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Formless Genesis

Formless Genesis

Kindred Sorcery — Shapeshifter

rare

Changeling (This card is every creature type.) Create an X/X colorless Shapeshifter creature token with changeling and deathtouch, where X is the number of land cards in your graveyard. Retrace (You may cast this card from your graveyard by discarding a land card in addition to paying its other costs.)

$0.25 View on Scryfall →

Semantic Tags

Cares about cards in the graveyard, puts cards into the graveyard, or benefits from things dying.

Creates creature tokens, Treasure tokens, Food tokens, Clue tokens, or other token types.

Tribalmechanical

Cares about creature types — lords, type-matters effects, and changeling.

Format Legality

commanderlegal
oathbreakerlegal
modernnot legal
pioneernot legal
standardnot legal
legacylegal
vintagelegal
paupernot legal
historicnot legal
explorernot legal
alchemynot legal

Price history

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Printings (3)

Related Concepts

Changeling

A characteristic-defining ability that grants the object it’s on every creature type. See rule 702.73, “Changeling.”

Retrace

A keyword ability that lets a player cast a card from their graveyard. See rule 702.81, “Retrace.”

Related Rules

702.73

Changeling

702.73a

Changeling is a characteristic-defining ability. “Changeling” means “This object is every creature type.” This ability works everywhere, even outside the game. See rule 604.3.

702.81

Retrace

702.81a

Retrace is a static ability that functions while the card with retrace is in a player’s graveyard. “Retrace” means “You may cast this card from your graveyard by discarding a land card as an additional cost to cast it.” Casting a spell using its retrace ability follows the rules for paying additional costs in rules 601.2b and 601.2f–h.

707.9d

When applying a copy effect that doesn’t copy a certain characteristic, retains one or more original values for a certain characteristic, or provides a specific set of values for a certain characteristic, any characteristic-defining ability (see rule 604.3) of the object being copied that defines that characteristic is not copied. If that characteristic is color, any color indicator (see rule 204) of that object is also not copied. This rule does not apply to copy effects with exceptions that state the object is a certain card type, supertype, and/or subtype “in addition to its other types.” In those cases, any characteristic-defining ability that defines card type, supertype, and/or subtype is copied.

707.9f

Some exceptions to the copying process apply only if the copy is or has certain characteristics. To determine whether such an exception applies, consider what the resulting permanent’s characteristics would be if the copy effect were applied without that exception, taking into account any other exceptions that effect includes.

Rulings

2024-09-20

A retrace card cast from your graveyard follows the normal timing rules for its card type.

2024-09-20

The subtype Shapeshifter that appears on the type line is mostly there to reinforce the flavor. A spell or token with changeling is just as much an Elf, a Dwarf, a Sliver, a Goat, a Coward, and a Zombie as it is a Shapeshifter.

2024-09-20

The value of X is determined only once, as Formless Genesis resolves. The token's power and toughness won't change if the number of land cards in your graveyard later changes.

2024-09-20

When a retrace spell you cast from your graveyard resolves, fails to resolve, or is countered, it's put back into your graveyard. You may use the retrace ability to cast it again.

2024-09-20

Changeling is a characteristic-defining ability. It functions in all zones.

2024-09-20

If the active player casts a spell that has retrace, that player may cast that card again after it resolves, before another player can remove the card from the graveyard. The active player has priority after the spell resolves, so they can immediately cast a new spell. Since casting a card with retrace from the graveyard moves that card onto the stack, no one else would have the chance to affect it while it's still in the graveyard.

2024-09-20

Casting a card by using its retrace ability works just like casting any other spell, with two exceptions: You're casting it from your graveyard rather than your hand, and you must discard a land card in addition to any other costs.