Everything We Know About MTG’s Banned and Restricted List – Standard, Modern, and More!

Here’s every Magic: The Gathering card you aren’t allowed to play with.

If you are looking to play Magic: The Gathering, you need to know about the Magic Banned and Restricted list. When a card becomes too powerful or too defining for a format, Wizards of the Coast may take the option to remove that card to encourage a more positive playing experience.

Knowing that is legal in Magic: The Gathering is tough given the variety of formats with tabletop and MTG Arena, but don’t worry, we have you covered!

What is the Banned and Restricted List in Magic: The Gathering?

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In Magic: The Gathering, Wizards of the Coast use a ban philosophy in which cards become illegal to play for numerous reasons. One is the cards are just glaringly powerful such as Oko, Thief of Crowns, for example. But more commonly, cards see a ban because they are too powerful in a specific format or warp a metagame to the point where it becomes too unhealthy. Unhealthy metagames discourage players from playing a particular format, in which interest dwindles until there is a fix from Wizards of the Coast. Often these changes happen due to competitive reasons and want to preserve a viable competitive format for players to take part in their Organized Play system.

Since Magic: The Gathering is an extensive game with multiple formats, there are different ban lists for each one. If a card appears on the ban list, then this means you can’t play it unless it comes off the ban list at a later date. Wizards of the Coast often announce banned and restricted updates through social media and articles, with a pre-announcement giving Magic players a brief period to brace for changes.

Below you’ll find every banned and restricted card in Magic at present. In some cases, Wizards of the Coast may unban a card in a format due to newer cards entering the pool, or metagames have shifted to handle the once problem card.

The Standard Banlist in Magic: The Gathering

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Standard uses the most recent Magic: The Gathering sets and is the most accessible format for players. Standard adopts an annual rotation to keep the format fresh and exciting for tabletop and MTG Arena players. Here are the cards banned in Standard at present:

The Meathook Massacre
Reckoner Bankbuster
Fable of the Mirror-Breaker
Invoke Despair

The Pioneer Banlist in Magic: The Gathering

As the latest Magic: The Gathering eternal format, Pioneer only uses cards from the expansion Return to Ravnica and onwards. The current Pioneer banlist is as follows:

Balustrade Spy
Bloodstained Mire
Felidar Guardian
Field of the Dead
Flooded Strand
Geological Appraiser
Inverter of Truth
Karn, the Great Creator
Kethis, the Hidden Hand
Leyline of Abundance
Nexus of Fate
Oko, Thief of Crowns
Once Upon a Time
Polluted Delta
Teferi, Time Raveler
Undercity Informer
Underworld Breach
Uro, Titan of Nature’s Wrath
Veil of Summer
Walking Ballista
Wilderness Reclamation]
Windswept Heath
Wooded Foothills
Lurrus of the Dream-Den
Expressive Iteration
Winota, Joiner of Forces

The Modern Banlist in Magic: The Gathering

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Modern is the most popular Magic constructed format and uses cards from Eighth Edition onwards. Here are the cards that are currently banned in the eternal format

Ancient Den
Arcum’s Astrolabe
Birthing Pod
Blazing Shoal
Bridge From Below
Chrome Mox
Cloudpost
Dark Depths
Deathrite Shaman
Dig Through Time
Dread Return
Eye of Ugin
Faithless Looting
Field of the Dead
Fury
Gitaxian Probe
Glimpse of Nature
Golgari Grave-Troll
Great Furnace
Green Sun’s Zenith
Hogaak, Arisen Necropolis
Hypergenesis
Krark-Clan Ironworks
Lurrus of the Dream-Den
Mental Misstep
Mox Opal
Mycosynth Lattice
Mystic Sanctuary
Oko, Thief of Crowns
Once Upon a Time
Ponder
Punishing Fire
Rite of Flame
Seat of the Synod
Second Sunrise
Seething Song
Sensei’s Divining Top
Simian Spirit Guide
Skullclamp
Splinter Twin
Summer Bloom
Tibalt’s Trickery
Treasure Cruise
Tree of Tales
Umezawa’s Jitte
Up the Beanstalk
Uro, Titan of Nature’s Wrath
Vault of Whispers
Violent Outburst
Yorion, Sky Nomad

The Legacy Banlist in Magic: The Gathering

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Legacy uses cards from all legal Magic: The Gathering sets but uses a ban list to keep to an even power level. The current Legacy banlist is as follows:

Ancestral Recall
Arcum’s Astrolabe
Balance
Bazaar of Baghdad
Black Lotus
Channel
Chaos Orb
Deathrite Shaman
Demonic Consultation
Demonic Tutor
Dig Through Time
Dreadhorde Arcanist
Earthcraft
Falling Star
Fastbond
Flash
Frantic Search
Gitaxian Probe
Goblin Recruiter
Gush
Hermit Druid
Imperial Seal
Library of Alexandria
Lurrus of the Dream-Den
Mana Crypt
Mana Drain
Mana Vault
Memory Jar
Mental Misstep
Mind Twist
Mishra’s Workshop
Mox Emerald
Mox Jet
Mox Pearl
Mox Ruby
Mox Sapphire
Mystical Tutor
Necropotence
Oath of Druids
Oko, Thief of Crowns
Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer
Sensei’s Divining Top
Shahrazad
Skullclamp
Sol Ring
Strip Mine
Survival of the Fittest
Time Vault
Time Walk
Timetwister
Tinker
Tolarian Academy
Treasure Cruise
Underworld Breach
Vampiric Tutor
Wheel of Fortune
Windfall
Wrenn and Six
Yawgmoth’s Bargain
Yawgmoth’s Will
Zirda, the Dawnwaker
Any card with the card type “Conspiracy”
Any card that references “playing for ante”
Any card that shares art, text, or a combination of both that are culturally offensive
All Sticker cards
All Attraction cards

The Pauper Banlist in Magic: The Gathering

Pauper is one of the most affordable Magic: The Gathering formats around. Pauper only allows cards that must be printed at common rarity in any MTG set or supplemental product.

Unlike other constructed formats, the banned and restricted updates are recommended by the Pauper Format Panel, a group of community members from across the globe. They discuss any trends to keep Pauper healthy and exciting for players, which may include bans or unbans if required. Wizards of the Coast has the final say for any updates, the Pauper Format Panel merely suggests the best course of action. The current Pauper ban list is the following:

Aarakocra Sneak
All That Glitters
Arcum’s Astrolabe
Atog
Bonder’s Ornament
Chatterstorm
Cloud of Faeries
Cloudpost
Cranial Plating
Daze
Cranial Ram
Disciple of the Vault
Empty the Warrens
Fall from Favor
Frantic Search
Galvanic Relay
Gitaxian Probe
Stirring Bard
Grapeshot
Gush
Invigorate
Monastery Swiftspear
Mystic Sanctuary
Peregrine Drake
Prophetic Prism
Sojourner’s Companion
Temporal Fissure
Treasure Cruise
High Tide
Hymn to Tourach
Sinkhole
Underdark Explorer
Vicious Battlerager
All Sticker cards
All Attraction cards

The Vintage Banlist in Magic: The Gathering

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Vintage allows you to play any card from the beginning of Magic: The Gathering. The Vintage format does not have a banlist per se but uses a restricted list instead. However, there are a few exceptions, and are currently banned in Vintage.

Chaos Orb
Falling Star
Shahrazad
Any card with the card type “Conspiracy”
Any card that references “playing for ante”
Any card that shares art, text, or a combination of both that are culturally offensive
All Sticker cards
All Attraction cards

The Vintage Restricted List in Magic: The Gathering

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The following cards in Vintage are restricted, meaning you can only have one of these restricted cards in your deck and sideboard in total. Vintage does not operate a banlist because Wizards of the Coast wants to advertise Vintage as a format where you can play any card (outside of the Ante cards). Here are the following cards that are restricted in Vintage:

