Card type
Creature
Attacks and blocks. Power / toughness is the bottom-right box.
- What it does
- The bodies that fight. Power is damage they deal. Toughness is how much they can take.
- When you play it
- On your main phase, for their mana cost, when you have priority and the stack is empty — same window as a sorcery, unless they have flash.
- Beginner trap
- Attacking with a creature you just cast (it has summoning sickness unless it has haste) or blocking with a creature that is already tapped.
Creatures enter and usually cannot attack until your next turn. They can block the turn they arrive if they are untapped.
Combat is optional. You tap attackers, they choose blockers, then damage. Unblocked creatures hit life — or a planeswalker, if you pointed them there.
When damage on a creature in a single turn meets its toughness, it dies. Damage on creatures wipes at end of turn unless a card says it is marked differently.
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More card types
Land
Not a spell. Tap for mana. One land per turn is the usual rule.
Instant
A one-shot you can cast on either turn, as long as you have priority.
Sorcery
A one-shot that waits for your main phase. Bigger effects, slower door.
Artifact
A permanent, usually colorless. Equipment, rocks, and machines.
Enchantment
A lasting spell on the table — a rule that stays, or an Aura on one thing.
Planeswalker
A legendary ally with loyalty. You may activate one ability on your turn.