Richmond, Virginia | Elks
Time: Thursday November 7th – Sunday November 10th
Players: 550 Winner: Abe Corrigan (Not Abe Corson)

Friday – PTQ


Rebuked Food
I saw a judge take a call on Gilded Goose, he was attempting to cast Metallic Rebuke by both sacrificing his food token for mana and tapping it for improvise. The judge on the call answered incorrectly and when the player sat down and attempted to do this, the opponent called a judge. The game was rewound but it was still pretty disadvantageous for the Metallic Rebuke player, as he'd just revealed a conditional counterspell to his opponent. The reason you can't do this is because activating mana abilities comes before paying costs in the steps of casting a spell, and tapping an artifact for improvise is part of the “paying costs” part of the spell. Convoke also works this way, and this is why you can't sacrifice Wild Cantor for mana and also use it to convoke the spell.

Unengineered Explosives
AP cast Arcum's Astrolabe, then cast Engineered Explosives, with the intent to cast it for zero. However NAP controlled Damping Sphere, and unfortunately, even if the mana spent on Engineered Explosives was used to pay the “Damping Sphere tax” it was still used to cast Engineered Explosives and would result in a single counter being placed on the card.

Nothing Puts a Damper on Affinity!
AP cast Emry, Lurker of the Loch as his second spell of the turn while a Damping Sphere was in play, and controlled 3 artifacts. He wanted to know if the Emry's reduction ability would apply to the Damping Sphere tax? The answer is yes, it does, when calculating a spell's total cost, we add all additions and then take away any reductions.

That One Time Everyone at the Event had to Learn About Type Changing Effects
Because of all the Elks running around, many players were confused about whether a food token that had been the victim of Oko, Thief of Crowns' +2 ability would still be an artifact. Since it's pretty relevant in the Whurza deck. Unfortunately for Mox Opal and Emry, Lurker of the Loch, no it is just a creature now. The type changing ability overwrites all previous types, including the artifact type. However it will not overwrite supertypes or names, such as snow or legendary. This is relevant in the uncommon event that someone plays a Cryptolith Rites, an Arcum's Astrolabe that has been previously turned into an Elk can cast an Arcum's Astrolabe, or in the more common event where someone Elks a Mox Opal and then plays another one.

OA to Reverse Scoop?
It's turn four of five, after time in the round, AP goes in the tank for a bit, then confirms that NAP is at 6 and that he is at 4. AP looks at his creatures, sighs and says “attack for 4?” NAP tanks for a moment, then says “alright” drops his hand face up on the table and extends his hand for a handshake and both players pick up their cards. Then a spectator says to NAP, “Wait, weren't you the one that was at 6?” and NAP stops and replies, “Wait I'm not dead?” The spectator then says, “Yeah, and it's super relevant because if you just rip a kill spell you can kill AP's blocker and swing for lethal.” Both players kind of look awkwardly down for a moment and the now empty table, and an awkward silence passes between everyone at the table. NAP then looks over at me, and I shrug and say, “Well, it looks like you scooped to me. You're allowed to scoop for weird reasons.” Neither player seems thrilled about this. A few more moments of awkward silence pass at the table. By this time the HJ had wandered over, as we were the last table. I turn to the HJ and break the silence by saying, “Well maybe the HJ has a better solution,” I explain what happened. The HJ shrugs, and says “I was was watching from over there and though I'm not quite sure of what was said, it sure looked like a concession from NAP. So the match, according to me, is over. AP you can still choose to offer a draw if you wish, since the match slip hasn't been filled out yet.” More awkward silence, before AP finally resigns and says, “Yeah, I guess we can draw.” And both players filled out the match slip.

Afterwards I spoke with the HJ and let him know that while his ruling was mostly in line with mine, I felt like the “you're allowed to draw” kind of put AP in a weird social situation, with so many spectators around, AP has the choice of looking like a sharky jerk, or taking a tournament disadvantage, because of NAPs mistake. I think that in this situation NAP made a weird and terrible play, and AP shouldn't be socially pressured into helping alleviate that. I think it's our responsibility as judges to bear any ire from NAP if he's salty about the “whelp you scooped” ruling.

Alternatively if the judge rules that the match isn't over until the match slip is signed, then there is a really strong argument for OA – ML for the spectator here. In this case we all kind of agreed the match had concluded and therefore there was no discussion of OA.

In This Episode of “Players Say the Darndest Things!”
Player: Is snow a color?
Judge: What?
Player: Mox Opal says it taps for one of any color, can I tap it for a snow?
Judge: …...No

Sometimes a Little Too Much Knowledge is a Bad Thing
AP flips two Narcomoeba's for an Ashiok, Dream Render's -1 ability, which says that it first puts the cards into the GY then exiles them afterwards. AP knows that they'll trigger mid ability, and wants to know if the trigger will follow the Narcomoeba's into exile and bring them back. Most of us intuitively know that this doesn't work, but explaining why is kind of difficult. All I can tell you is see rule 603.6.

'Walk us to Victory!
In the Mystery Booster format, along with copious amounts of salt, value mining, and nonsense cards that do or don't work depending on which judge you ask, there is a card called “You're in Command” which reads “target creature you control and own is now your commander, any previous commanders are no longer your commander.”
Player: What if I make Gideon Jura my commander? Judge: That's fine, Gideon Jura is your commander. If he dies, he goes to the command zone and you can pay {2} more to cast him.

Pools of No Effect
There is a card in Mystery Booster that allows a player to planeswalk to Pools of Becoming, the player was wondering if he needed the actual plane card for Pools of Becoming. I said, no, I believe it's in the spirit of Mystery Booster to assume cards simply work, however not all the judges on the event were on the same page as me.
*Update* this conversation was before we got to look at the release notes, which actually clarify by saying that you do not need the physical card*

Eschew Rule 111.7 (That one about tokens changing zones)
A few cards in Mystery Booster create token cards (which are notably distinct from “tokens”) that shuffle into a library, or go to the graveyard (Time Sidewalk, Bone Rattler, Gunk Slug). This is a mechanic that I've seen utilized in online “magic-likes” like Shadowverse and Hearthstone, and its something that when I saw it for the first time I considered it a “digital-only” style mechanic, since it seemed pretty implausible for logistical reasons in paper. It turns out I was mostly wrong! This mechanic, while somewhat confusing and cumbersome, actually worked ok, and was a really unique experience!

Saturday – Main Event – Slips/ODEs


Put Two Cards Second From the Top of Your Library!
I took a call regarding Weaponized Scrap in Mystery Booster. The player wanted to know what would happen if Teferi, Hero of Dominaria used his -3 ability to put the Weaponized Scrap second from the top of the library. I let him know that both cards would go “second from the top” and that the controller of the cards would choose which one was actually second and which one was third.

“This is Judge Calls: The Set!”
AP controlled Form of the Mulldrifter (you may cast cards from your hand as if they were “Mulldrifter”, you may evoke them as well) and wanted to know what would happen if he evoked
Jasconian Isle, then in response to the sacrifice trigger, activated Cauldron of Souls, what would happen? I ruled that the land would sacrifice, then come back as a land with a -1/-1 counter on it.

Sunday – PTQ “Not Checks” Team Lead


Two Wrongs Really Do Make a Right!
AP used Oko, Thief of Crowns' -5 ability to exchange control of a food token and an artifact that NAP controlled. Neither player noticed the mistake, then, several turns later NAP used his own Oko, Thief of Crowns' -5 ability to steal the artifact back! At which point both players noticed the error! The judge on the call ruled that it was unfeasible to backup to the first mistake and it would feel very unfair to only backup to the most recent mistake, and therefore I feel like the correct ruling was GRV to both players with no fix.

