Cardhoarder FRF Ref Sheet

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Happy Friday MTG peeps,

We are off again to Friday Night Magic at OMG! Games here in Barrie, Ontario and will be bringing along a funky Mardu decklist that drew into first place last week (quick report over here on Tumblr).  There is a Fate Reforged PreRelease event at midnight but we're not sure if we can make it as we got up pretty dang early today, so it might be Saturday or Sunday.

Anywhoos, the great folks over at Cardhoarder had produced a very excellent reference sheet for Fate Reforged.  They might be one of the best Magic: the Gathering Online (MTGO) sellers out there, but they are also, like you, Magic: the Gathering players at heart and know how slow 'n' grindy a PreRelease match can go if a player had not bothered to do a cursory familiarization of some of the new tech.  We suggest to all players to pop on over to the Cardhoarder page here and review online what you'll be seeing on the game tables this weekend.  Here is a round-up of their article here - 

New Mechanics Featured in FRF

Bolster (green / white)
Bolster is a keyword action; accompanying the keyword will be a number which tells you how many +1/+1 counters will be created from the action. When a spell or creature with Bolster resolves, the Bolster action is completed without using the stack. The creature receives the counters when you Bolster, not when you cast the spell/creature. 

To clarify in the instance of the Bolster action on a creature: the Bolster trigger does use the stack, but once priority is passed on the action, the action is then completed without use of the stack (e.g., your opponent can kill a creature you control with the bolster ability on the stack, but cannot respond to the action of choosing the creature you control to bolster). 

To Bolster, you choose the creature you control with the least toughness; in the event of a tie, you may choose one of those creatures. Bolster does not target a creature. 


9 cards feature the bolster action (5 creatures, 2 instants and 2 sorceries):

Dash (black / red)
The aplty named dash ability is an alternate casting cost option for the creature. When a creature is dashed, it gains haste and returns to its owner's hand at the beginning of the next end step. Dashing a creature is still casting it - it goes on the stack like a normally casted creature, and may be targeted on the stack the same way (e.g., with a counterspell). 

In any event where the creature goes to the graveyard or is exiled from play, the return provision will not trigger. Similarly, if the creature leaves play and comes back into play (e.g., from an Astral Slide effect), the returned instance of the card will not return to hand, but rather will stay on the battlefield. 


8 creatures feature the dash ability:

Manifest (all colours)
A manifested card is put onto the battlefield face down. While manifested (i.e., face down), it functions just like a morph - it is a 2/2 colorless creature without any characteristics whatsoever (no name, no abilities, no types). A manifested card may perform all actions other creatures can perform (attack, block, ability to be targeted as a creature, etc.). 

Any time you have priority, you may turn a manifested creature card face up by revealing its mana cost and paying that mana cost. Similar to morphing a creature, the act of turning the card face up does not use the stack and cannot be responded to (any trigger upon turning it face up would use the stack as normal). A manifested creature card with the morph ability may be turned face up by paying either its morph cost or its casting cost. Non-creature cards that have been manifested may not be turned face up in this manner. 

A manifested creature that is turned face up is not a new creature. State-based effects affecting that creature remain when turned over (any counters on it remain, auras/equipment attached remain, etc.). Enter the battlefield effects do not trigger. 

In the event a card turns a manifested instant/sorcery card from face down face up, you reveal the card and it stays on the battlefield face down. 


18 cards feature the Manifest mechanic (6 creatures, 4 enchantments, 6 sorceries and 2 instants):

Click on over to the Cardhoarder page to see their handy summary of the returning mechanics.
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