A growing collection of Magic: The Gathering keywords and mechanics with clear definitions and real card examples.
Damage dealt by this creature also causes you to gain that much life.
Lifelink is a static ability. You gain life when damage is dealt, not later.
Multiple instances of lifelink on the same source are redundant (don't stack).
Example card: Vampire Nighthawk
Any amount of damage this deals to a creature is lethal.
Only 1 damage from a deathtouch source is enough to destroy a creature (barring indestructible).
In combat, you can assign just 1 damage to each blocker before assigning the rest with trample.
Example card: Typhoid Rats
Excess combat damage can be assigned to the defending player or planeswalker.
Must assign lethal damage to blockers first (considering deathtouch, damage marked, and damage prevention).
Example card: Ghor-Clan Rampager
Can only be blocked by creatures with flying or reach.
Reach creatures can block flyers; non-flying, non-reach creatures cannot.
Example card: Serra Angel
Whenever this permanent becomes the target of a spell or ability an opponent controls, counter it unless that player pays the ward cost.
Ward costs can be mana, life, or other payments depending on the card (e.g., “Ward 2”, “Ward — Pay 3 life”, “Ward — Discard a card”).
Targeted spell or ability is countered unless its controller pays the specified ward cost as the ward trigger resolves.
If multiple ward abilities would apply (rare), each must be paid separately or the spell/ability is countered.
Example card: Tolarian Terror
This creature deals both first-strike and regular combat damage.
In combat there are two damage steps: first-strike damage, then regular damage. A creature with double strike deals damage in both.
Lifelink and deathtouch apply in each step separately (e.g., lifelink gains life twice).
If power changes between steps (pump spells, equipment), the new power is used for the second damage step.
Example card: Adorned Pouncer
This creature can’t be blocked except by two or more creatures.
Menace requires at least two creatures to be declared as blockers together; a single blocker is illegal.
If one of the blocking creatures is removed after blockers are declared, the attacker remains blocked (it won’t hit the player unless it also has trample and you assign excess).
Menace stacks with other restrictions (e.g., “can’t be blocked except by artifact creatures” still needs two artifact creatures).
Example card: Hunted Nightmare
Attacking doesn’t cause this creature to tap.
The creature remains untapped after it attacks but is still an attacking creature during combat and cannot also be declared as a blocker that same combat.
Effects that require tapping (e.g., activated abilities with “Tap:”) can still tap it after attacks are declared.
Combines well with “tap” abilities or “convoke” post-combat, since it’s likely untapped.
Example card: Sun Titan
This permanent can’t be the target of spells or abilities your opponents control.
You can still target your own permanents with hexproof; opponents cannot.
Example card: Slippery Bogle
Damage and effects that say “destroy” don’t destroy it.
It can still be exiled, sacrificed, bounced, or die due to 0 toughness.
Example card: Darksteel Colossus
An old ability with complex combat assignment rules allowing shared damage assignment among banded creatures.
Any number of creatures with banding, and up to one without, can attack in a band.
The attacking player chooses how combat damage is assigned to creatures in the band.
Example card: Benalish Hero