Rite of Ruin MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	7
Rarity	Rare
Type	Sorcery
Released	2012-05-04
Set symbol
Set name	Avacyn Restored
Set code	AVR
Number	153
Frame	2003
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Clint Cearley

Key Takeaways

Rite of Ruin creates card advantage by disrupting opponent’s plans with forced discarding and sacrifices.
The card strategically clears the way for attacks, potentially aiding your board position significantly.
Timed deployment can yield an impact comparable to instant speed spells, altering the game’s momentum.

Text of card

Choose an order for artifacts, creatures, and lands. Each player sacrifices one permanent of the first type, sacrifices two of the second type, then sacrifices three of the third type.

Skirsdag cultists refused to quietly accept Avacyn's ascendancy.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Rite of Ruin demands strategic discarding from opponents, disrupting their hand and potential on-board plays. This can lead to a significant advantage for the player casting it by depleting opponents’ resources and options.

Resource Acceleration: Rite of Ruin isn’t a direct resource accelerator but can clear the way for your attacks by forcing opponents to sacrifice their blockers. It can also remove potential threats that could disrupt your own resource acceleration plans.

Instant Speed: While Rite of Ruin functions at sorcery speed, its impact when timed correctly can be as devastating as a well-placed instant. Careful play can maximize ts ability to tip the scales in your favour during your turn.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Although Rite of Ruin doesn’t have a discard requirement, it’s important to carefully plan its use, as it doesn’t immediately impact the board state upon being cast. This may leave you open to opponent strategies if not timed correctly.

Specific Mana Cost: With an exacting casting cost that includes both red and generic mana, Rite of Ruin might be a tight fit for multi-colored decks. Ensuring the right mana availability can be challenging, especially in formats where mana fixing is less reliable.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: At seven mana to cast, Rite of Ruin comes with a steep price. Despite its potential to disrupt opponents’ board presence heavily, the cost may prove too prohibitive in faster-paced games where lower-cost alternatives could be more impactful in the early to mid-game stages.

Reasons to Include Rite of Ruin in Your Collection

Versatility: Rite of Ruin adapts to a variety of strategies focusing on resource denial. It allows players to structure the order of sacrifices, playing well in decks that manipulate or capitalize on specific board states.

Combo Potential: This card can be a cog in a well-oiled machine within destruction-focused strategies, providing a significant sweep that can clear the path for victory. It’s particularly potent when combined with cards that protect your assets or benefit from opponent sacrifices.

Meta-Relevance: Given its potential to disrupt opponent setups, Rite of Ruin can be a game-changer in metas where creatures, lands, and artifacts play a pivotal role—shaking up the battlefield and shifting the game in your favor.

How to beat

Rite of Ruin is a powerful spell that can disrupt an opponent’s board when used skillfully in Magic: The Gathering. This red sorcery forces players to select one or more permanent types and then sacrifice them in a specific order. To effectively combat this card, consider strategies that either counter the spell or mitigate the sacrifice effect. Holding up mana for counterspells can ensure Rite of Ruin never resolves. Alternatively, playing decks that can quickly rebuild from a sacrifice or using cards that can recover assets from your graveyard can diminish the impact of Rite of Ruin on your game plan.

Building a resilient board with indestructible or regenerate abilities can also help withstand the devastation. Furthermore, instant-speed spells that can create tokens or cheat in permanents post-sacrifice serve as excellent ways to rebound. Lastly, maintaining card advantage and hand size ensures that even after a Rite of Ruin resolves, you’re well-equipped to replenish your board and continue to apply pressure.

Ultimately, being prepared for the disruption and maintaining flexibility in your playstyle can nullify Rite of Ruin and keep you in control of the match.

Cards like Rite of Ruin

Rite of Ruin stands out in the MTG landscape as a potent tool for strategically dismantling opponents’ board states. In terms of destruction, it can be likened to Decree of Annihilation, which also focuses on widespread removal. But Rite of Ruin provides players the flexibility to choose three destruction layers targeting lands, artifacts, and creatures in any order. Decree of Annihilation lacks such choice, opting for a complete board reset instead.

Another comparable card is Boom // Bust, which allows for either targeted land destruction or a full sweep of all lands on the battlefield. Rite of Ruin’s customizable approach, however, affords a tactical advantage, given that it can also purge artifacts and creatures, not just lands. Then there’s Obliterate, which ensures an irreversible state of destruction due to its cant-be-countered clause. Yet, Obliterate doesn’t offer the selective removal Rite of Ruin does.

Assessing the unique approach Rite of Ruin takes to removal, it’s clear why this card can be pivotal in any red deck. It blends the flexibility of targeted removal with the raw power of a one-sided sweep. Perfect for players who want to shape the board to their strategic advantage while working within MTG’s rich tapestry of spells.

Decree of Annihilation - MTG Card versions

Cards similar to Rite of Ruin by color, type and mana cost

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Rite of Ruin MTG card by a specific set like Avacyn Restored, 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 Rite of Ruin and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Rite of Ruin has restrictions

Format	Legality
Commander	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Modern	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Penny	Legal

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
2012-05-01	First you choose the order for the card types. Then each player in turn order (starting with the active player) chooses one permanent they control of the first card type. Then those permanents are sacrificed at the same time. Then each player in turn order chooses two permanents they control of the second card type. Then those permanents are sacrificed at the same time. Finally, each player in turn order chooses three permanents of the third card type, then those permanents are sacrificed at the same time.
2012-05-01	If any abilities trigger while Rite of Ruin is resolving, those abilities will wait until Rite of Ruin finishes resolving before going on the stack. Starting with the active player, each player puts their abilities on the stack in any order.
2012-05-01	Permanents sacrificed for one card type won’t be on the battlefield to be chosen for subsequent card types.