DoesItResolve Unofficial Magic rules reference

Historical Rules

Rules effective 16 June 2023

This is a dated historical record, not the current Rules release.

Read all rulesEvery rule, in source order, with links to dedicated pages.
Jump to chapter
1. Game Concepts24 sections · 485 rules

Read chapter 1 continuously →

100. General
101. The Magic Golden Rules
102. Players
103. Starting the Game
104. Ending the Game
105. Colors
106. Mana
107. Numbers and Symbols
108. Cards
109. Objects
110. Permanents
111. Tokens
112. Spells
113. Abilities
114. Emblems
115. Targets
116. Special Actions
117. Timing and Priority
118. Costs
119. Life
120. Damage
121. Drawing a Card
122. Counters
123. Stickers
2. Parts of a Card14 sections · 120 rules

Read chapter 2 continuously →

200. General
201. Name
202. Mana Cost and Color
203. Illustration
204. Color Indicator
205. Type Line
206. Expansion Symbol
207. Text Box
208. Power/Toughness
209. Loyalty
210. Defense
211. Hand Modifier
212. Life Modifier
213. Information Below the Text Box
3. Card Types16 sections · 160 rules

Read chapter 3 continuously →

300. General
301. Artifacts
302. Creatures
303. Enchantments
304. Instants
305. Lands
306. Planeswalkers
307. Sorceries
308. Tribals
309. Dungeons
310. Battles
311. Planes
312. Phenomena
313. Vanguards
314. Schemes
315. Conspiracies
4. Zones9 sections · 78 rules

Read chapter 4 continuously →

400. General
401. Library
402. Hand
403. Battlefield
404. Graveyard
405. Stack
406. Exile
407. Ante
408. Command
5. Turn Structure15 sections · 146 rules

Read chapter 5 continuously →

500. General
501. Beginning Phase
502. Untap Step
503. Upkeep Step
504. Draw Step
505. Main Phase
506. Combat Phase
507. Beginning of Combat Step
508. Declare Attackers Step
509. Declare Blockers Step
510. Combat Damage Step
511. End of Combat Step
512. Ending Phase
513. End Step
514. Cleanup Step
6. Spells, Abilities, and Effects17 sections · 314 rules

Read chapter 6 continuously →

600. General
601. Casting Spells
602. Activating Activated Abilities
603. Handling Triggered Abilities
604. Handling Static Abilities
605. Mana Abilities
606. Loyalty Abilities
607. Linked Abilities
608. Resolving Spells and Abilities
609. Effects
610. One-Shot Effects
611. Continuous Effects
612. Text-Changing Effects
613. Interaction of Continuous Effects
614. Replacement Effects
615. Prevention Effects
616. Interaction of Replacement and/or Prevention Effects
7. Additional Rules29 sections · 1254 rules

Read chapter 7 continuously →

700. General
701. Keyword Actions
702. Keyword Abilities
703. Turn-Based Actions
704. State-Based Actions
705. Flipping a Coin
706. Rolling a Die
707. Copying Objects
708. Face-Down Spells and Permanents
709. Split Cards
710. Flip Cards
711. Leveler Cards
712. Double-Faced Cards
713. Substitute Cards
714. Saga Cards
715. Adventurer Cards
716. Class Cards
717. Attraction Cards
718. Prototype Cards
719. Controlling Another Player
720. Ending Turns and Phases
721. The Monarch
722. The Initiative
723. Restarting the Game
724. Subgames
725. Merging with Permanents
726. Day and Night
727. Taking Shortcuts
728. Handling Illegal Actions
8. Multiplayer Rules12 sections · 173 rules

Read chapter 8 continuously →

800. General
801. Limited Range of Influence Option
802. Attack Multiple Players Option
803. Attack Left and Attack Right Options
804. Deploy Creatures Option
805. Shared Team Turns Option
806. Free-for-All Variant
807. Grand Melee Variant
808. Team vs. Team Variant
809. Emperor Variant
810. Two-Headed Giant Variant
811. Alternating Teams Variant
9. Casual Variants6 sections · 122 rules

Read chapter 9 continuously →

900. General
901. Planechase
902. Vanguard
903. Commander
904. Archenemy
905. Conspiracy Draft