Discover in MTG: Rules, History, and Best Cards

David Royale November 8, 2023 Collecting, MTG Cards, MTG Rules

Last updated on November 15, 2023

Chimil, the Inner Sun | Illustration by Gaboleps

Every new set brings us new abilities and keywords for Magic players to brew new decks and change the pace from otherwise stalled metagames regardless of the format.

With the introduction of The Lost Caverns of Ixalan, some card types like Map tokens were added to the game, but there’s also a new keyword, very reminiscent of cascade, that’s raising eyebrows among many players.

This keyword is called discover, and today, we’ll dive into it to unravel its mysteries, compare it to cascade, and ultimately, conclude if it’s better or worse than its counterpart.

Intrigued by what the results may be? Let’s dive into it!

How Does Discover Work?

Caparocti Sunborn | Illustration by Donato Giancola

Similar to cascade, discover X lets you exile cards from the top of your library until you exile a nonland card with a mana value of X or less. Then, you may cast it for free or put it into your hand, and you put the rest of the cards on the bottom of your library at random.

The History of Discover in MTG

Discover is a new ability introduced in The Lost Caverns of Ixalan in November 2023. It was first introduced in the preview for Quintorius Kand, a planeswalker that has discover 4 as one of its abilities.

This ability is very similar to cascade in the sense that both let you cast spells for free, with the difference that the latter is based on the mana value of the card that has cascade, and discover X is based on the value of X printed on the card.

While it's not an evergreen mechanic, it’s thought to be an improved version of cascade, and if well received, WotC may start printing it more often in future sets.

Is Discover an Activated Ability?

No. While some cards like Hidden Courtyard require activation to discover X, the new mechanic itself is defined as a keyword action that resolves if the ability on the stack does.

Is Discover a Triggered Ability?

No. Discover is a keyword action, so it resolves if the ability on the stack does, similar to scry, mill, and surveil, among others.

Can You Leave the Discovered Card in Exile?

No, not without a workaround. Once you exile a card that meets the discover requirement, you can choose to cast it or put it into your hand, but unless you can’t put cards into your hand or can’t cast the spell for some reason as the ability is resolving, the card won’t remain exiled.

Can You Cast Adventures With Discover?

To cast adventures with discover, both the card and the adventure part of it have to be equal to or less than discover X. For example, you can’t cast the adventure part from Fae of Wishes with discover 3, but if it were discover 4, you could cast either part of the card.

In contrast, you can't cast the adventure side of Bonecrusher Giant with a discover 2, but you’d have no trouble with a discover 3.

Can You Cast Split Cards With Discover?

Yes. As long as the split card's total mana value is equal to or less than the discover X, you may cast the exiled split card or put it into your hand.

Can You Pay Kicker Costs With Discover?

Yes! Since you’re casting the spell without paying its mana cost, you can always pay additional ones, like kicker, when casting it for free.

Can You Pay Bargain Costs With Discover?

Yes. As with kicker spells, you can pay additional costs when casting cards for free with discover.

What if Your Library Is Empty?

If your library is empty, discover fails to find a target and doesn’t resolve.

What if You Fail to Find With Discover?

If you fail to find a card because your library is empty or the rest of the cards don’t meet the discover criteria, the action fails to resolve. If you searched your library, you would still shuffle it.

Can You Stifle Discover?

Unlike cascade, a triggered ability, you can't Stifle keyword actions like discover or scry. You can, however, Stifle the abilities that enable the keyword action.

Discover vs. Cascade

The main difference between discover and cascade is that the former is a keyword action as part of the resolution of an ability. Cascade, on the other hand, is a triggered ability that’s put into the stack, and unlike discover, it can be countered by the likes of Stifle.

Let's compare Bloodbraid Elf and Geological Appraiser.

In the cascade card’s case, its ability goes onto the stack first and resolves before the creature enters the battlefield. If you hit a Pyroclasm, your Bloodbraid Elf is unharmed.

It’s a different story for Geological Appraiser, as for discover to resolve, the creature has to enter the battlefield first. From there, you can either cast the Pyroclasm if you reveal it or put it into your hand. If you choose to cast it, the Geological Appraiser is damaged along with the other creatures in the field.

With cascade, you can cast the spell or put it into the bottom along with the other exiled cards, while discover also gives you the option to put the discovered card into your hand.

Gallery and List of Discover Cards

Best Discover Cards

Trumpeting Carnosaur

I like Trumpeting Carnosaur as a big fattie that can put other threats onto the field in the right deck, similar to what Etali, Primal Conqueror does. Of course, the dream is to hit a Carnosaur out of an Etali trigger, but at worst you can count on the former ability to kill pesky little creatures or planeswalkers by discarding it from your hand, which comes very handy when you’re playing around counterspells other than Stifle.

Quintorius Kand

Since Quintorius Kand is the very first planeswalker with a discover keyword, it only makes sense to put it on the list. Don't get me wrong, though. Its other two abilities, along with its static one, are very powerful ones that only make our elephant super friend better.

Caparocti Sunborn

Caparocti Sunborn is a creature that can repeatedly discover through the course of the game whenever it attacks, allowing you to cast spells for free in the combat phase. You can pair it with combat tricks or removal spells like Lightning Bolt to craft a powerful board presence. However, you must first have two untapped artifacts or creatures to trigger this card's ability.

Ellie and Alan, Paleontologists

I might be somewhat biased because I’m a big fan of Jurassic Park. Ellie and Alan, Paleontologists is one of my favorite cards with discover because it has a repeatable effect that can be used multiple times a game and even on the same turn if you manage to untap it and have enough creatures in the graveyard. It’s indeed a very fun card to play as your commander in Bant colors ().

Pantlaza, Sun-Favored

Look, I’m a big fan of aggressive commanders, and Pantlaza, Sun-Favored is the perfect commander for a dinosaur-themed deck because it allows you to put multiple of them on the field in no time. The only drawback I see is that it only triggers once per turn, but it's still pretty sweet with other ones dinos like Etali, Primal Conqueror.

Wrap Up

His the Mother Lode - Illustration by Diego Gisbert

Hi the Mother Lode | Illustration by Diego Gisbert

While similar to cascade, discover offers unique qualities that, in some cases, are better than its counterpart, while in other scenarios, like the ones I’ve described with Pyroclasm, it could end up being worse. Still, variance aside, it's thrilling to see revamped mechanics introduced so newer and seasoned players can enjoy and experience them.

What do you think? Is this mechanic better or worse than cascade? Would you like to see more cards with it in the future? Let me know in the comments!

Thanks for reading up until now, and if you want to read other valuable articles, remember to follow us on Twitter and newsletters to stay up to date.

Take care, and see you next time!

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David Royale

David is a YouTube Gaming content creator and the 2011 Central American MTG Champion. He's been playing Magic since 2010 and -- in real life -- is a database analyst.