Spiritforged Patch Notes

Origins

Spiritforged

A card's Rules Text is Inactive while that card is Attached to another card. See rule 716 Attachment for more information. See rule 720 Inactive for more information.

134.4.a

The presence of text, rules, Keywords, and other effects can still be referenced and detected by other game effects, even while Rules Text is Inactive.

135

Effect Text

135.1

Some cards have a separate section of text below the Rules Text. This is referred to as the Effect Text.

135.2

Effect Text can contain additional Abilities.

135.2.a

Effect Text can be blank.

135.2.b

Effect Text is inactive unless the card with the Effect Text is Attached to another card. See rule 716 Attachment for more information. See rule 720 Inactive for more information.

135.2.c

The abilities in the Effect Text section of a card are appended to the Rules Text of the card to which the card with the Effect Text is Attached.

136

Might Bonus

136.1

Some cards have a Might Bonus in their lower right corner, expressed as an operator plus an integer.

136.2

A card's Might Bonus can be +0.

136.3

A card's Might Bonus modulates the Might of the card to which the card that has the Might Bonus is Attached. See rule 716 Attachment for more information.

136.3.a

The Might Bonus is applied while Attached and stops applying as soon as the card with the Might Bonus is no longer Attached.

136.3.b

If the card to which a card with a Might Bonus is Attached has no Might value, the Might Bonus is ignored.

145

Gear

182.1

When a player Plays a Card, they are established as that Game Object's Controller.

185.1

When a player Plays a Card or other Game Object, they are established as that Game Object's Controller.

185.4

For Abilities, they are the Ability's Controller.

185.4.a

By default, the Controller of an Ability's Source is the Controller of that Ability.

185.4.b

Changes to Control of an Ability's Source do not change Control of that Ability.

185.4.c

That player chooses targets.

185.4.d

That player chooses modes.

185.4.e

That player pays costs.

312.1

Priority is the permission to take Discretionary Actions. See rule 398.1. Discretionary Actions for more information.

312.1

Priority is the singular exclusive right to take Discretionary Actions. See rule 398.1. Discretionary Actions for more information.

312.3

When a player is granted Priority, it is either created if no player has it or taken from the player with Priority.

313.4

A player may not make discretionary actions with Focus unless they also possess Priority.

317.2.a

Invoke a Special Cleanup. See rule 318. Cleanups for more information.

317.2.a

Invoke an End of Turn Special Cleanup. See rule 318. Cleanups for more information.

317.2.b

Insert "2a. Heal all Units."

317.2.b

Insert "2c. Heal all Units."

322.2

2. All Units that have non-zero Damage marked on them equalling or exceeding their Might are killed and placed in their owners' Trash.

322.2

2. Handle outstanding board state

322.3

2a. All Units that have non-zero Damage marked on them equalling or exceeding their Might that have Deathknell abilities will trigger their Deathknell ability now, making note of their current location, attributes, and other information relevant to add the trigger as a Pending Item See rule 734 Deathknell for more information.

322.4

2b. All Units that have non-zero Damage marked on them equalling or exceeding their Might are killed and placed in their owners' Trash.

322.8.a

The Showdown remains Staged at each Battlefield that is Contested and has only units present controlled by the player that applied Contested

322.9

6a. If Units of an opposing player are present at a Battlefield that has a Showdown staged before it can be Opened, the Showdown will cease being Staged

322.7

7. Mark a Combat as Staged at each Battlefield that Contested was applied to that is controlled by a different player than the one who applied the Contested Status.

322.10

7. Mark a Combat as Staged at each Battlefield that Contested was applied to that have Units present controlled by opposing players.

322.11

7a. If Units of two opposing players are no longer present at a Battlefield that has a Combat Staged before it has opened, the Combat will cease being Staged

352.2.a

By default, Valid locations include the controller's Base or a Battlefield the controller controls.

352.2.b

Some Game Effects may grant players permission to play Units to locations that are not normally Valid. Such locations become Valid for the purposes of Playing the Unit..

