text:
Can I activate Dawn of Hope's ability twice while only paying its mana cost once?
So, let's say that I have a Dawn of Hope out. I have 2 Healer's Hawks that attack on the same turn. I pay 2 mana to draw a card for the lifelink from the 1st healer's hawk. Do I need to spend another 2 mana if I want to draw another card or do I just draw another card automatically since there were 2 lifelink events in that turn?

To be overly (and necessarily) precise: You don't activate Dawn of Hope's ability, it triggers by itself. Whenever you gain life, it triggers the enchantment, then you may choose to pay 2 generic mana in order to draw a card. Activated abilities have usually a cost and an effect, separated by a colon. If Dawn of Hope was an activated ability, it would read something like this: "Pay 2 generic mana: Draw a card. Activate this ability whenever you gain life, and only once each time you gain life"

As you stated, there are two lifelink events, both setting up an independent instance of Dawn of Hope's trigger. In order to draw two cards, you have to spend 4 mana; the second trigger doesn't 'remember' you've paid already for the first trigger.

Just a small nitpick here, but it's actually generic mana, not colorless. Colorless mana is represented by a gray diamond symbol, while generic is represented by a number (and any color of mana can be used for generic mana costs, not just colorless).

Heh, I'm old enough to remember the original printing of Ancient Tomb ...

@Glorfindel Colorless mana is something you can have in your mana pool. Generic mana is part of the cost of many spells and abilities. I think that's how it's always been.

(They may have, at times, used the generic mana symbol when they meant colorless mana, but I have yet to see them mix up the names of the two concepts. Note that even in your Ancient Tomb, they clearly could've used a grey circle with a 2 in it, but they chose not to. Even then, apparently, colorless and genetic were clearly seen as two distinct things by the design team.)

Yeah, let's just remove the terminology from this Q&A since it's not really relevant :)

@Arthur The FtV lands printing of Ancient Tomb used that grey circle with a two in it. At the time of the original print, they hadn't started to use that method to denote colorless mana creation in any cards. It's also worth noting that the two ideas were used pretty much interchangeably until OGW created cards that required mana to be colorless and not generic.

It is not accurate to say that the ideas of generic and colorless mana were used interchangeably before OGW. The same symbols were used to represent each, but they were definitely separate things.

Notice that it says "If you do", not "If you did". It is not checking whether you have, at some point, paid 2 generic mana. It's checking whether you paying 2 happened for that trigger. Every time you gain life, Dawn of Hope puts a "You may pay 2. If you do, draw a card." on the stack. Each time such a trigger resolves, you either pay 2 and draw a card, or nothing happens.  If, theoretically, there were a card that says "Every time you gain life, you may pay 2. If you have paid 2 this turn, draw a card." or "You may pay 2. If you do, for the rest of the turn, draw a card every time you gain life." then you could pay just 2 to draw two cards. But this card is worded as "Each time you gain life, you may pay 2 to draw a card", not "You may pay 2 to draw a card every time you gain life".

Thanks everyone, that definitely cleared that up for me!


text:
How many times can I activate this Lotleth Troll and Basking Rootwalla combo?
If I have a Lotleth Troll and a Basking Rootwalla in my hand and I cast Lotleth Troll. How many times can you activate its ability? I'm just making a deck to troll my friends.

Besides the answers, note that you can't use the "discard a creature card:" ability of Lotleth Troll when you cast it, but rather when it is already on the battlefield.

Without help from other cards, this combo will only work once; when you discard the Basking Rootwalla to put a +1/+1 counter on Lotleth Troll, and cast it for its madness cost, you'll end up with a Basking Rootwalla on the battlefield, so you can't discard it again unless you find a way to return it to your hand.

With just those two cards there is no repeatable combo, you are able to use the Troll as a discard outlet to let you use madness abilities, but it doesn't return the card to hand, so it can't be repeated, it plays that card as if you cast it normally.
There is a way to make this combo work infinitely, and that is through the use of a card called Cloudstone Curio and a second Basking Rootwalla. The curio would let you play the first Rootwalla for it's madness cost then return it to hand when you madness out the second one, allowing each rootwalla to infinitely "bounce" the other until you decide to stop the cycle by not bouncing or not using the troll's ability.

We must go more degenerate. 2 Rootwallas, 2 Soul Wardens, Warstorm Surge, March of the Machines, Mycosynth Lattice, Grave Pact, a Phyrexian Reclamation and a Phyrexian Altar. Infinite Life, Infinite damage, infinite sac effects in only an 11 card combo.

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text:
Rules of MTG Dive Down and spells priority
I'm playing MTGArena and I have one issue with the Dive Down spell. I have a Guttersnipe on battlefield, then my opponent cast Lightning Strike on it. I cast Dive down on Guttersnipe. And then my opponent cast another Lightning Strike that kills my creature. Why? I already used Dive Down. Why can the second Lightning Strike destroy my creature? Please explain.

You could, in the exact same manner, ask why Dive Down helps at all, since your opponent has already used Lighting Strike.

related - https://boardgames.stackexchange.com/questions/42474/end-of-the-turn-casting-in-magic-arena/42477#42477

This goes to the basics of how the stack works. After a spell or ability has been played, but before it resolves ("takes effect") it goes on the stack. Then all players have the opportunity to play instants, spells with flash and activated abilities. If anyone does, that spell or ability goes on the stack on top of everything already there.
Only when all players pass on the opportunity to play anything does the top object on the stack resolve (or if the stack is empty, the game continues to the next phase / step instead). Then all players once again have an opportunity to play things.
So this is what happens in your case:

Your opponent plays Lightning Strike, targeting your goblin.
Before the Strike resolves (the damage happens), instead of passing, you play Dive Down, targeting your goblin. It goes on top of the Lightning Strike on the stack.
Guttersnipe triggers, and you put its ability on the stack on top of Dive Down.
Before the goblin's ability resolves, instead of passing, your opponent plays a new Lightning Strike, targeting your goblin. It goes on top of the stack.
You both pass, and the topmost spell on the stack resolves. Your goblin takes three damage and dies.
You both pass.
Guttersnipe's ability resolves, and your opponent takes two damage (the ability, once on the stack, doesn't care at all what happens to the Guttersnipe).
You both pass.
Your Dive Down tries to resolve, but all its targets are gone, so it just fizzles (does nothing, is removed from the stack).
You both pass.
The first Lightning Strike your opponent played tries to resolve, but all its targets have disappeared so it fizzles.

Note that your opponent can, if they choose, wait until Guttersnipe's ability has resolved before they play the second Lightning Strike, and the end result will be the same. This will matter if they, for instance, have an ability which lets them draw cards when they take damage. In that case they would want to see what the drawn card is in case it's a better card to use instead of the second Lightning Strike.

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text:
Can Firesong and Sunspeaker deal damage to Planeswalkers?
Is this the the equivalent of "new lightning bolt" effect due to rule change on planeswalker damage?
Let me explain below the question and confusion.
The new Buy-a-box promo, Firesong and Sunspeaker, has an effect that spells out “target creature or player”. Is this the first card where we have to remember that the effect excludes planeswalkers, i.e. we don't replace the text with “any target” since it's printed after the planeswalker damage redirection rule change?
Channel Fireball's article Understanding the Dominaria Rule Changes and Sagas says:

Now, imagine they print a card like this:

New Lightning Bolt
New Lightning Bolt deals 3 damage to target creature or player.

This card explicitly excludes planeswalkers, but, if you don’t know when it was printed, you have no way of knowing. If New Lightning Bolt and old Lightning Bolt are both in your hand, they’ll have the exact same printed text, but one will work very differently. It’s not going to confuse any established players, but I can see how it could confuse someone who’s not already enfranchised.

This is interesting info as I hadn't heard about it before... but not sure I see a question here; more of a general complaint. It's always been true that in order to know what a card officially does, you have to go by the Oracle text, not by what is printed on the card (unless you have R&D's Secret Lair of course). But yes, this particular errata seems like it could be a bigger deal.

Until  Firesong and Sunspeaker has a gatherer entry, it has no official Oracle text. If the Oracle text ends up being the same as the printed spoiler, then yes, it will not be able to target Planeswalkers. If the Oracle text says "any target" like Lightning Bolt, then it will. Either way, the question is basically self-answering.

Since Firesong and Sunspeaker is being printed in the set Dominaria, and the mentioned rule change is happening as part of the release of that set, it would be incredibly bizarre if they print it with the pre-Dominaria wording and concurrently publish errata to it.

"Lightning Bolt" and the hypothetical "New Lightning Bolt" are different cards because they have different names. Their printed rules text does not matter. Rules of thumb, even those put up by official sources, do not matter. All that matters is the Oracle text and the compRules.

@murgatroid99 I agree, but I don't know how visual spoilers work in MTG. I know with other things, often times an early spoiled version of something is different than the final product.

As far as I know, no card has ever been spoiled, then printed with different text. In general, I believe these cards have already been physically printed by the time they are spoiled online.

@murgatroid99 Thanks; that does make sense. I think it still amounts to this not being a "real" question; as I don't get the impression that the asker doesn't already know the answer to the title question.

I'm on the fence about that, and personally I am giving them the benefit of the doubt for now. Even though much of the question is basically a rant, there is a question in there that I think is worth answering.

thanks guys, good to have this particular card clarified.... given the frequency of such "new lightning bolt" effect already happening in the first set after the rule change, i guess everyone just have to remember the list of cards printed before/after this rule change, or looking up oracle text on website.  not a clean rule change after all.

@AndyM I want to believe that you are asking this question in good faith, but I would strongly encourage you to edit your question to remove the rant about the rule change and focus on the question you want to ask.

I would like to clarify: your title asks about the functionality of the card Firesong and Sunspeaker. But most of your question body focuses on describing out the confusion players may face, assuming that it works a certain way. If your question is about how the card works, then the stuff about how players may be confused isn't relevant.

As Firesong and Sunspeaker are printed under the new rules, they would have been printed specifically allowing targeting a planeswalker. With every old card getting errata, all new cards will have been printed with that errata in place. They cannot target walkers.

In early March, the release notes were accidentally published in Simplified Chinese, and Wizards of the Coast responded to that leak by publishing the release notes in all languages. In the release notes, the section about the planeswalker damage redirection rules change includes the following paragraph:

Cards printed in the Dominaria set that deal damage to creatures and/or players but not to planeswalkers (such as the Planeswalker Deck card Chandra, Bold Pyromancer and the promotional card Firesong and Sunspeaker) require targets as written even though similar cards have received errata.

In addition, the release notes list the text of Firesong and Sunspeaker as follows:

Firesong and Sunspeaker (Buy-a-Box Promotional Card)
  4RW
  Legendary Creature – Minotaur Cleric
  4/6
  Red instant and sorcery spells you control have lifelink.
  Whenever a white instant or sorcery spell causes you to gain life, Firesong and Sunspeaker deals 3 damage to target creature or player.

and includes this ruling

The last ability of Firesong and Sunspeaker can't target a planeswalker.

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text:
MTG: Priority before attacking
When does my opponent receive priority? It's the beginning of my turn; I draw a card and decide to go straight into combat. Can my opponent tap my creatures before declaring attackers with Gideon's Lawkeeper? Even though I didn't take any actions before declaring them as attackers meaning he never got priority before?

Technically, you're not going straight to combat. You still have a main phase, it's just that you're not doing anything in it.

Yes, your opponent gains priority and has several opportunities to activate their Gideon's Lawkeeper.

Your opponent will get priority and may activate their Lawkeeper in your Upkeep, Draw, 1st Main, and Beginning of Combat steps.  You cannot skip any of those steps.  If you draw your card for turn and go straight to combat you're proposing a shortcut, but your opponent is not obliged to accept that shortcut.  They can stop you at any time they would receive priority and cast instants or activate abilities.

Miles is right, but to explain in more detail.
Each phase the acting player gets priority. They either take an action or pass priority. If they take an action they get priority again with that action on the stack.
As soon as they pass priority their opponent gets priority and can act.
As soon as both players pass priority the top of the stack takes affect or if the stack is empty the phase ends.
If the acting player (you in this example) passes priority and your opponent then passes priority you can't change your mind. Unless they act that is the end of the phase. This means for example that you can't wait to see whether they tap anything before casting a spell. If you say "go" and they don't act then the turn proceeds to the combat phase.
So you can see that in this case, you draw a card and then try to go straight to combat in fact you just passed priority multiple times. Your opponent can accept that shortcut and the "declare attackers combat step" starts or they can interrupt at any point with an action of their own after you passed priority.
Once they have acted though that then gives you the option to change your mind and act anyway.
For example the following is legal:

You: Go to attack (this is a shortcut saying you are passing priority until you get to the declare attackers phase)
Them: I use Lawkeeper to tap your creatures in beginning of combat.
You: Lawkeeper resolves (tap your creatures). Note that you are no longer in your main phase so cannot summon creatures or cast sorcery spells. If on the other hand your opponent had intervened in your first main phase you would be able to.
Still you: Still in beginning of combat, I untap my creatures with X.
Them: resolves
You: Go to combat

At this point you passed priority, they acted with their priority and passed it back to you. You then acted again and passed it back.
They can now try to do something else but if they don't respond then declare attacker happens.

Well they accepted 2 hours after I wrote it so...shrugs guess the other one was more useful for them. No worries.

@Chris Yep, don't worry about it :)


text:
What happens when two Ochran Assassins are attacking?

What happens if I attack with 2 Ochran Assassins? Which Ochran Assassin must be blocked?
Also, can my opponent cast spells (respond) after the Ochran Assassins have assigned damage?

You are asking two different questions and I would suggest breaking them into separate questions in order to get them better answered.

Your opponent may choose for each creature which of the two Ochran Assassin it blocks (or both, if it's a Palace Guard).

509.1c The defending player checks each creature they control to see whether it’s affected by any requirements (effects that say a creature must block, or that it must block if some condition is met). If the number of requirements that are being obeyed is fewer than the maximum possible number of requirements that could be obeyed without disobeying any restrictions, the declaration of blockers is illegal.

If your opponent has two creatures, they'll need to fulfill four requirements, but "the maximum possible number of requirements that could be obeyed without disobeying any restrictions" is two, and as long as both creatures are blocking, two requirements are fulfilled.

And there's no opportunity to cast spells between damage assignment and damage dealing:

510.2. Second, all combat damage that’s been assigned is dealt simultaneously. This turn-based action doesn’t use the stack. No player has the chance to cast spells or activate abilities between the time combat damage is assigned and the time it’s dealt.

(quotes are from the Comprehensive Rules)

The player's ability to influence how the damage is assigned isn't just limited to the damage step, though. In fact, players usually don't have any choice during the damage assignment step. When a single creature has multiple blockers, the most important choice (i.e. the order in which blockers will be prioritised when the time comes to assign damage) is decided once blockers have been declared. And players do have the opportunity to play instants between that choice being made and damage being dealt.


text:
Why don't ground-types (fighting) in Pokemon TCG have resistance to electric?
I don't play the Pokemon TCG, and most of my exposure comes from collecting cards from the first three sets when I was a kid (which I've long since gotten rid of).  I decided recently to pick up a couple starter decks I saw in the store (the relevant one to this question being Mewtwo Mayhem theme deck) just to see, out of pure curiosity, how far the game has come and how much it has changed.  I was looking through the cards and I noticed something odd:  the Diglett, Dugtrio and Sandshrew don't have resistance to lightning, despite this resistance being a staple for ground-types.  Here's the Sandshrew card pictured for reference:

(source: studiobebop.net)
I could have sworn these cards once had resistance to lightning, and a simple Google image search confirms this (in addition to revealing the cards getting HP boosts, among other changes).  What gives?  Why don't the ground-types have resistance to lightning?  Or rather, why was their resistance to lightning removed?

Pokémon Trading Card Game follows original type effectiveness table only loosely. In each generation, there can be found some patterns, like originally Ground Pokémon having Lightning Resistance in earlier generations, but those usually change in time and also some cards can diverge. Some of those patterns were applied according to one of the types of dual-types Pokémon, without regard to the second type.
Let's have Gligar as an example. In the past, there was a pattern of Originally Ground-type Pokémon having Grass Weakness¹. Even though Gligar is damaged normally by Grass and is resistant to Bug and Poison² (types that were represented by TCG Grass type back then), it was printed with such Weakness:

In the past, there was also a pattern of Originally Flying-type Pokémon having Lightning Weakness³. Even though Gligar is immune to Lightning² in games, it was printed with such Weakness:

Later, Gligar kept its Water Weakness and Lightning Resistance for a long time, loosing the Resistance during 6th Generation, which is the same for Sandshrew as well. It's possible that card creators changed their patterns recently. You can compare Gligar from 2012 (5th generation) with Gligar from 2014 (6th generation):

During the 7th generation, Gligar's Weakness changed to Grass once again:

Officially, there is no information about how the conversion from game types to TCG Weaknesses and Resistances work.


text:
Does Sylvok Lifestaff work with Bronze Bombshell?
Suppose I use Endless Whispers to gift a Bronze Bombshell to my opponent.  Do I have enough time to equip a Sylvok Lifestaff that I already have on the field to the Bronze Bombshell before the opponent sacrifices it, so that I can gain 3 life from Sylvok Lifestaff's second ability?
For reference, Endless Whispers' rules text reads: 'Each creature has "When this creature dies, choose target opponent. That player puts this card from its owner's graveyard onto the battlefield under their control at the beginning of the next end step."'  Bronze Bombshell has the ability: 'When a player other than Bronze Bombshell's owner controls it, that player sacrifices it. If the player does, Bronze Bombshell deals 7 damage to the player.'
And Sylvok Lifestaff has the relevant ability: 'Whenever equipped creature dies, you gain 3 life.'

Is Endless Whispers and Bronze Bombshell not enough combo for you?  Throw in a repeatable sac outlet, like Ashnod's Altar, and you get to deal an opponent 7 damage on each player's turn (and potentially more in multiplayer).

You don't have enough time (since equipping is done 'at sorcery speed'), but it doesn't really matter; you can only equip a creature you control:

02.6a Equip is an activated ability of Equipment cards. "Equip [cost]" means "[Cost]: Attach this permanent to target creature you control. Activate this ability only any time you could cast a sorcery."

No. You can equip the Sylvok Lifestaff before the Bronze Bombshell dies when you control it. When an opponent gains control of Bronze Bombshell there is no chance for you to equip Sylvok Lifestaff, because you can only equip creatures you control. You can gain 3 life when the Bronze Bombshell first dies, but not 6 life.

Do I have enough time to equip a Sylvok Lifestaff that I already have on the field to the Bronze Bombshell before the opponent sacrifices it

Yes. And that time is before your opponent gains control of Bronze Bombshell. You can equip Blond Bombshell while you control it, then if it dies your opponent gains control of Blond Bombshell, while you remain the controller of Sylvok Lifestaff, and since you are the controller, you are the "you" in "you gain 3 life."

When Bronze Bombshell enters play under your opponent's control its ability will immediately trigger.  That ability will go on the stack when someone gets priority  (which happens immediately after the Endless Whispers trigger finishes resolving) at which point you will have the opportunity to play spells and activate abilities before it resolves  (since the sacrifice is part of the effect and not a cost, it won't happen until the ability resolves).
But you are limited to instants and instant speed abilities, and equipping can only be done whenever you could cast a sorcery (your turn, main phase, with nothing on the stack), and you can't equip creatures your opponent controls anyways.


text:
Am I allowed to take measurements before declaring an attack?
During a Full-Thrust game, am I allowed by the rules to take measurements and check fire arcs before declaring an attack?

The rules don't specifically state this.
In the example on page 4 of the rule book it notes that you declare targets before rolling dice and specifically points to an example where multiple ships are in an arc and this rule is used to prevent players from determining new targets based on the effects of shots. Since it says nothing about range and arc calculations nor about choosing targets and then not be able to retarget if they are actually our of arc or range it would imply validity for arc and range are determined before declaring the attack.

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text:
Armadillo Cloak contains a triggered event that in combat resolution resolves?
When Armadillo Cloak's ability is triggered due to combat it is placed on the stack.  My assumption is that the stack does not resolve till the second main phase and only after all players have passed.  Is this correct?

No, not entirely. Combat damage is dealt in the Combat Damage step (rule 510):

510.2. Second, all combat damage that’s been assigned is dealt simultaneously. This turn-based action doesn’t use the stack. No player has the chance to cast spells or activate abilities between the time combat damage is assigned and the time it’s dealt.
510.3. Third, the active player gets priority. (See rule 116, “Timing and Priority.”)
510.3a Any abilities that triggered on damage being dealt or while state-based actions are performed afterward are put onto the stack before the active player gets priority; the order in which they triggered doesn’t matter. (See rule 603, “Handling Triggered Abilities.”)

After the stack resolves, everybody passes, the End of Combat step follows, and only then the second main phase.


text:
What happens when I copy a creature whose characteristics change before the copy resolves?
If I cast a spell to copy a target creature and then a second spell is put on the stack, say one which changes the creature to a 0/1 red Weird. What creature does the copy spell create?

Only the printed text will be copied, unless the other spell was also a copy effect. It doesn’t matter if another effect changes the to-be-copied creature’s stats or abilities.

706.2. When copying an object, the copy acquires the copiable values of the original object’s characteristics and, for an object on the stack, choices made when casting or activating it (mode, targets, the value of X, whether it was kicked, how it will affect multiple targets, and so on). The “copiable values” are the values derived from the text printed on the object (that text being name, mana cost, color indicator, card type, subtype, supertype, rules text, power, toughness, and/or loyalty), as modified by other copy effects, by its face-down status, and by “as . . . enters the battlefield” and “as . . . is turned face up” abilities that set power and toughness (and may also set additional characteristics). Other effects (including type-changing and text-changing effects), status, and counters are not copied.

This works this way because of the layer system that controls how different continuous effects work together. When determining what an object currently looks like, the copy effect is applied first, and the other changes made are applied after.

Interaction of Continuous Effects

613.1. The values of an object’s characteristics are determined by starting with the actual object. For a card, that means the values of the characteristics printed on that card. For a token or a copy of a spell or card, that means the values of the characteristics defined by the effect that created it. Then all applicable continuous effects are applied in a series of layers in the following order:

613.1a Layer 1: Copy effects are applied. See rule 706, “Copying Objects.”
613.1b Layer 2: Control-changing effects are applied.
613.1c Layer 3: Text-changing effects are applied. See rule 612, “Text-Changing Effects.”
613.1d Layer 4: Type-changing effects are applied. These include effects that change an object’s card type, subtype, and/or supertype.
613.1e Layer 5: Color-changing effects are applied.
613.1f Layer 6: Ability-adding effects, ability-removing effects, and effects that say an object can’t have an ability are applied.
613.1g Layer 7: Power- and/or toughness-changing effects are applied.


text:
Is Festering March cast repeatedly via the suspend ability?
The card text of Festering March is as follows:

Creatures your opponents control get -1/-1 until end of turn. Exile Festering March with three time counters on it.

It appears that you can cast this card repeatedly as you suspend it as part of its resolution.

Yes, that's right. Otherwise, it would just be an overcosted Make Obsolete. Even though the phrase is "Exile Festering March with three time counters on it." and not "Suspend Festering March with three time counters on it.", the card is still suspended according to the Comprehensive Rules,

702.61b A card is “suspended” if it’s in the exile zone, has suspend, and has a time counter on it.

and removing time counters and casting the spell without its mana cost works just like if you had suspended it from your hand:

702.61a Suspend is a keyword that represents three abilities. The first is a static ability that functions while the card with suspend is in a player’s hand. The second and third are triggered abilities that function in the exile zone. “Suspend N—[cost]” means “If you could begin to cast this card by putting it onto the stack from your hand, you may pay [cost] and exile it with N time counters on it. This action doesn’t use the stack,” and “At the beginning of your upkeep, if this card is suspended, remove a time counter from it,” and “When the last time counter is removed from this card, if it’s exiled, play it without paying its mana cost if able. If you can’t, it remains exiled. If you cast a creature spell this way, it gains haste until you lose control of the spell or the permanent it becomes.”

Note that there is no card that says anything like "suspend [cardname]"; it's always "exile with x time counters". Your answer makes it sound like the former would be the expected wording.

Festering March is part of a cycle of suspend cards which all would resuspend themselves with three time counters every time they resolve.  Chronomantic Escape in particular was rather popular, because three of them make you forever immune from being attacked (unless the opponent had a counterspell)

@Hackworth right, it doesn't; still, I think this where the OP's confusion is coming from.


text:
Does Blowfly Infestation create a loop with Hapatra, Vizier of Poisons?
Does Blowfly Infestation create a loop with Hapatra, Vizier of Poisons?
The card text is as follows
'Whenever a creature is put into a graveyard from play, if it had a -1/-1 counter on it, put a -1/-1 counter on target creature.'
When a token dies it goes to the graveyard and then disappears, so it looks like you keep generating a token and killing it.  Or does the generation of the creature allow you to cast in between.

As already answered, yes, the loop is there. If you have any lifeloss enducing trigger upon death of a creature on the battlefield (Blood Artist, Zulaport Cutthroat, Poisontip Archer) and no opponent intervenes, you win the game.

If there is a creature with 1 toughness on the battlefield when a creature with a -1/-1 counter dies, you can create an arbitrarily large number of enter the battlefield triggers as @gendolkari explains.
This is an optional infinite loop and so the game won't end in a draw because you can always choose to end it by giving Haptatra the a -1/-1 counter from blowfly infestation.  If Haptara has more that 1 toughness, the loop will end because a creature does not die.  If Haptara has 1 toughness, the loop will end because her ability is no longer active.

421.2. If the loop contains one or more optional actions and one player controls them all, that player chooses a number. The loop is treated as repeating that many times or until another player intervenes, whichever comes first.

421.2 is a good find... but what rule stops you from doing the same action again to restart the loop after it has repeated “that many” times?

@GendoIkari Honestly, that feels like it'd almost fall under slowplay rules. There's not a whole lot of difference between doing it X times then Y times vs doing it X+Y times. This assumes no responses and similar boardstate, mind you.

@veskah. Good point. So the important thing here is that you cannot get a draw due to an infinite loop this way; right?

@GendoIkari In this case, you also need the ability to start the loop again as the two cards in question don't have the ability to start the loop on their own (besides as a result of combat).  Let's say you have Fevered Convulsions and infinite mana, you can create a meta-loop involving continually restarting the basic loop.  In this case, rule 421.2 kicks in again, you pick some number of times to resolve the meta-loop and the game moves on.

@Zags you could start the loop again simply by choosing the same targets for hose abilities again (the point where the loop ends is the point where you choose targets; to not start the loop again you’d need to choose different targets).

@GendoIkari Only mandatory infinite loops can cause the game to end in a draw.  Also see 104.4b

This works if you start with more than one 1/1 creature.
The order of events:
When you add your first -1/-1 counter on a 1/1 creature (creature A), this triggers Hapatra’s ability.[1] When state-based actions are checked; the creature dies; which also triggers Blowfly. SBAs keep getting checked until nothing new triggers.[2] At that time, you have 2 triggered abilities to put on the stack, and you can choose the order.
No matter which order you choose, you have to choose Blowfly’s target at this time. Hapatra will not have resolved yet, so the 1/1 token won’t exist yet to target. You will have to target something else. Only after that will both abilities resolve and give you your token.
If you had a second 1/1 token (creature B) to start with, then you could target that. If you do, and you have Hapatra resolve first, then Hapatra will create another 1/1 token (creature C), followed by Blowfly adding a -1/-1 token to creature B. This then repeats the entire cycle; everything is the same now except you have creatures B and C, with B dying, instead of creatures A and B, with A dying.
Note that you can always break the loop at any time by targeting a creature with more than 1 toughness with Blowfly's trigger. Because you have a different choice you can make, the game will not end in a draw due to this loop.[3]

[1]603.2. Whenever a game event or game state matches a triggered ability’s trigger event, that ability automatically triggers. The ability doesn’t do anything at this point.
[2]704.3. Whenever a player would get priority (see rule 116, “Timing and Priority”), the game checks for any of the listed conditions for state-based actions, then performs all applicable state-based actions simultaneously as a single event. If any state-based actions are performed as a result of a check, the check is repeated.
[3]104.4b [..] Loops that contain an optional action don’t result in a draw.

I'm unclear if the player can actually choose to force a draw or not... does 720.3 apply here? It doesn't very clearly define what a "fragmented loop" is; but the example seems to imply that it only deals with multiple players making a choice. In this case, there is only one player involved. But 104.4b also says "Loops that contain an optional action don’t result in a draw."

If anything, the rule that applies here is 720.2a. You are suggesting a shortcut that consists of a sequence of game choices (Blowfly Infestation target choices), and such a sequence has to have an end if possible. If every possible sequence of choices was infinite, then 720.4 would apply.

Just for clarification: Hapatra's ability triggers, then state-based actions are checked because the player gains priority again and only after that the ability resolves?


text:
When is a creature a Target?
For a Fleecemane Lion when you pay and place a +1/+1 on it making it monstrous.  Is the counter targeting Fleecemane Lion.  If someone casts an effect or activates an ability to change the target does this mean Fleecemane Lion is not monstrous?

Specifically, sub-question 2 deals with monstrosity.

Best rule of thumb here. Does the ability say the word "target" if not, then there's no targeting involved (there are exceptions, like auras, but in general this applies.

3 things target: 1) Spells/abilities that use the word target, 2) Keyword abilities that represent abilities that use the word target, and 3) Auras on the stack.

When that creature is a minotaur (joking, see Target Minotaur)


text:
Can making a creature unable to attack, after it has been assigned as an attacker, remove it from combat?
Kulrath Knight has an effect that states 'Creatures your opponents control with counters on them can't attack or block.'   So a creature is assigned as an attacker and subsequently gets a counter placed on it prior to combat resolution, does that remove the creature from combat?

Related: https://boardgames.stackexchange.com/questions/7343/what-happens-if-a-blocking-creature-with-flying-loses-flying

@GendoIkari close-enough that it might be a dupe, but this one is specifically asking about attacking and not blocking so I figured it was worth an answer. Plus there is clean/clear rule in CR so why not.

@Malco Yeah I don't think it's a duplicate; although there could easily be another question that these could then be both duplicates of. But unless this same basic question pops up a few more times in a few more forms; I don't think there's a need for such a question.

A -1/-1 counter can remove a creature from combat (by killing it), but I suspect that that's not what you meant.

@ArcanistLupus It's the interaction with Kulrath Knight's ability "Creatures your opponents control with counters on them can't attack or block." that Bill is referring to, asking if making a creature unable to attack after it was declared as attacking invalidates and reverses that attack (I think it does in YuGiOh and causes confusion for players coming from that game)

@ArcanistLupus Well a -1/-1 creature would not stop a creature from being blocked when placed on its blocker so not sure that really counts.

@JoeW His point is that a -1/-1 would stop a creature from blocking when that creature only had 1 toughness.

@Andrew The attacking create won't take damage from the blocking creature and possibly be destroyed but it would still be blocked which was my point.

@JoeW this question was not about damage being dealt, but about being removed from combat. And a dead creature is certainly removed from combat, even though it has given whatever it blocked "blocked" status

@Andrew In my example the attacker would still be in combat but against 1 less blocker than it had prior. The fact that a blocked creature has had all blockers killed before damage is assigned doesn't mean that it is no longer in combat.

@JoeW Placing it on a 1 toughness attacker would remove that attacker from combat, you are the one who assumed blocker, when that makes no sense in the context of the comment and question. placing it on a blocker would also remove it, the blocker, from combat

@Andrew I would certainly hope that removing a creature from play and placing it in the graveyard would remove it from combat but that is not at all related to what was asked here which was preventing something from attacking not destroying it in any way.

No, making a creature "unable to attack or block" after attackers have been declared does not remove it from combat.
An ability that says "Creatures can't Attack or Block" means that they can not be declared as blockers or attackers. If they are already attacking or blocking it is too late and they will not be removed from combat.

506.4a: Once a creature has been declared as an attacking or blocking creature, spells or abilities that would have kept that creature from attacking or blocking don't remove the creature from combat.

No, creatures that are already declared as attacking (or blocking) are not removed from combat because they could no longer be legally declared as an attacker or blocker. That is only checked when declaring the attack or block, and never again for that combat. This is covered by the comprehensive rules(Emphasis mine):

506.4a Once a creature has been declared as an attacking or blocking creature, spells or abilities that would have kept that creature from attacking or blocking don't remove the creature from combat.

There are effects that will remove a creature from combat, these though all specifically say they do so, on cards like Maze of Ith, Reconnaissance or Illusionist's Gambit. The ways that a creature CAN be removed from combat are spelled out here:

506.4 A permanent is removed from combat if it leaves the battlefield, if its controller changes, if it phases out, if an effect specifically removes it from combat, if it's a planeswalker that's being attacked and stops being a planeswalker, or if it's an attacking or blocking creature that regenerates (see rule 701.14) or stops being a creature. A creature that's removed from combat stops being an attacking, blocking, blocked, and/or unblocked creature. A planeswalker that's removed from combat stops being attacked.

There are also effects that can get around combat restrictions, usually effects that force a creature into play tapped and attacking, this lets you get around effects like Ensnaring Bridge with bigger ninjas, like
Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni, or past effects like Crawlspace by creating tokens when attacking with Hero of Bladehold or Tilonalli's Summoner. If an effect causes creatures to enter with a counter, say Rhythm of the Wild it will also bypass Kulrath Knight that turn.

Time Stop does not explicitly say it removes creatures from combat (and the foil hilariously lacks all of the "reminder" text entirely), but since there's no other logically reasonable interpretation of the card, there is a ruling to that effect.

@Kevin It is interesting that they specifically mention it happening before state-based actions are checked. If they hadn't, then creatures would still be removed from combat when the combat step ends, but state-based actions would not be checked again before the cleanup step. I haven't found any cards for which this would make a difference though.

@Kevin it does however move the game out of the combat step, so I'd say it less removes the creature from combat as causes that combat to cease to exist.

Time Stop's text is just reminder text, it does not list everything that happens. There is a full section of the rules (716) that describes how ending the turn works. And in fact 716.1b explicitly says "Remove all creatures and planeswalkers from combat"


text:
Does First Strike apply when two creatures Fight each other?
Does First Strike apply when two creatures fight, i.e when they have been targets of the Fight ability?

No. First strike only works in combat, and Fight is not a combat ability. See the Comprehensive Rules:

701.12. Fight
701.12a A spell or ability may instruct a creature to fight another creature or it may instruct two creatures to fight each other. Each of those creatures deals damage equal to its power to the other creature.
701.12b If a creature instructed to fight is no longer on the battlefield or is no longer a creature, no damage is dealt. If a creature is an illegal target for a resolving spell or ability that instructs it to fight, no damage is dealt.
701.12c If a creature fights itself, it deals damage to itself equal to twice its power.
701.12d The damage dealt when a creature fights isn’t combat damage.

702.7. First Strike
702.7a First strike is a static ability that modifies the rules for the combat damage step. (See rule 510, “Combat Damage Step.”)

And even if first strike did matter, the damage would still be dealt during a single resolution, and creatures don't have an opportunity to die from lethal damage until after the spell has resolved. I can't imagine there are many edges case where it matters whether the damage is dealt simultaneously or one after the other.


text:
Aura Mutation vs. indestructible enchantments
If the target is indestructible, does Aura Mutation still resolve and give you the tokens, or is an indestructible enchantment an illegal target?

The spell still resolves and gives you tokens; being indestructible means nothing more than

702.12b A permanent with indestructible can’t be destroyed. Such permanents aren’t destroyed by lethal damage, and they ignore the state-based action that checks for lethal damage (see rule 704.5g).

(source: Comprehensive Rules)
This is different from being an illegal target because of protection from white, shroud or hexproof.

I know what you mean, but this is slightly different that the situation in 609.3. It's two separate parts instead of not fulfilling a certain part to the max. I will look if there are any other references for this.

608.2c The controller of the spell or ability follows its instructions in the order written. explicitly mentions that there might be multiple instructions in a single spell. Aura Mutation does not try to do something impossible; it's just that it's effect is 'canceled/nullified' by indestructible.

That looks like a better suggestion.

For an indestructible enchantment, say Purphoros, God of the Forge, to have been an illegal target, the text of Aura Mutation would have had to say something like (emphasis mine):

Destroy target enchantment without indestructible. Create X 1/1 green Saproling creature tokens, where X is that enchantment's converted mana cost.

The restrictions on targets are always explicit, and for Aura Mutation, the only restriction is that it must be an enchantment. In Magic, as long as a spell has a legal target, it resolves, doing as much as it can. This spell tries to destroy the indestructible enchantment and fails, this does not stop the second half of the ability from resolving, if it would have the wording would have been like this (emphasis mine):

Destroy target enchantment, if you do create X 1/1 green Saproling creature tokens, where X is that enchantment's converted mana cost.

If the ability was written like this, the intervening if means the first clause has to have succeeded for the second part to happen, in this case destroying the targeted enchantment. Since you can't destroy an indestructible permanent, that second clause does not happen, and no tokens would be created.
If however the enchantment becomes an illegal target, say an enchantment creature gaining hexproof or shroud in response, then the only target of the spell is no longer legal and the spell fizzles. This used to mean being countered, but now it is just put into the graveyard without resolving.


text:
How many times can you cast a card exiled by Release to the Wind?
Release to the Wind has the following Text.

Exile target nonland permanent. For as long as that card remains exiled, its owner may cast it without paying its mana cost.

Is there a limit to the number of times you can cast it?

Yes, that limit is one time.
When a spell is cast, it moves to the stack and by then it fails to meet the "remains exiled" criterion mentioned by Release to the Wind. The Stack and Exile are different zones.

Stack

405.1. When a spell is cast, the physical card is put on the stack (see rule 601.2a). When an ability is activated or triggers, it goes on top of the stack without any card associated with it (see rules 602.2a and 603.3).

Exile

406.1. The exile zone is essentially a holding area for objects. Some spells and abilities exile an object without any way to return that object to another zone. Other spells and abilities exile an object only temporarily.
406.2. To exile an object is to put it into the exile zone from whatever zone it’s currently in. An exiled card is a card that’s been put into the exile zone.

Of course, if you'd cast another Release to the Winds on the same card, its owner will be able to cast it again.

I take it the card then moves from the stack to the graveyard?

It's a permanent, so it'll move to the battlefield (unless it's countered). But even if it's hit by an effect saying "Exile target spell" while it's on the stack, it can't be cast again.


text:
Timing/Stack question about abilities triggered during combat
Helm of the Host states: at the beginning of combat create a creature token.  Is there a stack to put this on and resolve, or is there no way for your opponents to respond to this triggered ability, or cast some other spell? A similar question regarding Sigiled Sword of Valeron. That happens later in the combat phase: 'Whenever equipped creature attacks, create a 2/2 white Knight creature token with vigilance that's attacking.' Is there a stack where this goes, allowing your opponent to respond?

Yes, both are triggered abilities and can be responded to, e.g. countering them with Stifle. If the ability triggered, it's too late to counter the ability by destroying the source with e.g. Naturalize. Even though the artifact is gone before the ability resolves, the ability itself is now a different 'object' and won't be affected by this.

603.1. Triggered abilities have a trigger condition and an effect. They are written as “[When/Whenever/At] [trigger condition or event], [effect]. [Instructions (if any).]”
603.2b When a phase or step begins, all abilities that trigger “at the beginning of” that phase or step trigger.
603.3. Once an ability has triggered, its controller puts it on the stack as an object that’s not a card the next time a player would receive priority. See rule 117, “Timing and Priority.” The ability becomes the topmost object on the stack. It has the text of the ability that created it, and no other characteristics. It remains on the stack until it’s countered, it resolves, a rule causes it to be removed from the stack, or an effect moves it elsewhere.

I noted those conditions except in the case of either of these they appear to resolve before anyone gets priority.  The assign attackers is over and the token is attacking.  The begining of combat has the token appearing and it has haste so it can be assigned as an attacker.  I can not find any place for a stack till after assign attackers which is too late.

@Bill it seems to me you are mixing up to concept of the stack with the concept of priority. There is only one stack ever, into which all spells and abilities go. You can cast spells and activate abilities whenever you have priority, which happens at least once every step, and also whenever something goes into the stack.

@Bill You are correct that attackers are done being declared before Sigiled Sword's ability resolves.  There's nothing preventing an ability from adding extra attackers after the player has finished declaring their attackers.

There are 6 steps to the combat phase:

Beginning of combat <-- Helm of the Host triggers here
Declare attackers <-- Sigiled Sword of Valeron triggers here
Declare blockers
First strike damage <-- Skipped if no creatures involved have first strike or double strike
Normal Damage
End of combat

Each player gets priority in each of these steps.  The game advances to the next step when the stack is empty and each player passes priority without taking an action.
So the sequence for Helm of the Host and Sigiled Sword of Valeron looks like this:

Players pass from the first main phase
Beginning of combat step starts
Helm of the Host triggers; it's trigger is placed on the stack
Active player gains priority and may cast spells and activate abilities; assume player takes no action
Next player in turn sequence gains priority and may cast spells and activate abilities; assume player takes no action
Repeat step 5 for each additional player
Helm of the Host's trigger resolves; a token that's a copy of the equipped creature is placed on the battlefield
Repeat steps 4-6
Declare attackers step begins
Active player declares which creatures they will attack with
Sigiled Sword of Valeron triggers; it's trigger is placed on the stack
Repeat steps 4-6
Sigiled Sword's trigger resolves; a 2/2 knight token is placed on the battlefield attacking
Repeat steps 4-6
Declare blockers step begins


text:
Massacre Girl when several creatures die at once
Massacre Girl and 7 creatures all get hit for lethal damage from the same effect. Does her triggered ability happen? Assume that there are multiple opponents each with at least one creature.

It depends on whether or not Massacre Girl entered the battlefield this turn.

Massacre Girl's ability reads:

When Massacre Girl enters the battlefield, each other creature gets -1/-1 until end of turn. Whenever a creature dies this turn, each creature other than Massacre Girl gets -1/-1 until end of turn.

As you can see, both sentences are part of the same ability. When this ability resolves, it creates a delayed trigger for the rest of the turn, which will trigger whenever a creature dies.
If Massacre Girl entered the battlefield this turn, even if her ability didn't kill any other creatures itself, it'll have created the delayed trigger, and that will trigger whenever a creature dies (including Massacre Girl herself). Otherwise, the delayed trigger doesn't exist and will, therefore, not trigger.


text:
What happens to leftover money in the pot in Red Dog (card game)?
In the card game "Red Dog", what happens to the money left in the pot after all the players bar one have quit the game? There can be a large amount in the pot that is not won.
I've looked at 5 sites which have the game's rules but none answer that question.

My understanding is Red Dog is a casino game is just one round played against against the dealer.  As any money if won or lost each round I'm not sure that you mean by 'the pot' in this game.  Unless your referring to another game of same name.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_dog_(card_game)


text:
Open lead in a variant of Spades, where players must play a winner if able (CallBreak)
CallBreak is an Indian variant of Spades, The rules differences from normal Spades are:

Solo (no partnerships)
Possible bids are from 1 to 8  (no Nil bids)
Players must play a stronger card than the current trick winner, if able.
Can lead first trick with a spade (No “spades broken” rule).
No bags penalty.
Game ends after 5 rounds.

My question is, what is a strong open lead in CallBreak?
While this question could be seen as opinion based, it is not so since I have access to a simulator of the game which allows me to compare clones of the same AI-agent that differ solely in the open lead, thus finding which open lead is better.

It is available to play in many mobile game applications and also at http://callbreak.com/.

I made several AI agents that plays CallBreak. My current strongest rule-based agent uses the following lead:

If starting with 5+ spades, lead them: lead boss, otherwise lead lowest.
Lead sidesuit Boss.
Lead strongest below the second-Boss from sidesuit with a second boss.
Lead low from Short sidesuit.
Lead Trash - low from worst suit.

Terminology:

Lead - the first card in the trick.
Open lead - the lead in the first trick of the round.
Boss - Strongest card in the suit, based on the cards that were already played. For example, the King is the Boss if the Ace was played.


text:
In Gin-Rummy, what are the chances to make Gin on the first turn?
What are the odds for a Gin on the first turn?  That is, what are the odds for arranging 10 out of 11 random cards in melds.
In Gin-Rummy, at the start of a round, players draw 10 random cards. On the first turn the player decide to either pickup the face-up card or pass the turn.  Thus, for the first player to make a Gin on the first turn, she must take the face-up card and arrange at least 10 out of the 11 cards in melds. In an earlier question we found out that the probability of 10 random cards to form a Gin is about 1 in 115,733.  Great explanation for the counting process here.

I modified that program by Andrew Inwood to count them (including all the three-of-a-kinds, still), and it finds 5,379,372 11-card hands that contain a 10-card gin hand.
Out of C(52,11) hands, that makes the odds about 1 in 11,228 or 0.00891%


text:
What happens if I go past Phase 10 in Phase 10 Twist?
In the Phase 10 Twist rules, they say the winner is whoever gets past phase 10. Say I'm on Phase 9, and I go out, dropping all my cards. I'm supposed to go 3 spaces forward, but can't because Phase 10 is the only spot left. Do I win automatically or do I sit on Phase 10 spot and play that spot to win?

The rules cover this, under the "If you land on the PHASE 10 Space..." section:

You may skip over the 10th Phase space by earning a 2 or 3-space move from one of the two preceding spaces.

So you indeed win if you go out while on Phase 9.


text:
Why is exile often an intermediate step?
When card text says to place a card into exile, and then do something else with that card, what is the purpose of putting it into exile temporarily?
For example, cards often either let your draw from your library into exile, or remove cards from a graveyard into exile, and then cast them from exile. Dire Fleet Daredevil for example.
As someone who did not play for many years, this seems wordy and over complicated.  I find myself reading such cards 2 or 3 times before mentally connecting the trigger to the end result without the seemingly pointless intermediate step of exiling cards.
I assume this is a common practice now to avoid some overpowered combo or weird condition.  I'd like to have a better understanding of what the rule/card designers accomplish/prevent by having exile as an intermediate step.
Note, I am not asking for an explanation of what exile does in general, nor am I asking why a player would prefer to exile over destroy.

Exiling a card before allowing an action does a couple things:

It protects the cards from interactions until it is cast.  If the Dire Fleet Daredevil has targeted a card, you want it to be uninteractable by the owner until you decide to cast it (assuming it wasn't removed in response to the trigger). If it wasn't exiled, it could be removed from the graveyard (e.g. shuffled into library) before being cast, preventing you from casting the card.
It acts to remove the card from the game.  This is more relevant for graveyard exile than deck exile, where it's more a use-it-or-lose-it situation. Even in the Daredevil scenario, if you never cast the card, it's still exiled.
It makes the card public information.  This applies more to deck exile.  It would be "harder" (read "near-impossible") to keep track of which card you exiled if you got to put the card into your hand.  Even if the card is not face-up, it's still in a separate area.

It also allows normal ETB stuff to happen without having to create weird special rules (see any of the creatures that flip to planeswalkers like Nicol Bolas, the Ravager).  It also makes it easier to understand (for me) rules like 701.27f (multiple delayed transform triggers only result in one transformation rather than multiple) (I can't exile and transform something that isn't on the battlefield vs flipping the same card over multiple times).

@Becuzz I didn't address that since I assumed flicker/exile+return weren't part of the question.

This reasoning is illuminating, but I think there's a premise (or conclusion?) that's been left unstated: The cards "earmarked" by these effects have to go somewhere within the game mechanics; the exile zone is the only place that allows an effect like "you get to play a card from an opponent's graveyard" to work while providing the conditions listed in this answer.

Re "you want it to be uninteractable by the owner until you decide to cast it", For example, if DFD left the card in the graveyard, if the card was somehow removed it from their graveyard, you would no longer be able to cast it (CR 400.7)

I think the second point is more of a side-effect rather than a reason. Protection and clarity are key here.

And note that there is a rule that if there are face down cards in a public zone, then while the front of the card is not public information, which card it is is public information, in the sense that if you exile two cards at two different times, you have to allow your opponent to track which card is the first card you exiled, and which is the second.

@RyanVeeder The cards don't have to go into exile to be played. [mtg:Sen Triplets] allows you to play cards directly from an opponent's hand. And if a card said you could play cards from opponents graveyards, you could as well.

@ikegami RE CR 400.7, do you want that added for clarification?  RE side-effect, I tend to think of it as a separate effect rather than a side-effect since many cards only exile.  Yes getting to cast it is a powerful side effect, but at the base it's an exile.

"It acts to remove the card from the game" -> "It sets aside the card", which is also useful for remembering which card was chosen

Re "do you want that added for clarification?", Up to you. Citing the rules doesn't seem necessary. I provided the example (not the rule) because I thought it wasn't 100% clear what you meant by point #1. // It can be a side-effect on some cards, and the main effect on others.

@Caleth, That was mentioned (point #3)

Dire Fleet Daredevil  probably isn't the best example, since the purpose is rather straightforward. The desired effect of the card is that you get to choose a card from an opponent's graveyard. The card you choose can be cast until the end of turn, and if it's not cast by then, it's lost forever. I can't think of a simpler way of implementing that. It could read "You can put target card into your hand, and then at end of turn if it's still in your hand exile it", but that would mean that there's a special card in your hand that has a special property that has to be kept track of, and would mean that there would have to be an extra trigger at the end of turn exiling it. It also means that you have a card that you don't own in your hand, and AFAIK the main game (i.e. not including the un sets) doesn't allow cards you don't own in your library, hand, or graveyard. Not only would this implementation be more complicated, it would also not be functionally identical. As just one example of an interaction that would differ between the two situations, if the card is in your hand, your opponent can get you to discard it, but cards can't be discarded from exile.

It's not something from recent years; Magic's history is full of cards which remove ... from the game (the old wording for 'exile').
In fact, that terminology is a better indication of what's going on (Wizards of the Coast switched to 'exile' for flavor reasons, and not everybody was happy with this). The cards are removed from the rest of the game in order to make it clear for every player (whether the cards are face up or face down) that they were 'set apart' for a special effect. You'd lose that if they were put in somebody's hand, graveyard or the bottom of their library.
Because they are 'set apart', there aren't that many cards which are able to interact with all cards in the exile zone. (Pull from Eternity is one of the exceptions.) That also means that it's relatively safe for combos by the owner, but also for 'hate' by the opponent (e.g. Tormod's Crypt). In your Dire Fleet Daredevil case, the opponent can't return them to their own hand, or cast them themselves if the spells have flashback.

The Wish cycle used to be able to interact with the removed from game zone, but it cannot interact with the exile zone.

Heh, you're right - it's been a long time since I played competitive MtG. I'm on mobile right now - have there been printed any alternatives meanwhile?

There are only a few. Pull from Eternity is probably the simplest one.

I disagree that "remove from the game" is a better term than "exile". Things that aren't part of the game (e.g. cards not in my deck, Scrabble tiles, etc.) should be essentially irrelevant to someone playing the game. With so many relatively recent cards that interact with cards in exile, exiled cards are a strategic resource for certain types of decks. For the card in question here, it wouldn't make much sense to be able to cast a card that's been "removed from the game" - if I can cast it, it is clearly still part of the game!

This ianswer involves a lot of theory crafting and opinions. One or more actual sources would go a long way towards improving this answer.

@NuclearWang and e.g. AWOL making a joke about the dissonance of having a game zone named "removed from the game"


text:
Which mercenaries does the bishop apply to?
In "Condottiere", 3rd edition, the bishop's rule sounds ambiguous.
It makes the players discard "all of the highest strength mercenary cards".
But if we have the following cards on the table :

Player 1: [1] [6]
Player 2: [3] [5]

Would the bishop apply on only the 6 or on both the 6 and the 5?
Is it all of the highest strength cards for a single battle line? Or for all the battle lines?

The way the rules are worded:

When a Bishop card is played, all of the highest-strength Mercenary card(s) in play are discarded.

(emphasis mine)
and the specific example they choose to highlight (where two players have the highest-strength card):

Example: In a two-player game, Chris has one 6- strength, one 3-strength, and two 1-strength Mercenary cards in his battle line. Scott has one 6-strength and two 1-strength Mercenary cards in his battle line
and plays a Bishop card. Since the highest-strength Mercenary card in play is 6, all 6-strength Mercenary cards are discarded from both players’ battle lines (even the player that played the Bishop card).

lead me to think that in your situation, it would only apply to the 6, not the 5. The words 'in play', when interpreted naturally, apply to the board state in its entirety. The example seems to highlight a specific situation which won't happen all the time.

To me, the example might be interpreted as both "the highest cards in play" and "the highest cards for each player's row", and to me this casts a doubt.
But I guess that the interpretation you make of the rules makes sense, in the (French) version I use, that's even more ambiguous since the rule for the Spring cards states that it adds 3 to the highest cards "in play with the highest value of all the battle lines", this precision isn't present for the bishop's card and that difference doesn't seem to be present in the English version.


text:
Is the ability of Sphinx of New Prahv cumulative?
The passive ability says

Spells your opponents cast that target Sphinx of New Prahv cost {2} more to cast.

If I have two copies in play, does the opponent has to pay {4} extra to target one Sphinx with a spell?

No, just {2}; in this case, Sphinx of New Prahv refers only to itself. (Also, if the card's name somehow changes, it would still refer to itself.) The relevant rule is

201.4. Text that refers to the object it's on by name means just that particular object and not any other objects with that name, regardless of any name changes caused by game effects.

It would be different ({4}) if the card would read

Spells your opponents cast that target a card named Sphinx of New Prahv cost {2} more to cast.

but it doesn't.

If the opponent's spell targets both Sphinxes then each would apply the +2 making +4


text:
Do benched Pokemon heal?
I'm trying to learn Pokemon TCG so I can play with my kids; and I'm trying to figure out whether benched Pokemon heal or not? If so: are there any constraints ("healing rate", etc.) which apply to this healing process?
If not, can we remove Pokemon from the bench and return them to our hand and have them heal then? Or is the only way to heal via potions or trainer cards?

This rules guide explicitly says that:

You'll see that each pokemon has HP, this stands for hit points. When they have damage on them equal to or greater than that number, they are knocked out. Each attack does damage, which is written on the card. This damage stays on the pokemon, even if it is no longer the active, unless you can heal it with a card.

This suggests that if you don't remove the damage counters from your Pokemons, they don't in fact heal by themselves. It doesn't matter whether the Pokemon is active or benched.
And yes, returning a Pokemon to your hand removes all damage from it, but you cannot return a Pokemon to your hand whenever you want to. You need to use trainers or an ability of a Pokemon to do so.

While they do not heal hit points, a Pokémon that retreats or otherwise moves to the bench does remove all other conditions - any status condition such as poisoned, burned, confused, asleep, paralyzed; any effect from attacks or abilities (that aren't still acting on it) is removed (things like "this Pokémon can't attack", or similar). From the Pokemon rules guide:

All status conditions are healed if your pokemon retreats to the bench, or if your pokemon evolves. Pokemon on the bench cannot be affected by special conditions.

I've added a citation for this answer. The source is the same as in the other answer—if you'd prefer a different source, please feel free to update.


text:
In what order do unblocked creatures assign damage?
Scenario:

Player A has two unblocked creatures attacking player B, each with power 3 with an ability that triggers upon dealing combat damage to a player, let's say Brago, King Eternal and Doubtless One.
Player B has a damage prevention effect preventing the next 4 damage dealt to himself.
No creatures have first strike and no other replacement or prevention effects are active.

Which of the two creatures abilities triggers and why?

Player B gets to choose exactly which of the 6 damage is prevented.
The two creatures deal damage simultaneously. Rule 510 deals with the combat damage step, and days among other things (emphasis mine):

510.2. Second, all combat damage that’s been assigned is dealt simultaneously. This turn-based action
doesn’t use the stack. No player has the chance to cast spells or activate abilities between the time
combat damage is assigned and the time it’s dealt.

So how does the prevention happen? Rule 615 speaks about prevention effects, and we find that the affected player (or the controller of the affected permanent) decides freely what damage to prevent if multiple sources deal simultaneous damage:

615.7. Some prevention effects generated by the resolution of a spell or ability refer to a specific
amount of damage—for example, “Prevent the next 3 damage that would be dealt to any target this
turn.” These work like shields. Each 1 damage that would be dealt to the “shielded” permanent or
player is prevented. Preventing 1 damage reduces the remaining shield by 1. If damage would be
dealt to the shielded permanent or player by two or more applicable sources at the same time, the
player or the controller of the permanent chooses which damage the shield prevents. Once the shield
has been reduced to 0, any remaining damage is dealt normally. Such effects count only the amount
of damage; the number of events or sources dealing it doesn’t matter.


text:
How to get “Final Countdown” Spell card in Duel Links?
I am new to Yugioh Duel Links game and am wondering how to get Final Countdown.

At the time of this answer's writing,
Final Countdown is not obtainable in Duel Links.
To verify this, you can search for it within the View/Convert Cards section of the Deck Studio. Doing a text search for the word "final" shows six cards - none of which are Final Countdown.
Moreover, according to the Yu-Gi-Oh! wiki, neither  does a skill which adds Final Countdown to a player's hand or deck currently exist.


text:
Can Esika, God of the Tree ever cheat the back side of a double-sided card into play?
Suppose I have played The Prismatic Bridge (the back face of Esika, God of the Tree), an enchantment which has "At the beginning of your upkeep, reveal cards from the top of your library until you reveal a creature or planeswalker card. Put that card onto the battlefield and the rest on the bottom of your library in a random order."
Now suppose that the card revealed this way is Valki, God of Lies - which is a double-faced card with Tibalt, Cosmic Imposter on the back.  Can I put Tibalt, Cosmic Imposter into play instead of Valki?

No - The Prismatic Bridge specifically tells you to put the card onto the battlefield, double faced cards being put onto the battlefield without being played (lands) or cast (spells) are put into play front face up unless otherwise specified (put into play transformed, or daybound/nightbound). This is covered by rule 712.10:

712.10 A double-faced card put onto the battlefield from a zone other than the stack enters the battlefield with its front face up by default.

712.10a If a spell or ability puts a transforming double-faced card onto the battlefield “transformed,” it enters the battlefield with its back face up. If a player is instructed to put a card that isn’t a transforming double-faced card onto the battlefield transformed, that card stays in its current zone.
712.10b If a player is instructed to put a modal double-faced card onto the battlefield and its front face isn’t a permanent card, the card stays in its current zone.

