Energy Field MTG Card
1998-10-12 - Number 73
2000-08-02 - Number tvdl73
2019-11-07 - Number 363
2020-09-26 - Number USG-73
| Card sets | Released in 4 setsSee all |
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 2 |
| Rarity | Rare |
| Type | Enchantment |
Key Takeaways
- Energy Field can be a card advantage powerhouse, negating damage and conserving resources effectively.
- It requires precise mana and careful graveyard management to maintain its defensive shield.
- Despite its strengths, Energy Field’s rigid mana and self-sacrificing conditions pose deck-building challenges.
Text of card
Prevent all damage dealt to you from sources you do not control. When a card is put into your graveyard, sacrifice Energy Field.
Card Pros
Card Advantage: By preventing all damage dealt to you from sources you don’t control, Energy Field can help you conserve the cards in your hand. Instead of casting spells for life gain or creature removal, you can extend strategies without losing card count against aggressive decks.
Resource Acceleration: Energy Field does not directly provide mana or tokens, but its protective properties can indirectly allow for greater resource investment in board development and card draw engines, giving a crucial advantage when setting up for the win.
Instant Speed: While Energy Field itself is an enchantment, its synergy with instant speed graveyard manipulation means you can smartly manage the condition for its self-sacrifice trigger. This allows for flexible plays and can catch opponents off-guard, giving you the upper hand during key turns.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: With Energy Field, there’s a stipulation that the shield it provides can be nullified once a card heads to your graveyard. This can pose a challenge, particularly in gameplay that leans heavily on cycling through your deck or strategies that involve graveyard interaction, ultimately risking the discard of the valuable protection prematurely.
Specific Mana Cost: Energy Field’s casting requirements demand both blue and white mana. This specificity confines the card to decks that can reliably produce both types of mana, potentially restricting its inclusion to only Azorius or multicolor decks capable of accommodating these colors.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a two-mana cost for a non-creature enchantment, it may be perceived as a steep investment for a card that doesn’t directly influence the board state or offer an immediate impact on gameplay. Other cards at similar mana costs could potentially provide more immediate defensive or offensive benefits.
Reasons to Include in Your Collection
Versatility: Energy Field is a unique card that offers defensive capabilities across multiple formats. It can serve as an effective shield in decks focused on biding time to assemble powerful combinations or protect valuable permanents.
Combo Potential: This card is well-known for its synergy with Rest in Peace, creating a combo that prevents most forms of damage to you as long as your graveyard remains empty. It’s a potent mix that can be the cornerstone of a lockdown strategy.
Meta-Relevance: Given its ability to shut down certain aggressive strategies, Energy Field remains relevant in environments where direct damage and creature-based assaults are prevalent. Integrating this card into your deck can provide a significant edge in such metas.
How to beat
Energy Field is a unique protection enchantment in Magic: The Gathering that prevents damage to you as long as you haven’t had a card put into your graveyard from anywhere this turn. This intriguing element can make it seem like a daunting task to overcome such a shield. However, there are strategic plays that can dismantle the barrier it creates.
To circumvent Energy Field’s protection, consider using cards that force a player to discard or that specifically target and remove enchantments without dealing damage. Cards with abilities to exile cards from the graveyard, like Tormod’s Crypt, can pave the way to bypass Energy Field’s condition, nullifying its effect. Abilities and spells that shuffle a graveyard into the library are also effective, as they can leave the opponent without any cards in the graveyard, which is a prerequisite for Energy Field to operate.
Remember, targeted removal or discard strategies not only can disrupt your opponent’s board presence but also can cleverly dismantle their defenses. By understanding and interacting with the specific mechanics of cards like Energy Field, you can proficiently navigate around the obstacles it presents and maintain the upper hand in your matchups.
Cards like Energy Field
The Energy Field card offers a unique protective measure for players in the MTG universe. It shares its preventative nature with the likes of Propaganda, another card designed with defense in mind. However, Propaganda requires opponents to pay an additional cost to attack you, while Energy Field prevents all damage that would be dealt to you, as long as you haven’t put a card into your graveyard from anywhere this turn.
For those seeking a slightly different flavor of defense, there’s Ghostly Prison. Similar to Propaganda, this card imposes a cost on attackers targeting you. Yet, Energy Field stands out for its total damage negation. Then consider the card, Solitary Confinement which, akin to Energy Field, provides strong personal protection. It does demand a continual feed of cards to maintain its effect, contrasting Energy Field’s one-time cast-and-forget approach, albeit with a vulnerability to graveyard interactions.
Ultimately, within the MTG card pool, Energy Field represents a solid choice for players who want to set up impenetrable defenses early on, making it a staple in counterspell and control decks that aim to lock down opponents while setting up their win conditions.
Cards similar to Energy Field by color, type and mana cost
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Energy Field MTG card by a specific set like Urza's Saga and World Championship Decks 2000, 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 Energy Field 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 Energy Field Magic the Gathering card was released in 4 different sets between 1998-10-12 and 2019-11-07. Illustrated by John Matson.
| # | Released | Name | Code | Symbol | Number | Frame | Layout | Border | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1998-10-12 | Urza's Saga | USG | 73 | 1997 | Normal | Black | John Matson | |
| 2 | 2000-08-02 | World Championship Decks 2000 | WC00 | tvdl73 | 1997 | Normal | Gold | John Matson | |
| 3 | 2019-11-07 | Mystery Booster | MB1 | 363 | 1997 | Normal | Black | John Matson | |
| 4 | The List | PLST | USG-73 | 1997 | Normal | Black | John Matson |
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Energy Field has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Commander | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Premodern | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Predh | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Energy Field card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2004-10-04 | Buyback causes a spell to go to your hand instead of your graveyard, so using Buyback will avoid triggering this card to be sacrificed. |
| 2004-10-04 | Discarding does trigger this. |
