BinderLoot

Your first game

Set up a game of two, keep a hand, and know when the game ends.

5 min read

After this guide you can

  • Set up a game of two from a shuffled deck, with mulligans.
  • Say which player draws on turn one.
  • Name three ways a player loses.

What each player needs

20
life at the start of a game
7
cards in an opening hand

Each player brings a deck of their own and a way to count life. A notepad works, and so does a phone.

  • Each player starts the game at 20 life. Commander starts at 40.

    CR 103.4, 103.4c

Setting up, in order

  1. 1Pick the player who chooses who goes first. In the first game, flip a coin or roll a die.
  2. 2Each player shuffles their deck. From now on, the deck is called your library.
  3. 3Each player draws seven cards. This is the opening hand.
  4. 4If you do not like your hand, take a mulligan: shuffle it back, draw seven new cards, and put one card on the bottom of your library for each mulligan you took.
  5. 5When every player keeps a hand, the starting player takes the first turn.

  • Before the first game of a match, the players agree on a way, such as a coin flip, to pick the player who chooses who goes first. In a later game of the match, the loser of the previous game chooses.

    CR 103.1

  • Each player draws seven cards. To mulligan, shuffle the hand into the library and draw seven again, then put one card on the bottom for each mulligan taken.

    CR 103.5

Worked example: Ana and Ben start a game

  • Island, a basic land that taps to add one blue manaIslandBasic Land — Island

Island, Marvel Super Heroes, illustrated by Raymond Bonilla. Card images from Scryfall. Magic: The Gathering is a trademark of Wizards of the Coast. Marvel and all related character names are trademarks of MARVEL. BinderLoot is unofficial Fan Content and is not approved or endorsed by Wizards or by Marvel.

  1. 1Ana and Ben flip a coin. Ana wins and chooses to go first, so Ana is the starting player.
  2. 2Both players shuffle and draw seven cards.
  3. 3Ana has one land in her hand, an Island, which is too few. She takes a mulligan: she shuffles, draws seven new cards, and puts one of them on the bottom. She keeps six cards.
  4. 4Ben likes his hand and keeps all seven cards.
  5. 5Ana takes the first turn and does not draw a card. Ben draws a card in his first turn, as normal.

  • In a two-player game, the player who goes first skips the draw step of their first turn. In a game of three or more players, nobody skips it.

    CR 103.8a, 103.8c

How a game ends

You win when every opponent has lost. Most games end on life, so watch your life total and the damage your opponent can deal next turn.

  • Your life total is 0 or less.
  • You must draw a card from an empty library.
  • You have 10 or more poison counters.
  • You concede.

  • A player loses at 0 life or less, when they must draw from an empty library, with 10 or more poison counters, or when they concede.

    CR 104.3a, 104.3b, 104.3c, 104.3d, 704.5a, 704.5b, 704.5c

Your turn: finish the setup

Chris and Dana play the second game of a match. Chris lost the first game.

1 / 2Who chooses the player who goes first?
2 / 2Dana takes two mulligans and keeps her third hand. How many cards does she keep?

Check yourself

1 / 3You go first in a game of two. What happens in the draw step of your first turn?
2 / 3Which of these makes a player lose the game?
3 / 3Ben has 3 life and takes 5 damage. What happens?
Next guideReading a cardThe cost, the type and the text tell you what a card does and when you can play it.

Sources