Near-Death Experience MTG Card
2010-04-23 - Number 38
2016-08-19 - Number 10
| Card sets | Released in 2 setsSee all |
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 5 |
| Rarity | Rare |
| Type | Enchantment |
Text of card
At the beginning of your upkeep, if you have exactly 1 life, you win the game.
Lands ravaged, cities in ruins, so many lives sacrificed, and yet there was no other word for it but victory.
Understanding Near-Death Experience
The world of MTG is replete with cards that twist the game with unusual win conditions, and Near-Death Experience is a prime example. This White enchantment from the Rise of the Eldrazi set harbors the potential to win the game under the most edge-of-the-seat circumstance – if you begin your turn with exactly 1 life.
Cards like Near-Death Experience
While Near-Death Experience offers a dramatic path to victory, there are other cards with comparable win conditions that cater to creatively strategic minds. One such card is Triskaidekaphobia, an enchantment that plays on the number 13, winning the game if a player’s life total is exactly that number. Both cards hinge on maintaining a specific life total, though Triskaidekaphobia offers a more flexible range for setting up its win condition.
Felidar Sovereign and Test of Endurance are two more life-based win condition cards in MTG. These cards require significantly high life totals in contrast to Near-Death Experience’s tightrope walk at 1 life. While these alternatives focus on life gain as a path to victory, Near-Death Experience compels a daring playstyle where one flirts with defeat for a chance at triumph. Each card carries unique risks and rewards, appealing to different strategies within the MTG realm.
Whether playing high-risk high-reward with Near-Death Experience, managing your life total with Triskaidekaphobia, or amassing vast health with Felidar Sovereign, these cards create pivotal moments that define the match, cementing their place in the hearts of MTG enthusiasts.
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Although not a draw card itself, Near-Death Experience provides a unique form of card advantage by paving an alternative path to victory. By focusing on life total management, you leverage the cards in your deck that enable such strategies, essentially ‘drawing’ closer to a win condition through a different axis of play.
Resource Acceleration: Near-Death Experience shines in a deck that can manipulate life totals quickly. While it doesn’t directly accelerate resources, it encourages a deck build that uses life as a resource—a strategy that can ramp up the pressure substantially if life-gaining or losing effects can be stacked effectively.
Instant Speed: This card’s intrinsic value lies in its ability to force opponents to always consider the threat it poses, even if it’s not an instant itself. In a deck tailored to Near-Death Experience, cards that can adjust life at instant speed become formidable tools, forcing opponents to think twice before taking actions that might inadvertently lead to their loss on your upkeep.
Card Cons
Specific Mana Cost: Near-Death Experience comes with a strict mana requirement – three white and two generic. This specificity narrows down deck inclusion to mainly white-based decks, potentially limiting the card’s versatility in a multi-color metagame.
Discard Requirement: While Near-Death Experience doesn’t directly require you to discard cards, it often necessitates keeping your hand size to a minimum. This creates an indirect discard condition as you need to sink resources into staying at a dangerously low life total without the safety net of a full hand.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost of five mana, Near-Death Experience demands a significant investment for a win condition that isn’t guaranteed. In a game where tempo is essential, the five mana spent on this card could be allocated to more immediately impactful plays.
Reasons to Include Near-Death Experience in Your Collection
Versatility: Near-Death Experience might seem niche, but its ability to offer an alternative win condition makes it a valuable addition for players looking to outmaneuver traditional victory paths. This card can slide into life-manipulation decks, serving as both a threat and a deterrent to opponents.
Combo Potential: As a linchpin for creative combos, this card thrives in decks built around life total manipulation. Pairing it with effects that can rapidly adjust life totals, such as life gain or loss spells, can turn a precarious situation into a powerful win scenario.
Meta-Relevance: In a meta where games can swing on big turns and life totals fluctuate wildly, Near-Death Experience holds relevance. It demands an answer from your adversaries and keeps them guessing about your next move, potentially giving you the upper hand in pivotal moments.
How to beat
Near-Death Experience stands out in Magic: The Gathering as a card that offers a unique win condition. It allows players to secure a victory if, at the beginning of their upkeep, they possess exactly 1 life. This creates an intriguing dynamic where one must carefully balance on the brink of defeat to trigger its powerful effect.
To counter this strategy, maintaining board control is essential. Direct damage spells like Lightning Bolt or creature attacks can be used to alter an opponent’s life total unpredictably, disrupting their setup. Life gain spells are also effective, as they can push a player’s life above the threshold needed for Near-Death Experience to activate. Additionally, enchantment removal such as Disenchant or Naturalize can directly target and remove Near-Death Experience before its condition is met.
Ultimately, staying versatile and ready to adapt to the precarious balance the card requires of its owner, is key. By ensuring you have a strategy to either prevent or disrupt the exact life total requirement, you can effectively neutralize the threat of Near-Death Experience and take control of the match.
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Near-Death Experience MTG card by a specific set like Rise of the Eldrazi and From the Vault: Lore, 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 Near-Death Experience and other MTG cards:
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- eBay
- 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
Printings
The Near-Death Experience Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 2010-04-23 and 2016-08-19. Illustrated by Dan Scott.
| # | Released | Name | Code | Symbol | Number | Frame | Layout | Border | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2010-04-23 | Rise of the Eldrazi | ROE | 38 | 2003 | Normal | Black | Dan Scott | |
| 2 | 2016-08-19 | From the Vault: Lore | V16 | 10 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Dan Scott |
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Near-Death Experience 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 Near-Death Experience card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2010-06-15 | In a Two-Headed Giant game, anything that cares about your life total checks your team’s life total. You’ll win the game if your team has exactly 1 life. |
| 2010-06-15 | This ability has an “intervening ‘if’ clause.” That means (1) the ability triggers only if you have exactly 1 life as your upkeep begins, and (2) the ability does nothing if your life total is anything other than 1 by the time it resolves. |