A-Rockslide Sorcerer MTG Card
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 3 |
| Rarity | Uncommon |
| Type | Creature — Human Wizard |
| Released | 2020-09-25 |
| Set symbol | |
| Set name | Zendikar Rising |
| Set code | ZNR |
| Power | 2 |
| Toughness | 2 |
| Number | A-154 |
| Frame | 2015 |
| Layout | Normal |
| Border | Black |
| Illustred by | Daarken |
Key Takeaways
- Incrementally deals damage through spell casting, potentially swinging the game by draining opponent’s life or forces.
- Encourages multi-spell turns, enhancing control and creating value from each spell cast.
- Combines well with instant-speed plays, allowing strategists to act on opponent’s turns with impactful consequences.
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase A-Rockslide Sorcerer MTG card by a specific set like Zendikar Rising, 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 A-Rockslide Sorcerer and other MTG cards:
- eBay
- TCG Player
- Card Kingdom
- Card Market
- Star City Games
- CoolStuffInc
- MTG Mint Card
- Hareruya
- Troll and Toad
- ABU Games
- Card Hoarder Magic Online
- MTGO Traders Magic Online
See MTG Products
Text of card
Whenever you cast an instant, sorcery, or Wizard spell, Rockslide Sorcerer deals 1 damage to any target.
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Rockslide Sorcerer offers the ability to incrementally whittle down opponent forces or chip away at their life total, which in turn can translate into card advantage. Each instant or sorcery spell is a potential trigger for this ability, giving you more value out of spells played.
Resource Acceleration: Although not directly providing resource acceleration, Rockslide Sorcerer can form a crucial piece of a combo or synergistic strategy to unlock explosive turns. It can enable more complex plays that lead to a more efficient use of your resources, be that mana, creatures, or spells.
Instant Speed: This card enhances instant-speed plays, by providing an additional effect every time you cast an instant (or sorcery). This means you can keep your mana untapped and still make impactful plays during your opponent’s turn that can damage or eliminate threats as they arise.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: The activation of A-Rockslide Sorcerer’s ability hinges on you casting another instant or sorcery spell, which can deplete your hand quickly if you’re not equipped with a strategy to refill it.
Specific Mana Cost: As a card that requires two specific mana colors—one red and one blue—it may not fit into all deck archetypes comfortably, particularly those that do not support an Izzet (blue-red) mana base.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost of three mana and a requirement to play additional spells to activate its ability, A-Rockslide Sorcerer competes with other cards in the same mana range that could potentially offer more immediate impact on the game state.
Reasons to Include in Your Collection
Versatility: A-Rockslide Sorcerer fits well in decks that leverage instants and sorceries, enabling damage output with spell casting, enhancing both offensive and controlling play styles.
Combo Potential: This card shines in synergy with other spells that lead to chains of spells being cast in a single turn, potentially clearing the board of smaller threats for each cast.
Meta-Relevance: In a meta that favors spell-slinger or wizard-centric decks, A-Rockslide Sorcerer can become a key player, disrupting opponent tactics while providing incremental advantage.
How to Beat Rockslide Sorcerer
Rockslide Sorcerer is a unique creature in the world of Magic: The Gathering, offering a specific brand of synergy with instant and sorcery spells. It’s a card that invites strategy, prompting players to craft their approach thoughtfully. To overcome the challenges posed by Rockslide Sorcerer, one must disrupt this synergy. This could involve removing the creature before it becomes a significant threat or countering the key spells that trigger its ability.
Effective tactics could include using targeted removal spells, such as Murder or Doom Blade, to dispatch the Sorcerer quickly and efficiently. Alternatively, deploying a Negate or Disdainful Stroke can prevent the key instants and sorceries from ever resolving, thus negating the Sorcerer’s potential impact on the board. Having a plan to deal with creatures that interact so closely with spell casting is crucial in a game that rewards foresight and preparedness.
When facing a deck bolstered by Rockslide Sorcerer, it’s essential to be proactive and decisive. By keeping pressure on the opponent and their resources, the threat of this card can be significantly diminished, ensuring that your chances of securing victory remain high.
Cards like A-Rockslide Sorcerer
A-Rockslide Sorcerer steps into the MTG arena as an intriguing piece in spell synergistic decks. It shares a kinship with cards like Guttersnipe, with both creating an effect when a player casts an instant or sorcery spell. However, A-Rockslide Sorcerer brings a unique touch to the table with its ability to deal damage to a creature based on the number of spells you’ve cast, providing not just damage to opponents but also functioning as a removal tool.
Spellweaver Eternal is another card worthy of comparison. While it also benefits from casting spells, through afflict and prowess, it differs in role and utility by offering more aggressive early gameplay compared to the Sorcerer’s direct creature damage approach. Nivix Cyclops is in a similar ballpark, where it gains a temporary power boost for each spell cast, although it leans more towards direct player damage rather than interacting with opposing creatures.
In evaluating these options, A-Rockslide Sorcerer shines in decks that cast multiple spells and seek to control the board through targeted removal. Its ability to scale damage based on spell-slinging gives it a noteworthy standing among its counterparts, especially in longer, grindy games where it can become a consistent threat.
Cards similar to A-Rockslide Sorcerer by color, type and mana cost
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where A-Rockslide Sorcerer has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Historicbrawl | Legal |
| Historic | Legal |