When a Grave Titan attacks and is blocked by Mirran Crusader, the Crusader will not die. As we discussed a few weeks ago, protection does several things, such as preventing all damage from any source it has protection from. That means that deathtouch will not apply, as damage that is prevented is not considered dealt.

Now let’s say you attack with Elite Inquisitor, and your opponent flashes in Ambush Viper to block. Players might assume that because of the block, the deathtouch kicks in, killing off the Elite Inquisitor, but it doesn’t work that way. Deathtouch requires at least 1 point of damage to be dealt to the creature. The Inquisitor has first strike, so it deals 2 damage to the Viper in the first combat damage step, killing it before the Viper even gets a chance to deal damage (which would happen in the second combat damage step if it were still alive).

Today’s Rules Tip written by
Ronny Alvarado, Level 2 judge from Houston, TX