Compiled by Eli Shiffrin, with contributions from Laurie Cheers, Carsten Haese, Nathan Long, Zoe Stephenson, Matt Tabak, and Thijs van Ommen

Document last modified September 19, 2016

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The Release Notes include information concerning the release of a new Magic: The Gathering set, as well as a collection of clarifications and rulings involving that set’s cards. It’s intended to make playing with the new cards more fun by clearing up the common misconceptions and confusion inevitably caused by new mechanics and interactions. As future sets are released, updates to the Magic rules may cause some of this information to become outdated. If you can’t find the answer you’re looking for here, please contact us at Wizards.com/CustomerService.

The “General Notes” section includes release information and explains the mechanics and concepts in the set.

The “Card-Specific Notes” section contains answers to the most important, most common, and most confusing questions players might ask about cards in the set. Items in the “Card-Specific Notes” section include full card text for your reference. Not all cards in the set are listed.

GENERAL NOTES

Release Information

The Magic: The Gathering—Commander (2016 Edition) release consists of five different game packs. Each game pack contains a deck with 100 cards plus an oversized foil commander card. The five decks are “Entropic Uprising,” “Open Hostility,” “Stalwart Unity,” “Breed Lethality,” and “Invent Superiority.”

Release date: November 11, 2016

Go to Wizards.com/Locator to find an event or store near you.

New Cards and Format Legality

There are fifty-six cards within the Magic: The Gathering—Commander (2016 Edition) decks that are completely new to the Magic game. These cards are legal for play in the Commander, Vintage, and Legacy formats. They aren’t legal for play in the Standard or Modern formats.

The other cards in this release are legal for play in any format that already allows those cards. That is, appearing in this release doesn’t change a card’s legality in any format.

For more information about Magic formats, please visit Magic.Wizards.com/Rules. For information about the format legality of a specific card, please visit Gatherer.Wizards.com, search for the card, and check the “Sets & Legality” tab.

What Is Commander?

Created and popularized by fans, Commander is a casual format in which each player’s deck is led by the legendary creature of his or her choice—the player’s commander. It’s usually played in casual Free-for-All multiplayer games, although two-player games are also popular. Each player starts at 40 life. Each deck contains exactly 100 cards, including its commander. Commander is also a “singleton” format: other than basic lands, each card must have a different English name.

A recommended banned list for the Commander format is maintained by the rules committee at MTGCommander.net, not by Wizards of the Coast.

Using Your Commander

The legendary creature card chosen as your deck’s commander plays a prominent role in games, often appearing on the battlefield multiple times.

Your commander begins the game in a separate game area called the command zone. The other 99 cards are shuffled and become your library.

While in the command zone, your commander’s abilities won’t affect the game unless those abilities specifically say they do.

You may cast your commander from the command zone. Each time you do, it costs 2 more to cast for each time you’ve previously cast it from the command zone during the game.

If your commander would be exiled or put into your hand, graveyard, or library from anywhere, you may choose to put it into the command zone instead.

Your commander’s color identity determines the other cards that can be in your deck. A card’s color identity includes its color, as defined by its mana cost or color indicator, and the colors of any colored mana symbols in the rules text.

Color identity is established before the game begins and doesn’t change during the game, even if your commander becomes a different color.

A land with a basic land type can’t be included in your deck if that basic land type’s intrinsic mana ability generates a color of mana outside of your color identity.

In addition to the normal rules regarding winning and losing the game, the Commander format has one other rule: a player who has been dealt 21 or more combat damage by the same commander over the course of the game loses the game.

Players should keep track of combat damage dealt to them by each commander over the course of the game.

This rule includes a player’s own commander, which can deal combat damage to its owner if the commander is controlled by another player or if its combat damage gets redirected to that player.

Leaving the Game

Unlike two-player games, multiplayer games can continue after a player loses and leaves the game.

When a player leaves the game, all permanents, spells, and other cards owned by that player also leave the game.

If that player controlled any abilities or copies of spells that were waiting to resolve, they cease to exist.

If that player controlled any permanents owned by another player, the effects that gave control of them to the player who left end. If this doesn’t give control of them to a different player (perhaps because they entered the battlefield under the control of the player who left), they’re exiled.

Oversized Commanders

Each Magic: The Gathering—Commander (2016 Edition) deck comes with an oversized foil card that corresponds to the four-color commander of that deck. This card is for fun only and isn’t required for Commander game play.

You must have the traditional Magic card version of your commander, even if you use the oversized card.

As long as your commander is in a public zone, such as the command zone or the battlefield, you may substitute the oversized card for the traditional Magic card.

If your commander is in a hidden zone, such as your library or your hand, use the traditional Magic card.

New Ability: Partner

It’s awfully lonely for your commander in the command zone. With the partner keyword, you can have two commanders working together to marshal your forces.

Akiri, Line-Slinger

RW

Legendary Creature — Kor Soldier Ally

0/3

First strike, vigilance

Akiri, Line-Slinger gets +1/+0 for each artifact you control.

Partner (You can have two commanders if both have partner.)

Silas Renn, Seeker Adept

1UB

Legendary Artifact Creature — Human

2/2

Deathtouch

Whenever Silas Renn, Seeker Adept deals combat damage to a player, choose target artifact card in your graveyard. You may cast that card this turn.

Partner (You can have two commanders if both have partner.)

The official rules for partner are as follows:

702.123. Partner

702.123a Partner is an ability that modifies the rules for deck construction in the Commander format (see rule 903), and it functions before the game begins. Rather than a single legendary creature card, you may designate two legendary creature cards as your commander if each has partner.

