Cazur, Ruthless Stalker MTG Card

Cazur excels in card advantage through proliferating counters, boosting his and other creatures’ potential. Despite resource acceleration abilities, Cazur’s specific mana requirement can limit deck versatility. When building a collection, consider Cazur’s adaptability and combo potential with Ukkima for dominance.

Cazur, Ruthless Stalker - Commander 2020 (C20)

Commander 2020 (C20)
2020-04-17 - Number 5

Cazur, Ruthless Stalker - Outlaws of Thunder Junction Commander (OTC)

Outlaws of Thunder Junction Commander (OTC)
2024-04-19 - Number 188

Card sets	Released in 2 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost	4
Rarity	Mythic
Type	Legendary Creature — Human Warrior
Abilities	Partner,Partner with
Power	3
Toughness	3

Text of card

Partner with Ukkima, Stalking Shadow (When this creature enters the battlefield, target player may put Ukkima into their hand from their library, then shuffle.) Whenever a creature you control deals combat damage to a player, put a +1/+1 counter on that creature.

Cards like Cazur, Ruthless Stalker

Cazur, Ruthless Stalker finds its niche within the partner commander tradition in Magic: The Gathering. Cazur, much like Reyhan, Last of the Abzan, boasts the potential to make creatures formidable with +1/+1 counter synergies. While Reyhan focuses on retaining and reallocating counters from creatures that leave the battlefield, Cazur’s strength lies in aggressively beefing up creatures as they engage in combat and survive the fray.

Another comparison could be drawn with Exava, Rakdos Blood Witch, which also thrives on +1/+1 counters. Exava confers haste to any creature entering the battlefield with a counter, although it doesn’t actively contribute to counter accumulation like Cazur does. Then there’s Kalonian Hydra, a creature that doubles the number of +1/+1 counters on all creatures you control as it attacks. While not providing the consistent, per-attack boost, the Hydra can be explosive in the right setup as opposed to Cazur’s incremental, but constant, advantage.

When evaluating the impact of these commanders and creatures on the battlefield, Cazur’s capability to steadily proliferate strength across your forces, one combat at a time, makes him a steadfast choice for players favoring a relentless, growing board state.

Reyhan, Last of the Abzan - MTG Card versions

Exava, Rakdos Blood Witch - MTG Card versions

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Card Pros

Card Advantage: Cazur, Ruthless Stalker ensures a steady stream of creatures as each time it deals combat damage to a player, you can proliferate. This allows you to add an additional count to any number of permanents with a count on them, leading to an increasing number of +1/+1 counters, loyalty counters, and more. This mechanic generates significant card advantage by amplifying the effects of all your counter-based cards on the battlefield.

Resource Acceleration: Though not directly a ramp spell, Cazur can indirectly speed up your resource acquisition. By enhancing creatures consistently, you’re more likely to keep a solid board presence, reducing the need to cast creatures and allowing you to allocate resources elsewhere. This enables more efficient mana utilization over the course of a game, which can be a subtle yet powerful form of acceleration.

Instant Speed: While Cazur, Ruthless Stalker itself operates at sorcery speed, its ability to proliferate can synergize with instant-speed interactions. For instance, if you’ve cast an instant that places a counter somewhere, on your following turn, Cazur can immediately increase it. This interaction allows for maintaining open mana for counterspells and other instant-speed plays while still promising an impactful play on your turn.

Card Cons

Specific Mana Cost: Cazur, Ruthless Stalker requires a precise combination of green and blue mana to be played. This can be challenging for decks that are not heavily invested in these colors, reducing the versatility in multi-colored or colorless mana bases.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost of four mana, including two that are color-specific, Cazur could be considered a heavy investment in the early to mid-game. This cost could slow down your board development, especially when compared to other creatures that could be played more efficiently for the same or lower mana investment.

Discard Requirement: While not an inherent feature of Cazur itself, it often synergizes with mechanics that require discarding as part of the cost to fully utilize its potential. This could potentially deplete a player’s hand, leaving fewer options later in the game when flexibility and card choices are critical.

Reasons to Include Cazur, Ruthless Stalker in Your Collection

Versatility: Cazur, Ruthless Stalker offers adaptability across a multitude of deck archetypes due to his capability to boost creatures. His presence is well-suited for decks emphasizing the +1/+1 counter strategy, enhancing both offensive and defensive plays.