Please Infract Me!
NAP had won the game, AP had scooped up all his cards, NAP was in the process of scooping when he realized that he'd used Ugin, the Ineffable's -3 ability on an Eternal Witness while Mycosynth Lattice was in play. I shrugged and let him know that we don't infract post games, but thanked him for his honesty.

Missed Trigger..... or Not
NAP controlled Dictate of Kruphix. AP drew a card at the beginning of their turn, thought for a little while, then played a Temple Garden tapped and passed the turn. At which point AP then said “Wait, we both forgot the Dictate of Kruphix trigger!” It was a little ambiguous as to whether NAP had forgotten, or simply not had a chance to mention the trigger. I believe if after the land drop AP had quickly passed the turn and mentioned the trigger it's very possible to believe that NAP didn't have a chance to mention it, because after AP draws, they aren't required to call attention to the trigger until AP takes an action that clearly denotes that they are no longer in their draw step. However I also noted that it is very uncommon for players to linger in their draw step (unless you're playing Judge Tower) and therefore this is the kind of trigger that if remembered, is generally called as soon as AP draws a card. This coupled with the fact that AP was the one to notice and not NAP lead me to rule MT – W for NAP, the fix being that AP chooses whether they want to draw the card now. Even though I couldn't really ascertain how much time had passed between Temple Garden being played and the turn being passed. AP was a little dissatisfied with this resolution since, after drawing the card for Dictate, he now wanted to not pass the turn and in fact play Temple Garden untapped and cast the Bring to Light he had drawn. I go the appeals judge and halfway through the HJ assessing the appeal AP then said, “Wait I thought about it a little more and decided I don't want to play this after all!” and well, that was that.

Almost Fatal Assistance
AP controls Verdant Catacomb and a few other nonbasic lands, he casts Fatal Push on NAP's Fuliminator Mage AP, then goes to sacrifice the mage in response. At which point a spectator pauses the match and calls for a judge. Then both players look at the board state and realize that AP hasn't lost any permanents that turn and they both believe that Fatal Push can't legally target Fulminator Mage because of this. I explain to the players that there is no targeting restriction on Fatal Push. The players had already backed up the Fulminator Mage sacrifice and it looked like they were a bit unclear on where they were in the game. I decided to do a “mini-backup” ruling that we were right after Fatal Push was cast with AP having priority. The players seemed pretty happy with the resolution, AP happily cracked his fetchland, NAP happily sacrificed Fulminator Mage and they played on. I then took the spectator away from the match, intending to explain to him how Fatal Push worked. However, he mentioned that he knew how Fatal Push worked but mentioned that it looked like both players thought it was going to kill Fulminator Mage, which it was not. In particular, because his significant other, the Fulminator Mage player, was sacrificing the mage even though at that point it wasn't going to die. This felt... not ok to me and very close to OA, even though the player had done the technically correct thing, pausing the match and calling a judge. I let him know that he shouldn't be pausing matches because he thinks players misunderstand cards or because it looks like something illegal *might* happen, he should only pause matches when he believes something illegal *has* happened. He then mentioned that he thought that maybe AP was trying to angle shoot NAP, and I again, let him know that this was very legal, and he should not interfere with things like this. The spectator let me know he was an L1 judge. And I let him know that what he had done was very close to OA and an accompanying match loss. I also advised him to take a look over the IPG if he wanted more info on what was and wasn't legal.

Oko, Confuser of Players
Because the meta at MF Richmond was mono Oko, Thief of Crowns, there were many Oko-related interactions, since his +1, which removes abilities, is not the kind of effect we've ever really had to encounter in formats as complex as modern and standard in quite some time! I've collected a few interesting ones that are bound to come up if you judge an event in the near future! Feel free to take this cute little Oko quiz. (Answers are at the bottom) Quell the Oko! Q: What if Oko makes Spell Queller (exiling Grizzly Bears) into an Elk?

I Wish We Could Freeboot Oko out of Magic
Q: What if Oko makes Kitesail Freebooter (exiling Duress) into an Elk?

