Flip cards have a two-part card frame on a single card. The text that appears right side up on the card defines the card’s normal characteristics. Additional alternative characteristics appear upside down on the card. The back of a flip card is the normal Magic: The Gathering card back. See rule 508, “Flip Cards.”
The top half of a flip card contains the card’s normal name, text box, type line, power, and toughness. The text box usually contains an ability that causes the permanent to “flip” if certain conditions are met. The bottom half of a flip card contains an alternative name, text box, type line, power, and toughness. These characteristics are used only if the permanent is in play and only if the permanent is flipped.
A flip card’s color, mana cost, expansion symbol, illustration credit, and legal text don’t change if the permanent is flipped. Also, any changes to it by external effects will still apply.
In every zone other than the in-play zone, and also in the in-play zone before the permanent flips, a flip card has only the normal characteristics of the permanent. Once the flip permanent in the in-play zone is flipped, the normal name, text box, type line, power, and toughness of the flip permanent don’t apply and the alternative versions of those characteristics apply instead.
If you control a flip permanent, you must ensure that it’s clear at all times whether the permanent is flipped or not, both when it’s untapped and when it’s tapped. Common methods for distinguishing between flipped and unflipped permanents include using coins or dice to mark flipped objects.
Flipping a permanent is a one-way process. Once a permanent is flipped, it’s impossible for it to become unflipped. However, if flipped permanent leaves play, it retains no memory of its status.
The current DCI Magic: The Gathering Floor Rules can be found at
Flying is an evasion ability. A creature with flying can’t be blocked by creatures without flying. A creature with flying can block a creature with or without flying. See rule 502.4, “Flying.”
Forecast is a special kind of activated ability that can be played only from a player’s hand. It’s written “Forecast – [Activated ability].” A forecast ability may be played only during the upkeep step of the card’s owner and only once each turn. The controller of the forecast ability reveals the card with that ability from his or her hand as the ability is played. That player plays with that card revealed in his or her hand until the upkeep step ends or until it leaves the player’s hand, whichever comes first.
“Forest” is one of the five basic land types. Any land with the land type Forest has the ability “{T}: Add {G} to your mana pool.” See rule 212.6d.
See Landcycling.
See Landwalk.
Free-for-All is a multiplayer variant in which a group of players complete as individuals against each other. See rule 605, “Free-for-All Variant.”
Several steps contain actions that don’t use the stack. These actions are game actions. The game actions are phasing in and out at the start of the untap step (see rule 302.1), untapping at the start of the untap step (see rule 302.2), drawing a card at the start of the draw step (see rule 304.1), declaring attackers at the start of the declare attackers step (see rule 308.1), declaring blockers at the start of the declare blockers step (see rule 309.1), the active player discarding down to his or her maximum hand size at the start of the cleanup step (see rule 314), and removing damage from permanents and ending “until end of turn” effects at the start of the cleanup step (see rule 314). Mana burn at the end of a phase is also a game action (see rule 300.3).
The player seated in the middle of a team in the Emperor multiplayer variant is called the team’s emperor. The other players are called generals. See rule 607, “Emperor Variant.”
A generic mana cost is represented by a number in a gray circle. Any color of mana, as well as colorless mana, may be used to pay a generic mana cost. See rule 104.3b.
Global Enchantment (Obsolete)
Some older cards used the term “global enchantment.” These cards now say “non-Aura enchantment.” See also Aura and Enchantment.
Graft represents both a static ability and a triggered ability. “Graft N” means “This permanent comes into play with N +1/+1 counters on it” and “Whenever another creature comes into play, you may move a +1/+1 counter from this permanent onto that creature.” If a creature has multiple instances of graft, each one works separately.
The Grand Melee variant is a modification of the Free-for-All variant. Grand Melee is normally used only in games begun with ten or more players. The Grand Melee variant allows multiple players to take turns at the same time. Moving
The Grand Melee variant uses the following default options:
