Harsh Justice MTG Card

Portal (POR)
1997-05-01 - Number 18

Harsh Justice - Masters Edition IV (ME4)

Masters Edition IV (ME4)
2011-01-10 - Number 13

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

Key Takeaways

Harsh Justice deters attacks effectively, often yielding indirect card advantage by influencing opponent strategies.
Its instant speed provides significant flexibility, enabling it to be a surprise element of control in various situations.
Despite its strengths, its specific mana cost and discard requirement may limit its utility in certain decks.

Text of card

Play Harsh Justice only after you're attacked, before you declare interceptors. This turn, each attacking creature that damages you also deals equal damage to the attacking player.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Harsh Justice shines by potentially deterring attacks due to its effect of causing opponents to lose life equivalent to the damage their creatures would deal. This can indirectly translate to card advantage as opponents may withhold their creatures, leaving you with more time and resources to execute your strategy.

Resource Acceleration: While Harsh Justice doesn’t provide direct resource acceleration, it can give you the upper hand in stabilizing the battlefield. By strategically waiting to reveal Harsh Justice, you can sustain your board position, indirectly making your resources more effective as your opponent hesitates to commit resources to an attack.

Instant Speed: The power of Harsh Justice is amplified by its instant speed, allowing you the flexibility to cast it when it’s most impactful. Whether it’s during the declare attackers phase or at the end of your opponent’s turn, the ability to respond to threats at any time makes this card a potent form of control in your arsenal.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Harsh Justice compels a player to discard a card, which could be quite detrimental during later game stages when maintaining a healthy hand size is critical for strategy and response.

Specific Mana Cost: The mana cost of Harsh Justice includes white mana, which might not synergize well with multi-colored decks or those that don’t heavily feature white. It’s important to keep in mind that this requirement could potentially restrict its incorporation into a diverse array of decks.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a cost that’s on the higher end for its effect, Harsh Justice could be considered a significant investment, especially in fast-paced games where efficiency is key. Other cards might offer similar effects with lower mana requirements, possibly making them preferable choices in certain deck builds.

Reasons to Include Harsh Justice in Your Collection

Versatility: Harsh Justice offers a unique approach to defense, deterring attackers not through the usual creature destruction but by punishing opponents with life loss. This card can slide into many white-based control or combo decks that focus on deterring combat through non-traditional means.

Combo Potential: This card has synergy with strategies that encourage opponents to attack, only to be met with an unpleasant surprise. It can be combined with cards that lure creatures into attacking, maximizing the unexpected life swing it can deliver.

Meta-Relevance: In an environment dominated by aggressive decks, Harsh Justice can serve as a pivotal sideboard card. Its ability to sway the tide in your favor during combat can turn it into a meta-dependent ace, especially when timed well against unsuspecting opponents.

How to beat Harsh Justice

Harsh Justice is a unique white instant card within the universe of Magic: The Gathering that can turn the tides during your opponent’s attack. It deals damage to attacking creatures’ controllers based on the amount of damage those attackers would inflict upon you. The beauty of this card lies in its reactive nature, surprising opponents who might be expecting an uneventful hit on your life total.

To efficiently counter Harsh Justice, players should consider employing spells that prevent their creatures from being declared as attackers, which could bypass the trap Harsh Justice sets. Additionally, leveraging instant-speed removal spells to eliminate potential blocker threats before initiating the attack phase is an effective strategy. This leaves fewer or no creatures on the battlefield to be targeted by Harsh Justice. Hexproof abilities on creatures or embracing spells that offer temporary invincibility during the attack, like Dive Down or Blossoming Defense, can also ensure that a Harsh Justice play isn’t as devastating.

When assessing the gameplay against Harsh Justice, anticipation and strategic spell casting are crucial. By staying a step ahead and carefully choosing when to attack or holding back to avoid leaving yourself vulnerable to Harsh Justice’s impact can ensure that you maintain the upper hand in the match.

Cards like Harsh Justice

Harsh Justice is a unique spell that shapes the battlefield outcomes in Magic: The Gathering. It finds parallels with cards like Reflect Damage and Comeuppance, which also twist the direction of damage dealt. Unlike Harsh Justice, Reflect Damage redirects the damage from a single source to another target, providing tactical control. Comeuppance further refines this effect by targeting not just one but all damage that would be dealt to you and your creatures this turn.

A broader comparison could be drawn with Master Warcraft, a card that allows you to manipulate combat by choosing which creatures attack and block. Though Harsh Justice doesn’t control the creatures’ actions, it creates a powerful deterrent by promising retribution in the form of damage. Another similar card is Rakdos Charm, which punishes opponents’ creature-heavy strategies by dealing damage for each creature they control, a different but relevant twist in the same sphere of retributive effects.

Exploring the nuances and strategic applications of each card, Harsh Justice certainly holds its ground, offering players a distinct approach to defending against swarming tactics and cleverly turning opponents’ aggression to their own disadvantage.

Cards similar to Harsh Justice by color, type and mana cost

Ardenvale Tactician // Dizzying Swoop - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Harsh Justice MTG card by a specific set like Portal and Masters Edition IV, 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 Harsh Justice and other MTG cards: