What is a "Cantrip"?
General forum
Posted on Nov. 24, 2011, 12:42 p.m. by Basuldur
I'm not sure if this is the correct forums to post this in, but it seemed right. I've been playing magic for about a year and a half now and I've heard the word "Cantrip" thrown around quite a bit. What is a "Cantrip"?
mozerdozer says... #3
Generally an Instant or Sorcery that has a card advantage of 0. You play one card and get another. Originally seen in Ice Age, the first cantrips had you draw the card at the beginning of the next upkeep or main phase. Now cantrips have you draw it immediately. Most people won't refer to Ponder or Preordain or anything similar as cantrips because the whole point of those cards is card advantage and thus the use of the term cantrip is redundant. Fleeting Distraction is an excellent example of a cantrip. Cantrips can also be seen on any permanent besides Plan eswalkers. Elvish Visionary , Chromatic Star and Spreading Seas are all cantrips.
November 24, 2011 1:21 p.m.
Brainstorm isn't actually card advantage though. The true definition of card advantage is getting more cards than you spent. Ancestral Vision generates card advantage, but Brainstorm doesn't; you spend one and you get one. Your cards are better afterwards, but you still have the same number; hence why I called it "virtual advantage".
November 24, 2011 1:24 p.m.
Rhadamanthus says... #6
Just so you know, the term "cantrip" came into Magic from Dungeons & Dragons. In earlier editions of the game, it was a class of spells that were very simple and could be cast at pretty much any time, with no daily restrictions on their use, because they don't have a very strong effect (like conjuring dancing lights, making an illusory sound, etc.). Many cantrips in Magic have the "draw a card" rider because the effect is a simple one that isn't really worth spending a whole card on.
November 24, 2011 3:37 p.m.
Cantripping is the act of using cheap mana cards to get through your deck quicker to the cards you want. So it's essentially wanting a 60 card deck to be trimmed down even less, so the odds of drawing something good is higher.
November 24, 2011 6:30 p.m.
Like for instance, Grixis Deck - 4x Doom Blade 4x Mana Leak 4x Incinerate 4x Silent Departure
You're going to be playing all those cards quickly and being effective, always having something to do.
November 24, 2011 6:34 p.m.
Oh yes, and drawing a card haha. 4x Ichor Wellspring 4x Mycosynth Wellspring
November 24, 2011 6:36 p.m.
KrazyCaley says... #10
For all your Magic slang needs:
http://tappedout.net/mtg-articles/2010/dec/24/mtg-slang-lexicon/
November 25, 2011 1:28 a.m.
pookypuppy6 says... #11
My favourite cantrips include Phyrexian Rager (bit different) and Gitaxian Probe ! :D
bcurran says... #2
You're right, this isn't the correct forum. Try the general forum for questions like this.
To answer: Cantrip is a name used by players to describe a spell that draws you one card as part of its effect. It can be a little bit of disruption plus card draw, like Spreading Seas , or generate virtual advantage by smoothing out your draws like Ponder and Preordain . Brainstorm also counts because you spend one card and you net drawing one.
November 24, 2011 1:08 p.m.