Magic: The Gathering is a game that combines strategy and fantasy.The premise is that you are a powerful wizard who summons creatures, spells, and weapons to help you destroy your enemies.Magic can be enjoyed alone, or with friends, as a trading card collection or a sophisticated strategy game.You can learn how to play.
Step 1: Choose who to play with.
Two or more players square off against one another.In games where you fight against two or more players, squaring off against a single player is the most common way to play.
Step 2: Pick out cards to put in a deck.
Your arsenal is your deck.The minimum amount of cards in a "constructed" deck is 60, with no upper limit.Players usually stick to the minimum of 60 cards.A limited deck is a deck that has a minimum number of 40 cards and no upper limit.A player's deck is called their library.
Step 3: Each player needs to draw 7 cards from his or her library at the beginning of the game.
There are 7 cards that compose a player's hand.A player adds a card to their hand at the beginning of each turn.When a creature dies or a spell is destroyed, a card is put in a player's graveyard.The graveyard is a pile that players place next to their library.
Step 4: Each player begins with 20 points of life.
A player can gain or lose life during a game.Having more life is better than less life.Damage is dealt to both creatures and to each other.Damage can be dealt by creatures or spells.Damage is determined by the number of hit points it causes.If one player deals damage to the other, they both lose life.If player two started out with 20 life, she now only has 16.20 - 4 is 16.
Step 5: The three ways a player can lose should be avoided.
A player has lost the game if they lose all of their life, run out of cards, or have 10 poison counters.When a player's life total is below 0, they have lost.A player can no longer draw cards from their library at the beginning of their turn.A player has lost if they have received 10 poison counters.
Step 6: You can incorporate different colors into your deck.
White, Blue, Black, Red, and Green.White is the color of order.A white orb is the symbol of white.White's strengths include a host of small creatures that collectively become powerful; life-gaining; reducing the powers of opposing creatures; and "equalizing" cards that wipe large swaths of cards off the board.Blue is a color of deceit.A blue water drop is the symbol of blue.Taking control of opponents cards is one of Blue's strengths.Black is the color of death.The symbol of black is a skull.Black's strengths are destroying creatures, forcing opponents to discard cards, and returning creatures from graveyards.Red is the color of chaos.A red fireball is the symbol of red.Red's strengths are sacrificing resources for great power, dealing direct damage to players or creatures, and destroying artifacts and lands.The color green is found in nature.A green tree is the symbol of green.Green's strengths are powerful creatures withmple, the ability to regenerate, or bring them back from the graveyard, and getting lands faster.
Step 7: Understand where "mana" comes from and what lands it is from.
The building blocks of spells are Lands.There are five basic lands.Lands produce magical energy, or "mana," which is the fuel used to cast other spells.The five basic lands are Plains, Islands, Black lands, Swamps, and Red lands.
Step 8: "Sorceries" are what they are.
You can only cast sorceries during your own turn.You can't cast a sorcery in response to another spell.After they resolve, sorceries usually go into the graveyard.
Step 9: Understand what instants are.
You can cast instants during the other player's turn in addition to your own, and you can also cast them in response to a spell.After they resolve, instants usually go into the graveyard.
Step 10: Understand the meaning of "enchantments"
"stable manifestations" are Enchantments.Enchantments can either be attached to a creature, affecting only that one card, in which case they are called an "Aura", or they can also affect the game in a different way.Enchantments stay on the battlefield unless they are destroyed.Permanents don't go to the graveyard right away.
Step 11: Know what facts are there.
Artifacts can be permanent and magical.Artifacts don't need to be summoned by a specific land or type.Normal artifacts are similar to enchantments.Extra abilities can be given to creatures by attaching equipment artifacts to them.The equipment doesn't follow the creature into the graveyard if it leaves the battlefield.These cards are artifacts and creatures at the same time.They're just like creatures, except they don't take specific mana to summon, and you can summon them with anything you want.Most of them are immune to certain spells that affect specific colors.
