
turned here, as my Finkels come over for massive card
advantage, and Tog goes to the dome at 12.
Game 3 – This one looks a little closer, but I locked
most everything out with a Plague on Squirrels and
Elves. He drops a Squirrel Mob. It gets killed, and Tog
goes in for the kill at 16.
Games: 4-1, Matches: 2-0
Round 3 – David Ly – U/G Opposition
As he sits down, he comments on how I misspelled his
name in the report from the last time we played (I
spelled it Lau then).
Game 1 – He wins the second roll, 10-9, after we tie at
11, and he plays. He also takes a mulligan. I tap out
for turn 3 Finkel, and he drops turn 3 Opposition, with
2 or 3 creatures already out. I scoop.
Sideboard: Nothing. Maybe this is what the Duresses were
for?
Game 2 – I go first. He gets in some early attacks, but
I am able to stabilize. I then drop Standstill with no
creatures out. I make the boneheaded play of the
tournament, and cast a Looter the next turn. No, he
didn’t cast any cards in between – I broke my own
Standstill. That takes what little chance I had of
winning and throws it straight out the window.
Games: 4-3, Matches: 2-1
Not like I either had much of a chance to win that, or
even deserved to win it with my play.
Round 4 – Alex Diaz – W/G
Game 1 – He wins the roll, 10-9, and plays first. I get
my 2 Finkels down, but he gets 2 Nomad Mythmakers out,
and plays Mythic Proportions. I block the first attack
with a Tog, and don’t pump it. I have to get him to
assign his damage, so I can see if I can save my Tog. He
maxes out on the damage to me, and only assigns 2 to the
Tog, so I pump the Tog after damage is on the stack. I
then Smother and bounce the next couple of attacks, and
send in 3 Togs while he only has 1 untapped creature at
12.
Sideboard: Nothing.
Game 2 – This one is a little easier for me. All his
creatures have 1 toughness this game, so I wish for and
play a Psychotic Haze, and come in with a Tog while he
is at 14.
Games: 6-3, Matches: 3-1
Round 5 – Joshua Durick – R/G madness
Game 1 – I win the roll, 12-8, and play. He comes out
fast with an Angry Mongrel. I hit him back a couple of
times with an unpumped Tog. We then play “pump the
creature,” discarding a bunch of cards to try to kill
each other’s creature. I win that battle.
I drop a total of 3 Standstills during this game, and he
immediately breaks them all.
I take 5 from a Browbeat going down to 5, but I wish for
Read the Runes, untap and play it, leaving 1 blue mana
open for a Logic, and sacing a bunch of lands. Tog goes
in for the kill.
Sideboard: Nothing.
Game 2 – He plays first. This one is a bit closer, but
he only draws 3 lands, and only is able to play a Walla
and Safekeeper. I eventually block the Safekeeper,
bounce or kill the Walla, and Wish to Read to end the
tournament at 4-1.
Games: 8-3, Matches: 4-1
An interesting side note that mirrors Zev’s tournament
report:
Number of Upheavals cast by me during the tournament: 0.
I might drop 1 Upheaval for a 4th Looter then next time
I play this deck. You have to keep 1 in though, for
random Bridge decks.
See you Thursday.
Bill Guerin
PojoMagicJudge@hotmail.com
DCI Level 2 Judge
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