Does Trample Still Work With Protection?

The short answer is yes, trample still works with protection, though perhaps not in the way many players initially expect. While protection from a quality (such as a color) prevents damage from a source with that quality, it doesn’t negate the trample ability itself. This interaction is a crucial part of understanding combat mechanics in Magic: The Gathering (MTG). Let’s delve into the specifics of how these two abilities interact.

How Trample and Protection Interact

When a creature with trample attacks and is blocked by a creature with protection from one of the attacker’s qualities (such as color), the attacking player doesn’t get a free pass to trample over for maximum damage. Instead, they must assign lethal damage to the blocking creature. What’s important here is that “lethal damage” is calculated as if the blocker didn’t have protection. Once that lethal damage is assigned (even though the damage won’t actually harm the blocker due to protection), any remaining damage can then be assigned to the defending player.

For example, if you attack with a 7/7 creature with trample and it is blocked by a 2/2 creature with protection from red, you must assign 2 damage to the blocking creature (enough to kill it). The remaining 5 damage will then “trample over” to the defending player. The key takeaway is that protection prevents the damage, not the trample mechanic itself.

Key Rules to Remember

• Protection Prevents Damage: The protection ability prevents all damage that would be dealt to the protected creature by sources with the specific quality, but it does not stop the assignment of that damage.
• Trample Requires Lethal Damage Assignment: Trample mandates the assignment of enough damage to the blocker that would be lethal if the blocker didn’t have protection, even if that damage is prevented by protection.
• Damage Tramples Over: Once lethal damage is assigned to all blockers, the rest of the attacker’s power can be assigned to the defending player or planeswalker.
• Protection Does Not Affect Trample Calculation: The calculation of how much damage is “lethal” isn’t affected by protection; it is based on the blocker’s toughness before protection is considered.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Here are 15 FAQs to provide further clarity on how trample interacts with various other abilities and game mechanics:

1. Does trample damage go over indestructible?

Yes. When a creature with trample is blocked by an indestructible creature, the attacking player still has to assign enough damage to the indestructible creature that would normally be considered lethal. While the indestructible creature doesn’t get destroyed, that amount of damage is considered to be dealt, and the rest of the damage tramples over to the defending player or planeswalker.

2. Does trample work with fight?

No. Trample only applies to combat damage. When two creatures “fight,” they both deal damage to each other simultaneously. The keyword ability trample is not relevant here, since the damage is not assigned during the combat damage step. Other keyword abilities such as deathtouch and lifelink, do function during a fight because they relate directly to the damage being dealt.

3. How does deathtouch interact with trample?

Deathtouch and trample combine very effectively. When an attacking creature has both deathtouch and trample, the attacker only needs to assign 1 damage to each blocking creature to make it lethal. The remaining damage from the attacker with trample will then trample over to the player or planeswalker being attacked. This makes for a powerful combination.

4. Does indestructible prevent deathtouch?

Yes, indestructible prevents damage from destroying a creature. While deathtouch normally makes damage from the deathtouch source lethal, that damage is still prevented by the indestructible shield; therefore, the creature is unaffected by the deathtouch.

5. Does deathtouch cancel deathtouch?

No. Two instances of the deathtouch ability against one another do not cancel out either ability. Both sources of damage are still considered lethal. If either source assigns damage to a creature with less than or equal to its toughness, that creature will be destroyed.

6. What is the rule of trample?

The official rule for trample is found in the MTG Comprehensive Rules under rule 702.19, specifically 702.19a. It states that trample is a static ability that alters how an attacking creature’s combat damage is assigned. Trample only works for attacking creatures during the combat damage step.

7. Does double strike damage trample over?

Yes. A creature with both double strike and trample deals its combat damage twice. In the first combat damage step, it assigns damage as normal. In the second combat damage step, it assigns damage as normal as well, again trampling over any excess damage beyond what was needed to deal lethal damage to any blockers. The damage assigned in the first combat step is considered in the calculation for how much damage tramples over in the second step.

8. Does first strike stop trample?

A creature with first strike can destroy a blocking creature before combat damage is assigned by the attacking creature. If the first strike damage is lethal, the trample damage never happens, because the blocking creature is destroyed before damage assignment. However, if the first strike does not destroy the blocker, then the blocked creature with trample will assign damage during the normal combat damage step.

9. Does trample go through regeneration?

Regeneration only prevents a creature from being destroyed. When a creature with trample attacks and is blocked by a creature that can regenerate, the regeneration can save the blocking creature from death, but it does not prevent the trampling damage from going to the defending player.

10. Does trample work with toxic?

Yes. Toxic counters and trample work together. If a creature with trample and toxic is blocked, the attacking creature will assign damage as per the normal rules. Excess damage will trample over to the defending player or planeswalker. Because the creature with toxic assigned damage, it will also assign that number of poison counters to the player or planeswalker it deals combat damage to.

11. Do shield counters stop trample?

No. Shield counters prevent a creature from being destroyed, but don’t prevent damage from being assigned. Trample requires lethal damage to be assigned to each blocker, as normal. Shield counters have no effect on this process.

12. Does trample go through fog?

Fog effects (like the spell “Fog”) prevent all combat damage for the turn. However, creatures with trample still have to assign damage as if they were actually dealing damage to the blocker, including damage that would trample over to the defending player or planeswalker. Fog does not affect damage assignment, only the dealing of the damage. Trample still works as normal.

13. Can you trample over creatures with protection?

Yes. As explained earlier, you absolutely can trample over creatures with protection. Protection prevents the damage from being dealt to the blocking creature; it does not affect the assignment of damage. Thus, trample still works as intended.

14. What is “super trample”?

“Super Trample” is not a formal keyword but a slang term for trample-like effects that have appeared in some earlier sets. These often have additional effects, such as dealing damage equal to the attacker’s power directly to the defending player, regardless of blockers, which is significantly more powerful than normal trample. These are not the same as the keyword trample.

15. Does hexproof cancel deathtouch?

No. Hexproof prevents the creature from being the target of spells or abilities controlled by the opponent, while deathtouch is a static ability that deals lethal damage when a creature is assigned damage from a source with deathtouch. Because deathtouch is not an ability that targets a creature, hexproof does not prevent deathtouch from working.