Rules

Understanding DFC Card Rules

Can the rules handle a DFC that both can be cast on either side AND transforms between them?

The Transformers cards did something like that. The rules need to be tweaked to do both cleanly.

Dual Faced Cards Rules

Triggering Exile Ability Possible?

Could the rules support an ability that triggers if a card is exiled? If so would it need to care about the zone it was exiled from

I believe it could.

Rules The Exile Zone Triggered Abilities

Feasibility of Unexileable Status

Does the rules support "Unexileable"? As in, A permanent just cannot be exiled, but still can be destroyed, targeted, bounced back to hand, etc.

There’s no clean way to template it, and it doesn’t happen enough that we need a whole keyword.

Keywords Rules Templating The Exile Zone Your Hand

Differentiating Rules and Functional Erratas

I don't play Neheb so I have no feelings there, but I am genuinely curious. Why is it okay to change the rules/wording and make a major functional errata to how Neheb works, but not make the nephilim and Godsire legendary in the name of avoiding functional errata? It's not like Companion where it was an emergency thing.

I know we’re looking into this issue.That said, there is a difference between changing a card and changing a rule which results in a card playing differently. The first is functional errata (we’re actively changing how the card works). The latter isn’t. We’re changing how the game works and the relevant cards play with the rules as they now exist. Here’s an example. Lifelink used to stack. If you had two copies of lifelink on a creature you gained twice the life. We then changed how lifelink worked. Every card with lifelink now worked differently, but that wasn’t us specifically redoing any card.

Companion Creatures Errata Functional Errata Lifelink Nephilim Rules Godsire

Potential Gift Ability Tweak

Could the gift mechanic work as a triggered ability instead of something solely done on cast? Such as "when this creature attacks, you may Gift a Food."

I don’t know if the current version of gift can do that, but as it’s a cost, I assume we could tweak things to make that work. Just a hunch though. I’m not the Rules Manager.

Creatures Food Gift Mechanic Mechanics Rules Manager Triggered Abilities

Questioning Quaketusk Boar Reach

Quaketusk Boar having reach is probably going to catch a lot of people off guard. In the past, reach creatures typically were archers, or spiders, or had "spitting" or "turret" or "bounding" or something like that in the name. I understand that reach is far more common nowadays, making it harder to keep doing this, but I feel like SOME rules for reach creatures should still exist. The rules don't even need to be about the name or creature type. Maybe its something that's communicated in the art.

Reach has proven difficult to communicate in art because it doesn’t have clear symbols like wings for flying. We make a lot of large creatures that don’t have reach.

Archers Art Boars Creatures Flying Rules Spiders Quaketusk Boar

Richard Garfield's Ingenious Ideas

Hi Mark, Is there an Article or Podcast about how exactly Richard Garfield came up with the ideas? Especially basic lands, one Land per turn rule or the idea of tapping things for use? I mostly like the idea of having 5 colors and the more colors you play the harder it is to cast the right cards on time, that is the perfect system of keeping people out of playing all the best cards in the same deck most of the time.

Here’s the podcast with Richard where I ask about decisions he made in Alpha:
https://media.wizards.com/2020/podcasts/magic/drivetowork737_richardgarfield_Y83uI3oO.mp3

Colors Drive to Work Lands Richard Garfield Rules

Tokens Defined by Un-Cards

We have the technology to create tokens that have their qualities defined elsewhere, including by other cards (i.e. Tarmogoyf tokens). Could this be used to create a token defined by an silver border card that works within the rules? (I.e. create a Krark's Other Thumb token)

The rules could handle it provided the Un-card works in the main rules.

Rules Tokens Un-Magic / Silver Border / Acorn Un-sets Krark's Other Thumb Tarmogoyf

Potential for Eternal Un-Reprints

Could suitable un-cards get eternal "un-reprints"? That is, using a new name but identical abilities, like was the plan for Tammy, Power Gamer, and using a variant on Universes Within's "=SLD" label to mark that the cards are equivalent for casual games despite having different tournament legality. Would that be viable?

We clearly can make the same cards with a new name (if the card works within the rules). I’m more skeptical we’d use the Universe’s Within “same card” tech.

Casual Play Eternal Gamers Rules Timmy / Tammy Un-sets

Color Alternative in Planar Chaos

Hi Mark! I'm looking at Planar Chaos, and it's got me wondering: Could the rules handle the line of text "choose a color other than purple"?

My guess is no. Purple would have to be defined.

Colors Planar Chaos Rules

MH3 Flip Walkers Control Rules

Is there a flavor reason why the MH3 flip walkers return to the owner's control and not the control of the person who flipped them?

I think it’s how the rules work. A new card (as far as the game is concerned) that hasn’t entered the game yet doesn’t have a controller.Someone better versed in the rules could explain the nitty gritty.

Flavor Modern Horizons 3 Rules

Exploring Multi-offspring Functionality

Would Multi-offspring work within the rules the same way multi-kicker does?

Rules would have to get written, but probably.

Rules

Bestow Mechanic Rules

Currently every Bestow creature just grants its power/toughness as a bonus and all of its other abilities to the creature it enchants. Why did you not bake that into the keyword itself so that the cards don't have to list everything twice? If it was to keep open flexibility, is there a particular reason that space hasn't been explored since then?

Usually things like this are due to rules issues. I don’t know the specifics on this mechanic.

Bestow Creatures Keywords Mechanics Rules

Potential Future Set Tutoring

RE: Previous set TutorHas Wizards ever planned to do a card that would tutor a card in an upcoming set (not yet released)?

We’ve done numerous cards that reference unprinted (at the time) cards in rules text. None that tutor come to mind. Here’s the closest I could think of: (no Eldrazi card had been printed yet)

Blogatog / Tumblr Eldrazis Rules Tutoring

Prizes in Non-acorn Attractions

I'm interested in why there is only one non-acorn attraction that you can claim a prize from. Was this unintentional or was there a reason?

The cards were designed a ways before the decision to make the ones that could be Eternal legal, Eternal legal, so we just converted what we could. The main criteria at determining Eternal legality was “can it work in the rules?”. The one wrinkle was the Teddy Bear token that was a prize for some Attractions was pink and the rules don’t handle pink as a color. We’d already made the token and were using Water Gun Balloon Game as a promo and it also used the same pink Teddy Bear token which kept us from changing its color.

Attractions Balloons Bears Colors Eternal Promos Rules Teddies Tokens Water Gun Balloon Game

Silver-Border Card Legality

Could i please get you to clear something up for me,I rember listning to a interview were it was said by you(i yhink cant find it to check ) that Silver border/un-card/acorn cards are desighned to be "legal" in non compition formats, is this the way its supossed to work?

What I said was the original intent of silver-bordered cards when Unglued came out was they would be legal everywhere except in tournaments. That intent hasn’t followed through.For example, the Commander format specifically excluded silver-border by choosing Legacy legality, so the most played casual format doesn’t allow (although you can Rule 0 them in) the cards original designed for casual play.

Casual Play Commander Legacy Rules Un-Magic / Silver Border / Acorn Un-sets

Rules and Subtypes for Land Creatures

Is there a rules reason Omo cannot give all creature types to land creatures? Was that too confusing? Did it break something on arena? I’ve been pondering this and can’t figure it out.

You can’t give a subtype of a specific card type to a different type (with the exception that instants and sorceries share subtypes).

Card Types Creatures Instants Lands Magic Arena Rules Sorceries Subtypes

Seeking Comprehensive Rules Accessibility

Hello, Mark! I have a website request. The Comprehensive Rules are currently posted in 3 forms. None of them make for an easy link to somewhere in the middle of the rules on a phone. E.g., if I want to look up the order of State-Based Actions, I have to scroll down to the 187th page of today's Comprehensive Rules PDF. Difficult reference lookup drew out a rules dispute into a surprise unpleasant event in a tournament for me last night.Can an HTML version of the CRs be posted & maintained, where the table of contents links to in-page anchors?It's also possible for PDFs to link to other sections in a document, which also would help people used to the PDFs but currently stuck scrolling through a few hundred pages.

I can ask. I have no idea how much work it entails though.

Rules

Missing Old Aspects

Do you ever miss older aspects of Magic? Today, I'm missing "continuous" artifacts turning off when tapped.

That’s an old school miss. We stopped doing that with the Sixth Edition rules. It caused endless problems.

Artifacts Rules

Isolation of 'Level up' Keyword

Is it possible to use the 'Level up' keyword in isolation, without the Leveler card frame and its associated baggage? I.e. A creature with Level up that, in its rules text, attains bonuses referring to the number of Level counters it has.

I’ll say it would be unlikely.

Card Frames Creatures Keywords Level Up Rules Leveler