Merfolk Cave-Diver

two generic mana one blue mana Creature — Merfolk ScoutPower and toughness2/4

Whenever a creature you control explores, this creature gets +1/+0 until end of turn and can't be blocked this turn.

"Learn all you can of this underground sea. I suspect more secrets of our ancestors lie waiting in its depths." —Tishana

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Showing The Lost Caverns of Ixalan#65

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0.19 $

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8 printings

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Merfolk Cave-Diver rulings

2023-11-10
If a creature leaves the battlefield before an effect instructs it to explore, it still explores. Abilities like Merfolk Cave-Diver's that trigger whenever a creature you control explores will still trigger.
2023-11-10
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.
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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.
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If no card is revealed, most likely because that player's library is empty, the exploring creature receives a +1/+1 counter.
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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.
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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.
2023-11-10
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.)

Merfolk Cave-Diver keyword rules

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.