Phthisis MTG Card

Phthisis offers game-changing board control by removing beefed-up creatures at crucial moments. The card’s specific mana and high cost challenge its integration but reward strategic deckbuilding. Phthisis’ ability to dictate opponent’s plays makes it a formidable tool in controlled formats.

Time Spiral (TSP)
2006-10-06 - Number 122

Modern Masters (MMA)
2013-06-07 - Number 93

Commander 2013 (C13)
2013-11-01 - Number 85

Time Spiral Remastered (TSR)
2021-03-19 - Number 129

Phthisis - Forgotten Realms Commander (AFC)

Forgotten Realms Commander (AFC)
2021-07-23 - Number 105

Card sets	Released in 5 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost	7
Rarity	Uncommon
Type	Sorcery
Abilities	Suspend

Text of card

Destroy target creature. Its controller loses life equal to its power plus its toughness. Suspend 5— (Rather than play this card from your hand, you may pay and remove it from the game with five time counters on it. At the beginning of your upkeep, remove a time counter. When you remove the last, play it without paying its mana cost.)

Cards like Phthisis

The Phthisis card brings a unique ability to the battlefield in Magic: The Gathering, reminiscent of other delayed doom spells. Like its kin, the card Curse of the Cabal, Phthisis too thrives on a suspenseful countdown to devastation. With its exponential damage-dealing capability based on target creature’s power, Phthisis can be a game-ender. Conversely, Curse of the Cabal offers a different kind of threat, siphoning off cards or permanents in a regular rhythm unless its mantra is disrupted.

Comparably, Dread Slag is another creature that grows stronger with a fuller hand, though it directly converts cards into power rather than delaying the effect like Phthisis. However, it lacks the ability to remove creatures outright. Lastly, we look at Hex, which allows the removal of six creatures for one flat rate. A direct contrast to Phthisis, which, while only targeting a single creature, can lead to substantial loss of life and potentially alter the game’s momentum.

While Phthisis might require a setting of the stage to unleash its catastrophe, it stands uniquely in its cataclysmic potential. It underscores how in Magic: The Gathering, the right spell in the right circumstance can tilt the scales of victory.

Cards similar to Phthisis by color, type and mana cost

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Card Pros

Card Advantage: Phthisis shines when it comes to reducing your opponent’s card quality on the battlefield. By removing a creature that’s been beefing up each turn, it negates their gradual advantage, potentially leading to a significant swing in your favor.

Resource Acceleration: While this card isn’t directly tied to resource acceleration, its casting cost aligns with late-game strategies. When used at the right time, it clears the way for your own threats to dominate the board without interference.

Instant Speed: Phthisis operates at sorcery speed, demanding careful planning to optimize its devastating potential. Its ability to obliterate a creature grown too strong offers a tactical edge when timed to disrupt your opponent’s crucial turns. Although not at instant speed, its delayed trigger can be strategically advantageous, behaving like an imminent threat your opponents must account for.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Phthisis demands a significant sacrifice, expecting players not just to cast it but to strategize accordingly. Disposing of cards is a trade-off, and in the fast-paced environment of an MTG match, it can be quite a setback to part with valuable hand assets.

Specific Mana Cost: This card’s demand for a specific and sometimes cumbersome mana combination can impede its integration into various decks. Players often gravitate towards versatility, and Phthisis’ rigid black mana requirement may narrow its widespread appeal and usage.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: The mana investment for Phthisis is not to be taken lightly. Clocking in at a total of seven mana, this card presents a steep price point that might deter players, especially when there are alternatives in the expansive world of MTG that can induce creature removal for less.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Phthisis is a powerful addition to Commander and multiplayer formats, fitting well into decks that are designed to control the pace and attrition battles. Its ability to eliminate a single threat regardless of size makes it an adaptable tool in any black mage’s arsenal.

Combo Potential: In combination with cards that can manipulate or accelerate the countdown, Phthisis can become a swift game-ender. It aligns with strategies aiming to put large creatures onto the battlefield just to turn them into ticking time bombs for your opponents.

Meta-Relevance: In environments where beefy creatures dominate the board, Phthisis serves as a strong deterrent, able to take out key threats. Its presence alone can sway opponents’ decisions on when and what to play, influencing the game even when it’s just in your hand.

How to beat

Confronting Phthisis in a game of Magic: The Gathering presents a unique challenge, as this black sorcery card can be a devastating play with the ability to destroy almost any creature and potentially deal a significant amount of damage to that creature’s controller. To effectively counteract Phthisis, players must be strategic and attentive to the board state. Using low-toughness creatures that wouldn’t result in a high life loss when destroyed by Phthisis is one method, or employing creatures with indestructible or hexproof to sidestep this removal tool altogether.

