Date: Sat, 4 Dec 1999 16:46:06 +0000 From: Paul Barclay Subject: [O] NetRep Reply 501 ======================================================================= NetRep Reply number 501 to the Magic: the Gathering List ======================================================================= This reply covers the digests: MTG-L Digest - 23 Nov 1999 to 24 Nov 1999 MTG-L Digest - 24 Nov 1999 to 25 Nov 1999 MTG-L Digest - 25 Nov 1999 to 26 Nov 1999 MTG-L Digest - 26 Nov 1999 to 27 Nov 1999 MTG-L Digest - 27 Nov 1999 to 28 Nov 1999 MTG-L Digest - 28 Nov 1999 to 29 Nov 1999 MTG-L Digest - 29 Nov 1999 to 30 Nov 1999 MTG-L Digest - 30 Nov 1999 to 1 Dec 1999 Older replies may be found at: http://www.second-hand.demon.co.uk ftp://ftp.magic.asuka.net http://yavapai.ccgnews.com http://www.en.magic.asuka.net http://www.thedojo.com/backpage-rulesregulations.shtml SHORT ANSWERS: ======================================================================= ** If you have a Trampling Thorn Elemental, it can deal 7 damage to your opponent, or up to 7-X damage to your opponent (where X is the toughness of the blocking creature). You can't deal 1 damage to a 2/2 blocker and 6 to your opponent (all this assumes undamaged blockers, of course). LONG ANSWERS: ======================================================================= [Britt Hansen, replying to Michael Kastberg] >> I'll be in Tours this weekend, so I'll try to get Quinton Hoover to >> sign some of my cards. >> Problem: I don't know which cards he has drawn... >> >> Can anobody think of some? > >You might try using the artist search thingy on Wizards homepage... Now that's just far too easy. :-) ----- [Jeff Jordan, asking about Disintegrate] >BTW, what would happen if Disintegrate were executed as a replacement? >Would an Avenging Angel or Serra Avatar go to the library? It is a replacement. The controller of the Angel/Avatar chooses. ----- [James "Evil One" Lee, talking about WotC] >Generally, I would send this message directly to Paul >to wish him well during this holiday. Indeed, I >really do not know if Thanksgiving is celebrated in >his native land nor if it is at this time of year. It's not celebrated, as it's a purely American holiday, but I was celebrating it (with some friends who have American relatives). >Certainly, there are real business concerns as well. >I will not argue that WotC never makes certain >decisions based solely on economic factors. Most, if not all decisions in any business are taken with the economic factors taken into account. > After >all, after a card set is sent to press, if an error is >noted, the cost of destroying and reprinting the >entire run may well be prohibitive. At the same time, >I do see WotC investing more and more into programs >that do not necessarily make them the "big bucks." >For the most part, my perception is that Organized >Play as a whole is generally a money loser to the >bottom line. So is Production and R&D, if you look at it like that. Organised Play costs a lot of money to run, but it does help significantly with card sales and the general awareness of the game (I've seen enough figures about different geographic areas to know this). >But, having had the privilege of meeting, knowing, and >cooperating with many of those at WotC who have >laboured for our sport, I feel confident that they are >not shy about investing in producing an increasingly >better product for the next decade and beyond. I agree. I think that it's fair to say that both R&D and Organised Play now contain a large number of people who are not afraid to spend money in order to solve problems. ----- [Jeremy, asking about Starter] >Quick question -- are starter cards allowed in combination with advanced >and/or expert level cards in the same deck? Starter cards in general aren't legal in DCI sanctioned tournaments. However, if a card in Starter has the same name as a card in a normal Magic set, then that card may be used in tournaments. In casual play, then they're probably going to be allowed. ----- [Hanno, asking about Animate Dead] >What about a wording with "stops enchanting *the creature its on* " instead of >"targeted creature"? It's a self-unfulfilling prophecy. It doesn't work, as if it leaves play, it's not in play to see itself trigger (because it's not a "leaves play" type triggered ability), and if it is moved, then it is still "enchanting the creature it's on", and there is no point when it is not doing this. ----- [Bob Terrell, asking about talking about comments] >Am I ever talking about anything or do I just "have comments"? :) Happy? :-) Ususally, what people are doing depends on whether I can think up a clever comment or a bad pun or not - if not, then I default to "asking" (for questions), "talking" (for discussions) or "comments" (for, well, comments). ----- [David Groman, asking about Spirit Link] >How does the timing on the gain of life due to a Spirit Linked Crypt Rats work? >Wouldn't the SL be gone before it triggered off of the damage dealt? You'd probably only gain one set of life, as the Rats will die after its first activation resolves. However, since the Rats has an activation cost of "{X}:...Spend only black mana in this way", then it's possible to spend 4 black mana at once, gaining 4 life for each creature and player, including the Rats. ----- [Jeff Jordan, with some comments on the new Classic rules] >> 212.2c Land subtypes are also called "land type" and are always the >> same as the name of the land card; they aren't listed on the type >> line. A card named "Island" has land type "island"; a card named >> "Henge of Ramos" has land type "Henge of Ramos." > >Wouldn't it have *three* land types, "Henge," "of," and "Ramos?" :) No, it's "Henge of Ramos". It has silent spaces >> Only basic lands get special abilities just for being a given land >> type. (See rule 214.9e.) > >So a Badlands "counts as" a swamp, but that doesn't make it produce B. >It needs its text to say that, which it does in the 6E erratum. >Hacking Swamp to Island lets the player be island-walked-on, but it >still produces R and B. (This reverses a current ruling in D'Angelo.) This is what's known as "well wrong, like". What it's _trying_ to say is that only being the type of one of the five basic lands grants any additional abilities that aren't in the text box. Of course, the texts of the dual lands are wrong as well. The text of Badlands is: |Badlands is a swamp and a mountain. |T: Add B or R to your mana pool. So, stuff like Conversion won't affect it properly either. For now, here's an Interim Solution(TM). The Dual lands should simply be worded "~ is a plains and swamp" (or equivalent), and if _any_ land is a basic land type, it produces the same mana as that basic land (so the dual lands and Blanket of Night work properly). Play these cards this way until we get an official fix. >What does Blanket of the Night accomplish? This sounds like it lets >Plains produce B (since Plains are basic) but not a Treetop Village >(it's a swamp, but not a *basic* swamp). So, the same applies here: Blanket of Night would make the Village into a swamp and a Village, and it would be able to produce both black and green mana. >> 408.f Card text that isn't an ability, such as " counts >> as a forest," is simply read and followed as applicable. >> >> 408.g Game actions-untapping during the untap step, cleanup, and >> mana burn-don't use the stack. > >A minor point: these should be rules 408.2f and 408.2g. Yep. >> 410.3. If multiple abilities have triggered since the last time a >> player received priority, pseudospells controlled by the active >> player go on the stack first, in any order he or she chooses, then >> those controlled by the opponent go on the stack in the same way. >> (Then the players once again check for state-based effects and add >> any new abilities that triggered during this process.) > >So at the beginning of my upkeep, several abilities trigger. One of >them is Afiya Grove. I put it on the stack first, and choose as its >target a Skulking Fugitive. This says I stack the rest of my abilities >(and my opponent stacks any he may have) before the SF's ability goes >on the stack? Correct. >> 409.1a The player announces that he or she is playing the spell or >> ability. It goes on the stack ... For abilities, a pseudospell with >> the text and color of the card generating the ability goes on the >> stack. >> >> 502.7b A permanent with protection can't be targeted by spells or >> abilities that have the stated quality, ... > >Careful, there. According to 409.1a, the only properties that go on >the stack for an ability's pseudospell are *text* and *color.* But >502.7b is not clear whether you check the ability on the permanent or >on the pseudospell generated by the permanent and put on the stack. > >Can Yavimaya Scion can be targeted by an artifact's ability? I hope >not, but you can interpret it that way. But this new 502.7b definitely >means that Tower of the Magistrate can't make an artifact's ability >fizzle. The pseudospell does not have the attribute "artifact." The >source of the ability does. Instafix: No, it can't. This is an Unforseen Problem(TM), and will therefore be dealt with using an Interim Solution(TM). The ability needs to know all the characteristics of the card that it generated it when it generated it (for example, Brown Ouphe). This is the card at the time that the ability was created, not the current time. Paul. - ------------------------------------------------------------------- - - Paul Barclay -- paul@second-hand.demon.co.uk -- Mobile: 0958-980180 - - DCI Level III judge -- http://www.second-hand.demon.co.uk/index.htm - - Official MTG-L Network Representative for Wizards of the Coast, Inc -