Can You Target Yourself in Magic The Gathering?
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The question of whether you can target yourself in Magic: The Gathering (MTG) is a common point of confusion, especially for newer players. The short answer is: it depends on the specific card or ability. You can often target yourself with spells and abilities, but not always. The rules surrounding targeting can seem intricate, but understanding the nuances will significantly improve your gameplay. Let’s dive into the details.
Understanding Targeting in MTG
Defining a Target
In MTG, a target is a specific object (like a creature, permanent, or player) that a spell or ability affects. A spell or ability will always specify what it targets using the word “target.” If the word “target” is not present, that effect does not target. The type of target(s) will also be included (e.g. target player, target creature, target permanent). When casting a spell or using an ability that requires a target, you must choose a legal target (or targets) for the effect.
The “Target” Keyword
The crucial thing to understand is that a spell or ability will explicitly use the word “target” if it targets something. If a spell says something like “Destroy all creatures,” it doesn’t target. However, if it says, “Destroy target creature,” you must choose a single creature as the target. This distinction is essential for determining whether your own cards are valid targets.
Can You Target Yourself?
Generally, yes, you can often target yourself with spells and abilities. If a spell or ability says “target player”, and there are no other restrictions, you can select yourself as the target. This comes up more often than you might think and is actually quite common in MTG. However, there are exceptions, such as when the wording specifically restricts the target or if a game rule or card ability prevents it.
Self-Targeting Examples
There are many examples where targeting yourself is useful and even strategic:
- Card Draw: Many spells allow you to draw cards. You can target yourself with these, ensuring you have more options on your turn.
- Life Gain: When a spell allows you to gain life, you can target yourself to increase your life total.
- Discard Effects: You can sometimes use cards that cause you to discard in order to activate graveyard synergies or when a card requires it as a cost.
- Hexproof and Shroud: Crucially, effects with hexproof only prevent opponents from targeting you or your permanents. You can still enchant your own creatures with hexproof and cast spells on them. Shroud, on the other hand, prevents anyone from targeting the permanent.
When You Can’t Target Yourself
There are scenarios where self-targeting is not allowed:
- Opponent Targeting: If a card or ability specifically states “target opponent,” then you cannot target yourself. Your are your opponent during the game.
- Restrictions in the Text: Some cards may have other restrictions which prevent self-targeting, such as “target other creature” or “target player other than yourself”.
- Game Rules: The game rules themselves do not prevent you from targeting yourself unless you also have a game state where that target is not legal.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. Can You Target Your Own Creatures with Spells?
Yes, you can generally target your own creatures with spells and abilities that use the word “target“, unless stated otherwise. For instance, you can target one of your own creatures with a spell to grant it an ability or remove a negative effect.
2. Can You Target a Creature with Hexproof if you Control It?
Yes, you can. Hexproof prevents spells or abilities controlled by opponents from targeting a permanent. However, the controller of the hexproof permanent can still target it themselves.
3. Can You Target a Creature with Shroud if you Control It?
No, you cannot. Shroud prevents anyone, including the controller, from targeting that permanent with spells or abilities.
4. What Happens if a Target Becomes Illegal?
If a target becomes illegal, meaning it is no longer on the battlefield or doesn’t match the targeting criteria when the spell or ability tries to resolve, the spell or ability will fizzle. The spell does nothing.
5. Do Spells that Don’t Use the Word “Target” Still Affect Your Cards?
Yes, they do. Spells that don’t use the word “target” can affect your cards and permanents, regardless of hexproof or shroud. These are spells or abilities that affect all cards of a certain type (like “Destroy all creatures”) or all players.
6. Can You Target Yourself with Thoughtseize?
Yes, you can target yourself with Thoughtseize. Though uncommon, it is a legal play. This can sometimes be advantageous to get rid of a card from your hand for graveyard strategies.
7. Can You Target Yourself with a Card that Makes You Discard?
Yes. You are a legal target for those effects as long as you follow all of the other restrictions on the card.
8. Can You Target Your Opponent with a Card that Makes You Draw?
No, unless the card says “target player”. Cards that make you draw often use the wording “draw a card”. This means you are always drawing the card, not an opponent.
9. What is a Target Permanent?
A target permanent refers to a card or token on the battlefield that a spell or ability is directed towards. It is important to remember a permanent is only something that is on the battlefield.
10. Does Copying a Spell Copy the Target?
Yes, a copy of a spell will copy all decisions made during the casting of that spell, including targets, modes, and values chosen (like the value of X).
11. Can You Target a Planeswalker with a Removal Spell?
Yes, many removal spells can target Planeswalkers, as long as the spell’s text includes “target permanent”. If the removal spell only says “target creature,” you would not be able to use it to target a planeswalker.
12. Can Spells Target Themselves?
No. A spell on the stack cannot target itself. However, through a complex stack manipulation, you can re-target a spell on the stack to be a spell that is higher on the stack, rendering the original spell unable to resolve.
13. Does Deathtouch Target?
No, deathtouch does not target. If a creature with deathtouch deals combat damage to a creature, the creature with damage is destroyed (even if the damage was 1). Because it does not target, hexproof will not protect against it.
14. Can an Indestructible Creature be Killed by Deathtouch?
No, a creature with indestructible cannot be killed by deathtouch. Indestructible protects the creature from being destroyed by lethal damage, which is what deathtouch damage causes.
15. Can you Target Yourself with an Effect that Says “Target an Opponent”?
No. You can never be your own opponent. You are your own opponent when you are outside of a game. So you are not a legal target for any effects that target an opponent.
Conclusion
Navigating the world of targets in MTG can be tricky, but with a good understanding of the rules, you will be able to better utilize your spells and abilities. Remember the key concepts: “target” keyword, differences between hexproof and shroud, and the ability to target yourself in many scenarios. By keeping these rules in mind, you’ll be able to play more effectively and enjoy your games of MTG even more.