Discussion Forum

The new rules resolve combat damage immediately - does not go on a stack like abilities and spells, etc.
In the old days after creatures dealt their damage you could respond with an instant like Boomerang and return your creature to your hand before the combat damage resolved - so the damage simply fizzled. I always felt, however, that if your creature didn't absorb the damage, just like if you duck whatever is behind you gets shot, so I always felt the damage should go through to the Wizard, but MtG ruled that once a creature was declared blocked, regardless of how large the creature was and unless it had trample, no damage made it to the Wizard.
Instead of allowing the damage to go through to the Wizard if the blocking creature was removed, Wizards decided to resolve damage immediately and allow no step to cast spells except unless the damage step triggered an ability which sets up a stack and an opportunity for both players to add to the stack.
Having said all that, when a creature has first strike, if it attacks with other creatures and there are blockers, can players play instants and abilities between the first strike assignment/resolution and the regular combat damage step?