Planeswalker
- This page is about the card type. For the beings capable of planeswalking, see Planeswalker (lore). For the 1998 novel, see Planeswalker (novel).
Planeswalker | |
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Card Type | |
Subtype | Planeswalker type |
Scryfall Statistics | |

1) card name, 2) mana cost,
3) type line, 4) loyalty ability,
5) ultimate, 6) starting loyalty.
Planeswalker is a card type representing powerful spellcasters with the ability to travel between planes.[1][2] Planeswalker cards are permanents defined by their loyalty, which fluctuates as they use abilities and take damage. Like players, they can be attacked. A planeswalker that reaches zero loyalty is put into the graveyard.[1] Planeswalkers are always legendary,[3] usually mythic rare, and usually pushed for Constructed viability.[4] Planeswalkers have been designated a unique feature of the Magic intellectual property and are excluded from Universes Beyond products as a rule.[5][6]
Planeswalker cards premiered in the 2007 expansion Lorwyn and were a wildly popular success.[7] Every non–Universes Beyond premier set since Magic 2010 has included at least one.[8] Since 2023, R&D has limited the default number of planeswalkers per set to just one or two.[9]
Description
Planeswalkers have a unique card frame with a curved border, translucent text box, and no flavor text. They depict sentient, mostly humanoid characters with vertically oriented full-card art. All planeswalkers have the legendary supertype.[a][3] Most also have a planeswalker type,[1] which is a one-word version of their name; planeswalker cards depicting Nicol Bolas, for example, have the Bolas subtype. The word "planeswalker" is not translated on any non-English cards except the original printings of the first planeswalkers.
Almost all planeswalkers are mythic rare and only five sets have non-mythic planewalkers: Lorwyn, War of the Spark, Core Set 2020, Phyrexia: All Will Be One and Commander Masters.[4] Their debut in Lorwyn was a year before the restructuring of rarities that began in Shards of Alara, by and large remaining at Mythic Rare ever since.
Loyalty is represented by numbers in shield-like boxes. On the battlefield, a planeswalker's loyalty is tracked using loyalty counters. It enters with a number of loyalty counters equal to the number printed in its lower right corner. When it is dealt damage, that many loyalty counters are removed; a planeswalker can be attacked like a player and suffer combat damage, or be damaged by spells and abilities. A planeswalker with no loyalty counters is put into its owner's graveyard.[1]
Every planeswalker has at least one loyalty ability, a special type of activated ability which adds or removes loyalty counters as a cost. Only one loyalty ability per planeswalker may be activated each turn, and only as as a sorcery.[1] An ultimate, colloquially, is a loyalty ability with a negative cost so high that it cannot be used on the same turn a planeswalker enters; ultimates tend to produce large, sometimes game-ending effects.[10] Most planeswalkers have three loyalty abilities; the default template is "plus, minus, ultimate,"[b] but there are many exceptions.[11]
Rules
From the glossary of the Comprehensive Rules (July 25, 2025—Edge of Eternities)
- Planeswalker
- A card type. A planeswalker is a permanent. See rule 306, “Planeswalkers.”
From the Comprehensive Rules (July 25, 2025—Edge of Eternities)
- 306. Planeswalkers
- 306.1. A player who has priority may cast a planeswalker card from their hand during a main phase of their turn when the stack is empty. Casting a planeswalker as a spell uses the stack. (See rule 601, “Casting Spells.”)
- 306.2. When a planeswalker spell resolves, its controller puts it onto the battlefield under their control.
- 306.3. Planeswalker subtypes are always a single word and are listed after a long dash: “Planeswalker — Jace.” Each word after the dash is a separate subtype. Planeswalker subtypes are also called planeswalker types. Planeswalkers may have multiple subtypes. See rule 205.3j for the complete list of planeswalker types.
- 306.4. Previously, planeswalkers were subject to a “planeswalker uniqueness rule” that stopped a player from controlling two planeswalkers of the same planeswalker type. This rule has been removed and planeswalker cards printed before this change have received errata in the Oracle card reference to have the legendary supertype. Like other legendary permanents, they are subject to the “legend rule” (see rule 704.5j).
- 306.5. Loyalty is a characteristic only planeswalkers have.
- 306.5a The loyalty of a planeswalker card not on the battlefield is equal to the number printed in its lower right corner.
- 306.5b A planeswalker has the intrinsic ability “This permanent enters with a number of loyalty counters on it equal to its printed loyalty number.” This ability creates a replacement effect (see rule 614.1c).
- 306.5c The loyalty of a planeswalker on the battlefield is equal to the number of loyalty counters on it.
- 306.5d Each planeswalker has a number of loyalty abilities, which are activated abilities with loyalty symbols in their costs. Loyalty abilities follow special rules: A player may activate a loyalty ability of a permanent they control any time they have priority and the stack is empty during a main phase of their turn, but only if none of that permanent’s loyalty abilities have been activated that turn. See rule 606, “Loyalty Abilities.”
- 306.6. Planeswalkers can be attacked. (See rule 508, “Declare Attackers Step.”)
- 306.7. Previously, planeswalkers were subject to a redirection effect that allowed a player to have noncombat damage that would be dealt to an opponent be dealt to a planeswalker under that opponent’s control instead. This rule has been removed and certain cards have received errata in the Oracle card reference to deal damage directly to planeswalkers.
- 306.8. Damage dealt to a planeswalker results in that many loyalty counters being removed from it.
- 306.9. If a planeswalker’s loyalty is 0, it’s put into its owner’s graveyard. (This is a state-based action. See rule 704.)
Loyalty abilities
From the Comprehensive Rules (July 25, 2025—Edge of Eternities)
- 107.7. Each activated ability of a planeswalker has a loyalty symbol in its cost. Positive loyalty symbols point upward and feature a plus sign followed by a number. Negative loyalty symbols point downward and feature a minus sign followed by a number or an X. Neutral loyalty symbols don’t point in either direction and feature a 0. [+N] means “Put N loyalty counters on this permanent,” [-N] means “Remove N loyalty counters from this permanent,” and [0] means “Put zero loyalty counters on this permanent.” Loyalty symbols may also appear in abilities that modify loyalty costs.
From the Comprehensive Rules (July 25, 2025—Edge of Eternities)
- 606. Loyalty Abilities
- 606.1. Some activated abilities are loyalty abilities, which are subject to special rules.
- 606.2. An activated ability with a loyalty symbol in its cost is a loyalty ability. Normally, only planeswalkers have loyalty abilities.
- 606.3. A player may activate a loyalty ability of a permanent they control any time they have priority and the stack is empty during a main phase of their turn, but only if no player has previously activated a loyalty ability of that permanent that turn.
- 606.4. The cost to activate a loyalty ability of a permanent is to put on or remove from that permanent a certain number of loyalty counters, as shown by the loyalty symbol in the ability’s cost. This cost may be modified by other effects.
- 606.5 If the total cost to activate a loyalty ability contains multiple costs to add or remove loyalty counters, those costs are combined into a single cost to add or remove loyalty counters, as appropriate.
Example: A player controls Carth the Lion, which says, in part, “Planeswalkers’ loyalty abilities you control cost an additional [+1] to activate. That player also controls a planeswalker with three loyalty counters. To activate one of that planeswalker’s abilities that normally costs [+1], they put two loyalty counters on it. To activate one of its abilities that normally costs [−4], they remove three loyalty counters from it.
- 606.6. A loyalty ability with a negative loyalty cost, taking into account any additional costs, can’t be activated unless the permanent has at least that many loyalty counters on it.
