New Player here. How does Ceremonious Rejection work? For example, my opponent plays Dukhara Peafowl, a colorless artifact creature. Do I counter it when it enters the battlefield, or when it attacks me? In any case, it goes to the graveyard, right?
Neither. To counter a spell means to remove it from the stack and put the card into its owner's graveyard. A counterspell is useless against anything that has already resolved. In other words, you cast Ceremonious Rejection in response to the spell you want to stop, putting CR on the stack above the targeted spell. Thus the counterspell resolves first, and the other spell doesn't get to resolve, because it has left the stack. For a permanent spell, that means, it never gets to enter the battlefield in the first place. For an instant or sorcery spell, it means it goes to the graveyard without any effect.
First off please use card tags when asking question about specific cards as it gives us the most upto date wording for them. Not so important in this case but with some older cards there are big differences between the printed wording and the current official wording of the spell. Instructions on how to use card tags can be found here
To answer your question a counterspell like Ceremonious Rejection can only target something whilst it is on the stack between when the player casts the spell and it actually resolves. If it is a creature like a Dukhara Peafowl once it has hit the battlefield it is to late counter it and you would need something like shatter to deal with it.
You are correct though that if something is successfully countered it will go to the graveyard unless something tells it go elsewhere.
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Neither. To counter a spell means to remove it from the stack and put the card into its owner's graveyard. A counterspell is useless against anything that has already resolved. In other words, you cast Ceremonious Rejection in response to the spell you want to stop, putting CR on the stack above the targeted spell. Thus the counterspell resolves first, and the other spell doesn't get to resolve, because it has left the stack. For a permanent spell, that means, it never gets to enter the battlefield in the first place. For an instant or sorcery spell, it means it goes to the graveyard without any effect.
I understand a bit better now, but what exactly do I do to make Ceremonious Rejection counter an artifact creature?
Neither. To counter a spell means to remove it from the stack and put the card into its owner's graveyard. A counterspell is useless against anything that has already resolved. In other words, you cast Ceremonious Rejection in response to the spell you want to stop, putting CR on the stack above the targeted spell. Thus the counterspell resolves first, and the other spell doesn't get to resolve, because it has left the stack. For a permanent spell, that means, it never gets to enter the battlefield in the first place. For an instant or sorcery spell, it means it goes to the graveyard without any effect.
I understand a bit better now, but what exactly do I do to make Ceremonious Rejection counter an artifact creature?
To get the creature to be on the battlefield, your opponent first has to cast it. This involves announcing that they are playing the card and paying its cost. The card goes onto the stack, a zone where spells and abilities wait to resolve. Before it resolves, both players have the opportunity to respond to it by casting other spells (specifically instants or spells with flash) or activating abilities. It is at this point where you can respond by casting Ceremonious Rejection to counter it.
In practice, your opponent will announce that they are playing the creature card, and you need to say that you are casting your counterspell at that time.
To get the creature to be on the battlefield, your opponent has to first cast it. This involves announcing that they are playing the card and paying its cost. The card goes onto the stack, a zone where spells and abilities wait to resolve. Before it resolves, both players have the opportunity to respond to it by casting other spells (specifically instants or spells with flash) or activating abilities. It is at this point where you can respond by casting Ceremonious Rejection to counter it.
In practice, your opponent will announce that they are playing the creature card, and you need to say that you are casting your counterapell at that time.
Awesome, thank you all for clearing that up and for being patient with a noob like me. Related question: can Ceremonious Rejection destroy a vehicle like Fleetwheel Cruiser? If so, what difference does it make if the vehicle is crewed or un-crewed?
To get the creature to be on the battlefield, your opponent has to first cast it. This involves announcing that they are playing the card and paying its cost. The card goes onto the stack, a zone where spells and abilities wait to resolve. Before it resolves, both players have the opportunity to respond to it by casting other spells (specifically instants or spells with flash) or activating abilities. It is at this point where you can respond by casting Ceremonious Rejection to counter it.
In practice, your opponent will announce that they are playing the creature card, and you need to say that you are casting your counterapell at that time.
Awesome, thank you all for clearing that up and for being patient with a noob like me. Related question: can Ceremonious Rejection destroy a vehicle like Fleetwheel Cruiser? If so, what difference does it make if the vehicle is crewed or un-crewed?
No, it can't. To "destroy" something means to put it from the battlefield to the graveyard, but as others have said, rejection cannot deal with things already on the battlefield. To have rejection interact with a vehicle you would have to play the rejection when the vehicle is cast, exactly like with the peafowl scenario. Once the vehicle is in play and either a creature or not, it is too late to cast rejection.
Awesome, thank you all for clearing that up and for being patient with a noob like me. Related question: can Ceremonious Rejection destroy a vehicle like Fleetwheel Cruiser? If so, what difference does it make if the vehicle is crewed or un-crewed?
It will be able to counter the fleetwheel cruiser not destroy it. And since the cruiser is not on the battlefield your opponent will not have had a chance to crew it. If he has done so it means that it has resolved and is on the battlefield and you are back to needing something like shatter to deal with it.
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Every normal man must be tempted, at times, to spit on his hands, hoist the black flag and start slitting throats.
- H.L Mencken
I Became insane with long Intervals of horrible Sanity
All Religion, my friend is simply evolved out of fraud, fear, greed, imagination and poetry.
- Edgar Allan Poe
To get the creature to be on the battlefield, your opponent has to first cast it. This involves announcing that they are playing the card and paying its cost. The card goes onto the stack, a zone where spells and abilities wait to resolve. Before it resolves, both players have the opportunity to respond to it by casting other spells (specifically instants or spells with flash) or activating abilities. It is at this point where you can respond by casting Ceremonious Rejection to counter it.
In practice, your opponent will announce that they are playing the creature card, and you need to say that you are casting your counterapell at that time.
Awesome, thank you all for clearing that up and for being patient with a noob like me. Related question: can Ceremonious Rejection destroy a vehicle like Fleetwheel Cruiser? If so, what difference does it make if the vehicle is crewed or un-crewed?
Rejection can counter a colorless vehicle spell when it is cast, before it resolves and is on the battlefield. Rejection can't do anything to something that is already on the battlefield.
For other cards that could affect it on the battlefield, the difference between "crewed" and "uncrewed" is that the vehicle is both an artifact and a creature with power and toughness in the former case, and just an artifact in the latter. It's vulnerable to more things as a creature: damage, effects that destroy creatures, etc., in addition to still being vulnerable to things that affect artifacts. For something that would care about color similar to Rejection, it stays colorless either way.
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To answer your question a counterspell like Ceremonious Rejection can only target something whilst it is on the stack between when the player casts the spell and it actually resolves. If it is a creature like a Dukhara Peafowl once it has hit the battlefield it is to late counter it and you would need something like shatter to deal with it.
You are correct though that if something is successfully countered it will go to the graveyard unless something tells it go elsewhere.
- H.L Mencken
I Became insane with long Intervals of horrible Sanity
All Religion, my friend is simply evolved out of fraud, fear, greed, imagination and poetry.
- Edgar Allan Poe
The Crafters' Rules Guru
I understand a bit better now, but what exactly do I do to make Ceremonious Rejection counter an artifact creature?
In practice, your opponent will announce that they are playing the creature card, and you need to say that you are casting your counterspell at that time.
Awesome, thank you all for clearing that up and for being patient with a noob like me. Related question: can Ceremonious Rejection destroy a vehicle like Fleetwheel Cruiser? If so, what difference does it make if the vehicle is crewed or un-crewed?
No, it can't. To "destroy" something means to put it from the battlefield to the graveyard, but as others have said, rejection cannot deal with things already on the battlefield. To have rejection interact with a vehicle you would have to play the rejection when the vehicle is cast, exactly like with the peafowl scenario. Once the vehicle is in play and either a creature or not, it is too late to cast rejection.
It will be able to counter the fleetwheel cruiser not destroy it. And since the cruiser is not on the battlefield your opponent will not have had a chance to crew it. If he has done so it means that it has resolved and is on the battlefield and you are back to needing something like shatter to deal with it.
- H.L Mencken
I Became insane with long Intervals of horrible Sanity
All Religion, my friend is simply evolved out of fraud, fear, greed, imagination and poetry.
- Edgar Allan Poe
The Crafters' Rules Guru
For other cards that could affect it on the battlefield, the difference between "crewed" and "uncrewed" is that the vehicle is both an artifact and a creature with power and toughness in the former case, and just an artifact in the latter. It's vulnerable to more things as a creature: damage, effects that destroy creatures, etc., in addition to still being vulnerable to things that affect artifacts. For something that would care about color similar to Rejection, it stays colorless either way.