General Rulings Summary Updated 2004/01/15

Rulings are collected from many sources. See credits and disclaimer at the end of the file for details.

This release is under rules used by EIGHTH EDITION.

These rulings have been updated monthly with the most recent version available on the web (WWW) as the following:

http://www.crystalkeep.com/magic/rules/index.html

This is the final update I will be doing to these files. If/when information about future updates is available, it will be posted at the same web address you see above.

This document contains the complete text of the Magic: The Gathering Comprehensive Rules document published by Wizards of the Coast. These rules are noted with numbered entries. It also contains additional rulings to clarify or explain some rules. These are marked with the word "Ruling".

An open circle is used to mark changes since the last released version on 2003/12/18

Thanx,

Stephen.

Stephen D'Angelo (dangelo@crystalkeep.com)
Official Magic: The Gathering Rules Summary
Network Representative for Wizards of the Coast, Inc.

Table of Contents:

1 - The Game
• 100 - General
• 101 - Starting the Game
• 102 - Winning and Losing
• 103 - The Magic Golden Rules
• 104 - Numbers and Symbols
2 - Parts of the Game
• 200 - General
• 201 - Characteristics
• 202 - Name
• 203 - Mana Cost and Color
• 204 - Illustration
• 205 - Type Line
• 206 - Expansion Symbol
• 207 - Text Box
• 208 - Power/Toughness
• 209 - Illustration Credit
• 210 - Legal Text
• 211 - Collector Number
• 212 - Type, Supertype, and Subtype
• 213 - Spells
• 214 - Permanents
• 215 - Legends and Legendary Objects
• 216 - Tokens
• 217 - Zones
3 - Turn Structure
• 300 - General
• 301 - Beginning Phase
• 302 - Untap Step
• 303 - Upkeep Step
• 304 - Draw Step
• 305 - Main Phase
• 306 - Combat Phase
• 307 - Beginning of Combat Step
• 308 - Declare Attackers Step
• 309 - Declare Blockers Step
• 310 - Combat Damage Step
• 311 - End of Combat Step
• 312 - End Phase
• 313 - End of Turn Step
• 314 - Cleanup Step
4 - Spells, Abilities, and Effects
• 400 - General
• 401 - Spells on the Stack
• 402 - Abilities
• 403 - Activated Abilities
• 404 - Triggered Abilities
• 405 - Static Abilities
• 406 - Mana Abilities
• 407 - Adding and Removing Abilities
• 408 - Timing of Spells and Abilities
• 409 - Playing Spells and Activated Abilities
• 410 - Handling Triggered Abilities
• 411 - Playing Mana Abilities
• 412 - Handling Static Abilities
• 413 - Resolving Spells and Abilities
• 414 - Countering Spells and Abilities
• 415 - Targeted Spells and Abilities
• 416 - Effects
• 417 - One-Shot Effects
• 418 - Continuous Effects
• 419 - Replacement and Prevention Effects
• 420 - State-Based Effects
• 421 - Handling "Infinite" Loops
• 422 - Handling Illegal Actions
5 - Additional Rules
• 500 - Legal Attacks and Blocks
• 501 - Evasion Abilities
• 502 - Keyword Abilities
• 503 - Copying Objects
• 504 - Face-Down Spells and Permanents
• 505 - Split Cards
• 506 - Subgames
• 507 - Controlling Another Player's Turn
7 - Specialized Rules
• 701 - Unglued
• 702 - Licids
8 - Tournament Rules
• 800 - Shared Tournament Format Rules
• 801 - Type 1 Tournament Format
• 802 - Type 1.5 Tournament Format
• 803 - Extended Tournament Format
• 804 - Standard (Type 2) Tournament Format
• 805 - Sealed Deck Formats
• 806 - Block Constructed Deck Formats
• 807 - Booster Draft Formats
G - Glossary
• G1 - A
• G2 - B
• G3 - C
• G4 - D
• G5 - E
• G6 - F
• G7 - G
• G8 - H
• G9 - I
• G11 - K
• G12 - L
• G13 - M
• G14 - N
• G15 - O
• G16 - P
• G18 - R
• G19 - S
• G20 - T
• G21 - U
• G22 - V
• G23 - W
• G24 - X
• G25 - Y
• G26 - Z

1 - The Game

• 100.1 - These Magic rules assume a game between two players. Optional rules allow for more players but aren't discussed here. These rules can be found at the Wizards of the Coast website at "http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=magic/rules/multiplayer". [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 100.2 - In constructed play, each player needs his or her own deck of at least sixty cards, small items to represent any tokens and counters, and some way to clearly track life totals. A constructed deck can have any number of basic land cards and no more than four of any card with a particular English name other than basic land cards. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 100.3 - For sealed deck or draft play, only forty cards are required in a deck, and a player may use as many duplicates of a card as he or she has. Each player still needs small items to represent any tokens and counters, and some way to clearly track life totals. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 100.4 - There is no maximum deck size. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 100.5 - Most Magic tournaments have special rules (not included here) and may limit the use of some cards, including barring all cards from some older sets. See the most current Magic: The Gathering DCI(tm) Floor Rules for more information. They can be found at "http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dci/utr/intro". [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 100.6 - A player can concede the game at any time. A player who concedes leaves the game immediately. He or she loses the game. [CompRules 2003/12/01]
• Note - Also see Rule 202.3 for how to deal with non-English cards.
• Note - The rules in this section are metarules and cannot be overridden by a card in the game. [WotC Rules Team 2003/12/01]

• 101.1 - At the start of a game, each player shuffles his or her own deck so that the cards are in a random order. Each player may then shuffle his or her opponent's deck. The players' decks become their libraries. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 101.2 - After the decks have been shuffled, the players determine who chooses which player goes first using any mutually agreeable method (flipping a coin, rolling dice, etc.). In a match of several games, the loser of the previous game decides who will take the first turn. If the previous game was a draw, the person who determined who would take the first turn in the previous game decides. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 101.3 - Once the starting player has been determined, each player sets his or her life total to 20 and draws a hand of seven cards. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 101.4 - A player who is dissatisfied with his or her initial hand may mulligan. First, the starting player takes any mulligans. To take a mulligan, that player shuffles his or her hand back into the deck and then draws a new hand of six cards. He or she may repeat this process as many times as desired, drawing one fewer card each time, until the hand size reaches zero cards. Once the starting player has decided to keep a hand, the other player may take any number of mulligans. A player can't take any mulligans once he or she has decided to keep a hand. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 101.5 - Once both players are satisfied with their hands, the starting player takes his or her turn. The player who plays first skips the draw step (see Rule 304, "Draw Step") of his or her first turn. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• Note - The rules in this section are metarules and cannot be overridden by a card in the game. [WotC Rules Team 2003/12/01]

• 102.1 - If a player's life total is 0 or less, he or she loses the game the next time a player would receive priority. (This is a state-based effect. See Rule 420.) [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 102.2 - When a player is required to draw more cards than are left in his or her library, he or she draws the remaining cards, and then loses the game the next time a player would receive priority. (This is a state-based effect. See Rule 420.) [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 102.3 - A game immediately ends when a player loses or wins or when the game is a draw. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 102.4 - If both players lose simultaneously, the game is a draw. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 102.5 - If a player would both win and lose simultaneously, he or she loses. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 102.6 - If the game somehow enters a "loop," repeating a sequence of events with no way to stop, the game is a draw. Loops that contain an optional action don't result in a draw. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 102.7 - A player who concedes a game leaves the game immediately. He or she loses the game. [CompRules 2003/12/01]
• 102.8 - If a player has ten or more poison counters, he or she loses the game the next time a player would receive priority. (This is a state-based effect. See Rule 420.) [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 103.1 - Whenever a card's text directly contradicts these rules, the card takes precedence. The card overrides only the rule that applies to that specific situation. The only exception is that the rules in Rule 100, "General," and Rule 101, "Starting the Game," can't be overridden by the cards. These rules apply at all times, regardless of what the cards say. [CompRules 2003/12/01]
• 103.2 - When one effect says something can happen and another says it can't, the "can't" effect wins. For example, if one effect reads "You may play an additional land this turn" and another reads "You can't play land cards this turn," the effect that keeps you from playing lands wins out. Note that adding abilities to objects and removing abilities from objects don't fall under this rule. See Rule 407, "Adding and Removing Abilities." [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 103.3 - If an instruction requires taking an impossible action, it's ignored. (In many cases the card will specify consequences for this; if it doesn't, there's no effect.) [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 103.4 - If both players would take an action at the same time, the active player (the player whose turn it is) makes any choices required, then the nonactive player makes any choices required, then the actions happen simultaneously. This rule is often referred to as the "Active Player, Nonactive Player (APNAP) rule." [CompRules 2003/07/01]
  Example: A card reads "Each player sacrifices a creature." First, the active player chooses a creature he or she controls. Then the nonactive player chooses a creature he or she controls. Then both creatures are sacrificed simultaneously. [CompRules 2003/12/01]

• 104.1 - The Magic game uses only natural numbers. You may not choose a fractional number, deal fractional damage, and so on. When a spell or ability could generate a fractional number, the spell or ability will tell you whether to round up or down. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 104.2 - If a creature's power or toughness, a mana cost, a player's life total, or an amount of damage would be less than 0, it's treated as 0 for all purposes except changing that total. If anyting needs to use a number that can't be determined, it uses 0 instead. [CompRules 2003/12/01]
  Example: If a 3/3 creature gets -5/-0, it deals 0 damage in combat. But to raise its power back to 1, you'd have to give it +3/+0 (3 minus 5 plus 3 is 1). [CompRules 2003/12/01]
  Example: If you control no permanents, the "highest converted mana cost among permanents you control" can't be determined, so 0 is used instead. [CompRules 2003/12/01]
• 104.3 - The mana symbols are {W}, {U}, {B}, {R}, {G}, {X}, {Y}, {Z} and the numerals {0}, {1}, {2}, {3}, {4}, and so on. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 104.3a - Each of the colored mana symbols represents one colored mana: {W} is white, {U} blue, {B} black, {R} red, and {G} green. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 104.3b - Numeral symbols (such as {1}) are generic mana costs and represent an amount of mana that can be paid with any color of, or colorless, mana. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 104.3c - The symbols {X}, {Y}, and {Z} represent unspecified amounts of mana; when playing a spell or activated ability with {X}, {Y}, or {Z} in its cost, its controller decides the value of that variable. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 104.3d - Numeral symbols (such as {1}) and variable symbols (such as {X}) can also represent colorless mana if they appear in the effect of a spell or ability that reads "add [mana symbol] to your mana pool" or something similar. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 104.3e - The symbol {0} represents zero mana and is used as a placeholder when a spell or activated ability costs nothing to play. A spell or ability whose cost is {0} must still be played the same way as one with a cost greater than zero; it won't play itself automatically. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 104.4 - The tap symbol is {Tap}. The tap symbol in an activation cost means "Tap this permanent." A permanent that's already tapped can't be tapped again to pay the cost. Creatures that haven't been under a player's control continuously since the beginning of his or her most recent turn can't use any ability with the tap symbol in the cost. See Rule 212.3d. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 104.5 - A tombstone icon appears to the left of the name of many Odyssey(tm) block cards with abilities that are relevant in a player's graveyard. The purpose of the icon is to make those cards stand out when they're in a graveyard. This icon has no effect on game play. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

2 - Parts of the Game

• 200.1 - When a rule or text on a card refers to a "card," it means a Magic card with a Magic card front and the Magic card back. Tokens aren't considered cards--even a card that represents a token isn't considered a card for rules purposes. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 200.1a - A card's owner is the player who started the game with it in his or her deck or, for cards that didn't start the game in a player's deck, the player who brought the card into the game. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 200.2 - Use the Oracle(tm) card reference when determining a card's wording. It can be found at "http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dci/oracle". [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 200.3 - A player is one of the two people in the game. A player's opponent is the other player. The active player is the player whose turn it is. The other player is the nonactive player. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 200.4 - A token is a marker used to represent any permanent that isn't represented by a card. (See Rule 216, "Tokens.") [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 200.4a - A token's owner is the player who controlled the spell or ability that put it into play. A token's controller is the player who put it into play. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 200.5 - A spell is a card or copy of a spell that's on the stack. (See Rule 213, "Spells.") [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 200.5a - A spell's owner is the same as the owner of the card that represents it. A spell's controller is the player who played it. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 200.6 - A permanent is a card or token that's in play. (See Rule 214, "Permanents.") [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 200.6a - A nontoken permanent's owner is the same as the owner of the card that represents it. A permanent's controller is the player who put it into play. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 200.7 - An ability can be one of two things. First, it can be an activated or triggered ability on the stack. Second, it can be text on an object that explains what the object does. (See Rule 402, "Abilities," and Section 4, "Spells, Abilities, and Effects.") [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 200.7a - The owner of an ability on the stack is the player who controlled its source when it was played or triggered. The controller of an ability on the stack is the player who played the ability, or the player who controlled the ability's source when it triggered. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 200.8 - An object is an ability on the stack, a card, a token, a spell, or a permanent. The term "object" is used in these rules when a rule applies to abilities on the stack, cards, tokens, spells, and permanents. Combat damage on the stack is also an object, although many uses of the term "object" in these rules don't apply to it. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 200.9 - If a spell or ability uses a type, supertype, or subtype without either the word "card," "spell," or "source," it means a permanent of that type in play. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 200.9a - If a spell or ability uses a type, supertype, or subtype in conjunction with the word "card," and the name of a zone, it means a card with that type in the stated zone. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 200.9b - If a spell or ability uses a type, supertype, or subtype in conjunction with the word "spell," it means a spell of that type on the stack. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 200.9c - If a spell or ability uses a type, supertype, or subtype in conjunction with the word "source," it means a source of that type-either a source of an ability or a source of damage. See Rule 419.8 "Sources of Damage." [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 200.10 - A counter is a marker placed on an object or player, either modifying its characteristics or interacting with an ability. A counter is not a token, and a token is not a counter. A +X/+Y counter on a permanent, where X and Y are numbers, adds X to that permanent's power and Y to that permanent's toughness. Similarly, -X/-Y counters subtract from power and toughness. Counters with the same name or description are interchangeable. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 201.1 - The parts of a card are name, mana cost, illustration, type line, expansion symbol, text box, power and toughness, illustration credit, legal text, and collector number. Some cards may have more than one of any or all of these parts. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 201.2 - An object's characteristics are name, mana cost, color, type, subtype, supertype, expansion symbol, rules text, abilities, power, and toughness. Objects can have some or all of these characteristics. Any other information about an object isn't a characteristic. Characteristics don't include any other information, such as whether a permanent is tapped, a spell's target, an object's owner or controller, what a local enchantment enchants, and so on. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 202.1 - The name of a card is printed on its upper left corner. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 202.2 - Text that refers to the object it's on by name means just that particular object and not any other duplicates of it, regardless of any name changes caused by game effects. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 202.2a - If an ability of an object uses a phrase such as "this [something]" to identify an object, where [something] is a category or characteristic, it is referring to that particular object, even if it isn't the appropriate category or characteristic at the time. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
  Example: An ability reads "Target creature gets +2/+2 until end of turn. Destroy that creature at end of turn." The ability will destroy the object it gave +2/+2 at the end of the turn, even if that object isn't a creature anymore. [CompRules 2003/12/01]
• 202.2b - If an object grants to another object an ability that includes the first object's name, the name refers only to the object granting the ability, not to any other object with the same name. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
  Example: Saproling Burst has an ability that reads "Remove a fade counter from Saproling Burst: Put a green Saproling creature token into play. It has 'This creature's power and toughness are each equal to the number of fade counters on Saproling Burst.'" The ability granted to the token only looks at the Saproling Burst that created the token, not at any other Saproling Burst in play. [CompRules 2003/12/01]
• 202.3 - Two cards have the same name if the English versions of their names are identical, regardless of anything else printed on the cards. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 203.1 - The mana cost of a card is indicated by mana symbols printed on its upper right corner. Tokens and lands have a mana cost of {0}. Paying an object's mana cost requires matching the color of any colored mana symbols as well as paying the generic mana cost indicated. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 203.2 - An object is the color or colors of the mana symbols in its mana cost, regardless of the color of its frame. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 203.2a - Objects with no colored mana symbols in their mana costs are colorless. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 203.2b - Objects with two or more different colored mana symbols in their mana costs are multicolored. Multicolored cards are printed with a gold frame, but this is not a requirement for a card to be multicolored. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 203.2c - The five colors are white, blue, black, red, and green. The white mana symbol is represented by {W}, blue by {U}, black by {B}, red by {R}, and green by {G}.
  Example: An object with a mana cost of {2}{W} is white, an object with a mana cost of {2} is colorless, and one with a mana cost of {2}{W}{B} is both white and black. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 203.2d - If a player is asked to choose a color, he or she must choose one of the five colors. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 203.3 - The converted mana cost of an object is a number equal to the total amount of mana in its mana cost, regardless of color. Some effects ask a player to pay mana equal to an object's converted mana cost; this is a generic mana cost-it may be paid with any combination of colored and/or colorless mana, regardless of the colors in the object's mana cost.
  Example: A mana cost of {3}{U}{U} translates to a converted mana cost of 5. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 203.4 - Any additional cost listed in an object's rules text or imposed by an effect isn't part of the mana cost. (See Rule 409, "Playing Spells and Activated Abilities.") Such costs are paid at the same time as the spell's other costs. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 203.Ruling.1 - If a cost has an "X" in it, the mana cost equals the amount announced as part of playing the spell or ability while it is on the stack, but if the card in any other zone, X is treated as zero. [D'Angelo 2003/09/08] See Rule G24.1a.