702.123b Your deck must contain exactly 100 cards, including its two commanders. Both commanders begin the game in the command zone.

702.123c A rule or effect that refers to your commander’s color identity refers to the combined color identities of your two commanders. See rule 903.4.

702.123d Except for determining the color identity of your deck, the two commanders function independently. When casting a commander with partner, ignore how many times your other commander has been cast. When determining whether a player has been dealt 21 or more combat damage by the same commander, consider damage from each of your two commanders separately. See rule 903.11a.

702.123e If an effect refers to your commander while you have two commanders, it refers to either one. If an effect causes you to perform an action on your commander and it could affect both, you choose which it refers to at the time the effect is applied.

If your Commander deck has two commanders, you can only include cards whose own color identities are also found in your commanders’ combined color identities. If Akiri and Silas Renn are your commanders, your deck may contain cards with white, blue, black, and red in their color identity, but not green.

Both commanders start in the command zone, and the remaining 98 cards of your deck are shuffled to become your library.

To have two commanders, both must have the partner ability as the game begins. Losing the ability during the game doesn’t cause either to cease to be your commander.

Once the game begins, your two commanders are tracked separately. If you cast one, you won’t have to pay an additional 2 the first time you cast the other. A player loses the game after having been dealt 21 damage from one of them, not from both of them combined. Command Beacon’s effect puts one into your hand from the command zone, not both.

An effect that checks whether you control your commander is satisfied if you control one or both of your two commanders.

New Ability: Undaunted

Some players struggle when they’re beset by foes on all sides, but some thrive! The more opponents you’re facing down, the less you pay for spells with the undaunted keyword.

Sublime Exhalation

6W

Sorcery

Undaunted (This spell costs 1 less to cast for each opponent.)

Destroy all creatures.

The official rules for undaunted are as follows:

702.124 Undaunted

702.124a Undaunted is a static ability that functions while the spell with undaunted is on the stack. Undaunted means “This spell costs 1 less to cast for each opponent you have.”

702.124b Players who have left the game are not counted when determining how many opponents you have.

702.124c If a spell has multiple instances of undaunted, each of them applies.

Causing an opponent to lose the game after you’ve announced that you’re casting a spell with undaunted and determined its total cost won’t cause you to have to pay more mana.

Effects that reduce what you pay to cast a spell don’t affect its converted mana cost. Sublime Exhalation’s converted mana cost is 7, regardless of how many opponents you have or how much mana you spent to cast it.

Returning Ability: Basic Landcycling

When your commander demands four colors of mana, it can be a challenge to draw the right lands. Cards with the basic landcycling ability can be discarded to find exactly the basic land you need.

Migratory Route

3WU

Sorcery

Create four 1/1 white Bird creature tokens with flying.

Basic landcycling 2 (2, Discard this card: Search your library for a basic land card, reveal it, and put it into your hand. Then shuffle your library.)

You don’t choose the type of basic land card you’ll find until you’re performing the search. After you choose a basic land card in your library, you reveal it, put it into your hand, then shuffle your library.

Basic landcycling is a form of cycling. Any ability that triggers on a card being cycled also triggers on a card being basic landcycled. Any ability that stops a cycling ability from being activated also stops a basic landcycling ability from being activated.

Basic landcycling is an activated ability. Effects that interact with activated abilities (such as Stifle or Rings of Brighthearth) will interact with basic landcycling. Effects that interact with spells (such as Negate or Cancel) will not.

You can choose not to find a basic land card, even if there is one in your library.

CARD-SPECIFIC NOTES

Ancient Excavation

2UB

Instant

Draw cards equal to the number of cards in your hand, then discard a card for each card drawn this way.

Basic landcycling 2 (2, Discard this card: Search your library for a basic land card, reveal it, and put it into your hand. Then shuffle your library.)

The number of cards in your hand is counted only as Ancient Excavation resolves. Ancient Excavation is on the stack at this time, so it’s not counted.

The number of cards drawn this way might not be equal to the number of cards in your hand (for example, if you apply Necroplasm’s dredge ability instead of drawing one of those cards). The number of cards that you actually drew is what determines how many cards you discard.

Armory Automaton

3

Artifact Creature — Construct

2/2

Whenever Armory Automaton enters the battlefield or attacks, you may attach any number of target Equipment to it. (Control of the Equipment doesn’t change.)

The triggered ability triggers both when Armory Automaton enters the battlefield and whenever it attacks. You don’t have to choose only one.

You can choose to target no Equipment if you don’t want to attach any to Armory Automaton. Because the ability is optional, you also don’t have to attach the Equipment it targets as you resolve the ability. However, you must either attach all of the target Equipment or attach none of them.

Armory Automaton’s ability can cause an Equipment one player controls to become attached to a creature another player controls. The controller of the Equipment can pay the equip cost to move that Equipment to a creature he or she controls, but only any time that player could cast a sorcery. The controller of Armory Automaton can’t pay the equip cost to move Equipment he or she doesn’t control.

If an Equipment an opponent controls is attached to a creature you control, any ability of that Equipment that says “you” refers to that opponent. However, if the Equipment says that the equipped creature has an ability, the word “you” in that ability refers to you, the controller of the creature.

If Armory Automaton leaves the battlefield before its ability resolves, nothing happens to any of the Equipment it targeted. If they were already attached to other creatures, they remain attached to those creatures.

