MTG Salvation

Apologies in advance if this has been answered before, but I cant find it.

I just want to make sure what makes a card legal, as it always seems to be stated in an ambiguous way. Does a card have to have been printed as a common specifically in an online set, or in any set, paper or not? For example, Sage of Lat-Nam was common in AQ, rare in 8th Ed. Legal?

Thanks.

Could I use the ability of my Quicksilver Dragon to target something with hexproof or shroud, since the ability doesn't target the creature? That is, play Path to Exile/Terror/whatever on the Dragon, then pay U to change its target to your Slippery Bogle?

I am wondering if, when you and an opponent clash, does your opponent decide whether or not to top- or bottom-deck his/her card first, allowing you to decide whether to top- or bottom-deck your card after learning what your opponent chose? I believe this is the correct process, in 'turn order' style, but I wanted verification on this. Thanks in advance for any knowledge/advice.

Would cards like Winding Constrictor or Hardened Scales affect the Proliferate mechanic?

I'm wondering about the interaction between colorless cards with Waste mana cost and cost reduction effects.

Lets say I have a Warping Wail in hand and a Semblance Anvil imprinted with an instant. Can I play it for free?

OR

Lets say I have a Warping Wail in hand and Baral, Chief of Compliance on the battlefield. Do I have to pay a colorless to satisfy the Waste mana cost or can I choose to use the cost reduction to pay for the Waste mana?

Thanks in advance.

Thank you kindly, sir. My Sage of Hours infinite turn deck is that much closer to completion!

Can someone please clarify whether or not a spell copy created by a cipher ability is 'cast'? In the rules under section 706 "Copying Objects", it states:

706.10. To copy a spell, activated ability, or triggered ability means to put a copy of it onto the stack; a copy of a spell isn’t cast and a copy of an activated ability isn’t activated.

But under section 702 "Keyword Abilities" it states:

702.98a Cipher appears on some instants and sorceries. It represents two abilities. The first is a spell ability that functions while the spell with cipher is on the stack. The second is a static ability that functions while the card with cipher is in the exile zone. “Cipher” means “If this spell is represented by a card, you may exile this card encoded on a creature you control” and “For as long as this card is encoded on that creature, that creature has ‘Whenever this creature deals combat damage to a player, you may copy the encoded card and you may cast the copy without paying its mana cost.’”

Specifically, I want to know if a spell copy created by a cipher trigger will trigger a heroic ability.

Thanks in advance.

gah....sorry, musta misclicked.

thanks, though.

but can I order it either way? it says to choose one, tap or untap. does that mean i can choose either one first, then the other? or do I have to go in the order listed in the text?

I want to know because of cards like Pain Seer (or inspired cards in general), and also because my inner Johnny is working on Sorrow's Path / Political Trickery / Shifting Borders / etc. I know, it's lame.

One quick question about Dream's Grip ... Can you target the same permanent with both sides of the entwine, and make it tap and untap (or untap and tap)?

Yeah, I suppose this topic is a bit anal, but then again....Magic.

Also, I forgot Serum Powder and Backup Plan (if you want to count that), but I think that's it for pregame cards.

Ah, I just now noticed that Wastes just say "Basic Land" in the type line, whereas a Forest says "Basic Land - Forest". So there is a difference between a land being basic and having a basic land type.

Would Nylea's Presence and Prismatic Omen now make the affected land(s) all six BLT's? With all this colorless fun going on now, Prismatic Omen seems like it would be considerably more useful if it now made all your lands able to produce colorless as well.

Forgive me if I'm wrong here, but I believe there is a turn order to pregame effects/abilities, what with Gemstone Caverns, Leylines, Chancellors, and whatever else there is out there. Technically I think you're supposed to go in turn order starting with the player that won the die roll (or the player who is set to go first, depending on whether or not the die roll winner actually elected to go first). It's not that the effects can be "responded to" in the traditional sense, but that they are at least declared by Player A before Player B decides whether or not to use any pregame effect of their own. Again, though, I may be wrong here.

thanks guys.