Good morning, Vintage strategists.
I was watching the Vintage Super League on YouTube and noticed something that really stood out to me.
I've been playing Oath of Druids decks in Vintage for many years. Throughout that entire tenure, judges and players alike have been telling me the same thing: When an Oath of Druids trigger is on the stack, players can't increase or decrease the amount of creatures on the battlefield to change the outcome of the Oath of Druids. They've said that however the turn began is what the Oath of Druids will ultimately "see" upon resolution, regardless of what has changed since then.
By clicking this link, you'll be taken to the exact time (22:08) when Shuhei Nakamura begins his turn. He controls fewer creatures than Brian Kelly and has the option to successfully activate Oath of Druids. Brian Kelly responds, with Nakamura's trigger on the stack, and taps his Forbidden Orchard to give Nakamura a spirit token, therefore equalizing the amount of creatures that both players control. Nakamura ultimately doesn't activate Oath of Druids and moves on to his draw step. (By choice, or due to inability?)
I was under the impression that, once a turn began, creatures couldn't be added or removed to change the outcome of an Oath of Druids. Did Nakamura not activate his Oath of Druids on his own accord, or was Kelly's last-minute decision actually what "stopped" Oath of Druids from working? Eric Froehlich and Randy Buehler didn't seem surprised by what Kelly did. Froehlich even briefly acknowledged it.
I'd like to get this straight once and for all. It's an important concept, especially for the Oath of Druids mirror match. How does adding and removing creatures work in relation to an Oath trigger going on the stack?
Let's look at Example A:
Bill is on the play and is going to take his first turn. He casts Mox Ruby, plays a Forbidden Orchard, and then casts Oath of Druids. It resolves. Bill passes the turn.
Andrew draws a card and plays a Forbidden Orchard of his own. He taps it for blue, casts a Preordain, and then ends his turn. Both players have an equal amount of creatures.
Can Bill untap, trigger Oath of Druids, and then respond to it by tapping his own Forbidden Orchard to increase Andrew's amount of creatures and change the outcome of Oath of Druids? Many judges have told me that this won't work, but I want to know for sure.
If Kelly was able to add a creature to nullify an Oath trigger by equalizing the amount of creatures, why couldn't somebody remove or add creatures to cause Oath of Druids to trigger when it otherwise wouldn't?
How about Example B?
Bill is on the play and is going to take his first turn. He casts Mox Ruby, plays a Forbidden Orchard, and then casts Oath of Druids. It resolves. Bill passes the turn.
Andrew draws a card and plays a Forbidden Orchard of his own. He casts Mox Sapphire. He taps them, casts Time Walk, and then ends his turn. Andrew takes his extra turn, taps his Forbidden Orchard, and passes.
Let's say Bill untaps, triggers Oath of Druids, and then responds to it by tapping his own Forbidden Orchard and Mox Ruby to cast Fire//Ice, successfully killing off his own two tokens. Now that Andrew has two tokens and Bill has zero, can he successfully use Oath of Druids, even though he had more at the beginning of the turn?
I realize that this thread will partially be a wash if Kelly's adding of a creature didn't actually change anything, and that Nakamura simply chose not to activate his enchantment, but regardless, let's get some clear answers.
Thank you to all who are able to offer some insight on the finer details of triggering an Oath of Druids. I'd really like, once and for all, to definitively know how all of this works.