Test of Talents MTG Card
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 2 |
| Rarity | Uncommon |
| Type | Instant |
| Released | 2021-04-23 |
| Set symbol | |
| Set name | Strixhaven: School of Mages |
| Set code | STX |
| Number | 59 |
| Frame | 2015 |
| Layout | Normal |
| Border | Black |
| Illustred by | Lie Setiawan |
Key Takeaways
- Interrupts strategies by exiling targeted spells and related copies, diminishing opponents’ future game plans.
- Indirectly aids resource acceleration and maintains hand advantage by allowing card draw upon successful countering.
- Operates at instant speed, offering surprise and flexibility in gameplay by countering spells during opponents’ turns.
Text of card
Counter target instant or sorcery spell. Search its controller's graveyard, hand, and library for any number of cards with the same name as that spell and exile them. That player shuffles, then draws a card for each card exiled from their hand this way.
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Test of Talents not only counters an opponent’s spell but also extracts it from their deck, diminishing their potential strategies. It then allows you to look at the opponent’s hand and graveyard, ensuring you gain valuable information and disrupt their game plan. Moreover, if you find more copies of the countered spell, you get to exile them, further tipping the scales in your favor.
Resource Acceleration: While not directly influencing mana, Test of Talents compensates by providing a subtle form of resource acceleration. By exiling key spells and their copies, it efficiently degrades an opponent’s resources. The card also allows you to draw a card if the spell is countered, indirectly accelerating your access to more resources and options for subsequent turns.
Instant Speed: The ability to disrupt opponent plays at instant speed is invaluable. Test of Talents fits seamlessly into this category, allowing you to react to your opponent’s actions during their turn. This keeps your tactical options flexible, maintaining the element of surprise and the capacity to adapt swiftly to the evolving game state.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Test of Talents necessitates players to reveal their hand and exile all cards with the same name as the countered spell, which could be less impactful if the opponent has already utilized key cards from their hand or if the targeted spell is a one-of in their deck.
Specific Mana Cost: This card’s blue mana requirement makes it exclusive to blue or multicolor decks, potentially excluding it from a broader range of decks that could benefit from its effects.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a cost of two mana, Test of Talents may compete with other efficient counterspells or disruption tools that either have a lower cost or offer a more versatile response to threats on the board.
Reasons to Include in Your Collection
Versatility: Test of Talents fits seamlessly into various control strategies across multiple formats. Its ability to counter and exile an opponent’s spell ensures that crucial combos or threats are neutralized efficiently.
Combo Potential: Beyond its direct interference with opposing plays, Test of Talents reveals the opponent’s hand, providing strategic insight that can be leveraged to disrupt their future plays, making it a smart addition to decks that aim to outmaneuver their opponents.
Meta-Relevance: In environments where instant or sorcery spells dominate, Test of Talents shines by limiting repeatable spell strategies and information-dense decks, making it a relevant choice against decks reliant on specific noncreature spells.
How to beat
Test of Talents is a nuanced counter spell that not only snags a noncreature spell out of an opponent’s stack but also digs into their deck to exile any other copies they might have. The top-tier competitive scenes often utilize this card as a strategic move in various formats. Its potential to disrupt combo decks and search the opposing player’s hand and graveyard provides an unmatched layer of intelligence.
To effectively navigate around Test of Talents, it’s crucial to bait it out with less critical spells before launching your main play. Be mindful of what you’re casting when your adversary has untapped mana that matches the counter spell’s cost. Alternatively, running spell redundancy ensures that losing one piece won’t collapse your strategy, granting resilience against this type of disruption. Lastly, instant-speed spells that can be cast on the opponent’s turn may force them to use mana before your main phase, reducing the opportunity for them to disrupt your crucial plays with Test of Talents.
Ultimately, while Test of Talents is a formidable tool in the arsenal of blue decks, adept players can adapt their strategies to mitigate its influence on the game. Preparing for and outmaneuvering such control tactics defines the ever-evolving metagame of Magic: The Gathering.
Cards like Test of Talents
Test of Talents stands out in Magic: The Gathering as a powerful counterspell with a unique twist. Like other counters such as Negate or Essence Scatter, it efficiently prevents an opponent’s spell from resolving. However, where Test of Talents truly shines is in its ability to not just counter but also to exile any copies of the countered card from the opponent’s hand and library, then allowing a player to peek at the opponent’s hand. This added insight into an opponent’s strategy can be a major tactical advantage.
Comparing this to something like Dissipate, another counterspell that also exiles the targeted spell, Test of Talents is more specialized. Dissipate does not provide the additional hand and library information which is integral to Test of Talents. Conversely, Disallow is broader in its approach, countering not just spells but also activated or triggered abilities. Nevertheless, it lacks the disruptive power of deck investigation and extraction present with Test of Talents.
When considering utility and the potential for disrupting an opponent’s future plays, Test of Talents is a superior choice for players looking to go beyond traditional countering tactics. The card provides insight and a pathway to future advantage that can be unmatched by many other spells in its class.
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Test of Talents 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 Test of Talents and other MTG cards:
- eBay
- TCG Player
- Card Kingdom
- Card Market
- Star City Games
- CoolStuffInc
- MTG Mint Card
- Hareruya
- Troll and Toad
- ABU Games
- Card Hoarder Magic Online
- MTGO Traders Magic Online
See MTG Products
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Test of Talents has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Historicbrawl | Legal |
| Commander | Legal |
| Historic | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Explorer | Legal |
| Gladiator | Legal |
| Pioneer | Legal |
| Timeless | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Test of Talents 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 | Countering a spell normally puts that card into the graveyard, so that card will be there to find and exile. |
| 2021-04-16 | If the back face of a modal double-faced card is countered, you will not be able to exile any cards, including the one that you countered, because those cards have only their front-face characteristics (including name) in the graveyard, hand, and library. |
