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Rootha, Mercurial Artist

Rootha, Mercurial Artist

Legendary Creature — Orc Shaman

Rootha wants a deck that casts lots of instant and sorcery spells. It also suits a deck that answers everything its opponents play, then wins late.

  • Mana cost1 genericbluered
  • Blue, Red ()
  • Power / toughness1 / 4
  • RarityUncommon

2 generic, Return Rootha to its owner's hand: Copy target instant or sorcery spell you control. You may choose new targets for the copy.

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Archetypes

Cards That Fit Rootha, Mercurial Artist

Picked for what they do in Rootha's deck. When two cards do the same job, the one with the lower comes first. All of them fit Rootha's color identity.Mana ValueThe total amount of mana a card costs, all added up. A card costing two generic and one green has a mana value of three. Wizards renamed this from "converted mana cost" in 2021, so older cards and articles may still use the old name.Sol RingOpen the full glossary

plan6

The 6 Cards

plan6

The 6 Cards

Rulings for Rootha, Mercurial Artist

explain how Rootha works in tricky situations. They come from Wizards of the Coast, the company that makes Magic.RulingThe official answer to how a card works in a tricky situation. Most rulings are written by Wizards of the Coast, the company that makes Magic, and a few are notes from Scryfall, the card database Magic players use. A ruling explains a card. It does not change what the card says.Open the full glossary

Wizards of the Coast 16 Apr 2021

Rootha, Mercurial Artist's ability must have a target to be activated. You can't activate it without a target in order to return Rootha to your hand.

1 ruling, all written by Wizards of the Coast. Read the originals on Gatherer ↗

Similar Commanders

Commanders that share the most with Rootha, and what they share.

Color identityEvery color of mana symbol on a card, in its cost and in its rules text. Your commander's color identity sets the limit for your whole deck: every other card has to fit inside it. A deck led by a green and white commander cannot play a card with any blue in its color identity.Open the full glossaryURPlayers write colors as letters: U for blue, R for red. Blue is U because B was already taken by black.SpellslingerSpellslinger decks cast lots of instants and sorceries, one-time spells, and play creatures that reward every spell you cast. Instants and sorceries take effect once and then go to your graveyard, and an instant can even be cast during another player's turn.Open the Spellslinger pageAikido / RedirectionTurns an opponent's own spell, ability or damage back on them. It changes the spell's target, copies it, or sends the damage somewhere else. Aikido is the community's name for it, borrowed from the martial art. Deflecting Swat, Narset's ReversalOpen the Aikido / Redirection pageSpell CopyingCopies a spell or an ability. The copy is not cast, so it costs nothing extra and does not set off cards that care about casting a spell. Reverberate, Storm-Kiln ArtistOpen the Spell Copying pageControlControl decks answer what everyone else plays, stopping spells and removing dangerous cards, then win slowly once they are in charge. Expect lots of removal, spells that cancel other spells, and extra card draw.Open the Control pageStack InteractionActs while a spell is waiting to take effect: countering it, changing what it targets, or copying it. When someone casts a spell it waits on the stack, and every player gets priority, a chance to respond, before it happens. Counterspell, NegateOpen the Stack Interaction pageMana SinkGives you somewhere useful to spend spare mana, usually through an ability you can activate again and again. Rogue's Passage, Mind StoneOpen the Mana Sink page