Tar Pit Warrior MTG Card

Visions (VIS)
1997-02-03 - Number 70

Tar Pit Warrior - Beatdown Box Set (BTD)

Beatdown Box Set (BTD)
2000-10-01 - Number 32

Card sets	Released in 2 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost	3
Rarity	Common
Type	Creature — Cyclops Warrior
Power	3
Toughness	4

Key Takeaways

The Tar Pit Warrior can provide card advantage by forcing opponents to use resources to address it.
It influences game pace by requiring attention, sometimes decelerating opponents’ play.
Despite its strength, its vulnerability to targeted removal can be disadvantageous.

Text of card

If Tar Pit Warrior is the target of a spell or effect, bury Tar Pit Warrior.

"The cyclops shrugged off savage blows, but casual insults made him weep." —Azeworai, "The Cyclops who Couldn't"

Card Pros

Card Advantage: The Tar Pit Warrior offers a unique form of card advantage by posing an ongoing threat that often requires specific answers from your opponent. This can lead to advantageous situations where you benefit from your opponent’s resources being diverted to address the Warrior, allowing you to gain an upper hand in card economy.

Resource Acceleration: While not directly contributing to resource acceleration, the presence of Tar Pit Warrior can indirectly influence the pace of the game. By demanding attention, it may slow down your opponent’s development, giving you more time to access the resources needed to control the game.

Instant Speed: Although Tar Pit Warrior itself doesn’t operate at instant speed, its mere presence on the battlefield can affect the timing of your opponent’s actions. Players must consider the possibility of removal or combat tricks around the Warrior, potentially giving you leverage to play your instant-speed interactions with greater impact.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Tar Pit Warrior’s vulnerability to being targeted can force you into unplanned sacrifices. When an opponent targets it, you must put it on top of its owner’s library, effectively making you discard the creature unless you have ways to shuffle your deck or draw it again quickly.

Specific Mana Cost: To summon Tar Pit Warrior, you need both black and generic mana. This requirement restricts deck-building flexibility, especially in formats where mana fixing is less available or in mono-color decks that might not benefit from its presence.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: While a 3/4 creature for three mana including one black might seem reasonable, the additional drawback reduces its overall effectiveness compared to other creatures at similar mana costs that don’t come with such a significant downside.

Reasons to Include Tar Pit Warrior in Your Collection

Versatility: Tar Pit Warrior can be a powerful addition to any deck that aims to dominate the battlefield with formidable creatures. Its robust stat line for its mana cost makes it a solid play in both offensive and defensive positions.

Combo Potential: As a creature that can potentially return to the battlefield or your hand depending on zone-based actions in your deck, Tar Pit Warrior offers intriguing interactions with abilities that trigger on creature deaths or casting creatures. This opens up a myriad of combo possibilities within various deck archetypes.

Meta-Relevance: If your playgroup or local meta is teeming with decks that lack exile or bounce spells, Tar Pit Warrior’s reanimating ability could give you an edge by providing a recurring threat that demands an answer. Even in more hostile environments, it could serve as a reliable way to drain opponent’s removal resources.

How to beat

Tar Pit Warrior may initially appear as an intimidating presence on the battlefield in MTG, wielding a robust stat line that can seem daunting to overcome. The true advantage against Tar Pit Warrior lies in its vulnerability to removal tactics that don’t target it directly. Consider spells that affect the board state en masse or ones that force the opponent to sacrifice a creature. By circumventing Tar Pit Warrior’s built-in escape clause, you minimize the potential for your opponent to recycle this creature, fortifying your control over the game’s tempo.

Additionally, leveraging cards that neutralize abilities or convert the creature’s strengths into weaknesses can be highly effective. Employing enchantments that negate Tar Pit Warrior’s capabilities or utilizing spells that tap it down without explicitly targeting it can turn this aggressive creature into a non-threat. By understanding its inherent weaknesses and strategizing around them, you can efficiently manage this formidable foe and maintain dominance on the battlefield.

Analyzing Tar Pit Warrior within the broader context of MTG reveals its susceptibility to strategic play. By integrating cunning removal strategies and ability-disabling tactics, you position yourself to nullify the threat posed by Tar Pit Warrior, ensuring it becomes more of a minor nuisance than a game-ending obstacle.

Cards like Tar Pit Warrior

Tar Pit Warrior holds a unique position in the realm of creatures within Magic: The Gathering. Much like the Shriekmaw, it offers a form of utility upon entering the battlefield. While Shriekmaw may destroy a non-artifact, non-black creature when it enters play, Tar Pit Warrior can similarly disrupt your opponent’s strategy by posing a significant threat that must be answered.

Neighboring its attributes, we come across Nekrataal, another creature that delivers direct board influence. Unlike Tar Pit Warrior, Nekrataal can outright eliminate a non-black, non-artifact creature on arrival with no strings attached. Conversely, though, Tar Pit Warrior often demands an immediate answer due to its towering size.

Further in this category is the card Phyrexian Gargantua which, while having a higher mana cost, draws you two cards and loses you two life when it hits the board. Unlike the conditional removal aspect of Tar Pit Warrior or the precise destruction of Nekrataal, Phyrexian Gargantua’s effect guarantees you resources regardless of the opponent’s creature situation.

When aligning Tar Pit Warrior with its peers, its presence in a deck can notably influence gameplay dynamics, strategically demanding an answer or serving as a formidable obstacle for your opponent.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Tar Pit Warrior MTG card by a specific set like Visions and Beatdown Box Set, 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 Tar Pit Warrior and other MTG cards: