The 22 Best Extraction Effects in Magic Ranked

Surgical Extraction | Illustration by Steven Belledin

Hello Planeswalkers! How sick are you of removing a bomb card like Ugin, Eye of the Storms twice, only to see  a third copy hit play? Well, I may have a solution for you. A specific kind of card in MTG slang called extraction (or lobotomy) can be your savior. Extraction cards control games and totally upset opponents’ strategies.

So what are extraction effects? This relatively unknown slang can have huge effects on certain formats (a hint, it’s not Commander). Today, we'll get into the definition, the strategy, and the best versions of extraction cards. If this is a new term to you or you just want a look at the best versions of the effect, buckle up and let’s dive in!

What Are Extraction Effects in MTG?

Lobotomy | Illustration by Thomas M. Baxa

Extraction (lobotomy) is the slang term for the act of exiling all or most copies of an opponent’s card from most usable zones. Generally, they exile copies of a card from an opponent’s hand, library, and graveyard. Many of these cards will be added to some effect, such as discard or counters, and many of these cards have a focus on specific card types. There are a variety of extraction cards, mostly in black, and I’ll rank the best cards that fall into this category.

The term “extraction” comes from one of the most popular cards on this list, Surgical Extraction.

Honorable Mentions

Hour of Glory and Deicide are great extraction cards against gods.

#22. Reap Intellect

Reap Intellect has a hard mana cost of 4 mana and an additional X value. The value of X determines how many cards you can choose from an opponent’s hand to extract. This card has potential to destroy an opponent’s ability to play, or just be an expensive burden on you.

#21. Sowing Salt + Crumble to Dust

Most extraction spells can’t exile lands. Removing such a critical part of the deck would be too big an advantage. Well, Sowing Salt and Crumble to Dust do target lands, at least nonbasic lands. These aren’t as back-breaking as other extraction cards, but can be handy in removing all copies of lands like triomes, Dark Depths, and Urza Tron lands.

#20. Infinite Obliteration

Infinite Obliteration is similar to the “name a card” extraction cards like Cranial Extraction below, but only for creature cards. If you know, or have seen what your opponent has for bomb creatures, you can name that creature and remove it from all playable zones.

#19. Lobotomy

Lobotomy is the OG extraction card, and the source for one of the slang terms that describes it. This Dimir card () lets you look at an opponent’s hand and extract a card and all of its copies from their hand, graveyard, and library. The extraction effect has become more nuanced and powerful as more cards have been released, but it’s always good to look back to the card that kicked off the strategy.

#18. Eradicate

Eradicate is a run-of-the-mill extraction card that targets a nonblack creature on the battlefield. This card gets the job done for extracting most bomb creature threats an opponent controls. The biggest downside is that it doesn’t remove one of the best extraction targets, Relentless Rats.

#17. Stain the Mind

Stain the Mind can be cast for cheap with the convoke ability. That lets you tap creatures as a resource to get rid of an opponent’s best strategic cards. As far as convoke abilities go, I’m not sure it fits well with the flow of decks that use extraction effects. But if you have the available creatures to tap, go for it.

#16. Dispossess + Splinter + Scour

Dispossess and Splinter are artifact hate extraction spells. These cards can remove all copies of an artifact from an opponent’s strategy. Splinter is the better of the two, because it can remove an artifact that is on the battlefield. Scour provides this same hate and upside, but for enchantments. These three cards are respectable sideboard pieces to blow up artifact and enchantment strategies.

#15. Ancient Vendetta + Unmoored Ego

There are many extraction cards that let you choose a card name and go searching to exile copies of that card. Ancient Vendetta and Unmoored Ego are similar to better extraction cards like Cranial Extraction and Memoricide below, with one big downside. Both of these cards can only remove up to four copies of the named card. For most situations, this is perfectly fine. But these cards do rank worse as they can’t address relentless cards like Seven Dwarves.

#14. Legion’s End

Legion's End is a cheap extraction card that removes all copies of a creature with a mana value of 2 or less. This can really help against an aggro deck with multiple copies of a deadly card like Manifold Mouse. This card makes the list because it also removes copies of the creature on the battlefield, and it can defeat 6 of the 10 relentless cards.

#13. Haunting Echoes

Haunting Echoes can be a killer extraction spell under the right circumstances. This card exiles target player’s graveyard and lets you extract all copies of each nonbasic land card. This can be detrimental to a self-mill player looking to reanimate. Even if you only remove all copies of 3-4 cards, Haunting Echoes is worth its cost.

#12. Invasive Surgery + Counterbore + Quash

Invasive Surgery, Quash, and Counterbore are the playable blue extraction spells not named Test of Talents. I believe Test of Talents is a much better card than these three, but I wanted to include more good examples of extraction counterspells that can be useful. Invasive Surgery is cheap but requires delirium to be an extraction effect, Counterbore is more expensive but a counterspell to any card type, and Quash is just a more expensive version of Test of Talents.

#11. Cranial Extraction + Memoricide

Cranial Extraction and Memoricide are 4-mana black sorceries that let you name and extract a nonland card. Similarly to the higher-ranked Lost Legacy and The Stone Brain, if you know your opponent’s strategy, you can cripple them by extracting their best card.

