Grafdigger's Cage states that players can't cast cards from exile. Impulse draw effects (like those from Light Up the Stage or Valiant Veteran-style abilities) exile cards and allow you to play them until end of turn — but Grafdigger's Cage shuts this down entirely for spells (non-land cards that would be cast).
Under CR 601.1, casting a spell means taking a card from wherever it is and placing it on the stack. Grafdigger's Cage creates a replacement/restriction effect that forbids this action when the card's origin zone is exile. The exile zone is still a zone (CR 406), and cards exiled by impulse effects are still in exile when you attempt to cast them.
Note that Grafdigger's Cage does not stop you from playing a land card exiled by an impulse effect, because playing a land is not casting a spell (CR 305.1). Only the casting of spells from exile is blocked.
Example: You cast Light Up the Stage and exile two cards — a Mountain and a Lightning Bolt. You may still play the Mountain (it's not cast), but you cannot cast Lightning Bolt from exile because Grafdigger's Cage prohibits it.
This interaction is well-established in competitive play. Grafdigger's Cage is frequently used as a hate piece specifically to nullify impulse-draw spells in formats like Modern and Legacy.
Unofficial fan resource — not affiliated with or endorsed by Wizards of the Coast. Answers are AI-generated estimates grounded in the Comprehensive Rules and are not a substitute for an official judge. Verify anything match-critical.