Combo Potential: Partnered with Ukkima, Stalking Shadow, Cazur becomes a powerful force, enabling a game-ending combo. Together, they can form an insurmountable board presence, turning any creature into a significant threat.

Meta-Relevance: Given the ever-evolving nature of the MTG meta, Cazur’s strength grows in environments where creature-based strategies prevail. His ability to empower creatures makes him a valuable asset against a variety of opponent tactics.

How to beat

Cazur, Ruthless Stalker brings a unique dynamic to the battlefield in MTG. As a partner commander, Cazur can be quite formidable when combined with the right ally. This card thrives in an environment where creatures can grow and become threats rapidly, leveraging the counters Cazur places on them to turn the tide. Defeating this card often involves a two-pronged strategy to keep the board in check and prevent Cazur from accumulating too much value over time.

Controlling the creature flow is vital, and therefore removal spells are crucial. Cards like Murderous Rider or Doom Blade allow players to keep Cazur at bay by immediately removing him before he can start buffing creatures. Additionally, board wipes such as Wrath of God or Damnation can clear the battlefield of any creatures that have benefited from Cazur’s influence. The aim is to limit opponents’ creatures’ strength while developing a solid board presence to apply enough pressure to pivot the game in your favor.

Overall, efficiently managing resources while consistently disrupting your opponent’s game plan is key to overcoming the challenge posed by Cazur, Ruthless Stalker. By staying one step ahead with strategic removals and board control, players can mitigate Cazur’s impact and steer the game towards victory.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Cazur, Ruthless Stalker MTG card by a specific set like Commander 2020 and Outlaws of Thunder Junction Commander, 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 Cazur, Ruthless Stalker and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Cazur, Ruthless Stalker Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 2020-04-17 and 2024-04-19. Illustrated by Daarken.

#	Released	Name	Code	Symbol	Number	Frame	Layout	Border	Artist
1	2020-04-17	Commander 2020	C20		5	2015	Normal	Black	Daarken
2	2024-04-19	Outlaws of Thunder Junction Commander	OTC		188	2015	Normal	Black	Daarken

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Cazur, Ruthless Stalker has restrictions

Format	Legality
Commander	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
2020-04-17	A creature with a “partner with” ability can’t partner with any creature other than its designated partner. Losing a partner ability during the game doesn’t cause either to cease to be your commander.
2020-04-17	Both commanders start in the command zone, and the remaining 98 cards of your deck are shuffled to become your library.
2020-04-17	If the target player is an illegal target by the time Ukkima’s last ability tries to resolve, the ability won’t resolve. You won’t gain any life.
2020-04-17	If your Commander deck has two commanders, you can only include cards whose own color identities are also found in your commanders’ combined color identities. If Haldan and Pako are your commanders, your deck may contain cards with blue, red, and/or green in their color identity, but not cards with white or black.
2020-04-17	If your life total is brought to 0 or less at the same time that Ukkima is dealt lethal damage, you lose the game before the last ability goes on the stack.
2020-04-17	Note that the target player searches their library (which may be affected by effects such as that of Stranglehold) and that the card they find is revealed, even though these words aren’t included in the ability’s reminder text.
2020-04-17	Once the game begins, your two commanders are tracked separately. If you cast one, you won’t have to pay an additional the first time you cast the other. A player loses the game after having been dealt 21 damage from one of them, not from both of them combined. Command Beacon’s effect puts one into your hand from the command zone, not both.
2020-04-17	The second ability represented by the “partner with -ame]” keyword modifies the rules for deck construction in the Commander variant and has no function outside of that variant. If a legendary creature card with “partner with -ame]” is designated as your commander, the named legendary creature card can also be designated as your commander.
2020-04-17	The triggered ability of the “partner with” keyword still triggers in a Commander game. If your other commander has somehow ended up in your library, you can find it. You can also target another player who might have that card in their library.
2020-04-17	Use Ukkima’s power as it last existed on the battlefield to determine how much damage it deals and how much life you gain. If that number is negative, it deals no damage and you gain no life.
2020-04-17	“Partner with -ame]” represents two abilities. The first is a triggered ability: “When this permanent enters the battlefield, target player may search their library for a card named -ame], reveal it, put it into their hand, then shuffle their library.”