Citanul Druid MTG Card

Antiquities (ATQ)
1994-03-04 - Number 31

Citanul Druid - Masters Edition IV (ME4)

Masters Edition IV (ME4)
2011-01-10 - Number 146

Card sets	Released in 2 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost	2
Rarity	Uncommon
Type	Creature — Human Druid
Power	1
Toughness	1

Key Takeaways

Offers card advantage by dissuading opponents from playing noncreature spells, creating favorable gameplay scenarios.
Incremental power boosts from opposing spells help save mana and pose as an escalating threat on board.
Despite mana cost and specialization, it shines in artifact-heavy metagames and discourages enchantment play.

Text of card

Druid gains a +1/+1 counter each time opponent casts an artifact.

Driven mad by the fall of Argoth, the Citanul Druids found peace only in battle.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: A unique aspect of Citanul Druid is its potential to indirectly provide card advantage. Opponents may forgo casting noncreature spells to avoid strengthening the Druid, effectively reducing the number of cards they can play and tipping the balance in your favor.

Resource Acceleration: Each activation of an opponent’s artifact or enchantment spell naturally bolsters Citanul Druid’s power. These incremental increases can serve as a form of resource acceleration by potentially saving your mana for other developments on the board or by threatening to become a significant beater on their own.

Instant Speed: While Citanul Druid itself isn’t played at instant speed, it interacts favorably against instant speed spells your opponent may cast. This means it becomes stronger during the full turn cycle, constantly charging up in the face of your opponent’s noncreature spells.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Playing Citanul Druid means meeting a steep condition in the form of card discards. If your hand is sparse, triggering its abilities could put you in a more precarious position by depleting your options.

Specific Mana Cost: The Druid demands a dedicated green mana investment. This specific cost can pigeonhole you into a mono-green build or require a mana base tailored to accommodate it, potentially limiting versatility in deck construction.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With its ability pinned to a relatively high mana cost, the Citanul Druid may lag behind other options. Savvy players might point out that the Druid’s benefits don’t quite measure up to simpler, more affordable alternatives that could be slotted into a deck.

Reasons to Include Citanul Druid in Your Collection

Versatility: Citanul Druid is a classic card that fits well into green decks that focus on punishing opponents for spell casting. Its ability to grow stronger each time an opponent casts an artifact spell makes it a flexible threat.

Combo Potential: This card has synergy with decks that encourage opponents to cast spells due to its ability to accumulate +1/+1 counters. It can be a crucial piece in a strategy that aims to create a hasty, large creature to overpower the opponent.

Meta-Relevance: In environments where artifact-heavy decks are popular, Citanul Druid can serve as a robust answer. It can quickly become a formidable force on the board, making it a smart inclusion for those anticipating artifact strategies in their play group or local meta.

How to beat

Citanul Druid is a unique Magic: The Gathering card that can be a substantial threat in games involving a lot of artifact plays. This green creature possesses an ability that can potentially grow it into a formidable force whenever an opponent casts an artifact spell. Therefore, tackling this card requires a strategy that mitigates its strength amplification.

Control is key when facing Citanul Druid. Cards that can remove creatures from the board, like Path to Exile or Fatal Push, are highly effective as they can directly counter the Druid before it becomes too large. Another approach is to limit the casting of artifacts when Citanul Druid is on the field. Alternative strategies include using counter spells to prevent artifacts from ever hitting the battlefield, which indirectly keeps the Druid’s power in check. Additionally, employing instant-speed removal can catch your opponent off-guard, eliminating the Druid before they can benefit from its growth.

Ultimately, the best way to combat Citanul Druid is to recognize the situations that make it a threat and to have a plan in place. Whether it’s removing it swiftly or adjusting your playstyle to sidestep its triggering ability, there are several ways to ensure the Citanul Druid doesn’t disrupt your path to victory.

Cards like Citanul Druid

When examining Citanul Druid alongside its peers in the vast universe of Magic: The Gathering, it shares the playing field with other creatures that turn opponent’s actions into advantages. Cards like Harsh Mentor echo this retaliatory stance, imposing a penalty whenever an opponent activates an ability of an artifact, creature, or land. Unlike Citanul Druid, which bears the strength of growing itself, Harsh Mentor instead deals direct damage to the opponent.

Moving forward, there’s Managorger Hydra, a creature that not only gets a +1/+1 counter when an opponent casts a spell but when any player does, including yourself. It can outpace the cumulative growth of Citanul Druid quickly and is not limited to enchantments. Nonetheless, Citanul Druid holds the unique niche of being an anti-enchantment specialist, and in metagames heavy with enchantments, it could be a more strategic option. Both cards have their place depending on the deck you’re running and the matchups you expect to face.

Considering such variables, Citanul Druid could function as a specialized tool in a player’s collection, capable of deterring enchantment-heavy strategies and gaining formidable strength in the process. Its place in Magic: The Gathering card hierarchy is solidified by its unique reactive growth ability.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Citanul Druid MTG card by a specific set like Antiquities and Masters Edition IV, 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 Citanul Druid and other MTG cards:

Continue exploring other sealed products in Amazon
See MTG Products

Printings

The Citanul Druid Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 1994-03-04 and 2011-01-10. Illustrated by Jeff A. Menges.

#	Released	Name	Code	Symbol	Number	Frame	Layout	Border	Artist
1	1994-03-04	Antiquities	ATQ		31	1993	Normal	Black	Jeff A. Menges
2	2011-01-10	Masters Edition IV	ME4		146	1997	Normal	Black	Jeff A. Menges

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Citanul Druid has restrictions

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

Rules and information

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