Pronoun
A pronoun is a word or a group of words that one may substitute for a noun or noun phrase. Through the years, the use of pronouns in Magic: The Gathering has evolved in several ways.
In rules text
Referring to players
Magic cards have always referred to their controller with the pronoun "you". Most cards in Alpha avoided using pronouns for other players, instead opting for nouns like "player", "opponent", or "caster". However, four cards used the pronouns "he or she" to refer to a player: Personal Incarnation, Word of Command, Power Surge, and Kudzu. Wheel of Fortune referred to both players as "they". This phrasing stayed consistent, with Mark Rosewater stating that Wizards of the Coast had considered referring to players using "they/them" pronouns, but had issues with potential ambiguity created by the change.[1] In 2017, The Chicago Manual of Style, which Wizards of the Coast uses for standardized styling, updated its guidelines to recognize the use of the word "they" as a singular pronoun in its 17th edition.[2][3] Following this, the shift to "they/them" was enacted with 2018's Dominaria, and all cards were errataed to implement the change.[4]
Referring to the card or character
Cards generally refer to themselves with the pronoun "it", and have done so consistently since Alpha. When planeswalker cards refer to themselves, they use the gendered pronoun of the character represented on the card. Rise of the Eldrazi's Gideon Jura in 2010 was the first card to do so, referring to Gideon with he/him pronouns. When 2015's Magic Origins introduced "flipwalkers", the legendary creature front faces included gendered pronouns to be consistent with their back faces. This was also the first appearance of female pronouns referring to characters, on Liliana, Heretical Healer, Chandra, Fire of Kaladesh, and Nissa, Vastwood Seer. The female planeswalkers Jeska, Thrice Reborn and Grist, Voracious Larva both refer to themselves as "it", although the former was errataed and Mark Rosewater said that the latter may also use non-gendered pronouns.[5] Planeswalkers retain their gendered pronouns on their desparked cards, as shown on The Lost Caverns of Ixalan's Huatli, Poet of Unity.
The use of gendered pronouns on legendary creatures was expanded with the introduction of Universes Beyond. In its original product, 2020's Secret Lair Drop Series: The Walking Dead, multiple characters were referred to with their gendered pronouns, although these were errataed on their Universes Within counterparts. This trend continued, with Universes Beyond Secret Lair characters receiving gendered pronouns. Legendary creature cards in larger Universes Beyond sets, including collaborations like Transformers, did not use gendered pronouns. Marvel's Spider-Man was the first full set to use gendered pronouns for all legendary creatures. As of November 2024, Wizards of the Coast was discussing using gendered pronouns on all legendary creatures in non-Universes Beyond sets.[6]
No non-binary character has received a card that refers to them by their pronouns. Hour of Devastation in 2017 contains the first and so far only non-creature non-Planeswalker card to use a gendered pronoun: Liliana's Defeat.
In flavor
Magic has featured male and female characters throughout its run. The first character to be referred to explicitly without using gendered pronouns was Ashiok, introduced in 2013's Theros.[7] Although they were referred to with he/him pronouns in their introduction, it was eventually clarified that their gender is unknown, but rather than use they/them pronouns, which were not yet recommended as a singular pronoun by The Chicago Manual of Style, it was suggested that authors forgo pronouns and use Ashiok's name directly.[8] Kaladesh in 2016 introduced aetherborn, a non-binary race referred to with they/them pronouns. In 2020, Niko Aris was explicitly designed as a non-binary character.[9] Their introductory story, Know Which Way the Wind is Blowing, also featured the first use of neopronouns in magic lore: Orhaft, who uses the pronouns xe/xer. This was expanded in 2025's Edge of Eternities: Kadrik and the Pod, which features two more characters who use neopronouns: Zoritt (xe/xir) and Pabkoh (ze/zir).
With 2025's Edge of Eternities, the set's associated Legends article for the first time included characters' pronouns in their entries.[10]
The constructed language Phyrexian does not use any personal pronouns.[11]
References
- ↑ Cecilia D'Anastasio (March 9, 2018). "Magic: The Gathering Is Getting Some Big Changes". Kotaku.
- ↑ Chicago Manual (March 28, 2017). "Announcing The Chicago Manual of Style, 17th Edition". CMOS Shop Talk.
- ↑ Chicago Manual (April 3, 2017). "Chicago Style for the Singular They". CMOS Shop Talk.
- ↑ Dominaria Release Notes
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (January 1, 2023). "You can be female and use non-gendered pronouns". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (November 1, 2024). "We are discussing legendary creatures using proper pronouns". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Doug Beyer (September 27, 2013). "Ashiok’s gender is officially unspecified". A Voice for Vorthos. Tumblr.
- ↑ Wizards of the Coast (June 30, 2015). "Ashiok's Style Guide Entry". The Official Magic: The Gathering Tumblr. Tumblr.
- ↑ Gerritt Turner (December 14, 2020). "Creating Niko Aris". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Miguel Lopez, Amanda LaFranco, Laurel Pratt and Jay Annelli (July 10, 2025). "The Legends of Edge of Eternities". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Bella Guo, Mary Kathryn Amiotte, and Matt Danner (January 12, 2023). "A Breakthrough in Phyrexian Language and Communications". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.