Merchant ScrollHow it works & interactions with other cards

Finding the Perfect Answer

When you cast Merchant Scroll, you search your library for a blue instant card. The card must be both blue and an instant; you cannot find blue sorceries, artifacts, or non-blue instants. After finding the card, you reveal it to all players to prove it meets the criteria, then put it into your hand and shuffle your library.

Step-by-Step Resolution

First, you pay the mana cost and put Merchant Scroll on the stack. Once it resolves, you begin the search. You may choose any blue instant card in your library. If you don't want to find anything, or if there are no blue instants left, you can choose to find nothing since the search specifies a specific card quality. Finally, you shuffle your library regardless of whether a card was found.

Common Mistakes

The most common error is attempting to search for a sorcery. Even if a card like Ponder or Windfall is blue, Merchant Scroll cannot find them because they are not instants. Additionally, remember that you must reveal the card. Because the search is restricted to a specific type, your opponents have the right to verify that the card you found is legal.

Strategic Timing

Merchant Scroll is a sorcery, meaning you must cast it during your main phase when the stack is empty. While the card you find might be an instant you can use immediately, you need to plan your mana accordingly to ensure you have enough left over to cast the spell you just tutored for.

Interaction examples

Filtering with Sorceries

Ponder

You have Merchant Scroll in hand and Ponder in your library. You cannot use Merchant Scroll to find Ponder because Ponder is a sorcery, not an instant. Merchant Scroll only targets cards with the 'Instant' type line.

Interaction with Hand Disruption

Windfall

If you use Merchant Scroll to put a powerful blue instant into your hand, and then an opponent casts Windfall, you will be forced to discard that tutored card along with the rest of your hand. Always consider if your hand is safe before tutoring for a key piece.

Searching for Nothing

If you cast Merchant Scroll solely to shuffle your library (perhaps after seeing bad cards on top), you can choose to fail to find a blue instant even if your library contains many of them. The official rulings state that because you are searching for a card with specific characteristics, you are not required to find one.