Coven – MTG Mechanic Spotlight

Tom AndersonDesign, Strategy

“The strong will hunt the weak” seems to be the dominant philosophy of Innistrad: Midnight Hunt. But not all denizens of the haunted plane follow such twisted laws of nature! And we can see proof of this resistance in one of the set’s many innovative mechanics: coven. Coven is a green-white mechanic, seen on the witches of Harvesttide, their human …

Splice – MTG Keywords Explained

Card KingdomStrategy

Once more through the breach! We’re continuing our journey through Kamigawa block’s mechanics, this time with one of the most complex. What is Splice? Splice appears on instant and sorcery cards, and it allows you to pay a little extra to add more effects to your spells. Sounds like kicker, right? Well, this mechanic is way more complicated rules-wise, although …

Soulshift – MTG Keywords Explained

Card KingdomStrategy

Just like last week, we’re heading back to Kamigawa to share some tips for using one of Magic‘s lesser-known mechanics. What is Soulshift? Soulshift is a mechanic exclusive to the Spirit tribe. It makes sense coming from Kamigawa block, where Spirits were a main part of the story and showed up in abundance. Soulshift is an ability on Spirit creatures …

Bushido – MTG Keywords Explained

Card KingdomStrategy

Today, we’re taking a trip back to Kamigawa to revisit an ability that will help your creatures in combat. What is Bushido? Bushido is a combat mechanic that helps your creatures, whether they’re on offense or defense. Whenever a creature with bushido blocks or becomes blocked, it gets +N/+N, where N is the number printed next to bushido. This ability …

SUNBURST

Sunburst – MTG Keywords Explained

Card KingdomStrategy

Last week, we discussed modular: an ability that adds counters to artifact creatures and allows players to move those counters around. Today, we’ll be talking about another mechanic you’ll find on artifacts: sunburst! What is Sunburst? Like modular, sunburst first appeared in the artifact-heavy original Mirrodin block, and it appears solely on artifacts. Both artifact creatures and non-artifact creatures can …

MODULAR

Modular – MTG Keywords Explained

Card KingdomStrategy

Sets like Modern Horizons provide exciting opportunities to revisit the mechanics of Magic‘s past. But if you’re new to the game — or coming back after a break — you may have some questions about how these mechanics work. Today, we’ll be covering a mechanic you may have seen in Modern Horizons and Modern Horizons 2: an artifact-based mechanic called …

CLASS mtg

Class – MTG Keywords Explained

Card KingdomStrategy

Adventures in the Forgotten Realms has brought the flavor of D&D to Magic with exciting new cards and game mechanics. Recently, we covered how you can go dungeon-crawling with the new Dungeon cards; today, we’ll be showing you how you can level up your player character! What is Class? Class is a new enchantment subtype in Adventures of the Forgotten …

what is entwine

Entwine – MTG Keywords Explained

Card KingdomStrategy

In recent years, Magic has seen a marked increase in “modal” cards: cards that give players a choice of two or more effects. These types of spells have been around for a long time, but they’ve become more prominent with the introduction of “Best of One” gameplay on MTG Arena, as well as the exponential growth of the Commander format. …

AFFINITY

Affinity – MTG Keywords Explained

Card KingdomStrategy

Affinity is one of the most powerful mechanics ever printed in Magic, and it’s the namesake of one of the Modern format’s longest-standing decks. But how exactly does it work? Read on to learn more! What is Affinity? Affinity first appeared in the artifact-focused Mirrodin block, and its goal was to make your artifacts easier to cast. A card with …

PROVOKE

Provoke – MTG Keywords Explained

Card KingdomStrategy

This week, we’re unearthing another relic from Legions that will serve you well in combat! What is Provoke? Whenever you attack with a creature with provoke, you may choose a target creature the defending player controls. That creature untaps, and it must block the creature with provoke, if able. There are few caveats with this: You can target a creature …