Soaring Seacliff MTG Card

Provides tactical advantage by enabling creatures to evade ground defenses and inflict potential game-winning damage. Allows for immediate mana utilization, which maintains flexibility and unpredictability in combat situations. Effective in tight matches where bypassing blockers quickly can pivot the game towards a swift victory.

Zendikar (ZEN)
2009-10-02 - Number 225

Soaring Seacliff - Duel Decks: Venser vs. Koth (DDI)

Duel Decks: Venser vs. Koth (DDI)
2012-03-30 - Number 37

Commander 2020 (C20)
2020-04-17 - Number 315

Card sets	Released in 3 setsSee all
Rarity	Common
Type	Land

Text of card

Soaring Seacliff enters the battlefield tapped. When Soaring Seacliff enters the battlefield, target creature gains flying until end of turn. : Add to your mana pool.

Cards like Soaring Seacliff

Soaring Seacliff is an interesting choice for decks that crave an extra kick in the aerial assault department. As a land card from the world of Magic: The Gathering, it serves a dual purpose, providing blue mana to fuel your spells while also giving a creature the ability to fly until end of turn when it enters the battlefield. This compares to other utility lands like Halimar Depths, which also enters tapped, provides blue mana, and lets you manipulate the top three cards of your library upon entry.

Another related card is the Sejiri Steppe, which shares the “landfall” ability to provide a one-time effect—giving a creature protection from color of your choice until end of turn when it lands on the battlefield. Though it doesn’t offer the evasive power of flying, the protection it grants can be crucial in certain scenarios. Mystic Sanctuary is yet another example, a land that taps for blue mana and has the potential to bring an instant or sorcery card from your graveyard to the top of your library, providing long-term strategic advantages.

Considering the strategic applications and benefits, Soaring Seacliff stands out for giving creatures an immediate offensive boost and unlocking the potential of aerial strategies in a Magic: The Gathering match.

Cards similar to Soaring Seacliff by color, type and mana cost

Magosi, the Waterveil - MTG Card versions

Glasspool Mimic // Glasspool Shore - MTG Card versions

Sea Gate Restoration // Sea Gate, Reborn - MTG Card versions

Beyeen Veil // Beyeen Coast - MTG Card versions

Otawara, Soaring City - MTG Card versions

Card Pros

Card Advantage: One of the standout features of Soaring Seacliff is its ability to set you ahead by modifying the board state without losing card economy. When a creature gains flying until end of turn, it can often mean the difference between an uneventful turn and a significant hit to your opponent’s life total. Although Soaring Seacliff doesn’t directly draw you cards, it elevates the tactical potential of your creatures, enabling advantageous combat situations or even game-winning strikes.

Resource Acceleration: Resource acceleration isn’t always about generating mana, and Soaring Seacliff provides an indirect form of it. By giving a creature flying, you can potentially bypass ground-based defenses, effectively hastening your route to victory. This can be crucial in tight matches where tempo is key, and the time saved by soaring over blockers can be a game-changing resource.

Instant Speed: While Soaring Seacliff itself doesn’t operate at instant speed, it does bring a land onto the battlefield which can immediately be used to tap for mana. This accessibility allows you to respond with actual instant speed spells in your arsenal, keeping your strategies flexible and your opponents guessing. The instant utilisation of the new mana can often be just as critical as the defensive and offensive capabilities offered by spells you can cast at instant speed.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Soaring Seacliff comes into play tapped unless you discard a card, which can set you back, especially during the early game when establishing your mana base is critical.

Specific Mana Cost: While it doesn’t require a specific color to cast, the activation of its ability is only useful in decks that rely on flying creatures, potentially narrowing its application across the MTG landscape.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With lands that enter the battlefield tapped, the tempo loss can be a setback. In faster-paced games where every turn counts, this can put a player at a disadvantage when there are other options that provide mana more efficiently.

Reasons to Include Soaring Seacliff in Your Collection

Versatility: Soaring Seacliff is a flexible land card that can find a home in various blue-based decks. By providing flying momentarily, it has the capacity to turn any creature into an immediate aerial threat. This can be a game-changer in limited formats or decks that focus on combat tricks and evasive maneuvers.

Combo Potential: The card’s ability to grant flying plays well with strategies that benefit when creatures have this ability, or when they attack unblocked. Combining Soaring Seacliff with cards that capitalize on attacking creatures can form powerful synergies, potentially unlocking alternative win conditions or creating substantial tempo swings.

Meta-Relevance: In a game state where ground stalls are common, Soaring Seacliff offers a way to break through board deadlocks. Its relevance increases in metagames where evasion is key to securing victory, allowing for crucial damage to be dealt or enabling the triggering of on-hit effects crucial for your game plan.

How to beat

Soaring Seacliff is an intriguing element in Magic the Gathering’s landscape of lands. This card offers flying until end of turn to a single creature when it enters the battlefield tapped, providing a tactical aerial advantage. Although it appears modest, this effect can turn the tides by giving unexpected evasion to a crucial creature.

Circumventing the benefits of Soaring Seacliff involves a two-pronged strategy. If the card’s flying ability is crucial to your opponent’s plans, control or removal spells are highly effective. Deploying a counterspell when your opponent targets a creature with this land’s ability can nullify the immediate threat. Conversely, board wipes or targeted removal can deal with the creature post-activation, rendering the Seacliff’s contribution moot. Another way is to strengthen your aerial defense. Stocking your deck with enough reach or flying creatures ensures that Soaring Seacliff’s ability doesn’t outmaneuver you during combat.

Overall, maintaining flexibility in your strategy and deck composition will position you to confidently handle challenges posed by cards like Soaring Seacliff and maintain dominance in your games.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Soaring Seacliff MTG card by a specific set like Zendikar and Duel Decks: Venser vs. Koth, there are several reliable options to consider. One of the primary sources is your local game store, where you can often find booster packs, individual cards, and preconstructed decks from current and some past sets. They often offer the added benefit of a community where you can trade with other players.

For a broader inventory, particularly of older sets, online marketplaces like TCGPlayer, Card Kingdom and Card Market offer extensive selections and allow you to search for cards from specific sets. Larger e-commerce platforms like eBay and Amazon also have listings from various sellers, which can be a good place to look for sealed product and rare finds.

Additionally, Magic’s official site often has a store locator and retailer lists for finding Wizards of the Coast licensed products. Remember to check for authenticity and the condition of the cards when purchasing, especially from individual sellers on larger marketplaces.

Below is a list of some store websites where you can buy the Soaring Seacliff and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Soaring Seacliff Magic the Gathering card was released in 3 different sets between 2009-10-02 and 2020-04-17. Illustrated by Izzy.

#	Released	Name	Code	Number	Frame	Layout	Border	Artist
1	2009-10-02	Zendikar	ZEN	225	2003	Normal	Black	Izzy
2	2012-03-30	Duel Decks: Venser vs. Koth	DDI	37	2003	Normal	Black	Izzy
3	2020-04-17	Commander 2020	C20	315	2015	Normal	Black	Izzy

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Soaring Seacliff has restrictions

Format	Legality
Commander	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Paupercommander	Legal
Modern	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Pauper	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Predh	Legal
Penny	Legal