General Rulings - 701

• 701.1 - Most actions described in a card's rules text use the standard English definitions of the verbs within, but some specialized verbs are used whose meanings may not be clear. These "keywords" are game terms; sometimes reminder text summarizes their meanings. [CompRules 2009/07/08]

• 701.2a - To activate an activated ability is to put it onto the stack and pay its costs, so that it will eventually resolve and have its effect. Only an object's controller (or its owner, if it doesn't have a controller) can activate its activated ability unless the object specifically says otherwise. A player may activate an ability if he or she has priority. See Rule 602, "Activating Activated Abilities." [CompRules 2009/07/08]

• 701.3a - To attach an Aura, Equipment, or Fortification to an object means to take it from where it currently is and put it onto that object. If something is attached to a permanent on the battlefield, it's customary to place it so that it's physically touching the permanent. An Aura, Equipment, or Fortification can't be attached to an object it couldn't enchant, equip, or fortify, respectively. [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.3b - If an effect tries to attach an Aura, Equipment, or Fortification to the object it's already attached to, the effect does nothing. [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.3c - Attaching an Aura, Equipment, or Fortification on the battlefield to a different object causes the Aura, Equipment, or Fortification to receive a new timestamp. [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.3d - To "unattach" an Equipment from a creature means to move it away from that creature so the Equipment is on the battlefield but is not equipping anything. It should no longer be physically touching any creature. If an Aura, Equipment, or Fortification that was attached to something ceases to be attached to it, that counts as "becoming unattached"; this includes if that object and/or that Aura, Equipment, or Fortification leaves the battlefield. [CompRules 2009/07/08]

• 701.4a - To cast a spell is to take it from the zone it's in (usually the hand), put it on the stack, and pay its costs, so that it will eventually resolve and have its effect. A player may cast a spell if he or she has priority. See Rule 601, "Casting Spells." [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.4b - To cast a card is to cast it as a spell. [CompRules 2009/07/08]

• 701.5a - To counter a spell or ability means to cancel it, removing it from the stack. It doesn't resolve and none of its effects occur. A countered spell is put into its owner's graveyard. [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.5b - The player who cast a countered spell or activated a countered ability doesn't get a "refund" of any costs that were paid. [CompRules 2009/07/08]

• 701.6a - To destroy a permanent, move it from the battlefield to its owner's graveyard. [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.6b - The only ways a permanent can be destroyed are as a result of an effect that uses the word "destroy" or as a result of the state-based actions that check for lethal damage (see Rule 704.5g) or damage from a source with deathtouch (see Rule 704.5h). If a permanent is put into its owner's graveyard for any other reason, it hasn't been "destroyed." [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.6c - A regeneration effect replaces a destruction event. See Rule 701.11, "Regenerate." [CompRules 2009/07/08]

• 701.7a - To discard a card, move it from its owner's hand to that player's graveyard. [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.7b - By default, effects that cause a player to discard a card allow the affected player to choose which card to discard. Some effects, however, require a random discard or allow another player to choose which card is discarded. [CompRules 2009/07/08]

• 701.8a - A spell or ability may instruct players to exchange something (for example, life totals or control of two permanents) as part of its resolution. When such a spell or ability resolves, if the entire exchange can't be completed, no part of the exchange occurs. [CompRules 2009/07/08]
  Example: If a spell attempts to exchange control of two target creatures but one of those creatures is destroyed before the spell resolves, the spell does nothing to the other creature. [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.8b - When control of two permanents is exchanged, if those permanents are controlled by different players, each of those players simultaneously gains control of the permanent that was controlled by the other player. If, on the other hand, those permanents are controlled by the same player, the exchange effect does nothing. [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.8c - When life totals are exchanged, each player gains or loses the amount of life necessary to equal the other player's previous life total. Replacement effects may modify these gains and losses, and triggered abilities may trigger on them. [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.8d - Some spells or abilities may instruct a player to exchange cards in one zone with cards in a different zone (for example, exiled cards and cards in a player's hand). These spells and abilities work the same as other "exchange" spells and abilities, except they can exchange the cards only if all the cards are owned by the same player. [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.8e - If a card in one zone is exchanged with a card in a different zone, and either of them is attached to an object, that card stops being attached to that object and the other card becomes attached to that object. [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.8f - If a spell or ability instructs a player to simply exchange two zones, and one of the zones is empty, the cards in the zones are still exchanged. [CompRules 2009/07/08]

• 701.9a - To exile an object, move it to the exile zone from wherever it is. See Rule 406, "Exile." [CompRules 2009/07/08]

• 701.10a - To play a land means to put it onto the battlefield from the zone it's in (usually the hand). A player may play a land if he or she has priority, it's the main phase of his or her turn, the stack is empty, and he or she hasn't yet played a land this turn. Playing a land is a special action (see Rule 114), so it doesn't use the stack; it simply happens. Putting a land onto the battlefield as the result of a spell or ability isn't the same as playing a land. See Rule 305, "Lands." [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.10b - To play a card means to play that card as a land or to cast that card as a spell, whichever is appropriate. [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.10c - Some effects instruct a player to "play" with a certain aspect of the game changed, such as "Play with the top card of your library revealed." "Play" in this sense means to play the Magic game. [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.10d - For many years, the action of casting a spell, or casting a card as a spell, was referred to on cards as "playing" that spell or that card. Cards that were printed with that text have received errata in the Oracle card reference so they now refer to "casting" that spell or that card. [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.10e - For many years, the action of using an activated ability was referred to on cards as "playing" that ability. Cards that were printed with that text have received errata in the Oracle card reference so they now refer to "activating" that ability. [CompRules 2009/07/08]

• 701.11a - If the effect of a resolving spell or ability regenerates a permanent, it creates a replacement effect that protects the permanent the next time it would be destroyed this turn. In this case, "Regenerate <-permanent->" means "The next time <-permanent-> would be destroyed this turn, instead remove all damage marked on it and tap it. If it's an attacking or blocking creature, remove it from combat." [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.11b - If the effect of a static ability regenerates a permanent, it replaces destruction with an alternate effect each time that permanent would be destroyed. In this case, "Regenerate <-permanent->" means "Instead remove all damage marked on <-permanent-> and tap it. If it's an attacking or blocking creature, remove it from combat." [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.11c - Neither activating an ability that creates a regeneration shield nor casting a spell that creates a regeneration shield is the same as regenerating a permanent. Effects that say that a permanent can't be regenerated don't prevent such abilities from being activated or such spells from being cast; rather, they prevent regeneration shields from having any effect. [CompRules 2009/10/01]

• 701.12a - To reveal a card, show that card to all players for a brief time. If an effect causes a card to be revealed, it remains revealed for as long as necessary to complete the parts of the effect that card is relevant to. If the cost to cast a spell or activate an ability includes revealing a card, the card remains revealed from the time the spell or ability is announced until it the time it leaves the stack. [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.12b - Revealing a card doesn't cause it to leave the zone it's in. [CompRules 2009/07/08]

• 701.13a - To sacrifice a permanent, its controller moves it from the battlefield directly to its owner's graveyard. A player can't sacrifice something that isn't a permanent, or something that's a permanent he or she doesn't control. Sacrificing a permanent doesn't destroy it, so regeneration or other effects that replace destruction can't affect this action. [CompRules 2009/07/08]

• 701.14a - To search for a card in a zone, look at all cards in that zone (even if it's a hidden zone) and find a card that matches the given description. [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.14b - If a player is searching a hidden zone for cards with a stated quality, such as a card with a certain card type or color, that player isn't required to find some or all of those cards even if they're present in that zone. [CompRules 2009/07/08]
  Example: Splinter says "Exile target artifact. Search its controller's graveyard, hand, and library for all cards with the same name as that artifact and exile them. That player then shuffles his or her library." A player casts Splinter targeting Howling Mine (an artifact). Howling Mine's controller has another Howling Mine in her graveyard and two more in her library. Splinter's controller must find the Howling Mine in the graveyard, but may choose to find zero, one, or two of the Howling Mines in the library. [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.14c - If a player is searching a hidden zone simply for a quantity of cards, such as "a card" or "three cards," that player must find that many cards (or as many as possible, if the zone doesn't contain enough cards). [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.14d - If the effect that contains the search instruction doesn't also contain instructions to reveal the found card(s), then they're not revealed. [CompRules 2009/07/08]

• 701.15a - To tap a permanent, turn it sideways from an upright position. Only untapped permanents can be tapped. [CompRules 2009/10/01]
• 701.15b - To untap a permanent, rotate it back to the upright position from a sideways position. Only tapped permanents can be untapped. [CompRules 2009/10/01]

• 701.16a - To "scry N" means to look at the top N cards of your library, put any number of them on the bottom of your library in any order, and put the rest on top of your library in any order. [CompRules 2009/07/08]

• 701.17a - To "fateseal N" means to look at the top N cards of an opponent's library, put any number of them on the bottom of that library in any order, and put the rest on top of that library in any order. [CompRules 2009/07/08]

• 701.18a - To clash, a player reveals the top card of his or her library. That player may then put that card on the bottom of his or her library. [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.18b - "Clash with an opponent" means "Choose an opponent. You and that opponent each clash." [CompRules 2009/07/08]
• 701.18c - A player wins a clash if that player revealed a card with a higher converted mana cost than all other cards revealed in that clash. [CompRules 2009/07/08]

• 701.19a - A player may planeswalk only during a Planar Magic game. Only the planar controller may planeswalk. See Rule 901, "Planar Magic." [CompRules 2009/10/01]
• 701.19b - To planeswalk is to put the face-up plane card on the bottom of its owner's planar deck face down, then move the top card of your planar deck off that planar deck and turn it face up. [CompRules 2009/10/01]
• 701.19c - A player may planeswalk as the result of the "planeswalking ability" (see Rule 309.6) or because the owner of the face-up plane card leaves the game (see Rule 901.9). [CompRules 2009/10/01]
• 701.19d - The plane card that's turned face up is the plane the player planeswalks to. The plane card that's turned face down, or that leaves the game, is the plane the player planeswalks away from. [CompRules 2009/10/01]