Although Strixhaven: School of Mages came out back in April, the set is starting to see a huge impact in Standard, with a handful of spells extending into Modern. With the release of Strixhaven, the Mystical Archives changed up the Historic format in a tremendously huge way. The Mystical Archives are a selection of powerful instants and sorceries celebrated throughout the history of MTG, these are not Standard legal but are accessible in Historic.
As these are all reprints, it offers a great opportunity to pick up these unique-looking cards for your collection. As such, there are a few Mystical Archive cards that have rocketed in price due to their evergreen status within MTG. But, that shouldn’t stop you from checking out this impressive range of cards to bling out your Commander or constructed deck.
Inquisition of Kozilek
A Modern staple,
Inquisition of Kozilek
Inquisition of Kozilek
Target player reveals their hand. You choose a nonland card from it with mana value 3 or less. That player discards that card.
is a powerful discard spell for one Black mana. You often see the Sorcery featured alongside
Thoughtseize
Thoughtseize
Target player reveals their hand. You choose a nonland card from it. That player discards that card. You lose 2 life.
in Jund, Grixis Death’s Shadow, or any strategy that wants to deny the opponent of their resources.
It’s so good in Modern since the format cares about low mana value spells which is where
Inquisition of Kozilek
Inquisition of Kozilek
Target player reveals their hand. You choose a nonland card from it with mana value 3 or less. That player discards that card.
can discard them to forward your gameplan. Going further, the Sorcery sees a lot of play in Legacy for similar reasons to Modern, as it can remove some tricky yet cheap spells. You can’t go wrong with owning a set of
Inquisition of Kozilek
Inquisition of Kozilek
Target player reveals their hand. You choose a nonland card from it with mana value 3 or less. That player discards that card.
for Modern or Legacy, and they’re pretty affordable with this printing in Strixhaven: School of Mages.
Read More: Standard is Dominated by Two Decks, Should They Be Banned?
Chaos Warp
Originally from Commander 2011,
Chaos Warp
Chaos Warp
The owner of target permanent shuffles it into their library, then reveals the top card of their library. If it's a permanent card, they put it onto the battlefield.
is one of the best removal spells in Red. Not only does the Instant remove any kind of permanent in play, but it also tucks the card back into their library. Although the opponent may re-reveal it once the spell resolves, the chance of it returning into play in Commander is quite low.
Red struggles to have dedicated permanent removal outside of creature removal and land destruction, which makes
Chaos Warp
Chaos Warp
The owner of target permanent shuffles it into their library, then reveals the top card of their library. If it's a permanent card, they put it onto the battlefield.
such an effective option for Commander. You also see the card in Legacy and Vintage Cubes to offer a similar approach for Mono-Red archetypes. If you’re playing Red in Commander, you can never have enough copies of this card because of how many targets it can hit. Plus, you may get a fun story of a more powerful card coming in off a
Chaos Warp
Chaos Warp
The owner of target permanent shuffles it into their library, then reveals the top card of their library. If it's a permanent card, they put it onto the battlefield.
, so there is a bit of randomness thrown in for good measure.
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Lightning Bolt
One of the most iconic spells in MTG,
Lightning Bolt
Lightning Bolt
Lightning Bolt deals 3 damage to any target.
is the best burn spell ever printed. Since its original printing in Alpha, the card has seen continued play throughout the years and there will always be a demand for the card. It’s evergreen in formats such as Legacy, Modern, and it’s pretty good in Commander too.
You can never have enough
Lightning Bolt
Lightning Bolt
Lightning Bolt deals 3 damage to any target.
s as you’ll always want to run a playset across various decks you own. Nothing will ever come as close to
Lightning Bolt
Lightning Bolt
Lightning Bolt deals 3 damage to any target.
in terms of raw power for a single mana, and you can be sure we won’t ever see another burn spell come close to it again.
Read More: 10 Best Standard Cards from Innistrad: Midnight Hunt
Counterspell
Another iconic spell from Alpha,
Counterspell
Counterspell
Counter target spell.
has risen in value since its legality in Modern thanks to Modern Horizons 2. You see the Instant in Blue-heavy lists that want to protect their threats such as Izzet Murktide or Izzet Control.
It’s also solid interaction in Commander as it cleanly answers any card your opponent is trying to cast for two Blue mana. There was a lot of talk about the card breaking Modern as it’s too effective at what it does, but we’re yet to see that happen. If you are after an affordable yet effective way to say “No” to your opponent,
Counterspell
Counterspell
Counter target spell.
is one of the best available.
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Mizzix’s Mastery
First printed in Commander 2015,
Mizzix’s Mastery
Mizzix’s Mastery
Exile target card that's an instant or sorcery from your graveyard. For each card exiled this way, copy it, and you may cast the copy without paying its mana cost. Exile Mizzix's Mastery.
Overload {5}{R}{R}{R} (You may cast this spell for its overload cost. If you do, change "target" in its text to "each.")
saw play in Legacy which used
Enter the Infinite
Enter the Infinite
Draw cards equal to the number of cards in your library, then put a card from your hand on top of your library. You have no maximum hand size until your next turn.
and
Lightning Storm
Lightning Storm
Lightning Storm deals X damage to any target, where X is 3 plus the number of charge counters on Lightning Storm.
Discard a land card: Put two charge counters on Lightning Storm. You may choose a new target for it. Any player may activate this ability but only if Lightning Storm is on the stack.
to win the game. The Sorcery is now only seen in Commander and Historic as a way to cast a sleuth of spells. Earlier in the year, there was talk of the card seeing a ban in Historic since it played so well with
Time Warp
Time Warp
Target player takes an extra turn after this one.
.
Normally you see the spell feature in Izzet or Mono-Red Commander lists since these are the colors that can leverage the spell favorably. If you are looking to build a spellsinger Commander deck that cares about casting a lot of spells, then
Mizzix’s Mastery
Mizzix’s Mastery
Exile target card that's an instant or sorcery from your graveyard. For each card exiled this way, copy it, and you may cast the copy without paying its mana cost. Exile Mizzix's Mastery.
Overload {5}{R}{R}{R} (You may cast this spell for its overload cost. If you do, change "target" in its text to "each.")
is for you.
Read More: 10 Best Modern Cards from MTG’s Innistrad: Midnight Hunt
Tainted Pact
Once a very expensive card,
Tainted Pact
Tainted Pact
Exile the top card of your library. You may put that card into your hand unless it has the same name as another card exiled this way. Repeat this process until you put a card into your hand or you exile two cards with the same name, whichever comes first.
is a sorely needed reprint for those who prefer to play their Commander in a highly competitive setting. The card broke Historic in two with the inclusion of
Thassa’s Oracle
Thassa’s Oracle
When this creature enters, look at the top X cards of your library, where X is your devotion to blue. Put up to one of them on top of your library and the rest on the bottom of your library in a random order. If X is greater than or equal to the number of cards in your library, you win the game. (Each {U} in the mana costs of permanents you control counts toward your devotion to blue.)
, which saw a ban shortly after as it created an unhealthy metagame in the MTG Arena-exclusive format.
In the realms of paper MTG, the Instant sees play in Commander lists that can leverage the spell to its full advantage. Usually, you see
Tainted Pact
Tainted Pact
Exile the top card of your library. You may put that card into your hand unless it has the same name as another card exiled this way. Repeat this process until you put a card into your hand or you exile two cards with the same name, whichever comes first.
in Combo-focused lists that only run one of each Basic land to get the most value out of the card. Like in Historic when it was legal, you are looking for
Thassa’s Oracle
Thassa’s Oracle
When this creature enters, look at the top X cards of your library, where X is your devotion to blue. Put up to one of them on top of your library and the rest on the bottom of your library in a random order. If X is greater than or equal to the number of cards in your library, you win the game. (Each {U} in the mana costs of permanents you control counts toward your devotion to blue.)
since this wins you the game on the spot. It’s one of the less interesting win conditions out there, but it’s one of the most effective if you build your deck correctly.
Read More: 10 Best Historic Cards From Innistrad: Midnight Hunt
Time Warp
Banned in MTG Arena’s Historic format back in June,
Time Warp
Time Warp
Target player takes an extra turn after this one.
is a strong spell that allows you to take an extra turn. What makes these effects so powerful is the ability to repeat through copy spells such as
Galvanic Iteration
Galvanic Iteration
When you next cast an instant or sorcery spell this turn, copy that spell. You may choose new targets for the copy.
