Deal Broker MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	3
Rarity	Rare
Type	Artifact Creature — Construct
Released	2014-06-06
Set symbol
Set name	Conspiracy
Set code	CNS
Power	2
Toughness	3
Number	61
Frame	2003
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Cliff Childs

Key Takeaways

Deal Broker provides card selection through its draw-and-discard ability, crucial for optimizing plays each turn.
Boosts early game by allowing additional drafts, but demands careful hand management to avoid disadvantage.
Instant-speed adaptation gives tactical flexibility, yet the card requires a balanced deck strategy to shine.

Text of card

Draft Deal Broker face up. Immediately after the draft, you may reveal a card in your card pool. Each other player may offer you one card in his or her card pool in exchange. You may accept any one offer. : Draw a card, then discard a card.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Deal Broker offers a unique form of card selection, allowing you to draw a card then discard a card, which is essential in refining your hand to ensure you have the best possible plays each turn.

Resource Acceleration: As a part of the Conspiracy set, the card’s draft ability can set up powerful opening moves by allowing you to draft additional cards potentially accelerating your resource pool before the game even begins.

Instant Speed: Though Deal Broker itself is not an instant, the ability to draw and discard at instant speed provides a tactical edge, enabling you to respond to an opponent’s move with increased hand flexibility during their turn. This adaptability can lead to surprise shifts in the board state, keeping opponents on their toes.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: The Deal Broker card necessitates that a player discards another card to activate its draw feature. This could be a setback when a player is already dealing with a depleted hand, making it difficult to maintain card advantage.

Specific Mana Cost: Being an artifact creature with a specific casting cost, Deal Broker imposes constraints on deck-building, as it requires both a commitment of three generic mana and an appropriate deck strategy that can capitalize on its trading utility.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a mana cost that may be seen as steep for its abilities, gamers must weigh the potential benefits against other available options. In a game where efficiency is crucial, there might be more advantageous plays or combinations that can be made with a three-mana investment.

Reasons to Include Deal Broker in Your Collection

Versatility: Deal Broker isn’t just a placeholder in your deck; it’s a cog in a well-oiled machine. Capable of fitting into a variety of strategies, its card drawing ability keeps your hand full, ensuring you have the right answers at the right times. Whether you’re powering a control deck or fueling a creature-centric strategy, this card finds its niche.

Combo Potential: With the ability to trade cards in hand, Deal Broker serves as an engine in combo decks. It synergizes with cards that benefit from discard or draw mechanics, opening up a plethora of interactions that can turn the tide of the game in your favor. Harness this card and watch your combos come to life with precision.

Meta-Relevance: Adapting to the shifting landscape of the game is key, and Deal Broker offers just that. In metas where the right card choices are critical for survival, being able to sift through your deck reliably is invaluable. When other players are locked in a battle of attrition, Deal Broker keeps your options open and your strategy dynamic.

How to Beat Deal Broker

Deal Broker is a versatile tool in MTG that offers players a chance to enhance their hand by trading in potentially dead cards. This artifact creature with its looting ability is functional when aiming for card quality over quantity. However, sound strategies exist to counteract its strengths and mitigate the benefits it offers to your opponent.

One effective approach to overpowering Deal Broker is to limit your opponent’s opportunities to utilize its ability. Using instant-speed removal spells when the Broker’s ability is activated can disrupt the looting process. Moreover, cards that restrict activated abilities or artifact interactions, such as Stony Silence or Collector Ouphe, can completely neutralize the Deal Broker from the equation.

Additionally, aggressive decks that push for a swift victory can often bypass the incremental advantage provided by Deal Broker, as the time taken to set up and activate could be too slow. Ensuring your strategy conveys enough pressure early on will make the broker’s impact on the game minimal. Ultimately, knowing when to disrupt the looting process or to simply race past it is key to overcoming the advantage that Deal Broker might bring to your adversary.

Cards like Deal Broker

Deal Broker serves as a unique component within the realm of artifact creatures in MTG. It bears a resemblance to other looter creatures, such as Merfolk Looter, which allows you to draw a card followed by a discard. What differentiates Deal Broker is its role flexibility; beyond its loot ability, its Commander format trade clause enables card exchanges between players, pushing the boundaries of typical gameplay interaction.

Similarly, when examining Izzet Locket, players observe the draw mechanic intertwined with mana production, though it lacks the creature form and the interactive trade feature that Deal Broker offers. Azure Mage, another card with an activated draw ability, requires mana investment as opposed to the free looting action granted by Deal Broker, making Deal Broker a strategic choice for players valuing immediate card selection.

To sum up, Deal Broker’s dual functionality in both looting and promoting trades in Commander amplifies its uniqueness. While it might not boast of the most efficient looting ability, the card is a testament to the creative design that MTG offers, providing utility and a refreshing twist to gameplay tactics.

Cards similar to Deal Broker by color, type and mana cost

Scale of Chiss-Goria - MTG Card versions

Sword of Feast and Famine - MTG Card versions

Guardians of Meletis - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Deal Broker MTG card by a specific set like Conspiracy, 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 Deal Broker and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Deal Broker has restrictions

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

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
2014-05-29	If a player exchanges a card that has multiple pieces of information noted for it, all of the information is shared during the exchange. For example, if you receive a Cogwork Tracker from a player who drafted multiple Cogwork Trackers, your Cogwork Trackers may attack any player noted by either you or the other player for Cogwork Tracker. The other player will not remove a noted player from their remaining Cogwork Tracker.
2014-05-29	If either card involved in the exchange has any information noted for it, that information stays with the exchanged card, not the player who initially drafted it. Any abilities that refer to actions taken as you drafted the card (or similar) now refer to the card’s new owner, even though that player wasn’t the person who actually drafted the card.
2014-05-29	If more than one player drafts a Deal Broker, players who wish to use the second ability to exchange cards do so in a random order.
2014-05-29	If you accept a player’s offer, the card you revealed becomes part of that player’s card pool and the other offered card becomes part of your card pool.
2014-05-29	If your draft is breaking up into multiple games, the exchange happens before it’s known who will be playing in each game.
2014-05-29	The cards exchanged this way aren’t drafted. They can’t be removed from the draft by Cogwork Grinder, for example.
2014-05-29	When you use Deal Broker’s second ability, after you reveal your card, each other player chooses up to one card from their card pool, then all those chosen cards are revealed simultaneously.
2014-05-29	You may reveal Deal Broker itself for its second ability. If you do, and you accept another player’s offer, that player won’t be able to use the second ability to offer another exchange.