From what I've heard you can activate a Mosswort Bridge or Spinerock Knoll's ability at instant speed and play the hidden card at instant speed even if it is a sorcery or creature. Why is this the case? Normally, cards like Narset, Enlightened Master require you to obey normal timing restrictions behind casting sorceries or creatures. Cascade of course doesn't, however.
I also understand that you can't play a land off a hideaway card during an opponent's turn. So why do you have to obey the normal restrictions for playing a land but not a sorcery or a creature?
I would be especially grateful if somebody could point me towards the section of the Comp. Rules that covers these cases.
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Current Modern decks BGW Junk / URB Grixis Shadow / RGB Lantern Control / WUBCBant Eldrazi
Current Legacy decks BUG Shardless BUG / UWR Predict Miracles / RUG Canadian Thresh / WRBG 4c Loam UB Reanimator
Things like hideaway lands let you play the cards during the resolution of the ability, they're the same as cascade. They're now or never. Things like Narset allow you to play them for a set duration, not during the resolution of the ability, so you still have to abide by timing restrictions.
Playing spells during the resolution of an ability:
608.2f If an effect gives a player the option to pay mana, he or she may activate mana abilities before taking that action. If an effect specifically instructs or allows a player to cast a spell during resolution, he or she does so by putting that spell on top of the stack, then continuing to cast it by following the steps in rules 601.2a–h, except no player receives priority after it's cast. The currently resolving spell or ability then continues to resolve, which may include casting other spells this way. No other spells can normally be cast and no other abilities can normally be activated during resolution.
For the land part, you can't play lands on your opponents' turn because of this rule:
305.3. A player can't play a land, for any reason, if it isn't his or her turn. Ignore any part of an effect that instructs a player to do so.
From what I've heard you can activate a Mosswort Bridge or Spinerock Knoll's ability at instant speed and play the hidden card at instant speed even if it is a sorcery or creature. Why is this the case? Normally, cards like Narset, Enlightened Master require you to obey normal timing restrictions behind casting sorceries or creatures. Cascade of course doesn't, however.
It's because the ability instructs you to just cast the spell, implicit "right now", giving you special permission to do so at that moment or otherwise you wouldn't be able to (as you're still in the middle of an ability's resolution, so not even instants can be cast normally yet!).
Narset's ability, on the other hand, gives you a wider window where to cast the spell: "until end of turn,". It is not instructing you to cast it right now, you have until a certain later moment to do so, and the regular timing rules for the cards still apply.
I also understand that you can't play a land off a hideaway card during an opponent's turn. So why do you have to obey the normal restrictions for playing a land but not a sorcery or a creature?
Because lands have an actual restriction in place. Sorceries and creatures actually don't, they just have limited permission.
304.1. A player who has priority may cast an instant card from his or her hand. Casting an instant as a spell uses the stack. (See rule 601, "Casting Spells.")
307.1. A player who has priority may cast a sorcery card from his or her hand during a main phase of his or her turn when the stack is empty. Casting a sorcery as a spell uses the stack. (See rule 601, "Casting Spells.")
Those rules are permissive: they say you can. There's no rule saying "you can't cast sorceries during another player's turn", you just don't have any rule giving you permission. Some effects may give you permission, such as the Mosswort Bridge's last ability, and without any restriction to prevent you, you can cast such spells even at a point where you don't have priority.
305.1. A player who has priority may play a land card from his or her hand during a main phase of his or her turn when the stack is empty. Playing a land is a special action; it doesn't use the stack (see rule 115). Rather, the player simply puts the land onto the battlefield. Since the land doesn't go on the stack, it is never a spell, and players can't respond to it with instants or activated abilities.
305.3. A player can't play a land, for any reason, if it isn't his or her turn. Ignore any part of an effect that instructs a player to do so.
Like the others, 305.1 is permissive. But 305.3 is restrictive. Sorceries and other spells don't have any rule saying anything close to that "ignore any part of an effect..." bit.
So that's why you can't ever play a land outside of your turn, even if an effect instructs you to play it. But you can cast a spell at a moment you normally could, if an effect instructs you to.
About effects:
610.1. A one-shot effect does something just once and doesn't have a duration. Examples include dealing damage, destroying a permanent, putting a token onto the battlefield, and moving an object from one zone to another.
116.2e. Resolving spells and abilities may instruct players to make choices or take actions, or may allow players to activate mana abilities. Even if a player is doing so, no player has priority while a spell or ability is resolving. See rule 608, "Resolving Spells and Abilities."
The Bridge's last ability has no duration, so it's an one-shot effect. It takes effect immediately, and it is instructing you to cast the spell so you do so as the ability is resolving.
611.2. A continuous effect may be generated by the resolution of a spell or ability.
611.2a. A continuous effect generated by the resolution of a spell or ability lasts as long as stated by the spell or ability creating it (such as "until end of turn"). If no duration is stated, it lasts until the end of the game.
