Judge B is almost right.

Replacement effects look for an event to try and replace it. What exactly is an event depends on the replacement effect.

Here the creature is about to be detroyed. Regeneration is trying to replace destruction. Pillar of Flame is trying to replace “the creature is put into its owner's graveyard”, which is a part of destruction.

Both replacement effects are thus eligible, since both events are about to happen. After you apply one replacement effect, you determine whether the other one is still applicable, and apply it if it does.

If the creature's controller chooses to apply Pillar of Flame's replacement effect first, it replaces the “creature is put into the graveyard” part of destruction, but the event as a whole is still a destruction, so regeneration is still applicable. After that, you apply regeneration and creature stays on the battlefield.


If, on the other hand, the creature's controller chooses to apply regeneration first, then destruction as a whole is replaced, and “put the creature into the graveyard” is no longer about to happen. Pillar of Flame's effect does not apply anymore, and the creature stays on the battlefield.

Daniel Kitachewsky
L3, Paris, France
Rules NetRep

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Wouldn't Pillar of Flame's replacement still apply to the permanent if the regeneration replacement was applied first, waiting to exile it the next time it dies this turn?

not dissimilar to the situation where I activate Sundial of the Infinite to squelch the end step exile trigger of an unearthed creature and it remains on the field, but gets exiled if it would later go to any zone other than exile

if the creature's controller chose to apply Pillar first, does it still wait for a future destruction event this turn?

Edited Todd Bussey (June 20, 2013 11:54:18 AM)