Rulings
Planeswalkers are permanents, so any spell or ability that affects a permanent (e.g., Vindicate) can affect them. They are not creatures, so they can't attack or block, and spells and abilities that affect creatures (e.g., Murder) won't affect them.[1][12]
All planeswalker cards have the legendary supertype, including those printed before Ixalan, which were given the supertype via errata.[3] Planeswalkers can also have subtypes called planeswalker types, which are exclusive to planeswalkers. Planeswalker types are not creature types; they're a separate list.[1][12] Planeswalker types are no longer used to determine when extra copies of the same planeswalker are sent to the graveyard; this has been replaced with the "legend rule". Thus, if a player controls more than one legendary planeswalker with the same name (not subtype), that player chooses one and puts the others into their owners' graveyard.[3]
Planeswalkers can be attacked by creatures. The attacking player chooses which of their creatures are attacking an opponent and which are attacking planeswalkers; this happens when attackers are declared. The defending player can block the attacking creatures as normal, regardless of who or what they're attacking. During the combat damage step, damage dealt to creatures or players happens as normal, and damage dealt to a planeswalker causes that many loyalty counters to be removed from it. Planeswalkers don't deal combat damage.[1][12]
A planeswalker is removed from combat if it leaves the battlefield, changes controllers,[1][12] or stops being a planeswalker.[13] When this happens, creatures that were attacking the planeswalker are not removed from combat. They can be blocked, and blocked creatures deal and are dealt combat damage as normal. Unblocked creatures that were attacking the planeswalker do not deal combat damage.[1][12][13]
If a planeswalker becomes a creature, it can attack and block. If it becomes a creature the same turn that it enters, it can't attack or that turn.[14] If a planeswalker stops being a planeswalker, it keeps its loyalty counters, and it can still use its loyalty abilities with the same timing restrictions and the same costs, but it no longer loses loyalty counters as a result of damage, and it will not go to the graveyard for having 0 loyalty.[15] If a planeswalker becomes a creature while remaining a planeswalker, damage affects it as both types, causing both loss of loyalty and marked damage;[16] if attacked, it can even block the creatures attacking it, in which case it deals combat damage as normal as a blocker, but only specifically to the creature it's blocking.[14]
In addition to loyalty abilities, some planeswalkers have static or triggered abilities. These function as they would for any other permanent. They are active regardless of whose turn it is and regardless of whether any of that planeswalker's loyalty abilities have been activated.[17]
Flavor
In the game's lore, planeswalkers are powerful spellcasters with the innate ability to traverse the planes of the Multiverse. They are mortal, but their exposure to many worlds lets them build an impressive magical repertoire. Players assume the role of dueling planeswalkers, summoning creatures and casting spells from disparate worlds.[18][19]
Planeswalker cards are player analogues, representing alliances made with other fictional planeswalkers, and are therefore designed to feel like bringing another player into the game.[10][2] Like players, they can't attack or block, but can be attacked.[10][20] Loyalty abilities represent their suite of spells,[2] giving them a greater number of tools to work with than ordinary creatures possess;[10][20] like players, they can win the game on their own if left unchecked.[10] Players don't need to spend mana on loyalty abilities, which gives the impression that planeswalkers have access to their own mana sources.[10]
Loyalty measures the strength of an alliance between player and fellow planeswalker. It decreases as a planeswalker suffers damage and uses their more taxing abilities. When a planeswalker has no loyalty left, they "abandon" the player.[2][21][22] On the other hand, "destroy target planeswalker" effects like Hero's Downfall and Garruk, Apex Predator tend to be flavored as death.
Characters

Most planeswalker cards represent named planeswalker characters from the game's storyline. Many of these characters have multiple cards, depicting them at different points in their lives and in the Magic narrative.[23] Chandra Nalaar has been the most prominent example of this, with unique cards as of Tarkir: Dragonstorm. A planeswalker's evolving outlook is sometimes reflected by a shift in the color of their cards,[23] although most planeswalkers have a primary color that they never abandon.
A planeswalker card doesn't necessarily represent a character at their full power, only the amount of assistance they are willing to provide to the player. This is especially true of pre-Mending planeswalkers, whose true power was godlike.[24] Likewise, a change in mana value between cards does not imply that a character has grown more or less powerful.[23]
Characters can gain or lose planeswalker status. Potential planeswalkers whose sparks have not yet ignited, as well as former planeswalkers whose sparks have been lost (including in the mass loss of sparks following the March of the Machine storyline), are depicted with legendary creature cards rather than planeswalker cards. Transforming double-faced cards (cards) have been used to depict certain characters before and after their sparks ignite, as has one meld pair (cards).
Non-Magic IP
Planeswalker cards appear in the Dungeons & Dragons crossover sets Adventures in the Forgotten Realms and Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur's Gate, depicting iconic D&D characters. These are not planeswalkers in the same sense as Magic characters.[25] They are big-name, powerful characters known to travel between worlds, but "planeswalker" is ultimately a gameplay designation, not a creative one. Tiamat, for example, could have been justified as a planeswalker on creative grounds but was made a creature instead.[26]
Wizards of the Coast originally planned for the Universes Beyond series to include planeswalker cards, which would have likewise diverged from the normal flavor of planeswalkers.[27] This decision was reversed before any such cards were printed; the current policy is to use planeswalker cards only for Wizards-owned IP.[5][28] In retrospect, Mark Rosewater believes that putting planeswalkers even in the D&D sets was a mistake.[29]
Strategy
Planeswalkers are game-changing incremental advantage engines which are moderated by opposing creatures. Planeswalkers cost typically four or more mana and often do not pay for their cost with one activation, but the magnitude of damage required to eliminate them in one turn is often substantial. Those costing three and two gain heightened scrutiny due to the difficulty in addressing them profitably and are usually reserved for non-Standard products. Typically, the one positive loyalty ability plays badly from behind and the small negative ability recoups card advantage, but designs vary. For most games, the first-activation decision of whether to save up for the ultimate or immediately derive value with a negative ability is the most critical.
