Fault Line MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	2
Rarity	Rare
Type	Instant
Released	1998-10-12
Set symbol
Set name	Urza's Saga
Set code	USG
Number	185
Frame	1997
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Ron Spencer

Key Takeaways

Clears multiple threats, offering a potential card advantage and strategic board control.
Instant speed play allows for flexible, disruptive play during an opponent’s turn.
Restrictive mana cost and turn limitation require careful deck integration for maximum effectiveness.

Text of card

Fault Line deals X damage to each creature without flying and each player.

We live on the serpent's back. —Viashino saying

Card Pros

Card Advantage: When leveraged effectively, Fault Line can clear multiple threats at once, resulting in a potential swing in card advantage. This is particularly advantageous when facing a board full of smaller creatures, as it can decimate an opponent’s forces while leaving yours untouched if played strategically.

Resource Acceleration: While Fault Line does not directly accelerate resources, it can indirectly contribute to resource superiority by removing opponent’s mana dorks and other utility creatures. This disruption can hinder your opponent’s ability to ramp up their resources or execute their game plan, giving you the upper hand.

Instant Speed: The ability to cast Fault Line at instant speed provides significant tactical flexibility. This feature allows you to wait until the most opportune moment during your opponent’s turn to unleash this powerful effect, potentially disrupting their end-of-turn strategies or even responding to creatures being declared as attackers, ensuring maximum impact.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: One notable downside to Fault Line is that there’s no card discard involved, but its requirement for being played only during your turn can limit reactionary plays, akin to having a hand-tied in situations where you’d benefit from instant speed interaction during an opponent’s turn.

Specific Mana Cost: This card demands a specific mana investment, needing red mana to be cast. This condition can restrict its integration mainly to red-based or multicolored decks, potentially excluding it from others that can’t accommodate the mana requirement.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: The variable cost of Fault Line can become a setback as the game progresses. While the flexibility to choose how much mana to spend is an advantage, ensuring significant damage to each creature or player can require a substantial mana investment, which might be inefficient compared to other red spells that deal damage more cost-effectively.

Reasons to Include Fault Line in Your Collection

Versatility: Fault Line offers flexibility due to its instant speed and scalability. It can be a customized response to the board state, clearing out numerous small creatures or dealing a precise amount of damage to larger threats.

Combo Potential: As a damage-dealing spell, Fault Line pairs well with effects that increase spell damage or utilize damage triggers. It’s a solid choice for decks aiming to capitalize on spell-based combos or synergies.

Meta-Relevance: In metas with creature-heavy decks, having Fault Line in your arsenal means you’re equipped to handle swarms of opponents’ creatures effectively. Its ability to damage all creatures and players gives it a pivotal role in games where board control is crucial.

How to beat

Fault Line is a unique inclusion in red’s arsenal in Magic: The Gathering, acting as a powerful sweeper that can be particularly devastating in multiplayer settings. It stands out due to its ability to be cast at instant speed, allowing players to disrupt opponents during critical moments of play. This characteristic sets it apart from many other damage-dealing sweepers that typically operate on sorcery speed.

When playing against Fault Line, the key to success lies in maintaining board presence without overextending. As with any board sweepers, you want to bait it out without sacrificing your entire lineup. Cards that grant indestructibility, such as Boros Charm or Heroic Intervention, can safeguard your creatures from Fault Line’s indiscriminate damage. Additionally, playing creatures with toughness higher than what your opponent can pay for Fault Line’s variable cost ensures they survive the sweep.

Understanding Fault Line’s impact and employing strategic creature deployment or protective spells can significantly mitigate its effect, preserving your board state and place in the game. It’s a dance of resource management and timing—hesitate too much, and you could fall victim to the explosive power of Fault Line; act recklessly, and you leave yourself vulnerable to the board-wiping potential it holds.

Cards like Fault Line

Fault Line stands out in the pantheon of red area damage spells in Magic: The Gathering. It shares similarities with the classic card Earthquake, as both cards deal damage to each creature without flying and each player. What makes Fault Line distinct is its instant speed, allowing for unexpected plays and reactions during an opponent’s turn. In contrast, Earthquake is limited to your own turn, being a sorcery.

Comparatively, Rolling Earthquake is another close relative in this family of red spells. Its ability to hit creatures with horsemanship as well as those without flying aligns it more closely with Fault Line’s breadth of impact. Yet, its sorcery speed again reduces flexibility. Magmaquake follows this trend, targeting every creature without flying and each planeswalker, but at instant speed, it more closely echoes Fault Line’s utility at potentially pivotal moments in the game.

Therefore, while there is a suite of red spells capable of dealing widespread damage, Fault Line’s unique combination of an expansive reach and instantaneity underscores its strategic versatility in Magic: The Gathering, allowing for dynamic control in various game scenarios.

Cards similar to Fault Line by color, type and mana cost

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Fault Line MTG card by a specific set like Urza's Saga, 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 Fault Line and other MTG cards: