Battle of Wits MTG Card
2001-10-01 - Number 69
2005-07-29 - Number 65
2005-07-29 - Number 65★
2012-07-13 - Number 44
2019-12-02 - Number 1446
2020-09-26 - Number M13-44
| Card sets | Released in 6 setsSee all |
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 5 |
| Rarity | Rare |
| Type | Enchantment |
Text of card
At the beginning of your upkeep, if you have 200 or more cards in your library, you win the game.
The wizard who reads a thousand books is powerful. The wizard who memorizes a thousand books is insane.
Cards like Battle of Wits
Battle of Wits unveils a unique route to victory for Magic the Gathering enthusiasts, setting it apart from the mainstream win conditions. Notable for its unconventional approach, it shares the alternative win condition concept with cards like Maze’s End, which also offers a triumph that doesn’t hinge on depleting life points or amassing an insurmountable board presence.
The comparison with Helix Pinnacle is inevitable, as it too circumvents the traditional paths to victory, relying instead on obtaining a substantial number of counters to claim the game. While Battle of Wits demands an expansive library, Helix Pinnacle requires considerable mana investment over time. Each card creates a distinct game plan, yet both are united in the thrill of striving for a non-standard win condition.
Demonstrating the diversity in MTG, Door to Nothingness also echoes this sentiment, providing a win through its ability to outright eliminate an opponent, but it requires a hefty mana commitment across all colors. What makes Battle of Wits stand out in this unique assembly is its dependency on a massively built deck, quite the contrast to the singular, precise combination that Mesmeric Orb and Basalt Monolith exploit to clinch the victory.
Strategizing around these cards offers players an alternative challenge in deck building and game strategy, though Battle of Wits adds the curious twist of juggling a voluminous library that also opens the door to high variability and unpredictability in gameplay.
Cards similar to Battle of Wits by color, type and mana cost
Decks using this card
MTG decks using Battle of Wits. Dig deeper into the strategy of decks, sideboard cards, list ideas and export to play in ARENA or MOL.
| # | Name | Format | Archetype | Event |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Five-color Combo | Legacy | Painter | Charlotte Legacy League Season 2 Week 1 |
 | Decklist | Free form | MO89#CS | |
 | Battle of Wits | Modern | Titan Shift | $10K RCQ - Modern - SCG CON Philadelphia - Saturday - 9:00 am |
 | Azorius Miracles | Legacy | Azorius Control | 2023 Asia Legacy Championship |
Card Pros
Card Advantage: The Battle of Wits card is unique in its ability to create a win condition based on card quantity in your library. This enables a significant card advantage as you’re encouraged to build a large deck, thus increasing your options and resources to overcome your opponent.
Resource Acceleration: With this card, resource acceleration becomes a strategic component of gameplay. By allowing you to include various ramp cards within a prolonged deck, you’ll consistently access the mana needed to play Battle of Wits and activate its game-winning potential swiftly.
Instant Speed: Although Battle of Wits itself doesn’t operate at instant speed, its presence in your deck justifies the inclusion of numerous instant-speed spells. This leads to flexible responses to your opponent’s moves while you set up your winning condition unobtrusively, maintaining the suspense until you unveil your masterstroke.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: The unique condition tied to Battle of Wits requires maintaining an excessively large library, which could compel you to avoid discarding even the most underperforming cards, potentially bogging down your strategy with less impactful actions.
Specific Mana Cost: This enchantment comes with a demanding color profile, including blue mana, which dictates a certain commitment within your deck construction and can impede the inclusion of this card in multi-color deck strategies that are not heavily inclined towards blue.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a mana value that sits at five, including three generic and two blue, the deployment of Battle of Wits can be slow, often coming into play much later than other impactful win conditions, thus leaving room for opponents to establish their board and strategize a counter-play more effectively.
Reasons to Include in Your Collection
Versatility: Battle of Wits offers a unique approach to deck building, allowing for a highly diverse and extensive card pool which can shuffle through different strategies quickly and efficiently. Its ability to embolden a variety of tactics makes it a fascinating addition for players who appreciate innovative and adaptive gameplay.
Combo Potential: This card unlocks creative deck construction that can pivot around the sheer volume of your library. By exploiting synergies with cards that manipulate library size or provide card advantage, players can unveil surprising combinations and catch their opponents off guard.
Meta-Relevance: In a game where most decks adhere to a smaller, more consistent size, the presence of Battle of Wits can be a game-changer. Its win condition encourages a different kind of metaplay, allowing for an alternative angle of attack in a competitive environment that often prizes predictability and control.
How to beat
Battle of Wits stands out in Magic: The Gathering as an enchantment that offers an alternative win condition, challenging players to harness a library of over two hundred cards. However, triumphing over this unique strategy revolves around a keen understanding and interference with this library-centred tactic. One straightforward method is using cards that force players to shuffle their library into their graveyard, drastically reducing their library count below the required threshold and neutralizing the enchantment’s win condition.
Another effective approach includes employing counterspells to prevent Battle of Wits from ever hitting the battlefield. This preemptive measure ensures that your opponent’s deck design doesn’t reach its full potential. Additionally, direct enchantment removal spells are essential, stripping your adversary’s field of this tricky card and solidifying your stance in the game. Maintaining a vigilant gameplay strategy by keeping instant-speed interaction at the ready is crucial to disrupt and dismantle the Battle of Wits build as they inch towards victory.
Ultimately, resistance against Battle of Wits is about disrupting your opponent’s deck mechanics, staying adaptive with your removal, and never letting their library-based win condition catch you off guard. With these strategies in mind, you can ensure that the battle truly will be for the wits, with victors crowned through tactical foresight and timely maneuvers.
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Battle of Wits MTG card by a specific set like Odyssey and Ninth Edition, 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 Battle of Wits 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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Printings
The Battle of Wits Magic the Gathering card was released in 5 different sets between 2001-10-01 and 2019-12-02. Illustrated by 4 different artists.
| # | Released | Name | Code | Symbol | Number | Frame | Layout | Border | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2001-10-01 | Odyssey | ODY | 69 | 1997 | Normal | Black | Mark Brill | |
| 2 | 2005-07-29 | Ninth Edition | 9ED | 65 | 2003 | Normal | White | Edward P. Beard, Jr. | |
| 3 | 2005-07-29 | Ninth Edition | 9ED | 65★ | 2003 | Normal | Black | Edward P. Beard, Jr. | |
| 4 | 2012-07-13 | Magic 2013 | M13 | 44 | 2003 | Normal | Black | Jason Chan | |
| 5 | Secret Lair Drop | SLD | 1446 | 2015 | Normal | Borderless | Anna Pavleeva | ||
| 6 | The List | PLST | M13-44 | 2003 | Normal | Black | Jason Chan |
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Battle of Wits has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Commander | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Premodern | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Predh | Legal |
| Penny | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Battle of Wits card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2012-07-01 | Battle of Wits has an “intervening ‘if’ clause.” This means that if you don’t have 200 or more cards in your library at the beginning of your upkeep, the ability won’t trigger. If the ability does trigger, but you have fewer than 200 cards in your library when the ability resolves, the ability will do nothing. |
| 2012-07-01 | In tournaments, you must be able to shuffle your entire deck within a reasonable amount of time. |