Déjà Vu MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 2 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost3
RarityCommon
TypeSorcery

Key Takeaways

  1. Enables recasting of instants and sorceries, making it a game-changer for maintaining momentum.
  2. Can indirectly accelerate resources by recurring mana-efficient spells from the graveyard.
  3. Instant speed casting maximizes flexibility and strategic depth in gameplay.

Text of card

Return any one sorcery card from your discard pile to your hand.

The past is a mirror of the future.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Déjà Vu generates a benefit by permitting the retrieval of an instant or sorcery card from your graveyard to your hand. This recursion allows players to reuse their most impactful spells, maintaining momentum and putting pressure on opponents through repeated use of powerful effects.

Resource Acceleration: While Déjà Vu itself doesn’t directly create mana or tokens, the ability to recycle mana-efficient or ramp spells from the graveyard can indirectly lead to a substantial increase in available resources, setting up for pivotal turns or enabling faster deployment of threats.

Instant Speed: This card’s flexibility is further enhanced given it can be cast at instant speed. This allows savvy players to respond to shifting game states, make the most of unused mana at the end of an opponent’s turn, or strategically time the return of a crucial spell to hand for maximum surprise and impact.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Playing Déjà Vu means you’ll need to toss another card from your hand, which could be a setback when your hand size is dwindling or you’re aiming to maintain card advantage over your opponent.

Specific Mana Cost: This card demands a precise blend of blue mana, which might not always jive with your deck’s mana base, potentially causing it to be a dead draw in multicolored or splashy builds.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Clocking in at three mana, Déjà Vu’s cost can be steep for the effect of returning a single card from your graveyard to your hand. For a similar investment, you might find spells that provide additional benefits or more flexible retrieval options.


Reasons to Include Déjà Vu in Your Collection

Versatility: Déjà Vu offers the ability to reclaim an instant or sorcery card from your graveyard, allowing it to adapt to various playstyles. Its flexibility in returning key spells to your hand makes it a valuable asset in many decks, serving diverse strategic needs.

Combo Potential: This card opens up possibilities for powerful combos by recycling spells that complement other cards or the overall deck theme. It synergizes well with strategies that revolve around casting numerous spells or ones that benefit from specific instant or sorcery cards being played repeatedly.

Meta-Relevance: In a game environment where certain spells can decisively impact the board, Déjà Vu gains importance by providing access to those pivotal spells more than once. This can be particularly effective against control decks or in situations where recurring specific answers or threats is crucial to maintaining an advantage over your opponents.


How to beat

Déjà Vu represents an intriguing aspect in Magic: The Gathering, bringing a touch of repetition to the game by allowing players to return a sorcery spell from their graveyard to their hand. The strategy to overcome this card intertwines with disrupting your opponent’s graveyard. Graveyard hate cards like Scavenging Ooze play a pivotal role, as they can remove key sorcery cards directly from the graveyard before your opponent has the chance to reuse them with Déjà Vu.

Another effective tactic involves countermagic. By keeping up mana for spells like Negate or Dovin’s Veto, you can counteract Déjà Vu directly, rendering the spell ineffective and maintaining control of the game pace. This proactive approach can hinder your opponent’s plan to capitalize on their past spells and maintain momentum in your favor. Hence, employing graveyard management or timely countermagic is essential in neutralizing the recursive power of the Déjà Vu card.

In essence, staying one step ahead of your opponent by managing the graveyard or utilizing counterspells is key to triumph against Déjà Vu’s potential to sway the tide of the game by replicating powerful spells.


Cards like Déjà Vu

Déjà Vu is a unique card in the MTG universe, offering a twist on the conventional spell recursion. Comparable to other recursion spells such as Recollect, Déjà Vu provides the ability to return a card from your graveyard directly to your hand. While Déjà Vu focuses specifically on instant and sorcery cards, Recollect doesn’t discriminate, pulling any one card out of the graveyard regardless of type.

Looking at other spells in the same category, there’s Regrowth, another staple for players who want to retrieve their important spells. It’s similar to Déjà Vu but without the type restriction, giving it a broader application. Then you have Call to Mind, which, like Déjà Vu, requires three mana and solely targets instants and sorceries. The difference lies in the mana composition where Call to Mind requires one blue mana, suggesting a higher specificity in deck building compared to the more flexible mana requirement of Déjà Vu.

Ultimately, Déjà Vu’s efficiency depends largely on the construction of your deck and your strategy. It fits well in MTG environments where casting the right spell at the right time is paramount and can shine in decks focused on casting numerous instants and sorceries.

Recollect - MTG Card versions
Regrowth - MTG Card versions
Call to Mind - MTG Card versions
Recollect - Ravnica: City of Guilds (RAV)
Regrowth - Limited Edition Alpha (LEA)
Call to Mind - Magic 2011 (M11)

Cards similar to Déjà Vu by color, type and mana cost

Volcanic Eruption - MTG Card versions
Timetwister - MTG Card versions
Baleful Stare - MTG Card versions
Exhaustion - MTG Card versions
Political Trickery - MTG Card versions
Time Ebb - MTG Card versions
Dream Cache - MTG Card versions
Tinker - MTG Card versions
Sage's Knowledge - MTG Card versions
Undo - MTG Card versions
Ingenious Mastery - MTG Card versions
Animating Faerie // Bring to Life - MTG Card versions
Queen of Ice // Rage of Winter - MTG Card versions
Reminisce - MTG Card versions
Fabricate - MTG Card versions
Counsel of the Soratami - MTG Card versions
Vacuumelt - MTG Card versions
Wistful Thinking - MTG Card versions
Savor the Moment - MTG Card versions
Sanity Grinding - MTG Card versions
Volcanic Eruption - 30th Anniversary Edition (30A)
Timetwister - 30th Anniversary Edition (30A)
Baleful Stare - Portal (POR)
Exhaustion - Ninth Edition (9ED)
Political Trickery - World Championship Decks 1997 (WC97)
Time Ebb - Tempest Remastered (TPR)
Dream Cache - Tempest (TMP)
Tinker - Urza's Legacy (ULG)
Sage's Knowledge - Portal Three Kingdoms (PTK)
Undo - Starter 1999 (S99)
Ingenious Mastery - Strixhaven: School of Mages (STX)
Animating Faerie // Bring to Life - Throne of Eldraine (ELD)
Queen of Ice // Rage of Winter - Throne of Eldraine (ELD)
Reminisce - Ninth Edition (9ED)
Fabricate - Secret Lair Drop (SLD)
Counsel of the Soratami - Tenth Edition (10E)
Vacuumelt - Guildpact (GPT)
Wistful Thinking - Planar Chaos (PLC)
Savor the Moment - Shadowmoor (SHM)
Sanity Grinding - Eventide (EVE)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Déjà Vu MTG card by a specific set like Portal and Portal Second Age, 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 Déjà Vu and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Déjà Vu Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 1997-05-01 and 1998-06-24. Illustrated by 2 different artists.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
11997-05-01PortalPOR 531997normalblackHannibal King
21998-06-24Portal Second AgeP02 361997normalblackDavid Horne

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Déjà Vu has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderLegal
OathbreakerLegal
PauperLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal

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