Most custom-card rules text is built from a small set of reusable patterns, and each one has a fixed shape Wizards' editors have used for years. Learn the shapes — trigger words, the cost-colon-effect form, "target" versus "each" — and templating becomes fill-in-the-blank instead of guesswork. This cookbook collects the patterns designers reach for most, each with its template and a one-line note on when to use it.
If you want the underlying grammar in depth, read how to write MTG oracle text first, and see MTG ability types explained for what triggered, activated, and static abilities actually are; this page is the quick-reference companion. Every pattern below is paraphrased into a template — swap in your own card name, cost, and effect.
Triggered ability patterns
Triggered abilities fire on an event and always begin with one of exactly three words: When, Whenever, or At. If your ability happens because something occurred and it doesn't start with one of those, it's templated wrong.
Enters-the-battlefield
The workhorse trigger. Use it for one-shot effects that happen the moment a permanent resolves onto the battlefield.
When this creature enters, [effect].
Note: modern templating says "enters," not the older "enters the battlefield." Refer to the card as "this creature" / "this artifact" so the text survives a rename.
Dies trigger
"Dies" is shorthand with a precise meaning: a creature is put into a graveyard from the battlefield. Use it for death payoffs and recursion.
When this creature dies, [effect].
Note: "dies" only covers the battlefield-to-graveyard move. A creature exiled, bounced, or milled has not died.
Attack and combat triggers
Combat triggers reward you for swinging. "Attacks" fires when the creature is declared as an attacker; "deals combat damage" fires later, only if it connects.
Whenever this creature attacks, [effect].
Whenever this creature deals combat damage to a player, [effect].
Note: use Whenever (not When) for events that can recur, like attacking each turn.
Beginning-of-step triggers
For effects tied to the turn structure — upkeep drains, end-step payoffs — use At.
At the beginning of your upkeep, [effect].
Note: name the step and whose turn it is. "Your upkeep" and "each opponent's end step" are both common.
Activated ability patterns
Activated abilities use the strict form Cost: Effect. The colon is load-bearing — it separates what you pay from what happens. Conventional cost order is mana, then tap or untap symbols, then everything else.
Activated ability with a tap cost
The classic "tap this to do something" line. The tap symbol is a cost, so it sits before the colon.
: [effect].
Or with mana added first, written as a backticked template: {1}{U}, {T}: [effect].
Note: a creature needs to have been under your control since your most recent turn began to pay (unless it has Haste). Tapping is a cost; it is never written after the colon.
Sacrifice as a cost
Sacrificing in a cost line is something you choose to do as part of activating the ability — it does not target and an opponent cannot respond to which permanent you pick.
Sacrifice [a thing]: [effect].
Combine it with mana for a fuller cost, shown as a backticked template: {1}{B}, Sacrifice a creature: [effect].
Note: because it's a cost, "Sacrifice a creature" uses "a," never "target." Contrast this with an effect that reads "sacrifice" after a colon or trigger, which is a different construction.
Modal patterns
A modal ability lets the player pick from a menu of effects. The header tells you how many to choose, and each mode is its own bulleted line beginning with a bullet character.
Choose one —
• [first mode].
• [second mode].
Variants swap the header: "Choose one or more —", "Choose two —", or "Choose one or both —" on a two-mode card.
Note: modes are written as complete instructions, each ending in a period. Modern modal cards use a literal bullet ("•") rather than the older em-dash bullets.
Static ability patterns
Static abilities have no trigger word and no colon. They state a continuous truth that's simply always on while the permanent is on the battlefield.
Anthem
The most common static: a passive buff to a group of permanents you control.
Creatures you control get +1/+1.
Note: there's no "When" and no cost — it's not a trigger, so don't write one. Use "other creatures you control" if the source shouldn't pump itself.
Cost reduction and taxes
Static effects that change what spells cost read as a flat statement of the new cost.
Spells you cast cost
{1}less to cast.Spells your opponents cast cost
{1}more to cast.
Note: "to cast" closes the line. Generic-mana adjustments are the safe default; reducing colored mana has corner cases.
Conditional and replacement patterns
Intervening "if" trigger
Sometimes a trigger should only do something when a condition holds. The condition goes right after the trigger, set off by commas — this is the "intervening if."
When this creature enters, if you control three or more other creatures, [effect].
