Rules Tip of the Day: Blocking creatures are declared at the very beginning of the declare blockers step. In order for a creature to be declared as a blocker, it must be in play when this step begins. This means that the last chance you have to get a creature into play in order to block is in the declaration of attackers step. Keep in mind that it you do animate a permanent in play or play a creature as an instant, your opponent can still respond before the declaration of blockers step begins and destroy this creature so it cannot block.

Q: If you try to hit something with Rakdos Ickspitter, but then use a replacement ability, like Carom or Kill-Suit Cultist, does the originally targeted creature's owner lose the one life from the Ickspitter? In the case of Carom, does the newly hit creature's owner lose the life? In the case of the Cultist, does the originally targeted creature's owner take the life loss?

A: In both cases, the controller of the targeted creature will lose one life. The second portion of Ickspitter's ability doesn't care where the damage from the first portion of its ability gets dealt or if this damage is dealt at all. The loss of life is not contingent on the damage being dealt, and the player who loses life does not change if what gets damaged is changed.

Q: I have Grand Arbiter Augustin IV and Dovescape in play under my control. I play another Dovescape. I know I would only pay four mana, but will I still get six bird tokens?

A: Yes, the converted mana cost of a spell is not necessarily what you actually pay when playing the spell. The converted mana cost is determined by combining the mana symbols in the upper right hand of a card. In this example, you will get six bird tokens even though you only spent four mana to play the second Dovescape.

Q: My opponent controls Goblin Flectomancer. He plays Magnivore, and in response, I Mana Leak it. My opponent plays the ability of the Flectomancer to make the Mana Leak target itself. I argued that this was not a valid play, and referenced the Goblin Flectomancer and Parallectric Feedback answer earlier. Who is right? If I am, will he get his Flectomancer back?

A: You are correct, spells cannot target themselves. However, targeting Mana Leak with Goblin Flectomancer's ability is not an illegal play. It's just that when Flectomancer's ability resolves there is not another legal target to change the target of this Mana Leak to. This means that the Flectomancer will remain in its owner's graveyard and the Magnivore will be countered unless its controller pays three mana.

Q: Can you use Faith's Fetters to stop a player from sacrificing a creature with Greater Good, or tapping down your artifacts and creatures with Glare of Subdual?

A: Yes. Both Greater Good and Glare of Subdual have activated abilities. Faith's Fetters can enchant any permanent type, so you can use it to prevent the abilities of those two enchantments from being played.

Q: Will Spell Snare be able to counter a Shining Shoal played using its alternate cost?

A: Not unless X is zero. The value of X of a spell on the stack is equal to whatever was chosen. The converted mana cost of a Shoal spell on the stack, however it was played, is X+2.

Q: Does Protean Hulk's ability mean that I can search my library for any number of creatures whose converted mana cost is six or less and put them into play? Or does it mean that I can search my library for any number of creatures whose combined mana cost add up to six or less and put them into play (six one-CC creatures, or a four-CC creature and a two-CC creature)?

A: You can only put into play a set of creature with a combined converted mana cost of six or less. For example you can get six creature cards with the converted mana cost of one, or you could get three creatures that cost two, or three one drops and one three drop etc.

Q: If Wildfire is played while Sacred Ground is in play, how many triggers are there for Sacred Ground? One or four? This is relevant to Voidslime; can I stop one land from returning to play or all four?.

A: Assuming that the controller of the Wildfire is different from the controller of the Sacred Ground, then the Sacred Ground will trigger four times. Even thought they all go to the graveyard at once, each instance of a land going to the graveyard will create a separate triggered ability. This means that you'll be able to use a single copy of Voidslime to prevent just one of these lands from returning to play.

Q: If a Sculpting Steel is in the graveyard and chosen as the target of a Goblin Welder's ability, can it copy the artifact that is about to be welded out of play, or is it not a legal target? Which happens first, copying an artifact when it comes into play, or the artifact in play hitting the graveyard?

A: No, it can't copy the other artifact. When Goblin Welder's ability resolves, the artifact in play is sacrificed, and then the targeted artifact card in a graveyard is put into play. Because the artifact in play is sacrificed first it is not in play when you need to choose an artifact for the Sculpting Steel to copy.