So in a set where they supposedly try and nerf Jace they give him a great card to protect him anyway. Seems kinda dumb. Don't forget hex parasite is cmc 1 as well.
Though I have to agree, amazing legacy card.
Lohran
★★★★☆ (4.3/5.0)(10 votes)
Sword to Plowshares, Aether Vial, Brainstorm, Lightning Bolt, Thoughtseize, Dark Ritual, Sensei's Divining Top, Phyrexian Dreadnought, Wild Nacatl, Stifle, Shaman Combo, Grindstone, Nimble Mongoose... Huge impact in legacy. Now my deck is closer to having answers to everything. Best Card in the set for any eternal player. 5/5
scumbling1
★★☆☆☆ (2.2/5.0)(6 votes)
Everyone has already pointed out that the card is good, and I have nothing to add on that matter.
What I want to know is who is this Erica Yang, and where has she been all my life?
desolation_masticore
★★★★☆ (4.2/5.0)(2 votes)
Turn that Æther vial into a mini Blightning.
Mindbend
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(5 votes)
this card will shake up magic as we know it. for the better.
Revelation666
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This card will make it into almost everyone's sideboard.
Studoku
★★★★☆ (4.4/5.0)(4 votes)
Mostly useful in legacy, but I'm going to try and pick up a playset for standard. With three seperate duress effects around, as well as lightning bolt, condemn and a whole range of 'free' CMC 1 spells (including other mental misteps of course), I can see this as a handy sideboard card.
krauser-gogetthegirl
★☆☆☆☆ (1.5/5.0)(2 votes)
wow. hope u have a good poker face with all this free stuff that can b played. especially free counter. turn one goblin guide? no. turn one steppe lynx? no. duress? no. despise? no. vampire las-irater? no. preordain? no. signal pest? elite vanguard? fog? giant growth? spell pierce? no matter what color im playing? this is going to *** standard up. probably by everyone running it at first. then everyone will just stop playing one drop spells lmao
thisisnotmyname
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(3 votes)
As a blue player I am very fond of counterspells. However, I believe that all the color pie not only should have one, but actually needs one. This card may be enough to bring zoo and other decks to the higher tiers of legacy, and tear control from standard. This is the card that will bring fun back to the game.
MasterOfEtherium
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(11 votes)
Loam Lion, Kird Ape, Wild Nacatl, Hex Parasite, Lightning Bolt, Despise, Dispatch, Path To Exile, Elite Vanguard, Duress, Spell Snip, Llanowar Elf, Pithing Needle, Goblin Guide, Sword To Plowshares, Birds Of Paradise, Figure Of Destiny, Magma Spray, Brittle Effigy, Arcbound Worker, Bloodchief Ascension, Slag Fiend, Scute Mob, Harms Way, Noble Hierarch, Pouncing Jaguar, Uktabi Drake, Scythe Tiger, Jackal Pup, Goblin Lackey, Chain Lightning, Burst Lightning, Senseis Divining Top, Mana Tithe, Skullclamp, Executioner's Capsule, Infiltration Lens, Bone Splinters, Savanah Lions, Hound Of Konda, Marrow Shards, CurseCatcher, Giant Growth, Innocent Blood, Dark Ritual, Stifle,Kraken Hatchling, Phyrexian Dreadnought And Even MENTAL MISSTEP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
supershawn
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(3 votes)
you know, everyone is talking about how great this is, but the only one cmc card I have played against that I would actually want to counter, would be lightening bolt. and I don't even have very many one cmc cards in my decks, and the ones I have I would be very happy if someone payed 2 life to counter them.
iamludo
★★★☆☆ (3.2/5.0)(22 votes)
"F*ck it." - Wizards of the Coast
stratoscythe
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
I hope this would Force of Will price to go down a little... this card will be in almost every legacy deck...
theelk801
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(4 votes)
@tcollins: It doesn't counter Green Sun's Zenith unless they cast it for 0. The converted cost on the stack takes into account the value of X.
Yay overpriced uncommons!! Only pick this guy if you're drafting for money, or find it late. Sideboard it in when your opponent is playing one-drops.
NecroticNobody
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
That sound your hearing is every eternal format being forcibly shattered simultaneously.
SocialExperiment
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I guess Wizards got tired of players complaining that Wizards never prints any cards for Eternal formats. I like it now, but when all the control-obsessed guys at my store start playing this my opinion will change out of rage.
