Harrowing Journey MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	5
Rarity	Uncommon
Type	Sorcery
Released	2012-02-03
Set symbol
Set name	Dark Ascension
Set code	DKA
Number	67
Frame	2003
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	James Paick

Key Takeaways

Draw three cards at sorcery speed with Harrowing Journey to potentially access the right combo or response.
While potent, the discard and strict mana cost challenge its inclusion in multi-color or tight-hold decks.
Despite a steep mana cost, its significant draw effect makes Harrowing Journey a contender in attrition-based metas.

Text of card

Target player draws three cards and loses 3 life.

"There are always fools who attempt to traverse Kruin Pass before sundown and every time they wind up in a race for their lives." —Old Rutstein

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Harrowing Journey offers a significant boost in card access, letting a player draw three cards which increases the chances of getting just the right tools for victory.

Resource Acceleration: Although not directly providing mana or tokens, the ability to draw multiple cards with Harrowing Journey can indirectly lead to resource acceleration by allowing players to access more lands or ramp spells.

Instant Speed: The power of Harrowing Journey comes at sorcery speed, but it’s well-timed use after blockers are declared or before your next main phase can still strategically put you ahead, especially when you’re digging for an answer or setting up a winning combo.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: One of the hurdles with Harrowing Journey is the necessity to discard a card. For players who are tightly managing their hand, this can negatively impact strategic plans and decrease your available options.

Specific Mana Cost: Harrowing Journey comes with a strict mana requirement that includes black mana. This can be a stumbling block in multi-colored decks or for those who are struggling to maintain a consistent mana base.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With its mana cost on the upper end of the spectrum, Harrowing Journey competes with other impactful cards in the same slot. This can deter players from including it in their deck, opting for alternatives that provide more versatility or lower cost efficiencies.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Harrowing Journey offers a unique element to your deck, providing a powerful card draw mechanism that could replenish your hand, which is essential in long and drawn-out matches. Its ability to potentially swing the tide of the game makes it a great addition to control and midrange decks alike.

Combo Potential: With Harrowing Journey, there’s significant synergy with life-matters strategies. It pairs well with cards that benefit from losing life or those that allow you to gain life, such as in a black-and-white lifelink deck, creating opportunities for powerful combos.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta where card advantage is key, Harrowing Journey can be particularly effective. It finds its place in a game dominated by attrition and resource management, nudging the scales in your favor with its substantial draw mechanic.

How to beat

Harrowing Journey is an intriguing card in Magic: The Gathering, allowing a player to draw three cards at the expense of losing three life. This trade-off often requires careful consideration of one’s current life total and the overall state of the game. To effectively counteract Harrowing Journey, it is important to apply pressure on your opponent’s life points, making the cost of using the card too risky for them. Furthermore, utilize instant-speed interaction to disrupt their plays or remove key creatures before they can capitalize on the new cards they’ve drawn.

One strategy to overcome Harrowing Journey is to introduce cards that limit an opponent’s ability to gain card advantage, such as Narset, Parter of Veils, which restricts the number of cards they can draw per turn. Additionally, utilizing effects that punish players for drawing cards, like Underworld Dreams or Nekusar, the Mindrazer, can turn Harrowing Journey into a liability for your opponent rather than an asset.

Ultimately, to triumph over Harrowing Journey, maintain control of the game’s tempo and continuously evaluate the opponent’s potential to turn their card advantage into a winning position. Employ disruption and pressure as key elements in your strategy to ensure that such a risky card draw has minimal impact on the game’s outcome.

Cards like Harrowing Journey

Harrowing Journey is a unique card that finds its niche within the realm of life manipulation strategies in Magic: The Gathering. It’s often compared to Sign in Blood, a card that also allows the player to draw two cards at the cost of life. While Harrowing Journey costs more mana and life, it compensates by giving you three cards, which is more than the steady two-card pace of Sign in Blood.

Another card that springs to mind is Read the Bones. This spell also sees you forfeiting life for knowledge, offering scrying abilities along with drawing cards. However, Read the Bones brings more flexibility in card selection but provides fewer cards than Harrowing Journey. Night’s Whisper is worth mentioning too, with its low mana cost and similar “life for cards” trade. Yet, it falls short in quantity, providing only two cards versus Harrowing Journey’s three.

Assessing their roles in a player’s deck, Harrowing Journey seems well-suited for those willing to risk a higher cost for a more substantial immediate gain, setting it apart from its counterparts that balance card quantity with life and mana expenditures.

Cards similar to Harrowing Journey by color, type and mana cost

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Harrowing Journey MTG card by a specific set like 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 Harrowing Journey and other MTG cards: