Scapeshift is one of those cards players keep asking about. Here is, in plain words, what its official text says, the rulings published by Wizards of the Coast, and the combos players actually run.
Official card text
Sacrifice any number of lands. Search your library for up to that many land cards, put them onto the battlefield tapped, then shuffle.
Complete guide
Scapeshift is a powerful sorcery that allows you to completely overhaul your mana base in a single turn. By trading your existing lands for any land cards from your library, you can set up game-winning combos or simply fix your colors.
What It Does
Scapeshift lets you sacrifice any number of lands you control as it resolves. Once those lands are in the graveyard, you search your library for an equal or lesser number of land cards and put them directly onto the battlefield tapped.
Step-by-Step Resolution
First, cast the spell and wait for it to resolve. Upon resolution, you choose and sacrifice the lands; this is not an additional cost, so if the spell is countered, your lands remain safe. Second, search your library for the new lands. Third, put the new lands onto the battlefield tapped. Finally, shuffle your library.
Common Mistakes
A frequent error is sacrificing lands before the spell resolves. Because the sacrifice happens during resolution, your opponents must decide to counter the spell before knowing exactly which or how many lands you intend to give up. Also, remember that the new lands enter tapped, so you cannot use them for mana immediately unless you have a way to untap them.
When to Play It
Scapeshift is best played when you have enough lands to trigger multiple 'Landfall' abilities or to fetch specific non-basic lands that provide a utility advantage. It is a late-game finisher that rewards players for building a large resource pool.
Interaction examples
CultivateAfter using Cultivate to get ahead on basic lands, you can cast Scapeshift to sacrifice those basic lands and replace them with powerful utility lands or color-fixing non-basics from your library to close out the game.
Kodama's ReachIf you have used Kodama's Reach to pull basic lands out of your deck, you have thinned your library. Casting Scapeshift afterward allows you to trade those basic lands for higher-impact lands while ensuring your library is shuffled for better future draws.
With Scapeshift alone, you can sacrifice four basic Forests to find four different non-basic lands. Even though they enter tapped, you have successfully transformed your mana base into a more versatile toolkit for the following turn.
Guide written with AI from the official text and rulings. Official English text prevails.
How it works : Scapeshift
Original English text — Wizards of the Coast / Scryfall
- #1· Wizards of the Coast
You sacrifice the lands as part of the resolution of Scapeshift. It isn’t an additional cost. If Scapeshift is countered, you won’t sacrifice any lands.
No other card is named in this ruling.
Popular combos
Real combos played by the community, sorted by popularity.
Maze's End + Scapeshift
- 1Cast Scapeshift, sacrificing 9 lands and searching your library for nine gates minus the number of gates already on the battlefield under your control and putting them onto the battlefield.
- 2Activate Maze's End, searching your library for a tenth gate and putting it onto the battlefield, winning you the game.
Legal formats
Commentaires
- Sois le premier à commenter cette carte.
Read next
Meta decks with Scapeshift
