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Spectral Adversary

Spectral Adversary

Creature — Spirit

mythic

Flash Flying When this creature enters, you may pay any number of times. When you pay this cost one or more times, put that many +1/+1 counters on this creature, then up to that many other target artifacts, creatures, and/or enchantments phase out.

2/1

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Semantic Tags

Cares about +1/+1 counters — places, moves, doubles, or benefits from counters on creatures.

ETB Mattersmechanical

Triggers when a creature or permanent enters the battlefield. Prime blink targets.

Evasivemechanical

Difficult to block or grants evasion. Includes flying, menace, fear, intimidate, shadow, skulk, horsemanship, unblockable effects, and cards that grant these abilities.

Flashmechanical

A keyword ability that lets a player play a card any time they could cast an instant. See rule 702.8, “Flash.”

Flash Mattersmechanical

Flash-focused strategy — playing at instant speed for tempo and information advantage.

Flyingmechanical

A keyword ability that restricts how a creature may be blocked. See rule 702.9, “Flying.”

Permanentmechanical

A card or token on the battlefield. See rule 110, “Permanents.”

Format Legality

commanderlegal
oathbreakerlegal
modernlegal
pioneerlegal
standardnot legal
legacylegal
vintagelegal
paupernot legal
historiclegal
explorernot legal
alchemynot legal

Price history

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Printings (6)

Related Concepts

Flash

A keyword ability that lets a player play a card any time they could cast an instant. See rule 702.8, “Flash.”

Flying

A keyword ability that restricts how a creature may be blocked. See rule 702.9, “Flying.”

Related Rules

106.5

If an ability would produce one or more mana of an undefined type, it produces no mana instead.

106.7

Some abilities produce mana based on the type of mana another permanent or permanents “could produce.” The type of mana a permanent could produce at any time includes any type of mana that an ability of that permanent would produce if the ability were to resolve at that time, taking into account any applicable replacement effects in any possible order. Ignore whether any costs of the ability could or could not be paid. If that permanent wouldn’t produce any mana under these conditions, or no type of mana can be defined this way, there’s no type of mana it could produce.

106.12

To “tap [a permanent] for mana” is to activate a mana ability of that permanent that includes the {T} symbol in its activation cost. See rule 605, “Mana Abilities.”

106.12a

An ability that triggers whenever a permanent “is tapped for mana” or is tapped for mana of a specified type triggers whenever such a mana ability resolves and produces mana or the specified type of mana.

106.12b

A replacement effect that applies if a permanent “is tapped for mana” or tapped for mana of a specific type and/or amount modifies the mana production event while such an ability is resolving and producing mana or the specified type and/or amount of mana.

107.3m

If an object’s enters-the-battlefield triggered ability or replacement effect refers to X, and the spell that became that object as it resolved had a value of X chosen for any of its costs, the value of X for that ability is the same as the value of X for that spell, although the value of X for that permanent is 0. This is an exception to rule 107.3i.

107.5

The tap symbol is {T}. The tap symbol in an activation cost means “Tap this permanent.” A permanent that’s already tapped can’t be tapped again to pay the cost. A creature’s activated ability with the tap symbol in its activation cost can’t be activated unless the creature has been under its controller’s control continuously since their most recent turn began. See rule 302.6.

107.6

The untap symbol is {Q}. The untap symbol in an activation cost means “Untap this permanent.” A permanent that’s already untapped can’t be untapped again to pay the cost. A creature’s activated ability with the untap symbol in its activation cost can’t be activated unless the creature has been under its controller’s control continuously since their most recent turn began. See rule 302.6.

Rulings

2021-09-24

As a permanent phases out, Auras and Equipment attached to it also phase out at the same time. Those Auras and Equipment will phase in at the same time that permanent does, and they'll phase in still attached to that permanent.

2021-09-24

Permanents phase back in during their controller's untap step, immediately before that player untaps their permanents. Creatures that phase in this way are able to attack and pay a cost of {T} during that turn. If a permanent had counters on it when it phased out, it will have those counters when it phases back in.

2021-09-24

An attacking or blocking creature that phases out is removed from combat.

2021-09-24

Choices made for permanents as they entered the battlefield are remembered when they phase in.

2021-09-24

Phasing out doesn't cause any "leaves the battlefield" abilities to trigger. Similarly, phasing in won't cause any "enters the battlefield" abilities to trigger.

2021-09-24

Permanents that are phased out are treated as though they don't exist. They can't be the target of spells or abilities, their static abilities have no effect on the game, their triggered abilities can't trigger, they can't attack or block, and so on.

2021-09-24

If an opponent gains control of one of your permanents, that permanent phases out, and the duration of the control-change effect expires before it phases back in, that permanent phases in under your control as that opponent's next untap step begins. If they leave the game before their next untap step, it phases in as the next untap step begins after their turn would have begun.

2021-09-24

After you pay the {1}{U} cost one or more times, a second ability triggers and you choose the targets for it. Players may respond to the new ability at that point. As that ability resolves, Spectral Adversary gets its +1/+1 counters and the target permanents phase out.

2021-09-24

Any continuous effects with a "for as long as" duration ignore phased-out objects. If ignoring those objects causes the effect's conditions to no longer be met, the duration will expire. For example, phasing out Mind Flayer will cause the duration of its continuous effect ("for as long as you control Mind Flayer") to expire.