Mishra's Workshop MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 5 setsSee all
RarityRare
TypeLand

Key Takeaways

  1. Primarily boosts artifact decks by providing significant mana specifically for casting artifact spells rapidly.
  2. Lacks versatility as it only generates mana for artifact spells, potentially limiting strategy in non-artifact scenarios.
  3. Integral for Vintage format artifact strategies, offering both combo potential and substantial format influence.

Text of card

Tap to add 3 colorless mana to your mana pool. This mana may only be used to cast artifacts.

Though he eventually came to despise Tocasia, Mishra listened well to her lessons on clarity of purpose. Unlike his brother, he focused his mind on a single goal.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Mishra’s Workshop provides an unparalleled edge in decks centered around artifacts. It offers direct access to substantial amounts of mana specifically for artifact spells, allowing players to deploy multiple threats or key pieces rapidly, often overwhelming opponents with the value generated.

Resource Acceleration: Exceptionally, Mishra’s Workshop can tap for three colorless mana but with a catch; it can only be used to cast artifact spells. This powerful ability provides a significant speed boost, especially in artifact-heavy formats, enabling players to execute their strategies far ahead of the usual curve.

Instant Speed: While Mishra’s Workshop does not operate at instant speed, its impact on the game is instantaneous. From the moment it enters the battlefield, it alters the pace, allowing for immediate and impactful plays that can shape the course of the game. Its capacity to provide a rush of resources with just one land plays out in the very essence of accelerating game mechanics.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Mishra’s Workshop requires a specialized deck build as it only produces mana to cast artifact spells. This exclusivity might cause players to discard valuable non-artifact cards, leading to a narrowed strategic play.

Specific Mana Cost: While incredibly powerful within the right context, Mishra’s Workshop’s mana can’t be used for non-artifact spells, making it less versatile compared to lands that offer more flexible mana options. This specificity confines its utility to artifact-heavy decks.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Mishra’s Workshop, as a part of the “Power Nine,” is prominent in formats like Vintage where mana costs of cards are critical. Despite its ability to ramp, it competes with other mana sources that don’t restrict their mana to a single type of spell, potentially limiting an otherwise diverse and adaptive mana base.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Mishra’s Workshop is a powerhouse in artifact-centric decks, providing an exceptional mana boost that can be utilized across various archetypes such as Stax, Combo, and even Aggro.

Combo Potential: With the ability to generate three colorless mana specifically for artifacts, this card opens up numerous avenues for high-impact combos, enabling the casting of significant threats much earlier than usual.

Meta-Relevance: In a format like Vintage where many decks revolve around powerful artifacts, Mishra’s Workshop holds substantial value. Its presence can turn the tide of battle by accelerating pivotal plays that can dominate the game state.


How to Beat

Mishra’s Workshop is a powerhouse land in the realm of MTG, infamous for its ability to rapidly fuel artifact decks with its generous supply of mana. This card has the unique strength of tapping for an incredible three colorless mana, but with the restriction that this mana can only be used to cast artifact spells. Such an advantage can give an artifact-heavy deck an early and often insurmountable lead in the game.

To counteract Mishra’s Workshop, disruption is key. Strategies should include land destruction or denial tactics to mitigate its impact. Cards that force a player to sacrifice a land can strip away the advantage Mishra’s Workshop provides, while more direct removal spells target it specifically. Another effective approach involves limiting the player’s ability to utilize artifacts through cards that increase casting costs or cards like Stony Silence which prevent them from being activated. Without the proper setup or protection like Pithing Needle to stop activated abilities, the Workshop’s potency is severely diminished.

Minimizing the Workshop’s influence requires a proactive and disruption-focused deck, prepared to deal with both the land itself and the flurry of artifacts it enables. Staying one step ahead of artifact strategies can pivot the battlefield in your favor.


Cards like Mishra's Workshop

Mishra’s Workshop is a potent staple in artifact-heavy decks across the MTG landscape. It shines by allowing the tapping of three colorless mana exclusively for artifact spells, making it a powerhouse in vintage formats where artifacts are prevalent. Its closest counterpart, Ancient Tomb, also generates two colorless mana at the cost of inflicting 2 points of damage to the player each use – a trade-off for the increased output.

Another notable comparison is with the card City of Traitors, which provides two colorless mana but comes with a significant drawback: it’s sacrificed when another land enters the battlefield under your control. Though not restricted to artifacts, the downside of City of Traitors often requires careful play around land drops.

Comparatively, Metalworker offers a creature-based approach to mana acceleration for artifact-centric strategies, providing a potentially larger mana generation, yet it requires revealing artifact cards from hand, which signals your strategy to opponents. Mishra’s Workshop stands out by fueling rapid artifact deployment without such concessions, solidifying its unique position in decks that leverage a substantial number of artifacts.

Ancient Tomb - MTG Card versions
City of Traitors - MTG Card versions
Metalworker - MTG Card versions
Ancient Tomb - Tempest (TMP)
City of Traitors - Exodus (EXO)
Metalworker - Urza's Destiny (UDS)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Mishra's Workshop MTG card by a specific set like Antiquities and Magic Online Promos, 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 Mishra's Workshop and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Mishra's Workshop Magic the Gathering card was released in 5 different sets between 1994-03-04 and 2014-06-16. Illustrated by 3 different artists.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
11994-03-04AntiquitiesATQ 811993normalblackKaja Foglio
22002-06-24Magic Online PromosPRM 469442003normalblackSam Burley
32003-01-01Vintage ChampionshipOVNT 2020C2015normalblackDrew Baker
42011-01-10Masters Edition IVME4 2471997normalblackKaja Foglio
52014-06-16Vintage MastersVMA 3052015normalblackSam Burley

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Mishra's Workshop has restrictions

FormatLegality
OldschoolLegal
CommanderLegal
LegacyBanned
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelBanned
PredhLegal

Rules and information

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

DateText
2004-10-04 The mana can’t be used to pay Echo costs.
2004-10-04 This mana may be used on additional costs to cast the spell, such as Kicker.
2004-10-04 This mana may not be used to pay costs imposed after the spell is initially cast.
2004-10-04 You can spend the mana on costs on the spell’s text.

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