Heliod vs Mortarpod

[The Fluff]

Hi, for example my opponent has Heliod, Sun-Crowned + Spike Feeder with 2 +1/+1 counters on it in play. When opponent starts to do the combo by removing a counter from feeder... can I respond by sacrifice the germ of my mortarpod to kill the feeder before heliod can put a counter on it, so the combo is stopped?

[void_nothing]

Yes. Your opponent will activate the ability and as a result immediately after the cost is paid have a 1/1 Spike Feeder; activating the Mortarpod equipped creature's ability with that activated ability on the stack will cause the Spike to take lethal damage and then die before its activated ability can resolve, and Heliod, Sun-Crowned's ability will still trigger but obviously cannot target the dead Spike. The end result will be 2 life gained for your opponent and one +1/+1 counter on your opponent's creature or enchantment.

[The Fluff]

thanks for the clarification.