It's my understanding that a player must be able to describe their board state to their opponent.
Things like storm count, triggers on the stack, or even just the number of creatures on their board.
I also understand that players straight up lose the game for causing an infinite loop.
So my question is: If a player had a number of creatures so large that it could only be represented as a mathematical equation, would that be enough to qualify as an accurate representation of board state?
Assuming nothing impedes the triggers, things get out of hand after turn four.
T4: 2059 Doubling Seasons
T5: 6.619 x 10 ^ 619 Doubling Seasons (620 decimal digits long)
T6: 10 ^ 10 ^ 10 ^ 2.79 Doubling Seasons
T7: 10 ^ 10 ^ 10 ^ 10 ^ 2.79 Doubling Seasons
T8: 10 ^ 10 ^ 10 ^ 10 ^ 10 ^ 2.79 Doubling Seasons
So, if a Judge asked the player to explain their board state on turn 5, and they verbally told them the mathematical representation, would that be ruled okay or would the player receive a penalty or loss?
The answer is largely a matter of tournament policy and depends on the particular facts and circumstances of the case, as well as the tournament's rules enforcement level. Under M.T.R. 4.1, "[p]layers must answer all questions asked of them by a judge completely and honestly, regardless of the type of information involved." But in a real tournament, is it really likely for a judge to ask questions whose answer is largely outside the players' mathematical expertise, especially if the exact answer is hard to calculate on the spot?
However, if a player violates the tournament rules with the intent to gain an advantage and knowing that the violation is illegal, a judge may find that the player has cheated (see also M.T.R. 5.1; I.P.G. 4.8; J.A.R., "Serious Problems"). However, a judge might not decide this way for unintentional violations of the rules or tournament policy.
I also understand that players straight up lose the game for causing an infinite loop.
No, infinite loops are not an automatic game loss.
Rule 722 handles loops for friendly games. (Tournaments rules may differ)
In a nutshell:
-If no player is able to break the loop, the loop will run for infinity; the game is a draw. (rule 722.4)
-Any player who can break the loop may choose a maximum number (perhaps only one), and the loop runs that many times. (rule 722.1b)
-If no player wishes to break the loop, the game is a draw. (rules 722.5 & 722.6)
Things like storm count, triggers on the stack, or even just the number of creatures on their board.
I also understand that players straight up lose the game for causing an infinite loop.
So my question is: If a player had a number of creatures so large that it could only be represented as a mathematical equation, would that be enough to qualify as an accurate representation of board state?
My friends and I stumbled across a (fairly well known?) hypothetical situation regarding;
opalescence
doubling season
followed footsteps
Assuming nothing impedes the triggers, things get out of hand after turn four.
T4: 2059 Doubling Seasons
T5: 6.619 x 10 ^ 619 Doubling Seasons (620 decimal digits long)
T6: 10 ^ 10 ^ 10 ^ 2.79 Doubling Seasons
T7: 10 ^ 10 ^ 10 ^ 10 ^ 2.79 Doubling Seasons
T8: 10 ^ 10 ^ 10 ^ 10 ^ 10 ^ 2.79 Doubling Seasons
So, if a Judge asked the player to explain their board state on turn 5, and they verbally told them the mathematical representation, would that be ruled okay or would the player receive a penalty or loss?
The answer is largely a matter of tournament policy and depends on the particular facts and circumstances of the case, as well as the tournament's rules enforcement level. Under M.T.R. 4.1, "[p]layers must answer all questions asked of them by a judge completely and honestly, regardless of the type of information involved." But in a real tournament, is it really likely for a judge to ask questions whose answer is largely outside the players' mathematical expertise, especially if the exact answer is hard to calculate on the spot?
However, if a player violates the tournament rules with the intent to gain an advantage and knowing that the violation is illegal, a judge may find that the player has cheated (see also M.T.R. 5.1; I.P.G. 4.8; J.A.R., "Serious Problems"). However, a judge might not decide this way for unintentional violations of the rules or tournament policy.
Rule 722 handles loops for friendly games. (Tournaments rules may differ)
In a nutshell:
-If no player is able to break the loop, the loop will run for infinity; the game is a draw. (rule 722.4)
-Any player who can break the loop may choose a maximum number (perhaps only one), and the loop runs that many times. (rule 722.1b)
-If no player wishes to break the loop, the game is a draw. (rules 722.5 & 722.6)
RULES OF MAGIC :
http://magic.wizards.com/en/game-info/gameplay/rules-and-formats/rules