Rules Tip of the Day: When assigning damage from an attacking creature with Trample, its controller must assign what would normally be lethal damage to all blocking creatures, he can then assign the remainder to the defending player. In this case you still need to assign what would normally be lethal damage to the defending creature. It does not matter that this damage will be prevented; you do not take that into account when assigning combat damage.

Q: Can I use Artificial Evolution to change the creature type of the Soulshift ability? For example change it so I can get a Soldier when the creature with Soulshift goes to the graveyard?

A; No. The rules text for Soulshift is actually in the Comprehensive Rules. The italicized text on the card with Soulshift is reminder text and it there to describe how the ability works; changing this text does not change how the ability works. This is similar to how the Fear keyword ability now works.

Q: Can I reveal and Splice a spell onto itself when I play it?

A: No. The first step of playing a spell is to put the spell card on the stack. At this point the splice spell is on the stack and you can not reveal it in your hand to add its own splice text.

Q: The Champions of Kamigawa FAQ says that you may choose less than four cards for Gifts Ungiven, yet I seem to recall a ruling about Intuition that stated that you HAD to get 3 cards (so long as you had at least that many in the library). Is there a reason for this difference, or am I just remembering incorrectly about Intuition?

A: The difference is that Gifts Ungiven has you choose four cards with different names and Intuition only said that you had to find three cards without any other stipulation attached. There is no way to prove that you do indeed have cards with different names in your deck without revealing the entire deck, so you can get less than four cards. With Intuition it is possible to get any three cards if you have at least three cards in your deck. While the number of cards in your library is public knowledge, the names of the cards in your library is not.

Q: What if both Ertai, Wizard Adept and Ertai, the Corrupted were in play? Would the Legend rule apply, because it's actually the same individual, or not, because their full names are different?

A: Even with the changes to the Legend rule this has not changed. It will not be applied, as these two permanents will have different names.

Q: If I have Broodhatch Nantuko in play, can I play Chain of Plasma on it more than once without it dying before the first 3 damage is dealt?

A: No. When the first copy of the Chain of Plasma resolves it will deal 3 points of damage to the Broodhatch Nantuko and if a card was discarded a copy will be made and go on the stack. However before this copy can resolve state-based effects are checked and the Broodhatch will go to the graveyard due to the fact that it received lethal damage. If the copy of the Chain of Plasma targeted this Broodhatch then it will be countered on resolution when it goes to resolve. (The Broodhatch's ability will have triggered and resolved as well, but you will only have gotten 3 insect tokens.)

Q: I have Sphere of Resistance in play, and I want to play Shrapnel Blast. If I sacrifice the Sphere, does it cost me 2 or 3 to play it?

A: It'll still cost you 2R. You calculate costs before you pay them, so you have already applied the cost increasing effect of the Sphere by the time you sacrifice it.

Q: My friend wants to know if he has Mephidross Vampire in play with a Kamahl's Desire on it (without Threshold) and he attacks and his opponent blocks with a 4/4 flyer, will his Vampire get the +1/+1 counter before the opponent's 4/4 would kill it?

A: Yes, because Kamahl's Desire gives the Vampire First Strike, the triggered ability of the Vampire will trigger and resolve before the normal combat damage step. It will get this +1/+1 counter when this triggered ability resolves. The Vampire will not deal lethal damage to the blocking creature (being 3/4 when it assigned damage), but it will survive, as the blocking creature will only deal 4 points of damage to the now 4/5 Vampire.

Q: If I copy a modal spell, do I have to choose the same mode?

A: If you copy a modal spell you will get the copy with the same mode(s) or modes chosen as the original. You don't get to make a new choice.

Q: Will Tangleroot let you play Llanowar Elf for free if you have no source of mana when you start to play it? My feeling is that first you announce that you're playing a Llanowar Elf. That triggers the Tangleroot's ability and it places G in your mana pool. Next you must pay all related costs for the spell, which you can do via the G placed in your mana pool by the Tangleroot. Is this correct?

A: No. Tangleroot's triggered ability is not a mana ability; it is a normal triggered ability that does use the stack. Only triggered abilities that trigger off of another mana ability are mana abilities and do not use the stack.

Also, the Tangleroot ability will not trigger unless you complete the announcement of a creature spell. If you start the announcement and can not finish it because you can't make the necessary payments then this creature spell does not count as played.

Because of the above facts, Tangleroot's ability will not give you mana until it resolves, which will be after you have completed the announcement of the Llanowar Elves. In order for that to happen, you have to have paid for the Elf with some other mana.

Q: Let's say I have 4 Zubera Spirits, 2 Floating Dream Zubera and 2 Ember-Fist Zubera. If they all attack, and die in the same combat phase, do I get to place their effects on the stack as I choose (i.e. Either do 1, 2, 3, 4 damage, or draw 1, 2, 3, 4 cards), for example 1 damage, 2 cards, 3 cards, 4 damage?

A: Yes, you can control how these triggered abilities go on the stack. However, when these abilities resolve they all count the number of Zubera that have gone to the graveyard that turn. At this point all four will have gone to the graveyard, so if you so stack those abilities as you listed you will deal four damage to a target creature, draw four cards, draw four cards and deal four damage to a target creature.