Rules Tip of the Day: Triggered abilities are not played; they automatically go on the stack whes their trigger condition is met. Triggered abilities can go on the stack even if there is a Split Second spell on the stack.

Q: I have a question about Aquamorph Entity. Is its ability a characteristic-setting ability or not? If a Giant Growth is played on it while it is a Morph, will it become an 8/4 or a 5/1 after it unmorphs?

A: The effect that makes Aqumorph Entity a 1/5 or a 5/1 creature is not a characteristic setting-ability. That ability is a normal static ability that generates a continuous effect that sets power and toughness (for rules gurus, this means that it is applied in layer 6b). This also means that, with respect to the Giant Growth, this effect will be applied according to timestamp. So your 5/5 face-down creature that is turned face up will become either a 1/5 or a 5/1 creature.

Q: If you have a Chronozoa in play and turn a Vesuvan Shapeshifter face up and copy the Chronozoa, will it have no counters on it because it did not "come into play"?

A: Yes. As this Shapeshifter did not come into play as a copy of Chronozoa, it will not have any time counters on it. This means that you will not have to sacrifice it when its Vanishing triggered ability resolves, as you are can't remove any counters from it. It also means that if this Shapeshifter / Chronozoa goes to the graveyard, you will get two copies of Chronozoa. As these copies do come into play, they will have time counters on them. These copies will also have the upkeep triggered ability that allows them to be turned face down as well, but they won't have a Morph cost, so if you do turn them face down, you won't be able to unmorph them.

Q: I'm confused on the wordings on Sindbad and Fa'adiyah Seer. Since they say "Draw a card and reveal it," can I replace the draw with a Dredge?

A: Yes, you can replace this draw by Dredging a card. Having other actions associated with the draw do not prevent you from Dredging. If you do replace the draw, you will not have a drawn card to reveal. Because of this, you will not have to discard anything.

Q: If an effect causes a player to discard multiple cards simultaneously, and that player discards a black creature card and Call to the Netherworld, will that player be able to return the discarded black creature card via Call to the Netherworld's Madness ability?

A: Yes. When these cards are discarded, the Madness card can be removed from the game instead of going to the graveyard. If it is, the Madness ability will trigger. When this triggered ability resolves, you can then play the Madness spell. At this point, the black creature card that was discarded with the Call to the Netherworld is in the graveyard (in fact, its been there for a while) and you can target it with the Call.

Q: If there is a creature in play that has Flash, does Clone gain that ability if you choose that creature to copy? Can you then play Clone as if it had Flash?

A: No. The Clone spell is played as normal and it will not become a copy oft he chosen creature until the Clone spell resolves and the Clone comes into play. If it does enter play and copy a creature with Flash, then the Clone will now have that ability, but that doesn't really do anything. The fact that it has Flash now does not mean that you could have played it as an instant earlier.

Q: If I have a Gratuitous Violence in play and sacrifice one of my blocking creatures after damage is on the stack, will the combat damage of that sacrificed creature still be doubled?

A: Yes. The source of this damage on the stack is the creature. As it is no longer in play when combat damage is dealt, the game will use last known information. When this creature was last in play, it was a creature you controlled, so the replacement effect from Gratuitous Violence will be applied and will double the assigned damage.

Q: In a recent multiplayer game, I played an Ixidron and turned all other creature in the game face down. Later I "died" and left the game. Should the other players' creatures have turned face-up when I died?

A: No. While you and your Ixidron may have left the game, the effect created when Ixidron came into play does not end. Continuous effects created by spells and abilities controlled by a player that has left the game will still be applied when that player leaves the game.

Q: My opponent activates Timberwatch Elf's ability to pump a 1/1 creature. I respond by activating Magical Hacker, targeting Timberwatch Elf. Does the 1/1 get pumped or killed?

A: The targeted creature will get pumped. Once an ability has been played it is independent of its source. Changing the text of the source will not change the text of the ability on the stack. The ability of the Timberwatch Elf in play may now read "Target creature gets -X/-X," but the ability on the stack will still give +X/+X.