Ever experienced that groggy detachment upon waking up in the morning? Well, imagine your creatures in Magic: The Gathering feeling just like that when summoned onto the battlefield. They need a moment to orient themselves before springing into action, akin to someone stumbling out of a portal. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll delve deep into the concept of summoning sickness in MTG, covering everything from its definition to its implications in gameplay.
What Is Summoning Sickness in MTG?
Summoning sickness refers to the condition of a creature that has recently been summoned onto the battlefield. As a result, it cannot attack or utilize tap abilities. This condition persists until the controller’s next turn. The term originates from the notion that newly summoned creatures are disoriented and require time to acclimate to their surroundings before engaging in actions.
How Does Summoning Sickness Work?
Upon entering the battlefield, whether through casting or other means, a creature is considered to be summoning sick. During this period, it is unable to tap for an attack or activate its own abilities that involve tapping. However, once the controller’s next turn begins, summoning sickness wears off, allowing the creature to function normally.
When Does Summoning Sickness End?
Summoning sickness concludes at the onset of its controller’s subsequent turn. Notably, a creature is always considered summoning sick unless it has been continuously controlled by a player since the beginning of that player’s most recent turn.
Can Creatures With Summoning Sickness Use Tap Abilities?
No, creatures with summoning sickness are unable to utilize tap abilities or launch attacks. Abilities requiring tapping or untapping symbols in their cost are off-limits until the creature overcomes summoning sickness. However, haste grants an exception to this rule.
What About Other Activated Abilities?
Creatures with summoning sickness can activate abilities that do not necessitate tapping. As long as the ability’s cost does not involve tapping or untapping symbols, it can be utilized without hindrance.
Can Creatures With Summoning Sickness Block?
Yes, creatures afflicted by summoning sickness can still serve as blockers. While they cannot initiate attacks, they retain the ability to block incoming threats, providing defensive utility to their controller.
Do Planeswalkers Have Summoning Sickness?
No, planeswalkers are not subject to summoning sickness. They can immediately utilize their abilities upon entering the battlefield, without any restrictions.
Do Artifacts Have Summoning Sickness?
Plain artifacts do not experience summoning sickness since they are not creatures. However, artifacts that are transformed into creatures, such as those affected by cards like Skilled Animator, adhere to the summoning sickness rules applicable to creatures.
Do Tokens Have Summoning Sickness?
Yes, tokens are subject to summoning sickness like other creatures. Despite not being permanent cards, tokens act as creatures on the battlefield and are subject to the same laws regarding summoning sickness unless they have haste.
Do Lands Have Summoning Sickness?
Indeed, lands also experience summoning sickness, although it may not frequently manifest in gameplay. For instance, lands animated into creatures, such as Creeping Tar Pit, cannot attack on the turn they are played due to summoning sickness.
Do Creatures Have Summoning Sickness After They Transform?
No, transforming into a different form does not trigger summoning sickness. A creature can still attack after transforming, provided it has been continuously controlled since the beginning of its controller’s turn.
Does Flickering Creatures into Exile Cause Summoning Sickness?
Yes, flickering a creature into exile and returning it causes summoning sickness to reapply. The creature is considered a new permanent upon returning to the battlefield, necessitating it to overcome summoning sickness once more.
Do Creatures From the Graveyard Have Summoning Sickness?
Yes, creatures resurrected from the graveyard are subject to summoning sickness. Despite re-entering the battlefield, they retain their summoning sickness until it naturally wears off or is negated by effects like haste.
Do Creatures With Flash Still Have Summoning Sickness?
Yes, unless granted haste, creatures with flash maintain summoning sickness upon entering the battlefield. However, playing a creature with flash during an opponent’s turn may mitigate the impact of summoning sickness by allowing it to be deployed with less vulnerability to removal.
How Does Mutate Work With Summoning Sickness?
The interaction between mutate and summoning sickness depends on the timing and status of the creature involved. A mutating creature retains summoning sickness if it was present upon entering the battlefield, while one without summoning sickness maintains its status after mutating.
When You Take Control of a Creature, Does it Have Summoning Sickness?
Yes, a creature seized by control-changing effects, such as Act of Treason, is affected by summoning sickness unless granted haste by the controlling player.
When You Morph a Creature, Does it Have Summoning Sickness?
Similar to mutating, morphing a creature does not subject it to summoning sickness again. However, if morphed immediately after entering the battlefield, the creature cannot attack until summoning sickness dissipates.
How Can You Get Around Summoning Sickness?
Haste and flash provide avenues to bypass summoning sickness. Haste allows creatures to act immediately upon entering the battlefield, while flash enables them to be cast at opportune moments, reducing their vulnerability to removal spells.
Why Does Summoning Sickness Exist?
Summoning sickness serves as a crucial balancing mechanism in Magic: The Gathering, preventing aggressive strategies from dominating the game. It ensures a diverse range of deck archetypes by incentivizing the use of creatures with unique abilities and attributes beyond sheer speed.
Wrapping Up
In summary, summoning sickness plays a vital role in shaping the dynamics of MTG gameplay. Whether you’re a novice or seasoned player, understanding its implications is essential for strategic decision-making and deck construction. By grasping the nuances of summoning sickness, you can navigate the battlefield with greater finesse and appreciation for the game’s intricacies.