Does lifelink stack? If so, what other abilites stack?
Asked by Burl 11 years ago
I had a small 'argument' as always happens in MTG at my house. One of my friends tires to bestow a Hopeful Eidolon with another Hopeful Eidolon . Then he procedes to insist that Lifelink stacks and he should get 2x the life instead.
What is going on here and are there other abilities that stack that I need to know about?
Trample? Flying? Deathtouch? Hexproof? Shroud? these don't stack correct?
What about First strike and Double strike? Do 2 First strikes = Double strike?
How about firebreathing. If I have 2 [dragon mantle]] on a Rakdos Cackler does he get +2/+0 for every R?
No it doesn't.
702.15e Multiple instances of lifelink on the same object are redundant.
No to all of them. No, you have to pay each of them separately. For Dragon Mantle the same payment can be made for 2 different things.
I would suggest you read through the Comprehensive Rule book, or browse the site I linked above.
March 10, 2014 6:04 p.m.
Lifelink doesn't stack, but there are some effects that are like lifelink that do stack.
Spirit Link and Armadillo Cloak don't actually grant lifelink. they actually have triggered abilities that each trigger when the enchanted creature does damage
March 10, 2014 6:27 p.m.
Basically, with a couple exceptions (See below), static abilities are all redundant if you try to stack them. In the end, this means that trying to stack abilities does nothing. There may even have been a rule change which officially says they don't stack anymore.
For example; A creature already has First Strike. You cast another spell to give it First Strike as well. What happens? In the case of First Strike, it means the creature deals its combat damage in the first strike step -instead- of the normal damage step, like a replacement effect. At no time does first strike affect -what- damage the creature actually deals. So another instance of first strike simply means the creature -still- deals its damage in the first strike step. Repeat as many times as you like, it makes no difference.
The above example works exactly the same for the other static abillities, like hexproof (your opponent -still- can't target your creature), or Trample (no -extra- damage is dealt, just means you -still- only need to assign lethal damage to blockers, nothing more).
The only exceptions I know of, are for Extort and Exalted. I believe they are actually triggered abilities, but they look the same as static abilities on a card. The only reason they can stack where the other abilities do not is because it is explicitly written on a card, see the examples: Sublime Archangel Pontiff of Blight .
March 10, 2014 6:41 p.m.
GoldGhost012 says... #5
Both Extort and Exalted are triggered abilities, since they have the words "whenever" in their reminder text.
March 10, 2014 6:44 p.m.
Oh good, so we can just say 'no exceptions' to the stacking rule for static abilities.
March 10, 2014 7:06 p.m.
Ok, I think I see why he could have been confused as a case with Armadillo Cloak or such. Thank you all for clarifying this for me.
Another question tho regarding Extort - can I pay more than 1 W/B for each spell. So I cast Lightning Bolt with 7 Plains left untapped and a Blind Obedience on the field. Can I extort 7 times?
March 10, 2014 7:12 p.m.
no, you can only extort 7 times if you have 7 permanents with extort.
March 10, 2014 7:14 p.m.
You can only pay the Extort cost once for -each- instance of Extort that you control. So.... if you have 7 creatures, all with extort, you most certainly could extort 7 times off a Lightning Bolt .
GoldGhost012 says... #1
Lifelink doesn't stack. It used to be worded that way, but it isn't now. Now it's a static ability, which instantaneously will gain you life whenever Hopeful Eidolon deals damage.
As a static ability, lifelink doesn't stack, so multiple copies of the same static abilities don't do anything; they're simply redundant. Same with trample, flying, deathtouch, hexproof, shroud, first strike, and double strike.
2 first strikes don't make a double strike. The two abilities are completely different except for the fact that they deal damage during the first strike combat step.
Dragon Mantle 's Firebreathing ability is an activated ability. Activated abilities require a cost. When you pay that cost once, you only get one copy of the activated ability. So no, paying R doesn't get you +2/+0.
March 10, 2014 6:02 p.m.