Q: When is the latest that I can reveal Divine Intervention to teleport out of the way to cancel a spell on my creature before its effects are applied?
A: At the end of the Counter Spell Step.
Q: When is the latest that I can reveal Divine Intervention to teleport out of the way to cancel an attack on my creature before its effects are applied?
A: At the end of the Roll Dice Step. This means I get to see the roll result before deciding.
Q: If I reveal Divine Intervention to teleport out of the way of a melee attack, can my opponent reveal a Divine Intervention that was on the attacker to teleport the attacker into the same zone and follow through with the attack?
A: No, the first attack is canceled because the target has changed positions (much like a dodge, but over a greater distance). If the attacking creature possesses a 2nd attack, it may use it as normal after teleporting.
Q: If I reveal Divine Intervention against a ranged attack, and I teleport to another zone that is also within the range of the attack, does the attack get canceled?
A: Yes, the attack misses the target because it was originally aimed at a different location.
Q: A mage just cast a face-down Essence Drain on an opposing creature, and he has no mana left to activate it. When he gains mana from channeling next turn, can he turn it face up in time to make his opponent pay the mana for the upkeep that turn?
A: Yes, you can reveal an enchantment at the end of any phase. By the end of the upkeep phase, the mage will have enough mana.
Q: Mage A and mage B each have 1 life remaining. Mage A is enchanted with Magebane and casts a damaging attack spell at mage B. Who wins? (Alternatively, suppose it is a Drain Life.)
A: The Magebane damage applies immediately upon the full resolution of the spell, and the spell itself is considered fully resolved once all of its damage and effects are applied. This results in the simultaneous destruction of both mages, and the game is considered a draw.
Q: If a mage uses a Lair to cast an animal creature spell, can he use a Ring of Beasts to reduce the cost?
A: No, Ring of Beasts only works when the mage is casting the spell.
Q: If a creature with a flipped (i.e. used up) Action Marker is Banished, will it be able to take an action the turn it comes back?
A: No. Banish says the creature's Action Marker remains unchanged while it is out of the arena, so it will not be able to reset its Action Marker while banished. Since it returns to play during the Upkeep Phase, it cannot reset its marker because the Reset Phase has already passed.
Q: If a creature enchanted with Ghoul Rot is Banished, will it take damage from the Ghoul Rot while Banished?
A: Yes, Banish states that the creature is still affected by attached spells. However, it will be immune to arena-wide effects such as Idol of Pestilence or Mordok’s Obelisk.
Q: When I cast two segments of an Extendable wall, does my opponent's Gate to Voltari gain 2 mana?
A: No, summoning both walls at once through the Extendable trait counts as a single spell being cast for purposes such as Magebane and Gate to Voltari.
Q: When I cast an Extendable Wall, can I cast three wall segments at the same time?
A: No, extendable only triggers a single time as the wall is being cast.
Q: What does "the creatures must be different" mean on the Pentagram?
A: It means that in order to get the Pentagram's effect to trigger the second time in the same turn, the second damaged creature must be different from the first damaged creature. If I deal damage to a creature in one turn and later damage the same creature on another turn, the Pentagram gains a point mana both times.
Q: A Warlock's creature attacks and destroys a Beastmaster's creature. The Beastmaster casts Resurrect on the destroyed creature, then another of the Warlock's creatures attacks and deals damage to the newly resurrected creature, all in the same turn. How much mana is gained by the Warlock's Pentagram?
A: Two. The resurrected creature is a new, distinct creature.
Q: How exactly does the mana cost on Steal Enchantment work?
A: Steal Enchantment costs an amount of mana equal to the total cost to enchant the original creature plus the total cost to enchant the new target. These costs may be different due to effects such as Magebind. Since the mage is not actually casting the enchantment itself, discounts from equipment such as Enchanter's Ring or Ring of Curses does not apply. However, discounts for casting the Steal Enchantment spell still apply.
Q: Can I circumvent the extra Magebind cost by casting an enchantment on a non-mage creature, revealing it, then moving it to a mage using Shift Enchantment?
A: Yes, this bypasses the addition cost associated with Magebind.
Q: In a multiplayer game, a creature is in a zone with two enemy Mages each equipped with a Helm of Fear, and there are no other creatures. The creature attacks the first mage and a 9+ is rolled on the Helm of Fear. Then, the creature attempts to attack the second mage, and another 9+ is rolled. Can the creature choose to attempt to attack the first mage again?
A: No, the fear effect lasts until the end of the round. If there are no more valid targets, the creature may not make an attack that turn.
Q: A creature is in a zone with an enemy mage equipped with a Helm of Fear, and there are no other creatures. The creature attacks the mage and a 9+ is rolled on the Helm of Fear. Can the creature choose instead to move and attack a target in a different zone?
A: No. Once the attack is declared, the fear effect cannot change that. It just gives an immediate opportunity to select a different legal target.
