Into the Roil MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 8 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost2
RarityCommon
TypeInstant
Abilities Kicker

Key Takeaways

  1. Grants card advantage with its kicker effect, elevating your long-term game strategy.
  2. Instant speed makes it an exceptional reactive tool for disrupting opponents’ plays.
  3. Versatility across formats makes it an asset, handling various threats effectively.

Text of card

Kicker (You may pay an additional as you cast this spell.) Return target nonland permanent to its owner's hand. If Into the Roil was kicked, draw a card.

"Roil tide! Roil tide! Tie yourselves down!"


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Into the Roil offers the flexibility to return a nonland permanent to its owner’s hand; and if kicked, it also draws a card. This leads to maintaining or gaining card advantage, crucial for outpacing opponents in longer matches.

Resource Acceleration: While not directly accelerating resources, the card’s ability to temporarily remove key opposing threats can significantly hinder an opponent’s game plan, effectively setting them back and giving you an upper hand in resource allocation.

Instant Speed: The capability to cast Into the Roil at instant speed offers strategic depth, allowing players to react swiftly to the evolving state of the game. This provides an edge by efficiently managing threats or bypassing opponent counterspells during their turn.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: While Into the Roil doesn’t directly force a discard, it’s important to note that bouncing a nonland permanent doesn’t remove it entirely — meaning you may need to discard alternative resources to deal with the returned card more permanently down the line.

Specific Mana Cost: Into the Roil requires blue mana, which may not seamlessly fit into all deck strategies, especially those not focused around blue mana synergies or those operating on a tight color curve.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Although two mana for the base effect is reasonable, paying four mana to include the card draw option is a significant investment. For a similar or even lower cost, a player might potentially deal with threats more definitively or develop their board presence more effectively.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Into the Roil is a flexible inclusion that suits a broad range of blue decks. Its ability to bounce targets back to hand makes it a utility spell for various situations, clearing the way for attacks or disrupting opponent combos.

Combo Potential: This card not only offers tempo advantage but also pairs well with permanents that benefit from casting spells or drawing cards. Used in concert with other cards, it can generate powerful synergies in a deck.

Meta-Relevance: With many formats being dynamic and creature-heavy, Into the Roil maintains its importance by being a non-destructive answer to threats. Its capability to interact at instant speed keeps it particularly relevant and often sees play in sideboards and main decks alike.


How to beat

Into the Roil presents itself as a versatile card in the Magic: The Gathering universe with its capacity to bounce targets back to their owner’s hand. This can prove challenging when it disrupts your board setup or negates a pivotal spell. A key strategy in overcoming this card involves maximizing the value of cast effects or creatures that provide benefits upon entering the battlefield. This way, even if your permanents are returned, you gain from replaying them.

Also, playing around Into the Roil requires a watchful eye on the available mana of your opponent. If they have open blue mana, it could signal the potential use of this card. Patience can be your ally here; by waiting until your opponent is tapped out, you can play your more impactful spells without the threat of immediate return. Additionally, cards that can’t be targeted by spells or abilities provide resilience against Into the Roil’s effect, essentially nullifying its potential to disrupt your game plan.

Ultimately, while Into the Roil offers utility and a chance for card advantage with its kicker mechanism, anticipating its use and building your board with its presence in mind can mitigate its impact and secure your path to victory.


BurnMana Recommendations

Dive deeper into the strategic currents of MTG with cards like Into the Roil. The ability to disrupt your opponent’s battle plan and draw into more options spells success in the evolving game environment. Understanding cards that balance utility and flexibility is crucial to mastering the game’s intricate mechanics. Expanding your collection with multifaceted spells ensures you’re prepared for whatever your opponents concoct. Ready to fortify your deck-building skills and adapt your strategies to the competitive landscape? Explore more insights and tips with us and transform every duel into a showcase of skill and foresight.


Cards like Into the Roil

Into the Roil is a versatile bounce spell in MTG, offering a comparable function to other cards in Magic like Unsummon, which also returns a target creature to its owner’s hand. However, Into the Roil is distinct because of its “kicker” option, allowing players to draw a card if they’ve paid the kicker cost. Unlike Unsummon, Into the Roil can target noncreature permanents as well, lending enhanced flexibility to players in handling various threats on the board.

Situated in the same strategic space, Blink of an Eye follows the kicker trend, providing a similar effect with the added ability to draw a card. Its cost aligns with Into the Roil, and the kicker option makes it a viable competitor in the utility bounce category. Additionally, cards like Disperse offer another angle, being able to bounce any nonland permanent without the card draw but at a lower base cost, making it an efficient tool for tempo plays in the early to mid-game.

Focusing on game impact and overall utility, Into the Roil has a solid position among bounce spells in MTG, offering the duality of disruption and potential card advantage, elevating it beyond a mere bounce spell and into a mainstay for control strategies.

