We now have four -- that's right, FOUR -- printings of this in Standard.
Please, Wizards...Stop it.
Gomorrah
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
Oh...you again...
roqbthepirate
★★★☆☆ (3.9/5.0)(4 votes)
I just kinda like the art... The textless one looks like Thor.. haha
Vinifera7
★★★★☆ (4.6/5.0)(4 votes)
Hmm... I didn't expect to see Cancel again.
It seems like Blue counter control might be a viable option in limited with this, Mana Leak, and Negate.
Eternal_Blue
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.7/5.0)(8 votes)
still a bit overpowered. probably 2UU would work.
kittyspit
★★☆☆☆ (2.6/5.0)(4 votes)
lolz they put this and mana leak in the same set..
TheMoustacheCame
★☆☆☆☆ (1.9/5.0)(9 votes)
This card is pure shit, please if u made Lightning Bolt legal again, at least make Counterspell legal again
BantCaptain
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
This is my favourate cancel artwork
MasterOfEtherium
★☆☆☆☆ (1.5/5.0)(4 votes)
GARBAGE
WaffleCop
★★★★☆ (4.7/5.0)(3 votes)
Good for late game when your opponent has enough mana to pay 3 to stop Mana Leak
Temple_Garden
★★★☆☆ (3.9/5.0)(17 votes)
Blue Mage: Bah! Terminate is so powerful and we keep getting Cancel. If red and black getTerminate, blue should get Counterspell! Red Mage: Terminate makes me run black mana. Black Mage: I have to run red mana and it only deals with creatures. Cancel is a hard answer to 99% of spells any opponent can use against you, how can you complain about that? Blue Mage: BECAUSE IT COSTS ONE WHOLE MANA MOAR! QQ *rates two and a half stars* Green Mage: I have a 4 star card that will probably be useless in most match up to deal with either an enchantment or artifact and you are complaining about a card that is a hard answer to everything for only one mana more? Blue Mage: But Counterpsell is 2 mana and I don't have my instant speed card drawing any more! Everyone Else: Counterspell is stupidly overpowered and instant speed card draw is lame. Everyone else has to commit when they make decisions, why should blue be any different? White Mage is suspiciously quiet because more than likely he is playing with blue or busy spamming Path to Exile.
jkon3
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
bring back counterspell PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!11
TheSuperbloop
★★★☆☆ (3.8/5.0)(6 votes)
The only legit problem I have with this card is the fact that I KNOW that there are at least 2 counter spells that are strictly better than this that DIDN'T break the game: Forbid and
Dissipate.
C'mon guys. Counterspell wasn't the most broken card ever, but it was still broken, mainly compared with other colors. 2 mana to reject ~98% of spells. And at least Lightning Bolt doesn't automatically ruin your efforts (not saying that one is strictly better than the other, though).
Not to mention that all 1U couterspells would not be able to compete with a soild UU counterspell. The only people who would use Negate , Mana Leak, and Delay would be people who need a ridicously high concentration of counterspells in their deck.
Finally, it is just a bad idea to create cards that beg to be placed in every deck: Baneslayer Angel would still be annoying as an uncommon, since everyone would still be using it whenver able. At least Cancel doesn't force people with its allure.
So yeah. I'm going to go with unpopular idea and say...GO CANCEL!
...Except for the fact that there are three copies of cancel in standered. Yeah, that is annoying...
benegade
★★★★☆ (4.8/5.0)(5 votes)
If Ancestral Recall were printed with a different name and a 1U mana cost, would it be crap?
The fact that Mana Leak and this are in the same set makes total sense. Mana Leak early game, Cancel late game. I, too, would love the classic Counterspell, but I'm not above working with what we have.
Telltalereaper
★★☆☆☆ (2.5/5.0)(1 vote)
They made Doom Blade...essentially a Terror with a different name so you can have four more in a kill deck...why not make a Counter clone...two blue, counter target spell. Screw cancel, i'm not wasting 3 mana in a counter deck, i'd rather risk a mana leak.
Talaxar
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.8/5.0)(2 votes)
Good art, but I agree with most posters that counterspell is better. Rerelease Counterspell as a rare. 3/5 for Art and plausible workability.
ValoreD
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(2 votes)
I'm on the fence. While as a blue mage, I'd love CS back, I can agree that it was always a pretty powerful spell, and like someone else said, no card should be a must play.
I'd be happy if they continued putting more increased casting cost counterspells, but with added abilities.
Bring back Dismiss, Forbid, Rewind, Arcane Denial (god I loved that card). Not the cards themselves, since they require block specific mechanics, but something like them in the coming blocks, instead of continuously printing this POS lousy knockoff that makes me so angry everytime I see it.
qaq456
★★★★☆ (4.2/5.0)(6 votes)
Don't release Counterspell as a rare because it will just become expensive and then beginners can't hope to make a control deck. Cancel works fine so just keep it the way it is.
Saxophonist
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
If they're going to keep reprinting this, they could at least have the courtesy to use the far superior Time Spiral art.
TheSwarm
★★★★☆ (4.2/5.0)(2 votes)
Hey, they made it strictly better. Stoic rebuttal, check it out in the Scars visual spoiler. In Scars limited its basically gonna be a counterspell, its three mana (2 blue 1 colorless) regular and its two blue if you control three or more artifacts.
Kori260
★☆☆☆☆ (1.2/5.0)(6 votes)
Crappiest counter spell ever :(
blugrn1989
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I think that instead of Counterspell replacing this, they should add some bounce/draw to it... i.e: Dream Fracture.
made4ipod
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(4 votes)
For the last time wizards, BRING BACK COUNTERSPELL!!!
TheWrathofShane
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
how about lay bare but with added, if opponet has no cards in hand, draw a card.
DacenOctavio
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
It's quite a bizarre leap from playing mostly burn decks to trying out mono blue decks and winning with them. Mostly it's a lesson in patience. If you're too impatient to learn how to use Cancel effectively, try playing with other colors. The whole point of countermagic is to make the game last long enough for you to win the game. Cancel perfectly places the emphasis on this with a higher mana cost than the classic Counterspell.
I personally had a much more difficult time learning to use Counterspell effectively than I did with Cancel because Counterspell was available much earlier in the game. Cancel's higher cost means it sits in your hand longer, long enough for your opponents to have the mana to cast a spell worth countering.
i'm going to go against popular consensus here and going to give it 5, simply for good balanced game play... like most most blue players i miss the days of counterspell, however (as some have stated) it was pretty broken. on the other hand while blue is stuck with cancel in standard other colours have been given spells that are almost as broken as counterspell was, namely some one drop white instants grrr... still, as also mentioned this card works well late game in a deck that applies mana leaks early!
so wizards how about don't bring back counterspell and start balancing the other colours :)
DellamorteDellamore0
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Aother reason standard makes no sense to me. With all the ridiculous and over powered cards in Scars and Besieged it seems like real bullsh¡t for wizards to keep suppresing counterspell in favor of this gimped-out two bit common trash thats not even fit to proxy over.
ROBRAM89
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
On the positive side: it made situational counters viable, and I've always liked situational counters.
Feralsymphony
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(2 votes)
Wizards, you killed Shock, so why can't you kill this already? Bring back Counterspell!
scumbling1
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
That wizard is looking down at us, as if he has some reason to be proud. But we all know he's a broken-down husk of a mage, forced to cast Cancel. What a chump!
Dragon_Nut
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I have no doubt they playtested Counterspell in M10 at the same point they were playing with Lightning Bolt. Having old cards drop in is one of their favorite gimmicks, so I have no doubt they at least considered Counterspell and Dark Ritual. I'm willing to bet that they seriously considered Counterspell for M10.
I don't know why people knock cancel... it's actually a very good card. And Standard legal! (Though not for long, I'm betting).
Hoonster
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(3 votes)
The reason why Wizards do not want to bring counterspell back is that it would scrap most of the other versions of it. But really . . if counterspell is back . . what is the point of printing flashfreeze, negate, essence scatter, etc. Counterspell is already too powerful of a counterspell, adding more dirt cheap counterspells would break blue.
blurrymadness
★★★★☆ (4.1/5.0)(5 votes)
I'm of a different mind. "Must play" cards are not only not played in every deck, but they're color-defining, which is excellent. Maybe all blue mages know counterspell type spells? I'm fine with them not reprinting it, but lightning bolt in red decks makes sense, and we look to that as being color defining essentially. Doom Blade, Giant Growth and it's better kin, these are spells (or similar spells) that have defined the colors since the beginning of the game, and that's good.
We would expect most red mages to know how to zap you somehow, most green mages to know how to grossly defeat other creatures in matchups with their own, and black to demolish creatures. Similarly, we'd expect blue to snuff out your spells and... white to keep being a stupid color.
redsoxftw
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Almost strictly worse than stoic rebuttal, yet I love this card. l;
Xilinoc
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
@MasterOfEtherium Like your comments.
NecroticNobody
★☆☆☆☆ (1.0/5.0)(1 vote)
Why you no cost {U}{U}?
ninjaman98
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Strictly wore than counterspell , but way better than spell snip
guitargamer79
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
I can't believe how spoiled MTG players are. Yeah, you can compare this card to other counterspells, etc, etc, etc, but the point of it all is that 3 mana to counter ANY spell in th entire game, standard or not, is nothing to whine about. It's like the next best thing to a Vindicate, in that sense. How is 3 mana for that kind of defense not balanced in its casting cost? Wow, some people will always want cheap, broken spells.
Zacklar
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
i agree totally with ValoreD i don't ask for counterspell to come back but instead of making counterspell knockoffs why not make a "counter target spell, Tap target nonland permanent" it has an added utility effect instead of just being a plain and awful copy of CS
luca_barelli
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(2 votes)
2.9 stars, seriously people? Cancel is a great and balanced spell. They could print it in every Core set from now until forever for all I care. This needs to stay out of other sets, though.
sdfkjgh
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
You crybabies & yer "Cancel is the worst hard counter ever!" Be glad WotC doesn't replace Cancel with Fervent Denial. When I opened that card from among the first few packs I ever bought, I immediately recognized it as complete & utter 5h|t. It may be one of the biggest reasons why I don't normally play countermagic (scars run deep).
VoidedNote
★★★★☆ (4.5/5.0)(1 vote)
Fun fact: A world champ won the tournament with FOUR cancels in his deck. If he can win a tourney with it, is it all that bad? No. It's good enough for the best of the best, so why can't you just move on instead of whining that it's not 2 mana? As a hardcore blue player, I don't mind it. It's the cheapest 100% no shortcomings "No." in standard. There are other counters that have something they don't cover (negate) or have a draw back (deprive).
NuckChorris
★★★★☆ (4.5/5.0)(2 votes)
Still don't know why Cancel didn't have two colorless one blue mana cost. Wizards could then defend themselves by saying, "Hey it's more splashable than Counterspell", and it would be easier to play, and not be strictly worse than Stoic Rebuttal. I know the designers of this card could have made it a little more interesting, and it's first printing wasn't in a core set so I won't buy the "We tried to make it simple for new players" excuse. Just slapping one more mana on Counterspell is like a slap in the face. Cancel still isn't a half bad card, but whatev.
Dragonmaster3.0
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
I wish for Counterspell to come back, but I guess we've got to work with what we've got. 4 stars for just being in our decks to save us from Baneful Omens and the like.
Fictionarious
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I really don't think some people get that a double-blue costing "hard answer" (as though a {B} costing thoughtseize wasn't even "harder", not to mention faster, and requiring less finesse) to anything in the game that sets you back two turns in natural tempo if you want to actually use it (unless you build a deck of nothing but flash cards, instants, and manlands, which would be a deserved reward for building around the card as anything in magic) was ALREADY perfectly balanced. If someone were to ask me for my least favorite card in magic, my answer would be Cancel, because debuffing the inherent awesomeness of blue should NOT include spiking up the mana cost of one of it's most iconic, balanced, cards. I cannot believe that some people here are saying stuff like "but what if they reprinted ancestral recall for {1}{U}? Would you be complaining then?" Actually, yes, that would be overpowered - it's not an answer and it doesn't require in-game thought, good deck design, or timing (draw it, play it, three for one advantage, OVERPOWERED). However, EVERYONE should be complaining about Cancel (or more specifically, the replacement of counterspell with cancel). Just like runeclaw bear, it wasn't necessary, doesn't offer anything new or improved, and actually kind of ruins something integral to what it was trying to replace - in runeclaw's case, the flavor, in cancel's case, the functionality. Cancel the Cancels already, wizards!
