Ruhan of the Fomori vs Propaganda effects

Asked by Halphinian 5 years ago

There are two rules regarding Ruhan of the Fomori that I am a little confused about.

• "If, during your declare attackers step, Ruhan is tapped, is affected by a spell or ability that says it can’t attack, or hasn’t been under your control continuously since your turn began (and doesn’t have haste), then it doesn’t attack. If there’s a cost associated with having Ruhan attack the chosen player, you aren’t forced to pay that cost, so it doesn’t have to attack that player in that case either."
• "If Ruhan isn’t forced to attack the chosen player for one of the above reasons but can still attack, you may choose to have Ruhan attack another player, attack a planeswalker, or not attack at all."

What I get from these is that if the player with Ruhan has to attack a player that has a Propaganda and can't pay the two mana, they can choose to either abstain from attacking, or can choose to attack a different player or planeswalker.

So, does this mean that the Ruhan player finally gets to choose what they attack instead of leaving it to chance, or does it mean that they have to choose randomly again?

TL;DR:

If Ruhan has to attack a player that has something that prevents it from attacking, the player can choose to attack something/someone else, or choose not to attack at all. Does this mean that the player finally has control over Ruhan, or do they have to roll the dice to choose something else?

ClockworkSwordfish says... Accepted answer #1

If it's a multiplayer game, you get to freely choose any other player or planeswalker. The only restriction is that Ruhan has to attack the randomly chosen player if able. Since he's not able (as you didn't pay the cost,) you can attack any other player, or not attack at all, as you choose.

May 27, 2018 1:41 p.m.

Halphinian says... #2

ClockworkSwordfish That's what I thought. Thanks!

May 27, 2018 2:51 p.m.

Neotrup says... #3

Importantly, he doesn't have to attack the player with Propaganda if you choose not to pay the , even if you could. The game won't compel you to tap the lands, so you can attack another player even if you have the mana open.

May 27, 2018 6 p.m.