Such a brilliant card, even in standard. There are a lot of good 1 CMC cards, and any deck can side it in against aggro to create breathing room. For example, Goblin Guide is a very efficient beater, capable of doing a lot of damage before you can get a defender out, or drawing valuable spot removal. Imagine being on the draw, but still being able to counter it - you'll still take the 2 damage, but will save yourself long term pain. Or being able to counter Kuldotha Rebirth on the draw and getting CA for no mana cost. Very nice!
beatmick
★☆☆☆☆ (1.1/5.0)(8 votes)
@blink182zombies: Nope, the CMC of X is always zero when spells like this are concerned, it doesn't matter how much is spent on X, a spell like this will see it as 0. Fireball, Red Sun's Zenith, Green Sun's Zenith are legal targets, no matter how much is on X. I <3 Mental Misstep
TerraTron
★★★★☆ (4.4/5.0)(5 votes)
@beatmick Actually, X is always zero only while the spell is not on the stack, when it's on the stack X is the mana cost you declared, so it can't counter the Zeniths. "202.3b When calculating the converted mana cost of an object with an {X} in its mana cost, X is treated as 0 while the object is not on the stack, and X is treated as the number chosen for it while the object is on the stack."
N1N7A
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Only card that will keep kuldotha red alive Goes right into mainboard Edit: It also kills kul red but still buying at least two playsets (bc i play mostly with and again aggro decks) Edit2: we hate control decks in Moravia
It can stop some disruption cards, cheap removal, and smaller creatures, but Mana Leak and Spell Pierce are still much better for now. Standard, for the most part runs very tight on mana, this makes these spells ideal to counter key spells in combos, or disrupt the flow of turns. In most cases this card won't be worth being used in your mainboard, for standard at least.
For all other formats? Essential.
The further back you go, the more useful this becomes. I can't even name all the amazing cards that this can stop.. (partly because there are so many, and partly because I'm bloody tired)
tcollins
★★★★☆ (4.0/5.0)(3 votes)
Remember, this also counters some spells with converted mana cost X in them. Such as Red Sun's Zenith and Green Sun's Zenith. Nothing is more satisfying than countering a spell like that that has had say {15} sinked into the X portion of the spell.
edit: I stand corrected. Regardless, this card has still has an astoundingly large amount of cards that it can counter, Duress, Lightning Bolt, Kuldotha Rebirth (also they still lose their artifact, since its a cost of casting the spell). The list goes on..
Elleran
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Buy these while they're cheap! This card will see play in Legacy decks of all colors. Absolutely great.
DeathDark
★☆☆☆☆ (1.1/5.0)(8 votes)
"FIREBALL! Take 20 damage!" "How 'bout 2 instead?"
TheDanish
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Great card, 5/5.
But if my friend's luck is anything to go by, this thing is rarer than Karn. A whole booster box got him 2 Karn Liberated and 1 Mental Misstep.
Hayw00d0909
★★★☆☆ (3.8/5.0)(5 votes)
There is no excuse for this not be rated a 5/5.
This is going to shake things up a lot. And for only ...
TokenMaster
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
"Heh, I just drew Sensei's Divining Top . Look who just got locked out by countertop?"
"What do you mean, all I see is a Counterbalance on board and you casting a Shock."
Magnor_Criol
★★★☆☆ (3.0/5.0)(1 vote)
Just to throw something out there - While an XR spell like Disintegrate or Fireball has a CMC of 1 in your hand, in the library, in the graveyard, and such, when it's on the stack it actually has a CMC of whatever they pumped into it.
So DeathDark, your opponent's Fireball for 20 has a CMC of 21 at a time when you can target it with Misstep, and same for DacenOctavio's Disintegrate.
BastianQoU
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Much less opportunity for turn 0 victories.. Granted, i haven't pulled one off, so i don't mind a bit :D
Gormaol
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
Combo just died.
gasimakos1
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
god damn. this card kicks ass.
cytokin_x
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I once used this to counter Shock just because I could. ^.^
Combolulz
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
A whole boosterbox and not ONE of these. What the hell.
Dregrage
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
As a Dredge player, i really despise you, Mental Misstep!
goodlyknight
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This card should last long into the future of the metagame... Got to love hidden surprises, any color... Makes the early game a bit more touchy; and any late one cmc spells, any cards in their hand?? Great chase card, anyone can enjoy...
jonb86
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(3 votes)
they for got the words "or less"; difference between being vintage worthy and being barely even standard sideboard worthy.
blugrn1989
★★★☆☆ (3.9/5.0)(4 votes)
Definitely going into my counterburn, no question. Free counterspell to hose their first turn... imagine someone paying god knows how much for a Sol Ring only to get owned by this.