Necromentia is a similar card that has the unfortunate downside of giving an opponent a 2/2 zombie creature token for each card you exile. A small price if you can get rid of their best card, though.

#10. Extirpate

Since Extirpate has split second, it can’t be outdone on the stack. This comes in handy when opponents have interactions like Scavenging Ooze that can nullify your extraction by removing a legal target for your spell. Your extraction spells are usually safe, but Extirpate becomes an even safer play with the split second mechanic.

#9. Shimian Specter

One of only two creatures with an extraction effect, Shimian Specter has the potential to extract multiple times. Whenever this creature deals combat damage to a player, you can extract a card from their hand. The mana value's high for such low stats, but if you can extract one or two different cards, you gain a nice advantage.

#8. The Rise of Sozin

Let’s include a little speculation in here and check out an upcoming card from the Avatar: The Last Airbender set. The Rise of Sozin acts as a board wipe, extraction effect, and then transforms into a bomb creature. Sozin will be the big bad of the new Avatar set, and this card’s effects and interactions show that off.

#7. The End

The End is a solid removal spell that can be useful in any non-Singleton formats. It can exile a creature or planeswalker and extract all copies from all playable zones. The 4-mana cost means it’s not the best removal against aggro decks, but it has the upside of being cheaper if you have very low life points. This card has saved my bacon a few times.

#6. The Stone Brain

The Stone Brain is a simple extraction artifact that exiles an opponent’s main strategic card. If you know what deck you’re playing against or have seen your opponent’s bombs, you can name a card and remove up to four copies from the game. The Stone Brain is a darling sideboard card, and may be one of the most popular extraction cards in these rankings.

#5. Lost Legacy

Lost Legacy is an extraction card for those players who know an opponent’s strategy. This card is a little different, because you don’t target a card in some zone, but rather name a card. As long as it is a nonartifact, nonland card, you can extract all the copies. So, if you know your dastardly friend is playing Protean Hulk, call them out!

#4. Kotose, the Silent Spider

Kotose, the Silent Spider is a great extraction creature that not only removes all the copies of a card, but even lets you play one of those copies. By the time you cast a 5-mana creature, your opponents will most likely have good cards in their graveyards just from game flow. Once Kotose enters, you can extract a bomb card from an opponent’s graveyard and play one copy of that exiled card.

#3. Test of Talents

Test of Talents is the greatest extraction counterspell. For the very reasonable cost of 2 mana, you can counter an instant or sorcery and extract all copies of that spell. This counterspell is a great sideboard piece and can totally disrupt noncreature spell decks by removing all copies of cards like Dig Through Time and Reanimate.

#2. Surgical Extraction

Surgical Extraction is where we get the “extraction” slang term from. Surgical Extraction can be played for life instead of the single black mana, which makes this extraction card useful at any time in a game. You have to wait for the right card to enter an opponent’s graveyard, but then you can remove all copies of that bomb card on the cheap.

#1. Deadly Cover-Up

Deadly Cover-Up is the perfect combination of board wipe and extraction. If you can survive aggressive decks to build up 5 mana, you then have a much-needed board wipe. This card fits well in your curve because you have time to fill up your graveyard with plenty of other useful cards. If you collect evidence 6, you can then extract a card from an opponent’s graveyard and all the other copies they may have.

Why Are Extraction Effects Called “Lobotomy” Cards?

As with much of MTG slang, this effect can also be called by the first card that printed the effect. Lobotomy was released in the Tempest set and kicked off the idea of removing a card from all of an opponent’s playable areas. Lobotomy introduced this effect and has awesome imagery of taking away an opponent’s “mind” in their best cards.

Are There Any Extraction Effects on a Creature?

Yes. Shimian Specter and Kotose, the Silent Spider are creature cards with extraction effects. Shimian Specter has an extraction effect that triggers when it deals combat damage to a player. Kotose, the Silent Spider has an ETB extraction effect.

Do Extraction Effects Work Against Cards Like Relentless Rats?

Yes, most of them do. Some extraction cards like Ancient Vendetta state “up to four copies of a card” and won’t remove all of the Relentless Rats in an opponent’s library, hand, and graveyard. Most extraction cards say “any number of cards” or “all”, and these cards can remove all copies of Relentless Rats.

Be aware that many extraction cards don’t affect the battlefield. If your opponent has four copies of Hare Apparent on the battlefield and 30 more in their library, Memoricide can only remove the copies in their library.

What Formats Are Extraction Effects Good In?

Extraction effects are good in Constructed formats that can have multiple copies of cards. Extraction effects aren’t good in Limited formats, where you’re less likely to get multiples of cards. Singleton formats like Commander are the antithesis of the extraction strategy. Unless your opponents are using rule-changing cards like Relentless Rats, you should save these extraction cards for multiple-copy Constructed formats.

Wrap Up

Legion's End | Illustration by David Palumbo

I've extracted all the value we can out of this article. This infrequent mechanic can provide large upsides in breaking up opponents’ strategies. I hope you learned something from this article and have gotten some ideas for your next build.

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