Landcycling is an activated ability. “Plainscycling [cost]” means “[Cost], Discard this card: Search your library for a Plains card, reveal it, and put it into your hand. Then shuffle your library.” See rule 502.18, “Cycling.”
“Landwalk” is a generic term; a card’s rules text will give a specific property to look for, such as “islandwalk.”
Landwalk is an evasion ability. A creature with landwalk is unblockable as long as the defending player controls at least one land which has the specified subtype or supertype. See rule 502.6, “Landwalk.”
The last known information about an object is the information that it had just before it left the zone it was in. Effects from resolving spells and abilities use last known information if the object they require information from isn’t in the zone it’s expected to be in (unless the effect divides damage). See rule 413.2f.
Continuous effects are applied in order, in six layers: (1) copy effects (see rule 503, “Copying Objects”); (2) control-changing effects; (3) text-changing effects; (4) type-, subtype-, and supertype-changing effects; (5) all other continuous effects, except those that change power and/or toughness, and (6) power– and/or toughness-changing effects. Inside layer 6, effects are applied in a series of sublayers. See rule 418.5, “Interaction of Continuous Effects.”
A permanent leaves play when it moves from the in-play zone to any other zone (see rule 410.10c) or when its owner leaves the game (see rule 600.4a).
If a token leaves play, it ceases to exist. This is a state-based effect. See rule 420.5.
If a permanent leaves play and later returns to play, it’s treated as an entirely new permanent with no “memory” of anything from its former existence. (Phasing is an exception to this; see rule 502.15, “Phasing.” Permanents that phase out also don’t trigger any comes-into-play or leaves-play abilities.)
Legal text (the fine print at the bottom of the card) lists the copyright information. It has no effect on game play. See rule 210, “Legal Text.”
Many creature cards were printed with the creature type “Legend.” All of these cards have been given errata to have the legendary supertype. Legend is no longer a creature type. See Legendary.
Legendary is a supertype that may apply to any type (“Legendary Land,” “Legendary Artifact,” and so on).
If two or more legendary permanents with the same name are in play, all are put into their owners’ graveyards. This “legend rule” is a state-based effect. See rule 420.5.
If a legendary permanent’s types or subtypes change, this doesn’t change its supertypes. The permanent will still be legendary.
Lethal damage is an amount of damage greater than or equal to a creature’s toughness. A creature with lethal damage, but greater than 0 toughness, is destroyed. This is a state-based effect. See rule 420.5.
The library is the zone from which a player draws cards. When a game begins, each player’s deck becomes his or her library. See rule 217.2, “Library.”
Life total is a sort of score. Each player starts the game with 20 life. Any increase in a player’s life total is considered to be gaining life. Any decrease in a player’s life total is considered to be losing life. A player whose life total drops to 0 or less loses. This is a state-based effect. See rule 420.5.
An acronym for “Last In, First Out,” LIFO is the order in which spells and abilities resolve after going on the stack. The last played is resolved first. See rule 409, “Playing Spells and Activated Abilities,” and rule 413, “Resolving Spells and Abilities.”
Limited range of influence is an optional rule used in some multiplayer games. A player’s range of influence is the maximum distance from that player, measured in player seats, that the player can affect. Players within that many seats of the player are within that player’s range of influence. Objects controlled by players within a player’s range of influence are also within that player’s range of influence. Range of influence covers spells, abilities, effects, damage dealing, attacking, and making choices. See rule 601, “Limited Range of Influence Option.”
The limited range of influence option is always used in the Emperor variant (see rule 607), and it’s often used for games involving five or more players.
Some older cards used the term “local enchantment” for enchantments that are attached to other permanents while they’re in play. These cards now have the Aura subtype.
There are several ways to lose the game. A player can concede the game at any time; a player who concedes loses the game immediately. If a player’s life total is 0 or less, he or she loses the game the next time a player would receive priority (this is a state-based effect; see rule 420). If a player attempts to draw a card from an empty library, he or she loses the game the next time a player would receive priority (this is a state-based effect; see rule 420). If a player has ten or more poison counters, he or she loses the game the next time a player would receive priority. (this is a state-based effect; see rule 420). If a player would both win and lose simultaneously, he or she loses. In a multiplayer game between teams, a team loses the game if all players on that team have lost. See rule 102, “Winning and Losing.”
Madness is a keyword that represents two abilities. “Madness [cost]” means “If a player would discard this card, that player discards it, but may remove it from the game instead of putting it into his or her graveyard” and “When this card is removed from the game this way, its owner may play it by paying [cost] rather than paying its mana cost. If that player doesn’t, he or she puts this card into his or her graveyard.” See rule 502.24, “Madness.”
Some cards allow players to play a Magic subgame. The “main game” is the game in which the spell or ability that created the subgame was played. See rule 506, “Subgames.”
The term “main phase” comprises the first main and second main phases, also called the “precombat” and “postcombat” main phases. Artifact, creature, enchantment, and sorcery spells may be played only by the active player during his or her main phase, and only when the stack is empty. A player may also play one land each turn during his or her main phase.