356.3.e.4

If a target changes Zones to or from a Non-Board Zone and then returns to its original zone, it is no longer a legal target, because it's not treated as the same object. Examples: An enemy unit at a battlefield is no longer a legal target if it is no longer an enemy, no longer a unit, or no longer at a battlefield. A unit with 3 or less Might is no longer a legal target if it is no longer a unit or if its Might is greater than 3. Something that's exhausted is no longer a legal target if it is no longer exhausted. (It can't stop being "something.") A spell that's played from hidden has the additional targeting requirement "here." A target for such a spell ceases to be a legal target if it moves from the battlefield where that spell was played, even if the spell has no location targeting requirement otherwise.

356.3.e.4

If a target changes Zones to or from a Non-Board Zone and then returns to its original zone, it is no longer a legal target, because it's not treated as the same object. Examples: An enemy unit at a battlefield is no longer a legal target if it is no longer an enemy, no longer a unit, or no longer at a battlefield. A unit with 3 or less Might is no longer a legal target if it is no longer a unit or if its Might is greater than 3. Something that's exhausted is no longer a legal target if it is no longer exhausted. (It can't stop being "something.") A spell that's played from hidden can normally only target its own battlefield or something at that battlefield. A target for such a spell may cease to be a legal target if it moves from the battlefield where that spell was played, even if the spell has no location targeting requirement otherwise.

365.2

Triggered Abilities can be Replacement Effects.

376.1.a

The phrases that identify triggered abilities do not always appear at the beginning of sentences or abilities. Example: Sona, Harmonious says "While I'm at a battlefield, ready up to 4 friendly runes at the end of your turn." Although the ability starts with a conditional, "while," the phrase "at the end of your turn" identifies this as a triggered ability. It can only trigger while that condition is met.

376.1.a

The phrases that identify triggered abilities do not always appear at the beginning of sentences or abilities.

415.1.a.1.a

This is referred to as a Kill Instruction.

415.1.a.1.b

When a unit with a Deathknell is to be put in the Trash due to a Kill Instruction, it first has its Deathknell added to the chain as a Pending Item. Note the unit's location, attributes, and other relevant information to process its Deathknell when finalized before completing this Kill Instruction.

419

Double

419.1

Doubling is the act of increasing a numeric attribute by an amount equal to that attribute's current value.

419.1.a

This creates an effect that modulates that attribute by that specific amount for the duration specified by the Game Effect that instructed the player to perform this action. Example: A unit with 3 base Might and Shield 2 is in combat as a Defender. Since Shield applies, its current Might is 5. A player chooses it as the target for Last Stand, a spell that reads in part "Double a friendly unit's Might this turn." Its current Might is 5, so it gets +5 Might this turn, for a current Might of 10. After combat, Shield no longer applies, but the +5 Might from Last Stand does, so the unit's Might is 8.

419.2

Doubling is a Limited Action.

419.2.a

Players may only Double when Game Effects direct them to do so.

420

Swap

420.1

Swapping is the act of increasing one numeric value and decreasing another numeric value on some number of Game Objects such that their values are reversed.

420.1.a

Swapping creates two different effects that apply to each attribute. One that Increases one value and one that Decreases the other.

420.1.b

To accomplish this, determine the difference between these values and then apply an Increase for that amount to the lower value of the two attributes, and a Decrease of that amount to the higher value of the two attributes.

420.1.c

If both attributes are the same numeric value, Swapping has no effect.

420.2

Swapping is a Limited Action.

420.2.a

Players may only swap when Game Effects direct them to do so.

421

Attach

421.1

Attaching is the act of linking two cards on the board together to combine their effects in some way. This causes one or more cards to become Attached and at least one card to become a Top-Most Card. See rule 716 Attachment for more information.

421.1.a

Attaching affects two cards at once.

421.1.a.1

One card will be designated as the one being Attached, and thus become Attached. The other will become the Top-Most Card.

421.1.b

This is represented by physically laying the Top-Most card on top of the other or others such that all Effect Texts and Might Bonuses are showing, but nothing else from the card or cards Attached.

421.1.b.1

In the situation where there is more than one card attached to the Top-Most card, they should be stacked in such a way that all Effect Text boxes and Might Bonuses are readable. The order of the Attached cards has no bearing on the application of effects.

421.1.c

The Top-Most card has all Effect Text of all cards Attached to it appended to its Rules Text.

421.1.d

The Top-Most Card has its Might modulated by the Might Bonus of all cards Attached to it.

