Raka Sanctuary MTG Card


Raka Sanctuary offers card advantage and potential land ramping, accelerating your deck’s strategy. Instant speed interaction allows for a flexible response during your opponent’s turn. However, it requires a specific mana combination and a card discard, posing some limitations.
Raka Sanctuary - Apocalypse
Mana cost
Converted mana cost3
RarityUncommon
TypeEnchantment
Released2001-06-04
Set symbol
Set nameApocalypse
Set codeAPC
Number67
Frame1997
LayoutNormal
BorderBlack
Illustred byDavid Martin

Text of card

At the beginning of your upkeep, if you control a white or blue permanent, Raka Sanctuary deals 1 damage to target creature. If you control a white permanent and a blue permanent, Raka Sanctuary deals 3 damage to that creature instead.


Cards like Raka Sanctuary

Raka Sanctuary stands out in the Magic: The Gathering realm of enchantments that tailor player strategies. This card shares similarities with enchantments such as Outpost Siege, which also offers a choice to its controller during the upkeep. However, unlike Outpost Siege, which allows card exile and play for that turn or damage to opponents, Raka Sanctuary requires a card to be revealed from your hand to trigger its damage capability.

Another card worthy of comparison is Fevered Visions, which delivers consistent damage to an opponent while simultaneously providing card advantage. Raka Sanctuary, on the other hand, is conditional based on the player’s hand. While both cards tend to fit into decks that punish opponents over time, Raka Sanctuary’s influence is less predictable and more dependent on maintaining a certain hand composition to fully capitalize on its damage potential.

In assessing Raka Sanctuary’s position within similar MTG cards, its unique trigger condition grants it a situational advantage, potentially making it a stealthy complement in a strategy aiming to keep opponents off-balance.

Outpost Siege - MTG Card versions
Fevered Visions - MTG Card versions
Outpost Siege - MTG Card versions
Fevered Visions - MTG Card versions

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Mana Flare - MTG Card versions
Gravity Sphere - MTG Card versions
Goblin War Drums - MTG Card versions
Aggression - MTG Card versions
Heat Wave - MTG Card versions
Goblin Warrens - MTG Card versions
Heat Stroke - MTG Card versions
Seismic Assault - MTG Card versions
Torch Song - MTG Card versions
Ghitu War Cry - MTG Card versions
Fervor - MTG Card versions
Spellshock - MTG Card versions
Mana Cache - MTG Card versions
Citadel of Pain - MTG Card versions
Insolence - MTG Card versions
Granite Grip - MTG Card versions
Steam Vines - MTG Card versions
Magma Vein - MTG Card versions
Pyromania - MTG Card versions
Curse of Hospitality - MTG Card versions

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Raka Sanctuary enables you to consistently sift through your deck, thereby giving you a greater chance of drawing into the solutions you need or setting up your winning combos.

Resource Acceleration: Through its activation, Raka Sanctuary can potentially ramp you ahead by offering additional land plays, thus fast-tracking your strategy and enabling you to cast more impactful spells sooner than expected.

Instant Speed: The instant speed interaction of Raka Sanctuary allows for a flexible approach to gameplay, letting you respond to threats or opportunities at the most opportune time without compromising your main phase actions.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Leveraging the Raka Sanctuary comes with a trade-off. You’re compelled to discard another card which could deplete your hand, making it tough to maintain card advantage against opponents.

Specific Mana Cost: Raka Sanctuary’s casting requirements are rigid, needing an exact blend of blue, red, and white mana. This can pose a hurdle in decks that are not fine-tuned for such a specific mana base, restricting its inclusion to only certain deck types.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Sporting a mana value that may impact your early game momentum, Raka Sanctuary demands a significant investment for entry. When considering your game strategy, it might be worthwhile to explore alternative options that are more mana-efficient, offering similar or better outcomes at a lower cost.


Reasons to Include Raka Sanctuary in Your Collection

Versatility: Raka Sanctuary boasts a flexible color identity, making it a suitable addition to numerous multicolored decks yearning for enchantment synergies or incremental advantage engines.

Combo Potential: This enchantment pairs well with cards that benefit from the accumulation of enchantments or the casting of multicolored spells, enabling creative and powerful combinations.

Meta-Relevance: Given its capacity to steadily bolster your game presence with each multicolored spell cast, Raka Sanctuary can align adeptly with current meta strategies, particularly in environments where long-term value reigns supreme.


How to beat

Raka Sanctuary presents a unique challenge for Magic: The Gathering players, blending control with the incremental advantage. This enchantment becomes a recurring source of damage each turn, provided you’ve cast a multicolored spell. To effectively neutralize Raka Sanctuary’s impact on the game, prioritizing the removal of enchantments is key. Cards like Disenchant offer a simple solution, efficiently dealing with troublesome permanents at a low cost.

Moreover, countering the spells that trigger Raka Sanctuary’s ability disrupts the engine that fuels its power. A well-timed Counterspell or Thoughtseize can prevent the casting of multicolored spells, thus leading to a fizzled cycle of damage. Additionally, embracing an aggressive approach can pressure your opponent and limit their ability to establish the Raka Sanctuary lock. By addressing the card directly through enchantment removal, strategically disrupting its triggers, or applying early game pressure, you can effectively minimize the advantage Raka Sanctuary offers and maintain the upper hand in your matches.


Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Raka Sanctuary MTG card by a specific set like Apocalypse, there are several reliable options to consider. One of the primary sources is your local game store, where you can often find booster packs, individual cards, and preconstructed decks from current and some past sets. They often offer the added benefit of a community where you can trade with other players.

For a broader inventory, particularly of older sets, online marketplaces like TCGPlayer, Card Kingdom and Card Market offer extensive selections and allow you to search for cards from specific sets. Larger e-commerce platforms like eBay and Amazon also have listings from various sellers, which can be a good place to look for sealed product and rare finds.

Additionally, Magic’s official site often has a store locator and retailer lists for finding Wizards of the Coast licensed products. Remember to check for authenticity and the condition of the cards when purchasing, especially from individual sellers on larger marketplaces.

Below is a list of some store websites where you can buy the Raka Sanctuary and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Raka Sanctuary has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
OathbreakerLegal
PremodernLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal

Rules and information

The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Raka Sanctuary card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

Date Text
2004-10-04 It can deal 1 or 3 damage, but never 4.