A common trend in old MTG cards is artifacts and enchantments that offer incredible value to those who can use them. Sadly, because they often carry an equally disastrous downside, only a select few MTG strategies can actually take advantage of them.
While these strategies didn’t exist when these cards were originally printed, Magic: The Gathering is always getting new cards. Now, cards like Psychic Vortex can create game-shattering advantages in the right deck.
MTG Psychic Vortex
For four mana, Psychic Vortex offers a draw engine that only gets better over time. Unfortunately, while this is very powerful, there is a damning catch. To unlock this power, you need to deal with the disastrous downside that forces you to sacrifice a land and discard your hand on your endsteps. To make matters worse, you’ll usually have to suffer the Vortex’s downside before drawing extra cards.
Thankfully, there are a few MTG strategies that don’t care too much about Psychic Vortex’s downside. Empty hand strategies, like Flubs, the Fool and Rielle, the Everwise, for instance, can use this card to great effect. By both discarding your hand and drawing tons of cards, Psychic Vortex perfectly furthers this unique game plan. Similarly, Commanders that have replacement draw effects, like Damia, Sage of Stone, and Eruth, Tormented Prophet can largely ignore
Strategies that want to sacrifice lands can similarly use Psychic Vortex’s downside to advance their game plan. This is particularly nasty with Slogurk, the Overslime, a Commander with tons of infinite combo potential. Whether you discard your lands or sacrifice them, everything will grow the Ooze while you draw towards an infinite combo finish. Alternatively, Muldrotha, the Gravetide can replay everything that Psychic Vortex gets rid of.
While empty hand and land sacrifice decks can benefit from Psychic Vortex’s downside, other decks can just ignore it completely. Obeka, Brute Chronologist and other Sundial of the Infinite decks can just end their turn early, bypassing Psychic Vortex’s trigger entirely. Using Blink effects also accomplishes this, but it will reset your Age counters for future Cumulative Upkeep triggers.
Even if you don’t have a great way to get around Psychic Vortex’s downside, some Commander strategies can amplify the value this enchantment creates. Since Cumulative Upkeep triggers are tracked by Age Counters, Proliferate effects, like Atraxa, Praetor’s Voice and Cayth, Famed Mechanist and Kilo, Agogee Mind can do this to great effect. Similarly, Obeka, Splitter of Seconds can give you additional upkeeps, massively accelerating your card draw.
If none of this works and you want to play Psychic Vortex anyway, using Flash enablers can help make the downside of the card less egregious. Vedalken Orrery and High Fae Trickster can let you play Psychic Vortex on an opponent’s turn, meaning that you can draw a card before you need to start discarding your hand.
Still Very Difficult to Use
Sadly, even with all of these ways to exploit Psychic Vortex’s abilities, the downside gives this card a high barrier to entry. Sacrificing lands and discarding your hands is a real cost to use the enchantment, meaning that every Cumulative Upkeep trigger this card has needs to really count.
For this reason, despite being on the Reserved List, Psychic Vortex is a rather inexpensive MTG card. Near Mint copies of the Weatherlight exclusive rare go for about $3.30, while worse-conditioned copies can be had for just $1.50. This certainly makes Psychic Vortex an affordable pickup for those brave enough to try and break it.
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