Wipe Clean 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
Exile target enchantment. Cycling(
Complete guide
Wipe Clean is a versatile white instant that provides a permanent solution to problematic enchantments. Whether you are facing a game-ending aura or a persistent global effect, this card ensures the threat is removed from the game entirely. Its flexibility is further enhanced by the cycling ability, allowing you to trade it for a new card if no enchantments are present.
Removing the Threat
The primary function of Wipe Clean is to exile a target enchantment. Unlike destruction, exiling prevents the enchantment from being returned to the hand or battlefield through graveyard recursion. This makes it particularly effective against cards that have 'when this is put into a graveyard' triggers or those that can be reanimated.
Resolution Step-by-Step
First, you cast Wipe Clean by paying one white and one generic mana, choosing a legal enchantment as the target. Upon resolution, the target enchantment is moved directly from the battlefield to the exile zone. If the target becomes illegal before the spell resolves (for example, if it gains shroud or is destroyed by another effect), Wipe Clean will fail to resolve and be put into your graveyard.
Cycling Mechanics
Cycling is an activated ability, not a spell. You may pay three generic mana and discard Wipe Clean from your hand to draw a new card. Because this is an ability, it cannot be stopped by traditional counterspells that target spells. This makes Wipe Clean never a 'dead card' in your hand during matchups where your opponent isn't playing enchantments.
When to Play It
You should prioritize using Wipe Clean on enchantments that provide continuous value or protection to your opponent. Since it is an instant, you can wait until the end of your opponent's turn or react to a specific activation. However, if you desperately need to find a land or a creature, using the cycling ability during your own turn is a valid strategic choice.
Interaction examples
Swords to PlowsharesIf your opponent controls both a powerful creature and a dangerous enchantment, you can use Swords to Plowshares to exile the creature and Wipe Clean to exile the enchantment. By using exile effects for both, you ensure neither card can be recovered from the graveyard by standard means, effectively cleaning up the board state.
Path to ExileIn a situation where an opponent has an indestructible enchantment and an indestructible creature, Wipe Clean is your best tool for the enchantment. Just as Path to Exile bypasses indestructible on a creature by exiling it, Wipe Clean bypasses indestructible on an enchantment. This ensures the permanent is removed regardless of protection from destruction.
Guide written with AI from the official text and rulings. Official English text prevails.
How it works : Wipe Clean
Original English text — Wizards of the Coast / Scryfall
- #1· Wizards of the Coast
Cycling is an activated ability. Effects that interact with activated abilities (such as Stifle or Rings of Brighthearth) will interact with cycling. Effects that interact with spells (such as Remove Soul or Faerie Tauntings) will not.
No other card is named in this ruling.
Legal formats
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Meta decks with Wipe Clean
No archived Top 8 deck with this card yet.