How do I play Magic?
Here is a helpful video going over how to play a typical game of Magic by Brian Lewis, better known as "The Professor" in the Magic community:
Review Quiz:
Other Resources:
Keywords
Below is a summary of common keywords, most of which have been covered in the above video.
| Keyword | Definition | Where it's found |
|---|---|---|
| Deathtouch | A creature with deathtouch will destroy a creature if it has dealt any damage to them | Primary in black Secondary in green |
| Defender | A creature with defender can't attack | Primary in white and on Wall creatures |
| Double Strike | A creature with double strike will deal first strike and regular combat damage (see below) Click here for more info on combat and combat damage For example a 2/3 creature will destroy a 2/4 creature because it deals 2 damage two times. |
Primary in red and white |
| Enchant | Enchantments with enchant are auras and are restricted to having specific targets | Enchantment auras |
| Equip | Attaches the equipment artifact to a creature, which is then called an "equiped creature" | Equipment artifacts |
| First Strike | A creature with first strike will deal combat damage before creatures without first strike For example, a 2/1 creature and a 1/1 creature would normally destroy each other since neither has enough toughness. However, if one of them has first strike and the other doesn't, the one with first strike will destroy the one without first strike before taking damage |
Primary in white Secondary in red Creature types knight and soldier are the most common to have first strike |
| Flash | Any card with flash can be cast any time you can cast an instant spell | Primary in blue Secondary in green, black, and white |
| Flying | Creatures with flying can't be blocked by creatures that don't have flying or reach | Primary in blue and white Secondary in red and black Common on certain creature types such as Dragons, Angels, Sphinxes, and other creature types with wings |
| Haste | All creatures come onto the battlefield with summmoning sickness and can't attack or tap unless they have haste Haste allows them to overcome summoning sickness |
Primary in red Secondary in green |
| Hexproof | Permanents (cards that stay on the battlefield until removed) with hexproof can only be targeted by their owner's spells and abilities This is similar to the keyword Shroud, with the difference being that an object with shroud can't be targeted by any spells or abilities |
Primary in blue Secondary in green |
| Indestructible | Permanents with indestructible can't be destroyed by rules, effects, or damage (for creatures) | Primary in white Secondary in black and green |
| Lifelink | When a card with lifelink deals damage, its controller gains that much life | Primary in white Secondary in black |
| Menace | Creatures with menace can only be blocked by two or more creatures | Primary in red and black |
| Reach | Creatures that don't have flying can block flying creatures if they have reach | Primary in green |
| Trample | Creatures with trample will deal excess damage to the opponent if blocked For example, a 5/5 creature with trample will deal 3 damage to the opponent if they block with a 3/2 creature:there is a 3-point excess between the 5 power and 2 toughness |
Primary in green Secondary in red Any creature with high enough power and rarity may have trample, regardless of color |
| Vigilance | When creatures attack, they are tapped, which means they can't block during the opponent's turn or tap for abilities. Vigilance will allow a creature to attack without tapping | Primary in white Secondary in green |
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