Q: Inspirit untaps a creature and adds stats. Can an attacker put this on an attacking creature after blockers have been declared? If so, what happens? (I thought if you could untap an attacker, it was removed from combat, or dealt no damage...) Help!

A: Help has arrived!

This is one of the most common misconceptions I've run into since Magic began, and I don't know where it came from. The act of untapping a creature does not remove it from combat. If you play Inspirit on your attacking creature, you'll make it large and in charge for blocking.

- Sheldon

Q: Hi,

Player A declares end step, player B has no effects; player A discards two Basking Rootwallas and plays them with madness. Player B has no responses to the Rootwallas, and then Aether Bursts them both when he has priority again. Player B now has nine cards in his hand. Does he discard again, or end his turn with the two Rootwallas in his hand?

- Joe

A: Joe,

He discards. If any State-Based Effects happen or abilities trigger during Cleanup, the active player will get priority. Once the stack is empty and both players pass, another cleanup step begins (rule 314.1c). The player has nine cards, so at the first part of the new Cleanup (314.1a), he'll have to discard.

- Sheldon

Q: Can an Iridescent Angel be put into play when the Hunting Grounds is triggered given it has protection from all colors? Hunting Grounds is colored and is targeting a creature from your hand. I know according to the rule for Protection A.27.7, a card does not have protection when not in play - but this rule only cites the graveyard and the stack (no mention of the hand, though it is not the play-zone). The Hunting Grounds affect does not go on the stack anyway, as you've noted in an earlier answer. I think it can be played this way but I wanted to double check.

Thanks for the public service,
SyrDragon

A: Thanks! I'm glad to help. The answer to your question has two parts. First, Hunting Grounds doesn't target a card in your hand. You wait until the triggered ability resolves to decide which creature you're going to put into play. Second, permanents only exist in the In Play Zone (rule 217.5b). The abilities of permanents, like the Angel's Protection, only exist in the In Play Zone, unless the card specifically states otherwise. For example the Angel, while in your graveyard, can be targeted and removed by a Crypt Creeper.

Q: I've heard a lot of talk about cycling and how it can't be countered by spells that counter spells. However, I have not seen anyone even ask the question:"Can I counter the cycling ability with Bind?"

So, can I?

Thanks,
Adhil

A: Adhil,

Cycling isn't a spell, it's an activated ability (rule 502.18). That means yes, you can counter it with Bind, which specifically counters an activated ability. The cost of Cycling is discarding the card (in addition to any mana), so your opponent will lose the card and not get to draw.

Sheldon

Q: Once Erratic Explosion's card has been revealed, can the damage be responded to, or is it like Cursed Scroll - when you choose the card, it's too late?

A: It's just like Cursed Scroll; all the stuff happens during resolution. No one gets priority in between revealing the cards and dealing the damage (or putting them at the bottom of the library), so any damage prevention or redirection has to already have been played.

Q: Sheldon,

Hi, I just wanted to know one quick thing. If my opponent makes a creature such as Morphling untargetable, can I still prevent the damage with Kor Haven? I wasn't exactly sure whether or not the Haven actually targets Morphling.

A: Kor Haven is one of the few targeted damage prevention abilities - so the answer is no, you can't. A smart player can prevent you from ever being able to resolve the ability, because the Haven only works on an attacking creature. If your opponent makes it untargetable before it ever attacks, you're out of luck.

Q: I overheard a player talking about not being able to counter the copy of a spell that Mirari makes. I believe this to be incorrect... But the person who said this was a tourney official. I may have misunderstood their statement and/or argument, but I'd like to know.

A: I think you misunderstood. The copy is a spell just like any other spell. What this person was likely saying was that countering the original spell doesn't counter the copy. Mirari will trigger every time you play a spell, but won't go on the stack until you get priority (which means after you're completely done announcing the original). When that triggered ability resolves, you decide to pay 3 or not. If you do, then a copy goes on the stack. Mirari's trigger goes on the stack before your opponent gets priority, so he won't be able to counter the original beforehand.

Q: A player attacks with a Craw Giant; I Ray of Command it. Before the end of my turn I, Unsummon it; whose hand does it return to?

A: Unsummon returns a creature to its owner's hand. The"owner" is the person in whose deck the creature began the game. At the time of the unsummoning, you were the"controller." A spell or ability can change a permanent's controller but never its owner. A card is always put into its owner's library, hand, or graveyard, regardless of who controlled the card in its previous zone (Glossary"Control,""Controller," and"Owner").

Q: My opponent has a Raging Goblin and a Piledriver Goblin out. Can I Aether Burst his Raging Goblin at the beginning of his attack phase, before he declares attackers, in order to stop his Piledriver from getting +2/+0?

Thanks,
The Ferrett

Q: Even editors have questions from time to time.

The answer is yes. There's a Beginning of Combat Step (rule 307), which comes before the Declare Attackers Step (rule 308). If the Raging Goblin isn't around during Declare Attackers, it can't help the Piledriver's triggered ability.

Sheldon