Can You Proliferate Stun Counters? A Deep Dive into MTG Mechanics
Yes, absolutely! You can proliferate stun counters in Magic: The Gathering. The proliferate mechanic, designed to add more counters to permanents and players already possessing them, doesn’t discriminate based on the type of counter. This means that if a creature or another permanent already has a stun counter, you can use proliferate to add another one. This can create some very powerful, lockdown strategies. Let’s explore the nuances of this interaction and address some common questions.
Understanding Proliferate and Stun Counters
How Proliferate Works
The proliferate mechanic is defined as follows: “Choose any number of permanents and/or players that have a counter, then give each another counter of a kind already there.” Crucially, proliferate does not target. This is a key point because it bypasses abilities that would prevent targeting, such as hexproof, shroud, and protection. Because of this, you can add counters to permanents that would otherwise be protected from your spells or abilities. When you use proliferate, you aren’t forced to add counters, you are allowed to select the permanents and or players you want to add counters to, and then each player or permanent chosen will receive a counter of a type they already have.
What Are Stun Counters?
Stun counters are an evergreen counter type that function as a sort of delayed tap effect. When a permanent with one or more stun counters is about to untap during its controller’s untap step, the controller must instead remove a stun counter from that permanent. The permanent only untaps if there are no more stun counters. This effectively keeps permanents out of action for longer than a typical tap effect. This can stall creatures from attacking, it can stall creatures that have tap abilities, and even stall mana producing lands.
Combining Proliferate and Stun Counters
By combining proliferate and stun counters, you can create powerful control strategies. You can initially place stun counters on your opponent’s threats, then use proliferate to add more stun counters, further delaying their untapping and severely limiting their options. This makes for a very annoying opponent experience. It also adds depth to the game by creating some really interesting counter-play options, which is never a bad thing. The more options you and your opponents have, the better the game can be.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Proliferate and Stun Counters
Here are 15 commonly asked questions that shed further light on how proliferate and stun counters work together:
1. Does putting a stun counter on a creature tap it?
No, putting a stun counter on a creature does not inherently tap it. It only delays the untapping of the permanent. A permanent might become tapped from a different ability or action. A creature can also be tapped to attack. If a creature with a stun counter is tapped from attacking, you can remove a stun counter instead of untapping it. The creature will remain tapped.
2. Can you proliferate if there are no eligible targets?
While you must choose at least one permanent or player that currently has a counter on it, you can select to not give any additional counters to any target. This means that if you have a trigger that occurs whenever you proliferate, it will still trigger even if you do not choose to proliferate any additional counters. This is thanks to the way the ability is worded.
3. Does hexproof, shroud, or ward stop proliferate?
No, hexproof, shroud, and ward do not stop proliferate. Proliferate uses the word “choose” instead of “target,” so it bypasses those abilities. You can add counters to permanents with hexproof, shroud, or ward as long as they already have a counter of that type.
4. Can you proliferate more than once per turn?
Yes, you can proliferate more than once per turn. If you have multiple ways to proliferate (such as through multiple cards with the proliferate ability or using a repeatable proliferate source), you can use it multiple times. As long as you are able to pay the costs of those abilities, you can use proliferate as many times as you can.
5. Can you proliferate poison counters?
Yes, you can proliferate poison counters. This was a primary strategy in the “Scars of Mirrodin” block, where poison and proliferate synergized well together. Poison counters can be a win condition for you, so adding more is usually a good thing.
6. Can you proliferate loyalty counters on planeswalkers?
Yes, you can proliferate loyalty counters on planeswalkers. This is a key strategy for “Superfriends” decks, allowing you to increase the loyalty of multiple planeswalkers at once. This will allow you to achieve their ultimate abilities quicker.
7. Does proliferate trigger heroic abilities?
No, proliferate does not trigger heroic abilities. Heroic abilities trigger when a spell targets a creature with the heroic ability. Since proliferate uses “choose” instead of “target”, it will not trigger heroic abilities.
8. What happens if you untap a tapped creature with a stun counter?
If you use an ability that would allow you to untap a tapped permanent with a stun counter, you may remove a stun counter instead of untapping it. This will remove the stun counter and the permanent will remain tapped. This interaction is often misunderstood.
9. Can shield counters be proliferated?
Yes, you can proliferate shield counters. Similar to other counter types, shield counters can be proliferated, adding more layers of protection to your creatures. Multiple shield counters are better than just one.
10. Can you proliferate -1/-1 or +1/+1 counters?
Neither +1/+1 nor -1/-1 counters are typically present in sets that heavily feature proliferate. These were not part of the design of the mechanics for “War” and “Scars” blocks, but you can proliferate them if they happen to be on a permanent. If there were +1/+1 or -1/-1 counters in the design of sets that included proliferate, it might end up being too powerful.
11. Does attacking count as tapping a creature?
Yes, attacking taps a creature, but it’s not a cost. When you declare a creature as an attacker, it becomes tapped. This is a very important distinction to understand. Tapping is a condition, not a cost of attacking.
12. Can you proliferate on exiled cards?
No, you cannot proliferate on exiled cards. Proliferate only affects permanents on the battlefield or players. Exiled cards are not permanents. Exiled cards aren’t able to be touched by proliferate.
13. Can you proliferate a creature with protection from a specific color?
Yes, you can proliferate a creature with protection from a specific color. Protection only prevents you from damaging, enchanting, blocking, or targeting that permanent, not from choosing it with proliferate. Protection is a very narrow ability, which is by design.
14. Can you proliferate toxic counters?
Yes, you can proliferate toxic counters. This synergizes well with cards that deal poison damage via toxic, allowing you to spread poison counters quickly. Toxic is a mechanic designed to be a win condition, and proliferate can help make that even more potent.
15. What is the opposite of proliferate?
The opposite of proliferate is Diminish. Diminish adds -1/-1 counters. This works well with cards from Amonkhet that had -1/-1 counters added to them on the battlefield. You can remove the -1/-1 counters, which then allows the powerful card to be effective.
Conclusion
Proliferate is a powerful and versatile mechanic in MTG, and its interaction with stun counters is a great example of how nuanced the game can be. You absolutely can proliferate stun counters and create some very annoying lock-down scenarios. Understanding the nuances of how these mechanics interact is key to building successful and engaging strategies. By considering all the relevant interactions and frequently asked questions about proliferate and stun counters, you can confidently wield these powerful abilities. So next time you’re strategizing in MTG, remember the full potential of proliferate, and consider how stun counters could help you control your enemies.