Seal of Cleansing — ruling 1

Sacrificing Seal of Cleansing is the cost to activate its ability. Once you activate the ability, no player can do anything to Seal of Cleansing to stop you from activating it. Notably, if you cast Seal of Cleansing during your turn, you'll have priority to activate its ability before anyone can respond to stop you.

Seal of Cleansing : règles, fonctionnement et interactions (MTG)

Seal of Cleansing 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 this enchantment: Destroy target artifact or enchantment.

Complete guide

Seal of Cleansing is a versatile enchantment that provides white mages with a proactive way to police the battlefield. Instead of holding onto a reactive spell, you can deploy this early and threaten to remove a problematic permanent at any moment.

A Persistent Threat

Seal of Cleansing is an enchantment that stays on the battlefield until you decide to use it. Its ability allows you to destroy a target artifact or enchantment simply by sacrificing the Seal. Because the sacrifice is a cost, the card moves to the graveyard immediately upon activation, leaving very little room for opponents to interact with the Seal itself once you decide to pull the trigger.

Activation and Priority

When you cast Seal of Cleansing, it enters the battlefield and stays there. As the active player, you receive priority after the spell resolves. This means you can activate its ability before any opponent has a chance to cast a spell like Disenchant to destroy it. Once the ability is on the stack, it exists independently of the Seal; even if the Seal is gone, the target artifact or enchantment is still marked for destruction.

Common Strategic Mistakes

A common mistake is waiting too long to deploy the Seal. Unlike an instant, this must be cast during your main phase. However, once it is on the board, it can be activated at instant speed. Another mistake is forgetting that you must choose a legal target when you activate the ability. If the target becomes illegal before the ability resolves (for example, by gaining Hexproof), the ability will fail to resolve and the Seal will already be in the graveyard.

When to Sacrifice

Use Seal of Cleansing to remove high-impact pieces that prevent you from winning or that generate too much value for your opponent. Since it sits on the board, it often acts as a deterrent, forcing opponents to reconsider playing their best artifacts or enchantments until they can find a way to deal with your Seal.

Interaction examples

Clearing the Path for Attack

Ghostly Prison

If your opponent has a Ghostly Prison preventing your creatures from attacking unless you pay mana, you can activate Seal of Cleansing during your main phase. You sacrifice Seal of Cleansing and target Ghostly Prison. Once the ability resolves, the Prison is destroyed, and you are free to declare attackers without paying the tax.

Ending the Life Gain

Authority of the Consuls

Your opponent plays Authority of the Consuls, which causes your creatures to enter the battlefield tapped and grants them life. To stop this effect, you activate Seal of Cleansing by sacrificing it. The ability targets Authority of the Consuls. When the ability resolves, the enchantment is destroyed, ensuring your future creatures can enter the battlefield untapped and ready for action.

Guide written with AI from the official text and rulings. Official English text prevails.

How it works : Seal of Cleansing

Original English text — Wizards of the Coast / Scryfall

#1June 18, 2021· Wizards of the Coast
Sacrificing Seal of Cleansing is the cost to activate its ability. Once you activate the ability, no player can do anything to Seal of Cleansing to stop you from activating it. Notably, if you cast Seal of Cleansing during your turn, you'll have priority to activate its ability before anyone can respond to stop you.
No other card is named in this ruling.