Pulse of the Grid MTG Card

Darksteel (DST)
2004-02-06 - Number 29

The List (PLST)
2020-09-26 - Number DST-29

Card sets	Released in 2 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost	3
Rarity	Rare
Type	Instant

Key Takeaways

Gain hand advantage with potential multiple draws, making Pulse of the Grid a valuable card asset.
Instant speed allows strategic plays, enhancing MTG gameplay with unexpected turns and reactions.
Specific usage demands careful deck integration, ensuring color alignment and managing discard trade-offs.

Text of card

Draw two cards, then discard a card from your hand. Then if an opponent has more cards in hand than you, return Pulse of the Grid to its owner's hand.

Before labs or lectures, there was insight.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Pulse of the Grid offers a unique advantage by allowing you to potentially draw multiple cards throughout the game. This can be a significant boost in maintaining hand superiority over your opponent.

Resource Acceleration: While not directly providing mana or tokens, the ability to return Pulse of the Grid to your hand under specific conditions effectively reduces its cost, making it a repeatable source of card advantage and indirectly accelerating your resource access.

Instant Speed: The flexibility of being an instant cannot be overstated; it allows you to react to your opponent’s moves, potentially refilling your hand at the end of their turn or after a strategic play. This keeps your options open and can be a potent surprise against unsuspecting adversaries.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Pulse of the Grid requires players to discard a card if they want to use its ability to draw cards. This can be counterproductive when you’re in need of keeping all the cards in your hand, potentially setting you back in the game.

Specific Mana Cost: This card has a color-specific mana requirement needing two blue and one generic mana. The necessity for blue mana means it is tailored for blue-centered decks and may not fit seamlessly into multi-color or colorless strategies.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost of three mana, Pulse of the Grid might be considered a hefty investment for the effect it provides. Many alternatives offer card draw at a lower cost or with additional benefits, potentially making this card a less attractive option in a mana-tight situation.

Reasons to Include Pulse of the Grid in Your Collection

Versatility: Pulse of the Grid offers flexibility as it can serve multiple roles within a deck. It can be a source of card advantage to maintain hand quality or act as a way to dig for answers or key components, making it useful in control and combo decks alike.

Combo Potential: This card can synergize with strategies that capitalize on hand size or graveyard utilization. Its ability to return to your hand if you have more cards than your opponent at the end of a turn facilitates repeatable interactions, which can be a linchpin in combo-oriented decks.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta that leans towards attrition wars or control mirrors, sustaining card advantage is paramount. Pulse of the Grid thrives where games could be decided by incremental gains, ensuring you’re not falling behind in resources against your adversary.

How to beat

Pulse of the Grid is an intriguing card that can be a persistent source of card advantage in Magic: The Gathering. Its strength lies in its recycling ability, allowing players to potentially draw multiple cards over several turns. To effectively combat this, it’s pivotal to apply pressure on the opponent’s hand size. Since Pulse of the Grid returns to the owner’s hand if an opponent has more cards, reducing your hand size can nullify this benefit. Cards like Thoughtseize or Inquisition of Kozilek, which strip resources directly from your opponent’s hand, can be particularly effective.

It’s also beneficial to keep the game state in a position where you can safely fall behind in card count without losing control. This involves efficient threat deployment and resource management, ensuring that each card you play has maximum impact. Additionally, graveyard disruption tools like Tormod’s Crypt can prevent Pulse of the Grid from recurring if the game progresses towards a scenario where the card is in the graveyard and could be retrieved.

In summary, understanding the dynamics of hand size in relation to Pulse of the Grid, along with carefully-timed disruption and pressure, can significantly reduce the card’s effectiveness and maintain the upper hand in your Magic: The Gathering matches.

Cards like Pulse of the Grid

Pulse of the Grid is a unique card within the MTG universe, offering players the ability to draw two cards and then make a choice to potentially return it to their hand under particular circumstances. It holds similarities to cards such as Think Twice, which also allows a player to draw cards with the additional upside of flashback, granting a second use from the graveyard. However, Pulse of the Grid presents a conditional but repeatable use that can be very powerful in the right deck.

Blue Sun’s Zenith is another card to consider when looking at options for drawing in Magic: The Gathering. While you get to draw X cards immediately with Blue Sun’s Zenith, it shuffles back into its owner’s library, unlike Pulse of the Grid which has the potential to return to the hand directly. The flexibility in choosing the exact number of cards with Blue Sun’s Zenith is balanced by the higher mana cost and one-time shuffle back into the deck, as opposed to potential multiple uses of Pulse of the Grid if its conditions are met.

Assessing these cards, Pulse of the Grid stands out for its potential sustained card advantage in long games, making it an intriguing addition to decks looking to capitalize on maintaining a fuller hand than the opponent.

Blue Sun's Zenith - Mirrodin Besieged (MBS)

Cards similar to Pulse of the Grid by color, type and mana cost

Thirst for Knowledge - MTG Card versions

Mana Short - Classic Sixth Edition (6ED)

Psionic Blast - Intl. Collectors' Edition (CEI)

Capsize - World Championship Decks 1998 (WC98)

Forbid - World Championship Decks 1998 (WC98)

Frantic Search - Wilds of Eldraine Commander (WOC)

Circular Logic - World Championship Decks 2003 (WC03)

Archmage's Charm - Magic Online Promos (PRM)

Commander's Insight - Magic Online Promos (PRM)

Thirst for Knowledge - World Championship Decks 2004 (WC04)

Murmurs from Beyond - Saviors of Kamigawa (SOK)

Stoic Rebuttal - Modern Masters 2015 (MM2)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Pulse of the Grid MTG card by a specific set like Darksteel and The List, 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 Pulse of the Grid and other MTG cards: