============================================================================== General Rulings Summary (CHANGES ONLY) Updated 00/02/23 ============================================================================== Rulings are collected from many sources. See credits and disclaimer at the end of the file for details. This release is under the SIXTH EDITION rules. These rulings are updated monthly. The most recent version is available on the web (WWW) as the following: http://www.crystalkeep.com/magic/rules/index.html A '+' is used to mark changes since the 00/01/19 release. Thanx, Stephen. ---- Stephen D'Angelo | Official Rulings Summary NetRep dangelo@crystalkeep.com | Network Representative, Wizards of the Coast, Inc. ============================================================================== Table of Contents: ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ No changes to this section. A - Abilities ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ A.4 - Triggered Abilities + A.4.14 - Some triggered abilities give a player a choice of doing something or doing nothing. These use the word "may" and are worded like "When , you may do ". The choice of whether or not to do the action is made on resolution of the triggered ability. [WotC Rules Team 00/02/16] This is a REVERSAL of Rule 410.5, which said that you decided on announcement and if you decided not to, that the ability was never placed on the stack. + A.4.24 - An ability that triggers whenever a creature is blocked by a specific number of creatures can trigger after the declaration of blockers if a spell or ability adds an additional blocker. For example, Johtull Wurm's ability triggers when blocked by two or more creatures. If one blocked it during declaration of blockers, then another was added later, the ability will trigger. Note that swapping one blocker for another one blocker will not cause such abilities to trigger. [WotC Rules Team 00/02/16] A.6 - Mana Abilities + A.6.Ruling.4 - Being asked to pay zero mana counts as being asked to pay mana for purposes of rule A.6.3. There actually has to be a mana circle in the cost for this rule to apply. If there is no mana circle, then you cannot use a mana ability under this rule. [Bethmo 99/12/10] When asked to "pay {1} for each " and there are no "somthings", then you are being asked to pay zero mana. [bethmo 00/02/15] A.14 - Fading + A.14.1 - The ability is written "Fading X". [D'Angelo 00/02/15] + A.14.2 - The ability means "This permanent comes into play with X fade counters on it. ; At the beginning of your upkeep, remove a fade counter from it. If you can't, sacrifice it.". [D'Angelo 00/02/15] + Note - Some cards with Fading do not have the reminder text, but they still have the same ability. [Nemesis FAQ 00/02/07] C - Combat Rules ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ No changes to this section. D - DCI Tournament Rules ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ D.13 - Classic Tournament Format + Note - Nemesis is added to the legal expansions on 00/03/01. D.14 - Classic-Restricted Tournament Format + Note - Nemesis is added to the legal expansions on 00/03/01. D.15 - Extended Tournament Format + D.15.1 - Can be composed of cards from any edition of the basic set from Fifth Edition on, plus any expansion of Magic from Ice Age on, plus the "dual land" cards from Revised Edition (Badlands, Bayou, Plateau, Savannah, Scrubland, Taiga, Tropical Island, Tundra, Underground Sea, and Volcanic Island) are specifically allowed even though they are not in the listed sets. Collector's Edition cards are not allowed. Promotional cards are not allowed. The poker cards are not allowed (despite the April Fools article in the Duelist). [Tournament Update 99/09/01] To be more clear, Arabian Nights, Antiquities, Legends, The Dark, Fallen Empires, Limited Edition, Unlimited Edition, Revised Edition, Fourth Edition, and Chronicles are disallowed unless they were reprinted in an allowed set. + Note - Nemesis is added to the legal expansions on 00/03/01. D.16 - Standard Tournament Format + Note - Nemesis is added to the legal expansions on 00/03/01. + D.16.11 - These cards are explicitly banned even though they are from legal sets: [Tournament Update 99/10/01] Fluctuator, Time Spiral, Windfall, Memory Jar, Tolarian Academy. E - Extracted Rulings on Cards ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ E.1 - Alternate Cost Spells + E.1.3 - If there is a condition in the alternate cost, such as "if you control a plains, you may...", then this condition is tested only at the time you would pay the cost. If the condition stops being true later, the spell or ability still resolves as normal. [Nemesis FAQ 00/02/07] G - Game Terms and Rules ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ G.12 - Damage Redirection + G.12.6 - If either the original recipient of the damage or the new one is not a creature or player, or is not in play (for multi-player games this includes players who leave the game), a damage redirection effect does nothing. [WotC Rules Team 00/02/16] [DeLaney 00/02/18] G.19 - Life + Note - Vanguard cards can modify your starting life total, see Rule E.12. G.25 - Obsolete Terms + G.25.Ruling.10 - "Summoning Sickness" is officially obsolete, but is still in common use. See Rule G.37. G.27 - Phasing Out and In + G.27.4 - When a permanent "phases out", it keeps any counters or unlimited-duration (see Rule T.8.14) effects on it. All limited-duration effects (see Rule T.8.14, ones that only last until some time or some condition is met, such as a "until end of turn" or "as long as is tapped", and ones that are to happen at some time in the future, such as "at end of turn") are cancelled and never happen. Also, all damage is removed from the permanent. [Mirage, Page 1] [WotC Rules Team 00/02/16] G.29 - Regeneration + G.29.3 - Regeneration is defined as "The next time this permanent would be destroyed, instead remove all damage from it, tap it, and (if it's in combat) remove it from combat." [CompRules 99/11/01] K - Card and Permanent Types and Information ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ K.3 - Card Name + K.3.Ruling.1 - It was possible at one time for a card to have more than one name. This is no longer possible. [DeLaney 00/01/13] K.5 - Changing a Permanent's Type + Note - See Rule K.11.8 for changing a permanent's creature type. + Note - See Rule K.16.4 - Rule K.16.6 for changing a permanent's land type. K.15 - Land + K.15.4 - A basic land has a built-in ability to produce colored mana. The card is treated as if its tet box read "{Tap}: Add to your mana pool" even if the text box does not actually contain text. Plains produce {W}, Islands produce {U}, Swamps product {B}, Mountains produce {R}, and Forests product {G}. [CompRules 99/04/23] A non-basic land which says it "is" or "counts as" a basic land type also has the above text. [DeLaney 00/01/13] + K.15.Ruling.4 - When you announce the playing of a land, your "play a land" action is used for the turn. It remains used even if a replacement ability causes the land to not enter play. [bethmo 99/11/18] This is because playing a land consists of two parts, first choosing a land in your hand and announcing that you are playing it, and second resolving by putting it into play. Replacing the second part does not replace the announcement. [DeLaney 00/01/13] K.21 - Snow-Covered Lands + K.21.Ruling.9 - Snow-Covered is not an ability and will not be removed by an effect which removes abilities. [DeLaney 00/01/13] K.23 - Spells + K.23.4 - A spell is on the stack the entire time it is a spell. It is no longer in your hand and it is not yet in play or in the graveyard. [DeLaney 00/01/13] K.24 - Token Creatures + K.24.Ruling.6 - A token that is a copy of another permanent, such as with Echo Chamber or Dance of Many, also copies the permanent's mana cost, so it is possible for a token to have a non-zero mana cost. [DeLaney 00/01/13] K.26 - X Costs + K.26.4 - If a 'Y' or 'Z' appears in a cost, it follows the same rules that you follow for an 'X'. [D'Angelo 00/02/15] + K.26.Ruling.3 - If there is an X in the card but it is not in the mana cost, you decide the value of X on resolution (unless the card says otherwise). [DeLaney 00/01/13] M - Multi-Player Rules ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ No changes to this section. P - Phases of the Turn ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ P.3 - General Phase and Step Rules + P.3.5 - When a phase ends (but not a step), any unused mana in each player's mana pool is lost, and that player loses 1 life for each point of mana lost this way. This is called "mana burn" (see Rule G.22). [CompRules 99/04/23] Any abilities triggering on this loss of life wait until the next phase or step where a player receives priority before they are played. [D'Angelo 99/05/01] Checking if a player loses the game from having zero or less life waits until the next phase or step where a player receives priority. [DeLaney 00/01/13] + P.3.Ruling.1 - If a phase or step is skipped, any effects that last "until" that phase or step continue. For example, if your draw step is skipped, any effect lasting until your next draw step would not end at that time. [D'Angelo 99/05/01] P.7 - Draw Step + P.7.1 - The game has a "built-in" triggered ability (see Rule A.4) for this step that reads: "At the beginning of your draw step, draw a card." This makes you place a "draw a card" ability on the stack (see Rule T.2) along with any other abilities that trigger on the start of this step. [CompRules 99/04/23] The current player controls this ability and puts it on the stack with other triggered abilities as per the normal rules (see Rule A.4). [DeLaney 00/01/13] P.8 - First Main Phase + P.8.5 - Playing a land is a special action. It cannot be done in response to something and it cannot be responded to. [Duelist Magazine #5, Page 123, 95/05/01] It has two parts, announcing the playing of the land, and actually putting it into play. This action does not go on the stack. [DeLaney 00/01/13] P.10 - Second Main Phase + P.10.Ruling.1 - If a spell or ability gives you additional main phases in your turn, they will all be 'postcombat' main phases. [DeLaney 00/01/13] For example, Relentless Assault. T - Timing of Spells and Abilities ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ T.4 - Step 1: Announcing a