An ability of an Equipment that triggers “whenever equipped creature attacks” triggers only if the Equipment was attached to a creature at the moment that creature was declared as an attacker, and any references to “that creature” in the effect refer to the creature the Equipment was attached to when the ability triggered.

Atraxa, Praetors’ Voice

GWUB

Legendary Creature — Angel Horror

4/4

Flying, vigilance, deathtouch, lifelink

At the beginning of your end step, proliferate. (You choose any number of permanents and/or players with counters on them, then give each another counter of a kind already there.)

As you proliferate, you can choose any players that have counters, including yourself.

You can choose any permanent that has a counter, including ones controlled by opponents. You can’t choose cards in any zone other than the battlefield, even if they have counters on them, such as suspended cards or a Lightning Storm on the stack.

You don’t have to choose every permanent or player that has a counter; you choose only the ones you want to add another counter to. Since “any number” includes zero, you don’t have to choose any permanents at all, and you don’t have to choose any players at all.

If a player or permanent chosen this way has multiple kinds of counters, only a single new counter is given. You choose which kind of counter to give that permanent or player as you proliferate.

Players can respond to the spell or ability whose effect includes proliferating. Once that spell or ability starts to resolve, however, and its controller chooses which permanents and players will get new counters, it’s too late for anyone to respond.

If a creature has +1/+1 counters and -1/-1 counters on it, state-based actions remove the same number of each so that it has only one of those kinds of counters on it. There won’t be any counters of the other kind to put onto it as you proliferate.

Benefactor’s Draught

1G

Instant

Untap all creatures. Until end of turn, whenever a creature an opponent controls blocks, draw a card.

Draw a card.

You must cast Benefactor’s Draught before blockers are declared in order to draw any cards from its delayed triggered ability.

Each player will have a chance to cast instants and activate abilities after Benefactor’s Draught’s delayed triggered abilities have resolved, before combat damage is dealt.

If multiple copies of Benefactor’s Draught resolve in one turn, each creates a delayed triggered ability and each will trigger when its condition is met.

Boompile

4

Artifact

T: Flip a coin. If you win the flip, destroy all nonland permanents.

You flip a coin as Boompile’s ability resolves. No player may take actions between seeing the result of the flip and all nonland permanents being destroyed.

If you win the flip, Boompile is destroyed along with all the other nonland permanents.

Breya, Etherium Shaper

WUBR

Legendary Artifact Creature — Human

4/4

When Breya, Etherium Shaper enters the battlefield, create two 1/1 blue Thopter artifact creature tokens with flying.

2, Sacrifice two artifacts: Choose one —

• Breya deals 3 damage to target player.

• Target creature gets -4/-4 until end of turn.

• You gain 5 life.

You choose which mode you’re using as you activate the ability.

You can sacrifice any two artifacts you control to pay the cost of Breya’s ability, including Breya itself.

Bruse Tarl, Boorish Herder

2RW

Legendary Creature — Human Ally

3/3

Whenever Bruse Tarl, Boorish Herder enters the battlefield or attacks, target creature you control gains double strike and lifelink until end of turn.

Partner (You can have two commanders if both have partner.)

The triggered ability triggers both when Bruse Tarl enters the battlefield and whenever it attacks. You don’t have to choose only one.

Charging Cinderhorn

3R

Creature — Elemental Ox

4/2

Haste

At the beginning of each player’s end step, if no creatures attacked this turn, put a fury counter on Charging Cinderhorn. Then Charging Cinderhorn deals damage equal to the number of fury counters on it to that player.

Charging Cinderhorn’s triggered ability doesn’t trigger at all if a creature attacked this turn. It won’t get a fury counter or deal damage.

Charging Cinderhorn’s triggered ability triggers at the beginning of each player’s end step if no creatures attacked, including yours, and even if it wasn’t on the battlefield during combat.

If Charging Cinderhorn leaves the battlefield in response to its triggered ability, it won’t get a new fury counter, but it will deal damage equal to the number of fury counters it had before leaving the battlefield.

If a player loses the game during that player’s own turn, the turn continues to completion. If no creatures attacked, Charging Cinderhorn will get a fury counter even though it won’t deal damage to any player.

Conqueror’s Flail

2

Artifact — Equipment

Equipped creature gets +1/+1 for each color among permanents you control.

As long as Conqueror’s Flail is attached to a creature, your opponents can’t cast spells during your turn.

Equip 2

The first ability of Conqueror’s Flail constantly updates as the number of colors among permanents you control changes. If the number of colors decreases and the damage that was marked on the equipped creature earlier in the turn is now lethal damage, that creature is destroyed. Similarly, if its toughness becomes 0, that creature is put into its owner’s graveyard.

The five colors are white, blue, black, red, and green. Conqueror’s Flail can’t give a creature more than +5/+5. (Gold, artifact, and colorless aren’t colors.)

If you move Conqueror’s Flail from one creature to another, there’s no time in between that it’s not attached to a creature. Assuming it’s your turn, your opponents won’t be able to cast spells.

Cruel Entertainment

6B

Sorcery

Choose target player and another target player. The first player controls the second player during the second player’s next turn, and the second player controls the first player during the first player’s next turn.

Cruel Entertainment’s controller may be one of its targets, even if it’s less entertaining this way.

If one player loses the game before controlling the other player, the other player takes his or her turn normally.

The controlling player can’t make the player being controlled concede. A player may choose to concede at any time, even while under another player’s control.

