Dai Li Indoctrination
Sorcery — Lesson
Choose one — • Target opponent reveals their hand. You choose a nonland permanent card from it. That player discards that card. • Earthbend 2. (Target land you control becomes a 0/0 creature with haste that's still a land. Put two +1/+1 counters on it. When it dies or is exiled, return it to the battlefield tapped.)
"There is no war in Ba Sing Se."
Strategy & Gameplay
Dai Li Indoctrination is a versatile two-mana black sorcery from the TLA set that offers players strategic flexibility through its modal design, making it an excellent addition to multiple deck archetypes across numerous formats. The card's first mode functions as a targeted discard effect with built-in hand disruption, allowing you to force your opponent to reveal their hand before you choose which nonland permanent card they must discard, giving you perfect information before deciding which threat to remove. This mode is particularly strong in control decks and tempo strategies where hand disruption fuels your gameplan, and it's especially effective against combo decks that rely on specific pieces. The second mode introduces the Earthbend mechanic, which animates one of your lands as a 0/0 creature with haste while adding two +1/+1 counters, creating a temporary 2/2 hasty threat that returns to the battlefield tapped when it dies or gets exiled, providing both offensive pressure and recurring value. This mode shines in creature-based strategies and landfall decks that can take advantage of the land animation for both combat damage and synergy triggers. The card's exceptional legality across standard, historic, pioneer, modern, legacy, commander, and numerous other formats makes it a universally playable option for competitive and casual players alike. Whether you're building a Grixis control deck that wants additional disruption, a mono-black midrange strategy seeking to pressure opponents' resources, or an experimental Earthbend-focused deck exploring the mechanic's full potential, this card delivers genuine value and flexibility that rewards thoughtful deckbuilding and tactical gameplay.
Illustrated by Lius Lasahido