Archived from groups: rec.games.trading-cards.magic.rules (
More info?)
Oh no! It's Barbara Gordon!
> I have a friend who i taught to play MTG.. Most of her cards are older
> cards. I have only been playing for a couple of years so when she ask me
> what "PHASING" meant I wasn't sure. I learned mostly on my own by
> reading and playing with my husband. The rulebook that I have (which I
> printed off the web) does not have it in it.
> Long story short ..... Will someone please help me explain it to her?
> Thanks for your time. This is a great group. I know that when I have a
> question about MTG I can always count on finding it here.
Well, below you'll see what the comprehensive rulebook has to say about
it. To make a long story short, permanents with Phasing leave play and
go to a special zone called the Phased Out zone at the beginning of your
untap step; at the same time, any phased out permanents you control
phase back in. As a result, things with phasing are only there every
other turn.
These days these creatures would just remove themselves from the game
and return themselves, but there are a number of differences between
phasing out and being removed from the game. For one thing, phased out
permanents "remember" things that previously happened to them, and keep
enchantments and counters. They do not come into play as new permanents.
This is different from EVERY other type of zone change in the game,
whether it's returning a creature to your hand, destroying it, or
whatever.
Anyhow, here's the full rules for phasing, and for the phased out zone.
As you'll see, it's relatively complicated as keyword abilities go.
That's why WotC has pretty much vowed never to bring it back
🙂.
217.8. Phased-Out
217.8a Permanents that phase out are placed in the phased-out zone. (See
rule 502.15, "Phasing.")
217.8b Face-up objects in the phased-out zone may be examined by either
player at any time. Face-down objects in the phased-out zone are covered
by the rules for face-down creatures. (See rule 502.26, "Morph," and
rule 504, "Face-Down Spells and Permanents.")
217.8c Phased-out objects are not in play, so they do not count as
tapped or untapped, nor are they controlled by anyone. However, an
object in this zone "remembers" the state of the permanent as it phased
out and returns to play in the same state as when it left. (See rule
502.15, "Phasing.") This is an exception to rule 217.1c.
217.8d Tokens in the phased-out zone cease to exist. This is a state-
based effect (see rule 420, "State-Based Effects"). Any phased-out local
enchantments or Equipment that were attached to those tokens remain
phased out for the rest of the game.
502.15. Phasing
502.15a Phasing is a static ability that modifies the rules of the untap
step.
502.15b During each player's untap step, before the active player untaps
his or her permanents, all permanents with phasing the player controls
phase out. Simultaneously, all objects that had phased out under that
player's control phase in. (See rule 217.8, "Phased-Out," and rule
302.1.)
502.15c If an effect causes a player to skip his or her untap step, the
phasing event simply doesn't occur that turn.
502.15d Permanents phasing in don't trigger any comes-into-play
abilities, and effects that modify how a permanent comes into play are
ignored. Abilities and effects that specifically mention phasing can
modify or trigger on this event, however. Permanents phasing out trigger
leaves-play abilities as usual. (Because no player receives priority
during the untap step, any abilities triggering off of the phasing event
won't go onto the stack until the upkeep step begins.)
502.15e When a permanent phases out, all damage dealt to it is removed.
502.15f A card that returns to play from the phased-out zone is
considered the same permanent it was when it left. This is an exception
to rule 217.1c, which stipulates that a permanent "forgets" its previous
existence when it changes zones.
502.15g Effects with limited duration and delayed triggered abilities
that specifically reference a permanent will be unable to further affect
that permanent if it phases out. However, other effects that reference
the permanent (including effects with unlimited duration) can affect the
permanent when it returns to play.
Example: A creature is affected by Giant Growth and then phases out
during the same turn. If the creature phases back in somehow before the
turn is over, it won't get the +3/+3 bonus from the Giant Growth because
its effect has a limited duration.
502.15h Phased-out cards "remember" their past histories and will return
to play in the same state. They "remember" any counters they had on
them, any choices made when they first came into play, and whether they
were tapped or untapped when they left play. They also "remember" who
controlled them when they phased out, although they may phase in under
the control of a different player if a control effect with limited
duration has expired.
Example: Diseased Vermin reads, in part, "At the beginning of your
upkeep, Diseased Vermin deals X damage to target opponent previously
dealt damage by it, where X is the number of infection counters on it."
If Diseased Vermin phases out, it "remembers" how many counters it has
and also which opponents it has previously damaged. When it phases back
in, it will still be able to target those opponents with its upkeep-
triggered ability.
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