Myojin of Night's Reach and Grim BetrayalHow it works & interactions with other cards

The Indestructible Shield

This creature enters the battlefield with an indestructible counter only if it was cast from your hand. If you put it onto the battlefield via other methods, such as reanimation or library effects, it will lack the counter needed to activate its primary ability. This counter serves as both a layer of protection and a currency for its powerful effect.

Activating the Ability

Removing the indestructible counter is the cost to activate the ability. Once activated, the ability resolves in two parts: first, every opponent must discard their entire hand. Second, the game checks all graveyards for any creature cards that were put there since the turn began, regardless of how they got there (discard, sacrifice, or destruction), and places them onto the battlefield under your control.

Timing and Strategy

Because the ability reanimates creatures put into graveyards throughout the entire turn, timing is critical. You should look for windows after a board wipe or after forcing sacrifices to maximize your value. Remember that removing the counter makes the Myojin vulnerable to destruction effects once more.

Key Interaction Rules

The ability tracks cards that were 'put there from anywhere this turn.' This includes creatures that died in combat during the pre-combat main phase or cards discarded during a cleanup step if somehow activated then. If a card was put into a graveyard and then moved to another zone before the ability resolves, it will not be returned.

Interaction examples

The Ultimate Cleanup

Meteor Golem

Step 1: You cast Meteor Golem, and its ability destroys an opponent's creature. Step 2: You cast Myojin of Night's Reach and Grim Betrayal from your hand. Step 3: You activate the Myojin by removing its counter. The opponent discards their hand, and both the creature destroyed by Meteor Golem and any creatures discarded by the Myojin's effect enter the battlefield under your control.

Sacrifice and Reanimate

Sheoldred, Whispering One

Step 1: At the beginning of an opponent's upkeep, Sheoldred, Whispering One forces them to sacrifice a creature. Step 2: During your following main phase, you activate the Myojin's ability. Because the creature sacrificed to Sheoldred was put into the graveyard earlier this turn, the Myojin's ability will return that creature to the battlefield under your control alongside any cards discarded from the opponent's hand.