Mask of Memory MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 9 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost2
RarityUncommon
TypeArtifact — Equipment
Abilities Equip

Key Takeaways

  1. Mask of Memory excels in card filtering, offering crucial draw power during combat interactions.
  2. Streamlines decks with card cycling, aiding in land draws and maintaining game pace.
  3. Requires mindful management of the discard effect to optimize its potent card advantage.

Text of card

Whenever equipped creature deals combat damage to a player, you may draw two cards. If you do, discard a card from your hand. Equip (: Attach to target creature you control. Equip only as a sorcery. This card comes into play unattached and stays in play if the creature leaves play.)


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Mask of Memory provides key opportunities for card filtering by allowing you to draw two cards upon dealing combat damage to a player. This effect enhances your chances to access the perfect responses or threats you need during the course of the game.

Resource Acceleration: Although not directly producing mana or tokens, the cycling of cards helps to smooth out draws and potentially uncover additional lands or ramp spells, streamlining your path to powerful plays and maintaining momentum against opponents.

Instant Speed: While Mask of Memory itself isn’t an instant, it fosters flexibility by refilling your hand. This gives you the potential to hold up instant-speed interactions with newfound options every time you connect with an opponent.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Mask of Memory necessitates discarding a card whenever its triggered ability is used. This condition can be problematic for players who are already struggling with card advantage or when the hand is filled with essential spells you can’t afford to lose.

Specific Mana Cost: This equipment requires two generic mana to cast and an additional two to equip. Such costs can be restrictive early in the game, especially for decks aiming to deploy other threats or set up defenses quickly.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: While Mask of Memory provides card filtration, the total mana investment of four (two to cast and two to equip) might be seen as steep, particularly when compared to other card draw artifacts or spells that offer immediate card advantage without additional conditions.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Mask of Memory can seamlessly adapt to a myriad of deck builds, offering value to aggressive strategies by granting additional card draw to keep the pressure on opponents, or by enhancing control decks through selective hand sculpting.

Combo Potential: This card excels in decks focused on voltron strategies or ones that capitalize on equipped creature synergies, enabling powerful interactions and unparalleled card selection to assemble game-winning combinations with ease.

Meta-Relevance: In a constantly shifting landscape, Mask of Memory maintains its significance by offering consistent card advantage, crucial for outpacing the competition in a variety of metagame environments, thus solidifying its place in many players’ arsenals.


How to Beat

Confronting the Mask of Memory on the battlefield can be a test of strategy in Magic: The Gathering. As an equipment card that allows its wielder to draw and discard upon dealing combat damage to a player, it can quickly turn the tide by enriching your opponent’s hand with options. To counter this, deploying removal spells targeting the equipped creature or the Mask itself can stymie your opponent’s card advantage engine. Cards like Disenchant or the efficient Nature’s Claim can rid you of the Mask’s presence without breaking the bank in terms of mana cost.

Should direct removal not be available, consider strategies that prevent combat damage entirely. Ensnaring Bridge or Ghostly Prison can erect barriers too taxing for your opponent to afford. Additionally, spot removal such as Path to Exile or Fatal Push can dispatch the equipped attacker before they clinch that crucial combat damage. Lastly, strategic discard effects like Thoughtseize can wrest the Mask from your opponent’s grip before it ever becomes a threat, ensuring your opponent’s memory of it is as fleeting as a card on the wind.

Every match in Magic: The Gathering is a puzzle, and with the right pieces, even the challenge of the Mask of Memory can be surmounted, keeping your opponent’s strategic depth as shallow as possible.


BurnMana Recommendations

Unleashing the full potential of Mask of Memory in your deck can transform your MTG playstyle, granting strategic card advantage with each successful attack. From high-velocity aggro decks to nuanced control setups, this equipment fits snugly into multiple strategies, refining your deck’s efficiency. It’s crucial to weigh the discard requirement against the bountiful card draw, ensuring your deck can capitalize on the trade-off. Whether you’re streamlining your deck, seeking to outpace the meta, or looking for combo enablers, further exploration of the Mask’s capabilities could unlock new paths to victory. Dive deeper with us and refine your MTG expertise.


