Sacrificing Nothing: Can You Sacrifice a 0/0 Creature in Magic: The Gathering?
Yes, you absolutely can sacrifice a 0/0 creature in Magic: The Gathering, even if it immediately dies due to having zero or less toughness. The key is understanding the order of operations and how the game handles state-based actions. Sacrificing a creature is an action a player can take if they are required to do so by a spell or ability, or if they are choosing to do so for the cost of a spell or ability.
Understanding Sacrifice and State-Based Actions
Let’s break down why this works. Sacrificing a permanent, including a creature, is a cost or an effect. It doesn’t inherently care about the creature’s stats. When you sacrifice a creature, you’re moving it from the battlefield to the graveyard as part of resolving a spell or ability. State-based actions, which include a creature with 0 or less toughness dying, aren’t checked until after a spell or ability finishes resolving.
This timing is crucial. If a spell says “Sacrifice a creature: Draw two cards,” you can sacrifice a 0/0 creature to pay the cost, and you will indeed draw two cards. The creature will be in the graveyard due to being sacrificed, and then state-based actions will put it there (if it somehow managed to be on the battlefield). The sacrifice trigger fulfills the requirement regardless of the creature’s toughness.
Why This Matters in Strategy
Knowing this rule opens up strategic possibilities. Think about cards that grant temporary boosts. You could play a creature that enters as a 0/0, briefly pump its toughness, and then sacrifice it before the boost fades. This can trigger abilities or pay costs in situations where you need a body to sacrifice but don’t want to lose a valuable permanent. This is one of the many reasons why Magic is such a popular and enduring card game! You can learn more about game strategy and design at places like the Games Learning Society and GamesLearningSociety.org.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. What exactly does “sacrifice” mean in Magic?
To sacrifice a permanent means to move it from the battlefield directly to its owner’s graveyard. It’s a keyword action often used as a cost for spells or abilities, or as a result of a spell or ability.
2. What are state-based actions, and how do they relate to sacrificing a creature?
State-based actions are rules that the game checks and applies automatically at specific times, primarily after a spell or ability finishes resolving. They cover things like a creature with 0 toughness dying, removing planeswalkers with no loyalty counters, and eliminating redundant legendary permanents. They are checked after spells and abilities resolve.
3. If a creature enters the battlefield as a 0/0, does it die immediately?
Yes, a creature that enters the battlefield with 0 toughness (or less) will die immediately. However, as discussed, this happens after any abilities that trigger on its entering the battlefield have been put on the stack, and after any costs involving that creature have been paid.
4. Can I sacrifice a creature with -1/-1 counters on it?
Yes. If a creature has enough -1/-1 counters to reduce its toughness to 0 or less, it will die due to state-based actions after any spell or ability that required the sacrifice has resolved. You can sacrifice it to pay a cost.
5. What if a creature has indestructible? Can I still sacrifice it?
Indestructible only prevents a permanent from being destroyed by damage and “destroy” effects. It does not prevent it from being sacrificed. You can absolutely sacrifice an indestructible creature.
6. What happens if I try to sacrifice a creature that someone else controls?
You can only sacrifice a creature you control. Unless a spell or ability explicitly allows you to sacrifice a creature another player controls, you cannot do so.
7. Does sacrificing a creature count as “dying” for triggered abilities?
Yes! Sacrificing a creature counts as it dying. Abilities that trigger when a creature dies will trigger when a creature is sacrificed.
8. Can I sacrifice a creature to pay a cost, even if I can’t legally target anything with the resulting ability?
Yes. You must still pay the costs to activate an ability or cast a spell, even if the resulting effect will do nothing. For instance, you can sacrifice a creature to activate an ability that requires a target, even if there are no legal targets.
9. What’s the difference between sacrificing a creature and destroying a creature?
Sacrificing is an action taken by a player, usually as a cost or part of an effect, to move a permanent they control to the graveyard. Destroying is an effect caused by a spell or ability. Indestructible protects against destruction, but not sacrifice.
10. If I sacrifice a creature with persist, does it come back?
The Persist ability triggers when a creature dies. Since sacrificing is considered dying, a creature with persist will return to the battlefield with a -1/-1 counter on it, as long as it didn’t already have one.
11. If I sacrifice a creature with undying, does it come back?
Similar to persist, the Undying ability triggers when a creature dies. If a creature with undying is sacrificed and didn’t have a +1/+1 counter on it, it will return to the battlefield with a +1/+1 counter.
12. Can I sacrifice a token creature?
Yes! A token creature is a creature and can be sacrificed just like any other creature. However, when a token leaves the battlefield, it ceases to exist. It will trigger death triggers, but it won’t linger in the graveyard.
13. If I have multiple sacrifice outlets, can I sacrifice the same creature to multiple abilities?
No. Once a permanent has been sacrificed, it’s no longer on the battlefield. You can only sacrifice a specific permanent to one ability or spell at a time. You can stack the activations, but the creature will be gone before the second one resolves.
14. Can I respond to my own sacrifice ability?
Yes! Once you activate an ability or cast a spell that requires you to sacrifice something, your opponent has the opportunity to respond. However, you can also respond to your own ability before it resolves. This can be useful to protect other permanents or further manipulate the board state.
15. How does sacrificing a creature interact with the graveyard?
When you sacrifice a creature, it goes to the graveyard. This can trigger abilities that care about creatures entering the graveyard, such as morbid or graveyard recursion. The graveyard is a critical resource in many Magic decks, and sacrifice mechanics can be used to fuel those strategies.
Mastering the nuances of sacrifice mechanics, along with other rules and strategies, is what makes Magic: The Gathering such a captivating and intellectually stimulating game. Remember, it’s a game of strategy, creativity, and constant learning.