Magic Banned & Restricted Updates February 2014

With the release of Born of the Gods, all sanctioned formats as well as the group that oversees the Commander format announced their updates to banned and restricted lists.

The following changes are:

 

Modern

Deathrite Shaman is banned.

Bitterblossom and Wild Nacatl are unbanned.

 

Standard, Extended, Legacy, Vintage

No changes

 

Commander

Sylvan Primordial is banned.

 

Functional Errata and Relevant Rules Changes

Blind Fury and Cloudstone Curio have returned to their original printed errata, and Goblin Warchief has finally been given the Warrior subtype. Burning of Xinye was also changed in a previous update, but it has been reversed due to a convoluted interaction with indestructible lands (apparently).

The most noteworthy card change is Psychic Battle. It has been changed now to that multiple copies of Psychic Battle don’t trigger off one another.

Rules-wise, the main thing that arose was a clarification regarding when a spell with multiple targets resolves. Normally, if one or more of the targets becomes illegal, the spell still resolves and does as much as it can. (If all targets are illegal the spell fails). However, effects that will affect all of the targets oddly occasionally still affect said illegal targets. The example they use is Frost Breath. It has now been changed, for example, so that if one of Frost Breath’s targets becomes illegal, the illegal target isn’t affected by the “does not untap” effect.

Additionally, there was a clarification on how Daxos of Meletis interacts with the Commander tax if he tries to cast another player’s Commander. (It’s odd that this update comes from Wizards and not the Commander Rules Committee, but we imagine there had to be some sort of talk behind the scenes on it.)

 

The explanations of the non-Commander Banned & Restricted changes can be found here.

The Commander announcement can be found here.

The full list of rules clarifications can be viewed here.