According to the gatherer, you cannot choose an indestructible creature if two creatures are tied for the lowest power for Porphyry Nodes' effect.
Why isn't this same ruling true in the case of Sundering Titan's effect if you have a Darksteel Citadel and Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth? i.e. Why aren't you forced to choose a swamp that isn't indestructible instead of Darksteel Citadel?
This is because of a subtle wording difference between the two effects. Whereas Porphyry Nodes just instructs you to destroy the creature matching its description, Sundering Titan tells you to choose lands first, then destroy them.
608.2d If an effect of a spell or ability offers any choices other than choices already made as part of casting the spell, activating the ability, or otherwise putting the spell or ability on the stack, the player announces these while applying the effect. The player can't choose an option that's illegal or impossible, with the exception that having a library with no cards in it doesn't make drawing a card an impossible action.
Porphyry Nodes instructs you to choose to destroy a creature, and it's impossible to destroy a creature with indestructible, so you can't choose to destroy a creature with indestructible.
Sundering Titan, however, instructs you to choose lands, then destroy. All that happens is that you choose stuff; the set of objects from which you can choose doesn't depend on what happens after you choose those objects.
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How to use card tags (please use them for everybody's sanity)
[c]Lightning Bolt[/c] -> Lightning Bolt
[c=Lightning Bolt]Apple Pie[/c] -> Apple Pie
Vowels-Only Format Minimum deck size: 60 Maximum number of identical cards: 4 Ban list: Cards whose English names begin with a consonant, Unglued and Unhinged cards, cards involving ante, Ancestral Recall
That's because of the wording of the Titan's ability. At the time where you choose, Darksteel Citadel is not an impossible choice. That part of the effect is only asking to choose a swamp, without any other condition. Then, the rest of the effect tries to destroy it and simply fails. It's because the actions of choosing and destroying are sequential. With Porphyry Nodes, the choice and the destroying are part of the same action; you must choose something to destroy, so an indestructible creature is an impossible choice.
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I'm a former judge (lapsed), who keeps up to date on rules and policy. Keep in mind that judges' answers aren't necessarily more valid than those of people who aren't judges; what matters is we can quote the rules to back up our answers. When in doubt, ask for such quotes.
It's worth noting that Porphyry Nodes is almost unique in this regard. There are very, very few cases in which you have to choose to destroy something without first targeting it. 99.9% of similar situations you encounter will work like the Titan does, with indestructible permanents being legal targets.
Edit: huh. I guess I should read the card. Titan doesn't target. Still, pretty much nothing else works like the Nodes.
It's worth noting that Porphyry Nodes is almost unique in this regard. There are very, very few cases in which you have to choose to destroy something without first targeting it. 99.9% of similar situations you encounter will work like the Titan does, with indestructible permanents being legal targets.
Titan doesn't target either...
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
I'm a former judge (lapsed), who keeps up to date on rules and policy. Keep in mind that judges' answers aren't necessarily more valid than those of people who aren't judges; what matters is we can quote the rules to back up our answers. When in doubt, ask for such quotes.
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Why isn't this same ruling true in the case of Sundering Titan's effect if you have a Darksteel Citadel and Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth? i.e. Why aren't you forced to choose a swamp that isn't indestructible instead of Darksteel Citadel?
Porphyry Nodes instructs you to choose to destroy a creature, and it's impossible to destroy a creature with indestructible, so you can't choose to destroy a creature with indestructible.
Sundering Titan, however, instructs you to choose lands, then destroy. All that happens is that you choose stuff; the set of objects from which you can choose doesn't depend on what happens after you choose those objects.
[c]Lightning Bolt[/c] -> Lightning Bolt
[c=Lightning Bolt]Apple Pie[/c] -> Apple Pie
Vowels-Only Format
Minimum deck size: 60
Maximum number of identical cards: 4
Ban list: Cards whose English names begin with a consonant, Unglued and Unhinged cards, cards involving ante, Ancestral Recall
Edit: huh. I guess I should read the card. Titan doesn't target. Still, pretty much nothing else works like the Nodes.