Thought Scour MTG Card
Card sets | Released in 9 setsSee all |
Mana cost | |
Converted mana cost | 1 |
Rarity | Common |
Type | Instant |
Abilities | Mill |
Text of card
Target player puts the top two cards of his or her library into his or her graveyard. Draw a card.
"As you inject the *viscus vitae* into the brain stem, don't let the spastic moaning bother you. It will soon become music to your ears." —Stitcher Geralf
Cards like Thought Scour
Thought Scour has carved out its own niche within the arsenal of instant-speed card draw spells in Magic: The Gathering. It shares common ground with Visions of Beyond, which can also offer card advantage but is conditional on having twenty or more cards in a graveyard to draw three cards. Thought Scour, contrarily, always mills two cards and then draws you a card, promoting graveyard strategies.
Another card that comes to mind is Serum Visions, though its primary function is to scry rather than to mill, followed by drawing a card. Thought Scour’s immediate mill effect can be crucial for setting up delve mechanics or enhancing cards like Snapcaster Mage, which Serum Visions cannot replicate. Mental Note is nearly identical in effect to Thought Scour but without the added benefit of targeting, making Thought Scour more versatile in disrupting an opponent’s strategy.
Evaluating the utility and synergy with other cards, Thought Scour stands out for its ability to quickly populate the graveyard, becoming a subtle yet powerful tool for players adept at leveraging their graveyard as a resource.
Cards similar to Thought Scour by color, type and mana cost
Decks using this card
MTG decks using Thought Scour. Dig deeper into the strategy of decks, sideboard cards, list ideas and export to play in ARENA or MOL.
# | Name | Format | Archetype | Event |
---|---|---|---|---|
Dimir Control | Pauper | Dimir Control | Pauper Challenge 32 2024-05-03 | |
Mono-Blue Delver | Pauper | Mono-Blue Delver | Pauper League 2024-05-01 | |
Beanstalk Control | Legacy | Beanstalk Control | Legacy League 2024-05-07 |
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Thought Scour has the primary benefit of letting you draw a card, offering you the chance to see more of your deck and thereby increasing your options. The milling effect also strategically places cards in your graveyard, which could be leveraged by decks designed to utilize the graveyard as a resource.
Resource Acceleration: Though it doesn’t produce mana or tokens like some other spells, Thought Scour can be instrumental in fueling strategies that depend on a stocked graveyard. By filling your graveyard quickly, it accelerates your access to powerful delve spells or enables other graveyard synergies, effectively speeding up your game plan.
Instant Speed: The ability to play Thought Scour at instant speed offers flexibility, allowing you to wait until the most advantageous moment. Whether it’s during the opponent’s end step or in response to an action, instant speed ensures you can adapt to the changing game without sacrificing tempo.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: While Thought Scour helps to fuel graveyard strategies and cantrip, it does necessitate targeting a player to discard two cards from the top of their library, which could inadvertently benefit opponents with graveyard-based tactics.
Specific Mana Cost: Thought Scour requires blue mana, making it a strict fit for decks that can produce this color. This limits its inclusion to primarily blue or multicolored mana bases, potentially excluding it from mono-colored strategies outside of blue.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: Though Thought Scour represents a low mana investment at just one blue mana, in some scenarios, other spells at the one-mana slot could compete for a place in a deck due to their immediate impact or versatility compared to the mill and draw effect Thought Scour provides.
Reasons to Include Thought Scour in Your Collection
Versatility: Thought Scour serves a dual purpose of drawing a card while filling the graveyard, an essential tactic for decks that thrive on having resources in the bin. Its low mana cost makes it a staple for a variety of blue-centric decks.
Combo Potential: In combination with cards that benefit from graveyard interactions, Thought Scour can be a catalyst for powerful plays. It fuels strategies revolving around delve mechanics or reanimator themes, ensuring seamless integration into combo-driven decks.
Meta-Relevance: Thought Scour has seen play in various competitive decks across different formats. Its relevance continues in metas where graveyard synergy is key, and efficient cantrips are prized for their role in deck consistency and speed.
How to beat
Thought Scour is an unassuming yet powerful card that fuels graveyard strategies and ensures card flow in Magic: The Gathering. A low-cost instant, it allows a player to draw a card and simultaneously forces any player to put the top two cards of their library into their graveyard. While it seems minimal, the impact on the game can be significant, particularly in formats like Modern where graveyard interaction is potent.
To combat Thought Scour, proactive graveyard management is key. Cards like Relic of Progenitus or Rest in Peace can disrupt graveyard-based strategies by exiling the contents, rendering Thought Scour’s functionality moot. Surgical Extraction can target crucial cards dumped by Thought Scour, removing them from the game entirely. Additionally, playing around graveyard strategies by prioritizing instant-speed removal or counterspells like Negate, which can directly counter Thought Scour, can help maintain control over the battlefield and preserve your library.
Strategic deckbuilding and timely reactions are essential. By incorporating anti-graveyard measures and being aware of your opponent’s potential to leverage their graveyard, you can effectively neutralize the advantages Thought Scour provides and safeguard your deck from its subtle yet powerful effects.
BurnMana Recommendations
As we delve into the intricacies of Thought Scour, it’s clear that its strategic value in MTG cannot be understated. It’s a card that provides card advantage and fuels graveyard strategies with ease, pivotal for decks that capitalize on these elements. The instant speed of Thought Scour grants flexibility, allowing players to adapt on the fly and maintain tempo. If you’re keen to further explore the synergies and applications of Thought Scour in your decks, or investigate ways to counter its effects effectively in the meta, we invite you to stay with us. Dive deeper to unlock the full potential of your MTG gameplay with Thought Scour by your side.
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Thought Scour MTG card by a specific set like Magic Online Promos 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 Thought Scour and other MTG cards:
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- eBay
- 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
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Printings
The Thought Scour Magic the Gathering card was released in 8 different sets between 2012-02-03 and 2022-07-08. Illustrated by 3 different artists.
# | Released | Name | Code | Symbol | Number | Frame | Layout | Border | Artist |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Magic Online Promos | PRM | 102231 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Jeff Miracola | ||
2 | 2012-02-03 | Dark Ascension | DKA | 52 | 2003 | Normal | Black | David Rapoza | |
3 | 2014-03-14 | Duel Decks: Jace vs. Vraska | DDM | 21 | 2003 | Normal | Black | David Rapoza | |
4 | 2017-11-17 | Iconic Masters | IMA | 76 | 2015 | Normal | Black | David Rapoza | |
5 | 2019-11-07 | Mystery Booster | MB1 | 522 | 2015 | Normal | Black | David Rapoza | |
6 | 2020-07-17 | Jumpstart | JMP | 185 | 2015 | Normal | Black | David Rapoza | |
7 | The List | PLST | IMA-76 | 2015 | Normal | Black | David Rapoza | ||
8 | 2022-07-08 | Double Masters 2022 | 2X2 | 351 | 2015 | Normal | Borderless | Jeff Miracola | |
9 | 2022-07-08 | Double Masters 2022 | 2X2 | 65 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Julie Dillon |
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Thought Scour has restrictions
Format | Legality |
---|---|
Commander | Legal |
Legacy | Legal |
Paupercommander | Legal |
Modern | Legal |
Oathbreaker | Legal |
Pauper | Legal |
Vintage | Legal |
Duel | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Thought Scour card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
Date | Text |
---|---|
2011-01-22 | Follow the instructions in the order listed on the card: if you target yourself, you’ll put the top two cards of your library into your graveyard and then draw a card. |
2011-01-22 | If the target player is an illegal target when Thought Scour tries to resolve, it won’t resolve and none of its effects will happen. You won’t draw a card. |