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Pojo's Magic The Gathering
Judge's Corner
Feb 3, 2004 Ownership &
Tourney Report
Title: Ownership
Questions: 26
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Q: If I have Equilibrium in play and then I play Gilded
Drake and exchange it with an opponent's creature, if I
pay 1 to use the ability for Equilibrium on Gilded
Drake, would that return Gilded Drake to my hand or my
opponent's? Maybe if you could just clarify "owner",
whether I would be the owner of the card or my opponent
because he is currently in control of it.
-Ian
A: From the Rulebook:
Owner
The owner of a card is the player who started the game
with that card in his or her deck or, for cards that
didn’t start the game in a player’s deck, the player who
brought the card into the game. (Legal ownership is
irrelevant to the game rules, except for the rules for
ante.) The owner of a token is the controller of the
effect that created it. See rule 200.1a.
However, make sure you put the Equilibrium trigger on
the stack first, and then the Gilded Drake ability, so
the exchange is complete by the time Equilibrium's
ability resolves.
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Q: I equip a Specter's Shroud onto an Abyssal Specter.
When the Specter damages my opponent does he then
discard 1 or 2 cards?
-Robert H.
A: 2 cards. See Mantra 9.
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Q: Do multiple Stormscape Familiars reduce the cost of a
Consume Spirit (with X at least equal to one minus the
number of Familiars out)?
-anime
A: Yes. First, you determine the cost to play the
Consume Spirit. Then, you apply cost reducers. By the
time the Familiar's effect applies, you've already
figured out how much mana you need.
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Q: If a creature attacks and has provoke, does the
monster chosen have to be tapped?
A: No. If it did, it would say "target tapped creature."
You can untap an untapped creature just fine.
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Q: If a blocker blocks a Gustcloak Savior for example
and the controller of the Savior does nothing, and If
the blocker becomes powered up, can Gustcloak still be
removed from combat?
-ADSS
A: No. The Gustcloak creatures can only be removed from
combat when their triggered abilities resolve. If you
don't remove it at that point, it will stay in combat
until damage is dealt (or it is removed in some other
way).
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Q: What is the official definition of 'discard'?
Derek S.
A: From the Rulebook:
Discard
A player discards a card by putting a card from his or
her hand into his or her graveyard. By default, effects
that cause a player to discard a card allow the affected
player to choose which card to discard. Some effects,
however, require a random discard or allow another
player to choose which card is discarded.
---
Q: My friend has Patron Wizard in play and a wizard
enchanted with Pemmin's Aura.
Whenever a spell is played, he taps the wizard to
counter the spell. He then uses Pemmin's Aura to untap
the creature and taps it again to counter. This is
repeated several times.
The question is, can he do that?
-Junwei H.
A: Yes. He plays the ability, then, sometime before the
original spell resolves, he uses the untap ability of
the Aura to untap it and retap it again. Spells and
abilities resolve one at a time, and you can allow one
spell or ability to resolve, then play more spells or
abilities with a spell still on the stack.
---
Q: Can Glissa Sunseeker destroy artifact lands?
A: Yes. Artifact lands are artifacts with a mana cost of
0.
---
Q: How does combat damage resolve if a creature has
double strike and trample?
-DJH
A: Follow Mantra 5 on assigning lethal damage, and
assign the rest to the player (even if all the blockers
are killed in the first strike damage step, all the
damage will be assigned to the player in the normal
damage step).
---
Q: If someone uses Control Magic on my Weaver of Lies,
then I destroy it, can I flip it face up before it goes
to my graveyard?
A: No. You do not control the face down creature at that
time, so you can't play its morph ability.
---
Q: If I flip a Daru Sanctifier to destroy an
enchantment, and my opponent destroys it with a Western
Paladin, do I still get to destroy the enchantment?
A: Yes. See Mantra 8.
---
Q: If I have a 10/10 Doubtless One and my opponent
blocks with a 2/2, do I still gain 10 life?
