Magic: The Gathering Comprehensive Rules

ways of returning.

217.7d A card may have one ability printed on it that removes one or more cards from the game, and another ability that refers either to “the removed cards” or to cards “removed from the game with [name].” These abilities are linked: the second refers only to cards in the removed-from-the-game zone removed as a result of the first. If another object gains a pair of linked abilities, the abilities will be similarly linked on that object. They can’t be linked to any other ability, regardless of what other abilities the object may currently have or may have had in the past.

Example: Arc-Slogger has the ability “{R}: Remove the top ten cards of your library from the game: Arc-Slogger deals 2 damage to target creature or player.” Sisters of Stone Death has the ability “{B}{G}: Remove from the game target creature blocking or blocked by Sisters of Stone Death” and the ability “{2}{B}: Put a creature card removed from the game with Sisters of Stone Death into play under your control.” Quicksilver Elemental has the ability “{U}: Quicksilver Elemental gains all activated abilities of target creature until end of turn.” If a player has Quicksilver Elemental gain Arc-Slogger’s ability, plays it, then has Quicksilver Elemental gain Sisters of Stone Death’s abilities, plays the remove-from-game ability, and then plays the return-to-play ability, only the creature card Quicksilver Elemental removed from the game with Sisters of Stone Death’s ability can be returned to play. Creature cards Quicksilver Elemental removed from the game with Arc-Slogger’s ability can’t be returned.

217.8. Phased Out

217.8a Permanents that phase out are placed in the phased-out zone. (See rule 502.15, “Phasing.”)

217.8b Face-up objects in the phased-out zone may be examined by any player at any time. Face-down objects in the phased-out zone are covered by the rules for face-down permanents. (See rule 502.26, “Morph,” and rule 504, “Face-Down Spells and Permanents.”)

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.

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 Auras or Equipment that were attached to those tokens remain phased out for the rest of the game.

217.9. Ante

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 (www.wizards.com/default.asp? x=dci/doccenter/home).

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 any player at any time. At the end of the game, the winner becomes the owner of all the cards in the ante zone.

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.

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.

3. Turn Structure

300. General

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.

300.2. A phase or step ends when the stack is empty and all 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; all players have to pass with the stack empty. Because of this, each player gets a chance to add new things to the stack before the current phase or step ends.

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. 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.”)

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.

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.

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 multiple 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.

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.

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.

300.9. Some effects can cause a step, phase, or turn to be skipped. To skip a step, phase, or turn is to