Rules Tip of the Day: Effects that affect creatures mean creatures in play, not creature cards in any other zone. This also applies to effects that deal with the other permanent types.
Q: If there is an Enchanted Evening in play and Presence of the Master is played, can only sorceries and instants be played?
A: First of all, Presence of the Master does not prevent any cards from being played; it will just trigger and counter any enchantment spell. Also, Enchanted Evening only affects permanents in play. It does not make cards in any other zones into enchantments. This means that you can play and resolve permanents as long as they are not normally enchantments.
Q: If I control indestructible artifacts like Darksteel Citadel and Darksteel Ingot, and I play Fracturing Gust, do I gain any life from those artifacts?
A: No, because these indestructible artifacts are not actually destroyed. They will not be counted when figuring out how much life you should gain.
Q: When I attack or block with Dusk Urchins for the first time, will it be 3/2 when combat damage is assigned?
A: Yes. Its ability triggers when it attacks or blocks. This triggered ability will resolve and put the -1/-1 counter on the Urchins before combat damage is assigned.
Q: Player A has a Leech Bonder with two -1/-1 counters on it. He attempts to move one of its counters to another creature. In response, player B uses a creature enchanted with Power of Fire to try to kill it. I presume Leech Bonder dies. Does the target of the Leech Bonder\'s ability get a -1/-1 counter or not?
A: No. If either of the targets of Leech Bonder's ability are not legal when the ability resolves, the ability will fail to do anything. This is because Leech Bonder's ability instructs you to 'move' a counter. In order for a counter to move, it must have a starting point and a destination. If the creature with the counter on it is not in play when Leech Bonder's ability resolves, then there is nothing to move. If the creature that was to receive a counter on it is not in play when Leech Bonder's ability resolves, then there is nothing to move to.
Q: I have Imperious Perfect and Safehold Elite in play, and the Safehold Elite has a -1/-1 counter on it. My opponent plays a Godhead of Awe. What happens to my Elite?
A: It will remain in play as a 1/1 creature. When calculating the power and toughness of a creature, you start with the base characteristics or characteristic-defining abilities, apply all effects that set power and toughness, then effects from counters, and finally effects from static abilities. In this situation, you start with a 2/2 Safehold Elite, make it 1/1 due to Godhead of Awe's ability, make it 0/0 due to the -1/-1 counter, and finally make it a 1/1 due to the effect from the Imperious Perfect. It does not matter that in the midst of this calculation the Safehold Elite is a 0/0; state-based effects only see the final result.
Q: I have a Windborn Muse and two other creatures. My opponent pays two mana and attacks with Nacatl War-Pride, creating some tapped, attacking token copies. Does my opponent have to pay an additional 2 mana for each attacking token?
A: No, he only has to pay when he chooses a creature as attacking. This cost is not paid for creatures that are put into play attacking.
Q: I have Jace Beleren in play. My opponent uses Memnarch]'s ability to turn it into an artifact, then plays [[Animate Artifact targeting Jace. Is Jace still considered a planeswalker, or is it now just an artifact creature that can activate abilities as long as it can pay the cost?
A: This permanent will have three different permanent types: it will be a planeswallker artifact creature. When an effect gives an object a type but states that it keeps an existing type, it means that it keeps all previous existing types that it had. Animate Artifact states that the targeted artifact is still an artifact, but that means that this artifact will keep all other types it has. Because this Jace is still a planesalkwer the limit on the number of times you can play the planeswalker abilities still applies.
Q: Llanowar Elves is in play, and an opponent plays Kiku's Shadow targeting it. In response to the damage being on the stack, I activate Immaculate Magistrate targeting Llanowar Elves. Does my Elf survive?
A: The only damage that uses the stack as a separate object is combat damage. Spells and abilities that deal damage do so when the spell or ability resolves. In this example, Kiku's Shadow will cause the targeted creature to deal damage to itself in an amount equal to its power when it resolves. You can respond to this, but pumping the creature's power will not help. If you respond to Kiku's Shadow by using Immaculate Magistrate's ability, the targeted Llanowar Elves will just end up dealing additional damage to itself. The only way for the Elves to survive in this situation is if you use some effect to pump its toughness but not its power.
Q: Will the effect of Steely Resolve cancel out Grave Pact if the creature type I pick is protected by Steely Resolve?
A: No, Grave Pact's ability does not target anything. You can, and may have to, sacrifice a creature with shroud when Grave Pact's ability resolves.
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