Narset's ability has a continuous effect, because it has a duration. It is not happening right now, the effect is just giving you permission to cast the spell from an unusual zone, within the duration.
I also understand that you can't play a land off a hideaway card during an opponent's turn. So why do you have to obey the normal restrictions for playing a land but not a sorcery or a creature?
I would be especially grateful if somebody could point me towards the section of the Comp. Rules that covers these cases.
BGW Junk / URB Grixis Shadow / RGB Lantern Control / WUBCBant Eldrazi
Current Legacy decks
BUG Shardless BUG / UWR Predict Miracles / RUG Canadian Thresh / WRBG 4c Loam
UB Reanimator
Playing spells during the resolution of an ability:
608.2f If an effect gives a player the option to pay mana, he or she may activate mana abilities before taking that action. If an effect specifically instructs or allows a player to cast a spell during resolution, he or she does so by putting that spell on top of the stack, then continuing to cast it by following the steps in rules 601.2a–h, except no player receives priority after it's cast. The currently resolving spell or ability then continues to resolve, which may include casting other spells this way. No other spells can normally be cast and no other abilities can normally be activated during resolution.
For the land part, you can't play lands on your opponents' turn because of this rule:
305.3. A player can't play a land, for any reason, if it isn't his or her turn. Ignore any part of an effect that instructs a player to do so.
305.3.
And the other part essentially comes down to what "play" means:
701.11b
whereas play a land means:
701.11a
Narset uses the word "cast" which has a specific definition as:
701.4a
And "sorcery speed" is essentially spelled out in terms of casting a spell.
(I used this document. I wasn't allowed to copy/paste for some reason some problem with Non-latin unicode, so here are the comp rules: http://media.wizards.com/2015/docs/MagicCompRules_20150327.pdf)
It's because the ability instructs you to just cast the spell, implicit "right now", giving you special permission to do so at that moment or otherwise you wouldn't be able to (as you're still in the middle of an ability's resolution, so not even instants can be cast normally yet!).
Narset's ability, on the other hand, gives you a wider window where to cast the spell: "until end of turn,". It is not instructing you to cast it right now, you have until a certain later moment to do so, and the regular timing rules for the cards still apply.
Because lands have an actual restriction in place. Sorceries and creatures actually don't, they just have limited permission.
304.1. A player who has priority may cast an instant card from his or her hand. Casting an instant as a spell uses the stack. (See rule 601, "Casting Spells.")
307.1. A player who has priority may cast a sorcery card from his or her hand during a main phase of his or her turn when the stack is empty. Casting a sorcery as a spell uses the stack. (See rule 601, "Casting Spells.")
Those rules are permissive: they say you can. There's no rule saying "you can't cast sorceries during another player's turn", you just don't have any rule giving you permission. Some effects may give you permission, such as the Mosswort Bridge's last ability, and without any restriction to prevent you, you can cast such spells even at a point where you don't have priority.
305.1. A player who has priority may play a land card from his or her hand during a main phase of his or her turn when the stack is empty. Playing a land is a special action; it doesn't use the stack (see rule 115). Rather, the player simply puts the land onto the battlefield. Since the land doesn't go on the stack, it is never a spell, and players can't respond to it with instants or activated abilities.
305.3. A player can't play a land, for any reason, if it isn't his or her turn. Ignore any part of an effect that instructs a player to do so.
Like the others, 305.1 is permissive. But 305.3 is restrictive. Sorceries and other spells don't have any rule saying anything close to that "ignore any part of an effect..." bit.
So that's why you can't ever play a land outside of your turn, even if an effect instructs you to play it. But you can cast a spell at a moment you normally could, if an effect instructs you to.
About effects:
610.1. A one-shot effect does something just once and doesn't have a duration. Examples include dealing damage, destroying a permanent, putting a token onto the battlefield, and moving an object from one zone to another.
116.2e. Resolving spells and abilities may instruct players to make choices or take actions, or may allow players to activate mana abilities. Even if a player is doing so, no player has priority while a spell or ability is resolving. See rule 608, "Resolving Spells and Abilities."
The Bridge's last ability has no duration, so it's an one-shot effect. It takes effect immediately, and it is instructing you to cast the spell so you do so as the ability is resolving.
611.2. A continuous effect may be generated by the resolution of a spell or ability.
611.2a. A continuous effect generated by the resolution of a spell or ability lasts as long as stated by the spell or ability creating it (such as "until end of turn"). If no duration is stated, it lasts until the end of the game.
Narset's ability has a continuous effect, because it has a duration. It is not happening right now, the effect is just giving you permission to cast the spell from an unusual zone, within the duration.
BGW Junk / URB Grixis Shadow / RGB Lantern Control / WUBCBant Eldrazi
Current Legacy decks
BUG Shardless BUG / UWR Predict Miracles / RUG Canadian Thresh / WRBG 4c Loam
UB Reanimator