Wake the Past 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 all artifact cards from your graveyard to the battlefield. They gain haste until end of turn.

Complete guide

Wake the Past is a powerful high-cost sorcery that can turn a graveyard full of scrap into a game-winning board state. By returning every artifact you have lost to the battlefield at once, it allows for explosive turns that catch opponents off guard.

Mass Restoration

When you cast Wake the Past, you look at every artifact card currently in your graveyard and put them onto the battlefield simultaneously. Crucially, this spell grants those artifacts haste, meaning any artifact creatures returned can attack immediately, and any artifacts with tap abilities can be used without waiting for a full turn cycle.

Step-by-Step Resolution

First, the spell checks your graveyard for all cards with the 'Artifact' type as it resolves. Second, all identified cards enter the battlefield at the exact same time; any 'enters the battlefield' abilities will trigger and be put on the stack after the spell finishes resolving. Finally, a continuous effect is applied to those specific permanents, granting them haste until the end of the current turn.

Timing and Strategy

Because this costs seven mana, it is a late-game finisher. It is most effective after a game has seen several board wipes or high-value trades. Since the haste only lasts until end of turn, you generally want to cast this during your pre-combat main phase to maximize the pressure from artifact creatures.

Common Pitfalls

Keep in mind that Wake the Past only grants haste to the artifacts it returns. If you play another artifact from your hand later in the same turn, that new artifact will not have haste. Additionally, if an artifact is removed from the graveyard in response to the spell being cast, it will not be returned.

Interaction examples

Recovering from Destruction

Austere Command

If an opponent casts Austere Command and chooses to destroy all artifacts, your graveyard becomes stocked with machines. On your next turn, casting Wake the Past will bring every one of those destroyed artifacts back to the field, ready to attack with haste.

The Threat of Exile

Farewell

If an opponent casts Farewell and chooses to exile all graveyards, Wake the Past will have no targets to return when it eventually resolves. Always be wary of graveyard hate, as it is the primary counter to this spell's effectiveness.

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