Thran Tome MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	4
Rarity	Rare
Type	Artifact
Released	1997-06-09
Set symbol
Set name	Weatherlight
Set code	WTH
Number	160
Frame	1997
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Donato Giancola

Key Takeaways

Thran Tome provides a significant card advantage through strategic drawing.
Its instant speed activation allows for flexible, surprise plays.
Mana curve smoothing accelerates gameplay, setting you ahead.

Text of card

o5, oc T: Reveal the top three cards of your library to target opponent. Bury one of those cards of that opponent's choice. Draw the remaining cards.

Every line holds a tale, and between lie a thousand more.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Thran Tome is a treasure trove for players looking to draw into their strategic arsenal. By flipping through its pages, you gain access to additional spells and answers, thereby increasing your options and overwhelming opponents with a relentless cascade of resources.

Resource Acceleration: This powerful artifact doesn’t just reveal secrets; it accelerates your gameplay by smoothing out mana curves. The ability to sift through the top cards of your library and find the mana or spells you need can set you turns ahead of the competition.

Instant Speed: In the fast-paced world of MTG, timing is everything. Thran Tome works on your schedule, allowing you to utilize its power at the most opportune moments, potentially during an opponent’s end step to maximize efficiency and surprise.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: When utilizing the Thran Tome, players must discard a card to activate its ability. This mechanic can present a strategic setback, especially in situations where card advantage is crucial or hand size is limited, forcing tough decisions on which resources to sacrifice.

Specific Mana Cost: To unlock the full potential of the Thran Tome, a dedicated amount of mana is required. This is not just any mana, but one that specifically includes the often inflexible colorless mana, which might not seamlessly integrate into multicolor mana bases, thereby restricting the Tome’s playability across diverse deck archetypes.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Deploying the Thran Tome demands a substantial investment, with a mana cost that can be deemed steep considering alternative draw engines or library manipulation options available in the game. For the same cost, other cards may offer immediate impact or less conditional draw capabilities, making the Tome a less appealing choice for players seeking efficiency and optimal resource utilization in their gameplay.

Reasons to Include Thran Tome in Your Collection

Versatility: Thran Tome stands out with its capability to slot into a broad range of decks. This artifact’s power to deliver card selection ensures that players of all types can tailor their draws to the current game state, making it a valuable tool in any player’s arsenal.

Combo Potential: The card’s unique ability to shuffle unwanted cards from your hand into your library is not just a means of improving card quality but opens the door for various combo plays. This function synergizes well with library manipulation and graveyard strategies, such as reanimator decks or spell-based synergies.

Meta-Relevance: In an environment that rewards strategic consistency and card advantage, Thran Tome’s capacity to refine hands and draw into critical answers is unmatched. Its relevance only grows as you face opponents with decks that require precise responses or when navigating through competitive matches where every card choice counts.

How to beat

The Thran Tome is a piece of Magic: The Gathering history that offers players a unique strategic advantage. This artifact grants the ability to look at the top five cards of a library, then hide three of them for later use. It’s not hard to see why it could be a powerful addition to any deck, allowing for tailored card selection and potential game-changing plays. But as potent as this card can seem, it holds an Achilles’ heel in its hefty mana investment for each activation.

Overcoming a Thran Tome on the battlefield requires a multifaceted approach. Distracting your opponent with threats may force them to use their mana elsewhere, rendering the Tome inactive. Alternatively, using artifact destruction spells or abilities can directly remove the Tome from play. Disruptive spells that shuffle the opponent’s library negate the Tome’s setup, reducing its effectiveness. Additionally, since the Tome’s ability is not at instant speed, swift plays and maintaining a tempo that pressures the opponent prevents the Tome from becoming an overwhelming problem.

While the Thran Tome’s value is context-dependent and can flip the tides of a game, there are plenty of tactics and cards that can mitigate its impact, ensuring your path to victory remains clear against this ancient artifact.

Cards like Thran Tome

Thran Tome is an artifact that emerges from the deep lore of Magic: The Gathering, with a unique standing among its peers. It invites comparison with other card filtering artifacts like Jayemdae Tome, another venerable piece which also offers card advantage by allowing drawing of cards. The notable distinction is that Jayemdae Tome doesn’t necessitate discarding cards from hand, unlike Thran Tome which requires a bit of setup to optimize its utility.

Moreover, there’s the accursed Book of Rass, offering the utility of drawing cards at a steep life cost, hence demanding a careful balance between resource acquisition and life preservation. Thran Tome could be perceived as a safer alternative with its once-per-turn restriction draped over the potential for broader card selection. Additionally, the infamous Library of Leng gives a nod to strategic depth similar to Thran Tome, granting the capacity to selectively hold onto cards while discarding less desirable options.

As we dissect the functionality of Thran Tome alongside its counterparts, it becomes evident that it aligns well within the scope of card advantage artifacts. Its distinct blend of card filtration and selective discarding carves out a strategic niche for players in Magic: The Gathering.

Cards similar to Thran Tome by color, type and mana cost

Krark-Clan Ironworks - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Thran Tome MTG card by a specific set like Weatherlight, 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 Thran Tome and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Thran Tome has restrictions

Format	Legality
Commander	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Premodern	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Predh	Legal

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
2006-10-15	It does not target the cards, but it targets the opponent. If you can’t target an opponent, you can’t activate this ability.
2007-05-01	After the opponent chooses which card to put into your graveyard, you draw two cards regardless of how many were actually revealed or how many you have left in your library.