Magic: The Gathering Comprehensive Rules

by Mark L. Gottlieb

  504.4. If you control multiple face-down spells on the stack or face-down permanents in play, you must ensure at all times that your face-down spells and permanents can be easily differentiated from each other. This includes, but is not limited to, knowing the order spells were played, the order that face-down permanents came into play, which creature attacked last turn, and any other differences between face-down spells or permanents. Common methods for distinguishing between face-down objects include using counters or dice to mark the different objects, or clearly placing those objects in order on the table.

  504.5. As a face-down permanent is turned face up, its copiable values revert to its normal copiable values. Any effects that have been applied to the face-down permanent still apply to the face-up permanent. Any abilities relating to the permanent coming into play don’t trigger and don’t have any effect, because the permanent has already come into play.

  504.6. If a face-down permanent moves from the in-play zone to any zone other than the phased-out zone, its owner must reveal it to all players as he or she moves it. If a phased-out face-down object moves to any zone other than the in-play zone, its owner must reveal it as he or she moves it. If a face-down spell moves from the stack to any zone other than the in-play zone, its owner must reveal it to all players as he or she moves it. At the end of each game, all face-down objects in play, in the phased-out zone, or on the stack must be revealed to all players.

  504.7. If a face-down permanent becomes a copy of another permanent, its copiable values become the copiable values of that permanent, as modified by its face-down status. Its characteristics therefore remain the same: the characteristics listed by the ability or rules that allowed it to be turned face down. However, if it is turned face up, its copiable values become the values it copied from the other permanent.

  504.8. If a face-down permanent would have an “As [this permanent] is turned face up . . .” ability after it’s turned face up, that ability is applied while that permanent is being turned face up, not afterward.

  505. Split Cards

  505.1. Split cards have two card faces on a single card. The back of a split card is the normal Magic: The Gathering card back.

  505.2. In every zone except the stack, split cards have two sets of characteristics and two converted mana costs. As long as a split card is a spell on the stack, only the characteristics of the half being played exist. The other half’s characteristics are treated as though they didn’t exist.

  505.3. Because every split card consists of two halves with different colored mana symbols in their mana costs, each split card is a multicolored card while it’s not a spell on the stack. While it’s a spell on the stack, it’s only the color or colors of the half being played.

  505.4. Although split cards have two playable halves, each split card is only one card. For example, a player who has drawn or discarded a split card has drawn or discarded one card, not two.

  505.5. An effect that asks for a particular characteristic of a split card while it’s in a zone other than the stack gets two answers (one for each of the split card’s two halves).

  Example: Infernal Genesis has an ability that reads, “At the beginning of each player’s upkeep, that player puts the top card from his or her library into his or her graveyard. He or she then puts X 1/1 black Minion creature tokens into play, where X is that card’s converted mana cost.” If the top card of your library is Assault/Battery when this ability resolves, the game sees its converted mana cost as “1, and 4.” You get five creature tokens.

  505.6. An effect that performs a positive comparison (such as asking if a card is red) or a relative comparison (such as asking if a card’s converted mana cost is less than 2) involving characteristics of one or more split cards in any zone other than the stack gets only one answer. This answer is “yes” if either side of each split card in the comparison would return a “yes” answer if compared individually.

  An effect that performs a negative comparison (such as asking if cards have different names) involving characteristics of one or more split cards in any zone other than the stack also gets only one answer. This answer is “yes” if performing the comparable positive comparison would return a “no” answer.

  If an effect performs a comparison involving multiple characteristics of one or more split cards in any zone other than the stack, each characteristic is compared separately. If each of the individual comparisons would return a “yes” answer, the whole comparison returns a “yes” answer.

  Example: Void reads, “Choose a number. Destroy all artifacts and creatures with converted mana cost equal to that number. Then target player reveals his or her hand and discards all nonland cards with converted mana cost equal to the number.” If a player plays Void and chooses 1, his or her opponent would discard Assault/Battery because the game sees its converted mana cost as “1, and 4.” The same is true if the player chooses 4. If the player chooses 5, however, Assault/Battery would be unaffected.

  505.7. If an effect instructs a player to name a card and the player wants to name a split card, the player must name both halves of the split card.

  506. Subgames

  506.1. Some cards allow players to play a Magic subgame. A “subgame” is the game created by the card’s effect. The “main game” is the game in which the spell or ability that created the subgame was played. The main game is temporarily discontinued while the subgame is in progress. It resumes when the subgame ends.

  506.2. Any main-game abilities that trigger while the subgame is in progress aren’t put onto the stack until the subgame is completed.

  506.3. To start the subgame, each player removes his or her library from the game face down. It becomes that player’s deck in the subgame. Abilities that trigger on cards being removed from the main game face down will trigger.

