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Split cardsare a type of card inMagic: The Gatheringthat allows you to play two spells in one. These cards will have two pieces of artwork, two names, two descriptions, and even two separate mana costs for the two spells that each take up half of the card. You can choose to cast one of the spells in a tight situation or you can wait for the opportune moment to cast both of them to give yourself maximum value.
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The first time split cards were seen was all the way back in 2000 during the Invasion Block, where each spell of the two spells would be a single colour. For theInvasionset, these two spells would be ally colours and then the following set,Apocalypse, would have a combination of only enemy colours.
How Split Cards Work
A split card will only ever be aninstantorsorceryor a mix of the two, so, you will never see a permanent split card. In a game, the split card will have themana cost of both the cards combined, except for when it is on thestack, where it will only count for the mana cost of thehalf that is being cast.
It is important to note that youcannot cast one halfof a split card and then choose tocast the other half on another turn.
Once you cast one half, the card will then move to thegraveyardlike any other instant or sorcery, and it will only count as a single spell when in the graveyard. This means that you have to think hard about how valuable one half of a card is as you will not be able to play the other half unless it hasAftermath.
Aftermathis an ability onsome specific split cardsthat makes it so that youcan only cast that half of the card from the graveyard. For example,Driven // Despairhas Aftermath for the cardDespair, so unlike all the other split cards, it isbeneficial to play Driven as fast as possibleso that itunlocks the potential to use Despair.
When it comes to thecolour of a card, it is a mix of the two as long as it isn’t on the stack. For example, the cardFire // Icehas one red card and one blue.Ice- which is our blue card - is an instant that taps another permanent controlled by an opponent and lets the caster draw a card; thiswould not be able to target a card that has protection from blue. However,Fire- our red card - deals two damage split between one or two targets at instant speed. This cardwould be able to target a permanent with protection from blue, as on the stack it counts only as a red card.
As a split card counts as two cards with two separate names, if there is an effect that makes you choose a card name, you can choose one of the card’s names and the effect will only take place on that card instead of both of them.
Pronouncing these cards is easy enough, as for all regular split cards, you simply add an ‘And’ in between the two card names. Aftermath cards are slightly different as, instead of ‘And’, you simply say ‘to’. For example,Commit // Memoryis said as ‘Commit to Memory’ andWax // Waneis pronounced ‘Wax and Wane’.
How To Use Split Cards
Split cards are useful because of the variety of options they can give you. It can also make two cards that aren’t as useful by themselves, much stronger as they are better at dealing with a range of problems.
For example,Wear // Tearis a mix of two cards that become a lot more helpful in a deck when mixed together.Wearcandestroy an artifactat instant speed, which is strong, but there are a lot of different decks that don’t run any artifacts. However, mixing it withTear,which candestroy an enchantmentat instant speed, makes this card a staple in many sideboards as it can deal with a lot of threats.
Split cards are rarely spells that will act as your win condition, but they are still spells that can help you getahead of your opponentand disrupt their attacks.
The value of having two cards in one is also that you simply havemore opportunitiesto put yourself in awinning position. When you have no cards in your hand, drawing a split card has a good chance of saving you from a bad spot.
How Many Split Cards There Are
In total, there are178 split cards. Some split cards such asWho // What // When // Where // Whyare part of the un-sets, and so aren’t legal to play in most formats.
With all of these split cards, there are some definite highlights, like the previously mentionedFire // IceandWear // Tearwhich are both incredibly strong cards. Some other notable mentions areResearch // Developmentfor vintage decks andClaim // Famebeing a powerful card to help return small creatures to the battlefield and to give them a small buff and haste.
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