AWOL MTG Card

Card Pros

Card Advantage: The AWOL card offers a unique twist on card advantage as it effectively removes a single target creature from the game, which can dramatically swing the momentum in your favor by dealing with key threats permanently.

Resource Acceleration: Although AWOL itself does not directly provide resource acceleration, removing a crucial creature can indirectly lead to a resource advantage. By eliminating an opponent’s major play, you can significantly hamper their strategy and pave the way for a more efficient use of your mana and resources in subsequent turns.

Instant Speed: One of the hallmark features of AWOL is its instant-speed operation. This allows for strategic flexibility, enabling you to respond to an opponent’s actions in real-time. Whether it’s disrupting a combo, ambushing an attacker, or simply keeping the element of surprise on your side, AWOL’s instant speed is a tactical asset that keeps opponents guessing and can create game-winning opportunities.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: The AWOL card insists that players relinquish a card from their hand to utilize its powers, presenting a hindrance when card quantity is already dwindling.

Specific Mana Cost: With an exacting mana composition demanding a mix of colors, AWOL targets a niche segment, potentially excluding a range of decks from harnessing its benefits.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Although AWOL may offer a unique form of interaction with the game’s mechanics, its mana investment is on the higher side, prompting players to consider alternative cards that achieve similar results with less expenditure.

Reasons to Include AWOL in Your Collection

Versatility: AWOL is an unusual card that can surprisingly adjust to various deck strategies. This card provides a unique form of removal that can be particularly disruptive against decks relying on graveyard strategies or recursion mechanics, since it exiles the target creature and essentially removes it from the game in an unconventional way.

Combo Potential: For those who enjoy building around quirky and niche combos, AWOL can be a hidden gem. Its ability to permanently exile creatures opens up possibilities for interactions with cards that benefit from the absence of certain creatures on the battlefield or utilize exile zones strategically.

Meta-Relevance: While AWOL may not be a staple in every meta, it possesses an intriguing potential in sideboards for specific metagames. Should the environment saturate with creature-based strategies that lean on graveyard interaction, AWOL could serve as an ace up your sleeve to outmaneuver opponents relying on those tactics.

How to beat

AWOL, a niche yet potent card in the MTG universe, can often throw players off due to its ability to remove a creature from the game entirely. The mechanic at play is exile, which is a step beyond typical removal spells that only send creatures to the graveyard. But defeating the functionality of AWOL isn’t as daunting as it seems. The key is to limit the targets it can effectively remove. This can be done by employing creatures with hexproof or shroud, rendering them immune to being targeted by spells or abilities your opponents control.

Another strategy involves the use of cards that can counter spells, a reliable way to ensure AWOL never resolves on the stack. Cards with Flashback or other abilities that function from the graveyard can also circumnavigate AWOL’s removal, as they provide value even after being exiled. Lastly, deploying a swarm of low-cost creatures can overwhelm AWOL’s one-shot nature, diluting its impact across a board with multiple threats. Understanding these tactics can be crucial in maintaining an upper hand against decks packing this unique form of removal.