An anchor word is a word that precedes a choice on a modal spell, to give the respective abilities a bit of flavor and signify the choice. Anchor words don't have a specific rule attached to them, but always tie the existence of a continuous effect to the choice.[1]
History[ | ]
Anchor words were introduced in Fate Reforged, where the "Siege"-cycle featured the choice between "Khans" and "Dragons".[2][3]
Anchor words also appeared in Unstable and Modern Horizons. The flavor words from Adventures in the Forgotten Realms have a similar function. Those involving a modal choice can be accounted as anchor words as well.[4][5] However, many of those do not meet the condition of it being an enters the battlefield-ability.
Anchor words are now considered to be deciduous.[4]
Examples of anchor words[ | ]
| Anchor words | Card(s) | Set | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Self" and "Others" |
Feed the Machine |
Archenemy | |
| "Khans" and "Dragons" | "Siege"-cycle | Fate Reforged | |
| "Flavorful" and "Bland" | Ineffable Blessing | Unstable[6] | Acorn |
| "Whack", "Doodle" and "Buzz" | Buzzing Whack-a-Doodle | Unstable[7] | Acorn |
| "Mirran" and "Phyrexian" | Mirrodin Besieged | Modern Horizons | |
| "Executioner Round" and "Hyperfrag Round" | Primaris Eliminator | Warhammer 40,000 Commander Decks | Types of ammunition from a Universes Beyond IP |
| "NCR" and "Legion" | Battle of Hoover Dam | Fallout | Factions from a Universes Beyond IP |
| "Brotherhood" and "Enclave" | Struggle for Project Purity | Fallout | Factions from a Universes Beyond IP |
Examples of Flavor-anchor words[ | ]
Rules[ | ]
From the glossary of the Comprehensive Rules (April 12, 2024—Outlaws of Thunder Junction)
- Anchor Word
- A word that precedes one of two abilities a permanent may enter the battlefield with. See rule 614.12b.
From the Comprehensive Rules (April 12, 2024—Outlaws of Thunder Junction)
- 614.12b Some replacement effects cause a permanent to enter the battlefield with its controller’s choice of one of two abilities, each marked with an anchor word and preceded by a bullet point. “[Anchor word] — [ability]” means “As long as [anchor word] was chosen as this permanent entered the battlefield, this permanent has [ability].” The abilities preceded by anchor words are each linked to the ability that causes a player to choose between them. See rule 607, “Linked Abilities.”
Rulings[ | ]
- The anchor word "Dragons" has no connection to the creature type Dragon.[8]
- Will of the council options from Conspiracy, and Council's dilemma options from Conspiracy: Take the Crown are not anchor words, because they don't represent a modal choice.[1] The voting is just voting for arbitrary words and referring to how many times certain votes were received.
References[ | ]
- ↑ a b Ethan Fleischer (July 30, 2019). "Know Your Anchor Words.". Twitter.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (January 12, 2015). "Fate-ful Stories, Part 1". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Matt Tabak (January 15, 2015). "Fate Reforged Update Bulletin — Comprehensive Rule Changes". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ a b Mark Rosewater (March 28, 2022). "Deciduous". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (March 29, 2022). "You seem to count flavor words as anchor words. Is that correct?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Adam Styborski (November 14, 2017). "Welcome to Flavortown! (Or Not)". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (November 27, 2017). "Unstable Scraps, Part 1". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Wizards of the Coast (January 14, 2015). "Fate Reforged Release Notes". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.