Magic: The Gathering is a collectible card game for 2 or more players, set in a variety of fantastical realms. The cards represent the player's resources and available spells and their interactions lead to an often high paced battle of wits.
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When is Darksteel Juggernaut's power and toughness determined? Can they change?
The relevant part of the rules text states:
Darksteel Juggernaut's power and toughness are each equal to the number of artifacts you control.
When is Darksteel Juggernaut's power and toughness ...
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3answers
603 views
What is a quick way to test or simulate card strategies for deck building games?
Dominion is the specific example I would like to play with but this certainly applies to any game that involves decks of cards being shuffled and drawn.
I often see references to various simulations ...
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1answer
518 views
How much damage do my other Goblins deal if my Goblin Chieftain dies during the first strike step?
I was playing against my son tonight and an issue came up that we disagreed on. We looked in the rules, but that just made things murkier for us.
I attacked with Goblin Chieftain (2/2), Goblin ...
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2answers
320 views
If a land becomes a creature, has it entered the battlefield?
I was playing a game last night with a guy who was playing a new Simic Gatecrash deck, and he claimed that if he made a land into a creature, it counted as entering the battlefield, thus triggering ...
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1answer
931 views
If I attack with 2 creatures that both have “All creatures able to block this creature do so”, how are blockers determined?
Say I have 2 creatures enchanted with Lure or 2 Taunting Elves attacking: Does my opponent get to choose which of their creatures blocks each one or do I? What if one of those attacking creatures also ...
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3answers
268 views
Mimic Vat and Misthollow Griffin
Given that Misthollow Griffin can be cast from exile, if you somehow use Mimic Vat to imprint the Misthollow Griffin and then cast Misthollow Griffin and remove it from exile, can you still make ...
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2answers
209 views
Has the significance of the term 'cast' changed?
Spellshock currently has the following wording in the Gatherer:
Whenever a player casts a spell, Spellshock deals 2 damage to that player.
However, the original wording shown in the card image ...
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4answers
694 views
If I cast Flicker on an unearthed creature, does it remain exiled?
The rules for the Unearth ability are as follows:
702.82a Unearth is an activated ability that functions while the card with unearth is in a graveyard. Unearth [cost] means [Cost]: Return this ...
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2answers
604 views
In MTG, what happens when Sakashima the Imposter copies Halcyon Glaze?
If I cast Sakashima the Imposter, copying Halcyon Glaze, what happens?
My guess is that Sakashima becomes a 4/4 Enchantment Creature - Illusion until the end of the turn (that's the current state of ...
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3answers
992 views
Does it really matter if dice are randomized?
I was playing MTG with some friends the other day, when a guy walks up and challenges me to a game. He insisted that he would not roll my spin-down die to determine who goes first. When I pointed out ...
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2answers
209 views
Becoming better at sideboarding
One of the keys to tournament performance in Magic is proper sideboarding. This seems to be a point of failure with many Magic players that want to move up from casual play and compete in tournaments ...
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Are enchantments and artifacts considered spells?
In Magic: The Gathering, are enchantments and artifacts considered spells?
More precisely, can I use Cancel (which says "Counter target spell.") on an enchantment or an artifact?
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7answers
2k views
Is there any way to rehabilitate the “junk rare” Lost In The Woods?
I've really been enjoying the incredible Innistrad set, and advance previews of Dark Ascension (on the Wizards official site and elsewhere) have been living up to it so far. However, I had to do a ...
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3answers
4k views
What is the converted mana cost of a spell with {X} when cast with the Miracle mechanic?
Say I topdeck Entreat the Angels and cast it for its miracle cost of XWW. But my opponent wants to counter it with a CMC-based effect, such as Spellstutter Sprite or Spell Burst.
202.3. The ...
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4answers
3k views
If I lose control of an equipped creature, does the equipment stay attached to it?
If I have an equipped creature and my opponent Mind Controls it, does my equipment remain attached to it? Can I re-equip that equipment to one of my creatures on my turn? I assume since I control the ...
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2answers
2k views
What cards can be used to cheat Eldrazi creatures onto the table?
I'm constructing an Eldrazi based deck and I'm thinking about possible ways of getting one onto the table. What I already considered:
Summoning Trap
Polymorph
Do you know any other cards like ...
