Pointed Discussion

I know that it could be quite devestating in say EDH, and in a sense thats kind of mythic. But come on, this really would be more sensible at a rare seeing as how its not that great most of the time. I'll take my mind shatter any day

This feels like Rakdos's Return and slaughter games had a baby, but the recessive genes showed through and it lost its red nature for blue.

And no this would not be good in EDH. There's only one copy of each card in EDH in which case you end up with a strictly more expensive Rakdos's Return.

It may be costly, but I'll take mythics like this over abominations like Lotus Cobra any day. Though, if you're playing those colors, yeah, there's better stuff.

Lobotomy was the first Gold card I ever loved, and even *I* feel a bit let down by this.

It could work okay in a BUG Standard deck, but it's too expensive for other formats,
and in EDH, it essentially reads "Target player reveals their hand and exiles all non land cards from it",
which is hardly worth the mana cost.

I like the idea, but it just doesn't feel executed properly.
I'd rather have the Mirko Vosk we were originally going to get.

Maybe for Esper, just maybe

Would have been very fun at XBU, but no, Wizards just couldn't give Dimir some love

Lobotomy Games?

Remember when they previewed Mirko Vosk, Mind Drinker and we were all like "He's not that impressive, but this means Dimir will get an awesome mythic to make up for it!" Well... yeah. I kept reading this over and over, expecting to find some hidden effect that made it all worth it, but nope, trolled again.

An optimal open hand often has 3 lands, which means any number for X larger than 4 (7-3=4) would probably not give you more advantage, and that is just for opening hand, imagine how many cards you can actually hit from turn 2 and beyond. Unless you have some ramp, you can't cast Reap Intellect early enough to ensure that you will get the optimal result; an aggro deck could nearly empty its hand on turn 3 or 4 most of the time.

Used in the right place at the right time, this could potentially eviscerate a deck and leave it helpless. But those conditions are almost impossible to produce, and if you get to the point where you have that much mana spare to throw around, you could be casting something much better.

Is this card going to be winning standard tournaments? No. But the ability to cast Slaughter Games at the downside of 1 more mana, with the potential upside of hitting many more targets? I think this card deserves more respect!

My dream is to follow up an overloaded Cyclonic Rift with this card and cackle as his hand and deck are completely destroyed!

Too expensive imho. By the time you can cast it, your opponent will probably have killed you (if he plays aggro or combo) or has a counterspell ready (control).

hiiissssss.......


I dearly love Mythic Rarity, unlike almost everyone else. You love the power of Mythic Rare cards, but you don't like how rare they are to find and buy. :P I actually CAN appreciate that, mechanically, this is *quite* a complex spell (thinking pure Vorthos here- it would be very difficult to learn and cast, ultimately it's not too much of a burden for us to read and interpret though)- and since it's a "To 11" version of a type of effect that is Already strictly at Rare...

Yeah. Mythic is actually the correct Rarity for this I believe. Compare Knowledge Pool. These cards are roughly as Spikey as each other (which is "Not") and roughly as high-potential as each other (which is bonkers if you are in a strange game or lucky or cheating or you're a Jedi or Ninja, which is like cheating except cool.) But Knowledge Pool didn't have any real ancestors or anything. It has lots of step-cousins. Trying to say "Eye of the Storm + Hive Mind = Knowledge Pool, ergo KP should be a Mythic..." just doesn't exactly feel right, compared to "Lobotomy, Cranial Extraction, Thought Hemorrhage, Memoricide, Slaughter Games etc have all been Rares in the past, and if this isn't "Better" in a Spike sense, it's way more Powerful in a Best-Case Scenario sense." as reasoning for making this a Mythic.

The thing that makes most people very sad is that P(x) of this card being at it's best is even rarer, even harder to pull off, seems like you have to so far out of your way that there's very little motivations for doing that many backflips when you can play Haunting Echoes + Mind Shatter if you absolutely have to. It can SOMETIMES be as powerful an effect as Jace, The Mind Sculptor's Ultimate, but if you ever see it actually do that, seriously capture the moment on video because it's likely to happen all of once in history, if ever.

I understand the card's Design and Development, but I also get why it's only scoring 2-stars on Gatherer. I won't actually give it more than 2 myself, even though I love high-rating all the cards just because I love the game. If you have enough chutzpah, break this card and prove to the world that you are The All Time Most Johnny, because for the most part even the Johnnies are going to have to admit "This will never work."

I think this is the First Time I've seen a card that could actually justify the line "Why the Game needs Bad Mythics". I Don't think Archangel's Light needed to be Mythic...but I think this needed to be Mythic...and it's unintentionally really, really, REALLY Unspike, to the point of feeling Bad. It's not that they wanted to make it Bad. They just made it cost what it has to to not be broken.

This is one of those cards that I'm completely unsure whether it could be any good or not.
My initial instinct was "this card is awful," and I wouldn't be surprised if this were the case.
However, it is possible that this card could be used in an Esper or BUG-deck to remove any game-ending threats from your opponents hand before he or she casts them. But that's just wishful thinking on my part.
Overall, I don't think this is a sleeper; I think it's most likely that this is just a bad card.

