Rules Tip of the Day: Effects that prevent you from playing a specific card (Meddling Mage) or from playing spells for a specified amount of time (Orim's Chant) will not prevent a player from putting a permanent into play with an activated ability (Aether Vial).

Q: During a "friendly" 6 person melee, an opponent taps his mana for Jester's Scepter, and then starts to look at everyone's cards on the table, and concentrating on someone else's cards, he then whips around to me and chooses me. I have a Counterspell in my hand, and since he choose me, not my opponent, I counter the Jester's Scepter. We have a disagreement on the order of things. He says I should have played the Counterspell prior to him choosing a player; since he looked like he was going after a mutual opponent I held off till he chose me. Who is in the right here, or what is the correct order in countering a Jester's Scepter?

A: Form the description, it is somewhat difficult to tell. The Jester's Scepter spell does not target anything. However, when it resolves and comes into play, its comes-into-play triggered ability does target. The target for this ability is chosen when it goes on the stack. This means that when the controller of the Scepter chooses a target for the ability, it is too late to counter the Jester's Scepter spell. If you are going to counter the Scepter, you need to do so before Scepter comes into play and before the targeted player is chosen.

However, after the Scepter is played, and before it comes into play, each player in the game will have to pass priority without doing anything in order for the Scepter spell to resolve. You describe this opponent as playing the Scepter and then looking at each player before choosing who to target. I cannot tell if he played the Scepter and then chose a target without giving each opponent an opportunity to play spells and abilities.

Q: Can Azorius Guildmage counter Troll Ascetic's regeneration ability? In other words, is the Guildmage's ability targeting the Troll's ability, the Troll itself, or both?

A: Yes, the Troll's regeneration ability is an activated ability, and it can be targeted by the Guildmage's ability. This targets the ability on the stack, not the source of the ability.

Q: Dimir Doppelganger says it becomes a "copy of that card"—does that mean it is still a copy of the card while it is in a graveyard? Earlier today, I copied a Dredge card; does that mean I can Dredge Dimir Doppelganger?

A: The effect that makes Dimir Doppelganger a copy of the last creature card that was removed from the game only applies while the Doppelganger is in play. When in the graveyard. it is a Dimir Doppelganger card. So no, you will not be able to Dredge for the Doppelganger.

Q: Akroma, Angel of Wrath is in the graveyard. I cast Animate Dead. What happens? I've been told two things: that Akroma will remain in play without the Animate Dead, and that she will go to the graveyard. I've also been told that one of these rulings is old and was changed. Which is correct now?

A: Here is how it currently works. Animate Dead resolves and comes into play. When it does, its comes-into-play ability triggers. You target Akroma with this triggered ability. When this triggered ability resolves, Akroma is put into play and Animate Dead become an Aura. It will try attach itself to Akroma, but will not, due to Akroma's protection from black ability. Then, because it is not attached to anything, this Aura will go to the graveyard, but Akroma will remain in play.

It is true that this is not how this interaction has always worked. The rules that govern what an Aura can be attached to were tweaked last summer when the Aura subtype was introduced. In the past, local enchantments could become attached to a protected permanent; now they cannot become attached at all.

Q: I attack and get through with an Abyssal Nocturnus and an Abyssal Specter. Does the Nocturnus get +2/+2 and fear in time to deal that damage to the opponent?

A: No, barring first strike damage, all combat damage is dealt at one time. When combat damage goes on the stack, the power of the Abyssal Nocturnus is two, so it will only deal two points of damage. Later in the combat damage step the power of the Nocturnus will be raised, but that will not increase the amount of combat damage that it deals. If the Abyssal Specter had first strike, then the Nocturnus' power would increase before it dealt combat damage. This is because the Specter would deal its combat damage, and its ability would trigger and resolve before normal combat damage went on the stack.

Q: If I have a Mycosynth Golem in play, giving all artifact creatures Affinity, how does that interact with creatures that have Sunburst? Am I unable to pay its mana cost to give it the +1/+1 counters, or can I still pay it, even if it is "free", if there are enough artifacts in play?

A: If you control enough artifacts so this Sunburst artifact creature is free, then it will not get any +1/+1 counters. You are not given the option of paying colored mana in order to get the +1/+1 counters. For example, if you controlled a total of five artifacts and played a Skyreach Manta, you would pay zero mana, it would come into play with zero +1/+1 counters, and go to the graveyard.

Q: Will Destructive Flow force a player to sacrifice a dual land such as Taiga, Volcanic Island, Plateau, Underground Sea, etc.?

A: Yes. Those lands may have two basic land types, but they are still non-basic lands.