UnCommander Rules List

UnCommander Golden Rules

The rules presented here are specifically to facilitate the various unusual cards added to the game in these formats. As such, these rules take precedence over the Magic official Comphrehensive Rules of the game when relevant. Please use common sense with the application of these rules.

This rule replaces the “Silver-bordered Golden Rule” put forth in the Unstable FAQ article (2017-12-06). See the Philosophy page for reasoning.

The Game, Separate Games and External People

Object ownership and zones

If an effect requires a card to be selected at random in a hand that contains multiple owners’ cards, it is recommended to use a die or other random number generator, or pick blind from a bag.

A good way to make a card indistinguishable in a library is to use one of that player’s card sleeves if they have any spares.

Banned Cards

The reason behind this rules section is that cards are often banned in UnCommander because they do not function within the format’s rules framework. This prevents those cards, or any of their characteristics from affecting anything in-game.

Example: Mistform Ultimus is a creature with the ability “Mistform Ultimus is every creature type”. Frazzled Editor is a creature with the creature types “Human Bureaucrat”, printed in Unhinged. Frazzled Editor has the creature type “Bureaucrat” that isn’t currently in the Oracle text of any card in a set included in UnCommander. If Frazzled Editor was legal in UnCommander, “Bureaucrat” would be on the list of all creature types. However, Frazzled Editor is a banned UnCommander-only card, so Mistform Ultimus is not a Bureaucrat.

Mistform Ultimus never liked dealing with red tape anyway…

Meta Elements

Examples of meta elements would include holding a card above the battlefield, referring to flavour text as a characteristic, or performing a series of physical actions.

This is so players that wish to act out the meta elements and those that don’t can play in the same game with minimal issues.

Object Characteristics

Example: Cryptoplasm has the ability “At the beginning of your upkeep, you may have Cryptoplasm become a copy of another target creature, except it has this ability.” It targets Druid of the Sacred Beaker, a creature with a silver border and a Crossbreed Labs watermark. Cryptoplasm copies its characteristics, and is now silver-bordered and has a Crossbreed Labs watermark.

No card where its original printing has variants with different characteristics has been printed in a later release.

Example: Sword of Dungeons & Dragons’ original printing was in HASCON 2017 (September 8, 2017) where it had a “D&D” watermark, while its first printing in a commerical release was later in Unstable (December 8, 2017), without a watermark. As such, Sword of Dungeons & Dragons is considered to have a “D&D” watermark regardless of which printing is used, although on Gatherer the only version available is the Unstable printing that has no watermark.

Borders

Watermarks

Advice for players building decks that interact with watermarks: if different printings of a card have different watermarks (or a lack of a watermark), it is recommended to use a printing that has the same watermark (or lack thereof) as the original printing if possible. This makes watermark interactions as clear as possible.

Individual Words in Names

For an example, see “Aether Figment”

New Colors and Basic Land Types

Contributing nonstandard colors is separate from a card’s color identity.

Objects in Multiple Zones

Example: Yet Another Aether Vortex is an enchantment which reads, in part, “Players play with the top card of their libraries revealed.” and “Noninstant, nonsorcery cards on top of a library are on the battlefield under their owner’s control in addition to being in that library.”. Firemaw Kavu is a creature which reads, in part, “When Firemaw Kavu enters the battlefield, it deals 2 damage to target creature.” and “When Firemaw Kavu leaves the battlefield, it deals 4 damage to target creature.”. If Yet Another Aether Vortex is on the battlefield, and Firemaw Kavu becomes the top card of a library, Firemaw Kavu will be revealed and on the battlefield as well as in the library. As Firemaw Kavu is not treated as a new object entering a zone, its “When Firemaw Kavu enters the battlefield, it deals 2 damage to target creature.” ability will not trigger. If Firemaw Kavu’s owner draws a card, Firemaw Kavu would stop being on the battlefield and library, and become in that player’s hand. As that player’s “library” and “battlefield” have no zones in common with that player’s “hand”, Firemaw Kavu is treated as leaving that player’s library and battlefield and entering that player’s hand. Its “When Firemaw Kavu leaves the battlefield, it deals 4 damage to target creature.” ability will trigger.

Token Cards

It is important to differenciate a token card from normal tokens. If it enters a hidden zone, it is necessary to make it indistinguishable from the back from the other cards owned by the same player in that hand, or all other cards in that library. One way to do this is to use a spare card as a marker for the token card, putting it in a suitable card sleeve if necessary. Make sure all players are clear about how markers are being used.

Example: You have a Reassembling Skeleton creature token card in your graveyard. It has “{1}{W}: Return Reassembling Skeleton from your graveyard to the battlefield tapped.” You control Anointer Priest, which reads, in part “Whenever a creature token enters the battlefield under your control, you gain 1 life.” You also control Soul of the Harvest, which reads, in part “Whenever another nontoken creature enters the battlefield under your control, you may draw a card.” You activate Reassembling Skeleton’s ability, and it returns to the battlefield. Anointer Priest’s ability triggers, and you gain 1 life. Soul of the Harvest‘s ability doesn’t trigger.

Example: You control a Reassembling Skeleton creature token card. Targeting Reassembling Skeleton, you cast Wake the Reflections, a sorcery that reads “Populate. (Create a token that’s a copy of a creature token you control.)” It resolves, creating a token copy of Reassembling Skeleton. The copy is not a token card, and it is created as normal for a token.

Predefined Tokens or Token Cards

Cards with these creation effects have the relevant card characteristics in their reminder text on their UnCommander Card Entries.

Spell Copies and Permanent Types

Spells With Permanent and Nonpermanent Card Types

Numbers and Text-Changing Effects

Example: A double-faced card’s back face is up, and its converted mana cost is being determined by its front face. Effects that modify numbers cannot modify a numeral within a symbol in the mana cost on the front face as it is not currently up, so its converted mana cost cannot be affected that way.

You can use another die with more sides than the effect instructs after text-altering effects have been applied to simulate the roll, discounting any results if they are higher than the die could produce and rolling again. This is not a re-roll, and the value of the result is checked before any modifiers to the result are added. Alternatively, another way to simulate the roll is to use a random number generator that is approved by all players.

Noninteger Values and Amounts

Example: to pay a cost of {3}, you could use {HW}{HU}{HB}{HR}{HG}{HA}, {HC}{HR}{HR}{HR}{W}, {HW}{B}{R}{HR} or any other combination of mana that fits the mana cost to pay it, as long as you have the necessary mana in those colors in your mana pool.

If you are playing with a deck that makes use of half amounts of mana, it is recommended to bring markers or some other method of keeping track of mana amounts.

Example: Gruul Scrapper is a creature with mana cost {3}{G}, and the ability “When Gruul Scrapper enters the battlefield, if {R} was spent to cast it, it gains haste until end of turn.”. If {C}{C}{HC}{HR}{G} was spent to pay its mana cost, it would not gain haste, as a full {R} was not paid.

Example: Verdurous Gearhulk has the ability “When Verdurous Gearhulk enters the battlefield, distribute four +1/+1 counters among any number of target creatures you control.”. You must choose an integer number of targets, and also an integer number of +1/+1 counters to be put on each of those targets.

Put Outside the Game

The term “put outside the game” is a is a rephrasing of “absolutely-removed-from-the-freaking-game-forever” printed on AWOL in Unhinged. We have used this with UnCommander card entry errata for any effects with a clear intent that objects are removed fully from the game.

Combine and Combined Permanents

Example: Otherworldly Journey is an instant that reads “Exile target creature. At the beginning of the next end step, return that card to the battlefield under its owner’s control with a +1/+1 counter on it.” A player casts Otherworldly Journey targeting a combined permanent named “Horseshoe Crab” and “Harabaz Druid“. This permanent is exiled. At the beginning of the next end step, Horseshoe Crab and Harabaz Druid are both returned to the battlefield separate and uncombined, each with a +1/+1 counter on it.

Example: Leyline of the Void is an enchantment that reads, in part, “If a card would be put into an opponent’s graveyard from anywhere, exile it instead.” Wheel of Sun and Moon is an Aura with enchant player and the ability “If a card would be put into enchanted player’s graveyard from anywhere, instead that card is revealed and put on the bottom of its owner’s library.” If the controller of Half-Kitten, Half-Rocket (a combined permanent with “Half-Kitten, Half-” and “Angelic Rocket” as cards that became its constituents) is affected by both cards’ effects, that player chooses one effect to apply to the event, and Half-Kitten, Half- and Angelic Rocket are both moved to the appropriate zone.

EXAMPLE: Player A activates Grusilda, Monster Masher‘s ability to put a Feisty Stegosaurus, from player A’s graveyard (owned by player A), and an Acidic Slime, from player B’s graveyard (owned by player B), onto the battle combined under player A’s control. On a later turn, player A activates the augment ability of a Half-Orc, Half- card in their hand to combine it with the combined permanent under their control. On a further later turn, player B activates the ability of Homeward Path to make each player gain control of all permanents they own. As Homeward Path’s ability resolves, it is necessary to determine the combined permanent’s owner. The players agree on a way to randomly choose one of the combined permanent’s three constituents. The constituent chosen this way is Acidic Slime. As player B is the owner of that constituent, player B is considered the owner of the combined permanent for the purposes of that instance of Homeward Path’s ability. Homeward Path’s ability resolves, and player B gains control of the whole combined permanent from player A.

For the legend rule, see 704.5j in the official Comprehensive Rules

In 111.1 in the 704.5j of the official Comprehensive Rules, a token is defined as “A marker used to represent any permanent that isn’t represented by a card.” As such, if at least one consituent is a card, then it no longer meets the definition for “token”.

Merge, Mutate and Combined Permanents

EXAMPLE: Grusilda, Monster Masher‘s activated ability resolves, putting Lancer Sliver and Caterwauling Boggart onto the battlefield combined. Lancer Sliver is a 2/2 white Sliver creature that reads “Sliver creatures you control have first strike.” Caterwauling Boggart is a 2/2 red Goblin creature that reads “Goblins you control and Elementals you control have menace.” The combined permanent is a 4/4 red and white Goblin Sliver creature with both abilities.

Dirge Bat is then cast using its mutate ability targeting the combined permanent. Dirge Bat is a 3/3 black Bat creature that reads, in part, “Flash, Flying, Whenever this creature mutates, destroy target creature or planeswalker an opponent controls.” As Dirge Bat merges, its controller puts it underneath the existing combined permanent. As such, both Lancer Sliver and Caterwauling Boggart are topmost components, with Dirge Bat underneath them. The combined permanent is now a 4/4 red and white Goblin Sliver creature, and has first strike, menace, flash and flying. Dirge Bat’s ability will trigger when it merges as normal.

Meld and Combined Permanents

Host and Augment

Player Given Names

For the “Active Player, Nonactive Player order rule”, see 101.4 in the official Comprehensive Rules

Giving Attributes to Counters (art counter placement)

It’s still fine to use positions on an object’s art to represent the attributes of counters. For some objects, you may still need other methods of tracking, see Water Gun Balloon Game.

Example: Water Gun Balloon Game is an artifact that gives attributes to pop! counters put on it. It is on the battlefield with four counters on it: a pop! “Dennis” “4” counter, a pop! “Margaret” “2” counter, a pop! “Archibald” “0” counter and a pop! “Sam” “3” counter. Titania’s Song, an enchantment which reads, in part, “Each noncreature artifact loses all abilities” enters the battlefield. Water Gun Balloon Game loses all its abilities, but the attributes remain on its counters. The player called “Margaret” then casts a spell. Water Gun Ballon Game’s ability would normally increase the number attribute by 1 of the pop! counter with her given name as an attribute, but it has lost all abilities, so the counter is unchanged. Later, Titania’s song leaves the battlefield, and Water Balloon Game regains its abilities. Margaret then casts a spell, and Water Balloon Game’s ability increases the number attribute of the pop! counter with “Margaret” from “2” to “3”.

The reason for this is that attributes were made as a stand-in for art counter positions, so doesn’t make sense to carry over to other objects.

In the case of more than one constituent caring about attributes of the same kind of counter, it is usually better to only use positions on the art of one constituent to track attributes for that kind of counter.

Die Rolls and Coin Flips

This applies to how coins are flipped in 705.1. and 705.3. in the official Comprehensive Rules.