Amonkhet Magic: The Gathering Split Card Rule Changed Announced

Amonkhet will introduce a new kind of split cards with the Aftermath mechanic, but ahead of its release later this month, Wizards of the Coast just announced a major change for all split cards, not just the ones from the new Magic: The Gathering set.

There's been a confusion when asking the converted mana costs of split cards, so to simplify them, Wizards is changing the way converted mana costs of split cards are determined. As explained on the WOTC's site:

The core of the change is that we're no longer assuming split cards have two sets of characteristics when they're not on the stack. Some characteristics have multiple pieces of information very naturally—Destined to Lead is an instant sorcery, the same as Ornithopter is an artifact creature. It's black and green just like Winding Constrictor because its mana cost has B and G in it. Continuing that, the mana cost combines the components, and a card asking for Destined to Lead's mana cost sees 4BG.

So now, the converted mana cost question is simple: if Destined to Lead isn't on the stack, it has a converted mana cost of 6. Destined on the stack is still a black instant with a converted mana cost of 2, and Lead on the stack is still a green sorcery with a converted mana cost of 4, but Destined to Lead, any time it's not one or the other, is a black and green instant sorcery with a converted mana cost of 6.

This means that a lot of decks that take advantage of split cards converted mana costs interations will no longer work. You can no longer cascade into Boom & Bust with Violent Outburst; Kari Zev's Expertise or any other Expertise cards from Aether Revolt won't let you cast Beck & Call or Breaking & Entering; Isochron Scepter won't let you imprint Bound & Determined or Far & Away; and Counterbalance revealing Wear & Tear counters a spell with conveerted mana cost 3, not 1 or 2. Now, I feel bad for those people who bought Split cards and other cards for Expertise decks in Modern. I'm sure prices of split cards will drop following this major change.

Related: Amonkhet's Blue God, Kefnet, The Careful, Revealed