Removal After Attackers Are Declared
Judge Level 1The Hellrider dies instantly — its attack trigger burns you anyway.
Cards involved
The Hellrider attacks
Your opponent attacks with Hellrider (3/3): "Whenever a creature you control attacks, Hellrider deals 1 damage to the player or planeswalker it's attacking." The trigger goes on the stack.
508.3Triggered abilities that trigger on attackers being declared may have different trigger conditions.
You respond with removal
Doom Blade on the Hellrider — kill it before it deals damage.
What happens?
What do you actually prevent?
Doom Blade will resolve first and kill the Hellrider. What did you gain?
Pick an answer to continue.
113.7aOnce activated or triggered, an ability exists on the stack independently of its source. Destruction or removal of the source after that time won’t affect the ability. Note that some abilities cause a source to do something (for example, “This creature deals 1 damage to any target”) rather than the ability doing anything directly. In these cases, any activated or triggered ability that references information about the source for use while announcing an activated ability or putting a triggered ability on the stack checks that information when the ability is put onto the stack. Otherwise, it will check that information when it resolves. In both instances, if the source is no longer in the zone it’s expected to be in at that time, its last known information is used. The source can still perform the action even though it no longer exists.
Doom Blade resolves
The Hellrider dies and is out of combat.
The trigger still hits
1 damage to you. The combat damage (3) is gone though — the removal was worth it, just not completely.
Stack
Your life:
Hellrider
Whenever a creature they control attacks: 1 damage to you
Doom Blade
Target: the Hellrider
Triggered ability: Hellrider
Hellrider trigger: 1 damage to you
The stack is empty.
Battlefield
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In short
Does an attack trigger still resolve if the attacker is killed after attackers are declared?
Show answer Hide answer
The trigger fired when attackers were declared (508.3) and has been an independent object on the stack ever since (113.7a). Removal after the declaration saves you the combat damage — the "when it attacks" effects still hit you.
508.3Triggered abilities that trigger on attackers being declared may have different trigger conditions.
113.7aOnce activated or triggered, an ability exists on the stack independently of its source. Destruction or removal of the source after that time won’t affect the ability. Note that some abilities cause a source to do something (for example, “This creature deals 1 damage to any target”) rather than the ability doing anything directly. In these cases, any activated or triggered ability that references information about the source for use while announcing an activated ability or putting a triggered ability on the stack checks that information when the ability is put onto the stack. Otherwise, it will check that information when it resolves. In both instances, if the source is no longer in the zone it’s expected to be in at that time, its last known information is used. The source can still perform the action even though it no longer exists.
608.1Each time all players pass in succession, the spell or ability on top of the stack resolves. (See rule 609, “Effects.”)