Woodland Chasm — ruling 1

Snow is a supertype, not a card type. It has no rules meaning or function by itself, but spells and abilities may refer to it.

Woodland Chasm — ruling 2

The {S} symbol is a generic mana symbol. It represents a cost that can be paid by one mana that was produced by a snow source. That mana can be any color or colorless.

Woodland Chasm — ruling 3

Snow isn't a type of mana. If an effect says you may spend mana as though it were any type, you can't pay for {S} using mana that wasn't produced by a snow source.

Woodland Chasm — ruling 4

Some cards have additional effects for each {S} spent to cast them. You can cast these spells even if you don't spend any snow mana to cast them; their additional effects simply won't do anything.

Woodland Chasm — ruling 5

The Kaldheim set doesn't have any cards with mana costs that include {S}, but some previous sets do. If an effect says such a spell costs {1} less to cast, that reduction doesn't apply to any {S} costs. This is also true for activated abilities that include {S} in their activation costs and effects that reduce those costs.

Woodland Chasm : règles, fonctionnement et interactions (MTG)

Woodland Chasm 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

(: Add or .) This land enters tapped.

Complete guide

Woodland Chasm is a dual-colored snow land that provides flexible mana for Golgari decks. As a card with both basic land types, it offers great synergy with effects that care about Swamps or Forests. This land is a vital tool for players looking to enable snow-based abilities while fixing their mana base.

A Land with Multiple Identities

Woodland Chasm possesses the Swamp and Forest subtypes, which means it counts as both for any card that checks for land types. However, because it lacks the 'Basic' supertype, it is a nonbasic land and can only be used in formats where it is legal. The 'Snow' supertype identifies it as a snow source, allowing the mana it produces to pay for costs represented by the {S} symbol.

How it Enters and Operates

When you play Woodland Chasm, it enters the battlefield tapped. This is a static replacement effect that does not use the stack and cannot be responded to. Once it is on the battlefield, you can tap it to add either one Black mana ({B}) or one Green mana ({G}) to your mana pool. This mana is considered to have come from a snow source.

Common Misconceptions

A common mistake is treating 'Snow' as a color or type of mana. Snow is a supertype, not a mana type; mana produced by Woodland Chasm is still just Black or Green, but it carries a 'snow' attribute. Additionally, while it has basic land types, you cannot search for it with effects that specify 'Basic Land' because it is nonbasic.

Strategy and Timing

Because it enters tapped, you should plan your turn ahead of time, usually playing it on a turn where you don't need the extra mana immediately. It is exceptionally strong in decks using cards that require {S} costs or in Commander decks where land-type-specific fetches are common.

Interaction examples

Fixing for Your Commander

Command Tower

If your Commander is Green and Black, Woodland Chasm provides both colors. While Command Tower can also provide either color, Woodland Chasm uniquely provides 'snow' mana, which can be used for special costs that Command Tower's mana cannot satisfy.

Mirroring Opponents' Mana

Exotic Orchard

If you control Woodland Chasm and your opponent controls Exotic Orchard, their Exotic Orchard can now tap for either Black or Green. This is because Exotic Orchard checks what colors your lands could produce, and Woodland Chasm's subtypes allow it to produce both.

Guide written with AI from the official text and rulings. Official English text prevails.

How it works : Woodland Chasm

Original English text — Wizards of the Coast / Scryfall

#1February 5, 2021· Wizards of the Coast
Snow is a supertype, not a card type. It has no rules meaning or function by itself, but spells and abilities may refer to it.
No other card is named in this ruling.
#2February 5, 2021· Wizards of the Coast
The symbol is a generic mana symbol. It represents a cost that can be paid by one mana that was produced by a snow source. That mana can be any color or colorless.
No other card is named in this ruling.
#3February 5, 2021· Wizards of the Coast
Snow isn't a type of mana. If an effect says you may spend mana as though it were any type, you can't pay for using mana that wasn't produced by a snow source.
No other card is named in this ruling.
#4February 5, 2021· Wizards of the Coast
Some cards have additional effects for each spent to cast them. You can cast these spells even if you don't spend any snow mana to cast them; their additional effects simply won't do anything.
No other card is named in this ruling.
#5February 5, 2021· Wizards of the Coast
The Kaldheim set doesn't have any cards with mana costs that include , but some previous sets do. If an effect says such a spell costs less to cast, that reduction doesn't apply to any costs. This is also true for activated abilities that include in their activation costs and effects that reduce those costs.
No other card is named in this ruling.