Expel from Orazca MTG Card


Expel from Orazca - Rivals of Ixalan
Mana cost
Converted mana cost2
RarityUncommon
TypeInstant
Abilities Ascend
Released2018-01-19
Set symbol
Set nameRivals of Ixalan
Set codeRIX
Number37
Frame2015
LayoutNormal
BorderBlack
Illustred bySteven Belledin

Key Takeaways

  1. Expel from Orazca can control the battlefield tempo by returning opponent’s creatures at instant speed.
  2. Its effectiveness relies on achieving the city’s blessing, adding conditional gameplay complexity.
  3. Despite mana investment concerns, it’s a versatile card that fits into various strategies and decks.

Text of card

Ascend (If you control ten or more permanents, you get the city's blessing for the rest of the game.) Return target nonland permanent to its owner's hand. If you have the city's blessing, you may put that permanent on top of its owner's library instead.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Expel from Orazca enables you to bounce an opponent’s creature back to their hand at a crucial moment, effectively delaying their strategy and providing yourself with tempo advantage in the duel.

Resource Acceleration: While this card does not directly provide mana or treasure tokens, the act of removing a threat can enable faster plays for your own board, allowing your own creatures to swing in or protect your life total without impediment.

Instant Speed: The instant-speed nature of this spell allows you to keep up the pace of play, reacting on an opponent’s turn. This flexibility ensures that you can adapt to unexpected plays or utilize it as a surprise during combat to disrupt your opponent’s plans.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Casting Expel from Orazca demands you return a creature to its owner’s hand, but this stipulation only triggers if you have the city’s blessing, potentially limiting its utility when you’re unable to meet that condition.

Specific Mana Cost: The card necessitates blue mana, which constrains its integration exclusively into blue-containing decks or those with adequate mana fixing capabilities to accommodate such a specific requirement.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: There’s an investment of two mana involved, and when considering other available bounce spells in the game, some may find Expel from Orazca’s mana investment steep for the effect it delivers, especially in games where tempo is of the essence.


Reasons to Include Expel from Orazca in Your Collection

Versatility: Expel from Orazca isn’t just for control decks. Its ability to send a nonland permanent back to its owner’s hand adds value in multiple scenarios, helping tempo decks maintain their lead or giving midrange builds a necessary edge in tight board states.

Combo Potential: Coupled with cards that thrive on casting multiple spells in a single turn or those that reward players for bouncing their own pieces back, Expel from Orazca can be a quiet yet powerful engine in the right combo.

Meta-Relevance: In an environment teeming with potent creatures and other threats, Expel from Orazca’s potential to disrupt opponents at a crucial moment makes it a nifty tool to have. Against decks that heavily rely on a single permanent to dominate, it provides a low-cost and efficient response.


How to beat

Expel from Orazca adds a strategic layer to MTG matches with its unique ability to return target nonland permanent to its owner’s hand, provided you have the city’s blessing. When pitted against it, timing is of the essence. To effectively navigate around this disruption, it would be wise to pace your plays, avoid over-commitment to the board, and be mindful of when your opponent has ten or more permanents which grant them the city’s blessing.

Playing around Expel from Orazca demands foresight. Utilizing instant-speed responses to save your key permanents can counteract the potential setback. Holding back on playing out your high-impact cards until after your opponent has used their Expel from Orazca, or when you can protect them with a counterspell or hexproof, can safeguard your board position. Moreover, capitalizing on their tapped-out state post-Expel can swing the tempo in your favor.

To summarize, defeating Expel from Orazca’s disruption rests on your ability to anticipate your opponent’s plays, judiciously manage your permanents and resources, and exploit the moments of vulnerability it creates. With clever play, this card’s impact can be significantly mitigated, keeping you in control of the game’s ebb and flow.


BurnMana Recommendations

Mastering your MTG deck is akin to charting the unexplored depths of a mysterious island. Every card like Expel from Orazca is a treasure with both offence and defense capabilities. Its versatility can bolster your strategy, providing crucial momentum or turning the tide of battle in your favor. If you’re plotting your next victorious duel or eager to disrupt your adversaries with tactical prowess, understanding the finer points of such spells is key. Dive deeper with us, unearth the potent synergy of Expel from Orazca, and navigate your way to becoming a formidable player in the enchanting realm of MTG.


Cards like Expel from Orazca

Expel from Orazca is a distinctive card in Magic: The Gathering, offering players a control mechanism by sending opponents’ creatures back to their hands. This card echoes the function of cards like Unsummon, which also returns creatures to their owner’s hand, but with less flexibility since Unsummon can target creatures you control as well. However, Expel from Orazca steps up the game with its Ascend mechanic, granting a permanent bonus if you control ten or more permanents.

Another related card is Into the Roil, which not only bounces creatures but also allowing the drawing of a card for the kicker cost, enhancing the value gained from this interaction. Into the Roil provides versatility that Expel from Orazca does not by targeting non-land permanents. A more strategic card comparison comes with Blink of an Eye, which essentially offers the same benefit as Into the Roil with slight tweaks in its usability. Both cards provide utility but Expel from Orazca’s potential to affect the board with just creatures gives it a unique position.

When examining the subtleties of control and tempo in Magic: The Gathering, Expel from Orazca positions itself as a useful addition for its tempo swing and Ascend bonus, despite its limitations and situational nature compared to its counterparts.

Unsummon - MTG Card versions
Into the Roil - MTG Card versions
Blink of an Eye - MTG Card versions
Unsummon - MTG Card versions
Into the Roil - MTG Card versions
Blink of an Eye - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Expel from Orazca MTG card by a specific set like Rivals of Ixalan, 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 Expel from Orazca and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Expel from Orazca has restrictions

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

Rules and information

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

Date Text
2018-01-19 A permanent is any object on the battlefield, including tokens and lands. Spells and emblems aren’t permanents.
2018-01-19 If you cast a spell with ascend, you don’t get the city’s blessing until it resolves. Players may respond to that spell by trying to change whether you get the city’s blessing.
2018-01-19 If you control ten permanents but don’t control a permanent or resolving spell with ascend, you don’t get the city’s blessing. For example, if you control ten permanents, lose control of one, then cast Golden Demise, you won’t have the city’s blessing and the spell will affect creatures you control.
2018-01-19 If you have the city’s blessing and choose not to put the target nonland permanent on top of its owner’s library, it’s returned to its owner’s hand.
2018-01-19 If your tenth permanent enters the battlefield and then a permanent leaves the battlefield immediately afterwards (most likely due to the “Legend Rule” or due to being a creature with 0 toughness), you get the city’s blessing before it leaves the battlefield.
2018-01-19 Once you have the city’s blessing, you have it for the rest of the game, even if you lose control of some or all of your permanents. The city’s blessing isn’t a permanent itself and can’t be removed by any effect.

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