Q: Creature X has Bloodthirsty and is in the same zone as two enemy creatures, A and B. Creature A is damaged, and creature B is undamaged but has Taunted creature X. Which creature can creature X target with its melee attack?
A: Either. This is specifically described under the codex entries for both "Bloodthirsty" and "Taunt". Note that creature X must attack one of the two.
Q: If a creature with Bloodthirsty is in the same zone as two enemy creatures, one damaged and one undamaged but Guarding, who can the Bloodthirsty creature melee attack?
A: Only the guarding creature. The Bloodthirsty restriction has no effect because the "if possible" condition is not satisfied due to the guarding creature.
Q: A player with 3 mana controls a Bloodthirsty creature enchanted with Pacify, and the only other damaged creature in his zone is an enemy mage with a Cloak of Suppression. What happens when the creature is activated?
A: The total cost for the creature to make the attack is increased by 4, and these costs are paid at the same time during the Declare Attack Step. Therefore, the creature is unable to make the attack, and the creature’s controller does not pay any mana.
Q: A player with no mana controls an unrevealed Decoy and a Bloodthirsty creature, and the only other damaged creature in its zone is an enemy mage with a Cloak of Suppression. What happens when the bloodthirsty creature is activated?
A: The creature is not required to attack the mage because the mana was not readily available at the time the creature was activated.
Q: If a creature is enchanted with both Eagle Wings and Maim Wings, does it have the Flying trait?
A: The trait that the creature has gained most recently takes precedence.
Q: If I have a creature with a face-down Bull Endurance that is being attacked, can I wait until after I see how much damage is rolled on the attack before deciding whether to reveal the Bull Endurance?
A: Yes. An enchantment can be revealed at the end of any of the steps of an attack, including the Roll Dice Step, which occurs before the Apply Damage and Effects step. This means Divine Intervention can be used to avoid the result of an effect die as well.
Q: If a creature uses its Cobra Reflexes defense, and later in the turn Shift Enchantment moves the Cobra Reflexes to a different creature, can the second creature use the defense this turn?
A: No. The marker belongs to the defense card, not the creature. The defense marker is not flipped to the ready side until the beginning of the next round.
Q: How exactly does Chain Lightning work?
A: The first target is chosen and attacked as normal. Then, if the attack does any damage, a new target may be chosen if the caster wishes during the Make Additional Attacks Step. The new target must be within 1 zone and LoS of the target that was damaged (not the mage that cast Chain Lightning). In the event that the 2nd or 3rd targets of Chain Lightning reflects the attack with Reverse Attack, the attack reflects back to the most recent target in the chain, effectively hitting it twice.
Q: If Decoy is countered, does its caster gain the 2 mana from it being destroyed?
A: No. In this case, Decoy goes directly into the discard pile.
Q: If I have a creature with both a hidden Block and another defense (e.g. a revealed Force Sword), can I decide to use the Force Sword's defense and only then, if I fail, reveal the Block?
A: No. Revealing the Block is mandatory. If the Block is not used, it is discarded without effect.
Q: If a creature is attacked while it has a "mandatory reveal" enchantment (such as Reverse Attack), does the reveal cost have to be paid?
A: No. It is mandatory that the enchantment is revealed, but the reveal cost does not have to be paid. If the reveal cost is not paid, the enchantment is discarded without effect.
Q: If an equipment/enchantment is cast at a discount (e.g. by using a ring), does that reduce the amount of mana it will take to Dissolve/Dispel it?
A: No. Anything that references the casting or reveal cost of a card already in play is based off the cost printed on that card itself, not any external effects that may have altered it at the time it was cast.
Q: If I cast Harmonize on my Familiar, reveal it, then use Shift Enchantment to move it to my mage, how much mana will it cost to Dispel?
A: It will cost 6 mana to dispel. The Magebind cost must be paid because the enchantment’s cost is determined at the time Dispel is cast.
Q: If I use Jinx to counter a spell that was Spellbound to a wand, what happens to the spell card?
A: The spell is countered as normal, but the card remains attached to the wand it was cast from.
Q: If I have a face-down enchantment on a creature, and I cast another face-down enchantment, can I mix up the two enchantments so my opponent doesn't know which one is which?
A: No. The order in which the enchantments are cast matters because the enemy mage may have need of this information (such as when casting a Seeking Dispel). New enchantments should be placed on top of previous enchantments.
Q: Does "You must pay at least 3 mana" on Teleport also prevent other cost-reduction effects such as those granted by Rings?
A: No. "You must pay at least 3 mana" just means that X is 3 even if the mage teleports zero zones, but other external cost reduction effects may further reduce this cost.
Q: Can I cast Rouse the Beast on something I Resurrected this turn?
A: Yes. Casting Resurrection makes the creature come into play as though it were just summoned.
