Nightmare Incursion MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	6
Rarity	Rare
Type	Sorcery
Released	2008-07-25
Set symbol
Set name	Eventide
Set code	EVE
Number	40
Frame	2003
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Chuck Lukacs

Key Takeaways

Nightmare Incursion provides deck control by targeting and exiling opponent’s key cards.
High black mana cost limits its playability to mono-black or black-focused decks.
Despite sorcery speed, the long-term disruption of the opponent’s strategy can be game-changing.

Text of card

Search target player's library for up to X cards, where X is the number of Swamps you control, and remove them from the game. Then that player shuffles his or her library.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Nightmare Incursion shines at disrupting opponent’s strategies by removing key cards from their deck. This can lead to significant card advantage, particularly in the late game when the selections can be more targeted and damaging to the opponent’s remaining options.

Resource Acceleration: While not traditionally used for accelerating resources, Nightmare Incursion can indirectly contribute to resource acceleration by diminishing an opponent’s resources and thereby tipping the resource balance in your favor. Additionally, by tailoring the removal of cards from the opponent’s deck, you ensure that your resources remain superior.

Instant Speed: Nightmare Incursion’s power is in its sorcery speed, which necessitates careful planning and timing, contrasting the flexibility of instant speed. However, its long-term effects on the opponent’s game plan can compensate for this by setting them back significantly and disrupting their tempo.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Playing Nightmare Incursion often means meeting a discard requirement that can set you back if your hand is already depleted. Holding on to essential cards is key in MTG, and having to let go of one prematurely might tilt the balance unfavorably during gameplay.

Specific Mana Cost: Nightmare Incursion comes with a mana cost that necessitates a strong presence of black mana sources in your deck to be played effectively. This can constrain your deck-building options, limiting the card’s utility to mono-black or black-heavy multicolor decks.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Requiring a significant amount of black mana, the casting cost of Nightmare Incursion is relatively steep when weighed against other black spells at your disposal. This can affect your mana curve and potentially slow down your overall game plan, especially in fast-paced matches where efficiency is critical.

Reasons to Include Nightmare Incursion in Your Collection

Versatility: Nightmare Incursion is a unique card that offers a form of deck disruption many players appreciate. It can be slotted into a variety of black decks that capitalize on controlling the opponent’s strategy.

Combo Potential: This card has inherent synergy with strategies that benefit from knowing and manipulating the opponent’s library. It can combine with cards that exploit the number of card types in opponents’ graveyards, such as those with Delirium or Threshold abilities.

Meta-Relevance: With a meta that is heavy on search strategies or combo decks, Nightmare Incursion can act as a preemptive countermeasure. By removing key pieces from your opponent’s deck, you diminish their ability to execute their game plan effectively.

How to beat

Nightmare Incursion is a unique card that can challenge players with its potent ability to search an opponent’s library for a number of cards and exile them. Overcoming this card revolves around preemptive strategies and responsive play. For instance, incorporating spells that shuffle your library, such as “Elixir of Immortality,” can mitigate the impact of your opponent’s Incursion. Having a “Leyline of Sanctity” in play will provide you with hexproof, making you an illegal target for such cards.

Additionally, keeping counter spells handy to thwart Nightmare Incursion before it hits the table is essential. Cards like “Negate” or “Dovin’s Veto” are perfect for this kind of task as they can directly cancel out the threat. Moreover, using hand disruption techniques yourself, such as “Thoughtseize” or “Duress,” allows you to remove Nightmare Incursion from your opponent’s hand before they get the chance to cast it. By staying one step ahead, you can ensure that this disrupting force doesn’t dismantle your game plan.

Lastly, maintaining a flexible and adaptive strategy will make it difficult for your opponent to gain the upper hand with Nightmare Incursion. It’s all about balance, foresight, and timely reaction to keep your deck protected from such invasive threats.

Cards like Nightmare Incursion

Nightmare Incursion is a unique spell that makes its mark in the arsenal of black control cards within Magic: The Gathering. It shares thematic and strategic space with cards like Cranial Extraction or Lost Legacy, all of which target an opponent’s deck to exile specific cards. However, Nightmare Incursion allows you to search an opponent’s library for a card for each Swamp you control, which can significantly impair an opponent’s strategy if played at the right moment. This scaling potential sets it apart from the aforementioned similar cards that are limited to one or several cards regardless of the game state.

Additionally, we have cards like Sadistic Sacrament, which offers deck disruption by exiling up to three cards for three mana, or up to fifteen cards for its kicker cost. Though the base function is similar, Nightmare Incursion’s potentially vast reach can be more devastating in a mono-black deck heavily stacked with Swamps. It aligns well with the strategy of prolonging the game and disrupting combo decks.

In a landscape replete with various deck-impairing spells, Nightmare Incursion boasts a high potential for disruption, scaling with the number of Swamps controlled. This situational yet powerful interaction underlines its unique place among MTG black spells and can be a game-changer in the late game.

Cards similar to Nightmare Incursion by color, type and mana cost

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Nightmare Incursion MTG card by a specific set like Eventide, 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 Nightmare Incursion and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Nightmare Incursion 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 Nightmare Incursion card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

Date	Text
2008-08-01	The cards are exiled face up, so everyone can see what they are. (This is true of every effect that exiles cards, unless the effect specifically says it exiles those cards face down.)