Plateau is one of those cards players keep asking about. Here is, in plain words, what its official text says, the rulings published by Wizards of the Coast, and the combos players actually run.
Official card text
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Complete guide
Plateau is one of the original legendary dual lands from the early days of Magic: The Gathering. As a Land that carries two basic land types without being a basic land itself, it offers unparalleled flexibility for decks running Red and White. Understanding how its sub-types interact with other cards is key to mastering its place in your mana base.
What It Does
Plateau is a nonbasic land with the subtypes Mountain and Plains. Because it possesses these basic land types, it inherently gains the mana abilities associated with them. This allows you to tap Plateau to add either one Red mana ({R}) or one White mana ({W}) to your mana pool. Unlike many modern dual lands, Plateau enters the battlefield untapped and has no life cost or restrictive conditions to use its abilities.
How It Resolves
When you play Plateau, it does not use the stack and cannot be responded to, as it is a land. Once on the battlefield, its mana abilities are activated abilities that also do not use the stack. You simply tap the card and choose whether you want Red or White mana. Because it is both a Mountain and a Plains, any effect in the game that checks for those specific land types will recognize Plateau as both.
Common Mistakes
The most frequent error is confusing 'basic land types' with being a 'basic land.' While Plateau is a Mountain Plains, it does not have the 'Basic' supertype. This means cards like Blood Moon will still affect it, and effects that allow you to search your library for a 'basic land' cannot find Plateau. However, effects that ask you to search for a 'Mountain card' or a 'Plains card' can indeed put Plateau directly onto the battlefield.
When to Play It
Plateau should be played as early as possible to fix your colors, especially if your hand requires both Red and White mana for early-game plays. Since it enters untapped, it provides an immediate tempo advantage over 'enters the battlefield tapped' lands. It is also highly valuable in formats where fetch lands are legal, as they can specifically search for Plateau due to its subtypes.
Interaction examples
Command TowerIf your Commander's color identity includes Red and White, Plateau provides both options immediately. Unlike Command Tower, which scales with your Commander, Plateau always provides {R} or {W} regardless of your Commander's presence on the field, ensuring you have the specific colors needed for Boros spells.
Exotic OrchardIf your opponent controls a Plateau, your Exotic Orchard can now produce either Red or White mana. This is because Exotic Orchard checks what colors the lands your opponents control 'could produce.' Since Plateau can produce {R} or {W}, your Orchard gains both options.
Guide written with AI from the official text and rulings. Official English text prevails.
How it works : Plateau
Original English text — Wizards of the Coast / Scryfall
- #1· Wizards of the Coast
This has the mana abilities associated with both of its basic land types.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #2· Wizards of the Coast
This has basic land types, but it isn't a basic land. Things that affect basic lands don't affect it. Things that affect basic land types do.
No other card is named in this ruling.
Legal formats
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Meta decks with Plateau
No archived Top 8 deck with this card yet.