• 204.1 - The illustration is printed on the upper half of a card and has no game significance. For example, a creature doesn't have the flying ability unless stated in its rules text, even if it's depicted as flying. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 205.1 - The type (and subtype and supertype, if applicable) of a card is printed directly below the illustration. (See Rule 212, "Type, Supertype, and Subtype.") [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 205.2 - Types
• 205.2a - The types are artifact, creature, enchantment, instant, land, and sorcery. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 205.2b - Some objects can have more than one type (for example, an artifact creature). Such objects satisfy the criteria for any effect that applies to any of their types. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 205.3 - Subtypes
• 205.3a - A card can have one or more subtypes printed on its type line. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 205.3b - Artifact, creature and land subtypes are always single words and are listed after a long dash. Each word after the dash is a separate subtype. Artifact subtypes are also called artifact types. Creature subtypes are also called creature types. Land subtypes are also called land types. Artifacts, creatures and lands may have multiple subtypes. [Oracle 2003/10/01]
  Example: "Basic Land - Mountain" means the card is a land with the Mountain subtype. "Creature - Goblin Wizard" means the card is a creature with the subtypes Goblin and Wizard. "Artifact - Equipment" means the card is an artifact with the subtype Equipment. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 205.3c - Enchantment subtypes consist of the word "enchant" and the word(s) that follows it: "enchant creature," "enchant land," etc. A card with the type "enchantment" has no subtype. An enchantment's subtype specifies what the enchantment can be legally attached to. (See also Rule 212.4, "Enchantments.") [CompRules 2003/12/01]
• 205.3d - Instants and sorceries don't have subtypes. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 205.3e - If an artifact creature card has subtypes printed on its type line, those subtypes are creature types. If an artifact land card has subtypes printed on its type line, those types are land types. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 205.4 - Supertypes
• 205.4a - A card can also have one or more supertypes. These are printed directly before the card's types. If an object's types or subtypes change, any supertypes it has are kept, although they may not be relevant to the new type. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 205.4b - Any land with the supertype "basic" is a basic land. Any land that doesn't have this supertype is a nonbasic land.
  Example: Note that cards printed in sets prior to the Eighth Edition core set didn't use the word "basic" to indicate a basic land. Cards from those sets with the following names are basic lands: Forest, Island, Mountain, Plains, Swamp, Snow-Covered Forest, Snow-Covered Island, Snow-Covered Mountain, Snow-Covered Plains, and Snow-Covered Swamp. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 205.4c - Any permanent with the supertype "legendary" is subject to the rules for Legends and legendary permanents. See Rule 215, "Legends and Legendary Objects." [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 206.1 - The expansion symbol indicates which Magic set a card is from. It's printed below the right edge of the illustration. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 206.2 - The color of the expansion symbol indicates the rarity of the card within its set. A gold symbol signifies the card is rare; silver, uncommon; and black, common or basic land. (Prior to the Exodus(tm) set, all expansion symbols were black, regardless of rarity. Also, prior to the Sixth Edition core set, Magic core sets didn't have expansion symbols at all.) [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 206.3 - A spell or ability that affects cards from a particular set "looks" only for that set's expansion symbol. A card reprinted in the core set receives the core set's expansion symbol; any reprinted version of the card no longer counts as part of its original set unless it was reprinted with that set's expansion symbol. The first five editions of the core set had no expansion symbol. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 207.1 - The text box is printed on the lower half of the card. It usually contains rules text defining the card's abilities. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 207.2 - The text box may also contain italicized reminder text (in parentheses), which summarizes a rule that applies to that card, and italicized flavor text, which has no game function, but like the illustration, adds artistic appeal to the game. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 208.1 - A creature card has two numbers separated by a slash printed on its lower right corner. The first number is the creature's power (the amount of damage it deals in combat); the second is its toughness (the amount of damage needed to destroy it). For example, 2/3 means the creature has power 2 and toughness 3. Power and toughness can be modified or set to particular values by effects. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 208.2 - Some objects have power and/or toughness of *, where * is a value determined by the abilities of the object. As long as the object is in play, the ability sets the value of *. The * is 0 while the object is not in play. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 209.1 - The illustration credit for a card is printed directly below the text box. The credit has no effect on game play. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 210.1 - Legal text (the fine print at the bottom of the card) lists the copyright information. It has no effect on game play. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 211.1 - Some card sets feature collector numbers. This information is printed in the form [card number]/[total cards in the set], immediately following the legal text. These numbers have no effect on game play. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 212.1 - General
• 212.1a - Cards, tokens, permanents, and spells can all have types, supertypes, and subtypes. Abilities don't have types, supertypes, or subtypes. Instead, there are various categories of abilities. (See Rule 402, "Abilities.") [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.1b - When an object's type changes, the new type(s) replaces any existing types. Counters, effects, and damage affecting the object remain with it, even if they are meaningless to the new type. Similarly, when the subtypes of one of an object's types change, the new subtype(s) replaces any existing subtypes of that type. If an object's type is removed, the subtypes of its old type don't exist in any way under the new type. Those subtypes disappear completely for the entire time the object's type is removed. Removing an object's subtype doesn't affect its types at all. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 212.1c - Some effects change an object's type or subtype but specify that the object retains a prior type or subtype. In such cases, all the object's prior types and subtypes are retained. (This is a reversal of previous rules.) This rule applies to effects that use the phrase "in addition to its types" or that state that something is "still a [type]." Some effects state that an object becomes an "artifact creature"; these effects also allow the object to retain all of its prior types and subtypes. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
  Example: An ability reads, "All lands are 1/1 creatures that are still lands." The affected lands now have two types: creature and land. If there were any lands that also had the artifact type before the ability's effect applied to them, those lands would become "artifact land creatures," not just "creatures," or "land creatures." The effect allows them to retain both the artifact type and the land type.
  Example: An ability reads, "All artifacts are 1/1 artifact creatures." If a permanent is both an artifact and an enchantment, it will become an "artifact enchantment creature." [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.1d - An object's supertype is independent of its type and subtype. Changing an object's type or subtype won't change its supertype. Changing an object's supertype won't change its type or subtype.
  Example: An ability reads, "All lands are 1/1 creatures that are still lands." If any of the affected lands were legendary, they are still legendary. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.1e - If an instruction requires choosing a subtype, you must choose one, and only one, existing subtype, and the subtype you choose must be for the appropriate type. For example, you can't choose a land type if an instruction requires choosing a creature type. (Use the Oracle card reference to determine whether a creature type exists; see Rule 200.2. You will also find a complete list of creature types in the "Creature Types" entry in the glossary at the end of this document.) [CompRules 2003/12/01]
  Example: When choosing a creature type, "Merfolk" or "Wizard" is acceptable, but "Merfolk Wizard" is not. Words like "artifact," "opponent," "Swamp," or "truck" can't be chosen because they aren't creature types. [CompRules 2003/10/01]

• 212.2a - A player may play an artifact card from his or her hand during a main phase of his or her turn, when he or she has priority and the stack is empty. Playing an artifact as a spell uses the stack. (See Rule 409, "Playing Spells and Activated Abilities.") [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.2b - When an artifact spell resolves, its controller puts it into play under his or her control. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.2c - Artifacts subtypes are always a single word and are listed after a long dash: "Artifact - Equipment." Artifact subtypes are also called artifact types. Artifacts may have multiple subtypes. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 212.2d - Artifacts have no characteristics specific to their type. Because artifacts have no colored mana in their mana costs, they're colorless. Effects can give artifacts one or more colors, however, and colored objects can become artifacts without losing any colors they had. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.2e - Artifact creatures combine the characteristics of both the creature and artifact types and are subject to spells and abilities that affect either or both types. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.2f - Artifact lands combine the characteristics of both the land and artifact types, and are subject to spells and abilities that affect either or both types. Artifact lands can only be played as lands. They can't be played as spells. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 212.2g - Some artifacts have the subtype "Equipment." An Equipment can be attached to a creature. It can't legally be attached to an object that isn't a creature. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 212.2h - An Equipment is played and comes into play just like any other artifact. An Equipment doesn't come into play attached to a creature. The equip keyword ability moves the Equipment onto a creature you control (see Rule 502.33, "Equip"). Control of the creature matters only when the equip ability is played and resolved. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 212.2i - An Equipment that's also a creature can't equip a creature. Equipment that loses the subtype "Equipment" can't equip a creature. An Equipment can't equip itself. An Equipment that equips an illegal or nonexistent permanent stops equipping that permanent, but remains in play. (This is a state-based effect. See Rule 420.) [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 212.2j - The creature an Equipment is attached to is called the "equipped creature." The Equipment is attached to, or "equips," that creature. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 212.2k - An Equipment's controller is separate from the equipped creature's controller; the two need not be the same. Changing control of the creature doesn't change control of the Equipment, and vice versa. Only the Equipment's controller can play its abilities. However, if the Equipment adds an ability to the equipped creature (with "gains" or "has"), the equipped creature's controller is the only one who can play that ability. [CompRules 2003/10/01]

• 212.3a - A player may play a creature card from his or her hand during a main phase of his or her turn, when he or she has priority and the stack is empty. Playing a creature as a spell uses the stack. (See Rule 409, "Playing Spells and Activated Abilities.") [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.3b - When a creature spell resolves, its controller puts it into play under his or her control. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.3c - Creature subtypes are always a single word and are listed after a long dash: "Creature - Minotaur," "Artifact Creature - Golem Legend," etc. Creature subtypes are also called creature types. Creatures may have multiple subtypes.
  Example: "Creature - Goblin Wizard" means the card is a creature with the subtypes Goblin and Wizard. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.3d - A creature's activated ability with the tap symbol in its activation cost can't be played unless the creature has been under its controller's control since the start of his or her most recent turn. A creature can't attack unless it has been under its controller's control since the start of his or her most recent turn. This rule is informally called the "summoning sickness" rule. Ignore this rule for creatures with haste (see Rule 502.5). [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 212.4a - A player may play an enchantment card from his or her hand during a main phase of his or her turn, when he or she has priority and the stack is empty. Playing an enchantment as a spell uses the stack. (See Rule 409, "Playing Spells and Activated Abilities.") [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.4b - When an enchantment spell resolves, its controller puts it into play under his or her control. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.4c - A global enchantment simply has "enchantment" as its type. Local enchantments use the word "enchant," followed by what it can enchant. Examples of enchantments subtypes include enchant artifact, enchant artifact creature, enchant creature, enchant permanent, enchant player, and enchant Swamp. If a local enchantment's subtype includes more than one word after "enchant," the enchanted permanent must match each of those words. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 212.4d - A local-enchantment spell requires a target whose properties are indicated by the enchantment's subtype. The local-enchantment permanent the spell puts into play can only enchant that type of permanent or player and comes into play attached to the permanent or player the spell targeted. Any additional restrictions on what it can enchant are indicated by phrases like "[This local enchantment] can enchant only a [permanent or player with specified properties]." These restrictions also limit what the local-enchantment spell can target. Similar restrictions can limit what a permanent can be enchanted by. For example, a permanent might have an ability that reads "[This permanent] can't be enchanted by [local enchantments with specified properties]." These restrictions limit whether local-enchantment spells can target the permanent.
  Example: An enchant creature spell requires a target creature; an enchant creature in play must enchant a creature. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.4e - If a local enchantment is coming into play by any other means than being played, and the effect putting it into play doesn't specify what it will enchant, the player putting it into play chooses a permanent or player for it to enchant as it comes into play. In this case, the enchantment doesn't target the permanent, but the player who is putting it into play still must choose a permanent or player that the enchantment can enchant. If no legal permanent or player is available, the enchantment remains in the zone from which it attempted to move instead of coming into play. The same rule applies to moving a local enchantment from one permanent to another or from one player to another. The permanent or player to which the enchantment is to be moved must be able to be enchanted by it. If it isn't legal, the enchantment doesn't move. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.4f - If a local enchantment is enchanting an illegal permanent or player or the permanent or player it was attached to no longer exists, the enchantment is put into its owner's graveyard. (This is a state-based effect. See Rule 420.) [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.4g - A local enchantment can't be attached to itself. If this occurs somehow, the local enchantment is put into its owner's graveyard. (This is a state-based effect. See Rule 420.). [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.4h - The permanent or player a local enchantment is attached to is called enchanted. The enchantment "enchants" or, in more casual terms, "is attached to" that permanent. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.4i - A local enchantment's controller is separate from the enchanted permanent's controller; the two need not be the same. Changing control of the permanent doesn't change control of the enchantment, and vice versa. Only the enchantment's controller can play its abilities. However, if the enchantment adds an ability to the enchanted permanent (with "gains" or "has"), that enchanted permanent's controller is the only one who can play that ability. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.4j - An object that is an "enchant world" is a global enchantment. It's subject to the state-based effect for enchant worlds. (See Rule 420.5i) [CompRules 2003/12/01]

• 212.5a - A player may play an instant card from his or her hand any time he or she has priority. Playing an instant as a spell uses the stack. (See Rule 409, "Playing Spells and Activated Abilities.") [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.5b - When an instant spell resolves, the actions stated in its rules text are followed. Then, it's put into its owner's graveyard. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.5c - Instants have no subtypes. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.5d - Instants can't come into play. If an instant would come into play, it remains in its previous zone instead. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.5e - If text states that a player may do something "any time he or she could play an instant," it means only that the player must have priority. The player doesn't need to have an instant he or she could actually play. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 212.6a - A player may play a land card from his or her hand only during a main phase of his or her turn, and only when he or she has priority and the stack is empty. A land card isn't a spell card, and at no time is it a spell. When a player plays a land card, it's simply put into play. The land card doesn't go on the stack, so players can't respond to it with instants or activated abilities. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.6b - A player may play only one land card during each of his or her own turns. Effects may allow the playing of additional lands; playing an additional land in this way doesn't prevent a player from taking the normal action of playing a land. Players can't begin to play a land that an effect prohibits from being played. As a player plays a land, he or she announces whether he or she is using the once-per-turn action of playing a land. If not, he or she specifies which effect is allowing the additional land play. Effects may also allow you to "put" lands into play. This isn't the same as "playing a land" and doesn't count as the player's one land played during his or her turn. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.6c - Land subtypes are always a single word and are listed after a long dash. Land subtypes are also called land types. Lands may have multiple subtypes.
  Example: "Basic Land - Mountain" means the card is a land with the Mountain subtype. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.6d - The basic land types are Plains, Island, Swamp, Mountain, and Forest. If an object uses the words "basic land type," it's referring to one of these subtypes. A land with a basic land type has an intrinsic ability to produce colored mana. (See Rule 406, "Mana Abilities.") The land is treated as if its text box included, "{Tap}: Add [mana symbol] to your mana pool," even if the text box doesn't actually contain text. Plains produce white mana; Islands, blue; Swamps, black; Mountains, red; and Forests, green. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.6e - If an effect changes a land's type to one of the basic land types, the land no longer has its old land type. It loses any rules text it had in its text box, other than the rules text for the snow-covered ability, and it gains the rules text for the appropriate mana ability for that basic land type. Note that this doesn't remove any abilities that were granted to the land by other effects. Changing a land's type doesn't add or remove any types (such as creature) or supertypes (such as basic and legendary) the land may have. If a land gains one or more land types in addition to its own, it keeps its land types and rules text, and it gains the new land types and mana abilities. [CompRules 2003/12/01]
• 212.6f - Any land with the supertype "basic" is a basic land. Any land that doesn't have this supertype is a nonbasic land. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.6g - If an object is both a land and another type, it can be played only as a land. It can't be played as a spell. [CompRules 2003/10/01]

• 212.7a - A player may play a sorcery card from his or her hand during a main phase of his or her turn, when he or she has priority and the stack is empty. Playing a sorcery as a spell uses the stack. (See Rule 409, "Playing Spells and Activated Abilities.") [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.7b - When a sorcery spell resolves, the actions stated in its rules text are followed. Then it's put into its owner's graveyard. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.7c - Sorceries have no subtypes. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.7d - Sorceries can't come into play. If a sorcery would come into play, it remains in its previous zone instead. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 212.7e - If a spell, ability, or effect states that a player can do something only "any time he or she could play an sorcery," it means only that the player must have priority, it must be during the main phase of his or her turn, and the stack must be empty. The player doesn't need to have an sorcery he or she could actually play. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 213.1 - Every nonland card is a spell while it's being played (see Rule 409, "Playing Spells and Activated Abilities.") and while it's on the stack. Once it's played, a card remains a spell until it resolves, is countered, or otherwise leaves the stack. For more information, see Rule 401, "Spells on the Stack." [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 213.2 - Spell type is the type of a spell on the stack. A spell's type, supertype, and subtype are the same as those of its card. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 213.3 - The term "spell" is used to refer to a card while it's on the stack. The term "card" isn't used to refer to a card that's on the stack as a spell. It's only used to refer to a card that's not in play or on the stack, such as a creature card in a player's hand. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 213.4 - Every spell has a controller. By default, a spell's controller is the player who played it. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 213.5 - If an effect changes any characteristics of a spell that becomes a permanent, the effect continues to apply to the permanent when the spell resolves.
  Example: If an effect changes a black creature spell to white, the creature is white when it comes into play and remains white for the duration of the effect changing its color. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 214.1 - A permanent is a card or token in play. Permanents stay in play unless moved to another zone by an effect or rule. There are four types of permanents: artifacts, creatures, enchantments, and lands. Instant and sorcery cards can't come into play. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 214.2 - Permanent type is the type of a card or token that's in play. A nontoken permanent's types, supertypes, and subtypes are the same as those printed on its card. A token's types, supertypes, and subtypes are set by the spell or ability that created it. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 214.3 - A card or token becomes a permanent when it comes into play and it stops being a permanent when it leaves play. Permanents come into play untapped. The term "permanent" is used to refer to a card or token while it's in play. The term "card" isn't used to refer to a card that's in play as a permanent. It's only used to refer to a card that's not in play and not on the stack, such as a creature card in a player's hand. For more information, see Rule 217, "Zones." [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 214.4 - Every permanent has a controller and is either tapped or untapped. By default, a permanent's controller is the player who put it into play. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 215.1 - The word Legend or legendary may appear as an object's subtype or supertype. Permanents with the subtype Legend or the supertype legendary are subject to the Legend rule (see Rule 420, "State-Based Effects") as well as any other rules for their types, subtypes, and supertypes.
• 215.2 - Legend is a creature type; legendary is not. If a legendary noncreature permanent becomes a creature, it's still legendary, but it doesn't get the creature type Legend. If a creature of type Legend becomes a noncreature permanent, it loses the creature type Legend, but it doesn't become legendary.

• 216.1 - Some effects put token creatures into play. A token is controlled by whomever put it into play and owned by the controller of the spell or ability that created it. The spell or ability may define any number of characteristics for the token. A token doesn't have any characteristics not defined by the spell or ability that created it. The spell or ability that creates the token sets both its name and creature type at the same time. A "Goblin creature token," for example, is named "Goblin" and has the creature subtype Goblin. If a token's name is two words or more, it has the creature subtype for each of those words. For example, a "Goblin Scout creature token" is named "Goblin Scout" and has two creature subtypes: Goblin and Scout. Once a token is in play, changing its name doesn't change its creature type, and vice versa. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 216.2 - A token is subject to anything that affects permanents in general or that affects the token's type or subtype. A token isn't a card (even if represented by cards from other games or Unglued cards). [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 216.3 - A token in a zone other than the in-play zone ceases to exist. This is a state-based effect. (Note that a token changing zones will set off triggered abilities before the token ceases to exist.) Once a token has left play, it can't be returned to play by any means. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 217.1 - A zone is a place where objects can be during a game. There are normally six zones: library, hand, graveyard, in play, stack, and removed from the game. Some older cards also use the ante and phased-out zones. Each player has his or her own library, hand, and graveyard. The other zones are shared by all players. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 217.1a - If an object would go to any library, graveyard, or hand other than its owner's, it goes to the corresponding zone of its owner's instead. If an instant or sorcery card would come into play, it remains in its previous zone instead. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 217.1b - The order of objects in a library, in a graveyard, or on the stack can't be changed except when effects or rules allow it. Objects in other zones can be arranged however their owners wish, although who controls those objects, whether they're tapped, and what enchants or equips them must remain clear to both players. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 217.1c - An object that moves from one zone to another is treated as a new object. Effects connected with its previous location will no longer affect it. There are two exceptions to this rule: Effects that edit the characteristics of an artifact, creature, or enchantment spell on the stack will continue to apply to the permanent that spell creates, and abilities that trigger when an object moves from one zone to another (for example, "When Rancor is put into a graveyard from play") can find the object in the zone it moved to when the ability triggered. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 217.1d - If an object would move from one zone to another, first determine what event is moving the object. Then apply any appropriate replacement effects to that event. If an effect or rule tries to do two or more contradictory or mutually exclusive things to a particular object, that object's controller-or its owner if it has no controller-chooses what the effect does to the object. Then the event moves the object. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 217.1e - An object is outside the game if it's in the removed-from-the-game zone, or if it isn't in any of the game's zones. All other objects are inside the game. Outside the game is not a zone. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 217.2a - When a game begins, each player's deck becomes his or her library. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 217.2b - Each library must be kept in a single face-down pile. Players can't look at or change the order of cards in a library. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 217.2c - Any player may count the number of cards remaining in either player's library at any time. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 217.2d - If an effect puts two or more cards on the top or bottom of a library at the same time, the owner of those cards may arrange them in any order. That library's owner doesn't reveal the order in which the cards go into his or her library. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 217.2e - Some effects tell a player to play with the top card of his or her library revealed. If the top card of the player's library changes while a spell or ability is being played, the new top card won't be revealed until the spell or ability becomes played (see Rule 409.1i). [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 217.2.Ruling.1 - If player puts two or more cards on the top or bottom of another player's library (as with Misinformation), that player may arrange them in any order (unless otherwise specified) and doesn't reveal this order to the owner of the library. [D'Angelo 2003/09/08]

• 217.3a - The hand is where a player holds cards that have been drawn but not yet played. At the beginning of the game, each player draws a hand of seven cards. (See Rule 101, "Starting the Game.") [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 217.3b - Each player has a maximum hand size, which is normally seven cards. A player may have any number of cards in his or her hand, but as part of his or her cleanup step, the player must discard excess cards down to the maximum hand size. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 217.3c - A player may arrange his or her hand in any convenient fashion and look at it as much as he or she wishes. A player can't look at the cards in another player's hand but may count those cards at any time. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 217.4a - A graveyard is a discard pile. Any object that's countered, discarded, destroyed, or sacrificed is put on top of its owner's graveyard, as is any instant or sorcery spell that's finished resolving. Each player's graveyard starts out empty. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 217.4b - Each graveyard is kept in a single face-up pile. A player can examine the cards in any graveyard at any time but can't change their order. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 217.4c - If an effect or rule puts two or more cards into the same graveyard at the same time, the owner of those cards may arrange them in any order. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 217.5a - Most of the area between the players represents the in-play zone. The in-play zone starts out empty. Permanents a player controls (other than local enchantments enchanting the other player's permanents) are kept in front of him or her in the in-play zone. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 217.5b - A spell or ability affects and checks only the in-play zone unless it specifically mentions a player or another zone. Permanents exist only in the in-play zone. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 217.5c - Whenever a permanent enters the in-play zone, it's considered a brand-new permanent and has no relationship to any previous permanent represented by the same object. This is also true for any objects entering any zone (see Rule 217.1c). [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 217.5d - An object not in the in-play zone isn't "in play" and isn't considered tapped or untapped. Objects that aren't either in play or on the stack aren't controlled by either player. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 217.6a - When a spell is played, the physical card is put on the stack. When an ability is played, it goes on top of the stack without any card associated with it (See Rule 409.1, "Playing Spells and Activated Abilities.") [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 217.6b - The stack keeps track of the order that spells and/or abilities were added to it. Each time an object is put on the stack, it is put on top of all objects already there. (See Rule 408, "Timing of Spells and Abilities.") [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 217.6c - Each spell has all the characteristics of the card associated with it. Each activated or triggered ability that's on the stack has the text of the ability that created it and no other characteristics. The controller of a spell is the person who played the spell. The controller of an activated ability is the player who played the ability. The controller of a triggered ability is the player who controlled the ability's source when it triggered. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 217.6d - When both players pass in succession, the top (last-added) spell or ability on the stack resolves. If the stack is empty when both players pass, the current step or phase ends and the next begins. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 217.6e - Combat damage also uses the stack, in the same way as other objects that use the stack. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 217.7a - Effects can remove objects from the game. Some effects may provide a way for a card to return to a zone and use the term "set aside." Cards that are set aside this way are still removed from the game, even though that removal may be temporary. Objects that aren't cards can't be returned in any way. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 217.7b - Cards in the removed-from-the-game zone are kept face up and may be examined by either player at any time. Cards "removed from the game face down" can't be examined by either player except when instructions allow it. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 217.7c - Cards that might return to play should be kept in separate piles to keep track of their respective ways of returning. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 217.8a - Permanents that phase out are placed in the phased-out zone. (See Rule 502.15, "Phasing.") [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 217.8b - Face-up objects in the phased-out zone may be examined by either player at any time. Face-down objects in the phased-out zone are covered by the rules for face-down creatures. (See Rule 502.26, "Morph," and Rule 504, "Face-Down Spells and Permanents.") [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 217.8c - Phased-out objects are not in play, so they do not count as tapped or untapped, nor are they controlled by anyone. However, an object in this zone "remembers" the state of the permanent as it phased out and returns to play in the same state as when it left. (See Rule 502.15, "Phasing.") This is an exception to Rule 217.1c. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 217.8d - Tokens in the phased-out zone cease to exist. This is a state-based effect (see Rule 420, "State-Based Effects"). Any phased-out local enchantments or Equipment that were attached to those tokens remain phased out for the rest of the game. [CompRules 2003/10/01]

• 217.9a - Earlier versions of the Magic rules included an ante rule as a way of playing "for keeps." Playing Magic games for ante is now considered an optional variation on the game, and it's allowed only where it's not forbidden by law or by other rules. Playing for ante is strictly forbidden under the DCI Universal Tournament Rules. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 217.9b - When playing for ante, each player puts one random card from his or her deck into the ante zone at the beginning of the game. Cards in the ante zone may be examined by either player at any time. At the end of the game, the winner becomes the owner of all the cards in the ante zone. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 217.9c - A few cards have the text "Remove [this card] from your deck before playing if you're not playing for ante." These are the only cards that can add or remove cards from a player's ante zone or change a card's owner. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 217.9d - To ante an object is to put that object into the ante zone from whichever zone it's currently in. The owner of an object is the only person who can ante that object. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

3 - Turn Structure

• 300.1 - A turn consists of five phases, in this order: beginning, precombat main, combat, postcombat main, and end. Each of these phases takes place every turn, even if nothing happens during the phase. The beginning, combat, and end phases are further broken down into steps, which proceed in order. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 300.2 - A phase or step ends when the stack is empty and both players pass in succession. No game events can occur between turns, phases, or steps. Simply having the stack become empty doesn't cause the phase or step to end; both players have to pass with the stack empty. Because of this, each player always gets a chance to add new things to the stack before the current phase or step ends. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 300.3 - When a phase ends (but not a step), any unused mana left in a player's mana pool is lost. That player loses 1 life for each one mana lost this way. This is called mana burn. Note that mana burn is loss of life, not damage, so it can't be prevented or altered by effects that affect damage. This game action doesn't use the stack. (See Rule 406, "Mana Abilities.") [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 300.4 - When a phase or step ends, any effects scheduled to last "until end of" that phase or step expire. When a phase or step begins, any effects scheduled to last "until" that phase or step expire. Effects that last "until end of combat" expire at the end of the combat phase, not at the beginning of the end of combat step. Effects that last "until end of turn" are subject to special rules; see Rule 314.2. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 300.5 - When a phase or step begins, any abilities that trigger "at the beginning of" that phase or step are added to the stack. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 300.6 - Some effects can give a player extra turns. They do this by adding the turns directly after the current turn. If a player gets multiple extra turns or if both players get extra turns during a single turn, the extra turns are added one at a time. The most recently created turn will be taken first. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 300.7 - Some effects can add phases to a turn. They do this by adding the phases directly after the specified phase. If multiple extra phases are created after the same phase, the most recently created phase will occur first. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 300.8 - Some effects can add steps to a phase. They do this by adding the steps directly after a specified step (or directly before a specified step). If multiple extra steps are created after the same step, the most recently created step will occur first. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 300.9 - Some effects can cause a step, phase, or turn to be skipped. To skip a step, phase, or turn is to proceed past it as though it didn't exist. See Rule 419.6e and Rule 419.6f. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 301.1 - The beginning phase consists of three steps, in this order: untap, upkeep, and draw. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 302.1 - First, all permanents with phasing that the active player controls phase out, and all phased-out objects that the active player controlled when they phased out simultaneously phase in (this game action doesn't use the stack). See Rule 217.8, "Phased-Out," and Rule 502.15, "Phasing." [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 302.2 - Next the active player determines which permanents he or she controls will untap. Then he or she untaps them all simultaneously (this game action doesn't use the stack). Normally, all of a player's permanents untap, but effects can keep one or more of a player's permanents from untapping. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 302.3 - No player receives priority during the untap step, so no spells or abilities can be played or resolved. Any ability that triggers during this step will be held until a player would receive priority during the upkeep step. (See Rule 303, "Upkeep Step.") [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 303.1 - As the upkeep step begins, any abilities that trigger at the beginning of that upkeep step and any abilities that triggered during the turn's untap step go on the stack. (See Rule 410, "Handling Triggered Abilities.") Then the active player gets priority and players may play spells and abilities. [CompRules 2003/10/01]

• 304.1 - First, the active player draws a card. This special action doesn't use the stack. (This is a reversal of previous rules.) Then any abilities that trigger at the beginning of the draw step and any other abilities that have triggered go on the stack. Then the active player gets priority and players may play spells and abilities. [CompRules 2003/10/01]

• 305.1 - There are two main phases in a turn. In each turn, the first main phase, known as the precombat main phase, and the second main phase, known as the postcombat main phase, are separated by the combat phase (see Rule 306, "Combat Phase"). The precombat and postcombat main phases are individually and collectively known as the main phase. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 305.2 - The main phase has no steps, so a main phase ends when both players pass in succession while the stack is empty. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 305.3 - As the main phase begins, any abilities that trigger at the beginning of that main phase go on the stack. (See Rule 410, "Handling Triggered Abilities.") Then the active player gets priority and players may play spells and abilities. (This is the only phase in which a player can normally play artifact, creature, enchantment, and sorcery spells, and only the active player may play these spells.) [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 305.4 - During either main phase, the active player may play one land card from his or her hand if the stack is empty, if the player has priority, and if he or she hasn't yet taken this special action this turn. (See Rule 212.6, "Lands.") This action doesn't use the stack and it isn't a spell or ability of any kind. It can't be countered, and players can't respond to it with instants or activated abilities. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 306.1 - The combat phase has five steps, which proceed in order: beginning of combat, declare attackers, declare blockers, combat damage, and end of combat. The declare blockers and combat damage steps are skipped if no creatures are declared as attackers (see Rule 308.4). There are two combat damage steps if any attacking or blocking creature has first strike (see Rule 502.2) or double strike (see Rule 502.28). [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 306.2 - A creature is removed from combat if it leaves play (such as by being destroyed or removed from the game), if it regenerates (see Rule 419.6b), if its controller changes, if it stops being a creature, or if an effect removes it from combat. Removed from combat means the creature stops being an attacking, blocking, blocked, and/or unblocked creature. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 306.2a - Once a creature has been declared as an attacking or blocking creature, spells or abilities that would have kept that creature from attacking or blocking don't remove the creature from combat. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 306.2b - Tapping or untapping a creature that's already been declared as an attacker or blocker doesn't remove it from combat and doesn't prevent its combat damage. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 306.3 - During the combat phase, the active player is attacking and is the attacking player. The nonactive player is being attacked and is the defending player. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 306.4 - An attacking creature is attacking alone if no other creatures are attacking. A blocking creature is blocking alone if no other creatures are blocking. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 307.1 - As the beginning of combat step begins, any abilities that trigger at the beginning of combat go on the stack. (See Rule 410, "Handling Triggered Abilities.") Then the active player gets priority and players may play spells and abilities. [CompRules 2003/10/01]

• 308.1 - As the declare attackers step begins, the active player declares attackers (this game action doesn't use the stack). Then any abilities that triggered on attackers being declared go on the stack. (See Rule 410, "Handling Triggered Abilities.") Then the active player gets priority and players may play spells and abilities. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 308.2 - To declare attackers, the active player follows the steps below, in order. If at any point during the declaration of attackers, the active player is unable to comply with any of the steps listed below, the declaration was illegal; the game returns to the moment before the declaration (see Rule 422, "Handling Illegal Actions," and Rule 500, "Legal Attacks and Blocks"). [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 308.2a - The active player either chooses to not attack or chooses one or more creatures he or she controls and then determines whether this set of creatures could attack. Only creatures can attack, and the following creatures can't attack: tapped creatures (even those that can attack without tapping), creatures with creature type Wall, and creatures the active player didn't control continuously since the beginning of the turn (except those with haste). Other effects may also affect whether or not a set of creatures could attack. (See Rule 500, "Legal Attacks and Blocks.") [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 308.2b - If any of the chosen creatures have banding or a bands with other ability, the active player announces which creatures, if any, are banded with which. (See Rule 502.10, "Banding.") [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 308.2c - The active player taps the chosen creatures. Tapping a creature when it's declared as an attacker isn't a cost; attacking simply causes creatures to become tapped. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 308.2d - If any of the creatures require paying costs to attack, the active player determines the total cost to attack. Costs may include paying mana, tapping permanents, sacrificing permanents, discarding cards, and so on. Once the total cost is determined, it becomes "locked in." If effects would change the total cost after this time, ignore this change. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 308.2e - If any of the costs require mana, the active player then has a chance to play mana abilities (see Rule 411, "Playing Mana Abilities"). [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 308.2f - Once the player has enough mana in his or her mana pool, he or she pays all costs in any order. Partial payments are not allowed. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 308.2g - Each chosen creature becomes an attacking creature if all costs have been paid, but only if it's still controlled by the active player. It remains an attacking creature until it's removed from combat or the combat phase ends, whichever comes first. See Rule 306.2. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 308.3 - Abilities that trigger on a creature attacking trigger only at the point the creature starts to attack. They will not trigger if a creature attacks and the characteristics of that creature are then changed to match the ability's trigger condition.
  Example: A permanent has the ability "Whenever a green creature attacks, destroy that creature at end of combat." If a blue creature attacks and is later turned green, the ability will not trigger. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 308.4 - If no creatures are declared as attackers, finish the declare attackers step, but skip the declare blockers and combat damage steps. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 309.1 - As the declare blockers step begins, the defending player declares blockers (this game action doesn't use the stack). Then any abilities that triggered on blockers being declared go on the stack. (See Rule 410, "Handling Triggered Abilities.") Then the active player gets priority and players may play spells and abilities. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 309.2 - To declare blockers, the defending player follows the steps below, in order. If at any point during the declaration of blockers, the defending player is unable to comply with any of the steps listed below, the declaration was illegal; the game returns to the moment before the declaration (see Rule 422, "Handling Illegal Actions," and Rule 500, "Legal Attacks and Blocks"). [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 309.2a - The defending player chooses zero or more creatures he or she controls, chooses one attacking creature for each one to block, then determines whether this set of blocks is legal. Only untapped creatures can block, but blocking does not cause creatures to tap. Other effects may also affect whether or not a set of creatures could block. (See Rule 500, "Legal Attacks and Blocks.") [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 309.2b - If any of the creatures require paying costs to block, the defending player determines the total cost to block. Costs may include paying mana, tapping permanents, sacrificing permanents, discarding cards, and so on. Once the total cost is determined, it becomes "locked in." If effects would change the total cost after this time, ignore this change. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 309.2c - If any of the costs require mana, the defending player then has a chance to play mana abilities (see Rule 411, "Playing Mana Abilities"). [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 309.2d - Once the player has enough mana in his or her mana pool, he or she pays all costs in any order. Partial payments are not allowed. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 309.2e - Each chosen creature becomes a blocking creature, but only if it's controlled by the defending player. Each one is blocking the attacking creature chosen for it. It remains a blocking creature until it's removed from combat or the combat phase ends, whichever comes first. See Rule 306.2. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 309.2f - An attacking creature with one or more creatures declared as blockers for it becomes a blocked creature; one with no blockers becomes an unblocked creature. The creature's status remains unchanged until the creature is removed from combat or the combat phase ends, whichever comes first. (Some effects can change a creature's status.) [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 309.3 - Abilities that trigger on a creature blocking or becoming blocked trigger only at the point the creature blocks or becomes blocked. They will not trigger if a creature blocks or becomes blocked, and then the characteristics of that creature are changed to match the ability's trigger condition.
  Example: A creature has the ability "Whenever this creature becomes blocked by a white creature, destroy that creature at end of combat." If that creature is blocked by a black creature that is later turned white, the ability will not trigger. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 310.1 - As the combat damage step begins, the active player announces how each attacking creature will assign its combat damage. Then the defending player announces how each blocking creature will assign its combat damage. All assignments of combat damage go on the stack as a single object. Then any abilities that triggered on damage being assigned go on the stack. (See Rule 410, "Handling Triggered Abilities.") Then the active player gets priority and players may play spells and abilities. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 310.2 - A player may divide a creature's combat damage as he or she chooses among the legal recipients. Dividing combat damage is subject to the following restrictions: [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 310.2a - Each attacking creature and each blocking creature will assign combat damage equal to its power. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 310.2b - An unblocked attacking creature will assign all its combat damage to the defending player. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 310.2c - A blocked creature will assign combat damage, divided as its controller chooses, to the creatures blocking it. If no creatures are currently blocking it (if, for example, they were destroyed or removed from combat), it will assign no combat damage. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 310.2d - A blocking creature will assign combat damage, divided as its controller chooses, to the attacking creatures it's blocking. If it isn't currently blocking any creatures (if, for example, they were destroyed or removed from combat), it will assign no combat damage. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 310.2e - An effect that states a creature deals its combat damage in a different manner than normal affects the assignment of combat damage. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 310.3 - Although combat-damage assignments go on the stack as an object, they aren't spells or abilities, so they can't be countered. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 310.4 - Combat damage resolves as an object on the stack. When it resolves, it's all dealt at once, as originally assigned. After combat damage finishes resolving, the active player gets priority. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 310.4a - Combat damage is dealt as it was originally assigned even if the creature dealing damage is no longer in play, its power has changed, or the creature receiving damage has left combat. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 310.4b - The source of the combat damage is the creature as it currently exists, or as it most recently existed if it is no longer in play. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 310.4c - If a creature that was supposed to receive combat damage is no longer in play or is no longer a creature, the damage assigned to it isn't dealt. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 310.5 - At the start of the combat damage step, if at least one attacking or blocking creature has first strike (see Rule 502.2) or double strike (see Rule 502.28), creatures without first strike or double strike don't assign combat damage. Instead of proceeding to end of combat, the phase gets a second combat damage step to handle the remaining creatures. In the second combat damage step, surviving attackers and blockers that didn't assign combat damage in the first step, plus any creatures with double strike, assign their combat damage. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 311.1 - All "at end of combat" abilities trigger and go on the stack. (See Rule 410, "Handling Triggered Abilities.") Then the active player gets priority and players may play spells and abilities. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 311.2 - As soon as the end of combat step ends, all creatures are removed from combat. After the end of combat step ends, the combat phase is over and the postcombat main phase begins. [CompRules 2003/10/01]

• 312.1 - The end phase consists of two steps: end of turn and cleanup. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 313.1 - As the end of turn step begins, all abilities that trigger "at end of turn" go on the stack. (See Rule 410, "Handling Triggered Abilities.") Then the active player gets priority and players may play spells and abilities. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 313.2 - If "at end of turn"-triggered abilities are created or if cards with "at end of turn"-triggered abilities come into play after preexisting ones have already gone on the stack at the beginning of the end of turn step, those abilities won't go on the stack until the next turn's end phase. In other words, the step doesn't "back up" so new "at end of turn"-triggered abilities can go on the stack. This only applies to triggered abilities that say "at end of turn." It doesn't apply to continuous effects whose durations say "until end of turn" or "this turn." (See Rule 314, "Cleanup Step.") [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 314.1 - If the active player's hand contains more cards than his or her maximum hand size (normally seven), he or she discards enough cards to reduce the hand size to that number (this game action doesn't use the stack). [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 314.2 - Simultaneously, all damage is removed from permanents and all "until end of turn" and "this turn" effects end (this game action doesn't use the stack). [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 314.3 - If the conditions for any state-based effects exist or if any triggered abilities are waiting to be put onto the stack, the active player gets priority and players may play spells and abilities. Once the stack is empty and both players pass, another cleanup step begins. Otherwise, no player receives priority and the step ends. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

4 - Spells, Abilities, and Effects

• 400.1 - An ability is something an object does or can do. Abilities generate effects. An object's abilities are defined in the object's text box (if it has one) or by the effect that created the object. Abilities can also be granted to objects by effects. Reminder text and flavor text are not abilities. Reminder text and flavor text always appear in italics. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 400.2 - Spells, activated abilities, and triggered abilities generate effects when they resolve. Static abilities generate continuous effects. Text itself is never an effect. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 401.1 - A card on the stack is a spell. As the first step of being played, the card becomes a spell and goes on the stack from the zone it was played from (usually the player's hand). (See Rule 217.6, "Stack.") A copy of a spell is also a spell, even if it has no card associated with it. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 401.2 - A spell stops being a spell when it resolves (see Rule 413, "Resolving Spells and Abilities"), is countered (see Rule 414, "Countering Spells and Abilities"), or otherwise leaves the stack.
  Example: A played creature card is a creature spell until it resolves, is countered, or leaves the stack. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 401.3 - Instant and sorcery spells have abilities, just like any other objects. These abilities are instructions that are followed when the spells resolve, unless the instructions can only be applied at some other time. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
  Example: Some abilities that are not followed when the spell resolves are activated abilities or triggered abilities, any abilities that define the zone from which it can be played (see Rule 401.4), any abilities that apply while the spell is in a zone from which it can be played (see Rule 401.5), or any abilities that apply while the spell is on the stack (see Rule 401.6). [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 401.4 - Any object can have static abilities that allow it to be played from a zone other than a player's hand. These abilities are active while the object is in that zone. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 401.5 - Any object can have static abilities that apply while the object is in a zone from which it can be played. These include restrictions on playing the object and abilities that allow the object to be played at a time that it otherwise could not or in a manner that it otherwise could not. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 401.6 - Any spell can have static abilities that apply while the spell is on the stack. These include, but are not limited to, additional costs, alternative costs, and cost reductions. See Rule 409, "Playing Spells and Activated Abilities." [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 401.7 - As the final part of an instant or sorcery spell's resolution, the card is put into its owner's graveyard. As the final part of an artifact, creature, or enchantment spell's resolution, the card becomes a permanent and is put into the in-play zone under the control of the spell's controller. If any spell is countered, the card is put into its owner's graveyard as part of the resolution of the countering spell or ability. (See Rule 413, "Resolving Spells and Activated Abilities.") [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 402.1 - An ability is text on an object that's not reminder text or flavor text (see Rule 400.1). The result of following such an instruction is an effect. (See Rule 416, "Effects.") Abilities can affect the objects they're on; they can also affect other objects and/or players. Abilities can grant abilities to other objects or to the objects they're on; they do so when the words "has," "have," "gains," or "gain" are used. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 402.2 - There are three general categories of abilities: activated, triggered, and static. Activated and triggered abilities can also be mana abilities. Abilities can generate one-shot effects or continuous effects. Some effects are replacement effects or prevention effects. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 402.3 - Abilities can be beneficial or detrimental. For example, "[This creature] can't block" is an ability. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 402.4 - An additional cost or alternative cost to play a card is an ability of the card. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 402.5 - An ability isn't a spell and therefore can't be countered by anything that counters only spells. Abilities can be countered by effects that specifically counter abilities, as well as by the rules (for example, an ability with one or more targets is countered if all its targets become illegal). [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 402.6 - Once activated or triggered, an ability exists independently of its source as an ability on the stack. Destruction or removal of the source after that time won't affect the ability. Note that some abilities cause a source to do something (for example, "Prodigal Sorcerer deals 1 damage to target creature or player") rather than the ability doing anything directly. In these cases, any activated or triggered ability that references information about the source will check that information when the ability resolves, or will use the source's last known information if it's no longer in play. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 402.7 - An object may have multiple abilities. Aside from certain defined abilities that may be strung together on a single line (see Rule 502, "Keyword Abilities"), each paragraph break in a card's text marks a separate ability. An object may also have multiple instances of the same ability. Each instance functions independently. This may or may not produce more effects than a single instance; refer to the specific ability for more information. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 402.8 - Abilities function only while the permanent with the ability is in play unless the ability is a characteristic-setting ability that sets type or color, an ability of an instant or sorcery, an additional cost, an alternative cost, or a play restriction. Abilities can also function in other zones if they state otherwise or if the ability can only trigger or be played in a zone other than the in-play zone. An ability whose cost or effect specifies that it moves the object it's on out of a particular zone functions only in that zone.
  Example: An ability with a cost that includes "Discard this card from your hand" can be played only if the card is in your hand. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 402.9 - Some objects have activated abilities that can be played when the object is not in play. Some objects have triggered abilities that can trigger while the object is in a zone other than the in-play zone. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 403.1 - An activated ability is written as "[cost]: [effect]." The activation cost is everything before the colon (:). An ability's activation cost must be paid by the player who is playing it. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 403.2 - Only an object's controller (or its owner, if it doesn't have a controller) can play its activated ability unless the object specifically says otherwise. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 403.3 - If an activated ability has a restriction on its use (for example, "Play this ability only once each turn"), the restriction continues to apply to that object even if its controller changes. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 403.4 - A creature's activated ability with the tap symbol ({Tap}) in its activation cost can't be played unless the creature has been under its controller's control since the start of his or her most recent turn. Creatures with haste may ignore this rule (see Rule 502.5). [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 403.5 - Activated abilities that read "Play this ability only any time you could play a sorcery" mean the player must follow the timing rules for playing a sorcery, though the ability isn't actually a sorcery. Activated abilities that read "Play this ability only any time you could play an instant" mean the player must follow the timing rules for playing an instant, though the ability isn't actually an instant. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 404.1 - A triggered ability begins with the word "when," "whenever," or "at." The phrase containing one of these words is the trigger condition, which defines the trigger event. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 404.2 - Triggered abilities aren't played. Instead, a triggered ability automatically "triggers" each time its trigger event occurs. Once an ability has triggered, it goes on the stack the next time a player would receive priority. See Rule 408.1, "Timing, Priority, and the Stack," and Rule 410, "Handling Triggered Abilities." [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 404.3 - A triggered ability may read "When/Whenever/At ..., if [condition], [effect]." The ability checks for the stated condition to be true when the trigger event occurs. If it is, the ability triggers. On resolution, the ability rechecks the condition. If the condition isn't true at either of those times, the ability does nothing. This rule is referred to as the "intervening 'if' clause" rule. Note that the word "if" has only its normal English meaning anywhere else in the text of a card; this rule only applies to an "if" that immediately follows a trigger condition. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 404.4 - An effect may create a delayed triggered ability that can do something at a later time. A delayed triggered ability will contain "when," "whenever," or "at," although that word won't usually begin the ability. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 404.4a - Delayed triggered abilities come from spells or other abilities that create them on resolution. That means a delayed triggered ability won't trigger until it has actually been created, even if its trigger event occurred just beforehand. Other events that happen earlier may make the trigger event impossible.
  Example: Part of an effect reads "When this creature leaves play," but the creature in question leaves play before the spell or ability creating the effect resolves. In this case, the delayed ability never triggers. As another example, if an effect reads "When this creature becomes untapped" and the named creature becomes untapped before the effect resolves, the ability waits for the next time that creature untaps. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 404.4b - A delayed triggered ability will trigger only once--the next time its trigger event occurs--unless it has a stated duration, such as "this turn." [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 404.4c - A delayed triggered ability that refers to a particular object still affects it even if the object changes characteristics.
  Example: An ability reading, "At end of turn, destroy that creature" will destroy the permanent even if it's no longer a creature during the end of turn step. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 404.4d - A delayed triggered ability that refers to a particular permanent will fail if the permanent leaves play (even if it returns again before the specified time). Similarly, abilities that create a one-shot effect that applies to an object in a particular zone will fail if the object leaves that zone.
  Example: An ability reading, "At end of turn, remove this creature from the game" won't do anything if the creature leaves play before the end of turn step. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 404.5 - Some objects have a static ability that's linked to a triggered ability. These objects combine both abilities into one paragraph, with the static ability first, followed by the triggered ability. A very few objects have triggered abilities which are written with the trigger condition in the middle of the ability, rather than at the beginning. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
  Example: An ability that reads "Reveal the first card you draw each turn. Whenever you reveal a basic land card this way, draw a card" is a static ability linked to a triggered ability. [CompRules 2003/12/01]
  Example: An ability that reads "The controller of enchanted creature sacrifices it at the end of his or her turn" is a triggered ability. [CompRules 2003/12/01]

• 405.1 - A static ability does something all the time rather than being activated or triggered. The ability isn't played-it just "exists." Such abilities apply only while the ability is on a permanent in play, unless the ability is covered by Rule 402.8 or Rule 402.9. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 405.2 - Some objects have static abilities which state that the object "has" one or more abilities or characteristic values; "is" a particular type, supertype, subtype, or color; or that one or more of its characteristics "is" or "are" a particular value. These abilities are characteristic-setting abilities. Abilities of an object that affect the characteristics of another object are not characteristic-setting abilities. See Rule 201, "Characteristics," and Rule 418.5a. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 405.2a - A characteristic-setting ability that states that an object is a particular type, supertype, subtype, or color applies no matter which zone the object it's on is in. This rule doesn't apply to other characteristic-setting abilities. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 406.1 - A mana ability is either (a) an activated ability that could put mana into a player's mana pool when it resolves or (b) a triggered ability that triggers from a mana ability and could produce additional mana. A mana ability can generate other effects at the same time it produces mana. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 406.2 - Spells that put mana into a player's mana pool aren't mana abilities. They're played and resolved exactly like any other spells. Triggered abilities that put mana into a player's mana pool aren't mana abilities if they trigger from events other than activating mana abilities. They go on the stack and resolve like any other triggered abilities. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 406.3 - A mana ability remains a mana ability even if the game state doesn't allow it to produce mana. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
  Example: A permanent has an ability that reads "{Tap}: Add {G} to your mana pool for each creature you control." This is still a mana ability even if you control no creatures or if the permanent is already tapped. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 406.4 - A mana ability can be activated or triggered. Mana abilities are played and resolved like other abilities, but they don't go on the stack, so they can't be countered or responded to. See Rule 411, "Playing Mana Abilities," and Rule 408.2, "Actions That Don't Use the Stack." [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 406.5 - Abilities (other than mana abilities) that trigger on playing mana abilities do use the stack. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 406.6 - If a mana ability would produce one or more mana of an undefined type, it produces no mana instead. [CompRules 2003/12/01]
  Example: If you control no lands, an ability that reads "{Tap}: Add to your mana pool one mana of any type that a land you control could produce" will not produce any mana. [CompRules 2003/12/01]
• 406.Ruling.1 - If a mana ability can't produce any mana, it's still legal to play the ability, but no mana will be produced on resolution. [WotC Rules Team 2003/12/01]

• 407.1 - Effects can add or remove abilities of objects. An effect that adds an ability will state that the object "gains" or "has" that ability. An effect that removes an ability will state that the object "loses" that ability. If two or more effects add and remove the same ability, in general the most recent one prevails. (See Rule 418.5, "Interaction of Continuous Effects.") [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 407.2 - An effect that sets an object's characteristic, or simply states a quality of that object, is different from an ability granted by an effect. When an object "gains" or "has" an ability, that ability can be removed by another effect. If an effect defines a characteristic of the object ("[permanent] is [characteristic value]"), it's not granting an ability. (See Rule 405.2.) [CompRules 2003/07/01]
  Example: An effect reads, "Enchanted creature has 'This creature is an artifact creature.'" This effect grants an ability to the creature that can be removed by other effects. Another effect reads, "Enchanted creature is an artifact creature." This effect simply defines a characteristic of the creature. It doesn't grant an ability, so effects that would cause the creature to lose its abilities wouldn't cause the enchanted creature to stop being an artifact. [CompRules 2003/10/01]
• 407.3 - Effects that remove an ability remove all instances of it.
  Example: If a creature with flying is enchanted with Flight, it has two instances of the flying ability. A single effect that reads "Target creature loses flying" will remove both. [CompRules 2003/07/01]

• 408.1a - Spells and activated abilities can be played only at certain times and follow a set of rules for doing so. [CompRules 2003/07/01]
• 408.1b - Spells and activated abilities are played by players (if they choose) using a system of priority, while other types of abilities and effects are automatically generated by the game rules. Each time a player would get priority, all applicable state-based