The player being controlled is still the active player during his or her turn.

While controlling another player, the controlling player also continues to make his or her own choices and decisions.

While controlling another player, the controlling player can see all cards in the game that the player being controlled can see. This includes cards in that player’s hand, face-down cards that player controls, and any cards in that player’s library that he or she may look at.

While controlling another player, the controlling player makes all choices and decisions that the player being controlled is allowed to make or is told to make during that turn. This includes choices about what spells to cast or what abilities to activate, as well as any decisions called for by a triggered ability or anything else.

The controlling player can’t make any illegal decisions or illegal choices—that player can’t do anything that the player being controlled couldn’t do. The controlling player can’t make choices or decisions for that player that aren’t called for by the game rules or by any cards, permanents, spells, abilities, and so on. If an effect causes another player to make decisions that the player being controlled would normally make (as Master Warcraft does), that effect takes precedence. In other words, if the player being controlled wouldn’t make a decision, the controlling player can’t make that decision on his or her behalf.

The controlling player also can’t make any choices or decisions for the player being controlled that would be called for by the tournament rules (such as whether to take an intentional draw or whether to call a judge).

The controlling player only controls the player. The controlling player doesn’t control any of that player’s permanents, spells, or abilities.

The controlling player can use only the resources of the player being controlled (cards, mana, and so on) to pay costs for that player; the controlling player can’t use his or her own resources to pay costs for the player being controlled. Similarly, the controlling player can’t spend the resources of the player being controlled on any of the controlling player’s own costs.

If a player who would be controlled skips his or her next turn, the other player will control the next turn the affected player actually takes.

Multiple player-controlling effects that affect the same player overwrite each other. The last one to be created is the one that works.

Controlling a player doesn’t allow the controlling player to look at the controlled player’s sideboard. If an effect instructs that player to choose a card from outside the game, the controlling player can’t have that player choose a card.

Crystalline Crawler

4

Artifact Creature — Construct

1/1

Converge — Crystalline Crawler enters the battlefield with a +1/+1 counter on it for each color of mana spent to cast it.

Remove a +1/+1 counter from Crystalline Crawler: Add one mana of any color to your mana pool.

T: Put a +1/+1 counter on Crystalline Crawler.

The colors of mana are white, blue, black, red, and green. Colorless is not a color.

Unless a spell or ability allows you to, you can’t choose to pay more mana for a spell with a converge ability just to spend more colors of mana. Likewise, if a spell or ability reduces the amount of mana it costs you to cast a spell with converge, you can’t ignore that cost reduction in order to spend more colors of mana.

If there are any alternative or additional costs to cast a spell with a converge ability, the mana spent to pay those costs will count. For example, if an effect makes Crystalline Crawler cost 1 more to cast, you could pay WUBRG to cast it and have it enter the battlefield with five +1/+1 counters.

If you cast a spell with converge without spending any mana to cast it (perhaps because an effect allowed you to cast it without paying its mana cost), then the number of colors spent to cast it will be zero.

Curse of Vengeance

B

Enchantment — Aura Curse

Enchant player

Whenever enchanted player casts a spell, put a spite counter on Curse of Vengeance.

When enchanted player loses the game, you gain X life and draw X cards, where X is the number of spite counters on Curse of Vengeance.

Curse of Vengeance’s first triggered ability resolves before the spell that caused it to trigger. The ability will resolve even if that spell is countered.

If you and the enchanted player both reach 0 or less life at the same time, you’ll lose the game before Curse of Vengeance’s second triggered ability gives you more life.

Curtains’ Call

5B

Instant

Undaunted (This spell costs 1 less to cast for each opponent.)

Destroy two target creatures.

You can’t cast Curtains’ Call without two creatures to target. If one becomes an illegal target after you’ve cast Curtains’ Call, the other will still be destroyed.

Deepglow Skate

4U

Creature — Fish

3/3

When Deepglow Skate enters the battlefield, double the number of each kind of counter on any number of target permanents.

You can choose no targets if you don’t want to double the counters on any permanents.

To double the number of each kind of counter on a permanent, put another counter on it for each counter it already has. Effects that interact with counters being put onto permanents (such as that of Corpsejack Menace or Fathom Mage) apply if appropriate. For example, if Corpsejack Menace has two +1/+1 counters and a divinity counter on it, Deepglow Skate’s ability gives Corpsejack Menace four more +1/+1 counters and one more divinity counter.

As Deepglow Skate’s ability resolves, you must double each kind of counter on the permanents it targets.

Divergent Transformations

6R

Instant

Undaunted (This spell costs 1 less to cast for each opponent.)

Exile two target creatures. For each of those creatures, its controller reveals cards from the top of his or her library until he or she reveals a creature card, puts that card onto the battlefield, then shuffles the rest into his or her library.

You can’t cast Divergent Transformations without two target creatures. If a targeted creature becomes an illegal target for Divergent Transformations after it’s been cast, its controller won’t exile or replace that creature, but the other creature is still affected.

If two players’ creatures are exiled this way, start with the player whose turn it is. If that player controlled a creature exiled this way, that player follows the process on Divergent Transformations to replace it. If not, proceed to the next player in turn order. Repeat until the players who controlled the exiled creatures have each replaced those creatures.

If one player’s creatures are exiled this way, that player repeats this process twice.

The two creatures that are put onto the battlefield are put onto the battlefield sequentially. Triggered abilities of the second won’t see the first enter the battlefield.