On the subject of whether to attack an opponent or a planeswalker, Gavin Verhey recommends the rule of thumb of "When in doubt, attack the planeswalker." Ignoring the planeswalker and attacking the opponent directly can be the right move if the attacking player can finish the game quickly.[30] Decks light on creatures should include answers to planeswalkers—such as counterspells and planeswalker kill spells—either in their main deck or sideboard.[31] All decks can have use for planeswalkers, but with only two per set at most, Standard decks may not want their suite of abilities and larger formats are often too fast.
A significant choke point with planeswalkers is that all loyalty abilities are activated, and hence cards like Pithing Needle can disable planeswalkers at a cheap cost. Even among those that have passive abilities, a majority of them have no function when they cannot activate abilities as their passive ability is related to casting or their loyalty counter pool. The problem with this approach, other than having the artifact be removed, is that casting it proactively won't do anything and doing so reactively would have given the opponent one activation already.
History
Initial design and the Lorwyn Five

During the design of Future Sight, Matt Cavotta pitched the idea of a new card type representing planeswalkers, who were central to the the game's lore but had never been depicted as cards. A team comprised of Cavotta, Mark Rosewater, Mark Gottlieb, and Brandon Bozzi designed an early version of the card type, which bore many similarities to the eventual finished product.[21] The "attack me to lower my loyalty" mechanic was borrowed from the unreleased structure card type designed by Richard Garfield for Ravnica: City of Guilds.[21][32] These early planeswalkers cycled through their loyalty abilities in a predetermined order, with no player input. The cards playtested poorly, as many players felt they were too robotic. Planeswalkers were pulled from Future Sight.[21] This early pass at the card type would later inspire the design of Sagas.[33][34][35]
The planeswalker task was passed to the Lorwyn design team, with Rosewater, Aaron Forsythe, and Paul Sottosanti especially devoted to it. To fix the robotic feel of planeswalkers, they allowed players to choose which loyalty ability to activate each turn.[20] The development team finalized the card type and solidified the "plus, minus, ultimate" model. Loyalty activations were moved from the upkeep to the main phase, a change suggested by Nate Heiss, which helped make the cards Constructed playable.[20][10][36]
Although planeswalkers could have been pushed back for several more sets, the designs were finalized in time for Lorwyn.[1] Ajani Goldmane, Jace Beleren, Liliana Vess, Chandra Nalaar, and Garruk Wildspeaker were the first planeswalker cards ever printed, colloquially known as the "Lorwyn Five". They were designed to be archetypal of their colors, to match the creative team's write-ups, and to have "jaw-droppingly awesome" ultimates.[10] Initial reaction from players was mixed, but in the end planeswalkers were wildly popular.[7]
Early planeswalkers
Originally, R&D planned for planeswalkers to show up only occasionally, as a special occurrence. The popular response to planeswalker caused them to change course. Starting with Zendikar, at least one planeswalker was included in every expansion. Magic 2010 reprinted the Lorwyn Five, which began a tradition of every core set including a monocolored cycle of planeswalkers, often with at least one member of the Five.[8]
From early on, Mark Rosewater has advocated slowing down the evolution of planeswalkers due to the card type's limited design space. Novelty was thus meted out slowly in the years following Lorwyn, with one to three innovations in planeswalker design per year. Static and triggered abilities were deliberately held in reserve, with a few exceptions: Garruk Relentless (Innistrad) was deemed acceptable since his triggered ability only existing to enable his transformation (although even this was somewhat controversial within R&D), as was the static ability introduced in Commander 2014 that let a planeswalker serve as a commander.[8]
Rules changes
The planeswalker card type experienced three rules changed between 2013 and 2018. The first two involved the "planeswalker uniqueness rule", a now-obsolete rule mimicking the "legend rule" for legendary permanents. In its original form, the uniqueness rule held that two or more planeswalkers with the same planeswalker type could not exist on the battlefield, regardless of controller; if this happened, all of them would be put into their owners' graveyards.[37] A player could, for example, play Jace Beleren as a removal spell for their opponent's Jace the Mind Sculptor, since they shared the Jace subtype.[38]
The uniqueness rule was first changed in Magic 2014. The new rule tracked each player's planeswalkers separately; if a player controlled two or more with the same type, they would choose one of them and put the rest into the graveyard. This paralleled a similar change to the legend rule.[39][40] Then in Ixalan (2017), to simplify gameplay,[41][42][43] the uniqueness rule was made obsolete and effectively replaced with the legend rule: all planeswalkers past, present, and future were made legendary.[3] This change has also enabled planeswalkers without subtypes to be printed, such as The Wanderer.
