Bargaining Table MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	5
Rarity	Rare
Type	Artifact
Released	1999-10-04
Set symbol
Set name	Mercadian Masques
Set code	MMQ
Number	288
Frame	1997
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Scott M. Fischer

Key Takeaways

Bargaining Table offers strategic card draws by utilizing opponent’s hand size.
Although mana-intensive, it can provide indirect resource acceleration.
Its instant speed activation allows for flexible and responsive play.

Text of card

o X, oc T: Draw a card. X is the number of cards in an opponent's hand.

Although it looks like a game, business around the table is deadly serious.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Bargaining Table is an excellent card when it comes to increasing your hand size. It allows players to pay mana and draw cards corresponding to the number of cards in an opponent’s hand, cleverly leveling the playing field and enhancing their strategic options.

Resource Acceleration: While the card itself doesn’t produce additional mana or tokens, it offers an indirect form of resource acceleration by giving players access to more cards, which can lead to pulling the necessary lands or mana-producing spells needed to bolster your position on the battlefield.

Instant Speed: This artifact functions at the speed of your choice, enabling a flexible approach to gameplay. While not an instant itself, Bargaining Table can be activated anytime you could cast an instant, ensuring that you can adapt to evolving game circumstances and optimizing its use according to your opponent’s actions.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: The Bargaining Table card’s abilities necessitate discarding, which can deplete your hand and be detrimental when you need to retain options or when facing against decks that punish low card counts.

Specific Mana Cost: Sporting a specific mana cost that requires at least one colorless and four generic mana, Bargaining Table may not seamlessly fit into every deck archetype, especially those that run on a tight mana curve or multicolor strategies.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a cost that totals to five mana to begin buying cards, Bargaining Table can be considered less efficient compared to other card draw mechanisms or similar effects available at a lower cost, potentially slowing down your game tempo when speed is critical.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Bargaining Table adapts easily to various deck strategies by offering card draw flexibility according to available resources, making it suitable for both aggressive and control decks.

Combo Potential: This card synergizes well with strategies that manipulate the number of cards in hand, allowing for potent card drawing combos in the right setup.

Meta-Relevance: Given its ability to provide card advantage in prolonged games, Bargaining Table can be highly relevant in metas where grinding out resources is key to victory.

How to beat Bargaining Table

Bargaining Table is a unique artifact in the MTG universe that turns the number of cards in your opponent’s hand into a resource for drawing cards. Unlike other card-drawing mechanisms that offer a fixed or conditionally variable draw, the power of Bargaining Table can ebb and flow with the game’s tide, making it both flexible and unpredictable.

To outmaneuver an opponent wielding Bargaining Table, the key is to keep their hand size in check. This can involve forcing discards through targeted hand disruption or playing cards that limit the number of cards drawn each turn. In essence, your strategy should revolve around minimizing the functionality of their Table, rendering the card inefficient by maintaining pressure on their hand resources. Additionally, be prepared to deal with artifact removal or counterspells, as timely elimination of their Table can sever a pivotal draw source for your opponent.

When it comes down to it, the ability to adapt to the shifting draws enabled by Bargaining Table is essential. While it presents a potential boon to your adversary, savvy play and strategic deck building can turn the tables, overcoming its benefits and granting you the upper hand in the match.

Cards like Bargaining Table

The Bargaining Table card stands as a unique artifact in the MTG universe, offering players a drawn card at a variable mana cost. This cost is dependent on the number of cards in an opponent’s hand, which introduces a strategic factor to consider during gameplay. It holds a resemblance to the classic Jayemdae Tome, which allows you to draw a card for a fixed mana cost, providing a predictable outcome in contrast to Bargaining Table’s variability.

Another parallel can be drawn with Mind’s Eye, which enables card drawing at a mana cost whenever an opponent draws a card. While Mind’s Eye may offer more consistent drawing opportunities, Bargaining Table’s cost-effectiveness can fluctuate greatly based on the opponent’s hand size. Then we have Seer’s Sundial, which also supports card drawing, but at the cost of playing lands. This positioning makes Bargaining Table more versatile in terms of the timing and conditions under which its drawing ability can be activated.

When evaluating Bargaining Table among its contemporaries, its potential for low-cost card draw pegs it as a dynamic and situationally advantageous artifact, especially in multiplayer matches where opponents’ hand sizes can significantly impact its efficiency.

Cards similar to Bargaining Table by color, type and mana cost

The Deck of Many Things - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Bargaining Table MTG card by a specific set like Mercadian Masques, 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 Bargaining Table and other MTG cards:

Continue exploring other sealed products in Amazon
See MTG Products

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Bargaining Table has restrictions

Format	Legality
Commander	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Premodern	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Predh	Legal

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
2004-10-04	You choose an opponent on announcement. This is not targeted, but a choice is still made. This choice is made before determining the value for X that is used in the cost.