-Linda K.
A: Yes. All 10 damage is dealt.
---
Q: Can you play sorceries on your opponent's turn?
A: No, not on their own. (Of course, this just assumes
you want to cast them normally.)
---
Q: Can you play activated abilities (such as
sacrificing) during your upkeep? (and cleanup)
A: Upkeep, yes. Cleanup, no, unless a condition for a
triggered ability or state based effect is true.
---
Q: What happens if my opponent draws a card before he
untaps his permanents?
-Chase
A: He untaps his permanents, and is reminded not to do
that again.
---
Q: Are creatures, enchantments, sorceries, instants and
artifacts all spells?
A: Yes, while they are on the stack.
---
Q: My friends say a creature in play is not a spell -
are they correct?
A: Yes. Spells only exist on the stack. Once a card
leaves the stack, it is no longer a spell.
---
Q: With regards to Hallow, can this be used on any
non-land permanent?
-Dan S.
A: No. It can only be used on spells.
HOWEVER, if you cast this while a (permanent) spell is
on the stack, it will prevent the damage from that card
for the rest of the turn, even after that spell becomes
a permanent. This is useful for things like Flametongue
Kavu, for instance.
---
Q: Can I Dismantle a Darksteel Reactor with 10 charge
counters on it, and since it is not destroyed by
Dismantle, choose to put the 10 charge counters on the
same Darksteel Reactor totaling 20?
A: Yes.
---
Q: Does an artifact land retain the type "artifact" if
Blood Moon turns it into a Mountain?
A: Yes.
---
Q: If you turn a Darksteel Citadel into a Mountain, it
is still indestructible?
A: No. When a land is turned into a basic land type, all
rules text is removed from it.
---
Q: And if you target a creature with Lightning Greaves
AFTER it's been equipped with Bonesplitter, does this
detach Bonesplitter?
-Joseph M.
A: No. Equipment only targets when you play the equip
ability. Once it is on the creature, it no longer
targets that creature.
---
Q: I have a Grip of Chaos in play, and I play Shunt
and/or Fork and/or Forked Lightning. I'm fairly sure
what will happen, but for the final word:
Shunt will choose a random spell on the stack and
re-select its target at random.
A: Incorrect. Shunt will select a random spell on the
stack to retarget, but you will get to choose the target
for the spell Shunted.
---
Q: Fork will choose a random instant or sorcery spell on
the stack, copy it, and give it a random target.
A: Incorrect. Again, Fork will choose a random spell,
but you will get to choose the new target. Grip of Chaos
only triggers when a spell is first played. The Fork
copy isn't played, it is simply put on the stack.
---
Q: Forked Lightning will be unaffected by Grip of Chaos.
-BMoor
A: If Forked Lightning has more than one target, this is
correct. If Forked Lightning only has one target, it
will be redirected at random.
---
Q: Are hard plastic toploaders valid sleeves for
tournament use? I find it impossible to shuffle these
things and feel they negatively affect the game.
-Larry
A: The determination as to whether they would be allowed
lies with the individual head judge. If he feels they
interfere with normal game play, he may disallow them. A
player may not deem an opponent's sleeve illegal, only
the Head Judge can.
From the Floor Rules:
35. Card Sleeves
Players may use plastic card sleeves or other protective
devices on cards. If a player chooses to use card
sleeves, all cards in the player’s current deck must be
placed in the sleeves in an identical manner. If the
sleeves feature holograms or other similar markings,
cards must be inserted into the sleeves so these
markings appear only on the face of the cards.
Once a match begins, a player may request that the judge
inspect an opponent’s card sleeves. The judge may
disallow a player’s card sleeves if the judge believes
they are marked, worn, or otherwise in a condition or of
a design that interferes with shuffling or game play. To
avoid confusion, a card sleeve may also be used to mark
a player’s card if the card is in an opponent’s playing
area.
