Celestial Purge MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 7 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost2
RarityUncommon
TypeInstant

Key Takeaways

  1. Celestial Purge offers targeted removal against menacing red or black permanents with its instant speed advantage.
  2. Its low casting cost allows for effective mana use, complementing various strategic plays within a turn.
  3. The card’s specific white mana requirement may limit flexibility in multicolor decks and mana curves.

Text of card

Remove target black or red permanent from the game.

"This new chaos confounds us. We must fling it into our winds, our storms. These we can control." —Bezzit Plar, Esper stormcaller


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Celestial Purge is valued for its precise removal, circumventing the need to use multiple cards to deal with problematic red or black permanents.

Resource Acceleration: While Celestial Purge does not directly accelerate resources, its low casting cost aids in efficient mana utilization, allowing you to commit to other plays in the same turn.

Instant Speed: The instant nature of Celestial Purge permits strategic flexibility, providing the opportunity to disrupt opponents’ actions during their turn or at the end of it, maintaining the element of surprise.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Although not requiring a card to be discarded, Celestial Purge does necessitate a white mana, limiting its spontaneous inclusion in a multi-color deck, especially if the white source count is low.

Specific Mana Cost: Celestial Purge requires both white and generic mana, which might not seamlessly fit into a deck’s mana curve or strategy, especially if the deck relies on speed and mana efficiency.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: When considering removal options, Celestial Purge’s two-mana investment is seen as fairly priced, yet there are instances where one-mana removal spells could be more favorable for a swift response to threats.


Reasons to Include Celestial Purge in Your Collection

Versatility: Celestial Purge is a highly adaptable removal spell that can swiftly deal with black or red threats, crucial in a variety of game scenarios. Whether it’s a pesky creature, an enchantment causing you grief, or a planeswalker building up to a game-winning ultimate, Celestial Purge can handle it as long as it’s within its color targets.

Combo Potential: This card harmonizes well with strategies that aim to control the board and can be slotted into a sideboard plan for decks looking to pivot their removal package based on the opponent’s strategy. It serves as both a defensive and offensive tool, giving players a tactical edge.

Meta-Relevance: The card’s importance escalates in metagames dominated by powerful black or red permanents. In such an environment, being able to eliminate key pieces efficiently can be the deciding factor between victory and defeat.


How to beat

Celestial Purge is a targeted removal spell in Magic: The Gathering, exclusively efficient against black or red permanents. A mainstay in players’ sideboards, it’s especially potent in metagames where such colors dominate. To effectively beat Celestial Purge, versatility in your deck’s color palette can be key. Including permanents outside the range of Celestial Purge’s color restrictions ensures that your essential pieces remain on the battlefield. Diversifying threats also confuses opponents, making it difficult for them to choose the right target.

Another strategy is to bait out the purge with less critical permanents, safeguarding more vital ones for the later stages of the game. Be mindful of the timing of playing your black and red spells when opponents have white mana available, as this conservative approach to casting can mitigate the impact of Celestial Purge. Lastly, counterspells or abilities that grant hexproof can provide an effective shield against this removal, securing your position and nullifying the purge’s potential blow to your game plan.

Overall, in the complex dance of Magic: The Gathering spells and counter-play, foresight and adaptability pave the path to outmaneuvering Celestial Purge’s purge.


Cards like Celestial Purge

Celestial Purge solidifies its role in the realm of Magic: The Gathering as a targeted removal spell with a specific focus. This card efficiently exiles either black or red permanents, setting a strict boundary that parallels cards like Light of Hope and Disenchant. Both alternatives offer ways to deal with particular nonland permanents or provide additional flexibility but don’t have the exile mechanism that defines Celestial Purge.

On the other side of the spectrum stands Path to Exile, a powerful white removal that can exile any creature at the expense of granting its controller a basic land. While Celestial Purge doesn’t offer such broad targeting, it doesn’t compensate the opponent as Path to Exile does. Furthermore, Devout Decree is another similar card that can exile black or red creatures and also provides you with a scry opportunity, but unlike Celestial Purge, it can’t target enchantments or planeswalkers.

Evaluating the strengths of Celestial Purge and its allies, one can appreciate its unique role in Magic: The Gathering. It offers a combination of precision and efficiency in matchups where its specific targeting is most advantageous, markedly against decks heavily reliant on black or red permanents.

Light of Hope - MTG Card versions
Disenchant - MTG Card versions
Path to Exile - MTG Card versions
Devout Decree - MTG Card versions
Light of Hope - Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths (IKO)
Disenchant - Limited Edition Alpha (LEA)
Path to Exile - DCI Promos (PDCI)
Devout Decree - Core Set 2020 (M20)

Cards similar to Celestial Purge by color, type and mana cost

Disenchant - MTG Card versions
Divine Offering - MTG Card versions
Lightning Blow - MTG Card versions
Sacred Boon - MTG Card versions
Alabaster Potion - MTG Card versions
Invulnerability - MTG Card versions
Remedy - MTG Card versions
Rhystic Shield - MTG Card versions
Samite Ministration - MTG Card versions
Shield Wall - MTG Card versions
Life Burst - MTG Card versions
Shelter - MTG Card versions
Equal Treatment - MTG Card versions
Aura Extraction - MTG Card versions
Raise the Alarm - MTG Card versions
Test of Faith - MTG Card versions
Echoing Calm - MTG Card versions
Bathe in Light - MTG Card versions
Dawn Charm - MTG Card versions
Graceful Reprieve - MTG Card versions
Disenchant - The Brothers' War (BRO)
Divine Offering - Masters Edition IV (ME4)
Lightning Blow - Ice Age (ICE)
Sacred Boon - Ice Age (ICE)
Alabaster Potion - Fifth Edition (5ED)
Invulnerability - Tempest (TMP)
Remedy - Classic Sixth Edition (6ED)
Rhystic Shield - Prophecy (PCY)
Samite Ministration - Invasion (INV)
Shield Wall - Seventh Edition (7ED)
Life Burst - Odyssey (ODY)
Shelter - Eternal Masters (EMA)
Equal Treatment - Torment (TOR)
Aura Extraction - Onslaught (ONS)
Raise the Alarm - Mirrodin (MRD)
Test of Faith - Duel Decks: Knights vs. Dragons (DDG)
Echoing Calm - Darksteel (DST)
Bathe in Light - Ravnica: City of Guilds (RAV)
Dawn Charm - Commander Legends (CMR)
Graceful Reprieve - Morningtide (MOR)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Celestial Purge MTG card by a specific set like Magic Online Promos and Conflux, 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 Celestial Purge and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Celestial Purge Magic the Gathering card was released in 7 different sets between 2009-02-06 and 2015-05-22. Illustrated by 2 different artists.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12002-06-24Magic Online PromosPRM 368592003normalblackNils Hamm
22009-02-06ConfluxCON 52003normalblackDavid Palumbo
32009-07-17Magic 2010M10 72003normalblackDavid Palumbo
42010-01-01Magic Player Rewards 2010P10 62003normalblackNils Hamm
52010-07-16Magic 2011M11 92003normalblackDavid Palumbo
62011-07-15Magic 2012M12 112003normalblackDavid Palumbo
72015-05-22Modern Masters 2015MM2 112015normalblackDavid Palumbo

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Celestial Purge has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal
PennyLegal

Rules and information

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

DateText
2009-10-01 Lands are colorless (even if their frames have some colored elements to them). You can’t target a Swamp, a Mountain, or any other land with Celestial Purge (unless some other effect has turned that land black or red).

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