HiACSlater
★★★☆☆ (3.0/5.0)(1 vote)
This card is going to be seeing a LOT of play. Lots of powerful one mana cards out there. Say no to all those , , , and all those other annoying cards no matter how much mana you have to spend.
mlanier131
★★★★☆ (4.5/5.0)(2 votes)
Dredge almost has to run firestorm. With this in the format though it slows things down by a turn, so you can afford to play second discard or give you opponent 2 free turns while you just draw cards.
leomistico
★★★★☆ (4.0/5.0)(5 votes)
Similar in machanism with Spell Snare, and I love Spell Snare... A great card!
I would give it 4.5/5 because it can be cast in non-blue deck, but I will actually give it a 5/5 because it can be cast in the first opponent turn, even being on the draw...
5/5
NuckChorris
★★★★☆ (4.7/5.0)(6 votes)
I can't think of a deck that doesn't play 1 CMC cards. Spell Pierce, there's a hole in your plan.
WateryMind
★★★★☆ (4.6/5.0)(7 votes)
Yay. A way to stop a turn 1 Dark Ritual from any black combo deck ever.
SliverFriend
★★☆☆☆ (2.0/5.0)(1 vote)
In casual play with friends I see so few CMC 1 cards that Mental Mistep just takes up space in my hand that a more powerful, less restricted spell could be in. While it has uses, it's definitely meant for a sideboard.
kajillion
★★★★☆ (4.4/5.0)(8 votes)
Goodbye legacy metagame as we knew it.
Crag-Hack
★★★☆☆ (3.6/5.0)(4 votes)
Legacy is pretty much the same as it was before mental misstep. The only difference is that every blue deck runs mental misstep and a lot of fun decks are now unplayable. Good bye elvles :'(
Frozenwings
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I really wonder how it could be, if this spell has "Counter target spell unless its controller pays 1" sentence :)
ZestuXIII
★★★☆☆ (3.0/5.0)(5 votes)
@Frozenwings: Oh, how I remember the good ol' days of Daze.
I remember when NPH was spoiled how huge a deal this and and the rest of the Phyrexian Mana cards were going to be. Like Tezzeret's Gambit and Gitaxian Probe. MagicTV from Channel Fireball has a segment on it, predicting "attrition wars" between some players, Mental Misstepping each other. Funny how much we overestimate a card on its debut. I have seen this get some legit Legacy play as a Sideboard Star, though. Dark Ritual, Galvanic Blast, High Tide, Swords to Plowshares, and Pithing Needle are prominent cards in the format (some more than others). Having such a versatile answer is good, just not maindeck good. 4/5, but at the top of its class. (Its okay, I gave Chalice of the Void 5/5)
A new staple of the Legacy Format. Being able to counter spells without paying mana is just so valuable, which is why cards like Force of Will cost so much.
5/5
Arachibutyrophobia
★★★★☆ (4.7/5.0)(5 votes)
this is an example of a card that won't see play OUTSIDE of competitive play!
AlbinoSnowman
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(1 vote)
My play group pretty much only plays red because they think blue doesn't pack a punch. Now their decks don't either when I give their Fireball, Lightning BoltShock or Goblin Grenade a timeout.
Paleopaladin
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(2 votes)
I LIKE the disruptive potential of this card in modern and legacy. I'm glad that turn 0 & 1 combos might no longer be safe!
BTW, I might now consider a blue and black sideboard regardless of the color of my deck if I'm playing legacy:
If you've never been ranched by this card before, find a new format.
roguepariah
★★★★☆ (4.8/5.0)(9 votes)
Soon to be banned in Extended and Legacy as of October 1st 2011.
DarthParallax
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(3 votes)
Dear Wizards: Please, for the love of God, STOP trying to hose/protect us from Blue. You really, really suck at it. xP
EDIT: *looks at Innistrad Spoiler.......o.O
Dear Wizards, regarding my last missive: ......What. the. Hell? You know what, forget I said anything. Just go grab your foil full-art Islands from Zendikar people. You're gonna need 'em :P
5/5
The_USAgent
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(2 votes)
Wow Banned Are You Kidding Me!!! Now how am I going to counter turn one kills in a Black-Green-White deck?
