@psyklone:
No. You choose your targets BEFORE you pay the costs. Therefore you can't bring the same creature back.
Posted By:
Belz_
(7/24/2010 4:04:43 AM)
Why does this have such a low rating?!
With Dredge, this guy is an utter nightmare, letting you summon anything for basically free!
Posted By:
Weretarrasque
(9/25/2009 4:40:24 AM)
You wanna hear a scary joke? Apparently Recurring Nightmare is MaRo's idea of fixing Hell's Caretaker. 0.0
It was around this time he learned his skill set was better suited to design than development.
http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtg/daily/mm/169
@ Atali No actually you have it backwards. Just because a card has a problem, doesn't mean that problem is it's Design. In this case, the problem isn't Design, because the both cards express a cool idea: Sacrifice a creature to bring another one back.
When you talk about power balance based on interactions with cards far removed from the Set you're currently working on, that's Development, not Design. Mechanically, Design only cares mainly if the card works or not- if it delivers what it says it can do. Development then tweaks all the knobs until its ready to be allowed for Tournaments.
Yes, that's an oversimplification. Yes, they've run disambiguation articles in this past. But in this case,... (see all)
Posted By:
DarthParallax
(3/11/2012 8:24:52 PM)
Since sac-ing is part of the activation cost, the sac'd creature is in the graveyard when the ability is "cast", so you could bring the same creature back. Great for a zombie combo, or even an Arcbound one. Every turn I kill and bring back a +2+2 arcbound creature, and every turn another artifact creature gets 2 more counters.
4.5
Posted By:
psyklone
(11/24/2009 7:54:48 PM)
@Belz_
if that is true then why can you play the same card returned to your hand with Master Transmuter?
Posted By:
blimmi
(9/6/2010 4:57:27 AM)
Gavepact
Posted By:
Balatr0
(3/21/2011 10:55:51 PM)
Looks like the rating is getting closer to where it should be. The ability gets there in casual, and probably made for some evil combos while it was still standard-legal. Personally, I like this + Bladewing the Risen (makes all your dragons keep coming back. Sac Bladewing to it, then use it to return bladewing. Ooooh, look, that dragon you just killed? He's back.) or this + Kokusho, the Evening Star.
Posted By:
BDragon123
(3/13/2010 8:37:02 PM)
OMG, I just realized yesterday this guy was in Ninth, I LOVED this card. Remember he was in one of my decks...can't remember which one thou...
Posted By:
ElvishSpirit
(7/7/2010 8:27:50 AM)
@blimmi: because Master Transmuter does not target anything, but instead allows you to choose a card from your hand upon resolution.
Posted By:
jstorrie
(1/4/2012 11:17:28 PM)
@DarthParallax
You can clearly see how Recurring Nightmare would be a fixed version of this when they are both taken at face value. This costs no mana to use each turn, and can sacrifice itself n a pinch for the cost. Nightmare requires 
each use and requires an additional creature card to sacrifice every time. Now, of course, we all know the nightmare is far more powerful due its interactions, a fact that was obviously completely missed during design, the mark of an inexperienced designer.
Posted By:
Atali
(2/10/2012 1:31:02 PM)