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2answers
2k views
Does a creature that has both double strike and first strike deal damage three times or only twice?
In the new Dark Ascension expansion, the card Markov Blademaster has double strike. Stormkirk Captain gives all other Vampires first strike and +1/+1.
This means that the Blademaster has double and ...
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3answers
404 views
When should you side lands in and out?
Some Magic writers advise players to side out a land when on the draw in Limited, in order to improve the probability of drawing a strong starting hand.
Is it reasonable to do the same (side out a ...
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2answers
304 views
Are copied spells cast from the graveyard?
If you copy Increasing Confusion or any other "cast from the graveyard" spell with Increasing Vengeance, does the copy act like it was cast from the graveyard? Or, since the copy technically was not ...
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1answer
493 views
Can Meddling Mage Be Used as a Counter?
If a player activated an Æther Vial with two counters on it to drop in a Meddling Mage and named a spell already on the stack, would the named spell resolve?
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3answers
182 views
What is the correct creature type for Lesser and Greater Werewolf?
I noticed that the text of the Lesser/Greater Werewolf card reads Lycanthrope but the oracle text at Gatherer reads the type as Werewolf.
I think that the Gather errata (oracle) should be the ...
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1answer
200 views
If there are two Lighthouse Chronologist with three players, will one player be pereptually skipped?
If you would play a game with 3 people (let's call them A, B, and C) and A and B have a Lighthouse chronologist, will this make A get a turn after B, and make B get a turn after A without C getting a ...
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1answer
160 views
Dark Confidant and split cards
On my upkeep controlling a Dark Confidant I trigger revealing a card and losing life to it's cmc cost. What happens if I have a split card with 2 identifiable spells? Do I get to choose which one I ...
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1answer
185 views
Are tokens copying Essence of the Wild still tokens?
Some of my friends and I got into an argument about Essence of the Wild.
With Essence on the battlefield, I played Fungal Sprouting and put 6 1/1 green saproling creature tokens on to battlefield. ...
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1answer
25k views
How many lands should I have in my sealed or draft decks?
A standard draft deck has 40 cards in it; a 4-booster sealed deck has 30 cards. How many lands should I put in each of these formats? And why do I need this ratio?
The conventional wisdom that I ...
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1answer
158 views
How many missed triggers are necessary before you begin to have Game Losses and/or DQs?
While reviewing the latest changes to the Magic Infraction Procedure Guide, I notice that a missed trigger is considered a Warning, but that,
Judges should not intervene in a missed trigger ...
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2answers
4k views
What happens when a commander is exiled?
Let's say you have a commander on the field, and an opponent uses Sisters Of Stone Death to force your commander to block the sisters and then exiles your commander? Does it remain exiled, or does it ...
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1answer
2k views
Do you die instantaneously if your life total hits 0?
Way back when, the first combo I built a deck around was
Force of Nature
with a
Spirit Link
on it. If, at the beginning of my upkeep, I have less than 8 life and I don't pay the upkeep, will I lose ...
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1answer
505 views
What's a cantrip?
In discussions of Magic cards, I've heard a card called a cantrip on several occasions, but I haven't been able to find a definition of what that term means for MtG. Is a cantrip a particular card, a ...
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1answer
1k views
How does poison work in Commander?
In Commander / EDH players have 40 life. In normal magic 10 poison counters results in a player being eliminated. Is it still 10 poison counters in Commander / EDH?
In Commander / EDH a player is ...
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1answer
270 views
Do face-down creatures have “the same name” as each other?
My opponent has three face-down morphs on the battlefield.
I play Sever the Bloodline targeting one of them.
Do we exile all three because they all have the "same name"? Or do we exile just one ...
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5answers
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What is the most effective creature that can be resurrected from the graveyard in MTG?
I am currently designing a legacy deck around the new graveyard focused cards from Innistrad. My goal is to get cards in my own graveyard quickly and utilize those as best as I can. Innistrad offers a ...
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3answers
4k views
Does Wrath of God really destroy creatures with shroud?
I heard - (from an official MtG judge) - that Wrath of God ("Destroy all creatures") destroys creatures with the Shroud ability, because it doesn't target a single creature, it targets all creatures.
...
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2answers
978 views
Why was the banding ability 'removed' from MTG? What was so complicated about it?
While the banding ability was never actually removed from the game, no cards have been printed that use the ability in any set following sixth edition and it has never appeared on any rules summary ...
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3answers
463 views
Does the flanking provided by Slivers stack?
If I was to play 2 Sidewinder Slivers would the 'All Slivers have flanking' ability stack causing creatures blocking my Slivers to get -2/-2 until the end of the turn or would it gain flanking twice ...
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2answers
942 views
Why does the efficiency of creatures in MTG favor low and high cost creatures, leaving those in the middle much weaker?
Here's a stereotypical description of creatures of a certain mana cost where each creature's primary utility is in its power/toughness level and not in its effect. The mana cost is the number furthest ...
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4answers
654 views
What's the strategic advantage of building around alternate win conditions?
In MTG, there are several ways to win that don't involve damaging your opponent. The most prominent is milling (running an opponent out of cards to draw), but there are also special cards like Felidar ...
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3answers
290 views
Is Master of Arms pointless under new blocking rules?
Master of Arms
2W, Summon Soldier 2/2, Weatherlight Uncommon
First strike
1W: Tap target creature blocking Master of Arms.
I used to use this in my deck as powerful creature ...
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votes
1answer
272 views
Can I tap a creature with summoning sickness to pay “tap an untapped creature you control” costs?
I have a Chosen of Markov on the battlefield and I played a vampire earlier this turn. Can I tap both to transform Chosen of Markov even though I just played the vampire?
Extra Example: I play Battle ...
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2answers
2k views
Can you sacrifice a tapped creature?
If a creature has both a sacrifice and tap ability can you tap it for the tap benefit and then sacrifice it for the sacrifice ability?
(Example: Gemhide Sliver taps for mana, Basal Sliver gives mana ...
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4answers
7k views
Learning to build multi-color decks in Magic
I'm a MTG noob, and currently I've only built single-color decks. However, I want to explore the art of building decks that use cards of multiple colors.
What are the advantages of a multicolor ...
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2answers
827 views
Can an opponent make me discard a Miracle card before I cast it, after it is revealed?
For example, if my hand is empty and I draw and reveal Temporal Mastery, can an opponent cast Funeral Charm and make me discard it before I have a chance to cast it for its Miracle Cost?
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2answers
389 views
How do two Notion Thieves interact with each other?
Notion Thief's text reads:
If an opponent would draw a card except the first one he or she draws
in each of his or her draw steps, instead that player skips that draw
and you draw a card.
...
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2answers
173 views
Will Elesh Norn kill creatures if I don't pay the extra cost for Flash?
Suppose I use Flash to bring Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite into play, then choose to sacrifice her rather than pay her mana cost. Will my opponent's creatures with two or less toughness die?
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1answer
540 views
What happens if you steal an Elixir of Immortality and then use it?
In an EDH (Commander) game recently, Alice used Thada Adel, Acquisitor to steal an artifact out of Bob's deck, the Elixir of Immortality, and cast it.
That artifact's ability says:
{2}, {T}: You ...
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3answers
278 views
What happens when you blink a cipher-ed creature?
if I have a cipher ability encoded on a creature, and I cast a Restoration Angel, thus exiling and returning the creature to play, does the creature still have the cipher ability?
How about creatures ...
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2answers
342 views
Mistakes a beginner should avoid in Magic the Gathering with more than 2 players
I have been playing Magic the Gathering for several years now and I have a solid understanding of basic strategy and deck building. Until now I have only played against a single opponent. Magic the ...
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2answers
868 views
Finding places to play Magic the Gathering games
A friend of mine recently got MTG for the XBox and is talking us into getting real cards.
I'm all up for starting but I dread the idea of playing the same two people over and over with no change ...
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2answers
282 views
Can Conjurer's Closet be used to keep a stolen Commander?
We had this situation come up in a game last night, and we think we stumbled upon the right answer, but we're not sure.
So, Player A's Commander (Sliver Overlord) was stolen by Player B using a ...
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1answer
240 views
How big is a Consuming Aberration after it is stolen with Act of Treason?
Suppose I take a Consuming Aberration with an Act of Treason. Consuming Aberration says: Consuming Aberration's power and toughness are each equal to the number of cards in your opponents' graveyards. ...
