Attacking players in two headed giant
Asked by OrgasmAndTea 12 years ago
I have seen so many conflicting rules on forums around the web, I don't really know what to believe when it comes to Two Headed Giant. I thought I'd clear it up once and for all on the best forum around ;)
I've seen some formats where you are only allowed to attack one of the two heads (the one sitting opposite you), and others where you attack the team as a whole, and still others where you can pick which player to attack. Could someone please clarify what's true, and how does it affect some of the following cards, and perhaps link me to the official rules? Pretty please with a cherry on top?
card:Druid's Deliverance
card:Norn's Annex
Hellrider (for this one, I'm curious about directing damage at planeswalkers)
Thanks guys!
RedMurderDemon says... #2
Hellriders ability will only do damage to defending player. (planeswalkers are permanents).
December 25, 2012 7:28 p.m.
Epochalyptik says... Accepted answer #3
When you attack, you attack the enemy team. However, when you assign combat damage, you assign damage to one of the two players on that team. Abilities that trigger when an opponent is dealt combat damage will trigger only for that one player.
card:Druid's Deliverance will only prevent combat damage that would be assigned to you. Any damage assigned to your teammate will still happen. Note that damage assigning and damage dealing happen back to back, so you can't interrupt the process with card:Druid's Deliverance once you know where the damage is going.
From card:Norn's Annex's Gatherer page:
6/1/2011: In a Two-Headed Giant game, if one player controls Norn's Annex, creatures can't attack that player's team or a planeswalker that player controls unless their controller pays W/P for each of those creatures he or she controls. Creatures can attack planeswalkers controlled by that player's teammate without having to pay this cost.
Contrary to what HolyTyrant said, you may redirect any noncombat damage you would deal to an opponent to a planeswalker that player controls instead. In 2HG, there is a defending team with multiple defending players.
1/22/2011: This damage is not combat damage and may be redirected to a planeswalker controlled by the defending player.
December 25, 2012 8:06 p.m.
You can redirect to a planeswalker that the opposing team controls, but Hellrider will only count your creatures, not your teammate's.
If an effect needs to have a player or opponent specified, you choose which one (Annihilator, for example, you choose while attacking). Ruling: "6/15/2010: In a Two-Headed Giant game, the controller of an attacking creature with annihilator chooses which of the defending players is affected by the ability. Only that player sacrifices permanents. The choice is made as the ability resolves; once a player is chosen, it's too late for anyone to respond."
If it says 'each opponent', it will apply to both people on the team. This is the case even for life and poison, so 'each opponent loses 5 life' would mean the opposing team loses 10.
You share life and poison counters, so card:Druid's Deliverance would prevent all combat damage, but only populate one of your tokens, not your teammate's.
card:Norn's Annex indeed protects the team.
December 25, 2012 8:12 p.m.
Epochalyptik says... #5
Note that Hellrider will only hit one defending player.
810.7b Any one-shot effect that refers to the "defending player" refers to one specific defending player, not to both of the defending players. The controller of the effect chooses which one the spell or ability refers to at the time the effect is applied. The same is true for any one-shot effect that refers to the "attacking player."
Also, KevinLS is wrong about card:Druid's Deliverance, which only prevents combat damage that would be dealt to you. Combat damage that would be dealt to your teammate is unaffected.
December 25, 2012 9:04 p.m.
For what it's worth, I was playing in both 2HG sealed events at SCG Open: Las Vegas a few weeks back. This question came up, my table judge didn't know, and the head judge from the whole weekend came to our game and told me exactly what Epochalyptik is saying.
CrimsonKing says... #1
Check this out.
(http://mtg.wikia.com/wiki/"Two-Headed_Giant")
December 25, 2012 7:28 p.m.