Captain's Claws MTG Card
2016-01-22 - Number 162†
2016-01-22 - Number 162
2016-01-22 - Number 162s
| Card sets | Released in 3 setsSee all |
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 2 |
| Rarity | Rare |
| Type | Artifact — Equipment |
| Abilities | Equip |
Text of card
Equipped creature gets +1/+0. Whenever equipped creature attacks, create a 1/1 white Kor Ally creature token that's tapped and attacking. Equip
Forged for victory in a time of despair.
Cards like Captain's Claws
When evaluating Captain’s Claws within Magic: The Gathering, we find intriguing parallels with other equipment cards that bolster the battlefield with creature tokens. Take for instance Sword of the Animist, which similarly empowers the equipped creature and carves a path for strategic advantages by ramping lands directly onto the battlefield. While it doesn’t create creature tokens, the land acceleration can be crucial in certain deck builds.
Ancestral Blade is another equipment that echoes the token producing quality of Captain’s Claws, immediately putting a 1/1 soldier token into play upon its entrance. Although it doesn’t consistently generate tokens with each attack, the initial boost in board presence can be valuable. Then there’s the renowned Batterskull, a powerhouse in its own class, generating a massive Germ token and providing noteworthy stat boosts and lifelink. However, its higher casting and equip costs set it apart from the more lightweight and proactive Captain’s Claws.
Through this lens, Captain’s Claws holds its own distinct niche by providing ongoing token generation with each assault, enhancing both offensive capabilities and army development simultaneously—a quality that can continuously tip the scales in a player’s favor during the course of a game.
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Captain’s Claws offers the persistent benefit of creating 1/1 Kor Ally creature tokens potentially every turn, generating a steady increase in board presence which can translate into card advantage over time. Greater numbers of creatures can mean more options and pressure on your opponent.
Resource Acceleration: While Captain’s Claws doesn’t directly produce additional mana, the consistent creation of creature tokens can be leveraged in various ways. For example, the tokens can be used to power convoke spells or activate abilities, effectively accelerating your resource utilization.
Instant Speed: While Captain’s Claws itself isn’t an instant, it equips at instant speed, giving you flexibility in how you manage your turns. This adaptability allows you to wait until the most strategically advantageous moment to equip, preparing you for unexpected battlefield shifts without committing mana ahead of time.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: While Captain’s Claws doesn’t necessitate discarding directly, equipping it does use resources that might otherwise be allocated for maintaining card advantage, potentially leaving your hand diminished.
Specific Mana Cost: Captain’s Claws comes with a mana specificity—requiring one colorless and one white mana. This can potentially restrict the scope of decks it fits into, often favoring those that are already running a white mana base.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: With an initial cast cost and an additional equip cost, the investment for Captain’s Claws to become active is significant when compared with other equipment that provides a more immediate impact on the board for the same or lesser total mana investment.
Reasons to Include in Your Collection
Versatility: Captain’s Claws can be a dynamic addition to aggressive and token-based decks, aiding in the offensive strategy by creating additional 1/1 creature tokens with each attack.
Combo Potential: This equipment card pairs well with effects that trigger upon creature or artifact entering the battlefield, spawning tokens to exploit such synergies.
Meta-Relevance: As token strategies can be prevalent, Captain’s Claws remains a relevant card, particularly in environments where swarming the board presents a viable route to victory.
How to Beat Captain’s Claws
When facing Captain’s Claws, a unique equipment card in Magic: The Gathering that excels in token generating aggression, it’s important to disrupt the battle plan it provides. This artifact equips to a creature and creates a 1/1 Kor Ally token that’s tapped and attacking whenever the equipped creature attacks. Preventing the token accumulation can be crucial in maintaining control of the game.
Removal spells are a direct route to handle the tools that Captain’s Claws gives an opponent. Cards like Naturalize or Disenchant can destroy the artifact before the tokens start to overflow the battlefield. Furthermore, strategies that restrict the number of creatures able to attack, such as Propaganda or Ghostly Prison, can hinder the effectiveness of Captain’s Claws significantly.
To sum up, the key to overcoming Captain’s Claws lies in prompt artifact removal or deployment of preventative measures to minimize the impact of additional attackers. By staying attentive to these strategic elements, players can prevent their adversaries from leveraging the token generation prowess that Captain’s Claws offers within a match.
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Captain's Claws MTG card by a specific set like Oath of the Gatewatch and Oath of the Gatewatch, 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 Captain's Claws and other MTG cards:
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- eBay
- Card Kingdom
- Card Market
- Star City Games
- CoolStuffInc
- MTG Mint Card
- Hareruya
- Troll and Toad
- ABU Games
- Card Hoarder Magic Online
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Printings
The Captain's Claws Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 2016-01-22 and 2016-01-22. Illustrated by Anthony Palumbo.
| # | Released | Name | Code | Symbol | Number | Frame | Layout | Border | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2016-01-22 | Oath of the Gatewatch | OGW | 162† | 2015 | Normal | Black | Anthony Palumbo | |
| 2 | 2016-01-22 | Oath of the Gatewatch | OGW | 162 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Anthony Palumbo | |
| 3 | 2016-01-22 | Oath of the Gatewatch Promos | POGW | 162s | 2015 | Normal | Black | Anthony Palumbo |
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Captain's Claws has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Commander | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Pioneer | Legal |
| Penny | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Captain's Claws card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2016-01-22 | The token is never declared as an attacking creature. It simply enters the battlefield attacking. This won’t cause any abilities that trigger “whenever a creature attacks” to trigger. |
| 2016-01-22 | You choose which opponent or planeswalker controlled by an opponent the token is attacking as it enters the battlefield. It doesn’t have to be the same opponent or planeswalker that the equipped creature is attacking. |