Mordekaiser, Twice Slain
Unofficial Riftbound rulings for Mordekaiser, Twice Slain, with rules explanations, examples, and Core Rules citations.
Can I kill another friendly unit that would die simultaneously with Mordekaiser to pay for his replacement effect?
Yes, if Mordekaiser's replacement effect has not already been applied this turn. It applies before either simultaneous death occurs. The other friendly unit therefore remains on the board and can be killed to pay its cost.
Killing the other friendly unit is Mordekaiser's cost. Paying it performs a kill game action. That game action occurs before any simultaneous death events left unmodified by the replacement effect. Mordekaiser's death is replaced, so he is healed, exhausted, and recalled instead.
This result is not limited to specific cards. Two common ways to create simultaneous deaths are:
- Lethal damage: During a cleanup, all units with lethal damage are killed together. This applies directly to combat damage: if it leaves Mordekaiser and another friendly unit with lethal damage, the combat cleanup that follows would kill them together. Other examples include the cleanup after Singularity or Bellows Breath leaves Mordekaiser and another friendly unit with lethal damage. A cleanup caused while either spell resolves waits until that spell finishes.
- One kill instruction: For example, The Ruination and Cataclysmic Duel each use one kill instruction that can affect multiple units, so those deaths are simultaneous.
Can Mordekaiser, Twice Slain save himself while I control Endless Riches?
Yes, if Mordekaiser's once-per-turn replacement effect is available and you apply it before Endless Riches whenever both effects apply, then kill another friendly unit for its cost. Mordekaiser is healed, exhausted, and recalled even if Endless Riches banishes that unit's card instead of killing it.
If Mordekaiser's card would go to your trash, both effects initially apply to his death, so you choose their order as his controller. If Mordekaiser's effect applies first and you choose another friendly unit, killing that unit is the cost of saving him. If that unit's card would go to your trash, Endless Riches replaces killing it with banishing its card instead. Replacing its associated game action does not undo the payment. If Endless Riches does not apply to the chosen unit, that unit is killed normally to pay the cost. Mordekaiser's effect therefore heals, exhausts, and recalls him.
If Endless Riches applies to Mordekaiser's original death and you apply it first, it banishes him instead of killing him, leaving no death for his replacement effect to replace.
If an opponent's spell would kill Mordekaiser, Twice Slain, does killing him for his own replacement cost trigger that opponent's Immortal Phoenix in their trash?
No, because the kill used to pay Mordekaiser's replacement cost is attributed to his ability rather than the opponent's spell and therefore does not trigger Immortal Phoenix.
Replacing Mordekaiser's original death means the kill action from the opponent's spell does not occur. Mordekaiser's replacement effect cannot apply again to the kill used to pay that cost. You perform that new kill action as the cost, so you are responsible for it. Because Mordekaiser's ability contains the kill instruction, the kill is attributed to that ability and to Mordekaiser, not to the opponent's spell. An Immortal Phoenix in that opponent's trash triggers only if they are responsible for a kill attributed to a spell they control.
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Written by Christian “Near” Ivicevic.
Last updated on .