Cancel is a bleh card. The only thing you get for playing it is bragging rights. Solid 2.5/5
Hunter06
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
NYET!
2.5/5 Stars
shotoku64
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Giving it a 2.5, because, although it is fair, balanced, and a decent hard counter, there are many cards strictly better, especially recently (see Dissipate and Dissolve)
Comments (51)
Please, Wizards...Stop it.
It seems like Blue counter control might be a viable option in limited with this, Mana Leak, and Negate.
Red Mage: Terminate makes me run black mana.
Black Mage: I have to run red mana and it only deals with creatures. Cancel is a hard answer to 99% of spells any opponent can use against you, how can you complain about that?
Blue Mage: BECAUSE IT COSTS ONE WHOLE MANA MOAR! QQ *rates two and a half stars*
Green Mage: I have a 4 star card that will probably be useless in most match up to deal with either an enchantment or artifact and you are complaining about a card that is a hard answer to everything for only one mana more?
Blue Mage: But Counterpsell is 2 mana and I don't have my instant speed card drawing any more!
Everyone Else: Counterspell is stupidly overpowered and instant speed card draw is lame. Everyone else has to commit when they make decisions, why should blue be any different?
White Mage is suspiciously quiet because more than likely he is playing with blue or busy spamming Path to Exile.
Dissipate.
C'mon guys. Counterspell wasn't the most broken card ever, but it was still broken, mainly compared with other colors. 2 mana to reject ~98% of spells. And at least Lightning Bolt doesn't automatically ruin your efforts (not saying that one is strictly better than the other, though).
Not to mention that all 1U couterspells would not be able to compete with a soild UU counterspell. The only people who would use Negate , Mana Leak, and Delay would be people who need a ridicously high concentration of counterspells in their deck.
Finally, it is just a bad idea to create cards that beg to be placed in every deck: Baneslayer Angel would still be annoying as an uncommon, since everyone would still be using it whenver able. At least Cancel doesn't force people with its allure.
So yeah. I'm going to go with unpopular idea and say...GO CANCEL!
...Except for the fact that there are three copies of cancel in standered. Yeah, that is annoying...
The fact that Mana Leak and this are in the same set makes total sense. Mana Leak early game, Cancel late game. I, too, would love the classic Counterspell, but I'm not above working with what we have.
I'd be happy if they continued putting more increased casting cost counterspells, but with added abilities.
Bring back Dismiss, Forbid, Rewind, Arcane Denial (god I loved that card). Not the cards themselves, since they require block specific mechanics, but something like them in the coming blocks, instead of continuously printing this POS lousy knockoff that makes me so angry everytime I see it.
I personally had a much more difficult time learning to use Counterspell effectively than I did with Cancel because Counterspell was available much earlier in the game. Cancel's higher cost means it sits in your hand longer, long enough for your opponents to have the mana to cast a spell worth countering.
so wizards how about don't bring back counterspell and start balancing the other colours :)
I don't know why people knock cancel... it's actually a very good card. And Standard legal! (Though not for long, I'm betting).
We would expect most red mages to know how to zap you somehow, most green mages to know how to grossly defeat other creatures in matchups with their own, and black to demolish creatures. Similarly, we'd expect blue to snuff out your spells and... white to keep being a stupid color.
i don't ask for counterspell to come back but instead of making counterspell knockoffs why not make a
I cannot believe that some people here are saying stuff like "but what if they reprinted ancestral recall for {1}{U}? Would you be complaining then?" Actually, yes, that would be overpowered - it's not an answer and it doesn't require in-game thought, good deck design, or timing (draw it, play it, three for one advantage, OVERPOWERED).
However, EVERYONE should be complaining about Cancel (or more specifically, the replacement of counterspell with cancel). Just like runeclaw bear, it wasn't necessary, doesn't offer anything new or improved, and actually kind of ruins something integral to what it was trying to replace - in runeclaw's case, the flavor, in cancel's case, the functionality.
Cancel the Cancels already, wizards!
Sincerely, Old Fogey
2.5/5 Stars