How mana works

Tap a land, get mana, pay a cost. A card that costs two red and one generic needs two Mountains (or something that makes red) plus one more mana of any color.

You usually play one land a turn. Missing land drops is the silent way beginners lose — the spells in hand never come off.

Mana empties at the end of each step and phase. You cannot tap five forests on their turn and save it. That is why people wait to tap until they cast.

Colored mana vs generic: the little numbers are any color. The pips are specific. Hybrid and Phyrexian pips have extra rules — read the symbol once, then ask the table.