Pondering Mage MTG Card
2019-06-14 - Number 63
2019-11-07 - Number 457
2021-08-26 - Number 231
2020-09-26 - Number MH1-63
| Card sets | Released in 4 setsSee all |
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 5 |
| Rarity | Common |
| Type | Creature — Human Wizard |
| Power | 3 |
| Toughness | 4 |
Key Takeaways
- Pondering Mage enhances hand quality with deck manipulation and strategic draw options.
- It can reshuffle your deck, potentially accelerating access to crucial cards and plays.
- Despite its mana cost and card discard, its ability to scry and draw is invaluable.
Text of card
When Pondering Mage enters the battlefield, look at the top three cards of your library, then put them back in any order. You may shuffle your library. Draw a card.
"Never leave the future to fate."
Card Pros
Card Advantage: The Pondering Mage is an asset for any player looking to bolster their hand. Upon casting, it lets you look at the top three cards of your deck, providing insight and choice, empowering strategic planning and setting you up for future plays.
Resource Acceleration: This spell comes into play and immediately impacts the board by allowing you to shuffle your library if the cards observed don’t match your needs. This can be a form of indirect resource acceleration by finding the most opportune cards faster, leading to a more efficient game plan.
Instant Speed: While not an instant itself, Pondering Mage replicates the famed instant Ponder’s ability. It offers similar benefits by optimizing draws, albeit at sorcery speed, but compensates by presenting a tangible creature on the battlefield.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Pondering Mage demands a tough choice upon casting, necessitating that you discard another card. This can be particularly problematic when your hand is already pared down to essential strategies or combo pieces that you can’t afford to lose.
Specific Mana Cost: Aligning precisely with its casting cost can be tricky as it requires a specific combination of mana – two islands and three of any type. This restricts Pondering Mage’s inclusion mainly to decks that run heavily on blue and may deter its play in more varied mana base decks.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: For a five-mana investment, the Pondering Mage offers both creature presence and an ability reminiscent of the card Ponder. However, considering the metagame, there are alternative creatures and spells that might yield a more cost-effective card advantage or exert a stronger board presence for the same or lesser mana commitment.
Reasons to Include Pondering Mage in Your Collection
Versatility: Pondering Mage is a versatile addition to any MTG player’s deck due to its ability to manipulate the deck through scrying and drawing a card. This can be beneficial for a variety of blue decks that prioritize spell manipulation and draw strategies.
Combo Potential: This card offers solid combo potential, acting as a catalyst for setups that revolve around casting spells. Its casting can also trigger abilities from other cards that react to spell casts or card draws, integrating seamlessly into intricate play sequences.
Meta-Relevance: Given the significance of card advantage and selection in the current meta, Pondering Mage remains a relevant choice. It allows players to filter their draws and maintain pressure against opponents, adaptively shaping their hand to counter prevailing strategies.
How to beat
Pondering Mage is a card revered for its built-in card filtering ability, reminiscent of the infamous Ponder spell in Magic: The Gathering. When Pondering Mage enters the battlefield, it allows the player to look at the top three cards of their library, then put them back in any order and draw a card. This type of effect is powerful because it smooths out draws and can help a player access key cards more consistently.
To effectively counter Pondering Mage, consider using instant-speed removal spells to dispatch the mage before the ability resolves. Cards like Lightning Bolt or Fatal Push are excellent choices as they can eliminate the creature efficiently. It’s also beneficial to apply pressure with an aggressive strategy, forcing opponents to defend rather than setting up their library. Furthermore, utilizing hand disruption tactics can preemptively remove threats like Pondering Mage from the game, thereby maintaining tempo and thwarting your opponent’s plan.
When facing a deck that includes Pondering Mage, stay vigilant and prioritize resources to manage this card’s influence on the game. Control strategies that negate the benefit of such card filtering can be your key to victory against decks capitalizing on Pondering Mage’s consistent card advantage.
Cards like Pondering Mage
Pondering Mage stands as an intriguing Magic: The Gathering creature card that offers a glimpse into the future of your deck. It’s particularly akin to the likes of Omenspeaker and Augur of Bolas, which both dig into the deck for card selection. What sets Pondering Mage apart is its powerful ability to look at the top three cards and reorder them or shuffle the deck, combined with drawing a card, thereby exceeding the capabilities of the other two.
Comparable to Sea Gate Oracle, Pondering Mage exceeds expectations with its slightly higher mana value but with a direct draw effect, which Oracle lacks. Sea Gate Oracle allows for the selection of one card out of the two revealed, but Pondering Mage ensures that the card draw is a certainty. Then there’s Augury Owl, sharing the scry ability but falling short in terms of card draw and having less of a board presence due to its lower stats.
Ultimately, Pondering Mage is more than just an on-curve play. Its scry and draw combination makes it an excellent choice for deck manipulation within Magic: The Gathering, outshining other cards that offer similar foreseeing abilities but with limited immediate impact.
Cards similar to Pondering Mage by color, type and mana cost
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Pondering Mage MTG card by a specific set like Modern Horizons and Mystery Booster, 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 Pondering Mage and other MTG cards:
- eBay
- TCG Player
- Card Kingdom
- Card Market
- Star City Games
- CoolStuffInc
- MTG Mint Card
- Hareruya
- Troll and Toad
- ABU Games
- Card Hoarder Magic Online
- MTGO Traders Magic Online
See MTG Products
Printings
The Pondering Mage Magic the Gathering card was released in 4 different sets between 2019-06-14 and 2021-08-26. Illustrated by Tommy Arnold.
| # | Released | Name | Code | Symbol | Number | Frame | Layout | Border | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2019-06-14 | Modern Horizons | MH1 | 63 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Tommy Arnold | |
| 2 | 2019-11-07 | Mystery Booster | MB1 | 457 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Tommy Arnold | |
| 3 | The List | PLST | MH1-63 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Tommy Arnold | ||
| 4 | 2021-08-26 | Jumpstart: Historic Horizons | J21 | 231 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Tommy Arnold |
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Pondering Mage has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Historicbrawl | Legal |
| Historic | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Paupercommander | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Gladiator | Legal |
| Commander | Legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Pauper | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Penny | Legal |
| Timeless | Legal |
