Zenith Seeker MTG Card


Zenith Seeker - Amonkhet
Mana cost
Converted mana cost4
RarityUncommon
TypeCreature — Bird Wizard
Abilities Flying
Released2017-04-28
Set symbol
Set nameAmonkhet
Set codeAKH
Power 2
Toughness 2
Number77
Frame2015
Layoutnormal
Borderblack
Illustred byJason Kang

Key Takeaways

  1. Zenith Seeker offers prolific card draw and enhances hand options, key for maintaining game momentum.
  2. This card’s ability to filter and accelerate resources ensures quicker access to high-impact spells.
  3. Its instant speed agility provides players with superior adaptability during intense MTG matches.

Text of card

Flying Whenever you cycle or discard a card, target creature gains flying until end of turn.

Only from the sky can one fully understand the horrors of the wastes and the wonder of the Hekma's protection.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Zenith Seeker is an excellent tool to sift through your library, granting the ability to potentially draw multiple cards in a single turn, providing a significant boost in hand options.

Resource Acceleration: By efficiently filtering unwanted cards from the top of your deck, Zenith Seeker enables a more productive resource utilization, ensuring you draw into your impactful spells quicker.

Instant Speed: Operating at instant speed gives you the versatility to respond to your opponent’s actions, making Zenith Seeker a flexible choice capable of adapting to the ever-changing battlefield.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: The mechanics of Zenith Seeker necessitate discarding another card, causing potential resource depletion which might not always synergize well with your gameplay strategy, especially if your hand is already limited.

Specific Mana Cost: Zenith Seeker can be challenging to cast on curve due to its specific mana requirements. Decks that aren’t fine-tuned to generate the right mana at the right time may struggle to utilize this card optimally.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a higher mana cost than some of its counterparts, Zenith Seeker may lag in tempo against decks that aim to cast more impactful creatures or spells sooner, which could be a setback in fast-paced games.


Reasons to Include Zenith Seeker in Your Collection

Versatility: Zenith Seeker offers a multi-dimensional approach to deck building. The card can seamlessly integrate into flying-centered or multicolor decks, enhancing strategies around creature-based tactics.

Combo Potential: With its ability to provide card advantage when paired with flying creatures, Zenith Seeker can synergize with combos that aim to swarm the skies, drawing you into the right cards to sustain your aerial assault.

Meta-Relevance: In metas where flying creatures are prevalent or in environments that favor nuanced play over brute force, Zenith Seeker shines by keeping your hand filled with options and maintaining pressure on your opponent.


How to beat

Zenith Seeker presents a unique challenge on the battlefield due to its ability to shift the course of the game by enhancing the value of creatures with flying. This powerful ability in Magic: The Gathering can significantly bolster your opponent’s aerial forces, potentially leading to an overwhelming advantage if left unchecked.

To counteract the Zenith Seeker’s impact, one effective strategy is to prioritize the removal of creatures with flying. Utilizing cards that specify targeting creatures with flying, such as Plummet, can help you maintain control of the skies. Additionally, including sweepers like Wrath of God in your deck can clear the battlefield of multiple threats at once, including any bolstered by Zenith Seeker’s influence.

Another approach is to prevent the Zenith Seeker from triggering its ability altogether. Cards like Pithing Needle can be used to disable activated abilities, limiting the Zenith Seeker’s effect on the game. Moreover, a well-timed Counterspell can prevent Zenith Seeker from entering the battlefield in the first place.

Ultimately, understanding the Zenith Seeker’s strengths allows for strategic planning to mitigate its influence, ensuring you maintain a favorable position throughout the game. Employing targeted removal, board wipes, and disruptive spells are key tactics in overcoming the challenges posed by Zenith Seeker.


Cards like Zenith Seeker

Zenith Seeker stands out within the flying archetype of Magic: The Gathering. Often compared to cards like Warden of Evos Isle which also prioritizes flying creatures, Zenith Seeker offers a unique angle. While both cards benefit fliers, Zenith Seeker specifically enables immediate card draw when a creature with flying enters the battlefield under your control. Warden of Evos Isle, in contrast, reduces the mana cost of flying creatures but doesn’t facilitate card advantage.

Looking at Cloudreader Sphinx, you get a creature that can manipulate the top of your deck with scry upon entering the battlefield, but it does not offer the card draw potential that Zenith Seeker promises. This makes Zenith Seeker a more direct route to replenishing your hand when playing creatures. Gust of Wind is another spell that interacts positively with flying creatures, providing both a bounce effect and card draw, yet it requires that you have a flyer to even cast it at a reduced cost. Zenith Seeker simply asks that the creatures have flying as they come into play to trigger its ability.

Comparatively, Zenith Seeker aligns well with those seeking to exploit the aerial lane in their deck, granting not only thematic synergy but also a practical path to maintaining card flow in a game.

Warden of Evos Isle - MTG Card versions
Cloudreader Sphinx - MTG Card versions
Gust of Wind - MTG Card versions
Warden of Evos Isle - Magic 2014 (M14)
Cloudreader Sphinx - Dominaria (DOM)
Gust of Wind - Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths (IKO)

Cards similar to Zenith Seeker by color, type and mana cost

Phantasmal Forces - MTG Card versions
Phantom Monster - MTG Card versions
Wall of Vapor - MTG Card versions
Tradewind Rider - MTG Card versions
Archivist - MTG Card versions
Thieving Magpie - MTG Card versions
Inga Rune-Eyes - MTG Card versions
Sakashima of a Thousand Faces - MTG Card versions
Laboratory Drudge - MTG Card versions
Hisoka, Minamo Sensei - MTG Card versions
Johnny, Combo Player - MTG Card versions
Dream Prowler - MTG Card versions
Clone - MTG Card versions
Cytoplast Manipulator - MTG Card versions
Crookclaw Transmuter - MTG Card versions
Dreamborn Muse - MTG Card versions
Turtleshell Changeling - MTG Card versions
Sower of Temptation - MTG Card versions
Glen Elendra Archmage - MTG Card versions
Fatestitcher - MTG Card versions
Phantasmal Forces - Fourth Edition Foreign Black Border (4BB)
Phantom Monster - Fourth Edition Foreign Black Border (4BB)
Wall of Vapor - Chronicles (CHR)
Tradewind Rider - World Championship Decks 1998 (WC98)
Archivist - Urza's Legacy (ULG)
Thieving Magpie - Seventh Edition (7ED)
Inga Rune-Eyes - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Sakashima of a Thousand Faces - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Laboratory Drudge - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Hisoka, Minamo Sensei - Champions of Kamigawa (CHK)
Johnny, Combo Player - Unhinged (UNH)
Dream Prowler - Tempest Remastered (TPR)
Clone - Ninth Edition (9ED)
Cytoplast Manipulator - Dissension (DIS)
Crookclaw Transmuter - Time Spiral (TSP)
Dreamborn Muse - Tenth Edition (10E)
Turtleshell Changeling - Lorwyn (LRW)
Sower of Temptation - Wilds of Eldraine Commander (WOC)
Glen Elendra Archmage - Eventide (EVE)
Fatestitcher - Shards of Alara (ALA)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Zenith Seeker MTG card by a specific set like Amonkhet, 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 Zenith Seeker and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Zenith Seeker has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderRestricted
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PioneerLegal

Rules and information

The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Zenith Seeker card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

DateText
2017-04-18 An ability that triggers whenever you discard a card doesn’t give you permission to discard cards. You’ll need another effect that instructs or allows you to discard them.
2017-04-18 An ability that triggers whenever you “cycle or discard” a card triggers only once if you cycle a card. The ability “Whenever you discard a card” is functionally identical to this ability; cycling is mentioned for clarity.
2017-04-18 Giving a creature flying after it’s already been blocked won’t change or undo that block. If you want the flying to affect what can block the creature, you must cycle or discard a card during the declare attackers step at the latest.
2017-04-18 If a player discards a card during their cleanup step due to having too many cards in hand, any appropriate abilities that trigger on discarding that card trigger. If this happens, those triggered abilities are put onto the stack and players receive priority in that cleanup step to cast spells or activate abilities (normally, no players may take actions during a cleanup step). Another cleanup step is created following that one.
2017-04-18 Some cards have an ability that triggers whenever you cycle any card. These triggered abilities resolve before you draw from the cycling ability.

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