Rules Tip of the Day: When a creature with the Champion ability leaves play, the creature card that was removed from play when the Champion came into play will be returned to play under the control of its owner. This creature does not necessarily come into play under the control of the person who controlled the Champion when it left play. For example, if you have gained control of a Champion controlled by another player, the Championed creature will not return to play under your control.

Q: Can I use Smokebraider's mana ability to play a face-down Brine Elemental? Can I use that mana ability to turn Brine Elemantal face-up?

A: No and no. When you play a Brine Elemental face-down, it is not an Elemental spell. This face-down creature will not have any subtypes. Also, Morph is not an activated ability, so you cannot use Smokebraider mana to pay that cost either. The only interaction between these two cards is if you use the mana from Smokebraider's ability to play Brine Elemental face-up.

Q: Does a "Tribal Instant - Shapeshifter" count as an Arcane spell?

A: No. Arcane is a suptype of instants and sorceries; it is not a creature type. Tribal instants and sorceries with the Changeling ability will have all creature types, but they will not have the Arcane subtype.

Q: Player 1 plays Sower of Temptation and takes control of Player 2's Llanowar Elves. If Player 2 plays Lignify on Sower of Temptation, what happens?

A: Nothing will change. When Sower of Temptation's ability resolves, the controller of the Sower will gain control of the targeted creature. The effect that grants control of this creature to the Sower's controller lasts as long as the Sower remains in play. Whether or not the Sower has abilities any longer does not matter, as the effect has already been generated. This effect will continue to be applied as long as the Sower permanent remains in play, regardless of what its characteristics are.

Q: I have Brion Stoutarm and Keldon Marauders in play. I activate Brion's ability, sacrificing the Marauders. In response, my opponent kills Brion Stoutarm with Slaughter Pact. Does he still deal damage? Do I still gain life from Lifelink?

A: Brion Stoughtarm's ability will still resolve and deal damage equal to the power of the sacrificed Marauders to the targeted player. However, as Brion is not in play when this ability resolves, the Lifelink ability will not trigger. The ability can only trigger when Brion is in play. So the ability will deal damage, but you will not gain any life.

Q: I have Silvergill Douser in play, along with a creature that has the Changeling ability. If I activate my Douser, will it give the target -2/-0 because it only counts permanents that match, or will it give the target -3/-0, because it checks for Merfolk and sees both of them, and then checks for Faeries and sees the Changeling?

A: Silvergill Douser's ability counts the number of permanents that you control that have one or both of the subtypes of Merfolk or Faerie. A creature with Changeling will have both types, but it will only be counted once. So in this example, the targeted creatures will only get -2/-0.

Q: My friend seems to think he can pay the activate cost for his Windbrisk Heights on turn five, and then on turn twelve, if he meets the criteria, he can play the spell without paying its cost and without activating the land again. This seems absurd to me; it seems like the card says activate: upon resolution of this ability, you can play it for free if X. Who's right here?

A: You are correct. When a Hideaway activated ability resolves, you can play the card that was removed from the game at that point, provided that the appropriate condition is met. You cannot activate the ability in one turn and then play the removed card in another if the condition is met.

Q: I have a Fallowsage enchanted by Second Wind. Can I tap the Fallowsage to activate Second Wind's untap ability to create a loop to draw as many cards as I want?

A: Second Wind does not give any abilities to the enchanted creature. To activate either of Second Wind's abilities, you tap Second Wind Itself as the cost of the ability, not the enchanted creature. You can use the first of Second Wind's activated abilities to tap Fallowsage, but this is where this combo ends, unless you find some way to continually untap Second Wind.

Q: I have a Outrider en-Kor, and I redirect two damage to Pious Warrior. Will I gain two life? In other words, is the redirected damage still considered combat damage?

A: Yes. Outrider en-Kor and many other similar abilities do not change the source of the damage or any other qualities associated with it. As long as combat damage that would be dealt to Outrider en-Kor is being redirected, then the damage that ends up being dealt will be combat damage.

Q: Does Fade Away's effect mean that a player can pay one mana per creature or sacrifice one permanent per creature, or do they just pay or sacrifice one, period.

A: When Fade Away resolves, each player, for each creature they control, will have to either pay one mana or sacrifice a permanent. They cannot pay just one mana or sacrifice just one permanent if they control more than one creature.