Rules Lawyer – MTG Card of the Day

David
Fanany
Player
since
1995

Oh, man. If ever a card needed that “use at your own risk” sticker they put on R&D’s Secret Lair from Unhinged, this would be it. I suppose if they had put it here, you wouldn’t be able to read the examples!

The fact of the matter is, state-based effects are, in many ways, what holds Magic together. They’re the reason creature combat works, and the reason the game can end. Even just the examples on the card lead you quickly from simple things like always winning combat and not being able to die, and into the realm of using Simic Guildmage to attach Stab Wound to an opposing Paladin en-Vec, attacking with an Aetherling buffed to stats of 20/-11, or making some kind of weird self-contradictory Stax deck where you use Rite of Replication to give yourself six copies of Thalia, Guardian of Thraben.

And even if that doesn’t sound like your style of play, this card will give you a renewed appreciation for the humble state-based effect.

Casual: 4/5
Limited: 4/5
Multiplayer: 4/5
EDH/Commander: 4/5

King Of
Hearts

I feel like this card was created just to confuse people, and I love it. It’s amazing how a single sentence can have so much reminder text. So yeah, this guy is a Platinum Angel + Mirror Gallery + other shenanigans rolled into a single package. Much like Platinum Angel though, he is susceptible to both artifact and creature destruction. Unfortunately Platinum Angel has decent stats and evasion, Rules Lawyer won’t be winning any games alone. I can see this guy being a threat in limited, but if you want to be S.N.E.A.K.y there are ways to steal control of this card. 

Limited: 5
Casual: 5
Multiplayer: 3
Commander (EDH): 3

Ah, Rules Lawyer. It’s a card that basically says “screw all of you; we play by my rules”. And those rules include never dying or having your creatures (or planeswalkers) die. It’s basically a mega-Platinum Angel, though the body is somehow even more underwhelming. It’s good for making sure you have the upper hand in every trade, but it’s also good for drawing a lot of fire your way. Make sure you’re ready for them, because nobody likes a Rules Lawyer.

Casual: 4.5
Limited: 4
Multiplayer: 4.5
Commander: 4.5