Briarblade Adept MTG Card


Briarblade Adept - Commander Legends
Mana cost
Converted mana cost5
RarityCommon
TypeCreature — Elf Assassin
Abilities Encore
Released2020-11-20
Set symbol
Set nameCommander Legends
Set codeCMR
Power 3
Toughness 4
Number111
Frame2015
Layoutnormal
Borderblack
Illustred byUriah Voth

Key Takeaways

  1. Encore ability offers potential for card advantage and multiple threats from the graveyard.
  2. Briarblade Adept’s synergy with graveyard can improve your deck’s mana curve.
  3. Instant speed interactions complement its sorcery speed play, enhancing strategy.

Text of card

Whenever Briarblade Adept attacks, target creature an opponent controls gets -1/-1 until end of turn. Encore (, Exile this card from your graveyard: For each opponent, create a token copy that attacks that opponent this turn if able. They gain haste. Sacrifice them at the beginning of the next end step. Activate only as a sorcery.)


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Briarblade Adept comes with an encore ability, giving you the potential to bring back multiple copies from the graveyard. This effectively digs into your deck for further resources and overwhelms the opponent with repeated threats. It’s an efficient way to refill your board and press the advantage.

Resource Acceleration: Although Briarblade Adept itself doesn’t directly accelerate resources, its synergies with graveyard play facilitate a smoother and more enriched mana curve. By interacting with your graveyard, you set the stage for a variety of plays that can lead to resource acceleration through other cards in your deck.

Instant Speed: While Briarblade Adept operates at sorcery speed, it complements instant speed strategies well. Playing this creature and accompanying it with instants in your repertoire keeps your adversaries on their toes, as you can decide to play aggressively with Adepts or keep mana open for instant speed responses depending on the game’s context.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Briarblade Adept comes with a catch – playing this card forces you to discard another, which can put you at a card disadvantage. Especially in tight situations where every card counts, the requirement to discard can be detrimental to your game plan.

Specific Mana Cost: Costing one black and one green mana makes Briarblade Adept a somewhat rigid addition to a deck. This mana specification means it won’t fit seamlessly into just any build, particularly limiting its use in multi-color decks that may not focus on these colors.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: At three mana for a 3/2 creature, Briarblade Adept may not be the most mana-efficient creature you could run. In a game where tempo and value are crucial, there may be alternative cards that offer more impact or versatility for the same, if not lower, mana investment.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Briarblade Adept slips easily into various Rogue or Warrior tribal decks. Its ability to gain deathtouch makes it a reliable blocker and a threat that can trade with bigger creatures.

Combo Potential: With Encore, this card can create multiple copies of itself from the graveyard, pairing well with strategies focusing on sacrificing creatures or maximizing enter-the-battlefield triggers.

Meta-Relevance: In environments where graveyards are a resource and multiple creatures matter, Briarblade Adept’s Encore ability can turn the tide of a game, making it a smart addition for competitive play.


Understanding Briarblade Adept

Briarblade Adept is one of those MTG cards that immediately catches the eye of players who appreciate a blend of evasion and surprise in their gameplay. This creature card, coming with inherent strengths and particular synergies, can be a real headache for opponents if left unchecked. Adept at slipping past defenders thanks to its menace, it becomes even more formidable when it attacks, since it allows you to flash back a spell with Flashback or another type of alternative casting cost from your graveyard. This capability not only enhances your tactical flexibility but can also lead to powerful plays that swing the game in your favor.

How to beat

Counteracting Briarblade Adept requires a strategy that mitigates its recursion advantage and dodges its menace trait. Removal spells that can target multiple creatures are efficient, as they bypass the evasion provided by menace. Board wipes or damage-based removals like “Blasphemous Act” or “Sweltering Suns” work effectively here. Cards that restrict abilities or deny graveyard interactions, such as “Grafdigger’s Cage”, may prevent the Adept from pulling off its combo, effectively neutralizing one of its key strengths. Additionally, instant-speed removal when the Adept attacks can disrupt planned plays, especially if your opponent is relying on it to recast spells from the graveyard.


Cards like Briarblade Adept

Briarblade Adept enters the realm of stealthy creatures in MTG with an intriguing mix of abilities. It stands shoulder to shoulder with cards like Weaselback Redcap, which also flourishes from the boost mechanic. Briarblade Adept sets itself apart by granting you a scry opportunity when it attacks with the boast ability—something the Redcap lacks. This can offer a significant advantage by shaping your upcoming draws.

