This thread is for the discussion of my latest article, Cranial Insertion: All Together Now. We would be grateful if you would let us know what you think, but please keep your comments on topic.
"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.
Magister Sphinx is a tough "finisher" to play with. There were numerous times when I would want to play it at the end of a game but my opponent was at 5 or less life. Taking the game from a one-turn clock to a two turn clock (especially when removal is easy to find) just isn't appealing for some reason.
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.....
Wow, your friend just dropped dead and you're going to continue the game? You're hardcore!
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(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>
A: For a brief instant, your Infiltrator is an illegal target, but no one cares. A spell only cares if its target is legal when it's played and when it resolves. Any time in between, it's busy not caring.
Isn't the bolded portion just incorrect? All wretched banquet cares about is 'target creature', right? Its just that on resolution the creature is only destroyed if that creature has the least power or is tied for the least power among creatures in play. So the Infiltrator is never an "Illegal Target".
The wretched banquet is on the stack targeting the Infiltrator, then he plays agony warp in response, that resolves killing the 3/3 ... but the fact that the 3/3 died in the mean time has no effect on wretched banquet or its target.
So i guess what i'm getting at is that the author got the right answer but with the wrong explanation.
Magister Sphinx is a tough "finisher" to play with. There were numerous times when I would want to play it at the end of a game but my opponent was at 5 or less life. Taking the game from a one-turn clock to a two turn clock (especially when removal is easy to find) just isn't appealing for some reason.
Then target yourself. :\ It's clearly what you're supposed to do.
As for the article... you just went silly on that Mirror-Sigil Sergeant question.
Not enough explanation on the Wretched Banquet question, either - in addition to the incorrectness of certain statements. You don't draw out what is happening for Wretched Banquet's concerns enough.
Also Nyxathid >> Cumber Stone >>>>>>> all.
EDIT: Oh yeah, Stifle was the other thing. Exacerbated by pronoun abuse ("That ability is a static ability that lets you play it as a spell."), you really didn't make clear that
(a) Stifle can't apply
(b) The ability is one that never becomes an object to target at all (to stress the ill-formation of the very question)
nor (c) even that the ability allows Worldheart Phoenix to be played by changing the rules, not by creating specific cause or instruction to.
You indicated the contradiction of (a), didn't note (b), and were extremely vague about (c).
Not to pile all this on like this was horribad compared to other articles. I just wanted to identify this as clearly as possible.
Eli - Vague confusion about the Stifle/Phoenix wording. You say that the ability can't be countered, but the card can. But Stifle can't counter the card?
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Modern: Dominium Eminens
Legacy: UB Tezz (Check out My Primer at TheSource)
Vinitage: Oath
He means that, because you are playing the Phoenix as a spell, it is susceptible to regular countermagic.
Counterspell will stop the Phoenix from coming into play, and more than likely return it to the graveyard from whence it came. This is because you are playing the Phoenix as a spell, just like if you played it from your hand.
Stifle, however, will not have any effect on the Phoenix at all, and can't even legally target it. Playing the Phoenix from the graveyard is exactly like playing it from your hand, except you're paying a different cost. Just like Stifle won't do anything if you played the Phoenix from your hand, it also won't do anything if you play it from the graveyard.
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If God spoke to you, and commanded you to kill your own children, would you do it?
If your answer is "No," then your morality does not come from God's commandments.
If your answer is "Yes," then please, please reconsider.
Most of the questions were rather easy this time (as is often the case when a new set comes out). To be fair, ALA block seems easy on the rules in general ... or maybe reading all those rules articles finally rubbed off on me.
I really underestimated how angry people were about Alara not having three-colored shocklands. They're still looking for absolutely anything to complain about.
Time Spiral got a LOT more questions than Alara. Lots.
And yes, I glazed right over the accurate wording on Wretched Banquet in my haste to point out that it didn't matter anyway (and thankfully, the difference won't matter unless you engineer a single specific silly situation). Oops!
"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.
There were numerous times when I would want to play it at the end of a game but my opponent was at 5 or less life. Taking the game from a one-turn clock to a two turn clock (especially when removal is easy to find) just isn't appealing
"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.
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Curse PremiumWow, your friend just dropped dead and you're going to continue the game? You're hardcore!
(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>
The game must go on...
You should read them.
"Rejoice, for bad things are about to happen"
Isn't the bolded portion just incorrect? All wretched banquet cares about is 'target creature', right? Its just that on resolution the creature is only destroyed if that creature has the least power or is tied for the least power among creatures in play. So the Infiltrator is never an "Illegal Target".
The wretched banquet is on the stack targeting the Infiltrator, then he plays agony warp in response, that resolves killing the 3/3 ... but the fact that the 3/3 died in the mean time has no effect on wretched banquet or its target.
So i guess what i'm getting at is that the author got the right answer but with the wrong explanation.
Edit: One Wing, you beat me to it by 10 mins.
Nice article!
Keep up the good work!
A card game about Presidents. Stabbing each other. With knives.
Then target yourself. :\ It's clearly what you're supposed to do.
As for the article... you just went silly on that Mirror-Sigil Sergeant question.
Not enough explanation on the Wretched Banquet question, either - in addition to the incorrectness of certain statements. You don't draw out what is happening for Wretched Banquet's concerns enough.
Also Nyxathid >> Cumber Stone >>>>>>> all.
EDIT: Oh yeah, Stifle was the other thing. Exacerbated by pronoun abuse ("That ability is a static ability that lets you play it as a spell."), you really didn't make clear that
(a) Stifle can't apply
(b) The ability is one that never becomes an object to target at all (to stress the ill-formation of the very question)
nor (c) even that the ability allows Worldheart Phoenix to be played by changing the rules, not by creating specific cause or instruction to.
You indicated the contradiction of (a), didn't note (b), and were extremely vague about (c).
Not to pile all this on like this was horribad compared to other articles. I just wanted to identify this as clearly as possible.
Awesome avatar provided by Krashbot @ [Epic Graphics].
Modern: Dominium Eminens
Legacy: UB Tezz (Check out My Primer at TheSource)
Vinitage: Oath
I used to judge alot.
Counterspell will stop the Phoenix from coming into play, and more than likely return it to the graveyard from whence it came. This is because you are playing the Phoenix as a spell, just like if you played it from your hand.
Stifle, however, will not have any effect on the Phoenix at all, and can't even legally target it. Playing the Phoenix from the graveyard is exactly like playing it from your hand, except you're paying a different cost. Just like Stifle won't do anything if you played the Phoenix from your hand, it also won't do anything if you play it from the graveyard.
If your answer is "No," then your morality does not come from God's commandments.
If your answer is "Yes," then please, please reconsider.
I really underestimated how angry people were about Alara not having three-colored shocklands. They're still looking for absolutely anything to complain about.
And yes, I glazed right over the accurate wording on Wretched Banquet in my haste to point out that it didn't matter anyway (and thankfully, the difference won't matter unless you engineer a single specific silly situation).
"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.
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