See this post for part 1. Or read this recap:
So we’ve managed to change the rules of the game in a way that all the rules can be incorporated into 5 cards played by all players within the format. This feels like a step in the right direction–any questions about the format can be answered by simply pointing to one of 5 cards already in play. Since the abilities aren’t static, players don’t need a constant reminder of what these new rules are. And since each player starts with one of these new cards, these special “format” cards don’t need to be passed between a group of players.
For reference these 5 cards are the Ministers of War, the Environment, Information, Finances and Health. They represent a new method of producing mana (and, in the case of the Minister of Finances, how you can get this mana on your opponent’s turns). Furthermore, they represent the options of losing summoning sickness, playing an additional land, drawing additional cards, and the ability of the ministers to “restore” lost loyalty similar to how damage “falls off” creatures at the end of the turn. Instead of life, one has 5 ministers: when each is destroyed by being brought to 0 or less loyalty, you lose the game. They are not planeswalkers, although they use loyalty counters in a similar fashion and can be attacked. They are colorless and exist only in the command zone.
End Recap
Awh, you shouldn't have...
So now we reach the most daunting of subjects: the unlisted rule. For now, I’ll just call it the Raging River Rule. Now before I lose anyone out there who remembers the headaches associated with the famous mono-red enchantment that all-too-often just wound up saying “[most] creatures you control are unblockable”, the rule is anything but an exact copy of Raging River “always active” in the format. What the rule really does is change the range of influence of effects between cards and the turn order. In the War variant format, the Turn Order is changed so that the Declare Attacker’s Step and Delcare Blockers steps occurs before Main Phase 1 and Main Phase 2 (in addition to at the beginning of the Combat Phase). Furthermore, the range of influence of all cards that effect creatures in any way extends only to creatures attacking or blocking a particular Minister. Creatures attacking or blocking a minister are considered attacking or blocking creatures only during the actual Combat Step, but they remain within this special limited range of influence for the remainder of the turn. Furthermore, only creatures with Haste may be declared as attackers during the second Declare Attackers Step (the one in the combat step) and only creatures with Defender, Flying, Shadow, Reach, Horsemanship or the ability to block multiple creatures can block during the declare blockers step that occurs during the battle phase. Cards with global effects on non-creature permanents such as artifacts or enchantments must also choose a minister (yours if you are the defending player, your opponent’s if you are the attacking player) and only affect creatures also attacking and/or blocking that minister.
I think we might need an example or two.
Lets say I have 23 Grizzly Bears and my opponent has 18 Wall of Spears. So, before my Main Phase 1, first I declare my attackers–10 Grizzly Bears will attack my opponent’s Minister of War. 10 more will attack the Minister of Health. The remaining 3 Bears are not declared as attackers. My main phase 1 continues without me playing any cards or using any additional effects. During my combat step, I cannot declare any more attackers (as my three extra bears do not have Haste). My opponent, however, can choose to block with his walls (since they have Defender). So he blocks with 9 Walls blocking 9 bears in each group attacking each Minister. My bears attack and the walls block–end result each minister takes 2 damage and I lose 18 grizzly bears. Then during my Main Phase 2, I play Wrath of God. But the Wrath can only destroy 9 of his walls–either the 9 who blocked for the Minister of Health or the 9 who blocked for the Minister of War. Furthermore, only 1 of my bears would be destroyed–specifically, whichever bear survived the attack against whichever Minister I decide to Wrath. The 3 bears who did not attack can never be destroyed by the Wrath this turn, as they have never been assigned to attack or defend a minister. But what if my opponent wanted to play Holy Day? Well it would only affect creatures attacking or blocking a particular minister.
Furthermore, creatures and permanents that target a minister at any time during a turn would be affected by effects such as Wrath of God if cast on that particular minister. A creature may target another creature without becoming open to my opponent’s spells–even if that creature attacks. But if a creature attacks it cannot become the target of a spell or ability from a permanent that exists outside of the battlefield of the minister the creature is attacking. Removal spells and effects are considerably harder to resolve–but that just makes army building more possible.
Cards like Propoganda, Gravitational Shift, and Dissipation Field would also only affect one Minister–chosen as the spell is cast as though it were targeting the minister (it is not, however, targetting the minister). Cards like Runed Halo can still enchant a player (to prevent effects like Duress)…but may also target a Minister since it deals with damage.
Finally, cards like Primal Rage, Overrun and Levitation would need to specify a specific battlefield each turn (or when cast) and (in the case of the enchantments) can only be destroyed by opponent’s cards and effects (as per the rule with creatures) when in a specific battlefield (and, if by effects, by cards also in that battlefield).