421.1.e

Attaching one or more cards will cause those cards' Rules Text to become Inactive for as long as they remain Attached. See rule 716 Attachment for more information.

421.1.f

Attaching a card will cause it to Detach from any card to which it is currently Attached.

421.2

Attaching is a Limited Action.

421.2.a

Players may only Attach cards when directed to by Game Effects.

421.3

Attaching cards does not inherently choose or specify a target. However, Game Effects that Attach cards may do so.

421.4

When a card Attaches to a card, its location becomes the same as the new Top-Most Card.

421.4.a

This is not a Move.

422

Detach

422.1

Detaching is the act of unlinking two cards that are currently linked through the act of Attaching. This causes one to cease being Attached, and potentially causes the other to cease being a Top-Most card.

422.1.a

Detaching affects only cards that are currently Attached to another card.

422.1.a.1

Game effects that instruct a player to Detach a card that is currently not Attached to anything will do nothing.

422.1.b

When one or more cards become Detached, they cease to be in the Attached state.

422.1.b.1

To represent this, these cards should no longer be placed under the card they were previously placed under as Top-Most Card.

422.1.b.2

If the Top-Most Card no longer has any cards Attached to it after this, it is no longer a Top-Most Card.

422.1.c

The card being Detached has its Effect Text become Inactive and its Rules Text cease being Inactive.

422.1.d

The Top-Most Card ceases to have the Effect Text of the card being Detached appended to its Rules Text.

422.1.e

The Top-Most Card ceases to have its Might modulated by the Might Bonus of the card being Detached.

422.2

Detaching is a Limited Action.

422.2.a

Players may only Detach cards when directed to by Game Effects.

422.3

Detaching cards does not inherently choose, or specify a target. However, Game Effects that Detach cards may.

422.4

When a card Detaches from a Top-Most Card, its location is the same as the Top-Most Card from which it Detached.

422.4.a

If the Detached card was a Gear and this causes it to become present at a Battlefield, it will be Recalled during the next Cleanup.

422.4.b

If the Attached card was Detached because the Top-Most Card changed zones from a board zone to a non-board zone, then the location that the Attached Card will Detach to is the last location the Top-Most Card was at before changing from a board zone to a non-board zone.

431.1

When Gear is created or played at a battlefield, or is at a battlefield for any other reason, it is Recalled to its controller's base during the next Cleanup. Example: Zhonya's Hourglass is a gear with the Hidden ability, which allows it to be hidden at a battlefield and played later to that battlefield. If Zhonya's Hourglass is played from hidden, it must be played to that battlefield. It will be recalled to its controller's base during the next Cleanup.

435.1

When an un-attached Gear is created or played at a battlefield, or is at a battlefield for any other reason, it is Recalled to its controller's base during the next Cleanup. Example: An Equipment is attached to a unit at a battlefield, so the Equipment is present at that battlefield. If the unit dies, the Equipment will be recalled during the next cleanup.

436.1

In Modes of Play with more than two players, Battlefields with Staged Combats or Combats in Progress are Invalid Destinations for Moves of all kinds (Standard Moves or otherwise) by Units controlled by Players who don't already have permanents at that Battlefield. See rule 421.2.a. for more information on Invalid Destinations.

440.1

In Modes of Play with more than two players, Battlefields with Staged Combats or Combats in Progress are Invalid Destinations for Moves of all kinds (Standard Moves or otherwise) by Units controlled by Players who don't already have Units at that Battlefield. See rule 425.2.a. for more information on Invalid Destinations.

436.2

In Modes of Play with more than two players, Battlefields with Staged Combats or Combats in Progress are Invalid to be chosen as a location to play one or more Units by a player not involved in that Combat by any means

440.2

440.1.a

Invoke a Special Cleanup.

444.1.a

Invoke a Combat Special Cleanup.

440.1.a.1

Insert "2a. Clear all marked damage from all Units."

444.1.a.1

Insert "2c. Heal all Units."

440.1.a.2

Insert "2b. Recall Attackers present at the Battlefield if Defenders are still present." See rule 428. Recalls for more information.

444.1.a.2

Insert "2d. Recall Attackers present at the Battlefield if Defenders are still present." See rule 432. Recalls for more information.

440.1.a.3

Insert "2c. Remove Attacker and Defender Designation from all Units and Players."