Any abilities that trigger during the resolution of Divergent Transformations will wait to be put onto the stack until Divergent Transformations finishes resolving. An ability that triggers on the first creature entering the battlefield may target the second creature and vice versa.

If the controller of a creature exiled this way has no creature cards left in his or her library, that player reveals the cards in his or her library, then shuffles it.

Duelist’s Heritage

2W

Enchantment

Whenever one or more creatures attack, you may have target attacking creature gain double strike until end of turn.

The ability of Duelist’s Heritage triggers whenever any player attacks with one or more creatures, not just when you do. You know which players and planeswalkers the creatures are attacking before you choose the target creature.

Entrapment Maneuver

3W

Instant

Target player sacrifices an attacking creature. You create X 1/1 white Soldier creature tokens, where X is that creature’s toughness.

An “attacking creature” is one that has been declared as an attacker or put onto the battlefield attacking during this combat. Unless that creature leaves combat, it continues to be an attacking creature through the end of combat step, even if the player it was attacking has left the game or the planeswalker it was attacking has left combat.

If you cast Entrapment Maneuver after combat damage has been dealt, only creatures that survived combat can be sacrificed.

Entrapment Maneuver doesn’t target the creature to be sacrificed. The target player chooses one as it resolves. No player may take any other actions between the target player choosing the creature and you creating Soldier tokens.

To determine how many Soldier tokens are created, use the toughness of the sacrificed creature as it last existed on the battlefield.

Evolutionary Escalation

1G

Enchantment

At the beginning of your upkeep, put three +1/+1 counters on target creature you control and three +1/+1 counters on target creature an opponent controls.

You choose two targets for Evolutionary Escalation’s ability as it’s put onto the stack. No player may cast spells or activate abilities during your turn before this happens.

If there aren’t two legal targets for Evolutionary Escalation’s ability as it’s put onto the stack, it’s taken off the stack and no creature gets +1/+1 counters.

If one target becomes illegal before Evolutionary Escalation’s ability resolves, you’ll put three +1/+1 counters on the target that’s still legal.

Faerie Artisans

3U

Creature — Faerie Artificer

2/2

Flying

Whenever a nontoken creature enters the battlefield under an opponent’s control, create a token that’s a copy of that creature except it’s an artifact in addition to its other types. Then exile all other tokens created with Faerie Artisans.

If you control multiple Faerie Artisans, each one’s ability only exiles tokens created with the ability of that specific Faerie Artisans.

The token copies exactly what was printed on the original permanent and nothing else (unless that permanent is copying something else; see below). It doesn’t copy whether that permanent is tapped or untapped, whether it has any counters on it or Auras and Equipment attached to it, or any non-copy effects that have changed its power, toughness, types, color, or so on.

The token is an artifact in addition to its other types. This is a copiable value of the token that other effects may copy.

If the copied permanent has X in its mana cost, X is considered to be 0.

If the copied permanent is copying something else (for example, if the copied creature is a Clone), then the token enters the battlefield as whatever that permanent copied.

If the permanent copied by the token had any “when [this permanent] enters the battlefield” abilities, then the token also has those abilities and will trigger them when it’s created. Similarly, any “as [this permanent] enters the battlefield” or “[this permanent] enters the battlefield with” abilities that the token has copied will also work.

A token creature that’s a copy of a player’s commander isn’t a commander.

Frenzied Fugue

3R

Enchantment — Aura

Enchant permanent

When Frenzied Fugue enters the battlefield or at the beginning of your upkeep, gain control of enchanted permanent until end of turn. Untap that permanent. It gains haste until end of turn.

The triggered ability triggers both when Frenzied Fugue enters the battlefield and at the beginning of your upkeep. You don’t have to choose only one.

You won’t control the enchanted permanent as your upkeep begins. Any “at the beginning of your upkeep” abilities it has won’t trigger during your upkeep (unless you already controlled the permanent). Similarly, if you have an “at the beginning of your upkeep” ability that targets a permanent you control, that ability can’t target it.

Goblin Spymaster

2R

Creature — Goblin Rogue

2/1

First strike

At the beginning of each opponent’s end step, that player creates a 1/1 red Goblin creature token with “Creatures you control attack each combat if able.”

If, during your declare attackers step, a creature you control is tapped or is affected by a spell or ability that says it can’t attack, then it doesn’t attack, even if you control one of Goblin Spymaster’s tokens. If there’s a cost associated with having a creature attack, you aren’t forced to pay that cost, so it doesn’t have to attack in that case either.

Grip of Phyresis

2U

Instant

Gain control of target Equipment, then create a 0/0 black Germ creature token and attach that Equipment to it.

The Germ token exists on the battlefield as a 0/0 for a brief moment before the Equipment becomes attached to it. Abilities that trigger when a creature enters the battlefield will trigger based on its natural characteristics, not the characteristics it has immediately after becoming equipped.

If the Equipment doesn’t provide a toughness boost, your Germ token will have 0 toughness and die. You’ll still control the Equipment.

Ikra Shidiqi, the Usurper

3BG

Legendary Creature — Naga Wizard

3/7

Menace

Whenever a creature you control deals combat damage to a player, you gain life equal to that creature’s toughness.

Partner (You can have two commanders if both have partner.)

The amount of life you gain is determined as Ikra Shidiqi’s triggered ability resolves. If that creature is no longer on the battlefield, use its toughness as it last existed on the battlefield to determine how much life to gain.

