Sphinx's Insight MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	4
Rarity	Common
Type	Instant
Abilities	Addendum
Released	2019-01-25
Set symbol
Set name	Ravnica Allegiance
Set code	RNA
Number	209
Frame	2015
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Scott Murphy

Key Takeaways

Provides card advantage and increased hand options, enhancing your ability to respond to opponents.
Instant speed allows for flexible play, optimizing mana usage and strategic adaptability.
Addendum mechanic grants life gain if played on your main phase, further solidifying your position.

Text of card

Draw two cards. Addendum — If you cast this spell during your main phase, you gain 2 life.

"Do not think me blind to your true mission...or your true master, Grand Arbiter."

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Sphinx’s Insight enables you to draw two cards upon casting, bolstering your hand and potentially giving you a crucial edge over your opponent by increasing your options on subsequent turns.

Resource Acceleration: With its Addendum mechanic, if cast during your main phase, Sphinx’s Insight also allows you to gain life, essentially providing an additional layer of resource advantage and helping to stabilize your position in the game.

Instant Speed: As an instant, Sphinx’s Insight affords flexibility, allowing you to respond adaptively to the fluid dynamics of MTG gameplay. This means you can strategically opt to cast it at the end of your opponent’s turn to maximize your mana usage efficiency and keep your options open.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Unlike some other draw spells, Sphinx’s Insight doesn’t force you to discard a card. However, the advantage of this is offset by a requirement to hold it until you can leverage its Addendum bonus, which could mean missing out on crucial tempo.

Specific Mana Cost: Sphinx’s Insight asks for both blue and white mana, which may not always align with your deck’s mana base, potentially stranding the card in your hand at critical moments if your lands don’t match up.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: While offering card draw and life gain, its initial cost of four mana puts it on the higher end, especially when compared to other cards that might provide card advantage or life gain for less investment.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Sphinx’s Insight is adaptable across various control and midrange decks that thrive on card advantage and life gain. This flexibility allows it to fit seamlessly into your game plan, keeping your hand refreshed and your life total stable.

Combo Potential: For decks utilizing the Azorius color combination, Sphinx’s Insight synergizes with mechanics like Addendum, potentially unlocking dual benefits in the right deck context. The card works well with strategies centered on casting spells during your opponent’s turn.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta where instant speed interaction and staying ahead in resources is critical, Sphinx’s Insight delivers by offering an efficient draw mechanism. It ensures you’re well-equipped against decks that aim to grind out victories and maintain a stronghold in the late game.

How to beat

Sphinx’s Insight is a versatile card in Magic: The Gathering that can provide its caster with card advantage and life gain during a match. This instant card allows a player to draw two cards, and if it’s cast during their main phase, they also gain 2 life. The life gain combined with the card draw makes Sphinx’s Insight a resilient spell, especially in control decks.

To successfully overcome the benefits Sphinx’s Insight brings to your opponent, key strategies include hand disruption and spell counters. Cards like Thoughtseize can be used to remove Sphinx’s Insight from your opponent’s hand before they have a chance to cast it. Counterspells are also effective; by keeping mana open, you can deny them the opportunity to utilize their card’s full potential. Additionally, applying pressure with an aggressive deck can limit the opponent’s ability to comfortably cast Sphinx’s Insight on their main phase for the extra life, coercing them to use it more defensively and thus reducing its efficacy.

Overall, Sphinx’s Insight presents a dual threat of card advantage and life gain, but with preemptive measures and a strategy that prioritizes disruption and pressure, it is possible to mitigate the impact this card has in a game of Magic: The Gathering.

Cards like Sphinx's Insight

Sphinx’s Insight stands as an interesting spell within the realm of card draw in MTG. When juxtaposed with other card draw spells such as Chemister’s Insight, we observe fascinating differences. While Sphinx’s Insight also allows you to draw two cards, its added advantage comes from its Jump-start ability, allowing you to cast the card from your graveyard by discarding a card in addition to its other costs, much like Chemister’s Insight. What sets Sphinx’s Insight apart is the life you gain if it is cast during your main phase, enhancing your survival prospects against aggressive strategies.

Comparing it to Hieroglyphic Illumination, which can also be cycled for a single card draw, Sphinx’s Insight lacks the cycling option but compensates with the potential for immediate life gain. Another similar card, Think Twice, provides value over multiple turns with its flashback ability; yet it falls short in direct card quantity in comparison to Sphinx’s Insight’s immediate two-card draw and life gain in a single turn. Clearly, Sphinx’s Insight offers a more versatile choice for players who value life gain alongside their card draw abilities.

If assessing card options for their utility and impact during a game, Sphinx’s Insight undoubtedly secures a commendable position among other card draw options—its unique blend of immediate card advantage and life gain can pivot the state of play favorably for many players.

Hieroglyphic Illumination - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Sphinx's Insight 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 Sphinx's Insight and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Sphinx's Insight has restrictions

Format	Legality
Historicbrawl	Legal
Historic	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Paupercommander	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Gladiator	Legal
Pioneer	Legal
Commander	Legal
Modern	Legal
Pauper	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Explorer	Legal
Timeless	Legal

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
2019-01-25	Addendum abilities of instant spells apply while the spell is resolving, not immediately after casting it. If the spell is countered, you don’t get the addendum bonus. For example, if you cast Sphinx’s Insight during your main phase, you gain 2 life during its resolution, after you draw two cards.
2019-01-25	If a spell with an addendum ability is copied, the copy won’t give you the addendum bonus. This is because the copy wasn’t cast at all.