Dampen Thought MTG Card
2004-10-01 - Number 57
2013-06-07 - Number 39
| Card sets | Released in 2 setsSee all |
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 2 |
| Rarity | Uncommon |
| Type | Instant — Arcane |
| Abilities | Mill,Splice |
Key Takeaways
- Brings consistent milling and can synergize with graveyard-focused strategies for strategic play.
- Allows resource savings with its splice onto arcane mechanic, adding value to other spells.
- Flexibly designed for instant speed use, it can disrupt the opponent effectively and unexpectedly.
Text of card
Target player puts the top four cards of his or her library into his or her graveyard. Splice onto Arcane (As you play an Arcane spell, you may reveal this card from your hand and pay its splice cost. If you do, add this card's effects to that spell.)
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Dampen Thought shines by providing consistent milling of an opponent’s deck, steadily diminishing their resources. This effect not only reduces the options available to your opponent but can also synergize with your own strategies that benefit from having a large number of cards in an opponent’s graveyard.
Resource Acceleration: While Dampen Thought itself doesn’t directly accelerate resources, its splice onto arcane mechanic can be leveraged as a form of resource acceleration. By allowing you to add the card’s effect onto another arcane spell without expending additional cards from your hand, you effectively get more utility out of each card played, keeping your hand size robust.
Instant Speed: Dampen Thought operates at instant speed, providing flexibility in gameplay. You can disrupt your opponent’s plans on their turn or after they’ve tapped out for a big play, keeping the element of surprise on your side while also proceeding with your strategic milling.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Dampen Thought necessitates discarding a card to initiate its splice onto arcane ability, potentially depleting your hand and resources.
Specific Mana Cost: With a casting cost that includes blue mana, this card is inherently restricted to blue or multicolored decks, potentially limiting its applicability across various deck types.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: To fully leverage Dampen Thought’s milling capacity, substantial mana investment is required, as casting it in conjunction with other spells raises the overall cost, making it less mana-efficient compared to other milling options available in the game.
Reasons to Include Dampen Thought in Your Collection
Versatility: Dampen Thought is a card that offers strategic flexibility within various deck builds. It is particularly useful in decks that capitalize on spellcasting frequency or target opponent’s libraries as a win condition.
Combo Potential: This card shines when combined with other spells that enable you to cast multiple spells in a single turn, or with mill-focused strategies to rapidly deplete your opponent’s library.
Meta-Relevance: In a game environment where opponents rely heavily on specific combinations or a particular type of strategy, the ability of Dampen Thought to continually disrupt the opponent’s deck can give it a significant edge in match-ups.
How to Beat Dampen Thought
Dampen Thought heralds from the realm of spells that challenge opponents through milling strategies in Magic: The Gathering. Milling, for those unfamiliar, refers to the tactic of putting cards from the top of a player’s library directly into their graveyard, potentially depriving them of crucial resources. Dampen Thought offers the ability to persistently erode an opponent’s library, which can be amplified by its splice onto arcane ability.
To counter this card effectively, adaptability is key. Consider cards like Gaea’s Blessing or the Eldrazi titans, which shuffle back into the library if put into the graveyard from anywhere, effectively negating the mill. Additionally, employing instant-speed graveyard retrieval spells or using effects that grant hexproof to your library can shield your treasured deck from the relentless whittling of Dampen Thought. It’s also viable to focus on bolstering your draw strategy, keeping your hand flush with answers and threats that can outpace the methodical mill approach.
Mindful deck construction and the strategic inclusion of these protective measures can thwart the slow siege that Dampen Thought represents, preserving your library and maintaining your path to victory on the battlefield.
Cards like Dampen Thought
Dampen Thought stands out in the landscape of mill cards within Magic: The Gathering. Similar to cards like Tome Scour, which mills five cards from a player’s library to the graveyard, Dampen Thought pushes the boundary by allowing for repeatable milling action. Tome Scour, while a one-shot effect, is more efficient in its singular use. However, Dampen Thought can be spliced onto arcane spells, permitting players to strategically mill opponents over multiple turns.
Another analogous card is Hedron Crab, which has a different trigger for its milling effect—landfall. While Hedron Crab requires a specific condition to be met (the playing of a land), it can potentially mill more cards over time compared to Dampen Thought. This potential makes it a favored choice in decks that aim to manipulate libraries efficiently. Considering other mill cards like Glimpse the Unthinkable, which mill a significant portion of the library in one shot, Dampen Thought provides more flexibility with its splice mechanic, albeit at a slower pace.
Thus, Dampen Thought offers a unique niche within milling strategies in Magic: The Gathering. Its splice capability allows for continuous pressure on an opponent’s library, making it a versatile tool for players who want to weave their mill tactics throughout the game’s duration.
Cards similar to Dampen Thought by color, type and mana cost
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Dampen Thought MTG card by a specific set like Champions of Kamigawa and Modern Masters, 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 Dampen Thought 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 Dampen Thought Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 2004-10-01 and 2013-06-07. Illustrated by Arnie Swekel.
| # | Released | Name | Code | Symbol | Number | Frame | Layout | Border | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2004-10-01 | Champions of Kamigawa | CHK | 57 | 2003 | Normal | Black | Arnie Swekel | |
| 2 | 2013-06-07 | Modern Masters | MMA | 39 | 2003 | Normal | Black | Arnie Swekel |
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Dampen Thought has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Commander | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Paupercommander | Legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Pauper | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Predh | Legal |
| Penny | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Dampen Thought card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2013-06-07 | A card with a splice ability can’t be spliced onto itself because the spell is on the stack (and not in your hand) when you reveal the cards you want to splice onto it. |
| 2013-06-07 | If all of the spell’s targets are illegal when the spell tries to resolve, it won’t resolve and none of its effects will happen. |
| 2013-06-07 | You choose all targets for the spell after revealing cards you want to splice, including any targets required by the text of any of those cards. You may choose a different target for each instance of the word “target” on the resulting spell. |
| 2013-06-07 | You reveal all cards you intend to splice at the same time. Each individual card can be spliced only once onto any one spell. |
