mafteechr's classroom: Rules Exam 1 Answers

Features

mafteechr

21 April 2011

2510 views

1. AegairEtapa – 100
T2. komar – 98
T2. peppyhare – 98
4. theemptyquiver – 95
T5. RetSpline – 94
T5. Phantos – 94
7. sporkife – 92
8. landot – 90
9. MagnorCriol – 89
10. Ceseret42 – 88
11. Jimmuh – 86
12. KristusV – 84
T13. hammert1m3 – 82
T13. dude1818 – 82
15. cnielsen85 – 81
16. metalmagic – 80
17. maxtheax – 67
T18. Jarrod_0067 – 66
T18. Nightwielder – 66
20. doinitwrong – 65
21. DarcOso – 62
22. Bavrianswiss – 60
23. memaw381 – 52
24. Mpz5 – 51
25. leafs_suck – 47
T26. Battlecry1986 – 46
T26. supernick – 46
28. Balthasar – 31

And there you have it! Congratulations to AegairEtapa for scoring the only perfect score. I was surprised to see the gap between 16th and 17th.

The most missed questions were 5, 6, and 9. 10 also had a lot of incorrect responses, and the reasoning behind 7 was often flawed, too.

Now, to the answers!

Question 1:

KrazyCaley attacks squire1 with Thrummingbird. After squire1 declares no blockers, KrazyCaley casts Tainted Strike, which resolves. squire1 thus gains 3 poison counters.

(2pts) 1a) Is this legal? Yes.

(8pts) 1b) Thrummingbird is a 2/1 flying creature with infect. After combat damage is dealt, giving squire1 2 poison counters, Thrummingbird's triggered ability goes on the stack. It resolves, KrazyCaley proliferates, and squire1 now has 3 poison counters.

510.1. First, the active player announces how each attacking creature assigns its combat damage, then the defending player announces how each blocking creature assigns its combat damage. This turn-based action doesn’t use the stack.

510.2. Second, all combat damage that’s been assigned is dealt simultaneously. This turn-based action doesn’t use the stack.

510.3. Third, any abilities that triggered on damage being assigned or dealt go on the stack.

510.4. Fourth, the active player gets priority. Players may cast spells and activate abilities.

Question 2:

backyardmetal casts Garruk Wildspeaker. After it resolves, he uses his +1 ability to untap two target lands. In response, Leafs_suck uses Lightning Bolt, destroying Garruk Wildspeaker.

(2pts) 2a) Is this legal? No.

(8pts) 2b) When backyardmetal activates Garruk Wildspeaker's ability, the 1 loyalty counter is added as a cost to activate the ability. Thus, while Leafs_suck's Lightning Bolt will resolve first, it will leave Garruk Wildspeaker with 1 loyalty counter.

306.5d Each planeswalker has a number of loyalty abilities, which are activated abilities with loyalty symbols in their costs. Loyalty abilities follow special rules: A player may activate a loyalty ability of a permanent he or she controls any time he or she has priority and the stack is empty during a main phase of his or her turn, but only if none of that permanent’s loyalty abilities have been activated that turn.

Question 3:

On the battlefield under Legendinc's control is a Goblin Arsonist with a Basilisk Collar attached. Siegfried casts Burst Lightning, targeting the Goblin Arsonist. After it resolves, Goblin Arsonist is put into the graveyard. As his ability triggers, Legendinc targets Siegfried's Inferno Titan, destroying it. Legendinc gains 1 life.

(2pts) 3a) Is this legal? Yes.

(8pts) 3b) When Goblin Arsonist enters the graveyard, it's ability triggers and goes on the stack. As for the damage it deals, it checks the last known information of Goblin Arsonist, which says it had deathtouch and lifelink.

112.7a Once activated or triggered, an ability exists on the stack independently of its source. Destruction or removal of the source after that time won’t affect the ability. Note that some abilities cause a source to do something (for example, “Prodigal Sorcerer deals 1 damage to target creature or player”) rather than the ability doing anything directly. In these cases, any activated or triggered ability that references information about the source because the effect needs to be divided checks that information when the ability is put onto the stack. Otherwise, it will check that information when it resolves. In both instances, if the source is no longer in the zone it’s expected to be in at that time, its last known information is used. The source can still perform the action even though it no longer exists.

702.2c A creature with toughness greater than 0 that’s been dealt damage by a source with deathtouch since the last time state-based actions were checked is destroyed as a state-based action.

702.13b Damage dealt by a source with lifelink causes that source’s controller, or its owner if it has no controller, to gain that much life (in addition to any other results that damage causes).

Question 4:

yeaGO is attacking with a Blightsteel Colossus. BrownDog5117 declares two Squadron Hawks as blockers. yeaGO assigns all 11 combat damage to one Squadron Hawk. The remaining 10 damage hits BrownDog5117 due to trample, resulting in 10 poison counters.

(2pts) 4a) Is this legal? No.

(8pts) 4b) Both Squadron Hawks must be dealt lethal damage before the player will receive any damage.

702.17b The controller of an attacking creature with trample first assigns damage to the creature(s) blocking it. Once all those blocking creatures are assigned lethal damage, any remaining damage is assigned as its controller chooses among those blocking creatures and the player or planeswalker the creature is attacking. When checking for assigned lethal damage, take into account damage already marked on the creature and damage from other creatures that’s being assigned during the same combat damage step, but not any abilities or effects that might change the amount of damage that’s actually dealt. The attacking creature’s controller need not assign lethal damage to all those blocking creatures but in that case can’t assign any damage to the player or planeswalker it’s attacking.

Question 5:

Nightwielder passes turn. Balthasar draws a card, and Nightwielder casts Silence during Nightwielder's upkeep. Balthasar casts the card he drew, Spell Pierce, in response, targeting the Silence.

(2pts) 5a) Is this legal? No.

(8pts) 5b) While Nightwielder can cast Silence during Balthasar's upkeep, Balthasar does not draw until after his upkeep. Thus, Balthasar can not use the Spell Pierce.

501.1. The beginning phase consists of three steps, in this order: untap, upkeep, and draw.

Question 6:

insertcleverid, jessetaverne, and WiseHeart65 are in a free-for-all match. insertcleverid is at 3 life and jessetaverne is at 2 life. insertcleverid casts Forked Bolt, targeting jessetaverne. In response, WiseHeart65 casts Lightning Bolt, targeting insertcleverid. The Lightning Bolt resolves, killing insertcleverid. Then, the Forked Bolt resolves, killing jessetaverne. Thus, WiseHeart65 wins the match.

(2pts) 6a) Is this legal? No.

(8pts) 6b) Once the Lightning Bolt resolves, insertcleverid has 0 life. Before insertcleverid's Forked Bolt resolves, he loses. Thus, all his cards from all zones are removed from the game, and all spells and abilities controlled by insertcleverid on the stack cease to exist. Thus, jessetaverne remains alive with 2 life.

118.6. If a player has 0 or less life, that player loses the game as a state-based action.

800.4a. When a player leaves the game, all objects (see rule 109) owned by that player leave the game, all spells and abilities controlled by that player on the stack cease to exist, and any effects which give that player control of any objects or players end. Then, if there are any objects still controlled by that player, those objects are exiled. This is not a state-based action. It happens as soon as the player leaves the game. If the player who left the game had priority at the time he or she left, priority passes to the next player in turn order who’s still in the game.

Question 7:

mafteechr and theemptyquiver are playing a Two-Headed Giant game against π_is_the_word and onthewater. During the former's turn, theemptyquiver attacks with Neurok Commando. No blockers are declared, and the team of π_is_the_word and onthewater take 2 damage, and theemptyquiver draws 2 cards.

(2pts) 7a) Is this legal? No.

(8pts) 7b) While π_is_the_word and onthewater take 2 damage, theemptyquiver only draws 1 card. While teams in Two-Headed Giant share life, that is all they share. When one team attacks, they choose a specific player to assign combat damage.

810.7f As the combat damage step begins, the active team announces how each attacking creature will assign its combat damage. If an attacking creature would assign combat damage to the defending team, the active team chooses only one of the defending players for that creature to assign its combat damage to. Then the defending team announces how each blocking creature will assign its combat damage.

Question 8:

M457ERSP00K attacks Gamer7129 with Hero of Bladehold. Both of Hero of Bladehold's abilities trigger and resolve. No blockers are declared.

(2pts) 8a) How much damage does Gamer7129 take? 5 or 7.

(8pts) 8b) Since both of Hero of Bladehold's abilities trigger when it attacks, M457ERSP00K can put them on the stack in the order he chooses. If battle cry resolves first, the tokens will not get a bonus, and Gamer7129 wil take 5 damage. If the tokens resolve first, then they'll each get pumped by battle cry, and Gamer7129 will take 7 damage.

603.3b If multiple abilities have triggered since the last time a player received priority, each player, in APNAP order, puts triggered abilities he or she controls on the stack in any order he or she chooses. (See rule 101.4.) Then the game once again checks for and resolves state-based actions until none are performed, then abilities that triggered during this process go on the stack. This process repeats until no new state-based actions are performed and no abilities trigger. Then the appropriate player gets priority.

Question 9:

DingoDan controls a Jace Beleren with 2 loyalty counters. memaw381 casts an Inferno Titan, which resolves. As Inferno Titan's enter the battlefield ability triggers, memaw381 targets Jace Beleren for 2 damage, and DingoDan for 1 damage.

(2pts) 9a) Is this legal? No.

(8pts) 9b) First, Jace Beleren can not be targeted for noncombat damage. In order to assign damage to Jace Beleren, memaw381 would have to assign the damage to DingoDan first. Second, the damage can not be split between DingoDan and Jace Beleren since DingoDan can not be targeted twice.

306.7. If noncombat damage would be dealt to a player by a source controlled by an opponent, that opponent may have that source deal that damage to a planeswalker the first player controls instead.This is a redirection effect (see rule 614.9) and is subject to the normal rules for ordering replacement effects (see rule 616). The opponent chooses whether to redirect the damage as the redirection effect is applied.

114.3. The same target can’t be chosen multiple times for any one instance of the word “target” on a spell or ability. If the spell or ability uses the word “target” in multiple places, the same object, player, or zone can be chosen once for each instance of the word “target” (as long as it fits the targeting criteria).

Question 10:

Kalani and muffludwig both control a Mimic Vat. During Kalani 's turn, he casts Naturalize, targeting muffludwig's Kuldotha Forgemaster. It resolves, and Kuldotha Forgemaster is put into muffludwig's graveyard.

(2pts) 10a) If both players want to use their Mimic Vat's imprint ability, which player will be able to successfully exile Kuldotha Forgemaster? muffludwig.

(8pts) 10b) When Kuldotha Forgemaster enters the graveyard, both Mimic Vats' imprint abilities trigger. In APNAP order, Kalani 's ability goes on the stack, followed by muffludwig. Thus, muffludwig may exile the Kuldotha Forgemaster. If so, Kalani will not be able to exile Kuldotha Forgemaster since it is no longer in the graveyard.

603.3b If multiple abilities have triggered since the last time a player received priority, each player, in APNAP order, puts triggered abilities he or she controls on the stack in any order he or she chooses. (See rule 101.4.) Then the game once again checks for and resolves state-based actions until none are performed, then abilities that triggered during this process go on the stack. This process repeats until no new state-based actions are performed and no abilities trigger. Then the appropriate player gets priority.