Cruel Ultimatum (E01 #82)
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Cruel Ultimatum is a rare printing from Archenemy: Nicol Bolas (E01 #82), a Sorcery. Illustrated by Todd Lockwood.
Card text
Target opponent sacrifices a creature of their choice, discards three cards, then loses 5 life. You return a creature card from your graveyard to your hand, draw three cards, then gain 5 life.
There is always a greater power.
Details
| Mana cost | {U}{U}{B}{B}{B}{R}{R} |
|---|---|
| Type | Sorcery |
| Rarity | Rare |
| Set | Archenemy: Nicol Bolas (E01) |
| Collector number | 82 |
| Artist | Todd Lockwood |
| Released | 2017-06-16 |
Current price
As of 2026-10-19, Scryfall listed this printing at non-foil $0.49 (USD). Prices change constantly, so check the live price before buying.
Buy Cruel Ultimatum on TCGplayer
Legality
| Standard | Not legal |
|---|---|
| Future Standard | Not legal |
| Historic | Legal |
| Timeless | Legal |
| Gladiator | Legal |
| Pioneer | Not legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Pauper | Not legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Penny Dreadful | Legal |
| Commander | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Standard Brawl | Not legal |
| Brawl | Legal |
| Competitive Brawl | Legal |
| Alchemy | Not legal |
| Pauper Commander | Not legal |
| Duel Commander | Legal |
| Old School | Not legal |
| Premodern | Not legal |
| PrEDH | Legal |
| TLR | Not legal |
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Rulings
- March 14, 2017 — Cruel Ultimatum's only target is an opponent. You don't choose which creature card in your graveyard you'll return to your hand until Cruel Ultimatum resolves.
- March 14, 2017 — All of the actions for Cruel Ultimatum are performed sequentially, in the order listed. Earlier actions may affect how you perform later actions. For example, if the opponent sacrifices a creature that they control but you own, it will end up in your graveyard. When Cruel Ultimatum lets you return a creature card from your graveyard to your hand, you can choose that one.
- March 14, 2017 — If, as Cruel Ultimatum begins to resolve, your opponent's life total is 5 or less and you have two or fewer cards in your library, the game will result in a draw. Your opponent's life total will drop to 0 or less, but Cruel Ultimatum must finish resolving completely before state-based actions are performed. You'll then be forced to draw three cards and fail to draw one. When state-based actions are finally performed, you and your opponent will both lose the game at the same time, which means the game is a draw.
- April 12, 2024 — If the target opponent is an illegal target as Cruel Ultimatum tries to resolve, it won't resolve and none of its effects will happen. (I'm not going to list them all here because it would just be disappointing to hear all of the things you won't get to do.)
Other printings of Cruel Ultimatum
Every MTGBrew page for another printing of Cruel Ultimatum:
- Cruel Ultimatum (ALA #164)
- Cruel Ultimatum (C13 #182)
- Cruel Ultimatum (DDH #69)
- Cruel Ultimatum (MM3 #158)
- Cruel Ultimatum (OTP #40)
- Cruel Ultimatum (V13 #17)
More cards from Archenemy: Nicol Bolas
Other cards in Archenemy: Nicol Bolas on MTGBrew: