Archived from groups: rec.games.trading-cards.magic.rules (
More info?)
On Mon, 02 May 2005 07:22:56 GMT, MonoJoker <monojoker@bigjobbies.com.au> wrote:
>Situation came up today on magic workstation:
>
>Opponent has an attacking Scryb Sprites with Briar Shield enchanting it. I
>am on 3 life. Scryb Sprites attacks and is not blocked, doing 2 damage and
>opponent sacs Briar Shield to make Sprites effectively 4/4, thus doing 4
>damage.
Okay. To do this, opponent must have sacced the Shield _before_ combat damage
went onto the stack. (He can still do so after it's on the stack, of course,
but if he does, the 2 damage is already assigned, and changing the Sprite's
power doesn't change how MUCH damage was already assigned.)
>Question: Can I play Pulse of the Forge and save myself from going to -1
>and thus losing?
This had to be done before combat-damage step (combat damage goes on
the stack as that step starts) in order to get the Sprite to put 4 damage
on the stack, not 2. That means both of you get at LEAST one chance before
declare-blockers step CAN end, to do other stuff; you can Pulse before the
Sprite can put combat damage on the stack.
However: read the Pulse please - you can't Pulse the SPRITE at all. It can only
target a player. If _opponent_ were at 3 life, you could Pulse him and kill
him, before combat damage goes on the stack (but that raises the question of
why you didn't do so already). But the Sprite is safe from your Pulse of the
Forge.
If you had an Instant that could deal 4 damage to the Sprite, then sure, you
could use it on it and kill the Sprite before its combat damage went onto
the stack. But the question you asked appears to not be the right question
for your situation, as you describe it.
>Basically when can I play Pulse in response to damage being dealt and when
>does the fact i got to -1 life resolve, thus causing me to lose?
You will go to -1 life the moment combat damage resolves off the stack. You
will lose just after that, as a state-based effect. You may Pulse in response
to combat damage, but a) as noted about, THIS Pulse can't target a creature,
only a player, so it can't do anything to the Sprite to start with (though
you could kill _yourself_ with the Pulse before the combat damage can kill
you, but I sense that's not an answer you were looking for) and b) you can't
do anything to the combat damage once it's already on the stack by fiddling
with the creature(s) it's from - you'd have to do so BEFORE combat damage went
onto the stack. Fortunately, the Briar Shield also has to change the Sprite's
power before combat damage goes onto the stack, to affect how much goes on,
for exactly the same reason...
Summary: If he pumps the Sprite with the Briar Shield to have it do more
damage, he has to do so before combat damage goes on the stack, giving you
the chance to do stuff to the Sprite, also before combat damage goes onto the
stack. But: you can't do anything to the Sprite with Pulse of the Forge at
any time.
Dave
--
\/David DeLaney posting from dbd@vic.com "It's not the pot that grows the flower
It's not the clock that slows the hour The definition's plain for anyone to see
Love is all it takes to make a family" - R&P. VISUALIZE HAPPYNET VRbeable<BLINK>
http://www.vic.com/~dbd/ - net.legends FAQ & Magic / I WUV you in all CAPS! --K.