Shadow Alley Denizen is another card that shares the cloak of invisibility with Briarblade Adept thanks to its ability to become unblockable. Yet it misses out on the robust scrying function that the Adept boasts. As a creature that leans on the subtler tricks of MTG, Briarblade Adept uses its scry ability to carve out a space for itself among other unblockable peers.

In assessing the pantheon of similar MTG cards, Briarblade Adept’s unique blend of unblockability and scrying when attacking showcases its role not merely as a stealth attacker but as a strategic play enhancer, seamlessly combining the arts of evasion and foresight in the game’s intricate tapestry.

Weaselback Redcap - MTG Card versions
Shadow Alley Denizen - MTG Card versions
Weaselback Redcap - Throne of Eldraine (ELD)
Shadow Alley Denizen - Gatecrash (GTC)

Cards similar to Briarblade Adept by color, type and mana cost

Skyshroud Vampire - MTG Card versions
Entropic Specter - MTG Card versions
Predatory Nightstalker - MTG Card versions
Fallen Angel - MTG Card versions
Stone Catapult - MTG Card versions
Sengir Vampire - MTG Card versions
Grotesque Hybrid - MTG Card versions
Earwig Squad - MTG Card versions
Indulgent Tormentor - MTG Card versions
Sootfeather Flock - MTG Card versions
Zombie Cutthroat - MTG Card versions
Gluttonous Zombie - MTG Card versions
Vermiculos - MTG Card versions
Woebearer - MTG Card versions
Wei Elite Companions - MTG Card versions
Halo Hunter - MTG Card versions
Malakir Bloodwitch - MTG Card versions
Caustic Crawler - MTG Card versions
Shriekmaw - MTG Card versions
Reaper of Sheoldred - MTG Card versions
Skyshroud Vampire - Tempest (TMP)
Entropic Specter - Exodus (EXO)
Predatory Nightstalker - Vintage Masters (VMA)
Fallen Angel - Mystery Booster (MB1)
Stone Catapult - Portal Three Kingdoms (PTK)
Sengir Vampire - Arena Beginner Set (ANB)
Grotesque Hybrid - Torment (TOR)
Earwig Squad - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Indulgent Tormentor - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Sootfeather Flock - Legions (LGN)
Zombie Cutthroat - Scourge (SCG)
Gluttonous Zombie - Salvat 2005 (PSAL)
Vermiculos - Mirrodin (MRD)
Woebearer - Salvat 2005 (PSAL)
Wei Elite Companions - Masters Edition III (ME3)
Halo Hunter - Zendikar (ZEN)
Malakir Bloodwitch - Zendikar (ZEN)
Caustic Crawler - Worldwake (WWK)
Shriekmaw - Magic Online Theme Decks (TD0)
Reaper of Sheoldred - New Phyrexia (NPH)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Briarblade Adept MTG card by a specific set like Commander Legends, 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 Briarblade Adept and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Briarblade Adept has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderLegal
OathbreakerLegal
PauperLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal

Rules and information

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

DateText
2020-11-10 Each token must attack the appropriate player if able.
2020-11-10 Exiling the card with encore is a cost to activate the ability. Once you announce that you're activating it, no player may take actions until you've finished. They can't try to remove the card from your graveyard to stop you from paying the cost.
2020-11-10 If one of the tokens can't attack for any reason (such as being tapped), then it doesn't attack. If there's a cost associated with having it attack, you aren't forced to pay that cost, so it doesn't have to attack in that case either.
2020-11-10 If one of the tokens somehow is under another player's control as the delayed triggered ability resolves, you can't sacrifice that token. It remains on the battlefield indefinitely, even if you regain control of it later.
2020-11-10 Opponents who have left the game aren't counted when determining how many tokens to create.
2020-11-10 The tokens copy only what's on the original card. Effects that modified that creature when it was previously on the battlefield won't be copied.
2023-07-28 If an effect stops a token from attacking a specific player, that token can attack any player, planeswalker, or battle, or not attack at all. If the effect stops the token from attacking a specific player unless a cost is paid, you don't have to pay that cost unless you want to attack that player.

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