if i play a 1/1 and it deals damage then i play ink-eye, servant of oni using his ninjutsu ability can it be countered by a counter spell
Asked by zoomer428 9 years ago
I attack with a 1/1 use Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni ninjustu ability and he comes into play can he be countered by a counterspell. I don't think so because 1. His ability was activated before the counter spell. And 2. It's a ability not a spell.
TheRedMage says... #2
Basically - if something instructs to "put a permanent onto the battlefield", like the reminder text on Ninjutsu or Unearth (example: Kathari Bomber) does, or even "discard this card", like Bloodrush (example: Skinbrand Goblin), then it won't be a spell at all and it won't be possible to counter it with a card that counter spells (like Boza said, there are some older cards that can counter abilities, although they are far less common. My favorite one is Squelch, because it has a funny name).
Conversely, some abilities (even abilities that work in a somewhat similar way) will directly say "You may cast this for its (blank) cost" - examples of abilites like that include Evoke (Mulldrifter) or Prowl (Auntie's Snitch). Those cards are still being cast, albeit for a different cost, and can be countered with counterspell-style cards.
Basically a good way to figure this out (on cards that have been printed somewhat recently, at least) is to look for the word "cast" in the reminder text of the effect you are trying to use. If it's not there, it's very unlikely you can point a Counterspell at it.
Boza says... Accepted answer #1
Number 2 is correct. A Counterspell cannot be used to stop ninjutsu. However, there are cards like Stifle or Voidslime that can deal with abilities.
Number 1 makes no sense whatsoever and will never be true - your opponent always has to opportunity to respond to your plays.
April 2, 2015 11:54 a.m.