Dominaria Leak/Rules Changes · 2:29am Mar 9th, 2018
As some might already be aware, recently the Chinese release notes of the upcoming Dominaria expansion of Magic: the Gathering have been leaked. Wizards of the Coast, in response to this, have released the translated version of the release notes on their website.
Since these release notes contain some fairly massive spoilers for the set itself, I won’t be sharing the link, but there are a few rules changes and card wording updates that are worth noting. Since the My Little Planeswalker series is intended to have cards that use the most up-to-date Oracle wording, I’ll be designing future cards with these updated rules in mind. I likely won’t be going back and modifying old cards, however, as that would take a bit more time that I have available.
For those curious, here are the relevant rules changes:
#1: The planeswalker redirection rule is gone.
Noncombat damage can no longer be redirected to planeswalkers. Along with this rule change, a large number of cards will be receiving errata with the release of Dominaria:
To quote the release notes:
- Abilities that read "target creature or player" have been changed to "any target."
- Abilities that read "target player" have been changed to "target player or planeswalker." However, if the amount of damage is calculated by using information about that player or objects they control, the ability remains unchanged and can now damage only the player.
- Abilities that read "target opponent" have been changed to "target opponent or planeswalker" with the same exception listed above. These spells and abilities can target a planeswalker you control.
- Abilities that deal damage but don't call for a target haven't received errata, with one exception (Vial Smasher the Fierce).
This one is probably the biggest change, rules wise but it also means that nearly all burn spells will read differently. Lightning Bolt, for example, will have the Oracle text “Lightning Bolt deals 3 damage to any target.”
#2: “Mana pool” will no longer be referred to in card text
While the term “mana pool” will still exist within the games rules, cards with mana abilities will simply say “Add [Symbol].” For example, Llanowar Elves will have the ability “T: Add G.”
#3: Singular “they.”
Magic will now use “they” as the third-person singular pronoun for a player, instead of “he or she.”
#4: “This spell.”
Abilities that modify how a spell behaves on the stack will now refer to the spell as “this spell,” rather than with the spell’s name.
For example, the card Stoic Rebuttal’s Metalcraft ability will now say “this spell costs 1 less to cast if you control three or more artifacts” rather than “Stoic Rebuttal costs 1 less to cast if you control three or more artifacts.”
Finally, cards will now have a bar between their flavor text and card text to further distingsuish the two. As this may be difficult to distinguish from the bar separating a card from the chapter proper in MLPlaneswalker, and because it’s an aesthetic change more than a wording change, I won’t be adding this change to cards going forward.
I am so stoked about this change. I've been verbally replacing the old style with the future one for a good while already.
And saying "this spell" should make things more intuitive and concise.
What took them so long to make these changes?
Well thats great to know. Magic is such a fun game to play
I'm... really not sure how to feel about a few of these changes. You just know this is going to lead to new players trying to kill artifacts and enchantments with burn spells, and not referring to the mana pool... Well, I'm certainly going to be interested to see how they change Glissa Sunseeker. As for the text separation bar, really? We have to dig something out of Portal? What's next, sword and shield symbols for power and toughness?
Eh, don't mind me, just old man grumblings in the wake of change. (In my day, we landwalked through snow-covered Swamps! Uphill, both ways!) I'm sure I'll acclimate to the adjustments soon enough. Thanks for letting us know. This way, my stuff won't end up looking outdated any longer than it has to.