Glowcap Lantern
Artifact — Equipment
Card text
Equipped creature has "You may look at the top card of your library any time" and "Whenever this creature attacks, it explores." (Reveal the top card of your library. Put that card into your hand if it's a land. Otherwise, put a +1/+1 counter on that creature, then put the card back or put it into your graveyard.)
Equip
Showing The Lost Caverns of Ixalan#187
Price
0.20 $
Foil 0.29 $
8 printings
Daily estimate from Scryfall, not a shop quote.
Glowcap Lantern rulings
The ability granted by Glowcap Lantern lets you look at the top card of your library whenever you want (with one restriction—see below), even if you don't have priority. This action doesn't use the stack. Knowing what that card is becomes part of the information you have access to, just like you can look at the cards in your hand.
If the top card of your library changes while you're casting a spell, playing a land, or activating an ability, you can't look at the new top card until you finish doing so. This means that if you cast the top card of your library, you can't look at the next one until you're done paying for that spell.
If Glowcap Lantern isn't attached to a creature you control, you can't look at the top card of your library. The lantern isn't that bright.
If an ability instructs a creature to explore, its controller reveals the top card of their library. If it's a land card, they'll put it into their hand. Otherwise, they'll put a +1/+1 counter on that creature, then choose to either leave that card on top of their library or put it into their graveyard.
Once an ability that causes a creature to explore begins to resolve, no player may take any other actions until it's done. Notably, opponents can't try to remove the exploring creature after you reveal a nonland card but before it receives a counter.
If no card is revealed, most likely because that player's library is empty, the exploring creature receives a +1/+1 counter.
If a resolving spell or ability instructs a specific creature to explore but that creature has left the battlefield, the creature still explores. If you reveal a nonland card this way, you won't put a +1/+1 counter on anything, but you may put the revealed card into your graveyard. Effects that trigger "whenever a creature explores" trigger as appropriate.
Some spells or abilities might cause a creature to explore multiple times in a row. If you reveal a nonland card when a creature explores and leave it on top of your library, then the creature explores again immediately afterwards, you'll reveal the same card again.
In some unusual cases, noncreature permanents may explore. For example, if the creature card returned by Defossilize is somehow not a creature once it's on the battlefield, it can still explore. You'll take all the same actions, and you may end up putting a +1/+1 counter on the permanent. (Note that some effects target a creature, and those effects would still require a legal target to have it explore.)
Glowcap Lantern keyword rules
Explore Rule 701.40
Certain abilities instruct a permanent to explore. To do so, that permanent’s controller reveals the top card of their library. If a land card is revealed this way, that player puts that card into their hand. Otherwise, that player puts a +1/+1 counter on the exploring permanent and may put the revealed card into their graveyard.
A permanent “explores” after the process described in rule is complete, even if some or all of those actions were impossible.
If a permanent changes zones before an effect causes it to explore, its last known information is used to determine which object explored and who controlled it.
Equip Rule 702.6
Equip is an activated ability of Equipment cards. “Equip [cost]” means “[Cost]: Attach this permanent to target creature you control. Activate only as a sorcery.”
For more information about Equipment, see rule , “Artifacts.”
Equip abilities may further restrict what creatures may be chosen as legal targets. Such restrictions usually appear in the form “Equip [quality]” or “Equip [quality] creature.” These equip abilities may legally target only a creature that’s controlled by the player activating the ability and that has the chosen quality. Additional restrictions for an equip ability don’t restrict what the Equipment may be attached to.
If a permanent has multiple equip abilities, any of its equip abilities may be activated.
“Equip planeswalker” is a variant of the equip ability. “Equip planeswalker [cost]” means “[Cost]: Attach this permanent to target planeswalker you control as though that planeswalker were a creature. Activate only as a sorcery.”
Glowcap Lantern format legality
Constructed
- StandardLegal
- PioneerLegal
- ModernLegal
- Future StandardLegal
Eternal
- LegacyLegal
- VintageLegal
- PauperNot legal
- PremodernNot legal
- Old SchoolNot legal
- Penny DreadfulNot legal
Commander
- CommanderLegal
- OathbreakerLegal
- Pauper CommanderNot legal
- Duel CommanderLegal
- PreDHNot legal
Arena & online
- HistoricLegal
- TimelessLegal
- AlchemyNot legal
- GladiatorLegal
- BrawlLegal
- Standard BrawlLegal
- Competitive BrawlLegal
Other
- TLRLegal
All printings of Glowcap Lantern 8
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