Mind Burst MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	2
Rarity	Common
Type	Sorcery
Released	2001-10-01
Set symbol
Set name	Odyssey
Set code	ODY
Number	148
Frame	1997
Layout	normal
Border	black
Illustred by	Marc Fishman

Key Takeaways

Mind Burst offers escalating hand control, becoming more disruptive with subsequent plays within the game.
Although potent in hand disruption, the card requires careful management to avoid self-handicap.
Its unique scaling potency makes it a strategic addition to any deck focused on resource denial.

Text of card

Target player discards X cards from his or her hand, where X is one plus the number of Mind Burst cards in all graveyards.

As haunting as a zombie's curse.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Mind Burst proves its worth by forcing a discard, diminishing your opponent’s hand while you maintain a grip on the game. As you continue to play Mind Bursts, the effect becomes exponentially disruptive, guaranteeing you an upper hand in the battle of resources.

Resource Acceleration: Although Mind Burst itself doesn’t directly accelerate resources, its strategic use can slow down your opponent. Depleting their hand means they have fewer options to counter your strategies or build their board, effectively giving you a temporal advantage to develop your plays.

Instant Speed: The power of Mind Burst is in its instant speed, allowing you to react to your opponent’s moves, disrupt their plans on their turn, or simply wait until the most inopportune moment for them to lose a crucial card. It’s a silver bullet in the mental duel of Magic that rewards strategic and timely use.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Mind Burst necessitates discarding a card for each copy in your graveyard, which might deplete your hand and leave you at a card disadvantage.

Specific Mana Cost: With a blue-specific mana requirement, this card may restrict deck-building flexibility, confining it to blue-centric or compatible decks.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: The escalating cost of Mind Burst can become burdensome, especially when considering more efficient disruption options available at lower mana values.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Mind Burst’s growing discard effect scales up with every copy played, making it adaptable in decks that revolve around hand disruption. This card fits snugly into strategies emphasizing resource denial.

Combo Potential: Coupled with cards that capitalize on an opponent’s shrinking hand size or graveyard accumulation, Mind Burst can become a linchpin in compelling combo plays that lock down the opponent’s options.

Meta-Relevance: As metas shift towards decks that rely heavily on hand synergy, Mind Burst gains relevance as a way to dismantle an opponent’s carefully curated hand, thereby disrupting their game plan effectively.

How to beat

Mind Burst may at first appear daunting, providing players with a tool to deplete their opponent’s hand rapidly in Magic: The Gathering. This card becomes increasingly more powerful with each repetition, forcing the targeted player to discard a number of cards equal to the number of Mind Bursts in your graveyard plus one. Successfully managing this card involves strategic play to mitigate its potential damage to your hand size.

Effective strategies against Mind Burst involve maintaining a low hand size to diminish its impact, or utilizing cards that benefit from discard mechanics. Cards that have abilities triggered upon discarding or being in the graveyard can turn the tide against Mind Burst. Additionally, instant-speed draw spells can refill your hand quickly, ensuring you have the right resources when needed. Another robust approach is to deploy threats that demand immediate answers, diverting the Mind Burst player’s focus and resources away from hand disruption to dealing with on-board challenges.

While it may seem like a potent weapon first-hand, Mind Burst’s reliance on a setup and predictable pattern allows for plenty of counterplay, ensuring you can outpace the disruption with careful planning and suitable card choices in your deck construction. Offering both a testing challenge and an opportunity for strategic growth, navigating around Mind Burst can enhance your skills as a strategic MTG player.

Cards like Mind Burst

Mind Burst presents a unique approach within the pool of hand disruption spells in Magic: The Gathering. Its distinguishing trait lies in the fact that its potency increases with each subsequent copy played, potentially stripping multiple cards from the opponent’s hand in a single sweep. This is reminiscent of Delirium Skeins, which also targets the opponent’s hand, causing both players to discard three cards without scaling throughout the game.

Another parallel can be drawn with Mind Rot, an enduring staple in the realm of discard strategies. Mind Rot requires three mana and results in the opponent losing two cards on a single use. Mind Burst starts off weaker on the initial cast but can overshadow Mind Rot’s impact in longer matches where several copies are deployed. Lastly, there’s Raven’s Crime, which also escalates with each usage through its retrace ability, allowing repeated casting from the graveyard at the expense of land cards.

Overall, Mind Burst’s unique scaling mechanism can be a game-changer in matches that stretch over multiple turns, offering repeated value in a way that these similar spells cannot match. It’s a strategic asset for those aiming to erode their opponent’s options over time in Magic: The Gathering.

Cards similar to Mind Burst by color, type and mana cost

Sinkhole - 30th Anniversary Edition (30A)

Soul Exchange - Masters Edition II (ME2)

Imperial Edict - Portal Three Kingdoms (PTK)

Chainer's Edict - Ultimate Masters (UMA)

Predators' Hour - Magic Online Promos (PRM)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Mind Burst MTG card by a specific set like Odyssey, 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 Mind Burst and other MTG cards: