Published on 06/13/2022
Let's Get This Party Started
By Carsten Haese, Nathan Long, and Justin Hovdenes
This Article from: Nathan Long
Cranial Translation
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Hello everyone, and welcome back to Cranial Insertion! It's time to get the party back together, as we continue to talk about Magic's latest set, Commander Legends: Battle for Bauldur's Gate! So grab three of your friends, make sure that you have a full party (and a full commander game), and let's get back to answering your questions about the latest set.
Don't forget you can send us your Magic questions (whether they're about Commander Legends or not), and we'll send you back an answer. We may even use that question in a future article. If you have a shorter question, you can send it to our Twitter account at @CranialTweet, and you can send us your longer questions to our e-mail at moko@cranialinsertion.com .
Q: I cast Explore the Underdark choosing to search for Gond Gate and Basilisk Gate. Will Basilisk Gate enter tapped or untapped?
A: It enters tapped. Gond Gate has to be on the battlefield for its ability to work. It won't work if it's entering the battlefield at the same time as another Gate. Since Gond Gate and Basilisk Gate are entering the battlefield at the same time, Gond Gate's ability won't apply to Basilisk Gate entering, and Basilisk Gate will enter tapped.
Q: I cast Intellect Devourer, and one of my opponents exiled Moonshae Pixie. If I cast the adventure side (Pixie Dust) later, who has permission to cast the Pixie from exile later on?
A: You do! You're the player who cast and resolved Pixie Dust, so you have permission to cast Moonshae Pixie from exile later on. It doesn't matter that your opponent owns the Pixie, what matters is that you cast the adventure, so you're the one who casts the Pixie from exile later, not the owner of the card.
Q: Can I cast Astarion's Thirst even if I don't control a commander?
A: Sure, that's fine. The Thirst only targets a creature. It doesn't target a commander creature you control. If you don't control a commander, you simply ignore the rest of the effect and you won't put counters on anything, but you'll still end up exiling the targeted creature.
Q: I control Carefree Swinemaster and ten untapped Forests. If I attack with the Swinemaster, can I pay ten mana and make five Boar tokens?
A: Nope. The Swinemaster has a triggered ability, not an activated ability. When the trigger resolves, you can pay
once to make a token. Since it doesn't say you can pay multiple times (like Intrepid Adversary), you can only pay once to make a single token, not multiple times to make multiple tokens.Q: I control Mazzy, Truesword Paladin, which is enchanted by my Stoneskin. My opponent Murders my Mazzy. Will I be able to cast the Stoneskin because of Mazzy's triggered ability?
A: Nope, Mazzy won't trigger at all. When Murder resolves, Mazzy is destroyed and goes to the graveyard, but Stoneskin doesn't go to the graveyard quite yet. Once state-based actions are checked after Murder is done resolving, the game sees Stoneskin isn't attached to anything and it goes to the graveyard. But when Stoneskin goes to the graveyard, Mazzy isn't in play, so Mazzy won't trigger. Your Stoneskin will stay in the graveyard, and you won't get a chance to recast it.
Check your pockets after you shake their hand.
Q: I have a Neera, Wild Mage in play who has already triggered this turn. If I cast Blur targeting Neera, can I get another Neera trigger off of my next spell for the turn?
A: You can! The Neera that's on the battlefield now has no ties to the Neera that was on the battlefield before Blur resolved. This new Neera hasn't triggered yet this turn, so if you cast another spell once Blur has resolved, Neera can trigger off of that spell and you'll get another random spell that turn.
Q: How does Neera, Wild Mage work with Harmonic Prodigy?
A: They don't work together at all. Neera's ability can only trigger once each turn. Even with Harmonic Prodigy in play, that can't cause Neera's ability to trigger multiple times in the same turn, so you'll still only have a single Neera trigger when you cast your spell, not two triggers.
Q: What if I copied Neera's trigger with Strionic Resonator instead?
A: You could copy Neera's trigger, but it won't be very useful. To get the random spell from Neera's trigger, the trigger must put the spell on the bottom of your library. So the first trigger to resolve will resolve like normal, and you'll put the spell on the bottom and can cast the next spell from your library. The second trigger to resolve does nothing, since the spell can't be put on the bottom of the library (since it's not on the stack anymore), so you don't get a second random spell.
Q: If I attack with a Elturel Survivors and a Karlach, Fury of Avernus, will the Survivors retain its bonus when it attacks a second time, effectively doubling its power when it attacks again?
A: Nope. The Survivors has a static ability, not a triggered ability. As long as it's attacking, it will get +X/+0 based on the number of lands controlled by the player its attacking. But since it's a static ability, once it's no longer in combat, it won't have that bonus anymore. When the Survivors attacks a second time that turn, it already lost the bonus from its static ability, and when it attacks a second time, it gets a new bonus based on who it's attacking now.
