- 607.1 An object may have two abilities printed on it such that one of them causes actions to be taken or objects or players to be affected and the other one directly refers to those actions, objects, or players. If so, these two abilities are linked: the second refers only to actions that were taken or objects or players that were affected by the first, and not by any other ability.
- 607.1a An ability printed on an object within another ability that grants that ability to that object is considered to be “printed on” that object for these purposes.
- 607.1b An ability printed on either face of a double-faced card (see rule 711) is still considered to be “printed on” that object for these purposes, regardless of which face is up.
- 607.1c An ability printed on an object that fulfills both criteria described in rule 607.1 is linked to itself.
- 607.2a If an object has an activated or triggered ability printed on it that instructs a player to exile one or more cards and an ability printed on it that refers either to “the exiled cards” or to cards “exiled with [this object],” these abilities are linked. The second ability refers only to cards in the exile zone that were put there as a result of an instruction to exile them in the first ability.
- 607.2b If an object has an ability printed on it that generates a replacement effect which causes one or more cards to be exiled and an ability printed on it that refers either to “the exiled cards” or to cards “exiled with [this object],” these abilities are linked. The second ability refers only to cards in the exile zone that were put there as a direct result of a replacement event caused by the first ability. See rule 614, “Replacement Effects.”
- 607.2c If an object has an activated or triggered ability printed on it that puts one or more objects onto the battlefield and an ability printed on it that refers to objects “put onto the battlefield with [this object]” or “created with [this object],” those abilities are linked. The second can refer only to objects put onto the battlefield as a result of the first.
- 607.2d If an object has an ability printed on it that causes a player to “choose a [value]” or and an ability printed on it that refers to “the chosen [value],” “the last chosen [value],” or similar, those abilities are linked. The second ability refers only to a choice made as a result of the first ability.
- 607.2e If an object has an ability printed on it that causes a player to choose from between two or more words that otherwise have no rules meaning and an ability printed on it that refers to a choice involving one or more of those words, those abilities are linked. The second can refer only to a choice made as a result of the first ability.
- 607.2f If an object has an ability printed on it that causes a player to pay a cost as it enters the battlefield and an ability printed on it that refers to the cost paid “as [this object] entered the battlefield,” these abilities are linked. The second ability refers only to a cost paid as a result of the first ability.
- 607.2g If an object has both a static ability and one or more triggered abilities printed on it in the same paragraph, each of those triggered abilities is linked to the static ability. Each triggered ability refers only to actions taken as a result of the static ability. See rule 603.11.
- 607.2h If an object has a kicker ability printed on it and an ability printed on it that refers to whether that object was kicked, those abilities are linked. The second refers only to whether the intent to pay the kicker cost listed in the first was declared as the object was cast as a spell. If a kicker ability lists multiple costs, it will have multiple abilities linked to it. Each of those abilities will specify which kicker cost it refers to. See rule 702.32, “Kicker.”
- 607.2i If an object has an ability printed on it that causes a player to pay a variable additional cost as it’s cast and an ability printed on it that refers to the cost paid “as [this object] was cast,” these abilities are linked. The second refers only to the value chosen for the cost listed in the first as the object was cast as a spell. See rule 601.2b.
- 607.2j The two abilities represented by the champion keyword are linked abilities. See rule 702.71, “Champion.”
- 607.2k Abilities preceded by an anchor word are linked to the ability that allows a player to choose that anchor word. See rule 614.12b.
- 607.2m If an object has a static ability printed on it that allows a player to exile one or more cards “before you shuffle your deck to start the game” and an ability printed on it that refers to cards “exiled with cards named [this object’s name],” the second ability is linked to the first ability of any objects that had the specified name before the game began.
Example: Paradise Plume has the following three abilities: “As Paradise Plume enters the battlefield, choose a color,” “Whenever a player casts a spell of the chosen color, you may gain 1 life,” and “{T}: Add one mana of the chosen color.” The first and second abilities are linked. The first and third abilities are linked.
- 607.5 If an object acquires a pair of linked abilities as part of the same effect, the abilities will be similarly linked to one another on that object even though they weren’t printed on that object. They can’t be linked to any other ability, regardless of what other abilities the object may currently have or may have had in the past.
Example: Arc-Slogger has the ability “{R}, Exile the top ten cards of your library: Arc-Slogger deals 2 damage to any target.” Sisters of Stone Death has the ability “{B}{G}: Exile target creature blocking or blocked by Sisters of Stone Death” and the ability “{2}{B}: Put a creature card exiled with Sisters of Stone Death onto the battlefield under your control.” Quicksilver Elemental has the ability “{U}: Quicksilver Elemental gains all activated abilities of target creature until end of turn.” If a player has Quicksilver Elemental gain Arc-Slogger’s ability, activates it, then has Quicksilver Elemental gain Sisters of Stone Death’s abilities, activates the exile ability, and then activates the return-to-the-battlefield ability, only the creature card Quicksilver Elemental exiled with Sisters of Stone Death’s ability can be returned to the battlefield. Creature cards Quicksilver Elemental exiled with Arc-Slogger’s ability can’t be returned.
- 607.5a If an object gains an ability that refers to a choice, but either (a) doesn’t copy that ability’s linked ability or (b) does copy the linked ability but no choice is made for it, then the choice is considered to be “undefined.” If an ability refers to an undefined choice, that part of the ability won’t do anything.
Example: Voice of All enters the battlefield and Unstable Shapeshifter copies it. Voice of All reads, in part, “As Voice of All enters the battlefield, choose a color.” and “Voice of All has protection from the chosen color.” Unstable Shapeshifter never had a chance for a color to be chosen for it, because it didn’t enter the battlefield as a Voice of All card, so the protection ability doesn’t protect it from anything at all.
Example: A Vesuvan Doppelganger enters the battlefield as a copy of Voice of All, and the Doppelganger’s controller chooses blue. Later, the Doppelganger copies Quirion Elves, which has the ability, “{T}: Add one mana of the chosen color.” Even though a color was chosen for the Doppelganger, it wasn’t chosen for the ability linked to the mana ability copied from the Elves. If that mana ability of the Doppelganger is activated, it will not produce mana.