Faithless Looting MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 23 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost1
RarityRare
TypeSorcery
Abilities Flashback

Key Takeaways

  1. Faithless Looting excels in deck efficiency, allowing card selection and access to crucial combos by discarding.
  2. The card’s Flashback provides strategic late-game advantages, countering an opponent’s plays with surprise timing.
  3. Despite flexibility benefits, the mandatory discard can be risky, and the Flashback mana cost is considerable.

Text of card

Draw two cards, then discard two cards. Flashback (You may cast this card from your graveyard for its flashback cost. Then exile it.)


Card Pros

Card Advantage: With Faithless Looting, you have the power to draw two cards. This feature is a cornerstone for any strategy wanting to churn through their deck and find key pieces more efficiently. It’s particularly beneficial in formats like Modern, where selecting the right resources quickly can determine the outcome of a match.

Resource Acceleration: While Faithless Looting doesn’t directly produce mana or tokens, it effectively accelerates your resources by discarding cards that have synergy with the graveyard. It sets the stage for powerful reanimation tactics or enables strategies that benefit from having certain card types in the graveyard, such as Delve or Flashback.

Instant Speed: One might note that Faithless Looting is not an instant, but rather a sorcery; however, the Flashback ability it possesses allows players to cast it from the graveyard at a time that can interrupt an opponent’s strategy, akin to instant-speed plays. This secondary use provides another layer of flexibility, making it a valuable card in the late game.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: With Faithless Looting, players must discard two cards, making it a potentially risky play if your hand contains valuable resources or if your strategic setup relies on a full grip of cards.

Specific Mana Cost: Requiring red mana means the card is not universally flexible across all deck types. Decks that don’t run red or have limited access to red mana sources may struggle to incorporate Faithless Looting effectively.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: While the initial casting cost is low, the flashback cost of Faithless Looting is three mana, which is significant for a sorcery that doesn’t impact the board directly. There are alternatives in the card pool that may provide similar or better value without the hefty mana investment.


Reasons to Include Faithless Looting in Your Collection

Versatility: Faithless Looting offers unparalleled flexibility, being a low-cost spell that allows you to draw cards and then choose which to discard. This enables fine-tuning your hand to match any situation, making it a staple in a variety of red decks that thrive on card selection and graveyard strategies.

Combo Potential: This card shines in combinations, actively fueling graveyard-based strategies and setting up powerful plays. By discarding cards like reanimation targets or those with flashback, you unlock a new level of synergy with your deck’s core mechanics.

Meta-Relevance: Consistently relevant in various metagames, Faithless Looting has proven itself in high-level competition. If decks in the current meta benefit from graveyard interactions or quick set-up for combo finishes, Faithless Looting is likely to be a high-impact addition to your arsenal.


How to beat

Faithless Looting, a powerful card draw and selection tool, poses a unique challenge for Magic: The Gathering players. This card’s strength lies in its ability to rapidly cycle through a player’s deck, allowing them to discard unneeded cards while drawing into better options. However, one of the best strategies to beat Faithless Looting involves targeting the graveyard. Utilize graveyard hate cards such as Rest in Peace or Relic of Progenitus to nullify the advantage your opponent gains from the discard aspect of Faithless Looting.

Additionally, applying pressure can be effective. Because Faithless Looting is at its best when setting up for future turns, quickly developing your board and reducing your opponent’s life total can limit the time they have to leverage the card’s benefits. Speedy aggro decks or efficient removal spells can disrupt the card’s usefulness by demanding immediate answers from your opponent.

Lastly, hand disruption also proves to be a powerful tactic. By forcing your opponent to discard cards, you reduce the choices they have when resolving Faithless Looting’s effect, thereby mitigating its impact on the game’s outcome.


BurnMana Recommendations

Mastering the use of Faithless Looting in MTG demands attention to the balance between risk and reward. Integrating this card into your gameplay offers incredible card advantage and strategic depth that can propel your deck performance. As you embrace the strengths and maneuver through the challenges of Faithless Looting, remember to adapt to the ebb and flow of matches. We encourage enthusiasts to dive deeper into synergies and counterplays surrounding this versatile spell. Enhance your arsenal and sharpen your deck-building skills by joining us for a comprehensive exploration of tactics and insights catered precisely for dedicated MTG players like you.


Cards like Faithless Looting

Faithless Looting stands out in the roster of red card-drawing spells in Magic: The Gathering. It draws parallels with spells such as Tormenting Voice and Cathartic Reunion, which both demand a player to first discard a card in order to draw more. However, none can match Faithless Looting’s power to enable card selection at such a low initial cost and with flashback, offering a second usage for even more control over your hand.

Looking at its kin, Tormenting Voice makes a player discard one card and subsequently draw two cards at a cost of two mana, which is comparable but lacks the flexibility provided by flashback. Cathartic Reunion demands a steeper initial investment, discarding two cards but drawing three, which offers a larger immediate reward for a higher risk. Yet, neither offers the opportunity to be played from the graveyard like Faithless Looting does.

When examining cards of similar abilities, Faithless Looting arguably provides a distinct advantage in card selection and strategic depth. Its resource expenditure and graveyard synergy make it a valued tool amongst MTG players seeking efficient ways to sift through their decks while maintaining momentum on the battlefield.

Tormenting Voice - MTG Card versions
Cathartic Reunion - MTG Card versions
Tormenting Voice - Khans of Tarkir (KTK)
Cathartic Reunion - Kaladesh (KLD)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Faithless Looting MTG card by a specific set like IDW Comics Inserts and Dark Ascension, 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 Faithless Looting and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Faithless Looting Magic the Gathering card was released in 20 different sets between 2012-01-01 and 2023-11-17. Illustrated by 6 different artists.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12012-01-01IDW Comics InsertsPIDW 22003normalblackKarl Kopinski
22012-02-03Dark AscensionDKA 872003normalblackGabor Szikszai
32013-03-15Duel Decks: Sorin vs. TibaltDDK 592003normalblackGabor Szikszai
42014-11-07Commander 2014C14 1752015normalblackGabor Szikszai
52015-11-13Commander 2015C15 1532015normalblackGabor Szikszai
62015-11-18Legendary Cube Prize PackPZ1 592015normalblackGabor Szikszai
72016-06-10Eternal MastersEMA 1282015normalblackGabor Szikszai
82018-06-08Commander Anthology Volume IICM2 962015normalblackGabor Szikszai
92018-12-07Ultimate MastersUMA 1282015normalblackGabor Szikszai
102019-08-23Commander 2019C19 1402015normalblackKarl Kopinski
112019-11-07Mystery BoosterMB1 9192015normalblackGabor Szikszai
122020-09-26The ListPLST DDK-592003normalblackGabor Szikszai
132020-09-26The ListPLST CM2-962015normalblackGabor Szikszai
142021-04-23Strixhaven Mystical ArchiveSTA 382015normalborderlessCarly Mazur
152021-04-23Commander 2021C21 1682015normalblackKarl Kopinski
162021-04-23Strixhaven Mystical ArchiveSTA 1012015normalborderlessShiro Yayoi
172022-09-09Dominaria United CommanderDMC 1222015normalblackKarl Kopinski
182022-11-18The Brothers' War CommanderBRC 1161997normalblackKarl Kopinski
192023-03-21Shadows of the PastSIS 402015normalblackGabor Szikszai
202023-06-23Tales of Middle-earth CommanderLTC 2152015normalblackMiklós Ligeti
212023-08-04Commander MastersCMM 6422015normalborderlessDouglas Shuler
222023-08-04Commander MastersCMM 2202015normalblackKarl Kopinski
232023-11-17The Lost Caverns of Ixalan CommanderLCC 2252015normalblackKarl Kopinski

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Faithless Looting has restrictions

FormatLegality
HistoricbrawlLegal
CommanderLegal
HistoricLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderLegal
ModernBanned
OathbreakerLegal
PauperLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
GladiatorLegal
TimelessLegal

Rules and information

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

DateText
2016-06-08 You draw two cards and discard two cards all while Faithless Looting is resolving. Nothing can happen between the two, and no player may choose to take actions.
2021-03-19 "Flashback
-ost]" means "You may cast this card from your graveyard by paying
-ost] rather than paying its mana cost" and "If the flashback cost was paid, exile this card instead of putting it anywhere else any time it would leave the stack."
2021-03-19 A spell cast using flashback will always be exiled afterward, whether it resolves, is countered, or leaves the stack in some other way.
2021-03-19 If a card with flashback is put into your graveyard during your turn, you can cast it if it's legal to do so before any other player can take any actions.
2021-03-19 To determine the total cost of a spell, start with the mana cost or alternative cost (such as a flashback cost) you're paying, add any cost increases, then apply any cost reductions. The mana value of the spell is determined only by its mana cost, no matter what the total cost to cast the spell was.
2021-03-19 You can cast a spell using flashback even if it was somehow put into your graveyard without having been cast.
2021-03-19 You must still follow any timing restrictions and permissions, including those based on the card's type. For instance, you can cast a sorcery using flashback only when you could normally cast a sorcery.

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