Less than a year later, the rules for dealing noncombat damage to planeswalkers were changed.[44] Originally, players dealing noncombat damage to their opponents could redirect that damage to one of that opponent's planeswalkers, subject to the normal rules for ordering replacement effects.[1][12][44] To better match player intuition, the rule was made obsolete in Dominaria (2018).[44][45] Over 700 direct damage cards received errata enabling them to target planeswalkers: with some exceptions, "target player" was changed to "target player or planeswalker", "target opponent" to "target opponent or planeswalker", and "target creature or player" to "any target"[44][45]—which was defined to include creatures, players, planeswalkers,[44][45] and eventually battles.[46]
Gatewatch era

Magic Origins (2015) introduced a "new era" of storytelling featuring better integration between the game's story and its cards.[48] The storyline became focused on the Gatewatch,[49] a team of heroic planeswalkers allied against interplanar threats.[50] Origins depicted the backstories of the first five Gatewatch members, using transforming double-faced cards to represent the characters sparking into planeswalkers.[51] Gideon Jura and Nissa Revane replaced Ajani and Garruk as the archetypal white and green planeswalkers, respectively.
The increased story presence led to more "planeswalkers matter" cards beginning in Oath of the Gatewatch (2016). Most notable were the Gatewatch oaths (cards), a mega cycle of legendary enchantments that rewarded playing planeswalkers.[52][53] This era also saw an uptick in cards that called out specific planeswalker subtypes, sometimes as trinket text, such as Dark Intimations (Aether Revolt) or the "defeat" cycle (cards from Hour of Devastation).
Kaladesh (2016) introduced planeswalker decks, an introductory product line of preconstructed decks themed around mechanically unique planeswalker cards. Unlike most planeswalkers, these cards were not pushed for tournament play, although they were legal in Standard.[8]
The Gatewatch era culminated in War of the Spark (2019), which contained a record thirty-six new planeswalker cards. Each was given an enchantment-like[c] static or triggered ability, which had previously been avoided to conserve design space. The set also introduced the first uncommon planeswalkers; each had (in addition to its static or triggered ability) only one loyalty ability, which was always negative. These uncommons were especially important for making the set tick. Because they behaved a little differently than normal planeswalkers, they didn't eat at the same overall design space. Their inclusion also supported the planeswalker theme in Limited and made balancing the set easier.[4]
Throne of Eldraine – March of the Machine
In the years following War of the Spark, premier sets contained on average three and a half planeswalkers.[54][d] Static and triggered abilities became an evergreen part of planeswalker design, used in most sets although not on every card.[55] More planeswalkers also made use of set-specific mechanics, such as landfall on Nissa of Shadowed Boughs (Zendikar Rising); this had previously been avoided to enhance planeswalkers' otherworldliness, but was now embraced to expand the available design space.[56]

Beginning in Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty (2022), the Phyrexian storyline arc saw a number of planeswalker characters experience compleation. These planeswalkers received a new card frame and the first planeswalker-exclusive keyword, compleated, to signify their Phyrexian status.
Phyrexia: All Will Be One (2023) introduced Ichormoon Gauntlet, the first card to grant non-copied loyalty abilities to planeswalkers. March of the Machine's Commander release printed a cycle of "talents" (cards), which are the first Auras to specifically enchant planeswalkers, and also grant them a new loyalty ability.
