Back in the early days of Magic, creatures were much weaker than they used to be. Creatures had fewer abilities, and they were much smaller relative to their mana cost. Of course, creatures still had useful abilities that gave them an edge over other creatures in combat. And while some of those abilities haven’t been printed on cards in quite …

Games of Magic are commonly won through combat damage, and creatures with evasion often have the edge. Previously in this series, we covered the ability flying, which allows some creatures to soar across the red zone. We talked about trample, which allows some large creatures to deal damage depending on how they’re blocked. And more recently, we covered fear and …

Time Spiral Remastered is coming out soon, and many longtime Magic players are having flashbacks to fifteen years ago. Today, we’re talking about a Time Spiral block mechanic called… well, flashback! What is Flashback? Flashback is a graveyard mechanic that you’ll find on instant and sorcery cards. When a spell with flashback is in your graveyard, you may cast it …

As you’ve learned to play Magic: The Gathering, you’ve probably familiarized yourself with the instant and sorcery card types. These spells have a one-time effect — on your turn, and maybe on someone else’s. But in the early days of Magic, there was a third spell type with short-term effects. Interrupts were like instants, but more powerful — you could …

Earlier in this series, we explained hexproof: a mechanic that prevents your opponents from targeting your creatures with their spells or abilities. In explaining hexproof, we alluded to an older mechanic called shroud, from which hexproof evolved. But what is shroud, and how does it differ from hexproof? That’s what we’re here to talk about today! What is Shroud? As …