Sisay, Weatherlight Captain — ruling 1

If Sisay leaves the battlefield after you've activated its last ability but before that ability resolves, use its last known existence on the battlefield to determine what cards you can find.

Sisay, Weatherlight Captain — ruling 2

If a card in a library has {X} in its mana cost, X is considered to be 0.

Sisay, Weatherlight Captain : règles, fonctionnement et interactions (MTG)

Sisay, Weatherlight Captain is one of those cards players keep asking about. Here is, in plain words, what its official text says, the rulings published by Wizards of the Coast, and the combos players actually run.

Official card text

Sisay gets +1/+1 for each color among other legendary permanents you control. : Search your library for a legendary permanent card with mana value less than Sisay's power, put that card onto the battlefield, then shuffle.

Complete guide

Sisay, Weatherlight Captain is the ultimate commander for a deck full of legends, acting as a powerful recruiter for your crew. By gathering a diverse team of legendary permanents, she grows in strength and gains the ability to pull any legendary card directly from your library to the battlefield.

Legendary Empowerment

Sisay's first ability is a static effect that checks how many colors are represented among other legendary permanents you control. It is important to note that this counts colors, not the number of permanents. For example, if you control three different Green legendary creatures, Sisay only gets +1/+1. However, if you control one Green legend and one Blue legend, she gets +2/+2.

Recruiting the Crew

When you activate her five-color ability, the game checks Sisay's power at the moment the ability resolves. You then search your library for a legendary permanent card with a mana value strictly less than that power. If Sisay is destroyed in response to the ability, the game uses her power as it last existed on the battlefield to determine the mana value limit.

Strategic Considerations

Since the search ability relies on her current power, you can use equipment or spells to boost her before the ability resolves to find more expensive cards. Additionally, if a card in your library has an {X} in its cost, such as a legendary spell, X is treated as 0 for the purpose of mana value during the search.

When to Activate

Because this is an activated ability that puts a card directly onto the battlefield, it bypasses traditional counterspells that target cast spells. Use this at the end of an opponent's turn to bring out a game-changing legend or in response to a board wipe if you can find a legend that provides protection.

Interaction examples

Searching for Support

Solemn Simulacrum

If Sisay, Weatherlight Captain is your only creature and has no power buffs, her power is 2. Because Solemn Simulacrum has a mana value of 4 and is not legendary, you cannot search for it with Sisay's ability even if her power were higher. Sisay's ability is strictly limited to cards with the Legendary supertype.

Ramping with Legends

Sakura-Tribe Elder

If you have Sakura-Tribe Elder on the battlefield, it does not contribute to Sisay, Weatherlight Captain's power because it is not a legendary permanent. Furthermore, you cannot search for Sakura-Tribe Elder using Sisay's activated ability because the card being searched must be legendary.

Guide written with AI from the official text and rulings. Official English text prevails.

How it works : Sisay, Weatherlight Captain

Original English text — Wizards of the Coast / Scryfall

#1June 14, 2019· Wizards of the Coast
If Sisay leaves the battlefield after you've activated its last ability but before that ability resolves, use its last known existence on the battlefield to determine what cards you can find.
No other card is named in this ruling.
#2June 14, 2019· Wizards of the Coast
If a card in a library has in its mana cost, X is considered to be 0.
No other card is named in this ruling.