Tyrant's Familiar MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 3 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost7
RarityRare
TypeCreature — Dragon
Abilities Flying,Haste,Lieutenant
Power 5
Toughness 5

Key Takeaways

  1. Provides an on-board advantage, leveraging multiple resources from opponents to manage its presence.
  2. Synergy with commander heavy decks enhances power, offering significant advantages and a faster victory.
  3. Instant-speed reanimation allows for flexible and surprising plays, creating pivoting moments in matches.

Text of card

Flying, haste Lieutenant — As long as you control your commander, Tyrant's Familiar gets +2/+2 and has "Whenever Tyrant's Familiar attacks, it deals 7 damage to target creature defending player controls."

Nothing escapes its gaze—or its breath.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: When Tyrant’s Familiar enters the battlefield, it presents a significant threat that opponents must answer, indirectly working towards card advantage as it demands multiple resources to deal with its formidable presence.

Resource Acceleration: This card synergizes well with decks that accelerate the summoning of large creatures. Harnessing the Lieutenant ability, Tyrant’s Familiar becomes even more powerful when played alongside your commander, providing disproportionate value and accelerating your route to victory.

Instant Speed: Although Tyrant’s Familiar itself does not have an instant speed ability, it can be quickly brought onto the battlefield with various instant-speed reanimation effects, allowing for unexpected plays and swings in board presence during crucial moments in a match.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Tyrant’s Familiar’s effectiveness is directly tied to having your commander on the field. Without your commander, its abilities are significantly diminished, essentially equating to a vanilla creature in scenarios where you’re unable to meet this condition.

Specific Mana Cost: This powerful creature requires a substantial red mana investment which may not be easily accommodated in multicolored decks, potentially limiting its versatility outside of predominantly red builds.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: The seven mana required to cast this creature is no small sum, and while its abilities are powerful, in faster paced games or metas where lower cost creatures rule, Tyrant’s Familiar can feel cumbersome and slow to get off the ground.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Tyrant’s Familiar proves to be a dynamic addition to Commander and other high-powered formats where its presence can sway the tide of a game. As a creature with flying and haste, it adapts well to various strategies, fitting seamlessly into decks that require a quick and potent aerial threat.

Combo Potential: This card thrives in decks that utilize the Lieutenant mechanic, maximizing its impact when your commander is on the battlefield. The 7 damage dealt to a creature when it attacks not only clears the way for your other creatures but can work in tandem with effects that capitalize on high power or dragon synergies.

Meta-Relevance: Against decks that dominate by establishing a board presence with key creatures, Tyrant’s Familiar becomes an essential tool. Its ability to remove problematic blockers or threats every combat phase keeps the battlefield in your favor, aligning well with the pace of current multiplayer formats.


How to beat

Tyrant’s Familiar is a powerful creature card that can tilt the battlefield in favor of its controller. To neutralize this threat, it’s essential to employ effective counter-strategies. One method is to take advantage of its reliance on having a commander to unlock its full potential. Without the commander present, it is deprived of its devastating lieutenant ability, making it less formidable. Therefore, controlling or removing the commander card from play can significantly reduce the impact of Tyrant’s Familiar.

Spot removal spells are also invaluable in dealing with this creature. Cards like Swords to Plowshares, Path to Exile, or Murderous Rider can directly eliminate the Familiar before it unleashes havoc. In addition, the use of board wipes such as Wrath of God or Damnation can clear the board of multiple threats, including the Familiar, regardless of its power. Strategies that focus on indirect means like depleting life totals or locking down the game with control elements can also circumvent the Familiar’s power. By staying ahead in card advantage and keeping a varied arsenal of answers at the ready, players can overcome the challenge posed by Tyrant’s Familiar.


BurnMana Recommendations

Understanding the balance of power in MTG can be the key to your success, and Tyrant’s Familiar is a card that certainly tips the scales. With its considerable presence and the lieutenant ability awaiting your command, this card shapes the battlefield to your advantage. If you’re captivated by the prospect of dominating the skies and crunching your opponents’ defenses, integrating Tyrant’s Familiar into your arsenal is a wise move. Delve deeper with us, explore its synergies, and harness its strength in your deck. Ready to assert your dominance? Join our MTG community for more insights.


Cards like Tyrant's Familiar

In the vast world of MTG, creatures like Tyrant’s Familiar hold a particular charm for those looking to wield the power of commanding dragons on the battlefield. Tyrant’s Familiar shares the battlefield with other formidable flyers such as Thundermaw Hellkite. Both pack a punch with high power and haste, allowing for immediate impact — Thundermaw Hellkite’s ability to clear the skies of opposition and Tyrant’s Familiar’s potential bonus damage when it attacks with its lieutenant ability if you control your commander.

Another comparable dragon is Scourge of Valkas, which also thrives in a dragon-heavy deck. It deals damage upon the arrival of other dragons, synergizing well with Tyrant’s Familiar’s lieutenant trigger. However, Tyrant’s Familiar stands out with potentially higher direct damage output when attacking. Utvara Hellkite takes the synergy further by creating dragon tokens with every attack, but it lacks the immediacy of Tyrant’s Familiar’s haste.

While each dragon has its own niche, Tyrant’s Familiar remains a strong contender when building around a commander, leveraging both its substantial attack power and the tactical advantage of its lieutenant ability to outmaneuver adversaries and dominate the skies in MTG.

Thundermaw Hellkite - MTG Card versions
Scourge of Valkas - MTG Card versions
Utvara Hellkite - MTG Card versions
Thundermaw Hellkite - Magic 2013 (M13)
Scourge of Valkas - Magic 2014 (M14)
Utvara Hellkite - Return to Ravnica (RTR)

Cards similar to Tyrant's Familiar by color, type and mana cost

Magma Giant - MTG Card versions
Trained Orgg - MTG Card versions
Velican Dragon - MTG Card versions
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Molten Primordial - MTG Card versions
Spawn of Thraxes - MTG Card versions
Dream Pillager - MTG Card versions
Tyrant of Valakut - MTG Card versions
Magma Giant - Portal Second Age (P02)
Trained Orgg - Seventh Edition (7ED)
Velican Dragon - Sega Dreamcast Cards (PSDG)
Crazed Firecat - Torment (TOR)
Yidaro, Wandering Monster - Jumpstart 2022 (J22)
Butcher Orgg - Onslaught (ONS)
Rimescale Dragon - Coldsnap (CSP)
Boldwyr Intimidator - Morningtide (MOR)
Shivan Hellkite - Forgotten Realms Commander (AFC)
Hamletback Goliath - Commander Anthology Volume II (CM2)
Knollspine Dragon - Game Night: Free-for-All (GN3)
Thunder Dragon - From the Vault: Dragons (DRB)
Karplusan Giant - Masters Edition II (ME2)
Ancient Hellkite - Magic 2011 Promos (PM11)
Tyrant of Discord - Avacyn Restored (AVR)
Minotaur Aggressor - Return to Ravnica (RTR)
Molten Primordial - Gatecrash (GTC)
Spawn of Thraxes - Journey into Nyx (JOU)
Dream Pillager - Starter Commander Decks (SCD)
Tyrant of Valakut - Oath of the Gatewatch Promos (POGW)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Tyrant's Familiar MTG card by a specific set like Commander 2014 and Commander 2017, 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 Tyrant's Familiar and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Tyrant's Familiar Magic the Gathering card was released in 3 different sets between 2014-11-07 and 2018-06-08. Illustrated by Todd Lockwood.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12014-11-07Commander 2014C14 392015normalblackTodd Lockwood
22017-08-25Commander 2017C17 1432015normalblackTodd Lockwood
32018-06-08Commander Anthology Volume IICM2 1252015normalblackTodd Lockwood

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Tyrant's Familiar has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal

Rules and information

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

DateText
2014-11-07 If a triggered ability granted by a lieutenant ability triggers, and in response to that trigger you lose control of your commander (causing the lieutenant to lose that ability), that triggered ability will still resolve.
2014-11-07 If you gain control of a creature with a lieutenant ability owned by another player, that ability will check to see if you control your commander and will apply if you do. It won’t check whether its owner controls their commander.
2014-11-07 If you lose control of your commander, lieutenant abilities of creatures you control will immediately stop applying. If this causes a creature’s toughness to become less than or equal to the amount of damage marked on it, the creature will be destroyed.
2014-11-07 Lieutenant abilities apply only if your commander is on the battlefield and under your control.
2014-11-07 Lieutenant abilities refer only to whether you control your commander, not any other player’s commander.

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