Summoning Sickness and the Graveyard: A Deep Dive
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Yes, absolutely, cards returned from the graveyard do have summoning sickness. When a creature re-enters the battlefield from the graveyard, it’s treated as a brand new permanent. Summoning sickness affects any creature you haven’t controlled continuously since the beginning of your most recent turn, irrespective of how it came under your control. Whether it’s reanimated, flickered, or simply played from your hand, the rule remains the same.
Understanding Summoning Sickness
The term “summoning sickness” is a bit of a misnomer. It doesn’t actually represent a magical malady. Instead, it’s a shorthand way of saying that a creature needs a moment to acclimatize after entering the battlefield before it can engage in combat or utilize its tap abilities. The crucial factor is whether you’ve had continuous control of the creature since the beginning of your turn.
Consider this scenario: You reanimate a powerful creature from your graveyard during your turn using a card like Reanimate. Even though it’s a fearsome beast, it can’t attack or use any activated abilities that require tapping on that same turn. It’s got summoning sickness! This is because it just entered the battlefield under your control.
Summoning Sickness and the Graveyard
Creatures that are brought back from the graveyard are treated as new creatures that enter the battlefield. These new creatures can be targeted by removal spells, sacrifice effects, equipment, and any other spell that affects creatures in the battlefield.
Breaking it Down: The Specifics
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Reanimation Spells: Whether you’re using a spell like Animate Dead or an ability like Gravedigger, any creature brought back from the graveyard will suffer from summoning sickness.
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Continuous Effects: Even if the card returning the creature to the battlefield is a continuous effect, like an enchantment or a planeswalker ability, the creature will still be affected.
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Token Creatures: If a spell brings a creature token from the graveyard to the battlefield, the token will have summoning sickness as well. The effect is the same.
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Combat: Creatures that are summoning sick cannot be declared as attackers on the turn that they are summoned. They can block, however.
FAQs: Summoning Sickness and the Graveyard
Here are some frequently asked questions that should clarify your understanding of summoning sickness and how it interacts with graveyard recursion:
1. Can I Block With a Creature Reanimated from the Graveyard?
Yes, absolutely! Summoning sickness only prevents a creature from attacking and using tap abilities. It can still block during your opponent’s turn, offering a defensive option the moment it enters the battlefield.
2. Does Haste Override Summoning Sickness for Reanimated Creatures?
Yes, it does. If the reanimated creature has Haste, it can attack or use tap abilities immediately, ignoring the summoning sickness restriction. Haste is a crucial ability for creatures intended to have an immediate impact on the battlefield.
3. If I Reanimate a Creature on My Opponent’s Turn, Can I Attack With It on My Turn?
Yes, assuming you still control it at the beginning of your turn. Because you’ve controlled it continuously since the beginning of your turn, the summoning sickness restriction is lifted.
4. Does Flickering a Creature Remove Summoning Sickness?
No. Flickering a creature means exiling it and then returning it to the battlefield. It’s considered a new creature when it returns and is subject to summoning sickness.
5. Can I Sacrifice a Creature with Summoning Sickness?
Yes. Summoning sickness only restricts attacking and using tap abilities. You can still sacrifice it to pay a cost or activate an ability. Sacrifice outlets are great ways to utilize creatures even when they can’t attack or tap.
6. If I Control a Creature That’s Reanimated by My Opponent, Does It Still Have Summoning Sickness When It Returns to Me?
Yes. If control of a creature changes hands, it essentially resets its “summoning sickness” status. Even if it didn’t have summoning sickness under your opponent’s control, it will have it when it returns to you, unless you’ve maintained continuous control of it since the beginning of your turn.
7. If a Card Says “Put a Creature From Your Graveyard Onto the Battlefield,” Does It Have Summoning Sickness?
Yes. Regardless of the specific wording, if a creature enters the battlefield from your graveyard, it will be affected by summoning sickness unless it has haste or you’ve controlled it continuously since the beginning of your turn.
8. Does Morphing a Creature Get Rid of Summoning Sickness?
No. A creature that’s morphed is still the same permanent it was before, just with a different face-up state. If it had summoning sickness before it was morphed, it still has it after.
9. What if I Reanimate a Creature with a “When This Creature Enters the Battlefield” Trigger?
The “enters the battlefield” trigger will still happen as the creature is reanimated. Summoning sickness doesn’t prevent triggered abilities from resolving; it only prevents attacking and using tap abilities.
10. Can a Creature With Summoning Sickness Block a Creature With Haste?
Yes. Haste allows a creature to attack or use tap abilities the turn it enters the battlefield, but it doesn’t negate the ability of other creatures to block it, even if they have summoning sickness.
11. If I Reanimate a Land Creature, Does It Have Summoning Sickness?
Yes. Lands are not subject to summoning sickness unless they become creatures. When a land becomes a creature, the summoning sickness rules apply just like any other creature. So, if it entered the battlefield or came under your control this turn, it can’t attack or tap for abilities that require tapping.
12. Can I Attach Equipment to a Reanimated Creature on the Turn It Enters?
Yes. Summoning sickness doesn’t prevent you from equipping creatures. You can attach equipment as normal, giving the creature added abilities or stats, even if it can’t attack or tap.
13. If a Reanimated Creature Has an Ability That Says “As Long as This Creature Is Tapped…”, Does Summoning Sickness Affect That?
Yes, indirectly. Because summoning sickness prevents the creature from using tap abilities the turn it enters the battlefield, the “as long as it’s tapped” ability won’t function until your next turn (unless another effect taps it).
14. Does Exile Then Return Get Rid Of Summoning Sickness?
Exiling a creature and then returning it to the battlefield is treated as a new creature entering the battlefield, therefore it will have summoning sickness.
15. Can I Target a Creature Returned From The Graveyard With a Spell?
Yes. As long as the creature is on the battlefield, you can target it with a spell.
Conclusion: Mastering the Nuances of Summoning Sickness
Understanding summoning sickness is fundamental to playing Magic: The Gathering effectively. While it can seem like a simple rule, its interactions with different card types, abilities, and zones can create complex situations. By knowing how it affects creatures entering the battlefield from the graveyard and other zones, you can make informed decisions and strategize effectively.
For more insightful discussions on game design and the intricacies of card mechanics, consider exploring the Games Learning Society at GamesLearningSociety.org, where educators and researchers collaborate on the intersection of games and learning.