  506.3a A player’s deck in the subgame may have less than the minimum number of cards. If a player’s deck contains less than seven cards, the player will lose the game as soon as it starts, even if he or she mulligans. (See rule 420, “State-Based Effects.”)

  506.4. The subgame proceeds like a normal game. Randomly determine which player goes first.

  506.5. All objects in the main game and all cards outside the main game are considered outside the subgame (except those specifically brought into the subgame). All players not currently in the subgame are considered outside the subgame.

  506.5a Some effects can bring cards into a game from outside of it. Cards brought into a subgame from a main game are considered to be removed from the main game. Abilities in the main game that trigger on objects being removed from the main game will trigger.

  506.6. At the end of a subgame, each player puts all objects he or she owns that were brought into the subgame into his or her library in the main game, then shuffles that library. Cards removed from the game in the subgame are not put into the player’s main-game library. Instead they remain removed from the game in the main game.

  Example: If a card was brought into the subgame either from the main game or from outside the main game, that card will be put into its owner’s main-game library when the subgame ends.

  506.7. If another subgame is created during a subgame, there can be multiple subgames and main games. Each main game has one subgame, and each subgame has one main game. In this case, some games will be considered both a main game and a subgame at the same time.

  507. Controlling Another Player’s Turn

  507.1. One card (Mindslaver) allows a player’s turn to be controlled by another player. This effect applies to the next turn that the affected player actually takes. The entire turn is controlled; the effect doesn’t end until the beginning of the next turn.

  507.1a Multiple turn-controlling effects that affect the same player overwrite each other. The last one to be created is the one that works.

  507.1b If a turn is skipped, any pending turn-controlling effects wait until the player who would be affected actually takes a turn.

  507.1c
Only the control of the turn changes. All objects are controlled by their normal controllers.

  507.2. If information about an object would be visible to the player whose turn is controlled, it’s visible to both that player and the controller of the turn.

  Example: The controller of a player’s turn can see that player’s hand and the identity of any face-down creatures he or she controls.

  507.3. The controller of another player’s turn makes all choices and decisions that player is allowed to make or is told to make during that turn by the rules or by any objects. This includes choices and decisions about what to play, and choices and decisions called for by spells and abilities.

  Example: The controller of the turn decides which spells to play and what those spells target, and makes any required decisions when those spells resolve.

  Example: The controller of the turn decides which of the player’s creatures attack, and how those creatures assign their combat damage.

  Example: The controller of the turn decides which card the player chooses from outside the game with one of the Judgment™ Wishes. The player can’t choose a card of the wrong type.

  507.3a The controller of another player’s turn can use only that player’s resources (cards, mana, and so on) to pay costs for that player.

  Example: If the controller of the turn decides that the player will play a spell with an additional cost of discarding cards, the cards are discarded from the player’s hand.

  507.3b The controller of another player’s turn can’t make that player concede. A player may concede the game at any time, even if his or her turn is controlled by another player. See rule 102.3a.

  507.3c The controller of another player’s turn can’t make choices or decisions for that player that aren’t called for by the rules or by any objects. The controller also can’t make any choices or decisions for the player that would be called for by the tournament rules.

  Example: The player whose turn it is still chooses whether he or she leaves to visit the restroom, trades a card to someone else, takes an intentional draw, or calls a judge about an error or infraction.

  507.3d A player who controls another player’s turn also continues to make his or her own choices and decisions.

  507.4. A player doesn’t lose life due to mana burn while another player controls his or her turn. (Unused mana in players’ mana pools is still lost when a phase ends. See rule 300.3.)

  508. Flip Cards

  508.1. Flip cards have a two-part card frame on a single card. The text that appears right side up on the card defines the card’s normal characteristics. Additional alternative characteristics appear upside down on the card. The back of a flip card is the normal Magic: The Gathering card back.

  508.1a The top half of a flip card contains the card’s normal name, text box, type line, power, and toughness. The text box usually contains an ability that causes the permanent to “flip” if certain conditions are met.

  508.1b The bottom half of a flip card contains an alternative name, text box, type line, power, and toughness. These characteristics are used only if the permanent is in play and only if the permanent is flipped.

  508.1c A flip card’s color, mana cost, expansion symbol, illustration credit, and legal text don’t change if the permanent is flipped. Also, any changes to it by external effects will still apply.

  508.2. In every zone other than the in-play zone, and also in the in-play zone before the permanent flips, a flip card has only the normal characteristics of the permanent. Once the flip permanent in the in-play zone is flipped, the normal name, text box, type line, power, and toughness of the flip permanent don’t apply and the alternative versions of those characteristics apply instead.

  Example: Akki Lavarunner is a nonlegendary creature that flips into a legendary creature named Tok-Tok, Volcano Born. An effect that says “search for library for a legendary card” can’t find this flip card. An effect that says “legendary creatures get +2/+2” doesn’t affect Akki Lavarunner, but it does affect Tok-Tok.

  508.3. If you control a flip permanent, you must ensure that it’s clear at all times whether the permanent is flipped or not, both when it’s untapped and when it’s tapped. Common methods for distinguishing between flipped and unflipped permanents include using coins or dice to mark flipped objects.

  508.4. Flipping a permanent is a one-way process. Once a permanent is flipped, it’s impossible for it to become unflipped. However, if a flipped permanent leaves play, it retains no memory of its status.

  509. Ending the Turn

  509.1. One card (Time Stop) ends the turn when it resolves. When an effect ends the turn, follow these steps in order, as they differ from the normal process for resolving spells and abilities (see rule 413, “Resolving Spells and Abilities”).

  509.1a Remove every object on the stack from the game. Remove all attacking and blocking creatures, if any, from combat. All objects not in play or on the stack that aren’t represented by cards will cease to exist the next time state-based effects are checked (see rule 420, “State-Based Effects).

  509.1b Check state-based effects. No player gets priority, and no triggered abilities are put onto the stack.

  509.1c The current phase and/or step ends. The game skips straight to the cleanup step. Skip any phases or steps between this phase or step and the cleanup step.

  509.2. No player gets priority during this process, so triggered abilities are not put onto the stack. If any triggered abilities have triggered between the spell or ability resolving and the cleanup step ending, there’s a chance to play spells and abilities in the cleanup step. Then there will be another cleanup step before the turn finally ends (see rule 314.3).

  509.3. Even though the turn ends, “at end of turn” triggered abilities don’t trigger because the end of turn step is skipped.

  510. Status

  510.1. A permanent’s “status” is its physical state. There are three status categories, each of which has two possible values: tapped/untapped, flipped/unflipped, and face up/face down. Each permanent always has one of these values for each of these categories.

  510.2. Status is not a characteristic, though it may affect a permanent’s characteristics.

  510.3. Permanents come into play untapped, unflipped, and face up unless a spell or ability says otherwise.

  510.4. A permanent retains its status until a spell, ability, or game action changes it, even if that status is not relevant to it.

  Example: Dimir Doppelganger says “{1}{U}{B}: Remove target creature card in a graveyard from the game. Dimir Doppelganger becomes a copy of that card and gains this ability.” It becomes a copy of Jushi Apprentice, a flip card. Through use of Jushi Apprentice’s ability, this creature flips, making it a copy of Tomoya the Revealer with the Dimir Doppelganger ability. If this permanent then becomes a copy of Grizzly Bears, it will retain its flipped status even though that has no relevance to Grizzly Bears. If its copy ability is activated again, this time targeting a Nezumi Shortfang card (another flip card), this permanent’s flipped status means it will have the characteristics of Stabwhisker the Odious (the flipped version of Nezumi Shortfang) with the Dimir Doppelganger ability.

  510.5. Only permanents have status. Cards not in play do not. Although a card in the removed-from-the-game zone may be face down, this has no correlation to the face-down status of a permanent.

  510.6. A permanent that phases out remembers its status, as well as other information about the permanent (such as who controls it or whether it has any counters on it). It will phase in with the same status it had when it phased out. If it was face down when it phased out, it will stay face down in the phased-out zone.

  511. Flipping a Coin

  511.1. To flip a coin for an object that cares whether a player wins or loses the flip, the affected player flips the coin and calls “heads” or “tails.” If the call matches the result, that player wins the flip. Otherwise, the player loses the flip. Only the player who flips the coin wins or loses
the flip; no other players are involved.

  511.2. To flip a coin for an object that cares whether the coin comes up heads or tails, each affected player flips a coin without making a call. No player wins or loses this kind of flip.

  511.3. If the coin that’s being flipped doesn’t have an obvious “heads” or “tails,” designate one side to be “heads,” and the other side to be “tails.” Other methods of randomization may be substituted for flipping a coin as long as there are two possible outcomes of equal likelihood and all players agree to the substitution. For example, the player may roll an even-sided die and call “odds” or “evens,” or roll an even-sided die and designate that “odds” means “heads” and “evens” means “tails.”

  6. Multiplayer Rules

  600. General

  600.1. A multiplayer game is a game that begins with more than two players. This section contains additional optional rules that can be used for multiplayer play.

  600.2. These rules consist of a series of options that can be added to a multiplayer game and a number of variant styles of multiplayer play. A single game may use multiple options but only one variant.