Mystic

Mystic
Info
Cost
Type(s)	Action
Kingdom card?	Yes
Set	Dark Ages
Illustrator(s)	Alayna Danner
Card text
+1 Action + Name a card, then reveal the top card of your deck. If you named it, put it into your hand.

Mystic is an Action from Dark Ages. When you play it, you guess at the top card of your deck, and draw it if you're right. It's essentially an expensive Silver if you can't guess correctly, and is therefore most suited to decks where you have a reliable way of controlling or finding out what's on top of your deck.

FAQ

Official FAQ

• You get +1 Action and +.
• Then name a card ("Copper," for example - not "Treasure") and reveal the top card of your deck; if you named the card you revealed, put the revealed card into your hand.
• If you did not name the right card, put the revealed card back on top.
• Names need to match exactly for you to get the card; for example Sir Destry and Sir Martin do not match.
• You do not need to name a card available in the Supply.

Strategy

Mystic is a weak non-terminal payload card that is sometimes a cantrip. Drawing a card with Mystic is usually dependent on a mix of deck tracking, luck, and supporting effects, but if you guess incorrectly, Mystic is effectively a stop card, and a very inefficient one (especially in comparison to Silver) in that it generates only while costing . Thus, Mystic is usually outcompeted by other cards costing and has a high opportunity cost. It is most valuable when you can reliably use it as a Peddler variant in a draw-limited Kingdom.

In order to use Mystic as perfectly reliable cantrip payload, you need to consistently name the next card correctly. The only way to remove luck from this operation is via some form of support. This support can include other effects that inspect and reorder the top of your deck such as Sentry, or topdecking effects such as Artisan. Some effects can even reorder multiple cards on top of your deck, for example Wandering Minstrel or Apothecary, so a single play of such a card can set up multiple Mystics for guaranteed draw. Finally, Mystic can also use information from Attacks that set the top card of your deck (such as Clerk) and may therefore reduce the impact of such cards. Mystic is less likely to pay off in decks where you can't guarantee a hit, but if you're using it anyway, playing it after all your draw cards will improve your odds of guessing correctly. If you need a specific card from your deck to fruitfully continue your turn, it may be useful to name that card even if it isn't the most likely one.

Some decks can make use of Mystic even if it is unlikely to draw. Most often, this is the case in decks that are mostly using it as Action-based payload alongside abundant draw; this is most likely to occur with cards such as Tactician or Scrying Pool. Less frequently, revealing the top card of your deck can activate beneficial effects in other cards that care about that card, such as Native Village, Chariot Race, or additional Mystics.

Mystic synergizes very well with Way of the Chameleon, which turns it into excellent non-terminal draw, equivalent to a Laboratory that draws a third card if you can guess it correctly.

External strategy articles

Note: Article(s) below are by individual authors and may not represent the community's current views on cards, but may provide more in-depth information or give historical perspective. Caveat emptor.

• shark_bait's 2012 article

Versions

English versions

Print	Digital	Text	Release	Date
		+1 Action + Name a card. Reveal the top card of your deck. If it's the named card, put it into your hand.	Dark Ages 1st Edition	August 2012
		+1 Action + Name a card, then reveal the top card of your deck. If you named it, put it into your hand.	Dark Ages 2nd Edition	September 2017

Other language versions

Language	Name	Print	Digital	Text	Notes
Czech	Šamanka (lit. shaman, note: explicitly feminine)			+1 akce + Řekni název karty. Ukaž vrchní kartu svého dobíracího balíčku. Je-li to jmenovaná karta, vezmi si ji do ruky.
Dutch	Toverfeeks (lit. magic hag)
Finnish	Mystikko
French	Mystique
German	Medium			+1 Aktion + Nenne eine Karte. Decke die oberste Karte deines Nachziehstapels auf. Ist es die genannte Karte, nimm sie auf deine Hand.	(2019)
Japanese	秘術師 (pron. hijutsu-shi, lit. master of the secret art)			+1 アクション + カード1枚を指定し、山札の一番上のカードを公開する。公開したカードを指定していた場合、手札に加える。
Korean	신비주의자 (pron. sinbijuuija)
Polish	Mistyk (explicitly masculine)				Although Polish version is not released, this name is referred to in Polish Dominion 2E rulebook.
Russian	Мистик (pron. mistik)
Spanish	Pitonisa

Trivia

Official card art.

Secret History

This is a late card, from a point where I had a couple slots to fill, and wanted 's that didn't use up your action. I made a list of cards to try, and we tried them, and this one stood out. It's just Wishing Well with + instead of +1 Card. Only, as with Highway vs. Bridge, that change means that various combos that don't work with Wishing Well actually work with Mystic.

—Donald X. Vaccarino, The Secret History of the Dark Ages Cards

Relevant outtakes

More late cards, briefly tested in case they somehow worked out, all costing . A two-use Gold (you trash it and gain a Spoils). +3 Cards, we all set aside a card from our hand, then we all take one of those cards. +1 Card +1 Action, When you gain or trash this each other player gets a Ruins. +1 Card +1 Action +, may discard x cards to gain a card costing . +4 Cards, +1 Action, discard 3 cards. And there was a hot potato card - you passed it left when you played it and got some benefit, and at end of game it was worth negative   - that I tested but did not make a prototype card image for. The slot all these cards were tested for went to Mystic.

—Donald X. Vaccarino, The Secret History of the Dark Ages Cards