Crew
Crew is a keyword ability introduced in Kaladesh to enable the vehicle artifact subtype. It allows vehicles to become artifact creatures until end of turn.
To activate the crew ability, tap any number of creatures you control with total power equal to or greater than the crew number. Because the crew ability doesn’t use the tap symbol, you can tap any untapped creature you control, even one that just entered the battlefield. You can even tap an animated Vehicle to crew a Vehicle.
From the Comprehensive Rules (November 8, 2024—Edge of Eternities)
- 702.122. Crew
- 702.122a Crew is an activated ability of Vehicle cards. “Crew N” means “Tap any number of other untapped creatures you control with total power N or greater: This permanent becomes an artifact creature until end of turn.”
- 702.122b A creature “crews a Vehicle” when it’s tapped to pay the cost to activate a Vehicle’s crew ability.
- 702.122c If an effect states that a creature “can’t crew Vehicles,” that creature can’t be tapped to pay the crew cost of a Vehicle.
- 702.122d Some Vehicles have abilities that trigger when they become crewed. “Whenever [this Vehicle] becomes crewed” means “Whenever a crew ability of [this Vehicle] resolves.” If that ability has an intervening “if” clause that refers to information about the creatures that crewed it, it means only creatures that were tapped to pay the cost of the crew ability that caused it to trigger.
History
After Kaladesh crew also appeared in Aether Revolt. and Ixalan which made the mechanic Crew available in two different non-neighbouring blocks in Standard. It was also used for the Weatherlight in Dominaria.
The mechanic is now considered to be in the low end of evergreen or the high end of deciduous.
In retrospect, Heart of Kiran has an unusual templating in that it has one activated ability with another ability giving it a secondary cost. Later Vehicles would simply have a second activated ability. Due to the definition of “crewing” given by the rules, planeswalkers enchanted by Bound in Gold or Intercessor’s Arrest can still animate the Vehicle.
Crew in Practice
Crew in practice translates another creature into activating an static artifact on play, as is Getaway Car either Attacks or Blocks it will return the Crew creature to its owner hand effectively protecting it or re-casting the creature later on with recursion value on mind.
Reckoner Bankbuster on the other hand enters the battlefield as a draw source and when the final charge counters creates the Pilot token available to crew the Reckoner Bankbuster and hitting for 4.
