Mutated Commander Down! What Happens Now? A Deep Dive into MTG’s Murky Rules
So, your magnificent, mutated Commander has finally met its end on the battlefield. What happens next? The short answer is this: Your Commander card can go to the command zone, while the rest of the mutated stack goes to the graveyard. You will get a death trigger despite the commander replacement effect. It sounds simple, but the intricacies of the mutate mechanic combined with Commander rules can make things complex. Let’s break it down step-by-step.
When a creature dies in Magic: The Gathering, it goes to the graveyard, triggering any “when this creature dies” abilities. However, Commanders have special rules. If your Commander dies, you have the option to send it back to the Command Zone instead of the graveyard. This is a replacement effect, meaning it changes where the card goes instead of triggering a new ability.
But what if your Commander isn’t just a single card? What if it’s a mutated monstrosity, a horrifying amalgamation of creatures mashed together with the Mutate mechanic? That’s where things get interesting.
The Graveyard and the Command Zone: A Delicate Dance
When a mutated creature dies, the entire mutated pile, which consists of multiple creature cards, hits the graveyard simultaneously. However, due to the Commander replacement effect, you can choose to send only the actual Commander card to the Command Zone. The other cards that were mutated onto your Commander will go to the graveyard. This is crucial to understand. Each card in the mutated pile is treated individually upon death.
Death triggers will still trigger as normal. Even though the commander is being moved to the command zone, the game still sees that it died, triggering abilities like Grave Pact or similar death trigger effects.
Example Scenario
Imagine you have [[Vorinclex, Voice of Hunger]] as your Commander. You then mutate [[Sea-Dasher Octopus]] onto it. Your opponent casts [[Murder]].
- The mutated creature (Vorinclex mutated with Sea-Dasher Octopus) dies.
- You choose to send Vorinclex, your Commander, to the Command Zone.
- Sea-Dasher Octopus goes to your graveyard.
- Death triggers (if any) activate, seeing the mutated pile die.
Koll, the Forgemaster
Importantly, abilities like that of [[Koll, the Forgemaster]] will interact with a mutated pile dying. If Koll’s ability can find one of those creature cards, the ability affects all of those cards and they are all returned to your hand.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about Mutated Commanders and Death
Here are some common questions that arise when dealing with a mutated Commander dying, with clear and concise answers.
1. Does Mutating Change My Commander?
No, mutating does not change the fact that a creature card is your Commander. Even if it’s buried under other mutated creatures, it is still tracked as your commander. Commanderness is inherent to the physical card itself. The characteristics of the topmost card determine the mutated creature’s power, toughness, color, name, and creature types.
2. If I Blink a Mutated Creature, What Happens?
When you “blink” a mutated creature (using spells like [[Cloudshift]]), all the components separate. The mutated creature is exiled and then returned to the battlefield as separate creatures. This is because the blink effect exiles the permanent, and then returns the cards that made up that permanent.
3. Does Mutate Trigger ETB (Enter the Battlefield) Effects?
No, using the mutate ability does not trigger Enter the Battlefield (ETB) effects of the spell being cast. The spell does not enter the battlefield. It merges with the permanent that is already on the battlefield. However, the act of mutating can trigger mutate-specific abilities, or those that trigger when a creature is targeted by a spell you control.
4. Does Mutate Trigger Heroic?
Yes, Mutate can trigger Heroic abilities. Heroic triggers when a creature is targeted by a spell you control. Since you are targeting a creature you control with the mutate spell, this triggers Heroic.
5. Does Mutate Cause a Reduction in Gargos, Vicious Watcher’s Ability?
Yes! If you have [[Gargos, Vicious Watcher]] in play, the mutate cost is reduced. More importantly, mutating onto a creature you control will trigger Gargos’s fight ability.
6. Does Mutate Bypass Commander Tax?
No, Mutate does not bypass the Commander tax. The Commander tax applies to any time you cast your commander from the command zone. Since mutate is a casting cost, you still have to pay commander tax.
7. What Happens if My Commander Goes to My Hand?
If your Commander would be put into your hand or library from anywhere, you can choose to put it into the Command Zone instead. This replacement effect can apply more than once to the same event. So, if a spell attempts to put the commander from the mutated pile into your hand, you can choose to send the commander to the command zone.
8. Does a Morphed Commander Still Do Commander Damage?
Yes, a commander that has been morphed or manifested is still a commander. It still deals commander damage. Commanderness is a weird characteristic in the game, as it is tied to the physical card, so it doesn’t matter what the top face up of the card is.
9. What if I Chaos Warp My Commander?
[[Chaos Warp]] works as before. The commander’s owner can choose to either put it into the command zone or into the library. Chaos Warp then continues to resolve normally. The updated rules only change how to handle a commander going to the graveyard or exile.
10. Can a Legendary Enchantment Creature Be My Commander?
Yes, absolutely! The commander rule looks at the characteristics the card has before the game begins. It does not look at the back side of a double-sided card, for example, as you are never allowed to start the game with the back face up.
11. Do I Lose Experience Counters When My Commander Dies?
No. Experience counters are put on you, the player, and not on the Commander itself. Therefore, they stay on you even if your Commander goes to the Command Zone or graveyard.
12. Does Mutate Trigger the First Time?
Yes, it does! The mutate effect happens on the first mutate, even on creatures without other abilities. The creature sees itself mutate, triggering any relevant abilities.
13. Do Mutated Creatures Lose Legendary Status?
No. Supertypes like Legendary are maintained, and do not get overwritten by mutate. If you mutate on top of a legendary creature, you can cast it again without being affected by the legend rule, as it would not be another legendary creature with the same name.
14. Do Mutated Creatures Have Summoning Sickness?
Whether or not the mutated creature has summoning sickness depends on the original creature that started on the battlefield. If the original creature had summoning sickness, then the mutated pile has summoning sickness. If it did not, the mutated pile does not have summoning sickness.
15. Is Wish Banned in Commander?
Yes, effects that pull cards from outside the game into the game (such as Living Wish; Spawnsire of Ulamog; Karn, the Great Creator; Wish) are not allowed in Commander. You can only use cards that started in your deck.
Conclusion: Mutate and Commander, a Complex Relationship
The interaction between Mutate and Commander rules can be tricky, but understanding these nuances can significantly improve your gameplay. Remember that when a mutated Commander dies, the Commander card can go to the Command Zone while the rest of the mutated stack goes to the graveyard. Also, remember that this will trigger death triggers! Keep these rules in mind, and you’ll be well-equipped to navigate the complexities of mutated Commanders.
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