Jace, Memory AdeptHow it works & interactions with other cards

A Master of Mental Erosion

Jace, Memory Adept features three distinct loyalty abilities focused on drawing cards and milling libraries. The +1 ability provides consistent card draw while slowly eroding a player's library. The 0 ability is the centerpiece of the card, forcing a player to mill ten cards without costing any loyalty points, making it a fast clock against most decks. Finally, the -7 ultimate can force multiple players to draw twenty cards, which often leads to an immediate loss for opponents with thin libraries.

Step-by-Step Resolution

When you activate Jace's +1 ability, you must choose a target player immediately. Upon resolution, you draw a card first, and then the target player mills a card. Note that if the target player becomes illegal (for example, by gaining hexproof), the entire ability fails and you will not draw a card. For the -7 ability, you choose any number of target players as you activate it; if any player is forced to draw more cards than remain in their library, they lose the game the next time state-based actions are checked.

Strategic Timing

Since the 0 ability does not reduce Jace's loyalty, it is often the most efficient play when you are not under immediate pressure. Use the +1 ability when you need to find answers in your own deck or increase Jace's loyalty to survive an incoming attack. The -7 should be reserved for a finishing move, targeting opponents who have already been softened up by previous mill effects to ensure their library is empty upon resolution.

Common Mistakes

A common error is targeting yourself with the +1 ability when you have zero cards in library, hoping to mill a specific card. Remember that you draw first; if your library is empty, you will lose the game before the mill happens. Additionally, players often forget that the -7 ability can target the controller of the ability as well. Only target yourself if you have a way to win from an empty library or if you desperately need to find a specific card and have more than twenty cards left.

Interaction examples

Winning Through Depletion

Jace, Wielder of Mysteries

If you have Jace, Wielder of Mysteries on the battlefield and use Jace, Memory Adept's -7 ability targeting yourself, you may be forced to draw twenty cards. If your library has fewer than twenty cards, Jace, Wielder of Mysteries' static ability replaces those failed draws with a victory, winning you the game instead of losing it.

Removing Threats to Jace

Ugin, the Ineffable

If an opponent plays a colored creature that threatens to attack and destroy Jace, Memory Adept, you can use the -3 ability of Ugin, the Ineffable to destroy that permanent. This protects Jace, allowing you to continue using his 0 ability on subsequent turns to mill the opponent's library safely.

Incremental Advantage

You activate the +1 ability of Jace, Memory Adept targeting your opponent. First, you draw a card from your library. Then, the opponent moves the top card of their library to their graveyard. Even if the opponent has no cards left to mill, you still draw your card as long as they were a legal target.