Phyrexian Espionage MTG Card
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 3 |
| Rarity | Common |
| Type | Sorcery |
| Abilities | Kicker |
| Released | 2022-09-09 |
| Set symbol | |
| Set name | Dominaria United |
| Set code | DMU |
| Number | 60 |
| Frame | 2015 |
| Layout | Normal |
| Border | Black |
| Illustred by | Allen Williams |
Key Takeaways
- Enables card draw and opponent hand disruption, offering a significant strategic advantage in gameplay.
- Flexibility at instant speed allows for responsive play and tactical adaptation during matches.
- Despite its strengths, the required discard and specific mana can limit the card’s versatility.
Text of card
Kicker (You may pay an additional as you cast this spell.) Draw two cards. If this spell was kicked, each opponent discards a card.
"Even if they're hunting for sleeper agents, who looks twice at a bird?" —Rona
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Phyrexian Espionage enables you to potentially draw multiple cards, while disrupting your opponent’s hand and battlefield. This provides a significant edge in terms of available resources and strategic options during the game.
Resource Acceleration: While not directly providing resource acceleration, the ability to obtain information and optimize your subsequent plays with Phyrexian Espionage can indirectly lead to more efficient use of your mana and resources over time.
Instant Speed: Phyrexian Espionage’s high-speed capability is a strong suit, allowing you to act in response to your opponent’s moves or at the end of their turn. This flexibility ensures that you retain the upper hand and can adapt quickly to the evolving state of play.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Phyrexian Espionage comes with the drawback of needing to discard a card, potentially depleting your hand of valuable tools or resources critical to your gameplay strategy.
Specific Mana Cost: This card requires a precise combination of mana types to cast, which can present a deck-building challenge, limiting its versatility across various decks that may not align with its color identity.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: With other cards in the MTG world offering similar espionage or card advantage abilities at a lesser mana cost, Phyrexian Espionage can be considered an expensive investment for the effect it provides.
Reasons to Include Phyrexian Espionage in Your Collection
Versatility: Phyrexian Espionage offers tactical depth as it not only disrupts your opponent’s hand, but it could also provide you with insight into their next moves. This card fits seamlessly into decks that capitalize on information warfare and hand disruption techniques.
Combo Potential: The information gleaned from Phyrexian Espionage can empower strategies based around predictive plays and synergize with mechanics that penalize opponents for discarding or playing certain spells. This intel can be a linchpin in setting up detrimental combos against your adversary.
Meta-Relevance: In a game where the current competitive landscape values strategic planning and disruption, Phyrexian Espionage is a strong contender. Its ability to provide foresight and interfere with the opponent’s strategy makes it a valuable asset in maintaining an edge over the prevalent deck archetypes.
How to beat
Phyrexian Espionage takes mind games to a new level in the world of Magic: The Gathering. As an opponent, understanding the dynamics of hand disruption is crucial. The ability to peak into an opponent’s hand and disrupt their plans can be disconcerting. However, there are strategies to mitigate the impact of Phyrexian Espionage.
One solid approach involves maintaining a hand with cards that are less impactful to discard. Instant-speed spells that can be played in response to the Espionage help preserve your more valuable cards. Similarly, leveraging mechanics such as Flash allows you to keep creatures in hand and deploy them at the last possible moment, minimizing the chance they can be targeted. Another tactic is to include cards in your deck that benefit from being in the graveyard, turning a potential setback into an advantage.
Using artifacts or creatures that grant you hexproof is also a prudent countermeasure, preventing opponents from choosing you as the target of their hand peeking spells. Flexibility in gameplay and strategic deck building is the key to outmaneuvering the disruptive force of Phyrexian Espionage in your matches.
Cards like Phyrexian Espionage
Phyrexian Espionage offers a unique twist in the roster of information-gathering spells in Magic: The Gathering. It bears a resemblance to other cards like Thoughtseize, in that it allows a glimpse into an opponent’s hand. Yet Phyrexian Espionage brings a distinct nuance to the table with its potential to exile a card, playing into the larger tactic of disrupting an opponent’s future plans. Thoughtseize, however, does not exile but deals a blow to the opponent’s hand while costing life points.
Another parallel can be drawn with Peek, a card that lets you peek into an opponent’s hand while drawing a card, though it lacks the exile function. Peek can be a cheaper alternative, but Phyrexian Espionage serves a dual-purpose of knowledge gain and strategic exile. Consider also Duress, a staple in control decks for hand disruption. While it doesn’t allow exile or peeking at instant speed like Phyrexian Espionage, it can strip a noncreature, nonland card without any additional cost to yourself.
Choosing the right card for a deck often depends on the desired balance between delaying the opponent and gaining advantage. Phyrexian Espionage fits well in strategies aimed at both information gathering and long-term disruption, marking its territory in the control archetype within Magic: The Gathering.
Cards similar to Phyrexian Espionage by color, type and mana cost
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Phyrexian Espionage MTG card by a specific set like Dominaria United, 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 Phyrexian Espionage and other MTG cards:
- eBay
- TCG Player
- 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
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Phyrexian Espionage has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Standard | Legal |
| Historicbrawl | Legal |
| Historic | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Paupercommander | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Gladiator | Legal |
| Alchemy | Legal |
| Pioneer | Legal |
| Commander | Legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Pauper | Legal |
| Future | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Explorer | Legal |
| Brawl | Legal |
| Penny | Legal |
| Timeless | Legal |