Ancestral Recall
Balance
Black Lotus
Brainstorm
Chalice of the Void
Channel
Demonic Consultation
Demonic Tutor
Dig Through Time
Flash
Gitaxian Probe
Golgari Grave-Troll
Gush
Imperial Seal
Karn, the Great Creator
Library of Alexandria
Lion’s Eye Diamond
Lodestone Golem
Lotus Petal
Mana Crypt
Mana Vault
Memory Jar
Mental Misstep
Merchant Scroll
Mind’s Desire
Monastery Mentor
Mox Emerald
Mox Jet
Mox Pearl
Mox Ruby
Mox Sapphire
Mystic Forge
Mystical Tutor
Narset, Parter of Veils
Necropotence
Sol Ring
Strip Mine
Thorn of Amethyst
Time Vault
Time Walk
Timetwister
Tinker
Tolarian Academy
Treasure Cruise
Trinisphere
Vampiric Tutor
Wheel of Fortune
Windfall
Yawgmoth’s Will

The Commander Banlist in Magic: The Gathering

Commander is the most popular format around and uses a singleton deckbuilding design. The Commander banlist is overseen by the Rules Committee (RC) with added guidance from the Commander Advisory Group (CAG). Through the combined advice, Wizards of the Coast implements bans for the singleton format which are:

Ancestral Recall
Balance
Biorhythm
Black Lotus
Braids, Cabal Minion
Chaos Orb
Coalition Victory
Channel
Emrakul, the Aeons Torn
Erayo, Soratami Ascendant
Falling Star
Fastbond
Flash
Gifts Ungiven
Golos, Tireless Pilgrim
Griselbrand
Hullbreacher
Iona, Shield of Emeria
Karakas
Leovold, Emissary of Trest
Library of Alexandria
Limited Resources
Lutri, the Spellchaser
Mox Emerald
Mox Jet
Mox Pearl
Mox Ruby
Mox Sapphire
Panoptic Mirror
Paradox Engine
Primeval Titan
Prophet of Kruphix
Recurring Nightmare
Rofellos, Llanowar Emissary
Shahrazad
Sundering Titan
Sway of the Stars
Sylvan Primordial
Time Vault
Time Walk
Tinker
Tolarian Academy
Trade Secrets
Upheaval
Yawgmoth’s Bargain
Any card with the card type “Conspiracy”
Any card that references “playing for ante”
Any card that shares art, text, or a combination of both that are culturally offensive

The Oathbreaker Banlist in Magic: The Gathering

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The following cards are banned in the 60-card 20-life singleton format:

Ad Nauseam
Ancestral Recall
Balance
Biorhythm
Black Lotus
Channel
Chaos Orb
Dark Ritual
Doomsday
Emrakul, the Aeons Torn
Expropriate
Falling Star
Fastbond
Griselbrand
High Tide
Jeweled Lotus
Library of Alexandria
Limited Resources
Lion’s Eye Diamond
Mana Crypt
Mana Geyser
Mana Vault
Mox Emerald
Mox Jet
Mox Pearl
Mox Ruby
Mox Sapphire
Natural Order
Painter’s Servant
Primal Surge
Saheeli, the Gifted
Shahrazad
Sol Ring
Sundering Titan
Sylvan Primordial
Time Vault
Time Walk
Tinker
Tolarian Academy
Tooth and Nail
Trade Secrets
Upheaval
Yawgmoth’s Bargain
Any card with the card type “Conspiracy”
Any card that references “playing for ante”
Any card that shares art, text, or a combination of both that are culturally offensive

MTG Arena Formats

MTG Arena also comes with its own banned and suspended list. Often banned and suspended updates from Wizards of the Coast come separate to the tabletop formats.

