Can I choose an aura's target without casting it?
Asked by aepokh 12 years ago
When I cast Primal Surge, I usually get a few aura cards out with it. I've been playing this as "auras can only target as they are cast" so I put them onto the battlefield and, lacking a target, they immediately fall into the graveyard as a state-based action. (Enchantments like Oblivion Ring, which target when they enter the battlefield, are a-okay.)
A friend of mine insists that as long as a legal target exists, he can choose to attach it to one of them, so he'll Genesis Wave or something into his Eldrazi Conscription and attach it to his commander, then swing for lethal. If he doesn't want to attach it to anything, e.g. if the only legal targets are creatures I control, then he can choose to have it not target anything and still put it onto the battlefield, and thus into the graveyard.
So when does the targeting happen for auras? When it's cast, when it enters the battlefield, or both, or exactly once of either? Can I target my opponent's Phantasmal Abomination with my Felidar Umbra as I cast it, then change the target to my Fencing Ace when it enters the battlefield?
Rhadamanthus says... #2
I should have added to the first paragraph "if the target of an Aura spell becomes illegal before the spell resolves, then it gets countered by the rules as usual".
December 20, 2012 11:52 a.m.
ImTriForceGuy says... #3
303.4f If an Aura is entering the battlefield under a players control by any means other than by resolving as an Aura spell, and the effect putting it onto the battlefield doesnt specify the object or player the Aura will enchant, that player chooses what it will enchant as the Aura enters the battlefield. The player must choose a legal object or player according to the Auras enchant ability and any other applicable effects.
December 20, 2012 11:52 a.m.
Your friend is only partially correct; as long as there is a legal creature (assuming that the aura is a creature aura), it will enter and then attach. However, if the only creatures are on an opponent's field, they must attach to one of those creatures, as long as the creature can legally be enchanted. This does not actually target however; the only time an aura targets is when cast as a spell.
In reference to your last question: no, this would not work as suggested. When Phantasmal Abomination would be targeted by the Felidar Umbra , the sacrifice would occur. Felidar Umbra would then "fizzle", or be countered, never hitting the battlefield. Therefore, you could not switch the Umbra to the Fencing Ace .
In
Rhadamanthus says... Accepted answer #1
It's true that an Aura only targets while it's being cast as a spell, but an Aura entering the battlefield for any reason has to be attached to something. If there's no legal object for it to be attached to, then it stays in the zone it's currently in.
For Primal Surge , if you exile an Aura then you choose an object it could legally enchant (as defined by its "enchant XX" ability) for it to enter the battlefield attached to. This doesn't target the object. If you don't want to attach it to any of the legal objects (for example, it's a Pacifism and you're the only one with creatures), the "may" part of Primal Surge 's effect lets you leave it in exile. If there are no legal objects for it to legally enchant, then you can't choose to put it onto the battlefield. It stays in exile.
December 20, 2012 11:52 a.m.