Enthusiastic Study MTG Card

Enthusiastic Study - Strixhaven: School of Mages

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	3
Rarity	Common
Type	Instant
Abilities	Learn
Released	2021-04-23
Set symbol
Set name	Strixhaven: School of Mages
Set code	STX
Number	99
Frame	2015
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Jesper Ejsing

Key Takeaways

Enthusiastic Study provides card draw, keeping hands full and offering strategic depth in gameplay.
Instant speed casting of Enthusiastic Study allows for unexpected plays and momentum shifts.
Though powerful, the card requires careful deck integration due to its red mana specificity.

Text of card

Target creature gets +3/+1 and gains trample until end of turn. Learn. (You may reveal a Lesson card you own from outside the game and put it into your hand, or discard a card to draw a card.)

"If the pen is mightier than the sword, just think what a giant tome could do!"

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Enthusiastic Study excels at providing a significant boost in card flow. With its ability to let you draw a card upon casting, it guarantees that your hand remains replenished, offering a strategic upper hand over opponents who may be struggling to keep their options open.

Resource Acceleration: Although Enthusiastic Study doesn’t directly produce additional mana or tokens, it effectively accelerates your resources by potentially drawing into additional land cards or ramp spells. This can be crucial in escalating the pace of your game and overwhelming your competition with superior board presence.

Instant Speed: The flexibility of casting Enthusiastic Study at instant speed cannot be overstated. It allows for reactionary plays, giving you the ability to adapt on the fly to your opponent’s actions during their turn. This can create surprise advantages and shift the momentum of the game in your favor without sacrificing the tempo of your own turn.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Enthusiastic Study requires you to discard a card, which may be a steep price if your hand is already depleted or if the discarded card is vital for your strategy.

Specific Mana Cost: This spell’s cost is locked into red mana, making it less versatile and potentially difficult to cast in a multi-colored deck unless you have the necessary mana fixings.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: The mana investment for Enthusiastic Study might be considered high given the benefits it provides. Other cards available to players could offer more impactful effects or better value at the same or lower mana cost.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Enthusiastic Study is a flexible addition to any deck strategy that revolves around creatures. Its instant speed allows players to surprise their opponents by suddenly boosting creatures and providing the crucial Trample ability when needed most.

Combo Potential: With its Learn mechanic, Enthusiastic Study offers added value by letting you fetch a lesson card from outside the game. This opens the door to a variety of combos that can shift the tide of battle in your favor by accessing situation-specific answers or threats.

Meta-Relevance: Given the card’s ability to potentially turn the tables during combat phases, Enthusiastic Study aligns well with aggressive deck builds that are common in many metagames. Having the right card at the right moment can break through an impasse, making Enthusiastic Study a crucial pick for decks that rely on maintaining pressure and momentum.

How to beat

Enthusiastic Study offers Magic: The Gathering players a unique blend of power boosting and card draw strategically embedded in the single card. Much like cards such as Giant Growth, which strictly increases power and toughness, Enthusiastic Study takes it a step further by throwing card draw into the mix, with the added advantage of learning. This could potentially turn the tides of a game by not only enhancing a creature but also by deepening a player’s arsenal with options.

When it comes to outmaneuvering this card, timing is everything. You could leverage instant-speed removals, such as Shock or Fatal Push, to eliminate the targeted creature before the spell resolves. Additionally, countermagic plays a vital role, with options like Negate or Dispel that are designed to specifically thwart noncreature spells and could effectively counter Enthusiastic Study.

Understanding and preparing for the strategic depth Enthusiastic Study adds, is key to overcoming it in a match. Players that anticipate this card and have a plan for disruption will find themselves less impacted by the potential swing this card can provide an opponent. It’s a reminder of the intricacies in MTG, where foresight and preparation can nullify even the most advantageous situations for your opponent.

Cards like Enthusiastic Study

Enthusiastic Study stands out in the Magic: The Gathering landscape for its ability to provide instant-speed boosts and the added benefit of card draw. When talking about cards in MTG that offer a comparable experience, it’s easy to draw parallels to the classic card, Brute Force. Both cards grant a creature a substantial power increase; Enthusiastic Study gives +3/+1, while Brute Force also gives a +3/+3 boost, though, without the card draw.

Looking at built-in card advantage, we find cards like Expedite. This card offers the instant-speed advantage and draws a card, but it only grants haste, not the power boost of Enthusiastic Study. Another sibling in this category is Samut’s Sprint that provides a power increase and haste alongside the scrying ability, yet again, missing out on the direct card draw feature. Cards like these show the balancing act between providing immediate creature buffs and delivering card draw capabilities.

In essence, when comparing creature enhancing spells with card draw perks, Enthusiastic Study presents a unique package. It effectively combines the surprise element of instant speed with a decent combat trick and a card-drawing upside, situating it nicely among the options available for MTG players looking for spells that can swing a game in their favor.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Enthusiastic Study MTG card by a specific set like Strixhaven: School of Mages, 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 Enthusiastic Study and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Enthusiastic Study 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 Enthusiastic Study card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

Date	Text
2021-04-16	If a card is brought into the game from outside the game, it will stay in the game until it ends or until its owner leaves the game, whichever comes first.
2021-04-16	If instructed to learn, you may do nothing. Discarding a card and putting a Lesson card into your hand are both optional.
2021-04-16	If you bring a card into the game from outside the game in a Constructed tournament (or a Constructed game played under tournament conditions), you may select only a card from your sideboard. In casual Constructed games, the card comes from your collection.
2021-04-16	If you bring a card into the game from outside the game in a Sealed Deck or Booster Draft event, you may select only a card that is in the card pool that you built your deck from.