Final Payment MTG Card


Final Payment - Ravnica Allegiance
Mana cost
Converted mana cost2
RarityCommon
TypeInstant
Released2019-01-25
Set symbol
Set nameRavnica Allegiance
Set codeRNA
Number171
Frame2015
LayoutNormal
BorderBlack
Illustred byVictor Adame Minguez

Key Takeaways

  1. Cost advantage and board control with Final Payment, without spending multiple cards on a single threat.
  2. Flexibility in casting—use life as resource, preserving mana for other critical plays.
  3. Instant speed allows for strategic responses on opponent’s turn, adding a layer of complexity.

Text of card

As an additional cost to cast this spell, pay 5 life or sacrifice a creature or enchantment. Destroy target creature.

There's nothing quite like the feeling of paying off a large debt.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Final Payment stands out by offering a significant cost advantage. It allows you to deal with any creature or enchantment, paving the way to maintain board control without the need to spend multiple cards to handle a major threat.

Resource Acceleration: This card’s flexibility is key, as it can be cast by paying life instead of mana. This option provides you with a way to use your life total as a resource, potentially accelerating your game plan by preserving mana for other uses in a critical turn.

Instant Speed: The instant speed of Final Payment gives you the tactical advantage to respond to unfolding threats during your opponent’s turn. This can disrupt your opponent’s strategy while keeping them guessing about the full extent of your capabilities, which is a powerful element in any match.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Final Payment demands a significant trade-off from your deck. As part of its casting cost, you’re obliged to sacrifice a creature or pay 5 life, which can be a steep price if your board presence or life total is already under pressure.

Specific Mana Cost: This spell’s cost necessitates both white and black mana, which can constrain its integration into a multi-colored deck. If your mana base isn’t properly tailored, casting Final Payment can become a challenge, particularly in the early game.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Although Final Payment can be a powerful removal option, its efficiency is debated when compared to other removal spells in MTG. Some players argue that there are alternatives that either don’t require such a substantial additional cost or provide a broader range of targets and flexibility for a similar or lower mana investment.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Final Payment serves as a flexible removal option, efficiently dealing with threats in a wide array of decks that can leverage life or creature sacrifices for strategic gains.

Combo Potential: This card offers synergy with strategies that benefit from self-sacrifice, such as enabling death triggers or fueling graveyard-based mechanics.

Meta-Relevance: In a format where fast, efficient removal is key, Final Payment can play an important role in keeping pace with aggressive decks or disrupting opponent’s synergies.


How to beat

When facing off against Final Payment in your Magic the Gathering battles, it’s crucial to recognize its potential to be a highly cost-effective removal tool. This spell allows a player to pay 5 life or sacrifice a creature or enchantment as an additional cost for its casting, in exchange for the ability to destroy a target creature.

The key to countering this potent spell lies in limiting the opponent’s ability to leverage the low-cost benefits. Strategies could include avoiding playing high-value creatures that are likely to be targeted by Final Payment or holding up counterspells specifically for such removal spells. Additionally, minimizing the number of targets by playing less but more resilient creatures may discourage the opponent from gaining a cost-effective advantage through Final Payment.

Another angle is to apply pressure that forces your opponent to use their life total or resources differently, potentially making the cost of Final Payment less advantageous for them. In this way, your deck’s strategy can naturally undermine the efficiency of Final Payment, thereby reducing its impact on your game plan and increasing your chances for victory.


BurnMana Recommendations

Reflecting upon the strategic nuances of Final Payment in MTG can propel your deck to new heights. Whether utilizing this card for its cost-effective creature removal, or as part of a greater combo that spins sacrifice into an advantage, the depths of its potential are waiting to be explored. If you’re aiming to refine your control deck or simply seeking to disturb your opponent’s tactics with instant-speed interventions, this card could be a game-changer. Mastery comes from making informed choices and understanding the wide array of options available to you. Journey with us as we dive deeper into MTG strategy and optimize your gameplay to its fullest. Discover more and enhance your MTG experience today.


Cards like Final Payment

Final Payment offers a unique spot within the removal spells in the game. Its effectiveness is seen when we scrutinate its mechanisms alongside other removal options. For instance, Mortify is a close relative, targeting both creatures and enchantments. However, Mortify lacks the alternate cost mechanic that Final Payment leverages, which can be paying 5 life or sacrificing a creature or enchantment, giving more flexibility depending on the board state.

Comparatively, we look at Path to Exile, a staple for white-based control strategies. It exiles a creature at the cost of giving the opponent a land, yet the action is swift and unconditional. Final Payment doesn’t have the clean exile effect but offers strategic depth for decks that can utilize the sacrifice for additional benefits. Cast Down is another akin spell, efficiently dealing with nonlegendary creatures. But unlike Final Payment, it isn’t as viable when facing off against legendary threats or when trying to capitalize on your own permanent’s demise for a greater strategy.

In summarizing, Final Payment stands out in decks designed to exploit self-sacrifice for gain, positioning itself as a potent tool in Magic: The Gathering’s arsenal of removal spells.

Mortify - MTG Card versions
Path to Exile - MTG Card versions
Cast Down - MTG Card versions
Mortify - MTG Card versions
Path to Exile - MTG Card versions
Cast Down - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Final Payment MTG card by a specific set like Ravnica Allegiance, 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 Final Payment and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Final Payment has restrictions

FormatLegality
HistoricbrawlLegal
HistoricLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderLegal
OathbreakerLegal
GladiatorLegal
PioneerLegal
CommanderLegal
ModernLegal
PauperLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
ExplorerLegal
TimelessLegal

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