608.4d If a player leaves the game and that player leaving the game would reduce the number of turn markers in the game, a turn marker is removed. Turn markers are removed only between turns. Remove the turn marker immediately to the departed player’s right. If more than one player has left the game and there are multiple turn markers that could be removed, remove the marker with the lower number.

608.4e If a player would take an extra turn after the current turn and it’s not currently that player’s turn, that player instead takes the extra turn immediately before his or her next turn.

608.5. The Grand Melee variant uses the normal rules for winning and losing the game.

609.1. The Teams variant involves two or more teams of equal size.

609.2. Any multiplayer options used are determined before play begins. The Teams variant uses the following default options.

609.2a The recommended range of influence is 2.

609.2b Exactly one of the attack left, attack right, and attack multiple players options must be used. See rule 604, “Attack Left and Attack Right Options,” and rule 603, “Attack Multiple Players Option.”

609.2c The deploy creatures option isn’t normally used in the Teams variant.

609.3. At the start of the game, players are seated so that no one is next to a teammate and each team is equally spaced out.

Example: In a Teams game with three teams, A, B, and C, the seating around the table at the start of the game is A1, B1, C1, A2, B2, C2, A3, B3, C3, and so on.

609.4. A player can’t attack opponents who aren’t seated next to him or her.

609.5. Team games use the normal rules for winning and losing the game (see rule 102).

609.6 In the Teams variant, a team’s resources (cards in hand, mana, and so on) are not shared. Teammates can’t review each other’s hands unless they are sitting next to each other. Teammates may discuss strategies at any time. Teammates can’t manipulate each other’s cards or permanents.

“Ability” and “effect” are often confused with one another. An instruction in an object’s text is an ability. The result of following such an instruction is an effect. For more information, see section 4, “Spells, Abilities, and Effects.”

When an activated ability is played, it goes onto the stack and stays there until it’s countered, it resolves, or it otherwise leaves the stack.

When an effect states that an object “gains” or “has” an ability, it’s granting that object an ability. If an effect defines a property of an object (“[card or permanent] is [property]”), it’s not granting an ability. For example, an Aura might read, “Enchanted creature is red.” The Aura isn’t granting an ability of any kind; it’s simply changing the enchanted creature’s color to red.

An ability word appears in italics at the beginning of some abilities on cards. Ability words are similar to keywords in that they tie together cards that have similar functionality, but they have no special rules meaning and no individual entries in the Comprehensive Rules.

An activated ability is written as “activation cost: effect.” By paying the activation cost, a player may play such an ability whenever he or she has priority. See rule 403, “Activated Abilities.”

The activation cost of an activated ability is everything before the colon in “activation cost: effect.” It must be paid to play the ability. See rule 403, “Activated Abilities.”

Example: The activation cost of an ability that reads “{2}, {T}: You gain 1 life” is two mana of any color plus tapping the permanent.

The active player is the player whose turn it is. The active player gets priority at the start of each phase or step (except for the untap and cleanup steps), after any spell or ability (except a mana ability) resolves, and after combat damage resolves. See rule 200.3.

Whenever players are instructed to make choices at the same time, the active player makes all his or her choices first, then the nonactive players do so in turn order. This is called the “Active Player, Nonactive Player order” rule, or “APNAP order” rule. See rule 103.4. This rule is modified for Two-Headed Giant play; see rule 606.6d.

In the Two-Headed Giant variant, the active team is the team whose turn it is. The active team gets priority at the start of each phase or step (except for the untap and cleanup steps), after any spell or ability (except a mana ability) resolves, and after combat damage resolves. See rule 200.3 and rule 606.6d.

Some spells have additional costs listed in their text. These are paid at the same time the player pays the spell’s mana cost. See rule 409, “Playing Spells and Activated Abilities.”

Affinity is a static ability that functions while the spell is on the stack. “Affinity for [text]” means “This spell costs you {1} less to play for each [text] you control.” The affinity ability reduces only generic mana costs. It doesn’t reduce how much colored mana you have to pay for a spell. It can’t reduce the cost to play a spell to less than 0. See rule 502.31, “Affinity.”

The rules text of some spells reads, “You may [action] rather than pay [this object’s] mana cost,” or includes the phrase, “you may play [this object] without paying its mana cost.” These are alternative costs. Only one such alternative cost can be applied to any one spell. Other spells and abilities that ask for a spell’s mana cost still see the actual mana cost, not what was paid to play the spell. If an effect requires paying additional costs to play a spell, it still applies to the alternative cost. See rule 409, “Playing Spells and Activated Abilities.”

Amplify is a static ability. “Amplify N” means “As this object comes into play, reveal any number of cards from your hand that share a creature type with it. This permanent comes into play with N +1/+1 counters on it for each card revealed this way. You can’t reveal this card or any other cards that are coming into play at the same time as this card.” See rule 502.27, “Amplify.”