Rules Tip of the Day: There are a lot of old keyword mechanics that are returning in Time Spiral. A few of them have received minor tweaks in how they work. If you are attending the prerelease it would be to your benefit to read the Time Spiral rules primer.

Q: Will damage done by Demonfire when I have Hellbent be prevented by Energy Field?

A: No. If the controller of Demonfire has Hellbent, then the Demonfire will deal damage to the targeted player even if he controls Energy Field. This is because when two effects disagree, the one that says something can't happen wins.

Q: My opponent plays Castigate and I have Gobin Flectomancer in play. If I sacrifice Goblin Flectomancer to change the target, do I chose one of my opponents, or one of his?

A: Your opponent is still the controller of this spell, so you will have to choose someone in the game that is an opponent of the controller of Castigate.

Q: If you play two copies of Rising Waters, do they stack? Can you untap two lands at the beginning of your upkeep?

A: Yes. The abilities of each Rising Waters in play will trigger independently and resolve separately. When each does, you will be able to untap one land, so each player will be able to untap two lands in their upkeep step.

Q: If someone attacks me with Thalakos Deceiver and I give my Eight-and-a-Half Tails protection from white, and make the Deceiver white, will he still be able to sac the Deceiver and gain control of my Eight-and-a-Half Tails?

A: In the declaration of blockers step, when Thalakos Deceiver is not blocked, its ability will trigger and go on the stack. At this point your opponent must choose a target for this ability. You can respond to Thalakos Deceiver's triggered ability by making the Deceiver white and giving Eight-and-a-Half Tails protection from white. If you do, then the Deceier's ability will be countered on resolution, and nothing will happen.

Q: If I use Dominating Licid to gain control of an opponent's creature, can I then copy it with Copy Enchantment? Can I detach the Copy Enchantment and make it a 1/1?

A: Yes you can use Copy Enchantment to make a copy of a Licid in play that has been turned into an enchantment. However this Copy Enchantment will come into play as a creature, not an enchantment; it will not be attached to anything. This is because when a copy of something comes into play, it does not copy any of the effects that have been applied to the original, except for other copy effects.

Q: Could you generally explain how Mind's Desire works with split cards (Research / Development in particular)? Do I get to play both sides of the split card when it is removed from the game via Mind's Desire, or does the Mind's Desire rules text of "as though it were in your hand" limit me to choosing one side or the other?

A: Any time you play a split card, you can only play one half of it. It does not matter if you play it from your hand and pay the mana cost or if you play it from the removed from game zone without paying that cost.

Q: Can I use Wirewood Symbiote's ability if there are no untapped creatures in play?

A: Yes. Wirewood Symbiote's ability has one targeting restriction: it must target a creature. It does not matter if it is tapped or untapped. The word 'untap' in the ability is an instruction to untap the targeted creature when the ability resolves. If it is already untapped, then the ability will do nothing. However.

Q: When you have Necropotence and Zombie Infestation, can you make a token with the Zombie Infestation? I think you can't, as Necropotence removes any card that you would discard from the game.

A: Where the card may end up may be different from normal, but that does not mean that you are not discarding a card. So yes, you can activate Zombie Infestation's ability by discarding a card, and you will get a 2/2 Zombie, even though the discarded card does not end up in your graveyard.

Q: If my opponent has something that prevents his creatures from being targeted by spells or effects (Crystalline Sliver, say, when there are only Slivers in play on his side), is it still possible to use Arena? As I understand it, I am only targeting my own creature with it.

A: Arena's ability does not target anything. When this ability resolves, you choose a creature you control and an opponent. This chosen opponent then chooses a creature he controls. These two creatures become tapped and then these two creatures deal damage equal to their current power to each other. Both you and your opponent can choose creatures that cannot be targeted by spells and abilities.