Rimefeather Owl MTG Card


Rimefeather Owl - Coldsnap
Mana cost
Converted mana cost7
RarityRare
TypeSnow Creature — Bird
Abilities Flying
Released2006-07-21
Set symbol
Set nameColdsnap
Set codeCSP
Power *
Toughness *
Number42
Frame2003
Layoutnormal
Borderblack
Illustred byKensuke Okabayashi

Key Takeaways

  1. Enhances power through accumulation of snow permanents, strengthening board control and strategic flexibility.
  2. Transforms lands into snow types, ramping up synergy and resource potential at no extra mana cost.
  3. Can activate ice counter ability at instant speed, offering adaptability and maintaining tempo.

Text of card

Flying Rimefeather Owl's power and toughness are each equal to the number of snow permanents in play. {S}: Put an ice counter on target permanent. Permanents with ice counters on them are snow.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: The Rimefeather Owl scales in power as the game progresses, capitalizing on the accumulation of snow permanents. This means more board presence and potential for control, especially in long games where establishing card advantage becomes crucial.

Resource Acceleration: With the Owl’s ability to turn any land into a snow-covered land, you essentially increase the number of snow permanents without spending extra mana. This allows for a greater utilization of cards with synergies to snow, indirectly accelerating your resource availability.

Instant Speed: Rimefeather Owl’s ice counter ability can be activated at instant speed, providing strategic flexibility. You can manage threats or enhance your own permanents on your opponent’s turn, adapting to the ever-changing battlefield and maintaining tempo.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: The Rimefeather Owl requires sifting through your deck for snow permanents to utilize its abilities to the fullest, which could lead to discarding valuable cards from your hand if you’re trying to maintain a board presence.

Specific Mana Cost: The casting cost of Rimefeather Owl demands both colorless and blue mana, with a special emphasis on snow-covered lands. This specific requirement may hinder the consistency of casting it in a non-dedicated snow deck.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Despite its potential to grow in size and provide utility, Rimefeather Owl’s seven mana cost can prove to be cumbersome, especially when more effective creatures and threats are available at a lower cost threshold.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Rimefeather Owl offers a flexible presence on the battlefield, adapting its power and toughness in line with the amount of snow permanents you control. This allows it to fit into various deck strategies, particularly those that capitalize on snow synergy and manipulating board states with ice counters.

Combo Potential: As a card that can place ice counters on various permanents, Rimefeather Owl teams up well with effects that benefit from counters or require tap/untap dynamics. It can be a linchpin in decks looking to control opponents’ resources or enhance their own with ice counter-related bonuses.

Meta-Relevance: In metas where snow strategies are viable, Rimefeather Owl can be particularly potent. Whether as a scaling threat or a tool for environmental manipulation, it has a consistent and sometimes unforeseen impact in games where snow lands and permanents see play.


How to beat

Rimefeather Owl presents a unique challenge on the battlefield with its snow-centric abilities. This creature’s power and toughness are each equal to the number of snow permanents on the battlefield, which can quickly escalate if left unchecked. To navigate this icy conundrum, strategic removal is key. Consider employing instant-speed removal such as Path to Exile or the more flexible Assassin’s Trophy which can target the Owl regardless of its fluctuating size.

Tactics to mitigate or remove snow permanents are also effective. Cards like Blood Moon transform all non-basic lands into non-snow mountains, drastically reducing the Owl’s power. In multi-player formats, diplomatic play can be fruitful, encouraging others to refrain from utilizing snow lands or permanents.

Board wipes such as Wrath of God provide an all-encompassing resolution by clearing all creatures, including a potentially giant Rimefeather Owl, while preserving your life total. Lastly, taking the fight to your opponent and pressuring their life directly can sometimes be more efficient than dealing with a solitary threat.


BurnMana Recommendations

Exploring the remarkable abilities of Rimefeather Owl means considering both its versatility in MTG strategies and its potential high cost. As we’ve discussed, this card can turn snow-covered lands into powerful assets and manipulate the battlefield at instant speed. If you’re intrigued by the prospect of a force that grows alongside your snow accumulations or looking for unique synergies in a snow-themed deck, this avian force may just enrich your playing experience. Harness its evolving power and adaptability to outpace and outsmart opponents. Dive deeper into strategy optimization and discover other snow-related gems that can complement Rimefeather Owl by joining our MTG community.


Cards like Rimefeather Owl

Rimefeather Owl stands out in the snowy realms of Magic: The Gathering. With abilities tethered to snow lands, it shares a conceptual resemblance to cards like Frost Titan. Both creatures have icy themes, but the Owl’s power scales with the quantity of snow permanents, presenting a unique dynamic in games with heavy snow land counts. Frost Titan, contrarily, has a static power/toughness and a different utility in its ability to lock down opposing permanents.

Another counterpart is Heidar, Rimewind Master, which offers a repeatable way to bounce permanents, but lacks the Owl’s ability to become a multiplying threat on the board. Heidar requires a commitment to the snow theme but doesn’t directly benefit in size or strength from it. Also found in the frosty echelons is Adarkar Valkyrie, a powerful creature that protects the board with its resurrection ability, but it does not grow with snow permanents and serves a more defensive role compared to Rimefeather Owl’s aggressive potential.

Each of these frosted figures brings its own flavor and strategic applications, yet Rimefeather Owl holds a unique appeal for players looking to leverage the full power of snow-covered landscapes in their MTG deck designs.

Frost Titan - MTG Card versions
Heidar, Rimewind Master - MTG Card versions
Adarkar Valkyrie - MTG Card versions
Frost Titan - Magic 2011 (M11)
Heidar, Rimewind Master - Coldsnap (CSP)
Adarkar Valkyrie - Coldsnap (CSP)

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Slipstream Eel - The List (PLST)
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Quicksilver Behemoth - Darksteel (DST)
Errant Ephemeron - Time Spiral Remastered (TSR)
Cyclone Summoner - Kaldheim Promos (PKHM)
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Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Rimefeather Owl MTG card by a specific set like Coldsnap, 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 Rimefeather Owl and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Rimefeather Owl has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal
PennyLegal

Rules and information

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

DateText
2006-07-15 Rimefeather Owl’s last ability affects all permanents with ice counters on them, whether or not it put the ice counters on them.

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