This really needed to be X1UB at least; that way, even if you could only pay one mana for X, you still had a Lobotomy. As it is, I can't see it replacing anything, especially the counter-immune Slaughter Games.

Unless you're playing against a Kamigawa person (ie, giant hand size), this is probably useless.
What I've found is that Dimir kind of never wins by mill. What they do is mill, then get out a Wight of Precinct Six or a Consuming Aberration and beat face. This card is just... weird. Even if Dimir was more mill-focused, this is very inefficient, with only 28 cards at maximum, and costing you a hefty eleven mana.

But because Dimir relies on having cards actually IN graveyards, this is... ehh...

Kind of fun at the kitchen table and unhelpful everywhere else, this card is WAY too expensive for Standard. By the time you get to a point where you can use this, you will already be at 0. I don't really see it working in Limited, either, but somebody will find a way.

Dimir is really suffering right now. This combined with cards like Trait Doctoring and crappy mono-colored cards in blue and black like Hired Torturer and Mindstatic amount to a giant Suckfest for Dimir in Dragon's Maze. Sorry for ranting, but Dimir's new cards require it to do incredibly slow, convoluted things to get anything done.

I hear commentators say that Dragon's Maze will play slower than other releases. Well, I sure hope so. Otherwise, Dimir is going to get smoked in a grotesque, unceremonious manner.

I actually like the idea of a multi-Memoricide (sort of). Crypt Ghast ramps nicely, with extort as bonus.

I don't think it is as bad as everyone is treating it. If it cost any less it would be a strictly better Lobotomy. The price is fair for the effect. That said, I would have been more impressed if it said "Each opponent reveals their hand, choose up to X non-land cards and exile them, for each card exiled search..." It would have had that little extra to push it into that Mythic feel it doesn't quite have.

Underrated. Can completely change games, going to be a fun mythic for budget players. Keep note that with 5 mana you see their entire hand and exile the strongest card.
4/5

On the opponent turn, cast Plasm Capture to counter a big spell with cmc of 4 or higher. Then, on your turn, cast Reap Intellect for x=4 or more. Good game?

there must be a typo. I think this is supposed to be Rape Intellect.

That's realy ok if dark ritual comes back !

You're all complaining about the mana cost? Think it should be cheaper, as the effect's not that scary?
Think Wizards overestimated the effect? It's not a new one.
Let me tell y'all of a little card called Bitter Ordeal...

Well, they might could have gone with an (arguably strictly*) better Lobotomy here.

As it is, you get a more expensive Lobotomy for , and two Lobotomies for .
But above that, more often than not your opponent won't have that many cards to exile,
so you might just end up with a somewhat expensive card extractor.

But it's a very unusual effect to have the possibility to get multiplied with an X-cost, after all.
Maybe i'm underestimating the potential this card might get from just lowering the cost from to .

Yet since they kept that cost, I think it should have targeted each opponent.
That would have given the card the Mythic feeling it lacks right now.

I do love Steven Belledin's visualization of this spell a lot, though.


(*Although it coudln't really be called strictly better, since (1) Lobotomy can target any player and
(2) some X-spells are in a disadvantageous when cast without paying their mana costs.)

In Casual you could run Howling Mine, Font Of Mythos or Temple Bell to not only keep your opponent's hand big and primed for deck destruction, but also help you amass the lands and Crypt Ghasts you need for your big reap. Still, that seems like a lot of work to fulfil the potential of one card.

I think this card is pretty good actually, you're not going to use it against an aggro deck, but i think it could hold a spot in an esper or BUG decks or sideboard, i mean if the ability resolves against a control deck it puts you at a great advantage imagine hitting sphinx's revelation, supreme verdict, restoration angel, or thragtusk with this. and control decks do go up to the 7-9 mana allowing you to not only cast it for a reasonable number, but back it up with dispel or negate. its a good card. 4.2/5 for me

A ridiculous overcosted Lobotomy wannabe.
But if you can overload Cyclonic Rift at the EOT you gonna have a real good time.

Well, this could certainly destroy combo decks, but the chances are at 5-6 mana they have already played their keycard(s). So, with this you really need a Boomerang or perhaps something like Seal of Removal, that you can play earlier so you still have mana to burn on this card. Anyway, either slow their landplay or return those keycards back to their hand.

Well, it definitely screws over a Relentless Rats deck.

Turn 5 with crypt ghast will net you 3 cards at the least.

I really want to like Dimir but Wizards is making it so difficult! This isn't a terrible card it is just too expensive for standard.

In this set we have mythics that range from absolute crap to so good you can't afford it! My friend and I are going halvsies on a Dragon's Maze booster, this card better not show its face.

Originally my verdict was 2/5, but after testing it out as a one-of (later two-of) in my Esper control sideboard, I'm going to bump this up to 4/5. Do not make the same mistake I did and just assume that it's a strictly worse Lobotomy. Having the option to take out two (or more) cards is great. It's not quite as good as Lobotomy, but I like it nonetheless.

@CORRBentOrgy: Really? You think they would print a strictly better version of an already amazing card? Come on now.

