#All MTG Evergreen Key phrase Talents, defined – Destructoid

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All MTG Evergreen Key phrase Talents, defined – Destructoid
Magic: The Gathering is full of all kinds of creatures whose identities revolve round their talents and the way they match right into a deck’s technique. It doesn’t matter what set you began taking part in MTG throughout, you’ve definitely seen playing cards that include phrases similar to Flying or Haste which give talents to the cardboard they’re printed on.
A few of these playing cards have “reminder textual content” printed together with them that provides a quick clarification as to what the phrases imply. Sadly, not each card has sufficient room to incorporate guidelines for every Key phrase Capability– particularly those who include a number of talents on a single card.
There are at present 18 evergreen Key phrase Talents in MTG. These are talents which can be generally printed in new releases and have spent years of playtesting to earn their lifetime spot within the TCG. Total, there are 170+ Key phrase Talents in MTG. Most of them are unique to specific units on account of their theme (Ninjutsu or Bushido) or have been banned from the sport totally (Ante).
Whereas Wizards of the Coast are inclined to introduce new Key phrase Talents into each Magic: The Gathering launch, realizing the evergreen Key phrase Talents and the foundations related to them will get you thru 90% of MTG with out concern. Listed below are the entire MTG evergreen Key phrase Talents, together with explanations and examples with the intention to be the foundations decide at your kitchen desk:
Instance interplay: A 1/1 creature with Deathtouch that’s blocked by a 5/5 creature would lead to each creatures being destroyed.

Defender is a Key phrase Capability that stops a creature from with the ability to assault whereas nonetheless being able to blocking assaults.
Creatures with Defender usually boast excessive toughness and generally have zero energy. Defenders are meant for use as blockers in fight.

Nevertheless, some Defender creatures have particular triggers that briefly raise the restriction, permitting them to ‘assault as if it didn’t have Defender.’ These allow sure combos to show the beefy Defender creatures into hard-to-kill juggernauts of the battlefield.

Double Strike is a Key phrase Capability that permits a creature to deal fight harm twice throughout the Fight Part.
A second Fight Injury step is inserted earlier than the unique Fight Injury step the place solely the creatures with First Strike or Double Strike assign their harm. Afterward, creatures with Double Strike assign fight harm within the common Fight Injury step together with the opposite creatures that don’t include both of the Strike Key phrases.

Since Double Strike applies harm in two totally different steps, talents that activate ‘each time a creature offers fight harm’ set off twice (until the cardboard explicitly states that the set off can solely happen as soon as per flip).

Enchant is a Key phrase Capability that states which kind of goal an Aura can connect to. That is represented throughout the textual content field of the Aura card.

Equip is a Key phrase Capability discovered on Tools artifacts. This capability will usually have a price related to it that, as soon as paid, permits the Tools to be hooked up to a creature. Creatures with Tools hooked up to them will henceforth be thought of an ‘outfitted creature.’

First Strike is a Key phrase Capability that provides an extra Fight Injury step earlier than the usual one.
Creatures with both the First Strike or Double Strike Key phrase Capability deal fight harm throughout the first Fight Injury step.
Instance interplay:
- A 2/2 creature with First Strike assaults a 2/2 creature with out First Strike.
- The creature with First Strike will destroy the opposite creature with out taking harm. In a standard fight state of affairs, each creatures would’ve been destroyed.

Flash is a Key phrase Capability that permits a card to be performed at Immediate velocity. That is a technique that Non-Energetic Gamers can solid creatures throughout their opponents’ turns.
This capability is often discovered on playing cards with Enters-the-Battlefield talents which allow strategic responses to spells on the Stack.

Flying is a Key phrase Capability that makes it in order that creatures with out Flying are unable to dam those who do. Solely different creatures with Flying or the Attain Key phrase Capability are in a position to block Flying creatures.

Haste is a Key phrase Capability that negates the impact of summoning illness on a creature.
Usually, creatures are prevented from attacking or tapping through the first flip that they enter the battlefield. With the Haste capability, creatures can instantly assault or turn into tapped upon coming into the battlefield.
This capability is usually present in Crimson playing cards and is answerable for the colour’s aggressive status.

Hexproof is a Key phrase Capability that stops a everlasting or participant from being focused by an opponent’s spells or talents.
It’s vital to grasp the foundations surrounding Hexproof. Whereas a everlasting can’t be “focused” by a capability or spell, it’s nonetheless prone to the consequences of playing cards that don’t require declaring a goal for his or her results.

