Ransom Note MTG Card

Ransom Note’s card draw and Treasure tokens provide consistent advantage and resource acceleration. Instant speed offers adaptability, crucial for adjusting tactics in the evolving game state. Discarding as activation cost and specific mana could limit its broader application.
Card setsReleased in 8 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost1
RarityRare
TypeArtifact — Clue
Abilities Cloak,Goad,Surveil

Text of card

When Ransom Note enters the battlefield, surveil 1. , Sacrifice Ransom Note: Choose one — • Cloak the top card of your library. • Goad target creature. • Draw a card.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Ransom Note is an exceptional card for those looking to tip the scales in their favor. Drawing cards is crucial for maintaining the upper hand, and this card enables you to steadily bolster your hand, providing a consistent source of new options and strategies.

Resource Acceleration: For players seeking to ramp up their resources, Ransom Note does just that. By generating a stash of Treasure tokens, you not only increase your mana pool but also enhance your capacity for deploying bigger threats or activating key abilities ahead of schedule.

Instant Speed: The flexibility offered by an instant speed spell cannot be overstated. With Ransom Note, you have the freedom to adapt to the evolving game state, waiting for the perfect moment to disrupt your opponent’s plans without having to commit resources prematurely.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Ransom Note forces the discarding of a card as part of its activation cost. This can deplete your hand, potentially leaving you at a disadvantage if you don’t have ample card draw mechanisms in place.

Specific Mana Cost: The casting cost of Ransom Note includes specific colors, which could restrict its inclusion in decks that don’t support such a mana base, thereby reducing its flexibility and utility across different deck archetypes.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a higher mana cost than some alternative cards with similar effects, Ransom Note might not be the most mana-efficient choice for a deck that seeks to optimize every play. There could be other cards that do similar things for less mana, making them more appealing in a tightly-curated deck list.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Ransom Note offers a unique twist to any deck, able to disrupt opponent strategies by pinching crucial cards from their hand. Its utility in different gameplay scenarios extends from control to tempo plays.

Combo Potential: For creative deck builders, Ransom Note’s ability to secture specific cards can set the stage for powerful combos, aligning the pieces you need for a game-winning move or disrupting the opponent’s key sequences.

Meta-Relevance: Particularly in a format where knowing your opponent’s hand can make or break a match, Ransom Note’s insight into your adversary’s plans provides an undeniable edge, making it a worthy inclusion in a metagame where information is as valuable as raw power.

How to Beat Ransom Note in MTG

Ransom Note rises as a unique challenge on the battlefield, twisting the dynamics of player choice in MTG. This card manipulates the game by offering the opponent strategic decisions, potentially altering the course of play with its clauses. To counter Ransom Note effectively, one should consider keeping hand size to a minimum, thus reducing the options Ransom Note presents to the opponent. Cards that allow for graveyard retrieval can mitigate the impact of discarded cards, ensuring that key pieces are not lost permanently.

Similarly, incorporating instant-speed interaction allows you to respond aptly during your opponent’s turn, potentially disrupting their plans with Ransom Note. Cards like Swift Response can take advantage of the tapped creatures clause, turning a defensive move into an offensive advantage. Additionally, holding back resources and not committing fully to the board can limit the damage Ransom Note inflicts, as fewer cards in hand and creatures on the battlefield reduce the card’s influence.

Strategic foresight is essential when playing against Ransom Note. It’s vital to adapt your approach, consider the potential outcomes of your choices, and always be ready with a contingency plan in case Ransom Note alters the trajectory of the game. With careful play and the right responses, you can mitigate the disruptive power of Ransom Note and maintain command of the game.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Ransom Note MTG card by a specific set like Murders at Karlov Manor Commander and Murders at Karlov Manor Commander, 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 Ransom Note and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Ransom Note Magic the Gathering card was released in 1 different sets between 2024-02-09 and 2024-02-09. Illustrated by Gaboleps.

#ReleasedNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12024-02-09Murders at Karlov Manor CommanderMKC 3582015NormalBlackGaboleps
22024-02-09Murders at Karlov Manor CommanderMKC 3562015NormalBlackGaboleps
32024-02-09Murders at Karlov Manor CommanderMKC 472015NormalBlackGaboleps
42024-02-09Murders at Karlov Manor CommanderMKC 482015NormalBlackGaboleps
52024-02-09Murders at Karlov Manor CommanderMKC 3572015NormalBlackGaboleps
62024-02-09Murders at Karlov Manor CommanderMKC 462015NormalBlackGaboleps
72024-02-09Murders at Karlov Manor CommanderMKC 452015NormalBlackGaboleps
82024-02-09Murders at Karlov Manor CommanderMKC 3552015NormalBlackGaboleps

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Ransom Note has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal

Rules and information

The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Ransom Note card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

Date Text
2024-02-02 A permanent that turns face up or face down changes characteristics but is otherwise the same permanent. Spells and abilities that were targeting that permanent and Auras and Equipment that were attached to that permanent aren’t affected unless the new characteristics of the object change the legality of those targets or attachments.
2024-02-02 Any time you have priority, you can turn a cloaked permanent you control face-up by revealing that it’s a creature card (ignoring any copy effects or type-changing effects that might be applying to it) and paying its mana cost. This is a special action. It doesn’t use the stack and can’t be responded to.
2024-02-02 At any time, you can look at a face-down spell or permanent you control. You can’t look at face-down permanents or spells you don’t control unless an effect instructs or allows you to do so.
2024-02-02 Because face-down creatures don’t have a name, they can’t have the same name as any other creature, even another face-down creature.
2024-02-02 Because the permanent is on the battlefield both before and after it’s turned face up, turning a permanent face up doesn’t cause any enters-the-battlefield abilities to trigger.
2024-02-02 If a cloaked creature would have disguise (or morph) if it were face up, you may also turn it face up by paying its disguise (or morph) cost.
2024-02-02 If a double-faced card is cloaked, it will be put onto the battlefield face down. While face down, it can’t transform. If the front face of the card is a creature card, you can turn it face up by paying its mana cost. If you do, its front face will be up.
2024-02-02 If a face-down creature loses its abilities, it can’t be turned face up with a disguise ability because it will no longer have a disguise ability (or a disguise cost) once face up.
2024-02-02 If a face-down spell leaves the stack and goes to any zone other than the battlefield (if it was countered, for example), you must reveal it. Similarly, if a face-down permanent leaves the battlefield, you must reveal it. You must also reveal all face-down spells and permanents you control if you leave the game or the game ends.
2024-02-02 If something tries to turn a face-down instant or sorcery card on the battlefield face up, reveal that card to show all players it’s an instant or sorcery card. The permanent remains on the battlefield face down. Abilities that trigger when a permanent turns face up won’t trigger, because even though you revealed the card, it never turned face up.
2024-02-02 To cloak a card, put it onto the battlefield face down. It becomes a 2/2 face-down creature card with ward and no name, mana cost, or creature types. It’s colorless and has a mana value of 0. Other effects that apply to the permanent can still grant it any characteristics it doesn’t have or change the characteristics it does have.
2024-02-02 Turning a permanent face up or face down doesn’t change whether that permanent is tapped or untapped.
2024-02-02 Unlike a face-down creature that was cast using a disguise or morph ability, a cloaked creature may still be turned face up after it loses its abilities if it’s a creature card.
2024-02-02 You must ensure that your face-down spells and permanents can be easily differentiated from each other. You’re not allowed to mix up the cards that represent them on the battlefield to confuse other players. The order in which they entered the battlefield should remain clear, as well as what ability caused them to be face down. (This includes disguise, cloak, and in games involving older cards, morph and manifest, as well as a few other effects that turn cards face down.) Common methods for doing this include using markers or dice, or simply placing them in order on the battlefield.