Persist

Persist is a triggered ability. Persist was introduced in Shadowmoor. Persist was featured as rules card 5 of 6 in the Shadowmoor set and rules card 5 of 8 in the Eventide set.

From the ()

Rulings

• All the Shadowmoor cards with persist are creatures. If one of them somehow stops being a creature while it's in play, persist will still work.
• Persist triggers when the permanent is put into a graveyard. Its last known information is used to determine whether it had any -1/-1 counters on it before it left play. If the card is removed from the graveyard before its persist ability resolves, it won't come back into play.
• If a permanent has multiple instances of persist, they'll each trigger separately, but the redundant instances will have no effect. If one instance returns the card to play, the next will do nothing.
• If a token has persist, the ability will trigger when the token is put into a graveyard from play. However, the token can't return to play because it will have ceased to exist.
• When a permanent with persist is put into a graveyard and then comes back into play, it becomes a new object. It has no memory about its previous existence in play. It has "summoning sickness."
• If a creature with persist and some +1/+1 counters on it receives enough -1/-1 counters to cause it to be destroyed by lethal damage or put into its owner's graveyard for having 0 or less toughness, it's put into the graveyard before any counters are removed from it. Persist won't trigger, and the card won't return to play.

Reminder text

The latest reminder text for Persist reads "When this creature is put into a graveyard from play, if it had no -1/-1 counters on it, return it to play under its owner's control with a -1/-1 counter on it."