Moonring Mirror MTG Card
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 5 |
| Rarity | Rare |
| Type | Artifact |
| Released | 2004-10-01 |
| Set symbol | |
| Set name | Champions of Kamigawa |
| Set code | CHK |
| Number | 262 |
| Frame | 2003 |
| Layout | Normal |
| Border | Black |
| Illustred by | Christopher Rush |
Key Takeaways
- Moonring Mirror fuels consistent card advantage by stockpiling and transforming your hand.
- It provides strategic versatility, enabling instant-speed reactions and resource setup.
- Requires careful resource management due to its specific mana cost and upkeep effect.
Text of card
Whenever you draw a card, remove the top card of your library from the game face down. At the beginning of your upkeep, you may remove your hand from the game face down. If you do, put into your hand all other cards you own removed from the game with Moonring Mirror.
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Moonring Mirror has a compelling mechanic that begins stockpiling cards from your hand onto the artifact itself, which can eventually turn into a significant card draw. As you churn through your deck, Moonring Mirror ensures that your resources continue to flow, enhancing your overall card advantage as the game progresses.
Resource Acceleration: While not directly providing mana, Moonring Mirror’s ability to set aside cards every turn aids in dig for the resources you need more efficiently. In long games, this can lead to rapid access to critical spells or lands that are essential for keeping up the pace and staying ahead of your opponent.
Instant Speed: The true power of Moonring Mirror shines at instant speed. The ability to exile a card from your hand at the end of your opponent’s turn means you’re not tied down during your own turns. This flexibility allows you to react to your competitors’ actions while still ensuring that you’re setting yourself up for success.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Moonring Mirror necessitates the player to discard their hand at the beginning of their upkeep to utilize its abilities. This mandatory action can be a significant drawback when you have valuable cards you’d prefer to keep.
Specific Mana Cost: The artifact demands a precise composition of mana for its activation, specifically three generic and two blue mana. This could potentially restrict its inclusion in a multicolored or non-blue centric deck, since meeting this cost may not always align with the overall mana base.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: With the activation cost sitting at a total of five mana, Moonring Mirror can be seen as an investment that leads to delayed gratification. There are alternative options in the card pool that could offer quicker or more cost-effective means of achieving similar effects, particularly in decks where resource efficiency is key.
Reasons to Include Moonring Mirror in Your Collection
Versatility: The Moonring Mirror offers a unique form of card advantage. It can be incorporated into decks that look to exploit their hand size or benefit from having a selection of cards available in exile to use at the right moment.
Combo Potential: This artifact has synergy with strategies that play with the top of the/library manipulation or require a critical mass of cards in exile. It can be an integral part of intricate combos, setting up powerful plays.
Meta-Relevance: In environments where games draw out and resource management is key, Moonring Mirror can be a game-changer. It steadily provides you with alternative resources, keeping your hand fueled against control decks.
How to beat
Moonring Mirror is a unique artifact in the world of MTG, offering a way to draw fresh cards each turn as you exile cards from your hand. The key to defeating this strategy is to control the flow of the game by managing your opponent’s hand and graveyard. Graveyard hate cards like “Bojuka Bog” or “Relic of Progenitus” can disrupt the synergies Moonring Mirror relies on, by removing the exiled cards it would leverage for future turns.
Targeted removal like “Disenchant” or “Nature’s Claim” are also effective, allowing you to destroy the artifact before your opponent can maximize its potential. In addition, countering the spell when it’s on the stack is another proactive approach, using cards like “Counterspell” or “Negate.” As a player facing Moonring Mirror, focusing on these strategies could mean the difference between victory and defeat.
Remember, in MTG it’s all about understanding how to mitigate your opponent’s strengths while elevating your own strategies. By effectively managing their resources and staying one step ahead, you can ensure that Moonring Mirror doesn’t reflect a win for your adversary.
Cards like Moonring Mirror
Moonring Mirror is a nuanced artifact in Magic: The Gathering that begs comparison with other cards that manipulate the number of hands in play. A card like Thought Vessel comes to mind, which allows for an unlimited hand size, avoiding the necessity to discard; whereas Moonring Mirror’s unique mechanic involves exiling cards until the end of turn for a potentially new hand each cycle. Teferi’s Puzzle Box offers a similar hand-altering effect, urging players to draw and then put their entire hand on the bottom of their library.
Additionally, we might look to Anvil of Bogardan, which allows players to draw an extra card and then discard a card each turn. This can create draw optimization like Moonring Mirror, but without the same potential for bulk hand replacement. And while cards like Library of Leng allow a player to skip the discard step, Moonring Mirror adds the layer of setting up potential plays for future turns with its delayed draw feature.
By measuring these strategic differences, Moonring Mirror stands out for its ability to potentially transform a player’s hand turn after turn, aligning well with strategies focused on hand management and foresight in Magic: The Gathering gameplay.
Cards similar to Moonring Mirror by color, type and mana cost
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Moonring Mirror MTG card by a specific set like Champions 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 Moonring Mirror and other MTG cards:
- eBay
- TCG Player
- 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
See MTG Products
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Moonring Mirror has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Commander | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Predh | Legal |
| Penny | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Moonring Mirror card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2004-12-01 | If you choose to use Moonring Mirror’s second ability, you return all the cards you own exiled by both of its abilities, but not any of the cards you just exiled from your hand. |
| 2004-12-01 | Note that Moonring Mirror’s first ability is not a replacement effect. |
