As a battle resolves, its controller chooses one of their opponents to protect it
Its one thing for a combo to win a game and end it, but the worst banned cards will stop your opponents from doing anything from early in the game (think about cheating out a Sundering Titan on turn 1), but wont let you win for a long time
This finally gives Abzan a clear and cohesive identity, especially through the cards released in the Commander products
(7/14/2017) If a replacement effect allows a player to modify or replace an event by putting counters on an artifact, creature, enchantment, or land, that player may apply that replacement effect
In the incredibly rare case where there is no legal target for the last mode, that mode can't be chosen