Published on 07/07/2025
Summer Standard Bans
By Carsten Haese, Nathan Long, and Justin Hovdenes
This Article from: Nathan Long
Cranial Translation
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Our long national nightmare is finally over.
And while we're likely to see fewer questions involving those cards in the future, you can still send us questions about those cards or anything else on your mind, and we'll send you an answer back. We may even use your question in a future article. If you have a short question, reach out to us at @CranialTweet, and if you have a longer question, you can send us an e-mail at moko@cranialinsertion.com .
Q: My opponent controls a single creature, a Loporrit Scout. They cast Prishe's Wanderings. Can I cast Overkill in response to kill the Scout and prevent them from searching for land?
A: No you cannot. While you can kill the Scout in response to the Wanderings, the Wandering itself doesn't target anything. The initial spell just has them search their library for a land to put onto the battlefield. It has a reflexive triggered ability that triggers when they search, and that trigger will target the creature they control. Since the spell itself doesn't target, killing their only creature won't prevent them from searching for a land, they just won't be able to put the reflexive trigger on the stack once the spell is done resolving.
Q: Do I have to put a +1/+1 counter on Demon Wall to let it attack, or can I use any type of counter?
A: Any type of counter will do. Demon Wall has an ability that lets you put two +1/+1 counters on it, so that'll be the natural way to let it attack, but if you can put a counter on it in another way, that will let it attack, too. For example, you could use Protection Magic to add a shield counter to it. Or it could get a flying counter from Luminous Broodmoth.
Q: I control Summon: Fenrir and my opponent controls a 2/2 creature. If the chapter III trigger of Fenrir triggers, is Fenrir still be on the battlefield when its trigger resolves and count for its own effect?
A: Yep, it's still on the battlefield. Summon: Fenrir won't leave the battlefield until after the chapter III trigger has left the stack. Fenrir is still on the battlefield while the chapter III trigger is resolving, and since you still control a creature with the greatest power, you'll draw a card from the chapter III trigger.
Q: I control Cyan, Vengeful Samurai equipped with Buster Sword. If Cyan attacks and isn't blocked, what happens with my Buster Sword trigger?
A: You're going to get two triggers. Since Cyan has double strike, it will deal damage twice if it's unblocked. When first strike damage is dealt, Buster Sword will trigger, you'll draw a card, and you can cast a spell with mana value 6 or less from your hand without paying its mana cost. Then, during the normal combat damage step, you'll do it again since Cyan deals combat damage to your opponent a second time. You'll draw a second card and can cast a second spell with mana value 6 or less for free.
Q: I control Sin, Spira's Punishment. If I have Agadeem's Awakening in my graveyard, what happens if it's randomly chosen? Can I put it onto the battlefield as a land?
A: This can't happen as described. Sin can only exile a permanent card from your graveyard. In your graveyard, since the Awakening is on the front face, it's a sorcery card. We ignore the back face of a double-faced card, so the Awakening cannot be chosen by Sin's trigger since it's not a permanent card.
Q: I have a Terror of the Peaks in play. My opponent cast Ugin, Eye of the Storms. If they target my Terror of the Peaks with Ugin's trigger, will they have to pay 3 life?
A: They do not. The Terror's ability only applies to being targeted by a spell being cast by your opponent, not by being targeted by an ability. Ugin (the spell) doesn't target the Terror, but its cast trigger does. But since that cast trigger isn't a spell, the Terror's ability won't apply and won't make your opponent pay 3 life to target the Terror.
Q: On an earlier turn, I gifted my opponent Phyrexian Soulgorger with Jon Irenicus, Shattered One's triggered ability, and my opponent also controls an Incubation Druid as their only other creature. If I cast Flare of Malice, what will my opponent sacrifice?
A: They won't sacrifice anything. They have to sacrifice a creature or planeswalker with the greatest mana value among their creatures and planeswalkers. They cannot choose to sacrifice Phyrexian Soulgorger since Jon Irenicus's effect says it can't be sacrificed. They cannot sacrifice Incubation Druid since it doesn't have the greatest mana value among their creatures or planeswalkers. If they had a second creature that had a mana value of 3, they would have to sacrifice that other creature, but in this case, they won't sacrifice anything at all.
These tokens probably didn't need prowess as well.
Q: I have a Cori-Steel Cutter in play, but my opponent has an Illness in the Ranks in play. If I cast two spells and trigger the Cutter's ability, what happens to my token?
A: If you choose to attach the Cutter to the token, your token will survive. It will get +1/+1 from the Cutter's bonus and -1/-1 from the Illness in the Ranks, and those effects will effectively cancel each other out and your token survives as a 1/1. State-based actions aren't checked in the middle of the trigger resolving, so even though it would briefly be a 0/0 creature, if you attach the Cutter, it's a 1/1 by the time we check state-based actions.
Q: My opponent just cast Goryo's Vengeance targeting the Atraxa, Grand Unifier in their graveyard. I cast Commandeer to gain control of the Vengeance, but I don't have any legendary creature cards in my graveyard. What happens?
A: Changing the target of the spell you Commandeered is optional, since it says you may choose new targets for it. If there are no legendary creature cards in your graveyard, you won't change the target of the Vengeance, so it will still be targeting the Atraxa in their graveyard. However, when the Vengeance resolves, since it's not targeting a card in your graveyard, the target for the spell is illegal and the spell does nothing. You won't get the Atraxa from their graveyard, but at least they won't get Atraxa out of their graveyard either.
Q: Can I cast Dual Shot with zero targets?
A: Yes you can, if you really wanted to. Dual Shot has "up to two" targets, which means you can choose two, one, or even zero targets. If you choose zero targets, when Dual Shot resolves, nothing will really happen, but you did cast a spell, so if you have something like Guttersnipe in play, casting it will trigger Guttersnipe.
Q: My opponent has had Ultima, Origin of Oblivion in play for a few turns and has put blight counters on a few of my lands. Then I finally manage to remove Ultima. Do my lands go back to normal or are they still blighted?
A: They're still affected and can still only tap for colorless mana. Ultima's attack trigger put the blight counter on the land and that ability sets the duration ("for as long as that land has a blight counter on it") for its effect. Even if Ultima leaves play, that condition is still there, and your land can still only produce colorless mana. You'll either have to remove the blight counter or remove the land from play and replay it in order to return it to normal.
This is slightly different from a card like Omo, Queen of Vesuva. Omo puts the everything counter on the land or creature, but then has separate abilities that affects lands and creatures with everything counters on them. It's not tied to the triggered ability of Omo resolving, so if Omo leaves play, the everything counters won't do anything until Omo returns to the battlefield.
Q: If I enchant Ancient Adamantoise with a Gift of Immortality and it dies, what happens to my Turtle?
A: It's your choice what happens to it. Both the Gift and Adamanotise have dies triggers, and since you control both triggers, you choose the order they're put on the stack. You can stack the triggers so the Gift's trigger resolves first. That will return the Adamantoise to the battlefield. When the Adamantoise's dies trigger resolves, it's not exiled since it's not in the graveyard, but you still create ten Treasure tokens. Had you stacked the triggers the other way around, you'd exile the Adamantoise first, then the Gift trigger would do nothing since the Adamantoise is no longer in the graveyard.
Q: If I ninjutsu Yuffie, Materia Hunter, but my opponents don't control any artifacts, can I still attach an equipment to Yuffie?
A: More than likely, yes. The ability requires a target noncreature artifact, and even if your opponents don't control an artifact, you probably control at least one (the equipment you want to attach). Yuffie's ability can target your own artifact, and when it resolves, you gain control of the artifact you already control, plus you can attach an equipment you control to Yuffie.
The only way this wouldn't work is if you didn't control any noncreature artifacts either (perhaps your only equipment is a creature with reconfigure). In that case, you couldn't choose a target for the trigger, so it's removed from the stack and won't resolve.
Turns out that this town is big enough.
Q: What happens if my opponent uses Trickbind on the chapter III ability of my Fable of the Mirror-Breaker?
A: Trickbind resolves and counters the final chapter trigger of the Fable. Then, since the final chapter trigger of the Fable is no longer on the stack, the Fable is sacrificed as a state-based action. Fable of the Mirror-Breaker is a Saga, and while it normally will transform into a creature when the final chapter trigger resolves, if the ability is countered, it will end up in the graveyard.
Q: I have my two commanders Haldan, Avid Arcanist and Pako, Arcane Retriever in play. If I also have Passionate Archaeologist, will I get two triggers when I cast a spell from exile?
A: Yes you do! Since Haldan and Pako are your commanders, each of them will have the trigger from the Archaeologist. Casting a spell from exile will cause both abilities to trigger, and you be able to deal damage twice because of the two triggers.
Q: I control Eligeth, Crossroads Augur and a Chance-Met Elves. If I cast an Opt, will my Elves still get a counter?
A: Nope, your Elves won't get a counter. Eligeth replaces scrying with drawing that many cards instead. Since the scry is replaced, the scry won't happen and the Chance-Met Elves will not trigger and it will not get a +1/+1 counter.
Q: I cast General Leo Cristophe and I target a creature card in my graveyard with his enter trigger. In response, my opponent exiles the card I targeted with Scavenging Ooze's activated ability. Will I still get to put counters on General Leo?
A: You will not. The General's trigger has a single target - a target creature card with mana value 3 or less in your graveyard. If that target is illegal when the trigger goes to resolve, the entire ability does nothing and you won't put any counters on General Leo.
Do note that if you value the counters more than trying to return a creature card (or you know that your opponent will use the Ooze's ability on your creature card), since the ability says "up to one", you could choose zero targets for the trigger. That way, it doesn't target, so General Leo will get the counters even though you'll return nothing.
Q: I control Y'shtola, Night's Blessed, and my three opponents have each lost 4 life this turn. How many cards do I draw during my end step, one or three?
A: Only one card. Y'shtola's ability doesn't care how many players lost 4 or more life that turn, it just checks to see if at least one of them did. Since at least one player lost at least 4 life, Y'shtola will trigger and you'll draw a single card when the trigger resolves, not a card for each player who lost 4 or more life that turn.
Q: I control Tidus, Yuna's Guardian. If I deal combat damage to three opponents with three creatures with counters on them, how many times do I get to use Tidus's Cheer ability?
A: While you get multiple triggers, you only get to use one of them. Tidus's ability can trigger multiple times if you deal combat damage to different opponents, but Tidus's Cheer has a restriction on its use - do this only once each turn. Once you've used one of the triggers, you won't be able to use any of the other triggers that haven't resolved yet. So while it can trigger multiple times, you can still only use one instance of the trigger, not all three instances.
Q: I'm in a multiplayer game, and I have Blitzball in play. If one of my opponents attacks a different opponent with their commander and deals combat damage to them, can I sacrifice Blitzball to draw two cards?
A: Sure! The last ability just requires one of your opponents to have been dealt combat damage by a legendary creature this turn. Who controls that legendary creature doesn't matter, so one opponent dealing combat damage with a legendary creature to another one of your opponents will let you activate the last ability of Blitzball.
That's it for this week. Join us again next week!
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