Rules Tip of the Day: If there is a First Strike combat damage step, then after the First Strike combat damage resolves, each player will receive priority before the normal combat damage step begins and non-first-striking creatures assign combat damage.

Q: I attack with Purity, and my opponent blocks with Soul Collector. He pumps the Collector's power to six before combat damage is dealt. Which effect will prevail: the one from the Soul Collector that sends Purity from the graveyard back to play, or the one from Purity that sends it from the graveyard back to my library?

A: As it is your turn, your opponent will gain control of the Purity. In this situation, after combat damage is dealt, the triggered abilities of Soul Collector and Purity will try to go on the stack at the same time. When multiple triggered abilities to go on the stack at the same time, they go on in APNAP (Active Player, Non-Active Player) order. This means that those controlled by the active player go on the stack first, followed by those controlled by the non-active player. This means that the ability of the Soul Collector will resolve first and return your Purity to play under your opponent's control. Then, when Purity's ability resolves, the Purity will not be in your graveyard any longer, so nothing will happen.

Q: I have Haakon, Stromgald Scourge in play; my opponent casts Cryptic Command to bounce Haakon and draw a card. In response, I play Twincast targeting Cryptic Command and choose to counter the first Cryptic Command and draw a card. I think that when the copy is played, you get to choose the modality of the copy, just like a normal Cryptic Command. Is this correct?

A: Actually no, the copy created by Twincast is put on the stack without being played. It is an exact copy and you do not get to choose different modes. This copy of Cryptic Command will have to target a permanent.

Q: Elvish Promenade says to put a 1/1 Elf Warrior token into play for each Elf you control. Elvish Promenade is also a tribal sorcery, which counts as an Elf. Does Elvish Promenade count itself on resolution to determine the number of tokens to put into play?

A: As it resolves, Elvish Promenade is an Elf spell on the stack that you control; it is not an Elf in play that you control. When an effect refers to a type or subtype without also specifying 'spell', 'card', or 'source', it means a permanent in play with that type or subtype. So the Promenade will not count itself.

Q: If you put a Whispersilk Cloak on a Hamletback Goliath that already has a bunch of counters, would those counters fall off? Also, would you still get to put the counters on the Goliath if it had a Whispersilk Cloak attached to it?

A: It will keep the counters it has, and be able to gain additional counters. Counters on a permanent do not target the permanent; they will remain there when the permanent gains shroud. Also, Hamletback Giant's ability does not target itself, or anything, so it can gain additional counters.

Q: If my brother plays Experiment Kraj and has a +1/+1 counter on his Metamorphic Wurm with Threshold, does his Kraj also get Threshold?

A: First of all, Threshold is an ability word; it can be used to help describe or tie together similar abilities. Threshold abilities can be static abilities, activated abilities, or triggered abilities. Metamorphic Wurm's ability is a static ability that is applied when its controller has seven or more cards in its controller's graveyard. This ability is not copied by Experminent Kraj, regardless of the number of cards that are in the graveyard of the Kraj's controller.

Q: If I were to make Doubling Cube a Snow permanent, would the mana that it doubles be Snow mana?

A: Yes. The original mana in your pool will not be Snow, but the mana generated by Doubling Cube's ability would be Snow mana.

Q: I play Time Walk and my opponent plays Fork on it. Do I get another turn, and then he takes two turns, or will he get his turn first, and it will be as if nothing happened? Is the APNAP rule used here?

A: Whenever additional turns are generated, they are taken in LIFO (last in, first out) order, like items using the stack. APNAP has nothing to do with it. In other words, the most recently created extra turn will be taken first. So yes, you will take an additional turn, and then your opponent will take two turns—his extra one and then his normal one.

Q: I read a ruling in the database regarding Phage the Untouchable and Endless Whispers in a two-player game. I was wondering what the rules are for a multiplayer game. For example, I have both Phage the Untouchable and Endless Whispers in play, and I have two opponents. I sacrifice Phage, end my turn, and choose opponent A to control Phage, causing him to die during my end of turn phase. Does this mean that Phage will go back into my graveyard? And wouldn't I be able to choose opponent B, killing him in the same turn as well?

A: No. When this player loses the game, all objects they own will leave the game, and all change-of-control effects that are applied to permanents they control will end. Then, if there are still objects that would be controlled by this player, they are removed from the game. Phage is not owned by this player, so this will not cause it to leave the game. Additionally, your opponent does not have control of it due to a change-of-control effect. Endless Whisper's effect put it directly into play under your opponent's control; it did not come into play under someone else's control and then go under the control of opponent A. So when this player leaves the game, this Phage would remain in play, but nothing will put it under the control of another player. This means that Phage will then be removed from the game. (All of this is covered in rule 600.4a of the Comprehensive Rules.) So this trick is not repeatable, and in fact Phage will end up removed from the game.