Priority and Avenger of Zendikar?

Asked by timschil 8 years ago

If I play my Avenger of Zendikar, put my plants into the battlefield and this reolves. My opponent casts his Path to Exile just after it resolves. Do I have priority before he casts the path to play a land card boosting the plants while avenger is still on the board?

Whenever a spell or ability resolves off the stack the active player gets priority. If there are no more objects on the stack, the rest of the players must wait for you to put something on the stack or pass priority to change step/phase.

Your opponent should have Path to Exiled it in response to his ETB ability. Once the ability is resolves he must wait for you to do something.

Playing a land is a special action that doesn't use the stack and can't be responded to. But when Avenger's second trigger happens, he can respond to that.

Note that an ability exists independently of its source so even if Avenger is Pathed, the ability will still resolve giving your plants a counter.

February 27, 2016 11:51 a.m.

timschil says... #2

So after he is cast his ETB goes onto the stack? At that time my opponent could cast the path in response to the ETB and I wouldn't have a chance to play the land to trigger his landfall ability and would only be left with four 0/1 plants?

February 27, 2016 12:04 p.m.

timschil says... #3

Not four. However many lands I controlled at time of casting

February 27, 2016 12:05 p.m.

Raging_Squiggle says... Accepted answer #4

Correct. so the stack would look like this:

  • cast Avenger of Zendikar who then resolves and enters the battlefield.

  • his ETB ability immediately triggers and goes on the stack.

  • here, your opponent can and should have cast Path to Exile targeting the Avenger.

  • if he does, it resolves, exiling him, and then his ETB ability resolves, giving you X 0/1 plants.

  • if he does not, the ETB ability resolves and you get X 0/1 plants.

  • you may play your land for the turn if you have not done so yet, thus triggering Avenger's second ability (if he had not been exiled).

  • your opponent now has a second opportunity to cast Path to Exile in response to the triggered ability.

  • Path resolves if it was cast, exiling Avenger. Then the trigger resolves and your plants get a +1/+1 counter.

February 27, 2016 1:21 p.m.

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