Blinding Powder MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	1
Rarity	Uncommon
Type	Artifact — Equipment
Abilities	Equip
Released	2005-02-04
Set symbol
Set name	Betrayers of Kamigawa
Set code	BOK
Number	153
Frame	2003
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Greg Hildebrandt

Key Takeaways

Protect key creatures with Blinding Powder to gain unexpected battlefield advantages and maintain card superiority.
Equip at instant speed for strategic flexibility, responding quickly to changing combat conditions.
Consider mana costs and equip requirements to maximize Blinding Powder’s potential without compromising your plays.

Text of card

Equipped creature has "Unattach Blinding Powder: Prevent all combat damage that would be dealt to this creature this turn." Equip (: Attach to target creature you control. Equip only as a sorcery.)

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Blinding Powder provides a unique card dynamic by offering an unexpected form of protection for your valuable creatures. By effectively deterring attackers or interfering with combat math, it may preserve your important creatures, indirectly contributing to maintaining card advantage.

Resource Acceleration: Though Blinding Powder itself doesn’t generate mana or produce resources directly, the saved creature can remain in play to activate abilities or further your game plan, ensuring ongoing resource acceleration.

Instant Speed: The ability to equip Blinding Powder at instant speed offers flexibility during gameplay. This allows you to adapt to the battlefield conditions on the fly, responding to threats or attacks as they happen, and potentially saving your creature when your opponent least expects it.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Blinding Powder requires you to return it to your hand, essentially discarding it from the battlefield. In high-pressure situations, this cost can set you back, reducing your board presence and potentially costing you tempo against opponents.

Specific Mana Cost: Equipping Blinding Powder demands one colorless mana, which is manageable, but it requires precise mana allocation that could compete with more impactful plays in a turn.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: While not excessively costly, the two mana to cast Blinding Powder could be considered high for an equipment card that offers a very niche benefit. Considering competitive formats, players might find better value in other equipment or spells that provide a broader range of abilities or more substantial combat advantages.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Blinding Powder adds a layer of protection for key creatures, offering a strategic tool to decks that aim to preserve their board presence without heavily investing in defensive cards.

Combo Potential: The ability to essentially give a creature “regenerate” can feed into combos with cards that have tap abilities or those that have effects when they’re targeted, opening up unique synergies.

Meta-Relevance: In a game state where single-target removals are prevalent, Blinding Powder can thwart opponent’s plans to remove your crucial creatures and can upset the balance of control versus creature-based decks.

How to beat

Blinding Powder is a unique utility card in Magic the Gathering that can alter the course of combat. Equipping creatures with this artifact offers a single-use defensive mechanism, allowing the equipped creature to be untapped and removed from combat. While powerful in certain scenarios, overcoming this card isn’t overly complicated. One straightforward approach is to target the equipped creature before combat with creature removal spells, such as Doom Blade or Path to Exile, thereby rendering Blinding Powder useless.

An alternative strategy involves the use of counterspells to prevent Blinding Powder from being equipped in the first place. This not only negates its potential impact but also sets back your opponent by wasting their resources. Additionally, cards that prevent equipping abilities, like Stony Silence, directly counteract Blinding Powder’s key functionality without having to address individual creatures.

Ultimately, the effectiveness of Blinding Powder hinges on its activation. By disrupting its implementation or preemptively managing creatures that might be equipped, players can mitigate the impact of this artifact and maintain control of the battlefield.

Cards like Blinding Powder

Blinding Powder is a unique utility card from the Magic: The Gathering universe, finding its niche among artifact equipment cards. It notably bears resemblance to cards such as Neurok Stealthsuit which also provides a means to protect creatures. However, Blinding Powder’s specialty is offering creatures a second chance, giving them the ability to be unblocked when it truly counts, albeit at the cost of being returned to the owner’s hand. Unlike Neurok Stealthsuit, which grants shroud as a means of protection, Blinding Powder’s method of evasion can be a game-changer.

Another akin card is Ghostfire Blade, providing a distinct advantage in enhancing a creature’s power and toughness. Where Blinding Powder is about subtlety and evasion, Ghostfire Blade is more about boosting frontline strength. Cloak and Dagger is also worth mentioning as it grants not just a power/toughness increase but attaches for free to Rogues and Assassins, delivering immediate battlefield impact. Each card has its arena, with Blinding Powder catering to players who capitalize on the element of surprise and swift evasion tactics.

Through evaluating the strategic uses and effects of these similar cards, Blinding Powder holds its own niche in MTG, offering distinct opportunities for evasion and strategic creature preservation, a contrast to the more common buffing equipment in the game.

Cards similar to Blinding Powder by color, type and mana cost

Candelabra of Tawnos - MTG Card versions

Phyrexian Dreadnought - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Blinding Powder MTG card by a specific set like Betrayers of Kamigawa, 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 Blinding Powder and other MTG cards: