Can you detain a planeswalker?
Asked by EmperorEvil 12 years ago
I've been reading up the Return to Ravnica spoilers, I'm wondering if you can use a card like Archon of the Triumvirate to detain a planeswalker, and if their planeswalker abilities can't be activated. I was thinking this would be a good way to kill Vraska the Unseen .
DarthTrevyn says... #2
So I was told that yes detain could work on planeswalkers... but if I'm reading the wording correctly technically isn't the planeswalker "ability" just that? As cartwheelnurd stated above:
"Until your next turn, those permanents can't attack or block and their activated abilities can't be activated."
I just looked up the rules and it states:
-602. Activating Activated Abilities
-602.1. Activated abilities have a cost and an effect. They are written as "[Cost]: [Effect.] [Activation instructions (if any).]"
-602.1a The activation cost is everything before the colon (:). An ability's activation cost must be paid by the player who is activating it.
-Example: The activation cost of an ability that reads ", : You gain 1 life" is two mana of any type plus tapping the permanent that has the ability.
Since technically you don't pay anything to do a planeswalkers "ability" is it still considered a "activated ability"?????
I just want to make sure that I am looking at the rules correctly, because the idea is sound! I just don't wanna look like a noob walking into a draft and call someone on this argument. :P
September 24, 2012 5:58 p.m.
DarthTrevyn says... #3
never mind :P just found the answer to my own question! my bad!
306.5d Each planeswalker has a number of loyalty abilities, which are activated abilities with loyalty symbols in their costs. Loyalty abilities follow special rules: A player may activate a loyalty ability of a permanent he or she controls any time he or she has priority and the stack is empty during a main phase of his or her turn, but only if none of that permanents loyalty abilities have been activated that turn.
cartwheelnurd says... Accepted answer #1
Yes, you can detain a planeswalker, it it is detain target permanent, but if Vraska the Unseen has already been activated, detainng her won't remove the effect. Detain says "Until your next turn, those permanents can't attack or block and their activated abilities can't be activated." We know planeswalkers cant attack =) but they do have activated abilities. You can prevent Vraska from ever using her ability if you manage to detain her before she does, but since the ability has already resolved when you attack with Archon of the Triumvirate . The archon will still prevent her form doing the ability the next turn, but attacking into vraska with it when her ability is activated will not do you much good.
So briefly, Yes you can prevent Vraska from using her abilities.
September 22, 2012 8:23 a.m.