Rules Tip of the Day: Contrary to a fairly common opinion you can play multiple spells and/or abilities without passing priority. If you intend to do this make sure that you clearly announce that you are playing one spell or ability and then without passing priority you are playing another. Do not pause too long after announcing the first spell or ask 'OK?' as this is considered to be passing priority (Yes, there is no Interrupt window in Magic any more--Sheldon).

Q: With Bazaar of Baghdad, may I play Necromancy at the end of my opponent's turn with no targets in my graveyard, and with the knowledge that there is a Worldgorger Dragon on the top of my library? Then when my opponents say it resolves, I Bazaar in response, discarding the Dragon for a legal target? I am pretty sure Necromancy does not target until it comes into play, so it may be possible.

A: You are correct that Necromancy does not target until it comes into play and it's coming into play ability triggers and goes on the stack. However, what you want to do does not work. If you play Necromancy, pass priority and then your opponent passes priority the Necromancy spell will resolve and it will come into play. When it does its ability will trigger and go on the stack. At this time you must choose a target for this ability. This will happen before you can use Bazaar of Baghdad's ability to put a Dragon into your graveyard. In order for the Dragon to be in the graveyard when Necromancy's triggered ability goes on the stack you must use the Bazaar's ability before the Necromancy resolves. However if you do your opponent's will see the Dragon in you yard, figure out what you are up to and perhaps counter the Necromancy.

Q: In a tournament, when I Condescend a random spell with Condescend 0, and the opponent does not announce that he pays zero and simply proceeds with the spell, would that count for a warning?

A: No. While technically he should specifically announce that he intends to pay zero, I have no problem with assuming that he or she does indeed to choose to pay zero unless he specifically states otherwise.

Q: If I have Thought Prison in play with Afterlife imprinted on it and my opponent plays Barbed Lightning with the Entwine cost, does my opponent take the damage from Thought Prison or not?

A: Yes, the Thought Prison ability will trigger. The converted mana cost of the Barbed Lightning is 3, regardless of whether or not the Entwine cost is paid.

Q: I have Varchild's War-Riders in play and my opponent has Ivory Mask. This keeps me from selecting him as a target, but I still want to pay the cumulative upkeep. I think Varchild's War-Riders would die anyway because of you can't pay, but I don't know for sure.

A: Varchild's War-Riders has errata so that its cumulative upkeep ability does not target. You can still pay this cost and put token creatures under your opponent's control even though your opponent can not be targeted.

Q: According to rule 502.15g,"Effects with limited duration and delayed triggered abilities that specifically reference a permanent will be unable to further affect that permanent if it phases out." Is Callous Oppressor's ability considered an effect with limited duration?

A: Callous Oppressor's ability does have a limited duration. While in theory this duration might last until the end of the game if the Oppressor remains tapped for that time, the Oppressor's ability does specify a potential ending for the effect so it is limited. When a creature stolen by the Oppressor phases out, it will phase back into play at the beginning of this players untap step but it will be under the control of it's owner / previous controller.

Q: Does Chittering Rats trigger Geth's Grimoire's ability?

A: No. Chittering Rats' ability does not cause you to discard. Discarding is when you put a card in your hand into your graveyard. Your hand may be smaller, but it is not due to discarding.

Q: My opponent has Sun Droplet (no counters) and Energy Chamber in play. During his upkeep, he says Sun Droplet triggers (even though it has no counters yet) then he puts the Energy Chamber trigger on the stack, lets it resolve, puts the counter on Sun Droplet and then lets the Sun Droplet resolve gaining one life. I argued that the Sun Droplet wouldn't even trigger unless it had a counter. Who is right?

A: He is. Sun Droplet does not have an additional trigger condition. It's ability will trigger at the beginning of his upkeep regardless of whether or not there are counters on it.

Q: Can Spectral Shift modify a text of a land? If it can, will it change a type of mana that it produces? For example, if I use Spectral Shift on a Mountain and change it to Island will it become an Island and only will produce blue mana?

A: Yes, you can use Spectral Shift to change the basic type of a land. If you do it will produce mana of the new type.

Q: Can you Stifle Dance of the Dead or Animate Dead while it's in play but isn't enchanting a creature yet?

A: Yes you can. Both of those cards enter play as enchantments and then become local enchantments due to a coming into play triggered ability If you counter this ability with Stifle then they will remain as global enchantment and do nothing.

Q: I am playing an affinity mirror match in a Block PTQ. My opponent has a Disciple of the Vault and Arcbound Ravager in play and enough artifacts on the table to reduce my life total to zero, but I have Gilded Light in hand. If he looks at me and says"Sac everything to the ravager?" does this mean he is announcing all these sacrifice effects in response to each other? If so, by"everything" would he also have to sacrifice the ravager to itself? Does this depend on the REL of the tournament?

A: I would rule that because he did not specify that he was allowing each of the Disciple of the Vault's triggered abilities to resolve before he sacrificed the next artifact that he never passed priority to you and that all of these triggered abilities are on the stack at one time. I would also say that he did sacrifice the Ravager to itself. To allow him to take anything back after you play the Gilded Light would be revealing information about your hand. And I would most likely enforce this at every REL level. While I may spend more time teaching the Ravager player the proper / smart way to play things at REL 1 and show him why it works the way it does, I can't let this player change his decision after finding out that what he did won't win the game and will most likely cause him to lose the game.