So let’s break that ability down a bit. The ability itself is sometimes confused with triggers, but it isn’t one. It’s a replacement effect that changes the event “a permanent you control triggers” to the event “a permanent you control triggers twice“. Teysa’s ability doesn’t use the stack and it can’t be responded to- it just doubles the triggers automatically. Of course, the two triggers DO use the stack, and CAN be responded to. This also isn’t ‘copying’ the trigger- should the trigger in question involve a choice (like Vindictive Lich in a 2 person game, for example!), you aren’t locked into the same choice for both triggers, as each one is a separate thing. You can also choose targets independently for each trigger, and since both are put onto the stack simultaneously, you’ll choose which one is going to happen ‘first’. In the Lich example, you could make your opponent discard 2 cards and THEN sacrifice a creature, or the other way around.
But… what does Teysa work on? That’s the real head-scratcher we’ve been seeing around this card. Does she work with ‘when you exploit’ triggers, or with Deathreap Ritual, or “graveyard from anywhere” triggers? No, no, and sometimes! The exploit triggers are looking for a creature being sacrificed by the Exploit triggered ability, not just for something dying. Something does technically die, but the trigger condition for them is more specific, so it won’t get doubled from Teysa. Same with Deathreap Ritual- that’s just an “at the beginning of each end step” trigger, not a “when something dies” trigger. It does have an intervening-if clause that’ll keep the trigger from properly being put on the stack if nothing died, but it still TRIGGERS whether or not something dies- it just won’t go on the stack. So no Teysa double there. “Graveyard from anywhere” triggers are interesting though. For those, it will work, but only if Teysa herself and the triggering permanent are still on the battlefield immediately after the death of the creature that caused the trigger. So let’s say we have a Turntimber Sower on board, and an animated land like Treetop Village. If that Village chump-blocks something big and dies, Turntimber Sower will go to trigger, and Teysa says “Hey, that’s technically from a creature dying! Double that.”, and you’ll get two Sower triggers. But if there were a board-wipe like Damnation, everything would die, and THEN the trigger would be put onto the stack. Neither Teysa nor the Sower are on board at that point, so only one trigger for us. Very important note: these ‘graveyard from anywhere’ situations are the only ones where Teysa and the triggering permanent have to be alive after the death of a creature!
Today’s Rules Tip was written by Trevor Nunez