444.1.a.3

Insert "2e. Remove Attacker and Defender Designation from all Units and Players."

444.2

2. If no Showdown or Combat is staged at this location, the player with Units remaining here Establishes Control.

440.1.b

Clear the Contested status from this Battlefield.

444.2.a

Clear the Contested Status.

440.1.b.1

Clear the Contested status regardless of the outcome of the Combat.

440.2

If any Units remain at the Battlefield, and if their controller does not already Control the Battlefield, that player Establishes Control over the Battlefield..

444.2.d

If there are no Units remaining here controlled by any player, the Battlefield becomes Uncontrolled.

450.2.a

This layer deals with effects that grant, remove, or replace the abilities or rules text of Game Objects. Keywords Passive Abilitie Appending rules text Removing rules text Duplicating Rules Text from one Game Object to another

454.2.a

This layer deals with effects that grant, remove, or replace the abilities or rules text of Game Objects. Keywords Passive Abilities Appending rules text Removing rules text Duplicating Rules Text from one Game Object to another

454.2.c

Abilities of Effect Text of Attached cards are appended in this layer.

454.3.c

Might Bonuses of Attached cards are applied in this layer.

453

If more than one effect applies in the same layer but no dependency is established, then Timestamp order is applied to the effects.

457

If more than one effect applies in the same layer but no dependency is established, then Timestamp order is applied to the effects within that layer and sublayer

453.1

The first effect to have been played is applied first, and the newest effect is applied last within the same Layer.

457.1

When an effect begins applying, it establishes a time for which it is compared against other Game Effects for purposes of resolving Layered effects as its Timestamp.

457.1.a

Timestamps are not rote values.

457.1.b

Timestamps are relative comparisons between effects and when they began applying to the game.

457.1.c

Timestamps are not referenced by Game Effects in any way. They are only used to finalize layered effects.

457.2

When Rules Text becomes Inactive for any reason, it loses its Timestamp. When it ceases to be Inactive, a new Timestamp is established.

457.3

Effects are applied such that the earliest Timestamp within each Layer and Sublayer applies first, followed by other Effects in that Layer and Sublayer in chronological order.

716

Attachment

717

Attaching is a limited action that causes cards to become linked to each other to combine their effects in some way. This causes one card to become Attached and the other to become A Top-Most Card. See rule 421 Attach for more information.

718

Attached is the state of a card being linked to another card in this way.

718.1

A card remains in this state until Detached.

718.2

While in this state, the card's Rules Text is Inactive. See rule 720 Inactive for more information.

718.3

While in this state, Abilities in the card's Effect Text are appended to the Rules Text of the Top-Most Card.

718.4

While in this state, the card's Might Bonus modulates the Top-Most Card's Might by the value listed.

718.5

Attached cards still have all properties of being a card on the board while in this state.

718.5.a

Attached cards still have all Types and Tags while Attached.

718.5.b

Attached cards still can be chosen or targeted by game effects while Attached.

718.6

Attached cards cannot be moved separately from the Top-Most Card they are Attached to.

718.7

A card may be Attached only to a single Top-Most card at a time.

718.8

Attached cards may have different Controllers from their Top-Most card.

718.8.a

Changes in Control of the Top-Most card do not impact Control of Attached cards and vice versa.

718.8.b

An Attached card still appends the abilities in its Effect Text to the Rules Text of the Top-Most card and modulates the Top-Most Card's Might by its Might Bonus.

719

A Top-Most Card is a card that has one or more cards linked to it through the process of Attaching.

719.1

The Effect Text of all cards Attached to this card are appended to the Rules Text of this card for as long as they remain Attached.

719.2

This card ceases being a Top-Most Card when there are no longer any cards Attached to it.

719.3

A Top-Most Card and all cards Attached to it are at the same location.

719.3.a

When the Top-Most Card moves, all Attached cards move with it.

719.4

The Exhausted and Ready state of the Top-Most card does not affect nor change the status of the Attached cards and vice versa.

719.5

When a Top-Most Card changes zones from a board zone to a non-board zone, all Attached cards Detach from it, remaining in their current zones.

719.5.a

The player that controls the Top-Most Card that changed zones decides the order these cards Detach in, and thus the order of any relevant effects that occur due to the Detach occurring.

720

Inactive

721.1

Card text can occasionally be assigned to be ignored, disregarded, or otherwise rendered as not applicable during the course of play. This state is referred to as Inactive.

721.1.a

Text marked this way is not applied at all while in this state.

721.1.b

Inactive Abilities do not trigger, do not apply, and cannot be activated. Inactive instructions are not processed.

722

Inactive text is still present on cards.

722.1

Cards with Inactive text still have keywords for the sake of Game Effects that want to reference or see if a card has a keyword.

722.2

Game Effects that parse or interpret text to determine target eligibility may still parse Inactive text for the sake of eligibility. Example: Spinning Axe is a gear with [Temporary]. While it's attached and its rules text is inactive, its [Temporary] ability doesn't trigger. However, a spell that reads "Destroy a gear with [Temporary]" could still choose and destroy Spinning Axe.

723

Rules Text is never Inactive by default.

724

Effect Text is Inactive unless the card with the Effect Text is Attached.

725

Inactive text can partially cease to be Inactive under specific circumstances and exceptions.

725.1

If an Attached card has a Passive or Replacement ability that applies during the process of Attaching or a Triggered ability that triggers off of Attaching, that text exists and can be processed as it Attaches.

725.2

If an Attached card has a Passive or Replacement ability that applies during the process of Detaching or a Triggered ability that triggers off of Detaching, that text exists and can be processed as it Detaches.

725.3

If an Attached card has an Equip ability, the Weaponmaster keyword can reference that Equip ability and any abilities that passively modify that Equip ability.

734.1.d.2

The trigger will be added to the chain as a Pending Item before the card with Deathknell is moved to the trash due to a Kill instruction or a Cleanup.

734.1.d.3

Before the card with Deathknell is moved to the Trash, note its location, its attributes, and any other details related to the effect of its Deathknell to process the trigger after it has been Finalized.

744

Equip

744.1

Equip is an Activated Ability keyword.

744.1.a

Equip is normally present on Gear with the tag Equipment.

744.1.b

Equip has a cost to activate and Attaches the card with Equip to a chosen Unit when the cost is paid.

744.1.b.1

Equip's choice is a Target.

744.1.b.2

The chosen Unit will become the Top-Most Card for the Attach action.

744.1.c

Equip is formatted as "Equip [Cost]"

744.1.c.1

If paying costs or making choices for this ability causes triggered abilities to trigger, they will be placed on the chain above this ability in a Pending state. See rule 369 Activated Abilities for more information.

744.1.c.2

Equip is functionally short for "[Cost]: Attach this gear to a unit you control."

744.1.c.3

Equip costs may include both resource costs and non-resource costs.

744.1.c.4

Equip abilities may also include text that alters the Equip cost. Such text is taken into account when determining a card's Equip cost for any reason.

744.1.c.5

Equip abilities may include text that alters the timing or targeting of the Equip ability.

744.2

When the Attach action completes from this keyword, the Unit that was chosen is considered to have been Equipped by the Gear with this ability.

744.2.a

This is an event other Game Effects and Triggered Abilities can reference.

744.3

Equipped is the state of a Top-Most Card being Attached by one or more cards that are Equipment.

744.3.a

The state of being Equipped is synchronous with that of the Attached state of the Equipment.

744.3.b

A Top-Most Card is Equipped as long as one or more of its Attached cards are Equipment.

744.3.c

The state of being Equipped corresponds to a Top-Most card having a card with Equip that is Attached to it.

744.4

Multiple instances of Equip are equivalent to multiple Activated Abilities and can each be activated separately by paying the corresponding costs.

744.5

Equip, and whether or not a Gear has Equip, is a characteristic of the Gear and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.

744.6

Whether or not a Gear has Equip may be referenced even if the Rules Text of the Gear is Inactive. See rule 716 Attachment for more information.

745

Quick-Draw

745.1

Quick-Draw is a Triggered Ability keyword. It is also a Permissive keyword.

745.1.a

Quick-Draw is present on Gear with Equip abilities.

745.1.b

Cards with Quick-Draw have Reaction inherently.

745.1.c

Quick-Draw allows cards to be played and Attached using Reaction timing.

745.1.d

Quick-Draw is functionally short for "[Reaction]" and "When you play this, attach it to a Unit you control." See rule 716 Attachment for more information.

745.2

Multiple instances of Quick-Draw do not trigger separately and have no effect beyond the first.

745.3

Quick-Draw has no function while on the board.

745.4

Quick-Draw, and whether or not a gear has Quick-Draw, is a characteristic of the Gear and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.

746

Repeat

746.1

Repeat is an Optional Additional Cost keyword.

746.1.a

Repeat is present on Spells.

746.1.b

Repeat is an optional cost that player may pay to execute the effect of their spells a second time.

746.1.c

Repeat is formatted as "Repeat [Cost]"

746.1.c.1

The Cost is an Additional Cost to be paid during the steps of playing the spell.

746.1.c.2

If a spell has more than one instance of Repeat, each Cost may be paid or not paid individually.

746.1.c.3

Each Repeat Cost can be paid only a single time.

746.1.d

Repeat is functionally short for "You may pay [Cost] as an additional cost as you play this spell. If you do, execute the instructions of this spell one additional time."

746.1.d.1

When the additional cost is paid, the effect of the spell, upon resolution, will be performed an additional time. Example: Desert's Call is a spell with [Repeat] [2] and "Play a 2 [S] Sand Soldier unit token." If its controller pays its Repeat cost as they play it, the card's instruction to play a Sand Soldier is executed twice, as though the card says "Play a 2 [S] Sand Soldier unit token. Play a 2 [S] Sand Soldier unit token."

746.2

When a spell's effect is performed an additional time with Repeat, choices must be made at the usual time during the Make Relevant Choices step of Playing a Card. See rule 346 Playing Cards for more information.

746.2.a

Choices made for the additional execution do not have to be the same as the choices made for the initial execution. Example: Rocket Barrage is a spell with [Repeat] [4][C] and "Choose one — Deal 4 to a unit in a base. [or] Kill a gear." If Rocket Barrage's controller pays its Repeat cost as they play it, they may choose the same mode or a different one, and if they choose the same mode, may choose the same target or a different one. If they choose "Kill a gear" twice and choose two different gear, they must specify which gear is the first target and which is the second. As the spell resolves, those two gear will be killed in the chosen order.

746.3

Multiple instances of Repeat can be paid for separately. The spell's instructions will be executed an additional time for each instance of Repeat that is paid for.

746.3.a

Regardless of the number of times a spell's instructions are executed with this keyword, the spell is only Played once.

746.4

Repeat, and whether or not a spell has Repeat, is a characteristic of the Spell and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.

747

Weaponmaster

747.1

Weaponmaster is a Triggered Ability keyword.

747.1.a

Weaponmaster is present on Units.

747.1.b

Weaponmaster is a Play Effect that chooses an Equipment you control and allows you to pay its Equip cost at a discount, regardless of the usual timing of the Equip ability, to Attach that Equipment to the unit with Weaponmaster.

747.1.c

Weaponmaster is functionally short for: "When you play me, choose a Card you control with the Equipment tag. Necessary portions of its Rules Text are no longer Inactive if they are currently Inactive. Pay the cost of its Equip ability, reduced by [A], to attach it to this unit." See rule 716 Attachment for more information.

747.1.c.1

Weaponmaster can choose an Equipment whether it has an Equip ability or not.

747.1.c.2

The cost of the Equip ability is determined as though that Equip ability was being activated choosing the unit with the Weaponmaster ability, as modulated by any abilities that alter Equip costs.

747.1.c.3

If the chosen card's Equip cost does not contain [A], it can still be paid, but will not be reduced.

747.1.c.4

If the chosen card doesn't have an Equip cost, it can't be paid.

747.1.c.5

If the chosen card's Equip cost can't be paid, if it can't be detached from its current Top-Most card, or if it can't be attached to the unit with the Weaponmaster ability, it stays in its current location, Attached to anything it was already Attached to.

747.1.c.6

The Equip ability is not activated this way, and the unit with the Weaponmaster ability is not chosen.

747.2

Multiple instances of Weaponmaster trigger separately, and can choose different targets.

747.2.a

If you choose the same target with multiple instances of Weaponmaster, each will resolve separately.

747.3

Weaponmaster has no function while on the board.

747.4

Weaponmaster, and whether or not a unit has Weaponmaster, is a characteristic of the Unit and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.