Oona's Grace MTG Card
2008-07-25 - Number 27
2016-06-10 - Number 63
2019-08-23 - Number 91
| Card sets | Released in 3 setsSee all |
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 3 |
| Rarity | Common |
| Type | Instant |
| Abilities | Retrace |
Text of card
Target player draws a card. Retrace (You may play this card from your graveyard by discarding a land card in addition to paying its other costs.)
Oona grants her favored subjects a dream from her own guarded heart.
Cards like Oona's Grace
Oona’s Grace stands out in the realm of mana-efficient card advantage engines in Magic: The Gathering. It shares some similarities with other cards like Think Twice, which also offers a draw mechanic, but advances further with a repeatability feature through its retrace ability. Oona’s Grace allows you to discard a land card in addition to paying its casting cost, thereby drawing a card whenever it’s convenient during the game.
Compare this with Accumulated Knowledge, which has potential for drawing multiple cards at an ever-increasing value with each copy in your graveyard. The flexibility of Oona’s Grace, however, means you can transform those extra land draws late in the game into new opportunities, something Accumulated Knowledge doesn’t directly allow. Another comparable card is Chemister’s Insight, which similarly can be cast from the graveyard for additional benefit, but demands a higher initial mana investment and operates on a one-time effect rather than the repeatable option provided by Oona’s Grace.
Ultimately, Oona’s Grace adds a strategic layer to your deck, enabling sustained card advantage and turning late-game land draws into valuable resources. Its adaptability positions it uniquely amongst the pantheon of card draw spells in Magic: The Gathering for those who prize long-term resource management.
Cards similar to Oona's Grace by color, type and mana cost
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Oona’s Grace offers a strategic edge with its ability to draw cards repeatedly. With its “retainer” feature, you can discard a land card instead of paying its mana cost, which can help cycle through your deck and draw into more valuable cards, keeping your hand refreshed and your options open.
Resource Acceleration: Although Oona’s Grace itself doesn’t directly accelerate resources, the ability to churn through your deck can indirectly lead to faster access to the resources you need. By discarding excess land cards for value, you’re effectively converting a common, low-impact card into a new opportunity each turn.
Instant Speed: The instant speed nature of Oona’s Grace allows you to keep your mana untapped and your strategies flexible. You can wait until the end of your opponent’s turn to decide if drawing a card is the best move, ensuring that your mana is spent in the most efficient way possible and keeping your opponents guessing about your next play.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Oona’s Grace requires you to discard a card in order to activate its retrace ability. This can deplete your hand quickly, leaving you at a disadvantage in the game if you’re unable to maintain a healthy card advantage.
Specific Mana Cost: Oona’s Grace has a hybrid blue/black mana cost, which might not fit seamlessly into all deck types. Decks that don’t run on both colors could find it hard to consistently meet the mana requirement, thus limiting the card’s versatility.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost that includes three mana, Oona’s Grace may be considered expensive for the effect it offers. Players might prefer to have other options that provide greater impact or efficiency for a similar, if not lower, mana investment.
Reasons to Include Oona’s Grace in Your Collection
Versatility: Oona’s Grace offers the adaptability of a repeatable card draw engine that can seamlessly fit into control or combo decks. Its retrace ability enables players to consistently make use of excess lands later in the game, turning them into potential card advantage.
Combo Potential: This card pairs well with strategies that benefit from casting spells or drawing cards. It can fuel graveyard-based antics or work with cards that profit from spells being cast multiple times throughout a game.
Meta-Relevance: In environments where longer, grindier games are frequent, Oona’s Grace shines by ensuring that you never run out of options. It’s especially relevant in formats where maintaining hand size can mean the difference between victory and defeat.
How to Beat Oona’s Grace
Oona’s Grace extends the domain of card advantage mechanics in the realm of Magic the Gathering. Its Retrace ability is a potent tool, allowing players to cast the spell from the graveyard by discarding a land card, in addition to its casting cost. When comparing it to other card drawing spells, Oona’s Grace offers enduring value by turning any land draw late in the game into potential new cards for your hand.
To effectively counter Oona’s Grace, it is crucial to disrupt the graveyard. Utilize spells that exile cards from the graveyard, such as Rest in Peace or Relic of Progenitus. These cards eliminate the fuel that Oona’s Grace needs to operate, severing the ability to repeatedly cast it. Additionally, hand disruption plays a significant role. Cards like Thoughtseize or Inquisition of Kozilek can remove Oona’s Grace from your opponent’s hand before they have the chance to use it, or to discard their crucial land cards reducing the efficiency of their Retrace mechanic.
Moreover, applying pressure and maintaining a swift pace in the game can overwhelm a strategy relying on the gradual advantage of Oona’s Grace. Swift aggro decks, in particular, can be a strong strategy against decks that lean heavily on value spells like Oona’s Grace. Capitalizing on early game momentum ensures that your opponent may not have the luxury of time to utilize their graveyard as a resource.
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Oona's Grace MTG card by a specific set like Eventide and Eternal Masters, 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 Oona's Grace and other MTG cards:
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- eBay
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- Card Market
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- MTG Mint Card
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Printings
The Oona's Grace Magic the Gathering card was released in 3 different sets between 2008-07-25 and 2019-08-23. Illustrated by Rebecca Guay.
| # | Released | Name | Code | Symbol | Number | Frame | Layout | Border | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2008-07-25 | Eventide | EVE | 27 | 2003 | Normal | Black | Rebecca Guay | |
| 2 | 2016-06-10 | Eternal Masters | EMA | 63 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Rebecca Guay | |
| 3 | 2019-08-23 | Commander 2019 | C19 | 91 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Rebecca Guay |
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Oona's Grace has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Commander | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Paupercommander | Legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Pauper | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Predh | Legal |
| Penny | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Oona's Grace card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2008-08-01 | A retrace card cast from your graveyard follows the normal timing rules for its card type. |
| 2008-08-01 | Casting a card by using its retrace ability works just like casting any other spell, with two exceptions: You’re casting it from your graveyard rather than your hand, and you must discard a land card in addition to any other costs. |
| 2008-08-01 | If the active player casts a spell that has retrace, that player may cast that card again after it resolves, before another player can remove the card from the graveyard. The active player has priority after the spell resolves, so they can immediately cast a new spell. Since casting a card with retrace from the graveyard moves that card onto the stack, no one else would have the chance to affect it while it’s still in the graveyard. |
| 2008-08-01 | When a retrace card you cast from your graveyard resolves, fails to resolve, or is countered, it’s put back into your graveyard. You may use the retrace ability to cast it again. |