Crewed for Combat: Summoning Sickness and Your Artifact Vehicles
Do crewed artifact vehicles have summoning sickness? The short answer is yes, under specific conditions. If a Vehicle enters the battlefield and is crewed in the same turn, it’s subject to summoning sickness as an artifact creature and cannot attack that turn. However, if the Vehicle entered the battlefield on a previous turn, it does not have summoning sickness, even if it’s crewed on the current turn. The key is whether the Vehicle is a creature for the first time on that turn.
Understanding summoning sickness is crucial when piloting your artifact vehicles in Magic: The Gathering. Let’s dive deeper into the intricacies of this rule and how it impacts your vehicle-based strategies.
Summoning Sickness Explained
The Basic Rule
Summoning sickness is a common term for a game rule that dictates that a creature cannot attack or activate abilities with the tap ( {T} ) or untap ( {Q} ) symbol in their cost unless it has been under its controller’s control continuously since the beginning of their most recent turn. The reason being a creature that is new to the battlefield, or a non-creature that became a creature on that turn, has not yet had the opportunity to ready itself for combat or other activities. Haste allows the player to bypass this mechanic and attack or use tap abilities on the turn the creature comes into play.
How it Applies to Artifacts and Vehicles
Artifacts, in their base form, don’t have summoning sickness because they aren’t creatures. However, Vehicles introduce a twist. When you crew a Vehicle, you temporarily transform it into an artifact creature. If this transformation happens the same turn the Vehicle entered the battlefield, the newly formed artifact creature is afflicted with summoning sickness.
This is important because, without being a creature, Vehicles cannot attack or block. So, you have to crew it if you want to go on the offensive.
FAQs: Navigating Summoning Sickness with Vehicles
Here are 15 frequently asked questions to clarify how summoning sickness interacts with artifact vehicles:
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If my Vehicle has been on the battlefield for multiple turns, does crewing it give it summoning sickness? No. Crewing a Vehicle that has been on the battlefield since a prior turn does not trigger summoning sickness. It’s all about whether the permanent is becoming a creature for the first time this turn.
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Can I use a creature with summoning sickness to crew a Vehicle? Absolutely! The rule only restricts creatures from attacking or using tap/untap abilities. Crewing is not restricted because the creature is not tapping for its own abilities, but instead activating the crew ability of the vehicle. You can tap a creature with summoning sickness to pay the cost of crewing a Vehicle. This is a critical interaction for getting your Vehicles online quickly.
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Does giving my Vehicle haste bypass summoning sickness after I crew it? Yes! If you crew a Vehicle the same turn it enters the battlefield, and then give that Vehicle haste, it can attack that turn despite having summoning sickness initially.
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If I crew a Vehicle on my opponent’s turn, can I attack with it on my turn without it having summoning sickness? Yes. Since the Vehicle will have been a creature under your control since the beginning of your most recent turn, it is ready to attack, as long as it has been crewed on that turn and has not left the battlefield.
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If my Vehicle stops being a creature after being crewed (e.g., due to an effect that removes creature types), does it get summoning sickness again when I re-crew it? Only if the Vehicle re-enters the battlefield or is turned into a creature again on that turn. Otherwise, it is considered to have been there. The permanent itself must be entering the battlefield or becoming a creature in order to be afflicted by summoning sickness.
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Can a Vehicle block without being crewed? No. Vehicles must be creatures to block. They must be crewed (or turned into creatures by some other effect) during the Declare Blockers step.
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If a Vehicle is already an artifact creature (perhaps due to another effect), does crewing it still trigger summoning sickness if it’s the first turn it entered the battlefield? If that is the case then yes. If the Vehicle is already a creature when it enters the battlefield, then it has summoning sickness.
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Can I use an activated ability that doesn’t involve tapping to crew a vehicle? No. You have to use the Crew ability.
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Does summoning sickness affect triggered abilities of artifact creatures? No. Summoning sickness only prevents attacking and using abilities with the tap/untap symbol in their cost. Triggered abilities function normally.
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If I have an ability that allows me to put a Vehicle directly onto the battlefield crewed, does that Vehicle have summoning sickness? Yes. It enters the battlefield, and that same turn it becomes a creature. Therefore, summoning sickness applies.
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Does “destroy target artifact” destroy an artifact creature vehicle? Yes. Artifact creature vehicles are both artifacts and creatures, making them valid targets for spells and abilities that target either.
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Can I tap an equipped artifact? Yes, tapping an artifact won’t cause its abilities to stop applying unless those abilities say so.
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Can you defend with an artifact vehicle? Yes, but you have to do it before the declare blockers step of combat. You need to crew it before then, or turn it into a creature some other way.
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Can a creature with summoning sickness be goaded? Summoning sickness still applies to goad, and would require the goaded creature to have haste for it to attack the same turn it entered play.
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Are Warhammer cards legal in Commander? Warhammer 40,000 Commander cards with the 40K set code numbered 1–176 are permitted in the Commander, Legacy, and Vintage formats. Cards with the 40K set code numbered 181–317 and 322 are reprinted cards legal for play in any format where a card with the same name is permitted.
Crewing Strategy: Planning Your Attacks
Understanding when your Vehicles have summoning sickness is vital for planning your attacks. Consider these strategic points:
- Early Game Deployment: Play your Vehicles early, even if you can’t crew them immediately. This gives them a turn to “rest” and avoid summoning sickness when you are ready to strike.
- Haste Enablers: Include cards that grant haste in your deck to immediately attack with newly crewed Vehicles or vehicles that enter the battlefield that turn.
- Defensive Crewing: Crew Vehicles on your opponent’s turn to defend, ensuring they are ready to attack on your next turn.
- Mana Efficiency: Plan your mana usage carefully. Crewing a Vehicle and playing a haste enabler in the same turn can be mana-intensive but worthwhile.
The Intersection of Games and Learning
Understanding Magic: The Gathering rules, like summoning sickness, can be challenging. However, these rules create a complex and engaging gameplay experience. The ability to strategize, analyze, and adapt is fostered through gameplay, which is why organizations like the Games Learning Society are so important. GamesLearningSociety.org studies how games can enhance learning and problem-solving skills.
Conclusion
While summoning sickness can temporarily ground your artifact vehicles, a thorough understanding of the rules allows you to overcome this obstacle. By strategically deploying your Vehicles, utilizing haste enablers, and carefully planning your attacks, you can master the art of vehicle combat and dominate the battlefield. So, keep your crew ready, your engines revving, and remember: timing is everything when it comes to avoiding summoning sickness!