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Do Flipped Creatures Keep Counters? Unveiling the Secrets of Magic: The Gathering

Yes, flipped creatures do indeed keep counters. When a permanent is flipped, whether it’s a creature, artifact, or land, all counters on it remain intact. The act of flipping doesn’t cause the permanent to leave the battlefield or become a new object; it simply changes its characteristics. Think of it like changing clothes – you’re still the same person underneath!

Understanding Flipping, Transforming, and Other Similar Mechanics

In Magic: The Gathering (MTG), the concept of “flipping” can be easily confused with other similar mechanics like transforming, morphing, and phasing. While they all involve changing a card’s appearance or characteristics, they have different rules and interactions, particularly when it comes to counters.

Flipping: The Basics

Flipping typically involves cards with two distinct faces, often representing different stages or forms. A classic example is flip cards from the Kamigawa block. When a card flips, it remains the same permanent on the battlefield but changes its characteristics (power, toughness, abilities, etc.) based on the other face. Critically, since it’s the same permanent, any counters remain.

Transforming: A Two-Sided Story

Transforming cards, often seen in sets like Innistrad, also have two sides, but they are played initially with one side face-up. Specific conditions cause the card to transform, revealing its other side. Like flipping, transforming doesn’t cause the permanent to leave the battlefield, so counters persist.

Morphing: The Face-Down Mystery

Morph cards are played face down as a 2/2 creature with no abilities for a generic mana cost of three. They can then be turned face up for their morph cost, revealing their true identity. Just like flipping and transforming, morphing doesn’t remove counters. Any enchantments or counters that were on the creature when it was face down will remain when it is turned face up. The creature never changed zones and is still the same object.

Phasing: A Temporary Vanishing Act

Phasing is a unique mechanic where a permanent temporarily disappears from the battlefield and then returns during its controller’s next untap step. While phased out, the permanent is treated as though it doesn’t exist. However, because phasing out doesn’t count as leaving the battlefield, any counters that were on the object will remain on it. Any linked abilities involving that object will not reset, and any choices made as the object entered the battlefield or was cast as a spell are retained.

The Significance of Permanence

The core reason counters remain is due to the fundamental concept of permanence in Magic: The Gathering. Once a permanent is on the battlefield, it retains its identity unless specifically removed or destroyed. Flipping, transforming, morphing, or phasing doesn’t break this permanence; it merely modifies the permanent’s attributes.

Counters: A Separate Entity

It’s also crucial to understand that counters are treated as separate entities attached to a permanent. They are not inherently tied to the card’s printed characteristics. Therefore, changing those characteristics through flipping or transforming doesn’t affect the counters already present.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Counters and Flipped Creatures

Here are 15 frequently asked questions to further clarify the rules regarding counters and flipped creatures in Magic: The Gathering:

Do +1/+1 counters stay on transformed creatures?

Yes, they do. A transformed card is still the same permanent, so it hasn’t left the battlefield or anything.
Do counters stay on creatures if they’re affected by an effect that changes their power and toughness?

Yes. Counters are a separate entity once they are placed on a permanent. If a creature has +1/+1 counters on it and then receives -1/-1 from an effect, the counters remain, but the creature’s effective power and toughness are reduced accordingly.
When a creature phases out, does it keep counters?

Yes. Counters remain on a permanent while it’s phased out. Effects that check a phased-in permanent’s history won’t treat the phasing event as having caused the permanent to leave or enter the battlefield or its controller’s control.
Do counters go away when a creature dies?

No, the counters don’t go away. They remain in the graveyard, but they have no effect there unless some ability specifically interacts with counters in the graveyard. Creatures with indestructible are impervious to any effects that normally destroy creatures.
Do copied creatures retain counters?

No. Only the “copiable values” of an object are copied – essentially the attributes that would be printed on a card directly – not subsequent modifications such as counters, attached permanents, or spell effects. This is covered in rule 706.1.
Does Doubling Counters Count as Putting Counters On a Permanent?

Yes. If you have a creature with two +1/+1 counters on it and you double the number of counters with Vorel, the Hull Clade, you basically put two +1/+1 counters on the creature, which matters for cards like Simic Ascendancy.
Does Deathtouch beat indestructible?

No, indestructible creatures also ignore deathtouch. Normally, a creature is destroyed if it takes damage from a creature with deathtouch. But since indestructible creatures can’t be destroyed, they’re immune.
Does first strike beat Deathtouch?

Yes, A creature with first strike will hit first, and can possibly kill the deathtouch creature before it has a chance to hit. If it does, then the deathtouch creature dies, and nothing happens to the first strike creature. In order for deathtouch to do anything, the creature has to hit first.
Does Deathtouch stop trample?

No, Unless the creature with deathtouch has first strike, deathtouch does nothing to stop a creature from trampling over to the defending player. The creature with trample will assign leathal damage to the creature with deathtouch and any more damage can be assigned to the defending player.
Do flipped morph creatures have summoning sickness?

No, it won’t have “summoning sickness” unless it already had it. Turning the card face up (“morphing”) just changes its characteristics, just like Giant Growth does. Turning the card face up doesn’t give or take away “summoning sickness” any more than Giant Growth does.
Do flipped cards have summoning sickness?

Transforming doesn’t give a creature “summoning sickness,” so if a creature has been under your control continuously since the beginning of your turn, it can still attack even if it transforms—assuming it transforms into a creature!
Do copied spells count for storm?

No. The storm copies are put directly onto the stack—they aren’t cast. That means the copies don’t generate storm copies themselves, and they aren’t counted by other storm spells cast later during the turn.
Does sacrifice count as dying?

Yes. In MtG, “Dies” is a shorthand for “moves from the battlefield to the graveyard”.
Is A Planeswalker considered a permanent?

Yes, Planeswalkers are permanents. You can cast one at any time you could cast a sorcery. When your planeswalker spell resolves, it enters the battlefield under your control. Planeswalkers are not creatures.
Do Planeswalkers enter the battlefield with counters?

Yes, Planeswalkers enter play with the number of loyalty counters printed on their card due to an intrinsic ability, lose loyalty counters corresponding to damage dealt to them, and go to the graveyard when they have no loyalty counters on them as a state-based action.

Final Thoughts

Understanding how counters interact with flipped, transformed, morphed, and phased permanents is crucial for mastering Magic: The Gathering. The core principle to remember is that these actions don’t cause a permanent to leave the battlefield, so counters remain unless explicitly removed by another effect. This detailed knowledge not only enhances your gameplay but also provides a deeper appreciation for the intricate rules and mechanics that make MTG such a captivating and enduring game.

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