In the card game Magic The Gathering what does counter target spell and counter target creature spell mean?

Question

I've been playing this game and I have a card that says counter target spell, what does it mean?

I also have a creature that's ability is counter target creature spell, what does that mean?

I would appreciate if someone could help me.

Answer 1

Counterspells are the best cards for control.  Now incase you don't know, a spell is EVERYTHING but lands.  So all instances, enchantments, creatures, enchant creatures, artifacts, sorceries, artifact creatures, and any other type of card beside lands.

So what does counter target spell mean?

Let's say your opponent plays a "spell" (for this example we'll use the card Hallow [i'll leave a link for you of the card on the bottom]).  Before the spell comes into play you have the option of using any spells or abilities.  Let's say you have the card Cancel in your hand.  It's an instant that lets you "Counter target spell."  What this means is that before their card comes into play, you can counter it and thus send it into their graveyard, never being played and making them waste their mana trying to play it.

Counter means causing something to not happen.  So when cards say "Counter target spell", you can use that card or ability to keep them from playing that spell.  You use this when they play a spell, not a turn before.  You only use it right when they play a spell.  Since you are stopping them from getting their spell into play, that means that any abilities that might take effect when the card comes into play never activate because you kept it from coming into play.  Any cards already on the field that would have taken effect when the card comes into play, don't activate either because like I said, it never reached play.

Your other question asks what does it mean by "counter target creature spell".  It just means that this card only allows you to counter creatures (since they are a spell).  Some counter cards have special rules like that.  Some are only allowed to counter Artifacts or Enchantments, some creatures.  Also some counter cards say "Counter target spell unless the opponent pays 1" or something like that.  This means that you can counter the card, but if they pay 1 mana, they keep their card.  Sometimes it's good to have those pay costs because it can keep them from playing anything else for the turn.

There you go.  Counter cards are cards that stop your opponents from playing a spell.  Everything but lands are spells.  You first wait for your opponent to tap their mana and play the card before you counter.  You don't have to counter what they play, it's your choice.

Fun fact: Since everything but lands are spells, counter cards are spells too!  You can counter someone elses counter.  In that case you stop them from countering your own card  :D

Answer 2

"Counter target spell" means to prevent a spell from being cast. Typically it means that immediately after the person playing the spell card announces that they're playing it, but before the spell resolves, you can play your card to stop theirs. The spell that is "countered" goes to the graveyard.

(A "spell" card is any card other than a land. "Target" mostly means you have to pick a particular spell - it doesn't affect all spells, just one. And "counter" is the process of canceling their spell. You can only counter a spell as it's being played, you can't wait a turn and try to counter it later.)

"Counter target creature spell" means the same thing, but it only affects "creature spells". A "creature spell" is a card that represents a creature. However, it only counts as a spell from when it's announced to when it actually comes into play. Once it's in play, it's no longer a spell, so again, you can't wait till a later turn to counter it.  If a creature spell is countered, the card goes to the graveyard without ever actually coming into play.

The comprehensive rulebook has some more detailed timing rules that specify exactly when you can and can't counter something, but my summary above should handle most game situations.

Answer 3

In MTG when a player plays a spell (any card other than lands), the spell does not go into play inmediatly. It goes to the stack so every other player can respond by playing other spells or abilities.

Counterspells are cards that stop a spell from coming into play. Imagine that I play a terror, it goes on the stack. Then you Cancel (counter target spell), choosing my terror as target. No one plays any other spell, your cancel resolves, countering my terror. So my terror goes to the graveyard without destroying anything and that's it.

'counter target creature spell' means that you can only stop creature spells with this ability. You could stop a tarmogoyf but not a loxodon warhammer (for example).

Answer 4

Counter Target spell means you have the ability to target a spell coming into play, either from the spell being unsuspended or played from an opponents hand directly.  You target the spell you wish to counter, therefore someone can respond to your counterspell with other spells of their own.  It cannot counter a creature that is brought into play via the ability of another creature or enchantment already in play on the field.  Example, Elvish Piper has the ability to bring a creature from your hand into play with the cost of tapping it and paying G.  As the creature comes into play, since it was an ability of a creature that brought it into play, your spell cannot counter that, but a spell like Trick Bind could as that counters abilities.

The ability to counter target creature spell simply means that the only types of spells that the card can counter are creature spells.  Not enchantments, sorceries, or instants.  If someone is playing a creature or a creature is coming into play via being unsuspended, then you have the ability to counter that target.

Unless not stated on cards, every spell that does something to another card or with a condition has a target, whether it be another spell, creature, player, library or graveyard.  The reason for this is if your opponent has a way of changing the target or removing the target from the board for even a second, then the spell fizzles (meaning basically your spell is countered) due to a lack of it's target.

Most of these rules can be obtained on the wizards website.