Clue

Clue
Artifact Type
(Subtype for artifact cards)
Rules	, Sacrifice this artifact: Draw a card
Storm Scale	2
Statistics	6 cards 16.7% 33.3% 16.7% 33.3% 53 Clue creation cards 20.8% 26.4% 1.9% 20.8% 3.8% 5.7% 1.9% 1.9% 1.9% 3.8% 3.8% 5.7% 1.9% as of Doctor Who
Scryfall Search
type:"Clue"

Clue is a predefined token and artifact type introduced in Shadows over Innistrad. Clues are closely associated with the investigate keyword action which creates a Clue token.

Description

Although it does appear in the type line of a few cards, the type appears much more frequently on predefined tokens. Out of those, Clues are almost always created by the investigate action, which is carried out solely by creating a Clue. Clue tokens have ", Sacrifice this artifact: Draw a card." Unlike Food and Treasure tokens, Clue tokens don't have to be tapped before sacrifice.

The first card that featured the artifact type was Parcel Myr from Modern Horizons 2. It featured the same ability as the previous tokens.

Previously, Clue tokens had been defined by the rule for the investigate keyword action. However, Fae Offering from Modern Horizons 2 was the first card to create Clue tokens without investigating. As a consequence, the Clue token became a predefined token.

Clue tokens and investigate are considered to be deciduous.

Nontoken clues

• Agent's Toolkit
• Candy Trail (also a Food)
• Five Hundred Year Diary
• Investigator's Journal
• Parcelmyr
• Slayer's Bounty (designed-for-digital)

Rules

From the glossary of the Comprehensive Rules (June 7, 2024—Modern Horizons 3)

Clue Token

A Clue token is a colorless artifact token with “{2}, Sacrifice this artifact: Draw a card.” For more information about predefined tokens, see rule 111.10.

From the Comprehensive Rules (June 7, 2024—Modern Horizons 3)

• 111.10. Some effects instruct a player to create a predefined token. These effects use the definition below to determine the characteristics the token is created with. The effect that creates a predefined token may also modify or add to the predefined characteristics.
  • 111.10a A Treasure token is a colorless Treasure artifact token with “{T}, Sacrifice this artifact: Add one mana of any color.”
  • 111.10b A Food token is a colorless Food artifact token with “{2}, {T}, Sacrifice this artifact: You gain 3 life.”
  • 111.10c A Gold token is a colorless Gold artifact token with “Sacrifice this artifact: Add one mana of any color.”
  • 111.10d A Walker token is a 2/2 black Zombie creature token named Walker.
  • 111.10e A Shard token is a colorless Shard enchantment token with “{2}, Sacrifice this enchantment: Scry 1, then draw a card.”
  • 111.10f A Clue token is a colorless Clue artifact token with “{2}, Sacrifice this artifact: Draw a card.”
  • 111.10g A Blood token is a colorless Blood artifact token with “{1}, {T}, Discard a card, Sacrifice this artifact: Draw a card.”
  • 111.10h A Powerstone token is a colorless Powerstone artifact token with “{T}: Add {C}. This mana can’t be spent to cast a nonartifact spell.”
  • 111.10i An Incubator token is a transforming double-faced token. Its front face is a colorless Incubator artifact with “{2}: Transform this artifact.” Its back face is a 0/0 colorless Phyrexian artifact creature named Phyrexian Token.
  • 111.10j A Cursed Role token is a colorless Aura Role enchantment token named Cursed with enchant creature and “Enchanted creature has base power and toughness 1/1.”
  • 111.10k A Monster Role token is a colorless Aura Role enchantment token named Monster with enchant creature and “Enchanted creature gets +1/+1 and has trample.”
  • 111.10m A Royal Role token is a colorless Aura Role enchantment token named Royal with enchant creature and “Enchanted creature gets +1/+1 and has ward {1}.”
  • 111.10n A Sorcerer Role token is a colorless Aura Role enchantment token named Sorcerer with enchant creature and “Enchanted creature gets +1/+1 and has ‘Whenever this creature attacks, scry 1.’”
  • 111.10p A Virtuous Role token is a colorless Aura Role enchantment token named Virtuous with enchant creature and “Enchanted creature gets +1/+1 for each enchantment you control.”
  • 111.10q A Wicked Role token is a colorless Aura Role enchantment token named Wicked with enchant creature, “Enchanted creature gets +1/+1,” and “When this Aura is put into a graveyard from the battlefield, each opponent loses 1 life.”
  • 111.10r A Young Hero Role token is a colorless Aura Role enchantment token named Young Hero with enchant creature and “Enchanted creature has ‘Whenever this creature attacks, if its toughness is 3 or less, put a +1/+1 counter on it.’”
  • 111.10s A Map token is a colorless Map artifact token with “{1}, {T}, Sacrifice this artifact: Target creature you control explores. Activate only as a sorcery.” See rule 701.40, “Explore.”
  • 111.10t A Junk token is a colorless Junk artifact token with “{T}, Sacrifice this artifact: Exile the top card of your library. You may play that card this turn. Activate only as a sorcery.”

