Sometimes all it really takes is one card. One glorious, glowing card drawn at just the right moment to flip the game from certain defeat to divine deliverance. In today's Mechanics Overview Segment, allow me to introduce you to Miracle, Magic: The Gathering's high-stakes, high-impact mechanic that answers the age-old question: "Topdeck or lose the game?"

What Is Miracle?

Miracle [cost] (You may cast this card for its Miracle cost when you draw it if it's the first card you drew this turn.)

Miracle is a keyword mechanic that allows you to cast certain cards for a much lower cost if they happen to be the first card you draw in a turn and you reveal them immediately.

That's it. Just a little draw. A little reveal. A little Miracle. Simple and clean, right? Well...

Here's what can sometimes make Miracle a bit complicated:

• You still draw the card: Whether or not you use the Miracle ability, the card is still drawn. This means any "whenever you draw a card" triggers still happen. Miracle doesn't replace the draw.
• You can Miracle on any turn: Miracle checks if it's the first card you've drawn that turn, not particularly whether it's your turn or not. So, if you draw a card on an opponent's turn (say, with an Opt, a Scroll Rack, or a Sensei's Divining Top), you can still reveal and cast it via Miracle.
• Revealing is optional: If you don't want to cast the Miracle card at that time, or simply can't, you don't have to reveal it. No pressure.
• You can only cast it as the Miracle trigger resolves: If you reveal the card for Miracle, the triggered ability goes on the stack. You must cast it during the resolution of that trigger. If you pass on it or can't legally cast it at that moment, your chance is gone.
• Ignores timing restrictions: Miracle lets you cast cards during the trigger resolution, which means sorceries can be cast on an opponent's turn, during combat, or whenever the Miracle occurs!
• Reveal it before it hits your hand: You must reveal the card as you draw it, before it joins the rest of your cards. If it even looks like it touched your hand, you've essentially missed your Miracle window.
• First draw only: If you draw multiple cards, they're drawn one at a time. Miracle can only trigger off the first card drawn. So if a spell tells you to "Draw three cards," only the first one drawn can be Miracled (Miracled? Miraculized? you get it).
• If the card leaves your hand, it's too late: If your Miracle card happens to get bounced, exiled, discarded, or otherwise removed before the triggered ability resolves, tough luck, you can no longer cast it for its Miracle cost.
• Opening hand doesn't count: You draw your opening hand before the first turn begins, so you can't Miracle anything you draw there.

The History of Miracle

Miracle debuted in Avacyn Restored (2012), the final set in the first Innistrad block. Thematically, the set was all about divine intervention as Avacyn, the angelic protector of humanity, had been freed from her hellish prison, and everything in the world was suddenly a little more...hopeful.

Cards like Entreat the Angels and Terminus embodied that hope, letting players flip the script in one glorious topdeck. Losing the game? Well, just one draw later and you had five angels or a wiped board. Miracle was literal storytelling on a card, and it worked. Well, at least, at first.

In casual play, Miracle was undoubtedly fun and flashy. But in tournaments? It was kind of a nightmare. To avoid missing a Miracle window, competitive players had to adopt awkward habits: drawing one card at a time, above the table, carefully hesitating to see if the card was a Miracle. And opponents had to watch, nervously trying to decode the subtle dance of the draw.

This naturally led to:

• Slowed game play
• Excessive bluffing (every card draw could potentially be a Terminus, after all)
• An atmosphere of "gotcha" moments that, overall,l didn't always feel great

And R&D quickly took notice. While Miracle was flavorful, impactful, and fun, it just didn't fit comfortably into high-level, competitive Magic. Mark Rosewater himself has commented that while the mechanic was beloved by many, its logistical issues made it too clunky for regular use. They even considered alternate colored backs for Miracle cards so you could know what was coming, but yeah, that would've opened a whole new can of worms.

Still, Wizards keeps dipping their toes back into Miracle once in a while. And with cards like Commander 2018's (2018) Entreat the Dead (the very first Black Miracle card!), Warhammer 40,000 Commander Decks' (2022) Soeur Repentia (a multicolored, Miracle permanent, oh my!), and Duskmourn: House of Horror Commander Decks' (2024) Aminatou, Veil Piercer, we might be seeing an even more refined Miracle future in the near future.

It's a Miracle!

Miracle is certainly not the most streamlined or easy-to-manage keyword in Magic: The Gathering. It demands specific deck-building considerations, careful timing, a pinch of theatrics, and the self-control of a monk when it comes to how you physically draw your cards.

But when it works? Oh, when it works, it's absolutely unforgettable.

And sure, Miracle's not perfect by any stretch. As we've seen, competitive tournament players needed to adjust their drawing, bluffing became another mind game of its own, and Miracle might never become evergreen. But in the right context, especially in formats like Commander and Cube, where chaos and control often live hand-in-hand, it absolutely shines.

In fact, Miracle captures something pretty rare in Magic design: the emotional high of possibility. Every card draw could be the one. Every topdeck could be divine salvation. Miracle brings the drama. It brings the suspense. It brings that adrenaline-spike joy when you slowly reveal the card with a grin that says, "I absolutely planned this from the very start."

And with that, I've officially passed every last point of divine topdeck energy onto you about Miracle. As always, happy brewing, and may your draws be timely, your triggers pronounced, and your opponents thoroughly confused as to how you're casting game-changing sorceries at their end step. Until next time, and I hope your topdecks continue to stay blessed by RNGesus.