Meddling Thief of Crowns!
Q: What if Oko makes Meddling Mage (naming Grizzly Bears) into an Elk?

Bloody Oko!
Q: What if Oko makes Magus of the Moon into an Elk?

Oko of the Lattice
Q: What if Oko makes Mycosynth Lattice into an Elk?

Oko of Pendrell Vale
Q: What if Oko makes Magus of the Tabernacle into an Elk?

Oko, Devourer of Food
Q: If Oko makes a food token an Elk, will I still be able to sacrifice it to Bog Naughty?

Oko Thief of Status
Q: Oko turns a face-down Willbender into an Elk, will I be able to morph Willbender?

A Manifestation of Poor Development
Q: Oko turns a face-down Grizzly Bear that was manifested onto the battlefield with Fierce Invocation into an Elk, will I be able to turn it face up?



...In Conclusion
I had a great time at MF Richmond. There were a few months where I was beginning to get a little down on the circuit but I feel like things are finally swinging back up! Mystery Boosters were awesome and while Oko and his army of Elks are horribly oppressive and make for an awful standard environment, the amount of memes and creative things players are doing to almost celebrate the insidious infestation of antlered mammals are so cute and fun and really make me laugh and bring the event alive! I'm excited to be on the circuit and am looking forward to the future!

Oko, Confuser of Players Answers
Quell the Oko!
A: Spell Queller has two triggered abilities, one that exiles a card and one that returns the exiled card, the one that exiles a card has already happened, and if Spell Queller becomes an Elk it no longer has the trigger that will return it, so even if it dies, Grizzly Bears won't be returning any time soon.

I Wish We Could Freeboot Oko out of Magic
A: Kitesail Freebooter has a single triggered ability that creates a one-shot effect that sets up a zone change for when the specified duration ends, while it is true that if Oko makes the freebooter an Elk it will no longer have the triggered ability, that doesn't erase the effect that has already resolved. So if the Elkbooter dies, Duress will in fact go back to its owners hand.

Meddling Thief of Crowns!
A: Meddling Mage has two abilities, a replacement effect that modifies how it enters the battlefield, and a static ability that prevents players from casting a certain card. Making it into an Elk won't interfere with the naming of the card, that has already happened, however it will remove the ability that prevents that card from being cast, so after Meddling Mage has been Elk'd the named card can be cast. Alternatively if it was turned into an Elk with Kenrith's Transformation and then the transformation went away Meddling Mage would retain knowledge of the named card.

Bloody Oko!
A: Magus of the Moon has a type changing ability which applies in an earlier layer than adding and removing abilities (which is what oko's elkening does) therefore all nonbasic lands will be Mountains, and new lands that enter the battlefield will be Mountains, but if we have a Murganda Petroglyphs in play, the Elk'd Magus will get +2/+2.

Oko of the Lattice
A: Mycosynth Lattice applies in both the color and type changing layers, which are applied earlier than the ability adding and removing layer. What we get in the end is a game state where all cards that aren't on the battlefield, spells and permanents are colorless, and all permanents are artifacts in addition to their other types, however players cannot spend mana as though it were mana of any color.

Oko of Pendrell Vale
A: Both Oko, Thief of Crowns and Magus of the Tabernacle have abilities that apply in the adding and removing abilities layer. Magus of the Tabernacles ability is dependent on Oko's ability, therefore we apply Oko's ability first and then see that Magus has no abilities to apply and thus we don't apply them.

Oko, Devourer of Food
A: No, Oko changes the type and subtype of the object from 'Artifact – Food' to 'Creature – Elk'. When cards like Bog Naughty talk about food, they are referring to the type and not the name, if they were looking for a card name the templating would be 'sacrificed a card named food'. Which would be legal since Oko doesn't change the card name.

Oko Thief of Status
A: No, the game cares that Willbender will have the morph ability when it is turned face up, which it will not.

A Manifestation of Poor Development
A: Yes, because the game checks whether the manifested card is a creature card, and disregards any effects stating otherwise.