Spell
NormalMagic Reflector
View:
3333
Target 1 face-up Spell Card you control; place 1 counter on it. If it would ever be destroyed, remove the counter instead.
Magic Reflector — Power Evaluation
Final Score: 45 ± 5 · Confidence: Medium
- Intrinsic: 43 · Deck: 47 · Meta: provisional
- Primary role: Utility / Control · Secondary: Protection
Why it scores here
Magic Reflector is a defensive utility that protects spell cards from destruction in spell-centric decks such as Toon, Spirit Message, and Nimble. The card does not drive combo chains or generate advantage on its own; instead, it trades a counter to preserve a spell from being destroyed, making it a tech inclusion rather than a format staple. While it appears consistently across 8 archetypes in 19 recorded decks at 2–3 copies, the absence of any recorded combo boards and its dependence on having a live target spell limit its broader impact. The protection is situational and single-use per counter, useful for specific defensive spots but not a pipeline piece.
Axis scores
| Axis | Score | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Accessibility | 65 | Playable spell card with consistent target spells in 8 distinct spell-heavy archetypes; lives naturally in opening hand (verified via 19 decks, 8 archetypes, 84.2% co-deck with Scapegoat). |
| Combo & Conversion | 25 | Zero recorded combos and no board-building effect on its own; purely defensive with no extension or payoff capacity (verified via combos_evidence: 0 total appearances). |
| Resource Economy | 40 | Neutral card economy (spend 1 spell to save 1 spell, consuming a counter as cost) with no advantage generation or refuel (inferred from card text: replacement effect only). |
| Effect & Interaction | 30 | Soft, situational protection against spell destruction only; does not negate activations, summons, or effects, limiting interaction breadth (verified via card text: conditional protection, not negation). |
| Material Utility | 15 | Spell cards cannot be used as material; no level, attribute, or recursive function in the graveyard (verified via card type: Spell Card with no material role in evidence). |
| Resilience & Flexibility | 35 | Single-use counter per spell; dependent on spell remaining on field and only blocks one destruction event, limiting resilience against repeated threats (inferred from card text: one-time replacement per counter). |
| Deck-Building Efficiency | 50 | Consistent 2–3 copy inclusion in 8 spell-heavy archetypes with minimal overhead, but creates brick risk if you lack spell targets (observed via decks_evidence: avg 2.47 copies, 10 of 19 decks at 3 copies). |
Calculation
Weight profile: Floodgate / Control role (protection as board-state control). Intrinsic ≈ 43, Deck ≈ 47, Meta = provisional. Modifiers: none. Final formula: 0.40*Intrinsic + 0.60*Deck
Strengths
- Consistent protection against spell destruction in spell-heavy homes
- Low deck-building overhead; runs 2–3 copies across 8 archetypes with minimal conflict
- Solid redundancy through multiple copies and multiple archetype homes
Weaknesses
- Zero recorded combo appearances; not a combo driver or pipeline piece
- Single-use counter per spell; vulnerable to repeated destruction or removal
- Bricking risk if you have no face-up spell targets (mitigated in spell-heavy decks but present in opener)
- Purely reactive and defensive; generates no card advantage, refuel, or board value
Counters / choke points
- Spell destruction effects (Twister, Lightning Storm, Red Reboot when targeting spells)
- Spell removal/banishment (bypasses the counter-removal requirement)
Best use
Defensive utility to protect high-value spells from opponent disruption. Decks: Toon, Spirit Message, Nimble, Monarch, Mask, Greed. Suggested copies: 2.
Evidence & gaps
- Verified: Card text: 'Target 1 face-up Spell Card you control; place 1 counter on it. If it would ever be destroyed, remove the counter instead.'; Legal in 4 formats: TCG, OCG, MasterDuel, DuelLinks; Appears in 19 recorded decks across 8 distinct archetypes; Average 2.47 copies per deck; 10 of 19 decks run 3 copies; No banlist token; assumed unlimited (3 copies per format)
- Observed: Scapegoat is the top partner at 84.2% co-deck rate; Toon spells (Toon World, Toon creatures) are secondary partners at 47–52.6% co-deck rates; Appears in 19/19 main deck slots, 0 side deck (pure main-deck tech); Gameplay type 6 (control-focused) dominates at 89.5% of decks
- Inferred: Card is a protection utility, not a combo starter (from card text and 0 combos); Primarily useful in spell-heavy archetypes (required target: 'face-up Spell Card you control'); Limited resilience (single-use counter per spell; vulnerable to repeated destruction or removal); Deckbuilding cost is mild in spell-heavy homes but creates brick risk in spell-light lists
- Data gaps: No combos supplied — combo conversion is text-only inference; card does not appear in any recorded board pipeline No guides supplied — no human context on practical role or metagame weight No banlist token — assumed unlimited 3 copies per format No usage statistics (StatisticsCard rows) — archetype inclusion % inferred from 19-deck sample only; historical consistency unknown Unclear how counter interacts with spell removal vs. destruction (both bypass protection?) No evidence of the card appearing in high-power-index combo boards