---
Tournament Report - FNM - Diamond Bar, CA
First, the usual decklist:
1 Aether Spellbomb
3 Broodstar
3 Chromatic Sphere
4 Frogmite
2 Lightning Greaves
4 Mana Leak
4 Myr Enforcer
3 Override
4 Pyrite Spellbomb
3 Talisman of Progress
4 Thirst for Knowledge
4 Thoughtcast
4 Ancient Den
4 Glimmervoid
4 Great Furnace
1 Island
4 Seat of the Synod
4 Tree of Tales
Sideboard:
3 Naturalize
4 Pyroclasm
3 Sacred Ground
2 Second Sunrise
3 Stifle
28 players tonight.
Round 1 - Stan C. - LD
Game 1 - Him going first, and second turn Shatter, third
turn Stone Rain, fourth turn Demolish should equal loss
for me, right?
Not quite.
I sneak out a couple of 1 casting cost artifacts while
he's hitting my lands, drop a couple Frogmites and Myr
Enforcers on my 5th turn, and beat him down in short
order.
Sideboard: In: 3 Sacred Ground. Out: Broodstar, Aether
Spellbomb, Override.
Game 2 - He drops turn 2 Defense Grid. I try to drop
enough creatures to race him, but he does 6 a turn, and
I don't draw what I need to get out of it.
Sideboard: In: 3 Naturalize, Broodstar. Out: 4 Pyrite
Spellbomb.
Game 3 - Is a smashing success the other way. I get turn
2 Sacred ground, and that holds him up long enough to
get a Myr Enforcer and Frogmite on line. I allow a
Culling Scales, forgetting that it can hit Sacred
Ground, but by the time he hits Sacred Ground with the
Scales, I'm one turn from winning.
Games: 2-1, Matches: 1-0
Round 2 - Bryant M. - UW control
Game 1 - He drops turn 3 Angel, and morphs it up turn 4.
Even though I have an Enforcer and Frog on the table, I
can't keep up.
Sideboard: In: 3 Stifle, 2 Second Sunrise. Out:
Thoughtcast, Chromatic Sphere, Myr Enforcer, Broodstar,
Pyrite Spellbomb.
Game 2 - I get THE NUTS. I mean turn 1 Artifact land,
artifact, turn 2 artifact land, Talisman, Frogmite,
Thoughtcast, Frogmite, turn 3 Enforcer, Thoughcast nuts.
He plays a Morph, but I either counter it or bomb it off
the table.
Game 3 - I get a slow start, and he gets a couple Jens
and some soldier tokens quickly. I have no chance in
this game.
Games: 3-3, Matches: 1-1
A player asks about Gilded Light and Storm between these
round. We don't bother looking at the cards, and assume
since the target is illegal, the Storm player will have
to change the target to himself. (This is an incorrect
ruling - look a little further down to see the correct
ruling.)
Round 3 - James F. - 3c Affinitog
Game 1 - He has 2 Togs and a Disciple, and counters to
match mine, which means I have no chance in this game.
Sideboard: In: 4 Pyroclasm. Out: 4 Frogmite.
He complains about not knowing what to take out. I tell
him my swap is easy, because it really is. Just have to
swap the Frogs for more controlling cards, as I am the
control deck in this matchup.
Game 2 - I get him to block an Enforcer with an Atog,
and through Spellbomb and Pyroclasm tricks, get him down
to one artifact land and 2 Glimmervoid. Beyond that, I
just serve with another Enforcer, as he doesn't draw but
one other artifact.
Game 3 - I put a Greaves'd Enforcer on the table, while
he plays an Enforcer and 2 Frogs. I draw Pyroclasm, and
along with a Pyrite Spellbomb on the table, I clear his
side and start serving with my Enforcer. He doesn't draw
another creature.
