S.B.E. & C.I.P. Ability

Tritemio · Joined: 11 Jan 2006 Posts: 41

Night of Souls' Betrayal into play, I play Eternal Witness, can I return the Witness itself with it's ability?

CMA-Flippi · Posted: Wed Oct 15, 2008 5:54 am Post subject:

yes. you determine the target when the ability stacks which is after state-based effects are checked.

Carnubak · Joined: 21 Jul 2008 Posts: 30

Yes, you can.

The Eternal Witness enters play as a 1/0 creature (courtesy of the Night of Souls' Betrayal), but this doesn't prevent its ability to trigger. It is put into your graveyard as a State-Based Effect, just after resolving, but before you receive priority again (SBEs are checked every time a player is about to receive priority, just before they do).
When you receive priority, you put the triggered ability from the now extinct Eternal Witness on the stack, and as you do, you choose a valid target for it. Since the Witness is already in the graveyard, it can be targeted by its own effect.

Why would you want to do so, though, is another question (maybe you have a Soul Warden with a +1/+1 counter on it in play? Or are you just trying to build up your storm count?). But it's not relevant in itself.