This thread is for the discussion of my latest article, Cranial Insertion: Everybody Wants to Rule the Rules. We would be grateful if you would let us know what you think, but please keep your comments on topic.
"Q: What's the penalty if my opponent fails to shuffle my deck at a Competitive REL event?
A: While this is a violation of UTR 21, it doesn't fall under any of the infractions defined in the current Penalty Guide. Because it's an uncategorized minor infraction, a penalty issued for it would almost certainly be a talking-to.
It's important to note that your opponent is required to shuffle your deck only at the start of the game. In the middle of a game, only a cut is required."
I wasn't even aware that you were required to shuffle your opponent's deck at the start of a game. Wow, I'm going to start doing that! Good ol' UTR 21!
As for the Saproling token question (last question of the day), wouldn't using a torn in half Saproling token still represent a 1/1? Wouldn't you need something that actually stated it's power/toughness was 1/2/1/2? Basically a piece of paper or a token... I'm not sure if you could use the Saproling card.
Un-set questions are always tricky because fun answers (in the spirit of the set) generally aren't the "most accurate" answer in holding to the normal rules. Ripping a token in half is awesome.
For accuracy you're better off to either proxy a 1/2/1/2 Saproling token... or to carefully cut the 1/1 in half then cut the remainin card in a manner that the two resulting peices have equal surface area (so it's really 1/2 of a normal Saproling!).
Yes. A thousand times yes. They lured me in with Ivory Tower and Zuran Orb, and I kept telling myself "I can quit whenever I want...just look at that untapped disk". That was ten years ago man.....
wonder if you could just B.F.M. (Big Furry Monster)
the half tokens together
That's what I think. You get a half token now which does nothing since it's only half a token, then when little girl hits again, you get the other half and can make a whole saproling token.
Or you know you could just play double cleave and get the whole token right away.
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Both writers are quite good and I wouldn't mind having any of them as the new author. I needed a small, nitpicky reason to decide between the two, so I settled on this one :
Quote from Rutabaga »
Sure. The Canonist is screaming "I AM THE LAW!" only while he's in play. Once he's dead, he can't stop you from playing nonartifact spells, and you don't get a chance to play Rift Bolts #2 or #3 until after #1 has resolved.
If Ethersworn Canonist is actually a guy, then that means he used his etherium infusing process to undergo a sex change at the same time. That'd be a nice way to kill two birds with one stone ! Seriously, that creature really looks like a woman to me. Altough I won't get mad at anyone for that (very frequent) kind of gender mistake about a creature card, it does annoy me a little. I mean, if you are not gonna care about the flavor of a card, I think you should use "it", not "he".
So my vote is for Pamplemouse. I think I like his style a little more too, but it's not clear, just my current gut feeling. As I said, I really wouldn't mind seeing Rutabaga as the new author, and him calling every creature a "he" wouldn't stop me from enjoying his articles.
I'm a former judge (lapsed), who keeps up to date on rules and policy. Keep in mind that judges' answers aren't necessarily more valid than those of people who aren't judges; what matters is we can quote the rules to back up our answers. When in doubt, ask for such quotes.
Both authors seemed to fit the spirit of CI for me, but I enjoyed Rutabaga a mite more. Rutabaga's idea on the saproling question just struck me as hilarious.
A: Lord of the Undead allows you to dig up a Zombie card, which means any card with the subtype Zombie. Since Nameless Inversion has all creature types in all zones, it is a Giant Insect Mutant Angel Zombie card in your graveyard and it is therefore a legal target for the Lord's activated ability. Go get that Inversion and make your opponent very sad!
Who cares if it's a Giant, Insect, or Angel? The more important types here are that it is a Mutant Ninja Turtle Zombie.
I'd honestly be happy with either, both of 'em were good.
Voted for Pamplemouse because I want to find out if he/she is really a mouse! (Or if someone can't spell pamplemousse.)
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Both are pretty good, but I voted for the fruit because fruits are sweet and because one of the vegetable's answers confused me just a bit.
"An activated ability of a card in the graveyard! That's not an elemental unless it's in play! Haven't you read rule 200.9?"
Quote:
200.9. If a spell or ability uses a description of an object that includes a card type or subtype, but doesn't include the word "card," "spell," or "source," it means a permanent of that card type or subtype in play.
I *think* I understand the point, which would be that Hell's Thunder has no type in the graveyard and thus cannot be considered to be elemental at this point. Am I missing something?
What confused me however is that the rule quoted seems irrelevant to me. We are trying to determine if the creature in the graveyard has a type and we see a rule that talks about Smokebraider being only usable on spells and triggered abilities since she *does* specify her preferences.
