Rain of Daggers MTG Card

Rain of Daggers ensures board control by eliminating creatures and granting card advantage. Instant speed allows surprise plays; however, the card demands steep sacrifices and precise mana. Despite its power, smart play with indestructible or hexproof creatures can counteract its effects.
Card setsReleased in 3 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost6
RarityRare
TypeSorcery

Text of card

Destroy all your opponent's creatures. For each creature destroyed this way, you lose 2 life.

Knives in the sky, cries in the air, and blood on the ground.

Cards like Rain of Daggers

Rain of Daggers is an intriguing card that serves as a powerful creature removal in Magic: The Gathering. When you look at its high mana cost and destructive potential, it brings to mind the classic Damnation, which wipes the board clean of creatures for two mana less. The catch with Rain of Daggers, however, is its specificity, targeting solely the creatures one opponent controls, making it a strategic choice in multiplayer formats.

Comparatively, Plague Wind is another spell that doesn’t affect your creatures, but instead destroys all creatures your opponents control. Costing a hefty nine mana, Plague Wind is even more expensive but leaves your side of the board untouched. Inquisition is a cheaper alternative that, while not as sweeping in its effect, allows you to pick and eliminate a creature your opponent controls for only three mana, offering early game interaction.

Assessing Rain of Daggers within the spectrum of selective mass removal spells reveals its niche in MTG. It’s an expensive but potentially game-changing tool for controlling the state of the board, tailored for players who are willing to invest in a grand, sweeping gesture to remove opponents’ threats.

Damnation - MTG Card versions
Plague Wind - MTG Card versions
Inquisition - MTG Card versions
Damnation - MTG Card versions
Plague Wind - MTG Card versions
Inquisition - MTG Card versions

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Rain of Daggers offers a unique swing in the game’s dynamics by allowing a player to destroy all creatures one of their opponents controls. In multiplayer formats, selecting the right opponent can yield massive card advantage, effectively decimating an adversary’s board presence while preserving your own.

Resource Acceleration: Eliminating multiple creatures at once with Rain of Daggers clears the path for your own attacks. This can lead to accelerated damage to opponents and potential early wins. While not directly contributing to mana acceleration, the removal of blocking creatures can expedite victory and resource gains in the form of life point reduction on the opposing side.

Instant Speed: Rain of Daggers provides strategic flexibility with its instant speed capacity. You can surprise an opponent during their turn, after they’ve declared attackers or in response to a spell or ability that would put you at a disadvantage. This timing can severely disrupt your opponent’s plans and maintain the upper hand in the battle.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: To harness Rain of Daggers, players must part with a substantial number of their creatures, which can drastically reduce one’s battlefield presence and potentially leave them vulnerable to counterattacks.

Specific Mana Cost: This card demands a precise alignment of three black mana, presenting a challenge for multicolored decks and restricting its synergy with more versatile mana bases.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a total cost that climbs to six mana, Rain of Daggers competes with other sweeping options that might execute a similar role for less, making it a heavier investment in tight game situations.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Rain of Daggers offers a broad range of utility across multiple deck archetypes. Its ability to destroy all creatures one player controls makes it a powerful sweeper in both multiplayer and single opponent formats.

Combo Potential: This card’s potential to clear the board pairs well with strategies that benefit from opponents’ creatureless states, such as enabling successful attacks or setting up for game-ending combos without interference.

Meta-Relevance: With a shifting landscape that often favors creature-heavy decks, Rain of Daggers maintains relevance by acting as a potent counter to such strategies, ensuring you stay ahead in the evolving meta.

How to Beat

Rain of Daggers is a card in Magic the Gathering that can swing the game in favor of control decks by decimating an opponent’s board presence. This sweeping removal spell can eradicate multiple creatures at once, ensuring a clean slate for the caster. Although Rain of Daggers presents a significant challenge, it can be countered effectively.

To overcome this obstacle, players must prioritize mana efficiency and conservation. Playing creatures with indestructible as a keyword or those that can regenerate is a quintessential strategy against such spells. Moreover, utilizing instant-speed hexproof or shroud abilities can safeguard your creatures from targeted and global destruction alike. In essence, the key is to anticipate the potential unleashment of Rain of Daggers and preserving your valuable assets by either making them an unfeasible target or by maintaining resources to repopulate the battlefield swiftly post-clearance. With smart play and strategy, turning the tide against Rain of Daggers is within reach for adept players.

Despite the power that Rain of Daggers holds in a match, it is by no means unbeatable. With prudent selection of creatures, careful management of the board, and thoughtful conservation of spells and abilities, players can ensure that their strategy stands resilient in the face of such devastating removal.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Rain of Daggers MTG card by a specific set like Portal Second Age and Masters Edition IV, 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 Rain of Daggers and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Rain of Daggers Magic the Gathering card was released in 3 different sets between 1998-06-24 and 2011-01-10. Illustrated by Melissa A. Benson.

#ReleasedNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
11998-06-24Portal Second AgeP02 851997NormalBlackMelissa A. Benson
22011-01-10Masters Edition IVME4 941997NormalBlackMelissa A. Benson
32020-09-26The ListPLST P02-851997NormalBlackMelissa A. Benson

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Rain of Daggers has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal
PennyLegal