Alter Reality MTG Card


Alter Reality - Torment
Mana cost
Converted mana cost2
RarityRare
TypeInstant
Abilities Flashback
Released2002-02-04
Set symbol
Set nameTorment
Set codeTOR
Number22
Frame1997
Layoutnormal
Borderblack
Illustred byJustin Sweet

Key Takeaways

  1. Draw manipulation allows players to control game flow by discarding unneeded cards for a strategic advantage.
  2. Resource acceleration through deck curation makes Alter Reality a catalyst for outpacing opponents in resource-rich decks.
  3. Instant speed casting offers flexibility to disrupt opponents’ strategies and secure tactical superiority mid-game.

Text of card

Change the text of target permanent or spell by replacing all instances of one color word with another. (This effect doesn't end at end of turn.) Flashback o1o U (You may play this card from your graveyard for its flashback cost. Then remove it from the game.)


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Alter Reality shines when it comes to manipulating draws effectively. By shifting the top card of your library into the graveyard, you carve your path to the cards you need faster, enhancing your control over the flow of the game.

Resource Acceleration: This powerful spell can be the catalyst for outpacing your opponent by conveniently adjusting the top card of your library. This flexibility can indirectly speed up your resource acquisition by curating the deck’s output to your advantage.

Instant Speed: The true power of Alter Reality lies in its ability to be cast at instant speed. This versatility allows you to respond adeptly to the evolving battlefield, disrupting your opponent’s strategies on the fly while keeping your tactical options open.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Alter Reality necessitates discarding a card to reap its benefits, a drawback when your hand is already dwindling.

Specific Mana Cost: This card demands a precise blend of mana, including blue, potentially rendering it impractical for decks not aligned with blue mana strategies.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a mana value that’s on the higher side for its effect, players might find more attractive alternatives that achieve similar outcomes without such a hefty investment.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Alter Reality shines in its ability to be slotted into a wide array of decks, particularly those in the blue color wheel that capitalize on spell manipulation and control tactics. Its ability to change the text of a spell or permanent can pivot game outcomes on-the-fly.

Combo Potential: This card is a linchpin for combos, especially in formats like Commander where specific wordings matter. It pairs well with effects that depend on certain keywords, helping to alter conditions to your benefit in a pinch.

Meta-Relevance: Considering its capacity to adapt to the evolving deck archetypes and strategies, Alter Reality holds relevance in metas where control decks prevail. It can be an unexpected countermeasure against the opposition’s strategy, keeping them guessing and you one step ahead of the game.


How to beat Alter Reality

Alter Reality shines in Magic: The Gathering as an under-the-radar charm for tweaking the identity of spells and permanents. Players often use this versatile instant to disrupt opponent strategies reliant on specific card names or to shield their own key pieces from targeted effects. The key to overcoming Alter Reality is to avoid over-reliance on cards that can be thwarted by a single name change. Diversifying threats ensures that your game plan isn’t derailed by such targeted meddling.

Maintaining a robust suite of instant-speed removal or counterspells in your arsenal can also neutralize the impact of Alter Reality. By answering it on the stack, you prevent the name-change effect from ever resolving, keeping the original state of play intact. Moreover, consider cards with broader conditions rather than single targets, such as board wipes or generic damage spells that aren’t hindered by an altered card name. This approach minimizes the potential impact of Alter Reality and keeps you in control of the match’s outcome.


Cards like Alter Reality

Alter Reality shines in the realm of Magic: The Gathering as a unique twist on the theme of spell manipulation. It shares space with cards such as Whirlwind Denial, which counters any number of spells, abilities, or triggered abilities. Alter Reality, however, allows for a subtler approach by changing the text of a spell or permanent—one of the few cards with such a distinct niche.

Examining Sleight of Mind, we see a parallel in the alteration of card text. While Sleight of Mind offers a more cost-effective alteration, it’s limited to text that refers to a color. Alter Reality expands this scope by allowing changes to any single word in the text box. Then we come across Mind Bend, another card that offers text alteration at the same converted mana cost as Alter Reality. While Mind Bend provides the same service, it differs by only targeting color words, making it less versatile in scenarios where a wider array of words might be pivotal.

Considering their unique traits and capacity for textual modification, Alter Reality secures its position in MTG as a flexible card capable of ingeniously tailoring game conditions to a player’s advantage.

Whirlwind Denial - MTG Card versions
Sleight of Mind - MTG Card versions
Mind Bend - MTG Card versions
Whirlwind Denial - Theros Beyond Death (THB)
Sleight of Mind - Limited Edition Alpha (LEA)
Mind Bend - Mirage (MIR)

Cards similar to Alter Reality by color, type and mana cost

Counterspell - MTG Card versions
Hurkyl's Recall - MTG Card versions
Hypnotic Sprite // Mesmeric Glare - MTG Card versions
Lat-Nam's Legacy - MTG Card versions
Flash - MTG Card versions
Boomerang - MTG Card versions
Updraft - MTG Card versions
Rebound - MTG Card versions
Memory Lapse - MTG Card versions
Hoodwink - MTG Card versions
Tidal Bore - MTG Card versions
Accumulated Knowledge - MTG Card versions
Teferi's Response - MTG Card versions
Aether Burst - MTG Card versions
Impulse - MTG Card versions
Cyclonic Rift - MTG Card versions
Thassa's Intervention - MTG Card versions
Metamorphose - MTG Card versions
Flash Counter - MTG Card versions
Echoing Truth - MTG Card versions
Counterspell - Commander Masters (CMM)
Hurkyl's Recall - Antiquities (ATQ)
Hypnotic Sprite // Mesmeric Glare - Throne of Eldraine (ELD)
Lat-Nam's Legacy - Alliances (ALL)
Flash - Mirage (MIR)
Boomerang - Masters Edition III (ME3)
Updraft - Fifth Edition (5ED)
Rebound - Stronghold (STH)
Memory Lapse - Strixhaven Mystical Archive (STA)
Hoodwink - Mercadian Masques (MMQ)
Tidal Bore - Mercadian Masques (MMQ)
Accumulated Knowledge - World Championship Decks 2001 (WC01)
Teferi's Response - World Championship Decks 2001 (WC01)
Aether Burst - Odyssey (ODY)
Impulse - Game Night: Free-for-All (GN3)
Cyclonic Rift - Commander Masters (CMM)
Thassa's Intervention - Theros Beyond Death (THB)
Metamorphose - Scourge (SCG)
Flash Counter - Eighth Edition (8ED)
Echoing Truth - Modern Masters (MMA)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Alter Reality MTG card by a specific set like Torment, 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 Alter Reality and other MTG cards:

Continue exploring other sealed products in Amazon
See Magic products

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Alter Reality has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
OathbreakerLegal
PremodernLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal

Rules and information

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

DateText
2004-10-04 Alters all occurrences of the chosen word in the text box and the type line of the given card.
2004-10-04 Can target a card with no appropriate words on it, or even one with no words at all.
2004-10-04 Changing the text of a spell will not allow you to change the targets of the spell because the targets were chosen when the spell was cast. The text change will (probably) cause it to be countered since the targets will be illegal.
2004-10-04 If you change the text of a spell which is to become a permanent, the permanent will retain the text change until the effect wears off.
2004-10-04 It can’t change a word to the same word. It must be a different word.
2004-10-04 It only changes what is printed on the card (or set on a token when it was created or set by a copy effect). It will not change any effects that are on the permanent.
2004-10-04 You choose the words to change on resolution.
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.
2021-03-19Flashback
-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.”

Recent MTG decks

Continue exploring other format decks
More decks