Courser of KruphixHow it works & interactions with other cards

Information at Your Fingertips

While Courser of Kruphix is on the battlefield, the top card of your library is always revealed to all players. This effect is continuous; as soon as the top card changes, the new card is revealed. Most importantly, you gain the ability to play any land card currently on top of your library as if it were in your hand. This does not change the timing rules for lands; you can still only play them during your main phase when the stack is empty, and it counts toward your normal limit of one land per turn.

Life from the Land

The Landfall ability triggers every time a land enters the battlefield under your control, regardless of where that land came from. Whether you played it from your hand, played it from the top of your library via Courser's own ability, or put it onto the battlefield with a spell or ability, you will gain 1 life. If multiple lands enter at the same time, the ability triggers once for each of them.

Technical Timing and Shuffling

If you are performing an action that involves the top card, such as playing a land or casting a spell, you do not reveal the next card until that action is completely finished. For example, if you play a land from the top of your library that has an 'enters the battlefield' choice, you finish that choice and place the land on the table before revealing the next card. Similarly, if an effect tells you to draw multiple cards, you must reveal each one individually to all players before it moves to your hand.

Strategic Considerations

The most common mistake is forgetting that Courser of Kruphix does not grant extra land plays. If you have already played your land for the turn from your hand, you cannot play one from the top of your library unless another effect increases your land limit. Use Courser to 'filter' your deck; if you see a land on top, play it to get closer to the non-land spells underneath.

Interaction examples

Searching for Value

Sakura-Tribe Elder

With Courser of Kruphix on the battlefield, you sacrifice Sakura-Tribe Elder to search for a basic land. You put that land onto the battlefield tapped, which triggers Courser's Landfall ability to gain you 1 life. After shuffling your library, you reveal the new top card. If it is a land, you can immediately play it during your main phase (assuming you haven't used your land play for the turn), gaining another 1 life.

The Simulacrum Chain

Solemn Simulacrum

When Solemn Simulacrum enters the battlefield, you search for a land and gain 1 life from the Courser trigger. Later, when Solemn Simulacrum dies, its trigger lets you draw a card. Because Courser requires the top card to be revealed, you must show the card to your opponent before it officially enters your hand. If the new card revealed underneath it is a land, you can then play that land to gain even more life.