Q: Summoning sickness and special abilities
Steve Jensen
abilities. From how I've been playing, and seeing how other people play,
I am rather confused about when a special ability can first be used.
1) I summon a Royal Assassin. Due to summoning sickness, I cannot use
his special ability to destroy another creature until after the start of
my next turn.
2) I summon Birds of Paradise. I seem to be able to immediately tap for
some other mana.
I suspect that #2 is being played wrong (there are a number of creatures
that I see used like this, while others must wait like situation #1).
Are we playing it wrong? Or is there some rule on this? If this is the
correct interpretation, then how do you decide which creatures' special
abilities suffer summoning sickness, and which do not? Note that in this
specific example, BOTH creatures are tapped to use their ability.
Steve Jensen
st...@jensenpc.seanet.com
Snibor Eoj
(Steve Jensen) wrote:
In both of these examples, the creature cannot use it's special ability
until it starts a turn in play on your side. A creature can never use an
ability that requires tapping until it begins a turn in play on your
side. Any ability which doesn't require tapping (e.g. Initiates of the
Ebon Hand), however, can be used as soon as the creature is successfully
summoned.
Zorblak
jmro...@sccs.swarthmore.edu http://www.cs.swarthmore.edu/~robins/
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henry ha
>I've got a question about 'summoning sickness' and creatures' special
>abilities. From how I've been playing, and seeing how other people play,
>I am rather confused about when a special ability can first be used.
>
>1) I summon a Royal Assassin. Due to summoning sickness, I cannot use
>his special ability to destroy another creature until after the start of
>my next turn.
>
>2) I summon Birds of Paradise. I seem to be able to immediately tap for
>some other mana.
>
>I suspect that #2 is being played wrong (there are a number of creatures
>that I see used like this, while others must wait like situation #1).
>Are we playing it wrong? Or is there some rule on this? If this is the
Yes, you are playing it wrong. You cannot use a creature's tapping
special ability on the turn it is summoned unless it says so on the
card. You can however use a special ability that does not require
tapping such as Initiates of the Ebon Hand changing 1 mana of any color
into 1 black mana. You can block with your pumpable creatures and pump
mana into them if it doesn't require tapping.
>correct interpretation, then how do you decide which creatures' special
>abilities suffer summoning sickness, and which do not? Note that in this
We don't decide which creatures suffer from summoning sickness. All
creatures suffer summoning sickness unless their is text on the card
that says they don't.
>specific example, BOTH creatures are tapped to use their ability.
Both suffer summoning sickness.
-Henry Ha
>
>Steve Jensen
>st...@jensenpc.seanet.com
>
Mike Marcelais
| I've got a question about 'summoning sickness' and creatures' special
| abilities. From how I've been playing, and seeing how other people play,
| I am rather confused about when a special ability can first be used.
| 1) I summon a Royal Assassin. Due to summoning sickness, I cannot use
| his special ability to destroy another creature until after the start of
| my next turn.
| 2) I summon Birds of Paradise. I seem to be able to immediately tap for
| some other mana.
Nope, you can't use this ability either for the same reason your RA in #1
can't use his.
| I suspect that #2 is being played wrong (there are a number of creatures
| that I see used like this, while others must wait like situation #1).
All _creatures_ must wait as in #1. Any _non_creatures_ can be used right
away (like a Sol Ring can be tapped immediately).
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+--------------------------+---------------------------+
| Mike Marcelais | mrma...@eos.ncsu.edu |
| The Moonstone Dragon | Fourth Bryan Productions |
| -==(UDIC)==- | Author of ChrHack 2.3 |
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Brian Cash
: I've got a question about 'summoning sickness' and creatures' special
: abilities. From how I've been playing, and seeing how other people play,
: I am rather confused about when a special ability can first be used.
: 1) I summon a Royal Assassin. Due to summoning sickness, I cannot use
: his special ability to destroy another creature until after the start of
: my next turn.
Yes.
: 2) I summon Birds of Paradise. I seem to be able to immediately tap for
: some other mana.
No.
: I suspect that #2 is being played wrong (there are a number of creatures
: that I see used like this, while others must wait like situation #1).
: Are we playing it wrong? Or is there some rule on this? If this is the
: correct interpretation, then how do you decide which creatures' special
: abilities suffer summoning sickness, and which do not? Note that in this
: specific example, BOTH creatures are tapped to use their ability.
You cannot attack or tap to produce an effect when suffering summoning
sickness. ANY effect, including producing mana.
Any abilities that are continuous (Zombie Master) or that do not require
tapping as a cost (Combat Medic) can be used during summoning sickness.
Note that the tapping from regeneration is not a cost...so you can
regenerate a creature while sick (unless it has a Tap symbol on the
left of the colon...no cards like that yet).
This is covered in the small rulebook that comes with the starter packs.
Brian /-|-\
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