View source for Substance

{{Infobox keyword
| type = Static
| first = Ravnica: City of Guilds
| last = Alara Reborn
| storm = 10 ([[List of deprecated mechanics|obsolete]])
| storm_ref=<ref>{{EzTumblr|http://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post/173640974413/|title=Where is Substance on the Storm Scale?|2018-05-06}}</ref>
| stats = Never printed on a ''[[Magic]]'' card
| noreminder= 1
| search = If you cast it any time a sorcery couldn’t have been cast, the controller of the permanent it becomes sacrifices it at the beginning of the next cleanup step.
| searchtype = oracle
}}
'''Substance''' is an [[obsolete]] [[keyword ability]] that had no inherent [[effect]]. It existed only in [[Oracle]] rules text, and was never printed on a ''[[Magic]]'' [[card]]. It was created by then-[[rules|Rules Manager]] [[Mark Gottlieb]] in order to fix some cards for the ''[[Magic Online]]'' release of ''[[Mirage]]''.<ref>{{WebRef|url=https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/ask-wizards-march-2006-2006-03-01|title=Ask Wizards - March, 2006|author=[[Mark Gottlieb]]|publisher=[[magicthegathering.com]]|date=March 7, 2006|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20211203043923/https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/ask-wizards-march-2006-2006-03-01|archivedate=December 3, 2021}}</ref>

==Rules==
{{rules|''[[Comprehensive Rules]]''|May 1, 2009—''[[Alara Reborn]]''|502.49. Substance (Obsolete)
502.49a Substance is a static ability with no effect.}}

==Old Rulings==
*If you play one of these at a time you could normally play an Aura, or if it is put directly into play without being played, it will behave as a standard Aura. You can ignore its entire first ability.

*If you play one of these at a time you couldn't normally play an Aura, it will create a delayed triggered ability that forces you to sacrifice it when the turn ends. You'll sacrifice it after "until end of turn" abilities end and damage is removed from creatures. That means if you play <c>Soar</c> as an instant to save your 1/1 creature from <c>Flare</c>, your creature will survive even after Soar is sacrificed.

==Explanation==
Substance was introduced in the rules update for ''[[Ravnica: City of Guilds]]'' in 2005. It restored the original functionality to a set of cards that no longer functioned as they had when first printed, due to timing rules changes in the ''[[Sixth Edition]]'' rules update.

The rules changes for ''[[Fourth Edition]]'', ''Mirage'', ''[[Fifth Edition]]'', and ''Sixth Edition'' all sought to simplify the [[turn structure]]. In particular, each update modified the timing of what became the modern [[ending phase]].

Most of the cards that eventually received the substance keyword were printed under timing rules that were introduced in ''Mirage''. During this period, the [[main phase]] was followed by a discard phase, and then a cleanup phase. In the cleanup phase, effects with the wording "until end of turn" expired at the same moment that damage on creatures was erased. Afterward, at the end of the cleanup phase, effects with the wording "at end of turn" took effect.

The ''Sixth Edition'' rules update altered that procedure subtly by introducing the modern turn structure. The cleanup phase was renamed the end phase, and split into an end step, followed by a cleanup step. However, at the same time, effects that occurred "at end of turn" were moved forward to the beginning of the [[end step]], while "until end of turn" effects expired along with damage during the [[cleanup step]].

For most cards and scenarios, this changed little. However, a small number of cards now expired before intended, causing them to lose their intended purpose. For example, <c>Armor of Thorns</c>, which grants a creature +2/+2, was printed to be [[sacrifice]]d "at end of turn" when cast as though it had [[flash]]. At the time, the added toughness allowed the card to be used to save a creature that would otherwise die from damage, as the damage would expire before the aura. Under the ''Sixth Edition'' rules, however, the Armor would be sacrificed before damage was being removed from creatures.

Substance resolved the issue by adding a [[triggered ability]] to the [[card]]s and [[permanent]]s affected in this way. The Oracle text for those cards granted the [[object]]s in question substance until end of turn, along with a [[triggered ability|delayed trigger ability]] that triggered when substance was lost, at the beginning of the next cleanup step, thereby letting the cards work the same way that players expected them to. With that change, the trigger occurred simultaneously with the removal of damage, and the permanents which had had substance were sacrificed slightly later when the triggered ability resolved.<ref>{{WebRef|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060628222047/http://wizards.com/default.asp?x=mtgcom/daily/bs55|title=Visions Release Events|author=Bennie Smith|publisher=[[magicthegathering.com]]|date=April 6, 2006|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070905100331/http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=mtgcom/daily/bs55|archivedate=September 5, 2007}}</ref>

Substance was removed from the cards which had been used as part of the [[Magic 2010#Rules changes|Magic 2010 Rules Changes]]. Rather than using substance, the permanents all gained a delayed triggered ability that occurred "at the beginning of the next cleanup step". This wording is slightly misleading, as several things can happen during the cleanup step before these abilities trigger, but it has the same net effect as was accomplished with substance.<ref>{{WebRef|url=https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/feature/july-2009-update-bulletin-2009-07-08|title=July 2009 Update Bulletin|author=[[Mark Gottlieb]]|publisher=[[magicthegathering.com]]|date=July 8, 2009|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20220526083843/https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/feature/july-2009-update-bulletin-2009-07-08|archivedate=June 1, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{DailyRef|feature/july-2009-update-bulletin-2009-07-08|July 2009 Update Bulletin — Sweeping Card Changes|[[Mark L. Gottlieb]]|July 8, 2009}}</ref>

==Cards affected==
{{columns-list|colwidth=15em|
*<c>Armor of Thorns</c>
*<c>Grave Servitude</c>
*<c>Lightning Reflexes</c>
*<c>Mystic Veil</c>
*<c>Necromancy</c>
*<c>Parapet</c>
*<c>Relic Ward</c>
*<c>Soar</c>
*<c>Spider Climb</c>
*<c>Thawing Glaciers</c>
*<c>Ward of Lights</c>
*<c>Waylay</c>
}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Mechanics|misc}}