As a Rakdos mage(R/B), Kolaghan's command has become ever better in the current meta. While 90% of the time I don't need to destroy an artifact, occasionally I do and so my question is: Opponent has a tireless Tracker on the field and two mana open. On end step they go to sac the clue, draw a card and pump tireless tracker. I respond by destroying the artifact and dealing two damage to tracker.
Based on my 9 months of playing magic, my initial thought was because K command resolves first, the clue is destroyed and both affects(draw card and pump) don't resolve. I know the tracker will be dead because by the time the pump would resolve, if it did resolve, tracker would be dead but does the opponent get to draw a card off the sacrifice?
And just for my own education, if tracker made it through k command resolving(let's say I chose discard instead of 2 damage), the pump would still happen right since the sacrifice clue goes on the stack, and on top of that goes the pump, so the pump would resolve first even though the clue is already destroyed by the resolved K command?
Yes, your opponent would get to draw. In fact, the clue wouldn't even be a legal target for Kolaghan's Command since it sacrifices as part of its ability's cost, and you can't respond to cost payment. Of course, that would make your second question a sorta-yes because you can't stop the sacrifice in your situation. Sorta, because the rules don't allow that situation to happen at all.
If your opponent announces that he is saccing the Clue, you cannot even cast Kolaghan's Command on it anymore. Because be the time you get to respond, the Clue's activation cost has already been paid, which includes sacrificing it, and so it doesn't exist anymore. The paying of costs cannot be responded to!
If, otoh, you get to cast the Command before they sac the Clue, you can target it, but they can just respond by saccing it. In that case, with those particular modes chosen, they can even save their Tireless Tracker by doing so.
There is no way for you to stop the card draw from the Clue with the Command.
Wow, that is really good to know. So because part of the cost to draw a card was the sacrifice itself, it can't be responded to(much like you can't respond to tapping mana to summon a creature...you can counter the creature spell but the creature was still cast).
If the sacrifice were on the other side of the colon(:), so it read "2 : Sacrifice this artifact and draw a card", it could be responded to, because the sacrifice is not part of the payment cost but rather the effect?
Correct. Though even with that wording, the draw would still happen. Because the draw is not dependent on the sacrifice. It would be different if it there was an "if you do" clause tying the draw to the sarifice actually happening, in which case destroying the artifact would negate the draw.
Based on my 9 months of playing magic, my initial thought was because K command resolves first, the clue is destroyed and both affects(draw card and pump) don't resolve. I know the tracker will be dead because by the time the pump would resolve, if it did resolve, tracker would be dead but does the opponent get to draw a card off the sacrifice?
And just for my own education, if tracker made it through k command resolving(let's say I chose discard instead of 2 damage), the pump would still happen right since the sacrifice clue goes on the stack, and on top of that goes the pump, so the pump would resolve first even though the clue is already destroyed by the resolved K command?
If, otoh, you get to cast the Command before they sac the Clue, you can target it, but they can just respond by saccing it. In that case, with those particular modes chosen, they can even save their Tireless Tracker by doing so.
There is no way for you to stop the card draw from the Clue with the Command.
Former Rules Advisor
"Everything's better with pirates." - Lodge
(The Gamers: Dorkness Rising)
"Any sufficiently analyzed magic is indistinguishable from science."
(Girl Genius - Fairy Tale Theater Break - Cinderella, end of volume 8)
If the sacrifice were on the other side of the colon(:), so it read "2 : Sacrifice this artifact and draw a card", it could be responded to, because the sacrifice is not part of the payment cost but rather the effect?
Former Rules Advisor
"Everything's better with pirates." - Lodge
(The Gamers: Dorkness Rising)
"Any sufficiently analyzed magic is indistinguishable from science."
(Girl Genius - Fairy Tale Theater Break - Cinderella, end of volume 8)