Mairsil interaction
Asked by DarkMagician 6 years ago
How does Mairsil, the Pretender work with flip cards (such as Student of Elements) and double sided cards (such as Mondronen Shaman Flip)?
If Mairsil, the Pretender is instructed to transform (because he's using the activated ability of Ludevic's Test Subject Flip for example) he simply won't. You'll do everything else the ability says, but leave Mairsil face-up.
August 29, 2017 2:21 a.m.
So, if you put Nezumi Graverobber / Nighteyes the Desecrator "in the cage" with mairsil he does not gain nighteyes the desecrator's reanimate ability??
August 31, 2017 9:32 p.m.
Right. Mairsil, the Pretender can use Nezumi Graverobber's ability to flip, but that won't mean much. He'll still be able to exile cards from graveyards and still will not be able to reanimate creatures. However, if he somehow becomes a copy of a flip creature like Student of Elements he'll already be the other side, Tobita, Master of Winds, and grant flying, because he flipped before becoming a copy.
Rhadamanthus says... Accepted answer #1
The alternative characteristics on a flip card can only apply while the card is on the battlefield and flipped. In your example Mairsil, the Pretender will only have the activated abilities of the "normal" half of the card. Any permanent can gain the "flipped" status if something causes that to happen, but it won't really do anything if the card doesn't have specific alternative characteristics for being flipped.
Similarly, the characteristics on the back face of the double-faced card can only apply while the card is on the battlefield and transformed. In your example Mairsil will only have the activated abilities of the front face of the card. Only double-faced cards can actually transform.
Note that Student of Elements and Mondronen Shaman Flip don't actually have any activated abilities, which are always written out as "(cost) : (effect)". Jushi Apprentice and Wolfbitten Captive are better examples.
August 28, 2017 4:30 p.m. Edited.