Hey folks, and welcome to a new edition of “Tolarian Academy!” With the bulk of the National tournaments coming up this weekend and next, obviously what I plan to do this week is talk about banding or something. Speaking of Nationals, I’ll be in Kansas City for U.S. Nationals, so if you’re there, stop by and say hi! You might find me playing some Sealed on Friday, or if you’d like to throw down in some EDH, Rhys the Redeemed, Momir Vig, Kaervek, Kangee, and Thraximundar (80’s Rock Edition) are all ready and waiting. And of course, if you have rules questions, send your questions to [email protected].

Now that we’re done with that, let’s get to the mailbag, including this week’s big winners of $5 store credit each!

Q and A

Q: Sphinx Ambassador.
A: Riki made me put this question in the column. Riki, you have to give me more than that. “Sphinx Ambassador” is not a question; it is a card. I don’t even know what you’re asking or, frankly, why I bothered to put “Q:” in front of that.

Q: Eric, I told you to phrase the question however you wanted.
A: Fine, but again, that’s not a question.

Q: *sigh* Let’s say I attack you with my Sphinx Ambassador and it gets through. I search your library for Thraximundar, but because you’re insane, you name Thraximundar. What happens to your Thraximundar?

A: Well, I don’t know how anyone reading the card who isn’t a judge is supposed to know this, but the card never actually leaves my library, so it gets shuffled in when I shuffle at the end of Sphinx Ambassador’s effect. I know that when you search for something, you feel like it should leave the library, but look at your cards that search for things and how they’re templated; they all put things into your hand or your graveyard or something. Since this one doesn’t say what happens if I name it, it just stays there.

Q: How does this work with Panglacial Wurm?
A: Come on, Riki. Everyone knows Panglacial Wurm only works when you’re searching your own library. Seriously now. How about some real questions?

Q: If I block a creature with a band (a group of creatures containing at least one creature with banding,) does my opponent get to order my blockers?
A: Yes. Does it do anything? No, you still get to assign the attacking creature’s damage to your band of creatures as you see fit.

Q: Okay, but what if I attack with a band? Do I still get to order their blockers?
A: Yes. You also get to decide how the blockers’ damage will be assigned to your band. Banding doesn’t say “GO BACK IN TIME” in the Comp. Rules. I promise Wizards actually thought about banding.

Q: I have a Godhead of Awe on the battlefield, and I cast Telemin Performance– the last card in my hand. My opponent flips up his Overbeing of Myth, which enters the battlefield under my control. Is it a dead 0/0 or a hilarious 1/1?

A: Sounds like a layers issue to me! We apply the sublayers of layer 7, the power/toughness layer, in the order they appear in the Comprehensive Rules so as to find out how big the Overbeing ends up, well, being. Overbeing’s ability is a characteristic-defining ability and therefore applies in layer 7a, making it a 0/0, while Godhead’s static ability that sets power and toughness applies in 7b, making it a 1/1. It’s aliiiiive!

**The author of this question won $5 store credit with ChannelFireball.com!**

Q: During my opponent’s end step, I cast Waylay, making three 2/2 knights. After that resolves, I cast Time Stop. Do the knights die, or do they come through to my turn?
A: The knights’ abilities trigger at the beginning of your opponent’s cleanup step, meaning you’ll be able to smash with them on your turn. Cool? Yes. The “White Lightning” of the days of yore? Not so much. I feel like there are better things to do for 6UUW and two cards.

Q: When the ‘Sacrifice’ ability of cards that used to have substance (like the aforementioned Armor of Thorns or Waylay) goes on the stack, players gain priority, right? If, at that point, they play another ex-substance card, the logical thing under the new rules is that it lasts until the end of the next turn. Is this the same as it would have been before?

A: Well, according to section 514.3a of the Comprehensive Rules, players do gain priority with those abilities on the stack. However, if players do actually gain priority during cleanup (they don’t normally) then there will be an additional cleanup step after this one in order to get rid of whatever horrible Waylay-related mess you’ve inevitably made.

Q: My opponent Peppersmokes my activated Mutavault. I activate it again. It’s a 2/2 again, right?

A: Not any more, pal! This interaction makes sense now! Mutavault’s ability applies in layer 7b, while Peppersmoke applies in 7c, meaning that no matter how many times you activate Mutavault this turn, it will still be a 1/1. (Unless something else happens.)

Q: This is really weird, but bear with me. I attack with Runeclaw Bear (see, a bear pun!) with Fireshrieker attached. After first strike damage, my opponent Naturalizes my Fireshrieker. Does Runeclaw Bear deal regular damage?

A: No. You might think it did if all you did was read rule 510.5, which says:

The only creatures that assign combat damage in [the regular combat damage step] are the remaining attackers and blockers that didn’t have first strike as the first combat damage step began, as well as the remaining attackers and blockers that currently have double strike.

If that was our only rule about this, then our Bear, which didn’t have first strike as the first combat damage step began, would deal damage again. However, we are saved by rule 702.4c, which states:

Removing double strike from a creature during the first combat damage step will stop it from assigning combat damage in the second combat damage step.

This is right after 702.4b, which is essentially a reprint of 510.5 in the definition of double strike. This may seem contradictory and unclear to those who aren’t familiar with rule 101.2, which states (and I promise this is the last quote:)

When a rule or effect says something can happen and another effect says it can’t, the “can’t” effect wins.

510.5 says our bear will deal damage, but 702.4c says it won’t, so in the spirit of 101.2, 702.4c wins. And so ends today’s sojourn through the Comprehensive Rules!

Q: I have a question about out-of-order sequencing. Let’s say I go to the Declare Attackers step and say the following things: “Attack with Knight, attack with Knight, animate Mutavault, attack with Mutavault.” I know this is legal under the new rules at any tournament. Doesn’t this mean I can basically dodge Cryptic Command by waiting until Declare Attackers to animate the Mutavault?

A: No. The idea behind out-of-order sequencing, in this case, is that you are activating Mutavault’s ability during the Beginning Combat step and then attacking with it. That is the implied shortcut. If your opponent wants, he can interrupt your shortcut by saying “Hey now, after you animate that Mutavault during Beginning Combat, I tap your team.” No loopholes have been opened with out-of-order sequencing.

**The author of this question won $5 store credit with ChannelFireball.com!**

Q: My opponent has two copies of Sphere of Resistance on the battlefield as well as a Trinisphere. How much does my [card]Ancestral Recall[/card] cost?

A: Trinisphere always applies last and looks at the total cost of the spell, so it will see an Ancestral Recall costing 2U and say “TWO PLUS ONE EQUALS THREE! TRINISPHERE IS SATISFIED. LONG LIVE GRAY OGRE. TRINISPHERE OUT!” (translation: it won’t do anything to the cost of the spell.)

Q: Under the NEW layers system, if I Snakeform your Chameleon Colossus and you pump it in response, it’s a 5/5 snake? For real?

A: Yep. Snakeform’s effect goes in layer 7b, and Colossus’s ability goes in layer 7c, so regardless of the order of the effects, Colossus is a big man.

Q: I have a creature enchanted with Spirit Loop. My opponent steals it with Mind Control. What happens to my Spirit Loop? Does it stay on the battlefield or get put into a graveyard due to not enchanting a creature I control anymore?

A: Auras enchanting illegal targets are always put into their owners’ graveyards as a state-based effect, so yes, your precious Spirit Loop would die a terrible, horrible death.

All right! Unfortunately, there’s no “Urza’s Homework” or “Punts to Puzzles” this week, due to my computer dying again and a certain electronics company which shall, for its protection, be known as “Knitted E” (don’t think about it or you’re guilty of libel!) not living up to their promises in my extended warranty. Keep sending your rules questions in to [email protected], however. Join us next week as I show you how to give Riki Hayashi a migraine using only Panglacial Wurm, Sphinx Ambassador, Evil Presents, and a toothpick. Think about it.