Index -> Glossary -> Standard Exclusion List and Rotated Blocks

Standard Exclusion List and Rotated Blocks

The Standard Exclusion List (the X-list)

The Standard Exclusion List is a list of cards disallowed in any deck used in Standard format games (see Play Formats). For a deck to be legal in Standard play it may not contain ANY copies of any card that appears on this list.

For the most up-to-date Standard Exclusion List, Click Here. Or, you can take a look at the Current Rulings Document which also contains the most current X-list and any recent rule changes/clarifications.

Cards may be added or removed to the X-list over time. If and when these changes are made, they are announced on the first Tuesday of the month. Be sure to periodically look at the X-list and keep up with any changes that might occur.

Block Rotation

Only the three most current Blocks are ever legal in Standard play. Presently, this means that Fellowship Block (sets 1-3: Fellowship of the Ring, Mines of Moria, Realm of the Elf Lords) is 'rotated out' and not legal in Standard play while Tower, King and War Block sets (sets 4-13) are valid. When the next Block launches with the release of "The Hunters" set, the Tower Block will rotate out and sets 4-6 will no longer be legal in Standard play.

There is one very important exception to block rotation: an older version of a reprinted card is legal if the newest version is also legal. A card is only reprinted if its title, subtitle, culture, game text, etc are all identical (that is, everything but the collector's info is the same).

• Boromir, Defender of Minas Tirith shows up in the Fellowship block as card 3P122. There is also a Boromir, Defender of Minas Tirith in the Black Rider set: card 12U43. With the exception of the collector's info, both cards are exactly the same. Since currently the Black Rider set is legal in Standard, BOTH copies of Boromir, Defender of Minas Tirith are legal in Standard games, even though the older one is of a block that is rotated out.


• Troop of Uruk-hai (1R143) and Uruk-hai Troop (12R157) are very similar cards with the same picture, stats and game text. However, the latter is NOT a reprint of the former, despite the similarities (they have different titles and cultures) so Troop of Uruk-hai is not legal in Standard play.



It's important to note that cards from sets that have been rotated out of Standard format do not appear on the X-list. So when you build your Standard decks, remember to observe the X-list as well as make sure your cards are from the three most recent blocks.

Also note that the Standard Exclusion List and Block Ration apply to the Culture Shock Format.

See also Play Formats, Sets and Blocks, Restricted List, Expanded Exclusion List and Expanded Restricted List.