Celebration in MTG: Rules, FAQ, and Best Cards

Last updated on September 22, 2023

Raging Battle Mouse | Illustration by Rudy Siswanto

Everyone has a kind of candy they don’t like. And if I offer you one, you might just take a look and say, “Ah, no thanks.” But if I toss a bunch of candy in a piñata and it all spews to the ground on the vessel’s dramatic destruction, you might just race forward and hoover it all up in the excitement. That’s a party for ya.

Party logic is that more of a thing is great, even if the thing itself kinda sucks. It extends from piñatas to kegs, although maybe it sputters out with candles after a point? MTG’s celebration mechanic has this same feel: More stuff is better.

Although maybe Magic designers don’t party all that hard, as this mechanic has set limits to its boons, which, now that I’m saying that, is really the safest way to party after all. Adulting is tough.

But celebration, as a mechanic, doesn’t have to be. Let me explain….

How Does Celebration Work?

Jace, Arcane Strategist | Illustration by Kieran Yanner

Celebration is a keyword ability on permanents that grants an effect of some kind if the celebration condition is met. Celebration triggers when two or more nonland permanents have entered the battlefield under the controlling player’s control that turn.

It’s a reasonably straightforward mechanic with the odd “second thing gets the trigger” idea used in the second card drawn ability introduced in War of the Spark on Jace, Arcane Strategist but fleshed out on seven cards in the next premiere set, Throne of Eldraine.

The History of Celebration in MTG

Ash, Party Crasher | Illustration by Jason Rainville

Celebration first appeared in 2023 on 11 cards in Wilds of Eldraine. As of yet, that’s all we have, although the “when you draw your second card” ability highlighted in the original Throne of Eldraine has appeared in a few cards in multiple sets, since, including premiere sets, Commander releases and Jumpstart 2022, so perhaps we’ll see it again. It feels a bit underpowered for Constructed formats, which is often where we see mechanics return.

When Does Celebration Trigger?

Celebration triggers when the second nonland permanent enters the battlefield. That appears more complicated on a card like Ash, Party Crasher, whose celebration-given ability only triggers on combat, but celebration as a global, triggered state happens on that second ETB, and it’s like Ash checks that as it attacks.

Can I Trigger Celebration Multiple Times in One Turn?

No. A second nonland permanent can only enter the battlefield once per turn, so celebration, likewise, can only be triggered once per turn.

Can You Respond to the Celebration Trigger?

Not really. You can’t Stifle a keyword ability. If you Fatal Push the second permanent, it doesn’t matter because it already entered the battlefield and triggered celebration.

The only real response is to counter or Reprieve the spell that would result in a second permanent entering the battlefield, but even that won’t always work. Heroic, for example, is a mechanic that complicates this. If I cast Akroan Crusader for my first nonland permanent and then cast Giant Growth on it, the 1/1 token is made on casting, regardless of whether the spell is countered or not. And then we celebrate!

Do Tokens Count Towards the Celebration Trigger?

Yes, as long as they’re nonland permanents, which most tokens are. The exceptions are things like Rite of Replication or other token-generating clone effects that don’t specify nonland. If you Rite an activated Mishra's Factory, those tokens are still lands.

Do Both Nonland Permanents Have to Enter at the Same Time?

No. As long as they entered in the same turn, that’s enough. Celebration triggers that grant a buff, like that on Grand Ball Guest, can happen at instant speed if you drop a creature with flash during combat, for example.

Do They Need to Stay on the Battlefield?

No. The ETB happens, triggering celebration, and then it doesn’t matter if the permanent is destroyed, exiled, or sacrificed. Incidentally, when a permanent is bounced to hand and recast or blinked, the second time is ETBs it triggers celebration, as it counts as a new permanent on the second ETB. It’s like the game “forgets” it.

Does Gaining Control of a Nonland Permanent Count Towards Celebration?

No. If I Act of Treason your Tough Cookie, even if it entered the battlefield that turn for you, it wasn’t under my control when it ETB’d, so it doesn’t count toward celebration.

What About Animating a Land?

No. It’s the same principle. Anything that changes form doesn’t trigger celebration because that doesn’t make a new object ETB. Permanents that transform through exiling themselves, like battles or sagas that transform into a creature at the end such as Fable of the Mirror-Breaker, would count towards celebration, though, because they enter the battlefield on transformation.

Can You Stifle Celebration?

No, a keyword ability, like a static ability doesn’t go on the stack, and only things that use the stack can be Stifled. For example, Gallant Pie-Wielder simply has double strike once the celebration conditions are met.

The complication here is that celebration can also grant other abilities which can be Stifled, like that on Ash, Party Crasher. If celebration is met, when Ash attacks, it can put a counter on itself. That trigger can be stifled, but that stifling doesn’t negate the state of celebration that induced the trigger.

Gallery and List of Celebration Cards

• Armory Mice
• Ash, Party Crasher
• Belligerent of the Ball
• Bespoke Battlegarb
• Gallant Pie-Wielder
• Goddric, Cloaked Reveler
• Grand Ball Guest
• Lady of Laughter
• Pests of Honor
• Raging Battle Mouse
• Tuinvale Guide

Best Celebration Cards

Brief commentary on which of these cards are seeing the most play in Standard as well as anything in Commander or any of the eternal formats.

Okay, wait a minute. Hold the comments for a sec! I know Bespoke Battlegarb looks like the second coming of Bramble Armor, but this is in red and you can keep snapping it around at the start of combats, which feels really cool. It’s kind of weird that this is fancy clothes, as it seems unreasonable for your army to quick change like that. And I can’t stop thinking of the Green Lantern movie, sadly.

I’m getting goblins might be good in Standard again vibes here, as you know you want to be able to pair this with Cacophony Scamp. Add the Rundvelt Hordemasters you blew wildcards on and the Rhuk, Hexgold Nabbers you forgot existed, and I can see it. Failing that, you know Voldaren Thrillseeker is looking for a home.

In Commander, hard pass.

People are playing Phyrexian Arena in various formats, which means folks are willing to take off turn 3 for that. I’d rather just get more impact on the board. Turn 5 or 6? Well, this is probably right after a board wipe, so I can see Lady of Laughter fitting the plan, especially if multicolor faeries become a thing in Standard.

In Commander, this feels like bulk rare city, though.

Goddric, Cloaked Reveler is a hasty 3/3 for 3, which is always fine. But in a Standard deck, tossing out rectangles with other hasty cards like Charming Scoundrel, and it hits as a 4/4 flier with dragon-wide firebreathing. That’s fun!

It’s a bit hard to see an expensive dragon deck being reliably able to double spell in a way that makes this more than a pipe dream, but I’m looking at Manaform Hellkite and Shivan Devastator a bit differently now.

Look, the pressure would be on for a card called Raging Battle Mouse to be number one if it were even close, but fortunately, it’s not. This card is ridiculous, as is the insanely fun art by Rudy Siswanto.

Sure, you wish it had haste, but it’s still going to be sneaky awesome in Standard red aggro decks. The buff plus the cost reduction for tantalizingly close to playable cards like Blazing Crescendo that are combat trick quasi cantrips is going to be a big game. And in an instant speed control deck, this can toss out Go for the Throats and counterspells much more efficiently with this out.

It’s got fragile toughness, but it’s a mouse.

Wrap Up

Gallant Pie-Wielder | Illustration by Matt Forsyth

These cards are fine. So far this feels like a Limited mechanic more than anything, but I think these top four cards could find their way into Standard. Maybe. Sorta. Probably not Commander.

But I like the concept here, and since it self-limits on power level, I don’t see why it can’t be powered up in the future.

I’m all ready to celebrate Wilds of Eldraine. Are you? What do you think of celebration? Do you want to see more of it in future sets? Let me know in the comments below or over on Draftsim’s Discord.

Thanks for reading, and go find something to celebrate!