Games: 5-4, Matches: 2-1
I go over to a table to where Scott (the head judge) is
going through the Stifle/Gilded Light Ruling, and take a
look at Storm. It says "you MAY choose new targets for
the copies," and I call Scott over privately to show him
that. He goes through the thought process, and we
correct our prior ruling, allowing the Storm copies to
stay on the player who played Gilded Light. We end up
getting the ruling correct, but the player we told the
ruling incorrectly previous to this round isn't happy.
Round 4 - Robert K. - WGb Slaver Control
Game 1 - He drops 2 Mindslavers on me, and tries to set
up his board position. I get an Enforcer down, and he
has no creatures. He miscounts a Planar Portal
activation, and gets a Jens instead of a Wrath. I pop
him off the board with an Aether Spellbomb, and along
with the second Enforcer I just cast, I take the first
game.
Sideboard: In: 3 Naturalize, 3 Stifle. Out: 4 Mana Leak,
2 Override.
Game 2 - He drops an early Lethal Vapors, and kills my
one creature. After a couple of turns, I draw into
Naturalize in my end step, and cast it. I untap, cast 2
Frogmites, 2 Enforcers, a Greaves, and a Broodstar, and
swing for 14. Along with the Pyrite Spellbomb on the
board, that totals 16 damage, which is exactly his life
total.
Games: 7-4, Matches: 3-1
After some nasty administrative business is taken care
of, delaying the round for a few minutes, the round gets
underway.
Round 5 - Phillip S. - Sligh variant
He is the only undefeated player at this point, and as I
am reasonably confident of making top 8 (if there are no
draws, it will be a cut to top 8, with 3 3-2's making
it), I scoop to him so he gets the undefeated prize. We
play 2 games for fun, and he smashes me.
Games: 7-6, Matches: 3-2
I make top 8 as the 6 seed, and since Bryant wants to
play it out, I get ...
Top 8 - Brandon C. - Goblin Bidding
Game 1 - I draw 4xSpellbomb and 4xCounterspell, so my
Enforcers and Frog quickly mop him up. He had Bidding
the next turn after he would have died, and after I had
used all my counters stopping Siege-Gangs.
Sideboard: In: 4 Pyroclasm. Out: 4 Frogmite.
Game 2 - I draw into 3x Pyroclasm, and along with a
couple counters, a Broodstar hits with Greaves. I mistap,
and leave him a 1 turn opening to cast Bidding, but he
doesn't have it.
Games: 9-6, Matches: 4-2
With only a 5 pack split, Bryant still wants to play, as
he says he has too many splits going. So, ...
Top 4 - Bryant M. - UW Control
Game 1 - I get the early Frog, but he draws into 2 Jens,
and an Exalted Angel flips up to seal the deal.
Sideboard: In: 3 Naturalize, 3 Stifle. Out: 2 Pyrite
Spellbomb, 2 Lightning Greaves, Thoughtcast, Broodstar.
Game 2 - I keep a hand with a lone Frogmite as pressure.
He keeps a one land hand, and never gets up to 4 mana in
the 10 turns it takes me to kill him.
Game 3 - I get the early pressure, and try to force a
bad trade with a Pyrite finishing off an Exalted that
blocked an Enforcer, bouncing the Enforcer with the
Aether Spellbomb. He has the Stifle for the Aether, and
I really have no good answers. Fortunately, I had him to
one at this point. Unfortunately, he has a Jens and 5
Soldiers. He beats on me for 2 turns, and I draw lands.
I draw my last card, and it is a Chromatic Sphere. He
allows it, I sac it for a card, and draw Pyrite
Spellbomb. He has no counters, having drawn lands
himself during this point, and I administer a bad beat.
Games: 11-7, Matches: 5-2
By this time Phillip is waiting for me in the finals. I
propose a split, as it is 12:35, and offer him the extra
pack. He accepts, and I take my 8 packs and foil and go
home.
See you Friday.
Bill Guerin
DCI Level 2 Judge
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