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Cryptic Command
Oracle Text
Choose two —
• Counter target spell.
• Return target permanent to its owner's hand.
• Tap all creatures your opponents control.
• Draw a card.
Card Details
Mana CostCharacter Background
Cryptic Command is one of Magic: The Gathering’s most iconic control tools, and in a blue-heavy shell it feels like the spellcasting equivalent of a perfectly timed counterspell woven with a battlefield reset. Its four modes let you cover nearly every late-game need: protect your position by countering a key spell, bounce a problematic permanent, tap down an attacking team, or simply replace itself with a card draw. This flexibility makes it best in control and tempo decks, where holding up mana is already part of the game plan. In practice, it shines when you can pass with four mana untapped and punish the opponent’s commitment on their turn. A strong deckbuilding tip is to pair it with cheap interaction and instant-speed threats, such as Faerie-style flash creatures or planeswalkers that generate value while you preserve mana. In multiplayer, it can also act as a political blowout by countering and tapping attackers in one turn.
Generated using gpt-5.4-mini
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Character Background
Cryptic Command is one of Magic: The Gathering’s most iconic control tools, and in a blue-heavy shell it feels like the spellcasting equivalent of a perfectly timed counterspell woven with a battlefield reset. Its four modes let you cover nearly every late-game need: protect your position by countering a key spell, bounce a problematic permanent, tap down an attacking team, or simply replace itself with a card draw. This flexibility makes it best in control and tempo decks, where holding up mana is already part of the game plan. In practice, it shines when you can pass with four mana untapped and punish the opponent’s commitment on their turn. A strong deckbuilding tip is to pair it with cheap interaction and instant-speed threats, such as Faerie-style flash creatures or planeswalkers that generate value while you preserve mana. In multiplayer, it can also act as a political blowout by countering and tapping attackers in one turn.
Generated using gpt-5.4-mini · Updated at 2026-08-23 03:10:46 UTC