Departed Deckhand MTG Card

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Departed Deckhand offers a strategic edge in gameplay by granting you the power to streamline your deck on the go. Its ability to bypass enemy defenses not only pressures the opponent but also ensures your crucial spells have a clear path to weave their magic, keeping your hand fluid and adaptable.

Resource Acceleration: While this spectral pirate does not directly accelerate resources, its mere presence can expedite your victory. By commanding the battlefield with its unblockable nature unless by Spirits, it opens the door for relentless assaults, pushing your opponent to expend resources hastily and inefficiently to stay afloat.

Instant Speed: Departed Deckhand’s ability to transform another creature into an unblockable entity until end of turn operates at instant speed. This versatile trait can disrupt your adversary’s calculations by delivering a surprise offensive or by cunningly nullifying their tactical blocks. Quick and decisive, this quality can tip the scales when least expected, keeping you at the helm of combat’s ebb and flow.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: While Departed Deckhand doesn’t explicitly require a discard, it does have an effect that shares a similar downside. When it becomes the target of a spell, it is sacrificed, which can feel like a loss of card advantage if you’ve invested resources to get it on the battlefield.

Specific Mana Cost: Departed Deckhand requires blue mana. This specific mana cost makes it exclusive to blue decks or decks that can generate blue mana, potentially limiting its versatility in multi-colored deck builds.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: For a 2/2 creature, the cost can be seen as high, especially when you consider that other creatures at a similar mana cost might provide additional value or have stronger resiliency against removal. Departed Deckhand’s susceptibility to being targeted and sacrificed can be a significant drawback when you’re counting on it for board presence.

Reasons to Include Departed Deckhand in Your Collection

Versatility: Departed Deckhand offers a unique ability to become unblockable by all but Spirits, making it a flexible option in any blue-focused deck, especially those looking to deal combat damage directly to opponents.

Combo Potential: Its synergy with other Spirits can enhance tribal decks, and its ability to give another creature unblockable by turning it into a Spirit can create unexpected win conditions or protect key creatures in a pinch.

Meta-Relevance: With evasion being a powerful quality in creature-centric metagames, Departed Deckhand holds relevance. It can be a thorn in the side of opponents who lack Spirit interaction, presenting a reliable and recurring threat.

How to Beat Departed Deckhand

Departed Deckhand has become a noteworthy challenger on the high seas of Magic: The Gathering. Its ability to become unblockable except by Spirits poses a unique challenge. Understanding the card’s strengths and weaknesses is key to formulating a successful strategy against it.

One effective tactic is to utilize removal spells that don’t target, such as board wipes or spells that force all creatures to be sacrificed, thus circumventing Deckhand’s protection from targeted spells. Cards like Wrath of God or Citywide Bust are excellent choices. Alternatively, one could employ forced blocking strategies using cards such as Siren’s Call or Alluring Siren, compelling Deckhand into unfavorable combat situations.

As with many creatures in Magic: The Gathering, having the correct answers in your deck can make all the difference. Even though Departed Deckhand can guide a player’s strategy towards evasive aggression, it’s the knowledgeable player that keeps their head above water with the right counters and controls tucked in their arsenal.

BurnMana Recommendations

Delving deeper into MTG’s tactical play, Departed Deckhand emerges as more than just a spectral seafarer. Its unorthodox abilities carve paths for victory in the right deck. The intricacies of its advantages and drawbacks have now been unpacked, revealing its potential to make waves in your collection. Balancing its allure with its limitations is the key to unlocking its real power. Ready to cast Departed Deckhand’s influence over your next game? Sail over to our detailed guides and deck-building strategies to ensure that this elusive spirit becomes a cornerstone in your journey to outmaneuver the opposition on the high seas of MTG.