Misinformation in the archives

The Blind Eternities forum

Posted on June 25, 2021, 3:20 a.m. by rosfh

This is an old thread and i believe the information in the answer is incorrect.

https://tappedout.net/mtg-questions/can-you-take-back-a-land-drop-in-competitive-rel/

Regarding undoing a land drop. i believe it is allowed assuming no other action is taken. This is so because land drops are special actions. in the case of casting a spell, the player is required to announce the spell's name, if they do not, it is technically an illegal play. in the case of a land, that is not required to say the name of the land.

if i am wrong, then thats all fine and dandy, ive learned something. but in my search for truth, this is one of the results ive come across.

to further reinforce my point, here is a video: https://youtu.be/XYGFby9KJV0?t=270

Daniel Savage plays a scalding tarn then picks it up and wastelands his opponent. the judges say it's all good. this was at eternal weekend, vintage magic.

Gidgetimer says... #2

Your reasoning is a bit off. It has nothing to do with land drops being a special action. A judge may allow a player to reverse any decision that they feel the player has not gained information since they made. In the case of spells it is very high bar to clear because an opponent's response or lack thereof is information gained. In the case of a land drop there is no priority passes, so lack of response isn't information.

From the tournament rules:

4.8 Reversing Decisions

Players are expected to consider their options before taking an action and players are not usually allowed to take back an action that has been communicated to their opponent, either verbally or physically. Sometimes, a player will realize that they have made a wrong decision after making a play. If that player has not gained any information since taking the action and they wish to make a different decision, a judge may allow that player to change their mind. Judges must carefully consider whether the player has gained information since making the play that might have affected the decision; in particular, players may not try to use opponent reactions (or lack thereof) to see if they should modify actions they committed to. If the judge cannot be sure no information was gained, they should not allow the decision to be changed.

June 25, 2021 7:04 a.m.