To add to Andrew's answer, this is addressed explicitly on the linked Gatherer  page:

If you reveal a double-faced card whose front face is a creature or planeswalker, you'll put it onto the battlefield with its front face up.

along with other general double-faced card clarifications like

If an effect puts a double-faced card onto the battlefield, it enters with its front face up. If that front face can't be put onto the battlefield, it doesn't enter the battlefield.


text:
If the person to my right plays a Skip card, can I still pick the top card off the discard pile?
In Phase 10, if the person to my right uses their 'Skip card' to skip over me, can I still pick the top card off the discard pile?

Welcome to the site, and thanks for your question! Can you please clarify which of the following is actually your question: a) "If someone skips me, do I have to do nothing on my turn or can I still at least draw a card if I want?" or b) "If it is my turn and a Skip card is on top of the discard pile, am I allowed to draw it?". I ask because there is clearly some confusion among readers: the answer given is to question b, but someone else was trying to edit your question to read as a.

No you cannot.
From the rules:

Skip Card – This card enables you to force someone to skip or lose a turn for that particular rotation/round. Once you discard or play it down, you can choose anyone to lose their turn. The Skip card may not be picked up from the Discard Pile, only from the Draw Pile. If it’s the first card to be turned up at the start of the game, the first player to start will lose a turn.

Neither, the rule says a skip card is placed in front of a player, not on the discard pile. So the question is can the player after the skipped player pick up the card on top of the discard pile which was placed there by the last player

There are some older versions of rules that tell you to place the skip card in front of a player, but I believe those rules rae old/obsolete and replaced with the new rules linked in the other answer.


text:
Damage assignment with multiple attackers and blockers
I'm returning to Magic and I have a scenario that I can't seem to settle. In the case where I have two 4/4 creatures which I use to attack an opponent who then decides to defend with two 1/2 creatures, how is the damage allocated? Neither the 4/4 creatures or the 1/2 creatures have any special characteristics (i.e. not flying, not trample). I'm wondering which of the following is the right way:

Each of the opponent's creatures block each of my creatures, and their two creatures die.
The damage of one of my creatures destroys one of theirs, and then the remaining damage is assigned to the next 1/2 blocker creature. My second 4/4 is then free to attack the player.

Any help in understanding the order of operations for this situation would be greatly appreciated.

The defending player chooses which creatures block which attacking creatures, so your opponent can choose to either

have each 1/2 block a different 4/4
have both 1/2s block the same 4/4

The attacking player chooses how to distribute damage of the 4/4s. If a 4/4 is blocked, it cannot deal damage to the defending player. In case 1, all 4 damage is dealt to the 1/2 blocking it, so the blockers are destroyed. In case 2, the attacking player can (but is not required to, see below) divide the damage evenly among the 1/2s, destroying them both; the other unblocked 4/4 deals its combat damage to the player. Therefore, case 1 is preferable for the defending player.
It's possible to choose another distribution of damage among blocking creatures, e.g. 4 to one of them and 0 to the other, for example if some of the damage would be prevented with e.g. Cover of Winter (thanks @CALEBF for the suggestion). But a blocked creature (without trample) can only deal combat damage to creatures blocking it. The actual rules can be quite complicated when multiple blockers are involved which can't be all dealt lethal damage; see below.

510.1c A blocked creature assigns its combat damage to the creatures blocking it. If no creatures are currently blocking it (if, for example, they were destroyed or removed from combat), it assigns no combat damage. If exactly one creature is blocking it, it assigns all its combat damage to that creature. If two or more creatures are blocking it, it assigns its combat damage to those creatures according to the damage assignment order announced for it. This may allow the blocked creature to divide its combat damage. However, it can’t assign combat damage to a creature that’s blocking it unless, when combat damage assignments are complete, each creature that precedes that blocking creature in its order is assigned lethal damage. When checking for assigned lethal damage, take into account damage already marked on the creature and damage from other creatures that’s being assigned during the same combat damage step, but not any abilities or effects that might change the amount of damage that’s actually dealt. An amount of damage that’s greater than a creature’s lethal damage may be assigned to it.
Example: The damage assignment order of an attacking Vastwood Gorger (a 5/6 creature) is Pride Guardian (a 0/3 creature) then Llanowar Elves (a 1/1 creature). Vastwood Gorger can assign 3 damage to the Guardian and 2 damage to the Elves, 4 damage to the Guardian and 1 damage to the Elves, or 5 damage to the Guardian.
Example: The damage assignment order of an attacking Vastwood Gorger (a 5/6 creature) is Pride Guardian (a 0/3 creature) then Llanowar Elves (a 1/1 creature). During the declare blockers step, the defending player casts Giant Growth targeting Pride Guardian, which gives it +3/+3 until end of turn. Vastwood Gorger must assign its 5 damage to the Guardian.
Example: The damage assignment order of an attacking Vastwood Gorger (a 5/6 creature) is Pride Guardian (a 0/3 creature) then Llanowar Elves (a 1/1 creature). During the declare blockers step, the defending player casts Mending Hands targeting Pride Guardian, which prevents the next 4 damage that would be dealt to it. Vastwood Gorger can assign 3 damage to the Guardian and 2 damage to the Elves, 4 damage to the Guardian and 1 damage to the Elves, or 5 damage to the Guardian.
Example: The damage assignment order of an attacking Enormous Baloth (a 7/7 creature) is Trained Armodon (a 3/3 creature) that already has 2 damage marked on it, then Foriysian Brigade (a 2/4 creature that can block an additional creature), then Silverback Ape (a 5/5 creature). The damage assignment order of an attacking Durkwood Boars (a 4/4 creature) is the same Foriysian Brigade, then Goblin Piker (a 2/1 creature). Among other possibilities, the active player may have the Baloth assign 1 damage to the Armodon, 1 damage to the Brigade, and 5 damage to the Ape, and have the Boars assign 3 damage to the Brigade and 1 damage to the Piker.

I think the last paragraph is a little weird.  If you look at 510, there is no chance to do any tricks between distributing damage and the damage being dealt.  So there is no threat of Artful Maneuver interfering with those damage distributions.  I think maybe the best example for this is Cover of Winter.  If there is an age counter on Cover of Winter, you need to deal three damage to the first creature if you want to ensure that specific creature dies.

Ah, you're right. I've played 95% of my games under the old rules, where such tricks were possible.

Oh yeah, I forgot that this was the way it had to work under the old "damage on the stack" framework

You can only distribute damage evenly because a 4/4 deals enough damage to kill both blockers.  If they were 1/3s then your only options would be to deal 3 and 1 or 4 and 0 - you have to deal lethal damage to the first blocker before you deal any to the second (the catch is that the attacker gets to choose which blocker is the 'first' blocker.

@ArcanistLupus thanks, that's indeed important to note. That particular rule is so long ...


text:
Does the rent for the 'Double the rent' card need to be paid in two steps?
If I have played the rent card + the double the rent card, do the other players need to pay me for the total doubled amount or do they have to pay it in two steps?
Example:
I play Rent card (6m) + double the rent.
Now they need to to pay 6m + 6m or 12m?

The double the rent card has to be played with a rent card, and doubles the rent to be payed for that rent card.
In your example, they would need to pay just 12m.


text:
Can you chase away the robber if your knight is not active at the beginning of your turn?
Can you use your knight to chase away the robber if it was inactive at the beginning of your turn?

No.
According to the rules,

A knight may not be activated and then perform an action on the same turn.


text:
Is a pawn allowed to capture onto a promotion square?
I was playing chess with my father.
My pawn was on the second-to-last square before promotion. He had two rooks side-by-side blocking my pawn, therefore I naturally took the rook beside it because a pawn moves diagonally to take the piece.
He said this was an illegal move and not allowed, that a pawn cannot take a piece diagonally and then gets promoted because it's on the other side. Is this true?

A rule like this would provide unfair protection for pieces in the back row and in the future I would ask for proof of such a rule.

[chess.se] has more great questions for you OP!

No, this in incorrect. A pawn may capture and promote on the same move, there's no rule prohibiting this (§3.7 of the official rules regulate pawn moves, including captures and promotions).
With two rooks next to each other, the pawn might be 'pinned' because your king is on the same column and there are no other pieces or pawns in between; then, a capture would put your king in check. Otherwise, capturing is just as legal as moving forward.

The rules get even more explicit in 4.6.3: “If an opponent’s piece stands on the square of promotion, it must be captured.”

@wrtlprnft True, but rules 3.7.1 and 3.7.3 must be borne in mind. We don't determine the promotion square and then remove any opposing unit on it, regardless. We must choose between applying rule 3.7.1 (in which case the promotion square is the one straight ahead and the move is legal only if that square is empty) and applying rule 3.7.3 (in which case the promotion square is diagonally ahead and the move is legal only if that square contains a unit the pawn may capture).

@RosieF All I was trying to say is that the rules explicitly consider the act of capturing a piece during promotion.So it's not just some omission in the rules, but a clearly stated intent.


text:
What is the 'duration' of Charmed Sleep?
I have a question that relates to untapping a creature enchanted by Charmed Sleep. It says "Enchanted creature doesn't untap during its controller's untap step".
Does this apply to the following controller's untap step, or for any untap step?
(That is, does the enchantment last for one round or forever?)

It lasts permanently (as long as it's enchanting the creature). It simply states something which is true, so it will apply to all untap steps (of the creature's controller), not just the following one.

Thank you for the explanation.
Can I ask a bit more?   You refer to a property of language - "states something which is true" [without restrictions when] so applies to all. Is it a property of English generally, or is it just English as used on the cards ?

@user30128 It is a property of the English language used, but you can be sure that Magic’s rules specify it in detail (rule 113.3d, per ikegami’s answer).

@user30128 I think you're thinking about it the wrong way. It doesn't have a duration, it's simply there. Each time the creature would untap during its controller's untap step, if it is still enchanted by the aura (which it will be indefinitely unless a spell or an ability explicitly removes either the creature or the aura off one another or off the battlefield) the aura says that instead it doesn't untap. It's as simple as that.

"Enchanted creature doesn't untap during its controller's untap step." is a static ability.

113.3d Static abilities are written as statements. They’re simply true. Static abilities create continuous effects which are active while the permanent with the ability is on the battlefield and has the ability, or while the object with the ability is in the appropriate zone. See rule 604, “Handling Static Abilities.”

So the rule-modifying continuous effect it creates will last until the Charmed Sleep leaves the battlefield.

Charmed Sleep is not a change of control effect...

Ack! Fixed, but I'm not sure there's much point to the answer anymore with the extra paragraph that simply no longer applies. That said, the OP was confused by the other answer, so I'm going to leave this here.

Have a look at Crippling Chill. It states (emphasis mine):

Tap target creature. It doesn’t untap during its controller’s next untap step.

Here you can see how long this effect lasts.
Without the "next", it simply means that whenever that player has their untap step, the enchanted creature does not untap.


text:
Cauldron of Souls and Hydra Interaction
To keep it short I'm making a Hydra Tribal edh deck and was thinking about including Cauldron of Souls. I am not sure how it interacts with hydra creatures where you have to pay X for them. If I have a Hydra with base 0/0 and 5 +1/+1 counters on it that dies and is brought back with Cauldron of Souls, is it now a 4/4 or does it instantly die as it is brought back as a 0/0?

Cauldron of Souls is not really a good card in a Hydra deck.

107.3f If a card in any zone other than the stack has an {X} in its mana cost, the value of {X} is treated as 0, even if the value of X is defined somewhere within its text.

That means that if the Hydra enters the battlefield in another way (e.g. from the graveyard through an animate effect, Flicker, or persist), it has no knowledge about the X you spend when you originally cast it (which may be turns ago, or have not even happened at all). Instead, X=0, the Hydra re-enters the battlefield with 0 +1/+1 counters and it instantly dies (unless it has a base toughness higher than 1 - it needs to survive the -1/-1 persist counter as well).
Otherwise, it would be a little overpowered, since +1/+1 and -1/-1 counters cancel each other out, and you would be able to repeatedly bring it back. (Though for 5 mana + the cost of the Hydra, you might expect such a powerful effect.)

Ok thanks, thats sort of what I was expecting but I can always be hopeful.

A bit confusing to say it dies from the -1/-1 counter, because a 0 toughness creature would die even if it did not have a -1/-1 counter.

Slightly off topic, but Cauldron of Souls works very well with creatures that say "enters the battlefield with N +1/+1 counters". N may vary, but isn't X cost. For instance, Bioessence Hydra or Clockwork Hydra. If that creature was given persist, it would return with N-1 +1/+1 counters, and could be persisted again in the manner you're thinking.

@Aetherfox It's also good with creatures with Undying.

Re "A Hydra entering the battlefield from anywhere but your hand has no knowledge about the X you spend when casting it", That's statement has so many errors. For starters, the hydra absolutely does know the X chosen when it was cast, no matter from where it was cast. I think you meant to say that X is 0 when the hydra wasn't cast, but you talk about the hydra having been cast.

Re "Otherwise, it would be a little overpowered", That's not a valid argument. There are other infinite combos in the game.

Re "It's also good with creatures with Undying.", Indeed. See What happens when a creature with Persist AND Undying dies?

@ikegami that's how I remembered the rule as a teenager, and it worked remarkably well. I meant the situation where the Hydra is cast, but later re-enters the battlefield in another way.


text:
Can you counterspell everything? (aside from lands)
Artifacts, instants, sorcery, planeswalker, creature, and enchantment spells can all be stopped by counterspells right? So if I play Veil of Summer, and someone hits me with Didn't Say Please, would it cancel its effects (hexproof, spells can't be countered, and draw a card)?

Your opponent wouldn't hit you with Didn't Say Please, they would hit a spell you control. Are you saying that they hit Veil of Summer while it's on the stack?

You're right; everything that is a spell can be countered by Didn't Say Please. This excludes lands (they aren't spells and can't be countered)

305.1. A player who has priority may play a land card from their hand during a main phase of their turn when the stack is empty. Playing a land is a special action; it doesn’t use the stack (see rule 116). Rather, the player simply puts the land onto the battlefield. Since the land doesn’t go on the stack, it is never a spell, and players can’t respond to it with instants or activated abilities.

and activated or triggered abilities (which can be countered, but with other cards like Trickbind).
Veil of Summer's effects, including the 'spells can't be countered' part, only apply when they resolve; if it's on the stack, it's still vulnerable to Didn't Say Please.
Note that there are some spells which explicitly state they can't be countered, e.g. Obliterate, but there's an important difference in the wording: "This spell can't be countered." vs. "Spells you control can't be countered this turn.". "This spell" refers to the spell itself when it's on the stack; "Spells" does not.

Do note that "can't be countered" just means that a counterspell (or ability) does not have effect on it when it resolves. It can still be targeted by said counterspell. If then for some reason the spell can be countered again before the counterspell resolves, it will be countered.

Can you counterspell everything?

No.
To counter something, one removes it from the stack.[CR 701.5a] As such, you will only receive instructions to counter things that can be on the stack. These are

Spells
Activated abilities on the stack
Triggered abilities on the stack

In general, all of those can be countered.
That said, I believe that every counterspell only target a proper subset of these, so any particular counterspell only counters some of the above. For example,

Counterspell can't counter abilities.
Annul can only counter an Artifact spell or an Enchantment spell.
Revolutionary Rebuff can't counter abilities or Artifact spells.
Trickbind can't counter spells.

Furthermore, there are other restrictions in practice. Continuous effects (such as the one created by Veil of Summer) can restrict what can be countered. And other continuous effects (e.g. those created by Hexproof, Shroud and Protection) can restrict what can be targeted, indirectly reducing what can be countered.

Artifacts, instants, sorcery, planeswalker, creature, and enchantment spells can all be stopped by counterspells right?

Yes, subject to the limitations mentioned above.
A spell is a card on the stack, a copy of a spell (e.g. Doublecast), or a copy of a card on the stack (e.g. Isochron Scepter).[CR 112.1, .1a, .1b]
This includes Artifact spells, Instant spells, Creature spells, etc.
One of the first thing done as part of casting a card is to place it on the stack, so casting a card creates a spell (no matter what card types it has).
Note that once a spell leaves the stack it's no longer a spell, and thus can no longer be countered. That means that while a counterpell could be used on a Creature card on the stack, it couldn't be used on a Creature card on the battlefield.

(aside from lands)

Not really.
There's nothing that prevents someone from countering a Land spell. However, Land cards simply can't be found on the stack, so you will simply never encounter a Land spell.[CR 305.1, .9]
If a Land were to somehow find itself on the stack, it could be countered.

if I play Veil of Summer, and someone hits me with Didn't Say Please, would it cancel its effects (hexproof, spells can't be countered, and draw a card)?

Yes.
To counter a spell, one removes it from the stack.[CR 701.5a] This means it will never resolve, which means none of its effects will occur.

112.1. A spell is a card on the stack. As the first step of being cast (see rule 601, “Casting Spells”), the card becomes a spell and is moved to the top of the stack from the zone it was in, which is usually its owner’s hand. (See rule 405, “Stack.”) A spell remains on the stack as a spell until it resolves (see rule 608, “Resolving Spells and Abilities”), is countered (see rule 701.5), or otherwise leaves the stack. For more information, see section 6, “Spells, Abilities, and Effects.”
112.1a A copy of a spell is also a spell, even if it has no card associated with it. See rule 706.10.
112.1b Some effects allow a player to cast a copy of a card; if the player does, that copy is a spell as well. See rule 706.12.
305.1. A player who has priority may play a land card from their hand during a main phase of their turn when the stack is empty. Playing a land is a special action; it doesn’t use the stack (see rule 116). Rather, the player simply puts the land onto the battlefield. Since the land doesn’t go on the stack, it is never a spell, and players can’t respond to it with instants or activated abilities.
305.9. If an object is both a land and another card type, it can be played only as a land. It can’t be cast as a spell.
701.5a To counter a spell or ability means to cancel it, removing it from the stack. It doesn’t resolve and none of its effects occur. A countered spell is put into its owner’s graveyard.

"A spell is a card on the stack, a copy of a card on the stack (e.g. Doublecast), or a copy of a card on the stack (e.g. Isochron Scepter)" What distinction are you drawing between the two kinds(?) of copies?

@Karl Knechtel, They're all spells, so there's no distinction from that point of view. But if you want to describe what things are spells, then one must list three things because no terminology covers two of them and nothing else. Specifically, you can't just say "a copy on the stack" because "copy" is not a thing in MTG; it's always a copy of something, and there's no something that means "card or spell".

I think you typo'd, then? One of the "copy of a card on the stack"s should be "copy of a spell on the stack"?

@KarlKnechtel, woops! Indeed. Good catch. Sorry for the confusion. Fixed.

Artifacts, instants, sorcery, planeswalker, creature, and enchantment spells can all be stopped by counterspells right?

This is mostly true, but there are some exceptions.  The general structure of the rules of Magic is that the game defines basic rules and then modifies them with exceptions.  Most of the exceptions are caused by cards themselves as opposed to other rules within the rulebook.  Here are some notable exceptions:

Some spells have rules text that explicitly say "This spell can't be countered" which means that counterspells are ineffective.  Here are some nominally uncounterable spells.
Some spells have Split Second, which are functionally uncounterable by spell.  This is because Split Second makes casting any spells (including counterspells) illegal.

702.60a Split second is a static ability that functions only while the spell with split second is on the stack. “Split second” means “As long as this spell is on the stack, players can’t cast other spells or activate abilities that aren’t mana abilities.”

As an aside, there are even exceptions to the exceptions above, but those are out of scope for this answer.

While I believe that ikegami gave a pretty comprehensive answer to this question, the card rulings on gatherer may also be of help in this case:

Veil of Summer has no effect until it resolves. It can be countered.

When you attempt to cast Veil of Summer, it goes on the stack. At this point, it can be countered. The spell itself does not have Hexproof.