The real problem with this card is that by the time you're casting it for X>2, the chance that your opponent has more than 2 nonlands in hand isn't that high. The window where it's good is pretty small.

That being said, there are a few ways this could go to make it better:

-Like a lot of people have said, make it affect each opponent.

-Make it an instant? {U}{B} are control colors, and tapping out on your turn for a mediocre effect feels pretty bad on T5, when your opponent might topdeck then cast Thragtusk or another huge spell that you'd like to counter. Furthermore, it allows you to hit more cards that way since you can cast it after they draw but before they have the chance to play anything.

-Take out X, add Cipher? {3}{B} for discard a card every turn was in Gatecrash, and was mediocre. Lobotomy a turn would be pretty brutal, but hey, it's a mythic. It's supposed to be fairly powerful.

As it is, the effect is sometimes good, and hoses combo decks, but is generally too late to make a big difference in most matchups.

This card is unfortunate. Its design is actually really cool, and it couldn't be less mana without making other cards strictly worse, but it is just too slow.

I'm glad they didn't just make another staple mythic though. The art is also really cool too. 3.5/5

I've drafted this card twice (DGM block) but I've never cast it. It's been in my hand ready to go, but by the time I had enough mana it was too late. I ended up siding it out for Mindrot every game.

If you ramp super friggin' hard with it on the play against a slow opponent then it probably wins the game, but that's too specific a set of circumstances. Close to unplayable in limited.

Mythics usually have big, unique effects. Look at some of the other Mythic cards in this set: Deadbridge Chant, Blood Baron of Vizkopa, Master of Cruelties, Maze's End, Savageborn Hydra. Each of those cards that I just listed have 2 or more effects that are beneficial. Their costs are usually high to compensate. Most of their effects haven't been printed on a card before.

Now look at Reap Intellect. There's only one effect. The effect doesn't directly win the game for you. Its effect isn't combo-able. It isn't unique.

Here's an idea for a possible effect (and cost the compensate) that could replace this:

Exile target (or each) opponents hand. Search their graveyard, deck, and hand for any of the exiled cards and exile them. Shuffle their library.

That effect is huge. That effect is unique. Because of its cost, it still wouldn't be played competitively. However, when you get that card, you're thinking, "Oh sweet Jesus." That's what you should be thinking with Mythics.

Sure, my idea would make Wit's End obsolete, but it wouldn't ruin the overall game. It wouldn't affect the power creep (I think).

Not totally useless in EDH, it still lets you search their library even if your certain there wont be any more copies.

2.5/5 Stars

I got this in the dragon's maze prerelease.
Sniff

In a set with Maze's End, this manages to be the worst Mythic somehow. Worthless in principle for all singleton formats, worthless in practice for standard and limited, and a complete ripoff if this is your rare in a draft pack. What a disaster.

The potential for this card is huge, and I don't understand complaining about the X cost. X cost cards are traditionally 1 mana more expensive than non X cost cards that have the same basic effect. if you have, say, seven mana, then you can cast it for 3. Compare this to 3 casts of Lobotomy This just saved you 5 mana. It's well worth the cost starting at casting it for 2 even!

Granted, playing it for one is expensive at 5 mana, but the option of the X is almost worth it. Plus, at the point in the game where you would cast this, your opponent probably has some of his or her strongest cards in their hand.

The only way it could be better is if instead of X being the number of cards, it would be the number of copies of this spell, allowing you to A. Target multiple opponents in multiplayer games and B. use the copies to activate Consuming Aberration (or Circu, Dimir Lobotomist in non-standard formats.0

I like it, and I will definitely put 1 in my Dimir mill deck.

EDIT: I've been thinking. They could've easily made this a very good card by simply making it Lobotomy, but with cipher. It would then exile any card except for basic lands, and the effect would be repeatable turn after turn into the lategame. You can build around it, and the effect is fantastic.

TL;DR: Should've been Lobotomy, but with cipher.

@ferlord
Let's look Putrefy and Murder and see if they cared about obsoleteing a 2013 card. It is sad how bad most of the Dimir cards got gimped, I would have loved a card like you came up with honestly.

UPDATE: I am sorry, did I say Putrefy? I meant Hero's Downfall

The comments have soo many ways of making this card playable and fun to use. Its really a shame that we end up stuck with this instead of any of them. :/

There is at least one really great play with this card. Play Esper Control. At end of opponent's turn, when he has played at least 2 horrendous threats (like Voice of Resurgence or Stormbreath Dragon), cast Aetherize, or even better, overloaded Cyclonic Rift. Then your next turn, you get to pull them out of his hand, along with all the rest of them in the deck. You could potentially remove all of a deck's serious win conditions this way.

put one of these in my espercontrol deck and against mirror matches it was Ludicrous, of course my opponent tap out for sphinx's rev and then my turn came around boom tap out for a reap intellect for 6 cards, and pretty much it was gg. doesn't do too bad against mono black devotion or anything that can seem to be aggro; but regardless i think this card is awesomez

The only really good part about the card is how angry people get when you successfully pull it off in a game. Something about getting hit with such a bad card really makes people flip out.