Rules Tip of the Day: If, when an exchange would take place, one of the objects that was to be exchanged is not in play, othing will happen. You can't exchange nothing and get something in return.

Q: If Wild Pair is in play and I cast Shivan Wumpus, does the Wild Pair effect still trigger when a land is sacrificed to put the Wumpus back on top of my library?

A: Yes. Shivan Wumpus and Wild Pair's abilities trigger at the same time, when the Wumpus comes into play. As the controller of the Wild Pair and the Shivan Wumpus, you can determine the order that these abilities go on the stack and, therefore, the order that they resolve in. Even if you choose to have the Wumpus's ability resolve first, and the Wumpus is put on top of your library, Wild Pair's ability will still resolve. When it does, the game will use the last known information about the Wumpus to determine what creature cards you can search for, as the Wumpus is not in play. In fact, you can search for the same card (assuming that the Wumpus's P/T were not modified by other effects while it was in play) and put it into play if you want, and your opponent will then have to sacrifice another land or allow it to stay in play this time.

Q: Can I play my Whitemane Lion during an attack, declare it as a blocker, and then return it to my hand?

A: Not with its own ability. Blocking creatures are all declared at one time, at the beginning of the declaration of blockers step. In order to block, a creature must be in play when this step begins. If you intend to block with the Whitemane Lion, the last opportunity you have to put it into play is in the declaration of attackers step. However, if you do this, Whitemane Lion's triggered ability will also go on the stack and resolve in this step. And you cannot advance to the declaration of blockers step until after this ability has resolved. What you can do, though, is choose to block with a creature and then return this other creature to your hand with Whitemane Lion's ability.

Q: My opponent plays Extirpate targeting something in my graveyard. I unmorph Willbender to change the target of Extirpate to something in my opponent's graveyard. I'm sure my opponent has to find all copies of the card in his 'yard and has to reveal his hand and remove all copies from his hand from the game. The question is the library. Can my opponent fail to find copies in his library because the library is a non-public zone? Or does he have to find all copies of the targeted card?

A: First of all, your opponent does not have to find all copies of this card in his own hand. When searching for a card, you do not have to find any copies of a card in a hidden zone. This player may have to reveal his hand, but his hand is still a hidden zone. This is also what prevents your opponent from having to find and remove all copies of this card from his library, as that is also a hidden zone.

Q: At a local tournement, I had a Trinisphere in play. My opponent, with two lands in play, Suspends a Rift Bolt. At the beginning of his next upkeep, he still has two lands in play and the Trinisphere is untapped. Can he successfully play the Bolt, or will it remain removed from the game without time counters?

A: This Bolt will remain removed from the game and your opponent will not be able to play it. Trinisphere makes each player pay at least three mana anytime they would play a spell. It does not matter if some other effect allows you to play the spell without paying its mana cost, you'll still have to pay three mana. When a spell unsuspends, you can play it for free. However, if there is some effect that prevents you from playing it, then it will remain removed from the game.

Q: Scryb Ranger's ability says that it can be played only once each turn. If I use its ability, then it gets returned to my hand and I recast it, can I play the ability again during the same turn?

A: Yes, when a card leaves a zone and then later returns to that zone it is a new object. This Scryb Ranger that is now in play is a new one with no connection to the one that was previously in play.

Q: My opponent casts a spell, and I use Spell Burst to counter it. My opponent casts Reiterate. Can he copy Spell Burst to counter my Spell Burst and let his spell resolve?

A: No, that does not work. When a copy of a spell is made, it is an exact copy, so the value of X for the copy will be the same as the original. If the original spell has a converted mana cost of three, then the Spell Burst that targets it must have a mana cost of 3U. This means that the converted mana cost of the Spell Burst that targets this spell is four. A copy of this Spell Burst cannot target the original Spell Burst, as the value of X in the copy will be three.

Q: I have a Doubling Season in play and an Opalesence. I enchant my animated Doubling Season with Followed Footsteps. Do the copies come into play at the same time or one at a time? If one at a time, does its effect double the number of tokens on the second copy coming out, etc (essentially being a self-feeding combo)?

A: No, you haven't found an infinite-creature combo. When Followed Footsteps' ability first resolves, you will get two token Doubling Seasons at one time. The ability of these tokens only applies when they are in play, so they cannot somehow apply to this event and give you even more tokens.

Q: I play Hearth Charm to make my Raging Goblin unblockable and then attack. Can I then play Blood Lust on that same Goblin after I've attacked to increase his power above two? Is he still unblockable?

A: Yes, the Goblin will still be unblockable. Hearth Charm only cares that the power of this creature is two or less when Hearth Charm is played and when it resolves. After that, it does not matter what the power of this creature is; it will remain unblockable. The fact that the power of the targeted creature must be two or less is a targeting restriction of Hearth Charm; it does not set the duration of the effect.