Trade Routes 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
: Return target land you control to its owner's hand.
Complete guide
Trade Routes is a versatile blue enchantment that offers unparalleled control over your mana base and hand quality. Whether you need to protect your lands from destruction or dig through your deck for answers, this card provides the utility necessary to keep your strategy moving forward.
What Trade Routes Does
Trade Routes features two distinct activated abilities. The first allows you to pay one generic mana to return a land you control to your hand, which is excellent for protecting valuable utility lands or resetting lands with entry effects. The second ability lets you pay one generic mana and discard a land card to draw a card, effectively turning every excess land in your hand into a new draw.
Resolving the Abilities Step by Step
To return a land, you must target a land you control and pay the mana cost; the land returns to your hand when the ability resolves. To draw a card, you pay one mana and discard a land card as a cost. Because discarding the land is a cost, your opponents cannot respond to the discard itself, only to the draw effect placed on the stack.
Common Strategic Mistakes
A common mistake is forgetting that the return ability targets a land. If the land leaves the battlefield in response to the ability, the ability will fizzle. Additionally, remember that you cannot discard a land to draw a card unless you have a land card already in your hand; you cannot use the return ability and the discard ability simultaneously with the same mana payment.
When to Play Trade Routes
This card shines in the late game when you have more mana than you need. It is particularly effective in decks that care about land counts in hand or those that need to filter through the deck quickly. It also serves as a defensive tool against targeted land destruction or board wipes that hit all permanents.
Interaction examples
Rhystic StudyIf your opponent is consistently paying the tax for Rhystic Study and you are drawing unnecessary lands, you can use Trade Routes to discard those lands for one mana each, helping you dig deeper for a win condition or a counterspell.
Mystic RemoraWhile Mystic Remora draws you cards when opponents cast spells, its cumulative upkeep cost eventually becomes too expensive. You can use the extra cards drawn from Mystic Remora to find lands, and if you have excess lands, Trade Routes helps you discard them to find more protection to keep your engine running.
If you control a land with a powerful 'enters the battlefield' effect, you can pay one mana to return it to your hand with Trade Routes and then replay it during your main phase to trigger that effect again.
Guide written with AI from the official text and rulings. Official English text prevails.
How it works : Trade Routes
Original English text — Wizards of the Coast / Scryfall
No additional ruling has been published for this card.
Popular combos
Real combos played by the community, sorted by popularity.
Trade Routes + Retreat to Coralhelm + Walking Atlas
- 1Activate the land by tapping it, adding at least .
- 2Activate Trade Routes' first ability by paying , returning the land from the battlefield to your hand.
- 3Activate Walking Atlas by tapping it, putting the land from your hand onto the battlefield.
- 4When the land enters the battlefield, Retreat to Coralhelm triggers, untapping Walking Atlas
- 5Repeat.
Trade Routes + Retreat to Coralhelm + Sakura-Tribe Scout
- 1Activate the land by tapping it, adding at least .
- 2Activate Trade Routes' first ability by paying , returning the land from the battlefield to your hand.
- 3Activate Sakura-Tribe Scout by tapping it, putting the land from your hand onto the battlefield.
- 4When the land enters the battlefield, Retreat to Coralhelm triggers, untapping Sakura-Tribe Scout
- 5Repeat.
Kodama of the East Tree + Trade Routes + Tireless Provisioner
- 1Play any land.
- 2When the land enters the battlefield, Kodama and Tireless Provisioner trigger.
- 3Resolve the Kodama trigger, putting nothing from your hand onto the battlefield.
- 4Resolve the Tireless Provisioner trigger, creating a Treasure token.
- 5When the Treasure enters the battlefield, Kodama triggers.
- 6Holding priority, activate the Treasure by tapping and sacrificing it, adding .
- 7Activate Trade Routes' first ability by paying , returning a land from the battlefield to your hand.
- 8Resolve the Kodama trigger, putting a land from your hand onto the battlefield.
Trade Routes + Retreat to Coralhelm + PuPu UFO
- 1Activate the land by tapping it, adding at least .
- 2Activate Trade Routes' first ability by paying , returning the land from the battlefield to your hand.
- 3Activate PuPu UFO by tapping it, putting the land from your hand onto the battlefield.
- 4When the land enters the battlefield, Retreat to Coralhelm triggers, untapping PuPu UFO
- 5Repeat.
Mystic Sanctuary + Trade Routes + Walk the Aeons
- 1Cast Walk the Aeons by paying
, getting an extra turn after this one. - 2Play Mystic Sanctuary to put Walk the Aeons on top of your library.
- 3Activate Trade Routes' first ability by paying , returning Mystic Sanctuary to your hand.
- 4Move to your next turn.
- 5Repeat.
Trade Routes + Retreat to Coralhelm + Llanowar Scout
- 1Activate the land by tapping it, adding at least .
- 2Activate Trade Routes' first ability by paying , returning the land from the battlefield to your hand.
- 3Activate Llanowar Scout by tapping it, putting the land from your hand onto the battlefield.
- 4When the land enters the battlefield, Retreat to Coralhelm triggers, untapping Llanowar Scout
- 5Repeat.
Trade Routes + Retreat to Coralhelm + Skyshroud Ranger
- 1Activate the land by tapping it, adding at least .
- 2Activate Trade Routes' first ability by paying , returning the land from the battlefield to your hand.
- 3Activate Skyshroud Ranger by tapping it, putting the land from your hand onto the battlefield.
- 4When the land enters the battlefield, Retreat to Coralhelm triggers, untapping Skyshroud Ranger
- 5Repeat.
Mystic Sanctuary + Trade Routes + Time Warp
- 1Cast Time Warp by paying
, getting an extra turn after this one. - 2Play Mystic Sanctuary to put Time Warp on top of your library.
- 3Activate Trade Routes' first ability by paying , returning Mystic Sanctuary to your hand.
- 4Move to your next turn.
- 5Repeat.
Legal formats
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Meta decks with Trade Routes
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