This card has some great tension going in its design. Always one of my favourite counterspells.
Posted By:
holgir
(8/3/2009 11:54:03 AM)
Despite the card advantage thing, it's still a hard counter for 2... that alone is respectful! Arcane Denial FTW!
Posted By:
LeoKula
(9/29/2009 10:07:38 AM)
this card is really amazing as far as how versatile it is and how it STILL manages to almost not be broken. Unfortunately, Consecrated Sphinx breaks this in so many ways, I'd be surprised if he doesnt show his ugly face in a Legacy or Vintage match soon.
I wonder if they could make an updated card 'counter target spell, its controller draws 1 card' ?
that would be less powerful, but still in keeping with the spell's purpose.
Posted By:
DarthParallax
(3/8/2011 9:41:41 AM)
This is my counter-counterspell spell.
Aun gets it right. Arcane Denial turns any spell in your hand into Ancestral Recall for the low low price of 
. Run four, and you'll feel more comfortable running a low-cc card in your deck that's only useful some of the time.
Posted By:
Salient
(1/20/2012 8:43:05 PM)
Why would anyone complain about a hard counter for 2? Play it in a deck that controls the tempo, and your opponent won't be able to cast the 2 cards you gave him.
Posted By:
blugrn1989
(4/24/2011 11:40:56 AM)
Counterspell one of your own spells in order to draw 3 cards... and put a card from your hand into your graveyard. There are plenty of decks that benefit from having specific cards in their graveyard, and even more that can bypass it. (Like Bloodghast).
Posted By:
Sleazebag
(5/3/2011 7:19:50 AM)
Just thinking about having a little Isochron Scepter fun, considering running it alongside Curse of Exhaustion.
Oh. Did I say fun? I meant I wanted everyone in my playgroup to stab me.
Posted By:
BastianQoU
(12/25/2012 10:22:35 PM)
This card is one of the rare gems of Magic. It is a card whose power is subtle, and most people miss it on first look. Even people I have wasted with this card don't understand how such a seemingly disadvantageous card can wreak so much havoc.
It is a hard counter for 1U. Think about that for a minute. Nearly any spell, poof, gone, and it is very splashable. Not only is it a hard counter, but it replaces itself. Dismiss costs twice the mana. And the disadvantage? You're running blue! Arcane laboratory, more counterspells, run it with black for discard and you have more food for your megrim or lilliana's caress. Run it with mill. Run it with weenie and they might never get the chance to use those cards.
Posted By:
voidweaver
(2/13/2013 8:28:46 PM)
Splashable hard counter that cantrips or Ancestral Recalls w/ a lil help. I don't use any other counter-magic, and rightly so. 5/5, don't be silly.
Posted By:
Psychrates
(4/27/2013 5:55:06 AM)
Not an absolute staple counter, but very close. First off, it's one of the only absolute unconditional counters for 1U, which does in fact make the spell go to the graveyard. Secondly, some decks don't particularly care much if they lose a bit of card advantage. Thirdly, the aforementioned decks may also greatly benefit from their own card advantage. And lastly, your opponent may legally forget to draw the cards -- it is a choice for them, not a forced draw.
Posted By:
Locohead
(9/10/2009 2:33:22 AM)