Fuse is a static ability you can find on some split cards – modal cards that essentially act like two cards in one. Normally, these cards only allow you to cast one side or the other, but not both. Fuse lets you do exactly that. When you cast a Fuse card from your hand you may pay the costs of both halves of the card, and you then get the effects of both, resolving the left half first and then right.
So, that seems pretty straightforward, right? Well, here’s some notes:
- A fused spell has a total mana value equal to both halves of the spell added together. If you are only casting one side of it, it has the total mana value only of that side.
- You may only fuse a spell if you are casting it from your hand. From anywhere else, you may only cast one side of the card.
- If the two halves of the spell both can target, you may choose those targets separately. All targets for the combined spell must become invalid in order for the spell to fizzle.
- If the card is anywhere other than the stack, it has the total mana value and color identity of both its halves combined.
- If an effect names a card (like say, Meddling Mage), you may only name one half of a split card, whether it has fuse or not. This will still stop the card from getting fused, although the unnamed half may still be cast as normal.
- Fuse only cares that you are casting the card from your hand, but it doesn’t care that you pay full price. If you have a way to cast a card from your hand without paying its mana cost, you can fuse it for free.
Fuse, being a modal mechanic seen as pure upside on split cards, was well liked. That said, it was a little confusing (as you can perhaps tell from all the notes above), and requires a set with split cards to even be an option in the first place. So it could come back, but it will take a few things all coming together at once.
Want to Fuse some split cards yourself? Head over to cardkingdom.com!