Ishai, Ojutai Dragonspeaker

2WU

Legendary Creature — Bird Monk

1/1

Flying

Whenever an opponent casts a spell, put a +1/+1 counter on Ishai, Ojutai Dragonspeaker.

Partner (You can have two commanders if both have partner.)

Ishai’s triggered ability resolves before the spell that caused it to trigger. The ability will resolve even if that spell is countered.

Kraum, Ludevic’s Opus

3UR

Legendary Creature — Zombie Horror

4/4

Flying, haste

Whenever an opponent casts his or her second spell each turn, draw a card.

Partner (You can have two commanders if both have partner.)

One player must cast two spells for Kraum’s triggered ability to trigger. Two spells from different opponents won’t trigger it.

Kraum’s triggered ability can trigger only once each turn for each opponent.

Kraum’s triggered ability will resolve regardless of whether the first or second spell that a given opponent cast that turn has resolved, was countered, or is still on the stack. Notably, the ability will always resolve before the second spell resolves.

Kraum’s ability looks at the entire turn to determine which spell is a player’s second spell. It doesn’t matter whether Kraum was on the battlefield when the first spell was cast.

Kydele, Chosen of Kruphix

2GU

Legendary Creature — Human Wizard

2/3

T: Add C to your mana pool for each card you’ve drawn this turn.

Partner (You can have two commanders if both have partner.)

Kydele’s ability counts each card you’ve drawn this turn, whether or not they’re still in your hand and whether or not Kydele was on the battlefield or under your control at the time they were drawn.

Cards put into your hand without an instruction to “draw” them, such as those found with a basic landcycling ability, weren’t drawn.

If you haven’t drawn any cards this turn, you can activate Kydele’s mana ability, but it won’t produce any mana.

Kynaios and Tiro of Meletis

RGWU

Legendary Creature — Human Soldier

2/8

At the beginning of your end step, draw a card. Each player may put a land card from his or her hand onto the battlefield, then each opponent who didn’t draws a card.

Starting with you and proceeding in turn order, each player chooses a land card from his or her hand or chooses not to choose one, but doesn’t reveal any chosen lands yet. Once all players have made this choice, all chosen lands are revealed and enter the battlefield simultaneously.

If the card you draw is a land card, you may choose it to put onto the battlefield.

Ludevic, Necro-Alchemist

1UR

Legendary Creature — Human Wizard

1/4

At the beginning of each player’s end step, that player may draw a card if a player other than you lost life this turn.

Partner (You can have two commanders if both have partner.)

Damage dealt to a player causes that player to lose that much life.

Only one card may be drawn no matter how much life was lost or how many players lost life.

If a player lost life and subsequently lost the game, the player whose turn it is may draw a card.

Ludevic’s triggered ability triggers at the beginning of each player’s end step, including yours, even if no player has lost life that turn. Whether or not a player has lost life is checked only as the triggered ability resolves.

Ludevic’s triggered ability will allow the player to draw a card if any player other than Ludevic’s controller, including the player whose turn it is, lost life this turn.

Ludevic’s ability looks at the entire turn to determine whether the player may draw a card or not. It doesn’t matter whether Ludevic was on the battlefield when the opponent lost life.

Ludevic’s ability checks only if another player lost life during the turn, not whether that player’s life total decreased over the course of the turn. For example, if a player other than Ludevic’s controller lost 2 life and then gained 8 life this turn, the player whose turn it is may draw a card.

Magus of the Will

2B

Creature — Human Wizard

3/3

2B, T, Exile Magus of the Will: Until end of turn, you may play cards from your graveyard. If a card would be put into your graveyard from anywhere this turn, exile that card instead.

Cards that would be put into your graveyard are exiled even if you didn’t play them this turn, such as a nontoken creature that would die.

Creature tokens are put into your graveyard as normal (and cease to exist soon after). Abilities that trigger when a creature dies can trigger on token creatures being put into your graveyard but won’t trigger on nontoken creatures being exiled instead of being put into your graveyard.

You pay the costs for a card in your graveyard if you cast it. You may pay alternative costs such as emerge rather than the card’s mana cost.

You may play a land card from your graveyard only if you have an available land play.

Magus of the Will doesn’t change when you can play the cards in your graveyard. For example, if you have a creature card without flash in your graveyard, you can cast it only during your main phase while the stack is empty.

If another effect tries to change where a spell is put as it resolves, such as that of a rebound or buyback ability, you may choose whether to exile the card to Magus of the Will’s effect or to apply the other effect.

Manifold Insights

2U

Sorcery

Reveal the top ten cards of your library. Starting with the next opponent in turn order, each opponent chooses a different nonland card from among them. Put the chosen cards into your hand and the rest on the bottom of your library in a random order.

If there aren’t enough nonland cards for each opponent to choose one, all of the nonland cards are put into your hand.

Once the top ten cards of your library are revealed, no player may take any other actions until Manifold Insights has been completely resolved.

After Manifold Insights resolves, if it’s your turn, you may play one of the cards if it’s legal to do so before any other player can take any action.

Orzhov Advokist

2W

Creature — Human Advisor

1/4

At the beginning of your upkeep, each player may put two +1/+1 counters on a creature he or she controls. If a player does, creatures that player controls can’t attack you or a planeswalker you control until your next turn.

While resolving Orzhov Advokist’s ability, you choose a creature you control or choose not to put any counters on a creature, then each other player in turn order does the same. Each player will know the choices made by players who chose before them. Then simultaneously each player who chose a creature puts two +1/+1 counters on the creature he or she chose.

