New sets always bring new mechanics, and with the Izzet, I was looking forward to getting something for my Maelstrom Wanderer Commander deck. Imagine my disappointment when I saw Overload!

See, when you use an ability like cascade or flashback to cast a spell from a place you normally couldn’t, what you’re doing is casting it for an alternative cost (even “without paying its mana cost” still counts as an alternativee cost). Overload, too, is an alternative cost.

The problem is that while you can pay as many additional costs (like kicker or entwine) as you want, once you choose an alternative cost, you can’t cast the spell for any other alternative cost. So if you’re trying to cast a spell like Cyclonic Rift or Mizzium Mortars using Snapcaster Mage, the choice is already made for you – you can’t cast it out of the graveyard at all without choosing the flashback alternative cost, which means you don’t get the option to pay the overload alternative cost.

Sorry Maelstrom Wanderer – we’ll just have to wait until Gatecrash to see what the Gruul and Simic will bring!

Today’s Rules Tip written by
Jen Wong