Flashback {1}{U}{R} (You may cast this card from your graveyard for its flashback cost. Then exile it.)
, pushing your opponent further away from being in the game.
These effects are massively popular in Commander for similar reasons, especially if there is a
Narset, Enlightened Master
Narset, Enlightened Master
First strike, hexproof
Whenever Narset attacks, exile the top four cards of your library. Until end of turn, you may cast noncreature spells from among those cards without paying their mana costs.
entering play since these spells can be cast for free. When you play these kinds of effects, you are usually doing silly and broken things to follow it – which can cause some disparity with players as it can be very unfun for those involved.
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Natural Order
One of the best Green cards in Legacy,
Natural Order
Natural Order
As an additional cost to cast this spell, sacrifice a green creature.
Search your library for a green creature card, put it onto the battlefield, then shuffle.
sees heavy play in Elves in the format as it’s the ideal tutor effect in that color. Typically you would get ahead on mana and use
Natural Order
Natural Order
As an additional cost to cast this spell, sacrifice a green creature.
Search your library for a green creature card, put it onto the battlefield, then shuffle.
to grab
Craterhoof Behemoth
Craterhoof Behemoth
Haste
When this creature enters, creatures you control gain trample and get +X/+X until end of turn, where X is the number of creatures you control.
to finish off the opponent, or
Progenitus
Progenitus
Protection from everything
If Progenitus would be put into a graveyard from anywhere, reveal Progenitus and shuffle it into its owner's library instead.
as a difficult threat for your opponent to remove.
You see the Sorcery in Commander in Green-based lists to achieve a similar effect, you trade away your mana dork for a value creature, or for a game-ending threat. Either way,
Natural Order
Natural Order
As an additional cost to cast this spell, sacrifice a green creature.
Search your library for a green creature card, put it onto the battlefield, then shuffle.
is amazing in Green-based creature lists, and you often see the same habits occur in Legacy and Vintage Cube to great effect.
Read More: The 10 Best Graveyard Commanders In MTG
Teferi’s Protection
Originally printed in Commander 2017,
Teferi’s Protection
Teferi’s Protection
Until your next turn, your life total can't change and you gain protection from everything. All permanents you control phase out. (While they're phased out, they're treated as though they don't exist. They phase in before you untap during your untap step.)
Exile Teferi's Protection.
is one of the best cards to insure you from board wipes or any lethal damage. With that, the Instant allows you to phase all your permanents while your life total can’t change until your next turn. It’s a unique and strong effect that is now a staple in any Commander list that chooses to run White, as it can save your battlefield in a pinch.
It’s only had a handful of printings which makes the card desirable for Commander and Cube players alike. It doesn’t see play in Legacy as it’s too slow, as you want to further your gameplan rather than go defensive the format. Either way, it’s only going to rise in value since it’s unlikely we’ll see another card with this effect for a cheaper mana value.
Read More: The 10 Best Mono-White Commanders
Demonic Tutor
Unsurprisingly, coming in at the most expensive is
Demonic Tutor
Demonic Tutor
Search your library for a card, put that card into your hand, then shuffle.
. Banned in MTG Arena’s Historic format before Strixhaven: School of Mages even dropped, the Sorcery is one of the best tutor effects in Magic: The Gathering. It’s a staple in any Commander list that runs Black and allows you to grab whatever card you need given the situation.
Although this printing has helped curb the overall price, it’s still an expensive card given the power and legacy the card has. If you are lucky to open the Japanese Mystical Archive variant of the card, you are sitting on a small fortune. As such, the fortune will only increase the older Strixhaven: School of Mages becomes. Outside of Commander,
Demonic Tutor
Demonic Tutor
Search your library for a card, put that card into your hand, then shuffle.
is a staple in Legacy and Vintage Cubes, which is often seen as one of the most powerful cards outside of the Power Nine. It is considered to be one of the most effective Black cards ever printed, and players have made that statement since its original printing in Alpha.
Read More: Do Tutors In Commander Defeat The Point Of The Format?