Psychic Spear MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	1
Rarity	Common
Type	Sorcery
Released	2005-02-04
Set symbol
Set name	Betrayers of Kamigawa
Set code	BOK
Number	78
Frame	2003
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Ron Spears

Key Takeaways

Psychic Spear allows you to glimpse into opponents’ hands, disrupting their game plan at crucial moments.
Its instant speed offers strategic flexibility, letting you cast it when it’s most advantageous.
Despite its benefits, the card comes with a cost, impacting your own hand and mana efficiency.

Text of card

Target player reveals his or her hand. Choose a Spirit or Arcane card from it. That player discards that card.

"The wizards of Takenuma Swamp faced the horrors of humanity every day. It's no wonder they fared so well against the kami." —*Observations of the Kami War*

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Psychic Spear thrusts its way into the strategic spotlight by compelling an opponent to reveal their hand, offering a direct pathway to disrupt their plans. It anchors itself as a useful tool in stripping down an opponent’s resources, giving you the upper hand.

Resource Acceleration: Though it does not directly accelerate your resources in terms of mana, the strategic advantage gained from knowing your opponent’s hand allows you to pace your plays more efficiently. This calibration of your strategy can be as invaluable as actual resource acceleration by preserving your assets for the most opportune moments.

Instant Speed: The true strength of Psychic Spear lies in its ability to be cast at instant speed. This flexibility lets you delve into an opponent’s psyche at the most pivotal times—be it during their draw step, after they’ve drawn a key card, or in response to their actions when they least expect it.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Psychic Spear necessitates revealing a card from your hand and thus reduces your card advantage, a potential setback when trying to maintain hand superiority.

Specific Mana Cost: With a casting cost that includes black mana, this card demands a dedicated deck or mana base tailored to its inclusion, potentially limiting its flexibility in multicolored decks.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: While Psychic Spear’s effect can disrupt opponents, its mana cost can be considered steep for the impact it provides when compared to other hand disruption spells available to players.

Reasons to Include Psychic Spear in Your Collection

Versatility: Psychic Spear offers strategic hand disruption, allowing you to proactively strip key cards from your opponent’s hand regardless of your deck’s main theme, be it control, aggro, or combo.

Combo Potential: This card synergizes well in decks that capitalize on opponents having fewer options. It’s a great enabler for combos that benefit from knowing the opponent’s hand composition and can trigger when spells are cast from anywhere other than the opponent’s hand.

Meta-Relevance: In environments heavy with combo decks, the ability to disrupt your opponent’s game plan by targeting specific cards in their hand can be game-changing. As a result, Psychic Spear retains relevance, particularly in sideboards, to give you an edge against combo-centric opponents.

How to beat

Psychic Spear stands out in Magic the Gathering for its strategic role in disrupting an opponent’s hand. Playing against it requires a savvy understanding of timing and resource management. This card forces the player to reveal their hand, making it essential to play your most valuable spells before Psychic Spear can target them. Alternatively, card types that are immune to its effect—such as lands or creatures on the battlefield—should be prioritized to minimize the impact of this disruption.

Another tactic is to maintain a hand with multiple threats, diluting the impact of a single Psychic Spear. Cards that can recover discarded cards from the graveyard or that have their own effects when discarded can turn the tables on this strategy. Implement cards with Flash, enabling you to cast them in response and preserve your key spells. Additionally, countermagic should be reserved to directly counter Psychic Spear, ensuring your hand remains intact against this type of targeted disruption.

Ultimately, your ability to protect your hand and strategically navigate around the effects of Psychic Spear can be pivotal in maintaining your course to victory in a game of MTG.

Cards like Psychic Spear

In the realm of targeted discard spells in Magic: The Gathering, Psychic Spear stands out. While it shares a core function with the likes of Thoughtseize – disrupting the opponent’s hand – Psychic Spear zeroes in on sorceries, offering a more specialized approach. Compared to Thoughtseize, which targets any card type and gives you a peek at the opponent’s arsenal at the cost of 2 life, Psychic Spear is more restrained yet avoids the life penalty.

Then we have Duress, a common parallel that also allows you to pick a noncreature, nonland card from your opponent’s hand. Without any life loss, Duress is similarly cost-effective but does not apply the same sorcery-focused limitation. The absence of such a restriction potentially makes Duress a broader strategic tool in many gameplay scenarios.

Assessing these alternatives, Psychic Spear carves a unique niche. It’s particularly adept in environments where sorceries are prevalent or in sideboard strategies designed to counteract specific decks. While it may not possess the universal application of Thoughtseize or Duress, its specificity can be an advantage in the right context.

Cards similar to Psychic Spear by color, type and mana cost

Bloodcurdling Scream - MTG Card versions

Call to the Netherworld - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Psychic Spear 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 Psychic Spear and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Psychic Spear has restrictions

Format	Legality
Commander	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Paupercommander	Legal
Modern	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Pauper	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Predh	Legal

Rules and information

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