Orzhov Advokist’s ability doesn’t target the creatures that receive +1/+1 counters. Their controllers choose them as the ability resolves. Players can’t take actions between making their choices and the +1/+1 counters being placed.

If a player chooses to accept Orzhov Advokist’s gift, that player can’t attack you or a planeswalker you control with any creatures during his or her next turn, even creatures that weren’t on the battlefield as Orzhov Advokist’s ability resolved.

Orzhov Advokist’s effect keeps creatures from attacking you even if Orzhov Advokist leaves the battlefield, if the creature that received counters is no longer on the battlefield, or if an effect has moved those counters off of the creature that received them and put them onto another creature.

Parting Thoughts

2B

Sorcery

Destroy target creature. You draw X cards and you lose X life, where X is the number of counters on that creature.

Parting Thoughts can target a creature without any counters on it. You’ll lose no life and draw no cards.

Parting Thoughts counts every kind of counter on that creature. Effects such as that of Giant Growth, Auras, and Equipment aren’t counters.

If a creature has +1/+1 counters and -1/-1 counters on it, state-based actions remove the same number of each so that it has only one of those kinds of counters on it. There won’t be any counters of the other kind for Parting Thoughts to count.

Primeval Protector

10G

Creature — Avatar

10/10

Primeval Protector costs 1 less to cast for each creature your opponents control.

When Primeval Protector enters the battlefield, put a +1/+1 counter on each other creature you control.

Once a player has announced that he or she is casting Primeval Protector, no player may take actions to try to change the number of creatures your opponents control in order to increase its cost.

Primeval Protector’s ability can’t reduce its cost below G.

Prismatic Geoscope

5

Artifact

Prismatic Geoscope enters the battlefield tapped.

Domain — T: Add X mana in any combination of colors to your mana pool, where X is the number of basic land types among lands you control.

The colors of mana that Prismatic Geoscope can produce aren’t related to the specific basic land types among lands you control. For example, if you control a Plains and an Island, you can activate Prismatic Geoscope’s ability to add RG to your mana pool.

You can activate Prismatic Geoscope’s mana ability if you have no basic land types among lands you control, but it won’t produce any mana.

Prismatic Geoscope can’t produce colorless mana.

To determine the number of basic land types among lands you control, look for the Plains, Island, Swamp, Mountain, and Forest subtypes among the lands you control. Count each subtype that appears one or more times toward the number of basic land types among lands you control. This number can’t exceed five.

How many lands you control of a particular basic land type is irrelevant to a domain ability, as long as that number is greater than zero. As far as domain is concerned, ten Forests are the same as one Forest.

Most nonbasic lands don’t have basic land types, even if they produce colored mana. For example, Caves of Koilos is neither a Plains nor a Swamp.

Some nonbasic lands do have basic land types. Domain abilities don’t count the number of lands you control—they count the number of basic land types among lands you control, even if that means checking the same land twice. For example, if you control a Tundra, a Blood Crypt, and a Forest, you’ll have a Plains, Island, Swamp, Mountain, and Forest among the lands you control. Your domain abilities will be maxed out.

Reyhan, Last of the Abzan

1BG

Legendary Creature — Human Warrior

0/0

Reyhan, Last of the Abzan enters the battlefield with three +1/+1 counters on it.

Whenever a creature you control dies or is put into the command zone, if it had one or more +1/+1 counters on it, you may put that many +1/+1 counters on target creature.

Partner (You can have two commanders if both have partner.)

If enough -1/-1 counters are put on a creature at the same time to make its toughness 0 or less, the number of +1/+1 counters on it before it got any -1/-1 counters will be used to determine how many counters you put on target creature. For example, if there are three +1/+1 counters on Reyhan and it gets six -1/-1 counters, the target creature gets three +1/+1 counters.

Runehorn Hellkite

5R

Creature — Dragon

5/5

Flying

5R, Exile Runehorn Hellkite from your graveyard: Each player discards his or her hand, then draws seven cards.

Exiling Runehorn Hellkite from your graveyard is part of the cost of its activated ability. An opponent can’t remove Runehorn Hellkite from your graveyard in response to you activating the ability.

If a player has no cards in hand, that player discards no cards, then draws seven cards.

Saskia the Unyielding

BRGW

Legendary Creature — Human Soldier

3/4

Vigilance, haste

As Saskia the Unyielding enters the battlefield, choose a player.

Whenever a creature you control deals combat damage to a player, it deals that much damage to the chosen player.

If a creature you control deals combat damage to the chosen player, it deals that much damage to that player again.

The damage that Saskia’s ability causes a creature to deal isn’t combat damage.

Once the chosen player has left the game, Saskia’s triggered ability will have no effect.

If Saskia leaves the battlefield and returns, you choose a player again. It doesn’t remember the previously chosen player.

Seeds of Renewal

6G

Sorcery

Undaunted (This spell costs 1 less to cast for each opponent.)

Return up to two target cards from your graveyard to your hand. Exile Seeds of Renewal.

If one target becomes illegal before Seeds of Renewal resolves, you’ll still return the legal target from your graveyard to your hand.

If each target is illegal as Seeds of Renewal resolves, Seeds of Renewal is countered and put into its owner’s graveyard. It’s not exiled.

Selfless Squire

3W

Creature — Human Soldier

1/1

Flash

When Selfless Squire enters the battlefield, prevent all damage that would be dealt to you this turn.

Whenever damage that would be dealt to you is prevented, put that many +1/+1 counters on Selfless Squire.

Selfless Squire’s first triggered ability prevents all damage that would be dealt to you this turn after the triggered ability resolves, even if Selfless Squire leaves the battlefield.

Selfless Squire’s second triggered ability doesn’t trigger only when damage is prevented by its first triggered ability’s effect. Any effect that uses the word “prevent” will cause it to trigger.

If a prevention effect applies to damage that would be dealt to you while you control a planeswalker, you choose whether to apply that prevention effect before or after the planeswalker redirection effect. If you apply the prevention effect first, the planeswalker redirection effect no longer applies. If you apply the planeswalker redirection effect and your opponent chooses to have the damage dealt to a planeswalker you control, that damage isn’t prevented.

Sidar Kondo of Jamuraa

2GW

Legendary Creature — Human Knight

2/5

Flanking (Whenever a creature without flanking blocks this creature, the blocking creature gets -1/-1 until end of turn.)

Creatures your opponents control without flying or reach can’t block creatures with power 2 or less.

Partner (You can have two commanders if both have partner.)

Sidar Kondo’s blocking restriction applies to creatures your opponents control even when an opponent is attacking a player other than you.

Once an attacking creature has been blocked by a creature without flying or reach, reducing its power to 2 or less won’t change or undo that block.

Silas Renn, Seeker Adept

1UB

Legendary Artifact Creature — Human

2/2

Deathtouch

Whenever Silas Renn, Seeker Adept deals combat damage to a player, choose target artifact card in your graveyard. You may cast that card this turn.

Partner (You can have two commanders if both have partner.)

You pay the costs for the target artifact card if you cast it. You may pay alternative costs rather than the card’s mana cost.

You may cast that card this turn even if Silas Renn leaves the battlefield.

Silas Renn doesn’t change when you can cast the target artifact card. For example, if you target an artifact card without flash, you can cast it only during your main phase when the stack is empty.

An effect that instructs you to “cast” a card doesn’t allow you to play lands.

Casting the card causes it to leave your graveyard and become a new object. You can’t cast it multiple times.

If you don’t cast the card, it remains in your graveyard.

Thrasios, Triton Hero

GU

Legendary Creature — Merfolk Wizard

1/3

4: Scry 1, then reveal the top card of your library. If it’s a land card, put it onto the battlefield tapped. Otherwise, draw a card.

Partner (You can have two commanders if both have partner.)

No player may take another action while you’re resolving the activated ability.

Tymna the Weaver

1WB

Legendary Creature — Human Cleric

2/2

Lifelink

At the beginning of your postcombat main phase, you may pay X life, where X is the number of opponents that were dealt combat damage this turn. If you do, draw X cards.

Partner (You can have two commanders if both have partner.)

You must pay exactly X life or none. You can’t pay less life to draw fewer cards.

If a player was dealt combat damage and subsequently lost the game, Tymna’s triggered ability counts that player to determine the value of X.

If an effect creates an additional combat phase in a turn, it may also create an additional main phase after that combat phase. Tymna’s ability triggers at the beginning of each of these postcombat main phases.

Vial Smasher the Fierce

1BR

Legendary Creature — Goblin Berserker

2/3

Whenever you cast your first spell each turn, Vial Smasher the Fierce deals damage equal to that spell’s converted mana cost to an opponent chosen at random.

Partner (You can have two commanders if both have partner.)

Vial Smasher’s triggered ability triggers when you cast your first spell each turn, regardless of whose turn it is.

Vial Smasher has to be on the battlefield at the moment you cast your first spell. If that spell causes Vial Smasher to leave the battlefield as an additional cost to cast it, Vial Smasher’s ability can’t trigger. If that spell is Vial Smasher itself, Vial Smasher’s ability can’t trigger.

For spells with X in their mana costs, use the value chosen for X to determine the spell’s converted mana cost.

Vial Smasher’s triggered ability resolves before the spell that caused it to trigger. If Vial Smasher’s ability resolves and the spell that caused it to trigger has been countered, use that spell’s converted mana cost as it last existed on the stack to determine how much damage is dealt.

The opponent to be dealt damage is chosen at random while the triggered ability is resolving. No player may take any actions between choosing the player and dealing that player damage.

Yidris, Maelstrom Wielder

UBRG

Legendary Creature — Ogre Wizard

5/4

Trample

Whenever Yidris, Maelstrom Wielder deals combat damage to a player, as you cast spells from your hand this turn, they gain cascade. (When you cast the spell, exile cards from the top of your library until you exile a nonland card that costs less. You may cast it without paying its mana cost. Put the exiled cards on the bottom of your library in a random order.)

Spells you cast from your hand this turn will gain cascade even if Yidris leaves the battlefield.

If Yidris’s triggered ability resolves more than once in one turn, spells you cast from your hand will gain cascade that many times. Each instance of cascade triggers separately; resolve one cascade trigger and the spell you cast from it before resolving the next cascade trigger.

The cascade ability triggers when you cast the spell, meaning that it resolves before that spell. If you cast the card exiled by the cascade ability, that spell will go on the stack above the spell with cascade.

When the cascade ability resolves, you must exile cards. The only optional part of the ability is whether or not you cast the last card exiled.

If a spell with cascade is countered, the cascade ability will still resolve normally.

You exile the cards face up. All players will be able to see them.

You don’t have to cast the last card exiled by a cascade ability. If you choose to do so, you’re casting it as a spell. It can be countered. Since it’s cast from exile, Ydris’s ability won’t give the new spell cascade.

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