Rulings

• Clue is an artifact type. Even though it appears on a creature (Parcel Myr), it is never a creature type.
• If an effect refers to a Clue, it means any Clue artifact, not just a Clue artifact token. For example, you can sacrifice Parcel Myr to activate the last ability of Lonis, Cryptozoologist.
• You can't sacrifice a Clue token to pay multiple costs. For example, you can't sacrifice a Clue token to activate its ability and also to activate the ability of Lonis, Cryptozoologist.
• Some spells that instruct you to create a Clue token have targets. You can't cast these spells without choosing all required targets, and if all of those targets become illegal targets, the spell won't resolve and you won't create any Clue. If some but not all of those targets become illegal, you'll do as much as possible, including creating Clue.

Clue tokens

Token Name	Color	Type Line	P/T	Text Box	Source	Printings
Clue	Colorless	Artifact — Clue		, Sacrifice this artifact: Draw a card.	Academy Manufactor Alquist Proft, Master Sleuth Angelic Sleuth Antique Collector Auspicious Arrival Bearer of Overwhelming Truths Blink Briarbridge Patrol Briarbridge Tracker Bygone Bishop Byway Courier Case of the Filched Falcon Case of the Pilfered Proof Confirm Suspicions Confront the Unknown Declaration in Stone Deduce Dennick, Pious Apparition Dining Room Disorder in the Court Drag the Canal Drownyard Explorers Duggan, Private Detective Elmar, Ulvenwald Informant Eloise, Nephalia Sleuth Erdwal Illuminator Ethereal Investigator Expose Evil Fae Offering Fateful Absence Fleeting Memories Floodhound Follow Him Foul Play The Fugitive Doctor Fugitive of the Judoon Funnel-Web Recluse Gleaming Geardrake Gone Missing Hard Evidence Havengul Laboratory Heaven Sent Hold for Questioning Homicide Investigator Hotshot Investigators Humble the Brute Innocent Bystander Inquisitor Eisenhorn Inquisitor Greyfax Jace's Scrutiny Lavinia, Foil to Conspiracy Library Lonis, Cryptozoologist Loxodon Eavesdropper Madame Vastra Magnifying Glass Martha Jones Meddling Youths Mistway Spy Morska, Undersea Sleuth Nick Valentine, Private Eye Novice Inspector No Witnesses Ongoing Investigation Osgood, Operation Double Out Cold Overencumbered Persuasive Interrogators Piper Wright, Publick Reporter Press for Answers The Rani Root Out Rory Williams Sally Sparrow Sarah Jane Smith Search the Premises Secrets of the Key The Seventh Doctor Sharp-Eyed Rookie Sophina, Spearsage Deserter Survive the Night Tail the Suspect Tamiyo, Inquisitive Student Tamiyo's Journal Teysa, Opulent Oligarch The Third Doctor They Went This Way Thijarian Witness Thorough Investigation Thraben Inspector Tireless Tracker Tivit, Seller of Secrets Trail of Evidence Transmutation Font Ulvenwald Mysteries Undercover Crocodelf Wavesifter Weirding Wood Wernog, Rider's Chaplain Wojek Investigator

Trivia

• Candy Trail is the first card printed with multiple predefined token subtypes.

Gallery

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