Omenpath era
Starting with Wilds of Eldraine (2023), the default[57] number of planeswalker cards was scaled back to one per premier set.[58] This decision was influenced by both story and design concerns.[59][60][61] (It was not influenced by the Commander format[62] or by the move to a three-year Standard rotation.[63]) The storyline's overwhelming focus on planeswalkers has eased up: most of the Multiverse's planeswalkers have been desparked and are now depicted on legendary creature cards, while the remaining planeswalkers have been sharing the spotlight with recurring non-planeswalker characters, who use Omenpaths to travel between planes.
The non-rotating core set Foundations (2024) introduced five planeswalkers into Standard for the indefinite future.[64] As of Tarkir: Dragonstorm (2025), the default number of planeswalkers for a Magic-IP premier set is now one or two.[9][65] Universes Beyond sets, which entered Standard beginning with Final Fantasy (2025), don't contain any planeswalkers.[5]
Planeswalker interaction
During the time of release, planeswalkers were rarely referred to in the rules text, being withheld from commons to increase the mystique of the card type.[66] Over time, and especially after the release of War of the Spark, R&D relaxed this requirement, and now many more spells can interact with them.
- White is the color that most interacts with planeswalkers. It can search the library for them and get them back from the graveyard, among other positive interactions.[67]
- Fated Retribution is one of the few white cards that specifically can remove planeswalkers, while Planar Cleansing destroys all nonland permanents, including planeswalkers. Bound in Gold and Nahiri's Binding show a trend to allow answers to planeswalkers using Auras. Banishing Light effects have usually had any nonland permanent at 3 mana and creatures only at 2 mana, with only Prison Realm bridging the gap.
- Black is the primary color that can have the text "destroy target creature or planeswalker".[68] A small number remove counters from planeswalkers or a subset of permanents.
- Red previously could damage planeswalkers through the planeswalker redirection rule, but with the rule change damage spells now need to specify planeswalkers as valid targets. Due to Lava Axe type effects being liabilities often, both damage spells to creatures and damage spells to players may now carry planeswalkers as secondary targets.
- Green doesn't call out the planeswalker type by name (Nissa's Defeat being an exception), but can destroy non-creature permanents; however, this effect is fairly rare, and to compensate for some of Green's Bite effects have started to target planeswalkers.
- Blue normally countered planeswalkers alongside other noncreature spells like with Negate. Lately blue has now some creature-target counterspells that also hit planeswalkers (Reject, Anticognition), and also some bounce spells and controlling spells that hit creatures or planeswalkers (Barrin, Tolarian Archmage, Mass Manipulation).
Design
Unlike most other cards in a set, planeswalkers are designed by the people who work on Standard (currently the Play Design team; formerly the development team, with contributions from people who played in the Future Future League).[11]
Much of the development revolves around the fact the turnwise advantage engine makes it prized against all archetypes, while the strongest answer to a planeswalker is being attacked by a board of creatures. Hence, the loyalty numbers are fine-tuned to match the expected board presence in the format: for example, if aggro decks rely on 3-power creatures, the loyalty numbers will revolve around 3, 4 and 6.
As planeswalkers are still characters, development has to make sure the card reflects the character's magic.[69] Part of this is capturing the right magic in the color space, while sometimes a planeswalker will pick up extra colors for the sole purpose of making them harder to cast.[70] During the long storyline arc era from 2014-2024, all ten color pairs have had at least one main representative, and seven of ten three-color combinations had at least one card (missing Naya, Sultai and Abzan). R&D does not actively require filling out the remaining combos by any sort of deadline.[71] However, plot developments have pushed the remaining planeswalkers off being color balanced, such as having three (Tezzeret, Kaito and Ashiok) while several have none confirmed.
Due to Mythic exclusivity, storyline relevance and recency bias, planeswalkers that overshot on power level are often greatly maligned.
All planeswalkers are legendary for flavor reasons. There are no current plans to create nonlegendary planeswalkers.[72]
Combining other types
R&D decided that they didn't want to have to rein in other card types because they might dangerously impact planeswalkers. They decided not to add these other types when they chose to not make Karn an artifact Planeswalker.[73]
The first exception to this rule appeared in Aetherdrift, which features the Legendary Planeswalker Artifact - Equipment The Aetherspark.[74]
As commanders
Planeswalkers can be used as commanders in the Brawl format. This is not generally true of the Commander (EDH) format, which typically only allows legendary creatures as commanders, but some exceptions exist: certain planeswalkers have text allowing them to be commanders, while others are double-faced cards with legendary creatures on the front face and planeswalkers on the back face. One card, Grist, the Hunger Tide, is a valid EDH commander due to always being a creature when not on the battlefield. As of Modern Horizons 3, there are valid planeswalker commanders in EDH.
