Perplexing Chimera
Spoilers, Rumors, and Speculation forum
Posted on Jan. 22, 2014, 11:03 p.m. by Rayenous
Perplexing Chimera - 4U
Enchantment Creature - Chimera
Whenever an opponent casts a spell, you may exchange control of Perplexing Chimera and that spell. If you do, you may choose new targets for the spell. (If the spell becomes a permanent, you control that permanent.)
3/3
What...? Abrupt Decay
is uncountable?
No problem! You take this, and I'll just make it target your other creature!
What...? Counterflux
is uncountable?
No problem! You take this, and I'll just make it target itself!
What...? A Sphinx's Revelation ? I'll use my Prophet of Kruphix ability to Flash in this guy for you to have... I'll take the life and the cards, Thanks!
What... You're casting Elspeth, Sun's Champion ?? I think I'll take that spell, and have it resolve on my side of the battlefield.
For all cases above:
Now that you have my 3/3... I'll return it to my hand with... well any number of blue bounce.
This card may not be over powered, but it certainly has some tricky manoeuvres. At worst, when it's in play it's a huge deterrent against bombs.
I could see it run in Zedruu or Roon Commander decks. It seems like interesting tech.
January 22, 2014 11:09 p.m.
I just realized... he doesn't work in the Sphinx's Revelation Example I mentioned above.
He has to be on the battlefield at the time the spell is cast in order to trigger.
Still... if he's there, no opponent would cast Sphinx's Revelation
January 22, 2014 11:11 p.m.
idk if your Counterflux example works either, since you would be controlling it and it can't counter a spell you control.
January 22, 2014 11:15 p.m.
Myogenesis says... #6
The problem is in the value. Sure you can get really good value from your opponent...once. But you've just given them a 3/3 flyer by paying 5 mana, and now THEY have control of the ticking time bomb that is just waiting to grab your spell. Because of this it probably won't be that broken, but as Erabel said it'll be good in Zedruu and Roon decks atleast haha.
January 22, 2014 11:18 p.m.
maxon: Well, if you gain control of it, it either fizzles for having no legal targets, counters another spell of your opponent's lower on the stack, or counters all of your opponent's spells left on the stack. Not the best use of a 5 mana dude, but it does work to stop the uncounterable counterspell.
January 22, 2014 11:18 p.m.
ahhh. ok. my brain was aching a little just thinking about it. lol
January 22, 2014 11:19 p.m.
Not only can Counterflux target only spells you don't control, but it also can't be countered. Side note...no counterspell can target itself because the target is chosen before the costs are paid and the spell is cast and if it hasn't been cast yet, it can't be targeted.
January 22, 2014 11:21 p.m.
It wouldn't change how the counterflux is on the stack other then what it's targeting. If they didn't cast it for its overload cost then you can't decide it's overloaded.
January 22, 2014 11:22 p.m.
I'm confused. Who are you responding to? OP, or me? Because I'm pretty sure I gave a good explanation of what would happen.
If you gain control of Counterflux when your opponent casts it, and it wasn't overloaded, it either: fizzles, because when you gained control of it, your opponents had no other spells on the stack, so it can't target anything legally; or it has to target some other spell that isn't yours on the stack that it can target.
If you gain control of it when it is overloaded, then it just counters anything on the stack you don't control. Done.
January 22, 2014 11:27 p.m.
I forgot about the "...spell you don't control part". As such, if your opponent has no other spells on the stack, Counterflux just fizzles, as it's target is invalid.
For other counter spells, there would have to be another spell on the stack to redirect the counter spell to...
Taken from ruling for Redirect : "8/15/2010 - If you cast Redirect targeting a spell that targets a spell on the stack (like Cancel does, for example), you can't change that spell's target to itself. You can, however, change that spell's target to Redirect. If you do, that spell will be countered when it tries to resolve because Redirect will have left the stack by then."
Since this ability is not a spell, a counter spell would not be able to target it in the way Redirect can.
January 22, 2014 11:35 p.m.
RussischerZar says... #13
Problem with the bounce-plan is that you can't bounce it before the exchange trigger resolves because you can't exchange 1 thing with nothing. And if you bounce it afterwards your opponent could just exchange it again (which is probably beneficial anyway) and bounce something else or even the thing he played before that is now yours.
January 23, 2014 5:32 a.m.
Gumdrop_Prince says... #14
....you know what? I don't mind giving them my chimera, because I copied it first with progenitor mimic... and my artisan of forms... and my Fated infatuation.... And I have a handful of Cyclonic rifts and other "return target creature to it's owners hand"
Because you know what? when i cast that, it's coming to my hand, or you can just give me back my chimera and send one of my other chimeras to my hand....
And you can't cast any spells... again, ever.. You're locked in. Chimera is broken.
February 21, 2014 2:25 p.m.
Schuesseled says... #15
"Now that you have my 3/3... I'll return it to my hand with... well any number of blue bounce."
Well no, because that bounce spell is now mine, so i'll bounce the win condition you stole back to my hand and you can have this 3/3 troll back. And we are back at stage one. Again.
February 24, 2014 6:42 p.m.
The best situation with Perplexing Chimera I heard of is Progenitor Mimic cloning the chimera. That way you get a new chimera each upkeep. But all your opponents will hate you and you will lose all your friends.
February 24, 2014 6:46 p.m.
@Schuesseled well, stage one minus 1 blue bounce spell LoL
@Rayenous sounds like a combo piece dependent on gas in the form of other cards, which makes Perplexing Chimera waaay less likely to be just a single-card combo, he needs help, and a lot of it, combine that with bad draws/mulligans, and your lookin at chump blocking with a late chimera, and then promptly dying. I just don't see how it would work out in anything less than perfectly ideal conditions, you can't trade a chimera every single turn, nor can you stop an early Kiora, the Crashing Wave pop her emblem, now I don't need to cast anything the rest of the game in order to still beat you. Perplexing Chimera is just that, perplexing. I am enjoying these decks and idea's around it, but I'm not seeing anything that screams 'new top tier deck' about Perplexing Chimera , in standard anyways..
February 24, 2014 7:09 p.m.
Schuesseled says... #18
Well it comes in too late to deal with old threats, anytihng under 5cmc. So you need a way to get rid of.. oh wait blue has lot's of stuff to do that.
TurboFagoot says... #2
Counterflux can't target itself..
If you flash in Chimera in response to Revelation it's already too late, they'll have the cards...
No one is going to cast Elspeth with this guy on the field...
Calm down.
January 22, 2014 11:08 p.m.