It’s been a while since Fate Reforged was released, but today, like Sarkhan, we’re going to go back in time and take a look at the manifest mechanic. When a creature is manifested, even if it doesn’t already have a morph cost, you can “unmorph” it by paying its mana cost. However, this doesn’t work so well with cards with delve, like Gurmag Angler.

Delve is an alternative way to pay while you’re casting a spell, but turning a creature face-up via manifest is not casting a spell. While you might only have to pay 3 or 4 mana to cast your 5/5 if you fill up the graveyard fast enough, manifest doesn’t care; it only cares what the creature’s printed mana cost is. Which means that if you’re unlucky enough to get Gurmag Angler face-down off the top of your library instead of drawn into your hand, you’re paying the full 7 mana for your 5/5 every time.

Today’s Rules Tip written by Jen Wong