Instance interplay:
- A creature has the Hexproof capability.
- An opponent casts a spell that claims destroy all creatures.
- Since a goal doesn’t must be chosen, the creature is destroyed.

Indestructible is a Key phrase Capability that stops permanents from being destroyed on account of harm, guidelines, or results.
One thing to remember: Permanents with Indestructible can nonetheless be handled by different means. Being sacrificed, bounced (returned to proprietor’s hand), exiled or introduced all the way down to zero or much less toughness (generally completed with -1/-1 counter) are all methods the permanents with Indestructible will be faraway from the battlefield.
Instance interplay:
- A 1/1 creature with Indestructible is dealt 2 harm by a spell.
- The creature shouldn’t be destroyed since harm can not destroy it.
- The 1/1 creature is focused with a spell that provides a -1/-1 counter to it.
- For the reason that creature’s toughness has been introduced all the way down to 0, it’s despatched to the graveyard.

Lifelink is a Key phrase Capability that causes harm dealt by a supply to grant its controller (or proprietor if there isn’t a controller) that a lot life.
The life gained by Lifelink happens similtaneously the harm that causes it and doesn’t go to the Stack.

Instance interplay:
- Participant One has 2 life and controls a 4/3 creature with Lifelink.
- Participant Two controls a 6/6 creature with Trample.
- Participant Two’s creature assaults Participant One, who blocks with their 4/3 creature.
- The 4/3 creature will likely be killed by the 6/6 creature and the Trample capability will trigger the surplus harm (3 harm) to be dealt to Participant One.
- Nevertheless, since Participant One’s creature had Lifelink and dealt 4 harm, Participant One good points 4 life on the identical time that it loses 3 life and manages to remain within the sport with 3 life left.

Menace is a Key phrase Capability that’s given to creatures. Creatures with Menace can solely be blocked by two or extra creatures.

Safety [from X] is a Key phrase Capability that has all kinds of varieties in MTG. Safety will be discovered or granted to any everlasting or participant and is written as ‘Safety from X’. (With X being the colour, kind or subtype written on the cardboard.)
Some examples of Safety:
- Safety from a coloration (all spells and results of that coloration).
- Safety from a card varieties similar to Artifacts, Instants, or Planeswalkers.
- Safety from card subtypes similar to Ninjas, Dinosaurs, or Zombies.

The simplest option to bear in mind what Safety entails is the mnemonic acronym: DEBT
Permanents with Safety can’t be:
- Damaged by [X]
- Enchanted, outfitted, or fortified by [X]
- Blocked by [X]
- Targeted by [X]

Attain is a Key phrase Capability that grants non-Flying creatures the flexibility to dam Flying creatures. It is without doubt one of the first “anti-keywords” since it’s a direct counter to the Flying Key phrase Capability.

Trample is a Key phrase Capability that offers extra harm to the defending participant or Planeswalker even when it was blocked.
Usually, extra harm in fight is wasted, and a creature’s toughness drops under 0 into the detrimental digits. With Trample, the entire harm dealt previous 0 (identified in different video games as overkill harm) is directed towards the participant or Planeswalker (whichever the attacking participant initially focused).
Instance interplay:
- The attacking participant declares an assault with a 5/5 creature with Trample towards the defending participant.
- The defending participant blocks with a 1/1 creature.
- The surplus harm calculated after fight, on this case 4, is directed in the direction of the defending participant’s well being.

Vigilance is a Key phrase Capability that permits creatures to assault with out having to turn into tapped.
Usually, creatures have to be tapped as soon as declared as attackers. Since creatures remained tapped till the controlling participant’s Untap step, that usually implies that they gained’t be able to blocking till the following flip. With Vigilance, creatures can assault and stay accessible to dam afterward.

Ward is at present the one evergreen-triggered capability in Magic: The Gathering. Every time a everlasting with Ward is focused with a spell or capability, it’s countered until the focusing on opponent pays the everlasting’s printed Ward value.
Instance interplay:
- Participant One’s creature has ‘Ward 2’ written on its card.
- Participant Two targets Participant One’s creature with a Lightning Bolt instantaneous spell.
- To ensure that the spell to resolve, Participant Two has to faucet two mana and pay the Ward value.
- If Participant Two can’t afford this value, the Lightning Bolt is taken into account countered and moved to the graveyard.