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"The almighty tells me he can get me out of this mess ... but he's pretty sure, your f*****!"
I felt that both players were trying a little too hard to emulate the "CI style", making the jokes a little painfully obvious, but props for not sounding like Chris Richter
In the end, I chose Pamplemousse because his comedy was a little more subtle, and I liked how he handled the "linked" planeswalker questions. (Is it unfair that rutabaga didn't get to answer a linked question, or did he simply choose not to?)
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Do you know any judges who always impress you with their work ethic, knowledge, or attitude? Nominate them to be the next Judge of the Week!
Rutabaga lost me with a mention of low Will defense, Uncle Smokebraider, and a screaming Ethersworn Canonist, although I don't ever want to imagine what Magic players might "do" to their creatures.
i was liking pamplemouse quite a bit, but then i remembered that rutabega had a DnD reference. not only that, but an up to date DnD reference (will defense instead of will save) so it made the choice obvious.
(Is it unfair that rutabaga didn't get to answer a linked question, or did he simply choose not to?)
We got together twenty questions, and then tried to divide them so the pools would be relatively balanced in terms of difficulty, silliness, rules, and policy. Then Moko flipped a... coin to figure out who got which pile.
I *think* I understand the point, which would be that Hell's Thunder has no type in the graveyard and thus cannot be considered to be elemental at this point. Am I missing something?
Hell's Thunder has a creature type in the graveyard, but "an Elemental" is only a permanent with the type Elemental; in the graveyard, it's "an Elemental card" and not good enough for Smokebraider.
"Sufficiently advanced experience is indistinguishable from clairvoyance." -Carsten
"Ah those eyes, those horrible creepy eyes!" -Chaosof99
DCI Level 3 Judge & TO "I do not consider myself a hero. I know only what the Vec teach:
justice must always be served and corruption must always be opposed."
Go read! I am one of the three authors of Cranial Insertion.
But seriously, if you can't remember "Woapalanne", just call me Eli.
A: Nope. You do control four objects with the subtype faerie, but the Sprite only counts how many faerie permanents you control:
*snip*
Since Bitterblossom is not in play yet, you only control three faerie permanents, so you can only counter a spell with converted mana cost 3 or less. The converted mana cost of Cryptic Command is 4, so it's too cryptic for you to counter.
If I'm not mistaken, Spellstutters ability is a cip ability, and doesn't go on the stack or reseolve until the Spellstutter does, at which point there will be 4 Faeries in play. Doesn't Cryptic get countered?
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SKRules on Dark Rit art
5th is just a guy snapping his fingers. Maybe Nicol Bolas can get mana that way, but I can't.
Pample gets my vote, even tho the Question i posted in the Rulings forum got publicized and made meh cry he was the funnier of the two i guess. and humor always = Good writing One of the reasons i loved Woap for his articles.
If I'm not mistaken, Spellstutters ability is a cip ability, and doesn't go on the stack or reseolve until the Spellstutter does, at which point there will be 4 Faeries in play. Doesn't Cryptic get countered?
The bitterblossom is on the stack and being targeted by the Command, The Spellstutter would then be flashed in, and resolve, putting it's CITP ability onto the stack. At the moment that ability is put onto the stack there are only 3 faeries in play (2x Scion, 1x Spellstutter) and thus it's only LEGAL target would be the players own Bitterblossom, which is pointless to target, however he could target his bitterblossom and counter it, to counter the cryptic command (say the opponent used Cryptic Command's choices as Counter target, & Draw a card) the player with the cryptic would be countered upon resolution due to it's target already being in the graveyard, and thus fizzle both options)'
Due to the way the stack resolves First in, Last Resolve. the stack would look like:
Ravarshi Kashaku, Ancient Dragon of the Darkened Realms;
The Merciless Lord of Torture, Permanently Bound To: ">[THE PACK] 11/5/63 - 11/25/09 Goodbye mom, i'll always love you...
If I'm not mistaken, Spellstutters ability is a cip ability, and doesn't go on the stack or reseolve until the Spellstutter does, at which point there will be 4 Faeries in play. Doesn't Cryptic get countered?
I thought the same thing, but the read the question closely, Bitterblossom is on the STACK, not in play
Rutabaga's humor was too forced and over the top. He kinda lost me on the D+D reference and never quite won me back. Whole articles of that would get old pretty quick.
Honestly, I'm a bit sorry that both of these guys went with a similar approach here emulating Eli and the gang. You'll never get out of Eli's shadow that way, and a writer who tried to sculpt his own style could've been a real treat.
Pample gets my vote, even tho the Question i posted in the Rulings forum got publicized and made meh cry
You started it, but other people picked it up looking for an "official" answer (aside: I love it when people think Cranial Insertion writes DCI policy. I've also been asked to create sanctioned formats. If only.) and I've heard similar questions about power cards every few weeks since forever, so it was a good question to put in the pile.
Simic: There's the pull of "your own style needs to sort of fit in with CI" versus "you need to not sound exactly like the other writers." It isn't an easy thing, but I trust that whoever wins will find it easier to develop his/her own fitting-but-unique style post-victory with less stress to deal with.
"Sufficiently advanced experience is indistinguishable from clairvoyance." -Carsten
"Ah those eyes, those horrible creepy eyes!" -Chaosof99
DCI Level 3 Judge & TO "I do not consider myself a hero. I know only what the Vec teach:
justice must always be served and corruption must always be opposed."
Go read! I am one of the three authors of Cranial Insertion.
But seriously, if you can't remember "Woapalanne", just call me Eli.
If Ethersworn Canonist is actually a guy, then that means he used his etherium infusing process to undergo a sex change at the same time. That'd be a nice way to kill two birds with one stone ! Seriously, that creature really looks like a woman to me. Altough I won't get mad at anyone for that (very frequent) kind of gender mistake about a creature card, it does annoy me a little. I mean, if you are not gonna care about the flavor of a card, I think you should use "it", not "he".
I'm a-watching you, Rutabaga. O_O
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Rutabaga, all the way. D&D references & sex-changed Canonists keep Cranial Insertion at the forefront of M:tG rules articles (where, I think we can all agree, it truly deserves to be.).
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Also apparently a Fan of BtVS Season 8 (These things have no relation to one another; I just thought I’d say them.)
A: While this is a violation of UTR 21, it doesn't fall under any of the infractions defined in the current Penalty Guide. Because it's an uncategorized minor infraction, a penalty issued for it would almost certainly be a talking-to.
It's important to note that your opponent is required to shuffle your deck only at the start of the game. In the middle of a game, only a cut is required."
I wasn't even aware that you were required to shuffle your opponent's deck at the start of a game. Wow, I'm going to start doing that! Good ol' UTR 21!
As for the Saproling token question (last question of the day), wouldn't using a torn in half Saproling token still represent a 1/1? Wouldn't you need something that actually stated it's power/toughness was 1/2/1/2? Basically a piece of paper or a token... I'm not sure if you could use the Saproling card.
*Mayreturn*
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Un-set questions are always tricky because fun answers (in the spirit of the set) generally aren't the "most accurate" answer in holding to the normal rules. Ripping a token in half is awesome.
For accuracy you're better off to either proxy a 1/2/1/2 Saproling token... or to carefully cut the 1/1 in half then cut the remainin card in a manner that the two resulting peices have equal surface area (so it's really 1/2 of a normal Saproling!).
I'll take just ripping my token in half, thanks.
B.F.M. (Big Furry Monster)
the half tokens together
That's what I think. You get a half token now which does nothing since it's only half a token, then when little girl hits again, you get the other half and can make a whole saproling token.
Or you know you could just play double cleave and get the whole token right away.
The Steamflogged
Human Rigger Minions committed to
forcing Contraptions in YMTC4,
and Resisting The Tyranny of the
Viva La Assembly!
Quotes:
If Ethersworn Canonist is actually a guy, then that means he used his etherium infusing process to undergo a sex change at the same time. That'd be a nice way to kill two birds with one stone ! Seriously, that creature really looks like a woman to me. Altough I won't get mad at anyone for that (very frequent) kind of gender mistake about a creature card, it does annoy me a little. I mean, if you are not gonna care about the flavor of a card, I think you should use "it", not "he".
So my vote is for Pamplemouse. I think I like his style a little more too, but it's not clear, just my current gut feeling. As I said, I really wouldn't mind seeing Rutabaga as the new author, and him calling every creature a "he" wouldn't stop me from enjoying his articles.
UBOona, Queen of the FaeBU
Modern -
WUBEsper TempoBUW
RHowling FlareR
WBSuicidal VictoryWB
Legacy-
UWGScapedraziGWU
WUBEsper StonebladeBUW
Who cares if it's a Giant, Insect, or Angel? The more important types here are that it is a Mutant Ninja Turtle Zombie.
Banner by spiderboy4 at [High~Light Studios]
Voted for Pamplemouse because I want to find out if he/she is really a mouse! (Or if someone can't spell pamplemousse.)
(I'm on on this site much anymore. If you want to get in touch it's probably best to email me: dom@heffalumps.org)
Forum Awards: Best Writer 2005, Best Limited Strategist 2005-2012
5CB PotM - June 2005, November 2005, February 2006, April 2008, May 2008, Feb 2009
MTGSalvation Articles: 1-20, plus guest appearance on MTGCast #86!