Note: the condition is checked twice — when the ability would trigger and again when it resolves — so it differs from a plain "if" inside the effect. Keep the condition a simple board state.
Replacement effect
A replacement effect watches for an event and swaps it for a different one before it happens. It reads with "would" and "instead."
If [an event] would happen, instead [a different event].
A common shape: If this creature would die, instead exile it. Or for added value: "If you would draw a card, instead draw two cards" (kept deliberately simple here — real replacement effects can get intricate).
Note: replacement effects don't use a trigger word, even though they react to an event. The "would … instead" wording is the tell.
Target versus each, and capitalization
Two small choices separate clean text from sloppy text.
"Target" versus "each." Write "target" only when the player chooses, and the choice can be responded to — "[this] deals 2 damage to target creature." Write "each" for a non-choice that hits everything in a group — "[this] deals 2 damage to each creature." A board wipe uses "each"; a single bolt uses "target." Effects on triggers often use "a" or "each" precisely to avoid targeting.
Capitalize keyword abilities; don't capitalize keyword actions. Keyword abilities are proper nouns: Flying, Trample, Deathtouch, Lifelink, Menace. Keyword actions are ordinary verbs and stay lowercase mid-sentence: scry, surveil, mill, fight, exile, sacrifice. So it's "Flying, lifelink" on its own line, but "When this dies, surveil 2." The full vocabulary lives in the MTG keyword abilities list.
The pattern table
| Pattern | Template |
| --- | --- |
| ETB trigger | When this creature enters, [effect]. |
| Dies trigger | When this creature dies, [effect]. |
| Attack trigger | Whenever this creature attacks, [effect]. |
| Upkeep trigger | At the beginning of your upkeep, [effect]. |
| Tap activated ability | {T}: [effect]. |
| Sacrifice cost | Sacrifice a creature: [effect]. |
| Modal | Choose one — • [mode]. • [mode]. |
| Anthem (static) | Creatures you control get +1/+1. |
| Cost tax (static) | Spells your opponents cast cost {1} more to cast. |
| Intervening "if" | When this enters, if [condition], [effect]. |
| Replacement | If [event] would happen, instead [other event]. |
Read top to bottom, that table is most of a Magic card's grammar. Pick the pattern that matches what your ability does, drop in your specifics, and the text will already read like it was printed.
Let the editor template it for you
When you build a card in the PipGlyph editor, you can type these patterns directly and they render in a real card text box, so you immediately see whether the line fits. And if you'd rather describe an effect in plain English, the AI card generator returns properly templated oracle text — correct trigger words, the cost-colon-effect shape, "target" versus "each" handled for you. It's a quick way to check your own templating against a clean reference. If you're new to the whole process, common custom card design mistakes covers the templating errors that trip people up most.
FAQ
What is the difference between "dies" and "is destroyed"?
"Dies" means a creature is put into a graveyard from the battlefield, for any reason — destruction, lethal damage, sacrifice, or zero toughness. "Destroyed" is just one of those causes. A dies trigger fires when the creature is sacrificed; a "when this is destroyed" effect would not. Use "dies" unless you specifically want to exclude sacrifice and state-based deaths.
When do I write "target" instead of "a" or "each"?
Write "target" when a player actively chooses the object and an opponent could respond to that choice before the effect resolves — typical of spells and many activated abilities. Use "a" or "each" for non-targeting effects, which are common on triggered abilities and board-wide effects. A single-target removal spell says "destroy target creature"; a sweeper says "destroy each creature." If there's no meaningful choice to respond to, don't write "target."
Why does my activated ability need a colon?
The colon is how the rules distinguish a cost you pay from an effect that happens. Everything before the colon is the cost; everything after is the effect. Without it, the line reads as a static ability or breaks entirely. So ": Add one mana of any color" is an activated ability, while the same words without a colon would not be.
How do I capitalize keyword abilities versus keyword actions?
Keyword abilities (Flying, Trample, Deathtouch, Lifelink, Menace) are capitalized and usually listed together on their own line, comma-separated — and in modern templating only the first keyword on that line takes a capital letter, as in "Flying, lifelink." Keyword actions (scry, surveil, mill, fight) are ordinary verbs that stay lowercase when they appear mid-sentence, as in "When this dies, surveil 2."