Step 12: Understand what they are.
The main building blocks of Magic are creatures.Creatures stay on the battlefield until they are destroyed or removed from the game.The main feature of creatures is their ability to attack and block.The two numbers in the bottom right hand corner help you determine a creature's attacking and blocking strength.Creatures enter the battlefield with sickness.Sickness means that a creature can't be tapped or used on the same turn it was brought into play.It can't use certain abilities that cause the creature to tap.The creature is allowed to block, but not affected by sickness.Creatures have a lot of special abilities, such as "flying," "vigilance," or "trample."
Step 13: Know the function planeswalkers play.
A planeswalker is a powerful ally.They are rare and don't make appearances in games, and they change the basics of the game slightly when in play.The loyalty counters are indicated in the bottom right side by a number.When you use the ability, the symbol "+X" means "put X number of loyalty counters on this planeswalker" and the other symbol is "-X".You can only use a sorcery once per turn to get the powers that come with them.Planeswalkers can be attacked by their opponent's creatures.The planeswalker can be stopped with your creatures and spells.If your opponent deals damage to a planeswalker, it will remove as many loyalty counters as damage is dealt.
Step 14: Understand how to summon something.
You summon a creature by looking at its casting cost, which is usually a circled number followed by a specific color of mana, either white, blue, black, red, or green.To summon a creature, you need to match the card's casting cost.There is a card above.The white sun is followed by a white mana symbol.To summon this card, you need to have enough lands to produce one color and one white color.
Step 15: Try another way to summon.
If you can't figure out how many mana total and which specific kinds it takes to summon the following card, you're in trouble.The second card, "Angelic Shield," costs one white and one blue.
Step 16: Understand what tapping is.
"Tapping" is how you use the land's resources.There is a little right arrow sign.The card has to be turned sideways in order to tap.You can't use certain abilities for one turn if you tap a card.If you tap a card in order to use it, it stays tapped until the beginning of your next turn.You can't use it again until it's used up.To attack, you need to tap your creature.A creature is tapped when it depletes its energy.Unless the card explicitly says you shouldn't, you do this.Some cards don't tap when they attack.You can't block a creature that is tapped.It is ineligible to block when a creature is tapped.
Step 17: Understand what power and defense mean.
Creatures have two numbers for power and defense.The creature with the power and defense of 2 is called the phyrexian broodlings.It's a 2.The number of points a creature can deal in combat is called power.If a creature has a power of 5, it deals 5 damage to any creature who blocks it in combat.The opponent subtracts 5 damage from his or her total life if that creature goes unblocked in combat.The number of points a creature can survive in combat before it dies is called defense.A creature with a defense of 4 can survive 3 points of damage.It goes into that player's graveyard at the end of combat after being dealt 4 points of damage.
Step 18: Understand how damage is assigned in combat.
Attackers and blockers are declared when a player chooses to attack another player.Attacking creatures are the first to be declared.The player who is defending gets to choose which of his or her creatures he or she wants to block.The Magus of the Moat are blocking Anathemancer's attack.The Anathemancer has a power and a defense.It's a 2.The Moat has a power of 0 and a defense of 3.It's a zero.When they square off, what happens?The Anathemancer has 2 damage to the Magus.The 2 damage that the Anathemancer deals to the Magus isn't enough to kill it.Before it gets put in the graveyard, the Magus can survive 3 damage.The 0 damage the Magus deals to the Anathemancer isn't enough to kill it.Before the Anathemancer is put in the graveyard, it can survive 2.Both creatures are still alive.
Step 19: Understand how enchantments and artifacts can be activated.
Most of the time, creatures have abilities that players can use.You need to pay a fee in order to use these abilities.The following example is a good example.Ictian crier has an ability that says to put two Citizen creature token into play.There are some signs and text before it.The cost is the amount of time it takes for this ability to be activated.If you want to use this ability, you need to tap one basic land of any color, as well as one Plains that is white.For the "tap" sign after the requirements, you need to tap the card itself.If you discard a card from your hand, you probably want to discard your least valuable card.You will be able to put two Citizen token into play.These are basic creatures.
