Devoid
| Devoid | |
|---|---|
| Keyword Ability | |
| Type | Characteristic-defining |
| Introduced | Duel Decks: Zendikar vs. Eldrazi |
| Last used | Modern Horizons 3 Commander |
| Reminder Text | Devoid (This card has no color.) |
| Storm Scale | 5[1] |
| Statistics |
132 cards  1.5%  25.8%  23.5%  18.9%  16.7%  3%  2.3%  1.5%  0.8%  1.5%  1.5%  2.3%  0.8% |
| Scryfall Search | |
| keyword:"Devoid" | |
Devoid is a characteristic-defining keyword ability which states that a card is colorless, regardless of the colors in that card's mana cost.[2][3][4][5]
Description
Devoid was first seen in Duel Decks: Zendikar vs. Eldrazi, as a preview for its introduction in the Battle for Zendikar block sets.[6]
Because it is a characteristic-defining ability, cards with devoid are colorless at all times, including when not on the battlefield or outside of the game. However, devoid does not change a card's color identity, which is defined as the combination of all colors indicated on the card.
While functionally colorless, cards with devoid are numbered according to the color of their mana cost.
Until the release of Angelic Aberration in Modern Horizons 3 Commander, Eldrazi Displacer was the only card with devoid that had white mana in its mana cost. According to Mark Rosewater, several white-costing devoid cards were planned for Battle for Zendikar and Oath of the Gatewatch, but they ended up scrapped due to "running out of room." [7][8]
History
In retrospect, Rosewater also said that naming Devoid was a mistake. He thought that it should have just been the reminder text as rules text with no illusion that it was a mechanic.[9][10] Later, he thought it could better have been a supertype rather than a mechanic.[11]
Devoid reappeared in Modern Horizons 3 and Modern Horizons 3 Commander. R&D needed some Eldrazi to have colored costs and devoid was the tool they had in existence to do that.[12]
Rules
From the glossary of the Comprehensive Rules (June 7, 2024—Modern Horizons 3)
- Devoid
- A characteristic-defining ability that makes an object colorless. See rule 702.114, “Devoid.”
From the Comprehensive Rules (June 7, 2024—Modern Horizons 3)
- 702.114. Devoid
- 702.114a Devoid is a characteristic-defining ability. “Devoid” means “This object is colorless.” This ability functions everywhere, even outside the game. See rule 604.3.
Rulings
- Cards with devoid use frames that are variations of the transparent frame traditionally used for Eldrazi. The top part of the card features some color over a background based on the texture of the hedrons that once imprisoned the Eldrazi. This coloration is intended to aid deck building and gameplay.[13]
- A card with devoid is not the colors in its casting cost. It is treated by the game as a colorless object.
- Other cards and abilities can give a card with devoid color. If that happens, it is no longer colorless, but it still has devoid.
- Because Devoid is a characteristic-defining ability it applies in all zones, not just on the battlefield.
- If a card loses devoid, it will still be colorless. This is because effects that change an object's color (like the one created by devoid) are considered before the object loses devoid.
- For the same reason, if a colored object gains devoid, it will still have its original color(s). It will not be colorless.
Examples
Example
Dominator Drone 
Creature — Eldrazi Drone
3/2
Devoid (This card has no color.)
Ingest (Whenever this creature deals combat damage to a player, that player exiles the top card of their library.)
When Dominator Drone enters the battlefield, if you control another colorless creature, each opponent loses 2 life.
References
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (November 21, 2016). "Storm Scale: Zendikar and Battle for Zendikar". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (September 7, 2015). "Preparing for Battle, Part 1". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Sam Stoddard (September 18, 2015). "Developing New Mechanics in a Returning World". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Sam Stoddard (October 23, 2015). "Developing Devoid". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (October 19, 2015). "Concept vs. Execution". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Matt Tabak (August 31, 2015). "Battle for Zendikar Mechanics". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (October 12, 2015). "Why don't the Eldrazi cards use white mana?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (January 14, 2016). "Were there any White-costing Eldrazi in design that made it into the set with their color changed?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (May 12, 2016). "Is Devoid another example of a mechanic that was added for rules reasons?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (August 29, 2016). "State of Design 2016". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (August 10, 2020). "Back to the Future Sight, Part 2". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (May 16, 2024). "If devoid was so unpopular and it is considered a failure why would you choose to reuse it such a large quantity in modern horizons?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Wizards of the Coast (September 23, 2015). "Battle for Zendikar Release Notes". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
External links
- Marshall Sutcliffe (October 21, 2015). "Three Shades of Devoid". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.