Another approach revolves around timing, given Phthisis’s significant upkeep trigger delay, allowing an opponent to ready an answer. Play can be optimized through instant-speed spells or abilities to sacrifice or bounce the targeted creature back to your hand. This move would invalidate the target for Phthisis and nullify the impending danger. Additionally, quick deck cycling or tutoring for a counterspell before Phthisis’ trigger can ensure it never takes effect. Considering these strategies, players can navigate the menace of Phthisis, mitigating its impact and maintaining control of their life total and board presence.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Phthisis MTG card by a specific set like Time Spiral and Modern 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 Phthisis and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Phthisis Magic the Gathering card was released in 5 different sets between 2006-10-06 and 2021-07-23. Illustrated by Carl Critchlow.

#	Released	Name	Code	Number	Frame	Layout	Border	Artist
1	2006-10-06	Time Spiral	TSP	122	2003	Normal	Black	Carl Critchlow
2	2013-06-07	Modern Masters	MMA	93	2003	Normal	Black	Carl Critchlow
3	2013-11-01	Commander 2013	C13	85	2003	Normal	Black	Carl Critchlow
4	2021-03-19	Time Spiral Remastered	TSR	129	2015	Normal	Black	Carl Critchlow
5	2021-07-23	Forgotten Realms Commander	AFC	105	2015	Normal	Black	Carl Critchlow

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Phthisis 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 Phthisis card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

Date	Text
2021-03-19	If the creature's power is negative, you still add its power and toughness to determine how much life is lost. If that total is negative, its controller doesn't gain or lose any life. For example, Phthisis destroying a -1/3 creature would cause a loss of 2 life. Pthisis destroying a -4/3 creature would cause no loss of life.
2021-03-19	If the target creature is an illegal target by the time Phthisis tries to resolve, the spell doesn't resolve. No player loses life. If the target is legal but not destroyed (most likely because it has indestructible), its controller does lose life.
2021-06-18	As the second triggered ability resolves, you must cast the card if able. You must do so even if it requires targets and the only legal targets are ones that you really don't want to target. Timing permissions based on the card's type are ignored.
2021-06-18	Cards exiled with suspend are exiled face up.
2021-06-18	Exiling a card with suspend isn't casting that card. This action doesn't use the stack and can't be responded to.
2021-06-18	If an effect refers to a “suspended card,” that means a card that (1) has suspend, (2) is in exile, and (3) has one or more time counters on it.
2021-06-18	If the card has in its mana cost, you must choose 0 as the value of X when casting it without paying its mana cost.
2021-06-18	If the first triggered ability of suspend (the one that removes time counters) is countered, no time counter is removed. The ability will trigger again at the beginning of the card's owner's next upkeep.
2021-06-18	If the second triggered ability is countered, the card can't be cast. It remains exiled with no time counters on it, and it's no longer suspended.
2021-06-18	If the spell requires any targets, those targets are chosen when the spell is finally cast, not when it's exiled.
2021-06-18	If you can't cast the card, perhaps because there are no legal targets available, it remains exiled with no time counters on it, and it's no longer suspended.
2021-06-18	If you cast a card “without paying its mana cost,” such as with suspend, you can't choose to cast it for any alternative costs. You can, however, pay additional costs. If the card has any mandatory additional costs, you must pay those if you want to cast the card.
2021-06-18	Suspend is a keyword that represents three abilities. The first is a static ability that allows you to exile the card from your hand with the specified number of time counters (the number before the dash) on it by paying its suspend cost (listed after the dash). The second is a triggered ability that removes a time counter from the suspended card at the beginning of each of your upkeeps. The third is a triggered ability that causes you to cast the card when the last time counter is removed. If you cast a creature spell this way, it gains haste until you lose control of that creature (or, in rare cases, you lose control of the creature spell while it's on the stack).
2021-06-18	The mana value of a spell cast without paying its mana cost is determined by its mana cost, even though that cost wasn't paid.
2021-06-18	When the last time counter is removed, the second triggered ability of suspend (the one that lets you cast the card) triggers. It doesn't matter why the last time counter was removed or what effect removed it.
2021-06-18	You are never forced to activate mana abilities to pay costs, so if there is a mandatory additional mana cost (such as from Thalia, Guardian of Thraben), you can decline to activate mana abilities to pay for it and hence fail to cast the suspended card, leaving it in exile.
2021-06-18	You can exile a card in your hand using suspend any time you could cast that card. Consider its card type, any effects that modify when you could cast it (such as flash) and any other effects that stop you from casting it (such as from Meddling Mage's ability) to determine if and when you can do this. Whether you could actually complete all steps in casting the card is irrelevant. For example, you can exile a card with suspend that has no mana cost or that requires a target even if no legal targets are available at that time.