Board & Card Games Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for people who like playing board games, designing board games or modifying the rules of existing board games. It only takes a minute to sign up.
Sign up to join this community
Here's a quick question: suppose your opponent attacks with an 8/8 with Trample, and you block with a 5/5 with Defender, Indestructible, and Hexproof. You also have Hexproof.
Trample is an ability, and Hexproof won't allow you to be targeted by abilities or spells. How would one assign damage then?
Or is Hexproof just not important at all by this point?
They don't interact at all.
The word "target" does not occur anywhere in the Comprehensive rules for 702.19, Trample, nor 510, Combat Damage Step (well, the latter does use the word "target" within some examples, but those uses refer to spells being cast, not to the combat damage itself).
The Comprehensive rules for Hexproof are short enough to include here in their entirety:
702.11. Hexproof
- 702.11a Hexproof is a static ability.
- 702.11b "Hexproof" on a permanent means "This permanent can't be the target of spells or abilities your opponents control."
- 702.11c "Hexproof" on a player means "You can't be the target of spells or abilities your opponents control."
- 702.11d Multiple instances of hexproof on the same permanent or player are redundant.
Because combat damage is not targeted, and Trample does not target the blocking creatures nor the defending player, Hexproof will not protect creatures or players from this damage.
Your opponent would deal at least 5 damage to your blocking creature and up to 3 damage to you.
Hexproof prevents your opponents from targeting your creature and you in this example, but hexproof doesn't stop other things from effecting your creature or you. Things target only when they say the word 'target' on them (and Aura spells on the stack), other things like combat damage, Wrath of God, Archetype of Courage, or Worldfire do not target thus will still effect creatures, players, or anything else with Hexproof.
From the M15 Basic Rules PDF:
hexproof —A creature with hexproof can’t be the target of spells or abilities your opponents control, including Aura spells. Your spells and abilities can still target it.
target — If a spell uses the word “target,” you choose what the spell will affect when you cast it. The same is true for abilities you activate.