Gallery
-
Unused planeswalker symbol meant for future-shifted cards
-
Desparked symbol for Planeswalkers who have lost their spark.
Notes
- ↑ Planeswalkers printed before Ixalan do not have the word "legendary" on them but have been given the supertype through errata.
- ↑ One ability with a positive loyalty cost, one non-ultimate ability with a negative loyalty cost, and one ultimate.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater uses this term to distinguish the new planeswalkers from "a few narrow examples of old planeswalker cards" with static or triggered abilities.
- ↑ Excluding Planeswalker Deck cards.
References
- ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l Mark Rosewater. (September 3, 2007.) "Planeswalking the Walk", magicthegathering.com, Wizards of the Coast. (Internet Archive snapshot)
- ↑ a b c d Doug Beyer (September 10, 2007). "The Era of the Planeswalker". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2020-11-12.
- ↑ a b c d e Matt Tabak (August 28, 2017). "Ixalan Mechanics". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ a b c Mark Rosewater (April 1, 2019). "Waging War of the Spark, Part 1". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ a b c Mark Rosewater (June 11, 2023). "Is no planeswalkers going to be the norm for Universes Beyond, or did they just not fit in 40K and LotR?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (October 30, 2024). "Will the UB sets now have Planeswalkers since they are Standard legal?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ a b Mark Rosewater (August 05, 2013). "Twenty Things That Were Going To Kill Magic". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ a b c d Mark Rosewater (July 23, 2018). "Planeswalking Down Memory Lane". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ a b Mark Rosewater (March 18, 2025). "More sets in Standard = fewer Planeswalkers per set. Desparking = fewer Planeswalkers overall.". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ a b c d e f g h Devin Low (October 26, 2007). "The Nineteen Principles for Developing Planeswalkers". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2020-11-12.
- ↑ a b Melissa DeTora (January 19, 2018). "Designing Rivals of Ixalan Planeswalkers". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2018-01-20.
- ↑ a b c d e f "A Planeswalker's Primer for Conflux: Planeswalkers" — YouTube
- ↑ a b Rulings for Spark Rupture.
- ↑ a b Cf. Gideon, Champion of Justice.
- ↑ Ruling and reminder text for Sarkhan, the Dragonspeaker.
- ↑ Rulings for Gideon Blackblade.
- ↑ War of the Spark - Mechanic Spotlight: Planeswalkers | Magic (Video). Magic: The Gathering. YouTube (Apr 2, 2019).
- ↑ Brady Dommermuth (August 16, 2007). "You Are a Planeswalker". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2008-05-09.
- ↑ Wizards of the Coast (July 25, 2008). "You Are a Planeswalker". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ a b c d Mark Rosewater (November 12, 2007). "Planeswalk on the Wild Side, Part II". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ a b c d Mark Rosewater (November 05, 2007). "Planeswalk on the Wild Side, Part I". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Printed rules text of Teferi, Time Raveler and Karn, the Great Creator
- ↑ a b c Doug Beyer (May 19, 2010). "Planeswalker Potpourri". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2020-11-12.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (January 19, 2015). "Fate-Ful Stories, Part 2". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Magic: The Gathering (May 20, 2021). "We'll talk about this more during the full Adventures in the Forgotten Realm preview season, but some iconic D&D characters are being featured as Planeswalker cards in #MTGDND!". Twitter.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (August 9, 2021). "Odds & Ends: Adventures in the Forgotten Realms, Part 2". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (July 5, 2021). "Will UB sets be allowed to make do without planeswalkers?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (April 12, 2024). "That has been decided, so I would set your expectations accordingly.". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (December 1, 2023). "I’ve noticed that “Universe Beyond” sets don’t ever seem to have planeswalker cards.". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Gavin Verhey (January 26, 2017). "Walkership Down". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2021-04-29.
- ↑ Gavin Verhey (June 29, 2017). "Death to Planeswalkers". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2020-05-31.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (April 28, 2018). "Some birthday trivia about planeswalkers!". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (May 17, 2021). "Future Sight Design Handoff Document". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (March 13, 2018). "It feels like the sagas are the original planeswalker design from future sight.". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (Mark Rosewater). "Returning Home". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Erik Lauer (October 19, 2007). "Playtesting Planeswalkers". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2021-04-29.
- ↑ Wizards of the Coast (October 12, 2007). Magic: The Gathering Comprehensive Rules—Lorwyn. Retrieved from Academy Ruins March 18, 2025.
- ↑ bimmerbot (July 11, 2013). "M14 Rules Changes! The Planeswalker Uniqueness Rule". Magic Judge.
- ↑ Wizards of the Coast (July 19, 2013). Magic: The Gathering Comprehensive Rules—Magic 2014. Retrieved from Academy Ruins March 18, 2025.
- ↑ Matt Tabak (May 23, 2013). "Magic 2014 Core Set Rules Preview". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2020-11-11.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (August 28, 2017). "Why was there a need to make planeswalkers legendary?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (August 28, 2017). "Having multiple versions of the same planeswalker character out seems 'wrong'.". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (September 02, 2017). "Do you think it's a flavor fail to be able to summon more than one of the same legendary character from the Multiverse?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ a b c d e Aaron Forsythe (March 21, 2018). "Dominaria Frame, Template and Rules Changes". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2018-03-21.
- ↑ a b c Eli Shiffrin (April 13, 2018). "Dominaria Oracle Changes". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2018-04-13.
- ↑ Jess Dunks, Eric Levine, and Matt Tabak (April 12, 2023). "March of the Machine Release Notes (PDF)". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Retrieved on 2025-03-29.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (January 11, 2016). "Gatewatch Me Work, Part 1". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Jenna Helland (June 3, 2015). "Magic Origins: A New Era". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on June 4, 2015.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (January 09, 2016). "So 'The Gatewatch' is magic's Avengers or Justice League?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ James Wyatt (February 10, 2016). "Oath of the Gatewatch". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (Jun 22, 2015). "The Species of Origins, Part 1". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (Jan 4, 2016). "A Solemn Oath, Part 2". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (July 18, 2016). "Eldritch Perfect, Part 2". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (September 03, 2021). "As you mentioned 3 planeswalker per set, is there a reason why KHM and STX got 4 (while still 3 in ZNR)?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (March 30, 2022). "Just to clarify, when you say static abilities on Planeswalkers becoming evergreen…". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (September 21, 2020). "More Zendikar Rising Stars". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (May 25, 2024). "Hey Mark, did you guys abandon the rule about having only one planeswalker per set?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Magic: The Gathering (July 28, 2023). "Mark confirms the general intent is that it is one Planeswalker per set.". Twitter.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (July 28, 2023). "Was the shift to one planeswalker card per set more story-driven or play-design-driven?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (February 05, 2024). "Was the decision to make 1 planeswalker per set related to the fact the card type has small design space?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (March 18, 2025). "Could you elaborate more on *why* there were only those two slots?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (February 29, 2024). "One of my big issues is that the inverse of the current status quo would never happen.". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (March 01, 2024). "Was the 1 Planeswalker per set decision made before or after the decision to make standard longer, and are they connected?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ The Preview Panel—Magic: The Gathering Foundations (Video). Magic: The Gathering. YouTube (October 25, 2024).
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (March 14, 2025). "I’m worried that the 1 planeswalker per set rule will get in the way of giving them all cards.". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Tom LaPille (January 09, 2009). "To Kill a Planeswalker". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2020-11-12.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (October 18, 2021). "Mechanical Color Pie 2021 Changes". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2021-10-18.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (June 5, 2017). "Mechanical Color Pie 2017". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (August 19, 2015). "Liliana of the Dark Realms, can you talk about why she cares about Swamps.". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (July 1, 2016). "The new Tamiyo could easily be mono-blue. All of her abilities are in blue's pie. Is she Bant just to balance her?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (March 18, 2025). "Hi Mark! We've never had a Planeswalker in Abzan, Naya, or Mardu. Is that considered an unexplored design space? Is it a priority for you to fill that gap?". Blogatog. Tumblr. Note the asker is incorrect regarding Mardu.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (October 16, 2017). "Odds & Ends: Ixalan, Part 2". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (November 15, 2019). "Do you think we'll ever see planeswalkers combined with other types?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Magic: The Gathering (October 25, 2024). "Headliners are slated to appear in future sets as well.". Twitter.