I think it would still be a legal play if your opponent knew the flavor text on that printing of Ornithopter in English.
If this wasn’t insufferable to play against you could make a deck called “gun to ya head” where you try and make people recite flavor text on cards from memory or else they lose.
This wouldn’t work. Tournament rules may allow multi-language decks, but if a player can’t read the language printed, they also allow that player to call a judge over and ask for the oracle text with no penalty.
Also, tournament play does not allow the un-set used here
Phoebe’s ability also doesn’t indicate that the target of the text box changes. So it’s still the parrot that dies, and phoebe leaving the battlefield still does nothing.Edit: see below
That isn’t true. A self referencing ability automatically changes to the new creature as per 201.4b.
Boo, stupid rules /s
Thanks for the clarification
