lion's eye daimond
Asked by mozerdozer 13 years ago
Can you use it's mana ability while you are casting a spell? Normally you can do mana abilities at that time, but Gatherer says this:
Sacrifice Lion's Eye Diamond, Discard your hand: Add three mana of any one color to your mana pool. Activate this ability only any time you could cast an instant.
Yet many people think you can. For example:
You can even break some LEDs --> Turn 1 Multani, Maro Sorcerer. Shroud fatty = awesome.
KorApprentice says... #2
No, you cannot use card:Lion's Eye Diamond this way. The reason for that Gathering Ruling is because while you may activate mana abilities usually while casting a spell, the diamond can only be used as an instant. No player receives priority to cast a spell, such as an instant, until the costs have been paid for the current spell entering the stack. Basically, you can't activate the diamond until after you pay for the spell on the stack.
December 15, 2011 6:01 p.m.
mozerdozer says... #3
So then why is everyone going around saying you can use it to cast a 4 mana spell turn one? That is really the only confusing part.
December 15, 2011 6:02 p.m.
KorApprentice says... #4
The Gathering Ruling is specifically to prevent this kind of abuse :)
December 15, 2011 6:03 p.m.
KorApprentice says... #5
Anyone who says this works is incorrect, and now you have the power to correct them.
December 15, 2011 6:08 p.m.
When it first came out someone saw that and then broke the card. WotC quickly realized their mistake and fixed it with the oracle ruling.
Epochalyptik says... Accepted answer #1
From the Oracle:
10/4/2004: The ability is a mana ability, so it is activated and resolves as a mana ability, but it can only be activated at times when you can cast an Instant. Yes, this is a bit weird.
405.6c Mana abilities resolve immediately. If a mana ability both produces mana and has another effect, the mana is produced and the other effect happens immediately. If a player had priority before a mana ability was activated, that player gets priority after it resolves. (See rule 605, "Mana Abilities.")
The ability can only be activated when you have priority. However, once activated, LED's ability will resolve immediately (as it is a mana ability). Therefore, you cannot crack it and then in response cast something from your hand. Also, when a player casts a spell, he or she does not get priority back until the casting process is complete. Therefore, he or she cannot announce that he or she is casting a spell, then use LED to pay for it.
December 15, 2011 5:58 p.m.