<Limited Clan>
http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?p=5401186#post5401186
I *think* I understand the point, which would be that Hell's Thunder has no type in the graveyard and thus cannot be considered to be elemental at this point. Am I missing something?
What confused me however is that the rule quoted seems irrelevant to me. We are trying to determine if the creature in the graveyard has a type and we see a rule that talks about Smokebraider being only usable on spells and triggered abilities since she *does* specify her preferences.
In the end, I chose Pamplemousse because his comedy was a little more subtle, and I liked how he handled the "linked" planeswalker questions. (Is it unfair that rutabaga didn't get to answer a linked question, or did he simply choose not to?)
Do you know any judges who always impress you with their work ethic, knowledge, or attitude? Nominate them to be the next Judge of the Week!
4.0 isnt better than 3.5. its just different.
- Friz
Are you insinuating that grapefruits can't have tails and squeak? Because I can find a geneticist who says otherwise!
We got together twenty questions, and then tried to divide them so the pools would be relatively balanced in terms of difficulty, silliness, rules, and policy. Then Moko flipped a... coin to figure out who got which pile.
Hell's Thunder has a creature type in the graveyard, but "an Elemental" is only a permanent with the type Elemental; in the graveyard, it's "an Elemental card" and not good enough for Smokebraider.
"Sufficiently advanced experience is indistinguishable from clairvoyance." -Carsten
"Ah those eyes, those horrible creepy eyes!" -Chaosof99
DCI Level 3 Judge & TO
"I do not consider myself a hero. I know only what the Vec teach:
justice must always be served and corruption must always be opposed."
Go read! I am one of the three authors of Cranial Insertion.
But seriously, if you can't remember "Woapalanne", just call me Eli.
If I'm not mistaken, Spellstutters ability is a cip ability, and doesn't go on the stack or reseolve until the Spellstutter does, at which point there will be 4 Faeries in play. Doesn't Cryptic get countered?
The bitterblossom is on the stack and being targeted by the Command, The Spellstutter would then be flashed in, and resolve, putting it's CITP ability onto the stack. At the moment that ability is put onto the stack there are only 3 faeries in play (2x Scion, 1x Spellstutter) and thus it's only LEGAL target would be the players own Bitterblossom, which is pointless to target, however he could target his bitterblossom and counter it, to counter the cryptic command (say the opponent used Cryptic Command's choices as Counter target, & Draw a card) the player with the cryptic would be countered upon resolution due to it's target already being in the graveyard, and thus fizzle both options)'
Due to the way the stack resolves First in, Last Resolve. the stack would look like:
TOP:
Spellstutter = Counter (only legal target is Blossom)
Cryptic Command - Targeting Bitterblossom, & Draw
Blossom
BOTTOM:
The Merciless Lord of Torture, Permanently Bound To: ">[THE PACK] 11/5/63 - 11/25/09 Goodbye mom, i'll always love you...
Tibalt & His Devils vs. Avacyn's Inquisitors
My EDH decklists
I thought the same thing, but the read the question closely, Bitterblossom is on the STACK, not in play
Honestly, I'm a bit sorry that both of these guys went with a similar approach here emulating Eli and the gang. You'll never get out of Eli's shadow that way, and a writer who tried to sculpt his own style could've been a real treat.
But yeah, vote Pamplemouse '08.
You started it, but other people picked it up looking for an "official" answer (aside: I love it when people think Cranial Insertion writes DCI policy. I've also been asked to create sanctioned formats. If only.) and I've heard similar questions about power cards every few weeks since forever, so it was a good question to put in the pile.
Simic: There's the pull of "your own style needs to sort of fit in with CI" versus "you need to not sound exactly like the other writers." It isn't an easy thing, but I trust that whoever wins will find it easier to develop his/her own fitting-but-unique style post-victory with less stress to deal with.
"Sufficiently advanced experience is indistinguishable from clairvoyance." -Carsten
"Ah those eyes, those horrible creepy eyes!" -Chaosof99
DCI Level 3 Judge & TO
"I do not consider myself a hero. I know only what the Vec teach:
justice must always be served and corruption must always be opposed."
Go read! I am one of the three authors of Cranial Insertion.
But seriously, if you can't remember "Woapalanne", just call me Eli.
But Rutabaga better keep "his" eye on the point of this objection, which I will quote rather than repeat:
I'm a-watching you, Rutabaga. O_O
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Also apparently a Fan of BtVS Season 8 (These things have no relation to one another; I just thought I’d say them.)