Darksteel Reactor: Static or Triggered?
Asked by SimicPower 9 years ago
Is Darksteel Reactor 's last ability a static or triggered ability? Also, is it checked as a state-based action?
SimicPower says... #2
How often it is checked to be triggered? If someone casts Stifle on it, will it just trigger again?
August 29, 2014 10:56 a.m.
Well Stifle will resolve, countering the trigger, and then when state-based actions are checked again, it will again see a Darksteel Reactor with 20 or more counters, and trigger again.
August 29, 2014 10:59 a.m.
SimicPower says... #4
State-based actions are checked whenever a player get's priority (I believe), so if Darksteel Reactor triggered, wouldn't it trigger in response to it's own ability forever?
August 29, 2014 11:06 a.m.
Gidgetimer says... Accepted answer #5
This is why they take great pains to make it clear that state triggers aren't the same thing as state-based actions.
603.8. Some triggered abilities trigger when a game state (such as a player controlling no permanents of a particular card type) is true, rather than triggering when an event occurs. These abilities trigger as soon as the game state matches the condition. They'll go onto the stack at the next available opportunity. These are called state triggers. (Note that state triggers aren't the same as state-based actions.) A state-triggered ability doesnt trigger again until the ability has resolved, has been countered, or has otherwise left the stack. Then, if the object with the ability is still in the same zone and the game state still matches its trigger condition, the ability will trigger again.
State triggers track their own ability and only trigger again if the ability is not on the stack.
August 29, 2014 11:14 a.m.
Gidgetimer says... #7
No problem, I've been trying to find a card to help illustrate another point about state triggers.
Another thing of note is that state triggers trigger when SBA aren't checked. Lets say you have a Call to Arms out naming Blue and your opponent uses Brago, King Eternal to blink all of his blue creatures making a different color the most common among his nontoken permanents for a brief instant in the middle of the ability resolution. The sacrifice ability on Call to Arms triggers even though SBA would not have been checked. This is because the state of the game matched the trigger and the ability was not on the stack.
Devonin says... #1
Any ability that starts with "when" "whenever" or "at" is a triggered ability.
That means that the reactor having 20 or more counters on it is the trigger which puts the ability on the stack. The ability still needs to resolve before you win the game.
August 29, 2014 10:53 a.m.