UNHINGEDMAN
★★★★☆ (4.6/5.0)(8 votes)
Wouldn't have to be banned in modern or legacy if we learned to keep free counters on the DL! Seriously, Wizards needs to understand that it makes no sense to ban a good moderation spell for modern and then just ban every ok combo instead of just giving us this card to balance it out.
Eliteninjasauce
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(3 votes)
So they are banning this in Legacy you say? All I can really say is Wow...really? I mean I don't know about anybody else here but I am not made of bling and therefore can't afford a play set of Force of Wills. When this card was printed I thought to myself "Hey alright a poor mans Force!" Both cards have their ups and downs, Force only really works well in a predominantly blue deck and Mental Misstep can only counter spells with converted mana cost one. They both have their boons and obviously anyone who knows their Legacy meta-game knows why Force of Will isn't going to get banned anytime soon. My point is, did Mental Misstep really have to kicked to the curb like that?
divine_exodus
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This would be a great card if it was just one blue mana. As it is, even better.
Zaneshift
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
I almost wish it was 1 or less so I could use it on Ornithopter. No idea why, just the thought that occurred to me. Almost. But intentionally tapping out just to edge out little pieces to a foe's strategy-- just the tiniest piece out of their plans... and poof, advantage back to me. Goodbye mana ramping nonsense that tries to ignore me in favor of some ridiculous notion that Magic is a game of solitare-- I will enforce my back-and-forth preference for the game by slowing... you... down...
That, and I once played it for the life cost when hit with a shock. Think about that for a moment. No, actually, don't, it was to power up a runechanter's pike... and to be hilarious, I admit. I much prefer the flavor of only countering a low-cost-card than countering anything 'IF', say, they don't have open mana (I'm looking at you mana leak).
Here's a fun fact, with Innistrad, in standard there's 124 (did a simple CMC search) cards that can be countered by this. That, and few decks do nothing that costs 1, so it's rarely a dead draw.
Also rather laughed a bit at this card being in standard-- makes playing standard vs legacy as I often do in casual games all the more fun when I tell them it's banned... but only for them! XD
grandpraetor
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
A counter -even a soft counter- with no mana will always be GREAT!
Deal with it Dreadnought.
Stifle. Nop.
Lightning Bolt. Nop.
Stromkirk Noble. Nop!
Goblin Grenade. NO!
Birds of... NO!
mwahuahuaha! This card will guarantee some fun in this block!
Lueseto
★★☆☆☆ (2.2/5.0)(2 votes)
Deservedly banned she is.
ax_morph
★★★★☆ (4.1/5.0)(5 votes)
What's this? Another 1 drop uncommon from Mirrodin banned in Legacy?
And this, apparently, is stronger than all of them and got banned in Legacy. Respect. (though I don't think it is a stronger card than Force of Will. And I'm sure there are those who will agree or disagree with that. I'm not saying Force of Will should be banned, but just for fun, imagine a legacy format where Force is banned and Misstep is legal. What would your deck be like?)
Shadoflaam
★★★★☆ (4.8/5.0)(5 votes)
Oooookay, I've defended Dismember numerous times and I am a huge fan of Phyrexian mana, but this was kind of a mistake.
Salient
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(21 votes)
BANHAMMERED! Mental Misstep is now the most self-referential card in the history of Magic. :)
Your first mistake was thinking we would let you play with this for longer than a second.
LlanowarEmissary
★★★★☆ (4.2/5.0)(5 votes)
@Eliteninjasauce:
This card is banned in Legacy because it killed deck diversity. According to Erik Lauer, it was designed to give all colors the ability to counter spells and therefore increase deck diversity; however, it ended up weakening many non-blue decks and outright killing others (RDW perhaps got hit hardest). Force of Will, on the other hand, is completely necessary to INCREASE deck diversity, because without it combo decks would run amok and warp the format. Having both cards legal in an eternal format like Legacy makes it just a little too easy for blue control and U/X mid-range decks like StoneBlade.
I feel like this could have been foreseen to a certain extent, leaving me to question the foresight of the MTG R&D. I mean, did they really think that Zoo and RDW were going to maindeck Misstep to give them a 'control' element? If anything, this would be a sideboard card in those decks to counter an opponent's Misstep, thereby defeating the entire purpose of the card. However, there's no mistaking the card's power, and it will see play in Standard as long as it remains legal in that format.
Kragash
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Wizards - Crash and burn, huh Mav? Maverick - Wizards, you stink.
buddy2
★★★☆☆ (3.2/5.0)(2 votes)
This card was a mistake. Right up there with Skullclamp. They really should have thought about this a little more.
Superllama12
★★★☆☆ (3.2/5.0)(3 votes)
It should read: "Counter target red deck. You may play this in any color deck, but it doesn't really matter, because everyone plays blue, anyways."
Lash_of_Dragonbreath
★★★☆☆ (3.6/5.0)(6 votes)
What? This is banned in legacy, and Force of Will isn't? Why, because you don't have to eat only instant ramen noodles for a couple months to afford a playset? For Mox's sake, I know legacy isn't supposed to be fair, but they could at least pretend to be trying...
swords_to_exile
★★★★☆ (4.4/5.0)(4 votes)
@Lash of Dragonbreath. The reason Force isn't banned but this is is because without Force of Will, Legacy would degenerate into combos that could kill in 1 or 2 turns, like vintage. The reason this is banned is so that non-combo decks like Zoo and NO Elves that want to start on turn 1 can reliably do so. Besides, a deck has to be reliably blue-heavy to cast Force for "free", whereas literally any deck could run this. Baiscally, this started showing up in more decks than Force, as well as with Spell Snare, you could reliably counter everything your opponent played the first two or even 3 turns. THAT iswhy this is banned but force isn't.
D34D2R1T35
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
Not in the least bit broken, useless in standard banned in older formats because rich players were bumsore that a cheap uncommon from the new set was counterspelling thier super expensive cards.
j_mindfingerpainter
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
Surprisingly, you can counter a lot of Phyrexian mana 1-drops.
And of course, itself. Oh, and for those of you who don't know, when calculating the CMC of a card, X is 0, so yes, Corrosive Gale and Postmortem Lunge do have CMC 1.
Enelysios
★★★☆☆ (3.7/5.0)(3 votes)
Honestly, I am sad this is banned. Force of Will has been described as "The glue that holds type 1 together". This card is great, but it usually isn't anywhere near force of will. Against many desks, it might as well be a dead drop after the first few turns.
Where it shines are the ridiculous combo decks that infest type 1 like the plague. I am for almost anything that slows type one down, at least this card lets most 'fun spells' through. (Sorry to RDW and elves though).
This is probably a bit more powerful then it should be, but I think we do need something similar to slow things down. I really want something like this card that works, as Force of Will might as well read "Legacy decks must be blue, minimum two hundred dollars entrance fee"
I hope R&D tries something similar soon.
PieGuy64
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
@j_mindfingerpainter They only have CMC 1 when they're not on the stack. When you play them (assuming X is not 0), they have CMC of one + the chosen X value, so Misstep won't counter them.
blindloyalty
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
As a "free" Blue Phyrexian mana spell, Mental Misstep is a counter highly acclaimed for its value and flexibility — however, I'm skeptical about using it in Blue control decks because of its limited targets. For only one {U} mana, spells like Turn Aside and Outwit offer a significantly broader range of spells to counter.
I suggest using this only if you're running a low cost, fast-paced deck with little or no spare mana for countermagic; otherwise there are more consistent counters to use.
DivineNocturnus
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.9/5.0)(6 votes)
Really? They banned this? What the hell wizards?
Eluem
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
.5/5 terrible design. Completely broken.
5/5 for power though... it's entirely too strong.
theNinja-degozaru
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
So I can understand somewhat Misstep's banning in Legacy... But I still don't get it's banning in Modern...
Axelle
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
This card is a Mental Misstep.
TheWrathofShane
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(2 votes)
Judging by how fast this got banned, I wouldn't be surprised if they preplanned to ban this as they were making it. This card warps formats and they new it... Whats the point of making a card if your planning on banning it?
Also that explains why it wasn't a rare, would cause an insane amount of secondary market grief, the price-tag would have been over 40 dollars.
Lord_Seth_02
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(5 votes)
@ RecurringMemories
How is THIS banned but Force of Spending Money is not???
I'm going to guess you don't actually play much Legacy if you don't understand why.
Ligerman30
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(2 votes)
The fact that it stops fireball for free makes this card way too good against the decks it's good against. The fact it can be played in any color makes this oppressive against ultra-aggressive decks and format warping. If I want to play an aggressive beatdown or RDW strategy I should be able to play it in any constructed format. Hell, in modern or legacy I should be able to make a deck full of 1 mana spells and win games. This is why it got banned. It's just oppressive. Force of will never actually blows anyone out or hoses entire decks, it's a two for one/4 mana counterspell. I mean FoW is clearly amazing, but, it's not unfair.
