Stroke of Genius

Standard	Rotated out on November 1, 2000
Pioneer	Not Legal
Modern	Not Legal
Legacy	Unbanned since September 20, 2004
Vintage	Unbanned since December 20, 2004
Commander	Never Banned
Pauper	Never Banned
Oathbreaker	Never Banned
Extended	Rotated out on October 20, 2005

View on Scryfall

Timeline

• January 1, 1998 - Released
• December 1, 1998 - Status changed to Restricted in Vintage
• December 1, 1998 - Status changed to Banned in Legacy
• September 20, 2004 - Status changed to Unbanned in Legacy
• December 20, 2004 - Status changed to Unbanned in Vintage

Rationale

Stroke of Genius was classified as a high-impact card due to its efficient ability to accelerate complex control strategies, leading to its restriction or banning in specific formats. It was banned in Classic Restricted (Type 1.5) Constructed and restricted in Classic (Type 1) Constructed in response to the prevalence and power level of "Academy" archetypes. Subsequent rulings in formats like Type 1.5 continued to acknowledge the card's potent combination enabling capabilities, classifying it among other powerful utility spells.

This summary was generated by gemma4 on September 14, 2026. It has not yet been reviewed by a human editor and may contain some inaccuracies. Learn more.

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