Soul Summons MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 4 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost2
RarityCommon
TypeSorcery
Abilities Manifest

Key Takeaways

  1. Provides a 2/2 Warrior token to enhance battlefield control and forward game momentum.
  2. Manifest mechanic adds surprise elements by potentially turning cards into threats.
  3. Ideal for decks focused on creature strategies and enter-the-battlefield effects.

Text of card

Manifest the top card of your library. (Put it onto the battlefield face down as a 2/2 creature. Turn it face up any time for its mana cost if it's a creature card.)

Ugin's magic reaches beyond the dragons. The clans have adapted it for war.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Soul Summons introduces a 2/2 Warrior creature token onto the battlefield, effectively adding another card to your playing field. This bolsters your army and increases your in-game resources, which can be decisive for maintaining pressure on your opponent and influencing the game’s momentum.

Resource Acceleration: The creature token created by Soul Summons can serve as a key player in your strategy by providing an extra body for various abilities or synergies. This token can be used for bolstering strategies, such as enhancing your creature’s power or interacting with enter-the-battlefield effects, expediting your game plan and acquiring an advantageous board state.

Instant Speed: While Soul Summons itself is not an instant, it benefits from the mechanic “manifest,” which can create surprise blockers or unexpectedly turn noncreature cards into threats. This adds a layer of complexity and unpredictability to games, allowing for clever maneuvers against an opponent’s attacks.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: No flexibility when casting Soul Summons, as it does not allow you to discard another card for an alternative or additional effect, which may be seen as a missed opportunity for adaptability within a game.

Specific Mana Cost: Soul Summons’ cost requires one white mana, which can restrict its inclusion to mainly white or two-color decks, potentially limiting its versatility in a more diverse mana base.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Costing two mana might seem reasonable, but given that the creature manifested is unknown, it may result in a lower value for the mana invested, especially if the manifested card is a non-creature with no immediate board presence.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Soul Summons stands out as a card that seamlessly integrates into numerous deck archetypes. Its functionality shines in strategies that prioritize creature presence and bolstering creature counts on the battlefield.

Combo Potential: As part of a larger combo, Soul Summons can be a catalyst for synergies that revolve around creature summoning, offering a reliable way to trigger ‘enter the battlefield’ effects or populate strategies.

Meta-Relevance: Given the current competitive scene, where creature-based tactics are prevalent, Soul Summons offers a quick and efficient way to stay tempo-positive in the often fast-paced environment.


How to beat

Soul Summons is a unique spell from the Magic: The Gathering universe that introduces an interesting twist to creature summoning. Unlike traditional creature cards, Soul Summons doesn’t place a creature directly onto the battlefield. Instead, it manifests the top card of your library, turning it into a 2/2 creature. If the card happens to be a creature card, it can later be turned face up and become fully operational, with all its abilities, by paying its mana cost.

To effectively counter Soul Summons, players should be prepared with removal spells that can deal with creatures regardless of their face-up status. Board wipes, like Damnation or Wrath of God, can clear out the manifested creature along with any other threats. Spot removal, such as Path to Exile or Doom Blade, can also work wonders by targeting the manifested 2/2 directly. It’s also strategic to apply pressure early on in the match, preventing opponents from maximizing the value of their manifested creatures. Ultimately, keeping the board under control and staying one step ahead of your opponent’s face-down game will ensure your triumph over a Soul Summons strategy.


Cards like Soul Summons

Soul Summons carves its niche within the world of creature tokens in MTG. It’s kin to cards like Raise the Alarm, which also creates tokens quickly and efficiently. However, Soul Summons introduces the manifest mechanic, giving it the edge of potentially turning a noncreature card into a surprise threat. In contrast, Raise the Alarm offers immediate board presence with two 1/1 soldier tokens, lacking the element of surprise but presenting a reliable force.

Another comparable card is Dragon Fodder, known for generating two 1/1 red Goblin creature tokens at sorcery speed. While Dragon Fodder provides a surefire way to populate the board, it doesn’t hold the potential creature conversion that Soul Summons does. Then there’s Servo Exhibition, offering a similar output by creating two 1/1 colorless Servo artifact creature tokens. Unlike Soul Summons, Servo Exhibition’s advantage lies in steady artifact synergy and immediate token utilization.

In analyzing their pros and cons, Soul Summons stands out among token-generating spells. Its capability of flipping a card face up if it’s a creature adds an exciting layer of strategy. This trait makes Soul Summons a unique and versatile addition to MTG decks that are toked-focused or that enjoy dabbling in the element of surprise.

Raise the Alarm - MTG Card versions
Dragon Fodder - MTG Card versions
Servo Exhibition - MTG Card versions
Raise the Alarm - Mirrodin (MRD)
Dragon Fodder - Shards of Alara (ALA)
Servo Exhibition - Kaladesh (KLD)

Cards similar to Soul Summons by color, type and mana cost

Balance - MTG Card versions
Martyr's Cry - MTG Card versions
Gift of Estates - MTG Card versions
Starlight - MTG Card versions
Renewing Dawn - MTG Card versions
Pegasus Stampede - MTG Card versions
Planar Birth - MTG Card versions
Flicker - MTG Card versions
Steadfastness - MTG Card versions
Sacred Nectar - MTG Card versions
False Dawn - MTG Card versions
Morningtide - MTG Card versions
Academic Probation - MTG Card versions
Gather the Townsfolk - MTG Card versions
Servo Exhibition - MTG Card versions
Revoke Existence - MTG Card versions
Glare of Heresy - MTG Card versions
Return to the Ranks - MTG Card versions
Martial Coup - MTG Card versions
Swift Reckoning - MTG Card versions
Balance - Eternal Masters (EMA)
Martyr's Cry - Masters Edition IV (ME4)
Gift of Estates - Strixhaven Mystical Archive (STA)
Starlight - Seventh Edition (7ED)
Renewing Dawn - Portal (POR)
Pegasus Stampede - The List (PLST)
Planar Birth - Urza's Saga (USG)
Flicker - Urza's Destiny (UDS)
Steadfastness - Starter 1999 (S99)
Sacred Nectar - Ninth Edition (9ED)
False Dawn - Apocalypse (APC)
Morningtide - Torment (TOR)
Academic Probation - Strixhaven: School of Mages Promos (PSTX)
Gather the Townsfolk - Duel Decks: Blessed vs. Cursed (DDQ)
Servo Exhibition - Friday Night Magic 2017 (F17)
Revoke Existence - Double Masters (2XM)
Glare of Heresy - Theros (THS)
Return to the Ranks - Magic 2015 (M15)
Martial Coup - Warhammer 40,000 Commander (40K)
Swift Reckoning - Ultimate Masters (UMA)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Soul Summons MTG card by a specific set like Magic Online Promos and Fate Reforged, 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 Soul Summons and other MTG cards:

Continue exploring other sealed products in Amazon
See Magic products

Printings

The Soul Summons Magic the Gathering card was released in 4 different sets between 2015-01-23 and 2019-11-07. Illustrated by Johann Bodin.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12002-06-24Magic Online PromosPRM 557512015normalblackJohann Bodin
22015-01-23Fate ReforgedFRF 262015normalblackJohann Bodin
32019-11-07Mystery BoosterMB1 2402015normalblackJohann Bodin
42020-09-26The ListPLST FRF-262015normalblackJohann Bodin

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Soul Summons has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderLegal
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
PauperLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PioneerLegal
PennyLegal

Rules and information

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

DateText
2014-11-24 A permanent that turns face up or face down changes characteristics but is otherwise the same permanent. Spells and abilities that were targeting that permanent, as well as Auras and Equipment that were attached to the permanent, aren’t affected.
2014-11-24 Any time you have priority, you may turn a manifested creature face up by revealing that it’s a creature card (ignoring any copy effects or type-changing effects that might be applying to it) and paying its mana cost. This is a special action. It doesn’t use the stack and can’t be responded to.
2014-11-24 At any time, you can look at a face-down permanent you control. You can’t look at face-down permanents you don’t control unless an effect allows you to or instructs you to.
2014-11-24 Because face-down creatures don’t have names, they can’t have the same name as any other creature, even another face-down creature.
2014-11-24 Because the permanent is on the battlefield both before and after it’s turned face up, turning a permanent face up doesn’t cause any enters-the-battlefield abilities to trigger.
2014-11-24 If a face-down permanent you control leaves the battlefield, you must reveal it. You must also reveal all face-down spells and permanents you control if you leave the game or if the game ends.
2014-11-24 If a manifested creature would have morph if it were face up, you may also turn it face up by paying its morph cost.
2014-11-24 Some older Magic sets feature double-faced cards, which have a Magic card face on each side rather than a Magic card face on one side and a Magic card back on the other. The rules for double-faced cards are changing slightly to account for the possibility that they are manifested. If a double-faced card is manifested, it will be put onto the battlefield face down. While face down, it can’t transform. If the front face of the card is a creature card, you can turn it face up by paying its mana cost. If you do, its front face will be up. A double-faced permanent on the battlefield still can’t be turned face down.
2014-11-24 The face-down permanent is a 2/2 creature with no name, mana cost, creature types, or abilities. It’s colorless and has a converted mana cost of 0. Other effects that apply to the permanent can still grant or change any of these characteristics.
2014-11-24 There are no cards in the Fate Reforged set that would turn a face-down instant or sorcery card on the battlefield face up, but some older cards can try to do this. If something tries to turn a face-down instant or sorcery card on the battlefield face up, reveal that card to show all players it’s an instant or sorcery card. The permanent remains on the battlefield face down. Abilities that trigger when a permanent turns face up won’t trigger, because even though you revealed the card, it never turned face up.
2014-11-24 Turning a permanent face up or face down doesn’t change whether that permanent is tapped or untapped.
2014-11-24 Unlike a face-down creature that was cast using the morph ability, a manifested creature may still be turned face up after it loses its abilities if it’s a creature card.
2014-11-24 You must ensure that your face-down spells and permanents can easily be differentiated from each other. You’re not allowed to mix up the cards that represent them on the battlefield in order to confuse other players. The order they entered the battlefield should remain clear. Common methods for indicating this include using markers or dice, or simply placing them in order on the battlefield. You must also track how each became face down (manifested, cast face down using the morph ability, and so on).

Recent MTG decks

Continue exploring other format decks
More decks