Swarm Intelligence
Asked by CaiusV 7 years ago
I can't find the answer anywhere. If I copy an instant or sorcery spell with Swarm Intelligence, do I have to pay the mana cost of the original spell for the copy?
Sorry to double post, but I realized that I wasn't very clear about the original question.
No, you don't have to pay mana for the copy. You never have to pay costs for a copy unless the card specifically says so. When the spell is copied by an ability, like Swarm Intelligence or Nivix Guildmage or anything like that, the copy is put onto the stack without being cast and you don't have to pay for it again. So if you use a card where you have to pay X, like Banefire, the copy will have the same X you paid for the original spell. And if you copy a spell that you paid an additional cost for, like Tormenting Voice, you don't need to discard another card - you'll get the effect for both the original AND the copy.
The relevant comprehensive rules entry is slightly confusing, but says the same thing, more or less:
706.10. To copy a spell, activated ability, or triggered ability means to put a copy of it onto the stack; a copy of a spell isnt cast and a copy of an activated ability isnt activated. A copy of a spell or ability copies both the characteristics of the spell or ability and all decisions made for it, including modes, targets, the value of X, and additional or alternative costs. (See rule 601, Casting Spells.) Choices that are normally made on resolution are not copied. If an effect of the copy refers to objects used to pay its costs, it uses the objects used to pay the costs of the original spell or ability. A copy of a spell is owned by the player under whose control it was put on the stack. A copy of a spell or ability is controlled by the player under whose control it was put on the stack. A copy of a spell is itself a spell, even though it has no spell card associated with it. A copy of an ability is itself an ability.
Example: Fling is an instant that reads, As an additional cost to cast Fling, sacrifice a creature and Fling deals damage equal to the sacrificed creatures power to target creature or player. When determining how much damage a copy of Fling deals, it checks the power of the creature sacrificed to pay for the original Fling.
August 16, 2017 3:15 a.m.
VraskaTheCursed says... #3
It's important to note that with Swarm Intelligence, although the spell you are casting is copied, it isn't cast like the original. Any effects that require a spell to be cast won't trigger an additional time for the copy (for instance, prowess won't trigger for the copy, only for the original spell).
NARFNra says... Accepted answer #1
Nope!
Copies are not cast, they're simply put on the stack like abilities are. This is important to know for things like Storm, where only the original spell is cast and the rest of the cards are just copies with the effect.
So for instance, if you cast Tormenting Voice with Swarm Intelligence out, you only have to discard a card once, but you get to draw cards for both of them!
As a side note, because the spell is copied exactly and you don't pay any additional costs again, those costs are copied from the original. So if you cast Fireball with X = 2 for instance, and then Swarm Intelligence copies it, the copied Fireball also has X = 2 even though you didn't pay any mana for the copy. And if you copy something like Nahiri's Wrath, both the copy and the original will deal the same amount of total damage.
Pretty useful, huh?
When you have a problem like this, a good thing to do is to check out the rulings on Gatherer. Here's the relevant ones:
6/27/2017: If the spell thats copied is modal (that is, it says Choose one or the like), the copy will have the same mode. A different mode cant be chosen.
6/27/2017: If the spell thats copied has an X whose value was determined as it was cast (like Torment of Hailfire does), the copy will have the same value of X.
6/27/2017: The controller of a copy cant choose to pay any alternative or additional costs for the copy. However, effects based on any alternative or additional costs that were paid for the original spell are copied as though those same costs were paid for the copy.
August 16, 2017 2:55 a.m.