Offspring

Offspring is a mechanic that was introduced in Bloomburrow to represent the familial nature of the set's characters. 
==Description==
When you cast a creature with offspring, you may pay an additional cost. When it enters the battlefield, if that additional cost was paid, you create a 1/1 token that is a copy of that creature. The token has the same name, creature types, mana cost, mana value, and abilities as its parent. The only differences are power and toughness.
Like with the embalm mechanic from Amonkhet, each card with offspring has its own dedicated token depicting its junior version. R&D wanted the creatures with offspring to have abilities that were relevant to a 1/1 body, but usually not as potent as with the original creature. The most fruitful design space was triggers, especially "enters” triggers and attack triggers. This made the larger body better for combat while keeping the junior versions relevant.
==Rules==
==Rulings==
*You can pay an offspring cost only once as you cast a spell with offspring. You can't try to pay it multiple times to get more token copies, unless the spell has multiple instances of offspring.
**Even if the spell does have multiple instances of offspring, you can't pay offspring costs more times than the spell has instances of offspring (for instance, you can't pay an additional for a spell with only two instances of offspring ). 
*If the spell with offspring is countered, the creature will never enter, so its offspring ability will not trigger and no token will be created.
*If the creature with offspring leaves the battlefield before its triggered ability resolves, the 1/1 token copy of that creature is still created.
*Once you've paid a spell's offspring cost, creating the token when the creature enters is mandatory. You can't choose not to create it.
*The token copies exactly what was printed on the original creature and nothing else, except it's a 1/1 (unless that creature is copying something else; see below). It doesn't copy whether that creature is tapped or untapped, whether it has any counters on it or Auras and Equipment attached to it, or any non-copy effects that have changed its types, color, or so on. 
**The tokens for offspring creatures also are not printed with the offspring ability, since it is never possible to cast a token as a spell in normal gameplay.
*In the rare case where the original creature is copying something else when the offspring ability resolves, the token enters as whatever that creature copied, except it's a 1/1. 
*Many creatures with offspring abilities have other abilities that refer to them as "this creature" rather than referring to them by name. This difference is for clarity purposes and does not change the function of any of these abilities. 
*Any "enters" abilities of the copied creature will trigger when the token enters. Any "as [this creature] enters" or "[this creature] enters with" abilities of the copied creature will also work. 
*The token created by the offspring ability isn't "cast", so abilities that trigger when a creature spell is cast won't trigger for the copy. 
*In the rare case where the creature with offspring doesn't have the offspring ability when it enters, the offspring ability won't trigger even if you paid the offspring cost. 
==Example==
==Offspring tokens==
==Cards that grant Offspring==
*<c>Cottontail Caretaker</c> (white creature card in hand perpetually gains offspring )
*<c>Zinnia, Valley's Voice</c> (offspring )
==Trivia==
*<c>Coiling Rebirth</c> grants offspring in a sideways manner, creating a token copy 1/1 if the opponent is gifted a card. <c>Donal, Herald of Wings</c> gives nonlegendary fliers a variant of offspring.
*Many cards have the "1/1 copy of a creature" design, but <c>Offspring's Revenge</c> also notes the mechanic by name and was released four years prior to Bloomburrow.
==See also==
*Embalm
*Eternalize
*Myriad
*Squad
==References==