Question regarding missed triggers at FNM / Prerelease Event
Asked by Vraskatheseen 7 years ago
My opponent swings with Mobile Garrison and doesn't untap a creature. Neither he or myself remembers the trigger for two or three swings. His friend, who is watching the game, reminds him to untap a creature when he swings with it after watching him miss it again. Could this be considered assistance from another player?
Vraskatheseen says... #2
Would the judge be able to penalize me for not keeping the game state? After he pointed this out, he missed the trigger again 2 turns later. Am I at fault for not reminding him?
January 23, 2017 1:51 p.m.
Raging_Squiggle says... #3
Quote from Judging at Regular REL:
A player forgets a triggered ability (one that uses the words when, whenever, or at usually at the start of the ability's text).
These abilities are considered missed if the player did not acknowledge them in any way at the point that it required choices or had a visible in-game effect. If the ability includes the word may, assume the player chose not to perform it. Otherwise, add it to the stack now unless it happened so long ago that you think it would be very disruptive to the game - dont add the ability to the stack if significant decisions having been made based on the effect not happening! Unlike other game rule errors (which must be pointed out), players are never required to point out their opponents missed triggered abilities, although they may do so.
Rhadamanthus says... Accepted answer #1
Yes, but the distinction doesn't matter as much at an event like this. In your situation the judge will likely remind the friend about the expected behavior from spectators, give you and your opponent a solution for your current issue, then let everyone go back to what they were doing.
There are different Rules Enforcement Levels (RELs) for different types of tournaments, and events like FNMs and Prereleases are operated under Regular REL. The rules policies for Regular REL say that the judge's main responsibility is to help educate players. Unless the issue is one of the recognized "Serious Problems" (cheating, bribery, major unsportsmanlike conduct, etc.), a judge's response to a call at Regular REL will be to educate everyone involved on what went wrong and how to deal with it, then get the game moving again.
If this was another type of event being conducted at either Competitive or Professional REL, the spectator would be penalized for Outside Assistance. Because the trigger in this situation isn't one that would be considered detrimental for its controller, your opponent wouldn't receive a penalty. You wouldn't receive a penalty either, because you didn't control the trigger, so you aren't held responsible for keeping track of it.
January 23, 2017 1:47 p.m. Edited.