The Historic Banlist in MTG Arena

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Seen as MTG Arena’s eternal format of choice, Historic uses recent Standard sets from Ixalan onward, with a selection of cards entered into the format through Historic Anthology releases. Historic also adopts a suspension list as a mid-way point to see whether the card should see a ban, but no Historic cards are on the suspended list currently. Here are the cards banned in Historic at present:

Agent of Treachery
Blood Moon
Bloodstained Mire
Brainstorm
Channel
Commandeer
Counterspell
Dark Ritual
Demonic Tutor
Field of the Dead
Force of Vigor
Flooded Strand
Intruder Alarm
Land Tax
Lightning Bolt
Mana Drain
Memory Lapse
Natural Order
Necropotence
Nexus of Fate
Oko, Thief of Crowns
Once Upon a Time
Polluted Delta
Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer
Reanimate
Show and Tell
Sneak Attack
Spreading Seas
Swords to Plowshares
Thassa’s Oracle
Tibalt’s Trickery
Time Warp
Uro, Titan of Nature’s Wrath
Veil of Summer
Wilderness Reclamation
Windswept Heath
Wooded Foothills
Harbinger of the Seas
Winter Moon
Grief
Endurance
Fury
Solitude
Subtlety
Flare of Fortitude
Flare of Denial
Flare of Duplication
Flare of Malice
Misty Rainforest
Scalding Tarn
Arid Mesa
Marsh Flats
Verdant Catacombs

Also, Historic uses a rebalance feature to adjust the cards to correct any metagame problems without removing the card altogether. Since Historic is only on MTG Arena, rebalancing cards is a suitable compromise and tool for Wizards of the Coast to utilize without banning the card outright.

The Alchemy Banlist in MTG Arena

Alchemy is a digital-only rotating format for MTG Arena. It is the only Magic: The Gathering format to introduce new mechanics exclusive to the client and Alchemy itself. Alchemy also uses rebalance and similarly adjusts cards so there aren’t any banned cards at the time of publication

The Explorer Banlist in MTG Arena

Seen as the bridge between Standard and Pioneer, Explorer uses set legality from Return to Ravnica onwards. As such, Explorer does not use the digital-only cards featured in Historic or Alchemy. Here’s the following banlist for Explorer, which looks plenty similar to Pioneer’s banlist:

Expressive Iteration
Field of the Dead
Geological Appraiser
Karn, The Great Creator
Kethis, the Hidden Hand
Leyline of Abundance
Lurrus of the Dream-Den
Nexus of Fate
Oko, Thief of Crowns
Once Upon a Time
Teferi, Time Raveler
Tibalt’s Trickery
Underworld Breach
Uro, Titan of Nature’s Wrath
Veil of Summer
Wilderness Reclamation
Winota, Joiner of Forces

The Timeless Restricted List in MTG Arena

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Much like Vintage, Timeless uses a restricted list instead of outright banning cards. This means you can only run one copy of the card in your main deck and sideboard combined. The restricted cards are:

Demonic Tutor
Channel
Tibalt’s Trickery

The Brawl Banlist in MTG Arena

Brawl is a Commander variant that uses Standard-legal cards which is now a sanctioned MTG Arena format. The following cards are banned nor cannot be included as your Commander:

Agent of Treachery
Chalice of the Void
Channel
Demonic Tutor
Drannith Magistrate
Field of the Dead
Gideon’s Intervention
Lutri, the Spellchaser
Meddling Mage
Natural Order
Nexus of Fate
Oko, Thief of Crowns
Phyrexian Revoker
Pithing Needle
Runed Halo
Sorcerous Spyglass
Tainted Pact
Ugin, the Spirit Dragon
Disruptor Flute

The Historic Brawl Banlist in MTG Arena

Historic Brawl is a variant of Brawl which uses the Historic card pool in addition to the Standard-legal cards. The following Historic Brawl cards are banned and cannot be used as your Commander.

Channel
Drannith Magistrate
Demonic Tutor
Gideon’s Intervention
Meddling Mage
Natural Order
Nexus of Fate
Oko, Thief of Crowns
Omnath, Locus of Creation
Pithing Needle
Runed Halo
Sorcerous Spyglass
Tainted Pact
Teferi, Time Raveler
Agent of Treachery
Field of the Dead
Ugin, the Spirit Dragon
Chalice of the Void