Dormant Gomazoa MTG Card

Draws cards and controls pace by immobilizing opponent creatures at instant speed. Specialized mana cost and potential discard requirement can limit versatility. Excels in control decks, with tap/untap synergies and meta-relevant defensive capabilities.

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	3
Rarity	Rare
Type	Creature — Jellyfish
Abilities	Flying
Released	2010-04-23
Set symbol
Set name	Rise of the Eldrazi
Set code	ROE
Power	5
Toughness	5
Number	62
Frame	2003
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Chris Rahn

Text of card

Flying Dormant Gomazoa enters the battlefield tapped. Dormant Gomazoa doesn't untap during your untap step. Whenever you become the target of a spell, you may untap Dormant Gomazoa.

Cards like Dormant Gomazoa

Dormant Gomazoa presents players with a sturdy defender in the Magic: The Gathering landscape. With an apt comparison, we might consider the creature card Wall of Frost. Both share a focus on defense, with Wall of Frost having the ability to freeze attacking creatures upon being blocked. Yet, Dormant Gomazoa introduces an aerial advantage and does not untap during your untap step, which Wall of Frost doesn’t have to contend with.

Looking beyond the icy barrier of Wall of Frost, we find Gomazoa, a relative in the jellyfish family. While it shares the jellyfish creature type and a knack for neutralizing attacks, swinging into a broader tactical engagement, Gomazoa can trade places with attacking creatures, effectively bouncing them. This is distinct from Dormant Gomazoa’s more passive and enduring onboard presence.

Understanding these nuances aids players in valuing Dormant Gomazoa within defensive strategies. It’s not merely a wall but a strategic element that can dictate the course of battle while in the air, even though it requires a trigger to untap.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Dormant Gomazoa brings a unique tactical layer to your deck by suspending creatures and drawing a card whenever it immobilizes an opponent’s key threat. This can consistently replenish your hand and maintain an edge in prolonged matches.

Resource Acceleration: While not directly accelerating resources in the traditional sense of producing mana or tokens, Dormant Gomazoa can impede the resource flow of your adversary by neutralizing their creature-based strategies, indirectly giving you a relative acceleration in board presence.

Instant Speed: This creature’s ability to trigger at instant speed makes it an exceptional defensive tool. You can strategically wait until the last possible moment before your opponent’s creature declares an attack, catching them off-guard and shifting the pace of the game in your favor.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: While this jellyfish offers a sturdy defense in blue-focused decks, one can’t ignore the downside of its rigidity when it comes to board interaction. Without the means to wake it up from its dormant state, you might find yourself having to discard other valuable cards to keep up with the pace of the game.

Specific Mana Cost: Dormant Gomazoa demands a particular blend of mana to hit the field, including a double blue cost. This requirement can be burdensome for decks that are not heavily invested in blue mana sources, making it less versatile for multi-color strategies that might need that slot for a more flexible play.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: At three mana, which includes stringent color demands, players might hesitate to include it in a lineup that could otherwise feature creatures with more aggressive abilities. In the fast-paced modern environment, where every turn counts, the mana investment in Dormant Gomazoa could be better allocated to creatures or spells that offer immediate board presence or impact.

Reasons to Include Dormant Gomazoa in Your Collection

Versatility: Dormant Gomazoa provides a unique defensive option for decks that require time to set up their board. Its ability to neutralize threats without engaging in combat makes it a solid inclusion for control and combo decks.

Combo Potential: With its tap mechanic, Dormant Gomazoa can be incorporated into decks that capitalize on tap and untap triggers. Its synergy with cards that manipulate or benefit from the tap state can create unexpected advantages.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta teeming with aggressive creatures and combat-centric strategies, Dormant Gomazoa can serve as a deterrent. It has the ability to shut down aggressive attackers, making it a strategic choice for maintaining stability on the battlefield until you can execute your game plan.

How to Beat Dormant Gomazoa

Dormant Gomazoa brings a unique presence to the board with its ability to lock down as a formidable blocker while deterring attacks due to its jellyfish-like paralysis. To outmaneuver this card, players should focus on removal spells that don’t target, as to avoid activating its untap feature. Global sweepers such as Wrath of God or Toxic Deluge can be effective in clearing dormant obstacles without triggering their abilities.

Enchantment-based removal can also be a reliable solution as cards like Oblivion Ring or Detention Sphere can bypass Dormant Gomazoa’s protective measures. It’s also beneficial to utilize flying creatures with strong offensive capabilities that can soar over this immovable object, or simply switch tactics by boosting your own creatures’ strength to overpower the foe in combat. Another strategy is employing indirect damage through burn spells or abilities that can whittle down an opponent’s life total circumventing the Gomazoa’s defensive presence entirely.

Adapting to the presence of a Dormant Gomazoa requires a stoic game plan and clever utilisation of the broader card pool. With the proper approach, one can mitigate the influence of this jellyfish and maintain control of the match.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Dormant Gomazoa MTG card by a specific set like Rise of the Eldrazi, 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 Dormant Gomazoa and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Dormant Gomazoa has restrictions

Format	Legality
Commander	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Modern	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Predh	Legal
Penny	Legal

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
2010-06-15	A spell can target you only if it specifically says the word “target.” One that says “You draw two cards,” for example, doesn’t target you.
2010-06-15	Dormant Gomazoa’s last ability triggers when you become the target of any spell, including one you control. It doesn’t matter who else or what else the spell targets.
2010-06-15	Dormant Gomazoa’s last ability won’t trigger when you become the target of an ability.
2010-06-15	If you become the target of a spell, Dormant Gomazoa’s last ability triggers and is put on the stack on top of that spell. Dormant Gomazoa’s last ability will resolve (allowing you to untap it) first.
2010-06-15	You become the target of a spell when a spell is cast targeting you, when a spell has one of its targets changed to you due to a spell or ability like Deflection, when a spell that’s targeting you is copied and that target isn’t changed, or when a spell is copied and one of its targets is changed to you.