Assault Formation MTG Card

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Assault Formation enables players to utilize the toughness of creatures as a resource for dealing damage, effectively turning defensive units into formidable attackers. This can lead to an overwhelming board presence, often giving you a numerical edge over the opponent. It also opens up card interactions that can draw cards based on creatures’ toughness, indirectly contributing to card advantage.

Resource Acceleration: Not directly involved with traditional mana ramping, Assault Formation instead accelerates your board’s potential by allowing even the lowest-cost, high-toughness creatures to become viable threats. This efficient use of resources can outpace an opponent’s development, pressuring their life total early in the game.

Instant Speed: While Assault Formation itself is not an instant, it permits you to use creatures with high toughness as blockers and then, with its activated ability, turn them into attackers at instant speed during your turn. This flexibility can catch an opponent off-guard, potentially turning the tide of the battle by maximizing the utility of your creatures both defensively and offensively.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: One drawback of utilizing Assault Formation in your deck is the necessity to discard a card to activate its ability that allows creatures you control to assign combat damage equal to their toughness rather than their power. The discard could be problematic if your hand is already depleted.

Specific Mana Cost: Assault Formation has a specific mana cost that includes green, which means it slots primarily into green decks or those that can accommodate green mana. This can potentially limit deck-building options for players not running green or multicolored mana bases.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With an initial casting cost plus additional mana required to fully utilize its abilities, Assault Formation may be less mana efficient compared to other cards that boost creature power or provide defensive bonuses. This can be a significant factor, especially in faster-paced games where mana economy is crucial.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Assault Formation is a dynamic inclusion in any deck that focuses on toughness rather than power, turning defensive stalwarts into formidable attackers.

Combo Potential: This card synergizes well with high-toughness creatures, potentially unlocking game-winning combinations by allowing for unexpected damage output.

Meta-Relevance: With its unique ability to shift the combat dynamic, Assault Formation can catch opponents off guard in a meta that’s heavy on creature-based strategies.

How to beat

Assault Formation is a unique card that turns the usual combat calculations upside down by allowing creatures to deal damage with their toughness rather than their power. To effectively counter this strategy, removing or disabling Assault Formation is key. Cards that can destroy or exile enchantments, such as Naturalize or Disenchant, are traditional answers. Control decks can benefit greatly from counterspells like Cancel or Negate that prevent Assault Formation from hitting the battlefield in the first place.

Additionally, since the deck relies heavily on having creatures with high toughness, board wipes like Wrath of God or Damnation can prove devastating. It’s also worth considering that without Assault Formation, many of these creatures become less threatening, so creature removal spells remain valuable. Removing key defensive creatures can cripple an opponent’s strategy. Ultimately, maintaining the ability to disrupt and clear the board can turn the tides against an Assault Formation-centric deck.

BurnMana Recommendations

Dive deeper into the world of MTG with Assault Formation and redefine your gameplay. Embrace the shift from power to toughness, creating unexpected lines of attack that can astonish your opponents. Understanding the balance of strengths and weaknesses of this card brings a new layer to strategic deck-building. As you continue to build and fine-tune your collection, consider the value of synergy, the meta game, and niche strategies that can elevate your MTG experience. For more insights, deck-building tips, and ways to outmaneuver your opponents using Assault Formation, join us and enhance your MTG prowess.