Step 20: Understand the different phases of a turn
Each player's turn has five phases.Understanding how the five phases work is essential to understanding the game.The five phases are in order.
Step 21: The beginning phase began.
The Untap step is one of the three different steps in the beginning phase.Sometimes a player has to pay upkeep step.During this step, tap lands.The player draws a card.There is a smallUrl and a bigUrl.
Step 22: The first main phase.
A player can place a land from his or her hand during this phase.During this phase, a player may choose to play a card from his or her hand by tapping lands.
Step 23: There is a combat phase.
There are five steps in this phase.The player first declares an attack here.After the attack has been declared, the defender may play spells.After an attack has been declared, the attacking player chooses which creatures to attack.Attacking player can't choose which creatures he wants to attack.The defending player chooses which creatures he wants to block.A single attacker can be assigned multiple blockers.Creatures deal damage to one another.Attacking creatures with the same power destroyed the blocking creature.The attacking creature's defense is compared to the blocking creatures' power.Both creatures can destroy each other.The players are given the chance to cast instants during the end of combat phase.
Step 24: There is a second main phase.
The second main summon phase is the same as the first, in which the player can cast spells and creatures.
Step 25: The phase is ending or cleaning up.
Any abilities or spells that "trigger" take place during this phase.This is the last chance for a player to cast instants.If the player has more than 7 cards, he will have to discard them down to 7.
Step 26: Understand what "flying" is.
Creatures with flying can't be stopped.In other words, if a creature has flying, it can only be blocked by another creature with flying or one with reach.Creatures with flying can block other creatures.
Step 27: Understand what "first strike" means.
A concept in attacking is first strike.When one creature is attacking and a player chooses to defend that attack with a blocker, you measure their strengths and weaknesses against one another.The strength of one is compared to that of the other.If the attacking creature's strength is greater than that of the defending creature, both creatures die.Both creatures stay alive if their strength is higher than the opponent's.If one creature has first strike, that creature is given a "first chance shot" at knocking the other creature out with no consequences, even if the defending creature kills the attacking creature.The creature is still alive.For example.If an Inquisitor blocks a bear, he deals damage before the bear can, so the bears dies, and the person with the first strike is still alive.
Step 28: Understand what vigilance is and what it means.
The ability to attack without tapping is called vigilance.It is possible for a creature to attack without being tapped.You need to tap your creature if you are attacking.A creature can attack and block in successive turns with vigilance.If a creature attacks, it can't block the next turn.A creature can block the next turn if it isn't tapped.
Step 29: Know what it means.
Haste is the ability to attack the same turn as a creature."summoning sickness" is when creatures must wait a turn to attack.Sickness doesn't apply to creatures with haste.
Step 30: Understand the meaning of the word "trample".
Even if an opponent's creature blocks the creature, it still has the ability to deal damage.The attacking creature only deals damage to the blocking creature.When trampling, the difference between the trampling creature's strength and that of the blocking creature is dealt to the opponent.Let's say that Kavu Mauler is attacking and Bonethorn Valesk blocks it.The Valesk is a 4/2.The Valesk gets 4 damage back to the Mauler.The Mauler sneaks in 2 damage to the opponent after both creatures die.Why?2 of the Valesk's 4 damage gets dealt to it, and 2 to the opponent, because it is only 2.
Step 31: Understand what death touch is.
No matter how much damage is done, a creature with deathtouch dies.A 6/6 creature blocking a Typhoid Rats will die.The Rats will die.
Step 32: Understand double strikes.
The creature with double strike deals damage first.The defending creature has a chance to defend the first strike.As in normal combat, the second strike's attack damage is resolved at the same time as the defenders damage.