The Tool Desk
Outbyte Driver Updater FREEFix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Outbyte PC Repair FREERepair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Magic: The Gathering’s warp mechanic lets you cast a permanent from your hand for an alternative cost, use it temporarily, then potentially cast it again from exile on a later turn. It evokes teleportation and hyperspace travel, but the card does not automatically return to the battlefield.
How warp works
Warp is an alternative cost printed on certain permanent cards in Edge of Eternities. You may cast the card from your hand by paying its warp cost instead of its regular cost. It is still a spell: it goes on the stack and can be responded to or countered as usual. The official Edge of Eternities Release Notes explain the mechanic and its rulings.
- Cast from your hand: Pay the warp cost to cast the card. This does not put it directly onto the battlefield.
- Use it on the battlefield: If it resolves, it enters the battlefield and can contribute its abilities or other effects.
- Exile at the next end step: At the beginning of the next end step, a delayed ability exiles it if it is still on the battlefield. If it left the battlefield before that ability resolves, the ability will not exile it from its new location.
- Consider casting it again later: After it is exiled through warp, its owner may cast it from exile on a later turn, paying its regular cost.
The later-turn restriction matters: the card does not return automatically, and you cannot recast it from exile during the same turn it was warped. You also need to be allowed to cast it at that time. In the usual case, that means casting it during a main phase when the stack is empty.
Does warp exile a creature at end of combat?
No. Under the released rules, the warped permanent is exiled at the beginning of the next end step, not at end of combat. That timing gives players an opportunity to interact during the second main phase before the end step begins.
Recommended Free Tools
#1 Best Overall
- SURPASS YOUR PROGRAMMING—Boost artifacts and proliferate counters with the aid of interstellar vessel, Inspirit, and its sentient navigational consciousness, Kilo
- 2 FOIL BORDERLESS COMMANDERS—Every Edge of Eternities Commander Deck includes 2 Traditional Foil Legendary Creature cards featuring Borderless art
- INTRODUCES 12 COMMANDER CARDS—Each deck introduces 12 never-before-seen Commander cards to Magic: The Gathering
- COLLECT SPECIAL TREATMENT CARDS—Each deck also comes with a 2-card Collector Booster Sample Pack containing 1 Traditional Foil card and 1 alt-border Rare or Mythic Rare (foil or nonfoil)
- THRILLING MULTIPLAYER BATTLES—Commander is a multiplayer way to play Magic, an epic, free-for-all battle full of strategic plays and social intrigue
That differs from an early design version described in Wizards of the Coast’s Edge of Eternities Vision Design Handoff, Part 2, which exiled the card at end of combat and limited when it could be warped. Mark Rosewater’s account of the design process says the final timing and later-turn recast restriction were adjustments intended to improve how the mechanic played. See Giving the Players an Edge, Part 2.
What warp looks like on cards
The release notes use two cards to show how the mechanic can serve different roles. These are examples, not a ranking of which card is stronger.
Rank #2
- BATTLE FOR THE FATE OF A DYING STAR—Explore distant planets, wield dazzling magic, and wage war with alien factions
- LAUNCH YOUR COSMIC COLLECTION—Behold the wonders of the Sothera system with a Bundle full of out-of-this-world cards and play accessories
- ALTERNATE-ART PROMO CARD—Every Bundle comes with 1 promo card featuring Bundle-exclusive alternate art and a shiny Traditional Foil treatment
- 9 BOOSTERS FOR PLAYING WITH FRIENDS—Perfect for building decks, playing Limited games, and tons of fun to open, this Bundle includes 9 Play Boosters, with at least 1 Traditional Foil card and the possibility of multiple Rares in every pack
- BORDERLESS LAND CARDS—Explore The Edge with 15 Traditional Foil and 15 nonfoil Basic Land cards, including 10 Borderless Lands (5 foil, 5 nonfoil) offering cosmic vistas
| Card | Warp cost | What it contributes during the temporary turn |
|---|---|---|
| Memorial Team Leader | {1}{R} | A Kavu Soldier that can provide a temporary creature presence. |
| Starbreach Whale | {1}{U} | A flying Whale with an enters ability, offering an effect when it arrives as well as a temporary body. |
In either case, the warp cost is the cost to cast the card from your hand. If it remains on the battlefield through the next end step, it is exiled; a later cast from exile requires its regular cost.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Why the mechanic is tied to teleportation
Warp represents creatures and spacecraft entering and exiting hyperspace or teleporting. The Vision Design Handoff left room for different creative interpretations, while Mark Rosewater describes the intended feel as space-opera teleportation and hyperspace travel. Its play pattern also drew on ideas associated with evoke’s cheaper temporary use and Adventure’s option to cast a creature later.
Rank #3
- 6 Edge of Eternities Play Boosters
- 1 Traditional Foil Rare/Mythic with a year stamp
- Spindown life counter
The setting gives that travel a more specific form: faster-than-light journeys are called warp or “Weft” travel among Pinnacle socients. The Planeswalker’s Guide to Edge of Eternities describes ships entering the Weft, a parallel region behind the Chaos Wall, and emerging at their destination. For the journey it describes, ships need an eternity drive, proximity to an eternity column, and a Pinnacle codebook.
Quick Recap
Best Value
- BATTLE FOR THE FATE OF A DYING STAR—Explore distant planets, wield dazzling magic, and wage war with alien factions
- LAUNCH YOUR COSMIC COLLECTION—Collector Boosters are the ultimate way to add unique and exclusive cards to your collection, with tons of foils, special card treatments, and more
- MAY CONTAIN GALAXY FOIL CARDS—Make your deck sparkle like starlight with 0–3 Galaxy Foil cards in each Edge of Eternities Collector Booster
- POWER IN RARITY—Collect some of the hardest-to-find cards with 5 cards of rarity Rare or higher in every pack
- CONTENTS—1 Edge of Eternities Collector Booster containing 15 MTG cards and 1 Traditional Foil double-sided token.
Rank #4
- Experience Magic: The Gathering like you've never seen it before in Edge of Eternities. This far-out set takes the Magic Multiverse into the realm of science fantasy. You'll spacewalk through the Sothera system, an enigmatic realm at the far edges of the Multiverse. The sky isn't the limit; we're taking to the stars.
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
