Let's say I have Soulfire Grand Master in play, alongside an Archangel of Thune. My opponent has three creatures in my way, so I fire off Mizzium Mortars using Overload. The Mortars hit each of their creatures for four, and the lifelink from Grandmaster gains me 12 life. For the purpose of the Archangel trigger, do I gain 12 life in one go (based on one source of damage) or does the angel see three different damage/lifegain events? How many counters do my creatures get?
Apologies in advance if I'm duplicating queries – I have searched but couldn't find a clear answer. And thanks for your help in setting me straight.
All damage is dealt simultaneously so it is one instance of life gain. Archangel of Thune will trigger once in this case.
Note that something like Lightning Helix works a little differently. You would gain life off the 3 damage (because of lifelink) and gain 3 life off the the part of the spell that has you gain life. So, you would gain 6 life total with 2 triggers.
Okay, thank you. Related follow-up question then: I also have an Izzet Staticaster in play which has lifelink until EOT. My opponent's creatures are identical tokens, so the Staticaster will hit all three. Does the same logic apply such that one source = one lifegain even = one Archangel trigger?
Does the same logic apply such that one source = one lifegain even = one Archangel trigger?
In the case of Izzet Staticaster, yes - it deals damage to everything all at once so you gain life one time.
It's worth noting that it's not always a matter of one source = one event. Rather, you need to look at the effect of the spell or ability and consider how many distinct instructions you are performing. Each time there is a verb (e.g. "deals") there is a separate instruction, and a separate instance of the action occurring. For example, Chandra's Outrage deals all of its damage at once, but Lash Out potentially deals damage in two separate packets because the word "deals" appears twice.
Apologies in advance if I'm duplicating queries – I have searched but couldn't find a clear answer. And thanks for your help in setting me straight.
Note that something like Lightning Helix works a little differently. You would gain life off the 3 damage (because of lifelink) and gain 3 life off the the part of the spell that has you gain life. So, you would gain 6 life total with 2 triggers.
It's worth noting that it's not always a matter of one source = one event. Rather, you need to look at the effect of the spell or ability and consider how many distinct instructions you are performing. Each time there is a verb (e.g. "deals") there is a separate instruction, and a separate instance of the action occurring. For example, Chandra's Outrage deals all of its damage at once, but Lash Out potentially deals damage in two separate packets because the word "deals" appears twice.