Cards like Mask of Memory

The Mask of Memory offers a powerful way to boost card advantage in any MTG arsenal. This artifact stands out by granting not just one, but two cards upon dealing combat damage with the equipped creature. The catch is that you must discard one card afterward. A well-known counterpart is the Rogue’s Gloves, which also procures a card after its equipped creature deals combat damage. However, Mask of Memory’s draw two, discard one dynamic can cycle through a deck more efficiently, offering a more aggressive draw strategy.

Another parallel can be drawn with the Infiltration Lens, which draws two cards when the equipped creature becomes blocked. Although this promises card advantage regardless of damage dealt, Mask of Memory’s trigger is more reliable as it doesn’t depend on the creature being blocked. Lastly, the comparison with Skullclamp is inevitable. Skullclamp draws two cards upon the death of the equipped creature, which can be a more powerful draw engine in creature-heavy decks designed to exploit creature sacrifice.

Seeing these alternatives, it’s clear that Mask of Memory holds a unique spot in MTG. Its mixture of aggression and card selection makes it a versatile tool, especially in decks that thrive on combative exchanges.

Rogue's Gloves - MTG Card versions
Infiltration Lens - MTG Card versions
Skullclamp - MTG Card versions
Rogue's Gloves - Magic 2015 (M15)
Infiltration Lens - Scars of Mirrodin (SOM)
Skullclamp - Darksteel (DST)

Cards similar to Mask of Memory by color, type and mana cost

Chaos Orb - MTG Card versions
Winter Orb - MTG Card versions
Amulet of Kroog - MTG Card versions
Nacre Talisman - MTG Card versions
Howling Mine - MTG Card versions
Essence Bottle - MTG Card versions
Emerald Medallion - MTG Card versions
Scrying Glass - MTG Card versions
Cursed Totem - MTG Card versions
Tsabo's Web - MTG Card versions
Millikin - MTG Card versions
Ark of Blight - MTG Card versions
Surestrike Trident - MTG Card versions
Energy Chamber - MTG Card versions
Water Gun Balloon Game - MTG Card versions
Angel's Feather - MTG Card versions
Demon's Horn - MTG Card versions
Elsewhere Flask - MTG Card versions
Steel Overseer - MTG Card versions
Wurm's Tooth - MTG Card versions
Chaos Orb - Unlimited Edition (2ED)
Winter Orb - 30th Anniversary Edition (30A)
Amulet of Kroog - Rinascimento (RIN)
Nacre Talisman - Ice Age (ICE)
Howling Mine - Fifth Edition (5ED)
Essence Bottle - Tempest (TMP)
Emerald Medallion - Commander Anthology (CMA)
Scrying Glass - Urza's Destiny (UDS)
Cursed Totem - World Championship Decks 2000 (WC00)
Tsabo's Web - World Championship Decks 2001 (WC01)
Millikin - Odyssey (ODY)
Ark of Blight - Scourge (SCG)
Surestrike Trident - Darksteel (DST)
Energy Chamber - Fifth Dawn (5DN)
Water Gun Balloon Game - Unhinged (UNH)
Angel's Feather - Ninth Edition (9ED)
Demon's Horn - Ninth Edition (9ED)
Elsewhere Flask - Shadowmoor (SHM)
Steel Overseer - Magic 2011 (M11)
Wurm's Tooth - Magic 2011 (M11)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Mask of Memory MTG card by a specific set like Mirrodin and Planechase, 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 Mask of Memory and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Mask of Memory Magic the Gathering card was released in 8 different sets between 2003-10-02 and 2023-02-03. Illustrated by 2 different artists.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12003-10-02MirrodinMRD 2032003normalblackAlan Pollack
22009-09-04PlanechaseHOP 1192003normalblackAlan Pollack
32014-11-07Commander 2014C14 2492015normalblackAlan Pollack
42019-11-07Mystery BoosterMB1 16042015normalblackAlan Pollack
52020-09-26The ListPLST C14-2492015normalblackAlan Pollack
62020-11-20Commander LegendsCMR 3242015normalblackAlan Pollack
72022-10-07Warhammer 40,000 Commander40K 243★2015normalblackRoman Tishenin
82022-10-07Warhammer 40,000 Commander40K 2432015normalblackRoman Tishenin
92023-02-03Phyrexia: All Will Be One CommanderONC 1362015normalblackAlan Pollack

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Mask of Memory has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal

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