Uba Mask

[IthilanorStPete]

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=mtgcom/feature/465a&page=2

Uba Mask is being reverted to its printed wording. (and old functionality)

Shared Fate, Uba Mask & Void Maw

These three cards were all printed with a problem. They each had an ability that created a replacement effect that removed cards from the game . . . then they referred to the cards removed "with" Shared Fate, Void Maw, or Uba Mask. The problem is that no cards were removed with them; their replacement effects caused other things to remove those cards from the game.

When we run into a problem like this, there are two ways to handle it: Fix the cards, or fix the rules. I tried fixing the cards. But it wasn't a good fix; it used counters and introduced a functional change.

I'm calling a mulligan on these cards. This time, I'm fixing the rules. As a result, I'm restoring the cards' printed wordings.

New Oracle wording for Shared Fate:
If a player would draw a card, that player removes the top card of an opponent's library from the game face down instead.
Each player may look at and play cards he or she removed from the game with Shared Fate.

New Oracle wording for Uba Mask:
If a player would draw a card, that player removes that card from the game face up instead.
Each player may play cards he or she removed from the game with Uba Mask this turn.

New Oracle wording for Void Maw:
Trample
If another creature would be put into a graveyard from play, remove it from the game instead.
Put a card removed from the game with Void Maw into its owner's graveyard: Void Maw gets +2/+2 until end of turn.

[vartemis]

Was just about to post this.  I think the only two that affect us are the change to Uba and Necro.

j

[Xyre]

Near as I can understand rule 407 on linked abilities, Uba Mask works as normal (because the cards can only be played off the Mask that removed them). Cool.

Of course, the tradeoff is that we didn't get Mox Diamond or Time Vault back.

[wiley]

The exact rules changes won't be available until they update the actual comp rules (it hasn't been done yet, I'm guessing it will be done friday along with the oracle update).  Until then here is what he said regarding the change.

407
A new section for "Linked Abilities" was created and slotted in here. This is a more expansive section than before. Besides covering the "linked abilities" rule at 217.7d, which addressed things like Sisters of Stone Death, it now covers things like:


Uba Mask (cards with one ability that creates a replacement effect that removes things from the game, and another ability that refers to the removed things)
Saproling Burst (cards with one ability that creates a token, and another ability that refers to those tokens)
Quirion Elves (cards with one ability that causes you to choose a value or name a card, and another ability that refers to that choice)
Kavu Titan (cards with a kicker ability, and another ability that refers to whether the kicker cost was paid)

...and more.

The key to linked abilities is that they can only refer to one another. This is a change for Quirion Elves. In the past, say you chose "red" for Quirion Elves. Then you used Cytoshape to turn them into Voice of All. Voice of All's protection ability would be able to read the chosen color, and it'd have protection from red. This is no longer true. The color chosen for Quirion Elves is now usable only for the Quirion Elves ability, and can't be used for any other ability. In recent years, too many confusing cases had been coming up involving these kinds of choices and copy effects. (What if you choose a number for Shapeshifter, then turn it into Ashling's Prerogative? What if you choose green Saproling for Sarpadian Empires, Vol. VII, then turn it into Quirion Elves? What if you choose Island for Declaration of Naught, then turn it into Meddling Mage?) It had to stop at some point.

In addition, many other rules were modified due to this new section:


217.7d got streamlined and gained a cross-reference to the "Linked Abilities" rule.
404.5 gained a cross-reference to the "Linked Abilities" rule. In addition, its second example was deleted; errata has eliminated the template discussed in that example.
419.6j is being created to cover some of the same points (but to do so in the "Replacement Effects" section).
502.13b had used the word "linked." Now that "linked abilities" is a rules term, this is being changed to a neutral word.
Some of the kicker rules (502.21b-d) are getting rewritten to better express their concepts and reference the "Linked Abilities" section.
502.72b gained a cross-reference.
503.8 was changed. It now specifies that if a copy acquires a pair of linked abilities, they'll still be linked on the copy (and can't refer to any other abilities).
503.8a was added. Until now, 503.8 was the rule that explained how copy effects interacted with cards like Quirion Elves. 503.8a will explain the rule change, and that the old interactions don't work anymore.

