MTGNexus

So, in general I guess I am questioning what I can and can't do in the middle of resolving a trigger of Sanwell, Avenger Ace. Lets say I don't have quite enough mana to cast something I find with his trigger but I have things like Honor-Worn Shaku and additional legends but untapping it isn't a mana ability. Generally speaking paying for the card or not paying for the card is what I can do once I begin revealing the cards so I am just curious if I can later try to generate more mana from untapping Honor mid trigger. I also have options like Crystalline Crawler with sac outlets and modular creatures. I assume to some degree that if I use a mana source sac outlet like Krark-Clan Ironworks I can get away with moving counters onto the crawler but what about something like Arcbound Ravager sac to move counters to pay for the card?

I just really haven't asked enough questions in the past on something related to this. I don't know if I can activate non mana sources mid trigger or not in order to generate the mana to cast something.

ISBPathfinder wrote: ↑

8 months ago

I don't know if I can activate non mana sources mid trigger or not in order to generate the mana to cast something.

The simple answer to this question is no. Sanwell's triggered ability is exactly the kind that is covered by CR 608.2g - "If an effect specifically instructs or allows a player to cast a spell during resolution, they do so [...] except no player receives priority after it's cast. That spell becomes the topmost object on the stack, and the currently resolving spell or ability continues to resolve, which may include casting other spells this way. No other spells can normally be cast and no other abilities can normally be activated during resolution." Emphasis is mine. Since no one has priority as a spell or ability resolves, no one can activate abilities that require priority until resolution is finished - which is all of them except for mana abilities.

In other words, you may tap Honor-Worn Shaku for mana, remove +1/+1 counters from Crystalline Crawler to activate its mana ability, and sacrifice artifacts to activate Krark-Clan Ironworks's mana ability. You may not activate Arcbound Ravager's activated ability, Crystalline Crawler's T ability, nor Honor-Worn Shaku's activated ability that untaps it. Any triggered abilities that are triggered by you activating mana abilities go on top of the stack but won't resolve in the middle of another ability's resolution.

I was assuming that was how it was but I will be honest its narrow enough I really hadn't looked into this sort of thing before. Thanks for setting me straight!