Energy

Energy is a resource and mechanic that was introduced in the Kaladesh block (Kaladesh and Aether Revolt). 
==Description==
The mechanic enables the production of energy counters, which may be used to pay the costs of activated and triggered abilities. 
An energy counter is a counter that, unlike most other counters, is placed on players rather than objects. Most cards that grant energy counters also provide a way to spend them. However, because they are placed on the player rather than a specific object, energy counters from one card can be saved up and spent on the abilities of other cards. Energy counters don't go away as phases or steps end, or as the turn ends, and no cards printed in the Kaladesh block remove energy counters from other players. They could only be removed when the player chose to spend them. However, Core Set 2019 featured <c>Suncleanser</c> which could remove energy counters.
===Flavor===
Energy counters represent aether, magical energy that is found throughout the Multiverse. While it is present throughout the Blind Eternities and touches all planes to some extent, on Kaladesh, it is an integral part of the ecosystem.
==History==
Energy was originally designed for Mirrodin, but was not printed in that set. R&D tried it again for the Esper mechanic in Shards of Alara, but it was cut there as well. For many years, it was known only as "Mechanic E", after being mentioned as such by Mark Rosewater. Following that mention, many mechanics were speculated to be "Mechanic E", notably including the colorless mana symbol . This occasionally led Mark Rosewater to specifically refute those claims.
Mark Rosewater finally confirmed that "Mechanic E" would be in Kaladesh a few days before the mechanic was officially revealed. It was first previewed on the card <c>Aetherworks Marvel</c> at PAX West 2016.Magic Twitch channel (September 2, 2016). Magic at PAX: Kaladesh Debut.
For Kaladesh, Development built an energy economy to help ensure that any energy expenditure has roughly equal value. In order to create sufficient variety in that economy, both costs and production of energy were doubled relative to the mechanic as produced by the design team. The mechanic has been openly acknowledged as parasitic. However, R&D argues that this is less problematic than some previous mechanics because most energy-using cards serve as both sources and outlets for energy.
Another complaint was that Energy was too strong a mechanic, overshadowing other mechanics in Standard. This was also acknowledged by Mark Rosewater, who remarked that R&D had missed on the right power level in their first outing with the mechanic, but that it was not a flaw of the mechanic but rather a matter of costing.
After a cameo appearance in Jumpstart: Historic Horizons (<c>Longtusk Stalker</c>), Energy returned as a main mechanic in the Universes Beyond Fallout set and again shortly afterwards in Modern Horizons 3. The latter set had to divvy up the core themes and Eldrazi worked better in green/blue/red as it wanted to have more ramping elements and wanted green more. Energy went into blue/red/white because it had more of an aggro component and played better in those colors.
Less than a year later, energy returned once more as part of the Aetherdrift Commander deck Living Energy. After having been shifted away from green and into white for the prior two releases, this Avishkar-themed deck marked a return to the three-color combination that had received the most energy-utilizing cards in original Kaladesh block and gave it its first dedicated energy commanders: <c>Saheeli, Radiant Creator</c> and <c>Pia Nalaar, Chief Mechanic</c>.
===Energy symbol===
The energy symbol was introduced in Kaladesh to represent a cost for energy counters. A common player complaint concerns the typesetting of those symbols, which are printed in a single line with even spacing throughout the line. On cards that use many energy counters within a single ability, this makes reading the correct number of symbols difficult. Future printings of the mechanic might use small variations in spacing to alleviate the issue. It was ultimately decided on energy's return in Modern Horizons 3 to spell out higher numbers, as seen on <c>Roil Cartographer</c>.
==Rules==
==Rulings==
* is the energy symbol. It represents one energy counter.
*Energy counters are a kind of counter that a player may have. They're not associated with any specific permanents.
*Keep track of how many energy counters each player has. Potential ways to track this include writing theme down on paper or using dice, but any method that is clear and mutually agreeable is fine. (At higher levels of tournament play, dice may not be allowed for tracking counters that players have.)
*If an effect says you get one or more , you get that many energy counters. To pay one or more , you lose that many energy counters. You can't pay more energy counters than you have. Any effects that interact with counters a player gets, has, or loses can interact with energy counters.
*Energy counters aren't mana. They don't go away as steps, phases, and turns end, and effects that add mana "of any type" can't give you energy counters.
*Some triggered abilities state that you "may pay" a certain amount of . You can't pay that amount multiple times to multiply the effect. You simply choose whether or not to pay that amount of as the ability resolves.
*Some triggered abilities that state that you "may pay" a certain amount of describe an effect that happens "If you do." In that case, no player may take actions to try to stop the ability's effect after you make your choice. If the payment is followed by the phrase "When you do," then you'll choose any targets for that reflexive triggered ability and put it on the stack before players can take actions.
*If a spell or ability with one or more targets states that you "may pay" some amount of , and each permanent that it targets has become an illegal target, the spell or ability won't resolve. You can't pay any even if you want to.
*Some spells and abilities that give you may require targets. If each target chosen is an illegal target as that spell or ability tries to resolve, it won't resolve. You won't get any .
==Examples==
==Gallery==
File:KLD Energy Reserve.png|Kaladesh <c>Energy Reserve</c> marker.
File:PIP Energy Reserve.png|Fallout <c>Energy Reserve</c> marker.
==References==
 
Category:Game concepts
Category:Miscellaneous mechanics