Regeneration tactic?
Asked by BT26 11 years ago
I have a Devouring Strossus in my graveyard due to having to discard it from my hand for having too many cards. So on my next turn i summon Spire Owl its effect kicks in then i decide to sacrifice it the same turn to regenerate the Devouring Strossus . My question is i can i sacrifice the Spire Owl the same turn it was summoned to bring out the Devouring Strossus ?
Rhadamanthus says... #2
Regenerating doesn't bring something back from the graveyard. Rather, it stops something already on the battlefield from being destroyed (by either lethal damage or a "destroy" effect). Also, unless they specifically say otherwise, the abilities on a permanent card only work while it's on the battlefield. The play you described doesn't work.
December 3, 2013 2:11 p.m.
Absinthman says... #3
You are confusing how regeneration works. Regenerate does not mean "Return this from your graveyard to the battlefield". It means: "The next time this would be destroyed, instead tap it and remove it from combat".
December 3, 2013 2:11 p.m.
GreatSword says... #4
It occours to me that you might be confused on what regeneration actually does.
Regeneration puts a "shield" on a creature. It's kind of like an extra-life: the next time that creature would be destroyed (via lethal damage or an effect like Doom Blade ) it instead removes all damage from that creature, taps it, and removes it from combat (if it's in combat). The creature never actually goes to the graveyard.
December 3, 2013 2:15 p.m.
So what you're saying is regeneration has to occur on the same turn the creature is put into the graveyard from combat? even creatures like Drudge Skeletons ?
December 3, 2013 2:22 p.m.
Absinthman says... #6
It doesn't necessarily need to be put into the graveyard from combat. But essentialy yes. The creature you are regenerating must be on the battlefield. When you regenerate it, it gains what is commonly refered to as "regeneration shield". This shield stays on it for the duration of the turn, or until it is supposed to be destroyed by damage or destroy effect (whichever comes first), at which point the shield falls of, the creature isn't destroyed, it is tapped and removed from combat if it was in one in the first place.
December 3, 2013 2:25 p.m.
The myths that i heard when it comes to the rules of regeneration are false saying that any creature with that ability can sit in the graveyard for as long as the player chooses then be regenerated. Thanks for clearing this up.
December 3, 2013 2:30 p.m.
megawurmple says... #8
No, the creature never even hits the graveyard. You have to activate regenerate effects before a creature on the battlefield would be destroyed, whether in combat, or because of lethal damage or kill spells such as Doom Blade . The 'regeneration shield' put up by the regeneration ability prevents the creature from being destroyed at all.
December 3, 2013 2:30 p.m.
Absinthman says... #9
Just to avoid possible confusion. You need to activate regeneration before the creature actually dies. For example, if your creature gets into combat with a creature that's able to kill it, you need to activate regeneration before the combat damage step. Similarly, when your opponent casts Lightning Strike to scorch your creature, you need to regenerate it in response to that spell, before it resolves. After that, it's too late.
December 3, 2013 2:30 p.m.
I would like to add, has the rules for regeneration ever changed starting from 10 years ago up to the present?
December 3, 2013 2:35 p.m.
Absinthman says... #11
Those are indeed myths. If your friends are claiming otherwise, you can prove they're wrong using Rot Farm Skeleton and Mending Touch as examples of cards printed in the same set that use different wordings. Why? Because they do different things. If regeneration worked like you thought it did, the ability of the Skeleton would just say "regenerate".
December 3, 2013 2:36 p.m.
Absinthman says... #12
I don't believe they did. They may have worked differently like really long time ago before stack was invented, but I don't think they changed since then. However my knowledge of MTG history is not that great, so someone else might provide a better answer.
December 3, 2013 2:38 p.m.
One last thing, when i use a creature's regenerate ability it comes into play tapped?
December 3, 2013 2:39 p.m.
I come from the age when the "invasion" set first came out.
December 3, 2013 2:42 p.m.
Absinthman says... #15
I don't understand the last part. If you cast a creature spell from your hand, the resulting creature enters the battlefield untapped by default, unless something else makes it enter the battlefield tapped. When you regenerate a creature and a situation in which it would die occurs, it is not destroyed, so it never leaves the battlefield. It stays right where it is, but it becomes tapped.
December 3, 2013 2:42 p.m.
Absinthman says... #16
I played during Invasion and as far as I recall, the rules for regeneration were same back then.
December 3, 2013 2:42 p.m.
GreatSword says... #17
The creature doesn't leave the battlefield when it regenerates, it just stays there.
The creature taps as a result of it's regeneration shield being consumed.
December 3, 2013 2:43 p.m.
Using regenerationn causes the creature to become tapped, but as it is already in play, cannot cause it to come into play tapped. A regenerated creature never leaves the battlefield.
Regeneration rules haven't changed, but it does work a little differently than before since damage was removed from the stack. You used to be able to block with multiple creatures and wait to see how the attacking player assigns damage to decide which creature(s) to regenerate.
December 3, 2013 2:45 p.m.
Rhadamanthus says... #19
A very long time ago, a dying creature would touch the graveyard for a moment before regeneration brought it back. If the people who taught you the game learned how to play before 1995 or so, that might explain why they're telling you these things. Even under those very old rules, you still had to use regeneration to save it at that exact time. You couldn't wait until later and bring the creature back whenever.
To summarize, activating a regeneration ability (or casting a spell that regenerates as part of its effect) creates a "regeneration shield". Having that shield means that the next time the creature would be destroyed this turn, instead you:
- Remove all damage from it
- Tap it
- Remove it from combat
December 3, 2013 3:05 p.m.
youtube has a video on regeneration. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2hhOdQ6mYFY&list=FLJdwoegAfYHWNl6AiE-JPMg&index=1
GreatSword says... Accepted answer #1
No; you won't even be able to activate the regeneration on Devouring Strossus because he's not on the battlefield.
Unless otherwise stated in on the card, abilities on permanents are only relevant on the battlefield. Look at Rot Farm Skeleton for an example.
December 3, 2013 2:10 p.m.