Rules
Comprehensive Rules
Search and browse the complete Magic: The Gathering rulebook
9 Sections147 chapters
Game Concepts24 chapters
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100General101The Magic Golden Rules102Players103Starting the Game104Ending the Game105Colors106Mana107Numbers and Symbols108Cards109Objects110Permanents111Tokens112Spells113Abilities114Emblems115Targets116Special Actions117Timing and Priority118Costs119Life120Damage121Drawing a Card122Counters123Stickers
100. General
100.1
These Magic rules apply to any Magic game with two or more players, including two-player games and multiplayer games.
100.2
To play, each player needs their own deck of traditional Magic cards, small items to represent any tokens and counters, and some way to clearly track life totals.
100.3
Some cards require coins or traditional dice
100.4
Each player may also have a sideboard, which is a group of additional cards the player may use to modify their deck between games of a match. Sideboard rules and restrictions for some formats are modified by the Magic: The Gathering Tournament Rules (found at WPN.Wizards.com/en/rules-documents).
100.5
If a deck must contain at least a certain number of cards, that number is referred to as a minimum deck size. There is no maximum deck size for non-Commander decks.
100.6
Most Magic tournaments (organized play activities where players compete against other players to win prizes) have additional rules covered in the Magic: The Gathering Tournament Rules (found at WPN.Wizards.com/en/rules-documents). These rules may limit the use of some cards, including barring all cards from some older sets.
100.7
Certain cards are intended for casual play and may have features and text that aren’t covered by these rules. These include Mystery Booster playtest cards, promotional cards and cards in “Un-sets” that were printed with a silver border, and cards in the Unfinity™ expansion that have an acorn symbol at the bottom of the card.