Rules Tip of the Day: You can identify a triggered ability by the use of the words 'When,' 'Whenever,' and 'At.'

Q: My friend is playing a U/W Control deck with Grand Arbiter Augustin IV; I'm playing Gruul beats. He taps out on turn four to play "Augie." On my turn four, I drop a Burning-Tree Shaman, and he attempts to counter it by pitching Hinder to Disrupting Shoal. If Augie reduces the cost of blue spells by 1, does that mean my opponent would have needed to pitch a 4 mana blue card in order to counter my three-mana Shaman? Or, by pitching a card in this fashion, does X automatically get set to the casting cost of the card regardless of any cost reductions or additions being applied to the spell?

A: First of all, when playing a Shoal you choose a value of X first, and then pitch a card with the same converted mana cost as the chosen value, not the other way around. Additionally, the abilities of Grand Arbiter Augustin IV lower the amount that you pay towards the mana cost of the spell only, they do not affect the cost of spells that are played via an alternate cost. This means that in order to counter a spell with a converted mana cost of 3, the player who played Disrupting Shoal will still have to pitch a blue card with a converted mana cost of 3. Grand Arbiter Augustin IV's ability will not affect this at all or make him need to discard a blue card with a lower converted mana cost.

Q: How does the timing work on the interaction between Anthem of Rakdos and Kindle the Carnage? If I cast Kindle the Carnage and end up discarding three cards to it, activating my Hellbent abilities, how much of that damage is doubled? All of it, or just the last instance?

A: Each time you discard a randomly discard a card as Kindle the Carnage resolves, damage equal to this card's converted mana cost will be dealt to all creatures in play. The Hellbent condition can only be met when you discard the final card in your hand, so it is only this last "packet" of damage that can be doubled by Anthem of Rakdos' ability.

Q: If the creature you choose to copy for Cytoshape is a 0/0 with counters, such as the Graft creatures released in Dissention, will Cytoshape just kill the targeted creature, as it'll have zero toughness?

A: Yes. Assuming that the creature that is becoming a copy of the Graft creature does not have some other effect applied to it that raises its toughness, then it will go to the graveyard when Cytoshape resolves. This is because when one object become a copy of another you do not copy counters that are on it, or effects that are applied to the original creature (other than copy effects). So this creature that copies the Graft creature will now have a toughness of zero, as you pointed out, and it will go to the graveyard.

Q: I control an Edgewalker, and a Conspiracy, naming Clerics. What does it cost to play an Orzhov Guildmage?

A: It is free. A hybrid mana symbol matches both a W symbol and a B symbol; cost reducers that apply to either will affect it. [This is a corrected ruling -Seamus]

Q: I have no creatures in my graveyard and control a Shambling Shell. I play a Mausoleum Turnkey. Can I play the Shambling Shell's ability in response to the Mausoleum Turnkey's ability, getting back the Shell and leaving me with a 4/3 Turnkey in play and a Shambling Shell in my hand?

A: No, that does not work. When Mausoleum Turnkey comes into play, its ability will trigger and go on the stack. Whenever a targeted ability goes on the stack, its targets must be chosen at that time. It does not matter that your opponent chooses this target, it is still chosen at that time. If the Shambling Shell is not in your graveyard at this point, then it can not be chosen as the target of the ability. You can choose to respond to the Turnkey spell by sacrificing the Shell to put a +1/+1 counter on some other creature you control. If you do, this then the Shell will be in the graveyard when the Turnkey's ability goes on the stack. However these cards do not combine in such a way to allow you to put the +1/+1 counter on the Turnkey and return the Shell.

Q: As I understand it, my opponent has to have seven cards in hand when Ebony Owl Netsuke triggers and when it resolves, for the Owl's ability to do anything. My opponent (who has seven cards in hand), in response to the Ebony Owl's trigger, plays Shining Shoal, removing Wrath of God to pay for the Shoal's cost, with the intention of redirecting damage from the Owl to me. Now that he has five cards in hand, though, does the Owl actually deal any damage?

A: Your understanding of how Ebony Owl Netsuke's ability works is correct. When the Owl's ability resolves, your opponent will not have seven cards in hand, so no damage will be dealt. As no damage is dealt, no damage can be redirected. Your opponent could have gotten the same result by playing the Shining Shoal, choosing X to be zero, and just paying WW, rather than to pitching a card.

Q: Can you cast an Infernal Harvest for zero, targeting a creature?

A: No. Infernal Harvest deals damage divided amongst X target creatures. When dividing something between multiple objects, you must assign at least one of what is being divided to each target. As the value of X is zero in this example, you cannot divide this at all, and therefore this Infernal Harvest can not have any targets.

Q: I was told a long time ago that if you flip a coin for Frenetic Efreet and it doesn't turn out the way you want, you can then put another activation on the stack, and so on, until you get a flip that will phase out the Efreet and thus not sacrifice it. Is this true?

A: No. When the Efreet's ability resolves it will either phase out or be sacrificed. If you lose the flip, then you will sacrifice the Efreet, and—as no one can play spells or abilities during the resolution of another spell or ability—it is too late to activate the ability again.