At first glance I'm not sure quite what to think of this card. I've come to a conclusion that it's pretty good, although I find the card draw to be a little superfluous. I'd take Cancel over this card in any deck except a combo deck where I'm scrambling to get the cards I need to complete my effect. And of course Counterspell is unquestionably better than either.
Vorthosian
★★☆☆☆ (2.5/5.0)(3 votes)
Worse than Cancel. Your opponent will almost certainly have more threats than you have answers, so odds are good that the card draw will help your enemy more than you.
Mode
★★★★☆ (4.9/5.0)(4 votes)
Well at least it's better than Vex, isn't it? ;) And as Treima already mentioned, there are ways to punish your opponent by drawing cards or benefit from triggers through your card advantage. This card might not be the best choice for a simple control deck, but has some minor yet useful combo potential.
shaw_skate_4346
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(3 votes)
pleas correct me if im wrong on this
"Counter target spell. Its controller draws a card.
Draw a card."
so you couter a spell,then the oppnet draws a card,then you draw a card ???
AchillesTheElder
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(5 votes)
Just counter your own spell with a guile out for an instant two cards.
Dingo777
★★★★☆ (4.8/5.0)(2 votes)
a nice counter spell, not perfect, could have costed less but still nice and with chroma, maybe less would be better
it is card advantage neutral and has no strings attached to it, like say, they can pay to counter the counter, or the spell being countered has to be a creature, or an instant....
and Treima, you cant compare any recent counter spell to Counterspell, it is like comparing a penny to a gold bar
pigknight
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(3 votes)
I can see some use in a Dimir deck. He's going to discard his hand anyway, might as well make him discard more and you deck him faster.
MTGFreak
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(2 votes)
This is a Type 2 Arcane Denial just down graded slightly.
BaneSlayerKirby
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I was saving this card's picture for the art only to realize I already have it. o.o
Bursama
★☆☆☆☆ (1.0/5.0)(1 vote)
This card is good. When ever I play with my deck against other counter deck, this is the coutner they think few momnets if they counter it. They have opinion of drawing a card or countering it. When I counter their annoying creature, like Darksteel Colossus, they most of the times let it be countered and draw a card instead...
Folesauce
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
It depends greatly on the type of deck you're playing and facing. It's better than Cancel in combo for sure, and probably is against decks that tap out for huge threats, since they'll pass the turn and you'll essentially have gained access to an extra card half a turn before them. Anywhere else it's worse than Cancel. This is the sort of card design I love--tried and true with a very simple twist. Also, the art is awesome.
mflanaga
★★★☆☆ (3.8/5.0)(3 votes)
I'm highly tempted to say this is the best non-red, non land artwork in Magic...
ToAsTy42o
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Cracking a magical egg. Yum.
MasterOfEtherium
★★★☆☆ (3.9/5.0)(4 votes)
BETTER THAN CANCEL
Justice1337
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(2 votes)
Good only for tempo in duels, but this is practically a Dismiss in EDH or other FFA mulitiplayer. You don't care as much about one player drawing a card as you do about you getting another one.
Shadoflaam
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
We need to go deeper!
Gareth32
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Who wrote that flavor text, Dr. Gene Ray?
Dubbios
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.8/5.0)(2 votes)
A 2.5/5 counter spell. With no specially negative effect or positive effect. Played against the last spell in the turn, you get the chance to use your card first than your oponnent, played ealy in the turn, everything remains the "same". Not much better than Cancel or Stoic Rebutual
RunedServitor
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(2 votes)
Not necessarily strictly better than Cancel, if you don't want them drawing. However, as it will only be included in decks in which it is, it functionally is.
Artwork is stunning, even more so in person, running 3 of these in my mono blue permission deck, great card!
Lash_of_Dragonbreath
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
The biggest problem I find with counterspells is they don't scale well into multiplayer. Psychedelic omelet here is one of the few exceptions for this rule: resolving this, you have eliminated a threat at no expense of card advantage, while with Cancel, for example, you're putting yourself one card behind everyone else (except the owner of the countered spell, of course). Whether it is better or worse than Arcane Denial, that extra U in the cost makes all the difference in the world, as does the extra card. I'd say that puts them beyond comparison, IMO, since their aims are, respectively, to be a cheap counterspell and to be a counterspell at no CA loss. Apples and Mirran Gelfruit.
WarioMan
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
The art, it's so pretty, but on a mediocre counterspell...
DarkonCrack
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
I actually really like this card. It's a tempo card, hands down. Neither player loses or gains anything, it just is what it is. You shouldn't be comparing it to Counterspell or Cancel even because it's not a hard counter. Look at it more like Remand with an edge of hard counter. Remand sets an enemy back for a turn (or in the late game, makes them pay double the mana for a spell while you're hoping to draw a hard counter yourself), while this completely says no the the spell completely. Maybe they'll draw a land off it, maybe they'll draw a stronger spell, you never know. But it's a tempo thing, and not a bad one at that. I easily give it 4/5.
Lifegainwithbite
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(2 votes)
I don't see why people think this is mediocre. Sure, it can give your opponent options but it gives you options too. It replaces itself like Remand does but it's a hard counter. Sure, you risk them drawing another threat but they could just get a land and you have exactly the same chance of drawing a threat. Plus when you cast this, they're likely to have used up their mana trying to cast the thing you countered and won't be able to cast the new spell. It sets an opponent back just as much as Remand does.
Fearsomecritter
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
This card also works in decks that punish players for drawing cards or in mill decks since every card off the library counts.
blurrymadness
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
Sire of Insanity seems to work well with this and remand. (At that point in the game you have the mana to cast your other spell.)
TF404
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
Combo this in Modern with a Notion Thief, it becomes "1UU: Counter target spell, draw two cards."
Comments (28)
And as Treima already mentioned, there are ways to punish your opponent by drawing cards or benefit from triggers through your card advantage.
This card might not be the best choice for a simple control deck, but has some minor yet useful combo potential.
"Counter target spell. Its controller draws a card.
Draw a card."
so you couter a spell,then the oppnet draws a card,then you draw a card ???
it is card advantage neutral and has no strings attached to it, like say, they can pay
and Treima, you cant compare any recent counter spell to Counterspell, it is like comparing a penny to a gold bar
Whether it is better or worse than Arcane Denial, that extra U in the cost makes all the difference in the world, as does the extra card. I'd say that puts them beyond comparison, IMO, since their aims are, respectively, to be a cheap counterspell and to be a counterspell at no CA loss. Apples and Mirran Gelfruit.