Tibalt's Trickery

{1}{R}
Instant

Counter target spell. Choose 1, 2, or 3 at random. Its controller mills that many cards, then exiles cards from the top of their library until they exile a nonland card with a different name than that spell. They may cast that card without paying its mana cost. Then they put the exiled cards on the bottom of their library in a random order.

Set Kaldheim
Rarity Rare

Why Play Tibalt's Trickery

The primary appeal lies in its ability to counter any spell while potentially giving opponents something worse than what they were trying to cast. In competitive decks, you'll want to target your own cheap spells to cheat expensive threats like Emrakul, the Aeons Torn or other game-ending cards into play as early as turn 2. The randomness makes it unreliable as traditional countermagic, but when built around properly, it becomes a powerful combo enabler that can end games immediately.

Format Notes

Banned in Modern and Historic due to its ability to create unfun, non-interactive games where one player wins on turn 2 through random chance. Currently sees play in Legacy and Pioneer combo decks, though these strategies are generally fringe due to their inconsistency. Commander players occasionally include it as a chaos effect or in decks built around casting big spells for free, but it's not considered a staple in the format.

Combos & Synergies

Pairs perfectly with cheap spells you can cast on yourself like Assault or Opt to trigger the effect reliably on early turns. Stacking your deck with expensive, game-ending threats like Emrakul, the Aeons Torn maximizes the impact when you hit. Some builds include Throes of Chaos as additional copies of the effect, creating a deck full of cascade and Trickery effects to consistently cheat powerful spells into play.

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Instant Exile Counterspell