If Carnivorous Snapvine targets a Travelling Merchant on the battlefield, but the Merchant gets Flashed back to base before Snapvine resolves, does Snapvine still kill it?

Ruling: No, Snapvine does not kill the Merchant. Since Snapvine specifies "battlefield" and the Merchant is no longer on the battlefield when the spell resolves, it is not a valid target and the spell does nothing.

Sequence:

• Carnivorous Snapvine is cast and targets Travelling Merchant on the battlefield
• Merchant is Flashed back to base in response
• Snapvine resolves, but Merchant is no longer on the battlefield
• Snapvine does nothing because the target is not in the valid zone

Nuances:

• Spells that can target units anywhere (like Challenge, which can target units at bases) would still resolve even if the unit moves zones
• If a unit gains Deflect after costs are paid but before resolution, the caster does not need to pay additional costs because costs have already been calculated and paid