Unsummon - MTG Card versions
Blink of an Eye - MTG Card versions
Disperse - MTG Card versions
Unsummon - Limited Edition Alpha (LEA)
Blink of an Eye - Dominaria (DOM)
Disperse - Morningtide (MOR)

Cards similar to Into the Roil by color, type and mana cost

Counterspell - MTG Card versions
Hurkyl's Recall - MTG Card versions
Hypnotic Sprite // Mesmeric Glare - MTG Card versions
Lat-Nam's Legacy - MTG Card versions
Flash - MTG Card versions
Boomerang - MTG Card versions
Rebound - MTG Card versions
Memory Lapse - MTG Card versions
Hoodwink - MTG Card versions
Tidal Bore - MTG Card versions
Accumulated Knowledge - MTG Card versions
Aether Burst - MTG Card versions
Impulse - MTG Card versions
Cyclonic Rift - MTG Card versions
Thassa's Intervention - MTG Card versions
Metamorphose - MTG Card versions
Echoing Truth - MTG Card versions
Early Frost - MTG Card versions
Mana Leak - MTG Card versions
Remove Soul - MTG Card versions
Counterspell - Commander Masters (CMM)
Hurkyl's Recall - Antiquities (ATQ)
Hypnotic Sprite // Mesmeric Glare - Throne of Eldraine (ELD)
Lat-Nam's Legacy - Alliances (ALL)
Flash - Mirage (MIR)
Boomerang - Masters Edition III (ME3)
Rebound - Stronghold (STH)
Memory Lapse - Strixhaven Mystical Archive (STA)
Hoodwink - Mercadian Masques (MMQ)
Tidal Bore - Mercadian Masques (MMQ)
Accumulated Knowledge - World Championship Decks 2001 (WC01)
Aether Burst - Odyssey (ODY)
Impulse - Game Night: Free-for-All (GN3)
Cyclonic Rift - Commander Masters (CMM)
Thassa's Intervention - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Metamorphose - Scourge (SCG)
Echoing Truth - Modern Masters (MMA)
Early Frost - Fifth Dawn (5DN)
Mana Leak - Double Masters 2022 (2X2)
Remove Soul - Ninth Edition (9ED)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Into the Roil MTG card by a specific set like Zendikar and Duel Decks: Jace vs. Vraska, 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 Into the Roil and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Into the Roil Magic the Gathering card was released in 7 different sets between 2009-10-02 and 2020-11-20. Illustrated by 2 different artists.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12009-10-02ZendikarZEN 482003normalblackKieran Yanner
22014-03-14Duel Decks: Jace vs. VraskaDDM 232003normalblackKieran Yanner
32014-11-07Commander 2014C14 1152015normalblackKieran Yanner
42017-08-25Commander 2017C17 862015normalblackKieran Yanner
52018-08-09Commander 2018C18 922015normalblackKieran Yanner
62020-09-25Zendikar RisingZNR 3872015normalblackCampbell White
72020-09-25Zendikar RisingZNR 622015normalblackCampbell White
82020-11-20Commander LegendsCMR 3972015normalblackKieran Yanner

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Into the Roil has restrictions

FormatLegality
HistoricbrawlLegal
HistoricLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderLegal
OathbreakerLegal
GladiatorLegal
PioneerLegal
CommanderLegal
ModernLegal
PauperLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
ExplorerLegal
PredhLegal
PennyLegal
TimelessLegal

Rules and information

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

DateText
2009-10-01 If the targeted permanent is an illegal target by the time Into the Roil resolves, the entire spell doesn't resolve. You don't draw a card.
2020-09-25 An ability that triggers when a player casts a kicked spell resolves before the spell that caused it to trigger, but after targets have been chosen for that spell. It resolves even if that spell is countered.
2020-09-25 If the target nonland permanent is an illegal target by the time Into the Roil tries to resolve, the spell doesn't resolve. You don't draw a card if it was kicked.
2020-09-25 If you copy a kicked spell, the copy is also kicked. If a card or token enters the battlefield as a copy of a permanent that's already on the battlefield, the new permanent isn't kicked, even if the original was.
2020-09-25 If you put a permanent with a kicker ability onto the battlefield without casting it, you can't kick it.
2020-09-25 Kicker represents an optional additional cost that you may choose to pay as you cast the spell. A spell cast with that additional cost paid is "kicked."
2020-09-25 Some instant or sorcery spells require alternative or additional targets if they're kicked. You ignore these targeting requirements if those spells aren't kicked, and you can't kick those spells unless you can choose the appropriate targets. On the other hand, you can kick a permanent spell even if you won't be able to choose targets for an enters-the-battlefield ability of that permanent once the spell resolves.
2020-09-25 To determine a spell's total cost, start with the mana cost (or an alternative cost if another card's effect allows you to pay one instead), add any cost increases (such as kicker), then apply any cost reductions. The mana value of the spell is determined only by its mana cost, no matter what the total cost to cast the spell was.
2020-09-25 You can't pay a kicker cost more than once.

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