I mean I understand that this can counter lotus channel fireball but, so does gut shot! At least that's a fair card right?
RecurringMemories
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
How is THIS banned but Force of Spending Money is not???
@Lord_Seth_02; I don't play in tournaments except draft. I had considered taking the Reanimator I'm building into a Legacy tournament when it's finished; then I found out this was banned. I refuse to spend $70 on a single card; especially when you need a playset of them for it to be worth while.
@Ligerman30; if you're playing nothing but 1cmc spells then this can stop 4 max; if your opponent gets them all.
Obviously enough people disagree with me for it to be banned and that's fine (though if you read the posts it's clearly not everyone). I'm allowed to have and share my opinion, and I stand by original post. I do however wish I could have thought of something wittier then "Force of Spending Money".
I will admit that I (and most of my friends) have an issue with the Legacy banlist; it seems to hate fun/good cards. That''s the main reason my meta runs by Vintage rules even though none of us have anything close to the Power 9
Continue
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(3 votes)
: Ruin target player's early game.
patronofthesound
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
I like spell snare better...2 cmc cards swing the game so much more
LordRandomness
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(7 votes)
OKAY. You want to know the big difference between this and Force of Will? This doesn't require you to be playing blue. Hell, running this enables you to THEN use Force of Will in your deck as well, still without blue sources. It brings game-changing control to decks that shouldn't have it.
james2c19v
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
To unbreak this card, they just needed to have added this:
You may only cast Mental Misstep if you control an Island.
MightySqueeth
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
I wish that this was unbanned in Legacy and Force of Will was banned instead so that I might actually be able to afford to play it, but it actually makes sense to have Force of Will legal. Force of Will can only be played in decks running at least some blue whereas this card can go in practically any deck. If this were legal every deck in Legacy would run it and the format would probably be quite boring. It would be nicer I think if Force However was banned too and players had to use Foil and Daze for their free counters. I do however have a vendetta against blue so maybe my opinion is a little biased =P
Lifegainwithbite
★★★☆☆ (3.8/5.0)(3 votes)
@Mightysqueeth and the rest of the people calling for FoW to be banned in Legacy: Clearly you don't play much Legacy. If you did, you'd realise that Legacy would be completely unplayable if FoW weren't around. Spanish Inquisition and other combo decks that win on Turn 1 would run rampant. Legacy would be unplayable because whoever went first would win. FoW should never be banned in Legacy.
Zulutw0
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Obviously blue mana is OP. Oh wait, that's phyrexian mana? Life is OP!
RPJesus
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
Wish they'd called this Mental Mistep...
TheShadow344
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
For anyone who thinks this counters Fireball, or Corrosive Gale, or any other spell with mana cost (X)(whatever), that is not the case (assuming X is non-zero).
202.3b When calculating the converted mana cost of an object with an X in its mana cost, X is treated as 0 while the object is not on the stack, and X is treated as the number chosen for it while the object is on the stack.
BeatYouOnce
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This card makes me wanna go second = )
BongRipper420
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
The most busted thing about this card is a combination of three things.
A) It's amazing against virtually any competitive deck. B) Any deck can play it. C) The best card to fight it, is itself.
If you don't understand why that's a recipe for disaster, you don't understand the word 'Broken'.
EGarrett01
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
In retrospect, it's pretty funny that they thought this would make Legacy LESS annoying.
SirLibraryEater
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Green counterspells? Whaaat?
Atali
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Fine, it's banned. But we still need something to block those damn 1cmc discard spells in modern. If you're going to keep Thoughtseize in, then you should let us keep this too.
Comments (108)
Though I have to agree, amazing legacy card.
Best Card in the set for any eternal player. 5/5
What I want to know is who is this Erica Yang, and where has she been all my life?
and I don't even have very many one cmc cards in my decks, and the ones I have I would be very happy if someone payed 2 life to counter them.
Eternal formats are shaken. Note that this can be played in any color.
I got the last laugh.
Actually, X is always zero only while the spell is not on the stack, when it's on the stack X is the mana cost you declared, so it can't counter the Zeniths.
"202.3b When calculating the converted mana cost of an object with an {X} in its mana cost, X is
treated as 0 while the object is not on the stack, and X is treated as the number chosen for it
while the object is on the stack."
Goes right into mainboard
Edit: It also kills kul red but still buying at least two playsets (bc i play mostly with and again aggro decks)
Edit2: we hate control decks in Moravia
Very useful in standard, with Duress, Inquisition of Kozilek, Goblin Guide, etc.
However, this spell really shines in legacy/vintage/classic. There are many iconic and powerful 1cmc spells, and mental misstep is an elegant answer.
I will be using this card in all of my eternal decks.
5/5
It can stop some disruption cards, cheap removal, and smaller creatures, but Mana Leak and Spell Pierce are still much better for now. Standard, for the most part runs very tight on mana, this makes these spells ideal to counter key spells in combos, or disrupt the flow of turns. In most cases this card won't be worth being used in your mainboard, for standard at least.
For all other formats? Essential.
The further back you go, the more useful this becomes. I can't even name all the amazing cards that this can stop.. (partly because there are so many, and partly because I'm bloody tired)
edit: I stand corrected. Regardless, this card has still has an astoundingly large amount of cards that it can counter, Duress, Lightning Bolt, Kuldotha Rebirth (also they still lose their artifact, since its a cost of casting the spell). The list goes on..
"How 'bout 2 instead?"
But if my friend's luck is anything to go by, this thing is rarer than Karn. A whole booster box got him 2 Karn Liberated and 1 Mental Misstep.
This is going to shake things up a lot. And for only
"What do you mean, all I see is a Counterbalance on board and you casting a Shock."
So DeathDark, your opponent's Fireball for 20 has a CMC of 21 at a time when you can target it with Misstep, and same for DacenOctavio's Disintegrate.
Granted, i haven't pulled one off, so i don't mind a bit :D
I would give it 4.5/5 because it can be cast in non-blue deck, but I will actually give it a 5/5 because it can be cast in the first opponent turn, even being on the draw...
5/5
I remember when NPH was spoiled how huge a deal this and and the rest of the Phyrexian Mana cards were going to be. Like Tezzeret's Gambit and Gitaxian Probe. MagicTV from Channel Fireball has a segment on it, predicting "attrition wars" between some players, Mental Misstepping each other.
Funny how much we overestimate a card on its debut.
I have seen this get some legit Legacy play as a Sideboard Star, though. Dark Ritual, Galvanic Blast, High Tide, Swords to Plowshares, and Pithing Needle are prominent cards in the format (some more than others). Having such a versatile answer is good, just not maindeck good.
4/5, but at the top of its class. (Its okay, I gave Chalice of the Void 5/5)
Oh wait! Now i have a card that could counter it! Hooray!
...wait a second...
Birds of Paradise, Lightning Bolt, Ancestral Recall, Goblin Guide, Llanowar Elves, Shock, Tome Scour, Skullclamp, Phyrexian Dreadnaught, Goblin Lackey, Swords to Plowshares, Dark Ritual, Sensei's Divining Top, Mental Misstep, etc.
5/5
BTW, I might now consider a blue and black sideboard regardless of the color of my deck if I'm playing legacy:
4 x this
3 x Force of Will
4 x Chancellor of the Spires
4 x Surgical Extraction
EDIT: *looks at Innistrad Spoiler.......o.O
Dear Wizards, regarding my last missive: ......What. the. Hell? You know what, forget I said anything. Just go grab your foil full-art Islands from Zendikar people. You're gonna need 'em :P
5/5
Now how am I going to counter turn one kills in a Black-Green-White deck?
That, and I once played it for the life cost when hit with a shock. Think about that for a moment. No, actually, don't, it was to power up a runechanter's pike... and to be hilarious, I admit. I much prefer the flavor of only countering a low-cost-card than countering anything 'IF', say, they don't have open mana (I'm looking at you mana leak).
Here's a fun fact, with Innistrad, in standard there's 124 (did a simple CMC search) cards that can be countered by this. That, and few decks do nothing that costs 1, so it's rarely a dead draw.
Also rather laughed a bit at this card being in standard-- makes playing standard vs legacy as I often do in casual games all the more fun when I tell them it's banned... but only for them! XD
Deal with it Dreadnought.
Stifle. Nop.
Lightning Bolt. Nop.
Stromkirk Noble. Nop!
Goblin Grenade. NO!
Birds of... NO!
mwahuahuaha! This card will guarantee some fun in this block!
And I really wanted to use this one to...
Force of Will
Daze
Foil
Thwart.
Mindbreak Trap, Misdirection and especially Not of this World are pretty situational.
And this, apparently, is stronger than all of them and got banned in Legacy.
Respect.
(though I don't think it is a stronger card than Force of Will. And I'm sure there are those who will agree or disagree with that. I'm not saying Force of Will should be banned, but just for fun, imagine a legacy format where Force is banned and Misstep is legal. What would your deck be like?)
Your first mistake was thinking we would let you play with this for longer than a second.
This card is banned in Legacy because it killed deck diversity. According to Erik Lauer, it was designed to give all colors the ability to counter spells and therefore increase deck diversity; however, it ended up weakening many non-blue decks and outright killing others (RDW perhaps got hit hardest). Force of Will, on the other hand, is completely necessary to INCREASE deck diversity, because without it combo decks would run amok and warp the format. Having both cards legal in an eternal format like Legacy makes it just a little too easy for blue control and U/X mid-range decks like StoneBlade.
I feel like this could have been foreseen to a certain extent, leaving me to question the foresight of the MTG R&D. I mean, did they really think that Zoo and RDW were going to maindeck Misstep to give them a 'control' element? If anything, this would be a sideboard card in those decks to counter an opponent's Misstep, thereby defeating the entire purpose of the card. However, there's no mistaking the card's power, and it will see play in Standard as long as it remains legal in that format.
Maverick - Wizards, you stink.
"Counter target red deck. You may play this in any color deck, but it doesn't really matter, because everyone plays blue, anyways."
For Mox's sake, I know legacy isn't supposed to be fair, but they could at least pretend to be trying...
The reason Force isn't banned but this is is because without Force of Will, Legacy would degenerate into combos that could kill in 1 or 2 turns, like vintage. The reason this is banned is so that non-combo decks like Zoo and NO Elves that want to start on turn 1 can reliably do so. Besides, a deck has to be reliably blue-heavy to cast Force for "free", whereas literally any deck could run this. Baiscally, this started showing up in more decks than Force, as well as with Spell Snare, you could reliably counter everything your opponent played the first two or even 3 turns. THAT iswhy this is banned but force isn't.
For example: Corrosive Gale, Gitaxian Probe, Gut Shot, Marrow Shards, Mutagenic Growth, Noxious Revival, Postmortem Lunge, Surgical Extraction.
And of course, itself. Oh, and for those of you who don't know, when calculating the CMC of a card, X is 0, so yes, Corrosive Gale and Postmortem Lunge do have CMC 1.
Where it shines are the ridiculous combo decks that infest type 1 like the plague. I am for almost anything that slows type one down, at least this card lets most 'fun spells' through. (Sorry to RDW and elves though).
This is probably a bit more powerful then it should be, but I think we do need something similar to slow things down. I really want something like this card that works, as Force of Will might as well read "Legacy decks must be blue, minimum two hundred dollars entrance fee"
I hope R&D tries something similar soon.
They only have CMC 1 when they're not on the stack. When you play them (assuming X is not 0), they have CMC of one + the chosen X value, so Misstep won't counter them.
I suggest using this only if you're running a low cost, fast-paced deck with little or no spare mana for countermagic; otherwise there are more consistent counters to use.
5/5 for power though... it's entirely too strong.
But I still don't get it's banning in Modern...
Also that explains why it wasn't a rare, would cause an insane amount of secondary market grief, the price-tag would have been over 40 dollars.
How is THIS banned but Force of Spending Money is not???
I'm going to guess you don't actually play much Legacy if you don't understand why.
I mean I understand that this can counter lotus channel fireball but, so does gut shot! At least that's a fair card right?
@Lord_Seth_02; I don't play in tournaments except draft. I had considered taking the Reanimator I'm building into a Legacy tournament when it's finished; then I found out this was banned. I refuse to spend $70 on a single card; especially when you need a playset of them for it to be worth while.
@Ligerman30; if you're playing nothing but 1cmc spells then this can stop 4 max; if your opponent gets them all.
Obviously enough people disagree with me for it to be banned and that's fine (though if you read the posts it's clearly not everyone). I'm allowed to have and share my opinion, and I stand by original post. I do however wish I could have thought of something wittier then "Force of Spending Money".
I will admit that I (and most of my friends) have an issue with the Legacy banlist; it seems to hate fun/good cards. That''s the main reason my meta runs by Vintage rules even though none of us have anything close to the Power 9
You may only cast Mental Misstep if you control an Island.
202.3b When calculating the converted mana cost of an object with an X in its mana cost, X is treated as 0 while the object is not on the stack, and X is treated as the number chosen for it while the object is on the stack.
A) It's amazing against virtually any competitive deck.
B) Any deck can play it.
C) The best card to fight it, is itself.
If you don't understand why that's a recipe for disaster, you don't understand the word 'Broken'.