How does Bellows ath work when I target the same unit 3 times?

Question

Accepted Answer

With only the Core Rules available (no Bellows card text), the most defensible interpretation is: if Bellows creates three separate targeting effects (three separate spells/abilities or three trigger/ability instances) and you target the same unit with all three, each is a separate target relationship and will resolve separately, applying its effect to that unit each time. If any resolution kills or moves the unit to a non-board zone, later effects may not be able to affect it. [821] [417.1.b] [FAQ:unleashed#22]

If Bellows produced three separate items on the chain that each target a unit and you chose the same unit for each, those are three distinct targeting relationships. As the chain resolves (newest-first), each item resolves fully and will affect that unit when it resolves (e.g., deal damage or whatever the instruction is) as long as the game object still exists in a zone the effect can affect. If an earlier resolution kills the unit and it moves to the Trash (a different game object/zone), later resolutions cannot affect that unit. If the unit merely moves on-board (e.g., to Base) it remains the same game object and later effects still remember and can affect it even if it no longer meets specific targeting restrictions. [340.1] [821] [417.1.b] [FAQ:unleashed#22]

Assuming Bellows put three separate effects on the chain that each target a unit, those choices were made during Finalize and the three target relationships were established as part of finalization [337.1] [355.8]. When resolving the chain, the newest of the three instances resolves first, then the next-newest, then the oldest. Each resolves in its entirety when it resolves [340.1]. Each resolution that 'deals damage' or otherwise affects the targeted unit will mark damage or perform the instructed action on that unit at resolution time; damage is marked separately for each resolution [417.1.b][417.1.c]. If an earlier resolution kills the unit and it is moved to another zone (e.g., Trash), later resolutions that still refer to that original game object cannot affect it because it is a different game object in a different zone; triggers that depend on its death are handled as instructed by the rules (e.g., Deathknell triggers are put on the chain before the card is moved to Trash) [808.1.d.2]. If the unit instead moved on-board (for example from one battlefield to Base), it remains the same game object and later effects still remember it as a target and can affect it even if it no longer fulfills some targeting restriction—unless the instruction specifically requires the unit be at a particular location when the effect resolves [FAQ:unleashed#22] [355.9].

If Bellows is actually a single 'split' instruction (split X damage among up to N targets) then the splitting rules apply: targets are chosen on Finalize and the allocation of damage is decided on resolution; you could choose the same unit multiple times only if the card permits selecting the same object multiple times (the core rules don't explicitly forbid choosing the same unit multiple times for splitting, but typical split instructions choose distinct targets) [355.14]. If a later resolution expects the unit to be at a specific zone (e.g., 'a unit at a battlefield') and the unit moved on-board to a different location, that resolution might no longer be able to affect the unit even though the targeting relationship exists; the distinction is covered by the Elder Dragon example in the clarifications [FAQ:unleashed#20]. If the three items are triggered abilities that all trigger from the same event, the rules for ordering simultaneous triggers are not included in the provided excerpt; for Deathknell, the controller chooses the order [808.2.a], but I lack a general simultaneous-trigger ordering rule in the provided context.

I can't read the exact text of Bellows here, so I applied the generic targeting and resolution rules. If Bellows creates three separate items that each target a unit, those are three distinct targeting relationships established during Finalize [337.1] [355.8]. Multiple separate effects that target the same game object behave like multiple instances of Weaponmaster: each instance is independent and may target the same object; each resolves separately when it gets to the top of the chain [821]. When each instance resolves it executes its instructions fully (the chain resolves newest-first) [340.1]. If those instructions Deal damage, each resolution will mark damage on the unit as directed; damage marked by each resolution is separate and accumulates [417.1.b] [417.1.c].

If an earlier resolution kills the unit and it is moved to Trash, it becomes a different game object in a different zone; later effects that were targeting the original object will no longer be able to affect it (targets in non-board zones break the relationship) and earlier-death-related triggers (e.g., Deathknell) are placed on the chain as required before the object moves to Trash [808.1.d.2] [FAQ:unleashed#22]. If instead the unit only moved on-board (for example, to Base), it remains the same game object and later resolving instances still "remember" that unit as their target and can affect it even if it no longer meets a particular targeting restriction—unless the instruction specifically requires the unit be at a given location when resolving, in which case that particular resolution may do nothing to it [FAQ:unleashed#22] [355.9].

If Bellows is actually a single spell/ability that instructs you to split damage among multiple targets, then the splitting rules apply: targets are chosen on Finalize and allocation is decided on resolution [355.14]. Because I don't have the card text, I listed that as an assumption and an edge case. If you can paste the exact text of Bellows (the lines that mention the targeting), I can give a precise ruling tailored to that wording.