Pointed Discussion

This is a really nice card. I don't know of any other 2-mana hard counters that also help to get rid of those last few cards in your Legacy mill deck. My only problem is that it doesn't seem to interact as intended with the rest of the arcane cards. I tried splicing a Lava Bolt onto it, but the judge told me that it was illegal.

It's easier to see why this card is good when you compare it to Vision Skeins in a one-on-one game. Skeins gives you each two cards, while this gives you a card and a counter, and a well timed counter is probably worth more than a card. This also gives you the added possibility of drawing three cards while countering your own spell. Comparing the two has really helped me understand this card better.

Everybody draws!

This is card disadvantage, but relatively cheap and unconditional. I wouldn't play it unless I wanted my opponent to have a bunch of cards for some sinister reason.
Also, Richard Kane Ferguson is much, much better for this card than this I think.

Think combos...

Think Consecrated Sphinx...

Kane art I a million times better!

check out Deprive. check how Counterspells, which come from 0-3 mana for a variety of designs, cost a whole 4 mana just to get a cantrip.

I'm not sure, but I'm pretty sure that it's just about close to WOTC policy to say "For Counterspells CMC 2 or less, must give card disadvantage, or be very conditional'. This card is as old as Alliances and I think this has been their policy for just about that long. With only Counerspell itself sending a contrary message.

3 stars because it's really hard to rate a Counterspell lower than that. Pretty much, the card disadvantage is very often worth it even when you Don't have a Sinister Plot involving drawing cards.

Wait that's right. If you plan to counter spells and destroy permanents....you don't necessarily care if your opponent draws them now or later. You're going to send all his cards to the graveyard one way or another.

It's an unconditional hard counter, that you can splash.

Maybe not the greatest choice, but it's really quite well placed in EDH. You want to use cheap counters and there's a fairly limited selection, and the ability to splash lets you use this early on in case of ramp. Neato.

Notion Thief

"I'm sorry I stopped that thin excuse of potential. Here, have some more wasted potential."

Is everyone kidding themselves? There is a pile of vile bile heading straight for some poor, unassuming, fish dude who manages to stops that stream of ooze from reaching his undoubtedly smooth and moist flesh with effortless poise and grace. The previous attempt at art for this card is some confused, haphazard ice duel, whose relation to "denial" (I can see arcane, granted) is all but impossible to discern.

Onto what I think about what this card does, I think its a fitting edition to an EDH Grouphug deck-It gets the job done in a moment of crisis, for a decent cost, with the "plus side" of giving your opponent a little something extra in return (just so they know there's no hard feelings), and hey, you get half that deal yourself! What joy!

4/5

Nekusar, the Mindrazer loves this spell, so it's nice they gave it to him.

Oh wait, they gave it to Derevi instead. Sure, why not?

Not card advantage? Counter your own cheap spell and draw three cards for two. Granted it costs at least as much as a divination (unless you use 0 cmc cpells) but you can use it on your own spells in response to any spell making yours worthless.

Alternatively, cast an uncounterable spell and target it with this. Drawing three cards for {1}{U} sounds good.

Turn 1. Seal of Removal
Turn 2. This
Turn 3. Let them draw 2, draw one yourself, cast Iron Maiden

Pretty ideal counterspell in Iron Maiden centric decks. Not too shabby later in the game either. The drawing is optional, but that'd mean it's a hard counter + delayed cantrip for {1}{U}.

Hey look, a counterspell that doesn't suck to cascade into.

"Return target permanent to its owner's hand; Or draw three cards, whatever."

Funny how, at CMC 2, any Cascade spell could hit this.

+ CMC
+ Hard counter - counter creature AND non-creature spells
+ Mana cost of , not , making it splashable
+ At the beginning of the next turn's upkeep, you draw a card.
+ As Citz points out, cast a spell, counter it with this, draw 3 cards for ( + cost of other spell cast - counter a 0-drop of your own then, I guess.. heh)... or target something that can't be countered, since the drawing is not dependent on the countering being successful, and draw 3 for . Holy ****.
- The caster of the spell you countered is able to draw up to 2 cards at the beginning of the next turn's upkeep, you draw a card.

Is the one drawback that big a deal? Depends... but still, to hard counter and draw a card next upkeep feels worth that drawback... hard to see this card and not squeal with joy.


Even with the drawback, this is an amazing card, pure and simple, from what it gives and drawback, to how the drawback can be used in your favor.

So very very disappointing.
Huh?
No, not the card itself, the card is awesome.
But when a card with great potential but practically no use in Legacy or Vintage gets reprinted with new art and all after 17 years, you'd expect it to end up in an official set, adding it to formats where it would see use.

Nope.

One-of in a Commander box.

There go any hopes of seeing any real use of Arcane Denial in any format but Pauper for the next two decades.

:c

It looks like someone has been eating Sugarless Haribo Gummy Bears...

Notion Thief is horrible with this card. You want Dream Fracture instead as Denial says "May Draw". With the thief in play I would not draw the cards so you would only net 1 card. Fracture would draw 2 cards no matter what. The only advantage would be the reduced mana cost. I love Arcane Denial and consider it one of the most powerful counterspells of all time.

It's hard for me to rate this objectively, because this is the only card I own with art so terrible I refuse to put it in a deck.

I have a little boy, and this guy is trying to counter the contents of his diaper. It's a losing battle my friend... even without a nose.

It's weird that they didn't put this in the Nekusar deck.

Fantastic card. Just dont use it against another control player.... very bad idea... or mono red... also very bad idea..