Q: Can I just choose myself as all three players for Gluntch, the Bestower's triggered ability?
A: No you cannot. You have to choose three different players for each mode. You cannot pick yourself as the player for all three options. So you can be one of the three players picked, but you cannot be all three players at the same time - you have to pick a different player for each option.
Q: Could I choose a player with no creatures for the first option?
A: Sure, that's fine (and probably optimal, assuming you don't want the counters for yourself). There's no requirement that you have to choose a player who controls creatures as the first player, so if you choose a player with no counters, they won't put counters on anything, and you'll still get to pick players for the second and third options.
Great, now there's three of them!
Q: I control Safana, Calimport Cutthroat. I've completed a dungeon, but I do not currently have the initiative. Will I still get the trigger at the end of turn?
A: No you do not. Safana's end step trigger will only trigger if you have the initiative as your end step begins. The check to see if you've completed a dungeon is checked when the trigger resolves, but the intervening if part of the trigger requires you to have the initiative. If you don't have it, the ability won't trigger at all.
Q: I control a Boo token from Minsc & Boo, Timeless Heroes that currently has six +1/+1 counters on it. If I activate Minsc & Boo's -2 ability, can I choose to sacrifice Boo, then flash in Slippery Bogbonder to steal Boo's counters, but still deal 7 damage and draw 7 cards?
A: No you cannot. The choice of what creature to sacrifice (and sacrificing the creature) happens when Minsc & Boo's ability resolves. You can't do anything in-between choosing to sacrifice Boo and Boo being sacrificed. And if you flash in the Bogbonder before the ability resolves and move all six +1/+1 counters to the Bogbonder, when you sacrifice Boo, Boo's power is only 1 when it's sacrificed, not 7, so you'd deal 1 damage and draw 1 card.
Q: Will Raggadragga, Goreguts Boss give an Eldrazi Spawn token made by Awakening Zone +2/+2?
A: Yep, it will. The Spawn have a mana ability. It's an ability that requires you to sacrifice the Spawn, but it's still a mana ability, so Raggadragga will give the Eldrazi Spawn token +2/+2.
Q: I have an enchantment token that's a copy of Opal-Eye, Konda's Yojimbo thank to my Myrkul, Lord of Bones. If I activate the ability of the token Opal-Eye, what happens?
A: A whole lot of nothing. Damage can only be dealt to a creature or planeswalker permanent. You can't deal damage to a noncreature enchantment. While you're free to activate the redirection ability of Opal-Eye, in order for that damage to be redirected, Opal-Eye must be a creature. Since Opal-Eye isn't a creature when the damage would be dealt, the redirection effect does nothing and the damage is dealt to what it would normally be dealt to, not redirected to the Opal-Eye enchantment.
Q: What happens if I exiled Ancestral Vision to Alaundo the Seer's ability? Do I get to cast it immediately?
A: I have some bad news - you should have just suspended it normally. Alaundo's ability only lets you cast it when you remove the last time counter from it. But Alaundo will exile it with counters equal to its mana value - which is zero. Since you'll never remove the last time counter, you'll never get the chance to cast it, and the Vision will be stuck in exile for the rest of the game.
Q: So let's say I do suspend the Vision like normal. Could I use Alaundo the Seers ability to remove time counters from it?
A: Yep, that will work. Alaundo's ability will remove a time counter from every card you own in exile, not just cards exiled by Alaundo's ability. If you suspend the Vision like normal, you can activate Alaundo's ability and remove a time counter to help speed up when you cast the Vision.
You should only spend so long trying
to find the perfect card for your deck.
to find the perfect card for your deck.
Q: I'm at a low life total, and I have a Black Market Connections in play. Can I choose zero of the modes?
A: No, you have to choose at least one mode. The Connections says to choose one or more, so you always have to choose at least one mode. Even if you'd rather not lose life this turn, you'll still have to pick at least one of the Connection's modes.
Q: Does Burakos, Party Leader fill a party by itself?
A: No it does not. While Burakos is a Cleric, Rogue, Warrior, and Wizard, your party must consist of four different creatures. While Burakos can fill any role in a party, it can only fill one role at a time, not every role at the same time, so just having Burakos in play doesn't give you a full party.
Q: I have my commander Sivriss, Nightmare Speaker, some Cleric, and a Haunted One in play. If I tap Sivriss to activate its ability, can I give the Cleric undying with Haunted One's trigger before I sacrifice it?
A: No you cannot. The trigger from the One can't go on the stack — let alone resolve — until you're done announcing Sivriss's ability, and that includes sacrificing the Cleric. The ability from Haunted One would only give the Cleric undying when it resolves, but the Cleric is long gone by then.
That's all we have for you this week. We'll see you again next week!
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