Spell or Ability + T.4.Ruling.4 - As an exception to rule T.4.9, you can target something with an effect that "rounds down" damage knowing that it will round down to zero. [DeLaney 00/01/22] T.6 - Step 3: Resolution + T.6.8 - If a permanent left play (or whatever zone it was in), but information about it is required in order to follow the instructions, the last known values for that permanent before it left play are used. [CompRules 99/11/01] T.8 - Continuous Effects + T.8.14 - A continuous effect is said to have "limited duration" if it lasts "until" some time or condition, or "as long as" some condition is true. An effect is said to have "unlimited duration" if the effect lasts indefinitely. [WotC Rules Team 00/02/16] Note that the Licid ability is considered to be unlimited even though there is a new ability created which can end the effect. The effect itself does not define its end condition in this case. [WotC Rules Team 00/02/16] T.10 - Replacement and Prevention Effects + T.10.4 - Replacement and prevention effects wait around for the next event which they apply to, then do their thing. When they are applied, they get "used up". For this reason, people commonly say that they act like a "shield" (using the science fiction idea of an energy shield that protects a spaceship). [CompRules 99/04/23] Note that static abilities which provide replacement or prevention do not get "used up" like this; they are in a sense continually re-creating the shield. [DeLaney 00/01/22] + T.10.9 - Regeneration is a replacement effect. Regenerate means "The next time this turn the permanent would be destroyed, instead remove all damage from it, tap it, and (if it is in combat) remove it from combat." [CompRules 99/11/01] + T.10.12 - Many prevention effects require you to choose a "source". A source is any permanent, any spell on the stack, or any card or token referred to by a spell or ability on the stack. [CompRules 99/11/01] U - Unglued ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ No changes to this section. Z - Zones of Play ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Z.1 - Zones of Play + Z.1.Ruling.3 - An ability which triggers on a card (or token) moving from one zone to another cannot track the card (or token) to a third zone. If the card (or token) is not in the second zone and the ability tries to affect it, it does nothing. [DeLaney 00/01/22] Z.2 - Ante + Note - There are variations on Rule Z.2.2 whereby people have other ways of deciding what card is placed in the Ante. For example, some people disallow basic lands. [DeLaney 00/01/22] Z.4 - Hand + Z.4.Ruling.3 - Your hand is not ordered. You can shuffle or otherwise change the order of the cards in your hand at any time. [DeLaney 00/01/22] Z.9 - Stack + Z.9.3 - A spell or ability leaves the stack only if it is countered or when it resolves. [CompRules 99/04/23] Or when Ertai's Meddling removes it. [DeLaney 00/01/22] Index ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ No changes to this section. Acknowledgements and Disclaimers ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ While this work is not officially issued by Wizards of the Coast, it is the official collected rulings from official sanctioned representatives of and publications by Wizards of the Coast. This summary is collected from rulings made by officials and network representatives of Wizards of the Coast, along with a number of unofficial rulings also collected from the net. Whenever a source for a ruling is known, the name of that person is listed with the ruling. "Aahz" is Tom Wylie, the former Magic Rules Manager. "Barclay" is Paul Barclay, the network representative for the MTG-L mailing list. "bethmo" is Beth Moursund, the Rules Manager at Wizards of the Coast, and former MTG-L mailing list NetRep. "CompRules" marks rules from the Sixth Edition Comprehensive Rules. "D'Angelo" is Stephen D'Angelo, the Rules Summary network representative, and former MTG-L mailing list NetRep. "DeLaney" is David DeLaney, the network representative for the "rec.games.trading-cards.magic.rules" newsgroup. "Encyclopedia, Page " marks errata from the Magic Official Encyclopedia. "Fifth Edition, Page " marks rules from the Fifth Edition rulebook. "Jackson" is Collin Jackson, the DCI Rules Documentation NetRep. "Mirage, Page " marks rules from the Mirage rulebook. "Peterson" is Paul Peterson, a previous MTG-L mailing list NetRep. "Tempest, Page " marks rules from the Tempest rulebook. "WotC Rules Team" marks official rulings from the rules team. These files may be freely copied and posted anywhere you'd like. The contents can also be included in other formats (such as HTML or databases) or in products, but there are two restrictions. I insist that the files are not sold for profit. Anything you put them in must be available at no more than cost of duplication. Also, you must give credit to me and list the version date your work is derived from. Thanks. Every attempt has been made to make this summary accurate, but errors do creep in. Nothing in this work is guaranteed to be accurate. Use at your own risk. Magic: The Gathering and all of the cards listed herein are copyrighted by Wizards of the Coast.