It's nice to know that Uba Mask is back to its original functionality again, I wonder how good it would be right now...

Also, how did we not get Mox Diamond back?  Did WotC take it away again?

[IthilanorStPete]

Here's the part about Necro:

Necropotence

It's yet another card printed in both Ice Age and Fifth Edition—and this time, the cards match! But Oracle doesn't. Both printed versions have abilities that trigger whenever you discard a card; those abilities remove that card from the game. The Oracle wording changes that to a replacement ability. You still discard the card, but it never hits the graveyard. This can go back to being a triggered ability. The new ability being implemented here specifies that the ability looks for the discarded card in the graveyard. If it can't find it there (due to Library of Leng, for example), then it won't remove it from the game.

New Oracle wording:
Skip your draw step.
Whenever you discard a card, remove that card in your graveyard from the game.
Pay 1 life: Remove the top card of your library from the game face down. Put that card into your hand at the end of your turn.

[Xyre]

There has been much written about changing the errata on Mox Diamond and Time Vault here. On Mox Diamond, the original function was as a comes-into-play ability ("when Mox Diamond comes into play, sacrifice it unless you discard a land card", effectively), but today, it's a replacement effect ("If Mox Diamond would come into play, you may discard a land card instead. If you do, put Mox Diamond into play. If you don't, put it into its owner's graveyard."), which doesn't approach the original effect. The problem comes from 6th Edition rules, because under the old ruleset, you couldn't tap the Mox for mana in response to its comes-into-play cost, but with 6th-ed rules, you can. Hence, the debate over the wording.

Time Vault was neutered by WotC to prevent "Twiddling", as it were. It's the difference between

Time Vault comes into play tapped.
Skip your next turn: Untap Time Vault
Tap: Take an extra turn after this one
(original wording)

and

Time Vault comes into play tapped.
If Time Vault would become untapped, instead choose one - untap Time Vault and you skip your next turn; or Time Vault remains tapped.
Tap: Take an extra turn after this one.
(current errata)

The reason why Vintage (and perhaps Legacy) players care is because the former wording enables the Time Vault-Flame Fusillade combo.

[Smmenen]

http://www.themanadrain.com/index.php?topic=35600.30

Can't it just say "if you would draw a card, Uba Mask removes the top card of your library from the game instead"?

Yes.  But the problem is that, according to Gottlieb and (the rules), the source of the "RFG" would remain the draw, not the Uba Mask.   

I think this could be solved by simplying changing the rules rather than changing the card. 

Good thing too. 

[Lordpenguin]

I can't decide whether to rebuild my Uba Stax deck now or continue building it into MonoR Aggro Stax... Why do wizards have to make my choices so difficult?

I'm glad Gottlieb took this approach though; it makes far more sense than the counters-on-rfg-cards fix.

Does the Necro wording change any interactions that are used in Vintage?

[Harlequin]

Does the Necro wording change any interactions that are used in Vintage?

Yes, now the card sits in the graveyard for a moment before getting removed.  This is relevant primarily for Extirpate... but could also be beneficial for something like flash of insight? or possibly welder.

Also this ruling: Replaces all discards with removing the card from the game. The action is no longer a discard and abilities triggering on a discard will not trigger. [D'Angelo 2000/03/03]
appears to have reversed... so Madness will trigger off Necro again I think.

[Xyre]

Does the Necro wording change any interactions that are used in Vintage?

Yes, now the card sits in the graveyard for a moment before getting removed.  This is relevant primarily for Extirpate... but could also be beneficial for something like flash of insight? or possibly welder.

Also this ruling: Replaces all discards with removing the card from the game. The action is no longer a discard and abilities triggering on a discard will not trigger. [D'Angelo 2000/03/03]
appears to have reversed... so Madness will trigger off Necro again I think.

Correct. Near as I can tell, what would happen is that two triggered abilities would go on the stack. Obviously, the player would have madness resolve first, then necro goes looking for the card in the graveyard but can't find it.