Urza's Workshop MTG Card
2022-11-18 - Number 51
2022-11-18 - Number 28
2002-06-24 - Number 105866
| Card sets | Released in 3 setsSee all |
| Rarity | Rare |
| Type | Land — Urza's |
| Abilities | Metalcraft |
Key Takeaways
- Provides card advantage and reduces artifact casting costs for greater board control and faster plays.
- Enables instant-speed interactions, bolstering strategic responsiveness and on-the-fly adaptability.
- Demands careful use due to the necessary discard of a card for its activation, affecting hand size.
Text of card
: Add . Metalcraft — : Add for each Urza's land you control. Activate only if you control three or more artifacts.
Urza eventually came to understand Tocasia's lessons on clarity of purpose. Perfection became his goal, and all other matters fell away in its pursuit.
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Urza’s Workshop provides a unique edge in the form of card advantage. By allowing players to tap for an additional mana, it essentially reduces the cost of powerful artifacts, enabling you to deploy more threats and options faster than your opponents.
Resource Acceleration: With its ability to accelerate resource generation, Urza’s Workshop is a game-changer for artifact-centric decks. It ramps up your mana pool, affording the opportunity to cast high-cost artifacts earlier in the game, thereby solidifying a strong board presence that can be difficult for your opponent to overcome.
Instant Speed: While Urza’s Workshop doesn’t operate at instant speed itself, its mana-generation capability empowers you to utilize instant speed interactions more effectively. You can leave mana open to respond to opponents’ moves and then use unspent mana generated by the Workshop to play instants or activate abilities during their turn, keeping you one step ahead.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Urza’s Workshop demands that you discard a card to take advantage of its ability. This can deplete your hand quickly, particularly if you are playing a strategy that does not have sufficient card draw options to compensate for this cost.
Specific Mana Cost: This powerful land taps for colorless mana, which isn’t universally useful in all deck types. Some strategies require a diverse color pool to cast a variety of spells, and thus the Workshop’s specific mana generation can be somewhat restrictive.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: While the workshop provides substantial mana acceleration for artifact-centric decks, its insertion into your deck comes at the opportunity cost of opting out from other potentially lower-cost mana sources that could synergize better with broader strategies or have a more immediate impact on the game state.
Reasons to Include in Your Collection
Versatility: Urza’s Workshop stands out as a card that can seamlessly integrate into a variety of artifact-centric decks. This land’s ability to generate a significant amount of mana for artifact spells makes it an essential for players looking to cast high-cost artifacts or activate demanding artifact abilities with ease.
Combo Potential: The extra mana provided by this powerful land has the potential to be the linchpin in several combos, particularly in decks that rely on using and reusing artifacts. Its synergy with other cards that untap lands or care about the number of artifacts you have can set the stage for game-winning plays.
Meta-Relevance: In a meta where artifacts are prevalent or where strategies revolve around heavy artifact use, Urza’s Workshop can offer a consistent advantage. It’s especially effective in formats where artifacts play a key role, allowing players to outpace opponents by ramping up their mana resources quickly.
How to beat
Urza’s Workshop is a powerhouse in any MTG deck that thrives on artifact strategies, accelerating the deployment of mighty constructs and machines onto the battlefield. This land’s unique ability to provide an extra mana for artifact spells makes it a cornerstone for artifact-heavy decks, enabling players to outpace their opponents with crippling efficiency.
To effectively counter this card, focusing on land destruction or neutralization can be key. Cards such as Ghost Quarter or Field of Ruin can dismantle the Workshop’s mana advantage. Aiming to disrupt the opponent’s artifact synergy through spells like Shatterstorm or Vandalblast may also prove invaluable, stripping away the benefits that the Workshop provides. Additionally, employing counter spells to prevent high-value artifacts from ever hitting the board neutralizes the Workshop’s ability to ramp up the game.
Utilizing a well-rounded strategy that addresses both the artifacts and the mana acceleration Urza’s Workshop offers can be a decisive move towards victory. Controlling or dismantling the opponent’s resources ensures that the Workshop’s full potential is never fully realized, providing a clear pathway to outmaneuvering artifact-based decks.
Cards like Urza's Workshop
Urza’s Workshop is a unique piece in the vast puzzle of land cards in Magic: The Gathering. This card allows players to generate an impressive three colorless mana, which can only be used for artifact spells. This trait makes it particularly potent in decks that heavily feature artifacts. An apt comparison would be to Mishra’s Workshop, a card revered in MTG history. Mishra’s Workshop also produces three colorless mana specifically for artifacts, mirroring the capabilities of Urza’s Workshop. However, Urza’s version is often appreciated for being more accessible in terms of card availability.
When considering other land cards that have similar functions, we can look at the likes of Temple of the False God, which delivers two colorless mana, although it comes with the restriction that the player must already control five lands. Meanwhile, Urza’s Workshop requires no such prerequisite, giving it a reliability advantage. Ancient Tomb could also be considered similar as it generates two colorless mana at the cost of two life points. In juxtaposition, Urza’s Workshop provides a more significant mana boost without the life penalty, prioritizing long-term strategy and artifact spell efficiency.
Ultimately, the value of Urza’s Workshop in your MTG deck hinges on your commitment to artifacts. Its ability to ramp up your resources without immediate drawbacks distinguishes it from other lands, offering a strategic edge in the right context.
Cards similar to Urza's Workshop by color, type and mana cost
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Urza's Workshop MTG card by a specific set like Magic Online Promos and The Brothers' War Commander, 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 Urza's Workshop 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
Printings
The Urza's Workshop Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 2022-11-18 and 2022-11-18. Illustrated by Alexander Forssberg.
| # | Released | Name | Code | Symbol | Number | Frame | Layout | Border | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Magic Online Promos | PRM | 105866 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Alexander Forssberg | ||
| 2 | 2022-11-18 | The Brothers' War Commander | BRC | 51 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Alexander Forssberg | |
| 3 | 2022-11-18 | The Brothers' War Commander | BRC | 28 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Alexander Forssberg |
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Urza's Workshop has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Commander | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |