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Lodestone Needle // Guidestone Compass

Lodestone Needle

one generic manaone blue manaArtifact

Card text

Flash

When this artifact enters, tap up to one target artifact or creature and put two stun counters on it.

Craft with artifact two generic manaone blue mana (two generic manaone blue mana, Exile this artifact, Exile another artifact you control or an artifact card from your graveyard: Return this card transformed under its owner's control. Craft only as a sorcery.)

Guidestone Compass

Artifact

Card text

one generic mana, tap this permanent: Target creature you control explores. Activate only as a sorcery. (Reveal the top card of your library. Put that card into your hand if it's a land. Otherwise, put a +1/+1 counter on that creature, then put the card back or put it into your graveyard.)

Showing The Lost Caverns of Ixalan#62

Price

0.26 $

Foil 0.29 $

8 printings

Daily estimate from Scryfall, not a shop quote.

Lodestone Needle // Guidestone Compass rulings

  • Lodestone Needle's enters-the-battlefield ability can target an artifact or creature that's already tapped. If so, you'll just put two stun counters on that artifact or creature.

  • The back faces of some cards with craft refer to cards "used to craft" it. This refers to the cards exiled as part of the cost of the craft ability of the front face. Those cards are considered to be "used to craft" that permanent as long as they remain exiled and the permanent remains on the battlefield, even if the permanent's controller changes or some of its characteristics change (because of a copy effect, for example.)

  • If the materials required include multiple objects, you may exile some of them from among permanents you control and the rest from among cards in your graveyard. You don't have to choose all permanents or all cards from your graveyard.

  • You may exile tokens you control as part of the materials required. However, because they aren't cards and won't stay in exile, any abilities that refer to what you "used to craft" the back faces won't refer to anything.

  • If a card that isn't a transforming double-faced card becomes a copy of a card with craft, it'll stay in exile if you activate the craft ability. It won't return to the battlefield.

  • If an ability instructs a creature to explore, its controller reveals the top card of their library. If it's a land card, they'll put it into their hand. Otherwise, they'll put a +1/+1 counter on that creature, then choose to either leave that card on top of their library or put it into their graveyard.

  • Once an ability that causes a creature to explore begins to resolve, no player may take any other actions until it's done. Notably, opponents can't try to remove the exploring creature after you reveal a nonland card but before it receives a counter.

  • If no card is revealed, most likely because that player's library is empty, the exploring creature receives a +1/+1 counter.

  • If a resolving spell or ability instructs a specific creature to explore but that creature has left the battlefield, the creature still explores. If you reveal a nonland card this way, you won't put a +1/+1 counter on anything, but you may put the revealed card into your graveyard. Effects that trigger "whenever a creature explores" trigger as appropriate.

  • Some spells or abilities might cause a creature to explore multiple times in a row. If you reveal a nonland card when a creature explores and leave it on top of your library, then the creature explores again immediately afterwards, you'll reveal the same card again.

  • In some unusual cases, noncreature permanents may explore. For example, if the creature card returned by Defossilize is somehow not a creature once it's on the battlefield, it can still explore. You'll take all the same actions, and you may end up putting a +1/+1 counter on the permanent. (Note that some effects target a creature, and those effects would still require a legal target to have it explore.)

Lodestone Needle // Guidestone Compass keyword rules

Craft Rule 702.167

Craft represents an activated ability. It is written as “Craft with [materials] [cost],” where [materials] is a description of one or more objects. It means “[Cost], Exile this permanent, Exile [materials] from among permanents you control and/or cards in your graveyard: Return this card to the battlefield transformed under its owner’s control. Activate only as a sorcery.”

If an object in the [materials] of a craft ability is described using only a card type or subtype without the word “card,” it refers to either a permanent on the battlefield that is that type or subtype or a card in a graveyard that is that type or subtype. This is an exception to rule .

An ability of a permanent may refer to the exiled cards used to craft it. This refers to cards in exile that were exiled to pay the activation cost of the craft ability that put this permanent onto the battlefield.

Transform Rule 701.28

To transform a permanent, turn it over so that its other face is up. Only transforming tokens and permanents represented by transforming double-faced cards can transform. (See rule , “Double-Faced Cards.”)

Although transforming a permanent uses the same physical action as turning a permanent face up or face down, they are different game actions. Abilities that trigger when a permanent is turned face down won’t trigger when that permanent transforms, and so on.

If a spell or ability instructs a player to transform a permanent that isn’t represented by a transforming token or a transforming double-faced card, nothing happens.

If a spell or ability instructs a player to transform a permanent, and the face that permanent would transform into is represented by an instant or sorcery card face, or is a transforming token that was created with an instant or sorcery face, nothing happens.

Some triggered abilities trigger when an object “transforms into” an object with a specified characteristic. Such an ability triggers if the object either transforms or converts (see rule ) and has the specified characteristic immediately after it does so.

If an activated or triggered ability of a permanent that isn’t a delayed triggered ability of that permanent tries to transform it, the permanent does so only if it hasn’t transformed or converted since the ability was put onto the stack. If a delayed triggered ability of a permanent tries to transform that permanent, the permanent does so only if it hasn’t transformed or converted since that delayed triggered ability was created. In both cases, if the permanent has already transformed or converted, an instruction to do either is ignored.

Some spells and abilities refer to a “transformed permanent.” This phrase refers to a permanent on the battlefield with its back face up that’s also a transforming double-faced card or a transforming token. A permanent with its front face up is never considered a transformed permanent, even if it had its back face up previously.

Explore Rule 701.40

Certain abilities instruct a permanent to explore. To do so, that permanent’s controller reveals the top card of their library. If a land card is revealed this way, that player puts that card into their hand. Otherwise, that player puts a +1/+1 counter on the exploring permanent and may put the revealed card into their graveyard.

A permanent “explores” after the process described in rule is complete, even if some or all of those actions were impossible.

If a permanent changes zones before an effect causes it to explore, its last known information is used to determine which object explored and who controlled it.

Flash Rule 702.8

Flash is a static ability that functions in any zone from which you could play the card it’s on. “Flash” means “You may play this card any time you could cast an instant.”

Multiple instances of flash on the same object are redundant.

Lodestone Needle // Guidestone Compass format legality

Constructed

  • StandardLegal
  • PioneerLegal
  • ModernLegal
  • Future StandardLegal

Eternal

  • LegacyLegal
  • VintageLegal
  • PauperNot legal
  • PremodernNot legal
  • Old SchoolNot legal
  • Penny DreadfulNot legal

Commander

  • CommanderLegal
  • OathbreakerLegal
  • Pauper CommanderNot legal
  • Duel CommanderLegal
  • PreDHNot legal

Arena & online

  • HistoricLegal
  • TimelessLegal
  • AlchemyNot legal
  • GladiatorLegal
  • BrawlLegal
  • Standard BrawlLegal
  • Competitive BrawlLegal

Other

  • TLRLegal

All printings of Lodestone Needle // Guidestone Compass 8

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Card data

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