User blog comment:Gusjoong/question about linked god/@comment-24707-20130722084601/@comment-4755716-20130722141552

I'm not sure if this reply will appear under your reply to mine or if this reply will appear under your very first reply to the OP, but here's my reply to your reply, please forgive the potential misplacement, as there seems to be no direct reply button I can see on your reply.

Anyway, I definitely agree things would not relink, but I'm saying in the case of something evolving over a linked ABC, ABC would not at any time of the evo process be unlinked--think of it as a layer of three cards all being one creature, so all voided by the evolution creature using ABC in whole as bait. So if the Evo on top of ABC gets removed by Durian, the top layer is removed and unlike a Vortex evo that would separate the 2+ layers of creatures under it, de-evolving over a linked ABC would see not 3+ layers of A and B and C (where C is any 3rd+ cell) but a single layer of ABC--it's one giant creature since they were linked before being evolved. This is the basis of why I would say in all instances treat ABC as one giant creature, and never unlink it unless there is clear reason to.

Say you have an ABC in play and you want to vortex Evo--you can't because you technically only have one creature in play. However, say you Vortex evo over A and B and C, unlinked. If you Durian the Evo, you'd get A and B and C back rather than ABC, because when you evolved on them, they were each individual creatures. As far as we know, these aren't considered re-ETBing, so they don't get an opportunity to link at that time. Right?

Consider the analogue: if a Super Psychic were the bait. if Super Psychic ABC were evolved on, got Durian'd, what would happen? I'd say you'd get your ABC back, not the unlinked cells A and B and C. What if the Evo were destroyed? All would be graveyarded, then the game would see Psychics in the grave and boot them to the HSZ, with no opportunity for Link Release to save a single one. Ibid for manatize or bounce. In the same way, Novas and company can't spare any cell if they all get linked, evolved on, and then re-zoned, since at that point, their only quality the game cares about is that they are a creature that fulfils the Evo's evo requirement.

I do agree any link-able creature only links when something comes into play, for sure. But for me the question is whether or not they at any time unlink. If they ever are considered unlinked, then they surely would only ever re-link if something actually ETBs to prompt the re-link. If they never unlink, they would of course then always be considered linked until something breaks that link. Right?