Barrin's Unmaking MTG Card
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 2 |
| Rarity | Common |
| Type | Instant |
| Released | 2000-10-02 |
| Set symbol | |
| Set name | Invasion |
| Set code | INV |
| Number | 46 |
| Frame | 1997 |
| Layout | Normal |
| Border | Black |
| Illustred by | Luca Zontini |
Text of card
Return target permanent to its owner's hand if that permanent shares a color with the most common color among all permanents or the color tied for most common.
Cards like Barrin's Unmaking
Barrin’s Unmaking presents MTG enthusiasts with a unique blend of utility and flexibility. It draws parallels with cards like Swords to Plowshares, which efficiently exiles creatures at the cost of granting opponents life equal to the creature’s power. While Swords to Plowshares does so at a lower mana cost, Barrin’s Unmaking stands out with its ability to target more than just creatures, extending its disruption to planeswalkers at the same mana value.
Another card worth comparing is Anguished Unmaking, which also offers broader removal, hitting any nonland permanent at instant speed. It comes at a higher cost and the additional price of 3 life, presenting a trade-off for its wider range. Contrastingly, Barrin’s Unmaking sacrifices some of that range for a more life-neutral approach to board control. Moreover, it situates itself in mono-blue control strategies, whereas Anguished Unmaking fits into black-white decks.
Considering these counterparts, Barrin’s Unmaking carves a niche for itself in MTG blue-centric control arsenals. It asks players to weigh the benefit of versatile removal against mana efficiency and health preservation, ultimately offering a strategic choice in the delicate balance of removal and resource management.
Cards similar to Barrin's Unmaking by color, type and mana cost
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Barrin’s Unmaking provides a pivotal edge by returning not just one, but up to two target permanents to their owners’ hands. This dual disruption can efficiently dismantle an opponent’s board, setting them back significantly while you progress your own game state.
Resource Acceleration: While this card doesn’t directly create resources, the act of bouncing opponent’s permanents can indirectly accelerate your resources. By removing potential threats or valuable assets of your opponent, you create a smoother path for your strategies and reduce the need for resource expenditure in dealing with those permanents later on.
Instant Speed: The versatility of Barrin’s Unmaking being castable at instant speed cannot be overstated. It allows players to react precisely when it’s most detrimental to an opponent’s plan—perhaps in response to an “enter the battlefield” trigger or during the combat phase, adding a layer of strategic depth to every match.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Barrin’s Unmaking introduces a trade-off that can be quite the setback. In situations where your hand is already depleted, being forced to ditch an additional card can make it a burdensome choice, potentially leading to a loss of momentum in crucial moments of gameplay.
Specific Mana Cost: The spell’s strict blue mana requirement can potentially hinder its inclusion in multicolored decks. Decks that are not base blue might struggle to consistently generate the necessary mana, making Barrin’s Unmaking less versatile and more of a niche pick.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: Having to allocate three mana can place a significant dent in your mana pool, especially in the earlier stages of the game. It competes with other impactful plays one could make at a similar cost, which may offer immediate board presence or more straightforward removal options without the additional discard cost.
Reasons to Include in Your Collection
Versatility: Barrin’s Unmaking offers flexibility in handling threats by exiling any nonland permanent, making it a universal solution in a variety of deck archetypes that require precise and effective removal options.
Combo Potential: This card synergizes well with decks that capitalize on cast triggers or graveyard strategies, allowing players to craft potent combinations and potentially recast favorite spells through various graveyard retrieval methods.
Meta-Relevance: Given the diverse range of powerful permanents in the current meta, the ability of Barrin’s Unmaking to remove key pieces from the battlefield can prove crucial in maintaining control and tilting the scales in your favor during crucial moments of gameplay.
How to beat
Barrin’s Unmaking is a deceptively simple tool for control decks, capable of bouncing permanents back to their owners’ hands. Just as with Unsummon or Vapor Snag, the key is timing and resource management. Barrin’s Unmaking shines in its ability to handle both creatures and planeswalkers, but it does ask for a sacrifice. While it might seem like an easy solution to immediate threats, it does not deal with the problem permanently.
To effectively counteract Barrin’s Unmaking, player strategy should revolve around presenting multiple threats, swarming the board with more permanents than can be feasibly returned to hand. Alternatively, cards like Veil of Summer can guard against the disruption by providing protection or hexproof. Additionally, utilizing cards that benefit from being returned to your hand, such as those with strong enter-the-battlefield effects, can turn Barrin’s Unmaking into an advantage rather than a setback.
Balance and resilience are critical when facing Barrin’s Unmaking. By diversifying threats and deploying cards that capitalize on or resist bounce effects, one can reduce the impact of this spell and maintain momentum on the battlefield.
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Barrin's Unmaking MTG card by a specific set like Invasion, 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 Barrin's Unmaking and other MTG cards:
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- eBay
- Card Kingdom
- Card Market
- Star City Games
- CoolStuffInc
- MTG Mint Card
- Hareruya
- Troll and Toad
- ABU Games
- Card Hoarder Magic Online
- MTGO Traders Magic Online
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Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Barrin's Unmaking has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Commander | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Paupercommander | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Pauper | Legal |
| Premodern | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Predh | Legal |
| Penny | Legal |