how do you use planeswalker cards in magic

[kiokitu]

how do you use a planeswalker card in magic?

[Arix]

A planeswalker enters the battlefield with a number of loyalty counters equal to the number in the bottom-tight of the card, where a creature's power and toughness are. For example, Jace, Architect of Thought enters with 4 loyalty counters.

Once per turn, whenever you could cast a sorcery, you may activate one of the planeswalker's abilities. The cost to do so is indicated on the left. The cost to activate Jace's first ability, for example, is to add one loyalty counter to him. The cost to activate the second is to remove two loyalty counters. If the cost is just a 0, then you don't add or remove any counters - just announce that you're activating the ability. Of course, to activate an ability with a negative cost, you need to have at least that many loyalty counters on the planeswalker. You can't activate Jace's last ability if he only has six counters, for example.

You can attack planeswalkers like players. When you declare your attackers, choose whether each creature is attacking your opponent or one of their planeswalkers. You can "split up" your attackers - you can have one attack one planeswalker, one attack another, and another one attack your opponent, for example. Your opponent then declares blockers normally. An unblocked creature that attacks a planeswalker deals damage to it equal to the damage it would deal normally.

In addition, if a source you control would deal noncombat damage to an opponent, you can redirect that damage to one of their planeswalkers. For example, if I target my opponent with Lightning Bolt, I can choose to have the Bolt deal 3 to either them or one of their planeswalkers. You can't break up the damage - all 3 has to go to either the opponent or one of their planeswalkers, I can't have it deal 2 to them and 1 to a planeswalker, for example.

Any damage dealt to a planeswalker removes that many loyalty counters from it. If a planeswalker ever has 0 loyalty counters on it, it's put into its owner's graveyard. In addition, you can only have one planeswalker with the same subtype out at a time. You can control Ajani Goldmane and Jace Beleren out at once, but not Ajani Goldmane and Ajani Vengeant (since they both have the subtype "Ajani"). If there are two or more planeswalkers out with the same subtype, they're all put into their owners' graveyards.

Those are the basics. Keep in mind that planeswalkers are not creatures, nor are they players (despite what some people may try to tell you). You can't target a planeswalker with Doom Blade, for example.

[NIKTER]

Can u use planeswalker's ability first turn?

[Arix]

Yup.

[cboyer1951]

Question, ... about the rule; can not have two planeswalkers on the battlefield at the same time that have the same sub type. This includes the opponents planeswalker too, doesn't it? (I just read thru the detailed rules, perhaps shouldn't have, i get half-cocked ideas perhaps)... So , if yes, and this is the case, then couldn't a tactic be to just lay down one of your planeswalkers that is the same type as one of your opponents just to get rid of that opponent planeswalker tht has like 3 counters on it making it a 6 point blocker? Or something like that?

Also, 2ndly from the notes above, in the battle stage, when I declare my 2 attacking creatures, the opponent gets to declare his blocker, shure, but he also gets to choose which of my 2 attackers he's going to block first?

thank you
Chuck

[Kenji]

1. You're right. There aren't two "sides" to the battlefield -- it's one zone, shared by all players in the game. So, if there are every two or more of the same Planeswalker subtype on the battlefield at once, then all of them are sent to the graveyard almost immediately.

Also, planeswalkers aren't creatures, and can't be declared as blockers by their controller. Rather, when a player declares attackers, they can choose to either attack the defending player, or a planeswalker controlled by that player. Then, the defending player declares blockers as normal.

So, yes, it's a very legitimate tactic to play your own Jace to get rid of an opponent's Jace, for example. Do note that both Jaces will be in the graveyard before you ever get a chance to activate any of the abilities of your Jace.

2. There's no "blocking first" here. All creatures, attacking and blocking, deal damage to one another at the same time (except for first/double strike creatures, but let's not cover that right now).

Rather, the attacking player is able to determine the order in which their attackers deal damage to blocking creatures. Here, have an easy example:

Player A attacks with Baneslayer Angel, a 5/5 flying creature.
Player B declares both of his Serra Angel (4/4 fliers) as blockers, both blocking Baneslayer Angel (I know, that doesn't really make sense tactically -- bear with me here).

Player A, as the active/attacking player, gets to determine the order in which the 2 Serra Angels will be damaged by Baneslayer Angel Since Baneslayer has 5 power, it can distribute this damage in a manner of ways:

1. 3 damage to one Serra Angel, 2 damage to the other.
2. 4 damage to one Serra Angel, 1 damage to the other.
3. 5 damage to one Serra Angel, 0 damage to the other.

Remember, you have to assign a lethal amount to a blocker before you can assign any damage to the next blocker in the order you chose. Of course, you don't have to assign any damage to the 2nd blocker if you don't want to, hence option 3.

[Arix]

1. 3 damage to one Serra Angel, 2 damage to the other.

Except it can't actually do this, because

Remember, you have to assign a lethal amount to a blocker before you can assign any damage to the next blocker in the order you chose.

[cboyer1951]

thanks Kenji, I'm with you, and now I've learned a lot about the game just now. (the examples 'always' help me).
And yeah, Arix, thanks for that, I was about to ask about that. Good.

Chuck

[Kenji]

Whoops, you're right, Arix. I forgot that Serra Angel is a 4/4, not a 3/3.